Misty Rain of the Old Times

After being away from home for several months, the woods in front of and behind the house have gradually withered except for most of the evergreen trees. Birds even build nests on some of the trees. Only two of the transplanted trees did not survive. This is inevitable. They can be cut down and burned as firewood and then replanted next year.

Leading the horse towards the entrance of the residence, Chen Xuan saw the little girl Su Roujia at a glance.

After a few months, she had obviously grown taller and looked more beautiful. She was at the age when she was about to bloom.

In the autumn, she wore a printed dress and had two buns on her head. Her pretty face with a little baby fat was particularly cute.

However, when Chen Xuan saw her, she was in a bad mood. She glared with a stern face and looked fierce. She stood at the gate of Taoyuanju with her hands on her hips and started cursing, never repeating herself.

"Hey, who has offended my little girl? I heard your voice from far away, and you seem to be very angry. Tell me about this to the master, and then tell the county magistrate to let the constables arrest them and put them all in jail," Chen Xuan joked as he walked around the corner with his horse.

"...Today you dare to pick up other people's firewood, tomorrow you dare to steal money, the day after tomorrow you dare to kill people, what else can't you do? You are all mortals who deserve to be stabbed..." The little girl kept talking like a machine gun.

Chen Xuan was also truly convinced. If the person she was targeting heard this, he would probably want to die. Why did he have to offend this aggressive little girl when he could have offended anyone else?

While cursing, the little girl was stunned when she heard Chen Xuan's voice. She looked up and couldn't believe it. She rubbed her eyes subconsciously, thinking she had seen it wrong.

Then she instantly threw everything that happened before out of her mind, and ran towards Chen Xuan excitedly with a smile on her face. Her voice became gentle and joyful as she said, "Oh, Master is back. You must be tired on the journey. How are you? Why didn't you send a letter in advance..."

That excitement! Chen Xuan found it funny but also felt warm in his heart. It feels so good to have someone thinking about you.

After not seeing each other for a few months, she didn't feel strange at all. Instead, she seemed to be more attached to me.

Although she was excited, she had received special training at the Gao family, so she didn't do anything out of the ordinary like throwing herself at Chen Xuan. She came to the outside of Mishu and looked at Chen Xuan with her eyelashes curled in a smile, but her eyes were full of worry as she kept saying, "Master looks so tired and exhausted, it's obvious that he's not doing well. He must have suffered a lot without me by his side. He looks thinner..."

At this time, she no longer remembered her previous unhappiness. Her heart and eyes were filled with Chen Xuan, the backbone of the family. When she was alone at home, she would look out the door every morning and evening, looking forward to her master's return.

Which eye of yours saw me suffer? I don't know how cool it is to be away from home for a few months. Chen Xuan raised his hand to interrupt and said, "Stop, if you continue to talk, I will have no right to speak."

"Hehe, I'm happy to see the master," she said embarrassedly, tiptoeing and lowering her head.

Shaking his head, Chen Xuan stepped forward and said, "Alright, alright, let's go home. What's the point of standing at the door?"

"Yes, master, give it to me," the little girl followed excitedly and took the initiative to take the job of leading the horse.

Let her go, Chen Xuan handed her the reins, and the master and servant walked along the forest path to the house, one in front and one behind. He looked around and said, "You haven't told me yet, who offended you? You are so angry when you come back. I thought my girl was very gentle and lovely. I almost thought she was replaced by someone while I was away."

Hearing this, the little girl blushed and said shyly: "No, Master must have seen it wrong, I didn't lose my temper."

"Then tell me what's going on?" Chen Xuan said in silence. Where is your previous fierceness? Why did you start to act like a good boy in front of me?

After all, she was born in a poor family. If the little girl had not been a little fierce since she was a child, she might have been bullied. It was obvious that she released her nature when Chen Xuan was not around. But when Chen Xuan came back, she had a backbone to rely on, so she naturally became weak and well-behaved.

Facing the question, a hint of anger flashed in her eyes, but she still replied softly, "It's not a big deal. I just found that some dead branches in our grove were secretly taken away. They are the master's property, how can they be taken away by outsiders? I planned to collect them this morning, but they were gone. So I complained a little, otherwise others would think we are easy to bully and would take advantage of us in the future."

Love is just a small matter, why do you take it so seriously?
However, Chen Xuan also understood that the little girl had suffered a lot, so no matter whether it was useful or not, she would keep a close eye on everything that belonged to her. Even if it was just a dead branch, if someone took it, they would be at a disadvantage, which was like digging flesh from their body. How could that be tolerated?
The fact is that in this era in places like the countryside, it is not an exaggeration to say that neighbors would sometimes go to the government over a handful of grass, and even fight each other, leading to a conflict between two villages.

Smiling inwardly, Chen Xuan said jokingly with a serious face: "That's right. I'll scold you together later. Let's move the tables and chairs to the door and scold him for three days and three nights. Then make a pot of tea to keep your mouth warm."

"No, no, how can the master do such a thing? It will make people laugh. I don't care." She waved her hands quickly, knowing how to maintain the image of her master.

While chatting and laughing, Chen Xuan felt emotional in his heart that he had found a treasure with this little girl. Not to mention the Gu family, the place was spotlessly clean inside and out. It was autumn, and there was not a single dead branch or leaf on the forest path leading to the house. Not only that, the same was true in the woods around the house. The dead branches and leaves were swept cleanly. She was probably collecting them all in the woodshed as firewood.

I'm afraid she cleans twice every day and isn't lazy at all.

