Not to mention Thorpe treating this conversation as a foreign language, even a military attache with limited education like Lin Ming couldn't understand it at all. Xie Peng only knew a little bit about it. Of course I couldn’t get a word in.
Seeing that the three of them were left alone, Mellen was quite embarrassed and said quickly: "We will talk about poetry in the paper later. Don't let the beautiful scenery live up to it. Come on, let's have some drinks to cheer up the fun, and we can write poems without restraint. , as long as someone matches up, he will get a tooth chip. I have a Duan Inkstone given by Master Xiong here. Although it is not from Laokeng, it is still very precious. Whoever gets more tooth chips will use this as a gift. As he spoke and clapped his hands, a servant took out an inkstone and placed it on a high table in the middle of the room. It immediately attracted everyone's attention.
Zhaoqing is the origin of Duan Inkstone, which has been listed as a tribute for a long time in history. Every time a pit is dug to quarry, it is organized by the imperial government. Each pit is guarded by a dedicated person, and private mining is strictly prohibited. Several times in the Ming Dynasty, eunuchs were dispatched from the palace to take charge of quarrying, which shows its high value. After Xiong Wencan took office as the governor, he ordered the Lanke Mountain Water Rock Pit to be reopened for "operational" purposes. Although this batch of Duan inkstones is "new", it is still extremely precious to these poor literati.
"Now that you have a good fortune, you must set up rules." Among the guests was Xie Shiming, a local scholar who has always been self-sufficient and talented. After Xiong Wencan came to Zhaoqing, he hired him into the film industry - not because of his great talent, but because this scholar grew up in Sichuan when he was young. Not only could he speak standard Mandarin, but he could also speak a few Sichuan dialects. Let’s talk about comforting Xiong Wencan’s homesickness.
He stared at Duan Yan and said with a straight face, "Let Mr. Chang supervise the field. Those who mess up the order or make the wrong order will be counted. Whoever has the best opinion will be judged by everyone. How about it?"
Mr. Xianhe smiled and said: "Brother Xie is going to win the first prize in one fell swoop."
Xie Shiming smiled proudly and said: "I don't dare! I think I will ask Mr. Mei to give the title to the Lord first."
Mellen knew that since Thorpe and others were from Jinyiwei, they probably didn't have much talent. It would be embarrassing if he didn't get it right if he came up with something like a couplet of poems. He immediately smiled and said: "We are drinking here for fun. It would be meaningless if we made it too complicated. I just guessed it." yes."
Xie Shiming said: "Master Mei agrees with me. I don't like to write poems either. I spent half the night arranging a verse yesterday, and that's enough for me. Fortunately, there are many people here, so those who write poems just write poems." Those who guess can just guess. Mr. Mei is happy, so why not give us a guess?"
Seeing that he had no objections, Melun was just thinking of one when he heard Mr. Xianhe say: "Let me first ask you for an auspicious suggestion: 'Peace in the world', name the state."
A person next to me said: "I guessed it. But 'Puan'?"
Mr. Xianhe nodded and said: "Exactly." Then he came up with another riddle: "Another one: 'Peach seeds and dew seeds in the sky, red apricots planted against the clouds by the sun', give it a flower name."
Mellen sighed in admiration: "It's so clean and grand! This question must be good!"
Xie Shiming said: "I guessed it, it's 'Lingxiao Flower'."
A scholar next to him said: "What a mystery! Often when people make names for flowers, they only mention the first few words and ignore the word "flower". For example, for peony, only the word "peony" is used, but not the word "flower". Who knew this? The whole puzzle is full of flower characters."
Xie Shiming said lightly: "This is nothing, just listen to me: 'Just treat the officialdom as a theater', a line from The Analects of Confucius."
Chang Qingyun smiled and said: "This is a four-book question. It is the most vulgar. I already know the answer to the riddle, so I am not surprised."
Xie Shiming said: "Although the title is vulgar, it has many wonderful points."
Someone next to me joked: "This question is elegant and elegant. There is no need to talk about it. The question must be good."
Chang Qingyun said: "Since it's good, please wait and praise it. You praise it all first. Someone will guess it soon, so there's nothing more to say."
Thorp couldn't bear it and asked Xie Peng in a low voice: "What the hell is this?"
Xie Peng replied: "This is a riddle based on the contents of the Four Books and Five Classics. There is nothing unusual about it, it is 'official and excellent'. I don't know why the man named Xie is so proud."
Suddenly I heard someone clapped on the table and said, "That's great!" Everyone was startled and quickly looked at the time. But it was Mr. Xianhe.
Mellen asked: "How good is Mr. Xianhe that he slaps the table and bench like this?"
Mr. Xianhe said: "I've hit the mark of 'turning officialdom into a show', but what about 'being an official and excelling'?"
