Peasant Girl Bookseller

Chapter 235
Mai Xiang was a little surprised to see these two teenagers. She hadn't seen them for two years, and she didn't expect them to come to see her.

"Adis, Abida, why are you two here?"

"Sister Mai Xiang?" Abida was younger after all, and felt very close to Mai Xiang, so he jumped over in a few steps.

"It's not bad, remember me." Mai Xiang looked at Abida who was still a little baby fat, and thought of the little boy who used to chase after him for novelty toys.

"Of course I still remember Sister Mai Xiang, but Sister Mai Xiang has forgotten me a long time ago, and hasn't come to see us for many years." The little thing acted like a baby to Mai Xiang.

"My sister doesn't know how to do novel things now, so my sister is naturally embarrassed to come to the door, but I have been to your elder sister's house a lot, why didn't I see you?"

"Mai Xiang, my Mama sent our two brothers to visit you today, saying that after my elder sister got married, you never visited her old man again. Do you still remember the promise you made with her old man?" Addis Said beside.

"Of course I remember, when our cherries are ripe, I will deliver the first batch of fruits to the old lady myself." Mai Xiang laughed.

"I still haven't forgotten. It seems that Miss Mai Xiang is really a person who keeps her promise. Mama said that she still remembers you."

"Thank you, old lady, for remembering. After the two brothers go back, please convey Mai Xiang's greetings, saying that Mai Xiang is not only a nostalgic person, but also a person who will keep promises. When our cherries are ripe, Mai Xiang I will definitely send it to the old man myself.”

Mai Xiang must have understood what she meant, she was determined not to tell about the portrait of Ziguangge.

"Okay, I will definitely pass it on."

"Sister, why don't you let the guests in for a cup of tea?" Huai Ci also came over, seeing Mai Xiang standing in the snow talking with the guests, he was a bit puzzled.

"Look at me, I'm happy to see guests patronizing, please sit in the room." Mai Xiang laughed hurriedly, really being rude.

"You are sister Mai Xiang's elder brother, why do I think you look familiar?" Abida asked with his head raised.

"You, you are the one I met in Liulichang..." Adis also thought of Huai Ci, Huai Ci's face was comparable to a woman's, it was hard to ignore, besides, that time, Mai Xiang's behavior was quite abnormal , so Adis remembered the man who sold New Year pictures in Liulichang.

Seeing that Adis didn't finish his sentence, Mai Xiang was saving some face for Huaici, but she was still worried that Huaici would be a little uncomfortable, so she hurriedly glanced at him.

"It's me. I didn't expect this little brother to have such a good memory. But Miss Mai Xiang is my unmarried wife, not my sister." After Huaici finished speaking, she gave Mai Xiang a reassuring smile.

Seeing that he didn't take it seriously, Mai Xiang openly confessed the past, and felt quite comforted in her heart.In the past two years, Mai Xiang can feel that he is changing himself little by little, becoming more and more confident, strong, tolerant, and decisive. This kind of change is welcome to Mai Xiang

"Brother, these two are sister Amuxin's younger brother, let's get to know each other." Mai Xiang pulled Huai Ci and introduced.

Addis was regretting his recklessness, but Huaici was indifferent as if nothing happened, so he also smiled and said: "In this case, I seem to call you brother-in-law, because I am a few months older than Miss Maixiang .”

"Huh?" Huai Ci looked at Mai Xiang, when did he have another brother?
"That doesn't count, it's only been two months." It's a big loss for Mai Xiang to recognize A Muxin as her sister. She is five or six years older than A Mu Xin in mental age, and she didn't expect another kid to take advantage.

"Go in and have a cup of hot tea." Mai Xiang said as she led her up to the room and changed the subject.

"Miss Mai Xiang, I am the white mother next to the old lady. The old woman has met Miss Mai Xiang twice in the scholar's mansion. I wonder if she still remembers the old lady?" The person who was talking to Mrs. Zhao turned around and walked away with a smile. Go to Mai Xiang.

"Yes, hello Baimao." Mai Xiang saw that the other party was familiar.

"Okay, hello girl, girl is still so good at talking, of course, she is more capable, and she has settled down in the capital so quickly, our old lady has praised her a lot."

Mai Xiang smiled.

After the guests and hosts sat down, Addis and Huaici were talking about studying together, Abida was impatient to listen, he wandered around the room, wanting to see if there was anything new, Mrs. Zhao accompanied Mother Bai, Mai Xiang went to check out the gifts for Zhang Jia's family and the red envelopes for Nanny Bai.

"Sister Mai Xiang, did you paint these porcelains yourself?" Abida asked looking at the plates on the bogu shelf.

These plates are a set of twelve cartoon zodiac blessing plates hand-painted by Mai Xiang herself. Only twelve sets were made in total, one set each for Mai Xiang, A Mu Xin, and Ula Duomin, and the other two sets were sent to the palace. The next few sets were sold at a high price.

"You like it too?"

"I like it. I saw it at my sister's house. I guessed it was you who painted it. My sister still doesn't want to admit it."

"Well, if you like it, my sister will give you two drinking cups." After Mai Xiang finished speaking, she found two water cups from the cabinet under the antique shelf, and they were also bone china cups with cartoon patterns. Also made some small changes, some modern.

