The Moon Over Tang Dynasty

Chapter 91 Master-disciple battle, charming under the lamp

"There are many people riding around under the moon, watching people in front of the lamps, endless joy, singing and dancing until the morning." The three days before and after the Lantern Festival have always been the most lively festivals in the entire Tang Dynasty. The government canceled the curfew and the people caroused until the end of the night. It can be said that there are no taboos, the streets are empty, and there is a sea of ​​lanterns and crowds everywhere.

On the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, the sky had just turned dark, and the air in Chang'an City was filled with the excitement of carnival. Several to more than a dozen lanterns were hung in front of every house. The richer families would also make tall and short lanterns. There are various lantern trees, with their branches covered with large and small lamps. The wealthier ones would set up lamp sheds or lantern towers at intersections or gates. In Changxingfang, a building more than two feet high is illuminated by lights, making it splendid. At the entrance of Qinrenfang, there is a three-foot-high lantern tree. The lanterns made of colorful silks make people hold hands and sing songs under the tree. The faces and clothes of dozens of women were reflected in colorful colors; walking further east, we arrived at the broad long street outside the south gate of Dongshi City. To the north, there was a row of lamp sheds connected to the stage. It is the most popular song and dance opera during the Lantern Festival.

That night, among the crowds of people on the road, most of the people riding horses with embroidered saddles were young men, and those riding in green oil-scented carriages were young ladies. The horses chased the fragrant dust, and the poems picked up the green curtains. It was a romantic drama that was staged everywhere. . Some people also find it cumbersome to sit in a carriage and watch the lanterns. Young men and women wearing Chinese clothes and masks can also be seen everywhere in the crowd. Some of them look petite and exquisite, but have their hair tied up, wearing short boots and carrying long swords. Some are tall and straight, but With flowers in their hairpins and colorful silks on their bodies, it is really hard to distinguish between male and female, which makes people dazzled.

Liuli walked along the way and looked at the prosperous scene with noisy singing and dancing and bright lights in front of her, but she couldn't help but want to smile bitterly in her heart.

As usual, the Su family did not prepare a car, but the Su family took the lead, with more than a dozen strong male servants protecting the women. This was also a common formation for wealthy families when they went out to watch the lanterns, but this one The five women in the team, including Liuli, who were about the same height, short, fat, and thin, and wore the same cloak and mask, still attracted countless people to point their fingers at them—everyone was trying to dress in a unique way tonight. Dressed as neatly as quintuplets, they became extremely conspicuous.

Ginger is really spicy when old, not to mention that this piece of old **** has the surname Su Minglie and the prefix Dingfang! For this battle, Liuli probably wouldn't be able to figure out which one was her if she was given a big mirror now... Pei Xingjian is really a big fan, why would he make a bet with Su Dingfang if nothing happens? No matter how clever he was, even if he could break through the protection of more than a dozen male servants, how could he recognize who she was? Let alone take her away!

The further you walk towards the East Market, the more crowded the crowds become. Along the way, not only are there hundreds of operas and military dramas to watch on the northern stage, but also various entertainers appear in the crowd from time to time, either fighting against tripods or swallowing swords. Everyone in the Su family was watching with dazzled eyes, whether it was walking pills or spitting fire. The little Su brothers riding on the shoulders of the male servant were even more excited. They just watched, one wanted to go east to see the rope skills, and the other wanted to see them. Those who played the big game kept making trouble.

Only Su Dingfang, who was in the lead, was focused all the time, looking in all directions and listening in all directions, and never let down his guard for a moment. Seeing that his group had passed the most lively and prosperous place, and was approaching the southeast corner of the East Market, the crowds had obviously become sparse, but they still didn't see that familiar figure, and they couldn't help but feel puzzled.

Next to the Su family, a group of men in red wearing Nuo dance masks appeared at some point. Seeing these women from the Su family dressed in ordinary clothes, they couldn't help but point and smile. Su Dingfang looked back. At a glance, I saw that their figures and manners were clearly that of people from the market, and they didn't crowd here intentionally, so I didn't look any further and continued to look around.

Going further, a barbarian was performing an illusion of swallowing a sword in the middle of the street. This trick was not uncommon, so the only people around him were old people, women and children. When the Su family walked by, the Hu man was slowly pulling out a long sword from his mouth. Su Jin, who was wearing a tiger mask, couldn't help shouting, "Swallow that beard again!" The Hu man laughed and said, Suddenly there was a light of fire in his hand, he opened his mouth, and a long fire dragon sprayed towards him. The onlookers and the few male servants who were close to the Hu man were frightened. They all stepped back, and the Su family's queue suddenly dispersed. For some reason, the man dancing on the other side suddenly squeezed in from the other side with a muffled sound, pushing several Su family servants aside.

When Su Dingfang looked back, several women wearing the same cloak at home were already stuck in the scattered crowd. A tall man wearing a mask and red clothes, walking with his head bowed, suddenly straightened up and appeared from behind the Nuo dance team. He grabbed the woman wearing a pair of gloves on her head, turned around and walked away from the crowd. The woman who was being pulled suddenly screamed and twisted desperately and refused to move.

