Er Ni

"There are five weaving factories of various sizes in Yan Prefecture City, but only one with the surname Liu, called Liu Shi Fabric Workshop, located in Feng Family Village in the northern suburbs." That evening, after dinner, Liu Yuanyang brought Liu Yuanzhou good news.

Liu Yuanzhou jumped up excitedly at that moment.

Yan Province City has three city gates: east, south, and north. The so-called northern suburbs refer to an area within seven or eight miles of the North Gate, with five or six villages such as Ma Family Village and Feng Family Village scattered on the gently sloping hills.

Moreover, because Yan Province City is built against the mountains, the area is limited, and the city is not large, every inch of land is precious. Therefore, many workshops choose to build in the villages in the suburbs.

The next morning, after breakfast, Liu Yuanzhou went out early and hurried towards Feng Family Village, he was going to find Er Ni.

After leaving the North Gate, he walked two or three miles along the main road and entered the boundary of Feng Family Village. Liu Yuanzhou was still unsure, so he saw a grocery store by the roadside, went in and asked the shopkeeper, and finally confirmed that this was Feng Family Village.

Turning onto the main road into the village, there were many pedestrians in twos and threes on the wide road, and occasionally mule carts passed by, some with canopies carrying people, and some pulling goods. After walking not far, the road forked ahead. Liu Yuanzhou stopped a passerby to ask for directions and took the left side.

After walking another distance, under the morning sun, several old men were squatting under the wall, smoking Dry Tobacco and chatting idly. Liu Yuanzhou walked over and asked, "Old men, do you know how to get to Liu Shi Fabric Shop?"

One of the old men stood up and pointed with his finger, saying, "Look, it's right there, there's a sign on the gate."

Liu Yuanzhou quickly thanked him and walked in the direction the old man pointed.

Walking less than a few hundred steps, he saw a courtyard surrounded by high walls on the left-hand side, with a plaque hanging above the gate, with the four characters "Liu Shi Fabric Shop" written on it.

Liu Yuanzhou took a deep breath, calmed the excitement and trepidation in his heart, stepped up the steps, and walked towards the gate of the Fabric Shop.

The gate of the Fabric Shop was wide open. Stepping over the threshold, there was a wide courtyard in front of him, with a row of large willow trees along the wall. Directly opposite the gate was a row of large tile-roofed houses, which must be the weaving workshops.

An old man guarding the gate was sitting behind the gate. Seeing a stranger coming in, he asked, "Young man, what are you doing here? Buying goods or looking for someone?"

Liu Yuanzhou quickly said, "Old man, I'm here to find someone."

As soon as he finished speaking, a boy of ten years old ran towards the gate, and when he got closer, he looked up at Liu Yuanzhou for a moment, and then said with a surprised expression, "Are you Second Child?"

Liu Yuanzhou looked at the boy and said happily, "Gou Wa, that's great, you really are here." Gou Wa is Er Ni's younger brother.

The old man at the gate saw that the two knew each other, so he ignored Liu Yuanzhou.

The boy named Gou Wa immediately put on a stern face and lowered his voice, "Don't call me Gou Wa, I have a proper name, call me He Fugui."

Liu Yuanzhou laughed inwardly, thinking that Gou Wa had grown up and disliked his nickname. Looking at his clothes, they were much better than when he was in the village, so he must be living well in the city.

Liu Yuanzhou quickly said, "Okay, Fugui, I remember." He didn't want to offend Er Ni's younger brother, who might be his future brother-in-law.

He Fugui's face then improved, and he smiled, revealing two big tiger teeth, and asked, "What are you doing here?"

Liu Yuanzhou was speechless for a moment, he couldn't say that he came to find your sister Er Ni. He changed his mind and said with a smile, "Hehe, I was passing by here and saw a Liu Shi Fabric Shop, and I felt close to it, so I came in to take a look, but I didn't expect to meet you."

As he spoke, he picked up the pastries in his hand, "I bought some pastries for you to eat, they are from Old Wang Pastry shop, very famous." He had bought the pastries specially this morning.

He Fugui's eyes lit up immediately, staring at the pastries in Liu Yuanzhou's hand, but he didn't reach out to take them.

Liu Yuanzhou knew he was greedy when he saw his appearance, so he stuffed the two packs of pastries into his arms and said, "Take them and eat them."

He Fugui hugged the pastries, with a happy expression on his face, "Second Child, you are so nice, then I'll go play first."

Liu Yuanzhou quickly grabbed him and said, "Don't rush to leave, it's rare to meet someone from the village, let's talk a few words, um, do your parents and your sister all work here?"

He Fugui nodded, with a proud expression on his face, "You see this big factory, it's all opened by my uncle, my parents and second sister all work here, and they can earn a lot of money every month."

