Chapter 47, the Hexagram of Need, explains: Stay away from places and people embroiled in trouble. ...
As soon as Liu Chengen said this, the people gathered together immediately dispersed, leaving only him by the table, wildly flicking his sleeves and looking around. Xie Ji sat upright on the table, seemingly unaware of his earlier wails.
Now that the other guests had returned to their seats, Liu Chengen glanced at Xie Yun, who sat at the head of the table, who showed neither anger nor joy. He coughed awkwardly twice and shrank back to his seat.
After this commotion, the much-discussed debate between Wang and Lu came to an abrupt end, and whenever someone brought it up again, it was met with widespread agreement.
Madam Cui looked directly at Lu Guandao and said, "I also agree with what Young Master Lu said. Young Master Wang's couplet, 'Blowing on the wine in a small cup to taste the cold wine, and striking the fire in a deep stove to roast the new tea,' is indeed well written, but the remaining three couplets are a bit bland. Reading the whole poem, Young Master Lu's poem is more novel and ingenious."
Ignoring the ants, Liu Chengen immediately chimed in, "Madam Cui is absolutely right. Just because Brother Wang has won the championship several times doesn't mean we should assume he will win again this time. Today, Brother Lu's 'Drawing Water from the River to Brew Tea' is clearly the best."
"Yes, and besides, the person who won the most prizes hasn't even arrived yet! Heng is indeed slightly inferior this time."
"Ah! If Minghuai were here, there would be no doubt about it."
They started arguing again after a few words, and Lu Guan said loudly, "Thank you for your kind words, Madam Cui. My poem is only a bit new, but in terms of subtlety, it is no match for yours."
After the group argued for a while, Wang Zhen, who had been silent all along, finally spoke up: "In truth, after that line, my inspiration ran dry, and I had to awkwardly piece together the remaining three couplets. In the end, I would say that Yangxian's 'Drawing Water from the River to Brew Tea' is the best."
Before the banquet began, he met with Prince Yi, whose remark, "Your sister is quite healthy," made him uneasy. He could only hope that the tea banquet would end as soon as possible.
Even Wang Zhen gave way first, and the crowd's determination to reason with him grew even stronger.
Just as Xie Yun saw Xie Ji about to speak, Lu Guan preemptively said, "According to what the Princess Consort just said, the best choice should be based on Lady Xie's preference. It is up to Lady Xie to decide which one is the best."
Xie Ji suppressed the urge to vehemently agree with him, as the chief's intense gaze remained fixed on her.
“Since the gift has already been given, there is no reason to take it back. Young Master Lu’s ‘Drawing Water from the River to Brew Tea’ is indeed unique, and I think both of them should be the best.”
Liu Chengen was about to get up when Xie Ji's words stopped him.
"Although I have only prepared one gift, it is for the purpose of making friends. How about I invite Young Master Lu to have a drink at Fengle Restaurant?"
The young lady didn't seem to think much of the public invitation; her quick words stemmed entirely from her appreciation of the poem about brewing tea.
Xie Yun added, "The Marquis's residence just sent someone to deliver a message, asking me to let you return home as soon as possible. As for this gift, Ji'er can also choose one when she returns home, and then have someone send it to Young Master Lu's residence."
With each word Xie Yun spoke, the pressure on Xie Ji tightened. Every word pointed out that her appointment at Fengle Tower was improper, but Xie Ji remained stubborn, insisting on going. "Then let's choose another day, what does Young Master Lu think?"
Suddenly, Madam Cui said, "Fenglelou? I've heard that their lychee kidneys are delicious, but I haven't had a chance to try them yet. Would you two like to go together?"
"Of course!" Xie Ji agreed without hesitation, and asked Lu Guan, "Young Master Lu, what do you think?"
Lu Guan had been unable to get a word in edgewise during the first two invitations, but this time he was finally able to reply, "Either is fine."
Xie Ji said happily, "Then it's settled."
When the new tea was brewed, they changed their poem to "Seventh Month". Cui Hanqing suggested using "June" as the rhyme, but Liu Chengze said that the rhyme was difficult to rhyme and that it would be hard to match. Now that it was almost July, they changed it to "Seventh Month".
Lu Guandao presented the first line of the couplet, "A disgrace to the Three Hua Group,"
“In the end, he was just a corrupt scholar.” Wang Zhen continued the couplet.
This joint poetry recitation ended in such a way that everyone praised it endlessly. After the tea banquet, Xie Ji pulled Cui Hanqing along to catch up with Lu Guan.
