Ordinary clear day

Chapter 140
Shu Ning could hear clearly outside the store, and suddenly remembered that Tong Ying had an arm injury and was pursued by soldiers, but these people were obviously dressed in Mongolian clothes. She remembered that Mongolia had a good relationship with the Qing court, so why did she hunt down people from the Qing clan? What about Tong Ying?But he was my brother's friend, so she was naturally on his side, so she kept her composure and watched those people forcefully question the shopkeeper of the pharmacy.

Those Mongolians couldn't get an answer in the pharmacy, so they went to other medical centers and pharmacies.Shu Ning could hear a few aunts and six wives whispering gossip: "Those Mongolians heard that they also checked in the neighboring town yesterday if there was such a person."

"No, I heard that that person stole their money, and they are going to kill him."

"Oh, these Mongolian lords are really bold. They kill people when they say they want to."

"Of course, they are all nobles. I heard that the waiter at the inn in the town was awarded a big ingot because of his clever speech."

"A big ingot, ouch, that's really generous..."

Dongqing tugged Shuning's sleeve carefully, and said: "Girl, these people are scary, let's go." The servant also nodded sharply.

Shuning thought for a while, and said: "Let's stay far away. It's not easy for you to go out, so it's a pity to go back like this?" Dongqing and the servant looked at each other, and agreed, and went with Shuning Pick something from another stall twenty steps away.Shu Ning still kept an eye on the actions of those Mongols from time to time.

After Dongqing bought a bracelet, several colored silk threads, and a thin book of embroidery books, the servant also bought two velvet flowers for his mother-in-law, and a doughnut for the child, and the group slowly walked towards the direction of the carriage. .

When passing by the group of Mongolians, Shuning listened carefully to a few words of their conversation.Although she speaks Mongolian, she has also learned a few words from her brother, and she can only hear the words "capital", "road", "stop" and "kill". The leader in the blue robe seemed to notice something and looked in his direction.Shuning hurriedly turned her head, pretended to be nonchalant and returned to the carriage.

Her heart was pounding, she ordered the coachman to set off, and kept an eye on the back from time to time, and when she was two miles away from the town, she was sure that no one was following her, and then she was relieved.

As soon as she returned to the other courtyard, Shuning hurriedly confessed a few times, then rushed into the garden with heavy silk and ink, told Duanning and Tongying what happened to those Mongolians she met today, and asked: "Tongying Brother, are those people chasing you? How did you mess with the Mongols? Don’t you have a good relationship with them?”

Duanning and Tongying looked at each other, and the former said: "Sister, there are good and bad Mongolians. Don't worry, Tongying definitely didn't do anything bad. We know this very well, so you don't have to worry about it."

Shu Ning was a little depressed: "So you guys already knew it? Forget it." She tilted her head, and saw the other side of Linyuan Pavilion from a distance, Hu Zi was waving to this side, and she was still calling Young Master, He said: "Brother Huzi, I don't know what's going on, I'll go over and have a look." Then he left.

Tongying said to Duanning: "Your sister seems to be angry. She must be blaming us for not telling her. In fact, it's okay to let her know something. She won't say it." Duanning shook his head: "It will be fine after a while. Well, it’s better not to let girls know about this kind of thing. Speaking of which, those chasing soldiers dared to stay near the capital for so long, which shows that they are bound to win you.” Tong Ying said in a deep voice: “Needless to say, It must be that 'Blue Fox'! This person's real name is Lan Heli, he is Galdan's confidant, and he is as cunning as a fox. I have suffered from him a lot along the way, and I didn't expect that his ghost is still lingering!"

Duanning patted him on the shoulder and looked outside: "Huzi, I stayed in the capital to wait for your letter from your mansion. Now that he is back, what's the matter?"

Just as he was talking, Shuning came back and said, "Brother Huzi said that the people from Prince Jian's Mansion in the capital city told him that the emperor wanted to build the Shengjing City, so Fujin will bring a few young princes and cousin girls to the south of the capital soon. It's gone." Duanning and Tongying were both taken aback, and the latter frowned, with anger already in his eyes.

Seeing this, Duanning asked her younger sister to prepare lunch, Shuning glanced at them, and left Zhenxia Pavilion sullenly.

Tong Ying narrowed her eyes and said: "Before I entered the customs, I asked someone to report my safety to my family. I originally planned to prevent Ama from worrying too much. My stepmother must have known that I was fine. The emperor wants to build Shengjing City. What does it have to do with our mansion? She suddenly went south and brought that girl Lingxue with her, probably because she wanted the palace to decree the marriage, so I can't shirk it. She has a good plan!"

