Chapter 34: Act Three ? A Fateful Encounter? Fourteen
Chapter 34 Act 3 Fateful Encounter Fourteen
The bright moon is bright, and the distant bell outside Mozhu Hall has rang three times.
Morning bells and evening drums have been played in Mulu City for thousands of years. Every sunrise, noon and afternoon, the Bell and Drum Tower located on Chongwen Street on the north bank of the canal will ring a big copper bell on time. Bells. And every sunset, a huge Kui drum will be beaten in the building. The sound of bells and drums spreads along the streets and alleys to tell the time.
The bronze bell in the Bell and Drum Tower is said to have been cast by Duke Dehuan, the Taizu of Ye State who had a large number of soldiers after the great rise to the throne. He gathered all the soldiers from the country and melted them into copper water for a truce. There are eight inscriptions written on the bell. Engraving:
Stop the troops and nourish the people, and the country will be strong.
This move not only caused Emperor Baijiang to marry his youngest sister to Ye State as his queen, but also brought long-term peace and prosperity to Wanzhou. Ye State has since become a Tongwei Liang, Yubei A great feudal state that sits on equal footing and fights against each other.
"It's already midnight, will Jiang Yan call me today?"
Qi Ziyin gently put down the book in his hand, but his butt could no longer sit still - today is July 15th, and it is customary for the people to use new rice to offer sacrifices to their ancestors, which is the Ghost Festival. At this time, people in the city The lights in various places will stay on all night to drive away the ghosts who take the opportunity to enter the city and cause trouble. All the streets and cities will also be open until dawn to provide food, wine and accommodation for travelers who go out to worship and are too late to return home.
When the adults go to the tombs to worship and sweep, children under the age of 16 are not allowed to go out to avoid being harmed by the yin energy. Now Duke Ye and his family members have not returned from the ancestral tombs in the eastern suburbs, and all the civil and military officials are also After everyone returned home, only the imperial guards, eunuchs, and a few peers who were studying with Qi Ziyin were left in the palace.
"Young Master Ziyin, why are you no longer interested in studying?"
The child who spoke was two or three years older than the boy in white. He was the second son of Taichang Qing, who was in charge of the sacrifices, rituals, music, and rituals in the mausoleum and temple. His name was Cheng Xiao. Today, his father is also accompanying the country on official business. When the master was traveling, he specially arranged for him to be Qi Ziyin's companion in the Mozhu Hall. At this time, seeing the young master looking absent-minded, Cheng Xiao immediately spoke to remind him.
"Oh, brother Cheng Xiao, Master Gou is not around at the moment, why do you keep staring at me?"
Qi Ziyin muttered and picked up the book again, but his mind was filled with Ning Yue's fiery red hair, and he couldn't read even a single word.
"Young Master Ziyin, my father said that there are the most lonely ghosts wandering outside today. You'd better study peacefully and don't always think about sneaking out to play."
"But I heard from my friends that those are just tricks to deceive children. In fact, there are no souls or ghosts at all in this world. The city is very lively during the Ghost Festival, and there are a lot of delicious food and fun things. of."
"Friend? Young Master, could you be referring to the dark-eyed boy who works in Mo Ling Guard?" Cheng Xiao said, as if the person he mentioned was a being like a god of plague, full of disgust. , "I heard that that boy got into trouble with Marquis Jinghai earlier, and he is a troublemaker. Young master, it is better not to have any deep contact with him, otherwise, if you can't get rid of him in the future, you are asking for trouble." ?”
"Are you talking about Jiang Yan?"
"Yes. It's the one named General. I don't know what General Baili is thinking. It is said that in order to let this kid join Mo Lingwei, he and Marquis Jinghai met in the main hall with the civil and military officials in front of the king a few months ago. We had a big quarrel in front of the officer. At present, no one in the Forbidden Army is willing to say a word to that kid. Do you still want to play with him? "
"But Jiang Yan is a very nice person, so why does Uncle Wang have to have trouble with him?"
