Chapter 3 Chapter Three Liu Jingting and Wu Yingxiong

In the late night of autumn, when the moon was white and the wind was clear, three carts carrying Dong Xiaowan's family and all their belongings quietly entered the fishing alley and stopped in front of a mansion with an attic and a garden.The big-footed single mother opened the gate of the courtyard, and people began to move things in. The horses pulling the cart felt the pressure on their backs getting lighter and snorted happily, and tapped their hooves briskly on the stone pavement.The smell of chrysanthemums wafts through the long, deep alleys, and the dew-drenched terraces bow their heads like plants.

Everything was arranged and it was almost dawn, but Dong Xiaowan didn't feel sleepy.The busy life of serving guests for several months has made her used to the habit of laughing at night and sleeping during the day.Although this kind of life earns a lot of money, it is also tiresome, which is the real reason why she moved to Fishing Lane.She thought that in this way, she could avoid the boring faces of the hooker, but she didn't expect that the hooker could accurately find the hiding place of the prostitute like a fly searching for rotten meat. Dong Xiaowan sat by the window of the attic, pulled out the silver hairpin, and let her coiled long hair flow down like a waterfall.That silver hairpin reminded her of Xiang Yingtian, it was the only gift he left behind, she had privately fantasized that the number one scholar would marry her.When Xiang Yingtian returned to Beijing, he came here to say goodbye.She saw that Xiang Yingtian looked back at herself three times immediately, and at that time she cried out in her heart: "Mother, mother, look at him looking back at me!"

What a wonderful life, just overnight, Xiang Yingtian peeled off the mystery that shrouded her body like a skin, enabling her to face life naked as she was when she was born.Happiness, or bad luck?Women are often confused at this time. A woman who is touched by the current champion is naturally not an ordinary woman.Dong Xiaowan was like a miracle, and immediately caused Liudu to explode, and her beautiful legend was circulating in the streets and alleys.The children of wealthy families all longed for the honor to have fun with her.Her fame spread far, far away along the Qinhuai River.In front of her residence, there is a lot of traffic every day, and it is very flashy.But being flashy is also a burden, and Dong Xiaowan can no longer bear her slutty life.

On the third day Dong Xiaowan moved into Diaoyu Lane, three close sisters came to visit first. They were Li Xiangjun, Kou Baimen, and Bian Yujing.That day, the autumn weather was crisp, and the four women were sitting in the yard playing. Suddenly, someone suggested that everyone come together.Li Xiangjun said: "The theme is chrysanthemum." Bian Yujing rushed to say: "I will make the first couplet." Everyone looked at each other and said yes. "Yuebai shines on the painting building, and yellow flowers are all over Kyushu." Bian Yujing just read this sentence, and Kou Baimen pulled him to sit down:

"Sister Yujing wants to lie, this is the sentence that Hou Chaozong read a few days ago." Li Xiangjun blushed with shame when he heard Hou Chaozong's name.Seeing this, Xiao Wan glanced at her for some reason, which made Li Xiangjun even more uncomfortable.Xiao Wan asked, "Who is Hou Chaozong?" Kou Baimen and Bian Yujing also saw Li Xiangjun's appearance at this moment, they both laughed, and stretched out their hands together to pull Li Xiangjun's hand covering his face.Li Xiangjun also showed his temper, and the three of them twisted together and laughed together.Only Dong Xiaowan didn't understand, "Look at the ghosts of the three of you, why are you hiding it from me?"

Bian Yujing spoke quickly, and she said: "Hou Chaozong is the man Xiangjun's sister admires the most, and Xiaowan's sister doesn't know? Mr. Hou is really a first-class character. It can be said that he is both talented and beautiful." Dong Xiaowan stuck out her tongue and made a grimace, "No wonder sister Xiangjun is embarrassed." Dong Xiaowan was very curious, so he asked about Hou Chaozong's details.Kou Baimen answered: "Young Master Hou is one of the four great masters of Fushe. He is suave and suave, informal, and his literary talent is even more moving. He is a character that is hard to find even with a lantern."

"Fushe, what kind of organization is Fushe?" "Sister Xiaowan is really ignorant. Fushe is the most famous organization in Jiangnan. Everyone in Fushe is a celebrity. They think that the dynasty is declining and want to revive the country, so they call it Fushe." Kou Bai The door said, "To be honest, I really hate the stinky appearance they have when they talk about government affairs, as if they can all sweep the world down, but in fact, all of them are unsuccessful." Li Xiangjun interjected: "Don't talk about resuming the society, let's make a joint sentence, sisters."

Kou Baimen said: "What are you talking about, I'm not interested." After speaking, he sighed a long time, and pulled out the petals of a chrysanthemum on the stone table one by one.She said to herself: "I don't know how many men I have played with in my life, why don't I meet someone I like?" After hearing this, the three of them felt a little sad.Between people, the same fate is always sympathetic, and the four women resonated together. In order to liven up the atmosphere, Li Xiangjun deliberately laughed out loud and asked Bian Yujing, "Did Sister Yujing ever have a sweetheart?" Bian Yujing knew her intentions, so she happily replied, "There was one a few years ago."

"Who is it?" Dong Xiaowan asked. "It's a monk." Kou Baimen said with a smile: "Bald people can also have good fortune. It must be Zen Master Fengliu. Tell me quickly, what good stories about him." Bian Yujing picked up a pear and peeled it off, saying: "He is not an ordinary monk. His Dharma name is Jiami. Because he fell in love with a noble lady and was opposed by the girl's parents, he became a monk. Even the emperor asked him to talk about it. Zen. I heard that eighteen years ago, he was speaking about Zen in the capital. When the emperor was fascinated by it, he suddenly stopped talking. The emperor was anxious, so he asked why. He said that he suddenly saw two sons on his shoulders. The emperor said Said: "It's not easy to have a son, the widow will give you two court ladies." A year later, he really went to the palace to teach Zen to the emperor with his two sons on his back."

