The time system of Dahua is divided into: hour, moment, cup of tea, light of incense, snap of fingers, breath, and moment.
The Golden Crow rises at Mao Chen, midday at noon, and falls at Youxu; in addition, there are Si, Shen, Hai, Zi, Chou, and Yin, totaling twelve hours.
There are four moments at a time, three cups of tea at a moment, two sticks of incense from each cup of tea, ten snaps of fingers in one stick of incense, six breaths per snap of fingers, and five moments as one breath; according to this calculation, one day There are eighty-six thousand four hundred moments, which can be divided into subtle details.
The object used to measure time accurately is an object called a "sand funnel and funnel", which has a complex structure and is extremely exquisite. There are a pair of reed-shaped glazed containers in Luhu, arranged one above the other. The container has two openings, one facing the sky for the entrance, one half an inch wide in diameter, and one facing the ground for the exit. The openings are huge and small, and can only accommodate ants and insects. The two containers contain gold beads. Seven thousand two hundred grains, the gold beads in the upper container slipped from the outlet, and were right at the entrance of the lower container. One grain slipped and leaked out in an instant. The gold beads leaked out, and the upper and lower containers were switched for a while. This goes back and forth, switching twelve times to make one day, which is extremely mysterious.
The sound of banging bamboo sticks was heard in the corridor. It turned out that the watchman from the palace came to tell the time. I heard this frequency sound coming very urgently. It was the rhythm of "urging", and it must have reached the second quarter of Mao hour. Mei Yuanchen turned over, rubbed his sleepy eyes, and got dressed.
Last night, Xia Muchao held a family banquet for the fourteen members of the Mei family in Yuqiong Langyuan. The banquet was filled with daily side dishes, cooked to perfection and extremely exquisite. The servants have been in the Mei Mansion for a long time, which should be counted as ten years. The master and servant have been getting along harmoniously for many years, and they have a deep friendship with each other. At the banquet, Mei Siyuan thanked everyone for their hard work, so he couldn't help but toast frequently. It was so lively to eat and drink with everyone!
After the banquet was over, the royal maid led everyone back to their dormitories. The carriage and horses were bumpy all the way, and they had just eaten and drank indulgently. Everyone's eyelids were heavy and sleepy, and they fell asleep soon.
After hearing the update, Mei Yuanchen put on her clothes, washed herself, and sat down by the bronze mirror to tie her hair. Looking in the bronze mirror, there is a handsome young man: his face is like a crown of jade, his eyebrows are clear, his nose is high and his lips are thin, and there are thin hairs growing around his mouth. Mei Yuanchen tied up her hairband in front of the bronze mirror, looked at herself several times, and said with a proud giggle, "You're quite handsome!" After looking good at herself, she walked gracefully to the living room to find her parents.
I saw my father and mother sitting on the left and right sides of the tea table, talking softly. Mei Yuanchen called out from afar, "Daddy" and "Mother", walked over to his father and sat down next to him, then changed his voice again, "Daddy". Mei Siyuan stretched out his palm and touched the child's head. With a loving look on his face, he scolded softly, "Why are you screaming so sweetly? Your mother told me a long time ago that she doesn't like to practice martial arts at home. I'll take a test at the school later and see how you're doing?"
When Mei Yuanchen heard this, he was happy, but his face was bitter. He quickly expressed his grievances and said, "How can I not be happy, my child? I follow my father's instructions and practice for half an hour every day. But my talent is very poor. , the difference is extremely bad, the results of my training are not good." After saying this, he thought to himself: If it is as my mother said, knowing that I am not good at martial arts school, my father is not very angry, he must love me very much, and I will be determined in the future. You must put some effort into improving your fist and kick skills, and don't make your parents sad and disappointed.
Mei Siyuan shook his head gently and said seriously, "Silly boy, are you forced to practice boxing and kicking like that? The world is quite unstable. Without boxing and kicking by your side, how can your parents trust you? What if you meet a bad person? , with your helpless body, how should you protect yourself? If someone hits you, you can't hide, if someone chases you, you can't escape. At that time, the sky will not respond, and the earth will not respond. Look at you So what! It’s not your fault, but you can’t see any improvement no matter how hard you practice with your fists and kicks.”
