No, gentlemen also guard against

Chapter 607: Candle in the Snow: You are full of rhymes. It seems that I really can’t keep you [5k, monthly ticket requested! ]

After Yu Nianyuan returned to the house.

On the deck of the merchant ship bathed in the cool moonlight, there was only a tall figure wearing a long Wu skirt and waist-length blonde hair.

The snow-white sword was placed horizontally in front of him. Under the moonlight, the sword seemed to be covered with white snow made of moonlight.

Shining brightly.

Xue Zhongzhu made a sword-like finger with one hand and slowly drew it across the blade of the snow-white sword, but was unable to sweep away the snow-like moonlight.

The sword finger stopped at an inconspicuous engraving on the narrow sword.

The tip of the sword finger slowly stroked the two engraved small seal characters.

Know frost.

Under the moon, the candle in the snow lowered its head to look at the sword, and the sword was also looking at her.

The snow-white sword light illuminated the upper half of the face of the eldest lady of Yunmeng. The sword light was dazzling, but her pair of blue eyes did not blink at all.

The scene of that day flashed faintly before Xue Zhongzhu's eyes.

"...Hey, hurry up, Miss Zhishuang, if you don't come soon, forget it. I'm too lazy to wait for you, nagging...

"Ah, it seems that my guess was correct. It is indeed your nickname. After all, it is still the tactful thoughts of a little girl. You engraved it on the sword. Hmm, did you not expect that someone in this world would take your sword away..."

It was late at night and everyone was asleep. Even though a lot of time had passed, the offensive and provocative tone of a young man in a Confucian robe with a bronze fox mask still lingered in my ears.

That day he strolled leisurely in the courtyard, quoting from classics.

"There is a bell on Fengshan Mountain. When frost falls, the bell rings. So it means knowing. The name is quite particular...

"Tell me, who would have thought that the world-famous lady, Xue Zhongzhu, would have an elegant and playful nickname, Zhishuang, tsk tsk ..."

Xue Zhongzhu has a mixed-race fair face, as cold and unchanged as the frost and snow that have lasted for thousands of years.

After a while, she, whose maiden name was "Zhi Shuang", slowly lowered her eyes, murmured softly, and repeated:
"There is a bell on Fengshan Mountain. When frost falls, the bell rings, so it is said to be a sign of knowledge... So this is what it means, is it from here... So that's it..."

The tall Hu Ji, who was always domineering and unruly but seemed to be unaware of the origin of her maiden name, was briefly confused. She tilted her head slightly, and a thoughtful look appeared in her green eyes:

"Where is Fengshan... Where is the bell that rings when frost falls... Is this the place that Master has been thinking about so much..."

I don’t know how long I stood alone on the deck, feeling the evening breeze blowing in my face. At some point, Xue Zhongzhu put away Zhishuang’s sword, turned around, and prepared to return to the cabin.

When she turned halfway, the tall Hu Ji suddenly said coldly:

"You know so much and you're full of jingles. I guess we can't keep you here."

……

Empty mountain after the rain.

At noon, there was still a sparse drizzle, but the sky was very bright.

In the deep forest, there is a bamboo house with its door open.

A small table was placed in front of the door.

The three of them sat cross-legged at the table and ate quietly.

During the meal, the only sound was the slight knocking of porcelain bowls and silver chopsticks against teeth, occasionally mixed with a hoarse old cough.

The old man's cough was not severe but intermittent, as if he was ill.

It came from a short, skinny old man among the three.

The short and thin old man had no outstanding features, just an ordinary old man with a kind face.

He was wearing a musician's robe that had been washed to a pale color, and one could vaguely see that the robe was originally blue.

At the table, there were two other people eating with him.

They were a cold young girl in palace dress and an old woman with white hair and purple clothes.

The girl in the cold palace dress had her hair tied up high, in the standard style of a palace lady, and only secured with a mandarin duck jade hairpin. Apart from that, there was not a single girlish ornament on her body.

Pure and desolate like a white lotus in ice and snow.

The white-haired old woman had deep eye sockets covered with white, a chin like a pointed cone, and her silver hair was neatly tied up in the same hairstyle as the cold girl in the palace.

She was dressed in a dark purple and gold-woven palace gown with an intricate and ancient ancient pattern of clouds and cranes embroidered on the lapels. Her every move was dignified and majestic.

The two ladies, one old and one young, kept their backs straight while eating, held their bowls in their hands, and ate in small bites.

They lowered their brows and eyes, chewed slowly, without making the slightest chewing sound between their lips and teeth.

Very strict and well-behaved.

Ignoring their age and appearance, they look exactly like they were cast in the same mold.

