One day, Wu Yueniang was feeling anxious, and Aunt Wu came to visit and ended up staying for two days. The two of them were sitting in the room when suddenly a young servant named Dai An rushed in, carrying a felt bag, and said, "The master has returned!" Upon hearing this, Aunt Wu hurriedly ran to Li Jiaor's room. Ximen Qing came in, stripped off his outer garments, and sat down. Xiaoyu poured tea for him, but he didn't drink. Yueniang noticed something was off about his expression and asked, "Why did you come back so early today?" Ximen Qing replied, "Today it was Chang Erge's turn to host us. His place is small, so he invited us to play at Yongfu Temple outside the city. Hua Erge also invited Ying Erge along, and we all went to Zheng Aixiang's house to drink. Just as we were having a drink, a few officials suddenly came and without a word, they arrested Hua Erge! We were all scared out of our wits. I quickly hid out at Li Guijie's place for a bit, but still felt uneasy, so I sent someone to inquire about the news. It turns out that Hua Erge's relatives accused him of being greedy and reported him to the Kaifeng Prefecture in Dongjing, which issued an order for his arrest locally. Only then did we feel relieved enough to head home." Upon hearing this, Wu Yueniang said, "Serves you right! You spend all day hanging out with these people, never at home, always running around. Today, something finally happened, and it's a lesson learned! You still haven't given up? If you don't change by tomorrow, you'll suffer sooner or later! You don't listen to what your wife says at home, but when those vixens in the courtyard say something in front of you, you act like a fool and jump to listen! Truly: 'What family members say is just like the wind in your ears, while what outsiders say is treated like gospel.' " Ximen Qing laughed and said, "Who dares to touch me!" Wu Yueniang replied, "You, you just love to talk tough!"
Just as they were talking, Dai An rushed over to say, "Hua Erniang from next door sent Tianfu to invite you over, sir." Upon hearing this, Ximen Qing immediately headed out. Yue Niang said, "Don't let anyone laugh at you tomorrow." Ximen Qing replied, "After all, neighbors look out for one another. I’ll go see what she needs." He reached Hua Zixu's house, where Li Ping'er had a servant invite him to the backyard. He saw Li Ping'er disheveled, her makeup a mess, coming out from the house, her face was as pale as wax. She knelt in front of Ximen Qing, pleading repeatedly, "Sir, for the sake of our neighborly bond, please help me! As the saying goes: In times of trouble, neighbors assist each other. This guy never listens to advice, ignores important matters, and just runs around causing trouble. Only now has he sent someone to ask for my help. As a woman, where am I supposed to find someone to help? I really hate him! If only he could be sent to Dongjing and beaten to a pulp, it would relieve my anger! I just feel sorry for his late father-in-law. I have no choice but to ask for your help, sir. Please don't let him get caught. Out of pity for me, think of a way to save him and keep him from suffering."
Ximen Qing saw Li Bing'er kneel down to him and quickly said, "Sister-in-law, please get up, there's no need for this. I still don't know what's going on." Li Bing'er replied, "It's a long story. My deceased father-in-law had four nephews; the eldest is named Hua Ziyou, the third one is named Hua Ziguang, the fourth is named Hua Zihua, and my husband is named Hua Zixu. They're all my father-in-law's sons. Although my father-in-law earned a lot of money, when he saw that my son was not capable, after he returned from the south, he entrusted everything to me. Those nephews kept bullying him, scaring them into not coming forward. After my father-in-law passed away last year, Hua Da, Hua San, and Hua Si divided some of the family property, but I didn't get a single penny. I've been telling them all along that even a small share is fine, but they just ignore it. Today they secretly reported to the authorities and accused me." After speaking, Li Bing'er burst into tears. Ximen Qing said, "Sister-in-law, don't worry. I thought it was a big deal; turns out it's about dividing the family property. It's nothing. Since sister-in-law asked me, my brother's business is my business. You just command, and I will do my best." Li Bing'er said, "If the master is willing to help, that's good. How much should I prepare for the gift?" Ximen Qing replied, "It doesn't have to be too much. I heard that the Yang Prefect of the Kaifeng Prefecture in the capital is a student of the Imperial Tutor Cai, and Cai, the Imperial Tutor, and my fourth uncle Yang, the Inspector-General, are all influential people in front of the emperor. Send two gifts, one to Yang Prefect and one to Cai, the Imperial Tutor; this will sort things out. The main thing is to send more gifts to Cai, the Imperial Tutor. Yang, the Inspector-General, has a relationship with my family, so he should accept gifts." Li Bing'er immediately went into the house, opened the box, took out sixty taels of large gold