"Isn't Senior Brother going to be busy with the affairs of the new river?"

"It's okay today, come and see my sister."

"It turns out that senior brother is also lazy."

"It's not that I'm lazy, it's really busy, and I'm not idle these days, running around, and I went to Donglin Temple yesterday."

"What are you going to do at Donglin Temple?"

"The matter of the Broken Wing Canal."

"Folded Wing Canal? Is the new river channel really a senior brother can really choose a name? ”

"How do you know I took it?"

"It's very similar to my brother's style of doing things."

"What style do I have...... Forget it, then again, I didn't expect Master Shandao to be so hospitable, sympathetic to the government, and insisted on joining the Longcheng County Ya led by the Zheyi Canal to build a ......",

"That's good. So Senior Brother is really busy with everything, and then come over, right? ”

"That's right, little junior sister, don't worry, you didn't delay the business."

"Oh."

"Hey, why didn't the little junior sister speak?"

"I'm tired."

"Then I'll withdraw first, and you can rest well?"

"Wait, you come in."

"Uh, wouldn't it be inconvenient?"

"I'm in bed with my clothes."

"That's fine. I just brought you some grapes. ”

"Grapes?"

In a boudoir that doesn't have much of a daughter's fat powder but is bookish.

Ouyang Rong, who was wandering in the front hall, pushed open the curtain in the inner room and approached a hazy incense couch.

The beaded curtain on the couch was half-open and half-rolled, and the red-rope-tied black-haired Confucian shirt girl bit her lip and sat at the head of the bed, holding the futon in her arms, covering Wei'an's chest, and looked at him sideways.

"What's wrong with Senior Brother's face?"

Ouyang Rong walked first to open the window, squinting to see the maid waiting in the courtyard.

He pulled out a chair, sat down by the window, let out a long breath, pointed to two small red marks on the right side of his face, and said:

"This? Last night I picked the grapes, and the grape trellis fell down, and I knew that I wouldn't let Wei Lai hold the ladder, and I almost hit her, and besides, she didn't have much strength. I'll admit that I was careless, sitting on the desk for a long time, and my skills are a little inflexible......"

Xie Lingjiang frowned slightly, and his eyes didn't look at him:

"Senior brother's reflection shouldn't be why he likes to do it himself, senior brother told me not to be impulsive when I finished smoking that day, but what about senior brother, shouldn't these things be let the next person come, the son of a daughter can't sit down, and the senior brother has nothing to pick any grapes."

Ouyang Rong was slightly stunned, and turned his head to look at the junior sister who was a little reproachful.

How do I feel like I haven't seen you for a few days, it seems a little different.

Is this a bit mature?

Without arguing, Ouyang Rong lowered his head and took out a plate of washed grapes from the box he carried, and silently handed it to the small table next to the bed.

Xie Ling Jiang Yuguang saw it, and seemed to realize something, and the words of little grievance stopped, and he was reluctant to say more.

Ouyang Rong smiled and pushed down the plate, "Huh." ”

Xie Ling Jiang's head did not turn, "Don't eat." ”

Ouyang Rong nodded and took the plate back.

"Wait, put it down."

"Aren't you not eating?"

"Gave it away and took it?"

The girl in the beaded curtain glared at him with disgust.

"Oooh."

Ouyang Rong smiled in his heart and put his hand down honestly.

The duplicitous little sister is a little open-minded.

"How do you know that I like to eat grapes?" Xie Lingjiang asked in a low voice.

"Your father said that."

"Senior brother still asked my father about this?" She couldn't help but turn her head to look at him.

Ouyang Rong smiled and was silent.

He had nothing to ask the little sister about her hobbies and tastes, not to mention before, and not now.

In fact, the aunt asked his teacher Xie Xun to inquire before, and only the aunt cared about this kind of thing.

My aunt raised her mouth at dinner yesterday, so at night, a dry grape trellis in Merlot Park was tragically blacked out by a young county magistrate.

After all, you can't come empty-handed to visit people, it's embarrassing.

