It will take more than half an hour for the water god ceremony to end.
When He Yan and Xiao Jue came down, it was already late. Ling Xiu and Yan Min'er were long gone, and Concubine Wei said, "You haven't eaten anything after shopping all day, so the son and Miss Yuyan must be hungry, right?"
He Yan touched his stomach, "It's okay."
"Then let's go eat first." Cui Yuezhi said: "There are several good restaurants in Jiyang, which one does Yuyan want to go to?"
"I think..." He Yan pointed to the Wu Peng boat in the river, "Go there to eat."
She had just seen that there were many people riding on the boat with a stove in the bow. She didn't know what was simmering in it, it was probably soup. The rest of the food and drink is the boat to the shore or the hawker on the river, handing money to buy. People can take a boat and eat while watching the lively scene on both sides of the strait and the customs along the river, which is very special.
She hadn't been to Jiyang in the past, so she felt new and wanted to try it.
"That's the firefly boat." Aunt Wei explained with a smile, "The boatman who punted the boat would roll the boat to Luoyingquan in the evening. The weather in Jiyang is warm, and there is no need to have fireflies in summer. Luoyingquan. In the woods on the edge, when the boat sails past at night, you can see the river bank in the dense forest, full of fireflies, very beautiful! My concubine was fortunate to have been with the master once a year, and now I think about it, I feel very beautiful."
As soon as He Yan heard it, she wanted to go even more, so she looked at Cui Yuezhi: "Uncle, why don't we go to this firefly boat?"
"The girl's family likes this," Cui Yuezhi smiled and waved his hand, "I won't go there like this, this firefly boat is only for couples or lovers, two people in one boat, so many of us, we can't take one ferry."
He Yan's words stuck in his mouth, thinking that the Water God Festival in Jiyang was actually the Qixi Festival in the Central Plains, which would be too unfriendly to those who didn't have a lover. Without a lover, don't you have the right to take a look at the legendary Falling Yingquan? No reason!
"Since Miss Yuyan wants to go, let's go with Young Master Huanqing." Concubine Wei said with a smile: "There are many boats going with you. There should be a water stage on the road tonight, which is very lively."
He Yan was struggling. She really wanted to meet her, but Xiao Jue... might not be willing.
She turned to look at Xiao Jue and asked tentatively, "Master?"
"Don't think about it."
"Master, my desire to go is real."
Xiao Jue twitched the corners of his mouth, "I think it's true that you're taking an inch."
"I haven't seen what a lot of fireflies look like," He Yan whispered: "I've come here, don't you want to see it? Don't treat me as a woman, just treat me as a subordinate, let's pass by here , appreciate the local customs."
"Master, husband?" He Yan called him flatteringly again.
Xiao Jue's mouth twitched: "Speak well."
"You don't promise me, the concubine keeps talking like this."
Aunt Wei covered her mouth and smiled, as if she couldn't stand the slapstick, she whispered a few words to Cui Yuezhi, Cui Yuezhi nodded, and Aunt Wei asked someone to wave to the river and look for a boat Zhou, said to He Yan and Xiao Jue: "Master Fang Cai has already paid the money. Tonight, the master on this boat will take you to travel all over the Jiyang River. If you come across something delicious and fun, just buy it. When the time comes, He will also send you to Luoyingquan." After a pause, he continued, "I wanted to teach you to bring a few guards with you, but there is a city garrison patrolling by Luoyingquan, so it shouldn't be a problem. But if you don't Don't worry, you can also…”
"Thank you Aunt Wei! The guards don't have to..." He Yan said happily, suddenly remembered something, and asked Xiao Jue: "Lin Shuanghe and Chiwu, what if you want to see them too?"
Xiao Jue looked back and saw that Chiwu and the others had already stepped back a few steps, and shook their heads at him, indicating that they did not want to look.
Also, rough men probably don't like fireflies, and even if they like it, they don't dare to show it here.
"Then let's go up first." He Yan was very happy and got on the Wu Peng boat first.
