Kaifeng Bistro

"However," Zhuo Zhuo asked curiously while grinding, "I know poems, but aren't prose and policy theory the same thing? How are they all written?"

Xu Gan said: "Fu means 'collecting essays and writing about things', which is 'expressing one's mind', while policy theory is 'discussing the disadvantages of the time', which is naturally different." After finishing speaking, he looked at Tan Zhifeng and then at the wall The warm and throbbing flame said in a deep voice: "Try to look at the plains, where the vines linger on the bones, and the arched trees restrain the soul. Life is here, where is the way of heaven?!"

Zhuozhuo unconsciously stopped his hands, and everyone in the room even breathed carefully and quietly, only the occasional crackling of the fire.Seeing Zhuo Zhuo's puzzled face, Yi Yi said softly: "On the plain, there are many bones among the wild grass, and under the arched trees, there are lingering souls everywhere. Life has come to this point, where can we find the way of heaven?!"

Xu Gan went on to say: "...the hoof marks of the war horses overlap, the tracks of the chariots intersect, the yellow sand is flying, and the war songs are everywhere... But now... the smoke of the war has been extinguished, the flames of the war have been cut off, and how many soldiers have been buried under the nine springs. I don't know if they can get it now Rest in peace?"

"...It's over! The spring grass withers, the autumn wind blows up, the autumn wind subsides, and the spring grass grows again... the cycle goes on and on without stopping... Silk and satin turn into dust, buildings, ponds and pavilions are all ashes, harps are annihilated, and hills and ridges are razed to the ground ...Since ancient times, there has been death, and there is no one who does not swallow hatred..."

After he finished speaking, the dripping ink in Zhuo Zhuo's hand fell to the inkstone with a bang and broke into two pieces, she said in a daze: "This... this is a bit too miserable, you don't plan to write this in the examination room, do you? Shouldn't, shouldn't they be writing praises?"

Xu Gan said lightly: "I have never sung praises for others, so I don't know how to write them."

"Okay, Zhuo Zhuo, are you tired?" Tan Zhifeng saw that Zhuo Zhuo had made a mess on the counter, and Yi Yi who was on the side was about to get angry, so he hurriedly grabbed the inkstone and the ink that had been cut into two pieces before Yi Yi. He brought the strip to the table where he and Xu Gan were sitting, and said to the two of them, "Hurry up, go to rest, there are still many things to do tomorrow."

Yi Yi glared at Zhuo Zhuo angrily, and said: "Not enough success, more failure!" And Zhuo Zhuo moved his wrist embarrassingly: "Hehe, I think it's more suitable for me to use a sword, gun, sword or something, red sleeves add fragrance This kind of work... um... I will leave it to you, Zhifeng!"

As she spoke, her slender figure flickered and quickly disappeared beside the counter.Yi Yi let out a "hum", and some green circles of light flickered, and he disappeared before his eyes.

Tan Zhifeng looked at the horrific ink stirred by Zhuo Zhuo, carefully soaked up part of the water with paper, then picked up half of the ink stick and ground it carefully.Xu Gan sat at the table and looked at him, and asked, "Zhifeng, are you afraid of fighting?"

"You seem to have asked me this question before." Tan Zhifeng was still studying the ink, and he replied softly: "I have answered it too."

"I remember, you said that you are not afraid, you are just sad." Xu Gan folded his arms around his chest, and said in a deep voice, "But the most terrible wars are often not when two armies confront each other, when soldiers meet."

"I know." Tan Zhifeng didn't pause at all, but replied calmly: "A battlefield without gunpowder...sometimes is more terrifying than a real battlefield with dead bodies and blood all over the ground, this...I still know it. "

"That's right." Xu Gan moved to Tan Zhifeng's side, raised his hand and stroked his hair: "Zhifeng, I hope you are safe."

"If you are safe, I will be safe." Tan Zhifeng pushed the inkstone towards Xu Gan: "Look, the ink has been sharpened."

Xu Yan withdrew his hand, smiled at him, moistened the pen, sucked up the water, then dipped it in the ink, and said to Tan Zhifeng, "Go to sleep."

Tan Zhifeng shook his head: "You have to write at least three articles, and I'll continue to sharpen the ink for you."

Xu Gan sat with the pen in his hand for a while, then put it down again, looked at Tan Zhifeng and said, "I don't know why, when I hold this pen, what I think about is still war." He said slowly, "The only thing I have experienced is war. All kinds of wars, there is no right or wrong, no good or evil, only lose and win. Zhifeng, have you ever thought about what we should do when there is no war?"

"What to do?" Tan Zhifeng tilted his head slightly, thought for a moment, and replied, "Can't it be like when we first came to Kaifeng? I'm here... to cook something delicious for you all, and you, want to I study when I want to study, and when I want to forge iron, I watch Chen Qing and the others come to the store to talk about homework in the school every day, the girls in Killing Pig Alley...or, as Confucius' students once said-in late spring and March, Put on spring clothes, make an appointment with five or six friends, bring six or seven children, bathe by the Yishui River, blow the warm wind on the dance stage, and then go home singing songs all the way - live like this, Isn't it good?"

Xu Yan stood up and sighed: "'Mo Chun, the spring clothes are ready, five or six of the crowned ones, six or seven boys, bathing in Yi, dancing in the wind, singing and returning.'——Now that I want to come, I live It’s been so long, but in my memory, few people can live such a life.”

