The small courtyard on Baiye Street has some leaks.
Sanniang was squatting in front of the stove, holding an umbrella to block the rain dripping from the roof, and carefully looking after the fire.
The rain has become heavier again, and the night wind outside the window is strong, making the old door open and close, making a clanking sound.
The rainwater was also stirred by the sudden night wind and poured into the narrow door.
Sanniang was caught off guard by the sudden wind and rain. She staggered and fell to the ground, her whole body was soaked.
But she had no time to take care of herself, so she stood up quickly and wanted to close the door - under the ravages of the strong wind and rain, the flame in the stove was somewhat extinguished.
There was rain in the house again, and the firewood piled aside had long been wet. If the fire went out, it would not be easy to start it again.
The wind and cold were getting worse for the children, there was heavy rain tonight, and there were some holes in several houses in the courtyard, so this night was destined to be difficult.
She thought about making some ginger soup for the children to drive away the cold.
However, the wind and rain outside were too strong. She spent a long time trying to close the door, but before she could fasten the bolt, the strong wind blew the door open again.
She was so busy that her head was covered in sweat, and the veil covering the hideous scars on her face was blown away by the strong wind at this moment, and she disappeared without a trace.
But she had no time to worry about it, and turned around to find that the oil-paper umbrella placed in front of the stove had been blown away by the wind, and the rainwater pouring from the holes in the roof was continuously falling on the stove and dripping into the fire along the gaps.
She became anxious and thought about going back to block the rain. She relaxed against the door and the wind outside suddenly rushed in. Her feet slipped and she was about to fall to the ground.
At this moment, the hand that had always been wet suddenly stretched out from outside the house, and when he grabbed it, Sanniang almost fell.
Sanniang was stunned and looked at that person.
But it was Zhang Xingzong, a branch of the Zhang family.
He walked into the house, closed the door, took off his raincoat, and then showed an apologetic smile to Sanniang: "I'm sorry, things were more troublesome than expected, so I came back a little late."
As he said this, he hurried to the stove and held up his umbrella to block the dripping rain.
Sanniang shook her head and stepped forward to wipe away the water stains on the stove. She then took out a porcelain bowl and poured out the almost cooked ginger soup from the casserole bowl by bowl.
"You've worked hard these days, girl. If you hadn't helped me take care of her, I really don't know what I would have done!" Zhang Xingzong looked at the wet woman and thanked her sincerely.
Recently, the dozen or so people in the clan who were lucky enough to survive were quarreling over the family's inheritance. Zhang Xingzong didn't care about the money, he just wanted to find a way out for these children.
Today, the clan has to discuss this matter again, and Zhang Xingzong has no choice but to get rid of Sanniang to help. Originally, he was supposed to come back at Youshi, but everyone in the clan has never been able to get a satisfactory result on the inheritance distribution plan, so
The dispute continues to this day.
"They are all children of a few years old. They lost their parents at such a young age. They look very pitiful. I just tried my best. Mr. Zhang, you don't have to be polite." Sanniang said with a smile, adding the ginger soup.
It was already filled, and someone took the food box and put it in one after another.
"The girl has a kind heart." Zhang Xingzong sighed sincerely after hearing this.
When the accident happened to the Zhang family, rumors were circulating in the streets and alleys of Wancheng that the Zhang family had done too many evil things and was being targeted by ghosts and gods. No matter how high the price Zhang Xingzong offered, no one was willing to take care of these children. Only Sanniang
After one person heard about this, he came forward without taking any money.
To be fair, Zhang Xingzong asked himself that there was probably no way he could be like Sanniang.
"There is no one who is kind-hearted. It's just that I have encountered difficult things and know how difficult it is, so when I see others doing this, I can't help but want to help." Sanniang smiled while counting the ginger soup.
He said.
Sanniang said, closed the food box, turned to look at Zhang Xingzong, and said: "Let's go, give this ginger soup to the children."
After Zhang Xingzong heard this, he stretched out his hand to stop Sanniang who was about to leave. Sanniang was stunned and looked at Zhang Xingzong with some doubts.
But Zhang Xingzong took out a handkerchief from his arms and handed it over.
Sanniang was stunned for a moment, but the next moment she reacted and quickly reached out to touch her cheek. Only then did she realize that the veil that covered her face had been blown away by the violent wind and rain.
