Xianyun Yihe

Through the fields, the meandering stream flows quietly, the weeds with white flowers sway with the wind, and the cool breeze blows.Xianyun walked on the bank, a little far away from the village, looking up, there is his own house on the other side, and green hills on this side, lush and green.Behind him was a full-fledged white crane, which was chirping and walking forward, stepping on small pebbles by the stream from time to time, as if playing some game.

The afternoon sun is not glare, it is just brilliant, and the shadows of the trees are whirling.After walking for a while, Baihe got tired, so he lost his temper and asked Xianyun to hug him, otherwise he would stay where he was and refused to move. "You." Xianyun has always doted on it, and he naturally reached out to hug it. In the cool breeze and the fragrance of flowers, he felt very comfortable.

After a while, when it was almost at the foot of the mountain, Xianyun stopped to rest, picked a few large leaves, and folded them into shapes that could hold water.The leaf stalk just became the shape of a spoon handle, and when held in the hand, a clear stream of water was contained in the leaf.Bai He stretched his neck, took a few sips, and hurriedly rubbed his head against Xianyun's hand, asking him to drink some too, so as not to be thirsty.After walking for half a day, even under the shade of the trees, there was a sultry heat rising from the chest and abdomen.

The fish and shrimps in the stream were frightened and avoided far away, and soon they seemed to have no memory, and came up to them foolishly, shuttling between the rocks, occasionally biting off a section of aquatic plants.The white crane raised its feet to step on the water, and the little fish hula-la swam towards the distance, making it shout with joy. "These are not pretty enough. In summer, let Agui go to the city to buy some carp and put them in the pond." Xianyun knows that it likes to play and like beautiful things. It planted a pond of lotus in the early years, but forgot to watch it. fish.

Now it is mid-April, and the lotus is about to bloom again, pink and white, if there are more light red and deep red carps, it will definitely be more beautiful.

After passing this section of the road, you can see a small wooden house, which should be the resting place for the villagers before and after going up the mountain.There are only some pheasants and hares in the forest here, and there are no wolves or tigers, so Xianyun dared to come alone.He knocked on the door, and a man's voice came from inside: "Who is it?"

Sure enough, it was the eldest son of the old tenant, named Ajin, who was born with a hulking back and a hunchbacked waist, but with a simple and honest face.He caught fish this morning, and went up the mountain to catch wild animals, in order to entertain the master with something new tonight.Seeing Xianyun standing outside the door holding Baihe in his arms, he first rubbed his hands a little awkwardly, then he came back to his senses and welcomed him into the house: "Here...not cleaned up much, it's a bit messy."

There are bows and arrows hanging on the wall, spears are leaning against the corner, and the newly made leathers are piled up beside the couch before they can be disposed of in time.The quilt on the wooden couch was a bit old, exuding a faint musty smell.Xian Yun looked at the few pheasants bound by grass by the door, and the rabbit wounded by arrows: "You caught them all?"

Ah Jin nodded: "Yes, he is very fat, so he was easily caught."

Xianyun also laughed, because there are no ferocious large animals, the waterfowl in the forest are not smart, plump and fresh, and people who come here never return empty-handed.Although the title deeds are held in his hands, he believes that this is something shared with the world, and the birds and beasts, wild vegetables and mushrooms are reserved for people to share.

As dusk approached, Ah Jin brought up wild animals and went back to the village with Xianyun. Baihe stared at the fat chickens, not knowing what to think.The sky was getting dark, and both of them heard the crowing from the mountain forest. The crowing was probably the joyful singing of the pheasants who were spared to fill in the Wu Zang Mansion.On the trunk of the tree beside the road were carved some pictures, all below the waist, which looked like they were made by children when they were playing. There were crude pictures of a pheasant with outstretched wings, a rabbit with two long ears raised up, and a cunning fox.The white crane was attracted, and lightly pecked at the bark with its mouth, as if it wanted to engrave something, but in the end it only left a few not-so-deep marks, which made it angrily pounce on Xianyun, begging for comfort like rubbing.

The trace was like a cloud, lightly covering the sun.

When I saw the old tenant's house, the smoke was already lit, and the smell of rice wafted in the wind.Ah Jin walked faster, calling for his parents loudly, and gave his sister a small bunch of flowers wrapped in grass leaves.When the old tenant's wife left the kitchen, she smiled proudly when she saw the wild animals in his hands.

