Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 279: Reunion

The students from Jiangnan came to Suzhou to join in the fun, but now they can't get in, which adds to the trouble in Suzhou. The place is full of wilderness and there is not much scenery to see, so when there is a commotion in front of the gate, no one fails to pay attention.

The crowd formed a semicircle and surrounded the quarreling young men and a pair of monks in the middle.

Behind the two groups of people was a long desk for the scholars to answer the first entry-level test questions, with writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstone on it.

Ink marks have been left on a lot of rice paper, but the scratches are just barely enough to form a neat second line of the couplet.

Everyone was at a loss for a moment and was already annoyed. After hearing the noise and the monk's simple statement, they naturally stood on the side of the young man who was looking for trouble.

It was common for scholars to look down on each other, but today a scholar was looked down upon by a monk, which made him even more jealous. They all stared at Yue Ling, waiting to see him make a fool of himself.

Hearing the noise, a group of people came hurriedly from behind the desk, all wearing black robes and holding short sticks.

Their duty was to maintain order in the venue, but when they saw that the person surrounded by the crowd was Xu Lang, the eldest son of the Xu family, they stepped back and ignored him.

With someone backing him up, Shen Ying straightened his back a little and stepped forward to ask, "You, you already have my cousin as your wife, why are you following your female master to convert to Buddhism? Are you attracted by her beauty? It turns out that you, Liu Erlang, are a flower thief in the martial arts world, and you always abandon women after having sex with them!"

Compared with monks, literati look down on martial artists, not to mention the flower thieves who are despised by all martial artists.

As soon as these words were spoken, they were met with a chorus of disgust from the audience.

"The female master looks familiar. She must be the Master Miaoyu who has been doing a lot of good deeds in Wu County recently. How did you get involved with this guy? Don't be fooled by him! He left without saying goodbye and took my cousin who is as beautiful as a fairy away. Now he comes to join you in the elegant gathering. Doesn't this prove how bad his character is?"

Miaoyu looked at the scene in bewilderment, her lips moving as she whispered, "He can't be a bad guy."

Yue Ling raised his arm and signaled to Miaoyu behind him, telling her not to say anything more.

Seeing the veins on the wrists from the cuffs, Xu Lang realized that the man in front of him might not be a simple martial artist. Moreover, the way he looked at them just now seemed like he was looking at prey, but now it was as if he was looking at a dead person, which made Xu Lang's heart shudder.

Shen Ying once said that in front of many guards of the Shen family, one of his arms was cut off. But now Xu Lang just came to attend the elegant gathering and he didn't have many guards with him. If they really quarreled here, he would probably suffer a loss.

Pushing Shen Ying behind him, Xu Lang continued to smile, "Brother Liu, as an outsider, I will not judge your family affairs. It's just that you just said that this couplet is simple, but now this couplet excludes everyone. If you don't come up with it, you have to give an explanation to the Jiangnan students you look down on, right?"

"If you just brag in front of the door to please the female master, you will probably have a hard time getting out of this crowd."

The onlookers were also filled with anger and stared at Yue Ling with angry eyes.

Shen Ying said angrily: "Brother, we can't let him go easily. He has cut off my arm before. At the very least, we have to cut off one of his arms!"

Xu Lang held up his folding fan and stopped Shen Ying from speaking.

Then he spread out his fan to cover his face and whispered, "Brother has important matters to attend to today, and he also needs to win the favor of Marquis An Jing. If something unexpected happens here, how will I explain it to my father?"

"Let's see if he can come up with this pair of words. There's no need to use force to teach someone a lesson."

What Xu Lang said made a lot of sense, so Shen Ying had no choice but to swallow his breath and nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, Yue Ling sighed in his heart: "Using the power to pressure others is more shrewd than throwing dirty water. It seems that Xu Lang is smarter than the son of the Shen family."

Yue Ling couldn't help but show some favor in his eyes, thinking that the family that raised such a young man must have a lot of background.

Everyone was pressing forward, but Yue Ling remained indifferent and did not respond, remaining calm and composed. Instead, Miaoyu, who was following behind him, became a little anxious.

After carefully looking at the first couplet again, Miaoyu couldn't think of how to come up with the second couplet. She couldn't help Yue Ling, which made Miaoyu more worried.

