Chapter 3 Chapter Two

one Dexintang had two meals throughout the year, which was relatively common in that era.For a big family like the Kang family, breakfast and supper are all they need to do in the morning and evening.But the Kang family has always practiced sharing food between men and women, in order not to forget the poverty of their ancestors. Poor farmers in the countryside have the custom of eating men and women.That is, in order to ensure the man's labor force, the family cooks two kinds of food, men eat dry food, women eat thin; men eat clean food, women eat bran vegetables.The same was true before the ancestors of the Kang family made their fortunes.After making a fortune, in order not to forget the roots, a family rule was set up, not abandoning the sharing of food between men and women: the male lead of the family, no matter how old or young, has to eat in the big kitchen of the old man; the female relatives of each house eat in their own small kitchen.Naturally, a large kitchen is much more particular than a small kitchen.But after several generations of evolution, this ancestral rule has become a popular phenomenon. The hero eats in the big kitchen, which has become too grand, too serious, and too luxurious.As a result, some male protagonists often find excuses to eat and drink in the small kitchen of their own women, trying to make something delicious, casually.When there are festivals or guests, it is a last resort to eat in the big kitchen.

Kang Hunan has always been dissatisfied with this kind of failure, but he can't just sit around every day.As soon as he went to the big kitchen to sit down and eat, the six masters and young masters dared not miss him.But he didn't come for a meal, so they let the sheep go.I heard that only the fourth master is the most restrained, and he doesn't come all the time.Kang Hunan usually didn't come to the big kitchen to eat, but he didn't hide in the old lady's small kitchen, but the housekeeper Lao Xia specially set up a small kitchen for him.He is old and can't eat greasy and hard food.You guys are so young, you want to compare with him no matter what!

However, Kang Hunan never ate in his small kitchen since he led the four masters to ridicule the poor shopkeeper Qiu like a play.For two meals a day, he came to the big kitchen on time, meticulously, and ceremoniously ate.As a result, the old and young men in each house suddenly cheered up and came out to eat on time. In order to eat on time, other aspects must be punctual, and the atmosphere in the Kang Manor seemed to have changed for a while. The old lady Du Yunqing also felt that the atmosphere was suddenly strange.She didn't quite understand it, but she didn't ask any more questions.Besides, who to ask?What Kang Hunan didn't want to say more, she asked in vain.The servants around her didn't say much either.

On this day, before Si time, Du Yunqing had breakfast in her small kitchen in advance, went to the small study to greet Kang Hunan, and said: "Aren't you going out?"I went to town to take a bath today. Kang Hunan was practicing boxing at the door of the small study room, he didn't stop, he just snorted. Madam Du didn't stay long, and returned to the big study of the old courtyard, which was where she usually lived.Her accompanying maid, Lu Bu, has already packed everything needed to take a bath in the city.Not long after, another maid came in and said: Madam, the carriage is already waiting outside the door, when are you going to get up?

Lu Bu hurriedly said, "Let's go now." So, Du Yunqing was served by Lu Bu, walked through the hall and courtyard, walked out of the side door facing east of Dexin Hall, boarded a big saddle car inlaid with copper and silver, the young and handsome driver walked gently With a flick of the reins, the carriage started majestically. After the carriage left the village and walked onto the quiet country road, Lu Bu got out of the sedan chair and sat on the side of the carriage.Although the sedan chair was wide, it was hot after all, and both of them were sitting in it, so she was afraid that the old lady would be hot.She called out to the coachman again: Xixi, come up and sit in the cross yard too, while the road is quiet.

What happened today, you flatter me so much? If you don't know how to uplift, pull down! The Kang family has a family rule of not using young maids.Lu Bu was a middle-aged woman who was a few years older than the old lady Du Yunqing, so she didn't have much scruples about calling out to the younger driver.Moreover, Du Yunqing has always disliked majesty, allowing the servants around her to be lively and casual.She herself likes to be a little out of character sometimes. The coachman's name was Sanxi, he agreed, jumped lightly, and sat on the other side of the chariot shaft. Two tall and beautiful bay red horses, the color of their coats seemed to be dyed with water, shining like satin.At this time, they were a little excited again, but the rhythm was not chaotic, and they moved forward smoothly.

Du Yunqing felt very comfortable driving in such a light and easy way on the quiet country road. When she first arrived at the Kang family, every time she went out, the housekeeper, Lao Xia, would set her up two cars, a big saddle cart for her, and a small saddle cart for Lu Bu and the others who were serving her.Each car has a driver, a follower, and two drivers.Going to the city to take a shower, just like that, don't you want to be annoying!She insisted on taking only one car, and Lu Bu was the only maid.Can the driver be alone?Lao Xia said, it's like a farmer's family, so it's impossible!She asked Lü Bu again, and Lü Bu said, why not? I've been running on a familiar road all day long. I'm glad he can drive you into the ditch?Du Yunqing knew that Lu Bu wanted to please her, but she still insisted on leaving only Sanxi as the driver.Kang Hunan praised her for being so light and easy.When he travels sometimes, he also has one car, one servant, and one driver.

Du Yunqing's father, Du Changxuan, had been the French interpreter of Zeng Jize, Minister of the British and French envoys, for many years.After being a diplomatic mission in Paris for a long time, I developed a hobby of bathing.Du Yunqing's mother is from Songjiang in the south of the Yangtze River, and she also has the habit of bathing in the south.Therefore, Du Yunqing has been accustomed to a problem since she was a child: without taking a bath, she simply cannot live.After becoming the fifth continuation wife for a rich man like Kang Hunan, she followed her father's suggestion and asked the Kang family to build a Western-style bathroom in her mansion.

Kang Hunan agreed very readily at the beginning, saying: Taigu is the first one to build a Western bathhouse in his own courtyard, right?establish!The Western craftsmen were hired by the Du family.But not long after, Kang Hunan changed his mind, saying that according to Feng Shui theory, water should be avoided in Kang's house, so it is not suitable to build a bathhouse in the house.He advocated building a women's bathroom for Kang's family in the most exquisite Huaqing Pool bathhouse in the city, which is the same as building it at home. You can use it whenever you want. How can it be the same, once you take a bath, you have to mobilize people, run more than ten miles, and enter the city once.Although Du Yunqing was dissatisfied, that was all she could do. How dare she bear the charge of damaging the Kang family's feng shui.

