Records of the Lost Cases of Helaitang in the Ming Dynasty

The long summer breeze is clear.

For farmers, the rice seedlings have been planted and the rare off-farm time of the year has begun.

It is a very pleasant activity for young and old men to boil a pot of old Shaoxing wine and sing Yangyang folk songs.

The Wang family owns thousands of acres of good land. The main crops are rice, cotton, and wheat. After the summer harvest, farmers need to be rewarded.

We set up a shed on the threshing floor in the village, and invited women from the village who are good at cooking to help. There were six cold basins on the banquet, and three soups and three stir-fries were a must. The only difference from the wedding banquet was that one dish was missing, which means sweetness. Sweet rice pudding.

On behalf of Brother Chenyu, Wang Heng rushed to different villages and ate for three days. Xiaocai, as a long follower, shared some of the tasks of toasting, and the eating, speaking and praying ceremony was successfully concluded.

A few days later, the second wife's grandmother, Mrs. Zhou, gave birth to Xiao Zanyu. A banquet was held in front of Wang's office. It was lively for several days. Cars and horses were flowing in front of Wang's house. Wang Heng came to welcome guests and was so busy that his feet did not touch the floor.

In the past ten days or so, there was a lot of fish and meat, and the fat that I ate as a child was too much (Wu Yu). It took me two days of light porridge to recover. He said: "It is really not easy for Mrs. Zhu to manage the many properties of a large family. Wang The third master is currently at home, taking care of the property, so it is most appropriate for him to be sent for official business."

Wang Heng said with a smile: "Mother-in-law uses me because the elders give instructions to the younger ones. I can only obey. No matter what the uncle says to me, I will only treat him as his colleague. There is always a discussion. If you use me My dad still has to do some official stuff with him, and no one else will say, will Uncle Gen listen to him, or will he listen to Uncle Gen?"

Xiaocai shook his head and said: "Master Wang San is not very old either. He is in his prime. How could he be trapped at home like this?"

Wang Heng frowned and said: "He has taken off his official robe not long ago, and he still has an official aura. Naturally, it is not easy. After a long time, his posture has been lowered, and he still has errands to do."

Master Chenyu returned home from Huating, and Zhiqi Lang returned from the academy. He was preparing to go to Nanjing Imperial College to serve as a prisoner in September, so he came to give Wang Heng some advice.

Mr. Chen Yu pointed out that Wang Heng was in the Yin Prison, so he did not need to work hard on the time and writing. He would have a lot of social activities when he went to the South Prison. The first priority was to learn to compose poetry. Even if he could not become fat in one sitting, he also needed to learn rhythm to become a talented man. Not bad, the writing is fluent, and the allusions are well used.

Mr. Chenyu took with him Wang Weimo's Five Rhythms, Li Taibai's Qijue, and Lao Du's Seven Rhythms, which he had read when he was a boy. He asked Wang Heng to read them carefully, and on the seventh day he handed in a poem to Nanyuan Bieyeye for his review.

Wang Heng's knowledge was sparse, and his poetry writing was even more unsatisfactory. He reluctantly submitted two issues of "Ode to Lotus" and "Ode to Hongling". The day was already the eighth day of August, so he asked Mrs. Zhu for a few days' leave and went to Yunnan with Xiaocai. Go to Jianxian County to have a wedding banquet.

Xiaocai's gift was two pieces of fine Lake silk, and Wang Heng's gift was a piece of Zhenhu Su embroidery.Since we were going on a long journey, we asked the Wang family boatman to set off at dawn and set sail from the Zhouqiao River pier, from the deep and green Zhihe Pond to the open Yantie Pond.

Yantie Pond passes through Xinfeng City, meanders southward, and merges into the Wusong River at Huangdu.

The boat traveled along the Wusong River for a long time and arrived at Yunjian County in the afternoon.

Wang Heng asked the boatman to return to Taicang, and walked three miles with Xiaocai to the East Lake. He asked his father-in-law who was passing by that he wanted to take a ferry from here to Mohua Village.

It was almost dusk, people were returning home in a hurry, and the ferry was crowded with people.

Wang Heng and Xiao Cai boarded the boat early and each occupied a seat. Those who came later were so crowded that their feet were dangling in the air.

There was an old man in a long gown who spoke with a soft voice: "Dear readers, a strange case has occurred in Wujiang County, Suzhou Prefecture. My concubine died after having an affair, and she was wronged for a small amount of three cents."

Wujiang County and Yunjian County are neighboring counties and have very close contacts.

This old gentleman seemed to be a storyteller, and his few words aroused the curiosity of a boatload of people.

The old gentleman was so squeezed that he could not stand straight, so he said: "Look, sir, let me have a foothold and explain this strange case in Wujiang to you all."

Everyone made room for one another, and the old gentleman quickly sat down.

Everyone said, "Let's talk about the strange case in Wujiang."

The old gentleman stroked his beard and said with a smile: "This strange case in Wujiang is still being heard by the government. I will tell you all about it after I ask you clearly."

Xiaocai secretly smiled and said, "This storyteller is very naughty."