Chapter Twenty-Three Mid-Autumn

  When Zhang's family opened the door, Mr. Cheng was overjoyed and also pulled Liu Pu over quickly.

  "My master is not at home." The gatekeeper said with a scowl, narrowing his eyes.

  Cheater!

  Three people outside the door all thought to themselves.

  But didn't dare to shout out loud.

  "Old master, you see we've come several times..." said Cheng Erlaoye with a hint of a smile and a respectful tone.

  Before he could finish speaking, the little maid let out a sound and hastily came over to pay her respects.

  "Old master, you've come too?" she called out.

  Old man?

  Cheng Er Lao Ye was taken aback and stared at the maid in front of him.

  Call me?

  He hadn't spoken yet, but Liu Pu was taken aback and immediately overjoyed, looking at him with a hint of surprise.

  "Ah, so you're the one who can come and go from Old Master's house with just a little maid, no wonder you're formidable!" He said loudly, his Shaanxi-Gansu accent grew thicker, making Old Master Cheng's ears buzz.

  A little maid from our house can come and go in Teacher's old residence like this!

  My family's little maid!

  Mr. Zhang picked up his teacup.

  Liu Pu and Cheng Erlaoye got up with great interest.

  "The students have withdrawn." They said respectfully.

  Old Zhang nodded.

  Cheng Er Lao Ye and Liu Pu left Zhang's old mansion.

  "Zi Gu Ge, thank you so much this time." Liu Pu said with an excited expression.

  "Brother Yu Kun, I don't dare accept such praise." Master Cheng's face was slightly stiff, but he still managed to squeeze out a smile.

  "I must be on my way, I won't be able to drink and chat with you, brother. Next time we meet, I'll definitely not leave until I'm drunk." Liu Pu said, patting Cheng Erlaoye's arm.

  Liu Pu practiced martial arts from a young age and later became a disciple of Zhang Chun. Although he also studied books, his kung fu skills were not neglected, as evidenced by the slap on Cheng Erlaoye's arm. Cheng Erlaoye winced in pain but was secretly delighted.

  With this incident, he and the Liu family from the same province are considered to be related.

  Especially when parting ways, Liu Pu carefully asked him about his future career, and upon hearing the words, he seemed to be deep in thought, but didn't say anything, and smiled as he bid farewell and left.

  "Really?"

  Madam Cheng II asked in puzzlement as she took over the cloak her husband had taken off.

  "Liu Yukun is a man of rough yet refined nature, he must write to his uncle, with the teacher's recommendation and Liu Xueshi's help. If this matter doesn't succeed, then I'll directly resign and return to my hometown." said Cheng Erlaoye with a smile.

  It's great to be successful, and Madame Cheng is delighted. She also hopes that her husband will earn a noble title in the future.

  "This time it's really good, I should thank Old Man Zhang." She smiled and asked.

  At this point, Cheng Erlaoye's expression became solemn and stern.

  Thanks to Old Master Zhang for giving me face and letting me in?

  But...

  "The old master's favor is not bestowed upon me." He sat down, with a hint of inexplicable and indescribable flavor, "It's one of our family's little maidservants."

  At that time, the doorman heard the little servant shouting "master", and his expression changed immediately. After listening to him say "see you later", he didn't directly say "not at home" as before, but said "go in and ask". He went in and asked for a while, then invited them in.

  Master Cheng understood in his heart and knew it was the maid's feelings.

  "What's wrong?" Madame Cheng asked, puzzled.

  Mr. Cheng II told the story, and Mrs. Cheng II's expression was no better than his.

  "At that time, I couldn't ask her who she was or what her name was," said Master Cheng. "Call all the maids in the house to come and see which one it is."

  "Our family's servant girl, how could she possibly go out and about as she pleases? And enter other people's homes?" said Madame Cheng. "Old Master, didn't you hear wrong?"

  That's right.

  "Then isn't she a servant in our household?" said Old Master Cheng.