It was the thirteenth year of Guangxu. Although Taigu City was extremely prosperous, none of the bathhouses in the city had a women's department.Du Yunqing went to the city to take a bath in such a grand manner, which actually created a new show for the wealthy businessmen in Taigu, and the female relatives of all families followed suit.For a while, the bath wind was surging, and the fragrance of the Chinese cars was wafting. It was very lively for half a year.This made Du Yunqing very excited, she was the first person to open up this new trend.However, after half a year, the craze subsided.There are not many female guests who can insist on going to the city to take a bath every three to five days, and persist for many years.

The water quality in Taigu is not good, coupled with the long and cold winter, most people don't like bathing, especially women.But those noble women can't fall in love with bathing, she can't understand.No matter what others do, she must take a bath, otherwise, she really can't live. However, in recent years, a group of young women from wealthy families have become more popular in bathing, making Huaqing Pool's women's department lively again. In previous years, when the weather was hot, Du Yunqing would go to the city every three days.The weather has been hot enough these days, but seeing Kang Hunan's sudden sternness and abnormality, the whole family was nervous, and she was embarrassed to go out every day.It had been two days, and she couldn't bear it anymore, so she dispatched early that day and went to the city to take a bath. In the quiet countryside, apart from the rhythmic sound of horseshoes, there is the occasional chirping of cicadas.After walking out of the Kang family's deep compound, Du Yunqing always felt better.Not long after leaving Kangzhuang, she said to Sanxi: Sanxi, please sing a few more lines of Taigu Yangko, do you have any new words? Sanxi looked at Lu Bu and said, "She seems to have lost her soul today. When I sing, won't it scare her?" Lu Bu hurriedly said: "Who has lost his soul?"If the old lady asks you to sing, you will sing yours, what a disservice to me! Du Yunqing also said: "Sanxi, don't worry about her. I said a few words to her when I got up early, and she was feeling wronged."Leave her alone. Sanxi jumped off the ground, followed the car, and sang: I write word by word, Lu Meng is hanging orchids and walking through the fast, Mr. Guan bought tofu in Puzhou, Huh, cough, lost, lost, hum cough, lost clothes Liu Bei bought straw sandals in Sichuan. Lu Bu said: How many times have I sung it, the old lady wants to hear new words, do you have any? Du Yunqing said: "Singing is good, but humming, coughing, and coughing is difficult." Sanxi said: I will give the old lady a few more words. This plain Yangko tune popular in the Qitaiping area is more popular in the mountain Ertai, Xintianyou, and Mountain Climbing tunes in the northern border area. No roar of wild game.Sanxi sang while driving the carriage again, without roaring, the game could not come out, and the sound of horseshoes could not be covered. My husband lives in Dingxiang, From the south of the child, learn to master the book, I will read all the five classics and four books, When I was done, I brought a copy of the Three Character Classic, Hey ho cough I can't recognize the big and small in the imperial calendar. It's all about singing!Lu Bu was obviously restless. If you want to hear something nice, I'll sing it for you!Sanxi sang with enthusiasm. I live in Taigu City, Shanxi Province. My name is Yu Fengying, There is no one to compare the romantic talent and appearance, Learn needlework, I can count, Depicting dragons and embroidering count my essence, The ingenuity of the mind is the number one. Seeing Lu Bu's anxious look, Du Yunqing said to Sanxi: "Seeing that Lu Bu is not happy today, you don't have to sing." Lu Bu hurriedly said: Xixi, you can sing to the old lady quickly, don't worry about me. Sanxi roared twice again: Suddenly I heard the old man calling, Scared me, Su San, trembling with fear Du Yunqing didn't expect Sanxi to sing these two lines, and hurriedly said: Don't sing, don't sing soon. It turned out that Lu Bu was restless because he heard that his father was seriously ill and bedridden.But she dared not ask for leave.She has experience, and she must not ask for leave when the old man is so dignified.Once you take a leave of absence, you can never come back.Although she was a servant in the Kang family, Xin Jin was also comparable to a senior runner in the name because she served the old lady personally.Therefore, I regard the humble position as my life, and dare not make any mistakes. Du Yunqing saw what she was thinking, and said to Lu Bu: I will grant your leave, if you want to go back and have a look, you can return yours. Lu Bu actually said: Madam, you have a good heart, I know, but you can't confirm my fake.Your Kang Mansion has rules, we servants can only take ten days off in three months, just like the partners in a shop who are stationed abroad, you can't come back even if it takes less than three years. Du Yunqing was a little displeased, and said: I'll go and tell them, if you serve me as an adult, I can't give you a few days off? Lu Bu became even more anxious: Madam, you must not talk about it, once you say it, you will never see me again! Du Yunqing was very unhappy.This Lu Bu used to serve Kang Hunan, and after she passed through the door, he followed her.Even the name Lu Bu was given by