Re-embroidering life

The Dragon Boat Festival was created to commemorate Qu Yuan, who was a native of Chu. The Chu people naturally took the Dragon Boat Festival very seriously and celebrated it for 20 days. The fifth day of May is the first Dragon Boat Festival, the fifteenth day is the second Dragon Boat Festival, and the twenty-fifth day is the third Dragon Boat Festival. Every household makes rice dumplings, boils eggs, wears sachets, and wraps colorful silk. They also pick white wormwood and calamus, tie them into bundles with red paper strips, and hang them in front of the door.

Shui Qinghua's family is dressed in new clothes as they go out to visit someone today.

Qinghua usually wore light and elegant clothes. Today, she wore a lilac lotus brocade skirt, and a cloud shoulder cape with a moon-white background and silver thread. She put a little powder on her face, and applied rouge and lip balm. Her pale face immediately looked better.

Ji Zimo was wearing a long gown of quertle blue silk, a crimson silk belt around his waist, a white jade pendant hanging from his waist, and a folding fan in his hand. What a handsome man.

The two little girls Fei'er and Rui'er wore double buns and red pompoms on their heads. Their brocade robes were embroidered with birds of various colors: yellow, emerald, golden and red. There were green silk vines between the birds. The colors were gorgeous, which was the typical style of Chu embroidery.

Even Lan Xin and Hui Xin, who were accompanying them, changed into newly made light red dresses.

Ji Wei, who was still in her infancy, could only stay at home with her wet nurse to guard the door.

The family is colorful and youthful, and when they walk on the street, people stop and look back.

They rode a horse carriage for a while, and then got off to walk when they reached the market. It had been a long time since they had taken their children out, so it was a good opportunity to go shopping in the market. Along the way, the two children bought colorful silk and small sachets, which they wore happily. When the couple was buying red eggs for the children to play "egg fighting", they found that people around them were holding incense and candles from time to time, and they were walking in groups towards the outside of the city.

Shui Qinghua curiously asked the egg vendor, "Uncle, where are they going?"

As the old man lowered his head to give them eggs, he said absentmindedly, "You may not know yet, but the Medicine Buddha of Yuquan Temple has appeared and has come alive from the embroidered image! Today is a festival, if you have patients at home, hurry up and burn a stick of incense for the Buddha, and if you don't have any patients, pray for your family to be healthy during the Dragon Boat Festival!"

Shui Qinghua and Ji Zimo looked at each other and smiled secretly.

At this time, another passerby who was buying eggs interrupted: "I heard that there was something strange about the embroidered portrait. The Chen family, who were worshipping the embroidered portrait, burned the head and face of the Buddha. After a few days, the hair and eyes turned into real ones! Could it be some kind of evil magic?"

"It's a rumor! I have seen the embroidered picture with my own eyes, and there is not a single trace of burn on it. This is the Buddha appearing! It must be the kindness of the Chen family's doctor that moved the Buddha!" ​​A teenage boy squeezed through the crowd to refute the passerby who was buying eggs.

"Little guy, who are you to the Chen family? Why are you speaking for the Chen family like this?" The man who bought eggs was unhappy.

"I'm not from the Chen family. My father and I lived in a dilapidated temple. My father was sick and dying. It was Grandpa Chen who saved my father and gave us medicine without taking a penny!" The young boy said loudly as he looked at the crowd that gathered around him.

"Yes, I also heard that the Chen family's master and apprentice often go to treat illnesses and give medicine to the poor!"

"What can be hidden from the Buddha's eyes? If the Buddha's head is really burned, can the Buddha still show his power?"

"I'll go and pray later. My youngest son has had a cold for several days."

The onlookers started talking about it.

When Shui Qinghua and his wife brought their children to Chen's house, calamus had already been hung in front of and behind the house. The fresh fragrance of the plants brought out a strong Dragon Boat Festival atmosphere.

Shui Qinghua prepared a box of rice dumplings, which she, Lan Xin and Hui Xin made by themselves, and which included water dumplings, red bean dumplings, candied date dumplings and peanut dumplings. Ji Zimo brought a painting of "Dragon Boat Races" that he had drawn as a festival gift.

