Chapter 9 Chapter nine

Shijun made up his mind on that stormy night, never to go to Manzhen's house again.But such determinations are of little value.After all, the stimulation he received was just a few words from her mother and had nothing to do with her.Even if she herself has a different ambition, based on the friendship between the two of them in the past, she can't let it go. At least she has to meet one time and make things clear. Shijun thought he had figured it out, but he didn't know why, but he postponed it for another day.In fact, an extra day was just an extra night of insomnia for him.The next day, he went to the head office to find Manzhen during office hours.Since Shuhui left, another person was transferred to Manzhen's office, so it was inconvenient to talk, and Shijun didn't come here often, so as not to attract attention.On this day, he simply said to her: How about going out for dinner tonight? It's in the cafe not far from Yang's house. It's very convenient for you to teach at their place after dinner.Manzhen said: I don't go to teach today, and their two children are going to have a wedding, so I made an agreement yesterday.Shijun said: It's better if you don't go to teach, we can talk for a while.It's okay to change to another place to eat.Manzhen smiled and said: It's better to come to my house for dinner, you haven't come for a long time.Shijun paused, and said: Who said that, I just came the day before yesterday.Manzhen was very surprised, said: Oh?Why didn't they tell me?Shijun was silent.Seeing this situation, Manzhen guessed that he must have been wronged.At that time it was inconvenient to delve into it, so I just smiled and said: I happened to go out the day before yesterday, isn't my brother acting in school, Jiemin is his first time on stage, there is no other way, I have to cheer him on.When I came back, it rained heavily again, and several people caught cold. You pass it to me, and I pass it to you. The whole family caught a cold.Don't go out to eat out today, I can't eat anything too greasy, my voice is hoarse!Shijun just felt that there was a little rustle in her throat, which gave her a desolate and charming posture.So he agreed to come to her house for dinner.

He came to her house at dusk, and before he was halfway up the stairs, the electric light on the stairs was turned on, and it was her mother who turned on the light upstairs.The stairway was still the same as the day before yesterday, with a briquette stove on it, a casserole gurgling on it, and the smell of ham soup in the air was very strong. Shijun had eaten at their house many times, and Mrs. Gu knew his taste. This dish was probably made especially for him.Why did Mrs. Gu change her attitude and suddenly become so courteous to him? Manzhen must have said something to her, Shijun was a little embarrassed.

Mrs. Gu also seemed a little embarrassed, she nodded at him with a smile and said: Manzhen is inside.After saying this, she went to take care of the ham soup herself.Shijun walked into the room and saw Mrs. Gu sitting there peeling watercress.The old lady smiled when she saw him, pouted into Manzhen's bedroom, and said, "Manzhen is in there."When they did this, Shijun felt a little uneasy. Walking in, Manzhen was lying on the window sill and looking down, Shijun quietly walked behind her, grabbed her wrist, and said with a smile: What are you looking at, so lost in sight?Manzhen groaned and said: I was shocked!I've been looking here for a long time, why didn't I see you when you came?Shijun smiled and said: Then maybe I missed it in a blink of an eye.He kept holding on to her hand, Manzhen said: Why haven't you come these days?Shijun smiled and said: I have always been busy.Manzhen pouted at him.Shijun smiled and said: Really.Doesn’t Shuhui have a younger sister who is studying in the Mainland? Recently, she came to Shanghai to take the school entrance examination and needs to study arithmetic. Shuhui doesn’t live at home now, so this task falls on me.Two hours of tutoring after dinner every day.What about Yujin?Manzhen said: "It's already gone."Just left today.Shijun said: Oh.As soon as he sat on Manzhen's bed, he just turned on and off the desk lamp in front of her bed.Manzhen slapped his hand and said: Don't do that, it's broken!Let me ask you, what did Mom tell you when you came the day before yesterday?Shijun smiled and said: I didn't say anything.Manzhen smiled and said: You just don't confess.You were wronged because I owed my mother a confession.Shijun smiled and said: What did you wrong me for?Manzhen smiled and said: You don't care, anyway, I have already explained to her, she now knows that she has wronged a good person.Shijun smiled and said: Oh, I know, she must have thought that I was not sincere to you.Manzhen smiled and said: What, did you hear what she said?Shijun smiled and said: No, no.When I came that day, I didn't see her at all.Manzhen said: I don't believe it.Shijun said: It's true.Your sister came that day, didn't she?Manzhen nodded slightly.Shijun said: "They were talking in the inner room. I heard your mother say that he didn't want to say her mother was snobby. After a pause, Fang said: "I don't remember clearly either. Anyway, it means that Yujin is an ideal. son-in-law.Manzhen smiled and said: Yujin may be the ideal son-in-law for old ladies.Shi Jun looked at her and said with a smile: I think he is a person who appreciates both refined and popular tastes.