"Thank you very much." Abida accepted it with a smile.

"Missing your good things again." Addis smiled a little embarrassedly.

"Still seeing me?" Mai Xiang still remembered that she exchanged a few paintings for the jade pendants of the two boys.At that time, instead of looking down on Mai Xiang's poverty, they silently extended a helping hand to Mai Xiang, which moved Mai Xiang very much.

"Sister Mai Xiang, I haven't heard you tell a story for a long time." Abida rubbed up to Mai Xiang with a water glass.

"Where can I tell any stories? By the way, isn't there a collection of stories like that out there? Why don't you read that?"

"There are very few books of that kind, and Dad won't let us read them either."

"is it?"

Abida's words reminded Mai Xiang, is she thinking about publishing a children's book for her first book?Or a little book?This can't have any anti-Qing intentions, can it?
Thinking of this, Mai Xiang searched in her mind, what are children's books?

After Adis and Abida left, Mai Xiang was still struggling with this matter.

"Mai Xiang, you can try the little book you mentioned, but it takes a lot of time and energy to draw these things. I don't want you to be too tired. Why don't we hire a painter and a sculptor ourselves? Books with pictures can only be engraved and printed." Huai Ci said.

"Okay, I didn't plan to do it myself at first. But for the first book, I want to draw by myself, and I promise to only draw one book. It happens to be the first lunar month when I have nothing to do, and I can't do needlework, so I just draw."

Huai Ci thought about it for a while, and said, "Okay, I'll help you, and I can also change my mind."

"Then what advice do you have? What are the short stories you read when you were young?"

"Me? I was imprisoned in that small courtyard for several years when I was young. At that time, I couldn't read and held a picture book all day long. It was almost torn apart. Guess what it is?"

"The Three Character Classic?" Mai Xiang thought for a while and asked.

Huaici shook his head, smiled wryly, and said, "It's "Biography of Women" that my mother read."

"Your mother can read?" Mai Xiang was very surprised.

"My father taught my mother to read some characters. I guess my father gave it to my mother. My mother didn't want to throw it away. She always carried it with me. I can recite the stories in it backwards. Mai Xiang, do you know? ?After my mother left, for a long time, I had nothing to do, and I also took a branch to learn to draw on the ground. We are very similar in this respect, except that you draw pigs, and I draw those pictures of ladies. "

"Pfft." Mai Xiang laughed and said, "You compare the two, it's really a beauty."

"I think the pigs my sister draws are prettier than the beauties."

"Brother, is this comforting me?" Mai Xiang cast a glaring glance at the other party.

"By the way, sister, let's get down to business. You mentioned the "Three Character Classic" just now. How about drawing each and every little story in the "Three Character Classic" into pictures, accompanied by some simple text descriptions. Someone should buy such a book. Children's enlightenment can be used." Huaici also said with a smile.

"Big girl, can this fur make me a fur robe as well?" Mrs. Zhao came out of the inner room with an ermine skin, followed by Mai Huang and the others.

"Sister, tell mother, I've been persuading her for a long time." Mai Huang gave the gift slip in his hand to Mai Xiang, angrily.

"what happened?"

Mai Xiang took the gift list and looked at it. The New Year gift from Zhang Jia's family this time was rich enough. In addition to clothing, dried fruits, snacks, meat, fish, etc., there were also some animal furs. In addition, there was a pair of enamel from the Yongzheng period. Colorful plum bottle.

"Did Zhang Jia's family give you New Year's gifts in previous years?" Huai Ci asked suddenly, looking at the gift list in Mai Xiang's hand.

"I haven't delivered it in the past two years, but I have delivered it before."

Mai Xiang also knows that this time Zhang Jia's family is giving Mai Xiang a sweet date, one is thinking that Mai Xiang's dream is about to come true, and the other is a guard for buying Mai Xiang.

When Mai Xiang was about to ask Mai Huang why she was angry, Ye Dafu and Liu Shi came in.

"Are there any guests?" Ye Dafu looked at the things on the kang and asked.

He just took the Lius out for a stroll, because Liu was going to buy a big-haired gown for Jiufeng, and she didn't know what kind of animal leather was good, so she pulled Ye Dafu out, because Ye Dafu was once a hunter.

"Amusing Gege's natal family." Mai Xiang said.

"Hey, isn't this the leather we just saw? Call, what is it called ermine skin? It's really nice, but it's too expensive. Who is so willing to give you this?" Mrs. Liu touched the ermine skin on the kang. asked.

Since Mai Xiang and Liu's quarrel broke up that time, this is the first time that Liu took the initiative to talk to Mai Xiang.

"Nurse, this is from Ge Ge's family who was close to me before." Mai Xiang didn't want to make things difficult for Ye Dafu.

"Mai Xiang, you have a mink fur, give me the ermine one." Jiufeng opened his mouth and came.

"Why? I was telling my daughter that I haven't worn such a nice coat yet." Mrs. Zhao was not happy.

The last time the Wan family had a treat, Mrs. Wan wore some kind of ermine jacket, which made Mrs. Zhao very upset.

(End of this chapter)