On the first day of October, the autumn air is crisp and clear.
The weather is the best time of the year. There is sun but not too hot, and there is wind but not too cold. It is the most suitable time for traveling.
After dawn, people entered the village one after another. This time, nearly two hundred people were invited. There were scholars, dignitaries, businessmen... Anyone who had ever come to Dahe Village to spend money, regardless of their status, was invited this time. I invited you to come over, but the official Mr. Shen and Mr. Fu were too busy every day and did not come.
The people of Dahe Village have already had experience in receiving tourists, and the village's reception capacity has also increased.
After the people who come enter the village, their carriages and horses will be taken away by Zhao Da and taken care of. Zhao Tiezhu leads everyone to the flower garden.
This flower garden was built in the spring. It has a high fence and is covered with vines and flowers. Not many people in the village know exactly what it looks like inside, let alone outsiders.
The entrance to the flower garden is filled with wild chrysanthemums transplanted from the mountains. Small yellow or white daisies sway in the wind, warmly welcoming every visitor.
Mrs. Lin couldn't help but admire: "These chrysanthemums are so beautiful."
Mrs. Fu nodded: "Although the flowers are small, they gather together and are lively, which makes people happy to see them."
When the two of them said this, some businesswomen nearby immediately agreed.
"It's just a wild chrysanthemum." Mrs. Ge said in a neutral tone. "The Sui'an people invited so many people to come and enjoy the chrysanthemums with such great fanfare. I thought it was a green peony among the chrysanthemums, or a ten-foot hanging curtain..."
She didn't want to come today, but her husband said that she had offended the people of Sui'an last time and had to come to show her kindness this time, so she came.
But after coming so far, she felt a little unhappy to see these wild chrysanthemums all over the mountains and plains.
"In late autumn, new chrysanthemums sprout in the green fields, and the flowers silently bloom in the corner. The fragrance sinks into the earth in bursts, and the birds play the bamboo flute."
A group of literati on the side suddenly began to recite poems, and they were reciting poems about this wild chrysanthemum.
Mrs. Lin praised: "What a poem."
As she said that, she also glanced at Mrs. Ge.
She had never dealt with Mrs. Ge, but she had heard about the last time Mrs. Ge came to Dahe Village to seize koi.
Mrs. Zheng was not invited this time, and she had obviously offended the people of Sui'an. If Mrs. Ge did not stop and make Sui'an unhappy, Mr. Ge's official position would probably not be promoted by half a level until his death.
While the group was standing at the door admiring the wild chrysanthemums, Cheng Wanwan walked out of the flower garden.
She smiled brightly and said: "We have guests coming from afar, and I am sorry for not being able to welcome you from afar. Ladies, ladies, young masters and shopkeepers, please come in and invite us."
Everyone then walked inside.
Once inside, there is a spacious path with many trees planted on the side of the path. There should be flowers planted under the trees, but the flowers have faded in autumn.
Walking further inside, you can see a field of knee-high flowers, but there are no flowers, so you can’t tell what they are.
Cheng Wanwan introduced: "Jasmine is grown here. It didn't bloom this year. You should be able to enjoy jasmine next year."
She pointed her finger and said, "The plum blossoms are planted over there. They were transplanted from other places. The survival rate is good. They should bloom in the twelfth lunar month of this year. Everyone is welcome to come to Dahe Village to enjoy the snow and plum blossoms."
Meng was also invited. She kept walking beside Cheng Wanwan and sighed: "Last time I heard that people in Sui'an planted plum blossoms. After I went back, I also asked my servants to buy many plum blossom trees, twenty trees. Well, they were all planted to death."
"One of the reasons is that Dahe Village has good water and soil, and the other is that my eldest sister is very good at it." Cheng Wanwan said with a smile, "When you get inside, you will know how good my eldest sister is at growing flowers."
Cheng Yuanyuan is hard-working and willing to learn, and she teaches some modern flower-growing techniques from time to time, so the survival rate of flower seedlings naturally increases... Moreover, she buys many famous chrysanthemums directly from the mall as semi-finished products, which makes it easier to feed them.
As you continue walking inside, your view gradually broadens.
There was a faint sound of running water. As I got closer, I discovered that there was a narrow artificial stream. There were stones at the bottom of the stream. The water flowed on the stones, and you could see some small fish.
Here is a spacious reception area, with tables and chairs neatly arranged, with women on one side and men on the other.
And around this place are colorful chrysanthemums blooming one after another.
Mrs. Ge, who just looked down on wild chrysanthemums, was stunned.
What did she see? She actually saw the precious jade pot of spring chrysanthemums, the rare ten-foot hanging curtain, the red clothes and green clothes that were extremely difficult to maintain... and even many, many chrysanthemums that she couldn't name.
So many chrysanthemums were randomly placed on the ground, red, yellow, green, white, ink... This visual impact shocked everyone.
"gorgeous!"
"This is the first time I have seen so many precious chrysanthemums."
"The people of Sui'an are too casual. How can they just put their red clothes and green clothes on the ground? What if someone accidentally steps on them."
"These green clouds look like colorful clouds. I have only seen them in books before. They are more beautiful than what is described in the books."
"What's the point of just admiring chrysanthemums? How about we write a poem with chrysanthemums as the theme?"
The literati responded one after another.
For literati, the purpose of appreciating flowers is to write poems. If you get good poems, you can become famous in this party.
The men were reciting poems there, and the women naturally also had activities. Cheng Wanwan asked everyone to sit down by the stream and play Fei Hua Ling, which women like.
If a glass of wine is placed in the stream, whoever it strands in front of will have to say a poem based on the theme and rhyme. Just one sentence is enough. It is more interesting to play this way, and it will not make people think of a poem without racking their brains.
Cheng Wanwan would not dare to participate in such activities, otherwise she would keep reciting ancient poems. Those poems were not written by her, and they always felt like plagiarism.
She smiled and said: "You must have a good time, I will let others prepare the meal."
Just as she was about to turn around, Meng stood up abruptly: "Sui'an native, I'll go with you."
She used to be a maid, but now she can barely recognize the words. Isn't it a joke to let her stay here to recite poems and write poems?
Cheng Wanwan took Meng to the kitchen courtyard of the flower garden. There were more than twenty women preparing meals. Today's chrysanthemum viewing party was preparing a roast deer feast.
Zhao Tiezhu and his people had prepared the charcoal fire, loaded it with an iron pot, and carried it to the banquet venue. In the middle of the venue, a long barbecue stove had been repaired long ago. Two bricks were piled up, and there were Put the sliced and marinated venison on the wire mesh, and it will start to sizzle with oil.
The fragrance immediately spread and penetrated into everyone's mouth and nose.
Those who were reciting poems could no longer sit still and stood up one after another to come and watch.
In this era, there is a way to eat barbecue, but people have never eaten like this at a gathering. It looks quite novel, and the smell is different from what they usually eat, which brings out all the gluttons in their mouths. .
Cheng Wanwan smiled and said to everyone: "Everyone can go back to your seats and wait for the barbecue to be served. If you want to try it yourself, you can come here."
Here is a stone slab barbecue. A pit is dug under the stone, and charcoal fire is burning inside. The stone is heated, and the venison sizzles as soon as it is put on it. It is very interesting.
Many literati had itchy hands and decided to bake it themselves.
