Once upon a time, in Zhaojia Village, eight miles away from the city in the northeast corner of Caozhou, there was a businessperson surnamed Zhao. He had often gone to other places to do business since he was a teenager, and the villagers gave him a nickname: Zhao Lao Shang.

Zhao Lao Shang had an only child in his forties, named Chunbao. His wife was with the Wang family and was frail and sick. Zhao Lao Shang wanted to marry a daughter-in-law tohis son as soon as possible to help manage the housework, but he couldn't find a good girl.

Once, he went to Tokyo City to do business and stayed at the Zhangjia inn on the outskirts of the city. Because it was still early and he had nothing to do, he went to the inn's garden to enjoy the flowers. Suddenly, he saw a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl. She was skillfully pruning flower branches among the flowers. When Mr. Zhao asked, it turned out that the girl's name was Sister Hua, a woman who had gone out to take refuge. Sister Hua's father wanted to marry her to a powerful official as a concubine. This official was thirty years older than Sister Hua. Sister Hua vowed to obey and escaped secretly. When he met Zhang Diandong, he took her back to the inn and asked her to help manage the garden. Zhang Diandong's wife saw that Sister Hua was smart and recognized her as a goddaughter.

After listening to the waiter's words, Zhao Lao Shang thought to himself: Why don't I take Sister Hua home to be my daughter-in-law? So he bought a lot of gifts and prepared a sumptuous banquet. He invited Zhang Diandong, the waiter, and two businesspeople who were doing business with him to raise their glasses and drink together. At the hotel banquet, Zhao Lao Shang and Zhang Diandong got up and kissed. At first Zhang Diandong did not agree, but later, after the two merchants present and the waiter, Zhang Diandong also agreed. Zhao Lao Shang hurriedly offered a generous gift, and immediately set up a marriage contract, which was guaranteed by the waiter and the two business people.

Early the next morning, Zhao Lao Shang hired a two-person palanquin and brought Sister Hua back to her hometown. Sister Hua sat in the palanquin and thought, "As long as I don't marry a man over thirty years older than me, I would be happy to marry a merchant's son." She had a dream in the palanquin, dreaming that the merchant's son was a strong man with five big and three thick, although he didn't look too handsome.

Sister Hua was awakened by a burst of shouting, and it turned out to be in Zhaojia Village. The villagers all came to see the daughter-in-law that Zhao Laoshang brought from the capital. One said she was smart, and the other said she was beautiful. Mother-in-law Wang Shi was even more overjoyed. When Sister Hua got off the palanquin to worship the flower hall, she found out that her husband Chunbao was a little doll who was at the end of two years old! Sister Hua cried, crying like tears. The aunts of the neighbors all came to persuade her, and the couple of Zhao Laoshang comforted her with kind words, treating her like her own daughter. Xiao Chunbao hugged Sister Hua's neck and called out to her sister. The cold ice in Sister Hua's heart slowly melted, alas! Accept your fate.

Sister Hua is a ingenious girl, whether it is weaving, embroidery, raising silkworms, or planting flowers, everything is superhuman. Whenever she has free time, she coaxes Xiaochun Treasure to play with and gives him

Embroidered shoes sew flower hats and make flower clothes. Xiao Chunbao also loves to talk to his sister, and often when he cries, he stops crying when he sees Sister Hua. Zhao Laoshang and his wife see it in their eyes and are happy in their hearts, and praise their good daughter-in-law when they see people. Zhao Laoshang knew that Sister Hua was an expert in planting flowers, so he built a garden called Sister Hua to grow flowers. This time Sister Hua had a place to use, and within a year, she cultivated many precious flowers, the most of which were peonies. '

This year, Wang fell seriously ill and spent a lot of money to cure his illness. He passed away. Zhao Lao Shang lost money in his business and was worried all day, and his body was far less strong than before. The family's burden of life rested on Sister Hua's shoulders. One day, Sister Hua went to the garden to hoe grass, and Xiao Chunbao cried and wanted to follow him. Sister Hua had to carry him to work in the garden. On the way, Xiao Chunbao talked and laughed, and when he came to the garden, he had fallen asleep "whoosh." Sister Hua put Chunbao under a big willow tree, took off her coat and gently covered him, and then carried the flower hoe to the hoe. After a while, she was sweating hot and felt sore limbs. She went to rest under the big tree. She came to the tree and looked at it, and was immediately stunned: Xiao Chunbao was gone, and Sister Hua felt the world spinning, like thunder! She searched around in panic, shouting, "Chunbao! Chunbao! Where are you!"

A few days passed, and the neighbors who had gone to other places to find Xiao Chunbao all came back, and no one could tell the whereabouts of Chunbao. From then on, Sister Hua treated Zhao Laoshang more like her father, sewing clothes, cooking, serving soup, and delivering medicine. She rushed to do it in the wind, rain, at home, and in the field, and the whole village praised her for her kindness.

Time flies like an arrow. Seventeen years have passed in a flash. Sister Hua is already thirty-five years old. Due to overwork, her face is wrinkled and her head is long with white hair. She looks like a person over forty. Zhao Lao Shang has white hair and silver beard, and is old and tall.

Suddenly one day, a younger generation came to the village, saying that he came to recognize his relatives. Seeing that he looked like Lao Shang Zhao, the old neighbor led him into the Zhao family. Sister Hua and Lao Shang Zhao were stunned when they saw the younger generation: so kind. The younger generation saluted deeply and asked, "Did my ancestors lose a little boy seventeen years ago?"