Tan Zhifeng smiled lightly: "So we are still here. One day, we will see everyone live such a life. Yes, I know... It is not easy to live such a life. You said that day, you don't know Why did the war start, and I don’t know why you will be punished. I have also thought about it for a long time. I think the human heart is just like this world, and it can’t be more complicated. There are very few heinous people who have never done a good thing in their lives. Sinners, there are very few good people who are willing to do good every day of their lives, and have never been born with a little bit of greed, anger and ignorance. Everyone may be influenced by their own thoughts for a while... But I, I will never I don’t know that one thing is wrong and still do it, but if I know one thing is right, it’s..."

"Zhifeng." Xu Gan interrupted him suddenly: "Come here."

Tan Zhifeng was almost sitting at the table with Xu Yan, shoulder to shoulder, and he didn't know how he could get closer.Xu Gan supported his shoulders so that he faced him, and the two looked into each other's eyes. Tan Zhifeng tried his best to keep calm, but he still felt that Xu Gan read what he wanted to say from his eyes.

"I know you want to do the right thing." Xu Gan's voice sounded majestic and unquestionable: "But sometimes it is difficult for you to distinguish what is right. Zhifeng, you may be more important than you think, not only It's for me."

Tan Zhifeng was a little confused for a moment, he didn't know what Xu Gan meant by this sentence.But when he was in a daze, Xu Gan suddenly leaned forward, and he began to kiss him gently and tenderly.

Tan Zhifeng panicked and raised his hand to grab the edge of the table, but knocked the ink he had just polished to the ground.

Xu Gan stopped, looking at the pitch-black ink flowing all over the ground, he just smiled, flipped his fingers, the inkstone returned to the table, and the ground instantly became as clean as ever.Tan Zhifeng was even more surprised: "You...recovered? When?"

"My skill has indeed recovered a little, and I have to take it slowly. Didn't you make Huang Jing pancakes today?" Xu Gan still had a smile that Tan Zhifeng was not familiar with: "Huang Jing benefited, I'm much better."

Xu Gan turned his face slightly to look at the two tinkling flower pots in the corner, while Tan Zhifeng stared at his side face intently. Suddenly, he felt some inexplicable throbbing in his heart.He remembered the firm and silent gaze in those dark eyes that looked at him for the first time.He remembered that Xu Gan told him: "No matter what, maybe this is the last life of you and me in this world. Live well, don't think so much."

Amidst the clearly audible exclamation from the corner, he clumsily pulled Xu Gan's arm, leaned up and kissed Xu Gan's cheek lightly, when Xu Gan turned around in astonishment, he whispered: " In the past, I watched you live with others in every life, in fact, I was not without jealousy at all."

Xu Yan's deep eyes were filled with a smile, he touched his face, looked at Tan Zhifeng and asked, "So, now?"

"Now..." Tan Zhifeng lost his courage for a while, and he said to himself: "Now, I have to wait for Brother Bai to come back and teach me... No, I mean..."

Xu Gan waved his sleeves, and all the oil lamps in the tavern were extinguished, only the faint yellowish light by the table was still flickering and dancing.Tan Zhifeng's eyes gradually got used to the darkness, and also gradually got used to the fiery and more rapid breathing between the two.It took a long time for the lights that had just been extinguished to be turned on one after another.In the flickering lights, Tan Zhifeng worked hard to adjust his heartbeat.Xu Gan stared at him seriously and intently for a while, and then said, "I'm starting to write. You can stay with me."

Tan Zhifeng nodded, only to hear Xu Gan sigh in a low voice: "People in the world, who would not want to live the life you said, but after more than [-] years, the Northern Song Dynasty will be exhausted. Why don't I write the article about the Southern Expedition Let them have a look at the Fu, if someone can wake up after reading it, maybe they can save a few more lives."

After finishing speaking, he dipped his pen in ink and dropped it heavily on the paper. Tan Zhifeng leaned forward and saw him write roughly: "There is a cloud in the book: 'Use copper as a mirror to straighten your clothes; use history as a mirror to straighten your clothes; Knowing Xingtai;', I came to read the stories of the previous dynasty at night, and saw that during the Yongjia Rebellion, 'in Luoyang City, hundreds of officials were scattered, and there was no firm will... After Luoyang fell, the thieves plundered and took away the palace people and treasures , and killed more than [-] princes and officials.' Not only sighed in my heart, but also made this Southern Expedition Fu to warn the world."

Tan Zhifeng felt a sense of awe in his heart, so he held up the candle to light it for him, and watched him write each word, the moonlight entering the water flowed indifferently on the ink, and a fresh fragrance of ink gradually spread in the room.Zhuo Zhuo and Yi Yi also came over at some point, and the three of them sat around the table and waited quietly until the moon gradually moved away and the night darkened, Xu Yan put down his pen, and they wrote papers full of words Putting it away for Xu Gan, Xu Gan and Tan Zhifeng put out the fire, cleaned up the tavern, closed the doors and windows, and went back to the next door to rest together.

……

The following days passed fairly peacefully, and in a blink of an eye, it was the day of the various school examinations.It was almost mid-February at this time, but there was no news of the battle from the border, and there was no news from Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang. Tan Zhifeng could take it calmly at first, but recently he couldn't help being a little anxious.Not only that, Xu Yan went to the south of the city alone once, and he told Tan Zhifeng that he still only saw the person who came to him last time.