Manzhen glanced at him and said, "If you don't mention it, I won't mention it either. I'm about to settle accounts with you!"Shijun smiled and said: What?Manzhen said: You think Yujin and I are on good terms, don't you?You don't trust me like that.Shijun smiled and said: No such thing!I was just kidding.I know that you just admire him very much. As for him, he is the most affectionate person. He has been so loyal to your sister all these years, how could he suddenly fall in love with her sister in just a few days?There will be no such thing.When he mentioned Yu Jin, he felt a little sour. Manzhen originally wanted to tell him the story of Yu Jin's proposal to her, so that he would not always have such a cloud of suspicion.But she didn't want to talk about it, because she also felt that it was a bit surprising that Yu Jin had kept her sister's festival all these years, and suddenly fell in love with her, and it would be a bit ridiculous for Shijun to say that.She didn't want him to be laughed at by others.She somewhat defended him.

Seeing that she hesitated to speak, Shijun felt a little strange, so he couldn't help but glance at her.He also fell silent.After a long while, he smiled and said: "What your mother said is right."Manzhen smiled and said: Which sentence?Shijun smiled and said: It's better to get married early.If things go on like this, misunderstandings will easily occur.Manzhen smiled and said: Unless you, I will not be suspicious.For example, when you mentioned Shuhui's younger sister, Shijun smiled and said: "Shuhui's younger sister?"He is only fourteen years old this year.Manzhen smiled and said: I'm not asking around around, don't think I'm doing it on purpose.Shijun smiled and said: Maybe you do it on purpose.Manzhen was really a little angry, and said: I won't talk to you anymore!Then ran away.

Shijun held her back and smiled, "I'm serious with you."Manzhen said: Didn't we already decide, we said to wait another two years.Shijun said: Actually, it's the same when you're married, can't you still do things?Manzhen said: What if there is a child?Once you have more children, you will not be able to go out to do errands, and you will have to bear the two household expenses alone.I've seen this kind of thing a lot. In addition to supporting the family, a man's father-in-law's family also relies on him. If he is forced to arrest him for money and do everything, what future does he have!why are you laughing?Shijun smiled and said: How many children do you plan to have?Manzhen spat: This time I really ignore you!

Shijun said again: To be honest, it's not that I can't bear hardships, everyone can bear hardships.Don't you think about it for me, don't I feel sad when I see you working so hard?Manzhen said: It doesn't matter to me.She is always so stubborn.Shijun has said these words more than once.He fell silent dejectedly.Manzhen looked at his face, smiled and said: You must think that I am very cold.Shijun pulled her into his arms suddenly, and said in a low voice: I know, if it is for you, you will definitely not agree.If it were all for my sake, for my selfish sake, would you not?She didn't answer his words, but just pushed him away to prevent him from kissing her, and said: I have a cold, don't catch it.Shijun smiled and said: I also have a little cold.Manzhen laughed and said: Stop talking nonsense!She let go of her hand and ran to the next room.Her grandmother had only peeled half of the watercress, and Manzhen smiled and said, "I'll help peel it."

Shijun also came out. There was a desk behind her grandmother. Shijun leaned on the desk, picked up a newspaper, and pretended to read it. In fact, he was always looking at her and smiling at her.Sitting there peeling the beans, Manzhen felt a little uneasy.She finally felt a little shaken in her heart, thinking: Well, let's talk about it after getting married. There are more people with heavy family burdens. How do they live?Just as she was thinking deeply, she heard her grandmother let out a sigh and said, "Look, what are you doing here?"Manzhen was taken aback. When she saw it, it turned out that she had left the pods on the table, but the peeled beans were thrown to the ground one by one.Her face was almost red, and she squatted down to pick up the beans, and said with a smile: I asked idiot Guo to help, the more I help, the more busy I am!Her grandmother smiled and said: I didn't see you like this, doing things with your hands without looking at your eyes.Manzhen smiled and said: I will not peel off a few more.My fingernails are cut bald because of typing, and it hurts to peel these beans.Her grandmother said: I knew you couldn't do it!With that said, it was over.