Ouyang Rong didn't explain, for fear that the little junior sister would make a straight face and drive people away.

"Senior brother is very clear."

Xie Lingjiang averted his gaze and whispered.

She pulled out the beaded curtain with her hand, stretched it out towards the grape plate, and paused again in the middle of the process, and retracted.

"Little junior sister can't spit out the skin when she eats grapes, right?"

"Senior brother, don't you vomit?"

Xie Lingjiang paused, because someone in the afterglow had already picked up the grapes and threw them into his mouth to eat, not polite at all.

"Hmm." Ouyang Rong chewed and replied indistinctly, in fact, it was the same as not saying anything.

Xie Lingjiang has a black line on his forehead.

Senior brother really doesn't treat him as an outsider.

The originally reserved and shy girl suddenly became more formal, and hurriedly snatched some grapes back under the clutches of her senior brother.

Outside, in the courtyard full of Jianlan, several maids on duty occasionally looked back curiously, and saw a pair of handsome men and beautiful women grabbing grapes from each other through the bead curtain in the Xuan window.

The maid who served Xie Ling Jiang for many days couldn't help but look at her companions in surprise.

This noble lady of the Xie family has not shown a smile for many days, let alone such a lively appearance, and the little lady Su has never come to visit.

Inside the house, there was a commotion for a while, and a plate of grapes was swept away by the wind.

Ouyang Rong looked at the little junior sister behind the bead curtain and couldn't help asking:

"Didn't my sister hurt her back, why did she sit at the head of the bed?"

Xie Lingjiang lowered his eyes, "Otherwise, lie on your stomach and grab grapes with your senior brother?" ”

Ouyang Rong was suddenly dumbfounded.

It's true, you can't meet guests on your stomach, and the little junior sister is so strong.

"Yes. What happened to my sister's injury? After a pause, he added, "Looks like it's going to be fine, right?" ”

"Senior brother's hand, don't you know in your heart?"

Inside and outside the bead curtain, there was silence.

The atmosphere was a bit chilly.

"I'm sorry." Ouyang Rong spoke: "At that time. ”

"No, it's fine, no need to apologize."

The girl in the curtain bowed her head and whispered:

"Senior brother's discipline is very appropriate. I was actually quite happy at the time, my brother didn't treat me as an outsider. ”

"My father once said that in addition to his family and ...... People who care about you, no one outside will make mistakes for the price, let alone be angry with you. ”

"So Senior Brother and Senior Sister understood at that time, thank you Senior Brother for your discipline."

Xie Lingjiang subconsciously bit his lower lip again, "If you make a mistake next time, Senior Brother can continue to discipline." ”

"It was a special day."

Ouyang Rong was slightly stunned, shook his head and smiled: "Next time, you can't whip it again."

It was a joke, but I didn't expect a whisper to float out of the bead curtain:

"It's not impossible."

When Ouyang Rong lost his voice, Xie Lingjiang immediately said:

"Actually, I still can't figure out why she did that to me."

When Ouyang Rong heard this, he was stunned for a while before he reacted, this "she" should refer to the orchid named Zhiying.

Xie Lingjiang hugged his chest through the futon, leaned his head on the back pillow, looked at the gauze curtain on the top of the bed, and said with a slightly dumbfounded face:

"I saved her under the attack of the eagle, I cared about her safety, I helped her redeem herself, I brought her back to give her dignity...... But why did she choose to help a bad guy who insulted her, bullied her, and despised her? If there is hardship, coercion, and implicitness, why don't you tell me, it makes me feel worse than betrayal. ”

She turned her head, looked at her senior brother's heroic face with two more red marks, and asked:

"Is it like the book says, the barbarians are afraid of power and not virtuous? Maybe a little, but I don't think it's exactly, even if she wasn't an orchid, it seems like things would have slipped like that......"

"What went wrong, the book doesn't say. What is the color of this world? ”

Ouyang Rong turned his head to look at the bright spring outside the window, and asked, "Has the senior sister figured it out now?" ”

The whispering Xie girl was silent for a moment.