ingots, totaling three thousand taels of silver, and let Ximen Qing take it to smooth things over. Ximen Qing said, "Half is enough; it doesn't need to be so much!" Li Bing'er replied, "You keep the extra. Behind my bed, there are four boxes of silk, jade belts, hats, and belts, all valuable treasures. Please help me keep them; I will come to take them when I need them. Seizing this opportunity, I need to make a plan; I can't count on him anymore; the days ahead will be difficult. As the saying goes, two heads are better than one; in case one day these things are also taken away by others, I will have nothing left!" Ximen Qing said, "I'm afraid Hua Er will come home and ask you what to do?" Li Bing'er replied, "These things were all entrusted to me by my father-in-law before his death; he doesn't know at all. The master can just keep them." Ximen Qing said, "Since sister-in-law said so, I'll have someone come get them." So he went home and discussed with Yuen-yuen. Yuen-yuen said, "The silver can be brought over in a food box by one of the boys. If we carry the boxes through the front gate, the neighbors will notice; it'll be safer to climb over the wall at night." Ximen Qing was very happy to hear this and immediately called Dai'an, Laiwang, Laixing, and Ping'an to carry the three thousand taels of silver back home with two food boxes. Then, when the moon was high over the willows, Li Bing'er, together with Yingchun and Xiuchun, moved the table to the wall and placed the boxes next to it. On Ximen Qing's side, only Yuen-yuen, Pan Jinlian, and Chunmei used a ladder to bring the things over. They laid down a felt on the wall and carefully handed over one by one, all sent to Yuen-yuen's room.
Wealth and status are indeed blessings, but fame and fortune come with their own worries. What is meant to be yours will eventually come; what isn't meant for you shouldn't be forced. Ximen Qing secretly stashed away Huazi Xu's gold and silver treasures, and the neighbors were unaware. He packed his things overnight, asked his father-in-law Chen to write a letter, and sent family members to Dongjing to get things moving. He sent gifts to Supervisor Yang and, through Yang's connections, sought help from Minister Cai to write a note for Kaifeng Prefect Yang Shi. Yang Shi, whose courtesy name was Guishan, hailed from Hongnong County in Shaanxi, a successful candidate in the Guiwei examination, who climbed the ranks to become Minister of Justice and is now the Prefect of Kaifeng, renowned for his integrity. Moreover, Minister Cai was his former superior, and Yang Shi was a prominent official of the current dynasty, so this matter would surely be resolved! After taking office, Prefect Yang summoned Huazi Xu and questioned where his family assets had gone. Huazi Xu had already gotten a letter from Ximen Qing and replied, "Since my father-in-law passed away, all the expenses for the funeral and the rituals have been exhausted. Only two houses and a piece of farmland are left; everything else was taken by my relatives." Prefect Yang said, "The assets of your inner officials are difficult to verify; they come easily and go easily. Since they are all spent, let the Qinghe County government appraise and sell Huazi's two houses and a piece of farmland, and divide the money among the three of them." Huazi's relatives knelt again, begging to keep looking into Xu for more silver. Prefect Yang was furious and sent them away, saying, "Enough! Why didn't you report when your father-in-law died? Now that the matter has passed, you still come to cause trouble!" In the end, Prefect Yang didn't punish Huazi Xu but issued an official order for him to head back to Qinghe County to appraise the property.
Lai Bao hurried back to inform Ximen Qing. Ximen Qing was delighted to hear that things had worked out and sent Hua Zixu back home. Li Bing'er talked to Ximen Qing about using some money to buy the house they were living in: "After tomorrow, I will be yours." Ximen Qing went home to talk it over with Wu Yuemeng, who warned, "If you buy this house, be careful her husband might get suspicious. What will you do then?" Ximen Qing took this to heart. After a few days, officials from Qinghe County came to assess the value: the mansion on Anqing Fang Street was valued at seven hundred taels of silver and sold to Wang Huangqin; the land outside the South Gate was valued at six hundred and fifty taels and sold to Zhou Xiu, the guard; the only small house they lived in was valued at five hundred and forty taels, but since it was next to Ximen Qing's house, no one dared to buy it. Hua Zixu sent people to ask several times, but Ximen Qing kept claiming he had no money. The county pressed for a receipt, and Li Bing'er, feeling anxious, secretly asked Feng Mama to speak to Ximen Qing and suggest he use the deposited money to buy the house. Ximen Qing finally agreed. The authorities collected the silver, and Hua Ziyuan signed the contract, and the documents were sent back to the higher-ups that night, totaling one thousand eight hundred and ninety-five taels of silver, which the three of them split evenly.