Although Manzhen was shaken in his heart, Shijun didn't know that he was still a little depressed. After the meal, the old lady took out a pack of cigarettes for Shijun to smoke. They found it in a drawer when they were cleaning the room downstairs. , the children want to use it for smoking, but their mother does not allow it.At that moment Shijun casually took one and smoked it, and when the old lady left, he smiled at Manzhen and said: This is what Yujin left here, right?He remembered that Yujin said that in the countryside, cigarettes like this little fairy are already the top-grade cigarettes, and she was used to smoking them, so she bought them even when she came to Shanghai.Probably he is also used to thrift.While Shijun was smoking his cigarette, he started talking about him with Manzhen, but Manzhen was very reluctant to bring up Yujin again.When she came home today, she found that Yu Jin had already come, so she took her luggage and went directly to the station, clearly avoiding meeting her on purpose, and probably would never come again in the future.She rejected him and lost a friend like him. Although there was no way to do it, she couldn't help but feel sad.Shijun saw her look full of melancholy. He remembered that when the two of them were together, she often mentioned Yujin too many times. Now her attitude is exactly the opposite, as if she was afraid of mentioning him. .Something must have happened in between.She didn't tell, and he didn't ask her.

That day he was always a little depressed, and he went back early, using the excuse that he was going to tutor Shuhui's younger sister in arithmetic.Not long after he left, he suddenly heard the doorbell ring again. Mrs. Gu and the others thought they were the tenants downstairs and ignored it.Then I heard footsteps on the stairs, and I called out: Who is it?Shijun smiled and said: It's me, I'm here again! Mrs. Gu and the old lady, including Manzhen, were all taken aback by it. They felt that he came twice a day. His heart was too hot, and Manzhen's cheeks became hot again. She felt that his behavior seemed a bit unreasonable. Wouldn't it embarrass her to show it to her family, but she was very happy in her heart, and she didn't know why.

Shijun stopped before he reached the door of the room, and said with a smile: Are you already asleep?Mrs. Gu smiled and said: No, it's still early.When Shijun walked in, everyone in the room greeted him with smiles, with a hint of teasing.But when Manzhen saw a small suitcase in his hand, she was startled first, and then saw that although he had a smile on his face, his expression was very uneasy.He smiled and said: I want to go back to Nanjing, which is today's night train.I thought I'd come up here and say something.Manzhen said: Why do you want to leave all of a sudden?Shijun said: "Just now there was a telegram saying that my father was ill and asked me to go back."He stood there without putting the box down at all, as if he was not going to sit down.Manzhen was also like him, a little confused, just stood there in a daze.Or Mrs. Gu asked: What time does the car leave?Shijun said: "Eleven thirty."Mrs. Gu said: It's still early.Sit for a while, sit for a while!Just now Shijun sat down, slowly took off the scarf, and put it on the table. Mrs. Gu accosted and said that she wanted to make tea, then walked away, and called the rest of the children out one by one, and the old lady also walked away, leaving only him and Manzhen.Manzhen said: "What kind of illness was not mentioned in the telegram?"Not serious, right?Shijun said: The telegram is from my mother. I think, if it is not very serious, my mother will never know that he is sick.Doesn't my father have another home, and he always lives there.Manzhen nodded.Seeing that she was silent for a long time, Shijun knew that she must be worried that he would not come back for a while, so he said: I always come back as soon as possible.The factory cannot ask for more leave.Manzhen nodded again. The last time he went back to Nanjing, after all, their friendship was still shallow. This time they tasted parting for the first time.It took Manzhen a while to say a word, and said: I don't know the address of your home yet.She immediately went to find a pen and paper, Shijun said: No need to write, I will write a letter as soon as I get there, and it will be marked on the envelope.Manzhen said: Let’s write one.Shijun was writing on the desk, and she was on the other side of the desk, watching him write.Both felt a sense of desolation. After Shijun finished writing, he picked up the note and looked at it, then smiled and said: Actually, I will be back in a few days, and there is no need to write any letters.Manzhen didn't say anything, just took his scarf and twisted it