"Can you really guess the second line?"

Looking at Yue Ling's back, Miaoyu asked again.

Yue Ling said loudly: "I never brag."

The young man beside Xu Lang couldn't help laughing and said, "You are just a flower thief, how dare you bark here? I'm afraid you don't even understand this couplet? I'm kindly reminding you that the word '调' is a polyphone. If you want to answer it, you have to answer it with a polyphone."

Hearing this, the people around burst into laughter.

But when they looked again, they didn't see any surprised expression on Yue Ling's face, which made them lose interest.

Does this person in front of me recognize this couplet?

"Don't hold on any longer. If you can't answer correctly, kowtow to the students outside Canglang Pavilion, apologize, and get out of Suzhou City!"

Suddenly someone in the crowd shouted angrily, and the people around him echoed him.

Yue Ling lifted his spirits and angrily stared at the person who spoke, "If I tell you, will all of you kneel down and apologize to me?"

"That's natural!"

Everyone thought that it was impossible for Yue Ling to come up with such a difficult couplet, so they continued to agree with him.

Yue Ling waved his sleeves and turned around, passed by Miaoyu, came to the desk, picked up the pen and dipped it in ink, and then wrote like a dragon, finishing it in one go.

In just a blink of an eye, the brush returned to the pen holder, attracting everyone's attention.

Miaoyu was the closest to Yue Ling, standing next to him. She slightly sighed at Yue Ling's beautiful handwriting and silently recited the couplet in her heart: "Plant flowers, plant good seeds, plant all kinds of seeds, and all kinds of seeds will be fragrant. Wonderful, the Marquis really got it right!"

Miaoyu is a well-read person, and can even be Xing Xiuyun's teacher. Now seeing that Yue Ling is not only a master of strategy, but also has talent, an unknown emotion that was originally hidden in her heart now melts in her eyes.

The examiner behind the desk saw Yue Lingshu write the second couplet, so he quickly picked it up and came over to judge together.

"种" is also a homophone with different pronunciations. One is the verb "sow", and the other is the noun "kind", which is exactly the same as the word "调".

Moreover, the tuning of the piano reflects this grand event, and the planting of flowers also reflects the flower beds that can be seen everywhere in Canglang Pavilion, which is very suitable for the scene.

Seeing that the examiners were really judging Yue Ling's second line seriously, everyone present, except Miaoyu, couldn't remain calm.

"What exactly is right? Can this guy really figure it out?"

The young master and his group came to the front, waiting anxiously.

If the result is not what they want, it will not only be a slap in their faces, but will also implicate everyone present.

The Canglang Yaji is so lively, and the interesting things that happened during it will also become the topic of conversation among people after dinner. If talking about them is embarrassing, how can people go out on weekdays?
Xu Lang stopped waving his folding fan and stared at the examiners who were talking in front of him.

After a while, a man walked out, came to Yue Ling, and said: "Master, the couplet you came up with is the best today, and it is also the most neat second line. It is even more outstanding than the second line we prepared. You have passed this first level."

Hearing this, Miaoyu suppressed her excited heart, waved her arms gently, and looked at Yue Ling with admiration.

Yue Ling had a matter-of-fact expression on his face, which seemed to annoy others even more.

But the young masters standing by were all stunned as if they had been struck by lightning.

The examiner came to Xu Lang and handed him the second couplet that Yue Ling had just written. "Mr. Xu, this person is really talented and has indeed come up with a second couplet. Please take a look."

Xu Lang took the paper awkwardly, read it carefully, and tried to distinguish the pronunciation for a moment before looking up at the first couplet on the gate archway.

First couplet: Tune the zither to a new tune, tune to a new tune, tune to a new tune, tune to a new tune

Second line: Plant flowers well and you will get all kinds of fragrance.

"This……"

Xu Lang's hands could not help but tremble slightly. Once the couplet was matched, it could not be false. Even if he wanted to quibble, it would be useless at this moment.

"It is definitely the case. I am sorry for neglecting the previous matter. I hope you can forgive me."

Xu Lang bowed and stepped forward.

When Yue Ling's second line was spread, more scholars who were watching the fun couldn't help but marvel at it, and their views on Yue Ling changed slightly.

Yue Ling did not give them face, and said to the few people who had just stirred up the emotions in the crowd: "Since I have revealed it, why don't you kneel down and apologize to me?"