"Cough cough cough..."

During the dinner, the old musician's occasional coughing, which became the loudest sound at the table, echoing inside and outside the bamboo house.

Halfway through the meal, the old musician looked at them and couldn't help but put down his chopsticks:

"You two, big and small... aren't you talking?"

The tone was a little helpless.

Rong Zhen and Nanny Song didn't even raise their eyelids, as if they didn't hear anything.

Perhaps because her eye sockets were sunken and covered with white, Nanny Song didn't look at the old musician. She silently picked up a mouthful of food and stuffed it into her toothless mouth.

Rong Zhen seemed to be in a trance the whole time. When she was holding the bowl to eat, her little face was absent-minded and she lowered her eyes to stare at the nearest dish in front of her... The old musician found that she seemed to be only staring at the plate of stir-fried lettuce in front of her, and did not touch the other dishes.

"Are all the female officials in your Imperial Observatory like this? Haha, how interesting."

The old musician clapped his hands and laughed heartily.

After the voice fell, there was complete silence at the table.

Nanny Song slowly took out a neatly stacked handkerchief from her bosom, wiped the corners of her mouth, and continued eating.

Rong Zhen, who was standing next to her, seemed to be alerted by her action and came back to her senses. She also took out a neatly stacked handkerchief from her sleeve, wiped the corner of her lips, put the handkerchief away, and continued to eat with a dazed look on her face.

Old Musician: ...

No one paid attention.

A little awkward.

The old musician picked up the bowl again and turned to look outside the door.

A thin curtain of rain hung from the eaves of the bamboo house.

The spring rain that had lasted for several days has stopped, but there is still a little drizzle today.

Through the bamboo forest outside the courtyard, which has regained its lush green color, the outline of an open-air stone-carved headless Buddha can be vaguely seen.

The old musician's face became lonely, and he listened to the soft sound of rain for a while.

This time, he said without turning his head:
"According to the agreement, the matter of the Xingzi Lake Buddha is over, and it's time to let me go."

"No."

"No."

Nanny Song and Rong Zhen, who had been eating in silence, answered almost in unison.

The old musician turned around and asked curiously:
"So you two are not deaf or dumb."

Nanny Song snorted coldly:
"Old Yu, if you are bored, you can talk about your own things. I am not stopping you from talking."

Rong Zhen glanced at Deputy Supervisor Song and said nothing more. He continued to remain quiet and chew slowly.

The old musician touched his thin head with sparse white hair:
"This dinner is so lonely, I might as well spend it alone. You two came here just to monitor and not to chat, right? There's not even a hint of affectionate chat about family matters."

Nanny Song frowned and looked at him with a blank look.

No words were spoken, but everything was implied.

The old musician smiled:

"Well, even if that's the case, can't you two pretend a little? Don't be too hard, at least be a little soft. I've always been soft-hearted, so why are you so... so dry when doing things?

"Hey, your Si Tian Jian is still the same as before, so impersonal. Let me tell you, it's a good thing you met me. If it were someone else, something bad would happen sooner or later..."

The old musician kept muttering to himself and taking a bite of rice from time to time.

Finally someone started talking, and I began to enjoy my meal more.

Nanny Song's face was cold and her tone was impatient:

"Old Yu, this is your responsibility. It is to repay the saint's kindness. How can it be said that our company is forcing you? Are you still like a three-year-old child, asking us to coax you?"

"Hey, Miss Song, don't say anything."

The old musician leaned back:
"People really become more like children as they age. When I was young, I didn't like to talk either. I barely spoke a few times a month. I wouldn't talk to anyone who wasn't my vocal confidant.

"Now that I am older, I realize that speech is really interesting. If music is elegant, then human speech is vulgar. The most vulgar is the most elegant. The simplest is the most true. If you listen carefully, you will find the world."

The old musician was very happy and shared with the two ladies, one old and one young:
"I now feel that I have been silent for most of my life, and every extra word I say is a gain. As for Miss Song, you have had a stern face for your whole life, you should finally smile, don't take it with you into the coffin..."

The muscles in the nasolabial folds on Nanny Song's skinny face were twitching, as if they would change color at any moment.

At this time, Rong Zhen spoke softly to ease the atmosphere:

"Mr. Yu, Senior Song and the juniors have no intention of monitoring you. In Luoyang Sitianjian, everyone respects you very much, and the saint also remembers your hard work."

At this point, she paused, looked at the gentle old musician, and said in a clear voice:

"I have heard the saints say more than once in the presence of the emperor that you are a great man of state."

The old musician thought for a moment and asked carefully:
"Then may I ask Miss Rong, how do saints usually treat state scholars? Is there a set of procedures or something?"