around. Shijun looked at his watch, stood up and said: I should go.Don't come out, you have a cold.Manzhen said: It doesn't matter.She put on her coat and came out with him.The alley has not yet locked the iron gate, but there are few pedestrians on the street. I met two rickshaws, both of which were carrying passengers.Most of the houses along the street had their lights turned off, except for one Tiger Stove, with the door wide open. Under the yellow electric light, one could see milky white water vapor coming out of the stove from under the dark wooden lid.As soon as he walked to the door of his house, it was warm.The night walker walked by here, and couldn't help feeling a little bit attached.The weather is getting really cold, and the nights are quite cold. Shijun said: I didn't have any feelings for my father at first, but last time I went back and saw him, for some reason, it made me feel very sad.Manzhen nodded and said: I heard what you said.Shijun said: Also, what I am most worried about is the family's financial situation in the future.In fact, this was all expected, but my heart was extremely chaotic. Manzhen suddenly held his hand and said: I can't wait to go with you, I don't need to show up, I just find a place to live.If something happens, you have someone by your side who can talk to me at any time, and you will feel better in your heart.Shijun looked at her and said with a smile: You see, you will know at this time, if you get married, it will be easier, then of course we will go back together, so as to save you from worrying here alone.Manzhen rolled his eyes at him and said: You still have the heart to say these things, it shows that you are not really in a hurry. A rickshaw came from afar.Shijun yelled, and the coachman came across the street.Shijun suddenly remembered again, and whispered to Manzhen: No one will read my letter, you can write it longer.Manzhen sneered, and said: Didn't you say that there is no need to write letters, and you will be back in a few days?I knew you were lying to me!Shijun also laughed. She stood under the street lamp and watched him go away. In the early morning of the next day, the train arrived in Nanjing, and Shijun rushed to his home, but his store was still open.He went in through the back door and saw the chartered driver dusting the chartered car.Shijun said, "Is your wife up yet?"The chartered driver said: "Get up, I will go there in a while."When he said the word over there, he turned his head slightly to one side. Of course, over there is synonymous with the small mansion.Shijun's heart skipped a beat, thinking: Father's illness must not be cured, so mother has to rush over there to see her.Thinking of this, his steps became heavy.The chartered driver was ahead of him and ran upstairs to report. Mrs. Shen came out to greet him and said with a smile: You fell so fast.I was talking to the eldest young lady, and I will ask the driver to pick it up later, it must be the bus at noon.The eldest grandma and Xiaojian were eating porridge there, and she quickly got up and asked the maids to add some tableware, and asked them to cut some sausages.Mrs. Shen said to Shijun: Come with me after you have breakfast.Shijun said, "How is Dad's illness?"Mrs. Shen said: These two days are finally getting better, the first two days were scary to death!I didn't care about anything else, and ran to meet him.It didn't look right, his tongue was stiff, and he couldn't speak clearly.Now I get injections every day, and the doctor said that I have to rest well, and I am not out of danger yet.I go every day now. His mother actually ran to the small mansion every day, getting along with his concubine and his concubine's mother-in-law, Shijun couldn't imagine it.Especially because a woman like her mother told her to stay in the cold cave, no matter how hard she was, she could bear it, but she had her own status, and her patriarchal society was very strong, and she would never fall down in front of her concubine of.Although it is said to take care of her husband's illness.But it's not that there is no one to take care of her. It must be very unwelcome for her to run away, and it must be very painful for her.Shijun couldn't help but think of her mother, when talking about his father, she always used a cold tone to mention his illness and the possibility of death. She was also very calm and said with a smile: I don't worry about anything else. If nothing is left behind, how will we live in the future?If it weren't for this, I wouldn't mind if he died immediately, anyway, people who can't see him all year round, might as well be dead!The words are still in my ears. After breakfast, his mother went to his father's place together with him. His mother took a chartered car and called a rickshaw