Xie Shiming said: "Yes."
Mellen said: "What's so wonderful about this mystery? It's so earth-shattering, old master."
Mr. Xianhe clapped his hands and praised: "This mystery is nothing. You can do it and fight. However, there is something else inside. This one is even better than the 'Lingxiao Flower'."
Chang Qingyun smiled and said: "As far as I'm concerned: they're all the same. What's the difference? If you say there's a difference, I won't accept it. If Mr. !”
Mr. Xianhe said: "Listen to me. I don't care about his borrowing. Only the word 'er' jumps up to the virtual spirit. It is really descriptive. This riddle is borrowed by someone to make a virtual character and uses the utmost literary ingenuity." . Among the puzzles, borrowing should be the first, followed by the positive. However, there are also two levels of borrowing, such as "Guo Shi Wushuang", there is "What is a letter"; "The King of Qin's order to expel guests", "Believe in Si Yan Ye" Although these are also borrowed, the emphasis on the title is completely different from the emphasis on the topic, which is secondary. Recently, there is also a kind of numerology book. I find many similar books all day long. Who knows that the paste has not dried yet, and it has already been The wind blows and the remaining clouds are gone, and everything is gone in an instant. This is a third-class product."
This high-level discussion made everyone present nod their heads frequently, saying that the preparation was ingenious, and that Mr. Xie was very talented. Xie Shiming looked bright. At this moment, Thorpe wanted to be like Li Kui, jump up on the table and shout: "Straight bitch, please give me a machine gun!" He couldn't help but whisper: "What a nonsense!"
Although the voice was small, it was vaguely heard by Xie Shiming. He was originally dissatisfied with this "distinguished guest" being treated so politely, and now he deliberately wanted to embarrass him, so he picked up the wine glass and said in one fell swoop: "You guys are so complimentary. . Such a good time and beautiful scenery, I am not talented enough to write a poem to congratulate you!"
Then he chanted loudly:
The flying building crosses the dangerous battlement, and the clouds and mist are draped at dawn.
The shape is so good that I can overlook it. I came to Yanyi for the rest of my life.
The river is wide and wide, and the mountains are sparse and strange.
The wind and moon are priceless, but there is poetry in the king's condition.
Everyone cheered, and Chang Qingyun said: "It has the artistic conception of the Song Dynasty." Mr. Xianhe sneered slightly, but he also cheered. Xie Mingshi glanced at Thorpe and the others with a smug look on his face, and saw that Xie Peng had a slightly aggrieved look on his face. Lin Ming was still smiling and at ease, but Thorpe had an indifferent look on his face, obviously not listening. out the charm of this poem.
He couldn't help but secretly cursed: "You are really playing the piano to a cow!"
Mr. Xianhe said: "This poem is wonderfully done. Let's celebrate together." After raising a toast, everyone drank together. Mr. Xianhe put down his wine glass. He sighed: "This national scholar is really unparalleled! It's a pity that it is so expensive and hard to come by."
Chang Qingyun smiled and said: "What's the problem? The old man likes it. I have a few bottles here and will send them to you tomorrow. I just hope that the old man can write a few more poems to go with the wine."
Mr. Xianhe smiled and said, "I'm returning what I said exactly. What's the difficulty?" He hit the bowl with chopsticks and chanted in a sweet voice:
If the wine is not intoxicating, everyone will get drunk. Liu Ling will be ashamed after drinking a thousand cups.
I invite Chang'e to accompany me to drink with the moon, and we meet in the melancholy wine of a river.
Cooking sheep and slaughtering cattle is a pleasure, and you will have to drink thousands of cups at a time.
Don't laugh when you are lying drunk at the table. How many people can relieve the deep taste of hangover?
The poetry is very shallow and can only be regarded as limericks. Even Thorpe could understand completely: Mr. Xianhe seemed to be a grumbling person. But I saw the singer Yun Yu holding the pipa in her arms, murmuring something with her mouth, and her eyes couldn't help but glance at Mr. Xianhe. She was obviously admiring him, and couldn't help but secretly wonder: What's so good about this old man with a habit of cutting off his sleeves? Admired? My heart felt slightly sour.
After Mr. Xianhe finished chanting, he picked up the wine cup and drank the wine in one gulp. He said with a smile: "Although Kun people are hateful, their tools are not without their exquisiteness. They are truly unique."
"If the thief is willing to submit to the imperial court, it will be a blessing to the Ming Dynasty."
"The ships are strong and the artillery is powerful, and the soldiers are good at fighting. If the whole army can be recruited and transferred to Liaodong to quell the Eastern captives, no matter whether they win or lose, it will be a wonderful thing to kill two birds with one stone."
