Another banquet. Xie Yilu sat at a corner of the long table, staring blankly at the delicacies in front of him. The main dish was roasted goose, surrounded by four plates of sugar wraps. The wine was Jinan's Qiulubai. The oriole in Jiang, the puffer fish in Jiangyin, and the bitter bamboo shoot in Jianjiguan are all the best in the world.
He has been in Nanjing for more than ten days, and every night is eating, besides eating, he also has fun, playing prostitutes, and playing small songs. This seems to be the whole life of the Nanjing Military Department. drama.
"What are you thinking?" Qu Feng next to him elbowed him, "The goose is good, eat it."
Xie Yilu picked up the chopsticks, silver chopsticks, and buckled the ivory cap: "It's a big handwriting," he marveled, Qu Feng heard it, drank the wine in the glass, and showed him, "There is also a golden cup."
Tonight is Zheng Mian's banquet, so the ostentation is so big, but the banquet has been going on for more than an hour, and Zheng Mian has not shown up. .”
Qu Feng didn't even raise his head: "I didn't have him tonight," he said, he came closer and put his face against Xie Yilu's neck, "I didn't invite him at all."
It was that benzoin again, Xie Yilu stepped back: "How do you say?"
"Look carefully, he is not the only one missing here."
After Qu Feng said so, Xie Yilu carefully counted the heads. Indeed, Liu Shilang, He Zhushi, and Ye Langzhong, there are so few people who did not come: "It can't be..."
"Exactly," Qu Feng pressed him tighter, and his voice was softer, "If it were me, I would only invite my own people."
Xie Yilu suddenly became nervous: "Then us?"
Qu Feng held his hand from below, and patted him reassuringly: "We still have a choice, whether to be eunuchs or not."
Xie Yilu felt that he couldn't stay here for a moment, Qu Feng knew what he was thinking, and smiled at him very freely: "So I said eat quickly, and there will be no such good fortune in the future."
Just as they were talking, the people at the table stood up suddenly, Xie Yilu and Qu Feng thought it was Zheng Mi who had arrived, so they got up and bowed, but it turned out that it was not a eunuch who came in, but a tall man in his early thirties. Shangsheng has a neat short mustache, wearing a Buddha's head, green makeup and flowers over the shoulders, a modified flying fish suit, a military officer's head, and a thousand households of royal guards.
"Master Tu!" Everyone clapped their hands.
The one surnamed Tu nodded casually, but didn't even take his seat. He rolled his sleeves and asked, "Is the Duke here?"
When the answer was no, he didn't stop walking, went straight through the banquet hall into the side hall, and went inside to wait.
Everyone sat down again, Xie Yilu frowned: "What is the origin of this person?"
"Tu Yao, Zheng Mian's best friend," Qu Feng just picked up his chopsticks, when he heard footsteps outside, he sighed and put down his chopsticks, "The lord has arrived."
Zheng Mian should be a bloated old man, but when he was surrounded by a dozen or so young eunuchs, carrying a jade belt and walking into the field of vision with official steps, Xie Yilu was dumbfounded, his face was difficult to use Ordinary words make it clear, if you have to describe it, there are only four words "beautiful as peaches and plums".
He was wearing a lychee red flashing lion back and a bullpup patch. His snow-white fingertips were barely showing on his cuffs. The room was full of military officials, regardless of whether they were third-rank or fifth-rank, all stood solemnly, waiting for the little eunuch to give him Lifting the back of the back, watching him sit down with a crooked body, he said lazily: "Our family is late."
Xie Yilu seemed to be sweating in his palms, his fists were not clenched tightly, and he thought of Wei Zhuang's poem without paying attention: What does Yu Rong look like? A branch of plum blossoms frozen in spring snow, covered with fragrant mist and morning glow.
Zheng Mi pursed his lips, which were brighter than lychees, and suddenly broke into a smile. His voice was very soft, the kind unique to a big man, which made people have to listen carefully: "I'm happy today, we Here's a toast to everyone."
Immediately, a young eunuch handed a glass full of wine, he raised his hand to take it, raised his neck and drank it, two rows of ministers standing upright immediately picked up their own wine, and shouted loudly, "Thank you Dugong for giving me the wine! "
"Okay, you are fine," Zheng Mi nodded with satisfaction, "Eat all."