for Shijun.Shijun arrived first, jumped out of the car, rang the bell, a male servant came to open the door, seemed surprised to see him, and called Second Young Master.Shijun walked in and saw his concubine's mother sitting in the living room, braiding her granddaughter's pigtails, and a maid squatting on the ground to tie the child's shoes.The concubine's mother braided her hair and said: But the one from the Drum Tower is here?Don't move, don't move, Dad is sick, you are not good!Mother Zhou, take her for a stroll, but don't give her food, huh?Shijun thought: The one in the Drum Tower must refer to my mother, don’t we live in the Drum Tower?It's people named after places.At this time, the one from Gulou also came in.Shijun asked his mother to go ahead, and he followed behind to go upstairs together.This was the first time he saw his mother with someone else's eyes, seeing her bloated body and dismal face.She had a hard time climbing the stairs, and she tried to put on an air of self-possession that she was here to do her calling. Shijun had never been upstairs.The furnishing in the bedroom upstairs still retains the style of my aunt's previous business boom. The mahogany furniture is piled full of pits and valleys. In addition, some family flavors are added. whitewashed wall.Because there were patients in the room, it was a bit messy. Xiaotong slept alone on a double bed, and there was another small iron bed, which seemed to be set up temporarily.The concubine was leaning against Xiaotong's bed, feeding him orange juice with a small silver spoon, and holding his head in her arms.Xiaotong didn't know whether to think this was a kind of performance.When his wife came in, the aunt only raised her eyelids, greeted his wife softly, and continued to feed the orange juice.Xiaotong didn't even lift his eyelids.Mrs. Shen smiled at him and said: Look who is here!The concubine smiled and said: Hey, the second young master is here!Shijun called out to his father.Xiaotong said with great difficulty: Hey, you are here.How many days did you ask for leave?Mrs. Shen said: You just stop talking, didn't the doctor tell you to talk more?Xiao Tong fell silent.The concubine put out the little silver spoon to his lips to touch him again, but he shook his head in disgust and showed a embarrassed look at the same time.The aunt laughed and said: Don't eat?The more he was like this, the more she wanted to show off her tenderness and consideration, pulled off the white silk scarf tucked in her skirt, wiped his mouth, moved his pillow, and stretched the quilt. Xiaotong asked Shijun again: When are you going back?Mrs. Shen said: Don't worry, he won't leave, as long as you don't talk too much.Xiaotong was silent again. Shijun looked at his father, but he didn't know him very well. Of course, it was because of his weight loss, and half of it was because his father was lying on the bed without glasses, and he felt very uncomfortable looking at him.The concubine asked him that he came by night train, and hurriedly said, "Second young master, please stay here, I haven't rested since I got off the train."Letting him sit on a sofa chair by the window, Shijun picked up a newspaper to read.Mrs. Shen sat on a chair in front of Xiaotong's bed, and the room was quiet.A child downstairs started crying, and the aunt's mother yelled up from downstairs: "Auntie, come and hug him."The concubine was squeezing orange juice with a small glass roller, and she muttered: "An old man, a little man, it's killing me!"The old man is also talkative, like an orange juice, it will be unclean if others squeeze it. She was busy going in and out, and after a while, an old woman brought a large plate of fried noodles and two sets of bowls and chopsticks. The concubine followed behind and asked the wife and the second young master to eat noodles with a smile.Shijun said: I'm not hungry, I ate at home just now.My aunt said again and again: eat less.Seeing that his mother didn't move the chopsticks, and he didn't eat them, Shijun seemed a little embarrassed, so he had to hold up the chopsticks and eat some.His father was lying on the bed, just watching him eat, as if he felt a kind of pure satisfaction, and a smile appeared on his lips.Shijun was eating the greasy fried noodles beside his father's sickbed, but he felt a strange feeling of sadness in his heart. The concubine ordered another table to be opened for lunch in the master's room for Mrs. Shen and the second young master.Shijun sat in that room for a whole day, Mrs. Shen wanted to tell him to go home early to rest, but Xiaotong said: Shijun should live here today.When the concubine heard this, she was very unwilling, because she smiled and said: "Oh, we don't even have a good bed. I wonder if the second young