The White-haired Queen

Gu Changfeng took Wen Nuan Yue for a walk around the manor. The design of the entire manor was a bit like the garden style of Jiangnan.

Ponds, rockeries, pavilions and towers... more ancient than Suzhou gardens, more natural than West Lake in Hangzhou. Add to that the servants and maids running around, and if she hadn't had status here, she would have thought she was acting.

After touring the manor, Gu Changfeng brought Wen Lanyue to the center of Taoyuan Town. In the rouge shop, the aroma of powder filled the air; in the steamed bun shop, the steamed buns were steaming; in the teahouse, the aroma of tea was overflowing, and the sound of storytelling was endless; in the wine shop, the aroma of wine was mellow and strong, and various short songs were played one after another...

Wen Lanyue walked into the tavern involuntarily and sat down in a corner.

Gu Changfeng asked: "Yue'er, what kind of wine do you want to drink? Your favorite osmanthus wine or the most famous peach blossom wine here?"

Wen Lanyue said, "Let's drink peach blossom wine. Let's try it." The original owner liked osmanthus wine the most, but Wen Lanyue didn't think she liked it the most. The fragrance of osmanthus spread ten miles away, so the wine made from it was naturally good and refreshing, so she couldn't say she didn't like it. Try peach blossom wine, maybe you will change your taste.

As soon as the peach blossom wine was served, Wen Lanyue took a sip. Wow, it tasted really smooth. No wonder there are always people in costume dramas who drink a few pots of peach blossom wine and get drunk in the Peach Blossom Spring. The love and scenery are really better than countless other things in the world.

Suddenly, there was a sound of drums, and then a host came on stage and said, "To liven up the atmosphere, we will now start drinking games. Anyone who can answer the questions correctly can get a prize, or even a free meal. Are you ready for the first round of couplets?"

There was a round of applause, and everyone said in unison: "We are ready."

The officer said, "Let's start now." After that, there was another "dang" sound, and the officer asked the question: "The breeze is gentle over the willow pond."

Someone answered: "The moon is bright over the lotus pond."

Someone answered: "The sun is shining brightly in the fields."

Someone answered: "The rain is drizzling in the flower garden."

……

The officer in charge said, "You all are great. All of the above people will receive a plate of peanuts from our store." After getting some sweet rewards, everyone had more fun and the atmosphere was more lively.

Then the officer asked another question, "There is someone holding a short sword beside the courtyard."

Someone answered: "No one recites poetry in front of the flowers."

Someone answered: "No one drinks good wine under the moon."

Someone answered: "No one is pounding long gowns by the stream."

……

Wen Lanyue replied, "There are no guests dragging their long skirts in front of the door." It is true that one only regrets not having read enough books when he needs them. All the books he read are not in vain, thanks to the fact that he had memorized "Sound and Rhythm Primer" when he was young.

"This young master is really right."

"This young man is both handsome and intelligent."

"'Drag the long skirt', it's really amazing."

……

Gu Changfeng looked at Wen Lanyue with a faint smile.

The officer said, "Very good. All of the above will receive a pot of our signature peach blossom wine. Now let's ask the third question: 'Fish don't jump in cold water.'"

Someone answered: "Hot gold does not change."

Someone answered: "The sky is too high for birds to fly."

Someone retorted: "How can birds not fly when the sky is high? That's not reasonable."

Someone else echoed, "It just doesn't make sense, so it doesn't count."

Someone said: "I have only heard that the sky is high enough for birds to fly freely, but how can there be a sky so high that birds do not fly?"

……

The man defended himself by saying, "It's fine as long as it's neat. Besides, the sky is too high, and birds can't fly that high. If the sky is too high, the air will be too thin, and birds won't be able to fly, and even survival will be a problem."

……

The officer said: "This is far-fetched and not rigorous, so it doesn't count."

The man went on to say, "Then the sea is wide and people don't swim in it. The sea is too wide and people can't swim in it, so they don't swim in it. Is that logical? Who says it's illogical? Then go swim in it. Hahahaha..."

The officer said helplessly: "It's barely acceptable. Who else has a better one?"

Wen Lanyue stood up and replied, "The forest is lush and birds are frequenting it."

The audience applauded, many people gave thumbs up, and someone praised: "It's really great, it's both superb and elegant."

Someone said: "It's not just high, it's absolutely perfect."

Someone said: "Wonderful, really wonderful!"

...Gu Changfeng didn't look surprised. As the princess of Wen Jing Kingdom, it was reasonable for Wen Lanyue to have been influenced by culture and received a good education since childhood, even though the country was destroyed.

At this time, an elegant old man came over to greet Wen Lanyue and said, "Sir, are you ready to get married?"

Wen Lanyue thought that although she was a woman dressed as a man, she and Gu Changfeng had been engaged since childhood. And he was sitting opposite her, so she replied, "We were engaged since childhood."

The old man still wanted to ask, "My daughter is not only beautiful, but also good at needlework, music, chess, calligraphy and painting. Are you willing to meet her?"

Wen Lanyue waved her hands repeatedly and said, "Old man, this is not allowed."

The old man continued, "Why not? It is normal for a man to have three wives and four concubines. I admire your talent very much. I hope you can meet him first."

Wen Lanyue looked at Gu Changfeng and saw that he was looking at her as if he was watching a farce. She thought to herself, "If you don't help me, I will say that I have a crush on you and drag you into this mess. But this is the worst possible strategy."

So he said, "I'm really sorry, my parents have been together all their lives, and I also want to be together all my life, that's the tradition of our family."

The old man's eyes sparkled as he said, "It's rare, rare. It's a pity, it's a pity that my daughter doesn't have this blessing. Then, shall we be friends?"

Wen Lanyue said: "Thank you for your kindness, old sir."

The old man said, "To the east of Taoyuan Town, there is a small medicine shop called Peiyuantang. That is my home. Also, my last name is Qi."

Wen Lanyue said, "Okay. I'll make a note of it and visit you another day."

The old man said: "I will treat you to a drink when the time comes. Since we can't be father-in-law and son-in-law, it would be nice to be friends regardless of age difference." After saying that, the old man returned to his seat.

……

The officer said, "The wine at other tables is 50% off, and the table of this gentleman is free."

There was applause.

The host continued, "Now we start the second round of flying flowers, which will be held in tables. The first word is 'flower', and we start."

Table 1: "The flower is not a flower, the fog is not a fog."

Table 2: "Flowers are like spring sun, moon is like autumn frost."

Table 3: "Flowers bloom and fade, the cycle continues."

Table 4: "The falling flowers have feelings, but the flowing water is ruthless."

Table 5: "Green pines and cypresses, fragrant flowers and chirping birds."

At the sixth table, Wen Lanyue answered, "Suddenly, a spring breeze came overnight, and thousands of pear trees blossomed."

The people in the tavern began to talk again, "Suddenly, a spring breeze came overnight, and thousands of pear trees blossomed. It's quite poetic!"

"What do you think this describes?"

"When willow catkins are flying?"

"Is it a dandelion? It looks free, but it is not free."

"Is it winter snow?"

"Yes, it should be snow. Snow is white, just like pear blossoms. When the snow falls on the trees, it looks like thousands of pear blossoms are in full bloom."

"That's a great answer. You can even use it as a riddle to guess."

……

After this series of operations, Wen Lanyue felt that surviving in Taoyuan Town was both simple and interesting.