"Hahahaha..." Several women laughed and laughed.The pears on the table tumbled to the ground, and the golden ones were as unfortunate as the fallen leaves on the ground in the season of decay. A cold wave was moving silently in the sky above their heads. It was dark when the three women took their leave. It's a coincidence.In the evening of the next day, Monk Jiami came to Diaoyu Alley with a gourd of wine and a Zen staff.He went straight to knock on Dong Xiaowan's door.The big-footed single mother stretched out half of her body at the door and said, "Dead monk, it's almost dark. The time for almsgiving has passed, and even the Buddha has to sleep." After finishing speaking, the door was about to be closed.Jiami stretched out the Zen stick, stuck it on the door frame, and said, "I'm not begging. I want to see your lady."

"Miss is not feeling well today, and I don't see anyone." "She just doesn't see people. You can see clearly, I'm not a human being, I'm a monk." Jia Mi squeezed the Zen stick into it. The big-footed single mother couldn't resist, panting and said: "Okay, okay, wait, I'll report. See if Miss sees you." Monk Jiami smiled and handed over a name sticker the size of an envelope, and squeezed sideways into the yard.The big-footed single mother walked a few steps, then turned around and told, "Just stand there and don't move around." Dong Xiaowan is studying landscape painting according to "Mustard Seed Garden Painting Manual" in the attic.Xixi grinds an inkstone next to her, and there is a fragrance of ink floating in the building, which is like a faint memory, and people in the deep place will be infected with nostalgia. When the big-footed single mother sent the name card, Dong Xiaowan just picked up the brush and tapped a little on the rice paper.She took the name card, and when she saw Jia Mi's name, her heart skipped a beat: Bian Yujing just mentioned this person yesterday, and he came here, probably because of fate.Let me meet this romantic figure.So he asked Shan Ma to let him in.Shan's mother felt that the monk was inappropriate, and felt strange.Walking downstairs, she said to the monk, "My lady, please go up." Jiami pulled out the gourd and poured a mouthful of wine, put the Zen stick in the flower garden, winked at Shan Ma, and walked towards the attic. When Shan Ma turned her head to look at him, she suddenly saw a familiar figure from behind, her heart moved, but she couldn't remember it.She fastened the gate and sat on the threshold with her head in her hands, thinking.She remembered that on the day Xiaowan was born, when she was pouring blood on the bow of the boat, the weird monk she saw was this chubby monk.Could it be fate? Monk Jiami came upstairs and saw the rice paper on the desk, so he shouted to draw a big picture.Dong Xiaowan saw that his obese body contained an extraordinary aura, and knew that he was an uninhibited person, and ordinary etiquette was dispensable to him, so he went to take out a scroll from a large cloisonne porcelain vase half as tall as a person. The large rice paper, which is seven feet long and four feet wide, cannot be placed on the table, so it is spread on the floor.At this time Xixi brought tea, monk Jiami shook his hand, pointed to the wine gourd and said: "The poor monk uses wine as tea." After Xixi finished grinding the ink in a large inkstone, Dong Xiaowan presented a huge Yanghao brush.But Jia Mi said: "A poor monk doesn't need a big brush to paint." After speaking, he took off his shoes to reveal a pair of big feet.Dong Xiaowan and Xixi were very surprised, but they didn't make a sound, they just wanted to see what strange tricks he had.I saw Jiami put the large inkstone plate on the ground, dipped his feet into the ink, and then laughed and walked out five footprints on the rice paper.Strange to say, the layout of the five footprints on the rice paper is very reasonable, each of them is as lively as swimming fish, and the whole picture is both lively and interesting and slightly sad.Dong Xiaowan clapped his hands and praised: "It's a good painting." Jia Mi was even more proud, and took a pen to circle the footprints a few times, and the five fish were completely presented, and no one could see that they were five footprints.Monk Jiami also left a few footprints on the floor, Xi Xi was unhappy.Jia Mi understood what she meant, and went downstairs with a smile.There is a well at the back of the yard by the flower wall. At that time, the autumn wind was blowing violently, the trees hissed and the fallen leaves fluttered on the ground with mottled shadows. The cold came, but Jiami took off his robe without feeling it, and used the well. The bucket next to him was filled with water, and it poured down from the top of his head, with the sound of splashing water.His whole body was drenched with water, illuminated by the faint luminous light, and covered with a layer of hallucinations. The big-footed single mother was about to go to bed when she heard the sound of water, she thought it was Xiaowan who needed water, and rushed to help.Seeing a fat man naked by the well platform, she screamed in shock, turned around and ran, accidentally stepped on the moss on