Kang Hunan.He likes to give the names of the ancients to the servants around him.But Lu Bu has been with her for many years, and Kang Hunan is the one who is afraid! Du Yunqing thought about it, then sent the other servants away, and asked Lu Bu alone: ​​Do you want to visit your father? Lu Bu said: How can you not want to! Then I will find a way for you, so that you can go home without asking them for leave. Madam, it's really great to have such a way! Just because you dare not listen to me! Ma'am, what method did you come up with? Isn't your home not far from the city?You wait for me to go to the city to take a bath, and you have to wait for me at the gate of Huaqing Pool.I'll go in and take a bath, and you should hurry back to your home.There are a lot of maids in the bathhouse, and someone waits on me.I take a bath more leisurely, waiting for you to come back.It's up to you, whether you want to work hard or not. Can I still be afraid of hard work?just afraid I'm afraid that someone will tell the old man, right? Don't need the old man, even if Lao Xia Laoting knows it, it will be great You are afraid of Lao Xia and Lao Ting, but you are not afraid of me, right? Madam, if you say that, I can't live anymore! Then you just listen to my arrangement and go back to your home while I take a bath! That So what, don't you dare? Will Sanxi talk too much? Then don't let him know.Before taking a bath, I told you to buy something for me in front of him.Needless to say, Lao Xia Lao Ting is the old man. If you are not happy, I will send you to buy something! What can I spend so much time on buying? Cough, you can run all over the city, but you can't find it! Then listen to the old lady? If you don't dare to listen to me, it's up to you! Although Lu Bu said he would do so and went home secretly, Du Yunqing could tell that she still hadn't made up her mind.Now, she has set off to enter the city, and that time will soon come. Should she go or not?Lu Bu must have felt uneasy because of this. Du Yunqing tried her best to persuade Lu Bu to do such an outrageous thing, but she herself was very excited.So, along the way, even though she didn't call Sanxi to shout Yangko again, she still kept gossiping with him, looking relaxed and happy.She also tried her best to get Lu Bula in to talk, but unfortunately Lu Bu couldn't relax. When approaching Nanguan, Lu Bu got into the sedan chair.Sanxi also jumped off the shaft of the car, and drove with all her heart. In the sedan chair, Du Yunqing glared at Lu Bu.Lu Bu was still very nervous and lowered his head, not daring to look at the old lady. Huaqing Pool is on the bustling East Street in the city, but its back door is in a secluded alley.The female guests take a bath and walk behind.As soon as Du Yunqing's carriage stopped at the secluded back door, Chitang's maid came out to serve her. Du Yunqing got out of the car calmly, and said to Lu Bu calmly: "Go around the street and see if you can buy some velvet flowers for me. I want a bunch of purple grapes with a little squirrel crawling on them. Other flowers Green, don't.Do you hear me? Lu Bu said: Listen clearly Seeing that she agreed unnaturally, Du Yunqing asked sharply on purpose: Don't want to go? Lu Bu hurriedly said: I'll go, I'll go right away! Du Yunqing didn't say any more, and was served by the bathhouse maid gracefully, before stepping into the back door. two Du Yunqing took a bath as much as possible, but it was a hot day after all, and there was a limit to how much she wanted to wash.You can't heat yourself to death just because of this Lu Bu!After she got out of the bath, she chatted with the female guests as much as possible for a while.During this period, I sent the bathhouse maid out several times to look at it, but Lu Bu still didn't come back. It seems that Lu Bu followed her arrangement and secretly went home to visit his father.If you didn't go, you would have been waiting outside.This made Du Yunqing happy.What made her happy was not that Lu Bu obeyed her, nor did she do good deeds for Lu Bu, but that she instigated Lu Bu to break the rules of the Kang family!Breaking the rules of the Kang family seems to be an irresistible temptation for Du Yunqing. But, you have to come back quickly! Waiting foolishly in the stuffy bathroom like this, the comfort after bathing is almost gone.Du Yunqing really didn't want to wait any longer, so she told the maid in Huaqingchi: I'm leaving first, tell Lu Bu that she will come later. After getting out and getting into the car, she said to Sanxi: "Look at this Lu Bu, I don't know where he is going!"Let's go first, it's killing me. Sanxi started the car, and said: I think she is also staring in a daze today, not sure what's wrong, probably lost her way. How big is Taigu City, can you get lost?If she is so stupid, I don't want her. I'll keep an eye out to see if I can spot her. Better drive your car carefully and leave her alone. It's past noon, and the market at noon on a hot day is not crowded.The carriage crossed the street and the city, and soon left the city, and soon left Nanguan.Walking for a while on the quiet country road, a jujube forest appeared on the side of the road. Du Yunqing said: Sanxi, stop for a while, there is shade here, see if you can wait for Lu Bu.She knew that when Lu Bu ran to Huaqing Pool and lost his chariots and horses, he would definitely come out of his soul in a hurry. Sanxi stopped the horse, stopped the car, and said: Old madam, you are so kind.Don't punish her, but wait for her. You