Because Zichu was too weak, the team could only travel in horse-drawn carriages, and the speed was not very fast.
Zhu Xiang was speechless: "I might as well bring Zheng'er out. Tie Zheng'er to my back and I can ride a horse."
The despised Zichu crushed the cake in his hand.
Zhu Xiang handed over a stone: "What's the point of making pancakes? Can you crush a stone?"
Meng Wu, holding the sword, took a few steps back and hid himself in the shadows.
Recently, the Qin State has been shrinking its front lines and focusing on developing production. Meng Wu returned to Xianyang from the border to rest.
When summoned by the King of Qin, Meng Wu thought he had another chance to lead an army and make achievements, but he never expected that he would actually be a guard.
There was nothing shameful about being a guard for Prince Zichu, but the King of Qin ordered that Prince Zichu was fine, but it was very important to protect Zhu Xiang for me. Meng Wu hoped that he would not encounter any danger that would force him to choose between the two.
Meng Ao entered Qin from Qi and although he made great contributions, he always kept a low profile. Meng Wu also developed a quiet personality.
Seeing that Prince Zichu was looking for trouble with Duke Xiang of Zhu today, and Duke Xiang of Zhu would seize the opportunity to retaliate tomorrow, and that both of them were so weak that they couldn't even beat the bandits, yet they were very diligent in practicing sword fighting every day, Meng Wu's heart was filled with tears.
I heard that Prince Zichu hired a famous swordsmanship master to teach him after returning to Xianyang. Duke Xiang of Zhu's teachers were such great people as Lin Xiangru, Lian Po, and Xun Kuang. Why were the swordsmanship of these two nobles so harmful to the eyes
Meng Wu thought of his two sons who admired Duke Zhu Xiang very much, and sighed in his heart.
He promised to tell his sons a few things about Duke Xiang of Zhu after he returned, but could he really tell these things to his children? It would definitely destroy the good impression of Duke Xiang of Zhu in their hearts.
But Duke Zhu Xiang’s cooking is indeed delicious, no wonder General Bai and Marquis Ying stayed in Duke Zhu Xiang’s house.
Meng Wu had always believed that the world-renowned state hero Zhu Xianggong must be a person who fits the image of the legendary sage, and Prince Zichu had always been the favorite topic of many noble ladies in Xianyang City with his image of an elegant and noble young man.
Now the image of Duke Xiang of Zhu and Prince Zichu in his mind was completely shattered.
He thought this was the limit, but when they finally arrived at Lin Xiangru's hometown, Meng Wu discovered that this was just the beginning.
After arriving at Lin Xiangru's hometown, Zhu Xiang and Zichu, who had been insulting each other all the way, calmed down.
Lin Xiangru was so famous that when he was buried in his hometown, every household hung a white banner for him. Even after several months, farmers walking on the country roads still looked at the direction where Lin Xiangru was buried with a look of sadness on their faces.
Meng Wu ordered the guards to camp in the nearby mountains. He took ten people disguised as guards and entered the village with Zichu, who was disguised as a wealthy businessman, and Zhu Xiang, who was disguised as an old accountant.
In recent days, many people have come to pay tribute to Lin Xiangru. When the villagers pointed the direction for them, they wiped their tears with their sleeves and muttered a few disrespectful words to King Zhao.
Meng Wu didn't quite understand, and Zichu didn't hear it clearly either.
Zhu Xiang clenched his fists, guessing something in his heart, but he didn't ask immediately. He would know everything when he met Lin Zhi.
They came to the place where Lin Xiangru was buried. The other members of the Lin family had already left according to Lin Xiangru's wishes. Only Lin Zhi, who had always been with Lin Xiangru, lived in a hut in front of the tomb.
As I walked outside the wooden fence, cheerful singing floated into my ears.
Meng Wu frowned and spoke first, "Did we take the wrong road?"
Zhu Xiang and Zichu looked at each other, and without knocking on the door or asking anyone to pass the message, they both raised their feet at the same time and kicked the wooden door open.
"Who!" The Lin family servants clenched their weapons.
Lin Zhi, who was sitting on the ground, raised his head and said happily, "Stop, all of you retreat."
“But…” The Lin family servant looked at the two visitors with ferocious expressions and was very hesitant.
"Step aside, he is my friend." Lin Zhi waved his hand, "Everyone go out, we are closed to visitors today. If anyone comes to pay respect to my father, just send them away."
"Lin Li! What are you doing!!" Zhu Xiang said angrily when the Lin family servants left and the wooden door was closed again.
Lin Zhi patted the leather drum in front of him twice: "Play music."