He is only twenty-seven or eight years old? Xie Yilu guessed, but what he said and how he acted was completely old ginger. Zheng Mi put down his cup and looked up, seeing the sixth-rank official from Beijing staring at him stupidly. He turned slightly and asked old-fashionedly, "Xie Tanhua, are you still used to Nanjing's food?"
All eyes came together, Xie Yilu was startled, he was a candidate on the Jiashen list, and the entire military department knew about it, but no one mentioned it, because they were so different from him: "I'm still used to it," he said hurriedly He stood up and bowed, "Thank you Dugong for your concern."
"Okay," said Zheng Xian, got up, without another word, let the little eunuch support him, and walked slowly to the side hall: "Eat yours."
He went to look for Tu Yao, Xie Yilu sat down slowly, and as soon as he sat down, Qu Feng said: "Don't be overwhelmed, he just said those two words over and over again, hollow nanmu, there is nothing in the stomach."
"What's his background?" Xie Yilu wiped his hands on the sweat towel.
"I've been in the palace all the time, and I went to Guangxi to supervise the mine for the first two years, and I probably made a lot of money," Qu Feng sneered, "Where can I get the money to buy this guarding eunuch?"
Xie Yilu's mouth was dry, and when he leaned over to pour a cup of tea, he saw Xiao Zhuo. He was wearing a plain jacket, and a skirt embroidered with gold paintings on his lower body. There were dozens of fine pleats pinched on his waist. When he moved a little, his silhouette was like water patterns. , he should have come here with Zheng Mi, but he didn't realize it before, and it was also in response to the old saying, who can see the begonia when the peony is in bloom.
Guo Xiaozhuo smiled coquettishly, circling among a few acquainted adults, full of life and quite good-looking, Xie Yilu lowered his head and took a sip of tea, but before he swallowed it, someone called from behind, he looked back, it was a The childish little eunuch bowed respectfully: "Please, Dugong."
Xie Yilu was completely unintentional, and cast a look at Qu Feng: "Can I have one?"
The little eunuch was very clever and understood the situation, so he glanced at Qu Feng coldly: "Master Xie came from Beijing, Duke Du would like to talk to you about his hometown."
Xie Yilu had nothing to say, followed him, the small hall was small, very dark, a stick of wax was burning on the table, Zheng Mi sat reclined in the official hat chair, leaning on his shoulders casually, Tu Yao Standing, bent down close to his face, as if whispering, suddenly Zheng Mi pushed him, laughing loudly.
Tu Yao amused him, and he seemed to be enjoying himself too. When he looked up and saw Xie Yilu, his face turned cold, he turned his back, and went to the table to fiddle with the paperweight. Zheng Mi smiled tremblingly, and raised his hand to Xie Yilu: "Chunhoe, come here."
Xie Yilu's word is Chunhoe, he is a little uncomfortable to be called so affectionately: "I dare not."
In an instant, Zheng Mian changed his appearance, put away his smile, stopped talking, just sat there dryly, as if angry, Xie Yilu couldn't help it, so he had to walk over.
Zheng Mian didn't tell him to sit down, but tapped the corner of the table with his finger: "Has the family come over?"
"My parents died young, and the chaff stayed in Beijing."
Zheng Xian's calamus-like long eyelashes slapped lazily: "May I bring it here?"
Xie Yilu glanced at Tu Yao from the corner of his eye: "I don't have concubines."
Zheng Xian seemed surprised, and even turned his head to look at him. Just as he was about to say something, a young eunuch came in with two scrolls of calligraphy and painting and reported, "Deng Jiong sent Mi Fu two landscape paintings with splashed ink."
Zheng Mi let out a "hmm" without even looking at it, and then asked Xie Yilu: "Do you like Jiaotong?"
As if being slapped on the face by someone, Xie Yilu felt humiliated, but he couldn't attack: "The lower officials are dull, they can only read books, they can't have fun."
Zheng Xian raised one eyebrow abruptly, apparently displeased, but even this displeased look was extremely gorgeous, Xie Yilu glanced at it greedily, and didn't raise his head again.
When I was young, another little eunuch came in, hugging two red-billed pigeons with trembling legs: "Wang Ziren sent a pair of black-tailed emerald-feathered coral-billed 'Jieyuner'."
Zheng Mi's eyes immediately followed the pigeons: "Hurry up, hold the lamp." He got up from the official hat chair, jumping like a child, and told the left and right, "Write down the surname Wang."