"Young Master Lu, let's go!"
"now?"
"now!"
"Over at the Marquis's residence—"
"It's alright, no one in the Marquis's mansion can control me."
The Xie family's carriage carried the three of them straight to Fengle Restaurant. Xie Ji waved his hand and announced the names of more than ten dishes in succession.
The waiter laid out a variety of dishes on the square table, including Sichuan lactose, Xijing snow pears, Yitang melons, Weizhou white peaches, Nanjing golden peaches, steamed goose and duck ribs, lotus-shaped duck skewers, golden thread tripe soup, lychee kidneys, and sesame dumplings. Cui Hanqing finally couldn't help but ask, "There are only three of us, how can we finish all this?"
"Please eat first! Don't be shy."
Before the two of them could react, Xie Ji had already sat down and picked up his chopsticks.
"Very well. Since the table is already full, let's enjoy it first." Lu Guan then sat down.
It turned out that the quantity was just somewhat astonishing. When Cui Hanqing put down her chopsticks, the jade plates and porcelain dishes on the table, which had been full of delicacies, were now almost empty. Lu Guan, on the other hand, seemed to have barely touched his chopsticks, staring in disbelief at Xie Ji, who was the last to put down his.
"Have you all eaten? Let's go for a walk in town!"
The area was already bustling with activity. Tanbo and Lingqu were competing, and the area around the plum vendor was full of children. There were all sorts of paper-cuts, trinkets, and ribbons on display. The only shop with the character "解" (jie, meaning "to solve") on its signboard looked rather desolate in the night, with no one paying any attention to it.
The fortune teller was an older woman. Seeing that the three young men were not attracted by the bustling business, she became interested in the small shop and quickly tore down the cloth banner that was being blown by the wind, which read "Resolve Doubts".
Xie Ji had never experienced a fortune teller like this before. Driven by curiosity, she quickly pulled Cui Hanqing to sit down in the shop. Lu Guan stood leisurely behind them, seemingly unwilling to participate.
"Does this lady wish to have her fortune told?"
Xie Ji looked at the spirit turtle beside her and found it very novel and interesting, and then nodded.
Unexpectedly, she took three copper coins from a cloth bag beside her, placed them in Xie Ji's hand, and instructed her to silently recite the matter she wished to divine, then clasp her hands together, shake the bag, and scatter the coins. The three coins landed on the table, two heads and one tails. This was repeated six times. Shake, scatter.
The copper coin tumbled rapidly in the air, as if trying to pull the darkness into her palm.
It fell in an instant, and then the sky was bright.
"Thank you, sister!"
A young boy quickly knelt down, kowtowed to her, and ran off before Wang Yan could even help him up. She weighed the copper coin in her hand and then put it into her purse.
After a few steps, Wang Yan fell into deep thought at the fork in the alley. Had he come from this side... or the alley ahead? The surrounding shops all looked almost identical—were they silk shops or fan shops...?
At this difficult moment, a Taoist priest emerged from the path on the east side. The instant he saw her, he suddenly slowed his pace and stared at her. In just a moment, a subtle change appeared on his somewhat weathered face.
Just as Wang Yan was about to walk forward, the Taoist priest called out to her.
"Madam—would you mind if I, a humble Taoist priest, performed a divination for you?"
The Taoist priest before him wore a yellow robe with wide sleeves, a turban, and worn-out straw sandals. He appeared to be about fifty years old, with an ancient and venerable appearance. Wang Yan had seen many Taoist priests, but this one... was no different. He was about to refuse him when another young Taoist priest rushed out from the alley.
"Sister! What are you doing here?" Yan Xun had somehow put on his Taoist robe again, still looking like a frivolous Taoist.
"What are you doing here?" Wang Yan retorted.
“Of course I’m going to punish evil and promote good—Master…Master…” Yan Xun hid behind Wang Yan in an instant, stammering out two words, “Uncle-Master…” He had just run into his senior brother, and now he had run into his uncle-master. Today was really strange.
Although Wang Yan was a few years older than him, men of that age grow quickly, and she couldn't possibly hide him. She quickly stepped aside to give this uncle and nephew a chance to be completely honest with each other.
"In that case, I will not disturb you any longer, Daoist Master."
"Uncle-Master, would you like to perform a divination for this lady?"
