Ming Ting Ji

In the early morning, a cluster of red lanterns hangs on the green leaves, which are still green in winter, making the lanterns very bright.Yuan Lu hung up the lamp, helped the ladder down, looked up at the bright and clear sky, picked up a fine stone from the ground and drove the chirping crows on the branches, looked back and smiled, and said, my lord, today The late Lantern Festival must be very lively.Qixuan was standing in the corridor wearing a silver fur robe, he didn't seem to hear what Yuan Lu said, and he didn't seem to care.

Red lanterns are also hung on the eaves of the courtyard verandah, and there are still traces of snow that have not yet melted in the corner. A jacaranda tree at the end of the courtyard wall leans against the high white wall and looks out along its branches. Under the blue sky and daylight, Faintly see a corner of Xuantian Pavilion flying high, Xuantian Pavilion, tonight the Lantern Festival Lantern Festival in the city will illuminate it brightly all night.

Finally, when the night fell, Jinling City began to put on its makeup. From the streets and alleys to the tall buildings by the water, the lanterns were lit up one after another, and the lanterns gradually spread down like a river. The lights reflected the inner eaves and leaves. The lanterns are red, the water is shimmering, and the boats on the water seem to be unstable. The sound of pipa and laughter rippling down the river, there are sellers of lanterns, candy puppets, and hawkers of all kinds of festive things on the bank. They all set up stalls and hawked goods at their respective locations, and together they made the sky get late with a lot of noise.

Qi Xuan and Zhenyi's sedan chair passed through the noisy market, and stopped directly at the entrance of Xuantian Pavilion. Zhenyi smiled and said, I know you are not lively, so let's put a blessing lantern and leave.The lotus pond of Xuantian Pavilion in summer is exhausted, the curved water surface is connected to the outer river, and the high and low pavilions rise according to the terrain. It is also said that Xuantian Pavilion is protected by the Yuanyin Temple next to it. It is also the most efficacious, so every Lantern Festival is crowded, Qixuan takes Zhenyi's hand, writes peace on the lantern, gently puts it on the river, and watches the lantern go away with the water.Qixuan looked at the words written on the wall of each lantern, such as good luck, longing to return, being on the list, getting better, begging for a child, and having a surplus... In fact, what ordinary people want is not an excessive request, or If it can be achieved in time, but it can't be realized at that moment, life will have many shortcomings.Qixuan was still looking at the lanterns, and the Qudi and Sanxian in the distance floated leisurely around the rockery and entered the ears. The stage is on, the stage is on, the crowd surged, rushing towards the place where Xiaodi clapped and the sound of gongs and drums sounded. Before Zhenyi opened his mouth, he said, "Yuan Lu, go with his wife, and then said softly to Zhenyi, I will wait for you in the pavilion opposite, don't worry, just listen for a while, I will Wait for you.Zhenyi smiled in her eyes, and turned around to be led by Yuan Lu in response.

In an instant, many people were gone by the water, and the river bank was still crowded just now, but now only a few people are still writing lanterns, putting them into the water reluctantly.In the pavilion opposite the place where he was declaring, the word "Changyan" was written on the plaque. There seemed to be a stone table and a few stone benches in the pavilion. When he walked in, he found wine pots, cups, and fruit plates on the table. At the foot of the stone steps on one side, there was a man standing facing the water, who seemed to have sent away his servants; Qixuan sat down alone, poured himself a glass of wine, the aroma of the wine was overflowing, and said softly, good wine, instead of writing lamps to pray for blessings Looking forward to an auspicious future, it is better to take advantage of the good wind and good wine to enjoy the bright moon at present. The people by the water looked back and said nothing, and could not tell whether the expression on their faces was sullen or angry.Qixuan went straight forward, clasped his hands and said, please forgive me if you are happy, if you are lenient, you will be very grateful, if you are reprimanded by your brother, you will listen carefully and dare not argue.With a distance of three feet, I still couldn't see the expression of the person opposite me clearly. In the silence, I only heard: Please sit down.

A servant rushed over upon hearing the sound, and the man gently raised his hand to tell them to retreat behind the rocks. Only then did Qixuan see clearly that this man was dressed in black, his face was bright and clear under the moonlight, his eyes were calm, and he showed no emotion at all. in the eyes.He poured a glass of wine for Qixuan, and poured another glass for himself, still without saying a word.Qi Xuan drank the wine in one gulp and had nothing to say.In the Changyan Pavilion, the sound of wind blowing across the water can be heard in silence.A sound of Xiao flute came from afar, and the people on the stage had a gentle and delicate accent, and their chanting was gorgeous and elegant. They sang, "Life is like this, regardless of prosperity and waste, wealth and honor are like floating clouds, and world affairs are like child's play..."

