Moon Maze Ferry

Lu Zhanting bent over and curled up at the bottom of the boat. The bumps of the past few days made him vomited in the dark, and then developed a high fever.

He heard the sound of a boat mooring to the pier, and then his head lit up. Someone lifted the top cover and shouted at him, "Cyclops, get up soon! Unloading!"

Lu Zhanting stood up with support, and slowly climbed the stairs to the deck. The bright light shone on his red birthmark that almost covered half of his face. It looked ugly and weird, making people almost unwilling to look at the second Eye.

The fresh air on the banks of the canal lifted his spirits.

Just as he was about to take a few deep breaths, he was kicked hard in the back. The tall fat man in the lead said viciously: "If it wasn't for your cheap wages, I wouldn't want you, a disgusting ugly monster. I didn't expect you to do any work." If I can’t do it, I’ve wasted my food for several days.”

Lu Zhanting slowly got up from the deck, and muttered: "No wonder people say that the most hated thing in the world is the feet and teeth of the car and boat shop. If you catch them, you should kill them."

"What did you say?"

"I said go, go!"

After unloading a ship of cargo, Lu Zhanting sat on the edge of the pier to rest.

Although Yangzhou Mansion is small, it is exquisite and unique.It seemed that it was about to rain, and the whole sky was covered with dark clouds and the city was overwhelmed with darkness.Vendors and plain-headed commoners jogged quickly, pushing their carts and carrying their burdens.As the Double Ninth Festival approached, a handful of boi mugs were planted on top of many door shops.

Thinking of last year's Double Ninth Festival, which seemed to be far away, Lu Zhanting sighed softly.He saw that the boatman seemed to be taking anchor.Then he pretended to lean forward and said, "Boss Gao, I've gotten better recently, so I promise to get one and two in the future!"

Fatty Gao spat hard, and said, "The farther you get out of here, the better, if you want to eat for free, go dream about it!"

Lu Zhanting secretly laughed in his heart, and said in his mouth: "Boss Gao, then you have to take me back anyway."

Fatty Tall seemed to have made up his mind not to pay any attention to him, he lowered the anchor, and yelled that the sail was hoisted, the sail was hoisted.

Lu Zhanting stretched his waist looking at the departing ship, suddenly realized something, and shouted at the departing ship, "Hey, you should leave me the dinner money."

Lu Zhanting touched his stomach which was empty after doing a lot of physical work, and couldn't help but secretly smiled wryly.

Just a few steps away, there are big raindrops falling from the sky, and many of them are getting bigger and bigger.

Lu Zhanting quickly trotted and hid under the eaves of a shop. Before he could stand firmly, a basin of water poured out of it, and said, "You ugly monster, get out, don't touch your grandma's mold!"

Lu Zhanting was furious, but the rain was getting heavier and heavier, so he had to run away in a hurry and found another place to shelter from the rain. The rain was so heavy that even though Lu Zhanting tried his best to stand under the eaves, he was still beaten. drenched.

The rain finally stopped, Lu Zhanting thought about finding a family to inquire about the Ye family, remembering that he hadn't read the content carefully, he reached into his arms and took out the kit.But when I opened it, I couldn't help being stupid, the whole kit was soaked, and the letter was also a mess, and I couldn't make out what was written on it.

He held the piece of paper up to the sun and looked at it again and again, and suddenly burst out laughing, and passers-by said that the ugly monster was a lunatic.With a long sigh, Lu Zhanting put away the piece of paper, looked at the exquisite kit, walked to a small food shop by the side of the road, and exchanged it for a piece of Double Ninth Cake.

He ate the Double Ninth Cake and passed by that shop again.I saw the old woman who scolded me just now was holding a bowl of fresh bamboo and chicken soup in her hand, trying to persuade a skinny young boy to eat.The boy was half lying on the bamboo chair, with a look of irritability and impatience.

"Baby, this is your favorite food. Didn't you used to be unhappy if you didn't eat it every day..."

She wanted to persuade her a few words, but the boy suddenly reached out and swept the bowl of chicken soup on the ground, then fell heavily on the chair and seemed to pass out.The old woman was about to cry, but when she looked up, she saw Lu Zhanting standing at the door, raising her eyebrows just as she was about to curse.

"He's been poisoned!" Lu Zhanting said calmly.

"What did you say?"

"Believe it or not, don't give him bamboo chicken soup anymore. Bamboo chicken likes to eat pinellia, and what he got was the poison of pinellia contained in bamboo chicken soup. Pound two catties of ginger into the juice, take a cup of alum powder, mix it well, and give it to him Just feed me." He said, biting the Chongyang cake and leaving.

