Beautiful Peasant Girl: The Young Marquis's Beloved

Time passed quickly, and during this period the two families were enjoying good times. Liu Chang went to the town to inform Zhu Jiacheng.

The ninth day of October is an auspicious day, suitable for breaking ground.

Before daybreak, the foot of the mountain to the west of the village was already bustling with activity. The groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the houses of Liu Changshun and Liu Xu was about to begin.

They invited the second grandfather, who was the most senior in the clan. The old man also arrived early and solemnly set up the incense table in front of the homestead, with offerings laid out and smoke rising from the air.

All the people from Liu Xu and Liu Changshun's families, young and old, wore new clothes and stood respectfully by.

When the auspicious time arrived, the second grandfather sang loudly: "Respect heaven and earth, bless peace, break ground and start construction, blessings will continue."

Liu Changshun strode forward, holding the hoe tightly with both hands, and dug the first shovel of soil towards the selected position. Everyone cheered in unison, and the gongs and drums were deafening.

As for Liu Xu, since Liu Donglai was not there, the second grandfather personally held the two-month-old Xu Ge'er and slowly walked to the front. He held Xu Ge'er tightly in one hand and held the hoe with the other hand. Under the gaze of everyone, he solemnly dug a few shovels of soil.

At this time, the sound of firecrackers was deafening, and debris flew everywhere, as if announcing to heaven and earth the good beginning of the two families. The craftsmen also got busy, moving stones and transporting wood, and the sound of horns rose and fell.

Xu Ruolan and Chen Lan brought a few ladies they were on good terms with, and brought up the mixed-flour steamed buns they had prepared long ago, and distributed them to the neighbors who were watching the fun.

Liu Changshun, along with his two elder brothers and other clan members, also carried two baskets of steamed buns and two large basins of bone and radish soup and sent them to the workers.

The children were moving among the crowd, watching the lively scene with excitement.

The entire groundbreaking ceremony was filled with solemnity and joy, carrying the two families' infinite longing and expectations for their future life.

After the groundbreaking ceremony, the construction of the two new houses was entirely handed over to Zhu Jiacheng.

Zhu Jiacheng also put a lot of effort into the two houses, because both sides started construction at the same time, and brought 70 to 80 people over. They all set up tents at the foot of the mountain to live.

He also recruited a dozen laborers and four women to cook in the village.

Of course, Liu Xu and Xing'er did not ignore it. When Liu Xu and Xing'er were not busy, they would cook some mung bean soup or sugar water for the workers to quench their thirst. Seeing that the master was so kind, the workers worked even harder.

It is already late autumn, and the villagers have begun to sow winter wheat.

Whether in the fields or at the foot of the mountain west of the village, it is a busy and lively scene.

Liu Changshun's family also had land, so he kept Xing'er at home to cook and take care of the mushrooms.

All of Liuxu's family's land was rented to Guisheng's grandfather's family, so the mother and daughter had nothing to do.

Xu Ruolan was sitting in the yard doing needlework with her child. Seeing this, Liu Xu became interested and pestered her mother to teach her.

But after a while, she lay on the small table with no hope in life:

"Mom, I think God may not have given me this skill!"

"Puchi, you!" Xu Ruolan nodded at her.

"It's always like this at the beginning. Mom was stabbed a lot in the past. Just practice more and it will be fine! Needlework is extremely important. Do you want to give away your private items like your underwear to others in the future?"

Because she was still young, Xu Ruolan couldn't say that she would make clothes for her husband after she got married.

"Oh, but this is too difficult! Mom, look at my hands, they are almost like a hornet's nest!"

"Alright, alright, forget it today. Go play with your brothers!" Xu Ruolan didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Upon hearing this, Willow Catkins was as if granted amnesty. She quickly ran to the winnowing basket and started to play with the two little ones.

The days were plain and warm. During this period, the two families produced a lot of mushrooms, but Liuxu wanted to save them for selling at a high price in winter, so he dried and packed them all. Xing'er naturally did whatever Liuxu said.

In late autumn, the weather becomes more changeable.

When I woke up early that day, the sky was originally gloomy, but in the blink of an eye, it started to drizzle.

The raindrops were like fine bead curtains, falling continuously, hitting the eaves and the hearts of the willow catkins.

Liu Xu couldn't help but worry about the new house, wondering if the rain would affect the construction progress. She was even more worried that it would be unsafe for the workers to work in the rain or get sick from the rain.