This boat is not as gorgeous as the boats on the Chunlai River in Shuojing City. Even from the outside, it can be called simple, but it is spacious inside. There are ground collapses and a small stove for cooking. If you sit here and eat something , blowing the river wind, looking at the night market with lights along the banks of the river, it is really a beautiful thing in the world.
He Yan bent down and went in, then sat on the ground and looked up at the river.
The Jiyang Canal is very long and passes through the city. Today is a festival. Many lanterns are lit on both sides of the strait, and everyone is laughing and laughing. The boatman was a middle-aged man wearing a bamboo hat. He was very sturdy, with strong arms, and he rowed the oar vigorously.
He Yan was lying on the bow of the boat. She was a little afraid of water at first, but now the surrounding is really busy, maybe because of Xiao Jue's presence, the previous fears have been forgotten a lot, and only the freshness is left.
She was looking at it with joy, but suddenly a small boat was passing by, and the people on the boat were also a man and a woman. The woman suddenly poured a handful of water at her, and He Yan was suddenly splashed on her face. , the whole person was stunned.
The boatman laughed: "The girl is a foreigner and doesn't understand the rules of our Jiyang. This is on the canal. If two boats meet, everyone will fight each other. People say that the canal water feeds Jiyang one. City people, it wasn't water that was splashed, it was fortune and luck!"
The girl also looked at her and smiled, kindly, with a bit of cunning, making it difficult for people to get angry. He Yan thought to himself, what kind of rule is this, aren't you afraid that you won't be able to go out if your clothes are all wet
He Yan's idea actually really wronged the people of Jiyang, but everyone who knew that they were on the boat for the water fight tonight brought several pieces of clothes with them to change them easily. Only when she came here foolishly wearing a dress, Cui Yuezhi might not have been in the firefly boat for a long time, and this matter would have been forgotten for a long time.
It was probably because she was very splashy, and there were several boats surrounding her. Both men and women, they all bent down and slammed a handful of water from the canal towards He Yan.
He Yan: "?"
She said loudly, "Boatman, please rock the boat farther away!"
Before she could finish speaking, a large bag of water slammed into her face. He Yan was shocked. The next moment, someone stood in front of her and pressed her head into his arms, blocking the oncoming approach. water.
Xiao Jue glanced at the opposite side, and the man who threw water at He Yan was a man, and he was a man without any sense of pity and cherishing jade, and he was stunned at He Yan. Xiao Jue hooked the corners of her lips, and the next moment, the teacup in the boat made a large floating mark in the water, and a large pile of water made a "squeak", and the man was drenched from head to toe.
The man next to him didn't know whether it was his wife or his lover, and said anxiously, "How can you do this?"
Xiao Jue looked at the other party with a half-smile, and said slowly: "I will send you some more blessings, no need to thank you."
He Yan: "..."
She raised her head from Xiao Jue's arms and said, "Actually, there is no need to worry about it." After looking around again, she was speechless for a moment, "It's scary."
There were still a few boats surrounding him, and he probably thought He Yan's reaction was very interesting. Seeing the man's previous lessons, they didn't dare to approach, and asked the boatman to quickly row the boat away, as if to avoid the god of plague.
Xiao Jue laughed: "Are you still in the mood to care about others?"
He Yan looked down at herself, half of her body was splashed with water, Xiao Jue stood up, walked to the stern, took a handkerchief for her and threw it over, and sat by the small stove where the tea was being boiled. ,"come over."
He Yan followed her words, and Xiao Jue said, "Dry your hair."
He Yan obeyed obediently, put the long hair on the small stove, and roasted it in the hot air: "The Governor, are you hungry?"
"You are hungry?"
He Yan touched his stomach, "Very."
Her appetite has always been amazing, Xiao Jue sighed, and went to the front to say something to the boatman. After a while, the boatman rocked the boat and arrived at a water market.
It is said to be a water market, in fact, dozens of boats are together. There are snacks, hot tea, various snacks, and even roast chicken and goose on the boat. The smell is very beautiful. The boat stopped by the water market, Xiao Jue asked He Yan to get on the bow: "Choose it yourself."