"I don't know about that. In fact, everyone in the palace knows that Marquis Jinghai and General Baili have had a feud for a long time. Although there is no sign of it on weekdays, the two of them have always been secretly competing with each other. But it's no wonder.
, one is the governor of the navy division, and the other is the chief military and horse guard in front of the palace and the commander of the navy division, so naturally they will not give in to the other."
"But Jiang Yan is just a child about the same age as you and me. What trouble can he cause?"
"I heard that the Marquis of Jinghai suspected that the boy named Jiang was of shady origin and was sending people to investigate him privately."
"You also know that Uncle Wang is investigating Jiang Yan?" The young man suddenly remembered the night when Qi Shouyu went to Guihongyuan to talk to him, and realized that what the companion in front of him said was true.
However, at this moment, several partridges chirped from behind the bamboo forest outside the window. Qi Ziyin understood that the sound was Jiang Yan blowing a leaf whistle, urging him to leave the palace.
"But there is a saying in the book that friends are united by righteousness. The most important thing is to know each other and keep your word. I feel that Jiang Yan is a good person, and I have already made an appointment with him tonight, so I can't change my mind at the last minute.
It's getting late, brother Cheng Xiao, why don't you go back and rest early."
"Young Master, can you just listen to my advice once? If my father returns with the king and finds that you ran out of the palace secretly again, I will be the unlucky one to be punished!"
"No. If you are asked about it, just say that I had a bad stomach and returned to Hongyuan to poop."
The young man in white gave a sly smile, and before the other party could continue to persuade him, he opened the door and walked out of the Mozhu Pavilion. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared into the long corridor and was never seen again.
The canal in Mulu City starts from Jinshui Gate in the east and Fubo Gate in the west, passing through twenty-five squares and eighteen bridges. It is an important shipping channel. On weekdays, boats and boats gather in an endless stream. However, every Hungry Ghost Festival
Before and after, the river will suddenly become much empty, so that each household can place the boat lanterns used for sacrifices on the water, and the water will carry them all the way into the Yanjiang River.
Even Qi Ziyin, who grew up in the city, has never seen what the boat lanterns all over the river look like. Tonight he and his two little friends made an appointment to go out of the palace to go to the canal to see this annual event with their own eyes.
Shengjing, take the opportunity to satisfy your curiosity.
Legend has it that in ancient times, long before the rise of the Great Ascension, there lived a musician named Zhongya by the Danshui River. This man was a prodigy in piano skills and was famous all over the world. It is said that the music he played could calm the waves and frighten the birds.
Fei, a musician, traveled far and wide, but fell in love with a brothel dancer named Chang Yu.
The two fell in love at first sight and finally met each other's soulmate. After that, Zhong Ya could only play the piano in front of a woman, and Chang Yu no longer danced for other men. However, the musician had no talent and could not play for his lover.
In order to redeem himself, he made an agreement with the dancing girl to cross the Whale River to the west of the Whale Bay overnight, intending to find an isolated island in the sea to live in seclusion.
However, in that prehistoric era, the boat they were traveling on was unfortunately attacked by a ferocious beast in the sea. Zhong Ya luckily escaped with his life, but Chang Yu fell into the water, and was separated from the musician. From that day on,
The grief-stricken Zhongya would sit alone by the seaside and play the piano every day to mourn his deceased wife.
Thirty years later, one day, the piano master suddenly dreamed that his late wife asked him to take the piano to meet him in the Anji Sea in the north. Everyone thought Zhong Ya was crazy and advised him not to go, but the piano master still
Without hesitation, he sailed out to sea alone. I wonder if God was moved by his unwavering love. As long as the sound of the piano sounded, the ferocious beasts in the sea immediately disappeared and the turbulent sea water calmed down.
In this way, Zhongya played the piano all the way out of the Whale Bay, crossed the Dark Sea, and finally found his wife in a fairy city under the Hades Icefield. After the couple met, they cried each other and flew into the sky hand in hand. They became two bright stars next to each other in the sky - Yaqin and Wushang.
