Ever since the last beating from the housekeeper, Uncle De, Shen Ling's life in the Shen family has been getting worse day by day.
Not to mention Shen Huan, who acted like a monster every now and then, and Zhou, who was too scheming, but the flattery from the servants became more and more serious. Not only did he have to do all the hard work, he even had to eat dinner. I got a bowl of gruel, which was not enough to fill my stomach.
Every day, in addition to chopping firewood, he also had to starch and wash clothes. This not only taxed his body, but also tried to break his spirit.
Yes, after all, Shen Ling also studied seriously with the master for several years. He was originally going to take the boy examination, but now he was driven to do things that only women do.
This is probably another vicious trick that only Zhou's wet nurse, Lin, could come up with.
Now he chops wood in the morning and does laundry in the afternoon, so he never has any free time.
Lunch? Of course don't think about it. Mrs. Lin has already said before that don't hang around at home if you have nothing to do, so as not to upset the mistress.
Fortunately, the Shen family prided themselves on being a scholarly family, so they wanted to save some face and didn't let him go in the morning when the women in the village were doing laundry. Otherwise, if someone saw the Shen family treating their son harshly, I don't know what the spread would be like.
Shen Ling hasn't had a serious meal for several days.
When he woke up this morning, his hands were shaking. He went to the kitchen to serve breakfast, but the kitchen helper kicked him out. In the end, the stove couldn't stand it and made him a bowl of thin porridge and water.
"Young Master, please just drink a little. You don't want others to see you again."
Shen Ling was a bit arrogant at heart. He thanked Zaotou, but even though he drank the bowl of porridge and water, he made up his mind that he would never come to ask for it again.
He carried the firewood basket on his back, walked out from the back door of Shen's house, and headed towards the back mountain.
Zhuang Keqing was too excited yesterday and slept late, so it was too late to leave the stall today. Before she was ready, there were already one or two people buying tofu waiting at the door of the courtyard.
With a smile, she greeted the waiting villagers to wait a moment, and then she and her mother-in-law moved out.
Shen Ling looked at the tofu stall from a distance, and without knowing what to think, he actually headed in that direction.
After lowering his head to collect the firewood given by the previous villager, Zhuang Keqing looked up and saw a rather familiar man standing in front of his stall without speaking.
"How many pieces of tofu do you want?" She didn't recognize Shen Ling yet.
Although he was allowed to come to his stall at any time that day, he only had a quick glance at his appearance. Moreover, Zhuang Keqing had been so busy lately that his mind was full of tinkering with new things, and he had long forgotten about rescuing people that day. It's almost the same, let alone this stranger whom I've met for less than half a quarter of an hour?
"One piece, but do you allow me to exchange it for fruits from the mountain later?" Shen Ling did not explain, only spoke softly.
"Of course! I'll cut it for you." Zhuang Keqing put away the knife, cut a large piece, filled it with lotus leaves, and handed it to the other party.
She had already noticed the young man in front of her. Although at first glance, his clothes were neat and fresh, but upon closer inspection, she found that the material was worn thin at the cuffs and elbows and was about to be torn. Moreover, the boy's cheeks were thin and his lips were thin. The color was light, and the clothes that were supposed to fit were hanging on the body. The whole person looked bloodless, and he looked like he was malnourished.
He once again wanted to exchange wild fruits from the mountains. It seemed that he was afraid that the situation at home was not good.
We are from the same village, so I can help if I can. Even if this person doesn't send fruit later, it won't be a big deal.
Shen Ling took the tofu, said a few words, then bent down and saluted Zhuang Keqing.
"Nothing, just take it and eat it. This tofu is already cooked, but it tastes better with sauce." He said something casually to cover up his embarrassment. Zhuang Keqing smiled and pretended to be busy again. Talk no more.
Shen Ling knew what was going on, so he picked up his things and left without any intention of staying to talk.
After he was far away, Zhuang Keqing felt strange.
This person looks familiar, but I can't remember where I've seen him before. Where is he?
She dug deep into her memory, but couldn't recall anything.
On the other hand, my own tofu stall has been visited again.
"Have a piece of tofu."
"okay."
Zhuang Keqing responded, but when she looked up, it was Wang San!
Is this guy already healed?
She was slightly surprised.
Frowning, he glanced at Wang San, who was standing in front of the tofu stall, and saw that the other person actually had the nerve to give him a rather provocative smile. Zhuang Keqing immediately threw away the shovel for cutting tofu without being surprised.
Wang San was injured that day and lay in bed for several days. He felt that he was living a comfortable life with food to eat and clothes to put out his hands. He wanted to stay lazy for a few more days. But last night, his mother came back to meet him. He said, the dealer's girl went to town again, and this time she saw three baskets of goods on the cart, but they were all empty when she came back. I'm afraid she made a lot of money on this trip!
She advised her son to act quickly. People in this village are very smart, and there are many children at home. If they don't seize the opportunity, they may not even be able to eat hot food.
Wang San immediately decided to go the next day. With his appearance and the well-off family background of the Wang family, he was not afraid that the girl would not fall in love with her.
That's why this scene happened now.
Zhuang Keqing remembered how scoundrel and disgusting this guy was, but Wang San didn't even remember who the girl he was teasing that day was.
When he saw this tofu seller with slim shoulders, black hair and pink cheeks, and a pair of dark and lively eyes, he was even more eager to move, and vowed to use all his strength to capture her.
"What? But I have never seen my brother with such good looks?" Wang San raised his chin slightly and spoke in a glib tone, which almost disgusted Zhuang Keqing to death.
But when she saw the way the other person was spraying oil on her like crazy, she understood in her heart.
This guy doesn't remember himself at all.
I was originally worried that Aunt Wang would come to my house to cause trouble, but now I can put away my worries.
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but raise the corners of her mouth and reveal a light smile.
Wang San thought that he was extremely charming and had made this girl fall in love, and he felt even more proud.
Seeing Zhuang Keqing's delay in cutting the tofu, he became bold and reached out to touch the girl's hand, leading her to cut it.
"what are you up to!"
Qin Manzhi had just been busy mixing bean dregs with rice bran and chicken food, so she didn't come out for a while. Now that she was done, as soon as she left the house, she saw the scoundrel from the Wang family stretched out his dirty hand, and was about to touch his daughter's hand.
Li Guihua's words suddenly appeared in her mind, and she yelled angrily, which frightened Wang San to a halt.
Zhuang Keqing didn't intend to let Wang San take advantage just now, but she didn't expect to be bumped into by her mother.
But Qin Manzhi, who had always been soft-spoken and had no opinion or temper, was so angry that he grabbed a broom from the yard and rushed towards Wang San with it.