When everyone heard this, they were stunned at first, and then they all took a few steps back, unwilling to get involved in this topic.

And all the people who had just instigated Yue Ling lowered their heads and ignored his words, pretending they didn't hear anything.

Kneeling down in public is really too humiliating.

Xu Lang played the role of a good guy and said, "Brother Liu, you know from your experience in the martial arts world that it is better to resolve a feud than to create one. This time we underestimated you, it is our fault. I apologize on your behalf, but you should not be so unreasonable, in the end you will only be the one hurt."

Shen Ying also came back to his senses at this moment, and hurriedly stepped forward to help, "Yes, we were wrong, but putting aside that couple, isn't it right for you to look down on the scholars in Jiangnan?"

Yue Ling couldn't help but curl his lips when he heard this, and even wanted to applaud these two people. They were really experts in stirring up trouble.

But Yue Ling did not respond. Instead, he looked at the people watching the excitement and asked loudly, "Are you and the two of them thinking the same thing?"

The noise in the field was gone, and everything fell silent, but no one responded to Yue Ling's words.

Yue Ling snorted coldly and said, "If you are willing to accept the loss, I will think you have backbone. If you still cheat after losing, I think the literati here are just so-so."

"It's just a kneeling. If you don't kneel today, you won't be able to kneel in the future."

Yue Ling didn't want to compete with a group of scholars, that would be too self-deprecating, so he turned around and called Miaoyu, "Come on, let's go in."

Only when Yue Ling called her did Miaoyu retract her burning gaze, took out the invitation from her bosom and handed it to the person checking at the door.

"Master Miaoyu, please come in."

The silence was broken only when Yue Ling and the other person entered the garden.

Shen Ying could not swallow this breath, and kept yelling and cursing, "This guy is really a mean man, he clearly has an invitation, but he insisted on coming to take the test, deliberately showing off in public, and treating us as foils."

"It's just a kneeling. If he doesn't kneel today, he won't be able to kneel again in the future. Who does he think he is? Marquis of Anjing? This is really outrageous!"

The spectators surrounding Xu Lang and others were also affected by the incident and did not forget to spit at them before dispersing.

The first question that stood in front of everyone now has an answer. Those who thought they had no hope of entering the park are now cheering themselves up to answer the second question, which is the most important to them.

The instructor in front shouted, "For the next two questions, you must not tell others your answers after you answer them. If your answers are exactly the same, you will not be allowed to enter the park!"

Everyone rushed forward and rushed to the second doorplate building, waiting for the list to be announced and to do the questions.

At this time, Xu Lang finally came back to his senses. "Today should be my day to shine, but how come I'm having such a bad time before I even enter the garden? This is not a good sign."

"Brother, brother? Shall we go into the garden too? We have invitations in our hands, so there's no need to join in the fun of doing the questions."

After being called by Shen Ying several times, Xu Lang focused his attention on him. Looking at Shen Ying's dejected look, he felt that he was an unlucky person.

If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have been at a disadvantage earlier.

Since he was an outcast of the Xu family, Xu Lang was in a bad mood and didn't want to put on a show anymore, so he immediately looked gloomy.

"I am going to look for my father. You can go and visit the garden by yourselves."

After saying that, he strode into Canglang Pavilion, leaving those who were gathered around him at a loss.

Seeing Xu Lang's dissatisfaction with her, Shen Ying slapped her thigh in anger, "Liu Xianglian, this playboy, is having an affair outside behind my beautiful cousin's back, and he even came to ruin my good deeds. I will report him to my father later and ask him to bring my cousin back!"

Thinking of that beautiful and well-behaved cousin with a little rouge mark on her forehead, Shen Ying couldn't help but feel hungry, and her mood improved a lot.

"Brothers, shall we go in too?"

……

Canglang Pavilion, back hall,

Fan Pengcheng hesitated under the eaves for a while, and finally knocked on the door.

"My Lord, your humble servant Fan Pengcheng wishes to see you."

Soon, Lin Daiyu's clear voice came from inside, "Master Fan, please come in."

After entering the door, Fan Pengcheng looked around, but did not see the twelve girls. Only Lin Daiyu was drinking tea with Marquis Anjing. There was only a little sweat on Marquis Anjing's forehead, and his expression was no different from more than an hour ago.