There is no evidence as to where this legend originated. However, not long after the Great Ascension and the establishment of the dynasty, people began to imitate Zhongya in the story, folding paper into boats and putting them into the rivers to express their condolences to the deceased. Grief. A candle lit on a paper boat represents the sound of the musician's fingertips. People hope that the paper boat can also guide the soul of the deceased to the Hades Sea and become an eternal star in the sky.
"These ship lights are so--beautiful!"
At the moment, Ning Yue is sitting on the railing next to the Guangji Bridge, her feet dangling in the air, admiring the wonderful scenery in front of her. Her fiery red hair is flying in the wind, attracting pedestrians on the bridge to look at it. The three half-year-old children who dared to go out in the dark and made a lot of noise cast strange looks at them.
"Ning Yue, be careful. Be careful of falling into the canal!"
Qi Ziyin, who was dressed in white, was also leaning on the railing, stretching his head to look down at the river two or three feet away. The flickering light of the fire illuminated his golden pupils even brighter.
At this moment, large and small boat lights are lining up, slowly coming down from the upstream, with no head or tail visible. The whole canal is sparkling with light, twists and turns, and it makes people wonder from a distance. The illusion that the Milky Way in the sky falls into the mortal world.
The orange candlelight was like a golden dragon swimming in the city. It illuminated both sides of the canal as bright as day and also illuminated the faces of the three children.
"Anyway, I know how to swim. I won't drown if I fall." Ning Yue shook her head willfully, looking at the boat lantern at her feet in trance, "Zi Yin, the story about the piano player and the dancer you just told is... Really?"
"Since the story has been told by people, it must not be groundless."
"I also think it's true." The girl raised her head and looked at the bright Milky Way in the sky. "I wonder if there will be anyone in the world who is willing to join me in turning into two specks of dust among the stars in the sky, and we will be companions forever. ?”
Qi Ziyin looked at the girl talking to herself, and suddenly felt an inexplicable impulse in his heart. He almost blurted out the three words "I do". But he suddenly saw Jiang Yan standing next to her, so he had to The words were swallowed back in his stomach.
"You two are too deceptive. How can any of the legends be true? They are all used to coax children."
Jiang Yan on the side took a bite of the green fruit in his hand and interjected vaguely.
"Hey, you know again? You just know that you are greedy, and you don't remember to share the delicious food with me and give it to Tong Ziyin to try." Ning Yue was spoiled and pinched the back of the other person's arm angrily. Tender meat.
Jiang Yan grinned in pain and threw the leftover fruit core from the bridge into the night: "This green fruit was distributed in the camp. It's the only one. Yue'er, what do you want to eat? I'll treat you now." You two just go and eat."
Originally, the black-eyed boy had little interest in looking at the lights, but now he found an excuse and planned to go shopping in a nearby market.
"Stop showing off. It's not easy to support yourself with your little salary." Ning Yue shook her head and changed her mind, "I saw the wild persimmon forest near Shanglinfang in the West City was ripe that day. Why don’t we go pick some persimmons to eat?”
Jiang Yan pinched a few copper coins in his pocket and nodded immediately. Although his military salary increased from the previous fifty copper coins to three silver cents after joining the Mo Ling Guard, his expenses after entering the city also increased. When I got up, I didn't have much money at hand.
After hearing this, Qi Ziyin shook his head vigorously: "It's better not to go there. There seems to be a mass grave over there at Shanglinfang. Today is the Ghost Festival again -"
"Are you afraid, Ziyin? The moonlight is just right!"
Ning Yue climbed down from the railing nimbly, blinking her blue eyes and looking at the gentle and elegant young man in white in front of her.
"I, I'm not afraid!"
Qi Ziyin didn't want to lose face in front of the girl, so he quickly patted his chest in a gesture.
"Then let's go quickly! If you can pick more, you can take it back to Jiayunzhai and bake it into persimmon cakes, and save them for later eating!" Ning Yue laughed, holding up her two companions with each hand, and started playing around. Run towards Shanglinfang.
Thank you for your tasteful attention to "Twin Moon". I hope the wheat grown by Xiaoli will suit your appetite.