It was a deserted temple on the outskirts of the city, with broken walls and broken tiles everywhere, and all the places that did not leak in the temple were occupied by beggars before, so Lu Zhanting had to find a not-so-satisfactory place to lie down.Now he often feels that he does not have enough sleep. In his dreams, Yiyu is always chasing after him. Even if he can sleep soundly, he always wakes up very quickly.

Behind it was the wetland that had just rained, and the weather was getting colder and colder. Lu Zhanting slept until the middle of the night, and couldn't stand it anymore. He piled up the gods' ancestor cards in the temple, lit a fire and roasted them. When the sky was about to dawn, Sleepy, he leaned against the wall and fell asleep again.

As soon as he fell asleep, alternate characters such as Yiyu and Zhuer came one after another.

He dreamed of the spider's cry, Yiyu's sneer, and his own powerless struggle. He suddenly opened his eyes, but saw a man wearing a red silk crepe skirt, a red satin vest, and a white crepe sweater standing opposite him. The little girl was looking at herself coldly.

He had a pair of willow eyebrows like Daisy, and his big black and white eyes looked up and down at Lu Zhanting. She didn't seem to care that Lu Zhanting was surprised at first, but under her undisguised gaze, he looked a little embarrassed.

"You saved the fourth son?"

Lu Zhanting coughed lightly and asked, "Who is the fourth son?"

"It's the one who was poisoned by pinellia."

"No." Lu Zhanting quickly replied, he seemed to wake up all of a sudden, he got up quickly and said with a smile: "Miss, you have misunderstood the person."

The little girl turned her head and said to the door: "Old mother, is this one-eyed man?"

An old lady in green shirt came in from outside. When she saw Lu Zhanting, she immediately smiled and said, "It's him, it's him! He told me yesterday that ginger and alum could save the fourth son. In the past, the fourth son would have to wait a day before he fainted." Wake up, just drank a bowl of ginger soup yesterday and woke up."

Lu Zhanting smiled bitterly: "Did I say ginger juice with alum, I said ginger juice with white vinegar, use it to dip the chicken."

"I don't want to waste time with you, what's your name?"

Lu Zhanting blurted out, "Spider!"

"Pearl?" The little girl had a funny face.

"Spider's spider."

The little girl waved her hand suddenly, and a black python whip wrapped around Lu Zhanting's neck, and her face, which was full of laughter just now, suddenly became frosty.

"You go to see someone with me today. Look after it. I'll give you 100 taels of silver..." The beggars around were amazed, and the little girl said triumphantly, "If you can't cure it!" When the whip was pulled, Lu Zhanting hurriedly waved his hand, and the whip slid away like a spirit snake.

"Girl, I'm not a doctor!" Lu Zhanting said with a wry smile, "I think you're paying a hundred taels of silver every time you make a move, why don't you hire a decent doctor? "

The girl blurted out: "Naturally, I've been invited, even the imperial doctor, and I can't see it well." When she said this, her tone was stagnant, her dark eyes were covered with a veil, and she seemed to want to cry, but Finally, he glared at Lu Zhanting fiercely.

Before the threatening words came out of her mouth, Lu Zhanting sighed softly and said, "Then let's go and have a look." The girl in red was taken aback, and Lu Zhanting smiled again and asked, "What's your name?"

When he smiled, his light-colored lips curved slightly, showing a graceful arc, and the girl thought at that moment: "That ugly monster is not very ugly."

"My name is Ye Huilan."

"Lan Xin Hui Zhi, good name." Lu Zhanting stretched his waist, and said, "I'm hungry, since you want me to see a doctor, you can't let me be hungry, right?"

Ye Huilan snorted softly, and the old lady next to her quickly smiled and said, "This Ye family is one of the largest families in Yangzhou. Not only does the family have a young master who is a general in the capital, the Ye family itself is also the largest salt merchant in Yangzhou. It’s for one meal, even if it’s a Manchu banquet. The best cook in Yangzhou Mansion is in Ye Mansion.”

Ye Huilan played with the whip in her hand, completely expressionless.Lu Zhanting clapped his hands and said with a smile, "That's really great."

Ye Mansion is really a mansion, others have a pair of stone lions at the door, but Ye Mansion has a pair of bronze lions at the door.The entire Ye Mansion covers an area of ​​about ten hectares. From the other courtyards to the main courtyard, everything is luxurious, but not vulgar. The light-hearted wealth reveals another kind of nobility.

Black glazed tiles, pink and white walls, blue brick floors, bronze cranes and sundials are hidden among the green trees, or stand pretty under the white jade steps.Surrounded by green willows, terraces and corridors, the details seem to reveal the gracefulness of the south of the Yangtze River.

"Go see my dad first!"

Lu Zhanting yawned and said, "Let's eat first!"

"You ugly bastard!"

Ye Huilan raised her eyebrows, but was dismissed by Lu Zhanting with a smile, and said: "Your father has been seen by so many doctors, and since he didn't see it well, he probably didn't see it badly. He won't die for a while. I haven't eaten half a meal since last night." Get something, if you don’t save yourself first, you might die to save your father!”

