After days of traveling by boat and train, Shen Ruozhen thought he was hallucinating. His steps stopped and another layer of water droplets fell on the surface of his coat.
Xiang Mingzhang spoke first: "You're going to get wet if you just stand there, why don't you come over here quickly."
Shen Ruozhen shuddered slightly, walked over quickly, lowered his head and hid under the umbrella. He raised his arms to hug, but Xiang Mingzhang had already held him in front of him.
With one hand on his back, Xiang Mingzhang's slightly cold cheek pressed against Shen Ruozhen's ear.
"Why are you here?"
Xiang Mingzhang said: "I said I would wait for you."
Shen Ruozhen asked: "Are you waiting for me, or are you too impatient to wait even two days?"
Xiang Mingzhang admitted: "After writing a letter like that, do you still expect me to remain calm?"
Family letters were private, love letters were foolish, and Shen Ruozhen felt ashamed to mention them in broad daylight. He glanced at the temple on the mountain guiltily.
Fortunately, there were few people around. The two of them climbed the stairs. Shen Ruozhen held Xiang Mingzhang's arm holding the umbrella, and their bodies were almost touching.
Xiang Mingzhang had heard this many times, but this was the first time it was his turn to say, "Buddhism is a pure land, you should respect yourself."
Shen Ruozhen said fearlessly: "If you forget to ask the mage for protection, I am not afraid."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "Does Butler Yao know that you are using him as a shield?"
Raindrops hit the top of the umbrella, making crackling sounds, pressing the edge of the umbrella down to block one side's view. Shen Ruozhen took the opportunity to kiss Xiang Mingzhang's temples and whispered, "You are destined to be trapped by love in this life. I will accumulate merits in the next life."
Xiang Mingzhang tightened his lips and clenched the handle of his umbrella. He heard from Shen Ruozhen on the phone last night that he would be back late, and he didn't hesitate at all. He hung up and packed up his things.
It was estimated that Shen Ruozhen would take the earliest train, so Xiang Mingzhang drove out in the late night and waited at the foot of the mountain at dawn.
If he is trapped by love, then he is probably even more deeply trapped.
The stone steps were wet and slippery, making it difficult to walk fast. The two men reached the temple entrance, just in time when a young monk opened the door and was about to sweep the fallen leaves in front of it.
The abbot of the temple recognized them as friends of Old Lady Yao and invited them to have a vegetarian meal together.
With Shen Ruozhen's upbringing, he should have refused, but today he took the initiative to ask for a bowl of freshly cooked white porridge and gave it to Xiang Mingzhang to warm his stomach.
The Buddhist hall on the west side was still the same. Shen Ruozhen knelt on the cushion, spread out paper and copied scriptures. From time to time, he looked up at the tablet, just like he had done in the past many years when he wrote. Butler Yao was always waiting by the side.
"I'm here to see you, Housekeeper Yao." Shen Ruozhen said as he wrote, "You don't have to worry about me. I'm fine. By the way, I came here by train and bought the ticket with my own ID card."
His hands were cold and his pen was trembling. Shen Ruozhen laughed at himself: "Being able to travel the world with my real name seems like a dream. Even the words I write seem frivolous."
Xiang Mingzhang stood behind him and accompanied him, laughing: "Did you write it badly? Do you want to change it?"
Shen Ruozhen said: "No, it can be remedied."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "Don't let Master Wangqiu despise you."
Shen Ruozhen recalled that when he was ten years old, his father took him to see the vault of Fuhua Bank and told him that money can save lives, strengthen a country, but also destroy many things.
He understood the truth, but it was too heavy for his age. When he returned home, he woke up in the middle of the night from a nightmare. He dreamed that he had lost the key to the safe.
Butler Yao stood by the bed, feeling distressed but also a little disgusted. He said that he was just a child after all and told him to grow up quickly.
After copying the scriptures, Shen Ruozhen clasped his hands together and bowed to the tablet of Manager Yao, then threw the scriptures into the incineration furnace outside the main hall.
The rice paper burned out, and wisps of white smoke mixed with the rain and floated into the sky.
