Do you know: I am Xu Jiazi

Chapter 670: Ru ​​Shuttle [Thank you! Goodbye! 36K more to go]

Seeing the giant beast with raised hooves,

Everyone around couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

The guardhouse of Zhongshan Hou Sha's family was also more chaotic.

The young man from the Sha family wanted to get away quickly, so he staggered to his feet. He accidentally raised his foot and knocked the burning charcoal towards the girl from the Sha family who fell to the ground in fear.

Today, the girl from the Sha family wore a shawl made of gauze to look more beautiful.
As soon as the burning coals fell,
'bake'

The flammable shawl was ignited and caught fire instantly.

Fortunately, the maid beside Miss Sha reacted quickly and threw the shawl aside, otherwise it would have burned Miss Sha's fur coat and hair.

This incident,

It was a blessing in disguise.

The elephant's eyes instantly reflected the red charcoal fire near the charcoal basin and the flames that suddenly ignited on the shawl.

This fire is what the elephant fears.

The pain and the flames stopped the elephant from going crazy. It put down its front hooves, shook its trunk, and returned to the right track, continuing to walk towards Nanxun Gate.

Although the elephant made such a loud noise, it only lasted for five or six breaths.

After a little chaos, the team returned to normal.

But in the viewing tents along the way, the people watching the ceremony all looked towards the Sha family.

The six elephants behind passed by one after another, temporarily blocking Chai Zhengzheng's view.

When Chai Zhengzheng saw the Sha family's shed again, the maid of the Sha family was hiding her face with her head down.

Before Chai Zhengzheng could question why the maid of the Sha family covered her face, she got the answer: the girl of the Sha family slapped the maid again.

The maid of the Sha family covered her cheeks with her hands.

"What is the daughter of Zhongshan Hou doing?" Chai Zhengzheng was a little confused.

Amid Jun Rongzhi's music, Zi Teng came over and said, "Miss, I heard that the girl from the Sha family really liked that shawl. She might be mad that it was burned."

"But if the maid doesn't help her, her hair and face might get burned!" Fu Yi frowned and said, "If her face is damaged, no matter how good her shawl and clothes are, they will be useless!"

Upon hearing this, Chai Zhengzheng shook his head as he looked at the Sha family guards who were starting to put out the fire.

Under the watchtowers of several other wealthy families along the road, people were also whispering to each other, and from time to time they would glance towards the Sha family's watchtower.

Not far away, Mrs. Wu, who had watched the whole thing, held a hand warmer, shook her head and said to her two daughters-in-law beside her: "It's okay for a girl to be scared by an elephant. After all, it's human nature."

"But then, he slapped the maid who had made a contribution twice. That was just being heartless and mean."

"It seems that it may be difficult to discuss marriage in the future."

Mrs. Wu's eldest daughter-in-law smiled and said, "Mother-in-law, it is a little difficult, but the Sha family will probably have an excuse."

Madam Wu nodded, looked at the wife of her eldest son Liang Xu, and said, "Does your sister-in-law make sense?"

"Mother-in-law, that makes sense. I think the Sha family might say that the girl was frightened and lost her mind for a while, so she acted so willfully."

After Madam Liang Xu finished speaking, Madam Wu smiled with satisfaction.

Liang Han, who was sitting next to him, raised his eyebrows playfully.

Then Mrs. Wu looked around in the morning light and immediately noticed Miss Feiyan, who was standing in a daze with her head tilted to the side in the Rong family's watchtower not far away.

The Rong family is watching the shed.

Rong Feiyan followed the elephant's figure with her eyes and was deeply shocked.

"Xibu, is your brother fighting this kind of giant beast in the south?" Rong Feiyan asked softly.

Xi Bu beside him was also looking at the elephant and nodded, "Yes, girl. I heard that the Nong people and Jiaozhi people can tame elephants. Our second young master will encounter them on the battlefield."