the edge of the steps, and fell down.Monk Jiami heard her turning the corner and still scolding: "Dead monk, dead monk." Kami looked up towards the attic.Dong Xiaowan was leaning against the window and watching him quietly. Her back to the candlelight, like a thin silhouette.Jia Mi couldn't see her expression clearly, but she could feel that her bright eyes were shining, like stars in the clouds (the stars in the clouds may be the most indifferent).The few strands of hair on her head were blown by the autumn wind, exuding vitality, otherwise, Monk Jiami would mistake it for just a painting.Monk Jiami just stood naked in the cold autumn wind with a bucket in his hand, and was dazzled. Occasionally, fallen leaves brushed against his chest, and they went away with the wind with a crisp crashing sound... That night, Jia Mi and Dong Xiaowan shared the same bed.His strange behavior together with the flickering dim candlelight in the room became Dong Xiaowan's deepest memory.With the passage of time, this memory became more vivid, and it served as a kind of warning for her later life. Like all the flirtatious guests, Jia Mi hugged Xiao Wan to bed, and the parts and methods he rubbed were not special, and it always reminded people of some kind of "erotic pictures".That look reminded her of a nursing baby.She stroked his bare head, which felt as hot as a hand warmer in winter.Just when her own blood was excited, she clenched her teeth, and opened her arms to hug Monk Jiami's body tightly, weird behaviors happened suddenly.All sudden events are unexpected.At this moment, Dong Xiaowan was also caught off guard. At that time, a rising moon hung in the middle of the open carved window, which was very bright. Jiami, who was leaning on Dong Xiaowan's body, saw the bright moonlight reflected by the sweat on her chest, so she raised her head and looked out the window, just in time to see a spider hanging from the window lattice along the silk thread, hanging in the center of the moon.It happened that there was no wind, and the moon remained motionless as if caught by a spider.A clear Zen insight passed through Jiami's thoughts, which is the inevitable result of years of Zen practice.He whispered: "Ah." Then he got up and left Dong Xiaowan, and got out of bed.Standing in the middle of the room, staring at the bright moon outside the window, he put his palms together and read aloud: "Wild-open-sky-low-tree-river-clear-moon-near-people... ..." Sitting on the bed, Dong Xiaowan felt that it was impossible for a person to withdraw from the peak of desire, but Jia Mi did it.She seems to have realized another layer of extremely exquisite ineffable Zen mechanism, and she has glimpsed the essence of human beings in the world in an instant. Time stood still, and after an unknown amount of time, Dong Xiaowan's burning desires also fell to the lowest point, and her heart gradually became peaceful.She saw Monk Jiami put on his robe and walked to the desk, picked up a brush, bowed his head and meditated.She didn't know what he was going to do, but he knew what he was going to do.He walked up to Dong Xiaowan who was naked, without a smile on his face, he took up a pen and wrote the words "spring full of flowers" on Xiaowan's snow-white chest, and then threw the pen without looking back. walked out.Dong Xiaowan watched all this quietly, but remained motionless. Monk Jiami walked to the gate of the courtyard, suddenly remembered something, took out a cloth package from his robe, turned around, and threw it into Dong Xiaowan's room through the attic window.Then strode out of the courtyard gate and disappeared into the thick autumn night.There were several crisp dog barks from the deep alley.The moon is illuminating the Qinhuai River so peacefully that the world is like a dream. Xixi went upstairs early to tidy up the room.Dong Xiaowan was still asleep, and the writing on her chest was blurred by sweat.She saw a small package on the ground, picked it up, and knew it wasn't Xiaowan's, but must have been left by the monk last night. She was curious, hesitated again and again, and opened it anyway.The first layer is a layer of greasy coarse cloth, the second layer is a metallic silk satin, the third layer is some shredded cotton, and the fourth layer is an embroidered handkerchief with the words "Bian Yujing" embroidered on the corner.Inside the embroidered handkerchief was a colored glass bead.Unfortunately, I have never seen these three things.She thought it was very beautiful, so she lightly held it in her hand, peeked at Dong Xiaowan secretly, and then took it to the window to observe the light carefully.The light shone through the glass beads in a rosy color, and she was confused and excited. Xiaowan woke up, her eyes were reserved, her heart was lonely and sad.Xixi sees something that does not belong to her from the bottom of her eyes, at least there is a kind of tranquility like the shadows in the woods that she has never felt.Dong Xiaowan yawned and got out of bed, she took the glass beads from Xixi's hand, wiped the corners of her eyes with her hands while watching, suddenly her eyes lit up, and she looked carefully.Xi Xi saw a few strands of colored