This was a private banquet, and the venue was still arranged on the flower boat on the Liujing River, but this flower boat was exceptionally elegant, without the exaggerated feeling of those red-sleeved tricks on the other side of the river. At this time, there was no rain or cloud on the river, the river was full of tranquility, and under the breeze, the water waves were soft. Compared with the faintly crisp and pretty sounds that could be heard in the distance, one felt that the flower boat arranged by the second prince was a little extra The dusty feeling of being alone in a boat on the river and sea.
Fan Xian and Li Hongcheng, Prince Jing's heir, talked and laughed all the way to the riverside. Their own guards pulled the horses away. He had a smile on his face, but deep in his heart he was sighing, this prince seemed to be a really elegant person, but for some reason he was not willing to be a prince peacefully, insisting on causing so many troubles in Qing Kingdom.
On the slightly damp wooden board, when Fan Xian's feet were about to step on the side of the boat, he suddenly heard the sound of clang and plucking strings from the boat. rise.
"Just away from the green water and green mountains, I came to the bamboo fence hut early. Wild flowers are blooming on the roadside, and the village wine trough is squeezed. I don't answer for eating. The mountain boy does not persuade us when I am drunk, and the white hair is full of yellow flowers. .” (Note 1)
A smile appeared on the corner of Fan Xian's lips, and he walked in side by side with Li Hongcheng. Hearing the saliva in the song, he became more and more curious about what kind of person this second prince is.
The bead curtain was lifted, and a young man in a blue silk shirt was sitting on a chair in a strange posture, his head was slightly tilted, his eyes were slightly closed, and there was a strange expression on his face. With a satisfied expression, he listened to the soft singing of the singing girl in the corner.
Without asking, this young man is naturally the second prince born to His Majesty the Qing Emperor and Concubine Shu.
The second prince's sitting posture is really strange, he is half squatting on the chair, like a farmer resting in the field, his legs are covered by the blue silk shirt, but what is even more strange is that watching him intoxicated His gentle expression and delicate facial features were revealed all over his body. It is actually a feeling of elegance and tranquility, as if I have long been tired of everything around me, and the past in this world is just thinking about music.
Fan Xian's first thought when he saw the second prince was: This person feels very familiar to him. The second thought is that the person is tired, the mind is tired. The third thought is that this person has a heavy heart. He believed in his ability to see people, but the scene was a bit awkward at this moment. From the corner of his eye, he saw that the eldest son Li Hongcheng had already quietly picked a chair and sat down. And standing in the middle, looking at the second prince, he didn't know how to salute.
The other party seemed to be only listening to the music and forgot about himself as a guest. Of course, in the capacity of the other party, it is natural to let oneself wait a bit.
The song finally ended, the singing girl hugged the guqin horizontally, saluted each of the three people in the hall, and retreated into the back room in silence.
The second prince, who was squatting on the chair, seemed to be still immersed in the sound of the piano. He hadn't recovered for a long time, and his eyes were still closed. Grapes, hold the grape stems with two fingers and lift them up, lift them high, put them in the air like a child, raise your head, open your lips, close your teeth, and slowly bite off a very green grape, chewing twice , Swallowing it down, the throat moved twice beautifully, it seems that even eating grapes is a very enjoyable thing.
Fan Xian was not in a hurry, looked at the prince with a smile, his eyes were calm, but he didn't miss any of the other's small movements, he tried to see what kind of temperament the other party was.
…
…
After a long while, the second prince sighed, fumbled to put the grapes in his hand back on the plate, and then slowly opened his eyes. He seemed to have just realized that the guest he had invited had arrived in the boat, and a strange smile flashed in his eyes, and the corners of his lips curled up slightly, revealing a shy smile.
Fan Xian's heart skipped a beat, and that familiar feeling became stronger and stronger.
The second prince quietly looked at Fan Xian standing in front of him, and suddenly asked, "Since you're here, why don't you sit down?"
The eldest son Li Hongcheng was sitting beside him, drinking tea with a smile, and didn't say anything to Fan Xian. Fan Xian also returned a gentle smile, and bowed to the second prince with his hands clasped together: "The prince is here, I don't want to salute, I dare not sit down."
The second prince looked at Fan Xian with a smile, and said, "I never greeted you, and you don't have to respect me."
Fan Xian said with a smile: "Second Highness does not need to greet the ministers, the ministers must respect His Highness."
The second prince shook his head with a smile, wiped his right hand that had been stained with grape water casually on his blue silk shirt, and said: "Only Hongcheng and I are on this boat, and you are a brother-in-law. How can there be any servants of your highness?" of."
Fan Xian chuckled, cupped his hands, and didn't say anything more, and sat down on the chair opposite his dead son Li Hongcheng. Since the Second Highness likes to feel like a celebrity, although he is not good at it, he always knows how to sit in a sedan chair.
In fact, these few conversations between the two did not have any deep meaning, but Fan Xian still felt very strange, because the second prince spoke very slowly, and the rhythm of each opening was always half a beat slower than that of ordinary people. So when talking, I always feel that the other party's words are a little sudden. And Fan Xian found it even more interesting that the more he looked at the second prince, the more familiar he became, but he didn't know where this familiarity came from. He was sure it wasn't because of Wan'er.