"Kun people claim to be Miao descendants of the Song Dynasty, but they are actually a pretense of overseas barbarians." Xie Shiming said, "His glass mirrors, lukewarm pots, and tap fires are all strange and ingenious things. They can't fill them when they're hungry, and they can't clothe them when they're cold. It's just the icing on the cake, the cannons and warships. They seem to be amazing, but people all over the world are rebelling against them. What does a few cannons matter? No matter how well-built the warships are, can they be driven ashore? If the family manages the country and brings peace to the world, You still have to rely on moral articles!”
Several scholars nodded repeatedly and praised Mingshi: "The poem is well done, and the knowledge is even more thorough." Some people also talked about the Kun thief's disobedience to etiquette and many shameless things. On the contrary, it got everyone talking. All kinds of anecdotes were flying around for a while, and Thorpe shook his head repeatedly: This executioner has been around since ancient times.
Mr. Xianhe said, "I heard that Mr. Chang once fell into Lingao for several years and saw the real Kun with his own eyes. Why don't you tell me what you saw about the thief Kun?"
Chang Qingyun smiled bitterly and said: "In the past, when I was conquering Hezhen, I was defeated and fell into Lingao. It is really something I hate. However, I also learned the inside story of many thieves..."
This is true. The key to Chang Qingyun's ability to join the staff of the Governor's Mansion is that he is one of the few local talents who is proficient in "official affairs".
"...This is a place for entertainment. Not to mention the fierce military affairs would spoil the scenery. I was in jail that day, enjoying myself in hardship, and composed fifty poems of "Lingao Zhuzhi Ci". Today I will recite a few poems for you to drink. "
Thorpe's heart skipped a beat, he didn't expect that there were prisoners here who had been to Lingao! This Chang Qingyun was probably one of He Rubin's staff who was captured during the counter-encirclement and suppression campaign. Unexpectedly, he would actually get involved in Xiong Wencan's work again!
Since he has been to Lingao, he wonders if he has seen through his disguise? Maybe even if you see yourself, you won’t know! Thorp remembered that he had inspected the prisoner camp. Of course, at that time, he would not have noticed whether there was a person like Chang Qingyun among the group of unlucky guys with shaved heads and trembling in "freshmen uniforms."
Thorpe forced himself to calm down and looked at the master of the Juren Festival. He was calm and calm and chanted:
Tianya Hainan Road has the county name Lingao. The geothermal is suitable for kissing the ice, and the height of the building is suitable for reaching stars. I sincerely worship and have a good heart and uphold the sutras. I only hate the flying yellow generals, and they will never stop fighting.
The mountains and rivers are graceful, with thrushes spreading out on every level. Give people respect for women, and the earth should be nourished. The girl has a red face and the beauty has fair skin. The reason is that love is important and couples are happy to depend on each other.
On the high pavilions, luxurious mansions flourish. The iron fence is close to the house, and the river flows around the wall. The pink walls are painted with literary style, and the glass is decorated with brocade red. It is best to look out from the street and among the buildings.
The roads are mostly flat and have many cross roads. Two traveling ladies and gentlemen were riding along the middle road. The night market is bustling with people and shops, and the autumn night is rainy. At night, the lights hang on the roadside, and the candles are shining like stars.
He recited a poem and explained it a little bit. There was great interest among the people and there was a lot of discussion.
Xie Shiming was a little unhappy, seeing that he had finally gained some limelight, but was snatched away by Mr. Xianhe and Chang Qingyun. He drank a few more drinks and couldn't help but feel a little restless. His eyes glanced at Thorpe and he remembered the "complete nonsense" comment. I couldn't help but hold a grudge and deliberately wanted to embarrass him. I picked up my glass and said, "Mr. Suo is sitting here and bored, why not write a poem to cheer him up?"
Lin Ming saw that the momentum was not good: Leaders, don’t think highly of someone who knows astronomy and geography. Zhongtong is skilled in all kinds of skills, but he is "ignorant" when it comes to poetry. Let alone writing poetry, it is difficult to even form a rhyming sentence. He had seen the so-called new poems by Australians in the literary section of Lingao Times, such as "The Senate is better than my father", "My noodles are the most delicious in the world", etc. If he really wanted to recite them, he would have to recite them. This group of literati laughed out loud - it seems that this sour character has the intention of making Thorp unable to get off the stage.
Thorpe smiled lightly: "I'm not talented, I don't know how to do these things."
Melun secretly complained that it was not good, and secretly scolded Xie Suanzi that he had nothing to do after he was full - many of the Jinyiwei were relatives of nobles, and there were many who were not literate. In this way, he would lose face in public, even if he did not show any anger at the moment, or hold a grudge. If I go back, I might write a big article! Just as he was about to change his mind, Chang Qingyun had already come out to smooth things over.
"Master Suo is a martial artist, and he doesn't care much about poems and songs. Come on, come on. I think we can just ask the little boy to sing for fun..."