Duan Ning said: "In this case, we'd better hurry up and try to meet the emperor before your stepmother enters the palace." Tong Ying nodded, and then said: "Actually, there are not many unorganized things, but there are many fragments work. I think, having your sister help out will also free up time for the two of us to do business." Duanning was right after thinking about it, and agreed.

After hearing what the two said, Shu Ning finally understood the general idea of ​​the matter, but she still had a question: "They killed the envoys, and they almost turned against the court. Why are they still so bold and wandering around at the feet of the emperor?"

Tong Ying said: "Actually, the clothes of the various Mongolian tribes are somewhat different. They are now dressed in the clothes of the Monan people. There are many nobles and royal Manchurian marriages over there. Ordinary people will not provoke them. As long as they don't make any big troubles Come, the local officials will turn a blind eye. The Mongols in this area rarely come, and they are not afraid of being exposed."

I see.Those people spend a lot of money, probably because they want people to believe that they are princes and nobles, right?

Shuning started to join their work that afternoon.In fact, all she has to do is grind ink, cut silk, collect waste products, and bind the written paper into a book with a cover.It is indeed a piecemeal "hands-on" job.

She didn't have much to live. After finishing the work at hand, she saw Duan Ning and Tong Ying working hard, especially the latter with a strong brain, so she wanted to change their diet to nourish their brains.

For breakfast, she specially made a bowl of multigrain porridge, but unfortunately both of them couldn't get used to it, so she had to contribute both her goat's milk in the morning and evening, and added various pastries and snacks.

For lunch and dinner, she made sure that there would be meat and vegetables at every meal, but because the weather was getting colder, she switched to the stewing method, served them in a small clay pot, and ate them warm.Chicken, duck, fish, pork and beef are available every day. Vegetables, soybeans and fruits are also indispensable. She even cooked pig brain soup, which made the two big boys look disheveled. Too tired and so on.

However, the stir-fried diced chicken with pine nuts, corn and carrot cake she made occasionally was very popular. Tong Ying even said: "My good sister, you can cook this a few more times. I haven't eaten it for many years."

Shu Ning was not in a good mood, this dish took a lot of effort, did he think those dices were so easy to cut?For her, who has only started cutting vegetables with a knife in the past two years, this is a big project!Not to mention shelling pine nuts and corn kernels.

As for the supper at night, she was negligent in the past and just let the two big boys eat some snacks to pass by, but now she wants to make some healthy food.

The first day, she made walnut cheese. Duanning said it was delicious, but it was a bit too sweet, but Tong Ying said: "It tastes okay, but unfortunately I don't like walnuts, it smells weird."

Shu Ning glared, where did this picky eater come from!

The next day, she made sesame paste with only a little sugar in it. Duanning ate very satisfied, but Tong Ying said, "It's really fragrant, but it's a pity that the taste is a bit bland."

Shu Ning froze, gritted her teeth, took the bowl and left.

Duan Ning glanced at his friend: "Okay, you, my sister worked so hard to make you supper, and you just don't want to say thank you, but you still hate it?"

Tong Ying smiled: "If she's angry, she won't spend any more effort. In fact, you can eat whatever you want at night, so why bother with all these tricks, your sister has enough things to do."

Sure enough, Shu Ning was provoked by him, and she simply packed the clean nuts of various colors and the cakes and snacks that were convenient for storage into two large boxes, and put them in the room. When they were hungry, they could eat them at hand, and she There is no need to spend any more effort.

============================ I am the dividing line after three days =================== ========
The work of arranging and transcribing information was finally finished.Tong Ying finished writing the last word, threw the pen away, lay down on the bench, spread her limbs and let out a sigh, and said, "It's over."

Shuning followed Duanning to bind the last few pages of paper, counted them clearly, and heaved a sigh of relief, looking back at Tongying, only to find that he had fallen asleep.

Shuning looked at his somewhat pale face and his thinner body, and felt a little pity for him.These days his brain power consumption is the most serious, but fortunately his physical fitness is good, otherwise he would have been exhausted long ago.Didn't Mrs. Dongxie, who is so unforgettable in Jin Daxia's works, die of physical and mental exhaustion because of silent writing?

She looked at the thin jacket on his body and the weather outside, then went upstairs to the bedroom to get a cloak and covered him lightly to keep him from getting cold.Duanning glanced at his sister, put all the information books into the wooden box, and signaled her to leave with him first, not to disturb Tongying's rest.

