immortal person

Giovanni left the Maiano quarry in the evening.He has had a special fascination with stone since he was a child. He studied with a mason family for a period of time when he was young. As soon as he walked into the stacked rocks, no matter how irritable his mood was, he would naturally calm down.They are silent and tenacious, without saying a word, always standing faithfully, and are the eternal companions of all sculptors.

He walked slowly down the hillside with swaying green grass, and the western sky was like a chaotic palette of paints. The hot orange red gradually faded from the top, and the ocher-like brown red spread out at the end.The wilderness is extremely quiet at dusk, and the dwarf trees and shrubs are immersed in different shades of warm colors, crawling on the vast plains of Tuscany.Screech owls and barn owls return to the forests from the south, and their black and white fallen feathers are scattered among the grass blades.Giovanni walked slowly along the ridge until the approaching sound of hooves broke the silence.

A black iron carriage was approaching him along the path, and the chain beside the door was tied with a golden-red ribbon, whirling non-stop in the wind.He stopped, and immediately noticed the huge coat of arms on the side wall of the carriage - the family carriage.

So, the people in the car are—

He didn't even have time to be surprised or pleasantly surprised. With the groom's soft drink, the white horse neighed and stopped firmly in front of him.The car door was opened from the inside, and a handsome young face was smiling at him.

"Dear Mr. Buonarroti,"

The blond youth smiled and held out a hand to him.

Giovanni's breathing stopped for a moment.

"I have every reason to believe that you and I are going to the same destination." Those long-lost blue eyes stared at him, "Will you accept Lorenzo de' Medici's invitation to let him Have the honor to ride with you?"

After a moment's pause, Giovanni gripped the hand tightly.

The carriage rumbled down the grassy slope, and the low-hanging branches of the flowers and trees passed by the carriage, making a slight "rustling" sound.The interior of the car was very warm and smelled of rose incense. The Duke leaned on the soft pillow and looked at him sideways, with a relaxed and relaxed posture, almost lazy.A few hard suitcases were placed on the opposite seat. Giovanni hesitated for a moment, but Lorenzo patted the place beside him and lifted a corner of the blanket covering his body.

"Don't be so reserved," Lorenzo put the blanket over his knees after he sat down, "and don't be afraid, people say I'm a gentleman."

His joke made the boy even more embarrassed.Giovanni didn't even know where to put his hands and feet.With his hands on his knees and his shoulders raised stiffly, he felt that all of this could only be described as "incredible" - the last second, he was still immersed in the joy of "the Duke remembers my name", but at this moment, He had sat side by side with the de facto monarch of Florence.Before that, they had only had time to meet once.

"I know Poliziano is in charge of your studies now,"

Giovanni was nervous when he suddenly heard Lorenzo ask, "How do you feel?"

Giovanni shook his head slightly, remembering his troubles this morning.

The Duke smiled curiously: "Would you mind talking to me? Maybe I can help a little."

Giovanni then told him of all the grammatical frustrations he had encountered during the month.Confiding these things to Lorenzo was much easier than he imagined. When he was talking, he seemed to forget that the Duke of Medici was sitting next to him, and he just regarded him as an ordinary friend who was good at listening.This is one of Lorenzo's magic powers. His eyes are always focused and sincere on others, and people can't help but be honest with him.

After he finished, Lorenzo didn't look surprised, he said: "This is not something that can be explained easily. It's too late today, and there is no piano with me...Let's talk about it next time."

"Qin?"

"Do you prefer the lyre or the harp?" asked Lorenzo.

Giovanni did not understand the relationship between his doubts and the lyre: "The lyre."

"Great, I'm good at playing the lyre." Lorenzo exaggeratedly let out a sigh of relief.He saw the doubt in Giovanni's eyes, and added: "As for what to do, please allow me to keep it secret for now."

Giovanni was taken aback, then smiled.Lorenzo stared at him and smiled: "I finally smiled. I just finished a long trip and I'm exhausted. Help me, please smile more next time."

Only then did Giovanni realize that the Duke had been away for dozens of days.

