Xiaoyaoshanjun

Chapter 26 Relatives Come

There is still some time before the exam, and in addition to practicing martial arts and selling tofu every day, Tian Buli also reads and practices calligraphy.

That day, Mr. Bing was giving a lecture to Tian Buli when suddenly there was a knock on the door.

"coming!"

The dog playing in the yard quickly went over to open the door.

I thought they were two brothers or neighbors coming to visit, but when I opened the door, I saw a middle-aged man and an old woman.

The old woman looked to be in her fifties or sixties. She had a towel wrapped around her head and her hair looked a little bald.

The middle-aged man looked to be in his thirties, like a countryman who farmed in the countryside. It was obvious that he was not a city dweller.

When Mrs. Ma saw the child come out to open the door, she forced a smile on her wrinkled face.

"Little boy, I'm looking for Brother Tian. We caught two rabbits in the village, but we couldn't bear to eat them at home, so I brought them to him."

The dog was a little afraid of the old woman and the country man who seemed unable to speak.

"Second Dad! Someone is looking for you! Second Dad!" Gou'er turned his head to look towards the house and quickly called for help.

Not long after, Tian Buli came out. When he saw the old woman and the man, he walked over with a smile.

"Mrs. Ma, why did you come all the way from the village?"

Both of them were from the same village. When Tian Buli returned to his hometown twice, he got to know the elders in the village a little and they knew each other's affairs.

Although the people in the village seldom went out, there was still some news passed around. The two places were not far apart, and most of them knew about the success in the imperial examination.

Ma Po smiled and said, "We have killed two rabbits. We heard that you passed the imperial examination, so the villagers gave you some meat to eat. A cow died some time ago, so the butcher asked the eldest brother to bring you a jar of butter to nourish your body."

"Thank you! Thank you!" Tian Buli thanked him politely, "Come in, have a seat, have a drink of water, and rest your feet."

Ma Po said hurriedly, "No need. We should go back after putting the things down. It's hard to walk in the dark. I'm afraid something might happen."

Tian Buli took the two of them to the kitchen. After the man, who looked like he could talk but couldn't, and was as dull as most people, put down the sack, he took out more than twenty copper coins the size of a fingernail from his arms.

"Mrs. Ma, I am also living in someone else's house as a helper. I have to spend money on exams and things, so I don't have any spare money."

"You can use this money to buy some eggs and sesame oil when you go back. Take it for now."

In fact, this amount of money cannot buy a jar of butter, and the two rabbits are just by-products and are not valuable.

Butter is not an expensive item, the cows in the village will definitely die, and most of the time it is difficult to find people who would spend a lot of money to buy such a thing.

Most villagers and city dwellers are used to being frugal, and most businessmen are even more stingy. On the contrary, some people who practice martial arts and study are willing to spend money lavishly.

They were reluctant to eat the beef and mutton themselves, and basically sold them to shop owners or the wealthy families in the village, such as the Fuyuan Escort Agency.

Tian Buli knew that this was a normal interpersonal relationship. The people in the village were just inexperienced, not ignorant.

When an educated person emerges in a village where almost all the villagers are illiterate, the elderly in the village, unless they are stupid, will take the initiative to send someone to visit them.

From now on, whether it is borrowing money or doing things, it will be much more convenient.

A clan is an organization that ensures that a large family is not bullied by outsiders, and if this organization wants to grow stronger, it must rely on scholars.

A mere warrior cannot protect everyone.

Facing Tian Buli's return gift, Old Lady Ma quickly said, "How can this be? I can't accept it. I can't accept it."

Tian Buli knew that this was a unique etiquette of the villagers.

"Take it, take it."

Tian Buli and Old Lady Ma argued for several minutes before he stuffed some money into the hands of Old Lady Ma, who seemed very reluctant to take the money.

After receiving the money, Old Lady Ma's smile quickly showed even more wrinkles.

"You are studying now and have a promising future. When I return to the village, I will ask the eldest brother, his father, and his uncle to call people to pull out the weeds in your house, clean up the house, and put in a few stools and a bed. We can't let anyone look down on us."