like to be punished, don't you? Who likes to be punished?If you don't want to be punished, you have to obey the rules. The velvet flowers that she was asked to buy were also not easy to buy.I'm afraid that the shops in Beijing won't sell them, so I have to look for small peddlers walking around the streets, how can I find them easily? Du Yunqing is a natural foot, easy to move.She easily got off the sedan chair and walked into the jujube forest.Although the jujube forest has sparse branches and leaves and is not densely shaded, it still blocks the heat.The further you go in, the more refreshing and refreshing it becomes.So, she just walked deep into the jujube forest. Seeing the old lady walking towards the jujube forest, Sanxi quickly picked up the footstool for getting on and off the car, and followed behind.But the old lady didn't seem to want to stop. Old lady, dare not go inside. What are you afraid of, wolves or ghosts? In broad daylight, how can there be those unlucky things?I'm afraid that if I go further in, I won't be able to take care of the carriages and horses. Then you greet the chariots and horses, and I will take a few steps in the woods. Lu Bu is not here, no matter what, I have to serve the old lady first. It was only then that Du Yunqing realized that in this peaceful jujube forest, there were only her and the driver.This is almost never the case.Ever since he entered Kang's house, Lu Bu was always by his side at any time.And as long as Lu Bu followed, there would be more servants waiting around.In the Kang family's mansion, Du Yunqing felt lonely almost all the time, but she was always surrounded by many servants.Now that the siege was suddenly gone, especially the sudden absence of Lu Bu, she felt a sense of freedom and excitement. Then I won't go in.She said to Sanxi, put down the footstool, and I'll just sit here. Sanxi hurriedly chose a cool and shady place, put down the stool, wiped it again, and said: Old madam, can I sit here? I listen to you, it won't take you to greet the horses and horses here, right? That's right, the old lady should sit down soon. Du Yunqing sat down and said to Sanxi: You also find someone to sit down, sit down, I don't know when Lu Bu will catch up. Today I haven't suffered yet, so I don't need to sit.The old lady must be tired. She has just finished taking a bath, and walked this kind of rough place again. How nice to walk in the woods.When I was a child in the capital, my father took us on an outing, and we loved to find woods.He also often told us that Westerners will also enjoy the blessings. They bring all the food, drink, and entertainment, and go to the wild to find a secluded woods.Think about it, that would really be a blessing. Spend the night in the woods?Are there no wolves, tigers and leopards in the West? Du Yunqing smiled: Sanxi, you are so timid!Do we have jackals, tigers and leopards here? How not?When the crops are high, there will be. Yes, you don't have to be afraid, I will cure them. Sanxi smiled. You do not believe? Xin, who doesn't know that old lady, you are not an ordinary woman. Little minions, do you dare to talk about me behind my back? Sanxi saw that the old lady was not angry, so she said: We all praise the old lady, and never said anything bad about you, really. No bad things said, who knows.Tell me, how do you praise me? It's nice to speak the old lady's Beijing dialect.He also said that you have a kind heart, you are so kind to your servants, and you are not afraid of spoiling them.Say you are very civilized, love cleanliness, and don't worry about trouble. If you go to the city to take a bath like this every three days, the more you wash, the younger you will be, and the more beautiful you will be. Dog slaves, I can guess what else to say: It's a pity that I have a pair of big feet!Right? Sanxi hurriedly said: We didn't say that!But everyone said, looking at other people's old lady, she has left her natural feet, isn't it noble and elegant?Not only noble and elegant, but also generous, lively and flexible, you can go wherever you want, that's great.Are all the noble women in the capital like you, old lady? where!It is my father who wanted to take me to the West, and he forbade my feet from being bound when I was young. Western women don't bind their feet? No binding, and the bannermen and women don't bind their feet either.Sanxi, you also married a wife with small feet, right? But no, I can't do anything, I can't go anywhere. Is the daughter-in-law handsome? Small family, where can you go? Little slave, what are you talking about!Want to change your mind? No, I mean, I can't compare with rich and powerful families like you, my boss. Little slave, you still have high eyesight!It must be good for a wealthy family?I think you don't want to see your daughter-in-law, do you? no no. How about the parents at home? My father has been stationed in Lanzhou for many years, but my mother is fine. Is your father a ticket dealer or a tea farm? The tea house, for a lifetime, is in the tea house. Gossiping with this young and handsome driver made Du Yunqing feel very happy.The drivers selected by the Kang family for the car are all young and handsome youngsters of this type.They, together with the gorgeous and majestic carriages and horses, are the face of the master when he goes out.They are driving cars here, which is the same as being apprentices at Zihao.After working for a few years, he was sent to a firm in another city.Du Yunqing's driver has already changed two, the