After entering Chen's house, Shui Qinghua found that Dou Jianzhi, Shui Xiuhua and his wife, Dong Yajing and Shui Yuhua were also invited. Everyone was a relative or a good friend, and there was no distinction between male and female guests. Under the guidance of Chen Jinlan, they all went to the main hall to pay their respects to Mrs. Chen.

The Chen family was able to clear its name, and Old Lady Chen was naturally proud and refreshed, but it was also a big blow to her that Mother Chang, whom she regarded as a sister, was bribed by the rival family. At this moment, Old Lady Chen was mixed with sadness and joy, and her mood was complicated. Looking at the group of young people standing below, all of them were full of energy and vigor, she felt that she had become younger, and the haze in her heart was swept away a lot.

The old lady asked Shui Qinghua to sit below her. In front of everyone, Chen Jinlan performed a solemn ceremony, offered tea, and formally worshipped Shui Qinghua as her teacher. Shui Qinghua brought an embroidery, which was a birthday gift from Shen Xiu Niang. It was a handkerchief embroidered with the ink painting "River Snow Picture". This was also the last gift from Shen Xiu Niang. She carefully kept it for seven years and now gave it to Chen Jinlan as a gift to show the inheritance of skills.

When Ji Zimo saw the ink painting on the handkerchief, his heart skipped a beat. He seemed to have seen this painting somewhere before, but when he tried to recall it carefully, he could not find any trace of it.

The Chen family's apprenticeship gift was a bottle of medicine, which was only as big as a little finger. Shui Qinghua did not dare to underestimate it, as she knew that the medicine must be very precious. Sure enough, the people from the Chen family who were watching the ceremony were all surprised when they saw the bottle of medicine. The little girl Chen Xiulan was the first to lose her temper: "Grandma, the snow lotus is picked from the cliffs of the snowy mountains, and it is hard to find one. There are only a few snow lotus pills left in our family. Are you going to give them to an outsider like this?"

Old Madam Chen glanced at Chen Xiulan, then looked around and asked the others, "Do you think so too? Do you think this medicine should not be taken out?"

The famous doctor Chen and his wife returned to Jiangxia to retire, with only a few female relatives serving them, while their sons and grandsons stayed in Beijing. A daughter-in-law wearing red brocade clothes, who seemed to have the highest status among the younger generation, said: "The Snow Lotus Pill is too precious. It's not that it shouldn't be given to Jinlan's master, but my parents are old, so it should be used by my parents first."

The other daughter-in-law in yellow was much more straightforward: "Mother, please don't be too partial to Jinlan. Father has spent all his money over the years. Cailan and Xiulan will be getting married in two years. Our family can't even prepare a decent dowry. Mother gave the Snow Lotus Pill to Jinlan. What should Xiulan and Cailan do?"

Old Madam Chen shook her head in disappointment: "Do you think that Lady Shui is just Jinlan's master and the Snow Lotus Pill is just a gift for her apprenticeship? Without Lady Shui, do you know what would happen to the Chen family now?"

The daughter-in-law in yellow disagreed: "Are you talking about Bencaotang? Mother, don't think too highly of them. Father was a royal doctor. The officials in Echeng are all polite to father. It's because father is pedantic and always thinks of filial piety that a street medicine hall has been riding on the head of the Chen family for so many years!"

The women of the Chen family nodded one after another, and it was obvious that they had been filled with resentment over the years.

Old Madam Chen had an infinite sadness in her eyes: "Your father was attacked for being unfilial and treacherous, and your husband and son's future would be good if it got out? Today is the Dragon Boat Festival, and there are so many guests here. Let's not talk about the Chen family's family affairs for now, let's start the banquet now."

Old Madam Chen made the final decision and did not give anyone a chance to speak. The daughters-in-law and granddaughters were still dissatisfied. They did not dare to disobey the old lady in front of all the guests. However, the look they gave Shui Qinghua was not so friendly.