After hearing this, Rong Zhen hesitated to speak.

Nanny Song interrupted with a shrill voice:

"You are so long-winded, Old Man Yu. Look at the Master. He is not older than you, but he is still diligent and loyal to the country. He is still shining and making contributions as long as he is alive."

The old woman with white eyes raised her pointed chin and looked down at the old musician opposite her:
"Look at me again. I have served Your Majesty for decades, and I am a role model for the younger generations in the prison... I am not like you, who are indecisive and try to bargain."

The old musician stopped smiling and stood in awe.

He supported his knees with his hands, leaned forward slightly, and asked tentatively:

"That makes sense, but Miss Song shouldn't be considered a national scholar, right? Miss Rong, have you ever heard the saint say this in front of the emperor? In addition to Mu praising the Master and the old national scholar, has he ever praised Miss Song?" Rong Zhen: ...

Nanny Song's expression suddenly changed, unable to suppress her anger:

"Yu, an old man half buried in the earth, is he still talking nonsense?"

Just as the shrill old woman's eyes turned purple, the old musician waved his hand and said righteously:

"Alright, alright, regardless of whether you are a national hero or not, you are all working for the saint and repaying the saint's kindness. There is no distinction between high and low. Let me ask you, Miss Song, right? So, don't be anxious."

Seeing the dining table in front of him creaking automatically, as if it would fall apart in the next breath, he helplessly spread his hands:

"Okay, Miss Song, I didn't say I'm leaving now. Just work overtime and stay late. Let's work together to repay the saint's kindness."

"Humph."

The old woman rolled her eyes and snorted coldly, then continued to hold the porcelain bowl and eat with a stern face.

Rong Zhen glanced sideways slightly.

I am a little curious. Could it be that Senior Song and Mr. Yu have been at odds with each other since they met? I used to think that these legendary seniors in the Luoyang court were all very serious and solemn.

Nanny Song had a stern face and was cold and heartless. Rong Zhen frowned and was also a man of few words.

The dinner table fell into silence again.

At this time, the sound of rain outside the door stopped and the bamboo house became empty and quiet.

Failure to liven up the atmosphere.

The old musician sighed.

People always say that a hundred years pass like a snap of the fingers, and it is rare to live to be seventy.

But he……

The seventy-year-old musician shook his head.

Seventy, working overtime, afraid of workplace violence...

Just as the three of them were having their meal quietly and were about to finish, there was a creaking sound and the bamboo door of the courtyard where the bamboo house was located was pushed open.

The three of them turned to look.

In front of the bamboo gate of the courtyard, two slender female officials stood holding umbrellas.

"what happened?"

Rong Zhen picked up some food with a calm tone.

A female official holding an umbrella made a gesture, as if pointing in the direction of Xunyang City in the east.

The next moment.

The old musician, chewing his meal carefully, noticed that the seat opposite him was empty.

His face froze for a moment.

He turned his head and saw that the cold girl in palace dress was no longer in the courtyard. She had hurried away with two female officials holding umbrellas. Her short figure was leading the way. The two female officials who were holding umbrellas for the lady behind her had their umbrellas almost chased away by the wind and could not keep up with them.

"Just bring him here next time... Do you still need me to pick him up? What a hassle..."

The old musician could also faintly hear the intermittent voice of Miss Rong coming from outside the courtyard, as if she was giving instructions to the female officials holding umbrellas who came to report.

The bowl and chopsticks in his hands stopped in mid-air.

"What's going on?"

Nanny Song didn't even raise her head and said coldly:

"Someone is coming from Xunyang City."

"Who?"

"Who else could it be? The new scholar of Xiuwen Academy appointed by the Saint, Ouyang Lianghan, who is currently acting as the governor of Jiangzhou."

The old musician stroked his beard and asked curiously:

"How did Miss Song know this? I saw that the messenger didn't say anything. Do you female officials of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau know a set of sign language now?"

The old woman with white eyes had no expression on her face.

I don't want to answer this question at all.

The old musician smiled:

"Ms. Rong is really busy, and so are these younger generations. From this perspective, I am quite relaxed. What about Miss Song? The statues are being made outside, aren't you busy at all?"

Nanny Song replied calmly: "If you have nothing to say, you don't have to say anything."

Old Musician: ...

Soon, the two of them finished their lunch carefully.

Nanny Song did not leave. She paced around in the bamboo house, stopping from time to time to look at some of the old musician's daily necessities, but no one knew why.

The old musician was not annoyed at all and started to clear the dishes at the table.

After the rain, a spring breeze blew into the bamboo forest in the wild mountains and blew into the bamboo gates.

Refreshing and bright.