The temple was not far from the cemetery. The rain stopped when they reached the foot of the mountain. Xiang Mingzhang drove the car and Shen Ruozhen opened the passenger door. There were two bouquets of white chrysanthemums on the seat.
On the way, Shen Ruozhen held two bouquets of flowers and said, "One for each of us?"
"No." Xiang Mingzhang said, "You need to build a tomb for your mother, and it won't be done in a short time. Give the two bouquets of flowers to your parents respectively. You can tell them what you want to say at the same time during the worship."
Shen Ruozhen was touched and said, "Thank you."
We drove into the cemetery and saw only a few people visiting graves halfway up the mountain. We climbed to the seventh row and Xiang Mingzhang said, "Go ahead. I'll wait for you here."
Shen Ruozhen said: "Come with me, my mother taught me not to talk about people behind their backs."
Xiang Mingzhang raised his eyebrows: "Are you going to mention me?"
Shen Ruozhen said: "Can't mention it?"
Xiang Mingzhang said: "If I hadn't come, would you have talked about me behind my back, or would you not have mentioned it?"
Two mature men walked to Shen Zuorun's grave, arguing with each other, then stopped talking at the same time and bent down together to brush away the grass debris on the tombstone.
Shen Ruozhen put down two bunches of white chrysanthemums. He was not as sad as last time. Seeing his loved ones again, he felt at ease and said, "Father, mother, I am here to see you."
Xiang Mingzhang hesitated whether to greet him or not, and what to address him.
Uncle, aunt, but this pair of elders were a banker and a lady from a noble family in the last century, and ordinary titles seemed disrespectful enough.
Before he could figure it out, Shen Ruozhen introduced: "Mingzhang came with me."
Xiang Mingzhang said, "Mr. Shen, Mrs. Shen."
Shen Ruozhen looked relaxed, as if he was chatting with his parents in an old mansion, and said, "The Yao family has done enough for the Shen family. Old Mrs. Yao is old and it is not suitable for her to travel. From now on, Mingzhang and I will come to visit the grave every year, okay?"
Xiang Mingzhang was originally worried that Shen Ruozhen would be sad, but gradually he felt relieved. The knot in his heart left over from the old times was untied, and it was actually a surprise to find the whereabouts of his relatives after experiencing great changes in the times.
Suddenly, Shen Ruozhen turned to him and said, "My parents agree."
Xiang Mingzhang was stunned for a moment, then asked cooperatively, "Did you say anything else?"
Shen Ruozhen tilted his ears, as if he could really hear it: "Father and mother asked, what is my relationship with you?"
Xiang Mingzhang whispered: "If you are afraid of disturbing the spirits of Mr. and Mrs. Shen, I don't mind you hiding it."
Shen Ruozhen said, "You came all the way to accompany me, and even prepared flowers for me. If I hide it, wouldn't I be a heartless person?"
It was cold in the rain, but Xiang Mingzhang's eyes were hot: "So what are you going to say?"
Shen Ruozhen looked at the tombstone, his Adam's apple rolling twice: "Father and mother, Mingzhang gave me a pipa, I accepted it, and from now on, no matter the strings are broken or the wood is rotten, I will only recognize this one."
Xiang Mingzhang understood instantly. He had heard from Old Lady Yao that there was an antique pipa in Shen Ruozhun's mother's dowry, which was buried with Shen Zuorun's body.
Shen Ruozhen's subtle words actually have a hidden meaning, telling them that their relationship is like that of husband and wife and cannot be changed.
Xiang Mingzhang's heart was pounding. He looked at the tombstone and the two bouquets of flowers as if he were really facing the scrutiny of the Shen family's parents. His palms felt cold, and Shen Ruozhen reached out and held his hand.
Xiang Mingzhang said: "Uncle and aunt, rest assured, I will always love and protect him."
Shen Ruozhen said: "How can you take care of me?"
"I dare not say anything too explicit in front of my elders." Xiang Mingzhang replied, "I will always respond to your requests and keep your promises. Is that enough?"
