Evening Shaohua in the Red House

On the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the sky is high and the air is crisp, with lanterns and festoons hanging inside and outside Jia's mansion, it is very lively, and the girls and women start to get busy at dawn.

Xiangyun was stayed by Jia's mother to celebrate the festival, and these days she rested in Daiyu's room, but she always had the problem of choosing seats, she tossed and turned all night and couldn't sleep well, woke up at dawn, opened the curtain and went outside He glanced at it, saw that the sky was dim and bright, and it was still early, so he lay back again.

Daiyu had always been in a light sleep, and was startled awake by this movement, covered her lips with her hands and yawned softly, asking, "What time is it?"

Xiang Yun apologized a little, and said, "It's still early, did it wake you up?"

Daiyu rubbed her eyes and said: "It's okay, I usually sleep lightly, and I went to bed early last night, so I won't be sleepy now."

Xiang Yun turned over and said with a soft smile: "Anyway, I have to get up early to pay respects to the old lady, so let's not sleep, just lie down and talk for a while."

Daiyu didn't want to go back to sleep, turned around, and saw Xiangyun dragging her blue silk by the pillow, the peach blossom silk quilt on her body was only covered up to her chest, and her snow-white arms were thrown out of the quilt, so she gently helped her Covered it, tucked the corner of the quilt, and said, "What do you want to say?"

Xiangyun moved the pillow over and said in a low voice: "I went to sit with my sister-in-law for a while before, and happened to meet Mrs. Liu talking back, but I didn't listen carefully. After that, my sister-in-law kept frowning, although she was still the same. We were joking, but our expressions were a little dazed, and we were always in a trance these two days, which has never happened before, but I asked a few questions about my sister-in-law, but she was vague, and only said that it was from Zhuangzi in the south. Something happened, does my sister know what happened?"

Li Wan had always treated these sisters very well, Xiang Yun couldn't help feeling a little worried.

Daiyu frowned slightly when she heard the words, sighed and said: "It's not just you, I also asked yesterday, and my sister-in-law didn't want to say more, I just know that someone seems to want to rob my sister-in-law of her villages, It’s not quite clear what happened.”

Xiang Yun frowned immediately after hearing this, and said: "Who is so bold, hasn't he ever asked who the owner of this village is?"

Daiyu said: "The sky is high and the emperor is far away. The name of the Duke's Mansion may not be useful, but you don't have to worry about it. Depending on who he is, there must be a word of reason in everything. How can he cover the sky with one hand.

I already wrote a letter back to Yangzhou yesterday, asking my father to investigate secretly, if someone really wants to bully others by force, father will never stand idly by. "

Xiangyun immediately felt relieved when he heard the words, and said with a smile: "So you wrote

Write a letter to Uncle Lin, since Uncle Lin has come forward in this matter, I think it will be fine. "

Lin Ruhai, as the censor of salt inspection, has a high position and authority, and the Lin family is also a century-old family in the south of the Yangtze River, with deep roots, so it is natural to deal with such a trivial matter.

The two sisters whispered for a long time, and suddenly heard the sound of sweeping and sweeping outside the house, as well as low voices. It turned out that the sky had already dawned, and the maids and women were all up and busy.

Daiyu got up and lifted the silk curtain to look at the sky, and said, "It's dawn, let's get up too."

Xiangyun nodded, the two got up and got dressed, Zijuan Cuilu heard the movement, and hurried in to help her freshen up.

Zicuckoo combed Daiyu's unique hairpin, with jade hairpins and emerald tins on the hairpin; on her body was a satin lapel lapel with colorful tapestry silk flowers and grass patterns on a pink and blue background, underneath a horse-face skirt embroidered with plum blossoms on a white background, and a pair of pearls. The lantern earrings are gently swinging on the swing, making the eyebrows frown at the spring mountains and the eyes full of autumn water.

Xiangyun is a pair of skirts embroidered with red roses on a white background, and a long aqua blue skirt. She is in high spirits, as bright as spring flowers.

Dressed up properly, Xiangyun took off the soft-soled embroidered shoes on his feet, put on satin shoes, and suddenly shouted: "Oh! It's a pity."

Daiyu was adjusting her makeup in front of the mirror, when she heard the words, she turned her head and asked, "What's the pity?"

