See it or not, this is a poem that can easily touch people's hearts, which is why Zhu Ping'an chose it.
Zhu Pingan came across this poem in 2008. After reading it in a novel, it was deeply engraved in his mind. Many people mistakenly believe that this poem was written by Tsangyang Gyatso. In fact, this is a misunderstanding. The author of this poem is a Han girl named Tashi Ramuduo, and this poem was only created in 2007.
Although this poem had nothing to do with love when the original author wrote it, almost everyone associates it with love.
This is a poem that can conquer eyes, ears and heart. Therefore, Zhu Pingan chose this poem, Seeing and Not Seeing, as a stepping stone.
Of course, the result did not disappoint Zhu Ping'an. After "Seeing and Not Seeing" was passed in, about ten minutes later, the third door was opened to Zhu Ping'an.
The moon was above the treetops, and people were meeting after dusk. In the swaying moonlight, Zhu Ping'an stepped into the third courtyard.
When Zhu Ping'an stepped into the third courtyard, he had already prepared himself mentally. From the moment he entered, there would be a test at each door. He thought that there would be another test at the last door of the bridal chamber, just like how Su Xiaomei tested her groom Qin Shaoyou three times on her wedding night. People like the word "three" very much. He had gone through two tests, so he probably needed one more.
When he first entered the courtyard, Zhu Pingan noticed that a personal maid at the entrance of the bridal chamber was holding a scroll with a red ribbon tied to it. Zhu Pingan estimated that this scroll might be the third test of the night, and there should be a title or something written on it.
"Hello, son-in-law..." Four personal maids were standing at the door of the bridal chamber. When Zhu Ping'an approached, they called out "Hello, son-in-law" in their little mouths and bowed to him, including the little maid named Baozi whose face was blushing with shyness, as if she was going to enter the bridal chamber.
"Oh, hello." Zhu Ping'an stretched out his hand and gave a light support. He was still not used to others greeting him.
After seeing the maidservant, Zhu Pingan smiled slightly and nodded to her as a greeting. Then, the maidservant's face turned even redder.
However, to Zhu Ping'an's surprise, there was no test. After the maids greeted him, they led Zhu Ping'an into the bridal chamber.
In fact, the girl holding the scroll initially wanted to open it, as if she was going to ask a question, but the chubby little maid whispered a few words to the girl, and then the girl put the scroll away again.
In short, without any test, Zhu Ping'an was led directly into the bridal chamber.
After entering the bridal chamber, Zhu Pingan felt a little embarrassed to step on the red carpet and the gold and jade decorations. Even from a modern perspective, the decorations in the bridal chamber were too luxurious and magnificent.
"Uncle, please come this way."
Just as Zhu Ping'an was admiring the decoration of the bridal chamber, an old woman in her forties, neatly dressed, walked out from behind the screen and led Zhu Ping'an inside.
Zhu Pingan followed the old woman and soon arrived at the core bedroom of the bridal chamber. In addition to the double happiness characters, there were two paper-cuts on the bedroom door. One of the paper-cuts was an image of two little white rabbits lying on a laurel leaf. The leaf and the night, the entanglement and the lingering, the lingering night, probably meant that one night of marriage equals a hundred days of grace. The other paper-cut was an image of fish and water and a swing, the joy of fish and water, the swing is also the eternity, implying the eternity of fish and water.
The bedroom was furnished with an exquisitely crafted dressing table, desk, incense burner, assorted antique display cabinets, Jingdezhen vases, wine vessels, books, swords and guzheng. The display cabinets were filled with various curios, gold, jade and porcelain, the vases were filled with brightly blooming peonies and lotus flowers, and on the desk were two red candles as thick as wrists, creating an atmosphere of the wedding night.
It takes ten years to be able to cross the river together, and a hundred years to be able to sleep on the same pillow together.
The wedding bed in the bedroom was very tall and could be called a luxurious wedding bed. Zhu Ping'an even thought with evil humor that even if three or four people sat on it, they would not feel crowded at all.
