Chapter 59 Chapter 59 A secret meeting at the hot springs on a spring night The legendary painting...
The spring examination in February soon came to an end. After a series of activities such as thanking the emperor, the gathering, and the Wenxi Banquet, Zhen Hui participated in the "Guanshi" in the Ministry of Personnel of the Shangshu Province.
After passing the test, one can be granted an official position. After that, there will be a series of activities such as sightseeing in Qujiang, visiting the apricot garden, and nominating for the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. Zhen Hui picked a full bunch of apricot flowers in the apricot garden and sent them to the restaurant.
The apricot garden in Tongshanfang is a famous garden in Chang'an and is not easily open to the public. In order to see the apricot blossoms with their own eyes, the people nearby rushed to Duan's restaurant to appreciate them.
Aunt Duan was extremely proud. She specially changed into a mustard purple silk jacket, inserted a big red silk peony flower diagonally on her temples, painted her face pale, and sat at the door of the restaurant, fanning herself and accepting compliments from everyone. When she smiled, the powder on her face fell off.
In addition to the diners, the matchmakers were also almost breaking down the door of the Duan family restaurant. There were at most 300 successful candidates in the imperial examination this time, including those who were already married. The children of the aristocratic families had their parents to make the decisions, so a young successful candidate like Zhen Hui, who had just entered the officialdom and came from an ordinary family, became the object of crazy competition.
However, Aunt Duan couldn't make the decision for him, so she just stood aside and took the portraits of the girls from various families and ran to Zhen Hui to let him look at them. Zhen Hui's face turned red, and he stammered and couldn't say anything. Finally, he said, "I don't want to get married for the time being..."
Since the other person doesn't want to, you can't just tie him up and force him out, so Aunt Duan had no choice but to give up.
The Shangsi Festival on March 3rd is a good day for an outing. Aunt Duan called everyone from the restaurant to go to a hot spring resort outside the city for a spring bath. They would wash their bodies with orchids and then dip willow branches in water and apply them on their foreheads and bodies. It is said that this can ward off evil spirits and pray for blessings.
Duan Zhiwei was generous for once. Today he hired a sturdy ox cart and loaded a lot of peach blossom cakes and mugwort and red bean paste green rice dumplings onto the cart.
In early spring in March, the surface of the Weishui River in Chang'an is filled with golden sunlight. When the few people were still on the ox cart, they heard the sound of 羯鼓 coming from afar. A few young men rode white horses with silver saddles and galloped past. BMWs and luxurious carriages were crowded on Qujiang Avenue. Shangsi was a major festival, and it was thought that all the people in Chang'an went to the waterside to step on the grass. The ox carts were stuck near the city gate for a long time before they could continue to move forward.
Pu Tao fell asleep early on Aunt Duan's legs. Aunt Duan was bored, so she lifted the curtain and then put it down, then turned around and looked at Duan Zhiwei.
Duan Zhiwei felt a little uncomfortable: "Why are you looking at me?"
She was wearing a emerald green skirt that reached her chest today, and a gilded scent ball hung from a belt around her waist. She had a fair complexion, so she looked much prettier than when she usually wore coarse linen clothes.
Aunt Duan narrowed her eyes and smiled knowingly: "You look really beautiful today." She changed the subject: "But why don't you go meet your lover on Shangsi?"
Shangsi Festival also serves as Valentine's Day. Marriageable men and women go out of the city for an outing and play with each other by splashing water. This is a way for them to freely choose their partners. If they are attracted to each other, they will give each other peonies to express their love.
Duan Zhiwei said helplessly: "He has something to do today."
Officials have a rest day during Shangsi, but Yuan Shenji is in charge of the Jinwu Guard and has to work half a day today. The two agreed to meet at the hot spring villa at night.
Pu Tao's face was covered with sleep marks. She woke up dazed and asked, "When did you get a lover?"
Duan Zhiwei picked up a handful of candy and stuffed it into her mouth: "Children should not meddle in adult matters."
She hadn't told anyone about her love affair. Now Ah Pan slept with the little wolf in the next yard, and Pu Tao went back to his home every day. Only Duan Zhiwei and Aunt Duan were in the restaurant. However, Aunt Duan was not at home two out of three days because she went to the tavern to drink all night.