She suddenly noticed that outside the window, the morning sun had arrived, and it fell on the young man in front of the bed, who was listening attentively with his hands on his knees.

This scene is familiar.

In front of the county yamen that day, she was tired and depressed, and watched her senior brother standing in the noon sun to announce the fair verdict, and then boldly unveiled the new construction that shocked the audience.

In the old house of Wuyi Lane that year, when she was young, she hid behind the door and witnessed her father kneeling on the lobby seat under the sunset, and would rather die than refuse the olive branch thrown by the Wei envoy.

That year, the queen ascended the throne, and there were only a few left from the slaughter of the Qian's royal family, blood was splashed all over the palace, panic was all over the country, and the kings of the Wei family were in the limelight.

Only the father was not convinced, even if the clansmen cried and begged him, the father still refused to enter the court and did not kneel in the Zhou court.

Why for so many years, she studied hard, refused to get married, and worked hard to practice qi.

It was because of the light on her father who she saw in the old house of Wuyi Lane that she felt the "qi" of the scholar for the first time, and she entered the ranks of rare qi practitioners ahead of all the brothers and sisters of the Xie family.

This is the beginning of everything, this is what has been stubbornly pursued for all these years, and it has almost become...... Faith.

Xie Lingjiang can't forget it.

And now, she saw that the light on her brother and her father were really similar, but they were not the same.

There was another kind of "qi" on the senior brother's body, which attracted Xie Lingjiang from the very beginning to get closer and want to find out......

So she just said that she hoped that her senior brother would continue to discipline, and she faintly looked forward to the scenery on the road that was different from her father's, and followed him to appreciate it.

"Senior brother."

Xie Lingjiang shouted lightly, lifted the bead curtain, looked at him with a pair of bright eyes, and said seriously:

"I'm not fully transparent yet, but anyway...... She was absolutely not right to do this, and this world is definitely not pitch black...... It was not the same as I had previously thought, and I was disappointed but ...... Don't give up. ”

After a pause, she couldn't take her eyes off it:

"I always believe that if there is a light that always exists, justice will come."

Ouyang Rong was silent for a while: "Good." ”

After an open and honest conversation, the atmosphere was silent for a while.

This kind of serious topic is actually not suitable for much conversation, especially in broad daylight.

When you talk about life and ideals, you have to pick a black light, don't you?

Soon, the two brothers and sisters in the house changed the topic.

"That's right."

As if sitting for a long time, Ouyang Rong got up and paced in the room, remembering something, he turned around and said curiously:

"Among the maids who just picked me in, there is a little maid in goose yellow clothes, my sister knows?"

"Goose yellow?" Xie Lingjiang tilted his head, "Senior brother is talking about colorful ribbons?" The one who is a little baby fat? ”

Ouyang Rong nodded.

Just now he saw the little maid with a bun face who was a little familiar, and he was also a little surprised.

"It can't be my sister's maid, right?"

"Not really." Xie Lingjiang shook his head, "It's the personal maid of the little sister of the Su family in the courtyard next door, and she was called by Aunt Wei to change my dressing in the morning." ”

"Little sister of the Su family?"

Ouyang Rong muttered and nodded.

This makes sense, it turned out to be the girl of this house.

However, the little junior sister had never mentioned the matter of the Su family before.

And he lives in Merlot Garden, the two families have been neighbors for so long, Ouyang Rong still happened to meet the Su family girl once in Donglin Temple on the mountain.

I don't know if he is too busy on weekdays, or this law-abiding Su Mansion is too low-key and lives in a simple place.

"Why is Senior Brother asking this?" Xie Lingjiang looked sideways.

Ouyang Rong casually said about borrowing an umbrella in the pavilion yesterday.

"Looking at it this way, it is indeed fateful." Xie Lingjiang nodded.

"What's the fate, the county seat is so small, you can't see it when you look up." Ouyang didn't care.