Shen Ruozhen couldn't resist after all. His eyes turned red in front of the tomb. He dug his fingers into Xiang Mingzhang's fingers and crushed a petal of flower stuck in his palm.
After coming down the hillside, they contacted the cemetery's management office, hoping to build another grave there, or leave the grave unchanged and add a name on the tombstone, so that they could be buried together as a couple.
After completing the formalities, it was too late that day, so the cemetery arranged to start construction the next day.
In the evening, Xiang Mingzhang and Shen Ruozhen went to the city of Ningbo and found a hotel to stay in.
The autumn rain brought a chill, and the temperature in the suburbs was even lower. Shen Ruozhen took a hot bath to warm up. His assistant took his suitcase back, and he changed his clothes and sent them to the dry cleaners, leaving him with nothing on.
Wrapping himself in a bathrobe, he tightened his belt, went back to the bedroom, and went straight to the bed to lift the quilt.
Xiang Mingzhang warmed the bed, and as soon as Shen Ruozhen got on the bed, he hugged her and pressed her against his body, finally hugging her tightly.
A short separation is better than a new marriage. Even if they did nothing, they both had a lot of sweet things to say. Shen Ruozhen leaned on Xiang Mingzhang's chest and said, "I write to you wherever I go, but you never write back to me."
Xiang Mingzhang used up all his patience waiting for the letter. He would call directly after reading it, but he did not refute: "I have little education, and I can't write literary words."
"Excuses." Shen Ruozhen said, "You can write in plain language, and I can understand English."
Xiang Mingzhang stroked Shen Ruozhen's back. Without this person around, his work and life were ordinary day after day, just like before they met.
Bathrobes are thick in autumn and winter. Xiang Mingzhang increased his strength and said, "Then I will reply to you in person."
The desk lamp was dim, and Shen Ruozhen's eyes were bright and gentle: "What do you want to say? I'm all ears."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "The first time you went on a business trip to Beijing, you secretly said in your heart that your name was Shen Ruozhen, but I couldn't hear it. But did you know that you fell asleep in the hotel the day before and muttered in your sleep 'not Chu Shichen', but I heard it clearly."
Shen Ruozhen looked surprised: "Is there such a thing?"
Xiang Mingzhang added, "Chongqing hotpot is very spicy. Fortunately, we had the shabu-shabu hotpot. If you had tried to force yourself to eat the red soup, you would have gotten an upset stomach and probably made Director Qin laugh."
Shen Ruozhen said: "Cantonese cuisine is light, and my friend invited me to try an old restaurant."
Xiang Mingzhang interrogated: "Which friend, is your surname Zhai or Ling?"
Shen Ruozhen replied: "The one with the surname Zhai will be the host, and the one with the surname Ling will be the companion."
Xiang Mingzhang loosened the belt of his bathrobe and said, "You followed others to visit tourist attractions and felt relieved. You brought up Confucius regardless of whether I felt upset or not. Do you think I believe in Confucianism?"
Shen Ruozhen was rubbed until he was sweating: "You don't believe in Buddhism or Confucianism. You are too arrogant."
"I'm arrogant?" Xiang Mingzhang said, "I picked up a broken root from a tree in Fuzhou. It broke on the way to send it, but I couldn't bear to throw it away. I put it between the dictionary. Is there anyone more careful than me?"
Shen Ruozhen could imagine how much Xiang Mingzhang cherished his letter. With such harsh reckoning, he must have read it countless times.
There was one letter left to be mentioned, so he asked, "Anything else?"
There was no trace of cool air left in the bed. Xiang Mingzhang peeled off Shen Ruozhen's bathrobe and asked, "Is Yangzhou's Lvyangchun delicious?"
Shen Ruozhen lowered his eyes: "I am thinking of you in my heart, drinking bitterly."
His palm moved upwards, Xiang Mingzhang grasped the back of Shen Ruozhen's neck and rolled over on the bed, pressing on him. He lowered his head and nibbled Shen Ruozhen's shoulder: "Is the shrimp noodle delicious?"