There was a beautiful lady sitting on the wedding bed, wearing a bright red wedding dress and a piece of unique red silk covering her head, so her appearance could not be seen clearly.
"A happy balance will ward off disasters, great luck, and you can now choose your wedding scarf."
As the old woman spoke, she handed over a jade ruyi. The jade ruyi was made into the shape of a scale, with the crosshairs, the six stars of the Southern Dipper, the seven stars of the Northern Dipper, and the three stars of Fortune, Wealth and Longevity marked on it, a total of sixteen stars, which was a combination of the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, and was used to bring good luck when choosing a veil.
Zhu Ping'an took the jade ruyi and was about to lift the red veil.
"Son-in-law, you hold it upside down, you hold it upside down." The old maid saw Zhu Ping'an holding the jade ruyi upside down and couldn't help but remind him.
Puff, this idiot, why is he so excited? He even holds the wedding scale upside down. The beautiful lady under the red veil couldn't help but curl her lips.
This thing has a front and back? Zhu Ping'an scratched his head, and then, at the reminder of the old woman, he readjusted the jade ruyi and reached for the red veil.
The moment the red veil was lifted, the entire bridal chamber was lit up.
Heartbeat, throbbing.
Li Shu under the red veil is like a hybrid of a fairy, a witch and a seductress. She has a bit of fairy spirit, a bit of witch spirit and a bit of seductive spirit. One look of hers can convey a thousand kinds of charm, and she is extremely charming.
What a disaster...
Zhu Ping'an's throat was a little dry and he seemed a little thirsty.
"You are a perfect match made in heaven, and you are so happy. Congratulations to the son-in-law and congratulations to the young lady." When the old maid at the side saw Zhu Ping'an lift up the bridal veil, she couldn't help but compliment him with a smile and said auspicious words.
There are many formalities in the bridal chamber for wealthy families, but ordinary families in Xiahe Village would not have so many formalities. The groom finished drinking outside and returned to the bridal chamber with a smell of alcohol. He reached out and lifted the red veil, and the two of them got down to business. A night in the spring morning was worth a thousand gold.
Unlike now, there is an old lady and a pair of procedures.
After removing the wedding veil, the old maid said a lot of auspicious words, and then led Li Shu and Zhu Ping'an to the table, where they knelt facing each other. On the table were millet and sorghum, a meat dish, a bowl of daughter's red wine, and several small plates filled with sauces, pickles, salted meats, and stewed meats for seasoning.
This procedure is called eating together, and the meat dish is called lao. "Book of Rites: Marriage" says: "When the wife arrives, the husband will invite her in, and they will eat together, and drink wine together. This is to unite the bodies, treat the status equally, and show closeness to each other."
After eating together, they would drink the wine from the same cup, which is the modern equivalent of drinking from the same cup.
The wine is poured three times during the wedding ceremony, which is called "Sanli". The first two times, the old woman pours wine for the two people with a jug, and the third time, she uses a jin.
The wedding wine of this era is somewhat different from the wedding wine of today. Zhu Ping'an and Li Shu first drank half of the wedding wine, then mixed the two wedding wines and divided them into two wedding wines. Then they exchanged their cups with their hands and drank the remaining wine. After drinking, they threw the wedding wine cups, one facing up and the other facing down, under the bed, implying a long-lasting marriage.
The gourd is a cup, and the wine it holds is somewhat bitter. Moreover, when Li Shu was drinking the wedding wine, she only tasted it lightly, and Zhu Pingan drank almost all of the two cups of wine. In addition, after drinking the two cups of wine, Zhu Pingan felt a little dizzy.
After the wedding wine, there was another hair-tying ceremony. The man cut a lock of hair from Zhu Ping'an's left side and the woman cut a lock of hair from Li Shu's right side with golden scissors, tied them together with red silk thread and placed under the pillow.
"A moment of peace is worth a thousand gold coins, so I won't bother you any more."
After the wedding ceremony, the old maid left tactfully, leaving only Zhu Pingan and Li Shu in the bridal chamber.
The big eyes met the small eyes, and the atmosphere was a little charming for a moment. (To be continued.)