Liu Yuanzhou pretended to be envious and exclaimed, "Really? That's amazing! You said Er Ni Jie also works here, alas, I haven't seen her for a long time, I miss her so much, we used to play together often when we were young, call her out, I suddenly remembered something I want to tell her."

He Fugui said without thinking, "You wait, I'll call my Second Sister out, she should be free right now."

After saying that, he carried the pastries and hopped away inside.

Watching He Fugui walk away, Liu Yuanzhou finally breathed a sigh of relief, secretly marveling at his good luck today.

After patiently waiting for about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, he saw someone emerge from behind the tile-roofed house. Liu Yuanzhou's eyes widened. Who else could it be but Er Ni?

Liu Yuanzhou's heart pounded. He couldn't help but run forward, excitedly saying, "Er Ni."

Er Ni stopped, looked at Liu Yuanzhou, a hint of joy flashing in her eyes, and said in a trembling voice, "Second Child, you, why are you here?"

Liu Yuanzhou looked at the smiling face of the woman before him, and was mesmerized. All the previous grievances turned into tenderness and affection. At this moment, he only felt sweetness and warmth in his heart, a surge of heat rising from within. He couldn't help but grab the soft hand of the woman before him.

Er Ni's face flushed red. She quickly retracted her hand, glanced around, and said shyly, "Someone's watching."

Only then did Liu Yuanzhou realize that he had been too impulsive in his excitement and had offended the beauty. He withdrew his hand and said apologetically, "Er Ni, I'm sorry. How about we go for a walk?"

Er Ni hummed in agreement.

The two of them went out the gate, and Er Ni said, "There's a pavilion by the river, let's go sit there."

Liu Yuanzhou naturally nodded repeatedly. He couldn't wait to find a quiet place to pour out his feelings of separation.

So Er Ni led the way, along a small path, twisting and turning, until the two of them reached a small pavilion by the river.

Looking at Liu Yuanzhou, Er Ni asked curiously, "How did you come to the city?" She lowered her head, her face reddening, and her voice becoming softer, "Did you come specifically to see me?"

Liu Yuanzhou said, "I came to the city to work, and it was hard for me to find out about you here."

"Oh, you also came to the city to work," Er Ni raised her head, her expression returning to normal. "Where do you work?"

Liu Yuanzhou then told Er Ni about working at Yan Province Academy.

Although Er Ni didn't know what Yan Province Academy was, it didn't stop her from feeling secretly delighted. Her family had come to the city to seek refuge with relatives. She thought that her relationship with Liu Yuanzhou was over, after all, they were too far apart. She didn't have the courage to run back to the village alone to pledge her love to Liu Yuanzhou, nor could she bring Liu Yuanzhou to the city.

She was just an ordinary woman, except for her extraordinary appearance. Moreover, she was almost twenty years old and had matured a lot. Therefore, after arriving in the city, she had ruthlessly cut off this relationship, not even sending a letter back.

The sudden appearance of Liu Yuanzhou rekindled her dormant emotions.

Listening to Liu Yuanzhou's slow narration, looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar face, and those eyes, deep and affectionate, Er Ni couldn't help but be a little dazed, her eyes welling up with tears.

Er Ni in Liu Yuanzhou's eyes had also changed a lot. She was dressed fashionably, with a light touch of makeup, and was as beautiful and moving as ever.

Unconsciously, their hands were clasped together, and Er Ni leaned into Liu Yuanzhou's arms. No one spoke. At this moment, all the previous resentment turned into tenderness and affection.

As long as they embraced each other at this moment, what did all the past bitterness matter?

"Er Ni, what are you doing here? Who is he!" An angry male voice suddenly rang out.

Liu Yuanzhou and Er Ni quickly separated.

There was a hint of panic and shyness on Er Ni's face. She said softly, "Steward Bai, I, I came to see a friend, I'll go back to work now."

Liu Yuanzhou felt a burst of irritability in his heart. Could this be the man Li Er was talking about?

He stared at the so-called Steward Bai, without saying a word.

Steward Bai didn't even look at Liu Yuanzhou, and said to Er Ni, "Er Ni, although you are related to the owner, since you work in the factory, you must abide by the factory's rules."

Er Ni's face flushed instantly, and she whispered, "I'll go back to work now." After speaking, she turned her head and quickly said to Liu Yuanzhou, "Second Child, I'll go back first, I'll find you when I have time." After saying that, she hurried away.

After Er Ni walked away, Steward Bai glared at Liu Yuanzhou fiercely, and left with a gloomy face.

Watching Steward Bai's back, Liu Yuanzhou clenched his fists. A man's intuition told him that there would definitely be a fight between them. Liu Yuanzhou firmly believed that he would be the ultimate victor.