Chang'an India

Bian Yonglan walked out of the imperial city with a knife in his hand, out of the capital, and headed north.

The mountains are south and the desert is north, the sea is wide and the sky is high, from now on he can go anywhere.

In this world, in this world, there are always demons and monsters, there are always treacherous and vicious people, there are always people who cannot be helped or controlled, and there are always sufferings and grievances that are hard to appeal.

There are always people who are willing to use one knife for one person, one thing for one thing, and one person for saving one person.

——The young man has a knife in his hand, so he keeps his way.

The fleeting time changes secretly, and it is spring again.

Bian Yonglan left Jiangcheng and traveled northward for half a day. There was a place called Huangpi, also known as the hometown of Mulan.

There is Mulan Mountain in Mulan Township. March in the world is the time when magnolia flowers bloom.

Spring is warm and flowers are blooming, and children are playing.Bian Yonglan passed by a group of children who were born and raised in the countryside and ran wildly. Seeing them running away like a gust of wind, Fang smiled and turned around to see a wild temple not far away. The spring flowers are blooming brilliantly.

The small temple in the countryside is so dilapidated that the door is about to collapse. I don’t know which Bodhisattva is offered. Although there is no incense, the Buddha statue is not too dirty. Sweep it up.

I prayed to gods and worshiped Buddha, I prayed and prayed, but I didn't see any use. All kinds of troubles should be endured.

The temple that was bustling for a while last year has become deserted again this year. There is no one offering incense and offering offerings, and a moderate layer of dust has accumulated.

There is no monk in the wild temple, only Bian Yonglan meets the eyes of the Buddha statue, you look at me, I look at you, no one speaks a word.

"Brother! Wait for me!"

Hearing childish laughter suddenly, a burst of thumping footsteps rushed into the temple with the laughter, Bian Yonglan turned his head, and saw the group of children who ran madly just now came back, joking and playing outside the temple gate, One of them, a little girl, walked into the temple with her foot turned. She saw an unknown adult standing in the temple, but she was not afraid of strangers, she grinned at him.

The smile was a smile, but the little girl was a bit shy after all, she didn't want to talk to outsiders, she stopped talking to her right away, and ran to the Bodhisattva statue with sweat profusely, clutching a few sticks in her hand The drooping little wildflowers were placed on the case.

Xu Shi often played here on weekdays. The little girl put flowers in front of the Buddha, but she didn't salute, didn't ask for obeisance, and didn't make any wishes to the Bodhisattva. Dongdong ran away.

Bian Yonglan has good hearing, so he can clearly hear what the child muttered in a low voice.

After a group of children ran away pushing and shoving, he slowly walked out of the temple, and instead of picking the blooming flowers on the magnolia tree, he bent down and picked a freshly fallen one under the tree. The wilted Mulan walked back to the Buddha with her attachment to flowers, put the fallen flower and the wild flowers left by the little girl together, and said softly...

He opened his mouth softly, just like the little girl who neither prayed for Buddha nor made a wish, only said softly to Buddha: "I wish you happiness."

The spring day was fine, and Bian Yonglan walked out of a wild temple on the spring sun, but he saw that there was a Buddhist monk under the magnolia tree that was empty just now.

The Buddhist monk was young and dusty, wearing a simple gray monk's robe, standing on the fallen flowers all over the ground, clasped his hands, and raised his eyes to look at him.

The spring breeze passed by, and the shadows of the flowers swayed.The monk originally had an ordinary and unremarkable appearance, but because of the shadow of the tree and flowers, he was a bit mortal for nothing.

"........."

Bian Yonglan paused slightly, looked back at the monk, didn't have any intention of chatting with him, and went straight ahead.

"........."

After walking for half an hour, Bian Yonglan suddenly turned his head, glanced at the person a few steps behind him, and asked helplessly, "Master, why have you been following me?"

"Poor monk..." The monk stopped and lowered his eyes, raised his eyes again, and said with a Buddha in his hand, "The poor monk has no temple and no door, and travels in all directions. Seeing that the benefactor is also alone, it is good to have a companion on the road."

"You practitioners should be the least afraid of loneliness." Bian Yonglan smiled, turned to look at him and asked, "Master, where is your Buddhist recitation?"

"If you are a person but not a Buddha, you will always be lonely." The monk has an ordinary face, but his eyes are quite good, and the smile in his eyes is like a shallow stream, shining with waves, "Where does the benefactor want to go? There is nothing a poor monk can do."

"...you can, but I can't," Bian Yonglan turned around and waved his hands, "Why should I just be with a monk, Master, let's go."

