When I woke up, the ceiling was already illuminated by the reflection of the sun.
The breeze lifts the curtains, and the blurred window frames move with the flow of light, like a slowly moving train, taking people into the distance.
In this endearing, comfortable and peaceful illusion, Han Yingming once thought he had returned to his home in Tokyo, Japan.
However, when the sunlight penetrated into the room through the gap in the curtains, it shone on the three-drawer table from the white wall.
The cry of the thrush outside the house reminded him of where he was now as he gradually regained his consciousness.
So he immediately knew that he had overslept again in the courtyard in the capital.
Although I still want to stay in bed for a while, watch the tiny dust particles flying in the sunlight, and be in a daze for a while.
But his status as a guest was a humiliating motivation that forced him to give up this comfortable laziness and seize the time to get up quickly.
Fortunately, getting up late means getting up late, but he can also conclude that the time will not be too late.
Otherwise, as soon as the time passes nine-thirty and the sun's temperature rises, the ceiling that was opened for stargazing and ventilation last night will be pulled shut again, and there will be no trace of sunlight in the room.
It's just strange to say that people often don't sleep well in strange places.
Especially for an old man his age, who already suffers from insomnia. When he comes to a foreign country and there is no air conditioning, he may suffer from insomnia.
But the strange thing is that in this place, he slept deeply and soundly from the first day.
It has been almost a week since he came here, and he spends more time in his dream every day than at home. This is really a problem that puzzles him.
If you think about it carefully, the weather in Beijing is indeed hot, but it is quite cool in the morning and at night, which is probably the greatest blessing.
Moreover, there is a refrigerator and a fan in the house, a pergola and cattail fans outside, and there are several ice basins placed from ten o'clock until six o'clock in the afternoon, so people will not be affected by the heat at all.
In addition, the openness and tranquility of this garden, the sound of the wind blowing the leaves at night, and the chirping of various insects may also be one of the reasons.
Such natural sounds can only be clearly perceived in a quiet environment.
Just like the capital city at night, the stars are shining brightly on the sky.
Yes, you can see the Milky Way clearly across the sky from Beijing.
Han Yingming couldn't remember how long it had been since he had seen the Milky Way like this.
But in the past, when Keiko was just born, he could see the Milky Way with the naked eye in Japan.
But in today's extremely developed and brightly lit Tokyo, due to the increasingly serious light pollution, all these have become the most luxurious memories of yesterday, and people have to admit that "everything you gain must be lost".
These gifts of nature are like a mirror that allows humans to examine themselves, clearly reflecting how human society has benefited from the development of science and technology, but at the same time, the original pastoral life has become fragmented.
Or maybe only the current capital city allows people to relive this almost forgotten happiness.
No, this is just like the morning when Han Yingming woke up.
Although it was already 8:30 in the morning, it was not hot at all and it was so comfortable.
Bright and joyful sunshine slanted in the cool air. Black and white were everywhere, light was light and shadow was shadow.
The air is cool and the sun is hot. When it comes into contact with a place, the cool part is just warm, and the hot part is just a little cool.
In the midst of the lack of balance between coolness and warmth, the flowers sprouted their stamens and the leaves shone with dew.
Walking into the yard, the pomegranate tree in front of the east house was still in shadow, and its leaves were dark green.
But several lotus tanks in the middle of the yard have already seen the sun.
Those pink flower buds turned into orange, and white water drops floated on the tender green lotus leaves.
When the breeze blows, the lotus leaves will tremble from side to side, swaying like they are dancing in the morning light.
A few dragonflies were flying back and forth in the middle of the yard, flashing like flowing lightning.
Suddenly, a blood-red one looked at the pomegranate tree and then emerged from the ceiling into the blue sky.
Suddenly, one carrying a piece of emerald on its back only flirted with the bud of the lotus and then turned around and left.
Needless to say, with such good weather, Han Yingming must have been eager to go out for a walk after washing himself and having breakfast.
Or you can go west along the alley, go to Jingshan Park for hiking and have a good look at the Forbidden City under the blue sky.
Or you can paddle in Beihai Park to the west, rent a boat and go boating in Kunming Lake.
Or just go fishing by the Tongzi River or the lake of Shichahai.
Alternatively, you can go to Laijin Yuxuan under the old cypress trees in Zhongshan Park to make a pot of tea and listen to the chirping of cicadas while sipping tea to relieve boredom.
This is still close, but the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, Biyun Temple, Summer Palace, and Old Summer Palace that are further away are also good places to spend the summer.
In short, although the weather in Beijing is hot, people can avoid it.
Especially people like Han Yingming who have a lot of free time, don't have to worry about morning and evening, food and drink are taken care of, and they live in the Garden Hotel for free.
Whether he is in Yunyuan, in the park, or outside the city, he can perfectly avoid the heat.
