Chapter 8 Wenqing Talks "Your Highness, can you choose the person you like? ...
Min Shian raised his eyebrows, and Song Sheng seemed to sense something. He turned around and his gaze happened to meet Min Shian's eyes.
"Your Highness, what a coincidence."
Song Sheng's voice swept across the bustling streets and fell into Min Shian's ears.
She took two steps forward and stood in front of Song Sheng. After exchanging pleasantries, the shopkeeper, who had hurried over, saluted and said respectfully to Song Sheng, "Sir, the private room has been prepared."
"In that case, I will take my leave." He then looked at the shopkeeper and instructed: "From now on, when Her Royal Highness visits, please follow the highest standards."
Min Shian chuckled, and the shopkeeper said with an eager smile, "Your Highness, please come this way with me."
The shopkeeper bent over and walked quickly in front, leading the way to the innermost part of the third floor, but he did not see Song Sheng along the way.
The two of them were one after the other, which shouldn't have happened. She didn't pay much attention to it and said to the shopkeeper, "Bring us some signature storybooks."
"Alright, Your Highness, please take a rest. The storyteller will be here soon."
Min Shian thought of the guard who had watched intently all night, and then said, "Just call the storyteller."
She took Chuntao into the private room. The layout was similar to that of the second floor, except that it was a little wider and the calligraphy and paintings were more precious.
"Let's talk about this Young Master Song..."
Min Shian paused while drinking tea and almost choked. She put down the teacup as if nothing had happened, looked at the storyteller and listened carefully to what he said next.
"When he was born, hundreds of birds circled and chirped in the sky above the Song Mansion, and auspicious clouds lingered over the mountain behind the Song Mansion for more than half a month."
"This is the sign of the reincarnation of the gods."
“…”
After hearing this, Min Shian picked up the teacup and tasted it carefully, but he felt that the taste was not good enough.
I thought the people from Tianxian Tower were so bold that they dared to frame Song Sheng, but they were not actually kicked out by Song Sheng.
It seems that the gods are very magnanimous.
She had wanted to find an opportunity to tease him, but she didn't see Song Sheng. Later, she became absorbed in poetry and books and forgot about it. It wasn't until the eve of the Wenqing meeting that the two of them met briefly.
The heat in the dog days of summer is unbearable, cicadas chirp incessantly, and the summer sun shines warmly into every corner.
Changting Mountain luckily escaped the disaster. Lush pines and cypresses cover the mountain, the endless greenery isolates the heat, and the streams gurgle through the forest, refreshing the heart.
The meeting was held on the mountainside, where the endless fields were replaced by a bustling crowd, with 3,000 people feasting and chatting.
People gathered in groups of three or four, looking around in amazement; some people had already started to get active, running around to toast. Min Shi'an was hiding in a pavilion not far away, quietly watching the bustling scene. Behind him, Chuntao and the other two stood silently, their breathing barely audible.
Suddenly, a voice seemed to come with the breeze and mountain water, breaking the silence in the pavilion.
"Your Highness was originally seeking shelter here, but it was so easy for me to find him."
Chuntao's hand twitched slightly, but she returned to normal after seeing who was coming. She quietly left the pavilion with Xiamei and Qiumang and waited not far away.
Min Shi'an suppressed the emotion in his eyes, turned around and replied, "What does Song Pushe want to see me about?"
Song Sheng seemed to be in a good mood, the smile in his eyes more genuine, and he said in a drawling tone: "The teacher was afraid that the crowd would scare His Highness away, so he specially ordered me to come and look for His Highness."
She liked quietness and had never concealed this fact, so she declined most banquets for this reason. It was no wonder that Master Zhang was worried, but her original words were definitely not like that.
"Please tell the Minister of Public Security that I will not be absent when the talks officially begin." Min Shian looked calm, without any sign of displeasure, but her indifferent tone still betrayed her master's unhappy mood at the moment.
Completely opposite to Song Sheng.
Song Sheng chuckled and said, "Yes, I'll take my leave."
After saying that, he turned and left, disappearing from her sight in a moment.
Because there were so many people in the meeting, the current session was just to get everyone acquainted with each other. It would officially begin in two hours, entering the first stage - the discussion of the Dao[1].
Min Shian frowned slightly. She had never liked these things, but Taoism was popular now, so she had no choice but to keep silent. She even endured the discomfort to gain a deeper understanding, so she could talk about it clearly.
She concealed it so thoroughly that even Empress Xie didn't know about it.
In a daze, she heard Song Tinglan's voice: "Shi'an, such a Feng Shui treasure land, you are enjoying it all by yourself?"
Seeing the newcomer, Min Shian's lingering annoyance dissipated a lot. She pulled Song Tinglan to sit down and said with a smile: "The mountain road is rugged, and I don't want you to travel too much. Why is it still..."
Before she finished speaking, someone's smiling eyes flashed through her mind, and she turned and asked, "Did Song Pushe tell you?"
Song Tinglan blinked, covered her handkerchief with her hands and started coughing, avoiding answering.
"I won't blame your brother." Min Shi'an smiled helplessly at this, and then said: "The Minister of State is very attentive, and I can't thank him enough."
This is the truth. No wonder Song Sheng left so abruptly just now. According to his personality, he would have said a few words of praise or criticism before leaving.