Xiang Yun said angrily: "It took a lot of work to make these shoes, they were only replaced at noon yesterday, and they got dirty after wearing them for half a day. It's really embarrassing."

Daiyu saw that Xiangyun's red embroidered shoes were stained with mud and moss on the toe, and said with a smile: "It's a pity that these new shoes are stained with moss and mud, and the color will deteriorate after washing. "

Xiangyun said: "Because of this, I am very stunned!"

Daiyu said: "You love cleanliness at first, and the things you wear are just like mine. They are very clean. Maybe you picked flowers in the flower garden yesterday, and you accidentally got them on the grassy slope. It's already dirty anyway. It doesn't matter." But whatever, that’s all.”

Xiangyun sighed and said, "I'm too lazy to pick up needles these days. There are dozens of pairs of shoes. These are the top ones, and I love them the most."

While speaking, Cui Hui had brought another pair of clean royal blue embroidered satin shoes over, and said with a smile, "Miss, wear these, they are also new."

Although Xiangyun didn't like it very much, he had to.

When Daiyu saw it, she said: "Although these shoes are good, they don't match the color of your clothes. I still have a few pairs of new shoes at my place, which are all unworn. I asked the girl to fetch them. Look at them. None like it."

After finishing speaking, he called Zijuan over and ordered, "Go and fetch those new pairs of shoes that I made on my birthday last time."

Zicuckoo followed her advice and went to the ear room, opened the cage, touched the bottom for a while, and took out a

When the blue cloth bag was untied, there were six or seven pairs of silk embroidered shoes, some fully embroidered, some half embroidered, and some with a little embroidery on the tip of the shoe, all exquisitely and uniquely made.

Xiangyun stared at each other, full of praise.

Daiyu picked out a pair of bright red satin shoes inlaid with rice beads and filled with gold, and said with a smile, "Try this pair."

Xiangyun sat on the kang and tried it out, and said with a smile, "It's just right, not too big or too small."

Daiyu said, "Just wear these."

Xiangyun said: "This pair is better than mine, it's a pity to wear it easily."

Daiyu said: "It's just a pair of shoes. It's good to wear them all the time. Your pair is more delicate than mine. Unfortunately, it's a little dirty. It's okay to take it out."

When Xiangyun heard the words, he no longer refused, and said with a smile: "Today, I miss you, and tomorrow I will make a pair of shoes for you. It will definitely take more effort than this pair."

Daiyu pursed her lips and smiled, "Then I'll thank you in advance."

The two sisters tidied up and went out to the upper room. Knowing that Mother Jia hadn't got up yet, Xiangyun said, "It's still early, let's go for a stroll in the garden."

When the two came to the garden, they saw flowers like clusters of brocades, fragrant and intoxicating; noisy, bees and butterflies dancing wildly;

From a distance, Li Wan could be seen standing among the flowers with Suyun, Biyue, Wutong and other maids, holding flower baskets and bamboo scissors, picking flowers.

A group of colorful butterflies flew from afar, straight into the flowers, twirling back and forth, and passing through. Li Wan stood among the flowers, holding bamboo scissors, and gently cut off a golden-red rose, and lowered his head to smell the fragrance of the flowers.

Today she is wearing a turquoise blue gauze jacket embroidered with ice plums, a white sura pleated skirt, a bun of clouds on her head, two red gold and silk pearl flowers on her temples, and a dot emerald spreading her wings at a slant. Xiaofeng hairpin, a jasper hairpin, with a trembling bead butterfly on the top, and a light yellow chrysanthemum on the sideburns, although it does not apply makeup, it looks demure and beautiful, elegant and refined.

The two sisters admired secretly in their hearts, people are really as light as chrysanthemums, and this situation is almost like a painting.

When Suyun and Biyue saw Daiyu and the others, they hurriedly paid their respects.

Hearing the sound, Li Wan raised his head and saw Daiyu and Xiangyun coming hand in hand. They were gorgeously dressed and as delicate as a flower. He couldn't help laughing and said, "Why are you here now?"