The old musician rolled up his sleeves, and halfway through, his eyes, which were covered with crow's feet, narrowed comfortably. Then, he suddenly covered his mouth with his fists and hunched his body.

"Cough cough cough..."

Nanny Song was walking to a desk and seemed to see a manuscript on the desk out of the corner of her eye. She picked it up and just took a look at it when she suddenly heard a violent cough behind her.

She looked back and frowned:

"Why haven't you recovered from your tuberculosis yet? Last time you came, didn't you tell me that you have a northern disease and the further you go south, the better it will be?"

The old musician coughed for a while, then recovered and lowered his head to wipe his mouth with his sleeve.

He turned around, smiled happily and said:

"Didn't it stop and not go south anymore?"

The old musician was hunched over, and his figure swayed slightly in the spring breeze at the door. He seemed a little weak, but his voice was not weak at all. He laughed heartily:
"There is no rush to return home. It is important to repay the saint's kindness first. Don't worry too much, Miss Song."

Nanny Song put down the manuscript in her hand, her face stern and her tone stiff:

"I'm not worried."

The old musician smiled.

Nanny Song stood there in silence for a while.

"Once the big Buddha outside is built and some bugs are dealt with, I will definitely let you go. When the time comes, I will personally send you off."

"Okay."

The old musician smiled.

After a while, Nanny Song heard him add:
"But looking at the situation, the peach blossoms blooming late in April at the entrance of my hometown village probably won't be able to see me until I grow old."

Nanny Song frowned slightly, as if she didn't like this kind of gossip.

"Dong dong——!"

She tapped the handwritten manuscript of Peach Blossom Spring on the table:
"Old man Yu, is there really no problem with the original copy of Peach Blossom Spring hidden by the Jingzhao Yuan family? It's not a sword technique, nor is it... a cauldron sword?"

The old musician immediately shook his head:
"No, it's just an ordinary authentic work of a famous person... Haha, maybe it's not even an authentic work, it could be a forgery by later generations. After all, there are too many forged paintings and calligraphy by famous people in the world, haha."

He laughed alone for a while, then continued:

"Anyway, it's definitely not a sword technique, don't worry about that. As for whether it's a sword, Miss Song has seen the real thing, so can't she tell the fake one?"

Nanny Song nodded slightly, walked past the old musician, and headed towards the door, ready to leave.

The old musician suddenly called her:

"By the way, Miss Song, do you know where there are peach blossoms nearby?"

"You can't wait even a little longer?"

Nanny Song frowned and said impatiently:
"What's so good about those little peach blossoms? Maybe the peach forest and the village in your hometown have long been gone, but you still miss them every day."

The old musician was quiet for a moment, then smiled and said in an embarrassed tone:
"Sorry, I've been having dreams recently. My head feels dizzy during the day, and dreams and reality are a little confusing. I really miss you. I'm afraid I won't be able to wait until next April for the peach blossoms to bloom."

"Don't say such depressing words. Stay here and take good care of yourself. Tell us if you need anything. Do you think we can let you die? Judging from the progress of the statue, the day of your death... is coming soon."

After a pause, Nanny Song reluctantly added before leaving;
"I will ask for you about the peach blossom forest later, but you are not allowed to go if it is too far from Xunyang City."

The old woman with a rolled eye waved her hand without looking back, and her hunched figure disappeared at the door.

The old musician watched her go away quietly.

The bamboo house returned to silence.

He continued to pack up his bowl, then stopped in the yard and looked around.

It is filled with lush bamboo forests and spring breezes, but it seems like something is missing.

The old musician returned to the room, came to the table, picked up the handwritten manuscript of "Peach Blossom Spring" that Nanny Song had put back, and looked down at it carefully.

"... Suddenly I came across a peach blossom forest, which stretched for several hundred steps along the banks. There were no other trees in the forest, the grass was fresh and fragrant, and the fallen petals were colorful...

"At first it was very narrow, but only then could one get through. After walking a few dozen steps, it suddenly became open... The land was flat and spacious, with neat houses, fertile fields, beautiful ponds, mulberry trees and bamboos..."

He paused for a moment and chanted softly:

"The men and women who come and go and work there dress like outsiders. The old and the young are all happy and contented... When asked what era it is, they have no idea of ​​the Han Dynasty, let alone the Wei and Jin Dynasties..."

After reading one passage, the old musician suddenly closed the book, his face suddenly enlightened:
"Hey, there are peach blossoms here too."

He had a look of sudden enlightenment on his face:

"What a secluded paradise! You know how to find a place to hide from kindness, Tao Yuanming!"

……

------

(PS: Please vote for next month! or2)
(End of this chapter)