Painter

Chapter 186 35: Invitation

Although Xie Ningzhi did not express his disappointment when he left the Daxiangguo Temple, the news that the scholar of the Chu Tower was unable to seek ink spread spread in just one day, and in the restaurants and teahouses in Yujing, the Lizhou Qingling Li Dan's name.A few days ago, people in Yujing mentioned this name with some contempt, but this time they became curious.That Chu Tower scholar can use a three-foot green sharp edge to write on the water, and the sword energy will not dissipate for a long time.
But those high-spirited speeches only spilled out a little with the steaming heat of the wine shop, and then dissipated in the wind and snow, without blowing into the garden wall of Guangzhaifang.

Inside the wall, the monsters are still living a poor life.Except for Tu Shanxi who often goes out under the guise of grinding mirrors, the other monsters stay at home to clear snow, play games, and learn etiquette.Under the leadership of Xu Da, the etiquette practice of fishing for three days and drying the nets for two days, after Mr. Bi came, he cleaned it up and finally got some appearance.

In the afternoon of this day, the wind and snow were howling among the Yunqiao Feilou, and Song Wuji was burning brightly in the stove of the main house in Xinyuan.All the monsters gathered together to watch a "hege".I saw Pea, Sao Qingniang, Xu Da, and Chi Yasha four demons, each holding more than ten cards. On the cards were blue, soap, red, and yellow cranes painted by Li Chan with Danqing.Seeing that he was about to lose his last savings, Xu Da took advantage of Pea's ignorance and forcefully referred to a flamingo crane as a yellow one.The little demons dared not say anything, Chi Yasha took into account the brotherhood, and looked embarrassed.Sao Qingniang smiled slightly, but remained silent.Ya Qiantui was struggling with not being able to open his mouth, so he jumped anxiously on Pea's shoulder.

At this moment, the general of the town house came to report, and someone asked to see him.Hong Yao went out after hearing the sound, met a servant in green clothes at the door, took a letter from him, and took it back to the house.

Pea glanced at the post and looked towards the study.A few days ago, Li Chan realized something. In the past few days, she has been painting by herself in the house.

In the room, there are dozens of portraits piled up, and Li Chan is still drawing on the paper, using the pen that has a texture like bone and jade, but Pea no longer stays in it.He was in the middle of finishing a portrait, and the young man on the painting had a pair of blue eyes, his body and spirit were no different from his own, but he was frowning, obviously dissatisfied.

"Floating Cha."

"Fucha?"

Pea called softly outside the door, calling three times, and Li Chan turned around as if waking up from a dream.

"Mr. Pen?"

"Someone sent a post."

Pea handed the next post to Li Chan, and went to the table to look at the painting.

Li Chan took the post and looked at it.

"When I met Xin Yuan, I saw that Li Lang was very good at painting, and I couldn't forget it for a long time, so I invited Li Lang to meet at Bishuixuan on the twelfth of this month. Wouldn't it be nice to invite three or five fellows to recite poems and compose paintings? If Meng came here on snow, I should set up wine to wait. Junzhu and Xie Ningzhi sincerely offer it."

"Xie Ningzhi?" Li Chan was a little surprised, and after a while, he pulled his mind away from the painting, thinking of the green-clothed scribe in the Xinyuan Collection, who was wielding a sword to cut off the water.

"I didn't even meet him by chance, how could he invite me to a banquet?"

Pea said, "Maybe it's because you appreciate your paintings."

Li Chan smiled, "Then he still has some eyesight."

……

In the frosty weather, the oil-walled car covered with green curtains drove into Guangzhaifang.The groom pulled the reins, the brown horse stopped, and let out a big cloud of white gas.The curtain of the carriage was lifted, and the maid came out of the carriage first, and helped Wei Chengjun get off the carriage.

"Little lady, this Li Dan's reputation is not very good, I'm afraid he's hard to talk to." The servant girl glanced at the tiger's eye brass lock on the door, "Are we really going to find him?"

Wei Chengjun was wearing a sable fur and carried a small copper stove in the shape of a pumpkin. There were patterns of flowers, birds, insects and fish on the stove. She looked at the snow on the wall, and her expression was a little apprehensive. , thinking in his heart that when he handed over Ziyu Guang to Xie Ning, this gentleman must have looked very good-looking when he smiled.

Seeing the blushing on the face of her little lady, the servant girl couldn't help sighing: "Young lady is so kind, Xie Lang must be very touched if he knows."

Wei Chengjun smiled slightly, took the groom with him, and called the maid to knock on the door.Not long after, a girl in red opened the door, looked at Wei Chengjun and the carriage behind her, "This lady is..."

The maidservant next to her said: "My young lady's surname is Wei, and her father is Wei Zhou, Minister of the Ministry of Rites. Today I came to visit Li Dan."

"Wait a minute, you three. I'll go and inform Alang right away." The girl in red smiled slightly, turned around and entered the garden.