So, without caring about anything else, she said something to her mother, put on her straw raincoat and hat, and hurried to the foot of the mountain.

Along the way, the cold wind was blowing, the trees on the roadside were shivering in the wind and rain, and the withered yellow leaves were knocked down by the rain and scattered on the muddy road.

When we arrived, we saw the workers working in the rain. The rain soaked their clothes and their hair stuck to their foreheads. The mud and water on the ground splashed everywhere, and the whole construction site was muddy.

Liu Xu hurried forward and said loudly: "Everyone, stop working, it's raining hard, let's get out of the rain first!" Zhu Jiacheng saw her coming, wiped the rain off his face, and said: "Xu girl, this little rain is not a problem, we can hurry up and you can live in your new house soon."

Liu Xu persuaded anxiously, "Uncle Zhu, it doesn't matter if it's a few days late. Everyone's health is important. What if they get gonorrhea? Let them stop first!"

Seeing Liu Xu's firm attitude, Zhu Jiacheng felt warm in his heart and immediately asked the workers to put down their work.

Liu Xu said again: "Everyone go to the shed to avoid the rain first. I will make some ginger soup for everyone to drive away the cold."

After saying that, she turned and ran towards the makeshift kitchen that the workers had built.

The thin figure seemed a little struggling in the wind and rain, but her steps were extremely firm.

After a while, Liu Xu came back with the aunts who helped with cooking, carrying several buckets of steaming ginger soup.

She carefully served a bowl to each worker and said, "Drink it while it's hot, don't catch a cold."

The workers took the ginger soup, and the hot steam rose up, blurring their eyes.

Someone said, "Miss Liu, you are really kind-hearted."

Liu Xu smiled and said, "Everyone worked hard to build our house, and this is what I should do."

In this cold late autumn rain, the warm ginger soup dispels the chill and brings people's hearts closer.

After everyone had finished drinking, Liu Xu said goodbye to Zhu Jiacheng and waded through the mud to return home.

When she got home, Xu Ruolan had already prepared hot water for her.

After taking a hot bath and drinking the ginger soup brought by Xu Ruolan, he lay on the bed and let out a long sigh of relief.

"Is everything okay at the foot of the mountain?" Xu Ruolan was also a little worried.

"Don't worry, mom. It's okay. I told them to stop working and wait until the rain stops."

Xu Ruolan also breathed a sigh of relief when she heard this.

It was raining outside and there was nothing to do, so the mother and daughter stayed at home with peace of mind.

Liu Xu didn't want to follow her mother in needlework, so she went to find a wooden stick, dipped it in water and practiced calligraphy on the table.

Xu Ruolan was very pleased to see this, and thinking that the family now had a lot of money, she said:

"Xu'er, go to town someday and buy some pens, inkstones, and books. If you have any calligraphy books you like, buy some too! Calligraphy should be practiced on paper!"

"Okay, mother. How about buying some more cloth and cotton? When I have time, I will sew some quilts for use when we move to the new house."

Since she had moved to a new house and was not short of money for the time being, she naturally wanted to replace everything with new ones. Although she didn't throw away these old things, she planned to put them away and take them out when they were useful in the future.

"Well, the winter in Yongzhou is cold and damp, so we need to prepare a few beds. You can buy them when the time comes. And cotton-padded clothes, how about buying them as well? I don't have anything else to do now, so I'll hurry up and you can wear new cotton-padded clothes when the weather gets cold."

"Mom, let's just buy ready-made cotton clothes! You still have to take care of Xu'er and Hao'er, and it's not good for your eyes to sew all the time."

Liu Xu thought for a moment and said,

"By the way, mom, you can sew a few quilt covers, so it will be convenient to take apart and wash the quilt later!"

"What is a quilt?" Xu Ruolan asked puzzledly.

"Hmm? Just sew the cotton cloth into a big pocket that can be laid flat to hold the bedding. Then sew a few strips of cloth on the opening and tie them up when you put the bedding in. And when you want to wash it, just take off the quilt cover."

Seeing that Xu Ruolan still didn't quite understand, she simply picked up the needle and thread and planned to make a mini version.

It was still drizzling outside. The mother and daughter were discussing in a low voice in the house, while the two little ones were still sleeping soundly.

Perhaps God was also moved by her kindness, and the rain stopped after half a day.

After the rain, the sky cleared up and the villagers and workers were unwilling to waste time, so they started working again in full swing.