Chapter 5: Miracle Day (1)

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  Generally speaking, it's easier to beg for food in a tavern. The boss will give you some food to get rid of the beggar quickly, but if you encounter a stingy boss, you won't be able to get anything. Ah-Chou hopes that the boss of this tavern is not too stingy.

  He walked into the tavern when there were several young and beautiful Hu girls accompanying the corridor's silk music, singing and dancing.

  Chest out, waist thin, plump and round buttocks...

  Simple clothes reveal a touch of sexy skin at the waist, and the skirt hangs from the hips on both sides, making people wonder if it will fall off with their snake-like movements.

  Her seductive dance, accompanied by her sensual body, makes men drool with desire.

  Ah-Chui was still a boy, not a man, and had no interest in those oily and shiny, chest-out-and-waist-in Hu Jie. His eyes were fixed on the shopkeeper with a goat beard who was hunched over the counter calculating accounts.

  In the hotel, there were many seats on both sides. The guests either knelt or sat cross-legged on the mats, with low tables in front of them, on which wine and dishes were placed, drinking, chatting, and enjoying the singing and dancing.

  It's impolite to walk in front of people who are eating, so the boy went around behind the guests' seats and came out into the aisle behind the counter.

  He was very careful and did everything possible to leave a good impression on the owner of the wine house.

  "Shopkeeper!"

  The boy clasped his hands together and bowed politely: "May the shopkeeper's wealth increase, may business be booming, please give a small donation..."

  The gaze of the goat-bearded man shifted from the account book, coldly glancing at the boy, his facial wrinkles unmoving. He simply moved a withered old hand from the abacus to his whiskers, lightly stroking the sparse whiskers, then flicked his index finger outward, as if swatting a fly.

  Niang Niang crouched under the banana tree, hugging her shriveled belly, eagerly waiting for good news from her brother.

  The butterfly was tired of flying and had landed on her shoulder.

  She saw Ah Xiong walking towards her from the small bridge on the opposite side, and stood up happily. The butterfly was startled and flew again. A rickshaw slowly approached, just driving between her and Ah Xiong, blocking her line of sight.

  She raised her head and saw the beautiful little fairy with a butterfly hairpin, leaning on the luxurious carriage, curiously looking at her, looking at the butterfly on her head...

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  Ah Chou walked past the carriage and saw Niu Niu talking to a nobleman who had just stepped down from it. Ah Chou was startled, thinking that Niu Niu had gotten into some kind of trouble, and hastily went forward to apologize with a smile: "My younger sister is young and ignorant, if she has offended you in any way, please forgive her."

  At a glance, the scholar was the woman he had met in front of the Governor's Mansion, who was personally sent out by Yu Guangzhou, the Governor of Dufu, Yuan Rui. Ah-Chou's heart became even more nervous.

  As soon as Ah Chou's voice fell, a little loli with a butterfly hairpin came out from the side of the man-dressed woman, mischievously tilting her double buns, and a pair of dotted eyes stared at him, laughing: "Wow, wow, can't help it, a little beggar speaks so eloquently, hehe, my name is Gong Sun Lanxi, what's yours?"

  "Daughter! Doesn't know the rules!"

  The woman scolded her with a stern face and asked Ah-Chou: "Are you the sister of this young lady?"

  "Ah, Gong Sun's wife," said Ah Chou hastily, "although I and Niuniu are not blood relatives, we rely on each other for survival and our relationship is like siblings. Naturally, I can take responsibility for Niuniu's matters."

  The woman smiled slightly and said: "My husband's family name is Gong Sun, but I'm not surnamed Gong Sun. My surname is Pei. You can just call me Mrs. Pei."

  "Ah, yes, Lady Pei, I don't know what fault my sister has committed."

  Mrs. Pei smiled and said, "I have not wronged anyone. My mischievous daughter has been clamoring to find a companion of similar age. Just now on the road, I saw this young lady, who is clever and looks delicate, my daughter likes her very much. Just now I asked her, she is an orphan who begs for a living, it's better to come to our house and be with my daughter, also a reliance."

  It was Ah Chou's exquisite butterfly hairpin that caught Gong Sun Lan's interest, otherwise she wouldn't have given a street urchin a second glance. As a result of their conversation, even Niang Niang took a liking to her, and this is what prompted her to ask her mother to agree to take her in as a maid.

  Niang Niang liked Gong Sun Lan's butterfly hairpin, so Ah Chou made one for her. As a result, Gong Sun Lan had the idea of taking Niang Niang as her maid companion because of this "butterfly hairpin". It is really hard to distinguish who is the cause and who is the effect.

  Ah-Chou was overjoyed when she heard this, for a woman who could make the local tyrant of Guangzhou treat her with such respect must be someone extraordinary. If Niu-Niu could have such an influential patron to take care of her, it would truly be her greatest fortune; otherwise, not only did Ah-Chou currently lack the means to fill Niu-Niu's belly, but when Niu-Niu grew up a bit and encountered some unscrupulous characters like Xiao Lang, she feared that even she herself might not be able to protect her as luckily as last time.

  "Ah, Ah-Chu said with a smile: 'Niuniu's parents are both dead, and she is all alone without any relatives. If you, Big Madam, would be willing to take her in, that would be the best thing that could happen. This kindness, I, your humble servant, will never forget...'"

  Niang Niang pulled at his sleeve and said timidly, "Brother, Mrs. Pei says she'll only take one of us with her."

  "What?"