After the first song, the speaker said as if he was talking to himself. In fact, there is no need to listen to the song too close. The more it goes over the rocks and comes from the water, the more beautiful it is.The person on the opposite side replied, yes, the sound coming from the surface of the water, on the contrary, is very subtle. It's just the Lantern Festival, so it's not suitable to sing Fan Li's Boating Speech.It sounds sad.Qixuan shook his head, still whispering, this river lantern is full of hope, not as good as Fan Li, who saw clearly early on, why must he use rhetoric and joy to meet the occasion, everyone knows that life is unpredictable, and wealth is like floating clouds, but they can't let go of this It's just a wisp of floating cloud... The person on the opposite side asked, in this way, Xiongtai let go of this wisp of floating cloud, and he declared, "Josh, I'm also a cloud chaser. I know it's a floating cloud, but I still chase it. I just want to be gentle." Survival, will not try our best.When it comes to Xiongtai, with a calm demeanor, he must have seen everything clearly.The person on the opposite side said, the world treats all things and mortals like a child's play, but I dare not treat the world as a child's play, nor do I dare to regard wealth as floating clouds. I just know that what I want is not guaranteed, so I will not try my best to pursue it.When he said that, he smiled lightly.

The two of them were talking lightly, one sentence after another, and they didn't know how long they were talking, and where they were talking, until the wine in the jug dried up, and the night wind gradually picked up, the person on the other side suddenly said, "I heard brother The Taiwanese accent does not sound like someone from Jinling, and his answer is that it is indeed not. This time he is only visiting relatives in Jinling, and he is temporarily staying in Shuangshi Lane. He has been here for a while, and he will say goodbye tomorrow.Where does Xiongtai live?He Xuan glanced at the other party, and the other party suddenly felt abrupt, and talked happily all night, this questioning was a bit reckless, he bowed his hands, in the court of Ming Dynasty, lived in Jinling for a long time, today's narration is like meeting an old friend.He preached: Qixuan, people from Yuanjiang murmured to themselves again, Ming Ting, but Qi Wang Ming Ting suddenly got up and saluted, Ming Ting supported him, no need, please get up quickly.You and I met by chance, and we talked very well. If you don't mind, how about calling each other by first name?Qixuan said with a smile, not daring.Saying goodbye.Ming Ting smiled and said, "I'll see you off, and I went out of the Changyan Pavilion with Qi Xuanyi, and arrived at the place where I broke up with Zhenyi, until Zhenyi walked slowly from a distance, the two said goodbye to each other again, and Zhenyi walked away in a moment Recently, after his announcement, he gave him a shock. What are you looking at? Can you hear his announcement?Let's go back, why don't you talk to me while walking.

The next day, it was still sunny, the lanterns of the Lantern Festival had not been removed, and the laziness of the whole city had not dissipated. Ming Ting walked alone on the busy street, and the horses and chariots of Prince Qi's mansion were usually traveling. Pedestrians saw pearls and red curtains , avoid it from a distance, and now walk in black casual clothes, but walk freely, anyway, people only recognize cars, horses and sedan chairs, what kind of people are in the cars, there are not many people they have seen.There are not many shops on the street, most of them opened the Lantern Festival night market last night, and the shopkeepers are still resting before opening, and there are also people from the outskirts who have come to the city to catch up with the morning market, and do some business in this spare time.There was a yellow-haired boy running all over the stone road with a windmill made of paper, and among the passers-by, Ming Ting suddenly caught a glimpse of a figure, who seemed a bit like the Yuanjiang Qixuan from last night, Ming Ting took two steps faster, and followed him From behind, I saw him walking into an alley, seeing that his steps were light and fast, Ming Ting also stepped briskly, followed closely, and was about to announce it, the person in front suddenly stopped, turned around, Looking at him, the clothes of the person in front of him fluttered, and his eyes were like stars. Ming Ting looked at him, but felt that his eyes seemed to go beyond him, looking at a farther place. Before Ming Ting could speak, Qi Xuan suddenly stared at him. He smiled, his smile was extremely gentle, there was light in his brows, and they were very clear, Ming Ting looked at it, and seemed to forget to ask him something, and suddenly remembered, oh, yes, he said last night He left Jinling early this morning to go back to Yuanjiang. Why is he here now? He also said that visiting relatives is temporarily living in Shuangshi Lane. Jinling is not familiar with the place where he lives. Approaching him, Lang Ran said, Zhenyi loves Jinling very much, and wants to stay here for a while longer. She lived in Baihuai Lane when she was young, but later moved to the south, and has not been to Jinling for a long time.Although the yard has been left unused for a long time, it is cleaned from time to time. I was anxious to take a look, but I didn't expect to meet King Qi.Ming Ting chuckled, I saw a back that looked like you, but it wasn't real, I didn't expect to meet again by fate.Speaking of the vermilion gate on the side of the alley creaking open, Yuan Lu poked his head out and announced to him, sir, sir, it has been cleaned and a new tea set has been bought, please come in, sir.Qi Xuan smiled and said to Ming Ting, if you don't dislike it, you can have a cup of tea in the courtyard, okay?That's how I returned last night's jug of good wine.