The food on the boat all had the characteristics of Jiyang, which was very different from the one in Shuojing. He Yan was jealous of this, but reluctant to bear that. He chose a little of each, so he held a large pile of oil paper bags. Xiao Jue was silent for a moment and asked, "Are you a rice bucket?"
"If you can't finish it, you can take it back to Lin Shuanghe and the others," He Yan said with a smile, "I'm already very restrained."
Xiao Jue was speechless for a moment. She picked out a few items herself, paid the money, and helped her carry the contents of the oil-paper bag into the boat.
With these things to eat and drink, He Yan was very happy. Sitting on the ground, looking out of the boat, happily unpacking and eating and drinking. She already had a good appetite, but after being hungry for a day, the food she ate had no image, Xiao Jue endured it: "Pay attention to your manners."
He Yan hummed nonchalantly, still going his own way, reminded twice that there was no result, and Xiao Jue also gave up.
She put her hands on the small window of the boat, and suddenly remembered that when she was a teenager, she also took a boat to Jinling with the classmates of Xianchang Hall, and there was Xiao Jue at that time. The first time she took a boat, she was very seasick. She vomited several times on the boat and almost didn't die on the boat.
Now it's not seasick anymore, but the teenagers back then went their separate ways, and in the end, Xiao Jue was still by his side.
Things are unpredictable.
"There seems to be a water stage over there." He Yan said in surprise, "Boatman, can you shake the boat over there."
The boatman said, "Okay." After paddling, he rowed the boat to the water stage.
Under the stage, I don't know what it was used to prop up, only some wooden stakes were left on the water, and on the wooden stakes, a stage was built. The spectators around had to sit on the boat and look up, and saw that the faces of the singers were painted and they were singing vigorously. Wusheng Dance is very beautiful, babbling, although I can't understand it, but the excitement is very lively.
There was also a boat selling delicious honey water. He Yan ran to the bow of the boat to see that there were many girls buying it. Seeing He Yan's fascination, the hawker explained with a smile: "Girl, it's all fresh, so take a sip if you're tired from watching a movie? We have everything here, lychee cream water, bayberry thirsty water, apricot crisp drink, plum blossom wine, Sugarcane juice, pear juice, sweet bean soup…”
He Yan saw that there was a small cup that looked snow-white, ice-cold, with a red ball drenched on it, and asked, "What is that?"
"This is Sugar Bingxue Leng Yuanzi. It's sweet and cool, it's definitely not a loss if you take a bite, girl, would you like a cup?"
He Yan was a little greedy, and was about to speak when Xiao Jue asked, "Is this cold?"
"It's cold," the hawker replied eagerly, "the ice hasn't melted yet, it's very cool!"
"Don't do this, heat exchange." He said.
He Yan was stunned for a moment, but the hawker said enthusiastically: "Then sweet bean soup? We just cooked it, and it's very warm in our hands. Oh, did the girl get wet just now?" The hawker smiled While scooping a spoonful of sweet bean soup from the small bucket, putting it in a bowl and handing it to He Yan, he said, "Then drink some more heat to warm up your body, it's better for you to be considerate!"
He Yan was confused and didn't care about what the man said at the moment, only asked Xiao Jue, "Aren't you going to drink some?"
"I don't drink sweets." He turned and walked into the boat.
He Yan asked the hawker, "What's not sweet?"
"Perilla drink is not sweet."
He Yan took out a few copper plates from his sleeve: "I want another cup of perilla drink."
With Gandou soup in one hand and basil drink in the other, she followed Xiao Jue into the boat, and handed the basil drink to Xiao Jue: "Is this not sweet? I asked. Drink it, I invite you!"
Xiao Jue was speechless: "I gave you your money."
"It's all about your heart, how can you be so preoccupied with it?" He Yan scooped up a spoonful of sweet bean soup, the sugar water was sweet and warm, and she narrowed her eyes: "It's really delicious!"
Xiao Jue said: "It's really easy to support."