There are so many places he can go and so many sights he can see.
To be honest, his mentality has completely changed now.
Even though he still felt that the capital city was generally backward, the liveliness and fun of this ancient city in the summer had already touched his heart, allowing him to experience the leisurely and simple joy of life that could not be found in Tokyo, Japan.
Especially the Temple of Heaven Park, Han Yingming liked it from the bottom of his heart.
For no other reason than the Temple of Heaven Park, with its towering ancient trees and forests of pines and cypresses, was originally one of the royal gardens and the best place for Beijing residents to escape the heat in the summer.
The more important reason is that the park was planned by Ning Weimin with his son-in-law's hard work.
Nowadays, after so many years of development, the Temple of Heaven Park has become one of the top tourist attractions in Beijing, whether it is infrastructure, sightseeing content, entertainment projects, shopping, eating and drinking, and it is almost a must-recommendation to foreigners by travel agencies in Beijing.
place.
The number of tourists visiting here every day is almost as high as that of the Forbidden City.
Cultural relics and historic sites, costume photography, various exhibitions, entertainment and entertainment, folk arts, music performances, book exhibitions, antiques and antiques...
There are things to see, things to listen to, things to play, and things to shop.
What cold drinks and snacks, Chinese and Western food, dim sum pastries, fragrant tea and coffee...
It means eating and eating, drinking and drinking, resting and resting, and sitting and sitting.
In fact, not to mention that a foreigner like Han Yingming likes to visit the Temple of Heaven. How many locals in the capital, young and old, men and women, don't like this place?
In addition, the Temple of Heaven Park and Ning Weimin's own territory are almost there.
Based on his reputation, as his father-in-law, Han Yingming received special treatment wherever he went.
Not to mention Zhang Shihui, Luo Guangliang, and Xiao Tao, these people who spent every day in the Temple of Heaven Park to make money paid great respect to Han Yingming, calling him "uncle" one after another.
When Luo Guangliang and Xiao Taozi saw him, they took the initiative to ride on a tricycle to see him off, and Zhang Shihui even had to fawn over him with good food and drinks.
Even the people at the Temple of Heaven Garden knew him. The employees of the Temple of Heaven thought of Ning Weimin from top to bottom, and everyone's income increased.
So no one dared to charge him for the ticket, let alone let him queue up.
They all coaxed, worshiped and supported him like gods.
This feeling of enjoyment is so refreshing, no wonder he has a special liking for this time.
To put it bluntly, for Han Yingming, just because he has a son-in-law like Ning Weimin, he is treated as a distinguished guest wherever he goes in the Temple of Heaven Park, and enjoys privileges wherever he goes, and there is no need for him to take the initiative at all
Open your mouth.
Even when the Emperor visited China, he was probably not as comfortable and happy as he was when he came to this place.
So as the wedding preparations enter the final stage, even Matsumoto Keiko and her daughter are busy with serious things.
If he really has to go out these days, there will be no one to accompany Han Yingming, so that doesn't matter.
He can still enjoy himself and be very carefree by himself.
Anyway, he doesn't have to squeeze into the bus when he goes out, because in addition to calling a taxi, he can also ask Luo Guangliang and others for a car to pick him up.
In particular, Jiang Nianyun also prepared twelve bicycles at the concierge of Yunyuan for the convenience of guests in Yunyuan.
If he wanted to save trouble, he could just choose a car to ride on. Wouldn't it be more convenient to be self-reliant?
On this day, Han Yingming went out by bicycle alone. He didn't go anywhere and went to the Temple of Heaven.
He is already familiar with the road and can find it by himself.
It didn't matter if he didn't know Chinese. He knew all kinds of Chinese characters on the street, and he didn't care about eating, drinking or eating.
And for the sake of the insurance period, he carried Yunyuan's leaflet with him, so he could call him if he encountered any problems.
People will never get lost or lost.
What's interesting is that he has even followed the local customs in dressing up and let himself go.
Nowadays, I don’t wear formal clothes at all, but like ordinary old people in the capital, I also wear a white vest, shorts and cloth shoes.
In the basket of the cart, he also carried a folding fan, a newspaper and a large teapot filled with tea.
To be honest, if he didn't speak, no one would think of him as a Japanese.
And when he gets to the Temple of Heaven, he will at least have to walk back and forth along the central axis from north to south, and then from south to north.
No matter whether it was the Zhai Palace, the Southern God's Kitchen, the Northern God's Kitchen, or the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, he would find a place to have a good stroll. Then he would find a place to sit and rest, sweat off, and solve the problem of lunch by the way.
For him, there are more choices at this time.
There are ways to eat in the park, and there are also benefits outside the garden, and it will directly affect the activities in the afternoon.
If he was in the park, he would usually go to the cafe in Zhai Palace to eat some Western-style light meals.
