When the pears are green

Chapter 256: Childhood Friends

As the night deepened, Song Li, who couldn't open her eyes, pushed Jiang Qingzhou, who kept turning over, and asked with a yawn, "Qingzhou, what happened that made you toss and turn and unable to sleep at night?"

Jiang Qingzhou stopped turning over and answered while lying on his back: "I think Miss Su looks familiar, especially the mole at the corner of her eye. I feel like I've seen it somewhere."

Song Li perked up after hearing this, and the sleepiness was instantly driven away.

Song Li, who was sober, groped and held Jiang Qingzhou's hand and said, "Qingzhou, there are so many people in the world, there will always be a few who look alike. While eating, I saw calluses on the base of Mianmian's right hand and the second link of her index finger. I have only seen this kind of callus on Chen Yuan's hand. Mianmian may have practiced martial arts since she was a child. I heard from Ruyi and Chen Yuan before that the Su family passed down their family traditions through literature and did not practice martial arts. Mianmian may not be an orphan brought back to Bianzhou by her cousin."

"Who could that be Miss Su?" Jiang Qingzhou was extremely confused about Su Mian's identity.

Song Li moved closer to Jiang Qingzhou, and then expressed her guess: "There is a Su family mark on the carriage that Qingye and Mianmian are riding in, which means that Mianmian is indeed related to the Su family, but she may not be a cousin with Lingyi's uncle."

"What kind of relationship could that be? It can't be that kind of relationship. No, I must find Qingye and ask him clearly tomorrow." Jiang Qingzhou's mind was full of ideas, and he was thinking about how to start the conversation tomorrow in order to minimize the harm to Jiang Qingye.

Song Li laughed out loud, hugged Jiang Qingzhou's neck and asked softly: "Qingzhou, how did you think of that? What I mean is that Mianmian may not be related to the Su family, but may be related to the Chen family. You and I should stop guessing. Since they don't want to say, let's just pretend we don't know. Qingye is a child who knows right from wrong and will definitely not bring trouble home. Everyone has their own reasons. Go to bed quickly. You will be busy these days."

Jiang Qingzhou patted Song Li's back gently without saying anything. He gradually fell asleep while smelling the fragrance of soapberries on Song Li's hair.

Song Li listened to Jiang Qingzhou's steady breathing, gently removed her hand from her waist, and turned around to feel if Jiang Yao had kicked the quilt.

Jiang Qingye and Su Mian, who were used to getting up early, ran around the yard in the cool morning air.

Su Mian ran while looking back and smiled triumphantly at Jiang Qingye who was lagging behind her.

"Mianmian, what are you laughing at?" Jiang Qingye caught up with Su Mian and asked.

Su Mian slowed down her pace, tilted her head to look at Jiang Qingye and replied, "I was laughing at the fact that a man like you can't run as fast as a little girl like me."

Jiang Qingye stretched out his arms and hooked them around Su Mian's waist, leaning down and asking quietly, "When did you want to be a little girl, Mian Mian? I remember that you wanted to be a thorough man before."

Su Mian gritted her teeth and stepped hard on Jiang Qingye, then ran into the main room to pack up the gifts she brought from Bianzhou.

Jiang Qingye limped after him, accusing Su Mian with a wronged look on his face: "Mian Mian is so cruel and heartless."

Su Mian turned around and gave Jiang Qingye a blank look, then picked up the gift on the table and turned to walk out.

Jiang Qingye had no choice but to quickly catch up, making faces to tease Su Mian and saying, "Mian Mian, it's all my fault. I promise I won't mention it again."

Su Mian turned her head to the side and couldn't help laughing softly.

Song Li's house and Jiang Qingye's house were side by side. Su Mian walked a few steps to the east and stopped in front of the gate of Song Li's house. He turned around and looked at Jiang Qingye who was following behind him.

Jiang Qingye hurried forward to open the door.

Jiang Qingzhou hurried over to open the door, and said to Jiang Qingye and Su Mian with a smile through the door, "Qingye, Miss Su, Huan'er and Yaoyao are talking about you. Come in and wash up, and you can eat soon."

"Brother, we have boiled water over there and have already washed up."

"Brother, you can call me Mianmian. Calling me Miss Su feels a bit strange."

Jiang Qingzhou opened the door and stood aside to respond: "Mianmian, your sister-in-law is in the main room, go find her."

Su Mian smiled and nodded at Jiang Qingzhou, then walked quickly towards the main room with the things in her arms.

Jiang Qingzhou grabbed Jiang Qingye's arm and asked Jiang Qingye to follow him to the kitchen.

"Brother, do you have anything to say?" Jiang Qingye sat at the dining table and asked Jiang Qingzhou, who was sitting in front of the stove with a frown on his face.

Jiang Qingzhou was very conflicted at this moment. After thinking for a while, he replied softly, "Qingye, when you're done, take Mianmian to visit your parents' graves."

Jiang Qingye nodded quickly and said that he had planned to do so and would stop by Zhang's house.

"You are so thoughtful. Your aunt loves you for what you have done." Jiang Qingzhou said, and asked Jiang Qingye to wake Jiang Huan up.

Jiang Qingzhou watched Jiang Qingye walk out of the kitchen and decided to keep his discovery secret in his heart. Just as Song Li said, as long as it was not a threat to his family, there was no need to expose other people's secrets.