She was a little flustered, so she quickly took the handkerchief and put it on her face.
Zhang Xingzong looked at her like this and wanted to ask what happened to her, but he swallowed the words back.
Sanniang's eyebrows were as charming as autumn water. Before taking off the veil, Zhang Xingzong once thought that there would be a gorgeous face under the veil.
Of course, this is indeed the case.
The only difference is that there are two scars running through the entire cheek on that beautiful face.
With such a face and such scars, you can probably guess a lot if you think about it carefully.
It may not necessarily be right, but it can feel real pain.
For ordinary people like them, who have no ability to shield others from the wind and rain, the greatest kindness they can do is not to touch the scars that others don't want to mention.
…
The rain is still heavy.
In other words, it is getting bigger and bigger.
Holding umbrellas, the two walked through the small courtyard in the pouring rain and arrived in front of the main house.
Opening the door, there were about a dozen children sleeping on the prepared floor in the room. Some of the young and naive children were still playing, while the older ones were sitting aside and were even frightened when they heard the sound of the door opening.
He jumped, the fear still lingering on his face.
The Zhang family's compound was temporarily taken over by the county magistrate because the case had not yet been solved. Zhang Xingzong went to ask several times, but the replies were mostly vague. The county magistrate seemed to have no intention of returning it in a short time.
Several tribesmen are busy arguing about the ownership of the inheritance. Many properties of the Zhang family are now idle, but no one is willing to let others occupy them until the ownership is clearly defined. Zhang Xingzong also spent a lot of effort to get such a yard, but it is just too idle.
After a long time, there was no time to repair it. In the whole courtyard, only the main house and a wing room on the side were still intact.
That place was left to two women who had survived but were so traumatized that they could hardly take care of themselves. The children could only crowd in this place.
"Let's drink some ginger soup. After drinking it, you won't feel cold anymore when you sleep." Sanniang looked at the children and felt a little distressed, but she still cheered up and said softly.
As he spoke, he squatted down, took out the ginger soup from the food box, and distributed it to the children.
"Mom!" At this time, a childish voice came.
Sanniang lowered her head and saw a five-year-old girl actually reaching out to grab the corner of her clothes and looking at her pitifully.
"Yueyue." Sanniang had a smile on her face, took out the ginger soup from the food box, squatted down, reached out to scoop it up with a spoon, and put it to her mouth.
The ginger soup was actually not very tasty and had a spicy taste, but the girl named Yueyue still frowned and drank it in one gulp.
"Mom, Yueyue, drink it up obediently. How about you stay here tonight? Yueyue is afraid of being alone." She took Sanniang's hand and said with a bit of pleading.
The girl's name is Zhang Yue.
She is Zhang Houren's biological daughter and Zhang Quan's biological sister.
Probably because he was frightened, for some reason he has always regarded Sanniang as his mother since he met her.
As she said this, her eyes turned a little red, and her dark eyes were filled with crystal clear things.
"Yueyue, Sister Sanniang has something to do at night. Don't pester her. Your brother and sister will accompany you at night..." Zhang Xingzong on the side tried to help Sanniang out of the siege.
After all, he has already been in a lot of trouble these days, and it is really not good to drag him down anymore.
But how could a five-year-old child understand this? When he heard these words, he burst into tears with a cry, tears dripping down his cheeks, and his cheeks turned red.
"I don't want my mother to leave, I don't want my mother to leave."
"I will be obedient and eat whatever Mom tells me to eat. Mom, can you stay here..." The child's voice was childish, and he tried his best to persuade Sanniang to stay.
Sanniang's eyes were a little red for a while. She reached out and touched Zhang Yue's head and whispered: "Okay, okay, be obedient and I'll stay with you tonight."
The children around him suddenly became happy when they heard this. They all held the ginger soup that was easy to swallow, frowned and drank it in several sips.
…
"It's troublesome girl again."
Zhang Xingzong looked helpless at this scene, and said a little apologetically.
Sanniang shook her head and said: "It's raining so hard, it's not convenient for me to go back, so I just took shelter from the rain."
Of course Zhang Xingzong knew that the other party was trying to comfort him, and he added: "It will be fine in a while. My wife agreed yesterday to take these children back."