Xie Lingjiang glanced at Senior Brother, hesitated, and introduced:

"This family...... Well, I have always forgotten to tell my senior brother before, the old man of this family is surnamed Su, his name is leisurely, and he is an old friend of my father, and he has studied together. ”

"Classmates." Ouyang Rong shook his head.

Xie Lingjiang didn't explain how to "read calligraphy", but after careful consideration, he said:

"Uncle Su and Uncle Web's mother have a son and a daughter, the eldest son is named Fu, three years older than his senior brother, mellow and honest, diligent and studious; The youngest daughter is the little sister of the Su family, and she is also ...... Gentle and considerate, pure and good-natured, the whole family is very fond of her, I live next to her these days...... The family treated me very well. ”

In the Great Zhou Dynasty, the ladies of the rich and noble, the nicknames of the boudoir cannot be revealed indiscriminately, and even if outsiders know, they can't shout indiscriminately, just call according to the ranking of the family.

Ouyang Rong bowed his head, "That's good, speaking of which, I also owe Su Fu a favor, and I will have the opportunity to meet each other another day." ”

Before the Dragon Boat Festival, the Su family donated a thousand taels of silver, Xie Lingjiang had already known about it, and she was not surprised, she nodded and asked again.

"Senior brother visited just now, didn't you see Uncle Su and the Su family?"

Ouyang Rong shook his head, he was dressed in regular clothes, he came to the door directly, handed over a name post, and was brought in.

"That should be the senior brother who came too early, Su Dalang may still be reading early in the study, Uncle Su's words...... cough, it's okay, the senior brother came to visit, they will come over when they learn later, and the senior brother can get to know him then. ”，

"Okay."

Ouyang Rong nodded slightly, in fact, he was not interested in this kind of socialization, but he still had basic politeness and emotional intelligence.

Seeing this, Xie Lingjiang stopped talking.

The letter that my father had written to my brother in advance was still with her.

But when the time comes, it can't be handed over.

But Xie Lingjiang didn't think that the senior brother should make friends with this family.

On the contrary, it is the family that should turn around and woo the senior brother.

So what's the matter if the senior brother doesn't know it, and according to the character of the senior brother who is bent on disaster relief and treatment, even if he knows, he shouldn't care.

"By the way, there's this, for you."

Xie Lingjiang was still holding the futon and was distracted, and Ouyang Rong by the window took out something from his sleeve and threw it to her.

"It is."

Xie Lingjiang was stunned and took it, and there was a crystal clear round bead lying in his palm.

She was familiar with what it was.

Xie Lingjiang's face was a little ashamed, and he clenched the bead that still contained someone's warm body temperature.

"Senior brother, I was angry because of the price of food, and I didn't know that Zhiying was that kind of person, so I rashly handed over the night pearl you gave me."

Ouyang Rong shook his head, "You didn't make a mistake in your choice at that time, a bead is indeed not as important as a human life." ”

Xie Lingjiang stared at him for a moment, then stretched out his hand and handed it back to him.

"Senior brother, take it first."

Seeing Ouyang Rong's face puzzled.

Xie Lingjiang said seriously:

"This is what my senior brother rewarded me before, but I paid it wrongly, now Senior Brother Night Pearl will take it back first, if next time, Senior Sister has done something right to be praised, Senior Brother will give it to me openly!"

"The sense of ritual is right. Yes. ”

It was quite interesting for the little junior sister to get serious, Ouyang Rong took it with a smile and put the night pearl away again.

In fact, only he knew that it was a strange relic, but everyone, including the pawn shop, said that it was the Night Pearl that would shine, so he called it.

Afterwards, the brother and sister chatted for a while.

Glancing at the sun, Ouyang Rong got up and prepared to leave.

But at this time, a bun-faced little maid ran into the courtyard in a hurry, and after entering the door, her eyes quickly peeked at someone's face, and she saluted very ladylikely:

"Ouyang Gongzi, our eldest man is here and wants to see you."

Ouyang Rong raised his eyebrows, turned his head and glanced at his junior sister.