first one is reserved, the second is shy, they are not like this Sanxi, they are lively and talkative. Unfortunately, such pleasure will not last long.It seemed that before he had said a few words, Lu Bu rushed over in a daze. After re-boarding the car and setting off, Lu Bu kept asking why he didn't wait for her.He also said that when she ran to Huaqing Pool, the carriages and horses disappeared, and her legs were weak.But Du Yunqing didn't talk to her much.The desire to instigate Lu Bu to break the Kang family's rules has been fulfilled, but she no longer feels much excitement. She just missed the joy just now.In the jujube forest, something seemed to move her. three In the autumn of the eleventh year of Guangxu, Du Yunqing returned to Taigu from the capital with his parents. That year, because of the Vietnam case, China and France turned against each other.Her father, Du Changxuan, followed Zeng Jize, the minister who was envoy to Britain and France, and worked hard in Paris, negotiating and protesting, trying to maintain the dignity of the court and preserve Vietnam.Unexpectedly, Li Hongzhang, the Minister of Beiyang, urged the court to resign the upright Mr. Zeng in order to negotiate a peace.Du Changxuan, as the second-class interpreter of the envoy, was also called back to the country.Du Yunqing remembered that the father who came back didn't say much, but loved to look up to the sky and laugh.In the summer, I began to prepare for returning to my hometown for leisure.She did not believe that her father would really return to Taigu.But just in autumn, when the capital was a bit cooler, the father took their mother and daughter and left the capital. During the long and desolate journey, my father's interest increased day by day.Especially after leaving the Zhili Plain and heading west into the mountains, the barren valleys and ridges, the withered grass and lonely trees, the stern mountain wind, the frighteningly silent canyons, the silently flowing mountain streams, and the always difficult The inn that I arrived at seemed to be what my father longed for. Du Yunqing has never been able to believe that everything is true. Taigu is the hometown of the Du family. Du Yunqing, who was born in the capital, has grown up so much that she hasn't come back yet.She just imagined it from her father's constant narration.The Taigu in her imagination was already extremely prosperous, and when she finally saw the real prosperity, she was still very surprised.When she came back from the capital, it was not bad that her hometown did not disappoint her, but it actually surprised her! Du Yunqing remembered that when he arrived that day, it was almost dusk.The setting sun casts the past, and the White Pagoda and the Drum Tower stand above the city, which are extremely brilliant.Approaching slowly, I can see clearly that the Drum Tower is extremely magnificent, but the towering white pagoda seems to be more resplendent.The official road back home was in the east of the city, and the setting sun just set off the splendor of the hometown for her to see, and then slowly set in the west.When approaching Dongguan, the sky was already hazy, but there were many shops, heavy traffic, and the noise of the city was even more overwhelming. Especially the camel caravan that came back that night, it was so long that you couldn't see the beginning and the end, and only the sound of the camel bells was broadcast into the night.After crossing the Yongji Bridge and entering the East Gate, a sea of ​​lights suddenly appeared in front of my eyes. After going through a journey that is getting more and more desolate and seems to have no end, at that moment, it is like walking into a fairyland. The ancestral home of the Du family is hidden deep at the end of a quiet alley in Xicheng.Its unexpected delicacy and refinement also surprised Du Yunqing.It was not a very big mansion, but from every tile and rafter head of the gatehouse facing the street, to the hut for storing firewood in the side yard, everything was meticulously decorated.Du Yunqing was even more surprised by the elegant and graceful garden behind the mansion.The house where my father lived in the capital couldn't be compared with this place!Although the second-class interpreter also has the status of the third and fourth ranks, but how can such a miscellaneous official live in a mansion with a garden? In short, Du Yunqing was overjoyed by the hometown he met for the first time.However, the first sip of water she drank also surprised her beyond imagination: Is this water?So bitter and salty! My father said that what I drink is already sweet water, and my servants have to fetch it from a well far away.The well in the back garden is the bitter water, which is only used for general washing. Goodness, this is already sweet water! Like her mother, Du Yunqing didn't want to stay in Taigu for a long time from the first day she came back. The too bitter and salty water was one of the reasons.My mother said to her: After eating this kind of bitter water for a long time, our white and clean teeth will also become unclean. First, yellow spots, and later dark spots! At this she was terrified and horrified.But can you not eat or drink? When I asked my father when he would return to Beijing, he always said: I won’t go back, my old root is in Taigu, so I will retire in Taigu to retire.There are some in the capital, and there are in Taigu, so why go back and do it! As for my mother, I always told her behind my back: You don't