"What kind of person is that boy?"
"Very calm. After sitting for half an hour, the posture has not changed. I only drank a sip of tea at the beginning, probably out of politeness, and then I didn't drink it again... In fact, the first sip of tea he He only touched his lips, not like being cautious, but more like being cautious, deeply thoughtful, very guarded, and even harboring hostility."
"It seems that he is a smart man, at least a little smart... how old is it?"
"Fourteen."
"I remember it should be this big."
"It's just that the expression is too calm, and I always feel bigger when I look at it."
"Just an ordinary person?"
"Yes... the aura is normal, and it's obvious that I haven't even experienced marrow washing. Although I can't see the potential, but I'm already fourteen years old. Even if I start to practice again, I don't have a good future."
"Even if he has a future, can he still be compared with the head disciple of the Longevity Sect?"
"Ma'am, is the marriage contract real?"
"The token is real, so the marriage contract is also true."
"How could the old master... book such a marriage for Miss?"
"If the old man is not dead, or you can ask the answer... Open the door, I will meet him."
With a creaking sound, the door slowly opened. The bright sunlight poured into the room from outside the courtyard, illuminating all the corners, illuminating the bright face of the madam and the half jade pendant tightly held in her hand. The old nun who had talked to her earlier was standing in the corner, covered by shadows all over her body, it was even hard to spot if one didn't look carefully.
With the support of the old mother, the madam walked outside, walking slowly like a willow in the wind, the precious gold hairpin in her hair and the ring on her body did not make any sound, which seemed a bit strange.
The shadows of the trees in the courtyard are mottled, and there are more than a dozen big trees in the lawn that can only be hugged by a few people. There are no servants and maids on both sides of the stone path, and many people can be seen kneeling in the distance. The quiet atmosphere is full of chills It feels like those trees standing straight up to the sky, and like the cold weapons displayed everywhere in the flower hall.
The owner of this mansion is Xu Shiji, a general of Yudong God with great military exploits in the Great Zhou Dynasty. Lord God General governs the mansion like an army, and the mansion has always been solemn and quiet. Because of what happened today, all the servants were driven to the side garden, and the atmosphere here is naturally more depressing. It's like being frozen.
Mrs. Xu walked through the courtyard, came to the side hall, stopped, looked at the young man in the hall, raised her eyebrows slightly.
The boy was wearing an old daoist robe that had been washed until it turned white. His face was immature, his eyebrows were straight, and his eyes were bright. There was an indescribable smell, as if he could see the truth hidden in many things, just like a mirror.
Luggage was placed at the boy's feet. The luggage looked very ordinary, but it was organized in an orderly manner, and the dust from the journey could not be seen at all. The hat tied on the luggage was wiped clean.
It was not these things that made Madam Xu raise her eyebrows, but the fact that the tea on the table was no longer steaming, but this young man still had a calm expression, without the slightest sign of boredom, and possessed a calmness and patience that is difficult to possess at this age.
This is a difficult person to deal with.
Fortunately, such people are often very proud.
…
…
After entering the Divine General's Mansion, he spoke a few words with that nanny, and no one paid any attention to him. After sitting in the side hall for half an hour, it was inevitable that he would feel a little bored, but Chen Changsheng had been used to being deserted since he was a child, so he didn't find it difficult.
While silently memorizing the contents of the sixth volume of "Hua Ting Jing" Sutra Notes to pass the time, he waited for the other party to come to someone quickly so that he could return the marriage certificate to the other party. After this matter was resolved, he still had a lot of his own something to do.
He did only take a sip of the tea on the table, and then dipped it on his slightly dry lips, but he was not as cautious or guarded as the nanny guessed, but he felt that when he was a guest at someone else's house, if the tea was drunk It is impolite to want to go to the toilet too much, and even though the tea bowls used in the Shenjiang Mansion are all extremely rare Ru kiln porcelain, he is still not used to drinking water from other people's utensils.
In this regard, he is a bit of a clean freak.
He stood up and saluted as a junior to the gorgeously dressed lady. Guessing that she was probably Mrs. Xu from the God General's Mansion, he thought that this matter could finally be settled, so he reached into his arms and prepared to take the marriage certificate. come out.
Mrs. Xu stretched out her hand to signal that she was not in a hurry, sat down on the main seat, took the tea brought by the woman in charge, looked at him calmly and said, "Haven't you visited Tianshu Mausoleum? Where is Naihe Bridge? Or go to Li Palace Look at the ivy, the scenery is also superb."
Chen Changsheng thought to himself that this was just a small talk. He didn't think it was necessary, but since it was an elder who spoke, he naturally had to be courteous, and replied briefly and respectfully: "Not yet, I'll go and see it in a few days."
Mrs. Xu's hand holding the bowl cover stopped in the air, and asked: "So, as soon as you arrived in the capital, you came to the General's Mansion first?"
Chen Changsheng replied honestly, "I dare not delay."
"I see."
The madam raised her head and gave him a cold look, thinking that it is ridiculous that a poor young man from a poor country would not be attracted by the grand sights of the capital and come directly to the mansion to discuss marriage.
