On a late spring afternoon, Tang Xianzu's "The Story of the Purple Hairpin" was being prepared on the stage in Songjiang Guyang Garden.
The person who invited Kunban from Suzhou was Yin, the daughter-in-law of Dong Qichang, a famous local gentry.
This spring, Ms. Yin went around making donations, selling paintings, calligraphy, embroidery, ancient porcelain and other items donated by celebrities in the city, and earned thousands of taels of silver.
This noble lady, wearing a brocade hairpin, stood up in a grand manner, and in the name of the head of the "Jishan Society", she sent a few taels to various orphanages, Zeluo Hospital, Jimin Pharmacy, etc. in Songjiang.
"Charity money" ranging from more than ten taels.
But she still felt that the limelight was not enough, so she took out another hundred taels of silver from the donation and invited the famous Kun Troupe from the Nanzhili area to Songjiang to sing for the gentlemen and celebrities participating in the charity sale for a few days.
Gu Shouqian had previously donated the embroidery of Miao Atai's "Minghe Sea Battle Picture", so naturally he was also invited.
In the afternoon, as soon as Gu Shouqian stepped into Guyang Garden, Mrs. Yin, who was dressed like a golden pheasant and greeted guests with Dong Zuchang, walked forward with a smile and pretended to be affectionate and asked: "Hey, Mr. Gu, what's going on with Ameng?"
not coming?"
"She went on an outing with Mistress Han." Gu Shouqian said with a touch of greeting.
"Going for an outing? The pomegranate flowers are about to bloom, why are you going for an outing? Where are you going? Sheshan?"
Yin's barrage of questions only received an ambiguous "hmm" from Gu Shouqian.
Mrs. Yin pursed her lips: "Ameng is a very busy person. On weekdays, he is more busy outside than inside. It is rare that he has time to go hiking in the mountains and enjoy the spring. It is a pity that she has to miss the good show of Yu Jiaban today.
, Mr. Gu, you see, we specially reserved the seats in the front."
Gu Shouqian's expression turned even colder. He returned the gift hastily and walked to his seat in front of the stage.
Dong Zuchang complained to his wife in a deep voice: "It's not like you don't know that Mrs. Gu went to Chongming and didn't open or pick up any of the pots she did? After all, she came up with a masterpiece to show you off, didn't she?"
Mrs. Yin said disapprovingly: "How am I laughing at him? I'm just trying to fight against injustice, okay? This is the direct grandson of the Gu family, a handsome young master like a god. Many aristocratic families in Songjiang City want to marry their daughters to him, but Miss Han doesn't know how to marry her.
Zhen. Mr. Gu is a young man in his prime, but he is now all alone. If you regard yourself as his senior brother, don’t you consider me his elder sister-in-law? Therefore, I insist on reminding him, and if that doesn’t work, I will take a concubine as soon as possible.
Take care of him, and secondly, you can cure the eldest lady's domineering spirit."
Dong Zuchang heard this and secretly ridiculed her. She clearly hated Han Ximeng for ignoring Jishan Society and took the opportunity to stab Miss Han in the back.
Dong Zu often looked back toward the stage and saw a table of men sitting behind Gu Shouqian. After identifying them several times, he couldn't help but curiously asked Mrs. Yin: "Where are those people wearing blue and green silk brocades?"
Yin said: "The cotton merchant from Denglai passed by the academy that day and bought several paintings."
Dong Zuchang wondered: "Shandong people come to Songjiang to sell cotton?"
Yin sneered: "The price of Shandong cotton is low. In recent years, Su Song's cloth mill often collects Shandong cotton."
"Oh, so," Dong Zuchang frowned slightly, "no wonder he behaves vulgarly."
Mrs. Yin said displeasedly: "Today is a singing party, not a cultural gathering. Someone has given a lot of money to Jishan Society. Why, Mr. Gu can come, but they can't come?"
Dong Zuchang smiled and said: "Okay, as long as the lady is happy."
Not long after, all the guests arrived, a gong sounded, and "The Story of the Purple Hairpin" began.
"Thanks to the Emperor for his kindness in the lights and the moonlight, and thanks to Tian's kindness in the spring and in the years. It is written all over that the country is peaceful and the people are safe. I invite you to sing."
The tune of "The Garden Is Good" sounded, and it was the scene where the male protagonist Li Yijia was enjoying the lanterns during the festival. For a moment, the lotus lanterns were shining brightly on the stage, and the golden dragons were swimming, making it very lively.
Kun Opera was born in Kunshan and became popular in six prefectures in the south of the Yangtze River. It is loved by celebrities in Songjiang. Gu Shouqian has been influenced by Kun Opera since he was a child. He is also a fan of Kun Opera. Now seeing the smooth and beautiful tunes of the Yu family from Suzhou, he temporarily forgets his worries. Enjoy the play with full concentration.
I felt relieved for a moment, but I heard a few wealthy businessman-looking men behind them talking loudly.
One of them spat: "Hey, what kind of dance is this, like a bird, a lantern and a dragon, breaking off one section after another, just like fried dough sticks, it's a joy to kill."
Another one said: "Hey, this little daughter-in-law who is coming out is pretty good, she has a pretty face, and I love her to death."