I don't know if it's an illusion, but when Shu Ning left the water pavilion, there seemed to be a shadow passing by the corner of her eyes, but when she took a closer look, she didn't find anything, thinking that it must be because she was tired from working all day long and her eyes were blurred.

She didn't expect that just as the two of them left, one of them sneaked into the water pavilion.This man has a beard and looks about 40 to [-] years old.He looked at Tong Ying who was sleeping soundly, checked the box where the things were placed, thought for a moment, and then left.

Tong Ying slept for a day and a night, and when he woke up, he was already so hungry that his chest was sticking to his back, and when he saw the food brought by Ning Shuning, he hurriedly put it in his mouth.It wasn't until he was seven or eight percent full that the movements in his hands began to slow down.

Seeing him like this, Duanning felt relieved: "You slept deeply enough this time, you won't wake up no matter what. I, Ama, was startled. If it wasn't for sure that you were asleep, we would all It’s time to call for a doctor. It seems that you are really exhausted this time...you eat slowly, and I didn’t fight you.”

Tong Ying swallowed a mouthful of rice, and said: "I will return to Beijing with my things tomorrow, but I don't know where that fox is now, so I have to avoid him."

Duanning and Shuning looked at each other and smiled.Tong Ying was confused, but finally Duan Ning solved the mystery: "A lot of things happened during the day and night you slept, and it was widely spread outside. That fox seems to have encountered a suspicious person , suspected it was you, but ended up chasing you to a gambling house, and somehow got into a fight with a bunch of hooligans in the dark. It got so big that even the government came to intervene. Stealing money and horses. This time the government must investigate thoroughly, no matter what, they are also 'Mongolian nobles'."

Tong Ying laughed: "This is troublesome. What if they are found to be counterfeit? If they are found to be from Junggar, it will be even worse."

The two winked and laughed happily.Shu Ning said, "They disappeared last night. I heard that everyone is looking for them now, and the government probably started to suspect it. Wait for two more days, and they must have left."

Tong Ying stopped laughing, shook her head and said: "I'll go to Beijing tomorrow, don't wait." Shu Ning was a little strange, but seeing that Duan Ning didn't say anything, she stopped asking.

Shuning packed up the dishes and left.Duan Ning took out a stack of blueprints and said, "These are your map manuscripts, and they can be used as maps. I think it's a pity to burn them like this. Why don't you keep them as copies? If the submitted maps come out Any mistakes can be made up for.”

Tong Ying thought for a while, and said: "That's fine, but I don't plan to bring them into Beijing together, you should find a place to store them first. If I enter Beijing smoothly, I will come back to pick them up later."

Duan Ning pondered for a moment, agreed, found a wooden box to put the blueprints in, and put his manuscript papers in it, and said: "There is a hidden place in our home, which is in the belly of the mountain under the Taoranting Pavilion. You can enter by going down the ladder behind the big stone beside the pavilion. Only a few people in our family know there, and no one has touched the furnishings inside. I put this box in a semi-old book box inside, and then used it as a cover. It should be safe. Later, I will lead you to put things away."

Tong Ying was a little dazed, and after a while said: "You actually told me the location of your own secret room..." Duan Ning was stunned for a moment, and hurriedly said: "No, it was only left by the former owner, even my younger brother I know..." "You don't need to say it." Tong Ying stopped him, "For any family, only the most trusted people will know about that kind of place. You told me like this, which shows that you are serious. Treat me like a brother."

He hesitated for a while, went back to his room to fetch something, and said to Duanning: "This matter has been on my mind for a long time, I always wonder whether I should ask you, but now I don't hesitate any more , so as not to always be suspicious. Let me ask you, whose is this? Why is it here?"

Duanning glanced at the thing in his hand, it was clearly a yellow belt, wasn't it Tongying's?

When Tong Ying received his gaze, she also had some doubts: "It's not mine. When I left home that day, I didn't intend to display the clan signboard. Why did I wear a yellow belt with me? I found this at the foot of the bed. , because there is a quilt under it, probably the former residents missed it there?"

Duan Ning smiled: "So that's the case, you just ask directly. In fact, although I don't want others to know, I didn't intend to hide it from you. It probably belongs to the fourth elder brother. He once stayed at our house when he went to a nearby monastery to pay homage to the Buddha. , mostly left over from then.”