"She is actually a very kind-hearted person. She just has some grudges against what the host family did to us back then. After visiting the children that day, her heart softened..."
"But our small yard is too crowded. These days she is looking for a suitable yard in the city. We have saved some money over the years, enough to buy a larger one. She said that the children were frightened and arrived at the new home.
Only when you are beautiful and clean can you wash away the old and welcome the new.”
When Sanniang heard this, she also showed joy on her face. After all, she couldn't stay in Wancheng forever. In fact, if it weren't for Zhang Quan's incident, she would have left here and returned to Goshawk Village. After hearing that the children have a home, her
My anxious mind was relieved a lot.
"Mr. Zhang and Mrs. Zhang are both kind-hearted people. I am very relieved that the children can follow you. I have helped Zhaozhao tell them that when the time comes, the Chu family will offer a high price for the property that Mr. Zhang wants to sell.
." Sanniang said again.
Except for those women, Zhang Xingzong is the closest to the main family among the living collaterals. Logically speaking, he can get enough property, but in order to allow these children to follow him, Zhang Xingzong gave up his family.
Among the many inheritances, there are only a few small courtyards and a pharmacy next to the downtown area.
In the former, he can sell part of it as the cost of raising the children, and keep the remaining part. When the children grow up, they can all share one place with each other. They can also rent it out for daily expenses. As for the drug store, it is somewhat
Selfishly, I want to move my shop there in the future. If the business is better, I can make more money and give my children a better life.
"Thank you Miss Sanniang, you really helped us a lot." Zhang Xingzong thanked him sincerely.
Sanniang hurriedly said: "This is just a small effort from me. If I want to thank you, I have to thank Zhaozhao and Mr. Chu for their kindness. When they heard about this, they agreed without even thinking about it."
"They are all good people, they are all good people." Zhang Xingzong sighed in a low voice.
The Zhang family and the Chu family have been fighting in Wancheng for most of their lives. After the Chu family gained power, they bullied them, but with the help of Chu Qingxiao, they quickly restrained themselves. After the Zhang family's accident, it was Chu Qingxiao who also helped prevent the Chu family from taking advantage of the situation.
To deceive people, various industries are also waiting for the Zhang family's affairs to be settled before discussing the sale price.
I can't say how kind the Chu family is to the Zhang family, but at least they are fair.
Being able to maintain this justice when the Zhang family is in such embarrassment is already rare in this world.
He sighed like this.
"Not really a good person." Sanniang smiled, looked up at the rain outside the window, and murmured.
"I just got caught in the rain once. When I got caught in the rain, I thought that if someone could hold an umbrella for me at that time, I would be able to walk out no matter how heavy the rain was."
"It's a pity that we didn't wait until after all."
"But now I can't bear to see people getting wet in the rain. I don't have the ability to hold an umbrella for these children all the time, so I just walk with them for a while."
Zhang Xingzong was filled with emotion when he heard this and was about to say something.
Bang!
The door of the main house was suddenly blown open by a sudden strong wind outside, and the wind and rain poured in. The candlelight in the house flickered, and there was a burst of light and darkness.
The children in the room were startled by this scene and screamed. Some of the younger ones even burst into tears.
Seeing this, Sanniang quickly hugged the children and whispered comfort.
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, uncle will go and fix the door right now!" Zhang Xingzong also said quickly, picked up the oil paper umbrella brought by Sanniang and walked quickly to the door, holding the wooden door with one hand and using the umbrella to block the outside of the house.
The incoming wind and rain want to close the door.
But the wind was so strong that Zhang Xingzong couldn't pull it up even though he tried all his strength. On the contrary, his body was blown so much that he became unstable.
He was a little impatient, so he used an umbrella to protect himself from the wind and rain, and walked out of the door, trying to change his position and use his strength to close the door.
But just as he walked out, he saw a figure standing under the rain curtain not far away, looking at him motionless.
"Who are you?" He looked at the other person in surprise and was about to say something.
boom!
Suddenly a thunder struck above the dome.
The sky and the earth were illuminated in an instant as if it were daytime, and with the light of that moment, Zhang Xingzong could clearly see the appearance of the person coming.
Boom.
His face suddenly turned pale, followed by a soft sound.
The oil-paper umbrella brought by Sanniang fell on the ground...