That being said, he didn't draw his sword to drive away the people, but he just ignored the monk behind him and walked quietly in the direction of Mulan Mountain.

Bian Chonglan wanted to take a shortcut by crossing the mountain, his foot strength, even if he didn't mention lightness kung fu to hurry, it is not something ordinary people can keep up with.

But this monk can keep up - climbing mountains and wading, he can keep up, but for some reason, a monk has to be ashamed and has to follow behind others.

Bian Yonglan passed by the deep stream in the mountain, drew a bag of water by the river, and said to the monk angrily: "Master, you are too annoying, don't think that I am easy to talk, if you..."

It's just that he couldn't finish his words no matter what he said—the valley was deep and the water was fast-flowing. A suspension bridge was built on the river to facilitate the mountain people to come and go, but at this moment a person jumped down suddenly.

Bian Yonglan's eyesight is good, before he finished speaking, his figure has been swept away like lightning, and the figure has just entered the water, and he has already fished it out, using the reef in the rapid stream with his feet, he returned to the shore with one ups and downs.

"........."

The woman who fell into the water was about forty years old, her face was very dull, she seemed to have not recovered, she was neither frightened nor happy to be rescued.

She wanted to die with all her heart, but she was rescued, so there was nothing to be happy about.

"Miss..."

Bian Yonglan's body was half wet and half dry. Seeing that the woman was completely soaked, Fang wanted to take off his outer robe and put it on her. Then he saw the monk who obviously had no clothes on his body, and didn't even carry a burden on his back. He took out a monk's robe from somewhere and put it on for the woman.

"Young man... you saved me now..."

The woman was wearing a monk's robe, but she couldn't get half of the purity of Buddhism. She had already tied a knot in her heart, and said to her life-saving grace in a dumb way: "...It's useless."

"My eldest daughter died of dystocia, leaving no boy and a half girl... The younger son's family was established the year before last, thinking that the family was poor, and afraid that it would be difficult to support him after giving birth, so he followed his father to the city to ask for a job..."

There was no sadness on the woman's face, and she explained the family tragedy to Engong with a few words: "His father provoked someone he couldn't afford, and was beaten to death. He couldn't get angry for a while, and wanted to give his father To seek justice, I accidentally killed someone, and my head was beheaded... It was his life, and mine..." The woman's tears had already dried up, she only accepted her fate, and said indifferently, "His wife is a good child, You can't be a widow with me for the rest of your life, I'll send her to remarry, she's settled her mind, she can go."

"...Eldest sister, where is your home, I will take you back."

After Bian Yonglan finished speaking, the woman said: "I don't have a home... I don't have a home anymore."

That's what I said, but after all the people are gone, the house is still there - the fear is that the house is still there. There are four members of the family, guarding a small courtyard. Although they are a little poor, they eat three meals a day. The rough tea and light food left behind so many laughs and laughter.

"Sister, I'm alone and have nowhere to go, can I borrow your place to stay for a while?"

"...

... "

"You don't have to be afraid of being gossiped," Bian Yonglan thought of the monk who followed him, and felt that he was finally useful, and pulled the monk over, "He has nowhere to go, so he has to stay here with you." Down."

"I'm afraid that people will gossip..." The woman was silent all the way, but now she smiled, and shook her head with a wry smile, "I don't even want to live, so why should I be afraid of gossip."

So Bian Yonglan brought a monk to live at the foot of Mulan Mountain—the woman's maiden name is Yao, and her husband's family name is Li. She has been called "Li's" for half her life, but now she is only called by this non-kinship person. The young man calls her sister Yao.

"Sister Yao, I think your yard is empty and it's also empty." Bian Yonglan lived in it for a few days, and then he felt at ease as if it was his own home, and stepped into the yard with a bunch of seedlings that he didn't know who bought it from. door, raised his voice and asked, "How about we plant grapes together?"

"........."

The woman held a half-sewed sleeve in her hand and looked at the light. Hearing this, she stepped out of the door and silently walked up to the young man. After comparing the length, she said: "It's just right."

The benefactor asked for a place to live and asked her to make a robe for him.

But how could she not know what he really wanted?

He saved her from jumping into the river, but couldn't save her from hanging herself. He saved her for a while, but couldn't save her forever, so he begged her to live again for the time being, and live one day at a time.

"Xiao Bian," the woman nodded, closing the half-sewed sleeves, "I will grow grapes as you wish."

Grapes are not expensive things, they don't have the slightest spoiled temper, they don't care about water and soil, and they can be raised anywhere.

It’s a bit late for cuttings in March, but it doesn’t matter if it’s too late, the grapes grow fast—the leaves on the seedlings are not the same every day, plant them in wet soil, and look after a while, they are as big as those fingernails The small leaves of the leaves turned red, and after a while, I saw a stretch of green.

