There are twenty-four solar terms in a year, and Jingzhe ranks third, which is the beginning of mid-spring. At this time, there are bursts of spring thunder, and the insects that hibernate in winter are awakened from their dreams. They are hungry and looking for food, because the insects are chirping and the katydids are jumping. The spring rains are pouring, and the trees that have lost their leaves in autumn and winter are moistened by the rain and gradually sprout new branches, so they are full of vitality.
At the first moment of the hour, the sky was already dark, electric light was jumping in the distance, and a long roaring sound was heard, deafening. Under the porch of the courtyard, a young girl in elegant plain clothes was wandering around with a sad look on her face. She could only be heard saying, "Look at the endless cumulus clouds. I'm afraid it will rain heavily soon. Why hasn't the young master returned yet?" ?" The girl walked around, looking around frequently. After a few back and forth, she suddenly turned around and ran towards the room. Before she could even breathe, she saw her walking out of the door holding an oil-paper umbrella and walking quickly outside.
In the streets of the capital, the traffickers and foot soldiers dispersed one after another, and the number of passers-by and horses gradually decreased. Two riders rode side by side, followed closely by four riders. "Hey, Yuan Chen! Why have you made so much progress in the past half month? Isn't it surprising that even the big fat guy couldn't beat you in the martial arts school today!" The older boy asked the younger boy with a smile, his face There is a teasing look on it. The two people riding side by side are Xia Chengxuan and Mei Yuanchen. Today is Wangri, and they can go home after finishing their classes. In the martial arts school today, Mei Yuanchen and Yu Jie Gong exchanged moves, and their mastery of the martial arts boxing was really different from what it was half a month ago. After more than thirty moves, Xia Chengxuan was actually knocked down by Yu Jie Gong, who was more than eight feet tall and weighed nearly two hundred kilograms. Xia Chengxuan was not surprised, so he took the opportunity to ask questions on the way home.
"Haha! This is called knowing your shame and then being brave. You can't be chased and beaten like last time and have no power to fight back, right?" Mei Yuanchen looked at him and couldn't help laughing. After practicing the Immortality Kung Fu with his master for these days, Mei Yuanchen truly felt that he was completely transformed, with sharp eyesight, quick hands, sharp ears, sharp mind, and sharp mind. He was completely gone from the previous lethargy and confusion. Today, the martial arts school drew lots, and actually matched up with Yu Jia Gong, the biggest among his classmates. What is unexpected is that Mei Yuanchen, who was the weakest in the martial arts school last time, actually had an orderly attack and defense. In less than forty rounds, he defeated his opponent Fatty Yu with a move called "Eagle Spreading Wings".
"It's going to rain. Let's go faster. It won't be good if we get soaked in the rain soon." Xia Chengxuan raised his riding whip and urged his mount to run forward quickly. Mei Yuanchen followed closely behind without any delay. Six riders and twenty-four feet stepped on the bluestone, making a series of crisp "thumping" sounds.
"Chengxuan, I'll wait for half a cup of tea at the intersection ahead!" Mei Yuanchen drove his horse past Xia Chengxuan and shouted loudly when he missed him. Xia Chengxuan shouted a few words from behind, but when he saw that he didn't look back, he had to hold the reins of the horse and move slowly. He looked unhappy and cursed bitterly, "It's okay for this bastard to hook up with his family Haitang. If he wants to provoke Yiyi again, You have to give him some color." But how could Mei Yuanchen hear these words clearly?
"Mother in charge, have my clay dolls been wrapped?" Mei Yuanchen tied the horse at the door of the store and asked from a distance. The female boss didn't get any business the whole day, and she was feeling depressed. When she saw that the wealthy young man had come as expected, she was overjoyed. "Sir, I have already prepared them for you." The female headmaster bent down, took out two brocade boxes from the case, and walked towards Mei Yuanchen and said, "The bird puppet this time is a double-branched lark, and the female puppet is a pink duck. Take a look at the swallowtail bun." At this moment, it was drizzling outside. Although Mei Yuanchen was anxious, he was not vague. He took the brocade box and opened it one by one, holding it carefully, nodding and praising, "Well, it's very good. ." After saying that, he took out four taels of silver from his pocket and handed it to Mrs. Wang. Naturally, Mrs. Wang, the headmistress, couldn't stop thanking her.