Fan Pengcheng was secretly surprised, but he still asked, "My Lord, have you rested well? It's almost time, and all the celebrities have arrived at the pavilion, waiting to meet you."

Lin Daiyu answered on his behalf, "I have rested well. Sir Fan, please lead the way."

Fan Pengcheng nodded slightly, but couldn't help asking, "My Lord, are you satisfied with those twelve people? Where are they now?"

Thinking of what Xue Baochai had just said, Lin Daiyu's cheeks turned slightly red, but because of her veil covering her face, no one noticed.

Xue Baochai looked at Lin Daiyu with a hint of smile in her eyes.

Lin Daiyu's throat moved slightly, and she only answered: "They are still resting in the room now."

Fan Pengcheng was stunned, and couldn't help but secretly complained: "The physical strength of Anjing Hou is so good, and the twelve are just sweating a little? This... It is rumored that the Yellow Emperor had sex with three thousand women at night and became an immortal. It seems that the Marquis also has excellent bedroom skills."

He stroked his old waist gently, and thought of the concubines he had married when he was young, and now he was no longer able to take care of them.

"Would you like to ask the Marquis how to maintain it?"

But seeing the young girl Lin Daiyu nearby, Fan Pengcheng gave up the idea as it was really hard to say.

"The Marquis is so strong, but Lin Ruhai is willing to keep his only daughter by his side. I really don't know what to say."

Seeing that Fan Pengcheng didn't move for a long time, Lin Daiyu asked, "Master Fan? Aren't we going out yet?"

Fan Pengcheng quickly came back to his senses, "Yes, yes, it's important to go to the pavilion."

Canglang Pavilion is located in the center of the lake. You need to take a boat from the small pier on the shore to get to the pavilion.

It is not called a pavilion, but more like an isolated island in the water. In the center of this island, a tall pavilion is built.

At present, the area around the pavilion is filled with seats, and there are names corresponding to the names from far to near.

I think the order is based on status.

However, the shore was only about ten feet away, so there were not many seats for such a grand event. There were even more boats on the lake, and each boat had a small table outside the cabin, forming a banquet.

Lin Daiyu found this scene very novel.

"Master Fan, where is the Marquis' seat?"

Fan Pengcheng said: "Of course it is in the pavilion."

Fan Pengcheng brought Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai all the way to Canglang Pavilion, where there were even fewer seats. Only eight seats were seen, and they seemed more like the judges of this elegant gathering.

The other seven seats were occupied, with only the one in the middle still vacant. Needless to say, that must be their seats.

Someone else came into the pavilion and immediately attracted the attention of everyone who was still chatting.

Seeing Fan Pengcheng leading the way, they all knew that it was Marquis An Jing who had arrived, so they all stood up to greet him.

Arriving at the pavilion, Fan Pengcheng introduced everyone one by one, "This is Xu Yaozu, the patriarch of Suzhou Xu family. He has been organizing Canglang Yaji for more than ten years. All the preparations here were made by the patriarch of Xu family."

This sentence also implied that the small opera troupe was also the work of this person. Lin Daiyu understood it and couldn't help but look at this person twice more.

"This person is tarnishing Brother Yue's reputation. I have to make a note of this and tell him when I see him."

Just as Lin Daiyu was thinking about it secretly, Xu Yaozu had already stepped forward with a smile on his face and bowed.

"Your Excellency, your presence is truly an honor to my humble home! I am a humble person, but I have been organizing this Canglang Gathering for some years. Although it was quite lively in the past, it was nothing like today's grand occasion. All the wise and sages from famous families have come, and the seats are all full. Outside the hall, young scholars seeking knowledge are like a swarm of crucian carp, blocking the road in front of the door. If it weren't for your reputation and grace, how could we have gathered such a scene and attracted so many talented people from all over the world?

Lin Daiyu bowed and said calmly, "You are too kind. It is indeed the master of the Xu family who has arranged it so thoughtfully."

Seeing that it was the little girl beside Marquis An Jing who replied, Xu Yaozu didn't understand what she meant.

Fan Pengcheng stepped forward and explained, "Your Majesty has a sore throat and is having trouble speaking. This is the daughter of Yangzhou Salt Inspector Lin Ruhai, and she is here to speak for you."