Meren quickly called two singers to come in and wait. The two little ones had finished the meal at this time. Thorpe saw that not only did they kneel on the floor while eating, but they even licked the plates clean after eating, he couldn't help but frown secretly. What kind of way is this? Could it be that he was very hungry. Upon hearing the greeting, Xiao Yao'er hurried up and kowtowed first to thank him.
"Sing some meaty songs and serve wine to all the gentlemen!" Mellen said with a smile.
Xiao Yaoer understood it and sang another song. This is not "elegant" anymore. There were all lewd words and songs, everyone was drinking, everyone was laughing and making a lot of noise.
Thorpe saw that there was no point in staying here any longer. Immediately, he signaled to Lin Ming and stood up to leave. Chang Qingyun said a few polite words and was about to see each other off. Xie Shiming was already a little drunk. He couldn't help but cover his face with wine and became drunk: "Don't leave... don't leave... Such a peaceful and prosperous time. Good times and beautiful scenery, Going without having fun is simply... simply... a disgrace to the scenery... Don't do it!" As he said this, he was about to pour Thorpe's wine.
Thorpe was already angry when he saw that they were making such a fuss, but now he saw that this sour scholar was drunk and crazy. He sneered and said: "A peaceful and prosperous time, a good time and beautiful scenery? Rogue bandits are causing trouble in the Central Plains, Eastern captives have repeatedly breached the border, and all lives are in ruins... Everyone It's really interesting. As the saying goes, 'It's so sad to sing in a leaky boat and drink in a burning house without knowing that drowning is coming!'"
The words were not loud, but they were like a bucket of ice water poured on the people who were making noises and having fun. The huge floor suddenly became silent.
Thorpe added: "Last year I traveled to three towns, climbed to the Yellow Crane Tower, and met a scholar. I was worried about the decline of the country's power, so I wrote a poem on the wall - I can't write poetry, so I will give this to you." Shengman chanted:
The smoke trees are harvested in sight, the homeland is wandering, and the domineering power of the country is left floating. The Yellow Crane should shed tears when he returns, and his tears will fill Tingzhou. Paying homage to the autumn of the great river, I wish you leisure and sorrow. Migrant guests and clear water flowed in one after another. If a hero is extremely powerful, he will cry bitterly in China.
After chanting, he walked away.
When the group returned to the boat, Thorpe was silent. Lin Ming thought that he had lost face because of the poetry, so he comforted him: "Master Suo, don't be upset. Poetry is just a pastime. Whoever wants to make a contribution relies on it... "
Thorp said: "I'm not upset about this. What use are those lines of poetry? I just... just..." He didn't know what to say for a while, and then said after a while, "They are all one in a hundred, out of tens of thousands." There is only one scholar like this, what use is it to the country and the people?"
Lin Ming thought to himself that this is strange. The country and the people are not the "country" and "people" of Australia. Why is he, an Australian elder, worried about this? After thinking about it, I understood, and said with relief: "The chief is worrying too much. Don't look at them now, they only know how to write a few crooked poems and are complacent. If one day the imperial examination of the Song Dynasty is held, they will learn the same from Macao. …”
As he was talking, someone suddenly came to report: "Master Chang is here to pay his respects."
"Eh? What's he doing here?" Thorpe looked at Lin Ming doubtfully, "Why didn't you talk about something?"
"It doesn't hurt to invite him in for a chat." Lin Ming said, "I'm afraid there are some things we can't talk about during the banquet."
"Okay, then invite him in."
Both parties have met. While Thorp was thinking about how to speak, Chang Qingyun had already got straight to the point: "This Master Suo is probably a chief."
Thorpe was startled, Lin Ming had murderous intent visible in his eyes. Xie Peng also quietly showed his dagger. Thorpe shook his head slightly, signaling not to act rashly: "Why do you say that?"
"Mr. Suo, I have been in Lingao for a full year and a half." Chang Qingyun said calmly, "Digging sand, breaking stones, carrying soil, paving roads... I have done all the work I have never done in my life. I have endured all the hardships I have endured." He sighed, "I have met more than a dozen leaders like Mr. Suo - naturally, they may not remember that there was a person like me."
Just listen to him continue to say: "...Anyone who has met the Australian chief minister a few times will never forget their expressions. Mr. Suo, although there is no flaw in your words and deeds, the magnanimity on your face is... You’ll know just by looking.”
Thorpe smiled and said: "Mr. Chang, you are really over-praising me. In that case, what do you want from me?" (To be continued.)
ps: The poems in this section are all written by specific authors. Xie Mingshi’s poem is the work of Huang Gongwang of the Song Dynasty, which is dedicated to Piyun Tower. What Thorpe recited was the work of Yu Youren. I won’t go into details one by one.