Ming Ting didn't talk to him politely, but stepped into the courtyard one step at a time. The courtyard was full of verdant jacaranda trees, without the slightest feeling of winter. A beam of sunlight hit the stone table, and the freshly brewed tea was fragrant. It's a pity not to drink.The layout of the small courtyard is very simple, but Ming Ting has a sense of familiarity when he looks at it, as if he has been to this place before, and he looks closely at every white wall, whether it is a tree or carnation or flowers, standing against the wall, it is like a simple few A few ink strokes were drawn on the white paper, and Qixuan was drinking tea beside him, as if he had also integrated into the painting.Qixuan ordered Yuan Lu to move flowers and grass, only looking at the scattered and dense collocations of various colors, he seemed to be dissatisfied all the time, but Yuan Lu was so tired that he was sweating profusely, and shouted, "Just stay for a while, sir, don't bother so much." Small ones.Ming Ting smiled, let's put that small rock there, when the bamboo leaves are luxuriant in spring, it will be interesting to block part of the rock.Its declaration is actually to watch the shadows of rocks and bamboo leaves in spring, which is not interesting.

The two of them did not speak for a long time. It seemed that the sunshine, the pot of tea, and the swaying shadows of the trees in the courtyard were all excellent scenery and climate, and it was enough to immerse themselves in them.Yuan Lu looked at it strangely from the side, only felt that Qixuan didn't talk much today, and the guest didn't talk too much, and neither of them seemed uncomfortable.

I don't know how long I sat there, Ming Ting took a deep breath, stretched out his arms, as if he was infinitely satisfied, just said, I am really happy today, Qi Xuan, with you, even if I sit without saying a word, I still feel relaxed, it has been a long time At such a moment, I really hope that you will live in Jinling for a long time, and I will have one more person to talk to.Qi Xuan said with a smile, we didn't talk much today.It's just that I also feel very relaxed, maybe it's the weather today.Ming Ting smiled, perhaps, today's tea is good.He said with a smile, it was the snow water of the old year.Mingting saw that Qixuan was not familiar with Jinling and was very interested in the scenery of Jinling, so he began to tell him a lot of rumors and anecdotes, and Qixuan also enjoyed hearing it, Mingting thought, it should be Zhenyi I usually don't mention Jinling, so as not to be homesick. It's rare to stay here for a while, and I finally got rid of my homesickness.Qixuan talked about the scenery of Yuanjiang while listening, Ming Ting was also very interested, the two of them talked more and more, it seemed that the talk had no end, and I don't know how much longer it will be.Yuan Lu stood at the side, more and more confused. Counting the tea, he didn't know how many times he had refilled it. He thought to himself, just now when his lord said that he had to return the wine, he might have already had enough.I didn’t talk at the beginning, I was silent and boring, and now I’ve never seen such a person, I’ve never seen such a person, so hurry up and follow, and you can’t walk away, and you want to take the time to sneak around through the back door to play dice .

When Ming Ting really left, he had already had lunch at his Xuan's house, and spent an afternoon watching the sun shine from one end of the wall to the other, only missing dinner.Yuan Lu was thinking about it, and he stayed for a long time, but he saw that although this guest was dressed in black, the texture was gorgeous, and the jade plaque hanging on his waist was also a rare item. My lord has made such a friend, and we have frequent exchanges, and there is always someone to support him. There may be a few rewards from me, and the hard work is not in vain... "Yuan Lu" was still thinking about it, and there was a sound in the room, "Hui Shuangshi Lane" was just cleaned out, and if the bedding After buying everything, maybe we will stay overnight, thinking this way, Yuan Lu rolled his eyes and went to prepare the car.