After living long and growing taller, it's time to put it on the shelf——the three of them went up the mountain together, and stood on the tree when Bian Chonglan reached a little bit, picked the thick branch of the bowl, cut it off, and threw it under the tree. Looking down and seeing the monk looking up at him with a smile in his eyes, he couldn't help but smile at him.

Sister Yao stood aside with a bamboo basket, watched them for a while, bent over to pick some wild vegetables and mushrooms, and went back to cook a pot of vegetarian soup.

Digging pits and vertical pillars, Putao is still a child, so it doesn’t need ten pillars and eight beams. Give it four wooden sticks the size of a bowl, and then put on beams, it will be enough for it to grow in a year.

The children are trying to grow fast. In April, they have seen green leaves spread out like palms. In the evening, the three of them sat in the courtyard to enjoy the coolness, and it wanted to enjoy the coolness together. The leaves reflected the slanting light and swayed in the evening wind. Come over, put it over, as if waving to someone, and greeted happily: "Cool!"

People want to eat, so do grapes——Sister Yao saw that Xiao Bian and the little master named "Wu Ming" looked clean and refreshed, but she didn't want to do the rough work of excavating manure and fertilizing , I can do it unexpectedly, and I don't see the slightest embarrassment.

When fertilizing grapes, the emphasis is on the original taste, and the manure does not need to be mixed with water. If it is poured out in a bucket, the smell will not be very pleasant.Bian Yonglan frowned and held his breath, but he still wanted to shout at the monk: "Are you a fly? What are you doing so close to me?"

"... Yonglan," the monk endured and endured, and finally couldn't hold back, and joked with him, "Next time when you don't speak well, think about it first before opening your mouth."

It was nearly May, and the grapes had been fertilized, so it was time to water vigorously—watering the grapes was not watering, but irrigation—the "Picture Classics" has a cloud, "The roots and seedlings are connected in the hollow. , wanting to get a lot of profit, irrigate its roots in the evening, and soak the seeds in the morning, so the seedlings are commonly called Akebia."

Sister Yao has never grown grapes, and she doesn't know what the book says, but seeing the pleasing greenery, she really likes water.

The monk poured two buckets of water, and he could almost hear the sound of the grapes drinking water. After a while, they went from the root to the tip, and there was a pruned incision. With a drop, like endless tears.

The woman suddenly felt wetness on her face, wiped her face, only to realize that this man still had tears to shed, like a dry ancient well, water gushing out again.

"Master once planted a bunch of grapes in the temple, and this thing is most fond of water," the monk stayed at Sister Yao's house, and he didn't see him chanting scriptures and reciting Buddha every day, but now he clasped his hands together and didn't hear Buddhist teachings in his mouth. It is just the way of growth of all things, "It seems that people have a heart orifice, and the grape vines are hollow, and the common name is Mutong."

"........."

"Fill it when it's empty, and shed tears when it's clear," the monk held the salute in one hand, took Fang Supa and handed it to her with the other, and comforted her softly, "Everything is natural, so cry if you want."

Tears are bitter, but grapes are sweet—grapes are planted, but they don't bear fruit in the year, so people can't taste how sweet the fruit is, but only taste the tendrils from the grapes, which has a hint of sweetness .

Just like a child who grows crazily when he is old, the grapes grow out of order, and a new stalk is pulled out in a few days. If it is allowed to grow like this, it will not produce good fruit.

Hinging the branches and pinching the beards, the new tendrils are the most depleting fruit wood essence, as many as there are, three people and six hands, all pinched by it, sister Yao was reluctant to throw it away, so she took a thick bowl and filled it full .

"Try it, this beard seems a bit sweet, why not pickle it and make porridge as a side dish."

Sister Yao was used to living a frugal life, so she took the bowl and went to the stove, while Bian Yonglan and the monk stood under the grape trellis, feeling among the leaves to see if there were any remnants of beards.

"Try it, is it sweet?"

With sharp eyes, Bian Yonglan pinched off a small tendril. He didn't enter it himself, but stuffed the bud into the monk's mouth without any rules, and stroked his lips with his thumb as if nothing.

"........."

The monk lowered his eyes, covering his ears with shades of leaves. After chewing and swallowing carefully, Fang nodded and said in a low voice, "...it's sweet."

After a few more days, the grapes finally bloomed—some people said that the grapes don’t bloom, but they will bloom naturally, but the flowers are too small, light yellow and slightly green, and you can’t find them unless you look carefully among the leaves.