Tongying was a little surprised, so Duanning told him the reason of the matter, and said: "You also know that the fourth elder brother is related to our family, but we also took care to avoid suspicion, and only entertained him in the garden, and I, Ama, never If I don’t enter the garden gate, it’s me and Er Niang who come to talk to the fourth elder brother every time, and they talk about small household things. For example, the fruit forest and lotus pond at home, our brothers’ schoolwork, and the naughty younger brothers, but they were caught My younger sister was trained miserably and so on. Si elder brother sometimes talks about his own housework, but most of them listen to my mother-in-law. As for official matters, I don’t mention them at all.”

After hearing this, Tong Ying couldn't help sighing, and said: "You say that, I feel that he is getting more and more pitiful. These trivial matters in the parents' hearts are usually ignored by ordinary people, but he has to go to other people's homes to hear them."

Duan Ning said: "It's fine if you talk about it, but don't say it face to face, he will definitely be angry." Tong Ying smiled: "It's natural."

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The whole family got up early, set up a car and prepared to go back to Beijing.After discussing with the family members, they decided to dispatch the whole family to cover Tongying and let him take Shuning's car. Of course, they are not alone, Suxin will accompany the car.

The car stopped at the back door first, and after picking up Tong Ying, Hu Zi quietly rushed to the front, and then picked up Shuning and got into the car.Duan Ning rode a horse and followed the car, and arranged for several other strong and smart servants to ride on horses to follow.

Nothing happened.Along the way, Tongying carried a sturdy book cage, which contained the results of their many days.He seldom speaks, even in a low voice, trying not to let his voice go outside.Shu Ning knew that he was trying to deceive others, so she chatted with Su Xin very cooperatively, people who didn't know thought there were only two little girls in the car.

Walking halfway, Duanning felt that the sun was shining brightly, and there happened to be a tea shop ahead, so he asked everyone to drink and rest there.Zhang Bao and Tong Shi had gone a step ahead, but they had disappeared, so Duan Ning had no choice but to tell everyone to hurry up and catch up as soon as possible.

As soon as he got off his horse and entered the tea shop, he regretted it very much.Because there were several Mongolians sitting in the store, and the leader was wearing a blue robe.

I can't retreat at this time, I'm afraid that if I retreat, it will arouse suspicion.He had no choice but to pretend that nothing happened and asked the shopkeeper to pour some tea, and arranged tea for the servants. Then he walked to his sister's carriage naturally and said, "Is my sister thirsty? I'll call for tea right away." Then he whispered: "The fox is in the store, don't make a sound."

Shu Ning and Tong Ying were shocked when they heard this, Shu Ning replied with a normal voice: "Thank you brother, I'm not thirsty, let's hurry up." Duan Ning responded, and called the servants to move faster.

I don't know if Lan Heli saw that Duanning's age and figure were suspicious, so he found an excuse to chat with Duanning.Duan Ning confessed his identity frankly, and asked about their background.Shuning and Tongying were listening in the car, they were so nervous that Suxin didn't even dare to vent her anger.

Duan Ning was chatting with Na Lan Heli, but he noticed a few acquaintances coming from the road ahead, he hurriedly got up and went to meet him and shouted: "Brother Ma! What a coincidence? I actually ran into you here!"

It turned out that he was a classmate of the Imperial College, named Ma Long, and a large group of his friends—including two Mongolian nobles—heard that the Juma River had a beautiful scenery, so they went to visit.Duanning greeted them warmly, and then said that he would introduce a few Mongolian friends they had just met, but when he turned around, he found that Lan Heli and his party had disappeared.

Ma Long frowned: "Who are these people? Why did they leave without saying hello?" Duan Ning said, "I don't know either. He said they seem to be from the Bahrain Department."

A Mongolian nobleman next to him said: "I am from the Bahrain department, but I have never seen him, don't be a fake?" The other also followed suit.

When Shuning and Tongying heard these words in the car, they couldn't help laughing.After Duan Ning finally said goodbye to these people, they set foot on the road back to Beijing again. After a quarter of an hour, they caught up with Zhang Bao and Tong's chariot and horses again.

A group of people entered the capital, went straight to Zhengyang Gate, and stopped at the side of the road.Shuning and Suxin got out of the car and got into Tong's car.Only then did Tongying bid farewell to them, and drove the carriage in person towards the clan mansion.

(It's a very long chapter...so it's late, sorry...guest-starring Blue Fox and Sesame Paste and Ma Long's book friends, please take the lead...)
(End of this chapter)