Erju Yan stuffed the Egg Cake back into her husband’s hand, "You keep what’s given to you. Your health has always been poor."
Jinshu Wu smiled, "Alright, then we’ll each have one."
Erju then asked, "Didn’t mom say anything else to you?"
"No," Jinshu answered. "What could an old woman who never leaves the house possibly have to say?"
Erju figured that made sense, so she didn’t press further, "Then I’ll take this Egg Cake to Xiaoyun."
Erju was very fond of her daughter Yanyun; no matter what goodies she had, her two sons would have to step aside—the first person she thought of was always her daughter Yanyun.
...
On the other side, Mr. Du quickly caught up with Ni Yang.
"Why are you here?" Ni Yang looked back, puzzled.
Twisting his Buddha Beads, Mr. Du said, "Your master is worried about you going up the mountain alone."
Ni Yang grinned, "What’s there to worry about? Can a big living person like me get lost? Mr. Du, please go back."
Mr. Du took a step forward, "I do not make promises lightly. Since I’ve agreed to your master, I won’t let him worry. Hurry up then, it’s about to get dark."
Hearing this, Ni Yang had no choice but to follow.
Soon enough, the two of them entered the mountains.
It had rained the previous night; the mountain air was incredibly fresh, with unknown flowers blooming among the grass, looking gorgeous.
As she walked, Ni Yang picked flowers. In no time, she gathered a large handful, the dazzling colors complementing her jade-like face—it was truly a case of the lady being lovelier than the flowers.
Mr. Du followed behind, "Didn’t your teacher ever teach you to protect plants and flowers?"
Ni Yang placed the flowers into her basket, "Didn’t your teacher ever teach you to be more flexible in your thinking? The ancients said: ’If you have flowers, you should pick them before they wilt; don’t wait for the branches to become bare.’"
Mr. Du was speechless.
This young girl always managed to leave him at a loss for words.
For the rest of the time, Mr. Du simply kept silent, quietly following behind.
Conveniently, Ni Yang preferred not to be disturbed while she was digging for herbal medicine.
The mountain woods were well preserved at this time, with all kinds of herbs to be found. The more Ni Yang dug, the less she wanted to return; she even encountered several plants that had disappeared in later ages.
Mr. Du leaned against a Pine tree, half-closing his eyes, slowly twirling the Buddha Beads in his hand. ƒreewebɳovel.com
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Rebirth of a Village Girl