The grapes are in bloom, and so is the pear tree.

Sister Yao said that there are several pear trees in the town, and they bloom beautifully every year. "When the children are young, I always tell them that the flowers are beautiful, so don't pick them. They will bear fruit in the future."

It was the first time she took the initiative to bring up the past, with sadness on her face, but also a little smile quietly.

It is said that pear blossoms are like snow, but after seeing it, you will know that it is not like it.

The pear blossoms are so transparent and bright, you can only find out if you take a closer look, it is actually the color of the moon.

The three of them stood under the flower tree, not saying anything, just silently watching the wind passing through the flowers, blowing a tree of moonlight.

Summer is here, long and quiet, even the cicadas are silent, the sound strings together the bright sunlight of midsummer and the shadows of the sky.

It is said that there was no fruit back then, but I think it was because someone really wanted to eat it, and the grapes worked so hard to produce a few bunches of small fruits—this shows that some people have the luck of "all wishes come true", I really don't just talk about it casually.

"It's too sour, I can't eat it, wait until next year."

Bian Yonglan shook his head, his face was full of disdain for "this grape is not good", and the branches and leaves were whirling and rustling in anger, probably scolding someone.

There were no grapes to eat, but Sister Yao bought melons, dug well water to cool them, cut them open and cut into pieces, smiled and said to the two of them: "This melon is very sweet, eat two corners to get rid of the heat."

"At any rate, two clusters of fruit have grown, so it's not in vain to hurt you." Bian Yonglan grabbed the grape leaves and comforted it, "In the future, you can grow as much as you want, and it's good to give us a shade."

The shelves full of green turn from green to yellow, and when the leaves are all gone and bare, it's time to take off the shelves.

Bian Yonglan and the monks worked together to dismantle the grape trellises. Seeing that the pillars and beams were not damaged, they piled them into the woodshed for reuse in the next year.

Sister Yao insisted on digging the soil with a shovel. Although she was a woman, she was used to the work, so she had great strength. Live in the soil for a whole winter, dig it out in the coming year, water it, and it will be able to spread its leaves and branches in a day, and it will be a lively greenery again.

As autumn comes to an end and winter comes, fine snow falls, and every family kills chickens and chops meat to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new.

On New Year's Eve last year, the woman wept with the daughter-in-law who did not want to remarry and wanted to die for her. The sound of whips from other people's houses in the town muffled the crying of this family.

This year, the warm light from the candlelight came out from the window paper, and there was also a laugh - Bian Yonglan laughed and teased the monk, "Master, your skill at rolling dough is not as good as mine, have you always been so clumsy?"

The snow fell quietly, and the courtyard was covered with a thin sheet of white. The grapes were sleeping in the soil, and no sound could be heard.

Until the spring breeze picked up again in February, the three of them shoveled the soil and dug out the vines buried last year from the soil, and saw that a few buds and leaflets had secretly grown on the vines—it couldn’t wait any longer.

Put the old vines on the watered wet soil, and after a while, you will see that the edges of the leaves have turned red, and after a while, you will see a stretch of green again.

"Sister Yao, this year..."

"I know, you are leaving now."

Spontaneously, the woman knew that today was the time of parting.

She smiled and interrupted the young man's farewell words, there was reluctance in her eyes, but no sadness.

"Sister...do you have anything to say?"

The woman suppressed her smile, followed the two of them to the gate of the courtyard, did not send them off any further, and did not say any words of "safe voyage", but nodded, and said to the two of them peacefully: "I know, don't care Next year or the year after, when you pass by again, remember to come back and see, the eldest sister will cut grapes for you to eat."

The figures faded away, she watched their backs until they were out of sight, then turned around and closed the courtyard door.

——Four seasons in the world, let's live.

*****

The copyright of all content about growing grapes and the metaphor of pear blossoms belongs to Mr. Wang Zengqi (see "Grape Moon Order" for details)

The imagery about the singing of cicadas belongs to Ms. Zhang Ailing.

The reason for putting it in the text is that the author has something to say for fear that the website will not steal the article.

The author has something to say: Master: I can.Lanlan: No, let’s talk about five thousand words first.

Growing grapes is indeed a flag, but a good flag.I want to use 12 words to tell you about Wang Zengqi. Sometimes Weibo fans will send me private messages to tell me about their troubles.Mr. Wang Zengqi is really good, he is a person who can write a little bit of life in the most difficult time.Finally, this chapter is given to the little girl with the Weibo ID "Lin Jiangbei". Then make a wish to the Bodhisattva.Born as a human being, you can cross the sea of ​​suffering by yourself. If you really have a god in your head, I only wish you happiness.