have to listen to your father.When he came back this time, he wanted to raise a sum of money so that he could make a comeback in the capital and ask the court to send him back to France. Of course Du Yunqing hoped that what her mother said was true. Du Yunqing's grandfather was a senior member of Zhuang Xiecheng, another big ticket family in Taigu who was stationed abroad.The place where he led the village for the longest time was very far away in Xiamen.He had a close relationship with Zhou Kaixi, Fujian chief envoy.Therefore, when Zhou Kaixi assisted Zuo Zongtang in founding the Fujian Shipping Bureau, he followed Zhou Fantai's persuasion and sent fourteen-year-old Du Changxuan to the former school of the Shipping Bureau to study French and shipbuilding.At that time, Du Changxuan had already been selected as a scholar and was extremely intelligent.Although he traveled thousands of miles to Fujian to study French when he was a weak crown, he was quite talented.After graduating from the previous school, he was selected to study in France.It was not surprising that Zeng Jize later chose him as a French interpreter.It's just that Du Changxuan's diplomatic path sent by his father is neither a businessman nor an official, which is very unique in Taigu. Therefore, when Du Changxuan returned to Taigu, he received an extraordinary courtesy.Those who visited him and entertained him almost continued all day long.Those big business houses, officials, gentry and celebrities in Taigu, who have a great view of the world, almost invited him all over the place. The high society in Taigu kept inviting Du Changxuan, just to listen to him tell about the French court scene, the twists and turns of the Vietnam case, and some anecdotes about Zeng Jize and Li Hongzhang.Of course, we should also ask about Western merchant trade, money business, ships and guns, and the Western atmosphere of free communication between men and women.The same topic, the same story, each family has to hear it with their own ears, which is also a kind of ostentation. During the days when Du Changxuan was in and out of the high society in Taigu, he made a very westernized move, that is, he always took his daughter-in-law Du Yunqing with her.At that time, women were not allowed to show their faces in public, let alone enter and leave the social occasions of the upper class.But Du Changxuan took her daughter away just like that, and the high society in Taigu accepted her like that. At that time, Du Yunqing was twenty-one years old, and he had a different kind of demeanor, which was eye-catching.According to Du Changxuan's ideal, it is to make her beautiful daughter into a minister's wife who is suitable for going to and from Western diplomatic scenes.Because the wives of the ministers of the Qing Dynasty he saw were poor in style and aptitude, especially those with golden lotus feet, so they couldn't be on the social stage.Du Yunqing started from not binding her feet, and approached the Minister's wife step by step. She gained talent and learning, became addicted to bathing, and learned simple French and English. When she was seventeen, her father selected a man who was expected to become a minister for her in the Beijing Normal University Tongwen Hall.Unfortunately, not long after the marriage, the husband passed away early.She was regarded as a hit with Koff, and it was difficult to get closer to the Minister's wife.Her father's ideal was suddenly shattered like this, but she had already made it up and couldn't change it. However, Du Yunqing really has a kind of charm that is different from that of a lady from a boudoir. She is graceful and elegant, healthy and bright, which makes people feel that women leave their natural feet, so there is no beauty in it.Perhaps it is this kind of demeanor that the high society in my hometown wants to see with their own eyes. When Du Changxuan described the atmosphere of the French court, he would specifically point out that the Western ladies who gathered at the court banquet and dance, including noble women such as princesses, princesses, and princesses, were all natural.Therefore, they can socialize freely with male guests and dance lightly without losing their noble manners.Western social occasions, without noble women, will collapse.Noble women can freely enter and leave social occasions because they are all natural.In China, the more noble women are, the smaller their feet are bound, and they can't go anywhere.It was the humble big-footed wife who showed her face and ran all over the street. Du Changxuan's new theory made those old and young bosses, big and small shopkeepers, officials, gentry and celebrities listen to it, and they also felt that they were brain-opened. During those days when she accompanied her father in and out of the high society in Taigu, what Du Yunqing kept repeating were two things.One was to speak Beijing dialect to the host, and they were overjoyed to see that she, a graceful and beautiful female village party member, could speak such pure and pleasant Beijing dialect.Her Beijing dialect is flexible and tactful, like singing a song.Sometimes, I would praise her for her good Mandarin, and I would also praise her teeth, saying how they are so white and clean, like jade. Another thing is to walk a few steps and ask them to watch.They were also very happy to see that she walked gracefully and gracefully with her pair of natural feet.I believe that Du Changxuan's praise of Western women is not a joke made up. It's just that