Yan Xun, however, no longer held back. He directly grabbed the medicine in her hand, then leaned close to Wang Yan's ear and whispered, "Your master doesn't easily tell fortunes for people. It's a rare and precious service. Are you sure there's nothing you want to know?"
"Priceless?" Wang Yan looked at him suspiciously.
"Absolutely true."
The three of them casually chose a teahouse by the roadside to sit down.
Wang Yan took out three copper coins from his money bag in a serious manner, "But are you silently reciting what I desire?"
Yan Xun joked, "How many times have you calculated this? Calculating too much isn't good."
"The first time."
Wang Yan instantly suppressed his smile, his expression turning serious as he clasped the three copper coins together in his palm. Before he could release them, a sudden gust of wind arose, causing the blue cloth umbrella beside him to sway violently. Wang Yan immediately opened his eyes, exchanged a glance with the Taoist priest, clenched his fists, and then closed them again.
The wind stopped.
The old Taoist priest revealed the hexagram: "Water over Heaven, waiting for the right opportunity to act."
Waiting for the right moment... but she clearly didn't ask for anything just now. Wang Yan was somewhat suspicious.
Yan Xun murmured, "The Need Divination..."
The old Taoist priest interrupted his muttering nephew, "He's thirsty, boy, go buy two bowls of ice-cold water."
Yan Xun glanced at the old Taoist priest and said, "I understand, I understand."
The young Taoist priest, with his hands behind his back, disappeared around the corner. Only then did the old Taoist priest say, "Please, madam, listen to me one more thing."
Wang Yan kicked away a pebble that had blown in from somewhere, saying, "Please speak frankly, Daoist Master."
"Stay away from places of trouble and people of trouble."
Wang Yan thought it was some kind of divine secret, but it turned out to be just a white-bearded man pretending to be a shaman. "This principle is the same for me, even if the Taoist priest hadn't said it."
The old Taoist priest rose to leave, saying, "This is all I have to say."
Yan Xun walked over carrying two bowls of ice-cold water. "Uncle-Master was still thirsty just now, and you're leaving already?"
"Wait a minute." Wang Yan placed a string of copper coins beside the icy water and walked in another direction.
"Hey! That's too much!" Yan Xun glanced back at the old Taoist priest, then caught up with her. "Sister, you're so generous to others, why are you like this to me... Sister, you must take Uncle's words to heart."
Wang Yan glanced at him and said, "In that case... why don't you teach me a self-defense technique?"
Yan Xun quickly folded up four fingers of his left hand, leaving only his middle finger standing upright.
Wang Yan asked, puzzled, "What is this?"
"The Spirit Official Incantation can ward off evil spirits." Yan Xun slowed down and demonstrated it again. "Like this—"
A swordsman dressed in a dark blue robe stood at the crossroads. As Yan Xun turned around, Wang Yan had already run back several steps. The swordsman drew his sword and attacked, but Yan Xun met him with his bare hands. However, the swordsman had no intention of getting entangled with him and instead leaped forward to stab Wang Yan.
"elder sister!"
In an instant, Wang Yan leaned back to dodge, swiftly drawing his soft sword from his waist. The man attacked again, and Hua Xin leaped forward, holding his sword to block in front of Wang Yan. Wang Yan and Hua Xin then drew their swords together, and Yan Xun threw a punch, causing the dark-clad swordsman to retreat several miles.
Yan Xun looked at his fist in disbelief, then turned around. The old Taoist priest, who had seemingly left, had returned sometime earlier. Seeing this, the swordsman fled. Wang Yan then knelt before the old Taoist priest to express his gratitude, saying, "Thank you so much for saving me, Master. How can I possibly repay you?"
The old Taoist priest vanished in an instant, leaving only his voice, "Let this lad cultivate diligently."
Wang Yan, deeply entrusted with this important task, earnestly advised, "Please, young Daoist Yan, heed your master's teachings and diligently cultivate yourself in the future."
Yan Xun felt that this person was a stranger. "There's no need for such formalities... Who was that just now, and why did he try to kill you?"
“Enemies.” Wang Yan picked up the medicine and took two steps, then stopped and warned, “I have many enemies. Stay away from me in the future.”
"This time, my martial arts skills were lacking, but my uncle's reprimand is correct. We will definitely meet again!"
Yan Xun had also vanished. Wang Yan and Hua Xin, who had just stepped out of the alley, froze instantly.
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The author's note: *“In vain I disgraced the Three Hua Group, and in the end I was just a corrupt scholar.” This is from Lu You’s “Thoughts Written in the Inn”.
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