"I paid for this flower boat, what do you think?" The second prince seemed eager to know how Fan Xian felt about this flower boat. Fan Xian smiled wryly, and then took a wide look at the layout of the boat, and found that no matter the layout, the green pots in the corner, or the calligraphy and paintings hanging diagonally, this flower boat really didn't look like a flower boat, but a study room. He couldn't help shaking his head and laughing: "Your Highness, this flower boat is very quiet, it doesn't match the Chinese characters."
The second prince smiled slightly, looked up at him, and said, "It's good to be quiet."
Fan Xian suddenly felt that this kind of conversation was really boring and difficult. Just as he was about to turn his eyes to the familiar Li Hongcheng for help, he heard Prince Jing's words and rang at the right time.
"I said, can the two of you stop talking so tired?" Li Hongcheng interrupted with a smile.
The second prince chuckled, and said to Fan Xian: "See? Don't think that us royal family children are boring people. Besides, you are now married to Wan'er, and you are considered a family. You need to move around more in the future. "
Li Hongcheng teased Fan Xian ahead of him: "Forget about our palace, you are the dignified second prince, and you will be in danger if you move around."
All three of them knew that this was about Fan Xian's assassination by Northern Qi assassins on Niulan Street on his way to the Second Prince's banquet a few months ago. The three of them looked at each other, thinking of the past several months ago and the past, they couldn't help but feel some inexplicable feelings, and they all laughed at the same time.
Once the laughter is over, that incident is probably over. Fan Xian said with a wry smile: "Although the Second Highness is not holding a Hongmen banquet, it is indeed terrifying to take such a big risk to eat."
The second prince and Li Hongcheng couldn't help being slightly taken aback when they heard the words "Hongmen Banquet", but their faces were well concealed. Naturally, they had never heard of this allusion, but due to their own noble status, it was naturally difficult for them to speak out. The second prince smiled slightly, and said: "Don't call me Your Highness, just follow Wan'er and call me Second Brother."
Fan Xian's face remained unchanged, but he felt a little troubled in his heart. The relationship was getting too close... There seemed to be some problems. As if guessing what he was worried about, the second prince hung his hands in front of his knees, still half-squatting and smiling: "Don't be too cautious in everything, Wan'er is the treasure of the palace, you have to remember, you now have an extra Big brother, I’m still riding horses in the west, my second brother is still hiding in the Hanlin Academy and compiling books, as for the third brother of the crown prince, you need to get closer. More relatives, don’t they bother you so much?”
Fan Xian smiled, thinking that these royal relatives are of course the source of great trouble, and replied: "This is my blessing, but it's really a bit rude not to call you Your Highness."
The second prince smiled wryly: "Go home and ask Wan'er what she calls me."
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…
After exchanging greetings, the banquet began. The table was filled with some fresh seasonal vegetables and exquisite side dishes. Fan Xian ate very happily. He had already drawn up the strategy, so after getting familiar with it, he relaxed his mind, and the three of them chatted casually about the past of the people in Beijing, the posthumous works of the former sages, and they had a very happy chat.
The second prince was indeed deeply influenced by Concubine Shu, and he had a deep research on the way of literature, and he got along well with Fan Xian, but Li Hongcheng talked about some interesting stories about the makeup and powder, and he had to mention Sinanbo Fan Jian Your Excellency's brilliant achievements back then, and the topic among men, although it was inconvenient for the second prince to talk to Fan Xian, the atmosphere managed to liven up. Fan Xian, on the other hand, was hiding his clumsiness blindly, just telling some Danzhou stories and what he had seen and heard along the way.
After a meal, the second prince and Fan Xian each had their own income and said goodbye with a smile.
The second prince didn't see him off either, and he was still squatting on that chair. For a long time, he actually kept this posture without moving. He watched the figures of Fan Xian and Li Hongcheng disappear at the entrance of the flower boat, and then said softly. Sighed.
"Your Highness, what do you think of Mr. Fan?" The disciple of the second prince's relative asked respectfully.
The second prince smiled slightly, and said: "This brother-in-law is too cautious, there is no trace of the pride and recklessness that Qing people have cultivated for decades. To be honest, I really doubt that Xiao Fan, who was crazy about poetry at the banquet at the palace, Is it the person I saw today?"
After saying this, he habitually lowered his head again, and stretched his hand aside to touch the bunch of green grapes. As soon as the disciples saw him, they knew that the Second Highness was thinking about some extremely important national affairs, so they didn't dare to disturb him, so they hurriedly exited the door quietly.
After a long time, the second prince raised his head slowly, with confusion in his eyes. In fact, he was not thinking about any important national affairs, but he was still thinking about the "Hongmen Banquet" that Fan Xian said at the beginning. I remember what allusion this "Hongmen Banquet" is.
"Brother-in-law is really knowledgeable, it seems that I have to go back and look up the books."
With white teeth together, the second prince crushed the green grape in his mouth, the juice was extremely sweet and sour.
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"Note 1: Lu Zhizhi was intoxicated by the east wind in the Yuan opera. 』