light swirling on her face. "This is the Persian colored bead pill." She said with certainty, "I also saw one in Meixianglou." At this time, Mrs. Chen came upstairs.Seeing Dong Xiaowan standing naked in the room: "Good girl, be careful of catching a cold and getting sick. My good girl, you are the person who is most afraid of taking medicine." Xixi suddenly woke up from the mystery of the colorful beads, hurriedly ran downstairs with her skirt in hand, and brought a pot full of fragrant soup for Xiaowan to bathe in.Aunt Chen has placed the big wooden basin in the room. There was steam in the room.Xiao Wan gently wiped off the handwriting on her chest with her fingers.But those four words were a mystery she couldn't solve, which made her frown.Even in some happy moments in her future life, she will suddenly lose her mind and become sad because of the occasional thought of these four words. In the autumn afternoon, the sun shines softly.Dong Xiaowan sat at the stone table in the garden, staring at the colorful beads again.She thought about the day she saw another colorful bead in Meixiang Tower, which was the day she worshiped Li Zhenli as her godmother.At that time, Li Xiangjun asked her to play mahjong with Bian Yujing and Zheng Tuoniang in Meixianglou.Dong Xiaowan made a miraculous match with the "Eighteen Scholars" that day.All the sisters chattered and said that only Qin Shihuang could play this hand, and Dong Xiaowan must be a lucky person.It happened that Li Zhenli came upstairs. She was also a famous singing girl on the Qinhuai River and Li Xiangjun's mother.She also came to join in the fun, and heard people say that Dong Xiaowan is blessed, so she said, "It's good that my daughter has this kind of blessing." Xiaowan is well-behaved by nature, and by the way, she recognized Li Zhenli as her godmother. She was so happy that Li Zhenli was much younger, and immediately Give Xiaowan a pair of silver bracelets.Bian Yujing was threatening to snatch her, but Li Xiangjun and Zheng Tuoniang grabbed her, and the three of them laughed and pulled back and forth. Suddenly, a shiny bead rolled down from Bian Yujing's body, just rolling to Dong Xiaowan's feet.Xiaowan picked it up in his hand: "What a beautiful bead." Bian Yujing hurriedly left Li Xiangjun and Zheng Tuoniang, and snatched the bead from Xiaowan's hand.All the sisters surrounded her and said, "What kind of treasure?" Bian Yujing raised his head high and replied, "This is a Persian colored bead. I heard that Persian Hu people sell it for five hundred taels of silver each in Guangzhou." Dong Xiaowan looked at the colorful bead in front of her again, and then at the embroidered towel with the words "Bian Yujing" embroidered on it.I thought: This bead must be related to sister Yujing. Just as Dong Xiaowan was about to go out to meet Bian Yujing, the big-footed single mother ran in in a panic, and Xiaowan felt a gust of wind blowing towards her face. Beads of sweat covered her face, she stood in front of Xiao Wan panting heavily, unable to speak.Obviously ran a long way. "Eldest...Eldest Miss, that monk..." "What about the monk?" "The dead monk last night was really dead. Someone was fishing at Taoye Ferry just now, and thought they caught a big fish. Unexpectedly, it was a monk's body with a fat head and big ears. I squeezed over and saw it very clearly. It was last night. That dead monk. So scary, his whole body covered in white flowers, so scary, so scary..." Under the bright autumn sun, Dong Xiaowan felt cold, her neck and cheeks were covered with goose bumps, and her face was pale.The big-footed single mother even felt eerie, as if there was a ghost looking down at her, and couldn't help trembling all over. When Dong Xiaowan appeared in Meixianglou with inexplicable fear, she did not meet Bian Yujing.Li Xiangjun was basking in the sun alone in the corridor while cutting paper flowers, and the outlines of a few lotus flowers and magpies appeared faintly on the bright red paper.Xiao Wan sat beside her, looking around in a state of anxiety.Li Xiangjun pressed her shoulder and asked with concern: "My good sister, what's the matter?" "No, it's all right. Where's the godmother?" Li Xiangjun pursed his lips towards the closed door at the end of the corridor, Xiaowan understood, and asked: "What kind of romantic person is looking for my godmother? The older you get, the more coquettish you are, and it's not dark yet." Li Xiangjun patted Xiao Wan's face, and said in a low voice, "This man has been with my mother for more than ten years. Now that we haven't seen each other for a few years, of course he has a lot to say. He is quite intelligent." "Who is it? Is it Zhang Tianru from Fushe?" "Don't guess. This person is called Li Yu." Li Xiangjun said to Xiao Wan with admiration: "He is very famous for writing scripts. He is called 'One Person Forever Occupy', also known as Sumen Xiaolu." "What's the name 'One Person Occupies Forever'?" "He has four very famous plays, namely "A Handful of Snow", "Man and Beast Pass", "Forever Reunion", and "Oirania". People in Jiangnan combined the first characters of the four operas to call him, so it was called "one person will occupy