The servant girl looked at Hong Yao's back and was a little surprised. She thought it was a female family member of Li Dan's family, but after hearing the name of A Lang, she turned out to be a servant girl. I'm afraid Li Dan has a lot of family background."

Wei Chengjun thought for a moment, then shook his head, "Qingling in Lizhou is a remote place. When he applied to the Ministry of Rites, he knew all about his family background. He has no famous teacher and no connections. He is a son of a poor family."

After a while, the girl in red came back and invited the two into the garden.

The groom waited outside the door, and Wei Chengjun entered the garden with the red medicine. With a glance, he took a rough look at the furnishings in the garden. When he arrived in the main room, he looked at the charcoal basin. There was no charcoal dust in the basin. When burning charcoal, the newly burned charcoal is only paulownia charcoal, not cedar charcoal carved into animal shapes.The furniture in this room is also made of the most common beech wood, and it is not even complete. There are almost no vases, calligraphy and paintings, etc. It is indeed poor, so Wei Chengjun feels relieved.

She was invited to be seated, but did not touch the tea served by the red medicine, looked at the owner of the house, smiled and said: "A few days ago I heard about Li Lang's reputation in the Xinyuan Gathering. When I saw him today, he really looks like a talent."

Li Chan didn't know the purpose of the daughter of the Minister of Rites, so she smiled and said, "I'm afraid I didn't have a good reputation in Xinyuan."

Wei Chengjun said: "You can't say that. The so-called literati look down on each other. The more someone belittles you, it means that Li Lang has real talents and learning, and is envied by others."

Li Chan looked at Wei Chengjun in surprise, thinking of the custom of catching son-in-law in Yujing City.However, Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites is a member of the third grade, so if he wants to choose a son-in-law, it will not make his daughter put aside her reserve and come to contact him, an unknown person, in person.

"Is the lady's visit today related to Wei Shangshu?"

Wei Chengjun smiled slightly, "I came to visit Li Lang today, but I didn't tell anyone."

Li Chan thanked with a smile, and the two of them said something else. When Li Chan signed up, he met a servant from the Ministry of Rites. A month ago, she saw someone riding a paper crane shuttle between the flying buildings on the Yunqiao.

When the atmosphere became warmer, Wei Chengjun asked about Li Chan's recent situation, and said: "It's not easy to live in Yujing University. A talent like Li Lang should not be entangled by ordinary affairs. I respect Li Lang's talent. Since Li Lang is good at painting, I would like to ask Li Lang for a painting, I wonder if Li Lang is willing?" He said, and glanced at the maidservant.

The maid took out a few silver bills, Li Chan was taken aback for a moment, and after only a glance, she knew that there were at least a few hundred taels. She couldn't help but feel moved. This could sustain the livelihood of the monsters for more than half a year, but she declined the silver bills handed over by the maid. ticket.

The two shied away a few times, and Wei Chengjun finally said: "It is rumored outside that Li Lang is fake and noble. When we met today, Li Lang turned out to be really pure and noble. It is really admirable."

Li Chan said: "Why did the lady come here, you might as well just tell me."

Wei Chengjun and Li Chan looked at each other, the children from poor families lacked family status and money.Who can refuse the opportunity to pay homage to the minister of the Ministry of Rites, and not take a penny of the gold and silver sent to him?However, she never planned to be able to persuade Li Dan so easily, and said with a smile, "To tell you the truth, I really want to ask Li Lang for a little favor."

Hong Yao brought two bowls of tea, and Li Chan signaled her to put them opposite Wei Chengjun, "But it's okay."

"I heard that Li Lang went to the Daxiangguo Temple a few days ago and asked the Immortal Mo for a piece of purple jade light. I wonder if I can sell it?" Wei Chengjun took a sip of the tea, tasted it a little, and put down the tea bowl, "So it's Bijian, and so is Li Lang. People who love tea."

"My lady came here for this." Li Chan was stunned, thought for a while, and thought of the next post he had just received, the doubts in his heart suddenly became clear, and he smiled: "For Xie Ningzhi?"

Wei Chengjun was seen through his intentions, so he had to admit, "I heard that Li Lang got three taels of purple jade light. If Li Lang is willing to sell it, I would like to give 200 taels of gold. I heard that Li Lang has never been honored by any big man. Now It's almost spring, if Li Lang wants to pay a visit to the prince's house, the time is running out. But my father also loves Danqing, and he has a close relationship with General Jin Wu, so he will definitely appreciate Li Lang."

Leaving aside the 200 taels of gold for the time being, let’s say that the official residence of the Ministry of Rites is the third grade. Wei Zhou is also quite prestigious in the Yujing literary circle. The Chongxuan Second Department single-handedly handled it. Among the ministers who were donated by all the students, the House of Ministers of the Ministry of Rites is of course the first choice for paying respects.Li Dan, who came from a poor family, had absolutely no reason to refuse the latter condition.

