Chapter 8 Eight Flower Banquet

During the Emperor's reign (AD 697-707), it was passed to Japan. After the dance, read the Psalms.Master Genji's works are profound and profound, and the readers cannot easily recite them.Every time I read a sentence, there are voices of admiration everywhere.All the articles and doctors are also sincerely admired.In the past, whenever there was such an opportunity, the emperor would first make Mr. Genji perform to honor the four.Winning the poetry competition today, the joy of the Sacred Heart is beyond ordinary. Queen Barnacle saw the outstanding talent of Genji, and thought in her heart: "It's incomprehensible that the crown prince's mother Honghuidian Nuyu hates Genji so much. But I love him so much, and I can't help but feel guilty." She reflected deeply.

"If it can be regarded as an ordinary dance, you will not feel guilty if you are greedy for beauty." She only recited the poem silently in her heart, and for some reason it was leaked to the world. The imperial banquet lasted until late at night.The ministers and others resigned respectively, and the barnacle queen and the crown prince also returned to the palace.The surroundings are quiet, the moonlight is turning bright, what a beautiful night!Mr. Genji was so drunk that he thought it was hard to pass such a good night.He thought: "All the people on duty in the hall have fallen asleep. When no one is paying attention, there may be a chance to meet the barnacle queen." He quietly walked towards the barnacle courtyard to spy on the situation.But seeing that the doors of Wang Mingfu and others who could get the news were all closed, I could only sigh alone.However, he still refused to return here empty-handed, so he turned to walk under the corridor of Honghui Hall, but saw that the third door had not been closed yet.After the banquet, the ladies of the Honghui Palace went to the palace to stay overnight, and there were not many people staying here.Mr. Genji peeked inside the door, the small door inside was still open, but there was no sound of anyone.Mr. Genji thought: "Women in the world have committed wrongdoings because of lax gate control." He stepped into the door and "peeped inside. All the maids seemed to have fallen asleep.

Suddenly, I heard a very delicate and beautiful voice from the corridor, which was very different from ordinary female voices. It was singing an ancient song: "It's not like a bright light, and it's not like a dark curtain. The hazy spring moon night, the beautiful scenery is unparalleled in the world." Come here.Mr. Genji was overjoyed, when she approached, he rushed out the door and grabbed her sleeve.The woman seemed to be very frightened, and shouted: "Ah, you scared me to death! Who is it?" Genji replied, "Why do you hate me so much?" Then he chanted a poem:

"You and I both know that late night is good, and a good relationship is like a moon reunion." He carried her into the room and closed the door.Because of the accident, the woman was at a loss for a moment, which made people feel a kind of tenderness and sweetness.She was trembling all over, and shouted: "There is a stranger here!" Mr. Genji said to her: "I am allowed by everyone. What's the use of calling someone? Let's be quiet." The woman listened With this voice, it is expected that he is the son of Genji, and he feels a little comforted in his heart.She felt that this matter was embarrassing, but she didn't want to appear ruthless. Mr. Genji drank too much alcohol this day, and he was even more drunk than usual, so it would be a pity to let it go.The woman is young and naive, with a gentle temperament, and she is powerless to refuse.The two of them made it a good thing.Mr. Genji thinks this girl is very cute, but it's a pity that the sky is getting brighter, and he feels very melancholy.The woman was even more worried and confused.

Mr. Genji said to her, "I still want to ask you for your name. Otherwise, how can we communicate in the future? You don't want to break up just now." The woman then chanted a poem and said: "If my concubine returns to the spring soil unfortunately, I don't think you will have the chance to visit the grave." When she sings, her posture is very delicate and charming.Mr. Genji replied: "This is also reasonable. I shouldn't ask you, I should explore it myself. However, "Looking east and west for Fang's name, rumors spread like bamboo wind. If you are not afraid of damaging your reputation, why should I be afraid?I will definitely find out.Do you want to hide it from me? While talking, it was already dawn, all the maids got up one after another, went to the palace to meet the queen, there was frequent traffic on the corridor. Mr. Genji had no choice but to exchange a fan with the woman as a certificate, and then hurried out and went back to the palace.

This ancient song can be found in "The Collection of Thousand Miles". There are many maids in Tonghuyuan, the residence of Mr. Genji, and several of them have already woken up.When they saw the young master coming back at dawn, they shook hands and kicked their feet, and whispered to each other: "It's been hard work! You've been groping around day and night!" They pretended to be asleep.Mr. Genji walked into the inner room, although he lay down, he couldn't fall asleep.Thinking in my heart: "This man is so cute! He must be one of the female royal sisters in Honghui Palace. This person is still a virgin, so he must be the fifth or sixth daughter. The handsome prince's wife, the third daughter, and the first lieutenant general don't like it." The wife and the four daughters are all beauties. If it were these two people, it would be even more interesting. The sixth daughter has already been promised to the crown prince. If it were her, I would feel sorry for him. They have so many sisters that it is difficult to distinguish them. I don't know. Looking at her, I don't want to break up the relationship. Then why don't you tell me how to communicate?" He thought about it, and his heart was held by this woman.Compared with Honghui Hall, which is so thin and unrepaired, and Barnacle Courtyard, which is so tightly guarded, he feels that the character of Queen Barnacle is really admirable!