  Ah-Chou was taken aback, hesitated for a moment, and then said to Mrs. Pei: "Mrs. Pei, I'm very diligent, I can do odd jobs or be a servant, even if there's no pay, as long as you provide food and a place to live..."

  Mrs. Pei smiled and shook her head, her smile as gentle as a spring breeze, but the words that came out were like heavy lead hammers pounding on his heart: "Young man, she's indeed not bad, but it's also because my daughter is looking for a companion, otherwise I wouldn't have taken in a beggar girl, I'm not doing charity!"

  A-Chou's face suddenly turned red, he suppressed the strong sense of shame, and turned his head to look at Niu-Niu: "Niu-Niu, how...how did you say?"

  "I..."

  Niuniu looked at Pei Dainiang, then at her beautifully dressed daughter, and finally at the exquisite carriage. A hint of longing flashed in her eyes. But thinking of her brother, who she relied on for survival, her gaze dimmed again. She resolutely turned her head and said softly to Ah Chou: "I... will follow Brother!"

  Mrs. Pei smiled and took her daughter's hand, saying: "Daughter, let's go!"

  "Ah Niang!" Gong Sun Lan Ci was unwillingly pulled by her, pouting.

  A Chu let out a sigh of relief and also pulled Niu Niu's hand, softly saying: "Let's go!"

  Gongsun's daughter walked to the side of the carriage, lifted her skirt and stepped on the footboard, turned around and glanced at him, suddenly stamped her foot in hatred and said loudly: "Xiao Qi'er, do you want her to follow you as a beggar woman for the rest of her life?"

  The voice drifted into Ah Chou's ears with the wind, and Ah Chou's smile suddenly froze on his face.

  "Big Brother?"

  Niu Niu saw Ah Chou's stiff smile and asked him worriedly. Ah Chou remained standing, motionless.

  "What kind of life can you give her? Do you want her to be a beggar for her whole life?"

  This question was like a heavy battering ram, pounding his heart again and again, shattering it into pieces.

  He suddenly grasped Niu Niu's thin wrist and turned around to run, shouting loudly: "Mrs. Pei, wait a minute! Wait a minute!"

  The horse carriage stopped, and Mrs. Pei leaned out of the window and asked faintly, "What's going on?"

  "Niang Niang, you go with Mrs. Pei!"

  Niang Niang stared at him in surprise and stammered: "Brother, I..."

  "Listen! You stay by my side, how can I take care of you? You go with Mrs. Pei, and one day if I make a name for myself, I'll come find you. If you become capable, you can also come help your brother. We promise each other, no matter who becomes successful, we must find each other, never to part ways! Is that okay?"

  "Okay... but..."

  "All aboard! Hurry up and get on!"

  Ah-Chou didn't say a word, picked up Niuniu and put her on the cart, took three steps back, and gave a deep bow to Mrs. Pei: "Mrs. Pei, I'm entrusting Niuniu to you!"

  Gongsun's daughter happily beckoned: "Niu Niu, come and sit beside me!"

  "Go!" ordered Mrs. Pei faintly.

  Creaking and screeching, a burst of wheel axle twisting sounds.

  Ah Q made a long bow, but never lifted his head.

  "Brother, don't forget what you said, you promised me, don't deceive me! Brother, I'll take it seriously..."

  Niuniu's voice grew fainter as she walked away, her words still laced with sobs. Ah Chou remained bowed, refusing to lift his head.

  As he slowly straightened up and gazed out at the distance, people on the road hurried by, and the light carriage was no longer visible in the distance.

  Ah Qiu's heart was like a rusty axle: "This axle needs oil..."

  …………

  "I'll become someone's maid and earn a salary, I can also learn to do needlework. Once I've saved up enough money, I'll come back to find my brother. If at that time my brother still has no job, I'll become a seamstress to support him!"

  On both sides, tender green grass and tall trees appeared, and the car had long since driven away.

  Niang Niang still leaned on the window, with tears stains on her cheek, and quietly made plans for the future.

  Suddenly, she thought of a question that made her heart anxious: "Was brother still in Guangzhou at that time?"

  She thought again: "If Brother Ah is not in Guangzhou Prefecture, where can he go?" That little heart finally calmed down.

  Ah Chou stood at the crossroads, straining to open his swollen and bruised eye, staring blankly in the direction the car had gone.

  He knew his choice was right, he was too young and didn't have the power to protect Niu Niu, just like he could only watch as his sister's head was chopped off without being able to avenge her. If Xiao Lang found him, he might not be as lucky as last time, this was an opportunity that would change Niu Niu's fate for good.

  When Niu Niu left, his heart felt empty. With Niu Niu gone, he had no relatives left. He didn't know how to go on with his life from then on. Would he still be a beggar after many years? If so, would he still go look for Niu Niu?

  "Wait..."

  Ah Chui suddenly came to, and he knew that the man in woman's clothing must be a person of noble status, so he wasn't worried that Ah Mui had been kidnapped by human traffickers. However, in his haste, he forgot to ask about the other person's identity and residence, and wondered how he would find Ah Mui if he managed to blend in with society in the future.

  In a state of panic, Ah Chou subconsciously chased after the direction in which the car had disappeared...

  At the crossroads, Ah Q stood blankly, he had no idea where that car went. Ah Q thought to himself: "If I'm still a useless beggar, what's the point of bothering her? If I become someone with status, even if I'm not worthy of speaking with the governor, at least asking him about a noble residence he knows should be okay, right?"

  Just as Ah Qiu was thinking, a thunderous voice suddenly boomed in his ear, "Young man, do you know where the Guangzhou Governor's Mansion is?"

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