forever". " "It's really interesting." Xiao Wan looked at the closed door. "I heard that Gu Hengbo and Ma Wanrong are both his disciples. I think he was a suave and handsome man when he was young." The two talked quietly like this for a while, Dong Xiaowan was always a little different from the past because of something on his mind.The shadow of death seemed to her to be engulfing herself completely as the sun slanted across the corridor.After Li Xiangjun finished cutting the paper flower in his hand, he put down the scissors and immediately sensed Dong Xiaowan's uneasiness, so he asked what was the matter.Dong Xiaowan took out the embroidered towel and the mysterious bead from her bosom, and briefly told her what happened last night and the monk's death today. When Li Xiangjun heard Bian Yujing say that he fell in love with a monk that day, he took it as a joke.Only then did I realize that it was true, and I was a little anxious. "I haven't seen Sister Bian Yujing all day. I guess she must know what happened. She is famous for her smooth ears. She will know about the things on the Qinhuai River. Let's find her quickly. She doesn't know how sad she is now." As soon as the two got up and were about to leave, they heard the door at the end of the corridor squeak open.The two turned their heads and saw that Li Zhenli was coming out with a smile on her cheeks and a middle-aged Confucian scholar on her arm. When she saw Li Xiangjun and Dong Xiaowan, she hurriedly pulled her hands from Li Yu's arms.Li Xiangjun called "Mother".Dong Xiaowan called out respectfully: "Mother". Li Zhenli calmed down from her panic, and introduced Li Yu and Dong Xiaowan to each other.Li Yu was deeply moved by Dong Xiaowan's temperament, and wanted to write the heroine of a script he was writing like this, it would probably be very moving. Li Zhenli saw that Dong Xiaowan was restless, held her face lightly with her hands, kissed her forehead and said, "Wan'er, what happened? Your complexion is not very good." Dong Xiaowan told what happened last night again.When she said that the monk wrote the four characters "chunmanhuazhi" on her chest, Li Yu couldn't help but said, "What a romantic monk." "What does 'spring full of flowers' mean?" Lee Jung Ri asked. Xiang Jundao: "Doesn't it mean that sister Xiaowan has beautiful breasts, men like to make fuss about them." A faint red cloud rose quietly on Dong Xiaowan's face.Li Yu didn't pay attention, he was tapping his forehead with a fan, as if many sparks of wisdom would be knocked out by the handle of the fan. He said to himself: "'Chunmanhuazhi' must have another meaning!" He lowered his head and thought hard.Dong Xiaowan saw that the crow's feet in the corners of his eyes really seemed to be swaying gently, and his thoughts flowed from the corners of his eyes.He suddenly clapped his hands and praised: "What a profound Zen machine." "Quickly tell me, what is the Zen opportunity?" Li Zhenli was very curious, not to mention that her old lover could take the opportunity to show off her skills in front of the two juniors, so that her old face would be honored. "This monk must die." "How do you know he's dead?" Li Xiangjun asked hastily.Dong Xiaowan was so shocked that she couldn't speak, she just stared blankly at Li Yu's serious face. Li Yudao: "Since spring is full of flowering branches, it is clear that spring has reached its peak. And everything that reaches its peak is when it begins to go downhill. Monk Jiami must not want to see his own depletion, and may choose to die. Death is real It’s the most satisfying thing to do.” Li Xiangjun replied: "The monk should be satisfied, after all, there are bosom friends left in the world." She took Li Zhenli's hand and told her mother that this monk still has some love for sister Bian Yujing.Li Zhenli said: "You two dead girls, hurry up and find your sister Yujing, and comfort me with kind words. Hey! We people in the world can only help ourselves." Dong Xiaowan and Li Xiangjun each hired a sedan chair to find Bian Yujing separately.Dong Xiaowan went from Fuyuan Street, looked for Wuding Bridge, found Dazhong Bridge, met Chen Yuesi's sister head-on, and learned that Bian Yujing went out of the city alone along the lower reaches of the Qinhuai River.Dong Xiaowan asked the bearers to go out of the city, but the bearers refused to go. They didn't want to leave until they added a few coins to reward them.Walking outside the city, the sedan chair suddenly tilted to the right, Dong Xiaowan was unprepared, her body also tilted to the right, her face turned pale with fright.Seeing the rough face of a middle-aged bearer appearing on the raised part of the hanging curtain, he said with a smile: "Men asked for extra money from the young lady today, I feel very sorry, and I specially give you a gift to express my gratitude." Throw the coarse cloth belt into the sedan chair.Then the sedan chair started walking steadily again.Dong Xiaowan found that face very disgusting.She picked up the tape, not knowing what it was or what it meant. At this time, one of the bearers sang a song, apparently a few sentences that he thought of impromptu.Dong Xiaowan knew that the bearers were singing