Prince Shuai is the younger brother of Genji, who was later called Minister of the Ministry of Firefly. On the second day, a small banquet was held again. After a busy day, Mr. Genji played the zither for the banquet, but this small banquet was more elegant and interesting than yesterday's big banquet.It was almost dawn, and the barnacle queen entered the palace to serve her.Mr. Genji's spirits were waning, thinking of the woman he met under the dim moonlight last night, who would probably leave the palace and return to his residence at this moment, he felt very disappointed.So he sent his two shrewd and capable courtiers Liangqing and Weiguang to spy on the situation.The young master bid farewell to the emperor, and when he left the palace and returned to the mansion, the two came to report: "The car that was parked in the hidden place before has now gone out through the north gate. But among the many female royals and changing clothes, two of the right minister's family The two sons, Major General and You Zhongbian rushed out to see them off in a hurry, and we know that the ladies of the Honghui Palace have also withdrawn. We can see clearly that there are many beautiful women among them. There are only three cars." Hearing this, Mr. Genji guessed that the woman It must be inside, and I can't help being excited in my chest.He thought: "Is there any way to know the woman's rank? Is it possible to simply tell her father You Minister about this and officially become his son-in-law? But the quality of this person is not yet known. It is unavoidable to propose marriage suddenly." It's too Menglang. But let it go, it's a pity that you will never know who it is, what should I do?" He was troubled and lay blankly.

Suddenly he thought of Zi Ji: "She must be very lonely. I have been in the palace a lot these days, and I haven't returned to Ertiaoyuan for a long time. I think she is depressed." He felt very pitiful.He took out the witness fan to have a look, but saw that there were three cherry blossom-shaped ornaments on each of the two outer bones, tied with five-color silk threads.On the side of the thick color, a hazy pale moon is painted with lacquer gold, and the moon's shadow is reflected in the water.The style is not particularly novel, but this is something that beauties are used to, and it has a sense of kindness and loveliness.The face of the person who sang "Maybe you have no chance to visit the grave" never left his heart, so he wrote two lines of poems on the top of the fan:

"Where does the hazy waning moon go? The deep-seated lovesickness annoys the murderer." After writing, I put the fan away. Besides, Mr. Genji thought he would not go to the Zuo minister's mansion for a long time, but he felt sorry for the young Ziji, so he decided to comfort her first, then walked out of the mansion and went back to Ertiaoyuan. Every time I see Zi Ji, I always feel that she is more beautiful and more charming.Her intelligence is really different.Mr. Genji felt that this person had no flaws and could be raised and brought up according to his own wishes.Just a little bit of worry: If you are only raised by men, will your temperament be more gentle in the future?

He told Ziji about the flower banquet in the palace that day, and taught her to play the piano, and stayed with her for a day.At night, when the young master was about to go out, Zi Ji pouted and said, "I'm going again." However, she had gotten used to it recently, and she didn't hesitate to obstruct her. When Mr. Genji arrived at the left minister's mansion, Kui Ji did not come out to meet him as usual.The son is lonely and bored, so he has to think about various things alone.Later, I took the zither and played it, and sang the horse music "Guanchuan": "...There is no good night's sleep..." Minister Zuo came and talked to him about the interesting things at the flower banquet the day before yesterday: "This old man is so old, and he has been in office for four dynasties and Ming Dynasty. Lord, I have experienced a lot, but I have never seen such fresh and alert poems, perfect dance and music, and I have never felt that this time is so suitable for pottery, but I am sick and prolonging my life. Now is the literary movement It is a time of prosperous prosperity and talents come forth in large numbers, and my son-in-law is proficient in various arts and good at mobilizing talents, so he can achieve this victory. Although I am old, I still have the joy of hearing chickens dance!"