When Jiang Qingye walked into the main room, Jiang Huan was sitting at the eight-immortals table with his hair loose, watching Su Mian combing Jiang Yao's hair.

Su Mian tied a thin orange silk ribbon around her small ponytail, and then took out a silver chain engraved with a butterfly as a pendant between her eyebrows.

Jiang Yao held up the bronze mirror and looked around, then jumped to Song Li's side and shook the eyebrow pendant for Song Li to see.

Song Li raised her hand and tapped Jiang Yao's forehead, smiling and saying, "It's really beautiful. Did Yaoyao thank you, auntie?"

Jiang Yao hurriedly said to Su Mian, who was picking up a wooden comb to comb Jiang Huan's hair, "Thank you, Auntie."

Su Mian turned around and responded with a smile: "Yaoyao, you're welcome."

Jiang Qingye walked to the eight-immortals table, picked up a red silk ribbon and handed it to Su Mian. Su Mian helped Jiang Huan to simply comb two buns.

Jiang Yao came over and leaned on Su Mian's legs and acted coquettishly. Su Mian smiled and picked up Jiang Yao, then turned around and took out two dove carts from the bag on the Eight Immortals Table and handed them to Jiang Yao and Jiang Huan respectively.

Su Mian pointed at the ring in front of the cart in Jiang Yao's hand and asked, "Sister-in-law, do you have a hemp rope that I can put through this small hole and play with?"

"Yes, I'll get it right away." After Song Li said that, she quickly stood up and went to the south wing to get the hemp rope.

Su Mian casually took out a wooden horse head and handed it to Jiang Qingye, saying, "Qingye, I saw some bamboo in front of the east wing. Let's go find a suitable one to make a bamboo horse."

Jiang Huan took the horse's head for Jiang Qingye. He first scratched Hua's eyes with his fingers, then stroked the horse's mane with his right thumb and followed Jiang Qingye out.

Song Li returned to the main room with two hemp ropes about five feet long. Seeing that Jiang Huan was not there, she took the cart from Jiang Yao's hand and began to thread the hemp ropes through the ring.

"Mianmian, what is the name of this little car?" Song Li asked, pointing the hemp rope at the ring.

Su Mian quickly replied with a smile: "Sister-in-law, this is called a Jiuche, and it is made of copper."

The hemp rope was relatively thin and easily passed through the ring.

After Song Li finished tying the knot, she carefully looked at the dove in her hand and asked, "Dove? Is this bird a turtledove?"

Su Mian nodded when she heard this, and then explained to Song Li: "Sister-in-law, I once heard my cousin say that when a dove raises its chicks, it raises them from the upper and lower parts in the morning and from the lower and upper parts in the evening, just the same. Secondly, jiu is pronounced the same as jiu and jiu, and the dove cart is very popular in Bianzhou."

Song Li understood and returned the cart to Jiang Yao.

Su Mian put Jiang Yao down, and Jiang Yao walked back and forth in the main room pulling the cart. The large wheels on both sides of the cart and the small wheels behind the long tail began to roll together.

Jiang Huan ran into the hall holding the bamboo horse in his right hand, handed the dove carriage in his left hand to Song Li and said, "Mom, help me put it on too."

Song Li took the cart, picked up the hemp rope on the Eight Immortals Table and started threading the ring.

Jiang Huan placed the horse head in front of Song Li and introduced it: "Mom, this is a gift from my aunt. If you put it on bamboo, it will become a bamboo horse."

Su Mian then explained to Song Li: "Sister-in-law, Du Yi of the Jin Dynasty once said: At the age of five, there is the joy of riding a dove carriage, and at the age of seven, there is the joy of playing with bamboo horses. When I was in Bianzhou, I heard Qingye say that Huan'er was six years old, so I thought of bringing these two gifts to Huan'er when I came back, so that Huan'er could experience the joy of riding a dove carriage and playing with bamboo horses."

"Thank you, Mianmian."

"Aunt is so nice."

Song Li and Jiang Huan thanked Su Mian at the same time. Su Mian waved his hands and said, "Sister-in-law and Huan'er are too polite. This is what we should do."

Jiang Yao approached Jiang Huan cautiously, trying to reach out and grab the horse's head on the bamboo pole.

Su Mian quickly picked up Jiang Yao and coaxed her softly, "Yaoyao, you are still young and can't play this. The bamboo pole is too long and it's easy to trip over it. I have brought a kite. Wait until the afternoon and let your uncle take you to fly a kite."

Jiang Yao was attracted by the pearl on Su Mian's forehead. She raised her little hand and kept touching the round pearl.

Song Li was afraid that Jiang Yao would not know the seriousness of the matter and thus break Su Mian's eyebrow pendant, so she wanted to take Jiang Yao back.

Su Mian smiled and told Song Li not to worry about it.

Song Li quietly pulled Jiang Huan's sleeve. After Jiang Huan hid his childhood sweetheart in his room, he started playing with the pigeon cart in the main room.

Jiang Yao was immediately attracted and let go of the hand holding Pearl, pulling the hemp rope to play with the dove cart.

After Su Mian put Jiang Yao down, Jiang Huan took Jiang Yao's little hand and went to the yard.

The "swish swish" sound of the wheels sliding across the ground and the "ahaha" of the children's laughter spread throughout the yard.