It seems that the black-hearted fox can also suddenly fall ill and do good deeds.
Upon hearing this, Song Tinglan put down her handkerchief and stopped coughing. Her face looked much rosier than usual. She said, "I wanted to come look for you, and I happened to run into you, brother, so I asked you something."
"I haven't seen you for over a month, and I've been wanting to see you more, so here I am."
Min Shian smiled and said, "I miss you very much, too."
The summer breeze blew, and the branches of the pine and cypress trees above rustled, covering up the noise in the distance. The two chatted for a long time until the last moment.
"It's almost time, Shi'an, let's go, don't let the teacher worry."
"Um."
Min Shian took Song Tinglan through a shortcut and returned to the center of the banquet in less than a quarter of an hour. Master Zhang caught a glimpse of the two of them out of the corner of his eye, and then he felt relieved and continued to talk with the people next to him.
They sat to the right of Song Sheng. The Wenqing Talks were a grand feast for communication and exchange among scholars from all over the world, so the seats were mostly arranged according to where they came from.
The three people sat at the highest point on the left, representing the lineage of Master Zhang.
Looking around, the place was packed with people, with only a small space in the center left for placing desks, pens, ink, musical instruments, chess pieces, and other utensils.
Except for the seats at the top which are somewhat particular, the seats below are crowded and most people sit on the floor.
Song Tinglan whispered to the side, "Looks like there are a lot of people here, but this isn't all. We who are sitting up there will have to rush to the west side of the mountain."
Min Shian nodded with a wooden face, then she looked at the person above her calmly.
Most of them were familiar faces, so she just glanced at them and passed them by. She focused on secretly observing those faces she had never seen before.
"Your Highness, are you ready to choose the person you like?"
Min Shian turned his head and met those eyes that were always filled with gentle smiles, but no good words came out of that person's mouth, and his lips seemed to be filled with poison.
"Song Pushe is joking. I haven't thought about it yet."
"Song Pushe, Song Zhongshu, and Tinglan are all about to get married, but there's no news yet. How many noble ladies in the capital can't catch their eye?"
Min Shian retorted almost subconsciously, and after he saw Song Tinglan's laughing expression, he realized a very important past event.
"Then do you know why I disdain all the men in the capital?"
"Of course, Song Pushe is the best, so the others are naturally not worth mentioning."
She clenched her fingers, her face tense, and glanced at Song Sheng, but her heart was in great torment.
Anything that has anything to do with marriage is not a good thing.
Be it the previous marriage, the current predicament, or Song Tinglan's marriage in the future, none of it is good for Min Shian.
"It's not that I don't like the noble ladies of the capital, but I am so busy with government affairs that I don't have time to think about this matter."
Song Sheng didn't mention that, but responded humbly and politely, and even made some veiled innuendos at the end.
Tutor Zhang stood up first. Seeing this, everyone quietly quieted down and waited for Tutor Zhang to speak.
"Everyone, the time has come. This Wenqing meeting has officially begun. I will not say much. Let's start the discussion!"
Although the Wenqing talks were hosted by the Song and Jiang families, the two heads of the family were busy, so the talks were presided over by Zhang Taifu over the years.
Everyone responded in unison and began to discuss in low voices with the people around them.
If they encounter unclear disputes or difficult problems, they will ask people above them.
Before Song Sheng's lips could fully rise, people surrounded him, and even Min Shian and Song Tinglan were not spared.
Seeing Song Sheng handling every tricky question with ease, Min Shian gradually became distracted, and thoughts of how she should answer kept flashing through her mind.
After thinking like this for an unknown amount of time, Song Tinglan waved her slender fingers in front of her eyes. Min Shian came back to her senses and asked in a low voice, "What's the matter?"
"Shi An, you've almost seen through my brother. Is he really that good-looking?"
Min Shi'an didn't respond. He felt a little irritated by the buzzing sound in his ears. After a moment of hesitation, he jokingly whispered, "Not as good as Xiao Wangjing."
Song Tinglan's cheeks turned slightly red. She glared at her and stopped talking.
In Min Shian's opinion, discussing the Dao is nothing more than empty talk and is extremely boring.
One after another, women came to Song Tinglan to ask questions. Like Song Sheng, she patiently guided the other party and did not directly impose her own views.
If there weren't many women in the meeting, Song Tinglan would probably be the same as her brother.
Although everyone had heard of Min Shi'an's poetry and cursive calligraphy, they knew nothing about her philosophy, so no one came forward to ask her, and she was happy and at ease.
The discussion ended only when the sun set in the west, and Tutor Zhang announced the start of the "poetry competition" session.
After observing for a moment, Min Shian understood what the so-called "poetry duet" was.
The first person starts by writing poems or songs of his choice. After he finishes, many people will want to compete. At this time, the person who wrote the poem will choose one person from among them to be the second person.
This cycle repeats until no one wants to compete anymore, and the last person wins.
Although everyone present wanted to be the only winner, they still enjoyed the process of "poetry competition" more.
Min Shian listened carefully to what everyone said, competing secretly in his mind, but he had no intention of getting involved. Anyone who dared to challenge must have an estimate of his own strength, otherwise he would only embarrass himself.
If Min Shian appeared, the atmosphere would probably become quiet.
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