Shanglin Night Snow

The sun was already high, and in the bustling crowd of people in the bustling city, a faltering figure was quite eye-catching.Seeing that he was in a hurry, his face was flushed, and his eyes were burning with fire, it was obvious that he was full of anger and wanted to seek revenge somewhere.

"Brother Guo! Brother Guo!..." The voice came from a distance, and after calling several times, he stopped.

The carriage approached quickly, and the young man in Tsing Yi jumped down, his eyes revealed worry: "Where did Brother Guo go so early?" It was King Jia.

"I..." Guo Kai rubbed his forehead as if waking up from a dream, "I had a banquet with friends in Nancheng last night, and it was inconvenient to go home late at night, so I stayed at a friend's house, and I will return now."

"Nancheng?" King Jia was surprised: "Brother Guo is walking in such a distance? Why don't you ride a horse?"

horse! !Guo Kai stared blankly, wishing to slap himself hard: this is great, people leave, but it's useless to quibble.

"Brother Guo, Brother Guo..." Seeing that he seemed to be in sedation again, King Jia thought he was hangover and drowsy, and felt uneasy, so he said, "I'm going to Jianning Temple now, if Brother Guo returns home, I'll be on my way. May I give you a ride?"

Unexpectedly, he shook his head: "No need, I won't go back for the time being, but I want to..." At this point, another flame shot up in his eyes.

King Jia was startled, and cautiously probed: "Brother Guo... is in a bad mood? Is he unhappy with him? However, as a brother, it is really inappropriate to argue with a bunch of idlers. Wan Sansi."

Guo Kai was stunned, and crossed his hands forward: "Thank you, brother Mu, for the reminder, Guo has been taught!"

In fact, Guo Kai, the commanding officer of the imperial guards, taught a fireworks woman to make calculations without telling her, and then he even came to the house to make trouble, haggling with women, children, and servants, and passed on the general, what face did he have?Besides, Hu Rui might not admit it, on the contrary, this trip is to tell her that she has been tricked, isn't it a free gift to make fun of him?

Thinking of this, Guo Kai came to his senses, but still declined King Jia's kindness, saying that there was something left in a friend's house and he had to go to get it back, but King Jia had no choice but to let him.

Going back the same way, within two quarters of an hour, I arrived at the small courtyard.

Pushing open the courtyard door, the black dog Xifu greeted him wagging his tail and grunting twice, as if complaining that he couldn't go out for a morning walk with him just now.Patting the dog's head as a comfort, Guo Kai rubbed his sleeves habitually, but it was empty. Seeing the black dog circling around its legs, shaking its head and showing courteousness, he couldn't bear it, so he went straight to the kitchen and found a piece of cold meat in the cupboard. , the size of a fist must be enough to feed the beast, so he simply gave it whole.

After settling down the dog, Guo Kai went into the inner room.The windows are all closed, and the light in the room is dim, making people feel dizzy.Just as he was hesitating whether to open the window to get some air, he suddenly heard a rustling sound on the bed, followed by a soft moan, which seemed to be moaning in pain.

Guo Kai didn't know if he was awake or not, or if he was talking in a dream, so he could only call softly to test: "Zhiwei?"

"Hmm..." A vague voice responded, still astonished: "Brother Guo? When did you..."

Although he had foreseen it, Guo Kai was still shocked when he heard his answer, but he opened his mouth but was speechless.

"Brother Guo?" The man called again, feeling puzzled.

"It's me." Guo Kai finally made up his mind, pushed open the window, and placed himself in a bright place so that he could see clearly.

They come, the security!It is said that the night is long and there are many dreams. If this layer of window paper is punctured as soon as possible, it will be easier to deal with the aftermath.

The person on the bed was still lying on the bed, raising his hand in front of his eyes like he was afraid of light: "What time is it?"

Guo Kai turned his head to look at the sky: "It's almost the morning."