when these rich and famous people listen to her speaking Beijing dialect and walking like a beautiful woman, their eyes often become silly, as if they can no longer blink, and their mouths open stupidly, and they forgot to close them for a long time.At such a time, Du Yunqing would find that many of the wealthy and famous people in these villages had dirty teeth.Both yellow and black. Sometimes, Du Yunqing would be invited into the inner room alone to meet with the female relatives.They will also ask her to speak Beijing dialect and walk.It's just that they always look at it coldly. From autumn to winter that year, Du Yunqing accompanied his father just like that, kept going to appointments and visits, was used to riding in the gorgeous and majestic big saddle cars of rich families, and also saw the rural scenery all over the country.When it is sunny, the sky always seems to be too blue; when it is windy, the wind is obviously too harsh.However, she gradually got used to it.The Phoenix Mountain in the south of the city, the Wuma River in the north of the city, and the jujube forest among the falling leaves, and the car marks that meander and swim on the snowfield when the snow first fell, all gradually fell in love with her. But she didn't remember going to Kangzhuang or entering Kang's house. Those days finally faded away. Later, Du Changxuan did not raise the money he needed.The rich merchants in the township, especially the money business bank, did not value his future.Xibang Piaozhuang predicts a person's value, and his vision is too vicious.They obviously think that a translator like Du Changxuan is not worth investing in even if he is well versed in Western powers.Du Changxuan soon understood this level.But he didn't feel too much worry and anger except for occasionally laughing up to the sky. It seems that he is really going to retire in Taigu.For a period of time, he was enthusiastic about advocating letting go of his feet among the villagers, and took Du Yunqing around, but it had little effect.The villagers asked him: "It's so good to let go of your feet. Why can't you get married to this big-footed daughter of yours?"He really couldn't answer. Later, he went all out to get rid of the bad habit of the villagers who didn't like to take a bath.Enthusiastically promote the beauty of Western private bathrooms to those wealthy families.He said everywhere, why are the skin colors of Westerners so fair and watery?It is because people bathe every day!Talking about the beauty of bathing to this extent still can't impress anyone.This is the same as the bathing craze that Du Yunqing set off in Taigu later, it is the same as the underground, and the same as the sky. Whether he really wanted to or not, Du Changxuan was truly unemployed.He personally supervised the work and built a private bathroom in the Du family's ancestral home.In addition to insisting on taking a bath every day, he also insisted on taking a walk outside the city every day at dusk, accompanied by Du Yunqing, to see the rural scenery and the sunset and sunset.Whenever there is any excitement in the city, he would run to watch it like a child. In those days, Du Changxuan was most relieved by the few American pastors who had just come to Taigu to preach.They are clergy sent by the Congregational Church of Oberlin University in Ohio, USA. When they came to such a strange Taigu, they suddenly saw a Chinese who could speak English and French.It's just that they were too stupid, knowing Du Changxuan's background, they blindly persuaded him to convert to Christ.Du Changxuan is an official appointed by the imperial court, so of course he cannot join a foreign religion.However, he often visited these missionaries in order to speak English, and sometimes he couldn't bear it, and he also spoke French. Du Yunqing followed her father and went to see them as well.At that time, they were still living in Limeizhuang on the outskirts of the city. Although there were men and women, they were all blond, blue-eyed, tall and tall, and their conversation was very boring.There are so few boring Westerners living in Taigu, no wonder not many people believed my father's praise of Westerners.My father was too lonely to talk so fascinatedly with such a boring person. In the thirteenth year of Guangxu, that is, in the spring of the third year when they returned to Taigu, Kang Hunan's fourth Mrs. Suxian passed away suddenly. At that time, the Du family and the Kang family had no contacts.The Kang family is a wealthy family in Taigu. In comparison, the Du family is nothing!When the whole city was talking about how grand and luxurious the Kang family's upcoming funeral was, Du Changxuan was just as excited as a child.他不斷從街肆帶回消息，渲染葬禮的枝枝節節：城裡藍白綢緞已經脫銷；紙紮冥貨已向臨近各縣訂貨；只一夜工夫，幾乎整個康莊都銀裝素裹起來了；一對絹製的金童玉女，是在京城訂做的；壽材用的雖是柏木，第一道漆卻是由康笏南親手上的；出殯時，要用三十二人抬雙龍槓 杜長萱去鄉已久，多年未見過這麼盛大的葬禮了，很想去康莊一趟，看一看那蔚然壯觀的祭奠場面。只是因為杜筠青和母親站在一起，無情地譏笑他，才沒有去成。 發喪那天，康家浩蕩異常的送葬隊伍，居然要彎到城外的南關，接受各大商號的路祭。所以，南關一帶早已是靈棚一片。杜長萱無論如何不想放過這最後的高潮了，決意在發喪那天，要擠往南關去觀禮。他極力鼓動杜筠青也一同去，說，去了絕不會失望後悔。父親變得像一個頑童，杜筠青有些可憐他，就答應了。 可她一個女子，怎麼能和他一起去擠？ 父親說，他來想辦法。 杜長萱終於在南關找到了一間臨街的小閣樓。樓下是一間雜貨鋪，店主是他的一個遠房親戚。杜筠青也不知那是真親戚，還是假親戚。 到了那一天，杜筠青陪著父親，很早就去了南關。那裡已是人山人海，比大年下觀看社火的場面還大。在這人山人海裡等了很久，才將浩蕩的送葬隊伍等來。那種浩蕩，杜筠青也是意外得不能想像！ 她問父親：你不是常說，晉人尚儉嗎？我們在京時，也常聽人說，老西兒財迷。這個康笏南，居然肯為一個續絃的女人，舉行這樣奢華的葬禮，為什麼？ 杜長萱說：那能為什麼，康笏南喜愛這個女人吧。 父親的這句話，杜筠青聽了有些受感動。但最打動了她的，是在樹林一般的雪色旗旛中，那個四人抬的銀色影亭：影亭裡懸掛著這位剛剛仙逝的女人的大幅畫像。她出人意料地年輕，又是那樣美麗，似乎還有種幽怨隱約可見。杜筠青相信，那是只有女人才能發現的一種深藏的幽怨。 她是不想死吧？ 但杜筠青怎麼都不會想到，自己竟然做了這個女人的後繼者！她更不會想到，這個女人的死，竟然可能與自己有關！ Four 康笏南的這位夫人，是在春末死去的。