Daiyu looked carefully and saw that she was smiling, and she was no longer worried about yesterday, so she breathed a sigh of relief, and said with a smile: "The old lady has not woken up yet, so we came here for a stroll, why did my sister-in-law come to pick flowers so early in the morning? "

Li Wan said with a smile: "The flowers are blooming very well. I'm afraid that if they pick them up by hand, the flowers will be bad, so I went to the garden to cut some flowers and come back to everyone."

When you want flowers, just cut them out and give them away. "

Daiyu pursed her lips and smiled, "Sister-in-law is still thoughtful."

Xiangyun had gone to the flowers to enjoy, and picked out a few of them, picked a plum red rose for the hairpin, and picked a light crimson chrysanthemum to put on the sideburns for Daiyu, and said with a smile: "How does sister-in-law look?"

Li Wan looked at it for a while, nodded and smiled, "It's fresh and unique, and it fits the scene of Mid-Autumn Festival today."

Daiyu pursed her lips into a smile, looked at the sky, and said, "It's getting late, and it's time for us to greet the old lady."

Li Wan nodded, handed the bamboo scissors to Suyun, and said, "Let's go."

The three of them came to Jia Mu's room together. Jia Xie and Jia Zheng had led his nephews and nephews to kowtow to Jia Mu and then left. Not long after, Mrs. Xing, Mrs. Wang, Aunt Xue, Sister Feng, You's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, Baochai, and Sanchun The sisters also came to the upper room, and everyone kowtowed to Jia Mu one by one.

After tea, Li Wan smiled and said, "I picked some fresh flowers just now, let's see if you like them."

While talking, Biyue had already brought a small and exquisite rattan flower basket, which contained various kinds of broken branches flowers. When Jiamu saw it, she smiled and said, "These flowers are blooming well, let's wear flowers." After finishing speaking, she picked a flower basket. A bright red chrysanthemum hairpin.

Biyue sent the flowers to everyone, and everyone smelled the fragrance while bunting hairpins.

After a while of gossiping, Mother Jia ordered Mrs. Xing and You's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law to go home for the reunion festival and not to come at night.

Mrs. Xing left first, You stood up and said with a smile: "The ancestor chased us away, so we had to leave, and I will come to talk to the ancestor at night."

Everyone who said it laughed, and Jia Mu laughed and said: "I told you that you young couples are going to reunite on their own, and what will you do with me, an old lady."

You Shi blushed slightly, and said with a smile: "The old lady is very kind, but we are deserted at home, and the old ancestor's place is still lively. You can allow us to come over and eat two mooncakes."

Jia Mu couldn't help laughing and said: "It sounds so pitiful to see, that's all, come back at night."

Sister Feng also said with a smile: "I don't know what is good or bad. My ancestors are considerate of you. If you don't kowtow to thank you, you can see that she still has an accent. Don't be impatient, just let me go." Then, pushing You Shi, Qin Keqing He also walked away with a smile.

Everyone also went back separately.

After noon, Mother Jia invited Aunt Xue, Mrs. Xing, Mrs. Wang and all the sisters to come to the garden to enjoy the flowers first.

It turns out that this small garden is just behind the east wing of the main courtyard of Rongxi Hall. It is larger than the Huifang Garden in the East Mansion.

To.

The people walked all the way, green bamboos on both sides of the road, the ground is covered with moss, and there is a stone-filled path in the middle. At the end of the bamboos, there are small marshes and sparse forests, board bridges and lying stones, which is very elegant.

Baoyu leads the way, followed by Mother Jia, Aunt Xue, Mrs. Xing and Mrs. Wang, followed by Li Wan and others.

After passing the rockery, you can see a half-acre square pond with rippling clear water, and an exquisite water pavilion covering the pond. There is a vast lotus here, connected to Rongxi Hall in the east, Taoliu embankment in the west, and lotus leaves in the sky. Infinity, the green algae juniper in the pool, turns left and right in the depth of the lotus, swimming freely.

The edge of the pool is two feet wide, and flowers of various colors are planted inside and outside the roots of the hedge. A flower curtain is weaved along the water in the pool. There are various rattan flowers on the bamboo fence. But the begonias are in full bloom.

A kind of begonia, the dry color is like ivory, fresh and smooth, with vermilion bamboo leaves, dense and uniform.

