Chapter 111: Lord Contradiction, are you trying to draw a line between you and me?
Since that day, the two of them seemed to have made a silent agreement. Whenever Ji Shubai had a day off, he would invite Song Jin to his home to chat. Occasionally, he would come to the store and sit in a dimly lit corner to listen to Song Jin's storytelling.
This late summer, Song Jin talked about "Romeo and Juliet" and "The Merchant of Venice", and "The Lady of the Camellias" and "The Nose", but avoided masterpieces such as "Macbeth" that contain political struggles.
She would rather talk about aristocratic mistresses, young girls' love, and cunning businessmen, and would never mention stories that might drag her into a vortex.
Anyone can see that the relationship between the two is subtle, but Ji Shubai found out what Song Jin meant, but still did not take any further action.
Compared to going a step further, Song Jin enjoys the present time more, the kind of secretiveness, not thinking about the past, not worrying about the future, just simply enjoying the present.
If I go one step further, I will inevitably reveal my identity and attract everyone's attention. By then, I am afraid that I will be in a relationship and lose my freedom.
She didn't want to lose her freedom and be a lady in the backyard for the rest of her life, being blamed for the slightest mistake she made. How boring that would be.
As for the rules, just let Ji Shubai abide by them. She is happy to be a wild swallow.
After the weather turned cooler, Song Jin started to get busy.
She bought a few more small jars, planning to make preserved eggs in batches.
In October, everyone had to change into thick clothes. Fortunately, the mattress she had bought had arrived at the shop. After drying in the sun, it became fluffy and thick. At night, she and Chunyun huddled in the same quilt and felt very warm. One night, Chunyun even had a nosebleed due to the heat, but she was still happy.
Because she slept in the same bed with Song Jin, she didn't have to be nagged by Old Lu about the money spent on making bedding. Song Jin privately made her a jacket. Although she was small, less cloth and silk cotton would be wasted, but Song Jin still insisted on making it bigger so that she could wear it next year.
In November, Song Jin started making bacon.
She bought large slices of pork belly and brought it home. She cleared out a jar in advance, washed it clean, dried it, and prepared to start making bacon.
China is a large country, and there are many ways to make bacon. Take Suzhou for example, they make five-spice braised pork, which does not need to be dried in the sun.
But what Song Jin made was not the five-spice braised pork, but the simplest kind of bacon, which did not require any spices and could be made with salt and liquor.
The pork belly should be cut into long strips as wide as a fist, so that it can be marinated and cut in the future. Put the strips of meat into the jar, wipe them with soju, pour out the soju, and start to sprinkle salt.
Add more salt so that the meat will not spoil and can be preserved longer. After sprinkling the salt, rub it vigorously with your hands for a while, so that it is easier to absorb the flavor. If you eat it for a long time in the future, the salt will enter the meat and prevent it from getting moldy.
Song Jin attributed this to the wisdom of the poor.
After it is kneaded, the meat is stacked layer by layer in a jar and marinated for a few hours. Then it is taken out, a hole is pierced at one end, a rope is passed through, a knot is tied, and it can be carried away.
Some people don’t like food that is too salty, so they can rinse it in hot water to wash off the salt on the surface, which will make it taste better.
However, many people do not wash them, because saltier ones are better with rice, which is the same as eating pickled vegetables with rice in poor areas. If they are made unpalatable, they will last longer.
Song Jin heated it up before hanging it in the patio to dry. If the sun was strong, they would be ready to eat in a few days.
In mid-November, Ji Shubai wrote a letter as usual, inviting Song Jin to his home for a chat. Song Jin went there without any preparation.
This time, Ji Shubai was in the study, his brows furrowed, holding a book in his hands, his face pale as he read.
Song Jin saw this scene when he came in, but he didn't care at all. He called out cheerfully, "Master Ji, what are you looking at?"
Ji Shubai raised his eyes, glanced at the person who came, and silently turned the book upside down on the table. The three big words "Jin Ping Mei" caught Song Jin's eyes.
In an instant, Song Jin felt his back was wet.
"Haha, well...does it look good, sir?"
As he spoke, the man had already retreated towards the door.
Ji Shubai sat in the armchair, just looking at Song Jin without saying a word.
He really didn't know how to say it.
What about "mandarin ducks embracing each other in the water, phoenixes flying through the flowers"? After all, she was the one who recited "The Joyful Ode to the Intercourse of Yin and Yang in Heaven and Earth" in front of him. How could he be so impressed with her behavior... [1]
Oh, her character is hard to describe.
But Pan Jinlian really went too far. She plotted to murder her husband, schemed to kill Guan Ge, had an affair with a servant, indulged in lust and had no morals. How could she still be praised?
Ji Shubai put down the book, sighed, and leaned his head on the table with one hand.
What should I do? It seems that I have failed in my attempt to become a good person.
"My Lord, what's wrong? If you don't want to talk and don't have time to talk, then I will go back today."
"Sit down." With a weak voice, Song Jin sat down with his neck hunched.
I couldn't help but curse myself in my heart. Why bother? People in later generations have been cursing for so many years, and this stereotype is impossible to change. The open modern world is like that, not to mention the feudal Ming Dynasty.
Isn't this just seeking death?
You are such a big mouth that always causes trouble. I told you to show off and see if you dare to do it again next time.
"My Lord...are you worried about something?"
Ji Shubai closed his eyes, indeed feeling troubled.
