sbdcsierra Chapter 248 Susu
Chapter 248 Susu
one year later.
Tianshui Village.
A woman with pigtails, although she was wearing coarse linen clothes, it could not hide her beautiful face.
The woman was standing by the stream, with her sleeves rolled up, revealing a small section of her snow-white arms. She took out a gauze dress from the wooden basin with both hands and washed it slowly.
An aunt walked towards the stream from not far away, saw the woman rinsing, and called her with a smile.
"Susu. Are you here to do your mother's laundry?"
Su Su heard the call, raised her head, looked at the aunt, showed an innocent smile, gently wiped the water stains on her cheek with the back of her hand, and then nodded in response:
"Yeah." Seeing the wooden basin in Aunt Li's hand was filled with a lot of clothes, she immediately stood up and asked, "Why don't I help you wash them?"
Aunt Li smiled when she heard this, then said embarrassedly, "That won't work. Not only do you have to wash your mother's clothes by yourself, but you also have to help many left-behind elderly people in the village wash their clothes. You're already working hard enough. I can still wash this basin of clothes."
Aunt Li didn't want to cause trouble for Susu, so she simply didn't agree. Later, she squatted next to Susu and started putting down the wooden basin to wash clothes.
While Aunt Li was washing, she would occasionally turn her head to look at Susu, and sigh in her heart, this girl is really pretty, which girl in Tianshui Village can be so pretty.
Liu Mei really got a great deal. She actually found such a girl in Tianshui Forest a year ago.
Thinking of something, Aunt Li smiled and asked, "Susu, I heard that Sister Amei seems to want to find a husband for you. Do you need me to give you some advice?"
When Su Su heard this, her expression lightened slightly. After wringing out the water from the clothes in her hands, she replied, "Thank you for your kindness, Auntie. I don't have such thoughts now. I just want to be at my mother's side peacefully."
Aunt Li saw that Su Su was not very interested in this topic, so she stopped talking about it, but then changed the subject to other topics.
"Oh, I see. By the way, Susu, a while ago, I heard from the village chief that the imperial court seemed to have sent some important figures to inspect the area, and the town also gave the village chief a heads-up. Actually, this is a good thing, Susu. You are not from Tianshui Village. You are good-looking, and your temperament is the same as those daughters of officials. Auntie, if you have the chance, you might be able to meet the important figures. What if you can find your family?"
Su Su paused and lowered her eyes. In fact, she had lost all her memories since she woke up. She didn't remember who she was or where she came from. The only thing she remembered was that she had no relatives.
Even the name Liu Susu was given by her adoptive mother Liu Mei.
"Auntie, you're joking. How could I be a daughter of an official? Besides, you can't just meet important people whenever you want." Su Su knew that Aunt Li meant well, so she smiled and replied casually.
Aunt Li thought about it and said with a smile, "That's right. You can't just meet an important person whenever you want."
After Su Su finished washing the clothes, she said goodbye to Aunt Li, then left the stream and walked home.
Because the stream is a short distance away from the village, you need to cross a small hill.
She walked along the path, and just below the path was a slightly larger road.
A carriage that looked elegant and gorgeous passed by on the road.
Susu stopped for a moment, looked at the carriage, and then the curtain of the carriage was lifted by a breeze.
Through the gap in the car curtain, she saw a handsome young man with extraordinary temperament.
However, after just a brief glance, Susu had a sense of déjà vu, but it was only for a moment. Soon she thought about having to go home quickly to cook for her mother, and put the matter behind her.
Shen Peiqing, who was sitting in the carriage, was dozing off just now. Suddenly, there was a slight jolt and he slowly opened his eyes.
With the breeze, he seemed to feel a gaze, but when he looked in that direction, he saw nothing.
His dark eyes grew darker as he withdrew his gaze. He reached out his slender hand and gently lifted the curtain. He looked at the coachman and asked, "General Xu, can we really find Wulian grass in Tianshui Village?"
General Xu turned to look at Shen Peiqing. Seeing that he had woken up, he replied respectfully, "According to the information provided by the leader of the Bai Tiao Sect, it should be correct. Your Majesty, please rest assured that once the Wulian Grass is found, the Seventh Princess will be fine. However, this matter can actually be left to me. Why do you have to go looking for it yourself?"
Shen Peiqing's expression was indifferent. He lowered the car curtain and said in a light voice, "Just call me Master Shen."
"Yes." General Xu corrected himself immediately.