obscene things, so she quickly covered her ears. But the bearer's voice was thick and loud, and he forced it into his ears through his fingers.Just listen to the bearer singing: The beauty gave me money to buy the way, and I sent the beauty out of the city wall, lest the love would be empty, so I gave the belt to my bride. The other porters also opened their voices and sang together: "Hey! Hey! Hey! Tie up the little lady with their belts. Hey! Hey! Tie up the little lady." Only then did Dong Xiaowan realize that what she was holding in her hand was a pair of trouser belts, and she was angry and funny.Throwing the belt out of the car window, the belt rolled on the ground like a little snake and was covered with dust.She shouted loudly: "Stop, I want to get off the sedan chair." The four bearers were having fun at the moment, hearing her shout, they ran up and turned the sedan chair upside down.In order to stabilize her body in the sedan chair, Dong Xiaowan stretched out her hands to support the windows on both sides. She felt that her internal organs and lungs had been shifted, which made her unbearable. Dong Xiaowan held back her breath, and kicked violently at the side of the sedan chair.Unexpectedly, although the bridal sedan chair was beautifully decorated, it was not strong, and a piece of wood was kicked away by Xiao Wan's embroidery. Undoubtedly, it was like smashing the job of a dervish monk. The bearers couldn't laugh any more, and put down the sedan chair with a "tuo" sound.Dong Xiaowan knew she had caused trouble, so she jumped out of the sedan chair. The thick yellow dust on the road made her plain embroidered shoes mottled.She was about to open her mouth to apologize, but her hands were grabbed by two porters. She was so painful that she couldn't even speak, she just groaned "Ouch! Ouch!"A bearer angrily pointed at the tip of her nose and shouted, "You dare to move my sedan chair. I rely on it for food, clothing, and play.I want your life. "The other bearer wanted to slap her from the front, but suddenly he had an evil thought, he went up from behind and hugged Dong Xiaowan, and stretched out a few fingers on Xiaowan's nipples. Dong Xiaowan screamed in fright : "Help—" "A few beasts!stop! "A broken drink came from behind them, the voice was old but still powerful, full of righteous majesty. The four bearers quickly let go of their hands in a daze, and turned to see an old man with white beard and white hair. He He was holding a fishing rod, and the other hand was holding a string of small fishes tied with straw ropes, about forty or fifty. The four bearers called out respectfully: "Uncle Liu." The person who came was Liu Jingting, known as the world's number one storyteller.Dong Xiaowan and Kou Baimen once heard him talk about "Yue Fei practices calligraphy" in "Jing Zhong Shuo Yue", so they also knew each other.At this time, it was the time when the sun was setting and the afterglow illuminated his long silver beard with a layer of golden gleam floating in the autumn wind. Liu Jingting angrily reprimanded the porters, saying: "You can do such an outrageous act. You beasts! You have an old lady without a wife or a daughter. Ask your conscience." The four porters repeatedly said: "Little The little ones know their mistakes, and the small ones know their mistakes." Liu Jingting looked at the lead bearer and said, "Aren't you Ma Fugui from Tieniu Lane?" The bearer said: "It's the boy." Liu Jingting touched a few coins with one hand and said: "This money is enough for you to repair the sedan chair, take it. I will tell you that there will be no seat for you tonight. Ma Fugui almost cried, and hurriedly said: "Uncle Liu, please spare my life. I was wrong. I love to listen to your old storytelling. Today I should talk about 'Li Yuanba's death'. If I don't listen, I won't think about it. My old mother is about to fall ill. Uncle Liu, please forgive me, I was wrong." Liu Jingting sighed and said, "For your mother's sake, Old Man Liu won't bother with you." Ma Fugui nodded and bowed his thanks as if he had been granted an amnesty . Afterwards, the four bearers carried the broken sedan chair and left angrily. Dong Xiaowan stepped forward and said a blessing.Liu Jingting laughed and said, "You are the famous Dong Xiaowan. You really deserve your reputation." Xiaowan said shyly, "Uncle Liu has won the award." "It's getting dark, Miss Dong should go back to the city early. What are you doing here so late?" "I looked for sister Bian Yujing, and someone said that she came out of the city and came here." "Oh. Bian Yujing. I saw her just now." Liu Jingting turned his head and looked towards the lower reaches of the Qinhuai River. "Look, there she is." Dong Xiaowan looked along his finger, and sure enough there was a girl in green clothes standing under a willow tree not far away, who was it not Bian Yujing?What was she thinking obsessively under that tree? Liu Jingting and Dong Xiaowan said goodbye, and walked towards the city.Dong Xiaowan was deeply moved when he saw his strong back, what a majestic old man.The dust kicked up by his footsteps is separated to the two sides, as if not daring to stain the old man's shoes. Bian