Hua Zixu came out after losing the lawsuit, with nothing to show for his efforts; the money, house, and land were all gone, and the three thousand taels of silver were also missing, leaving him very frustrated. He asked Li Ping'er how much money Ximen Qing had used and how much was left, hoping to gather money to buy a house. As a result, he was scolded by his wife for four or five days, who said, "Pah! You fool! You don’t do anything serious, run around outside, get tricked and thrown into jail, and still expect me to ask for help. I’m a woman; I’ve never even left the house, who do I even know? Where am I supposed to go to ask for help? I've been running around begging for help on your behalf, and thanks to Ximen Qing, the official, who braved the wind and snow to send someone to Tokyo to help you sort things out. Now that your lawsuit is over, you come asking me about money, and even question if there is any! What about the letter you wrote? I don’t have your written proof, and if something goes wrong while using your money, I can’t bear the responsibility!" Hua Zixu said, "I just want to see how much is left to buy a house." The woman replied, "Pah! You idiot! I’m tired of scolding you. You always calculate others but never yourself. You keep saying money is spent too much, but where did the three thousand taels of silver go? Cai Taishi and Yang Tidu are not pushovers! If they hadn’t helped, how could you have come out safe and sound? After you come out, you still come asking me about money! They’re under no obligation to help you; why should they spend money running errands for you? You should be hosting a banquet to thank them, and you still come to ask me for accounts!" After a long scolding, Hua Zixu was left speechless.
The next day, Ximen Qing sent Dai An to deliver gifts to Hua Zixu to calm him down. Hua Zixu threw a banquet to thank Ximen Qing and wanted to ask him about money. Ximen Qing planned to give him a few hundred taels of silver to help him buy a house, but Li Ping'er disagreed and secretly told Mama Feng to tell Ximen Qing, "Don’t attend the banquet, just give him a bill, saying all the money was spent on connections." Hua Zixu, not fully understanding the situation, sent his servant to invite him repeatedly. Ximen Qing dodged him, saying he wasn't home. Hua Zixu was so furious he started stomping his feet.
As the saying goes: A woman's heart is like a needle in the ocean; even the strongest man finds it hard to fathom a woman's thoughts. There's an old saying that men handle the outside while women take care of the inside. Many men have had their reputations ruined by women, all because they do not understand the art of getting along. The key lies in mutual respect, emotional connection, and a united couple, which can lead to peace and safety. How could someone as unreliable as Zixu expect his wife to be loyal to him? The poem says:
"Selfish intentions may be shaken, but without wind, they cannot be moved."
In the end, Zixu only managed to gather 250 taels of silver to buy a house on Lion Street. Just after moving in, he sadly came down with typhoid fever and was bedridden since the first day of November. At first, he called for the court doctor, but later, not wanting to spend the money, he stubbornly held on. One day passed, then another, and another, and he held on until the 20th. Sadly, he died at just 24. A few of his servants, including Tianxi'er, had already bolted with five taels of silver while Zixu was sick. After Zixu died, Li Ping'er had Mama Feng call Ximen Qing to sort out the funeral plans, like buying a coffin, getting the body ready, chanting scriptures, and burial. Hua Da, Hua San, and Hua Si also came to pay their respects and attend the funeral. That day, Ximen Qing had Wu Yueniang prepare a feast at the grave to honor him. That evening, Li Ping'er returned home and set up an altar for the deceased; even though she was keeping vigil, she couldn't stop thinking about Ximen Qing. While Zixu was alive, he had already given two maidservants to Ximen Qing, and after his death, they started seeing each other even more often.