"Ah?" The man was startled, and seemed to get up in a hurry, but then fell back on the pillow again, "Why... I'm so weak?"

"We drank too much wine at Hu's house last night, so we were naturally unwell because of our hangover." Guo Kai tried his best to calm down, "You can rest well today, and I will send someone to the province to take a leave of absence for you."

"Hangover..." Xun Miao rubbed his temples and tried his best to recall, but in the end he couldn't find anything. He turned his eyes to the window in search of solution: "After I left Hu's house last night, I became dizzy and couldn't remember everything clearly. Disturbing brother Guo..." During the words, his eyes fell on his bare arms, and his brows tightened, "I...why do I have these scratches and bruises on my body??" Pulling back the quilt and looking inside, the face It suddenly turned red.

Guo Kai knew that there was nothing underneath.Immediately sighed, sat down with his forehead stroked, thinking about how to explain it to him.

"Last night, as soon as you entered the courtyard, you climbed up the old pear tree, sat on the branch and sang "Yu Shuhou | Garden Flower" with me, and taught me to beat the bowls and bowls to entertain you..." Touching the wings of the nose: He thought that too It was a scene in a dream, until I went out this morning and saw the broken branches of the old tree and the broken cloth strips fluttering in the wind, and the broken flowers and petals picked from nowhere under the tree (to this day, he still has I can’t remember what this is for...), and the pots and pans placed around the well platform...

Hearing what he said, the man nodded in shame: "That said, I just remembered that I had a dream last night. I climbed up an old tree, but the tree suddenly fell down and pressed me down... Now I know it was not a dream. "Paused, red-faced and soft voice: "Brother Guo, do you remember, did I sit on a broken branch last night? Or... on the tip of the bamboo fence?..."

Guo Kai shook his head: "Never..." He suddenly understood something when he said the words, and wanted to change his mind suddenly, but in the end, his conscience drove away the luck, and he raised his eyes to face the person: "First you climbed a tree, and then you climbed a tree." I am the one who overwhelms you..." Looking at the man stunned, he didn't seem to understand, but he smiled wryly: "It's not the fence or the broken branches that hurt you, but—it's me too!"

Xun Miao opened his mouth and stared, more confused than before.After a long time, he raised his hand and pulled the quilt up, covering his whole head and face, from beginning to end, he didn't say a word.

Guo Kai hesitated, and sat quietly for a while, seeing that he still didn't show his face, he finally made up his mind and stood up: "You can rest assured, there is no third person who knows about this matter except you and me. Although it happened last night Accidents, drunkenness mistaken people, but I was wrong after all, because you can ask for anything, I will do my best to make up for my mistakes." Seeing that the cotton bag on the bed was still lying motionless, he sighed "You don't want to see me right now, so I'll leave first, and I'll send a servant to take care of me. I'll wait until you're better." After speaking, he turned and left.

Just a few steps outside, I could hear the sound of whimpering in my ears, which was quite dull, like the desperate cry of a cat and dog locked in a vat, and it was echoed—the black dog listening to the sound I don't know what kind of sad thing it caused, but he spread his belly on the ground with his legs outstretched, echoing the master's wailing rhythmically!For a while, the voices of people and dogs ebbed and flowed, rising and falling, but there was quite a tacit understanding.

After hesitating for a long time, Guo Kai gritted his teeth, and finally left the small courtyard without looking back, got on his horse and rode away along the familiar path.

After that, for ten days or so, there was no news from the small courtyard in the south of the city, but the servant Guo Kai sent to take care of him rushed back the next day (so we could wait until the second day because the man on the first day was all In addition to self-pity and self-pity, his legs and feet are also numb, and he can't get out of bed to let the dog...), but fortunately, the boy reported that his body is fine, and Guo Xie knows that these days he goes out at night and comes back late, everything is the same, It seems that the mood has calmed down, but I just thought, it's better to avoid seeing each other at the moment, because even if I need to compile the tabloid, I still have my cronies send it.It's just that God's will does not follow others, even if the two of them tacitly wish to avoid seeing each other, there is always an unavoidable time.