到了秋天，滿城就在傳說康笏南再次續絃的條件了：可以是寡婦，可以是大腳，可以通詩書琴畫，也可以不是大家名門出身。 這些條件，簡直就是描著杜筠青提出來的！ 但在當時，無論是杜長萱，還是杜筠青，都根本沒朝這裡想。他們正被滿城議論著的一個神秘話題吸引住了。 康家有不納妾的家風。這份美德，自康笏南的曾祖發家以來，代代傳承，一直嚴守至今。康笏南雖將祖業推向高峰了，他也依然恪守了這一份美德。只是，他先後娶的四位夫人，好像都消受不起這一份獨享的恩愛，一任接一任半途凋謝，沒有例外。鄉人中盛傳，這個康笏南命太旺，女人跟了他，就像草木受旺火烤炙，哪能長久得了！每次續絃，都是請了最出名的河圖大家，推算生辰八字，居然每次都失算了。 康笏南就好像不是凡人！ 對康笏南神秘的命相，杜長萱提出了一個西洋式的疑問：康笏南是不是過著一種不洗浴的生活？ 杜筠青的母親是相信命相的，她無情地譏笑了自己的丈夫。 叫杜筠青感到奇怪的是，既然這個老財主的命相那樣可怕，為什麼提親的還是應者如雲？如此多的女人，都想去走那條死路？ 母親說，康笏南提出的續絃條件太卑下了，那樣的女人，滿大街都是。 父親卻說，康笏南倒是很開明。 但他們誰都沒有把康家的續絃條件，同杜家聯繫起來。很顯然，從杜長萱夫婦到杜筠青，還沒把杜家看成太谷的普通人家呢。 既然與己無關，即使滿城評說，那畢竟也是別人的事，閒事閒話而已。很快，杜家就不再說起康笏南續絃的事了。那已是落葉飄零的時節，有一天，杜長萱帶了女兒杜筠青，前往里美莊，去觀看西洋基督教的洗禮儀式。那幾位美國傳教士，終於有了第一批耶穌的信徒。他們邀請杜長萱光臨觀禮。杜筠青不明白什麼叫洗禮，當眾洗浴嗎？杜長萱笑了，便決定帶她去看看。 去時，雇了兩頂小轎，父女倆一人坐了一頂。已經出城了，轎忽然停在半路。杜筠青正不明白出了什麼事，父親已經過來掀起了轎簾。 不去看洗禮了，我們回吧，先回家 見父親神色有些慌亂，她就問：出什麼事了？ 沒有，沒有，什麼事也沒出。我們先回吧，回家再說 父親放下轎簾，匆忙離開了。 回到家，杜筠青見街門外停了一輛華美異常的大鞍轎車。父親去會見來客，她回到了自己的閨房，但猜不出來了怎樣的貴客。並沒有等多久，父親就匆匆跑進來。 走吧，跟我去拜見一個人，得快些。 去拜見誰呀？ 去了，你就知道了。趕緊梳妝一下，就走。 杜筠青發現父親的神情有些異常，就一再問是去拜見誰，父親不但仍然不說，神情也更緊張了。她只好答應了。 正在梳妝，母親拿來了父親的一件長袍，一頂禮帽，叫她穿戴。這不是要將她女扮男裝嗎？ 到底要去見誰，需要這樣神秘？ 父母都支支吾吾地不說破。她更犯疑惑，也起了好奇，你們不說，我也不怕，反正你們不會把我賣了。 杜筠青就那樣扮了男裝，跟著父親，出門登上了那輛華美的馬車。那天她就發現，趕著這輛華美馬車的，是一個異常英俊的青年。馬車沒走多遠，停在了一條安靜的小巷。從一座很普通的圓弧門裡，走出一個無甚表情的人來，匆忙將她和父親讓了進去，沒有說一句話。 後來她當然知道了，那次走進的是天成元票莊的後門。但在當時，根本不知道是到了哪兒，只覺得是一處很乾淨，又很寂靜的深宅大院。他們剛被讓進一間擺設考究的客廳，還沒有坐穩呢，旋即又被引至另一間房中。 進門後，杜筠青還沒有來得及打量屋中擺設，就感到自己已被一雙眼睛牢牢盯住。那是一雙男人的眼睛，露出放肆的貪婪！她立刻就慌了神。 你就是杜長萱？ yes. I have long admired my name.你把西洋諸國都遊遍了？ 去是都去過。 那就不簡單，遊遍西洋，你是太谷第一人！ 我是給出使大臣當差，笏老你才是太谷豪傑，生意做遍天下！ 我看你也能當出使大臣，反正是議和，割地，賠款，誰不會？她就是你的女公子，叫杜筠青，對吧？ right. 從小在京城長大，就沒有回過太谷？ 父親暗示她，趕快回答這個男人的問話。正是這個男人，一直貪婪地盯著她不放。不過，她已經有些鎮靜下來。被富貴名流這樣觀看，她早經歷過了。 沒回來過，長這麼大，還是第一次回太谷。 你的京話說得好！how old are you? 二十三了。 杜長萱他去西洋，帶你去過沒有？ 父親忙說：我是朝廷派遣，哪能帶她去？ 我不跟你說，只跟你家女公子說，我愛聽她說京話。 小時候，父親答應過我，要帶我去法蘭西。 看看，還是他不想帶你去。你父親他只出使過法蘭西，出使過俄羅斯沒有？ 他沒有出使過俄羅斯，只是去遊歷過。 那他去過莫斯科沒有？法蘭西沒有我們的字號，莫斯科有。就是太遙遠了，有本事的掌櫃夥計都不願去。去了，五年才能下一回班，太辛苦。我對孫大掌櫃說，也叫他們三年回來一趟吧，五年才叫他們回太谷瞥一回婆姨，太受委屈。大掌櫃不聽我的，說來回一趟，路途上就得小一年。三年一班，那還不光在路途折騰啊？你父親他出使法蘭西，幾年能下一回班？ 長時，也就三年吧。有了事，也不定什麼時候就給召回來了。沒事時候，也就在京師住著。 那他沒有我們辛苦。哎，你把男裝脫了吧，在屋裡不用穿它。 杜長萱就招呼她除下長袍，禮帽。杜筠青正被這位說話的男人盯住看得發慌，哪裡還想脫去男裝！可那個引他們進來，一直沒有表情的人，已經站到她的身邊，等著接脫下的衣帽。父親又招呼了一聲，她只好遵命了。 脫去男裝，那雙眼睛是更貪婪地抓住了她。這個男人一邊跟她說話，一邊就放肆地盯著她，一直不放鬆。這是個什麼人呀？ 你父親他是跟著曾紀澤？曾紀澤他父親曾國藩，也借過我們票莊的錢。左宗棠借我們的錢，那就更多了。你父親他借過我們的錢沒有？ no? 父親忙說：在京也借過咱山西票號的錢，數目都不大。 哈哈，數目不大，哪家票號還肯為你做這種麻煩事？ 父親有些臉紅了。 杜大人，那是耍笑的話！我還要請教你，西洋女人，還有京城在旗的女人，都是你家女公子這樣的天足嗎？ 父親回答：可不是呢。 接下來，杜筠青就開始為這個男人走佳人步。他看得很著迷，叫她走了好幾個來回。 走完佳人步，這次神秘的拜會就結束了。杜筠青又穿戴了男裝，跟了父親，靜悄悄地離開了這處深宅大院。 杜筠青後來當然知道了，這個神秘召見她、放肆打量她的男人，就是康笏南。他這是要親眼相看她！ 在等待相看結果的那些時日，杜筠青和她的父母，誰也沒有議論康笏南是怎樣一個男人，也沒有挑剔康笏南竟然採取了這樣越禮、這樣霸道的相親方式，更沒有去提康笏南那可怕的命相，她們全家似乎被這突然降臨的幸運給壓蒙了。除了焦急等待相看的結果，什麼都不想了，好像一家三口人的腦筋都木了。杜筠青自己更是滿頭懵懂，什麼都不會思想了。 當時，她們全家真是把那當成了一種不敢想像的幸運，一種受到全太谷矚目的幸運。 相看的結果，其實也只是等待了兩天。在那次神秘相親的第三天，康家就派來了提親的媒人。媒人是一個體面的貴婦，她不但沒有多少花言巧語，簡直就沒有多說幾句話，只是要走了杜筠青的生辰八字。 她剋夫的生辰八字，在康笏南那裡居然也不犯什麼忌。康家傳來話說，這次是請了一位很出名的遊方居士看的八字。這位居士尊釋氏，也精河圖洛書，往來於佛道兩界。也是有緣，正巧由京西潭柘寺雲遊來谷，推算了雙方命相，讚歎不已。 跟著，康家就正式下了聘禮。聘禮很簡單，就是一個小小的銀折。可折子上寫的卻不簡單：在杜長萱名下，寫了天成元票莊的五厘財股。 杜筠青和她母親，不太知道這五厘財股的份量，但杜長萱知道。他的父親在協成乾票莊，辛勞一生，也只是頂到五厘身股。為了這五厘身股，父親大半生就一直在天涯海角般遙遠的廈門領莊，五年才能下一次班。留在太谷的家、家裡的妻小，幾乎就永遠留在他的夢境裡。在去福建船政局以前，父親對杜長萱來說，幾乎也只是一種想像。 杜筠青聽了父親的講解，並沒有去想：這也是康家給她的身股嗎？她只是問父親：這五厘財股，能幫助你回京東山再起嗎？ 父親連忙說：青兒，我早說了，老根在太谷，就在太谷賦閒養老了，誰說還要回京城！ 母親也說：我們哪能把你一人扔下？ 婚期訂在臘月。比起那奢華浩蕩的葬禮來，婚禮是再不能儉僕了。按照康笏南的要求，她的嫁衣只是一身西洋女裝，連鳳冠也沒有戴。因為天太冷，裡面套了一件銀狐坎肩，洋裝就像捆綁在身上似的。康家傳來話說，這不是圖洋氣怪異，是為了避邪。在那個寒冷的吉日，康家來迎親的，似乎還是那輛華美威風的大鞍馬車。上了這輛馬車，杜筠青就成了康家的人，而且是康家新的老夫人。可康家並沒有為了迎接她舉行太繁複的典禮。拜了祖宗，見了族中長輩，接受了康笏南子孫的叩拜，在大廚房擺了幾桌酒席，也就算辦了喜事。 康家說，這是遵照了那位大居士的留言：婚禮不宜張揚。 不宜張揚，就不張揚吧，可杜筠青一直等待著的那一刻：與康笏南共拜天地，居然也簡略去了。只是，新婚之夜無法簡略。 但那是怎樣的新婚之夜啊！ five 蓋首被忽然掀去了，一片刺眼的亮光衝過來，杜筠青什麼也看不清。好一陣兒，才看清了亮光是燭光。天黑了，燭光亮著，燭光也照亮康笏南，他穿了鮮亮的衣裳。他那邊站著兩個女人，還有一個男人。這個永遠無甚表情的男人，就是時刻不離康笏南的老亭。她這邊，也站著一個女人。遠處、暗處，似乎還有別的人。 十冬臘月坐馬車，沒有凍著你吧？康笏南依然是用那種霸道的口氣說，你穿這身西洋衣裳，好看！就怕不暖和，凍著你。 杜筠青聽了，有些感動。可她不能相信，康笏南居然接著就說： 你們端燈過來，我看看她的腳。杜長萱他說西洋女人都是天足。駐京的戴掌櫃也常說，京城王府皇家的旗人女子，也不纏足。我真還沒有見過女人的天足。你就是天足吧，我看你走路怪好看。你們快把鞋給脫了，我看看她的腳。 杜筠青簡直嚇傻了。就當著他的面，當著這些女人的面，還有那個老亭的面，還有遠處暗處那些人的面，脫光她的腳嗎？康笏南身邊的一個女人，已經舉著一個燭台照過來。杜筠青身邊的女人，已經蹲下身，麻利地脫下了她的鞋襪，兩隻都脫了。天爺，都脫了！這麻利的女人，托著她的腳脖子往上抬老天爺，杜筠青閉上了眼睛，覺得冰冷的雙腳，忽然燒起來了。她第一次覺得自己是這樣的無處躲藏，彷彿被撕去了一切，裸露了一切，給這許多人看！ 唔，你的腳好看！nice!長得多舒坦，多細緻，多巧，多肉，看不出骨頭，好看，天足要是這樣，那真好看。 天爺，這一定是他的手，摸住她的腳了，燙人的手。 杜筠青再也聽不清康笏南說什麼了，只是恐懼無比。她知道不會再有什麼拜天地的禮節了。觀看她的腳，也是這吉日的禮節嗎？看完腳，他會不會叫這些下人麻利地剝去她的西洋衣裳？她緊閉了眼睛，仍然無處躲藏。她多麼需要身上的西洋服裝一直這樣緊緊地捆綁著自己！可這些下人的手腳太麻利了。 杜筠青不知道康笏南後來說了什麼，又是怎樣離去的，不知道他還來不來。好像是連著幾聲老夫人，才把她從恐懼裡呼叫出來。 老夫人！ 杜筠青不知道這是叫她，只是聽見一連聲叫，她才睜開了眼。一切都安靜下來了，一切都消失了。康笏南和他身邊的男人女人都不在了。西洋服裝還緊緊捆綁在身上，鞋襪也已經穿上，剛才的一切就好像沒有發生過似的。 這個女人的手腳太麻利了。 老夫人，請卸妝洗漱吧。 老夫人，這是叫她，她成了老夫人？ 老夫人，請卸妝洗漱吧，夜宵要送來了。 夜宵，就在這裡吃？燭光照著這太大的房間，杜筠青不知道這是什麼地方。她也不想吃飯，一點都不想吃，連渴的慾望也沒有了。 老太爺吩咐了，吃罷飯，老夫人就歇著吧，今天太勞累了。老太爺也勞累了，他不過來了。從今往後我伺候老夫人。 他不過來了，那今天就這樣結束了？杜筠青多少次設想過，在今天這個夜晚，只剩了她和那個人的時候，一定不能害怕，要像個京城的女子，甚至要像西洋的女子，不害怕，不羞怯，敢說話，說話時帶出笑意來。可這個夜晚，原來是這樣的叫人害怕，又是這樣意外的簡單！那個康笏南，還沒有看清，就又走了。 這個伺候她的女人，就是外間傳說的那種上了年紀的老嬤子吧。年紀是比她大，但一點也不像上了年紀，而且她生得一點都不難看。 what's your name? 老太爺喜歡叫我呂布，老夫人你不想叫呂布，就叫你喜歡的名字。 她笑了笑，笑得很好看，她的牙齒也乾乾淨淨。杜筠青想問她多大了，但沒有問。自己肯定比這個女傭年輕，可已經是老夫人了。她從來沒有想過，突然降臨的幸運，就是來做康家的老夫人！父親、母親，也從沒有說過，她將要做康家的老夫人。既是老夫人了，老太爺他怎麼能這樣對待她，簡直是當著這些男女下人把她剝光了！ 杜筠青對呂布說：我什麼也不想吃，我這裡也沒事了，你去歇了吧。 但呂布卻不走，攆也攆不走。就是從那一天起，呂布成了她難以擺脫的影子。 自從新婚之夜，康笏南那樣粗野地觀看過她的天足後，再沒有來看過她。除了被引去履行種種禮節，杜筠青就獨自一人守在這太大的屋子裡。 呂布說，這裡就是老太爺住的屋子，他叫大書房。杜筠青從來沒有住過這樣大的屋子，它七間九架，東西兩邊還各帶了一間與正房幾乎相當的耳房。從外望去，儼然是九間的殿堂，就是供奉神像或祖先牌位吧，也要放置許多尊的。康笏南他住這樣大的房屋，就不覺得太空洞嗎？杜筠青後來明白了，他住這樣大的房子，正是要占那一份屋宇之極。連老亭呂布他們都知道，京城的皇家王府才能有九間大的房宇，康笏南他似乎要悄然同皇家比肩。按朝制，他捐納的四品補用道，造七間九架的房宇已有些僭越了，居然又附了兩間大耳房，達到了九數之極。 杜筠青初入這樣的大屋，並不知道是住進了屋之極品，只是覺得太空洞，遮攔那樣遠，不像是置身室內。她更不明白，這樣氣派的房宇，康笏南他為什麼不來享用，他平日又居於何處？ 這樣的疑問，她還不能問呂布。 在這七間大屋中，杜筠青居於最西首的那一間，外面一間，供她梳妝起居，再外一間，供她演習詩書琴畫。中間廳堂，似乎更闊