Ye Huilan gritted her teeth and said, "Take him to the side hall!"

Lu Zhanting didn't seem to be satisfied after sitting in the magnificent side hall, he smiled and said, "Since your cook is the best in Yangzhou, then I'll just order it casually, and I don't want the eight pieces of Qin Huai, because the dishes are vulgar."

"I'm not bothering you. I'd like to have some of your authentic Yangzhou dishes, such as steamed anchovies, shredded chicken with silver cabbage, and stewed shark's fin. The abalone is a little out of season this season, but I think it won't be a problem for you in Yefu."

"Actually, I'm not a big fan of Jiangsu cuisine. I prefer Zhejiang cuisine with a light taste. You can also fry some Longjing shrimp. For dessert, you can do whatever you want. You can have thousand-layer oil cake and emerald siu mai."

Ye Huilan's pink face turned red and white, white and red again, and it took her a long time to say: "Do it for him."

Lu Zhanting didn't seem to see Ye Huilan's angry but desperately patient face. He was holding chopsticks in his hand, admiring the scrolls hanging around him.

He turned around, stopped in front of a painting, and said to himself: "It's a good painting, but it's a pity that the vision is too small, and it's a pity that painting a tiger can't be an anti-dog!"

"What are you talking about!" Ye Huilan couldn't bear it anymore, she ran over to Lu Zhanting and said, "What do you know, a beggar? This is drawn by one of the most gifted scholars today."

"One of the best talents?" Lu Zhanting said in surprise, he turned his head to look at the picture carefully, and then laughed: "I said who is so half-hidden, it turned out to be Fu Qingshan's masterpiece."

Seeing the concern on her face, Lu Zhanting became naughty again, and said, "Do you know why?" He pretended to be mysterious and said, "Because I am a trash collector, and every day I receive a lot of trash thrown by others. Fu Qingshan's paintings, I really don't want to know, and it's hard!"

Ye Huilan was furious, but apart from wielding knives and guns, she didn't know anything about piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, and she couldn't tell if what Lu Zhanting said was true or not. She was ashamed and angry when she thought that the paintings by the gifted scholar she admired were thrown away like garbage. .

Lu Zhanting had already sat at the table and started to eat the first dish that was served.He held a few chopsticks, frowned and said, "The steamed shad is not bad, but unfortunately the cage used to steam the fish is too airtight, the water vapor comes up and drips on the fish, diluting the freshness of the fish for no reason. , a little more water vapor."

He turned his head and said solemnly to the maid serving the dishes: "You can tell the cook later that the best way is to hang sand cotton under the steamer, so as to ensure the pure taste of the fish."

Ye Huilan suddenly realized that this beggar was really annoying, so she walked over angrily and sat down in front of Lu Zhanting.It seemed that Lu Zhanting hadn't seen her face clearly until now, he was startled, and immediately obediently stopped talking.

Afterwards, the meal was very silent. Ye Huilan found that the beggar was eating, lifting chopsticks, and picking up vegetables. Many of his movements were extremely elegant, and he seemed to be just tasting the dishes. Tasting food.

Although Ye Huilan doesn't know anything about piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, she is the daughter of a rich family. She likes to hang out with servants since she was a child, so she knows the difference very well.If it weren't for decades of habits, he would definitely not be able to develop this beggar's movements.

Thinking of it this way, out of thin air, she became a little more sympathetic and curious about the ugly monster in front of her. She soon discovered that he seemed to be always smiling, and seemed to be a very cheerful person, but when he was not smiling or silent, she would find that There is always some sadness in his eyes.

After finishing his meal, Lu Zhanting rubbed his stomach and said with a smile, "I've had enough wine and food, now I can go and see your father."

Ye Huilan seemed to have just woken up from contemplation, and hummed casually.

The two went out of the side hall, there were two soft chairs at the entrance of the hall, Ye Huilan sat on them, Lu Zhanting laughed and said, "Whether you can walk two steps if you are full, I will walk, you sit down!"

The two of them walked for about a stick of incense, and along the way Lu Zhanting seemed to be strolling in a courtyard.After entering a garden, the inscription on the garden is called Zhuxin Garden. The scenery in the garden is really different from the outside.

Bamboos are planted all around, the main species are tortoise shell bamboo, solid bamboo, and Tang bamboo. The side near the window lattice is planted with gold inlaid jade. Interlaced and born, on the other side is a clump of jade inlaid with gold, green bamboo stems, but each node is inlaid with a ecliptic.

The two clumps of extremely precious bamboos formed an interesting contrast. Lu Zhanting picked a bamboo leaf and placed it on the tip of his nose, taking a light breath.