Yujing stood by the Qinhuai River for an unknown how long.She has long been a woman who wants to cry but has no tears, so she feels sad for the death of Monk Jia Mi, but there are no tears on her face.She conveniently broke a short branch from a willow tree and held it in her hand.Looking at the afterglow of the setting sun on the river, she lamented in her heart the brevity of the world and the ruthlessness of time. She lost faith in life. Dong Xiaowan walked to her side.She turned around and smiled, very bitterly.Xiaowan didn't know what to say, but the willow stick in Bian Yujing's hand gave her an excuse to speak. She took Bian Yujing's sister's hand and said sadly: "There are many short branches in the willow, and the short branches are more parting." Bian Yujing looked at the dead branch in her hand, and threw it lightly, and the willow branch flowed down the river. She said: "It's also a big boat for an animal like an ant." Then she took Dong Xiaowan's words and said leisurely: "Mo Yan is a short branch, and there is long-term lovesickness in it." The voice contained tears, and Dong Xiaowan's nose was sour when he heard it, and his eyes were filled with tears. Dong Xiaowan took out the embroidered scarf and the colorful bead from her bosom.Bian Yujing threw the embroidered scarf into a ball into the Qinhuai River.The embroidered scarf spread out in the autumn wind and slowly floated into the water without causing any ripples.After all, flowing water is ruthless, not to mention that the Qinhuai River is a river of vanity that forces a happy face. Bian Yujing took out another bead and said: "These two colorful beads are a pair of male and female beads, which will produce miracles when they are combined. They are treasures brought back by Jiami when he traveled to India. He is a flower monk who can never get rid of vulgarity, and he has never understood the true meaning of Buddhism throughout his life. "When Bian Yujing said this, she imagined how she would become a nun with her hair shaved off. It would be nice to be able to wear a coarse cloth dress and raise a whisk to stay away from the hustle and bustle. This is the thought that often flashed in her heart. In fact, after many years, Bian Yujing really became a monk. , but instead of being a nun, she became a female Taoist priest. "He is an interesting monk." Dong Xiaowan said. "He doesn't know how to live, but he is the man who understands women best. That's why I love him." Bian Yujing said while putting two colorful beads together, facing the sunset. "Look, sister Xiaowan, what a beautiful flower!" Dong Xiaowan saw that the two colored beads in her palm emitted beautiful lights and shadows overlapping each other, turning into a radiant red lotus flower.The lotus is delicate, noble, and otherworldly, as if there are still a few drops of dew rolling on the petals with Bian Yujing's slightly trembling hands.The two sisters were dumbfounded. Bian Yujing sighed, closed his palms together, and the colorful beads and their beautiful lotus flowers disappeared before Dong Xiaowan's eyes.She saw Bian Yujing sobbing, but there were no tears on her face, and there was a swallowing sound in her throat, apparently all the tears had been swallowed into her stomach.Bian Yujing raised his hand, and the two beads passed through the air soundlessly and fell into the Qinhuai River. It was amazing that only one sound was made.The lingering sound echoed in the air for a long time, as if time had stood still. It was already night when the two sisters stepped into the city gate, and the lights from the open doors of the houses facing the street cut the long street into pieces like black and orange stone steps alternately arranged.The two sisters encountered a strong wind, and they felt cold in the wind.Bian Yujing said: "Winter has come." Winter is a cold season, and Dong Xiaowan only looks forward to plum blossoms and white snow.Bian Yujing didn't expect anything. There is no snow this winter.Even if this is the season of despair, time erases the memory of death and lost love.Dong Xiaowan opened half of the window and looked at the northern sky, where the clouds were thick and there was a lot of snow, but it might just be a tiresome heavy rain.The cold wind turned one of her hands on the window into ice, while the warmth of the other gave her the illusion of being in two seasons.She closed the window and sat in front of the desk again.Xixi didn't know where she went, she leaned over the strings and played "Qing Ping Le" alone. After playing a song, Dong Xiaowan felt bored, so she sat alone in front of the dressing table and looked at herself in the mirror.No one loves herself more than her.She stretched out her hand and pressed it on her face. The skin was tight, tender and elastic, as if it was really blown to pieces. The door opened suddenly, and Kou Baimen rushed in wrapped in a gust of cold wind, his face was red from the cold.She yelled: "It's so cold, it's so cold." She put her hands on the stove and rubbed them constantly.Xiaowan hurried to close the door, the wind just now made her shiver. "Damn weather. Really boring. I think you are boring too. I haven't seen you for a few