A life of clearness

Chapter 172 Story
"Sir, you have a really good eye. Our Xun family's boat is the largest and cleanest in the whole town." The boatman with gray hair and beard skillfully rowed the wooden oars and steered the boat on the waterway.

Yuxiang Town has a network of waterways and bridges everywhere. The slightly hot wind passes through the bridge holes and blows coolly on Rong Qing and Zhong Xiu.

Rong Qing replied with a smile, while Zhong Xiu looked around curiously at the bow of the boat. Although she grew up in Yuxiang Town, she had never been on a boat before, let alone on a clean boat.

Just as Zhong Xiu's attention was on the branches hanging down into the water on the shore, a naked-shirted boy suddenly jumped out from the side of the boat with a "splash", raising a splash of water.

Zhong Xiu let out a sigh, more out of curiosity than fear.

"Don't be afraid, little girl." The boatman said hurriedly, "It's my boy who's picking water chestnuts for you."

Sure enough, the shirtless boy was holding a handful of water chestnuts in his hands. He apologized to the customer with a smile, swam to the stern of the boat, handed the fresh water chestnuts to A Niang for processing, and then swam back into the water.

There was nothing interesting to see in the town. After Zhong Xiu's curiosity wore off, his eyes grew tired and he went back into the tent.

At this time, the boat girl also prepared some side dishes and brought them in. One of them was the freshly picked water chestnuts. The water chestnut meat after peeling was very tender and quite refreshing to eat in the summer.

Rong Qing only tasted a few bites of each dish and then stopped, coaxing Zhong Xiu to eat more. Zhong Xiu was a child by nature, so he didn't hold back for a few words and started eating happily.

Not to mention vegetables and fruits, fish and water chestnuts are all extremely fresh.

Because she was a female guest and Rong Qing didn't like drinking, she didn't bring in any wine. Instead, she kept a pot of tea on the stove. Rong Qing poured herself a cup, and the light-colored tea swayed gently in the cup as the boat swung.

Rong Qing quietly watched Zhong Xiu eat. In such a small space, she felt great security and happiness.

……

The sky gradually darkened, and the ripples caused by the boat's hull were not as bright as before.

"Are we outside of town yet?"

Zhong Xiu looked at the unfamiliar scenery. Away from the narrow waterway and the densely packed houses on both sides, the suddenly wide river surface seemed to allow him to let go of his boredom.

"Yes." Rong Qing recalled that several years ago, she had occasionally accompanied the noble lady on lake outings in Suicheng, and had also followed the master aimlessly downstream.

Such elegant interests among scholars and writers are rare in Yuxiang Town. Rong Qing was just in the mood to take Zhong Xiu on a boat trip. Rather than watching a play or listening to a book, she just wanted to stay with Zhong Xiu quietly for a while.

Apparently, Zhong Xiu was not a person who liked to make trouble. After eating and drinking, he took a nap in Rong Qing's arms. Now he woke up and felt full of energy again.

"Where are we going?"

"I don't know either." Rong Qing smiled, "I'm looking forward to it too."

"Girls, let my wife tell you a story." The boatman saw that Zhong Xiu had woken up and said, "It's still early for dinner. It's only half an hour to get there. It's just right to listen to two or three stories."

"That's great." The boatwoman came in and was smart enough not to ask too many questions. She just told Zhong Xiu some interesting stories.

Like "The Scolding Duck" and "The Loyal Dog", the stories were not long, but the boat girl told them vividly, making Zhong Xiu's eyes light up. Half an hour passed in a flash.

"... When Li Jia arrived at the inn in the city and checked in, he felt the purse on his waist and was terrified. It turned out that the purse had been torn, and less than half of the silver was left. He was immediately scared to death. At night, he lay in bed and couldn't fall asleep. You can imagine, who can sleep after losing the life-saving money for his father in prison. At this time, in the dead of night, Li Jia thought of the unusual things his black dog had done along the way, and thought there must be a trick behind it."

"The next morning, he waited for the city gate to open and left the city, searching carefully along the road. He was looking, but he had no idea. There were so many carriages passing by on this road for merchants, and if he scattered the silver on the ground, it would be like throwing meat buns at dogs, and it would never come back."

"Li Jia was hoping for a lucky break, so he went to the place where he had driven the dog. He actually saw that the puppy was already dead in the bushes. The sweat from its body had soaked its fur, as if it had fallen into the water. Li Jia picked up the dog and saw that all the silver he had lost was neatly laid out there."

"Li Jia was moved by the black dog's loyalty and bought a coffin to bury the dog. Later, people called it the 'loyal dog's tomb'."

The boat girl told three stories in a row without even drinking a sip of tea. Now that the boat was almost reaching its destination, she smiled and stepped back to let Rong Qing and the others rest for a while.

The sky was gradually darkening, and rose-colored clouds and mist were shrouding a small island in the distance. Rong Qing could see the eaves of a building in the distance. The gold foil on the roof was shining in the sunset.

"What's wrong?" Rong Qing noticed that Zhong Xiu was in a low mood.

"Poor little dog."

Rong Qing did not praise Hei Gou's loyalty, but asked, "Why do you say that?"

"The puppy was so good to him, but Li Jia scolded it, threw stones at it, and finally beat it with a whip... The puppy kept running and running, trying to catch up with its owner, but in the end it died of exhaustion."

Zhong Xiu said, and suddenly choked up, "If I were the owner, I would definitely not be so mean to the puppy."

"Yes, but some people will say that Li Jia did this to save his father. After all, his father was dying in prison, and Li Jia was rushing to save his father, and he didn't understand what the puppy meant. It's understandable that he did this in a hurry."

"But how could he bear to..." Zhong Xiu pouted, trying to hold back his sadness, "The puppy loves him so much."

Love...? Rong Qing thought that was right, and she gently patted Zhong Xiu's thin back.

"The owner didn't trust him at all. The dog must have been very sad and upset before he died." Zhong Xiu thought to himself, it must have been even sadder than I am now. I guess he doesn't need a grave, he just needs his owner to care about him more.

"You're right." Rong Qing whispered to comfort him, "The owner in the story might be as sad as you, but all he could do was to give the puppy a proper burial. The puppy was trying to show its love for its owner, and Li Jia also gave everything for the one he loved, spending all his family wealth and traveling a long distance for this. The only regret is that they couldn't communicate with each other in language. But in the end, they were willing to pay for love in the same way."

Zhong Xiu was silent for a while, but still shook his head. In Rong Qing's impression, Zhong Xiu always responded to her with a smile, but it was rare for him to express his opposition so firmly.

"No." Zhong Xiu looked down at the water, the clear river water was getting darker in the twilight. "It's because Li Jia doesn't love it... If he loved it, how could he bear to beat it. If he loved it, even if he couldn't express it in words, his heart would be connected."

(End of this chapter)