Hearing this,

Dou blinked worriedly.

The eyes of the wife of Marquis Fuchang also began to be filled with worry.

Rong Feiyan nodded: "Yeah, it does look a bit scary."

"Miss, although this elephant is huge, didn't the second young master say in his letter that this giant beast is afraid of fire and our powerful crossbows? You don't have to worry too much."

After Xibu finished speaking, the worry in Lady Fuchang's eyes eased a little.

Ningxiang on the other side leaned close to Rong Feiyan's ear and said, "Miss, Madam Wu is looking at us!"

Rong Feiyan quickly turned her head and after making eye contact with everyone in the Liang family, she smiled and nodded politely.

Liang Han sat next to Madam Wu, looking at Rong Feiyan, who was wearing cute earmuffs, had picturesque features, and glowing white skin not far away. He wanted to compare herself with Chun Ge in his mind.

But just thinking about it, Liang Han shook his head.

There's no comparison at all.

In the Rong family's shed,
The wife of Marquis Fuchang looked in the direction of Marquis Zhongshan's Sha's house and said, "Yan'er, why do you think this elephant wants to go to the Sha's house to look after the shed?"

Rong Feiyan shook her head: "Mother, I'm not sure either. Maybe the clothes worn by the Sha family's brothers and sisters have some color that attracts elephants?"

Lady Fuchanghou: "It's possible."

Talking
There was a sound of hoofbeats.
The Royal Guards, wearing exquisite armor and holding colorful flags, came from the south.

Behind the cavalry was the emperor's carriage surrounded by guards and eunuchs.

When the emperor passed by the pavilions along the way, everyone in the pavilions stood up and bowed to greet him.

Behind the imperial carriage were the court officials riding on horses.

When the rear of the imperial carriage passes by,
The people in the watchtowers along the way left the watchtowers one after another, got on their own carriages, and prepared to follow into the city.

Rong Feiyan stood beside her carriage, looked in the direction of the Xu family which was a little distance away, and said, "Mother, sister-in-law, I won't go to see the amnesty in front of Xuande Gate."

The wife of Marquis Fuchang nodded: "That's fine, it's just to pardon people who have committed minor crimes, it's okay if you don't read it."

On the way back to Beijing,

Ladies and young ladies who are close friends or relatives will often chat with each other through the car window with a smile and make plans to have tea together.

The young men from each family who were not afraid of the cold and were riding horses made plans to go to the bustling markets in the city to have fun.

After passing through the slightly congested Nanxun Gate, everyone returned to the city.

He didn't know if it was a psychological effect, but Xu Zaijing felt that as soon as he entered the city, the surroundings seemed to become much warmer instantly.

After talking to Liang Han for a while, Xu Zaijing heard the sound of horse hooves behind him. Turning around, he saw Changbai riding towards him.

"Changbai, why didn't you take the car?" Xu Zaijing said with a smile.

Changbai stroked the fine horse he was sitting on and said with a smile, "If I don't ride it anymore, it will become unfamiliar with me."

Liang Han nodded: "Second Brother Sheng, you stay at home all day, either reading or writing, and you don't feel tired at all."

Changbai smiled and said, "How can it be so tiring to read and write?"

Liang Han shook his head in confusion. "Whenever I see the words in the book, I feel sleepy. I feel so tired after reading two pages! I prefer playing polo or cuju, which is more relaxing."

Changbai was also somewhat confused when he heard this.

Liang Han continued, "Second Brother Sheng, after the first month of the lunar year, I will ask mother to surround the polo field with felt, light the charcoal stove, lower the goal post, and we will play on a small field that is one-fourth the size of the field."

"When the time comes, you can take your mount with you for a few more trips, and you will naturally become familiar with the horse."

"At that time, there will be noble ladies from Beijing who will go to watch the game, and who knows, they might even find a marriage."