A kind of red apricot, the flower is like Wodan, the shape is like a peach, the fragrance is sweet and refreshing.A kind of mandarin duck chrysanthemum, the branches and leaves are sparse, and there are two flowers on each stem, one is pink and purple; .

A kind of Phalaenopsis, with curly branches and trunks. It first blooms pink, turns light red, turns from light red to white, and gradually turns from white to red. It is shaped like a butterfly, with two long petals and two small round petals on both sides. Butterfly wings, a narrow and long petal in the middle is like a butterfly belly, and there are two long whiskers in the heart. Outside the big petal, it looks like a butterfly. When it blooms, it attracts countless butterflies to perch among the flowers. It's amazing.

Everyone was full of praise, and Mother Jia said to Aunt Xue and the others: "Let's not go anywhere else today, but spend a day here. The banquet is here, okay?"

Aunt Xue said with a smile, "Where would you be willing to go for such a beautiful view?"

So everyone came to the flower barrier to enjoy it, and saw that the preparations had already been completed, several screens were set up on the edge of the pool, and many seats were lined up, facing the flower curtain, from west to east, lined up.

Jiamu and the others each had one chair and two or so, and placed delicacies and tea sets. Daiyu and the sisters each had a small foreign-painted table, a brocade heart box, and a self-pourer pot of black and silver plum blossoms. Fresh fruit, wine and delicacies.

Jia's mother said to Aunt Xue: "This must be Feng girl's arrangement. Others are not as careful and thoughtful as her."

Aunt Xue said with a smile: "Madam Feng is smart and talented, and she got the old lady's sex, so everything is in order. She is trained by the old lady on weekdays, that's why she is like this."

Mrs. Wang and others laughed and said, "That's very true."

Jia Mu

He smiled and said: "When I was her age, I was better than her. Now what a coincidence, although Feng girl is not as good as me now, it's fine."

Sister Feng laughed and said: "We are clumsy and tongue-tied, how dare we compare with the old lady."

While talking and joking, a girl had already brought bowls, chopsticks, cups and saucers, and Jia's mother asked, "What are you ordering today?"

Sister Feng said: "In addition to the special dishes, I added a few things that everyone likes."

Jia Mu nodded and said: "This year the chrysanthemums are very beautiful in autumn, and this place is well cleaned up. Everyone is going to come and have a lot of fun. Baoyu often joins you for a while, and Lan'er will also ask him to come and relax. The Japanese family is bored in the study."

Li Wan was watching the maids laying out fruit, wine and dishes, and said with a smile: "Lan'er was called out by the master early in the morning, and she hasn't come back yet."

Jia Mu nodded and said, "That's all."

After two rounds of wine and food, Mother Jia looked up to appreciate the scenery, and saw that all kinds of chrysanthemums and begonias were in full bloom, novel and elegant, like emerald brocade, suddenly pointed to a double-petaled chrysanthemum opposite Mrs. Wang and asked: "This white one is very good." , It’s wonderful, what’s the name and color?”

Li Wan glanced at it and replied, "It's called Xueqiao Stratus."

Mother Jia nodded when she heard the words, and asked, "This name sounds nice. How many types are there?"

Li Wan said with a smile: "There are thousands of fine species, and all chrysanthemums are engraved with music."

Jia Mu said with a smile, "It's a cool autumn and the flowers are blooming well. It's only fun to watch the moon at night."

After eating and drinking, Mother Jia wanted to take a walk for a while. She came out to look at the garden and walked around together. Then she and Aunt Xue went first, and everyone followed.

Everyone walked slowly □□by the pool, the breeze blew by, the water was sparkling and rippling, and when they approached the water pavilion, they saw a long embankment of green willows, several feet wide, stone tables and benches along the embankment, and weeping willows planted on both sides of the embankment. hearts.

The lotus in the pond is in full bloom, deep red and light white, yellow and blue, some as big as a bowl, red like rouge, white like snow flakes, the breeze blows, and the fragrance comes slowly, which makes people feel refreshed.

Everyone enjoyed it all the way, and suddenly saw several lotus plants of different species blooming by the pool in front of them, the color is like jasper, and the fragrance is better than Jianlan, which is very quiet.

Xiangyun's eyes lit up when he saw it, and he said to Baochai, "Look at that emerald flower, it's really cute." After that, he was about to go forward to pick it, but Baochai was startled, and stopped him, saying: "You This temper has not changed, the pond is deep, and it is not stubborn to fall."