This provided great convenience for Duan Zhiwei's night date, but his aunt had a pair of sharp eyes and said to Duan Zhiwei earnestly: "It has been raining a lot recently. It is easy to leave footprints after climbing the back wall. Remember to destroy the evidence next time."
Duan Zhiwei: “…”
There are many wild hot springs outside Chang'an City, so many hot spring villas have been built. However, this villa is only open in March throughout the year and the number of guests is very limited. The restaurant made a lot of money today, so Aunt Duan chose the most expensive one.
The more expensive ones are different. The houses are covered with woven carpets, which are soft and silent when stepped on. Even the curtains are made of top-grade Shu brocade.
It’s just that because it’s expensive, five people have to squeeze into one restaurant.
After a few rests, they went to sit down by the river. Many people were already sitting on the grass mats. Some of the more particular ones even put up embroidered screens, and were followed by servants holding fans. They drank wine and tea and admired the flowers and the water.
There is also a custom of Qushui Liushang on Shangsi Festival. The waiters at the hot spring villa throw boiled eggs upstream and let the eggs drift in the water. People downstream can pick them up and eat them.
Adults were fine with this custom, and the children loved it. Pu Tao and Little Wolf rolled up their trouser legs and never stopped picking eggs in the water.
Duan Zhiwei and A Pan picked up two wild grasses at random and started to fight with them. Aunt Duan drank cup after cup of Green Ant Wine and watched the peach blossoms by the waterside floating down into the river.
The waterside was very lively, but suddenly there was a sound of a baby crying, which was extremely inconsistent with the lively atmosphere. Several people looked and saw a man and two women sitting next door, and the baby's crying came from there.
The woman holding the baby was embarrassed by the looks from passers-by and quickly stood up to leave, only to hear the man sitting there impatiently say, "I told you not to take it but you did. You really ruined the atmosphere of this Shangsi Festival."
A Pan hated to see babies crying, so he walked over to see if the woman needed any help. After talking for a few words, the two returned to the villa together.
Aunt Duan drank another bowl of wine: "It seems that this is another scum who favors his concubine and kills his wife."
Duan Zhiwei was eating a piece of Qingtuan, so he asked, "How can you tell?"
Aunt Duan said, "The wife is wearing an old-fashioned indigo-colored jacket with diamond patterns from last year, while the concubine is wearing a pomegranate-red gauze that is popular this year. Doesn't this explain the problem?"
As a fashion expert in Chang'an, Aunt Duan's eyes are like a ruler. Duan Zhiwei has no good feelings towards such people, but he did not run over to criticize her. He could only sit there quietly and eat cakes.
Therefore, when Zhen Hui, who arrived late, exchanged greetings with the "scumbag" next door and sat down, everyone in the restaurant gave him an extremely unhappy expression.
Zhen Hui sat down in confusion and reached out to grab the peach blossom pastry, but was snatched away by Aunt Duan.
He scratched his head: "What happened?"
Everyone told him about the man next door yelling at their wives, and Zhen replied, "I exchanged greetings with him because he was also a new Jinshi this spring, and he stood behind me during the test..."
Then he looked up blankly: "You should have heard of him, the strange story that was popular in Chang'an, the Jinshi in "Beauty in the Painting", the young man from the Nanyang Zhao family."
"So, that wife is the beauty who walked out of the painting?" Duan Zhiwei immediately perked up when he heard this strange story.
Zhen Hui replied, "No, Mr. Zhao bought a painting of a beautiful woman in Chang'an and took in a new concubine."
The rumor was spread by the owner of the bookstore. It was said that Mr. Zhao was quite fond of my concubine and specially set up a table of wine and invited the owner of the bookstore.
After returning, the owner of the bookstore spread the news everywhere that Mr. Zhao's new beautiful concubine, Zhenzhen, looked exactly like the beauty in the painting that he sold to Mr. Zhao.
Everyone thought that the inn owner was drunk and did not take it seriously. However, the story sounded novel and interesting, so it was written into a vernacular book and became popular in Chang'an for a while.
Duan Zhiwei's interest, which had just been aroused, disappeared in an instant. Needless to say, the owner of this bookstore must have made up a story to take advantage of the opportunity to promote his own bookstore.