"You don't know," He Yan said, "I rarely eat sweets before, but I actually like sweets." She said, "Jiyang is so nice, and I want to be a Jiyang native too."
"You can stay here."
"How can that be done," He Yan sighed, "there are always many other things to do."
When he was talking, another boat came next to him. Someone exclaimed and praised. He Yan climbed over to take a look and saw a craftsman sitting on the bow of the boat, kneading dough. The singers on the stage sang whatever they were singing, and he would pinch them. The straw-shaped piles were already filled with noodles, and they were born exactly like the Huadan Xiaosheng who sang opera.
He Yan was lying on the bow of the boat, watching the rapid changes of the dough in this man's hands without blinking. The old man who kneaded the dough asked with a smile, "If the girl likes it, can you buy one? I can make one for you with you. The same face."
"really?"
"certainly."
He Yan was a little moved, but hesitated for a while, "Forget it."
Xiao Jue was cooking something on the small stove for making tea. Hearing this, he looked up at her and asked, "Why not?"
He Yan turned around and said in a low voice, "I am a woman now, so I can buy it. But if I go back to the guardhouse, I will have to dress up as a man. It is always inconvenient to take this person with me, in case it is used as evidence. If you find it, it's not right. If you always lose it, why have it?"
Xiao Jue stared at her, suddenly raised his lips and smiled, and said lightly: "You are not tall, but you have a lot of heart." He tapped, and a string of copper coins flew to the craftsman's table, "Give it to her. do one."
The old man smiled and put away the copper coins: "Okay."
He Yan hurriedly turned around and walked to Xiao Jue's side: "Why did you buy it! I can't take it with me when I leave Jiyang, why waste money?"
"You don't like it," he said with hooked lips. "If you like it, buy it. In this world, if you don't fight for it because you are afraid of losing it, it would be too boring."
Seeing that He Yan was still motionless, his eyes were sneering, but his tone was very calm, "Miss He, this is in Jiyang, today you can do everything you want without worrying about it. What you were originally, is What it looks like. What you like and what you hate, you can say it directly. You don’t have to feel wronged, and you don’t have to lie to everyone.”
He Yan was speechless for a while, not knowing what to say.
After a while, she said, "I can really do whatever I want?"
Xiao Jue shrugged, "Do whatever you want."
He Yan sat down.
The old man who kneaded the dough had excellent craftsmanship, but after a while, he pinched one and greeted He Yan on the other side: "The girl's dough maker is done!"
He Yan thanked him and took the face person from him. The mask man made it very finely, and even the lace on the corners of the skirt was exactly the same as hers, and she looked pretty. She could see that, and for a long while, she held the mask man and asked Xiao Jue, "Captain, do you think she looks like me? ?"
Xiao Jue replied coldly, "I'm better than you."
He Yan was used to being run by him, so he wasn't annoyed, he just said happily, "I looked like a woman."
At a glance, she saw Xiao Jue taking something out of the jar on top of the small stove and putting it in a bowl. He Yan went over to take a look. I don't know when, Xiao Jue cooked a bowl of clear soup noodles, the noodles were white, and a little soy sauce was added. There is no green onion, only an egg lies in it, and a little green vegetables emits a fragrant aroma.
He Yan was stunned. She was busy looking at the scenery outside and eating. She didn't know when Xiao Jue cooked a bowl of noodles. She asked, "Captain, are you hungry?"
Xiao Jue didn't speak, just pushed the bowl in front of her and handed her a pair of chopsticks: "Eat it."
"For me?" He Yan took the chopsticks and was flattered, "Why? I bought a lot of food, and I didn't… "
Before the word "hungry" came out, the man in front of him said lightly, "Isn't it your birthday today?"
He Yan was stunned.
After a long while, she asked, "...How do you know?" Even in front of Cui Yuezhi, she was talking about... a few days after the spring equinox.
"Miss He," Xiao Jue said slowly, "Do you know that your ability to deceive people is erratic and sometimes full of loopholes."
He Yan didn't speak. After a while, she said softly, "So today, the reason why you are so nice to me is because you know today is my birthday, right?"