"Lost! lost! where is he? where is he?"

"I am... yes." Hou Sheng had tears in his eyes.

"Ah, are you Chunbao?" Zhao Lao Shang nodded when he saw the younger generation. He hugged Chunbao and cried loudly: "Son! I'm your father! Seventeen years! Seventeen years!" After crying for a while, the three calmed down, and Chunbao told him what happened to him for seventeen years.

Seventeen years ago, there was a merchant surnamed Wang in Shanxi. He was over 50 years old and had no children and no daughters. He was fascinated by his son. One day, he passed Zhao Laoshang's garden and saw a young child sleeping under the big willow tree, so he carried it away like his own child. When he saw the word "Chunbao" embroidered on the child's flower hat, he knew it was the child's name. Merchant Wang thought it was an auspicious name, so he did not change it. When Xiaochunbao grew to eight years old, Merchant Wang saw that he was very smart. He hired a teacher for him and asked him to study poetry and books hard at home. Ten years later, Chunbao went to Beijing to take the exam and won the top prize in each of the middle. The emperor saw that he was young and handsome, and wanted to recruit him as a subordinate horse, so he first ordered him to go back to his hometown to repair the grave and then go back to the capital. When the new champion returned to Shanxi, Merchant Wang was overjoyed. The talkative neighbors privately discussed that Merchant Wang was not the biological father of the champion. These words reached Chunbao's ears, and he asked about his own background. Merchant Wang couldn't hide it, so he told the truth. After Chunbao heard this, he must come to Caozhou to find his biological parents. Wang Merchant's group couldn't stop him, so he had to go back to his hometown to recognize his relatives.

Chunbao brought the soldiers to Caozhou, so he sent people to inquire around, and in a few days, he learned that Zhao Lao Shang lost his child that year. His uncle took the soldiers to recognize his relatives, and ten thousand people admitted that they were wrong and lost their dignity, so they took off their official uniforms, changed into civilian clothes, and came to Zhaojia Village alone.

Zhao Lao Shang then also told about the family's affairs. When it came to Sister Hua, he praised and praised, only praising Sister Hua to hide in the inner room, and was embarrassed to come out again. Chunbao only knew that Sister Hua was his daughter-in-law at that time. Zhao Lao Shang looked at Sister Hua's back and said to Chunbao, "Son! Today is a great day, our family is reunited! You husband and wife can have a marriage tonight! I will go to arrange a few tables of wine and food, and invite all the villagers." As Zhao Lao Shang said that he was about to leave, Chunbao hurriedly stopped him and stammered, "I... she..." Zhao Lao Shang was anxious, "If you have anything to say, just say it!" Chunbao glanced at the inner room and whispered, "Father, Sister Hua is so virtuous, just like my elders. She has been filial to her father for more than 20 years, and her kindness is like a mountain. My son is willing to serve her for a lifetime! "When Zhao Lao Shang heard this, he got angry;" What? You are an official, and you don't look down on Sister Hua anymore!

Sister Hua heard it clearly in the inner room, and couldn't help but feel sad secretly. She turned to look after the diamond mirror; she was old, Chunbao was less than twenty years old this year, and I couldn't miss his youth or his future. Thinking of this, she hurriedly came out of the inner room: "Father, don't be angry, I would like to be worthy of Chunbao siblings. From now on, I will be your own daughter."

Zhao Lao Shang trembled all over: "No! No! This marriage is justifiable, there were three people who guaranteed the media at that time. There was also an engagement document. I can't ask people to scold me for ruining the marriage. I can't be sorry for Sister Hua." Zhao Lao Shang said as he held out the engagement document that had been preserved for seventeen years with both hands and threw it in front of Chunbao.

At this time, there was a commotion outside the door. It turned out that it was the staff of the new champion, who led a herald to the Zhao family. Chunbao hurriedly changed his clothes to accept the decree, and the decree was to order Chunbao to enter the capital to marry: When Zhao Lao Shang heard about this, he became even more angry and immediately forced Chunbao to marry Sister Hua; Sister Hua and Chunbao begged bitterly, but he just didn't listen. Chunbao was helpless, so he had to stay for the time being, planning to wait for his father to calm down and then slowly persuade him.

Two days have passed, and his father's anger has not subsided. Chunbao wanted to go back to the capital, but his uncle's father was angry and found a short-sighted one, and he fell on a charge of unfilial piety. If he married a flower maggot, the emperor knew that he could not afford it, and he was forced to corner, not eating tea and rice. It was difficult to sleep at night. It was late at night, and he came to the garden, and the blooming flowers suddenly turned into engagement documents, and the flowers and leaves looked like royal saints. He was dazzled and dizzy, and instantly felt that engagement documents and royal decrees were overwhelming him. He felt sullen in his chest, itchy in his throat, the world was spinning, he was unsteady, spat blood, and fell to the ground and died.

In the garden of the Zhao family, a tomb of the champion was built. In the spring of the following year, in front of the tomb of Zhuangyuan, a peony with lush branches and leaves was born. The flowers were as large as a plate and fragrant. When it first bloomed, it was dark red and purple, and when it bloomed, it became cinnabar red, especially the brocade hug of the champion. Because it was born in front of the grave of the champion, people called it "the champion red".