Baoyu also hurriedly pulled her back, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, and sighed: "It's just a flower. If you like it, you can ask someone to pick it in a while. There's no need to be so anxious."

Daiyu laughed and said:

"Maybe Yun girl was transformed from bees and butterflies in her previous life, but she can't walk when she sees flowers in this life."

After hearing this, Xiangyun wanted to squeak her, and said with a smile: "If I were a bee and butterfly, I would be the first one to entangle you, a hibiscus flower."

Everyone burst into laughter when they heard the words, Li Wan couldn't help laughing, Xiangyun was bright and lively, Daiyu was clever and cute, it would be much more lively with them around.

After walking for a while, a sudden gust of wind came, and the scent of osmanthus blossoms filled my nose.

Mrs. Wang said: "These sweet-scented osmanthus are older, and they have a different fragrance than other flowers."

Sister Feng looked at the two osmanthus trees behind the rockery and said, "Sure enough, this year they are blooming extraordinarily luxuriantly, and you can smell the fragrance from far away."

Jia Mu said: "This golden osmanthus is so cute. It's good to break off branches to put in bottles." Baoyu took Xiangyun to go after hearing this, and came back after breaking a few branches.

Li Wan's girls brought a pair of bead bottles and filled them with water. Mother Jia admired them for a while and then ordered, "Put them in my room later."

The girls agreed.

While talking, I walked more than a section early, and in the distance, I saw a Fangsheng Pavilion next to the rockery, facing a pond of lotus.

Seeing that Jiamu's face was tired, Sister Feng hurriedly turned her head and said, "Come to the pavilion in front and finish laying."

The accompanying daughters-in-law and girls rushed to lay the work first.

After a while, the layout was ready, and Sister Feng helped Jia Mu to go in and have a rest.

Everyone went in and looked at it for a while. Baoyu said: "The lotus fragrance is rich and wonderful." Xiangyun said: "It's better to enjoy the coolness in summer night."

Seeing that the lotus bloomed very luxuriantly and formed many lotus pods, Sister Feng taught people to pick a few lotus pods to come up.

Everyone sits down to drink tea, the girl puts out fruit, Xiangyun grabs some pine nuts, Baochai picks up a preserved olive, and Tanchun and the others pick up some at will.

Baoyu ate a lotus seed and smiled at Daiyu: "My sister tastes the taste of this fresh lotus seed. It has a special taste, better than other fruits."

While talking, she peeled one and handed it to Daiyu, who said, "I don't need your help, it's interesting to peel and eat by myself."

After finishing speaking, he picked one up, slowly peeled and tasted it, nodded and said: "It is indeed fragrant and sweet."

Baochai saw it from the side and pursed her lips into a smile.

Talking and laughing, it was getting late, Jia Zheng sent someone to ask Baoyu to go to the banquet outside, and You's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law also came here together.

Burning joss sticks and holding candles on the platform of the garden, there are melons, fruits, moon cakes and other things displayed, and there are felt brocade mattresses on the ground floor.

Jia Mu washes her hands with incense and pays her respects, so everyone pays her respects.

Lin Zhixiao's family went up and down: "I have been preparing for the full moon banquet in Tingtao Water Pavilion for a long time."

Jia Mu nodded and said, "Let's go there."

Because Jia Mu walked a few more steps today, Sister Feng asked Jia Mu to take a sedan chair because she was afraid that Jia Mu would be tired.

Everyone followed, only to see a bright moon coming up from the shadows of the treetops, the autumn colors were clear and the sky was as clear as washing.

When I arrived at Tingtao Waterside Pavilion, the wives in charge had already sent people to decorate and hang lanterns, and people in the tea room were assigned to specialize in tea and wine.

It turns out that the Tingtao water pavilion is surrounded by water on all sides, so it is named Tingtao. There are three open halls inside and outside, and two small tea rooms at the back of the house. There are six screens inlaid with red sandalwood and eight treasures of mother-of-pearl, a few tables and chairs, and a large round table with pears in the middle.

The public enjoys it once before taking a seat.

Jia Mu sat at the head and in the middle, and the rest of the people sat down one by one, surrounded by groups.