Mr. Genji replied: "How dare you! My son-in-law is not good at dispatching, but he is just searching for talented people in many ways and doing his own duty. Looking at all kinds of skills, the "Liuhuayuan" by the first lieutenant general is perfect, and it is really an example for future generations. If my lord is willing to dance happily in the spring of this prosperous age, it will bring glory to the world." At this moment, Zuo Zhongbian and Touzhong General entered.The three of them leaned together in front of the railing, each took their favorite musical instrument, and played elegant tunes together, the sound of which was melodious and pleasant. The full text of "Guanchuan" reminding Ma Le: "(female singer) The sedge grows by the side of Guanchuan, making it soft as a pillow. I have lost my parents' love, and I don't have a good night's sleep. (female singer) My husband has lost his parents' love, for This is so cute and pitiful. (Male singing) My sister loves me so much, I am so grateful. Tomorrow I will go to Yashishishi, and I will definitely buy you a pair of shoes. (Female singing) If you buy shoes for me to wear, you will buy silk Narrow-soled shoes. Put on your shoes and good clothes, and walk up the official road to welcome you." Genji wanted to use this sentimental woman to contrast the indifferent Kuihime. Let's talk about the lady on the hazy moonlit night, recalling the misty dream of that night, she couldn't help but lament, with infinite thoughts in her heart.She has promised to marry the Crown Prince and is scheduled to marry in the East Palace in April, which adds to her worries.On the male side, it's not impossible to find out the details, but because it has not been confirmed which female son she is, and because she has always been at odds with the female imperial court of Honghui Palace, it is unseemly to propose marriage rashly, so it is very annoying.After March 20th, the right minister's house held an arrow competition, and invited all ministers and princes to participate in the arrow competition, followed by a banquet for viewing vine flowers.At that time, the cherry blossoms had fallen, but there were still two late-blooming cherry trees, which seemed to understand the meaning of the ancient song "Mountain cherry blossoms are hidden in secluded places, and they bloom only after spring." They were blooming very lushly.A newly-built palace was recently built, and in preparation for the dressing ceremony of the princess born to the female imperial palace of Honghui Palace, it is very ornately decorated.The right minister's house pays attention to ostentation, and all the equipment is very novel and fashionable.Today, when the right minister met Mr. Genji in the palace, he invited him to participate in the arrow competition today.But I was afraid that the son would not come, which would make the event less attractive, so I sent my son, a major general, to greet him, and presented a poem: "The vines and flowers in my house are as humble as they are, why should I wait for you to come here?" At this time, Mr. Genji was in the palace, so he heard about it.The emperor read the poem and said with a smile: "He is very proud!" Then he said: "He specially sent someone to pick you up, you should have gone earlier. The princesses all grew up in his home, and he will not treat you as an outsider." For this ancient song, see "Ancient and Modern Waka Collection". When a girl is between twelve and fourteen years old, a dress ceremony is held to show she is an adult. Mr. Genji dressed up and didn't come to the meeting until it was very dark.The right minister's family was anxiously waiting.He was wearing a Chinese chiffon gown with white ground color patterns, and a lavender shirting gown underneath, with a very long train, and he was sandwiched between many princes in frock coats. He was obviously a handsome nobleman. , everyone is in awe.The young master took his seat calmly, his demeanor is really different.The color and fragrance of the flowers are also reduced, which makes people feel disappointed after seeing it. The orchestral performances on this day were excellent.As the night was getting darker, Mr. Genji drank too much, got drunk, pretended to be depressed, got up and left his seat.In the main hall lived the eldest princess and the third princess.Mr. Genji went to the east side door and leaned on it to watch. The eldest princess is the person who held the dressing ceremony as mentioned on the previous page, and the third princess later became the He Mao Zhaiyuan, see page 186. In front of the eaves of the main hall is the place where rattan flowers bloom.In order to see the flowers, the lattice windows in the main hall were all open, and all the maids gathered in front of the curtain.They deliberately exposed their sleeves and skirts outside the curtain, just like when they hold a dance party in the New Year.This attitude is quite incompatible with today's internal banquet.So Mr. Genji thought of the elegance of the barnacle courtyard, and felt that it was different after all. "I'm not in a good mood, but they're trying to persuade you to drink too much. I'm so sorry! I'm sorry, since I'm here by fate, let me hide here for a while." As he said, he lifted the curtain and hid his upper body in the curtain.But I heard a woman say: "Hey! That's ridiculous! Only lowly people are attracted to each other. If you have such a noble status, why do you say 'destiny'?" At first glance, although this person's appearance is not very dignified, he is not ordinary either. The young maid clearly has noble and beautiful qualities. The room was filled with cigarette smoke from nowhere.All the girls are gathered together, the hairpins and tins are intertwined, and the shadows of their skirts are swaying. Everyone behaves gracefully, beautifully and movingly.But in the end, it lacks a refined and elegant style, which is obviously a family tradition of loving fashion and competing for luxury.These noble women all came to this door from their bridal chambers in order to watch shooting and flowers.In front of these noble women, Mr. Genji should be respectful and cautious, but he was infected by the current gorgeous scene, and his interest suddenly aroused, and he couldn't help but think: "I don't know which one I will meet under the hazy moon." His chest jumped uncomfortably.Leaning against the door, he changed the music "Ishikawa" to encourage horses, and sang in a humorous tone: "Ishikawa Koryo, took my fan. I regret it very much, hateful and deplorable..." But I heard that a woman replied: "It's strange! There is a wonderful Korean man!" It can be seen that this person does not know the details.There is another woman behind the curtain, who does not answer in silence, but sighs repeatedly.Mr. Genji approached this person, held her hand through the screen, and said: "Appreciate the hazy moon for a while, can we see you again? Looking at the place from the top of the mountain, lost in worry. Why did you go astray? He said in a speculative tone. The woman couldn't help it, and replied: "But if you agree with each other, it's not about the existence of Guan Yue. The mountains are cloudy and deserted, so you can get lost?" Hearing this voice, one could tell that this person was indeed the woman we met that day.Mr. Genji was overjoyed, but... The above two poems all compare the woman with the moon, and the room with the mountain.