Shen Ruozhen said: "I missed you so much that I only ate one bite."
Xiang Mingzhang kissed along the neck: "What did you dream about when you stayed overnight in Suzhou?"
With red ears and hot cheeks, Shen Ruozhen said, "I forgot."
Feeling the pain, Xiang Mingzhang bit his earlobe and said, "President Shen is well-informed and has a good memory. Don't fool me. I must ask him clearly while we are in Ningbo."
Shen Ruozhen's face became hot from rubbing his head: "… Why in Ningbo?"
Xiang Mingzhang laughed and threatened him: "All the ancestors of your Shen family are here, as well as your parents, so don't even think about denying it."
Shen Ruozhen cursed softly: "How can you mention our elders and ancestors? You are shameless."
"Then tell me." Xiang Mingzhang was willing to bear the blame and raised his head to ask, "It was just a dream, how did we end up in Wushan together?"
Xiang Mingzhang suddenly lost his breath. He acted like a gentleman and was polite in the temple cemetery that day. At night, he locked the door and went to bed. He also forced himself to talk a lot of sour words. There was probably no one in the world who was more restrained than him.
He lifted Shen Ruozhen's chin, lowered his head to kiss her, rubbed their lips together and said vaguely: "As long as it's sweet, I don't care if it hurts."
The rain started falling again, pouring down for a while, and hitting the window, sometimes slowly and sometimes quickly.
Shen Ruozhen thought Xiang Mingzhang was just trying to scare him, but he turned out to be so ruthless. He didn't know how to say dirty words, didn't like to beg for mercy, and cried against the pillow when they were lingering for death.
Xiang Mingzhang showed no mercy, but became even more ferocious, and in his pleasure he forgot to force a confession.
Shen Ruozhen's eyelashes fluttered, his whole body was wet, and he took the initiative to say, "That's it."
Xiang Mingzhang said hoarsely: "What?"
Shen Ruozhen said: "In my dream, you made my life miserable."
Veins throbbing wildly, involving his heart, Xiang Mingzhang leaned over again, biting Shen Ruozhen's thin lips as if to bite him: "... Who is not letting who have an easy life?"
The long night passed quietly, the city was quiet, the autumn rain stopped, but they still did not stop.
Shen Ruozhen fell asleep due to exhaustion, nestled in Xiang Mingzhang's arms. He did not dream. If he had really dreamed of the ancestors of the Shen family, he would probably never dare to return to his hometown again.
During a light sleep in the early morning, the human body is the softest and most relaxed. Xiang Mingzhang turned over and pressed on Shen Ruozhen's chest. The warmth in the quilt made people forget that it was a cold dawn.
While Shen Ruozhen was half asleep and half awake, Xiang Mingzhang took him again.
They stayed in Ningbo for a total of three days. The weathered old tomb was replaced with a double tombstone, with "Shen Zuorun" and "Zhang Daoying" engraved side by side, meaning a joint burial.
Shen Ruozhen went to the United States to study when he was young. Being alone abroad, he was used to reporting good news but not bad news. He never mentioned the shooting. Before leaving, he bowed and only said to his parents: "I know you are blessing me."
On the way back they took the highway, Xiang Mingzhang drove and took off his coat to cover Shen Ruozhen. This trip to visit the graves was a way of putting to rest a worry, but in addition to his parents, the Shen family also had a daughter.
Xiang Mingzhang asked: "How many years younger than you is your sister?"
Shen Ruozhen said: "Lizhi is five years younger than me."
Xiang Mingzhang calculated Shen Lizhi's age. If she were still alive today, she would be nearly a hundred years old, which is not impossible. He said, "Maybe we can find her whereabouts."
Shen Ruozhen thought about it and checked, but there was no news. At that time, his mother and sister went to seek refuge overseas, but life is long, and Shen Lizhi may not stay in one place for the rest of her life.
"I will continue to look for her," he said. "Hopefully I can bring news about my little sister next year."
Xiang Mingzhang drove for three hours and only took a break once at a service area. When he got off the highway, unlike Ningbo where it was cloudy and rainy, the whole city was still sunny near dusk.