Zhen Hui bowed and said, "My lady is smart. I have been to that bookstore before. There are not many books of sages, but there are many paintings of beauties. When the strange story came out, the paintings of beauties in the bookstore were snapped up and the prices were raised to thousands of gold. However, many scholars shouted the names of the beauties in the paintings, but no real beauties came down from the paintings. This shows that the story must be fake."
As they were talking, Ah Pan came back and sat down, holding a few copper coins in his hand: "Just now, the lady said that I was kind-hearted, and she must give me some money as a reward."
She seemed quite dissatisfied and complained, "It's not easy for a woman to raise a baby alone, but Mr. Zhao is just drinking and having fun as if nothing happened."
Aunt Duan was already drunk, and she burped and said, "This has been going on since ancient times."
After talking for a while, seeing that the sun was getting high, everyone stood up and prepared to return to the villa.
Duan Zhiwei had been cooking in the restaurant for a year. Finally, it was his turn to have someone cook for him. He happily ate two bowls of chestnut rice. The others thought the food in the restaurant tasted mediocre and only ate some. Then they went to the Chun Pond, which was full of orchids. Aunt Duan took a willow branch, dipped it in water, and touched it on A Pan's forehead, chanting prayers for peace and warding off disasters.
Mr. Zhao's wife, Dai, was also on the side. Her face was a little sallow and she was not pretty, but her behavior was very dignified. She hesitated for a long time, and then came over to ask Duan Zhiwei and his party if they could also perform the Xiuxi ceremony for her.
This ritual was not difficult to perform, and Aunt Duan really felt a lot of sympathy for this woman who was not loved by her husband, so she agreed immediately and then took a willow branch and sprinkled water on her.
Everyone lined up to perform the Xiuxi ceremony and returned to the villa together. Mr. Zhao also came back with his concubine Zhenzhen in his arms. I think they must have taken a spring bath. Zhenzhen is indeed a beauty, with bright eyes and a body full of jewels. She looked at Dai and said, "Tonight is the spring time with a bright moon. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could drink a pot of peach blossom wine together?"
Mr. Zhao readily agreed, then turned to Dai and said, "Did you hear that? Hurry up and go!"
Dai left silently, and Duan Zhiwei hurriedly followed her. Seeing her slowly cooking wine on a small charcoal stove, she said, "Madam Zhao, I run a restaurant, and I am familiar with cooking wine. Let me help you."
After thanking her, Dai sighed, "No need to call me Madam Zhao. I don't look like a madam. My nickname is Lancao. You can just call me by my name."
Duan Zhiwei didn't know how to comfort her, so he could only say, "Today is Shangsi Festival, and it is a custom to wear orchids. Madam's name is quite suitable for Shangsi Festival."
Madam Lancao said, "I was born on the Shangsi day, so my parents named me Lancao."
No one cared about her birthday, and she even had to cook wine for her husband and concubine. Duan Zhiwei felt so sorry for her that she accidentally spilled some wine on her arm.
Mrs. Lancao came over to wipe her arm, feeling very apologetic. Fortunately, the temperature was not high and not even a red mark was left.
The two of them left, and Duan Zhiwei returned to the room. Pu Tao and A Pan were already asleep. Aunt Duan was lying there, fanning herself with a palm-leaf fan. She glanced at Duan Zhiwei and said, "Alright, stop standing here, you're like a stake."
The implication was self-evident. Duan Zhiwei felt embarrassed, so she just lifted her skirt and walked away quietly.
Shangsi Festival has not ended yet, and she will have a night meeting with her lover tonight.
While sitting at the door waiting for Yuan Shenji, she actually fell asleep in a daze.
In my dream, I came to a peach blossom forest. It was indeed a beautiful pink dream. The noise outside the forest was blocked by the layers of pink branches, and time seemed to have stopped at this moment.
But she was alone, hiding under the sea of flowers. When she looked up, she could see the flowers covering the sky. Her aunt was gone, and the people in the restaurant were gone, and Yuan Shenji was also gone...
She felt a little flustered, as if she was the only one left in this peach blossom forest, and would have to guard this springtime scene for the next thousand years.