"Okay?" Xiao Jue raised her eyebrows: "You seem to have many misunderstandings about Hao. How am I to you?"
no. He Yan thought to herself, except for Liu Buwang, she has never met someone as nice to her as Xiao Jue. No one remembers her birthday. In the past, they called her "He Rufei". It was He Rufei's birthday, not hers.
But today's bowl of birthday noodles was made by Xiao Jue for "He Yan".
She raised her head, faced Xiao Jue, and said with a smile: "Captain, you are so kind to me, thank you."
The corners of the girl's eyes were curved, clearly laughing, but her eyes were a little red due to the steaming heat. Xiao Jue was slightly stunned. Just as he was about to speak, He Yan was already eating noodles.
He didn't say anything.
The sky is completely dark, the sky is like ink, sprinkled with ten thousand stars, and the water also becomes a river of stars, pressing down on a boat of old dreams.
The boatman paddled slowly, and at some point, he had left the most prosperous middle of the river. There were many fewer boats around, and there was a cool breeze blowing. It blows people's heart to win.
A little dark green streamer swept across the water and stopped at the bow.
The boatman has stopped paddling, and the boat floats quietly on the water.
He Yan took Xiao Jue out to look, and saw that on the edge of the spring water, in the depths of the dense forest, countless dots of bright or faint streamers flickered, bright and dark, flying around the water surface and around the woods. Such as the light rain that will shine, thousands of flying lights, and catch people's eyes.
"It's beautiful." He Yan sighed.
In the past few years, it’s not that I haven’t seen good scenery, but I’m just on the way to the army, so I don’t have the heart to appreciate it. After all, it has been many years since I put everything down like this.
She will never forget such a night. He Yan turned his head and saw Xiao Jue lying down on the bow of the boat with his hands behind his head, looking at the firefly in front of him. She thought about it for a while, and lay down beside Xiao Jue, imitating Xiao Jue's style with her hands behind her head, watching the brilliance of the night wind that could not be extinguished, as if the starlight was at hand.
"Today's birthday is the happiest birthday I've ever had, Governor, thank you," she said.
Xiao Jue was noncommittal and said, "Don't you have to make a wish on your birthday? After all, there is a beginning and an end."
"Make a wish?" He Yan said, "I don't have any more wishes."
Praying for God's gifts is probably a kind of self-deception. Whatever you want, you have to fight for it yourself.
"So indifferent?"
"If I really want to say it, I hope there is such a person in the world who is here for me."
Not for He Rufei, not for General Feihong, just for her, for her.
"What kind of wish is this." Xiao Jue sneered, "I thought you were going to say that if you add an official and a rank to make achievements and make a career, no matter how bad it is, you will also enter the Nine Banners Camp."
A little light in the woods, shining brightly at night. Xu is that the wind is so good tonight and the scenery is so wonderful, she also wants to say a few more words.
She said, "Captain, have you noticed that since I've been with you, I've been acting as someone else's stand-in. One moment is Cheng Lisu, another moment is Wen Yuyan, and next time, I don't know what my identity will be."
Xiao Jue said, "Aggrieved?"
"No, it's just..." She looked into the distance with some loss. "Sometimes after being a substitute for a person for a long time, it is inevitable that you will forget who you are."
"Commander, you must remember my name."
"My name is… "
"He Yan."
The girl faced the sky and smiled slightly. Xiao Jue looked sideways and saw that her eyes were clear, and in her happiness, there seemed to be a dark sadness, so the bright past was gone, as if there were countless indescribable expressions. The pain of the table, in the end, was swallowed one by one.
When he turned his head, he also looked at the sky. In the wilderness, the wild light was dancing, the stars flowed like a waterfall, the cool wind blew across the person's cheeks, and the water surface was uncertain.
I don't know how many people's dreams will fall tonight, and how many people have seen the glimmer of light in the middle of the night.
The young man raised the corner of his mouth and said slowly: "Such an ugly name, I will remember it once I hear it."
"Don't worry about me forgetting, Miss He."
"He Yan."