On the ninth day of the first lunar month, Li Ping'er heard that Pan Jinlian was celebrating her birthday. Although her husband was still in the mourning period, she bought a gift and went in a sedan chair, wearing a white silk jacket, a blue gold-embroidered skirt, her hair styled in a white cotton bun, and a beaded hairpin. Feng Mama carried the gift, while Tianfu'er followed the sedan chair. Upon entering, she first kowtowed to Wu Yuemiao four times and said, "A few days ago, thanks to Madam's help at the grave, I also received your generous gift. Thank you!" After paying her respects to Madam, she invited Li Jiao'er and Meng Yulou to pay their respects as well. Then Pan Jinlian appeared and asked, "Is this Fifth Sister?" She attempted to kowtow while repeatedly calling her "sister." Jinlian naturally refused, pushed back for a while, and the two finally exchanged polite greetings. Jinlian expressed her gratitude for the birthday gift. Wu Dajinzi and Pan Laolao were also present. Li Ping'er also asked for Mr. Ximen to come out and pay his respects. Madam replied, "He went to the Jade Emperor Temple for a ritual today." Then she asked Li Ping'er to sit down and served tea. After a while, Sun Xue'e came over. Li Ping'er saw that she was dressed more simply than the others, so she asked, "Who is this? I don't know her, I haven't seen her before." Madam said, "This is her daughter." Li Ping'er wanted to pay her respects, but Madam said, "No need to be polite, just greet each other as equals." After the two paid their respects, Madam took Li Ping'er to the inner room to change clothes and told the maids to serve tea in the bright room. Soon, the charcoal fire was lit, the wine and dishes were served, and the lamb wine was brought out. Wu Dajinzi, Pan Laolao, and Li Ping'er sat at the table, with Madam and Li Jiao'er sitting at the main seats, and Meng Yulou and Pan Jinlian sitting beside them. Sun Xue'e went back to the kitchen to help and did not dare to sit for long. Madam saw Li Ping'er drinking one cup after another, so she personally poured her a cup and then let Li Jiao'er and others take turns to pour wine. Then she smiled and asked her, "Second Sister, you moved far away, we sisters haven't seen each other for a long time, and I miss you. You're really heartless, you never come to see us." Meng Yulou said, "Second Sister came today to wish Sixth Sister a happy birthday, right?" Li Ping'er said, "Thank you, Madam, Third Sister, for your support. I also wanted to come, but first, I was still in mourning, and second, there was no one at home. I just finished the mourning period yesterday, and I was afraid of upsetting Fifth Sister, so I didn't dare to come." Then she asked, "When is Madam's birthday?" Madam said, "My birthday is earlier." Pan Jinlian interjected, "Madam's birthday is on the fifteenth of the eighth month; Second Sister must come then." Li Ping'er said, "I will definitely come." Meng Yulou said, "Second Sister, stay overnight with us sisters today, don't go back." Li Ping'er said, "I’d love to catch up with you sisters. I'll be honest with you, I just moved over, and since he left, there's no one at home. My house is right next to Qiao Huangqin's garden, and it's empty! There are often foxes causing trouble at night, and I'm quite scared. There were two little servants, the older one ran away, leaving only Tianfu'er to watch the front door, and the backyard was empty. Thanks to Old Feng, she's someone I knew before; she often helped me with laundry." Madam asked, "How old is Old Feng? She's a good person, speaks quite honestly." Li Ping'er said, "She's fifty-six this year, no children, living by matchmaking. I often give her some clothes. After my husband died, I invited her to stay with me, and we sleep together with the maids at night." Pan Jinlian, who was quick-witted, said, "Since Old Feng is at home keeping an eye on things, it’s fine for Second Sister to stay the night here; anyway, your husband is gone, and no one is there to control you!" Meng Yulou said, "Second Sister, listen to me, let Old Feng go back, don't let her stay." Li Ping'er simply smiled and stayed silent. After a few rounds of drinking, Pan Laolao got up first and went to the front, followed by Pan Jinlian back to her room. Li Ping'er repeatedly declined, saying, "I've had enough to drink." Li Jiao'er said, "Why is it that Second Sister is happy to drink with Madam and Third Sister but won't drink when I offer?" Then she poured a large cup. Li Ping'er said, "Second Sister, I really can't drink anymore; I dare not pretend!" Madam said, "Second Sister, drink this cup and take a break." Li Ping'er then took it, placed it in front of her, and continued chatting with everyone. Meng Yulou saw Chunmei standing by the side and asked her, "What is your mother doing in the front? Go call your mother and Pan Laolao to come; tell them Madam invites them to accompany Second Sister in drinking." Chunmei came back soon and said, "Laolao is in pain and sleeping. My mother is dressing up in the room and will come soon." Madam said, "I really haven't seen her; she acts like the host, leaving the guests hanging; I don't know where she went. Everything else is fine, but she's a bit childish."