While chatting and laughing, the group of people chewed pecans unscrupulously, threw the broken shells on the ground, and even threw them on Gu Shouqian's shoes.
Gu Shouqian looked sideways at them several times and saw that they were not restrained. He had to take advantage of the narration in the play and cupped his hands at the wealthy businessman and said: "My dear friends, can you please keep your voice down? Besides, if you are tired of dry fruit peels, you can spit them in this." "
After saying that, he placed the small porcelain jar in front of him on the table of the wealthy businessmen.
The faces of the three men all dropped, especially the oldest one with bags under his eyes, who looked the most fierce.
"If the young master dislikes us as a big boss, you can sit somewhere else." He said solemnly with swollen eyes.
In today's venue, all guests have fixed seats, and there are no empty tables anywhere in the venue.
Gu Shouqian could only sigh helplessly and turned back to continue watching the show.
The few wealthy businessmen behind him lived peacefully for a short time. When Li Yi and Huo Xiaoyu swore an oath to each other at Baqiao Mountain and parted ways, the swollen-eyed and rough voice sounded again.
"It's boring and boring. It's babbling. I don't know what to sing. It's not as exciting as the Wu Lao Er singing back home."
"The one who sings Wu Laoer" is Shandong Kueban'er, which is also a folk art that came out during the Wanli period. Most of the artists told stories about Wu Song in Water Margin, such as fighting tigers and killing golden lotuses, so they were called "Singing Wu Lao Er". "The middle child", or "the big one".
A toad-mouthed man next to the swollen eye laughed and said: "Brother, I will take you to a teahouse tomorrow to learn about books. Although I don't play Allegro, the story is interesting. It said that bandits robbed a young lady in Songjiang. "
"Oh?" The swollen eye suddenly became energetic, "How did you grab it? Did you get it?"
"They are all bandits, how can we still get them? I heard that the girl's family is in the cotton business like ours. Her ancestor was also a prime minister, named He Qi."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! "My name is Han Qi," the toad-mouthed companion took the question and said to his swollen eyes, "Brother, the little girl of the Han family went out to play and asked the water bandits to give her He went back to the village and entered the bridal chamber. Three days later, a group of guards came from the imperial court, killed the bandit leader, and rescued Miss Han. Guess what, this Miss Han was actually plotted by an aunt from her husband's family to whom she was engaged. Yes. Don’t say it. Don’t say it. Brother, listen to it yourself.”
With swollen eyes, he smacked the chopped walnut meat in his mouth, and said with a sullen face: "I was rescued after three days, I'm afraid there is a little bandit in my belly. So, did Miss Han get married later?"
"Snapped!"
There was only a crisp sound of breaking porcelain, causing Huo Xiaoyu's slow singing to stop abruptly.
Gu Shouqian stood up, kicked away the stool, waved his hand and punched the swollen eyelid.
…
"Lv Xian, my brother will accompany you to the hospital and ask the doctor to apply some ointment."
Dong Zuchang caught up with Gu Shouqian's footsteps, his hurried tone full of apologies.
Just now, "The Legend of the Purple Hairpin" was being played on the stage at a very emotional and emotional stage, when Gu Shouqian and several wealthy businessmen suddenly got into a fight.
The scene suddenly became chaotic. Dong Zuchang hurriedly ordered his servants to come forward and separate them. Gu Shouqian's forehead was already stained and the kerchief on his body was torn.
Dong Zu often asked questions, but the wealthy Shandong businessmen walked away angrily.
Gu Shouqian also dressed and left the table under the surprised and searching gazes of the guests.
Ms. Yin asked the group to continue singing with a sullen look on her face, while Dong Zuchang chased after her.
Gu Shouqian turned around and held up his hands: "I have disturbed Brother Dong and Second Mistress' distinguished guests today because of the situation. I will definitely come to accuse you in the future."
Dong Zuchang grabbed him and said, "Lv Xian, you don't have to go to the hospital. I will order my servant to take you back to your home."
"What? Brother Dong is worried that those rats can still rob them halfway? Songjiang is not their hometown, Liangshan, and I, Gu Shouqian, am not a useless playboy in your eyes."
Dong Zuchang was slightly startled when he heard the last half of the sentence, and then he realized that the beloved disciple of his father in front of him was not only angry but also depressed.
He then let Gu Shouqian walk farther away, then winked and asked his servant to follow him.
Not long after, the servant appeared in front of his master again with a bitter look on his face.
"Second Young Master, Mr. Gu scolded me back."
At this time, when I had just handed in the application, Fucheng Street was busy with traffic and pedestrians.
It was clearly a beautiful scene of warm breeze blowing people and all beings happy, but Gu Shouqian felt that the smiles on those faces were all mocking him.
Distraught, he raised his sleeves to wipe the blood on his forehead, then simply left the street and walked to a secluded place by the Moon River.
"Sir, sir, would you like to take a boat ride to relax? There is new tea on board."
In the sparkling light, a neat little fairy boat sailed slowly from the middle of the river, and the boat owner was soliciting customers diligently.
Gu Shouqian raised his eyes to look at the blue sky and white clouds, nodded and said: "Shake to the foot of Sheshan Mountain."