"Tell me, do you think Pan Jinlian can be a hero?"
Song Jin pondered for a while and said seriously: "If compared with the heroes in Water Margin, she is indeed not inferior at all."
"Killing a child in the backyard and hanging out with a servant, is this considered a heroic act?"
"I didn't say killing is right. Didn't the Liangshan heroes kill people? But they were heroes, but Jinlian was accused of being a slut. I think this is unfair. Besides, she wasn't the only one who killed young children. The Black Whirlwind even split the young yamen's head in half, and Wu Song killed everyone young and old, not even the children. So Ximen Qing's behavior is not much better than that of Zhang Dujian. How come Wu Song's killing of two people doesn't count, but Jinlian's killing of one is considered a heinous crime?"
"you--"
Ji Shubai was very angry at Song Jin's sophistry, but he couldn't say anything to refute.
There was a group of bandits on Liangshan Lake.
If they could all become heroes, then what Pan Jinlian did could be considered as getting rid of harm to the people.
"If others knew about your condition, no one would dare to get close to you."
Song Jin bit his lip, stared ahead, and asked him in a calm voice: "Does the master think so too?"
Ji Shubai was silent.
"Sir, do you want to draw a line between you and me?"
Ji Shubai remained silent.
Song Jin didn't look at him, so she didn't know his expression, but she felt that her heart was so blocked that she couldn't breathe. She had to say something, do something, to help herself feel better.
"If you ask me, this woman has two destinies. One is called Red Apricot, and the other is called Golden Lotus."
"They are all at the mercy of fate. The obedient one who doesn't resist is called Hong Xing. The one who is unwilling to accept and seeks another way out is called Jin Lian. My lord only sees that Jin Lian has a vicious heart and dissolute behavior, but he has never thought about why she became like this."
"A girl who was sold from childhood to childhood, with outstanding appearance, happened to meet the lustful Mr. Zhang, the jealous and fierce mistress, and her sister who was bought together died of illness. Your Excellency, have you ever thought about how Jinlian managed to survive all those years alone?"
"Mr. Zhang was lustful and couldn't persuade his wife, so he promised her to the weak and incompetent Wu Dalang, just to make it easier for him to have secret affairs."
"If you ask me, Wu Dalang deserves to die. How can a man who lets his wife serve two husbands for a little money have the face to live in this world? He obviously depends on Jinlian for his survival, but after his brother came back, he thought he had a backer and only sold half of the pancakes every day and locked Jinlian up to drink every day. On the day when the affair was exposed, he even wanted to save face and asked Jinlian to remain chaste. Has he forgotten how he saw Mr. Zhang bullying Jinlian outside the window and how he left in disgrace? If you ask me, with his ability, why doesn't he ask the eunuch to give birth to the child?"
Song Jin became angrier and angrier as he spoke, and his voice became louder and louder, until by the end he was even crying.
Whether it is Hong Xing or Jin Lian, they are just the epitome of women. Unfortunately, Song Jin may also face such a fate now.
"Is this why you bought Chunyun's marriage certificate?"
"Is that why you asked me if I was willing to help you that day?"
Song Jin's voice choked up a little: "You are a man. You can take the imperial examination to become an official, you can go out to do business, you can teach in a private school. There are many things you can do and many choices you have. You don't understand how horrible it is for a woman to have to face the fate of being at the mercy of others since the day she was born."
"Sir, you are very lucky. You are lucky enough to ignore other people's tragedies. You are lucky enough not to see how a woman turned from a good girl into a shameless slut. You only call her a slut, and that's enough."
"But I'm different. I've had to face these things since I was born. I've had to fight against these things. That's the tragedy you look down on and can't see. It's a tragedy you think is reasonable. That's the real tragedy."
Song Jin turned his head and looked at Ji Shubai: "Except for yourself, no one thinks you are suffering. This is the biggest tragedy."
She heard Ji Shubai sigh, hold his forehead and lower his head, and he didn't speak for a long time.
Song Jin stood up and bowed like a woman: "Sir, let's stop here."
Under Ji Shubai's astonished eyes, Song Jin walked out the door and went straight to the street of Suzhou.
That night, Song Jin was telling stories as usual, and the story he was telling was "The Lady of the Camellias".
A vulgar story of rescuing a prostitute.
What impressed Song Jin most about this story was the description of Armand's inner world.
The kind of man who, when faced with a charming woman, feels sad because of her rejection, but at the same time thinks that women who are easily obtained have no charm.
In the final analysis, what men love is the satisfaction of their desire to conquer, not a specific person. A woman who is easily obtained has no sense of satisfaction, so the difficult-to-approach woman becomes a trophy that can be shown off. Everyone wants to conquer her and then start showing off.
He would secretly rejoice when she appeared in gorgeous clothes holding someone else's arm, being watched by countless people, while he had her house key in his pocket.
This was his unique glory, and it was also a shame that the man beside her could not detect. He won, and he was happy, not necessarily because he won the heart of the beauty, but because he won over the man beside her.
A man's passion to conquer a woman comes from defeating many men.
She thought that Ji Shubai might like her little bit of anomalies and her occasional little offenses, and these things did not hurt him at all, so he could tolerate them and even find them interesting.
But Pan Jinlian was different. She killed her husband, killed her husband's son, abandoned her loyalty to the servant, and had an affair with her son-in-law.
No man can bear it, including Ji Shubai.
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