Over the past month, Yuan Lu had a few extra coins on his body. It wasn't anyone's reward, but Ming Ting came frequently. He always stood by and waited on him, and he stood there for a long time. He didn't have time to sneak out to play dice. In the past, he lost a lot. If you win less, it's better now.Ming Ting is a very quick guest, he just chats every time, sometimes he just stays for a while, sits for a while, doesn't even talk much, it seems that nothing ever bothers Yuan Lu, there is no chance to make money, Yuan Lu I feel a little regretful, even sometimes Ming Ting stays very late, and he walks back alone. I don't know anything.Ming Ting met Zhenyi once, and later heard that it was because the old lady in Shuangshi Lane was ill, and accompanied the old lady to live in another courtyard in the western suburbs, and they would not come back for a while. The old lady was very dependent on Zhenyi , reluctant to let her go, as long as she came back, she went straight back to Yuanjiang.

One day, Ming Ting stayed very late again, the two stayed in Qixuan's study and chatted, Yuan Lu helped them warm the wine Ming Ting had brought, and then exited the room to take a nap.Ming Ting flipped through Qixuan's book, and wrote in ink on the places he had annotated. When he got drunk, his handwriting became more flying and reckless. Qixuan was watching from the side, shaking his head again and again, listening to him read the words and sentences, and helping him write.Ming Ting looked at the books on the shelf, counted them, and said, there are still three volumes, Qixuan, if these three volumes are finished, what will they write?Qixuan smiled, I am too familiar with the scenery of Jinling. Didn’t you say it again today? You can say it again tomorrow.While the candle lamp was flickering, Qi Xuan held on to his pen and wrote something on his own. Ming Ting took a closer look, the handwriting was very small, neat and elegant, and what he wrote was that when we leave day and night, we will know the time.Ming Ting lightly called out to Qixuan, Qixuan didn't tilt his head, but the pen stopped, hung there without moving, Ming Ting's breath was right next to his ears, it couldn't be nearer.Qixuan put down his pen and tilted his head. Mingting in front of him had calm and gentle eyes. It was not the first time he had seen such a Mingting, but it seemed like the first time he had seen it. Qixuan put his hand on Mingting's left shoulder , stroking the pattern on the clothes with the palm of his hand, pulled the distance away, and said calmly, it was already raining outside.

There was no sound around, and the window was opened, there were indeed thin raindrops falling in the air, Qi Xuan picked up a folding umbrella from the corner, handed it to Ming Ting, and said, I will see you out of the alley.Ming Ting said yes, without saying much, and went out with him.Ming Ting has walked this road many times. This time, even in the light rain, he felt very cold in his heart. He didn't say it, but he also said it. Just know, in fact, there is no need to say it, in fact, it is useless to say it.After thinking for a long time along the way, he suddenly realized that the umbrella he announced to him was a bit special. There was a luminous pearl hanging on the corner of the umbrella, shining brightly. It's unique, and it's rare to meet two passers-by who are walking in a hurry, and they seem to look around twice.There is also a burden-carrying peddler who looked at the umbrella, as if he was frightened, and avoided it. Could it be that the light of the night pearl reflected on his face was blue, scaring others?Thinking of this, Ming Ting lowered his umbrella, covered his face, and hurried back home.On the way, I still couldn’t stop thinking about it. If it didn’t happen to be raining, then it was already raining outside. Thanks to your thinking, this is no excuse.Of course you have your own considerations, but before I say it, you have already refused, even if you tell the truth, even if you forget it after saying it, you will not refuse?Ming Ting was full of thoughts, closed the umbrella, looked at the night pearl hanging on the umbrella, just lost in thought.

Ming Ting thought that he would have a knot in his heart, but when he woke up the next day, when he thought of Qixuan, his heart seemed to melt again. There was no trace of grudges, and he felt strange. It turned out that he liked it so much that he even blamed it. Can't get up.In the afternoon, I went to Baihuai Lane as usual.An invitation card was left, it was the birthday banquet of Mrs. Ming.Qixuan declined it for a while, because he really didn't like lively occasions, Ming court invited him again and again, in fact, he wanted to invite him to go to the mansion to listen to an opera, or Fan Li's boating speech that he had heard together before, and he was earnest until Qixuan agreed. Ting left happily.

Qixuan stood alone in the yard, thinking, "Are you planning to prepare some congratulatory gifts?" Seeing that he was in a daze, Yuan Lu stepped forward to ask. "Why is the congratulatory gift a problem? I was thinking. When I return to this yard and see you again, I don't know when it will be." "Oh, my lord is planning to return to Yuanjiang? So soon, it will be a while if it's not Madam." Did you just come back?" "Zhenyi... well, maybe I'll go first." Yuan Lu couldn't understand why he was rushing back, but Yuan Jiang was in a hurry?How can I leave Mrs. Zhenyi alone in Jinling. "Yuan Lu," Qixuan said slowly, "It's hard for you to take care of me these days, thank you." Yuan Lu felt that Qixuan seemed to be depressed, but he didn't dare to ask.