Not provided.
Tired and sweating through the silk robe, helped up the jade ladder by someone from upstairs. Returning to the courtyard to wash my face again, the water in the golden basin becomes muddy and red. While speaking, Pan Jinlian arrived. Yulou saw her dressed up and charming, swaying her waist as she walked in, teasing her, "Hey, Fifth girl, you lazybones! Leaving the guest hanging here and hiding in the room, how are you supposed to be a maid like that!" Jinlian laughed and playfully nudged Yulou. Yulou said, "Bold fifth girl! Are you brave enough to toast me?" Li Ping'er said, "I've had more than enough at Third Sister's." Jinlian said, "That’s her business, so I’ll toast to Second Sister." So she poured a full glass of wine and handed it to Li Ping'er. Li Ping'er just set it down, refusing to drink. When Yuelou saw Jinlian wearing a gold hairpin with the character "Shou" on it, she asked, "Second Sister, where did you get that beautiful longevity hairpin? It's so beautiful! I want to get a pair for myself someday." Li Ping'er said, "If you want one, I have a few pairs left; I'll give each sister a pair another day. These were brought out by my deceased father-in-law from the palace; you won't find anything like them out there!" Yuelou said, "I was just messing with you. We have so many sisters, we can't all be showered with gifts like that!" Everyone laughed and joked as they drank.
As the sky grew darker, Aunt Feng came out of Xue'e's chamber, her face flushed, urging Li Ping'er, "Aren't you leaving yet? The sedan chair needs to head back." Yue Niang said, "If Second Sister is staying, then let Old Feng send the sedan chair back." Li Ping'er said, "There's no one at home; I’ll come back to visit you all another time. I want to stay a few more days." Meng Yulou said, "Second Sister is too polite; none of us sisters can really keep you here. If we don't send the sedan chair now, when her father gets back, he will definitely want to keep Second Sister." With everyone saying this, Li Ping'er had no choice but to give the key to the room to Aunt Feng, saying, "Since you sisters are so kind in urging me to stay, it would seem I’m being rude. Then let the sedan chair go back; please come to pick me up tomorrow. You go tell the servant to watch the door." Then she whispered to Aunt Feng, "Let Yingchun open the box in my bedroom with the key; take out the four pairs of gold longevity character hairpins from the little gilded box. Bring them to me tomorrow morning; I want to gift them to you four." Aunt Feng agreed, said goodbye to Yue Niang, and left.
After a while, Li Ping'er still refused to drink. Lady Yu invited her to the main room to drink tea and chat with Lady Wu. At this time, Dai'an walked in, carrying a woolen bag, followed by Ximen, who lifted the curtain and said, "Flower Erniang is here!" Li Ping'er hurriedly got up, and the two of them exchanged greetings before sitting down. Lady Yu asked Yuxiao to take Ximen's clothes. Ximen said to Lady Wu and Li Ping'er, "Today is the birthday of the Jade Emperor Temple, and I need to settle things with everyone at the Daoist temple. I've been busy with a lot of stuff until now." Then he asked, "Is Erniang not going home today?" Yulou said, "Erniang repeatedly refused to leave, so we sisters insisted on keeping her here." Li Ping'er said, "There's no one at home, and I'm worried." Ximen said, "Don't worry, the patrols have been very strict these days. What are you afraid of? Even if there is any movement, I'll write a letter to Master Zhou and ask him to send someone." He continued, "What's got Erniang down? Have a drink?" Meng Yulou said, "We've all tried to persuade her, but she just won't drink." Ximen said, "You guys can't get through to her, so let me have a go. She's really stingy!" Li Ping'er said, "I can't drink any more." But she still didn't move. She instructed the maidservant to bring a table from her room and set it with the food, snacks, etc. left for Ximen. Lady Wu was very sensible and declined to drink, going to Li Jiao'er's room instead. Li Ping'er sat down, Ximen accompanied her, Lady Yu poured tea on the kang, and Meng Yulou and Pan Jinlian sat on either side. The five of them sat down and drank. They skipped the small cups and went for the big silver flower cups, taking turns to drink. As the saying goes: "Tea brings people together, and wine seals the deal." As they drank, their faces flushed and their eyes sparkled with unspoken feelings. It was just like the saying: "Two peach blossoms bloom on their faces, showing their true selves."