"Xiao Qi, it's all my fault that she's like this now. She finally regained consciousness, but without the fog-linking grass, she can't see again. I have to find it myself. Also, after spending all day in a place like that, I seem to yearn for a more relaxing scene."
At first, Shen Peiqing thought that his sister Xiaoqi had been poisoned by Shen Fengyu, but he didn't expect that she was just imprisoned somewhere by Shen Fengyu and fell into a coma.
When he found her, it was two months after Shen Fengyu's death.
Now Xiaoqi has finally regained consciousness under Gu Yun's treatment, but he is blind.
He sighed lightly.
General Xu heard his Majesty sigh and assumed he was worried about the Seventh Princess, so he changed the subject, "Sir, I've heard that Tianshui Village is a picturesque fishing village nestled along the sea. It's said that every evening, you can witness the most beautiful sunsets. The entire sky is like a world ablaze."
Shen Peiqing was not very interested when he heard this: "Let's go and take a look when the time comes. Let's speed up the journey."
"Okay!" General Xu grinned, tightened his grip on the reins, and the horse ran faster.
When Su Su returned, she put down the wooden basin and hung the washed clothes on the wooden pole.
At this time, an old woman came out of the house. She was leaning on a cane. Seeing Su Su, she walked over and said, "Su Su. Are you back?"
When Su Su saw Liu Mei, she quickly hung up the last piece of clothing, wiped her body with her hands, and walked over to support Liu Mei.
"Mother, why don't you take a rest? Or are you hungry? I'll go cook."
Seeing Su Su about to go to the kitchen, Liu Mei quickly reached out and held her back. Seeing her puzzled expression, she said helplessly, "Oh, child, I'm not hungry. I actually want to tell you something."
Su Su listened, then helped Liu Mei over to the wooden chair, letting her sit on it, and then asked with a faint smile: "What's the matter?"
Liu Mei stared at Su Su for a long time and did not speak. She seemed to be struggling and hesitating.
And Susu just waited quietly, without any sign of impatience.
It is because of Su Su that Liu Mei really feels sorry for and pities this child. Although she is not her biological daughter, she is better than her own.
Liu Mei raised her hands, gently held Su Su's hands, and said earnestly: "My child. Mother wants to find a marriage for you. My child, then you should have a family too."
Su Su immediately understood what Liu Mei was going to say next. She was silent for a moment, then squatted down, raised her head and looked at Liu Mei, and said sadly: "Does my mother dislike me?"
When Liu Mei heard that Su Su had misunderstood, she became anxious and explained, "Oh, child, you misunderstood! How could mother dislike you? Mother loves you so much!"
Su Su looked at Liu Mei with a sad look: "Then why did A Niang drive me away? She forced me to start a family? But I already have a home. Wherever I am with A Niang, that is my home."
Looking at Su Su's eyes, Liu Mei felt even more sad, her eyes began to tremble, and her voice was a little choked.
"Silly child. I'm not trying to drive you away. I hope you'll have a husband who can accompany you for the rest of your life. My age doesn't allow me to stay with you for very long."
Su Su listened and felt uncomfortable. She rested her head on Liu Mei's legs and said dully:
"Mother, I don't want to leave you. Please don't chase me away, okay?"
Liu Mei lowered her head and looked at Su Su, who seemed to be somewhat resistant to this matter. She couldn't help but sigh and raised her hand to gently stroke her head.
"Since you don't want to, I can't force you to do it. I can't bear to do it either."
Su Su immediately raised her head, smiled gratefully and said, "I miss you so much, Mom."
Liu Mei was helpless and looked at her dotingly: "You. By the way, go to the village chief tomorrow and help him."
Su Su was slightly stunned: "What can I help you with? Is there something wrong?"
Liu Mei told Su Su about the request the village chief had made today: "The village chief came to say that a distinguished guest will be coming tomorrow. It seems that he wants to buy something. However, the village chief has no female relatives at home, so he wanted to ask you to help entertain the distinguished guest. He also said that he would give you three taels of silver as a reward."
It turned out that it was just to entertain the distinguished guests. Su Su did not think it was a difficult task, so she said, "In that case, I will go over to help the village chief tomorrow."
"Okay. Then I'll go find Aunt Li and ask her to give the village chief a definite message." Liu Mei stood up and said.
Su Su wanted to stop Liu Mei, but Liu Mei saw that she wanted to speak for her, so she looked at her with a strange look and said, "Mother, I'm hungry. Please cook quickly."