Sure enough, he is an eunuch, Xie Yilu thought, he likes pigeons, ostentation, and maybe he also likes horse fighting and cockfighting. Over there, Zheng Mi and Tu Yao were tasting pigeons, while here he stood and waited silently, neither passing by nor looking at him. Zheng Mi looked back at him from time to time. I know Xie Yilu's temperament.
"Chun Hoe," Zheng Mi put down the pigeon and walked over, "Our family will not see you anymore." He took the handkerchief handed over by the servants below and wiped his hands, "Our family wants to praise you."
Xie Yilu declined: "What's the virtue and what's the ability of the next official."
Zheng Xian sneered, a murderous beauty seemed to come out through the imperial bullfighting uniform: "In Beijing, if you don't thank the 'old ancestor' for your kindness, just come here. Our family must praise you."
Xie Yilu couldn't figure it out, so he boldly looked at him directly.
Zheng Xian smiled lightly: "There is only one sun in the Forbidden City, but there are more than one cloud supporting the sun. You push away his cloud, why don't you come to rely on mine?"
Xie Yilu suddenly realized that it turned out that the cloud over Zheng Xian's head was not the cloud of "Old Ancestor", he was following another line in Beijing: "The lower officials don't understand the affairs of the nobles."
Having said that, he glanced at Tu Yao very quickly. The man was standing in the shadow of the candlelight, unable to see his face clearly. He only saw a gorgeous flying fish suit and two cocks flapping their wings in his arms. Follow his line upwards, could it be that they are following the line of the chief inspector, the admiral, and the eunuch of the East Factory
When he was terrified, Guo Xiaozhuo walked in with a painted skirt, and Zheng Mi didn't show any airs to him, and if he lost his temper, he just said, "Why did you come in, this is serious business!"
Guo Xiaozhuo didn't show any fear at all, so Xiaoxiao patted his chest with a white hand, pushed him to sit on the chair, then sat down on his lap with his buttocks, leaned into his arms, raised his left hand to give He looked: "Pretty, isn't it?"
There was a huge white jade ring on the middle finger, which was just put on. Zheng Mi was afraid that he would slip off, so he put one arm around his waist: "Do you still have less rings..."
The rest of the words couldn't be heard clearly, the two of them put their mouths to their ears, and they talked selfishly, Xie Yilu didn't bother to listen, after waiting for a while, it was Zheng Mi who gave in first: "Okay, I'll make a note, and I'll be promoted tomorrow." This person."
Guo Xiaozhuo went out contentedly, when Xie Yilu wanted to talk again, Zheng Mi stopped listening, with an impatient and tired look on his face, he waved his hands to ask him to back off: "Keep the words in your stomach for a while," he said Said, like a warning: "Keep it well, we have plenty of time to talk slowly in the future."
Xie Yilu came out from the side hall, couldn't stay any longer, bid farewell to Qu Feng, and walked home, deliberately detoured to the stone lamp of Lingfu Temple to get the letter. On the other end of the letter was an unnamed friend. From the abrupt word "Ting Ting", the two became close friends. They exchanged letters for more than ten days, and occasionally they didn't receive them, and they still felt lost.
With the letter, Xie Yilu felt relieved. When he got home, he went to the study to read the letter. The letter was not long, and it was written in small letters: The clouds were clear last night, and the wind was blowing. head.
The following is his poem, which is like a poem, and the words are really romantic. From the words, Xie Yilu felt that he was a clean, indifferent, and calm person. For him, Xie Yilu specially prepared jasmine paper and bought a bedroom Silkworm Xiaomo, using a Huzhou pen, wrote back neatly: "It's better to see you than to see the wind and the moon."
Yesterday, when I was stunned, I made a whole garden in a short shirt. Under the steps, I planted one green peach, two poppies, chrysanthemums, red narcissus, pandan orchids, poppies, carnations, and under the eaves stood Xifu crabapples. On the rainy day in March, the garden is full of flowers, their appearance is also beautiful, and their smell is also fragrant. I look forward to enjoying it with you.
After finishing the pen, he also did not give his name, pushed away the paperweight, picked up the words, looked at them again and again, compared them with others, smirked in shame and admiration, opened the letter box, and put away the letters.
"Master," the chief attendant called outside, "are you still going out?"
"No, let's fetch water." Xie Yilu folded up the reply letter and put it on the desk, planning to deliver it to Shi Deng on the way to the Yamen tomorrow morning.