Zichu held his forehead with his hand: "You... do you still remember that you built a hut for Lord Lin to guard the mausoleum?"
Lin Zhi patted the drum again: "I know."
Zichu said: "Even in the Qin State, where funeral rites are not important, music is prohibited in the first year of mourning after the death of a father."
Lin Zhi beat the drum provocatively: "I am not a Confucian scholar, and I don't respect Zhou rituals. Dongdongdong, dongdongdong."
Zhu Xiang rolled up his sleeves and drew the sword from his waist: "Lin Li, do you want a beating?"
Lin Zhi glanced at the old gentleman with white hair and threw away the drum in astonishment: "Zhu Xiang?!"
Zhu Xiang raised his sword: "You recognized me now?! Look at the sword!!"
"Hey, hey! Let's talk it over!" Lin Zhi threw away the drum, got up and ran, "Xia Tong! Get out of my way!"
He recognized Zichu at a glance, so he asked the servants to leave.
Lin Zhi guessed that Zichu had come, and Zhu Xiang must have come back too. But he didn't recognize that the old man was Zhu Xiang, so he didn't hide when Zhu Xiang approached, and now he was being chased and running around Zichu.
Meng Wu was stunned and hasn't come to his senses yet.
Are they here to pay tribute to Lin Qing? Why are those who are mourning for Lin Qing singing happily
Zichu, who was being used as a pillar, also drew his sword and stabbed straight at the person in front of him without caring who he was. Zhu Xiang and Lin Zhi stopped at the same time and glared at Zichu.
Zichu retracted his sword and said, "Do you know the etiquette to fight in front of Lord Lin's tomb?"
Lin Zhi walked forward, as if he was not the one Zhu Xiang was chasing and slashing at just now. He put his hand on Zhu Xiang's shoulder and said, "Didn't Xia Tong take that merchant Lu Buwei as his teacher? He keeps talking about etiquette, but why do I feel like he took Xunzi as his teacher?"
Zhu Xiang said: "Your Majesty asked him to take me as his teacher, and I took Xunzi as my teacher, so he can be considered a disciple of Confucianism."
"Really?" Lin Zhi said happily, "I'm your brother, which means I'm his uncle. Come on, Xia Tong, call me uncle."
Zichu sneered and thrust out with the sword in his hand. Lin Zhi screamed and ran away. Now it was Lin Zhi's turn to be chased by Zichu and Zhu Xiang.
Meng Wu's mouth opened wide.
Are we here to pay homage to Lord Lin? Is that man Lord Lin's son? What is going on in front of us
Do you know etiquette
Over there, Zichu was tired of circling around, so he threw away his sword, and he and Lin Zhi looked at each other and laughed. Zhu Xiang also laughed.
Meng Wu: "..." What are you laughing at? So creepy!
"Should I call you Yiren, Zichu, or Xia Tong?" Lin Zhi said with a smile.
Zichu smiled and said, "Your Majesty has given me a new name, Xia Tong."
Lin Zhi reached out and pulled Zhu Xiang's hair: "What's wrong with your white hair?"
Zhu Xiang said nothing. Zichu said, "On the way from Zhao to Qin, his hair kept turning white. He dreamed of Lin Gong saying goodbye at night, and within a few days, his hair turned completely white."
Zhu Xiang touched his hair and said, "White hair looks so good. Do you know? The ancient Chinese ancestors engraved their love for white-haired handsome men into the blood of the Chinese people..."
Lin Zhi: "Who are you calling a handsome guy? Do you have any shame?!"
Zichu: "Don't insult our ancestors. Who would engrave such a mess in their blood?!"
Zhu Xiang sighed: "I know you are all jealous of my beauty."
Lin Zhi and Zi Chu: "Ugh!"
After the three of them finished their fun, they looked at each other and laughed.
Meng Wu's scalp tingled.
In Meng Wu's view, Zhu Xiang, Lin Zhi and Zichu behaved strangely, almost crazy, which gave him goose bumps.
"This man is General Meng Wu of the Qin State, the son of Shangqing Meng Ao." Zhu Xiang introduced Lin Zhi.
Lin Zhi pretended to be an ordinary scholar again, bowed to Meng Wu with a solemn expression, and thanked Meng Wu for coming to pay homage to his father.
The contrast between the two was so great that Meng Wu's voice was shaking when he answered.
Along the way, Zhu Xiang had discovered that Meng Wu was an honest man with a low level of acceptance.
