Flowers in full bloom

It was the first time that Rong Jin came into Qihuayuan after Hualei moved in. He sat under the big tree in the yard, drinking tea and looking around the yard. He felt that the trees were green and the flowers were fragrant.

"Brother, have you visited grandma?" asked Zhenzhu, who had changed her clothes and came out first. "I visited when I came back, but grandma was resting so I didn't disturb her." "Then have you visited mom? Let me tell you, cousin Qingge came again yesterday. Mom scolded me again last night and I was so angry."

Rong Jin laughed, "Why are we facing each other again?"

"Who made her so annoying?" Then she told him everything that happened in Songheyuan yesterday.

As Rong Jin listened, his expression gradually turned a little grim.

"Brother, let me tell you something," Zhenzhu said coquettishly, "I went to my grandmother's yard for breakfast this morning. Seeing her dark face, I was afraid I would lose my appetite. Tell me, there are so many yards at home, why does mother always let her live in the same yard with me? I am almost annoyed by her. Can you help me talk to mother and let her live anywhere, but not with me? If it really doesn't work, I can move to my grandmother's yard."

Rong Jin sighed softly. He was also annoyed. Whenever this cousin came to the Marquis's Mansion, no matter which courtyard she lived in, she would always find a reason to come to him. But he couldn't do anything to her, so he could only avoid her from a distance every time, which made him very annoyed.

Hualei came out wiping her wet hair. After running for nearly two hours, she was sweating profusely. She couldn't help it and quickly took a shower.

Seeing the flower buds, Zhenzhu seemed to remember something and turned to Rong Jin and said, "Brother, you know, Master Sun praised Sister Hua this morning and hung her handwriting on the wall behind the teaching building. Let me tell you, my cousin always thought that her handwriting was beautiful, but compared with Sister Hua's, there is simply a world of difference, like heaven and earth. Sister Hua is the cloud and she is the mud." After Zhenzhu finished speaking, she pointed to the sky and then to the ground.

The funny action made Hua Lei smile. "Don't talk nonsense, cousin Qingge's handwriting is also very good." Rong Jin paused slightly and looked at Hua Lei. "I haven't seen Miss Hua's handwriting yet." "Haven't seen it?" Hua Lei was confused. Rong Jin nodded. Seeing Rong Jin's expectant look, Hua Lei hesitated and said, "Then how about I ask Qingying to show it to you?" "Okay."

Hua Lei asked Qing Ying to fetch the history and current affairs notes on the bookshelf that she had sorted out two days ago and handed them to Rong Jin. Rong Jin took it and spread it out carefully. A beautiful hand-written calligraphy with flowers on it came into view. Rong Jin flipped through it gently and couldn't help but praise, "Miss Hua's handwriting is so good. Every stroke is so well-placed. Was this taught by Grandfather Hua?" Hua Lei nodded.

"Is this a historical note?" Rong Jin looked at the content and asked again. "Yes. Oh, by the way, Mr. Pei, I would like to ask, do you have a textbook on historical policy and strategy? If so, can you lend it to me?" Hua Lei asked cautiously.

"It should be there. I'll look for it when I get back. If there is, I'll ask Qingzao to send it to you." Hualei nodded, her eyebrows curved, and it can be seen that she was in a good mood. Zhenzhu watched the interaction between the two and covered her mouth. She said mischievously, "Brother, don't look at Hua sister's handwriting. She is just as bad at chess as I am, hehehe."

"Oh, really?" Rong Jin was a little unconvinced. "Really, big brother, I'm not lying to you. The other day we played chess in the academy, and Sister Hua and I ended up in a draw. Hahahaha, I've been playing chess for so long, and I always lose. It's not easy to get a draw this time. Maybe I can beat Sister Hua next time." Zhenzhu clapped her hands and laughed.

Rong Jin looked at Zhenzhu, then at Hualei, smiled, and said nothing. Zhenzhu was such a bad chess player, it was hard to lose to her. But he didn't know Hualei well, so he would find a chance to play a game with her later. Seeing that it was almost time, Rong Jin and Zhenzhu said goodbye, Rong Jin still had to go to Changfeng Garden and Songheyuan.

The next afternoon, Qingzao delivered the book that Hualei wanted to borrow to Qihuayuan.

In the following days, Zhenzhu secretly took Hualei to go horseback riding every day, and their relationship also developed rapidly. The days passed by in such laughter and fun.

The night before the family school closed, Hua Lei reported to Mrs. Pei and took Xiao Yuan back to the house in Qingyun Lane to stay overnight. When everyone in Qingyun Lane saw Hua Lei and her brother return, they happily prepared the dishes that Hua Lei and her brother liked. After dinner, they surrounded Hua Lei and her brother and asked about their lives. After hearing Hua Lei's affirmative answer, Uncle Fu and everyone else were relieved. Hua Lei also learned about the situation of the restaurant and bookstore, and knew that everything was fine, so she was relieved.

Since the grid-shaped copy paper was put on the shelves, customers have come to the bookstore almost every day to look at or buy it. There have been no imitations yet, and the business of woodblock-printed floating books is getting better and better. After word of mouth from surrounding students, students from the other three districts also come to Huaji Bookstore to buy some pens, inkstones, and paper. The sales of storybooks and picture albums have also risen sharply, and now they account for almost one-third of the sales of the entire bookstore. Even Brother Ping'an still has a subtle resistance to this, which gives Hualei a headache.

Hua Lei told Brother Xiao Qun that as the weather was getting warmer, more people would definitely be willing to go out for a walk, so a few more benches could be placed in front of the bookstore's entrance, as long as it didn't affect walking.

The restaurant business is much better again. More and more people come to eat steamed buns in the morning. I thought the business would decline as the weather got hotter. But I didn't expect that there were many temporary bricklayers and tilers who came out to find work during the slack season in the countryside around the market. Carpenters who were reluctant to spend money to work in restaurants all had lunch at the steamed bun shop. Now the steamed bun shop has a constant stream of customers at noon. Aunt Song now has to make steamed buns in two batches to supply them. After hearing this, Hua Lei asked Aunt Song to make a free soup in the store in the future, such as egg drop soup, vegetable soup, etc., and put some of the leftover oil residue from refining lard at home. It will be provided free of charge to customers who come into the store. Aunt Song agreed.

Hualei thought that the weather was getting hotter and hotter. The sun was a bit strong recently. For a long time, the sun shone directly into the bookstore and the restaurant, making people feel even hotter. She asked Uncle Fu to find someone to build a shed outside the bookstore and the restaurant, making it bigger and more stable. So as to block some of the sunlight. Uncle Fu nodded in agreement.

He also asked Uncle Fu to contact Brother Fang Youdi when he had time to see if there were any good farms or fertile fields for sale, ten, twenty, or fifty acres would be fine. It was the middle of the year, and fertile fields were hard to buy in the capital. It was not easy to buy a farm all at once.

In the farming era, the family was a little uneasy without land. She left enough silver for Uncle Fu, asking him to buy it directly if he could make his own decision, and to go to the mansion to ask someone to pass the message to her if he couldn't make up his mind. Uncle Fu happily agreed. Buying land has always been something Uncle Fu has been thinking about.

The next morning, I took Xiaoqun to the printing house to ask about the engraving of the imperial examination bookstore. Unfortunately, Manager Liu said that there was no news from the boss yet. If there was any news, he would inform Hualei as soon as possible. Hualei had no choice but to suppress her eagerness and went to the defective warehouse to pick up a cart of books. Because of the grid copying paper, Manager Liu only symbolically charged five taels of silver, which made Hualei very happy. This is like spending the money for steamed buns but the boss gave you a meat bun.