Tian Buli never paid much attention to the house in his hometown. He did not stay there the twice he went back. He just visited someone's grave and left.

"Okay, thank you. I'll go back in three or four months. I'm busy with some things in the city in the next few months."

Old Mrs. Ma had no objection and said with a smile, "That's all fine. This is good." After Tian Buli chatted for a while, he sent them away.

The rural man named Lao Da is the eldest son of Old Lady Ma, a rather dull and silent man.

There are only a hundred people in the village, and only about twenty households, including a few widows who cannot find wives.

The eldest brother’s wife was exchanged by his younger sister with someone from the neighboring village. Usually, the less able she is to speak and the less capable she is, the worse the man her younger sister will marry.

Two days later, eight more people came to the yard.

This group of people includes men and women, young and old.

The oldest is in his sixties, the youngest is seven or eight, and the rest are in their twenties, thirties, and forties.

A woman was carrying two chickens, the healthiest-looking man was carrying two baskets of grain, and the rest were carrying baskets or a few wine gourds.

Wang Sheng, holding two wine gourds in his hands, looked at the closed gate.

"Dad, this is it. I remember it is here."

Before the old man could speak, the dog that was playing outside his house ran over and asked, "Who are you looking for?"

Old Man Yan said politely: "Let's look for Hu Yuwei, he's my son-in-law, I heard he won the first place."

Yan Zhu, a man carrying a load nearby, said with a smile, "Dad, this is Dou Niang's youngest son Gou Er. I came here last spring and I recognize him."

Gou'er looked at these people. He didn't recognize either the old man or the man who was talking. There was a look of confusion and bewilderment on his face.

The relatives said they knew him, but he didn't know any of them, not even a single one.

"Wait a minute." The dog knocked on the door quickly, "Brother! Open the door!"

Hu'er didn't work today. Tian Buli said it was raining so he couldn't set up the stall. As it turned out, it didn't rain, so the whole family had some free time and took a good sleep.

Soon Tiger and Leopard came out to open the door, and Mr. Bing also came out to greet the guests.

Dou Niang's family members soon met Mr. Bing, and Dou Niang also came out of the house and started chatting with them in the main room.

There was nothing much to talk about. Over the years, both Dou Niang's family and her own uncles, aunts and relatives had rarely interacted with each other, and their relationship had long since faded.

Moreover, when she was not feeling well before, Mr. Bing also knew that Dou Niang’s family members had come to call her back several times.

He knew what it meant specifically, but most of the time he pretended not to know and lay alone in the room, like a cripple who might die at any time.

Tian Buli felt awkward staying at home, so he went out for a walk, thinking that it was about time for him to find a place to live.

When I returned home in the evening, the Yan family who lived in the neighboring county had already left.

Dou Niang's family was not wealthy, but just ordinary city folks who made a living by farming and had a sideline business of making sesame oil.

Most of the elderly people have many skills, such as carpentry, dog raising, pig slaughtering, wine making, hosting weddings and funerals, and some also know a little medical skills.

"You're finally back, let's eat."

Dou Niang was in a much better mood when she saw Tian Buli coming back, and she asked him to sit down and eat.

After Tian Buli sat down, Dou Niang brought him food and sat beside him, looking at him with a smile.

"I just talked to my sister-in-law and asked her to ask around in Yanxi County to find you a pretty young lady."

Mr. Sick also came out of the house when he heard the noise. Before he came over and sat down, he also laughed and joked.

"There is no rush to get married. I will find a better lady from an official family in the future. But now I should definitely find a concubine. I will start a family first and then establish a career."

Tian Buli nodded awkwardly, "Let's talk about it in two years. I'm young now, so there's no rush. Let's talk about it in three years."

The damselfly laughed and teased him, "Why are you shy?"

Tian Buli picked up his bowl to eat, and Dou Niang next to him began to babble about how snobbish her family was and how they had looked down on her over the years.

Mr. Sick laughed along, but also listened quietly.

The two of them looked like a couple, but Tian Buli was just eating like a son.

(End of this chapter)