A warm hand gently patted her face, calling her name firmly and gently. Duan Zhiwei finally escaped from the dream and saw Yuan Shenji's worried face when she opened her eyes.
"You idiot, how could you fall asleep at the door?" Yuan Shenji held her in his arms. He finally finished his official duties and rode over on horseback, only to see her sleeping, leaning against a willow tree.
Duan Zhiwei rubbed his eyes, saw that it was him, and said in fear: "I had a nightmare..."
The villa had already reserved a room for the commander of the Jinwu Guard, and Duan Zhiwei followed him in.
Yuan Shenji suddenly took off the orchid grass from his belt and said, "Today is the Shangsi Festival, and we should perform the Xiuxi ceremony."
He tied the orchid leaves into an exquisite knot and pinned it to Duan Zhiwei's ear. "Han Shi" says, "In the State of Zheng, on the third month of the lunar calendar, people hold orchids on the banks of the Qin and Wei rivers to call back souls and continue their spirits." '
Then he touched Duan Zhiwei's head and comforted her: "You won't have nightmares now."
It was already late at night, and there was no one by the spring pond in the backyard. Only a bright moon was shining through the woods, and at this moment, the pond was emitting wisps of hot steam.
Yuan Shenji had taken off his armor, and he looked even more broad-shouldered and broad-backed. Duan Zhiwei tiptoed to break off a willow branch on the bank to purify him and get rid of the disaster, but the bluestone slabs by the pool were polished smooth and stained with water, so she slipped and fell into the pool.
The spring day was suddenly warm, and she was only wearing a thin gauze skirt. The hot spring water outlined her exquisite figure. Her black hair was loosely pinned with a wooden stick, and now it spread out in the water like a waterfall. She quickly sank her body, leaving only her head above the water.
When Yuan Shenji thought of the stunning beauty he had just seen, he couldn't help but feel a little hot in his heart spreading to every part of his body.
Tonight the moonlight is like frost, pouring down on this mountain spring pond, creating shimmering light and misty water vapor rising up, like a fairyland.
After a while, Yuan Shenji also stepped in slowly with steady steps. When he entered the water, his Adam's apple rolled and water drops slid down his strong jaw line and sank into his chest.
He had a very good face, with sword-like brows and bright eyes, but years of fighting had made his features too cold and hard. At this moment, his usual coldness had disappeared, and he had become much gentler. Only the fire in his eyes was still flickering.
Duan Zhiwei stared at him for a while, then came to his senses and lowered his head embarrassedly, only to see that his collar was loose, and his strong chest muscles were faintly visible through the gap, covered with scars of various sizes.
She was stunned for a moment, and then touched his scar distressedly: "It must be very painful, right?"
Yuan Shenji's eyes were gentle, he rubbed her hair and said, "It's scabbed over, it doesn't hurt anymore."
He had seen the wind at the border whistling with yellow sand, and had treated arrow wounds alone in the tent. Now, someone was finally willing to walk up to him and ask him with concern: "Do these injuries hurt?"
She suddenly smiled evilly, scooped up a handful of water and poured it on him, then said, "Purge the old and get rid of the new. Yuan Shenji will surely be smooth sailing in the future."
Even though he was splashed with water, he was not annoyed. His eyes were full of smiles. He just took her wrist with one hand and pressed it lightly on the rock beside the spring. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her lips which were so sweet as honey that he had been dreaming about.
After a long while, Yuan Shenji let go, and only heard him say, "It will be Qingming Festival soon."
Duan Zhiwei didn't know why he mentioned Qingming, so he could only agree: "Yes, Qingming is coming soon."
Yuan Shenji said: "After Qingming Festival, I will go to the restaurant to propose marriage."
The fog in the spring pond seemed to be even thicker, as if all the troubles of the world were isolated from the outside by this pool of warm spring water.
Different from the tenderness between the lovers, Dai Lancao came into the house holding a pot of peach blossom wine. Zhao Langjun had already fallen asleep on the bed. Zhenzhen took the wine, smiled charmingly at her and said, "I know you are the best at making wine, thank you for your help."
Dai Lancao finally put aside her miserable and weak look and replaced it with an equally ambiguous smile: "This wine has been brewing for half a day, remember to drink it...sister."
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