After he, Zichu and Mengwu paid homage to Lin Xiangru, he asked Lin Zhi to send someone to take Mengwu to another courtyard to rest. Almost all the people in this village were members of the Lin clan, and there were Lin family mansions everywhere.
Meng Wu originally wanted to continue to serve as a guard, but after Lin Zhi patted his chest and made a promise, he left, looking back every few steps.
After Meng Wu and the Qin soldiers left, Lin Zhi, Zhu Xiang and Zichu returned to the courtyard, sat on the ground, drank boiled water and chatted.
They tacitly ignored Zhu Xiang's white hair.
"I thought I would cry in front of Lin Gong's tomb, but I couldn't cry when I saw you." Zhu Xiang complained, "Lin Li, I asked you before and you denied it. But I really think that you are not a disciple of Zhuangzi, right?"
Zichu also nodded.
Lin Zhi slapped his thigh and laughed, "Okay, I won't pretend anymore. My master is indeed Zhuangzi. My father particularly hates Zhuangzi, so I deny it."
Zichu held his forehead with his hand: "Hey, hey, hey, do you have any idea of respecting teachers in your heart? Can this teacher deny it just because he can?"
Lin Zhi said: "Yes, I didn't care when the teacher was still alive."
Zichu continued to hold his forehead: "Well, after all, it is that Zhuangzi."
Zhu Xiang rolled his eyes and was speechless.
He used to have extravagant hopes that Lin Zhi would become mature in the future, but after seeing Lin Zhi beating the drum and singing in front of Lin Gong's tomb, he realized that this was impossible.
He asked why Lin Zhi's behavior was so strange.
It was considered extremely impolite for an ordinary scholar to expose his underwear while sitting cross-legged, but Lin Zhi often jumped up and down with the hem of his skirt tucked into his belt.
Ye Xue and the other people in his family were born into commoner families. They were used to seeing farmers working in the fields without wearing skirts or even clothes, so they turned a blind eye to Lin Zhi's behavior.
It turns out that Lin Zhi was a disciple of Taoism, and not the Huang-Lao school that is popular today, but the Lao-Zhuang school that was popular during the Wei and Jin Dynasties.
Think about the people in the Wei and Jin Dynasties. It was normal for them to run on the streets naked while drunk and taking drugs. Lin Zhi's current behavior is already very restrained.
It is no wonder that Lin Zhi's name is not recorded in history. After Lin Gong passed away, Lin Zhi must have found a random mountain to hide in, and even his name was forgotten.
But why did Lin Zhi leave his name behind now
Zhu Xiang asked, "Lin Li, are you going to serve as an official in Zhao State next?"
"No, my father said that when you come to pay homage to him, I will go to Qin with you." Lin Zhi said, "He had long guessed that no matter how difficult it was, you would definitely come to see him."
Zhu Xiang was stunned.
Then, he, who had been calm when he was paying homage to Mr. Lin just now, burst into tears.
Zichu patted Zhu Xiang's shoulder gently and wanted to speak to comfort him, but when he opened his mouth, he choked with sobs.
Lin Zhi looked at the two and said, "My father said when we were leaving that since I was a disciple of Laozi and Zhuangzi, I should send him off with a smile. Rather than crying in front of his grave, which would disturb him, it would be better to play music and laugh in front of his grave, which would make him happy. By the way, he also said that he missed your erhu, Zhu Xiang, very much. Can you play a song?"
Zhu Xiang cried and said, "Okay."
Zichu wiped his tears and said, "I'll come too."
Lin Zhi said, "My father once asked the King of Qin to beat the drum for the King of Zhao. How about the future King of Qin beat the drum for my father?"
Zichu yelled, "Get lost!"
Lin Zhi laughed out loud.
When he smiled like this, Zhu Xiang and Zichu could no longer cry.
Lin Zhi found a zither in the study and took out a erhu from the box. Zichu played the zither, Lin Zhi beat the drum, and Zhu Xiang played the erhu with his head shaking. The three of them faced Lin Xiangru's tomb, playing and singing.
Incense, candles and paper money were burning in front of Lin Xiangru's tombstone. The curling green smoke was blown by the wind, swirling around the three people, as if a pair of hands were gently caressing them.
Zhu Xiang looked at the tombstone through the smoke, his eyes blurred, and he seemed to see Lin Gongzheng smiling at him.
He lowered his head and played the erhu more vigorously.
Just as the party was getting lively, the three of them suddenly heard a loud shout behind them.
"What are you three doing?!"
Zhu Xiang turned around and Xunzi raised his broadsword.
"Xunzi, listen to my explanation!!"
"You are looking for death!!"
(End of this chapter)