On November 15, the Meng Mansion put up lanterns and waited for the return of the owner Meng Hao.

Just after noon, Mrs. Meng went out with a group of domestic servants and went to the county jail.

It's still the wall of Hessen, and the word "prison" is still so eerie.

The people of the Meng Mansion slowly walked towards the iron gate.

"Stop coming. A jailer scolded.

Fu Bo stepped forward, quietly handed the jailer a string of copper coins, and said softly: "We are from the Meng Mansion, and we are here to pick up my master." May I ask the sir, when can I go in and pick up people?"

"Mengfu's?" the jailer looked at everyone and said slowly, "Wait here, I'll ask our cell leader." ”

The jailer winked at the other man, and then entered the iron gate.

After the jailer entered the iron gate, he walked through the dark passage for a dozen breaths, and when he came to a spacious place, he saw a square table set up there, on which were placed a few side dishes, and a jar of spirits. There were two benches on either side of the table, and on the benches sat two people, a middle-aged strong man and a short and thin old man. The walls are surrounded by black torture instruments of all kinds, which are not very clean.

The middle-aged strong man glanced at the jailer, "Xiaohu, are you here for business?"

The jailer named Xiaohu shook his head, "Boss, it's from the Meng Mansion, and he said that he was going to pick up Lord Meng." ”

"Oh?" the middle-aged man took a bowl of wine and drank it all, the spilled wine flowing down his beard, "How much did I give you?"

Xiao Hu snorted, then took out the string of copper coins from his arms, put them on the table, and said flatteringly: "Boss, the old man of the Meng Mansion gave me a string of copper coins, and now I am all filial to you." ”

The middle-aged strong man threw the wine bowl on the table casually and snorted lightly, "Come on, you keep it for yourself, so you don't have to scold me for peeling the skin behind my back." ”

After a pause, he spoke again: "Xiaohu, has Lord Meng's sentence arrived?"

Xiao Hu scratched his head, "Lord Meng was sent by the end of August 15, it stands to reason that this sentence is not over yet, and we need to wait a little longer." ”

The middle-aged strong man pondered for a while and asked, "Do you say that during Lord Meng's tenure, did he ever do anything wrong?

Xiao Hu didn't know why the cell boss asked himself like this, but he didn't say anything.

"Well, what about you!"

The middle-aged strong man didn't wait for an answer for a long time, and urged himself.

"This..."Xiao Hu looked embarrassed, "Boss, we shouldn't say these words." ”

"If you say it, you can say it, why is there so much, isn't it?" the middle-aged strong man scolded.

"Yes, yes, the little one said. Xiao Hu pondered for a while, and finally said: "If you want to say that this Lord Meng is honest and upright, he has never preyed on the people, nor has he criticized us. It's just that during his tenure, our brothers didn't get any benefits. ”

"Then you think he's a good official?"

Xiao Hu looked up at the cell leader's expression, but he didn't see the reason, so he had to continue: "A good official is a good official, that is..."

"Okay, since you think he is a good official, then go to the county office to handle the paperwork, and say that I asked you to go. Let's go back quickly. The middle-aged strong man spoke.

"Then what if Lord Zhong doesn't allow it?" Xiao Hu hesitated.

"Just go and leave the rest alone. ”

"Okay, the little one goes. ”

Xiao Hu hugged his fist at the cell boss and went out.

After Xiao Hu left, the short and thin old man spoke, his voice as harsh as the friction of pig iron, "Xiao Fang, what are you doing here?"

"What else can I do? Let that person go home as soon as possible. "This middle-aged strong man turned out to be surnamed Fang.

"Why should you bother? If you offend Zhong Hui's careful eyes, the future will not be easy. The old man sighed slightly.

"Haha, I'm afraid of him? Zhonghui is just a little man who can only shake his head and bend his knees. The middle-aged strong man looked disdainful.

"Xiao Fang, I'd rather offend a gentleman than a villain. The old man shook his head and patiently persuaded: "You just said that the one in prison was an official for one term, honest and upright, and also very popular, but in the end, he was just to say a fair word for the people of Jiangnan and other people, so he was dismissed from his post and imprisoned for three months." Do you believe it? It's just that you've offended people and been rectified by others. ”

"Hmph, of course I know. Now the few people in the yamen are all bad water, and they can't see the good of others, and they can't wait to strip the skin of the common people. The middle-aged strong man looked resentful.

"So what? This is the way of the world now. The imperial court has always been dissatisfied with my Jiangnan, and now the adults in the yamen naturally want to seize this opportunity to exploit the people even more, so as to gain the trust of the officials so that they can be promoted and make a fortune in the future. The short and thin old man said lightly.

"Hmph, it's just a bunch of beasts. The middle-aged strong man was indignant.

"When I was young, I was like you, cynical and hot-blooded, and in the end? I didn't go away incognito? I couldn't see my relatives and friends for the rest of my life, so I could only hide in a corner where no one knew me to survive. Why bother?" the old man slowly picked up his bowl and took a sip.

"Hey, this son of a bitch. The middle-aged strong man slapped his thigh fiercely, picked up the wine bowl in front of him, and drank it all.