Changbai smiled when he heard this, turned around to look at the Sheng family's carriage in the distance behind him, and said, "I think my third brother will definitely like it."

As they were talking, they crossed the inner city moat, passed through the Suzaku Gate, and entered the inner city.

Not far north of the inner city wall, there was a two-story wooden building on the street, which was the famous Tang family gold and silver jewelry store in Bianjing. When Xu Zaijing passed by, he glanced casually and saw a familiar and luxurious carriage parked at the door of the wooden building.

Looking over the roof of the car toward the second floor of the jewelry store, Xu Zaijing saw that there was a palm-wide gap in the window on the second floor.

A face wearing furry earmuffs is scanning the street, as if looking for something.

After a while,
Xu Zaijing made eye contact with Rong Feiyan who was on the second floor.

With just one glance, Xu Zaijing saw expectations, surprise, astonishment, panic and shyness in Rong Feiyan's eyes.

When Rong Feiyan realized that she was looking at Xu Zaijing, she quickly looked away, but only for a moment before looking back.

When she found that Xu Zaijing was still looking at her, she raised the jewelry in her hand somewhat helplessly, as if she was checking the quality of the jewelry.

When Rong Feiyan took her eyes off the jewelry and bravely looked towards the building again, she only saw the backs of Xu Zaijing and his group.

The light in Rong Feiyan's eyes faded slightly, and there was a hint of gloom in them.

Just as Rong Feiyan was about to speak, she saw one of the carriages passing downstairs lift up its curtain.

"Girl, look, it's the Sixth Miss of the Sheng family. She's waving at you."

Upon hearing this, Rong Feiyan smiled and hurriedly looked downstairs. Sure enough, Minglan and Rulan were lifting the curtain and waving at her.

When Minglan waved, she also pointed at the carriage in front of the jewelry store, but she didn't shout anything.

"Girl, look, the sixth daughter of the Sheng family is saying that she recognized our carriage." Ningxiang said from the other side.

Rong Feiyan smiled.

After the Sheng family's carriage left, Rong Feiyan handed the jewelry in her hand to Xibu and said, "Take it back."

Perhaps the emperor's offering to heaven had an effect.

One day after the winter solstice,
The sky turned gloomy.
The silver-gray clouds blocked the sun completely.

Although there was no wind, it felt very cold as soon as you went out.

At noon, dark clouds came from the north.

After a gust of north wind,

Snow particles began to fall rustlingly.
The snow grains gradually turned into bean-sized snowflakes, and in the afternoon they became the size of goose feathers.

The light in the Sheng family school was dim, so although it was still early, candles were still lit in the house.

I don’t know whether he likes snowy days or is worried about the difficulties people suffer during snowy days, but since the snow started, Zhuang Xuejiu has been standing by the window looking at the snow scene outside.

suddenly,

Not knowing what he was thinking of, Master Zhuang turned around and glanced at where Chang Qiu was sitting.

Seeing Chang Qiang stretching out his little hand to protect the flickering candle flame, Zhuang Xuejiu smiled and closed the window in front of him.

Looking back at the students in the candlelight, Zhuang Xuejiu said with his hands behind his back, "Okay, everyone! The weather is bad and it's still snowing, so let's go home early today."

When everyone heard this, they all stood up and responded.

on the way home,

The snow was still falling, but much lighter.

Xu Zaijing was wearing a cloak and riding a horse, looking at the white and black mottled road surface.

There has been no heavy snow since the beginning of winter, and the ground temperature is still acceptable under the sunshine.

The ground was covered with white snow, but the snow at the bottom had melted, and where people and animals stepped on it, there were black footprints.

Usually snow and water will stick to your shoes, and your feet will feel very cold when the cold wind blows.

If there is no snow removal, the snow water on the ground will freeze overnight.

Of course, there were people on both sides of the streets along the way who were sweeping the snow while it was light, but most of them were just sweeping the snow in front of their own doors.