After finishing speaking, she added: "Xie Lang has never written ink on paper. This time, he asked Immortal Mo for ink. He wanted to become a blockbuster. I hope Li Lang will not refuse the beauty of a gentleman."

Li Chan shook her head with a smile.

Wei Chengjun didn't expect Li Dan to refuse so decisively, "Li Lang might as well think about it."

"No need." Li Chan stood up, "My lady, please go back."

Wei Chengjun frowned slightly, then stretched them out again, got up and smiled and said, "Alright, it seems that Li Lang cherishes that purple jade light very much, so I can't force it. Let's not live today, but, those things I said , still counting.”

After all, he left with his maidservant.

Li Chan sent Wei Chengjun out, and when he returned to the house, all the monsters appeared. He sat down at the table and said with emotion: "As expected of the daughter of the Minister of Rites."

"This little lady, I'm still a little impatient." Pea smiled slightly, "If you change to the Minister of Rites, you won't be able to see your intentions, just wait for you to unknowingly take a lot of benefits. In [-], you got on his boat and you can’t get off.”

Hong Yao looked out of the window and said dissatisfied: "This woman's words are too ugly. What kind of gentleman is the beauty of an adult? If Alang is not the beauty of an adult, is he a villain? Then what's so great about the Minister of Rites? Why call Alang to let the surname Xie?" If Xie Ningzhi wants to become a blockbuster, Alang won't need it?" As he spoke, he caught a glimpse of the white cat walking by, and asked curiously, "Xu Da, what did you take?"

The white cat held a few silver bills in its mouth, and was stared wide-eyed by everyone's eyes. Then it held the silver bills to Li Chan's feet, and smiled flatteringly: "Let's see that little lady is rich, and I don't care if I think about it." These vulgar things..." Before he finished speaking, Li Chan lifted it up by the back of his neck.

Li Chan picked up the bank note at his feet again.

"Hongyao, send this back too."

……

Outside the garden, Wei Chengjun stepped into the carriage, and the maidservant said, "No wonder this Li Dan has a bad reputation. He is too ungrateful. Although the purple jade light is a good piece of ink, what can it do if it falls into his hands?" Useful? If he can win Yanyu, Minister of the Ministry of Rites, he will not be much more useful than Namo? No wonder Princess Lingbi wants to drive him out of Xinyuan Yaji." He said and lifted the curtain of the car.

"You, you don't have to talk so narrowly." Wei Chengjun leaned into the carriage, and smiled slightly, "Except for people like Xie Lang who don't stick to the worldly vision, the loftiness of the world's literati is also for fame. Although Li Dan didn't Promised to sell Ziyu Guang, but kept those banknotes. This is a polite refusal on the surface, but I agreed in my heart. As long as I introduce him to my father, he will present the ink as a gift, and within a few days ..."

Before he finished speaking, he left the garden in a red dress and trotted to the carriage in the snow.When Wei Chengjun heard the movement and lifted the curtain, the girl in red handed over five bank notes and said with a smile: "My lady left in a hurry, I forgot something."

When Wei Chengjun saw the banknote, he frowned, but still smiled and put away the banknote.

When the girl in red left, the groom raised his whip, and the oil-painted cart drove away from Guangzhaifang. Inside the curtain of the cart, Wei Chengjun's face darkened, and the banknotes were wrinkled.

……

In the study, Li Chan picked up the post again and finally understood the intention of Xie Ningzhi's Bishuixuan covenant.

Hong Yao was talking to Tu Shanxi about the change in the expression of the young lady of the Wei family just now, how to relieve her anger, and said: "When Ah Lang compares with that Xie Ningzhi, she might cry."

Li Chan put down the post, "I won't join in the fun."

Hong Yao was taken aback.

Xu Da shouted: "In this way, Alang will be said to be cowardly! No way!"

Li Chan smiled, "I have a solution, and you will know when the time comes."

As he said that, he put away the half-painted self-portrait on the table, took a look at Dai Zhu, and Dai Zhu moved closer.

When the painting touches the candle, it burns out in an instant, Li Chan turned to the brush and said: "It's also thanks to this post, otherwise I don't know how many days I will have to paint by myself."

Pea looked at the self-paintings in the study room. There were wild children in Taodu Mountain, young people traveling in the Western Regions, bell guards in Qingque Palace, and ghost masters in armor and soldiers in the paintings.

"If you draw yourself in a room, if you go deeper, it will be like the practice of Yangmen and Zen, seeking your own heart. But since you see all living beings and cultivate the way, you still have to travel more between heaven and earth."

Li Chan said: "Now I want to go to the school to seek the Tao, but I can't get away for the time being."

"Reading thousands of books is like traveling thousands of miles." Pea smiled, "The young man surnamed Bai carries a book with him every day. Take a trip to Lantai where the books are collected, and see how the sages saw the world. However, there are so many volumes in Lantai that it is difficult to read them all in a lifetime. There is a book written by one person, you might as well read it first."

"who?"

"The former owner of this abandoned garden."

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(End of this chapter)