......

Let's say that after the jailer Xiaohu came out of the iron gate, he was surrounded by the eyes of the people in the Meng Mansion. Xiao Hu said to Fu Bo: "I'll go to the yamen to handle the paperwork now, you can wait here." If it goes well, you'll be back soon, and if it doesn't, you can just wait with peace of mind. ”

With that, he hurried away.

Only the people of the Meng Mansion were left waiting in place.

......

About half an hour later, the jailer Xiaohu rushed back, holding a document in his hand.

The people of the Meng Mansion looked at Xiao Hu who was walking back from a distance, full of joy.

When he got closer, Xiao Hu spoke, "Don't disgrace the mission, the yamen has issued a document, and you can take Master Meng home later." ”

Mrs. Meng glanced at Fu Bo, who nodded, and then without a trace, stuffed a string of copper coins into Xiao Hu's sleeve.

The corners of the mustache grinned, and then quickened his pace.

Xiao Hu first went to find the middle-aged strong man, "Boss, the paperwork has been completed, after you sign and draw the pledge, you can release the person." ”

The middle-aged strong man took the paperwork and glanced at it, and then returned it to Xiaohu, "You can draw it yourself later." ”

After that, he pointed to a bunch of keys on the wall, and motioned to Xiaohu to open the door and release the people by himself.

Xiao Hu took the key and disappeared into the dim passage with a clang.

The short and thin old man was a little puzzled, and asked the middle-aged strong man, "Since it is something you want to do with your kindness, why do you want to give the credit to Xiaohu?"

The middle-aged strong man smiled, "You'll know later." ”

......

On the other side, after Xiao Hu opened the door, he helped Meng Hao out of the cell, staggered out of the passage, and walked out of the door.

There was still some distance from the iron gate, and Xiao Hu opened his mouth, "Master Meng, you can close your eyes and follow me later, don't let the bright light outside hurt your eyes." ”

Meng Hao said yes.

In this way, the two walked up the steps one foot high and one foot low, and slowly walked out of the county jail.

Outside, although Meng Hao's eyes were closed, his eyes were still stung by the bright light, and tears flowed down his gray cheeks, like two rivers of mud.

I saw Meng Hao's fluffy hair and dirty face, if it weren't for the neat clothes on his body, he would almost be a living beggar.

The people in the Meng Mansion had been looking forward to it for a long time, and after seeing Meng Hao's figure, they all ran over, stretched out their hands, and opened their mouths, so lively.

Subsequently, Mrs. Meng ordered the housekeeper Fu Bo to bring a message to the jailer Xiaohu, "Meng's mansion, thank the cell boss and you for taking care of my master, if you are free another day, please come to Meng's mansion to talk." At that time, thin wine and thin dishes, talk about your heart. ”

After receiving the cell leader's reply, Fu Bo also returned to the Meng Mansion with everyone.

I saw that after the people of the Meng Mansion left the gate of the county jail, they kept walking forward, and no one looked back.

At the gate of the Meng Mansion, several servants were waiting. When they saw their carriage coming, they lit firecrackers one after another and lit the brazier placed at the door.

Mrs. Meng helped Meng Hao get out of the carriage and said with a smile: "Master, we are going home." ”

Meng Hao immediately patted Mrs. Meng's hand.

Mrs. Meng helped Meng Hao to cross the red charcoal brazier, implying that burning would cut off all bad luck. Afterwards, a servant dipped the nectar water with the grapefruit leaves prepared in advance and sprinkled it around Meng Hao's body, which meant to purify the body and remove bad luck.

Everything was ready, and Mrs. Meng helped Meng Hao to start entering the door.

In the courtyard, Meng Ran stood there motionless, looking directly at the two people walking towards him, he rubbed his eyes, as if to confirm whether it was real. The figure began to become clear, it was a familiar figure for him, a figure he was afraid of never seeing again.

Meng Ran threw himself over mercilessly, hugged Meng Hao's leg with relief, and unconsciously began to whimper in a low voice, and his shoulders trembled. His head was buried in Meng Hao's robe, enjoying the joy of family reunion to the fullest.

Meng Hao stood motionless for a moment, then squatted down, hugged Meng Ran tightly into his arms, and hugged him tightly. Meng Ran was still crying, and Meng Hao gently stroked his back with one hand.

Finally, after Meng Ran's mood finally calmed down, Mrs. Meng hurriedly took Meng Hao to bathe and change clothes.

When everything was over, the Meng Mansion was immersed in a joyous voice, as if celebrating the New Year.

The next day, a servant took the items that Meng Hao had used before he was imprisoned out of the city, found a riverside and burned them, and threw them directly into the long flowing water.

Meng Hao also began to fast, after fasting for seven days, Meng Hao took his family to a Taoist temple outside the city, listened to the chanting for seven days, and then went to the ancestral tomb of the Meng family to worship the ancestors, and worshiped the ancestors for seven days.

After the ancestor worship was over, it was already the eve of Laba, and Meng Hao returned to Mengfu with everyone and began to busy with New Year's affairs.