That evening, when Guo Kai returned home, he didn't go straight in. Instead, he went around the wall of the north courtyard where he lived, looked up, and felt a chill in his heart: just like yesterday, there were three red flowers standing on the top of the wall!Without hesitation at the moment, he turned his head and left.

Riding aimlessly through the busy market, the scene that made him regret that day resurfaced before his eyes: the old lady was sitting at the front of the desk, with a stack of colored notes, three dice, and a piece of plain satin neatly arranged in front of her.

"This matter is a mother-in-law. From the beginning of spring to the beginning of autumn, you are stubborn and perfunctory." The more you talk, the more annoyed you become, and the wooden table is slapped out of the palm of your hand, "Since that's the case, I'm too lazy to talk to you anymore!" Turning to look at the stack of colored papers, "Even if you roll the dice today, you must choose one with me!"

Guo Kai had a bitter face: "This is child's play..."

"A joke?" The old woman snorted coldly, "Didn't you throw the dice that day? But who dares to say that this is a joke?"

It's all because of Guo Jian's talkativeness that he revealed this matter to her!Guo Kai secretly slandered, but was speechless.

"If you still don't want it after all, I will have to live up to your reputation as a rebellious son, and teach you to be cast aside by the world for the rest of your life!" Picking up Su Ling, the old lady broke the boat.

Guo Kai's legs softened: "Mother, why are you forcing me to die?"

The old lady is inexplicable: "Who said that I want to die? I'm not worth it for you, a rebellious son! I just write all your rebellious words and rebellious words on Su Ling in blood, read them in the downtown, and teach you to be poked by thousands of people." !"

This action really stunned Guo Kai, and in a hurry, he didn't choose what to say, and told a big lie: "Today, I have given an important job. If I succeed, I will promise to marry a daughter from the clan!" My wife actually believed what she said.

After that, the old lady tried to find out the appearance and manners of the women of the right age in the clan, and wrote them down one by one, and used them to preview with him, so as to be targeted.Guo Kai was very annoyed, but he didn't dare to reveal it, so he had to perfunctory, but he was also afraid that one day he would be careless and negligent, and he would leak the truth and reveal the truth, so he had to try to hide from her. In this matter, I found a bamboo pole that was higher than the wall, tied a few small flowers with bright colors on the top, and inserted it by the wall as a warning.However, this is not a long-term plan, it is only a temporary avoidance.

Sighing sadly, Guo Kai came back to his senses, only to realize that he was already at Dinggu Street, where the makeup shop of Guo Jian and his wife was located.If you come here, you will go there. If you come in time, you can save money for dinner.

It was still early, but the shop door was closed.Guo Kai tried to push it, but the door opened in response to the sound. Guo Jian was standing alone leaning on the cabinet with his head bowed.

"Since people are here, why do you close the door so early?" Guo Kai was puzzled.

"If there are no visitors, let's rest early." The man forced himself to be calm, closed the booklet in his hand and hid it under the cabinet.However, he still took a slow step. Guo Kai glanced over and knew it was a tabloid.

"Is the princess not here?" He walked forward and sat down, asking casually.

"I'm talking to the officials later." Guo Jian poured tea and served it in a fawning manner, with a mysterious expression on his face, "The officials seemed displeased because King Jia visited Shao's mansion privately that day, but they didn't know why they wanted to question Jin Fu... ..." Tilting his head to this side, his voice was extremely soft.