master can sleep well!"Xiaotong pointed to the small iron bed where his aunt slept, and the aunt said: You just sleep in this room?You asked for tea and water at night, and you haven't exhausted the second young master!He can't do these things either.Xiao Tong was silent.The concubine looked at his face, and could only smile and said: "Well, what's the matter, Second Young Master, please tell me, I also sleep more alertly." The concubine led the maid to remove the quilt from her bed.She slept in the same bed with the two children, changed Shijun into another quilt, and said: The second young master has to feel wronged on this small bed, but the quilt is newly nailed and clean. The light shone on the apple-green walls, and Shijun slept in this very romantic room, wondering why he came here.The concubine ran in countless times all night long, to ask about her health, and to serve Xiaotong to drink tea, take medicine, and defecate.Shijun felt very sorry, because he spent the night here, causing her to lose a lot of footsteps.He opened his eyes to take a look, and she smiled and said: Second young master, don't move, let me do it, I'm used to it.She was bleary-eyed, her bun was sleepy, and the cheongsam was not buttoned properly, revealing the red silk plaid blouse underneath.Shijun hardly dared to look at her, because he suddenly remembered the story of Feng Yiting.She might want to create an opportunity to falsely accuse him of molesting her.He had developed such a concept since he was a child, and he always felt that this aunt was a scheming villain.Thinking about it later, she was probably worried about the iron box in the corner of the room, and she was afraid that there would be some private exchange between the father and son, so she came here again and again to check it out. When Mrs. Shen went back that day, she felt that Shijun had a poor appetite and thought that he was not used to the dishes in the small mansion. She came the next day and brought some vegetarian goose and lettuce balls made at home.This lettuce ball is very delicately made. The lettuce is marinated, and a long section is formed into a dark green pancake, with a red dried rose stuffed on it.She smiled to Shijun: Yesterday you had breakfast at home, I saw you ate two of them, thinking you might like it.Xiaotong saw it and wanted to eat it too.It is more suitable for him to eat porridge with this kind of pickled vegetables. He ate it with relish and said: I haven't eaten this kind of food for many years!The aunt was very angry when she heard this. Xiaotong's spirit has improved a lot in the past two days.Once, the accountant came.Although Xiaotong is ill, he still has to ask about many business matters, and he must be consulted for some things.Because he is the only one who keeps accounts, and he keeps the whole set of figures clearly in his mind.The accountant man sat down in front of the bed and leaned very close, Xiaotong explained to him one by one in a very soft voice.After the accountant left, Shijun said, "Father, I don't think you should be so troublesome. The doctor knows, so he must speak."Xiaotong sighed and said: I really can't let go, what can I do!After I got sick, I realized that everything was fake, and none of the people I used could be trusted! Shijun knew that he had such a temper, if he continued to persuade him, it would only cause him to complain more, it was nothing more than saying that as long as he had one breath left in his body today, he would have to sacrifice his life, otherwise, what would the family members eat?In fact, why did he suffer so much? It seems that the family depends on him to cook and eat.He just committed the common fault of ordinary businessmen, he is too attached to money, and puts all his energy on it, so he never forgets it. The telephone in his small mansion was installed in the bedroom, and Shijun answered the call twice for him.Once there was a matter to be discussed, he said to Shijun: You go there.Mrs. Shen laughed and said, "Is he successful?"Xiaotong smiled and said, "He has been around outside, and he can't even do this, so it's okay?"Shijun ran errands for his father twice in a row. His father didn't say anything to his face, but he praised him to his mother behind his back: he is still careful.Thoughtful.When Mrs. Shen got a chance, she eagerly relayed the story to Shijun.Shijun was originally an outsider in these matters, and he was not very familiar with the ways of the world. When he was in Shanghai, he suffered from this point, so his popularity in the factory was not very good, and he was often troubled by this point. .But here, because he is Shen's son, everyone supports him, and he feels very comfortable when doing things, and of course he is very happy in his