Xue Baochai also nodded very appropriately.

Upon hearing that it was Lin Ruhai's daughter and seeing An Jinghou's statement, Xu Yaozu did not neglect and bowed to Lin Daiyu again.

Fan Pengcheng led the two of them forward and introduced the person next to them, "This is the second master of the Zhen family in Jinling, Zhen Yingjia, the supervisor of the Suzhou and Hangzhou Weaving Bureau."

Zhen Yingjia had just taken a look at the face of the visitor. Although he was quite handsome and not of ordinary appearance, he was less masculine and heroic than he had expected the Marquis of An Jing to be. He couldn't tell what was wrong with him, so he bowed to greet him.

"The Weaving Bureau works for the palace, and Marquis Anjing is also working for His Majesty when he goes south. I hope Marquis Anjing can take care of us in the future."

Xue Baochai nodded again, and Lin Daiyu bowed in return.

"This is the son of Prime Minister An, the Left Prime Minister of the current dynasty, Abe."

"I've met the Marquis."

"This is Minister Qian. You saw him when the Marquis got off the ship."

"This is a famous scholar in Suzhou City, with many students and disciples. He is Master Shi Zhengyi."

"This is the Grandmaster Sima Daoist of the Shangqing Sect."

"..."

After introducing the two people, Fan Pengcheng led them to the center and sat them down. He then said, "My reputation is not enough to allow me to sit in this pavilion, so I will leave first. If you have any questions, you can use anyone nearby."

Lin Daiyu nodded gently, "Thank you, Master Fan."

After sitting down, Lin Daiyu began to look around.

According to what Yue Ling said in the letter, the Canglang Gathering was the place where they would meet again, but at this moment Lin Daiyu had not yet found Yue Ling.

The seats outside the pavilion were almost full, and even the cabins on the lake were filled with many people.

Despite this, Lin Daiyu did not see the person she wanted to see.

Just when she was feeling a little lost, she felt Xue Baochai pulling her.

Lin Daiyu suddenly came back to her senses and heard Qian Shiyuan beside her talking: "My Lord, you have just dealt with the affairs of Cangzhou and you have come to Suzhou without stopping. It is really hard work. I would like to offer you a drink and wish you success in everything you plan in the future."

Lin Daiyu nodded and thanked him, "Thank you, Lord Qian. My Lord, your throat is uncomfortable and you can't drink. How about tea instead of wine?"

Qian Shiyuan waved his hand and said, "It's okay, my Lord, please do as you please."

Xue Baochai resisted the urge to raise her fingers, but just picked up the teacup and took a sip, trying to make as few movements as possible so as not to let others notice her flaw.

Then he heard Qian Shiyuan beside him say: "Today's Canglang Gathering is to witness the talents of the younger generation, not to discuss state affairs. Don't mind if you guys chat casually."

"I thought I was going to stay in Hangzhou, but I didn't expect to have this experience. Prime Minister Zhao, who is far away in Hangzhou, is really unlucky."

Everyone looked at each other and burst into laughter.

In the room, there were two old men without official status, the great scholar Mr. Shi and Taoist Master Sima. They sat close to each other and had known each other for many years. They were old friends.

Both of them had received invitations to the Canglang Gathering in the past, but had never shown up. However, today they were both here at the same time, and they smiled knowingly at each other.

After meeting An Jinghou himself, Master Shi and Taoist Sima asked in a low voice: "Master, can you see any clues?"

Taoist Sima shook his whisk, twirled his beard, and said, "This marquis is a woman in disguise."

Master Shi smiled and said, "You have a good eye. I have always heard that Marquis Anjing does things in an unconventional way and does not respect common sense. Maybe today's visit is not in vain?"

Taoist Sima nodded slightly.

The two of them talked in a low voice so that no one else could hear them. Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai also thought that they had dressed up well and did not disrupt their original plan.

After no one spoke to her, Lin Daiyu continued to gaze into the distance. After thinking for a long time, she finally saw her long-missed Brother Yue at the end of the table on the northeast corner of the shore.

Lin Daiyu's eyes lit up and her heart beat faster.

When his eyes dispersed, they quickly dimmed, and then turned fierce, "Brother Yue, there is a woman beside you!"

(End of this chapter)