In fact, he always thought it was good to follow Qixuan. Although he only followed him for a short month, since the housekeeper in Shuangshi Lane hired him as a follower, he felt that this job was very easy. Mrs. Zhenyi lived with the old lady and the housekeeper. In Double Ten Lane, such a big mansion seems to have too few people.He lives with him in Baihuai Lane, and his daily affairs are very simple, but, but, Yuan Lu thought about it, and suddenly remembered something, oh, by the way, I heard from the adults that the old lady was sick, and Mrs. Zhenyi went back to the house to accompany her , then why didn't my lord move back to Shuangshi Lane to take care of them together? Also, my lord and Mrs. Zhenyi have returned to Yuanjiang, so who will take care of the old lady, just a housekeeper, how is that possible?The more Yuan Lu thought about it, the more he couldn't figure it out. Then he thought, he only went to Shuangshi Lane a few times, and every time he went there after delivering Qixuan, he turned back to Baihuai Lane. He only stayed in the mansion for a short time. Maybe he didn't Let's meet, it's just what your lord said just now, alas, it seems that I have to find a new employer again.Yawned, rolled over and fell asleep.

The birthday banquet in the Ming Mansion is very lively, with an endless stream of guests, and the fine clothes and brocade clothes are passing through like clouds. Mrs. Ming likes to be lively, and she also accepts congratulatory speeches at the birthday banquet. Xuan's figure, as long as his eyes can't find him, he is worried that he has left, and when he sees him again, he always looks at him from the corner of his eyes to see that he is seated on the west corridor, ready to watch the play steadily , was a little relieved.The stage is built on a small lake in the Mingfu Garden. It is very interesting to watch it across the water. The figures on the stage are reflected in the water. The wind blows and the figures ripple. If it is in summer, the lake will be full of lotus flowers. More picturesque.

Until the end of the show, Ming Ting didn't have a chance to say a few words to him. Seeing that he was really going to leave, he sneaked up to him and said, I really don't enjoy myself if I didn't talk to you today. How about we drink alone again?He preached that it was getting late, so tomorrow is worse than tomorrow. The scenery here is really good, and we will have a drink to our heart's content tomorrow.At this moment, the guests had dispersed and the stage was empty, Ming Ting suddenly smiled, pulled Qixuan to walk around the barrier of mountains and rocks, and walked to the stage, only to see a bright moon in the sky, and the water patterns in the lake reflected on the white wall of the corridor Shaking, pavilions and pavilions can be seen faintly behind the corridor, and looking far away, it is the cornice of Xuantian Pavilion. "Qixuan," Ming Ting was about to say something, Qixuan faced him face to face, looked at him, lightly supported his left shoulder, rubbed the silver thread pattern on his clothes, and said, I will definitely go to the appointment tomorrow, the next morning, I'm going back to Yuanjiang.Ming Ting looked sullenly and said, I knew this day would come, but I just heard you say... Ming Ting was stuck there, and he couldn't say a word after that.

After sending Qixuan away, Ming Ting returned to the room where the congratulatory gifts were stored. He wanted to see what Qixuan had brought, and looked for the posts one by one. Finally, he found three gift boxes. There is a pair of calligraphy and painting, a long scroll, unfolded, with a large blank space on the top, and two people making tea at the bottom of the pine, with the inscription in the old days.After seeing this painting, Ming Ting felt a touch in his heart. There was another box, what was it when he opened it? He was full of curiosity, but it was a jade pendant. He thought it was Ruyi or something. This jade pendant was really interesting. Ming Ting took it In my hand, I looked at its texture carefully under the candlelight. I like it very much.Early the next morning, Ming Ting hurried back to the old lady, asked for the calligraphy, painting and jade pendant in the gift, carefully collected them, and put them together with the umbrella she announced to him.Just after noon, I ordered people to prepare drinks early, just waiting for Xuan to come to the appointment.Besides a jug of wine, there was also a sealed envelope on the table. Ming Ting opened it, and saw that it was written that the maker was Yuanjiang Qifu 20 years ago. The mansion was overturned due to fraudulent cases, and Yuanjiang will never see him again.Ming Ting's complexion changed, and he burned the letter paper.Fu took out his Xuan's painting scroll, unfolded it slowly, looked at it again and again, and said silently in his heart, in the old days, rain and snow kept old friends.Qixuan, your Yuanjiang River never snows.

The author has something to say:

The writing is very short and unfinished, don’t laugh if it’s not good, don’t laugh, if you’re happy, just smile