Su Dingfang couldn't help but laugh. Although he was over sixty years old, his skills were still strong. He squeezed through the crowd in a few steps, grabbed the tall man's wrist firmly, and laughed, " What a trick to fish in troubled waters!" Suddenly he felt something was wrong, his smile faltered, and he reached out and took off the mask on the man's face.

Under the mask, there was the face of a man in his thirties with a short beard. He bowed hurriedly to Su Dingfang with a smile on his face, "General Su, please forgive me. I didn't mean to offend the ladies of your house. My family has a fate." , the younger one has to follow.”

Su Dingfang hurriedly looked up and saw that his male servants were well trained after all and had already gathered around them again. Mrs. Yu, Luo Shi and the two children were all safe and sound, but only three of the ones wearing white cloaks were left!

In the crowd of people heading south at the Dongshi intersection, Liuli, who had taken off her mask, walked forward in silence, holding back her laughter until she was almost hurt internally. The extremely conspicuous snow-white cloak on her body has been added with an extremely delicate and soft begonia red satin cloak, and the original owner of this cloak is holding her hand tightly, wearing a rocking girl mask on her face. Naturally, there was no expression on his face.

Going south, the flow of people gradually became thinner. The two of them entered the nearest Jinggongfang, and turned two more turns in the square. Somehow, they entered a small alley, but there seemed to be no road ahead. Liuli stopped and glanced back. A big tree not far behind her blocked the scene outside. She turned around and took a closer look at the beautiful mask with a sad look on the face of the person in front of her through the light of the lanterns hanging on the nearby door. She endured it for a while, and finally couldn't help but burst out laughing - Shicai In the chaos, the "woman" who was watching the barbarian performance suddenly turned around and grabbed her. Naturally, she was startled. Fortunately, the familiar voice rang in her ears, "It's me!"

The mask was slowly lifted up, revealing Pei Xingjian's handsome face. His hair was **** high, but he was not wearing a headscarf. The big red silk flower he originally wore had been thrown away long ago. Under the cloak, he wore a green round-neck narrow When the light shines on the hem of the sleeve robe, one can see extremely elegant dark patterns of bamboo leaves. It is the winter robe Liuli gave him. At this moment, he no longer looked half as "enchanting" as before, but instead looked a bit more refreshing than usual.

Looking at Liuli who was smiling so hard that he could barely straighten his back, Pei Xingjian smiled bitterly and shook his head, but he couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth.

After a long while, Liuli finally raised her head and held back a smile and asked, "How did you recognize who was me? Why didn't you pull the one wearing the Rensheng?" He just thought that the Rensheng he made was put on someone else's head, and thought that Pei Xingjian might She did feel a little uncomfortable after admitting the wrong person...

Pei Xingjian looked at her quietly for a while, then smiled and said, "What are the chances of one person winning? No matter what you wear, I will recognize you."

Liuli's face couldn't help but heat up, and her voice lowered, "Nonsense, you've only seen me a few times?" Even if Pei Xingjian fell in love with him at first sight, there was absolutely no reason why he would be so familiar with her figure.

Pei Xingjian's smile became deeper, "I've seen you more times than you know."

Liuli was a little surprised and looked up at Pei Xingjian. She couldn't help but be infected by the joy on his face and laughed, "Why didn't I know?"

Pei Xingjian stared at her smiling face for a long time, his voice became hoarse, "Of course you don't know, there are many things you don't know..."

Liuli clearly saw that his eyes were slowly darkening, and suddenly she felt that everything around her, including the gorgeous lanterns on the door lintel nearby and the noisy singing and dancing in the distance, seemed to have quickly disappeared. Only the person in front of her was getting closer and closer to her. The next moment, she fell into a warm embrace almost dizzily, and heard him sighing contentedly above her head.

She almost wanted to sigh, but finally she just reached out and hugged him tightly. There was a kind of solidity in his chest that could not be seen from the outside, which made an empty corner in her heart suddenly settle down. She didn't want to say another word or think about anything anymore. She just closed her eyes and looked away. Cocoon robe quietly listened to the sound of his heartbeat. The sound was fast and strong, just like the drumbeat of the festival, just like her own mood at the moment...

There was silence in the alley, and it seemed that only the heartbeats of two people slowly synthesized into one beat in this silence. I don't know how long it took, but suddenly there were footsteps and the sound of joking at the entrance of the alley. Liuli came back to her senses in shock. Just when she was about to take a step back, Pei Xingjian put a little force in his hands and held her in his arms again. He whispered, "Don't be afraid, he's the same as us." Is he the same as them? Liuli was a little confused, but her mood felt strangely peaceful, and she lay in his arms without raising her head. The footsteps suddenly stopped not far away, and then there were a few chuckles, which sounded like the voices of a young man and woman. Then there were footsteps again, but they gradually moved away. Liuli immediately understood what Pei Xingjian meant. When she was at Kudi's house, she had also heard people joking that this night was originally a day for young men and women in Chang'an City to have a tryst and have fun. She heard that in the woods of Leyouyuan, there was a remote little village. In the alley, there are often mandarin ducks...