The city was a bit congested. Xiang Mingzhang tapped the steering wheel with his index finger and said, "Let's go back to Manzhuang."
Shen Ruozhen thought he was tired from driving all the way, so someone from Manzhuang prepared hot soup and hot food, and said, "Okay, I haven't seen my aunt for a while."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "Then you have to wait a little longer, my mother is away on a long trip."
Xu Liao has been working for Xiang Mingzhang in recent years and has rarely returned to Canada. Bai Yongti accompanied him and treated it as a long trip. He is expected to return at the end of the year.
Shen Ruozhen was happy for Bai Yongti and asked, "Is Sister Qing on vacation?"
"They've all been released." Xiang Mingzhang said, "There's no one in Manzhuang now, so it's convenient to start construction."
Shen Ruozhen didn't think much about it and assumed that it was the gardening department that was doing the work. Such a large estate required regular maintenance to preserve its beautiful scenery.
We arrived at Manzhuang and drove into the south gate. Autumn had arrived, but the leaves of the camphor forest had not yet turned yellow. A thick layer of fallen leaves piled up on the corridor, as if it had not been cleaned for a long time.
The doors and windows of the villa were closed, and it didn't look like anyone was there.
The engine stalled, and Shen Ruozhen realized belatedly and asked, "Is everyone on holiday?"
After getting out of the car, Xiang Mingzhang grabbed the car keys and said, "Well, let's do whatever we want today."
Shen Ruozhen noticed something unusual: "Where is the construction going on?"
Xiang Mingzhang raised his hand and pointed far away, saying: "We need to build a wall or fill a road between the South District and the North District to separate the two districts."
The north and south areas were originally two pieces of land that had nothing to do with each other. Xiang Mingzhang bought them together and built Manzhuang. He gave Bai Yongti a secluded place in the north, and he kept the south for himself as a safe haven.
Now that the mother and son's knots have been untied, this manor seems too lonely and too deep.
Shen Ruozhen understood Xiang Mingzhang's meaning and agreed, "Auntie gradually opened her heart and really came out to add a wall, which can be regarded as drawing a line with the past."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "You only consider my mother, not me?"
Shen Ruozhen smiled and said, "You must have thought carefully about your decision. I'll just listen to your immediate response."
Xiang Mingzhang told him in a relaxed tone: "I am not young anymore. It is time for me to start a family. I can't live with my mother."
As the sun set, Shen Ruozhen stood in the sunset glow: "Why didn't you tell me in advance that you wanted to start a family?"
Xiang Mingzhang said: "Because it's autumn, I want to give Qing Shang a birthday surprise."
Shen Ruozhen said, "You want to start a family?"
"More than that." Xiang Mingzhang said, "Manzhuang is divided into two parts. The northern part is for my mother, and the southern part... I am struggling with a small problem."
Shen Ruozhen said: "What's the problem?"
Xiang Mingzhang walked closer to him and said, "Silk cloth is called Man, and wrapping the body becomes a bondage. I want to change the name of Manzhuang."
Shen Ruozhen said this himself. It forced Xiang Mingzhang to collapse at the time, and it has been remembered to this day. He asked, "What name should it be changed to?"
Xiang Mingzhang said: "Zhenyuan, does it sound good?"
Shen Ruozhen was stunned. Xiang Mingzhang wanted to change more than just his name, he wanted to give him the South District as a birthday present.
The so-called starting a family means giving him a home.
Xiang Mingzhang doesn't like castles in the air and is pragmatic. He always remembers the day when he went to the Chu family to pick up Shen Ruozhen. He couldn't stand Shen Ruozhen's lonely look.
No one can predict the future. Xiang Mingzhang hopes that there will be a place that will always belong to Shen Ruozhen, and no matter what happens, there will always be a roof over his head to shelter him from the wind and rain.
Xiang Mingzhang said: "You said that this is the cage I built for myself."
Shen Ruozhen said: "At that time, the feelings were very deep..."