Guo Kai secretly sighed: this brother, it is possible that he was reincarnated with the wrong sex, not only has the leisurely feelings of a woman, but also has the leisurely heart of a woman, with sharp ears and a long mouth, which is really worrying.Let's say that in the past, if you wanted to hear something from his mouth, you had to use a little coercion and inducement, but now you don't need to ask questions, he knows everything, and he can say everything. This kind of inferiority really needs to be changed.He said: "I don't want outsiders to know the private words of the officials and the princess. You can just hear it, but why do you want to spread it? You should know that if the teacher knows this, the crime will affect the whole body at least, and the whole family will be affected if it is serious!"

Unexpectedly, the other person was not frightened, but was confident and confident: "I know this, my mother has taught me that this matter can only be told to my family, and it must not be passed on to the outside world! Moreover, my mother also said that since the princess married into the Guo family , her safety will also implicate us, I must pay close attention to it, but if I find something wrong, I will tell you immediately, because you are the only one who can protect the Guo family right now!"

Guo Kai was startled, he didn't think that his old lady would value him so much in private, he felt a bit complacent for a while, then he heard the man ask cautiously: "Brother Ze, do you think the officials will blame Jin Fu?"

Guo Kai thought for a while: "Since the officials discussed it with the princess in private, they probably blamed the princess for not reporting it in advance. It should be fine."

"That's good." Guo Jian heaved a sigh of relief when he heard the words, and then turned the subject: "By the way, Xun Miao came here today." He seemed puzzled, "Did the elder brother not tell him about the repentance of the Yan family's marriage? Why did he come here?" It’s about discussing the dowry with the princess.”

"What?" Guo Kai was startled: "So, he knows the inside story?" Seeing Guo Jian nodding, his complexion darkened, and he was waiting to ask, but Mu Yunqi and Jin Fu had already come out, and the two were still talking and laughing , It seems that there is no gap, Guo Jiancai is at ease.

After dinner, Guo Kai had something on his mind, he had no intention of staying for a long time, and was about to excuse himself to leave, but Mu Yunqi wanted to leave first, so Guo Kai followed suit and accompanied him out.

It was still early, the sky was bright and the air was clear, Mu Yun prayed that he didn't want to go back to the palace, but suddenly he had a suggestion: I want to visit Xun Miao!Knowing that he was divorced by the Yan family, he felt sympathy for him.

Guo Kai tried to persuade him to no avail, so he had to obey.The two went all the way, and they were gossiping.

"The last time you and I traveled together, was it when Zhong Qiuye visited Hu's house?" Mu Yunqi mentioned this, but expressed concern: "Then when you come out of Hu's house that day, are you both okay?"

Guo Xie knew what he was referring to, but he didn't point it out, he just answered calmly: "I'm not in serious trouble, Mr. Lao Lang is in your care."

Mu Yunqi nodded: "That's good." After a pause, "Does Guo Qing know that it is fashionable to copy the words of famous people in Hualiu Lane in Beijing?"

Guo Kai nodded: "I have heard a little bit about it, but the culprit behind Xu Zhizhou's case is the fireworks woman he had befriended before."

In fact, when Mu Yunqi brought out the "poetry" at Hu's house that day, Guo Kai knew that the purpose of his trip was not to seek flowers and willows, and the progress of the defection case in the DPRK and China has been confirmed. He thought so.

Mu Yunqi laughed: "Guo Qing is a smart person, he clearly understands the matter, it is commendable that he keeps his mouth shut, he is not conceited, he does not lie, he does not ask for credit, I may not have misjudged you."

Guo Kai bowed his head and bowed lightly: "Your Majesty, thank you."

The silhouette of the small courtyard in front of them was looming, and the two stepped on their horses, and they were outside the courtyard in a short while.At that moment, he only heard the dog barking anxiously, but there was no response when he knocked on the door, Guo Kai secretly felt ominous.

The courtyard wall was not high, so he jumped up and looked down, his eyes swept across the old pear tree by the well, and he was shocked——

There is a person under the tree, with his feet off the ground, swaying in the wind, like a walking corpse!

It was—hanging himself? !

Before thinking too much, Guo Kai jumped down and ran towards that place without touching the ground.