Those who can help other families clean the floor are mostly those who are short of snow when making snow lions with molds.

You will also see a group of children from Beijing wearing earmuffs made of various materials, using snow tongs to pick up snowballs and have snowball fights.

When Xu Zaijing and his brother arrived at Quyuan Street, they saw two lifelike snow lions in front of the clean gate of the marquis's mansion.

Entering the racecourse,
Xu Zaijing looked at Yin Bo who walked out of the wooden house and asked, "Master, where are Alan and Xunshu?"

Yin Bo said hoarsely, "They took the servants to clear the snow, and then went to the old courtyards of the nearby marquis' mansions. They helped clean the roofs that had a lot of snow to prevent the houses from collapsing."

"Well! Very good! It's worth an extra month's salary."

A few days after the snow,

Entering the twelfth lunar month,

Because of the melting snow, the weather is colder than before.

When Xu Zaijing put on his armor in the morning, it was more like he was wearing an ice coat, and the coldness seeped in through the clothes.

Sometimes when I ride a horse in the morning, my face is not protected by a mask, and the wind blows and it freezes painfully.

When practicing archery, one must be very careful to 'warm up' the strong bow. Sometimes, a strong bow can be easily damaged if one is not careful.

On this day,

In front of the wooden house beside the racecourse,
Beside the lantern,
'dor'

The heavy steel lance head was stuck into the frozen soil.

Xu Zaijing, with his armor slightly steaming, dismounted from his horse, and the little black colt beside him was also steaming white.

Yun Xiang smiled and handed the warm water gourd to Xu Zaijing, while Alan and Qingyun were busy removing the saddle from the little black colt and covering it with a sweat-absorbing and warm blanket.

A stream of warm water flowed into his stomach and Xu Zaijing breathed a sigh of relief.

Yun Xiang, who was standing by, looked at Xu Zaijing's hand holding the gourd and said helplessly, "Sir, please take off the gloves on your hands."

"Huh? What's wrong?" Xu Zaijing asked puzzledly.

Yun Xiang gestured and said, "The line is open again here."

Hearing this, Xu Zaijing turned his palm over to look at the position of the hand knife, only to see that the rabbit skin glove had now exposed the skin.

Xu Zaijing took off the gloves skillfully and threw them to Yun Xiang, saying, "Next time when you three sew gloves, make the stitches closer. Don't always make finished products of questionable quality."

Yun Xiang didn't show any sign of frustration after being counted by Xu Zaijing. He just curled his lips and nodded, "Yes, sir."

Afterwards, Yun Xiang held up the gloves and said to them with a sad face, "Alas! You were born at the wrong time! Others may use you for a whole winter, but the young master only uses you for one day! What a miserable life!"

"Crack!"

Alan, who was wearing gloves and removing the saddle from the little black horse, laughed out loud when he heard this.

Being 'squeezed', Xu Zaijing said helplessly: "Okay, okay, from now on, you three will get a bigger share, as a reward for your hard work in sewing gloves in winter."

Yun Xiang's bitter face turned into a smile, and he bowed to Xu Zaijing: "Thank you for your consideration, young master."

Xu Zaijing shook his head helplessly and threw the gourd in his hand directly into Yun Xiang's arms.

Seeing Yun Xiang being caught off guard when he caught the gourd, Xu Zaijing also laughed.

December,

On the eighth day of the first lunar month, we drank Laba porridge at Sheng's house.

By the time Xu Zaijing got out of school, he could already see idlers and hooligans on the street, some of them dressed as women and ghosts, "beating the night barbarian", going from street to street, knocking on doors and asking for money.

After the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month,
Sheng Family School also had a holiday like in previous years.

After leaving the school, Qi Heng walked beside Xu Zaijing and Gu Tingye and said, "Brother Jing, Second Uncle, we will come to the Sheng family to pay New Year's greetings on the second day of the New Year. Don't forget."

(End of this chapter)