Sitting down for a while, the food and drink were ready, and Lin Zhixiao's family went back and forth "the theater troupe is still waiting".

Sister Feng asked Jia's mother, and Jia's mother said, "I'm going to look at the moon at night, and I still have time to watch a play with my two eyes. Why don't you ask two girls to play two pieces of music in the pavilion over there, and let's listen to them and set up our ears anyway." Spoil yourself here."

Lin Zhixiao's family agreed, and immediately went out to spread the word with an order.

Not long after, I heard the melodious flute sounding in the distance. At this time, the moon came to the heart of the sky, the silver toad was full of light, and the colorful clouds rose slightly, shining in the pool, like a round of silver mirrors gushing out of the water. Jia Mu was very happy. Said: "The moonlight is good today, everyone have two more glasses."

Everyone toasted one after another, passing cups at each table, which was very lively.

Girls and daughter-in-laws ate and drank casually on the steps, and came up to serve in turn.

After eating for a while, the table was removed, and the fruit of the full moon was placed again, and good tea was sent. Everyone just used it for some scenery.

Jiamu saw that there were lotus flowers outside the windows on both sides, and they looked more graceful against the moonlight. She said: "The scenery here is beautiful, and there are water lilies and water chestnuts all around. It's just a good time to enjoy the flowers."

Li Wan peeled the lotus seeds for Jiamu, and said with a smile: "The old ancestor looked at the water chestnuts planted in the river, and there are already many layers of water chestnuts."

Sister Daiyu and others also leaned on the railing to talk, looking at the dew in the lotus leaves like emerald pearls and green jade.

Xiangyun said: "This lotus leaf is clean, how can you take the dew out of the lotus leaf and make a bowl of tea?"

Daiyu laughed and said, "Don't mention it, we didn't taste the lotus tea we made last time."

When Jia Mu heard it, she asked, "What lotus tea? Where did it come from?"

Li Wan said with a smile: "They took the dew off the lotus leaves and fried them with pine branches in old sand pots to make tea. Such a good thing."

, do not give some to the old lady to taste. "

Jia Mu laughed and said, "Who made the joke? I don't know. This is to eat good food without telling me. Who do you say it is, and I will punish him."

Sister Feng smiled and said: "I also heard about such a thing, but I don't know who it is. Wait until I investigate and find out, the old lady will be punished according to her name, and no one will be spared."

Baochai smiled and said nothing, while Daiyu, Tanchun and the others also pursed their lips and smiled.

Jia Mu laughed and said, "Needless to say, I guessed it too. It must be Baoyu and Yun girl's idea."

I joked for a while, the moon was in the middle of the sky, the night air was getting colder, and everyone's maids brought clothes.

Jia Mu said: "This year, the pavilion is no better than on the mountain. I have had a few more glasses of wine, and I don't feel cold."

After sitting for a while, the moon turned to the flowers and the stars moved to the bucket handle. Jia Mu seemed to be tired, and the men outside also stopped the show and left the banquet, so they all left and went back.

Mrs. Wang asked Jia Mu to take a rest and said, "It's late at night, and the wind and dew are also strong. Please take a rest, old lady. I have ordered someone to prepare a soft sedan chair to serve you."

Jia's mother also felt a little tired, so she nodded and said, "That's fine, everyone, let's go back and have a rest."

Sister Feng waited to help Jiamu get into the sedan chair, and all the people surrounded her and sent them out of the garden gate, and went back to their rooms, as did Youshi's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.

Back in the room, Mother Jia washed and changed her clothes, and was about to rest, when she suddenly heard people outside shouting, and said, "It's irrelevant, don't scare the old lady!" Mother Jia was surprised, and asked, "What's the matter?"

Yuanyang quickly went out to check it, and said, "Water has gone out in the west city."

Mother Jia was the most timid. After hearing this, she quickly got up and helped people out to the porch to have a look. Her heart skipped a beat. She saw that the night sky in the west was full of flames, and the direction of the fire was clearly in the palace.

The author has something to say: I feel a bit procrastinated, and I will speed up the progress later.

ps: Some of the scenery, architecture and plot references in the article are based on the "Dream of Red Mansions" written by Gui Zizi in the Qing Dynasty.