Chapter 237: Remember to Eat, Not to Be Punished
The dragon boat race ended and the crowd on the river bank gradually dispersed.
As the sky darkened, bamboo poles were erected on the streets. The employees of restaurants and shops that were going to hold lantern riddle activities hung up the lanterns they had prepared.
As soon as it gets dark, they will all be lit up.
In the narrow alley, the wailing of men could be heard from time to time.
Passersby looked curiously, but their view was blocked by four children standing at the entrance of the alley.
The two youngest ones actually have exactly the same face, with round little cheeks, and look as cute as the dolls in New Year pictures.
The other two were slightly older, one stood at the entrance of the alley as still as a mountain, while the other turned back from time to time to glance at the alley where the screams came from, making clicking sounds, gloating over the other's misfortune.
Seeing passers-by stop out of curiosity, the little girl who looked like a New Year picture put her hands on her hips, tilted her head, and asked with wide eyes: "What are you looking at? Don't you need to go home for dinner?"
Hey, still an awesome one.
The passers-by wanted to take a closer look at the little girl. The oldest one stood up and stared at them warily.
The boy looked to be about ten years old, but his pair of dark eyes were more ferocious than those of the wolves in the mountains.
Passersby were startled by his glare and had to disperse.
After about half an incense stick of time, the wailing inside finally stopped.
Qin Yao walked out of the dim alley, shaking her wrists and shoulders, feeling refreshed.
Behind her, there was a staggering figure, making a hissing sound with every step he took. It was Liu Ji who had just been beaten up.
"Mother!"
When Sanlang and Si Niang saw A Niang coming out, they immediately surrounded her and asked her if she was hungry. They didn't even bother to glance at their biological father who was following behind her.
Qin Yao touched the twins' heads, patted her chest for the warm money Miss He had just given her, and waved her hand, "Let's go and have something delicious!"
"Da Lang and Er Lang, hold him up." Qin Yao nodded her chin behind her, and after receiving a response from Da Lang and Er Lang that she knew, she walked in front, holding the twins' hands.
The two brothers watched their stepmother leave with their younger siblings, then turned around to look at Liu Ji, who was leaning against the wall with lifeless eyes looking up at the sky.
"Dad, are you okay?"
Dalang walked forward and found that his father's face was still as handsome as usual. In fact, due to the intense exercise, the corners of his eyes were flushed, which made him even more charming.
He didn't get hit in the face, it seems Aunt Yao wasn't too gentle.
However, just as he reached out to hold Liu Ji's arm, Liu Ji screamed.
Dalang was startled and lifted up his father's sleeve to check. He found that there was no bruise at all. He asked suspiciously, "Dad, what's your name?" There was no injury at all.
Liu Ji took a deep breath and rolled his eyes at his two sons, "Don't touch me!"
Seeing that Qin Yao and her son were about to leave, he staggered away, "Let's go, if it's any later, we won't get any dinner!"
Dalang and Erlang looked at each other and wanted to ask him if he needed help, but seeing that the other person was walking very well, they swallowed the words. There was no need to make themselves look bad.
Liu Ji looked intact from head to toe. Erlang followed behind him, scratching his head as he looked at his father. "Brother, did father get beaten?"
He clearly heard a scream just now, it was so creepy that he covered his ears in fear, and secretly thanked God that his mother never beat children, otherwise he would have suffered.
Dalang touched his chin and analyzed, "It should be an internal injury. It can't be seen from the outside, but it hurts when the bone seams are touched. This kind of technique requires a master level, and ordinary people can't do it. But for our Aunt Yao, it's a piece of cake."
"Ah?" Erlang shook his head at his father's back, "What about the scientific examination in the next few days?"
How can you write with such an injury?
Dalang smiled at his brother, "You don't understand this. By the time of the exam, it will be well. It won't be delayed. Aunt Yao knows it well."
"What are you mumbling about?"
The two brothers were chatting when someone shouted in anger, urging them to come over and help him.
Ji Lang: "Dad, didn't you just tell us not to touch you?"
Liu Ji took a deep breath to avoid being suffocated by this disobedient and unfilial son, and gritted his teeth and said,
"You should do whatever the adults tell you to do. Why are you such a talkative kid? Come here!"
Dalang and Erlang shrugged their shoulders, each of them put their arms lightly on one side, and supported their father, who seemed to be fine but was actually half-crippled, to chase after their stepmother and younger brothers and sisters.
After the dragon boat race, Liu Li and Da Zhuang returned to the inn first. They would not participate in the lantern riddle guessing activity in the evening.
It's not that I'm not curious, but I've exhausted all my energy from watching the dragon boat race during the day and I can't go on any longer.
Qin Yao smiled and expressed her understanding, and the two families separated.
As soon as they separated, his smile disappeared instantly. He grabbed Liu Ji, who was trying to run, and took him into a dark alley and beat him up.
By the way, force him to tell you how much silver he had deposited with the White Flag.
How could Liu Ji dare to hide anything? He confessed everything, including the money for last night's dinner and this morning's dishes, the remaining four cents and his own six hundred coins of private savings, a total of one or two taels, all of which were pledged.
Qin Yao felt a pain on her face when she heard that. Yesterday she told Erlang that she wanted to fly a kite, but today Liu Ji gave her a "surprise" and she kicked him again.
Then his brain started racing. He realized that he had earned two taels today, and after deducting one tael, he still earned one tael.
In addition, Liu Ji also got a piece of calligraphy from Qi Xianguan, which he sold to a wealthy businessman on the spot in exchange for five taels of silver, making a total of six taels of silver, which is why he was not beaten to death on the spot.
"If you embezzle public funds without telling me again, I will chop off your hands!" Qin Yao warned.
Liu Ji squatted on the ground with his head in his hands, and promised with tears in his eyes that he would never dare to do it again.
But she didn't say that you can't hide your own money, so you should be able to hide some secretly?
A family of six came to a goose meat noodle stall to eat.
Liu Ji didn't dare to say a word and silently helped to serve the noodles and add ingredients. His cautious look made Qin Yao frown.
"Just eat yours, I don't need anyone to serve me." Qin Yao said with disdain.
"Hey." Liu Ji tried hard to force a smile, squatted in the corner with the noodles in his hand to eat. His heart, which had been gradually rising in the past few days, now fell to the bottom again and he dared not act rashly anymore.
But how could Qin Yao not know him?
This man only remembered food and not beatings.
But now it seems that he is sensible and didn't say anything.
After finishing a delicious meal of goose meat noodles, the atmosphere between the couple eased somewhat.
All the lanterns were lit, and the shops around the river were hung with colorful lanterns. Hanging from those lanterns were small bamboo tubes containing riddles.
At the entrance of the store, there are gifts displayed, including rouge, powder, jewelry and toys, which are dazzling to look at.
The lanterns are not free. Small ones cost ten cents each, while large ones range from twenty to fifty cents.
There is also a super luxurious one, which costs ten taels of silver. It involves ten riddles in a row, and as long as you get six or more correct answers, you can choose a prize.
The prizes over there are quite impressive, including jade ornaments, ceramic vases, glass lamps, as well as gold hairpins and silver ornaments, all of which are exquisitely crafted.
(End of this chapter)