There was a slight hint of embarrassment in the sweetness, and she couldn't help but whisper, "Let go of your hands and let's talk properly, okay? I still have many things to ask you." There are really many things, such as where the house should be How to deal with it, and all those messy things, but they are not things that can be asked in this situation...

Pei Xingjian laughed softly, "No, Liuli, don't you know how hard I worked to get you tonight? I have been preparing since I made the bet with my teacher on the sixth day of the lunar month. I have to think of all kinds of situations. I owe you I got a lot of favors and even pretended to be a rocking girl!"

Pei Xingjian's "stunning" appearance wearing a red cloak and a beauty mask suddenly appeared in front of her eyes again. Liuli couldn't help but laugh again, and immediately remembered Su Dingfang's sharp eyes looking at him from head to toe before dinner on the sixth day of the Lunar New Year. I asked myself again, so it turned out that that was when the master and apprentice began to prepare for the fight?

She was just about to ask what kind of bet they had made, but she heard Pei Xingjian sigh deeply again, "Liuli, Liuli, you don't know, every time I saw you in the past, I had to endure how hard it was to not let myself go." Reach out and hold you in my arms! You don’t know how long I have been waiting for this day.”

Liuli's heart suddenly became soft, and her eyes felt a little warm for some reason. After a while, she whispered, "I know."

Pei Xingjian reached out and gently stroked Liuli's hair and smiled, "Silly Liuli, you don't know anything. Do you know that the day for us to get married has been decided?"

Liuli was stunned for a moment. She couldn't help but raise her head and looked at Pei Xingjian blankly - why didn't anyone tell her about such a big thing? "When was it decided? What day was it?"

There was only a bright smile in Pei Xingjian's eyes, "It was decided just now. A few days ago, my teacher asked someone to do a divination, and he said that April 17th, June 11th and September 2nd are the best days of this year. I originally I thought June might be more leisurely, but now I understand that April 17th is the most suitable day!”

 April 17, should he be playing house? Liuli said hurriedly, "Time is too tight and I don't have time to prepare many things. Is June better?"

Pei Xingjian looked down at Liuli and shook his head very firmly, "I think it's been too long." He softened his voice and said, "Liuli, I can't wait. These days, I know that there is only a wall between me and you. , but can’t say a word to you, can’t even see you, you don’t know how hard this feeling is!”

Liuli knew that he was probably a bit exaggerated, but these days, wasn't he just as worried about her? It took him a long time to say, "It's just...it's been less than three months, I..." Just looking at his dark eyes so close to me, all the reasons I had thought about flew out of my mind, leaving only a blank.

A hint of joking suddenly flashed in Pei Xingjian's eyes, "Someone is coming. If you don't agree to marry me early, I won't let you go."

Liuli was stunned for a moment, and she heard the sound of footsteps coming from the alley. She couldn't help being surprised. They were standing under the lanterns hung high. As long as those people walked past the tree in the middle of the alley, they would be able to stop them. They see it clearly. Pei Xingjian's arms tightened a little tighter, and his head slowly lowered... The footsteps got closer, and there were also children's screams and laughter in them. Liuli suddenly couldn't care about anything anymore, "I promise, hurry up Let go!"

Pei Xingjian smiled and let go of his hands. Just as Liuli was about to take a step away, Pei Xingjian wrapped her hand tightly in his palm and led her calmly out of the alley. As expected, he met her face to face before they had gone far. There were seven or eight people, probably a family returning from watching the lanterns. A seven or eight-year-old child looked at Pei Xingjian and Liuli up and down very curiously. Liuli felt like she couldn't even lift her head, but Pei Xingjian still walked very calmly and even smiled. Then he nodded to the family member, who was immediately greeted by a burst of good-natured laughter, "My wife is so beautiful, my husband is so lucky!"

Liuli walked out of the alley with her head lowered, but Pei Xingjian laughed and said, "Did you lose something? Do you want to go back and look for it again?"

Liuli was stunned for a moment before she realized that he was joking about her unwillingness to look up, so she couldn't help but glare at him. Although the flow of people on the avenue in front of her was not dense, there was a constant flow of people coming and going. Pei Xingjian sighed, his voice quite melancholy. , "I feel as if I have lost myself in this alley. I think I can only get it back if I marry you."

Liuli rolled her eyes at him, turned her head away, and covered up the smile on her lips, hiding the same sadness as him. He finally suppressed all his emotions, but suddenly thought of another thing. After hesitating for a moment, he turned to look at Pei Xingjian and said, "You always say that I don't know anything, but do you remember that you promised me that if I Come out with you today and you will tell me..."

Pei Xingjian looked at her with a smile, "Of course I remember that what I said that day was that if you agree to come out with me on the Lantern Festival, I will tell you what is most important."

Liuli nodded and summoned up the courage to say, "I came out with you today, but you haven't said anything yet!"

Pei Xingjian raised his eyebrows and said, "You did come out with me today, but is today the Lantern Festival?"

　　Well, the date has officially begun, and Pei Jiu’s true nature has just begun to reveal... Many thanks to dear anymm, chengcen1988 and Le Youyang. Today, the terminology explanation of the term "Ta Yao Niang" is updated.

 (End of this chapter)