A maid came out from the door, holding a bowl of medicine residue in her hand, she saluted Ye Huilan when she saw Ye Huilan standing outside the door.

"Is Daddy feeling better after drinking this medicine?" Ye Huilan asked.

"Back to the third lady, the master of the medicine has not missed a meal, but it has no effect. He still has chest tightness, shortness of breath, dizziness, and poor appetite. A few days ago, the pharmacy prescribed some tonics, and the master took it after stewing, and his complexion did not change. "

Lu Zhanting dipped his finger in the medicine juice, put it in his mouth, and said, "How long has your master been ill?"

"It's been more than ten years, and I don't know how many medicines I have taken."

"My father has always known how to take care of his body. Even if there is no problem, he would take some soup and medicine to recuperate. During the winter and summer solstice, we will never forget to give him tonic. Do you think my father will be hit by something like the fourth son? poison?"

Lu Zhanting didn't answer, but pushed the door open and entered the room, and saw a skinny old man lying unconscious on the bed inside.

He stretched out his hand to take a pulse for a while, and then asked Ye Huilan to bring all the prescriptions that had been prescribed before. He flipped through them one by one. the prescription.

He saw that there were some ink pen comments on the original prescriptions, and Ye Huilan told him that this was the evaluation of these prescriptions by the old man of the Ye family when he was in good spirits. It is said that old man Ye is also a person who is proficient in medical skills.Lu Zhanting smiled slightly after hearing this, and then asked about Master Ye's eating habits.

Such an ugly and dirty man who looked down to the extreme turned out to be so harmonious in flipping through books, Ye Huilan suddenly had a strong desire to explore him.

In the middle of the night, Lu Zhanting put down the file, yawned and said, "Your father has a long-standing illness. I can't guarantee that he will be cured. But if you want me to cure him, you must first agree to two conditions."

"Which two?" Ye Huilan blurted out.

"First, I will move into Zhuxin Garden to live with your father. No one will enter Zhuxin Garden except me within these three months..."

"What did you say?" Ye Huilan refused without thinking, "My father is used to being served by others. How can I trust him to you, an ugly monster?"

Lu Zhanting smiled, bowed deeply, and said, "Then I can't help you."

As soon as he got up, Ye Huilan reached out her hand to stop him, gritted her teeth and said, "Why should I trust you, an ugly monster?"

After hearing this, Lu Zhanting seemed to think that this was a reason to stop laughing, so he couldn't help grinning.Ye Huilan couldn't help being a little dazed, her smile looked a little lazy and nonchalant.

Lu Zhanting said with a smile: "Actually, I often advise others not to believe me."

Ye Huilan was stunned for a long time, and then said: "Two months!" Seeing Lu Zhanting's surprised expression, she murmured unwillingly: "After two months, my elder brother will be back, and I won't be able to make decisions. "

"Okay, two months is two months." Lu Zhanting smiled, and said: "I have a second condition... If your father is well, I will leave. You must remember to give me 100 taels of silver. In addition Don't mention me to anyone, and don't come to me again."

Ye Huilan said disdainfully: "When such a day really comes, I wish you would disappear early, you are ugly, smelly and dirty."

"Deal!" Lu Zhanting smiled.

But not a day later, Lu Zhanting's actions almost made Ye Huilan break the contract. He neither asked for some rare medicinal materials, nor asked for some special utensils, but asked for a basket of the best oranges in Jiujiang Dongting, and a lot of books.

Some servants who watched secretly told Ye Huilan that Lu Zhanting just lay in the courtyard all day, eating oranges while reading, throwing the orange peels on the table, and throwing the books he had read under the table.

About ten days later, the servant came back and told Ye Huilan that Lu Zhanting finally asked for herbs this time, but it was just a licorice plant. He said that he had been lying in the yard for the past two days and had a bit of cold and coughed, so he wanted some licorice.

Ye Huilan suddenly felt that she had endured to the extreme.She took the whip and was determined to teach the scoundrel a lesson.

When I walked to Zhuxin Garden, I felt that I had promised myself that now let alone two months, I would go back on my promise before the two ten days came, and I couldn't hide my face, and my heart was full of anger and hatred.She thought about it, and finally quietly climbed up the wall to see what happened for herself.

Lu Zhanting was indeed in the courtyard, it was getting late, and he didn't go back to the house, but hugged his knees and huddled in the chair, with his head deeply buried between his knees.

That posture made Ye Huilan's temper disappear without a trace for some reason. He stood for a while, and suddenly heard intermittent sobbing. She listened carefully for a long time before she realized that it was Lu Zhanting's suppressed crying.

Seeing Ye Huilan come back with a blank face, the servants of the Ye family quickly asked how to deal with the beggar. Ye Huilan just gave a light order that there was no need to monitor him anymore, leaving the bewildered servants to go away on their own.