The layout of Wangxian Town is different from other places. It is a typical Jiangnan water town building. As soon as you enter the door, you will see pink walls and black tiles. The buildings are well-proportioned and there are many shops and restaurants along the street.
It was March, it was misty and rainy, and there were clouds and mist on the top of the mountain, which was quite a sight.
The scholar Egret was sitting on the carriage, looking at this familiar yet strange town, feeling somewhat inexplicably sad.
Wangxian Town belongs to Pingyang County under the jurisdiction of Qingyang County. It is adjacent to Shenxian Town and is a typical ancient water town in the south of the Yangtze River.
The carriage stopped in front of one of the most famous restaurants in Wangxian Town. This restaurant was called Wangxian Tower. It was already past lunch time, but it was still full of guests.
The scholar Bailu and the old coachman walked into Wangxian Tower together and found a table by the window to sit down. The waiter from the own shop came to greet him: "Sir, what would you like to eat? Our Wangxian Tower has one of the signature dishes. Absolutely, such as the braised lion head..."
"One dish of fennel beans, half a pot to join the army!" The scholar Bailu said to the hospitable waiter with a smile.
Forehead?
The waiter was startled, seeing that there were five or six people dressed as foreigners. He must be a wealthy scholar, but he never imagined that he was a poor man.
Pooh…
He deserves to be unable to eat four dishes for the rest of his life.
The waiter's hospitality immediately disappeared. He lazily pulled out a plate of fennel beans from the table next to the table that had leftover food before he could remove it. He said, "The fennel beans are all sold out today. There are still some left. Why don't you take a bite? Also, I'm going to join the army with half a pot, but I have to pay first."
The old coachman watched this scene with interest, half-smiling.
"Don't worry, just bring the wine. Today, you have to pay in cash." The scholar Bailu took out a few large coins from his arms, arranged them on the table, counted them one by one, and said: "Here, nine coins. , the extra penny is your tip."
The waiter at the shop put away the money on the table in disgust and shouted at the top of his lungs: "Table No. 6, half a pot of wine to join the army, tip a penny."
The shopkeeper was fiddling with his abacus. Hearing this, he felt a little familiar. When he looked up, he saw a scholar and an old man sitting at table No. 6. They looked slightly startled, and then shook their heads.
Not long after, half a bottle of wine was served, and the waiter threw the two bowls on the table perfunctorily and said: "The shopkeeper said, half a plate of fennel beans also costs money, so I'll charge you two cents, give me the money."
The scholar Bailu took out three more coins from his arms, arranged them on the table again, and said: "I will still reward you with a penny."
The shopkeeper suddenly raised his head, and instead of fiddling with his abacus, he walked over and looked the scholar Egret up and down.
The scholar Bailu didn't care. He took a pair of chopsticks and carefully picked up the remaining half plate of fennel beans from the next table. Then he poured himself a glass of wine and drank it all in one gulp.
"Hey, shopkeeper, is this how you treat guests at Wangxianlou? You are also serving us the leftovers from the guests at other tables. Isn't this a bit of a bully?" the old coachman said angrily.
"No, no, it's just that our shop doesn't like scholars very much." The shopkeeper said, and then looked at the scholar Bailu carefully.
"Oh?" The old coachman became interested and asked, "What's going on?"
The shopkeeper looked at the scholar Egret again and again, then shook his head and said: "Forget it, just think of it as something to talk about after dinner!"
When he said this, a look of reminiscence flashed in his eyes, and he said: "Probably fifty years ago, Wangxian Tower was not as big as it is now. It was just a tavern. At that time, there was a restaurant called Wangxian Tower. Bailu was a poor scholar who failed in the imperial examinations many times. He was just a boy, but he was extremely pedantic and had a very good reputation. Regardless of autumn rain or winter snow, he always wore a shabby long gown, washed white, but extremely clean. "
The shopkeeper suddenly turned his attention to the scholar Bailu who was drinking at the moment, and said: "That scholar is about the same age as this gentleman. He always orders a plate of fennel beans and half a pot of fennel. The waiter in that shop had a bad attitude before. His family was a long-term employee of our family, and the scholar owed the store nineteen cents before and failed to pay him. Because of this, the father of the waiter in the store was beaten up by my father. "
"Then later, the scholar named Bailu still didn't give the nineteen cents?" The old coachman asked, while looking at the scholar Bailu narrowly.
"I really didn't give it to you. At that time, I was still a child. Now, I have taken over this restaurant for forty years. It is said that later, the scholar committed a crime and took away the official of the Mu Mansion. Mrs. Shi fell asleep and her legs were broken by Master Mu Jingfeng."
The shopkeeper sighed slightly and said: "This scholar is also a hard-working man. I remember the last time I saw him. At that time, I was already an apprentice in the restaurant. I remember clearly that the snow fell very heavily that winter. , the last time the scholar came to the shop, his legs were indeed broken, and his head was only as high as the low table. With a red face, he took out nine coins and lined them up, paid eight coins for the wine, and gave them to the shop I gave a penny as a reward, and then there was no more. I vaguely remember that the scholar stood on the ground with his hands, staggered and disappeared into the snow. From then on, there was no news, and he probably died in the snow. …well…"
The shopkeeper sighed, feeling a little inexplicably sad.
"Shopkeeper, your story is wrong." The old coachman suddenly said.
Scholar Bailu smiled bitterly but said nothing.
"What's wrong?" the shopkeeper said suspiciously.
"The story I heard, the scholar is not dead." said the old coachman.
"Impossible, the snow was so heavy that year, and the scholar broke his legs and won't survive!" the shopkeeper said, shaking his head.
The old coachman smiled and said: "The scholar is indeed not dead. It is said that that year, it snowed for a whole month, and the scholar froze outside Qingyang County. Later, he was rescued by a powerful swordsman named Ah Si. , the swordsman was too lazy to teach his disciples, so he threw the scholar to his junior sister Ouyang Xiaoqiao. This Ouyang Xiaoqiao was amazing. He was a saint disciple of Zhaoxia Academy. This scholar leaped over the dragon gate and became the third Confucian saint. The direct disciples, the gentlemen of the Tianxia Academy, should be addressed as "sir" as a courtesy when they meet."
Having said this, the old coachman paused, poured a glass of wine by himself, and continued: "Do you still remember, one year the Li River flooded and all the surrounding cities were flooded, but Wangxian Town survived. It is said that, It was the scholar who used immortal magic to protect Wangxian Town. One more time, the iron hooves of the Dazhen Dynasty moved southward, and all the surrounding towns were damaged. Only the iron hooves of Dazhen Dynasty took a detour past Wangxian Town..."
"Um?" The shopkeeper was startled, looked at the old coachman carefully, and said, "I see from my face that I must have been a handsome young man. How come he likes to talk nonsense? Why don't you let this pastime tell you fairy tales? ?”
The old coachman was also slightly startled. Is there any connection between being handsome and lying?