Yue Niang saw that the two were drinking a bit too much and their conversation was becoming inappropriate. Unable to bear it, she went to the adjacent room to keep Wu Da Jizi company. The remaining four continued drinking until the early hours of the morning. Li Ping'er drank until she could hardly stand and pulled Jin Lian to wash up. Ximen Qing wobbled into Yue Niang's room and asked her where he could rest. Yue Niang said, "He came to celebrate someone's birthday, so he can rest in that room." Ximen Qing asked, "Where do I sleep?" Yue Niang replied, "You can sleep wherever you like, or you can sleep with him." Ximen Qing couldn't help but laugh, "That doesn’t make sense!" He called for Xiao Yu to help him undress, saying, "I'll sleep here." Yue Niang said, "Don't be ridiculous, or I'll have to yell at you! If you sleep here, where will Da Jizi sleep?" Ximen Qing said, "Forget it, I'll go sleep in Meng San'er’s room." So he went to Yu Lou's room to rest.
Pan Jin Lian took Li Ping'er to wash up, and then they returned to their room to rest. The next morning, they got up to groom themselves as they got ready, with Chun Mei attending to them. Li Ping'er noticed that Chun Mei was quite sharp and recognized her as a maid previously used by Ximen Qing, so she rewarded her with a nice set of gold jewelry. Chun Mei quickly told Pan Jin Lian about this, and Pan Jin Lian thanked her over and over, saying, "Thanks to Er Niang for the gift." Li Ping'er said, "Wu Niang is truly blessed, good sister!" After they finished getting ready, Pan Jin Lian took Li Ping'er and Pan Lao Lao, and asked Chun Mei to open the garden gate so they could stroll and enjoy the garden together. Li Ping'er saw a small door in the courtyard wall that led directly to Ximen Qing's place and asked Pan Jin Lian, "When did Ximen Qing put up this house?" Pan Jin Lian replied, "Previously, the fortune teller said that construction was set to start in February, to connect your house with this one, build a large garden in front, and then build three flower-viewing gazebos in the back, connecting with my three rooms." Li Ping'er made a mental note of this.
At this time, Wu Yueniang sent Xiaoyu to invite them to the backyard for tea. The three of them went to the main hall together, where Wu Yueniang, Li Jiaor, Meng Yulou, and Wu Dajinzi were all waiting, and the tea and snacks were all prepared. While everyone was eating snacks, Feng Mama came in, took out an old handkerchief from her sleeve; inside were four pairs of gold longevity hairpins, which she gave to Li Ping'er. Li Ping'er first gave a pair to Wu Yueniang, then Li Jiaor, Meng Yulou, and Sun Xue'e each also received a pair. Wu Yueniang said, "Second Sister-in-law, this is too much, we can't accept it." Li Ping'er smiled and said, "Good big sister, this is nothing special, just a small token for my sisters." After Wu Yueniang and the others thanked her, they all put the hairpins on their heads. Wu Yueniang said, "I heard there's a lantern festival near your place; it must be very lively. Tomorrow we will go see the lanterns, and we will visit your house, so please don’t turn us away." Li Ping'er said, "I will definitely entertain all my sisters well when the time comes." Pan Jinlian said, "Sister, you might not know, but I heard that the fifteenth is your special day." Wu Yueniang said, "Since it's your special day, none of us sisters will be absent; we will all wish you well together." Li Ping'er smiled and said, "My place is small, but if my sisters want to come, I will definitely entertain you well."
Not long after, breakfast was finished, and wine was served. They played until sunset, and when the sedan chair arrived, Li Ping'er said her goodbyes and headed home. The sisters urged her to stay, but she couldn’t be convinced. Before leaving, she asked Ximen Qing to come out and see her off. Wu Yueniang said, "He left early in the morning to see someone off." After many thanks, Li Ping'er finally boarded the sedan chair and went home.
It is true:
The walnut's core is truly lovable; there's a kind heart within.