Mei Yuanchen had a look of shame on his face and replied, "That's right, kid. Remember, in the future, when practicing martial arts with Grandpa Yuan, you should practice for an extra hour every day. Don't dare to be lazy again."
Mei Siyuan was relieved to see her face, and she heard him say again, "You, Grandpa Yuan, are a master of light kung fu that is rarely seen in the world. If you have to learn it, who in Dahua can hurt you? My son is very talented, if he can do it at all If you work hard, you will definitely learn it. Before, you were just resisting in your heart. How could it be that your talent was not good? After years of practicing boxing and kicking, you only learned the layman's moves. How can you understand the meaning of martial arts! If you practice hard in the future If you learn it, you will benefit from it endlessly." After hearing this, Mei Yuanchen agreed.
For breakfast in a rich family, they usually eat some meat soup and drink some tea. The three members of the Mei family had eaten the tea soup, so they were going to pay a visit to the King of Jaws.
Mei Siyuan was already very familiar with the traffic in the palace, and he took his wife and children with him, and there were no guards to stop him along the way. After about five snaps of the fingers, the three of them arrived at the main courtyard of the palace. The family stood waiting in front of the courtyard gate without letting the guard notify them. Mei Yuanchen also knew the pros and cons, and stood there honestly and silently.
Before I had a cup of tea, the sound of footsteps came vaguely from the courtyard, and I heard a strange and sharp old man's voice saying, "Your Majesty, it seems that Master Mei's family is coming at the door!"
No one answered, but I felt the sound of hurried footsteps getting closer. After two breaths, I saw a middle-aged man in orange robe walking towards me. Behind him, an old man in gray robe hurriedly followed. The middle-aged man unexpectedly It is Xia Muchao, the king of jaws. Xia Muchao walked directly to the entrance of the main courtyard, saw Mei Siyuan and three people standing there, and said with a serious face, "Siyuan, what are you doing! Why don't you go in? Are you separated from me?"
Mei Siyuan hurriedly replied, "How can there be differences! I don't know if the prince has eaten, so how can he go in rashly? And we have just arrived, and we have not been waiting." The main courtyard is where the head of the prince's family lives, and Xia Muchao's female family members If they live here, if the female relatives are still sleeping, it is not suitable for others to enter, so Mei Siyuan answered like this. As is common in Dahua, greeting "Have you had breakfast?" is the same as asking "Have your family gone to bed?", it's just more euphemistic. Mei Yuanchen stood aside, waiting for an opportunity to glance at Xia Muchao, and saw the man in front of him walking steadily, with a thin and resolute face, and a pair of beards that were calm and intimidating.
Hearing Mei Siyuan's answer, Xia Mu smiled heartily at Fang and said loudly, "I have just finished my morning exercise. I'm afraid Jingru and the others are waiting. What's the big deal? This is your wife and young master. Let's go." Let’s go together!” After saying that, he grabbed Mei Siyuan’s left arm.
Bai Lisi and Mei Yuanchen already knew that this was His Royal Highness, the son of the current emperor, Prince Jaw, and immediately performed the blessing ceremony.
Mei Siyuan's face softened slightly, and he half-bent his waist and shoulders, and replied, "Your Majesty, please go and have breakfast. We have already eaten it, so just wait here.
When Xia Muchao heard this, he didn't force it and said to the old man behind him, "That's it! Chu Zhong, you lead Siyuan and the others to visit Jinghu Garden." He then said to Mei Siyuan, "In that case, Siyuan, you can I took my wife and children to Jinghu Garden to wait."
Mei Siyuan bowed, held his hand in salute, and said, "That's how it should be, the prince will invite you!" Xia Mu patted Mei Siyuan's left shoulder with his right hand, then turned around and entered the inner courtyard.
Xia Muchao disappeared, and the old man began to smile and said, "Master Mei, madam, young master, please come with me.
Although Mei Yuanchen already respected and admired this talented man, he couldn't help but feel close to him, but he couldn't help but see the subtle worry in the corners of his mother's eyes...
