Chapter 4 — An Y

8Just as Tong Hanh Van said, after a long time I never saw him again, no news, as if he had disappeared from this world. Summer has passed and autumn has come, this is the second autumn since An Ninh came to stay with me. "Restaurant owner, give me a piece of peach blossom cake." "Yes." I quickly took a piece of peach blossom cake, wrapped it in oil paper and gave it to the customer. The customer took the cake and went to Judge Thoi's wonton shop and sat down. I took a towel and slowly wiped the counter. Their conversation entered my ears little by little. "It's not very peaceful these days. I heard that Ve Xich Vu just got a new commander." "Tsk! Just keep it quiet, Ve Xich Vu received the Emperor's orders, a few days ago even arrested a few officials, the situation is very tense." I was still indifferent to what they said, until one sentence startled me and I quickly paid attention. "Have you heard, the Song family is about to be exiled." already.”“When did it happen?”“Just put up the notice this morning…”I stood there as if dumbfounded. It's the Song family. I quickly put down the things in my hand, walked out and said to An Ninh: "Good An Ninh, stay in the shop, sister has something to go out." "Come on judge, please ask her to look after the shop and help me look after An Ninh!" "Okay! But where are you going, lady?"... I quickly passed through the crowd, ran to the door of the yamen, where the notice had just been posted. I looked intently at every word on it. They were right, the Song family would be exiled to the frontier. A wave of emotions surged through my body, my eyes burned. I covered my mouth, not knowing whether to cry or laugh. As long as they don't lose their lives, it's extremely lucky. The day they leave the city will be three days later, I will rush back. A magnificent carriage passed me, almost knocking me down. The sound of the horse's hooves rang out, the falling yellow leaves spinning on the ground were trampled under the horse's feet. I didn't pay attention to that, I was just eager to bring this good news back to tell An Ninh. When I got back to the shop, Judge Cui was sitting An Ninh on a high wooden chair. An Ninh obediently sat on the chair, resting her chin in her hand, attentively looking at the flow of people passing by on the street. Seeing me return, her eyes lit up, she grabbed the chair with both hands, intending to jump down. Sister An Y, where are you going?" I lifted her round face and excitedly said: "An Ninh, do you want to see your parents again?" 9 I always remember Tong Hanh Van's advice, not to reveal An Ninh's identity to outsiders. The day they left the city, I took An Ninh with me, hiding in the crowd, watching from afar as Mr. Tong and Mrs. Tong were being escorted, wearing chains around their necks. Two years in prison caused Lady Song, who was originally gentle and cheerful, to become haggard and her skin turned yellow. Old Master Tong, who used to always stand straight with his head held high, was now hunched over by heavy chains, his hands tied tightly and dragged to the ground. I picked An Ninh up and let her look closely at her parents one more time. Even though she was young, perhaps because the event was so profound, An Ninh still remembers the silhouettes of Mr. Tong and Mrs. Tong. She looked at her parents, constantly pushed by the prison guards, her eyes suddenly red. She repeatedly used her hand to wipe her tear-stained eyes, just to try to see her parents clearly one last time. Perhaps sensing something, Lady Tong suddenly turned her head to look towards us. The eyes of mother and daughter met, overcoming two years of separation, passing through the jostling crowd, meeting again in this moment. Appearance may change, but feelings remain the same. Lady Song's eyes, once tired and gloomy from prison, were now bright, containing so many emotions: love, joy, worry and fear, all mixed together. In the end, there is only hope left

looked at An Ninh one more time. "Looking at something, go quickly!" A ferocious prison guard pushed Lady Tong, causing her to almost fall. Old man Tong quickly bowed down to apologize, holding Mrs. Tong's hand tightly: "Yes, yes..." Taking the opportunity to turn around, Mrs. Tong looked at An Ninh one last time, her eyes full of nostalgia, then stopped at me. We see her eyes filled with gratitude, her lips softly moving the two wordless words: "Thank you."... Dark clouds from who knows when have covered the sky, the cold autumn wind blows, and the first drops of autumn rain fall from the gray sky. The bustling crowd watching quickly dispersed, they quickly covered their heads, ran home or sought shelter from the rain under the eaves. At the city gate, I carried An Ninh and nestled in front of a shop. The rain becomes heavier and heavier, hitting my heart with cold waves, making my heart shrink. As the rain fell, the prison guards also took the prisoners under the railing to avoid the rain. I hugged An Ninh, quietly waiting for the rain to stop, watching the silhouettes of Mrs. Tong and old man Tong gradually disappear from the city gate. "The mountain is a strip of rain and wind, the bright moon is no different from two places." I just hope that when the spring grass turns green again, those who have been apart will meet again. 10Spring is still thin, willows are just budding, apricot blossoms are blooming. It's been the fourth spring since An Ninh came here, the little girl's unyielding scream echoed throughout the courtyard: "I don't want to! I don't want to go to school!" The apricot flower branch shook slightly from the wall, a gray brown sparrow jumped a few times, then got jostled by An Ninh's head, with her hair full of apricot blossoms, and had to fly away, causing a few flower petals to fall. "An Ninh skipped school again!" The loud voice of Tieu Ha, her son. Stop the interrogation at the right time. He quickly climbed up the apricot tree in his yard, expertly climbed the wall, sat down on it, pointed and laughed at An Ninh, the little girl who was covering her ears and stomping in the yard. "Tieu Ha! Shut up!" An Ninh was angry, not caring about his newly grown tooth, pointed at Tieu Ha, and spoke in a slurred voice threatening: "Watch out if I tell your mother about you not writing letters but drawing ducks and being scolded by the teacher, let her He hit me with a feather duster." "You better take care of yourself first!" An Ninh turned around and saw me rushing out holding a feather duster, pretending like I was about to hit her. An Ninh dodged and shouted: "Don't hit me, sister, it's not that I'm skipping school, it's just that I don't like to study!" Hearing this, I only felt a headache. The Tong family is full of well-educated people, so how could An Ninh be born - such a different child? I stood on the steps, my hands on my hips, helpless but not knowing what to do: "I don't like studying, so what do you want to do?" "I want to learn martial arts!" An Ninh's eyes lit up, she clenched her fists and made continuous kicking and kicking movements. I was speechless, my blood heated up, I couldn't help but wonder: could it be my fault? An Ninh ran over, hugged my hand, and cooed: "Sister, no matter how many story books you read beside my bed every night, if you don't like it, you still don't like it. Pressing a ripe melon won't be sweet, so give up." I could only hold my forehead, look at her for a long time, and then sigh in my heart. "Okay, if you don't study then that's fine - but at least you have to go to school to learn how to read, I can't let you." I became an illiterate person.” “Yes!” An Ninh happily jumped up and down. On the wall, Tieu Ha pursed her lips, looked down sadly, then groaned loudly when she saw Judge Cui approaching with a chicken feather broom: "Mom, look at sister An Y..." On the other side of the wall, chickens flew and dogs ran away. I think maybe we need to find a martial arts teacher for An Ninh.