heart. Gradually, it all came down to him.The accountant has something to ask the master to show me, Xiaotong smiled triumphantly and said: You ask the second young master!Now it's his business, I don't care.Go ask him! Now Shijun has suddenly become an important person. As soon as his concubine's mother saw him, she said, "Second young master, I've lost weight in the past two days. You've worked hard!"The second young master is so filial!The concubine also said: The second young master is here, the master is much better, otherwise he will always worry about it all day long!The concubine's mother said again: "Second young master, you don't have to be polite, just say what you want, our aunt has always been anxious and confused, and she didn't take care of her well!"The mother and daughter handed each other a hand, the second young master was the elder and the second young master was short, but secretly panicked.The aunt and her mother said: The old man will die now, it will be too late!Everything in the store is taken care of by others.No wonder people say that a businessman has no conscience, except for money, he only knows his son.is not that right!I have been husband and wife with him for more than ten years, so I don't plan for me at all!Her mother said: I said don't be angry, you should use some soft skills with him.To be honest, he has always been nice to you, but he is a little afraid of you.That year I went to Shanghai to play dancers, and if you had a fight with him, wouldn't it be fine? But this time the matter was a bit tricky. After much deliberation, the concubine still had to use her children to impress his heart.On the same day, she brought her youngest boy to Xiaotong's room, smiling: she kept torturing me and said she wanted to see Dad.Here, daddy is here!Didn't you say you missed your father?The child didn't know why, but suddenly felt awkward, and stood in front of Xiaotong's bed, just lowered his head and grabbed the bed sheet.Xiaotong reached out to touch his face, but felt very sad.People after middle age often have this feeling of loneliness, feeling that when they open their eyes, they are all people who depend on them, and there is no one they can rely on, not even a person they can discuss with.So he relied heavily on Shijun. Shijun has long wanted to go back to Shanghai.He whispered this meaning to his mother, and his mother grudged him to stay for a few more days, and Shijun also felt that his father's illness should be better, so he couldn't deal such a blow to him.So he didn't mention that he wanted to leave, but only said that he wanted to live at home.Living in a small mansion is really awkward.Others are secondary, the first is that the environment for reading and writing letters is too bad.Manzhen's letters were sent to his home, and his mother brought them here one after another, but he still couldn't write a long letter to her properly. Shijun told his father that he was going to move back home, his father nodded and said: I also want to live there, the area is quiet and it is more suitable for recuperating.He looked at his concubine again, and said: She always gets up early and goes to bed late, and is also tired and sick. I want her to have a good rest.The concubine was suffering from a cough because of the cold at night, and day and night, she was like guarding against thieves, preventing the old man from handing over the things in the iron box to Shijun. A person's energy is limited, and she can't take care of her.Suddenly hearing the old man say that he was going to move out, she turned pale and said nothing.Mrs. Shen was also stunned, and after a pause, she smiled and said: You are just a little bit, are you afraid of being too tired?Xiaotong said: "That's okay, call a car later, I will go back with Shijun."Mrs. Shen smiled and said: Go back today?In fact, Xiaotong had this intention for a long time, so he didn't dare to say it first, because he was afraid that his aunt would make trouble for him, so he wanted to wait for a while and leave immediately.Then he smiled and said, "Is it too late today?"Why don't you go back first and tell them to tidy up the house, and we'll come back later.Mrs. Shen agreed, but she and Shijun looked at each other, both of them thought in their hearts: It might not be possible to leave. When Mrs. Shen left, the concubine sneered and said: Huh, that sounds so nice, tell me to rest!As soon as I said this, the circles of my eyes turned red.Xiaotong just closed his eyes, showing a very tired look.Seeing this, Shijun was bound to have a quarrel, he was caught in it, and it was a lot of inconvenience, so he immediately went out, went downstairs, and pretended to ask Li Sheng to buy an evening paper.The servants were all whispering and chirping, as if they