Great Song Super Scholar

Chapter 711
As the weather gets colder day by day, the north begins to freeze. After entering December, there have been several light snowfalls in the capital. Just three days before the day, a heavy snowfall came unexpectedly. The heavy snowfall started the morning before. , It was light snow at first, and the snow became heavier and heavier in the afternoon, and clusters of snowballs fell from the sky, so dense that people's faces could not be seen clearly after a dozen steps, and the entire capital city was shrouded in a white blizzard.

The blizzard lasted all night, and at dawn the next day, the snow finally stopped.

Fanning slept late last night. After dawn, he was still soundly asleep, but was awakened by his wife Zhu Pei's angry reprimand.

"You two hurry down, the tree is about to be crushed, and you still climb up, why don't you roll down!"

The new year holiday, one of the three longest holidays in the Song Dynasty, starts today for seven days in a row, and each of the seven prime ministers is on duty for one day. Ouyang Xiu has been appointed as a Bachelor of Longtuge two months ago, and he is actually semi-retired At that time, Wang Gui, a scholar of the Imperial Academy and governor of Kaifeng Prefecture, took over the position of Zuo Cheng, the assistant minister under the door.

Wang Gui is also a reformer. This time, the reform of the official system was carried out by Wang Gui. He implemented the intention of the emperor Zhao Xu very well, and turned Wang Anshi's radical reform into a moderate reform of Fan Ning's style. It was very successful. Zhao Xu greatly appreciated it, Ouyang Xiu withdrew, and Wang Gui paid respects as a matter of course.

Wang Gui was on duty for the first day today, and Liao Kingdom was also covered by heavy snow, making it difficult to move an inch. Fan Ning didn't have to worry about any military reports coming from the Liao Congress, so he slept very soundly and soundly all night.

Fan Ning groaned in pain and covered his ears with a pillow, but his wife Zhu Pei's angry voice came again, "Ah Zhen, if you don't come down again, I will let your father clean you up!"

Fan Ning couldn't sleep anymore. Ah Zhen will be 15 years old this year, and she is about to get married. What is she still doing?
Fanning had no choice but to get up and walk out of the bedroom. As soon as he opened the door, a gust of cold wind blew in. Fanning was shivering all over, but he didn't close the door. He stared outside. The whole yard was covered with snow, at least as thick as Knee, a path in the middle was shoveled out, with thick snow on both sides.

"This year's heavy snow." Fan Ning shook his head. He had never seen such a thick snow since he was a child, and he was a bit abnormal.

"Ah Zhen, how many times do you want me to tell you? Come down quickly, the tree is about to break."

Fan Ning hurriedly put on his cotton coat and went out. The whole back garden was covered with thick snow, only small paths were shoveled out.

Walking through the round gate, he saw at a glance, on the largest pine tree in the mansion next to the rockery, his daughter Ah Zhen was standing unsteadily on it, reaching out to take something out of a tree hole, the whole tree was covered There was thick white snow, which rattled the big pine tree.

Several healthy women are helping the fat Zhu Zhe to get down from the tree. I really don't know how he climbed the tree?
His wife, Zhu Pei, was standing not far away, with his hands on his hips, staring angrily at Fan Zhen'er on the tree.

"Ape, what's the matter?" Fanning stepped up and asked.

Zhu Pei pointed at Zhu Zhe and Fan Zhen'er and said angrily: "These two guys climbed up the tree early in the morning, and a branch of the pine tree was crushed by the heavy snow. If they go up again, the whole pine tree will be broken, sir, You have to teach Zhen'er a lesson, my voice is hoarse, and she just won't come down."

At this time, Fan Zhen'er was holding something in her arms, and was climbing a big tree with one hand, and slowly came down, several healthy women hurriedly caught her.

Knowing that her husband is here, Zhu Pei will definitely protect her daughter in every possible way. It is useless to yell at her. She said angrily, "Your daughter should discipline herself!"

She turned around and walked away angrily.

Fan Ning stepped forward, but found that there were four or five little squirrels in the hat in his daughter's arms. They were all small and as big as oranges, but they were very cute.

"Really, were you digging out a squirrel hole just now?" Fanning squatted down and asked.

Fan Zhener's face was full of tears, she sobbed and said: "The branch broke in the morning, crushing their parents to death, they have no parents, I have to raise them!"

Zhu Zhe squatted on the ground like a child, looking at the dead bodies of the two squirrels under the tree and weeping. Like Fan Zhener, he regarded the squirrels, hedgehogs and deer at home as his best friends.

Fan Ning had no choice but to pat his daughter's head and said, "You can keep them if you want, but it's too cold outside. Do you want to put them in the house and make a new nest for them, instead of squatting here and crying?" .”