  Not at home? Then where is it?

  The couple were both in a daze.

  "Daughter, you were right after all, that old man is indeed no ordinary person."

  The girl put down her basket and said in a hurry.

  "I actually saw Master there today," she said, feeling the cold wind blow in and quickly closing the door again.

  Jiang Nang put down her book and looked at her with a soft "oh".

  "The old master was very respectful in front of the old man's house." The maid said with a smile, her eyebrows barely concealing her excitement. "If the old man tells the old master to let us go back, the old master will definitely comply."

  "Go back?" Chong Jiuniang looked at her, "I had a hard time getting out, and now I'm finally free. What's the point of going back?"

  "Daughter." The maid was a bit nervous, took a few steps forward on her knees, and held onto Jingniang's knee. "Although we live here, you must not have any thoughts of surrendering either."

  Jiang Yao's mouth curved slightly upwards.

  "Life is a journey of self-cultivation everywhere, I won't be stuck in one place." She said, patting the hand of the young girl, "You just relax, don't think about those things, first get up and teach those fairy maidens the few kinds of dry fruits you know, by tomorrow's Mid-Autumn Festival, they can use them to worship the moon."

  The girl responded accordingly.

  "My dear daughter, what would you like to eat? Tell me and I'll make it. We can enjoy our meal while appreciating the moon." she said happily.

  Jiang Nang nodded and said okay.

  "The mountains are high and the air is refreshing here, it's a great place to appreciate the moon. At home, you may not have such a pleasant atmosphere." She said, looking out the door, the bamboo forest rustling softly, elegant and self-satisfied.

  On Mid-Autumn Festival day, just like thousands of other families, the Cheng family hung lanterns and decorated with colorful streamers, making it a lively scene.

  The children returned from the street after watching the lanterns, and under the leadership of Mrs. Cheng, they worshiped the moon. After worshiping the moon, the whole family sat together to eat, drink and watch the moon. The sixth daughter-in-law showed off her flower arrangement skills, while the fifth and sixth daughters-in-law presented a pair of embroidered shoes to Mrs. Cheng. The seventh daughter-in-law drew a picture of watching the moon, and the whole family was filled with joy and laughter.

  Mrs. Cheng was talking in a low voice to several old servants when there was a crash at the table where her daughters were sitting, and it turned out that one of the maids had dropped a plate.

  This matter doesn't require Madame Cheng to come out, there are servants who can handle it. The servant girl just needs to go over and scold the person in a low voice. That servant woman has already knelt down to pick things up, and as she knelt down, several round fruits rolled out of her bosom.

  "Oh no, you're a dead man, sneaking in here!" A nearby maid shouted in a shrill voice.

  This shout made everyone look over, and for a moment they didn't understand what was going on, but the stolen words were heard by everyone.

  Madam Cheng's face sank, and she gave Madam Da a look.

  "She didn't steal anything." On the other side, Cheng Qiuniang shouted at this time, "This is my mother in front of me."

  Everyone was stunned for a moment, and Mrs. Cheng's face turned even uglier as she glared at Madame Cheng.

  "Nowadays, people like this can serve by one's side?" she asked.

  Those who can serve in front are naturally with a good reputation. Doing such things is naturally arbitrary and the family is not strict.

  "My wife was wrong." said Madame Cheng with her head bowed.

  "No, Grandma," Qīniáng shouted, standing up. "She didn't steal anything, I told her to take some for me to eat when I get back."

  "It's not that, it's not that, it's just that the slave is greedy and wants to steal some fruit, regardless of Seventh Lady's affairs." The servant woman heard this and was suddenly frightened, hastily knocking her head and saying.

  This eagerness to confess and admit fault is actually quite abnormal.

  Mrs. Cheng Lao stared at Mrs. Cheng Da, her face gloomy, and slammed the teacup in her hand onto the table, making a loud "crash" sound that was particularly jarring in the silent room.