were very nervous, probably they already knew the news that the master was going to move out.Shijun paced back and forth in the living room, and heard the maids shouting from a distance: Master's name is Li Sheng.Li Sheng went to buy a newspaper for the second young master.After a while, Li Sheng came back and delivered the newspaper to the guest room, and a maid came in and said, "Master is calling you."Tell you to call a car.After hearing this, Shijun couldn't help becoming nervous.The car seemed to come very slowly. He read an evening newspaper upside down two or three times before he heard the car horn.Li Sheng said to a maid outside: You go up and say something.The maid said, "Why don't you talk about it?"It was you who called.Li Sheng said seriously: "Go, go, go and say it!"What are you afraid of?The two of you pushed me and I pushed you, but they didn't dare to go. In the end, Li Sheng ran into the guest room and reported with his hands down, "Second Young Master, the car is here." Shijun remembered that he still had some clothes and odds and ends in his father's room, which had to be tidied up, so he went back upstairs.Before I got to the door of the room, I heard my aunt say loudly inside: How are you?You take out these things, ready to take them all away?That's not okay!Are you planning to lose our wives?Don't plan to come back?Are these children not raised by you?Xiao Tong's voice was also very hasty, and said: I'm not dead yet, where am I, of course things have to be put there, just for convenience!The wife said: Let me tell you, it's not so convenient!Immediately afterwards, there was a snatching sound, and then a loud bang, Shijun was really startled, thinking in his heart that his father would fall down again and have a second stroke, and there would be no way to save him.He couldn't stay out of it anymore, so he hurried into the room and saw that it was okay, his father sat on the sofa panting, and said: Are you going to piss me off or what?The iron box was open, and stocks, passbooks, and invoices were scattered all over the floor. About just now when he tremblingly went to open the iron box to get things, his aunt was in a hurry and tugged at him. Fall, but push a chair to the ground. The concubine's face turned yellow with fright, and she still said stiffly, "Then think about it for yourself, are you worthy of me?"These days when I'm sick, I've been so inattentive in serving you, you just leave as soon as you say, you are too bullying!She turned around and sat down, leaned on the back of the chair and began to cry.Her mother also came in at this time, patted her on the shoulder and persuaded: Don't be stubborn, it's not like the master will come back after he left!Silly girl!Of course, these words were meant for the master, which meant that her daughter loved him infatuatedly, but since the concubine came to grab the stocks and passbooks, Xiaotong also felt a little chilled.Taking advantage of the chaos in the room, he shouted: "Mom Zhou!Wang Ma!Is the car here?Why don't you tell me you're here?Damn!Help me down quickly.Shijun picked up a few of his own things that were most important, and followed behind, went downstairs, and got into the car together. Back home, Mrs. Shen never expected that they would come so early, and the house hadn't been tidied up yet, so she had to ask the chartered driver and maids to help the master upstairs, and helped him to lie down. Mrs. Shen made her own bed out. I gave him to sleep, and built another camp bed for myself.I didn't bring all the medicines I took, so I invited the doctor to prescribe and dispense the medicine again.又張羅著給世鈞吃點心，晚餐也預備得特別豐盛。家裏清靜慣了，僕人們沒經著過這些事情，都顯得手忙腳亂。大少奶奶光只在婆婆後面跟出跟進，也忙得披頭散髮的，喉嚨都啞了。這父歸的一幕，也許是有些蒼涼的意味的，但結果是在忙亂中度過。 晚上，世鈞已經上床，沈太太又到他房裏來，母子兩人這些天一直也沒能夠痛痛快快說兩句話。沈太太細問他臨走時候的情形，世鈞就沒告訴她關於父親差點跌了一跤的事，怕她害怕。沈太太笑道：我先憋著也沒敢告訴你，你一說要搬回來住，我就心想著，這一向你爸爸對你這樣好，那女人正在那兒眼睛裏出火呢，你這一走開，說不定就把老頭子給謀害了！世鈞笑了一笑，道：那總還不至於吧？ 嘯桐住回來了，對於沈太太，這真是喜從天降，而且完全是由於兒子的力量，她這一份得意，可想而知。他回是回來了，對她始終不過如此，要說怎樣破鏡重圓，是不會的，但無論如何，他在病中是無法拒絕她的看護，她也就非常滿足了。 說也奇怪，家裏新添了這樣一個病人，馬上就生氣蓬勃起來。本來一直收在箱子裏的許多字畫，都拿出來懸掛著，大地毯也拿出來鋪上了，又新做了窗簾，因為沈太太說自從老爺回來了，常常有客人來探病和訪問，不能不佈置得像樣些。嘯桐有兩樣心愛的古董擺設，丟在小公館裏沒帶出來，他倒很想念，派傭人去拿，姨太太跟他賭氣，扣著不給。嘯桐大發脾氣，摔掉一隻茶杯，拍著床罵道：混帳！叫你們做這點兒事都不成！你就說我要拿，她敢不給！還是沈太太再三勸他：不要為這點點事生氣了，太犯不著！大夫不是叫你別發急嗎？這一套細瓷茶杯還是她陪嫁的東西，一直捨不得用，最近才拿出來使用，一拿出來就給小健砸了一隻，這又砸了一隻。沈太太笑道：剩下的幾隻我要給它們算算命了！ 沈太太因為嘯桐曾經稱讚過她做的萵筍圓子，所以今年大做各種醃臘的東西，筍豆子、香腸、香肚、醃菜臭麵筋。這時候離過年還遠呢，她已經在那裏計劃著，今年要大過年。又拿出錢來給所有的傭人都做上新藍布褂子。世鈞從來沒看見她這樣高興過。他差不多有生以來，就看見母親是一副悒鬱的面容。她無論怎樣痛哭流涕，他看慣了，已經可以無動於衷了，倒反而是她現在這種快樂到極點的神氣，他看著覺得很淒慘。 姨太太那邊，父親不見得從此就不去了。以後當然還是要見面的。一見面，那邊免不了又要施展她們的挑撥離間的本領，對這邊就又會冷淡下來了。世鈞要是在南京，又還要好些，父親現在好像少不了他似的。他走了，父親一定很失望。母親一直勸他不要走，把上海的事情辭了。辭職的事情，他可從來沒有考慮過。可是最近他卻常常想到這問題了。要是真辭了職，那對於曼楨一定很是一個打擊。她是那樣重視他的前途，為了他的事業，她怎樣吃苦也願意的。而現在他倒自動放棄了，好像太說不過去了怎麼對得起人家呢？ 本來那樣盼望著曼楨的信，現在他簡直有點怕看見她的信了。