Chen Changsheng didn't understand the meaning of the words "so it is so", stood up, put his hands into his arms again, and was about to take out the marriage certificate and hand it back to the other party. Now that he has made up his mind, he is not going to think about more time.
However, his actions caused a misunderstanding again. Madam looked at him, her expression became more indifferent, and she said: "I will not agree to this marriage, even if you take out the marriage certificate, it is meaningless."
Chen Changsheng didn't expect to hear these words, and was stunned for a moment.
"The old lady was rescued by your master many years ago, and then set up this marriage... Does this seem to be a good story?"
Mrs. Xu looked at him, and said indifferently: "... But in fact, it is a good story that can only be found in dramas. It cannot happen in the real world. Except for those demented literary women, who would believe it?"
Chen Changsheng wanted to explain, saying that he came here for the purpose of retiring the engagement, but after listening to the condescending words, and seeing the undisguised contempt and indifference in Mrs. Xu's eyes, he found it difficult to speak—at this time his hand was still in his arms. Inside, the edge of the slightly stiff paper was already touched. One piece of paper was a marriage letter written by Dazai himself, and the other piece of paper had a certain little girl's birth date written on it.
"The old lady passed away four years ago, and this marriage no longer exists."
Mrs. Xu looked at the young man in front of her, and continued: "I know you are a smart person, so we should talk like a smart person. What you have to consider now is not to continue this marriage, but to think carefully. What kind of compensation can you get, what do you think of my proposal?"
Chen Changsheng took his hands out of his arms, without holding the marriage certificate, hanging down to his waist, and asked, "May I ask why?"
"Why? That's not a question a smart person should be asking."
Mrs. Xu looked at him expressionlessly and said: "Because your teacher has good medical skills, but he is still just an ordinary Taoist, and I am here in the Mansion of the Divine General; because you are a poor boy who can only afford old Taoist clothes, and my daughter It's the lady of the Divine General's Mansion; because you are an ordinary person, the Divine General's Mansion should not be a place where ordinary people can enter. Is my explanation clear enough?"
Chen Changsheng clenched his hands slightly, but his voice did not tremble: "It's very clear."
Madam Xu looked at this childish face and decided to put some more pressure on him. She knew very well what a smart and proud young man couldn't stand the most. Later, he would definitely take the initiative to call off the engagement.
She put the tea bowl on the case, stood up, and said: "The cup of tea on your case is the butterfly tea from Ming Dynasty. You can only buy one tael for five taels of silver. This tea bowl is from Ru Kiln, and it is even more expensive than gold. Tea It’s cold, and if you don’t drink it, it means that you don’t have the life to drink this cup of tea. You are just a grass root in the mud, you are not porcelain, you are just rubble, and you want to change your life by clinging to my god’s mansion? I’m sorry, this or Makes you happy, but makes me very unhappy.”
Madam's voice was very calm, she didn't deliberately overbearing, but pushed people to the ground, she didn't deliberately look down, but she seemed to be looking at an ant on the ground from the sky.
All these emotions were accurately conveyed to Chen Changsheng.
This is a blatant humiliation, especially the phrase "change your life by clinging to the God General's Mansion", which is an unacceptable accusation for any proud teenager. In order to be able to hold their heads high and leave proudly, many people will probably He chose to argue angrily, then took out the marriage certificate and tore it in half, threw it in front of his wife, and even spit twice.
And this is exactly what Mrs. Xu wanted to see - if it wasn't for the fact that the marriage letter was too special, and she didn't have a better way, why did she have to go to such troubles like today
The side hall was quiet, without any sound.
She looked at Chen Changsheng coldly, waiting for the boy's anger.
However, the development of the matter was completely beyond his expectation.
Chen Changsheng looked at Mrs. Xu and said calmly: "Actually, you misunderstood. I came to Shenjiang's mansion this time to return the marriage certificate to the mansion. I came here to annul the engagement."
The whole house was silent.
The wind came from the garden, blowing the old bamboo branches under the porch crackling.
Madam was slightly surprised and asked, "Say it again?"
She didn't notice that her voice was a little nervous, but also a little relaxed. It was unimaginable because of the accident. Whether the boy didn't want to lose face, said this on purpose, or he really came to divorce, it was what she wanted to see.
Chen Changsheng looked at her and said seriously: "Actually... I'm here to divorce the engagement."
In the corner of the side hall, the face of the nanny who seemed to have disappeared for a long time changed.
Mrs. Xu's expression remained unchanged, but her palm lightly landed on her chest.
The entire Divine General's Mansion seemed to have become much lighter at this moment.
Chen Changsheng's expression suddenly became serious.
"But now... I've changed my mind," he said.
The spring breeze in the mansion became cold again, and the atmosphere became extremely oppressive again. In the dark corner of the side hall, the wrinkles on the face of the nun, as deep as countless ravines, were suddenly washed away by the flood.
Madam Xu suddenly felt that she had done something wrong.
She forcibly suppressed the uneasiness that came from her heart, made her voice as gentle as possible, and said, "Since you have already figured it out, why do you say such things in anger? How about..."
However, she was shocked to find that the boy had no intention of continuing to listen to what she said.
Chen Changsheng picked up his luggage from the ground, carried it on his back, and walked directly out of the hall.