When Chen Xuan returned to his residence, he was even more certain of his thoughts. After being away for several months, there wasn't a single spider web to be found under the eaves or in the corners. Honestly, Chen Xuan didn't think he could be that diligent. He was too lazy to clean up himself, and at most, he would occasionally use martial arts techniques to clean up, whatever was most convenient and easy.

"Master, I can do anything. If anyone takes advantage of our family, I can go to their house and scold them if I know who it is," Chen Xuan said happily. Then he added, "Let's not talk about this for now. I have been leading the way all morning and I haven't had breakfast yet. Roujia, go get me something to eat."

"Master, you must be hungry. It's my fault for not taking good care of you. Wait a moment, you will be fine soon." The little girl suddenly felt distressed and blamed herself. She put the horse down first and ran to get a chair. After Chen Xuan sat down, she quickly led the horse to the stable at the back, untied it with a bow, and temporarily put it in the house to tidy it up. Then she ran to the kitchen and started to make a fire and cook.

Slumping down on the chair like a boneless person, basking in the autumn sunshine, Chen Xuan thought that it was still comfortable at home. He had a little girl who cared about him and he didn't have to worry about anything.

Before he could lie down for a while, the little girl brought a small table and a pot of tea to the side, saying, "Master, have a cup of tea first, the meal will be ready soon."

Looking at her cheerful and busy figure, Chen Xuan thought to himself that he was a useless person in comparison. No, he was just a useless person to begin with, so it was okay.

However, what surprised him was that after not seeing her for a few months, the little girl had made some progress in practicing the Qingyuan Liuyun Gong, and had some insignificant internal strength in her body. No wonder she had grown taller and become more graceful, and her movements had become more agile when she was busy.

Well, the little girl has a good talent in martial arts, comparable to Xiao Gao without the nourishment of the dragon horn pendant. In the future, I will train her to be a congenital master, and leave the small troubles to her. Of course, I, the master, will enjoy it.

Not long after, the little girl brought two dishes and a large bowl of rice, put them down and said, "Master, you eat first. There are also dishes and soup. They will be ready soon. By the way, Master, would you like some wine? I'll get it for you."

"Let's not drink so early in the morning. Roujia, have you eaten? If not, let's finish it together," Chen Xuan shook his head and started showing off the bowl of rice. It's no wonder that the little girl's cooking skills have improved after not seeing her for a few months. Could it be that she went to Gao's house to study while he was away?
She left happily and said, "I've eaten, Master, please wait, there are more dishes."

After the food was served, she came behind Chen Xuan, massaging his shoulders with one hand and fanning him with the other. Seeing Chen Xuan wolfing down the food like whirlwind, she pursed her lips and felt a little sad, thinking to herself that the master must be suffering outside, look how greedy he is.

Anyway, as long as Chen Xuan is there, the little girl has a backbone, she is happy, and has hope for the future. No matter how hard or tiring the life is, she will be happy to endure it.

While eating and drinking, Chen Xuan asked, "Rou Jia, how was the family while I was away?"

"Master, everything is fine at home. The bell you gave me has never been used. No one has come here to cause trouble. Guards from the Gao family often come here to hang around. By the way, the lady also comes back to talk to me occasionally," the little girl chattered.

Nodding, Chen Xuan said, "That's good." In fact, they had exchanged letters twice in the past two months to talk about the situation at home.

"By the way, master, I forgot to tell you that I have been growing mushrooms in our grove these past few months and have earned two taels and five cents of silver. I still have more than ten pounds of dried mushrooms that I haven't sold yet, which I saved for winter," the little girl said, looking like she was about to praise me.

Chen Xuan didn't let her down and gave her a thumbs up, saying, "Rou Jia is really amazing. In just a few months, she's earned as much as a waiter in Deyue Tower earns in a year. But our family isn't short of money, is it? Since you earned it from growing mushrooms, just keep it as pocket money. A girl can't be without money. And you're in charge of the treasury, you can withdraw money yourself, and buy whatever you like."

"I don't want pocket money, and I don't need much. Let's keep it for living," the little girl said with a smile, extremely satisfied with her current life.

In fact, she was worried that Chen Xuan had a lot of expenses, so she tried to save money so that she wouldn't be unable to come up with money at a critical moment and have difficulty making ends meet.

Not knowing what the little girl was thinking, Chen Xuan changed the subject and asked, "Have you been slacking off in your practice during this period? Do you remember what I said before I left?"

"Master, I haven't forgotten. You said you would come back to check my training progress. If you are not satisfied, you can sell me. I am not lazy. I grow mushrooms and sell them whenever I have time. Now I have developed internal strength. I can easily break bricks by using it. I don't know if you are satisfied or not. I have tried my best. Please don't sell me," the little girl said nervously, pursing her lips.

The little girl had learned bad things and dared to act pitiful. How could her little tricks fool Chen Xuan? He pretended to be indifferent and said, "It's okay. It's passable, but you still need to work hard. Your ability is not even a 3-legged cat."

"Yes, I knew I wouldn't let the master down," she said happily, and stopped pretending.

Previously, he was only focused on excitement and taking care of Chen Xuan. Now that he had calmed down, he asked curiously, "Why does the master have a stick on his waist for no reason? Is it a dog-beating stick?"

"This is a treasure that I bought on the road at the cost of a whole candy. I will make an exquisite shelf to put it on as a decoration," Chen Xuan said proudly.

Su Roujia: “…”

Master, do you want to listen to what you are saying? (End of this chapter)