He watched Lorenzo carefully.The duke was still impeccably groomed, his blond hair held back by a dark blue headband that matched the color of his eyes, and the organ-like folds of his shirt remained meticulous even after many days of travelling.But his face was slightly pale, and the blue and black under his eyes revealed his exhaustion, obviously he hadn't been able to get a proper rest for a while.Even so, he smiled, and his blue eyes shone when he laughed, like the seas of epic Greece.

Buying land, which can only be done by the branch manager, will make him tired like this?

"Your Highness," he couldn't help asking, "may I ask you something?"

Lorenzo made a "please" gesture.

He thought about his words, "I heard from Poliziano that your trip is to build an academy?"

"..."

Lorenzo blinked.After a while, he smiled and said, "I guess you know that I have always wanted to build Plato's Academy everywhere."

Giovanni nodded.Lorenzo continued: "This is actually not an easy task. I—and Ficino and the others—have been planning this matter recently. I hope to invite some outstanding architects and sculptors to Florence Come, I think, these people will include some of the most outstanding geniuses in the world, such as..."

"Leonardo?!" Giovanni's eyes lit up.

"Yes, he's in Milan now," Lorenzo thought for a moment, "and Quercia in Bologna, how about it? I hope he can decorate this academy more beautifully than the one it had a thousand years ago. And... ..."

He listed the most glorious names for young people in the world one by one.Just thinking of meeting these people in the Medici Palace in the future, Giovanni couldn't help but get excited.After a while, he realized that Lorenzo didn't answer his question directly, but turned the topic to something that interests him.

But he did not continue to ask.Since Lorenzo deliberately avoided it, the answer to this question must fall within the scope of what he should not peek at.

After a short pause, Lorenzo seemed a little tired and no longer described the prospect of the academy.Looking at the dim field outside the window, he was silent for a moment, and suddenly said: "It's still too cold now. I really hope that it will be May soon, and I can pick a sunny afternoon and come here with you."

"What are you doing?"

"Anything is fine. We can sit together under that beautiful fir tree—" Lorenzo pointed to the tree passing by the window, "let the girls dance, and I will accompany Poliziano, Giuliano Will sing for us. Have you seen my brother Giuliano? He's actually the best singer in Florence, far better than all the eunuchs."

"I brought back some good wine this time," he thought ecstatically, with a bright smile in his eyes. "They are all treasures from Madeira and Brogno. The wine is like flowing gold. At that time, strawberries were When they are ripe, we can bring them together in straw baskets. Do you know how good maraschino strawberries taste?"

Following Lorenzo's description, Giovanni also seemed to see that sunny afternoon in the future, and couldn't help but yearn for it with him.After talking about the food, Lorenzo talked about the guests he hoped to come with, and just listed a few names, but suddenly fell silent.

The voice stopped suddenly, Giovanni looked at him, Lorenzo stopped smiling.He stared at the dim scenery outside the window, without speaking for a long time.

"Is there no time?" asked Giovanni.

As the Duke of the Medici, Lorenzo was busy with affairs and always left early and returned late. I am afraid he did not have the time for these activities.Lorenzo turned to look at him and smiled: "No matter how busy you are, you have to set aside time for joy. But, by that time... I may not be a free man anymore."

He paused, and suddenly asked Giovanni: "How old are you?"

"17 is old."

"Seventeen," Lorenzo repeated, "is still young, which is enviable."

"You are young too."

"Me?" Lorenzo smiled, "I'm starting to grow old."

There was a sigh in the end of his voice.Giovanni looked at him blankly, and suddenly felt a slight twitch in his heart.The Duke had already looked out of the window again, his eyes stopped on Lorenzo's graceful side face, and his mind was filled with questions for a moment.After a long time, he suddenly realized that such a long stare was very rude.So he quietly turned his head back and hid himself in silence.

Until I don't know when—maybe it was a moment, maybe it was a long time—a warm weight suddenly fell on his shoulders.

The Duke leaned against him and fell into a deep sleep.