Mei Yuanchen held the box in his arms, quickly mounted his horse and headed towards the intersection. Xia Chengxuan and his servant parked their horses under the eaves of the street at the intersection and were waiting. Seeing Mei Yuanchen coming, he was filled with joy and anger, and shouted from afar, "What time has it been? Why don't you buy those useless things! Why don't you leave my brother here in the rain!" Mei Yuanchen hurriedly urged his horse to come over, okay? Xia Chengxuan smiled and said, "Okay, it's me. Hurry up!" The six riders braved the drizzle and ran towards Prince Jia's Mansion.
"These bird puppets are so meticulously made. Their feathers, shapes, and expressions are all lifelike and lifelike. I don't know where he got them from." Xia Chengyi held his face with his left hand and played with the peacock clay puppet on the dressing table with his right hand, and said softly, "This peacock was given to me for the first time, and this double-branched lark was given to me for the second time." As he spoke, he fiddled with the inside of the dressing table and arranged the twenty-six bird puppets one by one. , "I wonder what kind of bird he wants to give me today?"
In ancient times, royal female family members mostly stayed in their boudoir and rarely interacted with outsiders. Since the founding of the country, Dahua has always made small gifts, and Xia Chengyi can often go in and out of the house. But it is absolutely impossible to come and go at will like a man. I didn't notice it before, but lately I have been feeling depressed and unhappy. I wanted to go out for some air a few times but was stopped by my mother. Today I sneaked to the side door, trying to avoid my mother's eyes and ears, but I was caught anyway, so I had to go back to the room. "Why can my brother go to school, go shopping, and drink without restraint? But I am locked in the palace all day long, facing these flowers and trees and walls day and night?" Xia Chengyi became more and more sad as he thought about it, with tears streaming down his face. , eyelashes trembling slightly.
"Princess, Master Yuanchen is here." The maid Zi Teng reported from outside the curtain. Xia Chengyi couldn't help feeling happy and hurriedly wiped her tears with her sleeves. While combing her makeup in front of the bronze mirror, she said, "Tell him to come in." Ziteng opened the door and led Mei Yuanchen into Xia Chengyi's boudoir, and said softly, "The princess is unhappy in her heart. She hasn't eaten all day, please try to persuade her!" Mei Yuanchen felt stagnant after hearing this, and whispered to Ziteng, "I think Yiyi has no appetite, go and make some fruit preserves, and I'll persuade her to eat some. ." After hearing this, Ziteng responded "Yes" and hurried down. Mei Yuanchen walked to the room and called "Yiyi" at the door.
"You're here." Xia Chengyi sat in front of the bronze mirror and said to Mei Yuanchen. For more than a year, Mei Yuanchen has brought her birds to see Xia Chengyi on New Year's Day and Wangri every month. However, every time he sees her otherworldly appearance, his heart is unavoidable. Mei Yuanchen sat down on the brocade stool next to the dressing table more than two feet away from Xia Chengyi. He saw faint tears on her eyelashes and said warmly, "Yiyi, what's the matter? Who is messing with you again?" Xia Chengyi said in a low voice, "I won't tell you." Mei Yuanchen was anxious and pitiful. He didn't know how to comfort him. After a second thought, he took out the brocade box from his arms and handed it over and said, "Yiyi, what kind of bird do you think is here?" Xia Chengyi Then he got a little interested and said angrily, "How do I know what you got?" He took the brocade box, opened it and looked at it. He took a look at it and said with emotion, "What a beautiful bird!" Looking at the base, I saw only two words engraved on it: bliss. "This bird is called the Bird of Paradise, and some people call it the Bird of Paradise. Look, its head, chest and wings are all decorated with shield-shaped, spiral-shaped, fan-shaped, flags, shawls, and cloak patterns." Mei Yuanchen said. The words he just heard from Wang Po said to Xia Chengyi, "This kind of bird likes to migrate. People only see them flying in the sky, but never know where they are going, so they named them Birds of Paradise and said that they Always looking for a free paradise."
Xia Chengyi held the bird of paradise clay doll in his hand and looked at it. Listening to Mei Yuanchen's words, he murmured, "I wish I was a bird of paradise, flying freely." After saying this, two lines of tears collided in his eyes, Falling down. Mei Yuanchen looked on with pity and pain.