He is not picky, and he doesn't mind whether the sandwich or macaroni tastes authentic. The key is to eat it easily and conveniently.
It's not like when he went to Tan Gong Restaurant, even if he said, "Keep it simple, don't take too much trouble."
But Zhang Shihui always served him in a counter-intuitive manner. Every time, he brought him at least four or eight plates and a bottle of wine, saying "It's just a light meal. I'm sorry, I'm sorry for waiting on you."
To be honest, an old man of his age doesn't have much appetite in summer.
Lunch is actually just a bowl of noodles, a few fried dumplings, or a bowl of lotus leaf porridge, and a few steamed buns, which is enough to satisfy your appetite.
This is the same for both Chinese and Japanese people.
Looking at a table full of dazzling dishes but not being able to eat them, and having to throw them away in waste, I feel really sinful and would blame myself for such extravagance.
So he didn't dare to go there anymore. He usually just drank a little coffee at noon to fill his stomach.
As for lunch after dinner, the weather was getting hotter and he was sweating every time he moved, so it was hard for him to go shopping.
At this time, he would mostly go to the teahouse in Beishen Kitchen or the teahouse outside the east gate.
Those places are all well chosen and have a nice breeze.
I want a pot of tea, eat a few pieces of watermelon, and listen to a folk art show. It couldn't be more comfortable.
Let’s wait until we avoid the poisonous sun before two o’clock before talking about anything else.
It doesn't really matter if he doesn't understand those programs.
Because whether it is a drum or a musical instrument, there are rhythms, tunes and singing styles.
To him, those special and melodious rhythms were nothing more than an exotic opera, and he didn't even need to know what to sing to appreciate it.
And he also likes to flip through newspapers in this melodious atmosphere, and maybe use a pen to write an article or two in the notebook he brought.
He now writes almost every day to record in detail everything he experienced in the capital.
Since he doesn't want to forget such a beautiful life here easily, he also wants to return to Tokyo and tell those who make him fear the capital - they don't know this city too well. The capital of China is far more interesting and enjoyable than what they know.
Yes, Beijing is actually a very magical place.
And after 2:30 in the afternoon, he can go outside again.
At this time, he would either go to a second-hand bookstall or a second-hand goods stall, and almost every time he would bring something back.
He couldn't tell whether it was because of his son-in-law's influence that he had indeed begun to like Chinese culture.
It was because both Ning Weimin and Kang Shude were fond of collecting art and antiques that he consciously followed their hobbies.
Anyway, when doing this, he did feel a kind of cultural fun, and he did gain something.
Just like today, he found some original Japanese books from the war period on the bookstall, and also took a fancy to a porcelain pillow in the shape of a cat.
It only cost him more than 50 yuan to buy them all, but he knew that these books alone could cost at least 50,000 yen when brought back to Japan.
The cat-shaped porcelain pillow is his favorite thing. In fact, it has nothing to do with money. Whether it is used for taking a nap or as an interesting decoration, he is very satisfied.
Just like that, he rode his bicycle back home contentedly.
However, this beautiful day is far from over, but has just begun.
Because he knew that when he returned to Yunyuan, there would be a dinner full of reunion happiness waiting for him.
This meal is the most crowded time, and people who were busy during the day will come back.
Whether it was Kang Shude, Jiang Nianyun, his son-in-law Ning Weimin, or his wife and daughter, everyone would not be absent. They would all gather together under the canopy in the courtyard to have this dinner.
Perhaps the dinner was not very sumptuous by banquet standards.
Maybe it's just some home-cooked meals like pancakes, mixed tofu, fried eggs, fried mushrooms, winter melon ball soup, etc., but the feeling of getting everyone together, drinking some wine and chatting is the best.
And after dinner, as usual, we would sit in the yard to enjoy the cool air and talk.
When it gets dark, the ceiling above your head is opened, and a little starlight will shine among the lotus leaves. The cool breeze will also send fireflies to the shed, and like the stars falling, the tuberose will gradually release its fragrance.
Come and further exaggerate the romance of summer nights.
This kind of family happiness is actually what the elderly need and yearn for most.
Especially for him, it is rarely available in Japan, so it is extremely precious.
Therefore, how can he be unhappy? How can he still be unhappy?
He didn't know what heaven would be like, but judging from his life experience of most of his life, the few days he spent in the capital were like being in heaven.
This kind of capital city is really great. Not only is it fun, lively and lively everywhere, it makes this old city seem to be full of magic, and it also gives him happiness that he could never imagine in Japan.
Don't look at it. Maybe I can only sit with my wife and daughter for a few hours after meals every day.
But the amazing thing is that his relationship with them has never been so harmonious and harmonious.
To be honest, if he could always be this happy, he would be willing to settle here for a long time.