"Da Lang, come and help A Niang butcher the chicken."

Ah Jin obediently complied, picked two of the fattest pheasants, threw the rest into the chicken pen at the back of the house, and walked into the back kitchen.He grabbed the pheasant's wing with one hand, and with the knife in the other, he cut the throat neatly.The pheasant crowed twice, but there was no more sound. The white crane, who was peeking outside the door, couldn't help but flinch and fled to Xianyun's side.

Taking advantage of the exceptionally good weather tonight, the old tenant moved out the wooden bench and placed the table in the small courtyard.Ah Qing set up the bowls and chopsticks, Ah Liang also found an empty bottle, filled it with water, inserted the wild flowers brought back by his brother, and placed it in front of the window.

The snails picked up this morning had already spit out all the sand, their tails were cut off, and the meat was dug out one by one. The peculiar smell made the white cranes walk around the door, looking a little anxious.On the other hand, Ah Jin scalded the chickens with hot water to pluck their feathers. Compared with the domestic chickens that are usually raised, these pheasants are quite chewy and not so loose.The wife of an old tenant knows how to make snail chicken. Cut the pheasant into pieces and cook a pot of soup. Then heat the oil pan, add spices such as perilla, green onion and ginger, then add chicken and snails, stir fry with oil and salt for a while.The thick aroma couldn't wait to disperse, and Xianyun couldn't help but approach, looking at it with interest.

Whether it's snails or chicken, they are all wild animals, and they are turned into a dish of delicacy in spring.

As the night was getting dark, lanterns were hung in the small courtyard, and everyone came to the table. The old tenant finally opened the wine he had kept and drank happily.Xianyun seldom drank this kind of strong wine from the farmhouse, but after tasting it, he thought it was not bad, so he poured another glass.Ah Jin has always been reticent, drinking wine sullenly, listening to his parents boasting about himself and his sister.While talking, when they talked about Ah Qing's marriage, Xian Yun also became interested in it: "Ah Gui is young and has no elders in his family, knowing that he can marry a good woman is already ecstatic."

"It's a child of a good family, so we can ask the village chief to help with the management." The old tenant was drunk, chewing on the snail meat, and thinking cheerfully, "When Agui comes over, we will be a family."

Ah Qing's face was flushed with shame, she didn't dare to raise her head, but in her heart she was also looking forward to getting married after her birthday.

The old tenant's wife secretly put away the wine jar and put it beside Ah Jin: "It's time for Ah Liang to get engaged. It would be even better if things can be married."

Xian Yun nodded: "But you've taken a fancy to A Ping from the family at the entrance of the village? He's smart enough to find a job in charge of a shop, so he's going to live in the city forever."

"Whether it's in the city or in the village." Seeing that A Liang didn't refuse, the old tenant's wife smiled.Speaking of this, she suddenly glanced at her eldest son who was still alone, and found that his expression did not change, so she couldn't help but sighed.

Holding down the white crane that was eager to try, Xianyun noticed the sigh and was also a little puzzled: "A Jin is nineteen years old, why hasn't he married yet?"

Without waiting for his parents to speak, Ah Jin replied in a low voice: "I fell in love with someone, but..."

"He just has a stubborn temper." The old tenant's wife hurriedly interrupted, "When Ah Qing and Ah Liang's marriage is over, I'll hurry him!"

Ah Jin ate with his head buried in his mouth, without saying a word.

It was already dark, and the old tenant's family sent Xianyun away after eating and drinking, and the lanterns in the courtyard were also extinguished.The carriage was already waiting at the entrance of the village, Xianyun was rubbing Bai He's stomach while walking slowly in the field, accompanied by the moon and stars on the road.

After returning home, most of the servants had rested, only Agui and the yellow dog were guarding the door, and the hangover soup was still warming in the back kitchen.Bai He ate a bunch of snail meat and drank chicken soup, his stomach was full, but his cry was full of joy.Seeing Xianyun drinking the hangover soup, it flapped its wings and flew to the table, looking out curiously.

"Okay, be good." Xianyun drank the soup in the bowl. "The wine in the farm is really strong. After the autumn harvest, I have to make a few jars of grain wine." Resting on the couch, Bai He found a seat, biting the thin quilt to cover his body.Xianyun didn't bother to drive it away, so he simply fell asleep together. The whole night's dream was filled with the smell of brook water and wine, and a fat crane pecking at the bark of a tree.