days. I miss you so much, good sister." Kou Baimen said. "Where did you come from?" Xiaowan asked, "How is sister Xiangjun's condition?" "What's wrong? It's just a little bit of wind and cold. Drink a bowl of ginger water and sweat all over, and you'll be fine. I saw her in Meixiang Building just now, and her face was very good." "Wasn't yesterday very serious?" "She suffered from lovesickness. She received a letter from Hou Chaozong last night, and she recovered from her illness today. Do you think it's strange?" Kou Baimen said while throwing a piece of rice cake into his mouth. She continued to talk with food in her mouth, her voice sounded like spring water flowing from the cracks in the rocks, "That Mr. Hou is really ruthless. Xiangjun is so miserable. I heard Xiaohong said that she often shed tears when she thought about it in the middle of the night." Come." "Actually, Hou Chaozong also has his own difficulties. Ambitious men in this world are more tired from life. Let's not talk about it, let's just talk about the few people in their Fushe who don't know what they are busy with all day long." “复社中有很多好人。”寇白门说，“秦淮河上的好姑娘都想嫁一个复社公子。这些人对咱们风尘女子还算讲情义。马婉容姐姐嫁给杨龙友，李贞丽大娘和张天如相爱都快十年啦，这下，香君又看上了侯朝宗。说不定哪天你也看上个复社公子呢。” “姐姐说笑啦，我哪有那福份。” 寇白门笑道：“好妹妹，我说句真心话。干咱们这一行的女人，就得趁年轻快点嫁出去，等年纪大了就没人要了。” “咱们姐妹谁不这样想呢，只是要找那怜惜自己的男人却比登天还难。” “我给你说一个人……寇白门试探性地一说，便拿眼角去窥董小宛的胸部。董小宛脸没变色，显然心中也没异外地跳。 只拿眼睛看着寇白门，等她说下文。 “这个你也见过。就是人称'一人永占'的李玉。” “他太老了。”小宛道，“嫁给他还没过上半辈子也许就剩下我孤伶伶一个人。” “老又有啥关系？柳如是还不是嫁了个半百老头。钱牧斋比她整整大三十岁。” “她是她，我是我。” “好吧，我们就不说这事。但你今天见见李玉行吗？” “能不见吗？” “给姐姐一个面子。他从看见你那天起就想着你呢！今天你不见也得见，我把他引来了，他现在就在楼下。” 且说楼下的李玉独自站在冷风中，等着董小宛应客。他双手拢在袖子中，缩着脖子，冷得直跺脚。大脚单妈几次劝他先到厅中坐下，他都不肯去。大脚单妈不便怠慢了客人，就陪他站在冷风中，冷得她在心里骂李玉是个臭男人，害得自己受罪。直到寇白门把李玉叫上阁楼，大脚单妈才如释重负般快速跑进房中，狠狠地关上门。 李玉和董小宛彼此招呼之后，寇白门推说找卞玉京有事，便告辞而去，将李玉和小宛留在房中。两人都有些难堪，扯了几句关于天气的闲话之后，就没话说了。董小宛觉得李玉一点乐趣都没有，心里只是可怜他。 沉默良久，李玉惶恐地说；“我想娶你。”他说这话充满稚气，根本不像一个饱经风霜的中年男人。两人都觉得别扭。 “不。”小宛肯定地说。 又是沉默，仿佛一堵墙横在他和她之间。李玉长长地叹了口气，他太紧张了。他相信自己无法再坚持下去。 “我老了。”他站起来，告别话都没说，便开门走了。他携带美丽的红颜知己闯荡后半生的美梦破碎了。董小宛将他送到大门外，她嘴角始终挂着一丝不易察觉的笑。她瞧着李玉瘦瘦的身体穿过长长的钓鱼巷，多么萧瑟的背影。她深知一颗受伤的心有多么难过。 她走回院中。大脚单妈在她身后一边关门一边唠叨：“好讨厌的男人。害得老娘从头顶冷到脚跟。这把老骨头都要散架了。” 傍晚，在旧院陪李十娘玩了一天麻将的陈大娘回到家中，给董小宛带回一张请帖。她进门就喊：“乖女，乖女，快点来，你那干娘今夜在媚香楼摆酒宴，请你去撑面子。” 董小宛接了请帖，便回屋化妆。惜惜却还没有回来。她便慢慢地梳着头，嘴唇上咬着一支银晃晃的钗，钗头上镶着一颗孔雀石。 惜惜回来时，天已经黑尽了。她脸蛋红红的，愉快地跑到小宛面前，迫不及待地对小宛说她今天和翠翠去听柳敬亭说书，说的是一段“杜十娘怒沉百宝箱”，真精彩。董小宛本想生气，见她这样高兴，也就忍住了。毕竟惜惜是她最知心的妹妹，也是个苦命人儿。惜惜听说要去媚香楼，便匆匆忙忙拾掇一番，出门去雇了一辆漂亮的马车。 当董小宛和惜惜踏上媚香楼，媚香楼上的酒宴刚刚散席。 翠翠、柔柔、小红三个丫环正在朝外端出盛着残羹冷汁的菜盘，惜惜忙跑上前去帮忙。 董小宛本来就没吃晚饭，这时看见食物，忽然觉得很饿，禁不住咽了几口口水。李贞丽一边帮她脱去兔皮披风，一边责怪道：“干女，怎么现在才来。你看，你看，酒席都散了。” “天下没有不散的筵席，”董小宛很不好意思地说道，“我有点事耽搁了。” 李香君从另一间屋子走出来，拉住小宛的手问道：“吃饭了吗？”董小宛闻到她嘴里飘来的淡淡酒香，“没吃就好安排。” 董小宛觉得不便打扰，便强忍住饥饿说道：“吃过了，吃过了。” 李香君便把她拉进屋里。屋里很热闹。有卞玉京、郑妥娘、王媚娘、陈月思等一干姐妹。另有三个男人和一个十二三岁的男孩。李香君介绍一遍，原来四个都是复社中人，为首那人是复社的领袖，名叫张天如，另两个是陈定生和杨龙友，那个男孩名叫顾炎武，都说是个了不起的神童。董小宛各自道了个万福，便挨着卞玉京坐了下来。众人复又嘻嘻哈哈笑闹起来，接着刚才的话题说下去，她们几个正在拿顾炎武逗笑取乐。座中有谁知道顾炎武将来会成为名垂千古的大哲学家呢！ 陈月思对顾炎武说：“小兄弟肯定会成为顶天立地的男子汉，这么小就来逛窑子。” 顾炎武两眼盯着桌面，双手按住茶杯，非常紧张，有些张皇失措。众人看他模样都哈哈大笑起来。顾炎武也跟着笑了几声。 王媚娘见他如此窘迫，干脆紧靠到他身边，用乳房去磨他手臂。并抓起他的手说道： “多么白嫩的柔软的手呀！”顾炎武缩缩身子，他看见茶杯上自己淡淡的手印正在雾一般消失。陈月思又逗话道：“王媚娘生得一身好肉，小兄弟摸摸看。” 王媚娘便要把他的手拉到胸脯上。顾炎武赶紧一扭头，看见张天如正笑吟吟看着自己。 他慌忙向张天如求救。 张天如轻轻呷了一口茶，朝陈月思和王媚娘说道：“两位姑娘别为难他啦。顾少爷可是咱们复社的未来支柱，别把他教坏了。”屋里的人又一起笑了一回。陈月思和王媚娘笑嘻嘻坐到一边去了。顾炎武只得将头低低地垂着。 董小宛肚子饿得慌，对刚才那一幕也没有兴趣，便只顾朝嘴里填几块糕点。她小口小口地咬着，那副模样给张天如留下了深刻印象。陈定生忽然说道：“明天这秦淮河又要被扰得鸡犬不宁了。” 李贞丽正端了一盘金灿灿的小米饼走进来，听他这么说，问道：“何事又要发生？” “明天吴三桂的儿子吴应熊要到留都玩。这是个有名的浪荡公子，他不和他父亲一起镇守山海关，每日只干游乐勾当，是个无耻之徒。” 李贞丽道：“啥子浪荡公子，明天来都没好日子过，老娘明天就叫秦淮河的姑娘们挂免战牌。” “说归说，做归做。”杨龙友道，“那吴公子可是很有钱。” “你以为老娘们只挣钱。”李贞丽瞪着双眼说道，“杨老爷，你那老婆马婉容是不是只知道挣钱。” “当然不是。”杨龙友争辩道。 “别说是什么吴应熊，就是吴三桂亲自来也没什么便宜的。”郑妥娘接着说。 陈定生插嘴道：“吴三桂的相好可是秦淮河有名的陈圆圆。” “那是另外一回事。”李香君插话道：“咱们姐妹听说吴三桂专和你们复社过不去，不理他的公子是为你们争口气。” 张天如笑着说：“香君，帮复社出力是你们份内的事，谁叫你是复社的媳妇呢。” 李香君听他这么说，心里很高兴，脸上却露出羞色。她又想起了侯朝宗。 一群人就这样嘻嘻哈哈说笑一阵，不觉夜已深了。张天如等人起身告辞。众姐妹送他们出去，门一开，大家齐声惊呼：“好大的雪。” 王媚娘却又和顾炎武说道：“顾少爷，今日一别不知何时再见，让我亲你一下。”说完张开两臂要去抱他，吓得顾炎武跑出去很远，站在飞雪中等张天如。众人又是一阵大笑。笑声在纷纷扬扬的雪片中交织。 待众人走后，董小宛和众姐妹道了别，领着惜惜出了媚香楼。雪下得真大，地上铺了厚厚的一层，空中还飘着大团大团的雪片，车夫嚷道：“我快看不清路了。”天上地上一片白，马车就像在一团银色时光中穿行，虚幻而又空灵。 转过街角，又是另一番景象。居民们都快活地站在自家门前品评着这场大雪，他们身后桔黄灯光给他们镀上一层虚幻的边，看上去幸福美好，非常吉祥。孩子们大叫大嚷着在打雪仗，似乎不知道已是深夜。董小宛瞧见一个小女孩站在屋檐下张大嘴巴直哭，额头上敷了一团雪，又可爱又可怜。童年真好！连哭都那么爽快明朗。惜惜靠在她身边。 这场雪下了三天，董小宛和惜惜在自家院子中堆了三个雪人。第四天，天放晴了，董小宛就迫不及待地到梅林赏梅花去了。踏入梅林，当年柳如是的光彩在董小宛身上得以重现，这也是她童年的向往。留都大户人家的公子小姐这一天也纷纷涌进梅林。女人们为了趋赴雅兴，男人们大多数是为了炫耀才气，少部分是为了观赏美女。整个梅林里热热闹闹，到处是三五成群的赏花人。 董小宛身边一下就吸引了几位公子。他们跟在她身后。她洋洋得意，显得更加的骄傲和光彩照人。阳光照在雪地上，雪光反映在她脸上，给她整个人染上一层梦幻色彩。几个公子哥边走边吟诗，董小宛听得不顺耳，却不便扫大家的兴。 她时而轻轻掰下梅枝嗅嗅梅花，暗香令她陶醉；时而又对一些丑枝条评论一番，便有好事者将那梅枝折断扔掉。 几个人正笑闹之间，迎面撞上另一伙人。为首那个公子笑嘻嘻走上前来。董小宛和他一照面，便觉得他是个极邪的恶人。那人走到小宛身边，笑嘻嘻说道：“你就是秦淮河有名的美女董小宛？” 她瞧着他脸上微微抽动的肌肉感到恶心，也不回答。那人旁边一位师爷上前打圆场介绍说：“这位是京城有名的吴大公子吴应熊。今天看上董大小姐，请小姐同游梅林如何？” 董小宛一听是吴应熊，更觉难受。赏花的雅兴烟消云散。 她朗声说道：“不论'无'公子还是有公子，本小姐今天没兴趣。” 吴应熊面色变得阴沉沉的。董小宛也不理会，扭头就走。 吴应熊在京城里可没受过这般顶撞，不禁怒从心起，恶向胆生。他一纵身从后面将小宛一把抱住，小宛声尖呼救，一边就拼尽全力朝后一肘击去，正中吴应熊的脸颊。吴应熊伸手一掌打得董小宛滚在地上，嘴角迸出血来。血滴在雪上，滴出红色的小孔。 梅林中众人拥上来，七嘴八舌指责吴应熊。一人难犯众怒，他只得灰溜溜地走了。 董小宛从地上爬起来，擦去嘴角的血，却一滴泪都没有掉。吴应熊这一掌还含着另一层沉重的份量，它打痛了董小宛的心，董小宛的人格受到了极大的震撼。她在青楼好梦中养成的矜持和骄傲一下子变得一文不值，她清楚地意识到一个可怕的人生结局。 在回家的路上，她忽然感到异常寂寞。她想到了嫁人。而正在融化的雪在她前面铺开一条苍茫的无尽之路。归途是漫长的，回归本真的自我之路更加漫长。马车沿秦淮河走着，她听见一条画舫上有人唱道： 寂寞红尘，万卷波浪可怜人儿，前程渺茫…… 回到家中，陈大娘见她那张憔悴的脸和出去时判若两人，便心痛地问道：“乖女，发生什么事啦？”董小宛也不答话，径直朝屋里走，走到门边，扭头对陈大娘说：“娘，从今天起，凡是来求见的人都回说身体不舒服。”说完便使劲关上门。陈大娘望着门上晃荡的锁扣，难过得流下泪来。什么样的命运可以拯救宝贝女儿呢？