"Then you accept it." Xiang Mingzhang also said sincerely, "For me, this place has become a love nest."
Shen Ruozhen looked at him: "You give me too much love."
Xiang Mingzhang responded to the last sentence of the letter: "I feel the same way."
After opening the two doors, the villa became quiet. Xiang Mingzhang turned on several wall lamps in succession, and the living room and side hall were lit up.
Shen Ruozhen was still a little confused and didn't know what to do. He followed Xiang Mingzhang closely. When he passed by the study, he caught a glimpse of his piano case.
The pipa was taken away from the Chu family and placed in Bomanjia's apartment, taking up space. It was then sent here and placed on the soft couch where he studied.
Shen Ruozhen had just finished paying respects to his parents, and when he saw the pipa, his mind was moved. He walked in and opened the case, which had not been wiped for a long time, and asked, "Mingzhang, do you have a cloth?"
Xiang Mingzhang had no one to do anything for him, so he said, "I'll help you find it."
There was a note pinned to the pipa strings with "Gentleman's Agreement" written on it. Shen Ruozhen took it off, suddenly remembered something, and turned to go to another living room.
Xiang Mingzhang found a piece of deerskin cloth, went back to the study but found no one there, so he went to the door of the living room.
It was dark. In the bright light from the window, Shen Ruozhen stood in front of the piano. He calmly opened the piano cover and took out another gentleman's agreement that was hidden underneath.
Xiang Mingzhang couldn't help but smile. Although he was doing something sneaky, his posture was generous and good-looking. Those who didn't know would think that Shen Ruozhen was going to play a song.
He coughed deliberately and said, "You little thief, you've been caught."
Shen Ruozhen looked back, holding two notes in his hand. He said calmly, "It's a bright moon with no wind, so it's not suitable for stealing."
Xiang Mingzhang asked: "What do you think?"
Shen Ruozhen replied: "This is called stealing the wind but not the moon."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "Your skills are not good enough, why blame the moon?"
The two agreements were hidden under the piano lid and in the piano case, never seeing the light of day. The papers had grown cold. Shen Ruozhen walked to the door holding them, but they were confiscated by Xiang Mingzhang.
With a piece of deerskin cloth stuffed in his hand, Shen Ruozhen went to pick up the pipa. He was not convinced and asked Xiang Mingzhang to accompany him to take a look outside.
Walking out of the villa gate, the warm moonlight shines on the seven or eight clear steps.
The two men did not change their clothes. They sat down on the steps. Xiang Mingzhang read the gentleman's agreement in the moonlight and said, "I am not allowed to frame you, I am not allowed to fire you at will, and I am not allowed to let you peel apples. I have done all of these."
Shen Ruozhen read another one: "You are not allowed to go to Yaxi Bay alone, you are not allowed to lose your location, and you are not allowed to take back the old photos. I have never violated my rules."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "I didn't expect it would have such a restraining effect."
Shen Ruozhen wiped the pipa: "Perhaps you are actually a gentleman."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "The gentleman wants to hear you play the pipa."
Shen Ruozhen stretched out one leg and held the pipa tightly. He held the pegs to adjust the tightness, then suddenly touched the strings with his right hand and produced a "clang" sound with full force.
Then the sound became lighter, the rhythm faster, and the sound of the jade beads rolling broke the silence of the sky.
The music became more and more pleasant, so Xiang Mingzhang asked, "What kind of song is this?"
Shen Ruozhen lied, "It's about love."
Xiang Mingzhang asked: "How did you talk about it?"
The sound of the pipa continued. Shen Ruozhen turned his head to look at Xiang Mingzhang, his eyes flowing across the ivory pegs and his hair brushing against the Phoenix Terrace.
He said this seriously—
Ruyi zither head, everything goes well.
The four strings are ringing, and the love is ringing.
Xiang Mingzhang went to hold Shen Ruozhen's hand, and the music immediately became disrupted.
They smiled at each other, their fingertips interlaced and hit the pipa together. When the song was over, the final notes were dedicated to the bright moon and the wind.
(End of full text)
(End of this chapter)