Fan Zhen'er stood up, wiped away tears and said, "I see, I'll go find my little lady, she will help me."

She turned back to Zhu Zhe and said, "Uncle, you bury them, carve a monument in their image, and I will take care of their children."

Fan Zhener flew away, Fan Ning looked at his brother-in-law who was struggling to dig a grave, and at Fan Zhener, the chairman of their animal protection association, he shook his head helplessly, and went back to the house to warm up the fire.

The mansion built another warm pavilion in the backyard the year before last. In winter, the family stayed in the warm pavilion. When Fan Ning walked into the warm pavilion, he saw his eldest son, Fan Jing, and his two younger brothers, Fan Chu and Fan Qi, practicing calligraphy.

When the three of them saw their father coming in, they quickly got up and saluted. Fan Ning asked with a smile, "Is there a charcoal basin upstairs?"

"Report to father, it's already lit."

"Then go upstairs and write. People coming and going on the first floor will affect you."

"Yes!"

The three brothers quickly packed up their pens, ink, papers and inkstones, and ran upstairs.

Just as Fan Ning was about to sit down in front of a chair, he saw his second daughter Fan Ling'er standing in the yard, with red eyes, pouting lips, and an unhappy expression. Her mother Zhu Pei tried to persuade her, but it didn't seem to work.

Fan Ning walked to the window and smiled, "What's wrong with Linger?"

Zhu Pei sighed and said, "This little girl woke up late by herself, but she blamed me for not calling her, which delayed her from saving the little squirrel."

Under the influence of her sister Fan Zhener, Fan Linger also became the vice-chairman of the Fan Family Animal Protection Association. She raised three cats, which made the whole family feel dizzy.

"Obviously you didn't call me!" Fan Ling'er sobbed and was about to cry.

Fan Ning waved to his younger daughter, "Linger, come here!"

Fan Ling'er pouted, and walked up slowly, her eyes were red, tears rolled down, Fan Ning wiped the tears from her face, and said with a smile: "You heard from Daddy that saving the little squirrel is only the first step." Step, they have no parents, how cold it is, whether they can survive is still a question, your real sister must be too busy to take care of the little squirrels by herself, you go to help her, and then ask the old housekeeper how to keep the little squirrels Squirrels feed, they have experience, there are many things, you are still crying here!"

Fan Ling'er laughed through her tears, "Then I'll go find Sister Zhen."

"Go! She's at Sanniang's place and needs your help!"

Fan Ling'er turned around and ran away without even saying hello to her mother.

Zhu Pei had nothing to do with her, so he could only stare at Fan Ning bitterly and said, "All the boys in our family are quiet and well-behaved, but the girls are more difficult to serve than the other. The root of the trouble is you, the father."

Fan Ning laughed, "Don't stay outside, come in and enjoy the fire for a while to warm up your body."

Fanning sat by the brazier and added two pieces of charcoal to the brazier. At this moment, Jupe walked into the room, handed the white fox fur collar coat to the maid behind her, and sat down on the armchair beside her husband.

"Husband, the New Year is coming soon, is the family sacrifice the same as last year?"

Fan Ning has not participated in the family sacrifice for many years. There is a small sacrificial hall in his harem, which enshrines the spiritual tablets of his father Fan Tiezhou and two grandfathers. Most of the time, his mother Zhang is responsible for the sacrifices. and New Year's sacrifices.

In addition to Wu County, Fan's ancestral hall also has one in Beidao, where the official family sacrifice is, and Fan Ning's here is just family members worshiping ancestors.

Fan Ning took a sip of hot tea and said, "Ask your mother's opinion on this matter! I'm inclined to choose Jane."

"That's the same as last year, and my mother also meant it."

Fan Ning laughed again: "There are still lights and festoons, it seems that it hasn't started yet?"

"I've bought them all, and I'll start decorating them tomorrow. If we four women are worrying about it, don't worry about it. It's the third grandfather who wants us to have dinner together on New Year's Eve."

Most of Zhu Yuanfeng's grandsons went to Beidao, but his side became deserted. Fan Ning nodded, "No problem, we just go together, how do you arrange for the servants?"

"I consider those whose family is in the capital will have a holiday after the annual reward money is released in the afternoon. Those whose family is not in the capital will be taken by Housekeeper Liu to stay in the outer house for the New Year. The food and drink will be served in the Qingfenglou. Sister Jian will also bring her apprentices Come here, let's have fun together."

Fan Ning yawned, "These things sound like a big headache. You can discuss it yourself, so you don't need to tell me."

(End of this chapter)