The first snow of the 34th year of Emperor Wenjing fell heavily, leaving the mountains and rivers white.

The town of Tongqiu under the jurisdiction of Jintong Prefecture in Liangzhou was bustling with people.

On the day of Emperor Wenjing's death, the State of Wei banned entertainment and banquets for a month, and the people were really bored.

"Steamed buns, pork and green onion stuffed buns, fresh out of the oven, one copper coin for one, three copper coins for two"

"Selling candied haws, sweet and sour, one copper coin a string"

"Selling fish, lively Baima River carp."

A few children with drooping hair tightly grasped the sugar figures and ran hurriedly through the long street where the snow had half melted, stepping on the ink dots.

"My candy man, you haven't paid for it yet, you little bastards."

The sixty-year-old man followed the sound of silver bells in the cold wind, waving his cane and chasing after them.

In the crowd, a slim woman in red, holding a child about three or four years old with a fox mask on his face, walked and stopped.

"Xueer, do you want some buns?" the woman asked softly.

"I don't want to eat."

The voice was clear and pleasant, but it was a girl's.

"What about candied haws?"

"Do not eat"

"How about mom buy you some osmanthus cake?"

"It’s more expensive, don’t buy it."

Before they knew it, the mother and daughter had walked the entire long street. There were crowds of people on the overpass, and enthusiastic applause broke out from time to time.

The woman tightened her arms, squeezed in whenever she saw a gap, and quickly squeezed to the inner circle.

"My concubine! Since I started my campaign, I have been invincible and have conquered every battle."

"Now I have been ambushed by my nephews and trapped at Gaixia. All my food and grass are gone, and there is no one to help me."

……

The Jing role is majestic and the Dan role is graceful.

There are several opera boxes and the erhu is sad.

The woman is listening attentively, narrowing her peach blossom eyes and humming softly.

The girl in her arms stares at the colorful costume of the Dan role and the two mandarin duck swords. The watery eyes under the fox mask are wide open.

After about an incense stick of time.

The song is over.

The audience is satisfied. 70% of the freeloaders leave in a leisurely manner, and 20% of the freeloaders leave while cursing.

"What the hell is this song about?"

The last adult either untied his purse or reached into his sleeve.

Instantly, copper coins flew all over the sky.

The woman in red holding the girl had a rosy face.

……

The next day.

Tongqiu Town governs Changliu Village.

The Cang family is a wealthy family in Changliu Village, with a history of more than 300 years of traditional Chinese opera. Their best-kept play, Farewell My Concubine, is well-known.

In the snow, the Cang family's two-story mansion at the end of the village was exceptionally quiet. In the master bedroom, Canglan, who plays the role of King of Chu, poked the charcoal basin with a pair of fire tongs and asked,"Yiqing, how much did you earn from the three performances in town yesterday?"

Qu Yiqing, who plays the role of Concubine Yu, hugged his sleeping son and said bitterly,"A total of one hundred and fifty-seven copper coins.""

"So little?!"

Cang Lan was shocked.

A set of opera troupes is definitely not supported by the Sheng, Dan, Jing, Mo and Chou on the high stage. It also requires playing gongs and drums, playing the erhu, costumes, horses, food and so on.

Traveling all over the country costs a lot.

"In the past, the price of a show was 200 to 300 copper coins, but in the past two years, the price of a show was only 60 to 70 copper coins at most, and it was getting less and less."

""Alas~"

Canglan sighed,"This world is getting more and more difficult."

Footsteps came from far away.

Wang Haoyang, the head worker of Canglan, stood in front of the door and said respectfully,"Master, there is a mother and son outside who want to see you."

"Mother and son?!"

Canglan frowned slightly,"Please"

……

Half an incense stick of time later.

In the main hall of the Cang family, the maid served two cups of hot tea to the mother and daughter.

Looking at the red-dressed woman who was wearing heavy makeup and could not hide her decadent and lifeless aura, Canglan lit up the jade-mouthed dry pipe and started to smoke.

"My name is Yanxiang, and I am honored to meet Master Cang."

The woman put the girl on the ground and smiled brightly at Canglan.

"Let's get straight to the point."

Canglan said expressionlessly.

Woman:"Please, Master Cang, accept my daughter as your apprentice."