Seeing Liu Mei stubbornly walking towards Aunt Li's house with her crutches, Su Su shrugged helplessly and turned to walk towards the kitchen.
-
The next day.
Su Su washed Liu Mei's feet and went to the village chief's house.
Along the way, she met many familiar villagers, and they all greeted her.
When Susu was about to reach the village chief's house, the village chief was already waiting at the intersection.
As soon as the village chief saw her coming, he immediately came over happily.
"Susu. I've been waiting for you. Come quickly, follow me."
Seeing the village chief so enthusiastic, Su Su was a little confused. She looked at the village chief's door and asked, "Is the distinguished guest here?"
The village chief shook his head and said, "Not yet, but he should be here soon. You should change your clothes first. Otherwise, it would be inappropriate to meet such a distinguished guest."
Su Su looked down at her clothes. They were simple, but not dirty. She couldn't help but ask, "Village Chief, I think this is fine. Why don't you just tell me what to do?"
Seeing that Susu didn't really want to change, the village chief didn't force her. He led her inside and said, "Later, a distinguished guest will come to buy fog-leaf grass. As you know, fog-leaf grass is a rare herb in the village, so of course it has to be sold at a higher price. You just need to serve tea to the distinguished guest and occasionally talk about the benefits of fog-leaf grass."
After hearing this, Su Su pursed her lips, thinking that serving tea and water was not difficult, but why did she have to speak?
"Village chief, what should I say?" But thinking that if the village chief could sell the Wulian grass at a high price, it would also help Tianshui Village, he didn't care.
The village chief frowned and said, "Let me think about it. Just say that this fog grass only produces one plant every ten years and is very rare. Then I will say that you are our village's miracle doctor, and the distinguished guest will definitely believe you."
Su Su frowned immediately, feeling something was wrong: "Wouldn't that be a lie? That won't do!"
Seeing that Su Su was unwilling, the village chief became a little anxious: "Hey, Su Su, don't you read medical books every day? I heard from your mother that you know some medical skills, so it's not a lie."
"But, I only know a little bit. How can I be called a miracle doctor?" Su Su couldn't help but refute. She always felt that the village chief couldn't do this in order to sell the fog grass at a high price.
Seeing that Su Su refused to agree, the village chief became more and more anxious. Besides, the time agreed with the distinguished guest was approaching, and he could not delay any longer.
"How about this. Wait, you just need to briefly explain that fog grass is rare, and I'll take care of the rest. Is that okay with you?"
When Su Su heard that she didn't need to help deceive people, she nodded.
Now that Su Su agreed, the village chief finally breathed a sigh of relief.
After the village chief brought Su Su in, he asked her to stay in the kitchen.
There is actually another lady in the kitchen. She is an lady from the village who specializes in making sesame cakes. Her name is Aunt Yang.
When Aunt Yang saw Su Su, she called her out enthusiastically: "Su Su, you're here. Auntie, I've already made some pastries. You can just bring them out later. By the way, this peach blossom pastry, let me give you a try."
As she spoke, Aunt Yang brought out a small plate with three small pieces of pink, shiny peach blossom cakes on it.
Su Su did smell a very fragrant smell, but she still chose to decline, waving her hand and saying, "How can that be? This is a cake for our distinguished guest."
Aunt Yang immediately smiled and stuffed the plate into her arms: "I made a lot. Those distinguished guests have eaten all kinds of cakes. Making these cakes and serving them out is just a way to entertain them. The guests may not even eat them."
"Eat, child." Aunt Yang urged her again.
Su Su really couldn't refuse, so she whispered, "Thank you, Auntie."
Then I picked up a piece and tasted it. The sweet taste flowed through my mouth and slid into my throat. It was sweet but not greasy, and fresh and elegant.
"Delicious."
When Aunt Yang heard this, she smiled happily: "That's great, from now on, I will send all the cakes I make to you, Susu!"
At this time, the village chief came in, looked at them, and his expression became slightly serious.
"A distinguished guest has arrived."
When Su Su heard this, she immediately made preparations. Aunt Yang was also on standby. She handed the prepared pastries to Su Su and encouraged her with her eyes.
Su Su nodded, then followed the village chief out to the reception hall.
When she walked out of the reception hall, before she even looked up, she heard the sound of a cup hitting the ground with a bang, which frightened her for a moment. Then she raised her head and met a pair of black eyes filled with shock and disbelief.