Canglan exhaled a puff of smoke and waved at the girl.

The woman looked happy and pushed the girl.

Putting down the pipe, Canglan squatted down and took away the fox mask covering the girl's face. Her facial features were delicate, especially her eyes, which were clear and bright.

She was slender and had white skin. She was a beauty.

"This is……"

Canglan was dumbfounded.

The half of the girl's forehead under her bangs was bright and dazzling, like a piece of scarlet flesh.

No wonder she wore a mask.

Picking up the pipe again, Canglan sat back in the chair, pondered for a while and said,"I have traveled all over the world, but I have never seen such a big birthmark."

"You said that if I accept your daughter as my apprentice, when she goes on stage to sing in the future, won't all the guests be scared away by such a conspicuous and hideous birthmark?"

The woman smiled flatteringly and said,"Can't you just cover it with rouge and powder?"

Canglan said coldly,"No matter how thick the rouge and powder is, it won't be enough."

"Besides, a face full of makeup looks like a ghost, not a human."

"Opera can be sung by humans and listened to by ghosts, but it cannot be sung by ghosts and listened to by humans.

The woman pulled out a handkerchief from her sleeve and burst into tears.

"Master Cang, you don't look down on my daughter, you look down on me."

Cang Lan waved his hand,"Operas and prostitutes are all low class, I don't mean that."

"It's really because the ancestors don't give us food to eat, so go back."

The woman complained:"Go back? Where to go?""

"I drank a lot of Cha Nu tea and applied a lot of musk, so how come I got pregnant?"

"Lord Cang, I am dying."

"Maybe today, maybe tomorrow"

"I can't survive this cold winter."

With a thud, the woman's knees softened and she knelt down.

"Master Cang, I beg you to accept my daughter."

"Even if I pick up a kitten or puppy and feed her some leftovers, I can keep my daughter alive."

Canglan said indifferently:"Yue'er, show her away."

The woman gritted her teeth, ripped open her clothes with a sound, revealing a large area of white and tender skin

"Master Cang, I am at your disposal."

"If you don't think so, don't you have a few farmhands at home?"

"If it doesn't work, I see you have two dogs tied to your door."

"As long as I can make you happy and as long as you are willing to accept my daughter as your apprentice, I will do anything for you."

Canglan said helplessly:"Wei State is so big, and there are thousands of households in Tongqiu Town alone. Why did you choose me?"

The woman said without hesitation:"Because here, my daughter can use her skills to earn enough food and clothing."

"Brothels are small hells on earth, and those nobles are the high and mighty kings of the Ten Palaces of Hell."

"Sent to a rich family as a slave, my little girl is tongue-tied and I am afraid of angering the nobles, the ladies and daughters, they will beat me to death"

"Master Cang, please give my daughter a tomorrow."

"I kowtow to you."

Looking at the woman whose forehead slammed heavily on the floor tiles, and then at the girl who was holding the fox mask tightly and was at a loss,

Canglan finally felt a little sympathy.

"The troupe is declining, so I won't accept any apprentices."

"If you agree, I can take you as my goddaughter.

The woman was ecstatic, and her face, as pale as a dead person, suddenly turned blood red.

She quickly pulled the girl to her knees, pressed the back of her head and kowtowed three times and nine times.

"Is there a name?"

"No. It was just because there was a violent snowstorm on the night I was born that I was given the nickname Xueer."

"From now on, I'll call you Cang Xue."

"Cang Xue... sounds really nice"

……

The night my daughter got home.

The north wind blew the snow.

The woman found a hemp rope from somewhere and hanged herself in the deep woods outside the village.

The body swayed in the wind like a torn dress.

The red dress was like fire, but it couldn't drive away the cold wind. The red dress was like blood, but it couldn't melt the snow.

……

Ps: I only have one chapter today. I haven't finished the outline yet, so I feel constipated when I start writing.

The names of the people you contributed will be used later, so don't worry. In addition, I will try to save two chapters this week, otherwise it will be too uncomfortable to write and publish them immediately. The second half of the Bird Chapter was written and published immediately, and I am very dissatisfied with the ending. After the Cangxue Chapter is finished, I will take the time to polish the details. Finally, please give me a free gift.

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