Rewind nineteen years.

A semi-new sedan chair brought the relatives of the newlywed grandmother's mother's family, and the grandmother has a surname, and the boudoir name has the word "Mian".

Bai Mian stepped off the sedan chair and looked up at the lintel of Xie Mansion, looking a little timid. The threshold, the gatehouse, the shadow wall, the cloister, everything frightened her. She felt that she had entered the forbidden land of the gods.

In fact, she only entered the side door, with a black lacquered door face, and hung a couplet: "The courtyard and the toad Guijing, the courtyard is fragrant with ink and flowers." "It should be last year, the red paper has faded very much, but there is no damage, as if the family is declining, the years have eroded the body, the skeleton is still supported, it can't be like a wooden door on the street, it will fall.

There is no threshold for this door, the little maid hurried up and opened the door, untied the horse, the horse was led away from the side, and the car was pulled directly into the yard with manpower, bypassing a shadow wall, and a few women came up, bending their knees to say goodbye, and a mother-in-law helped Bai Mian and walked to a door on the right. Bai Mian was a little frightened in his heart, and couldn't help but turn around. The car came to a standstill. Her own family car is the only remaining luxury in the family, and it still looks shabby when parked in someone's small yard.

"This time I came to join my relatives, maybe I voted for the wrong ......" Bai Mian couldn't help but think so, although some people will feel that there must be the right one to take refuge with such a noble relative.

The next few doors, all equipped with a very high threshold, straight to Bai Mian's calf, her leg has been sitting in the car for a long time, slightly numb, has not completely eased up, to support the mother-in-law's arm, in order to try not to lose the grace of the past. There are courtyards between several wings, and they are all connected by corridors. The corridor is covered with a flower stand, I don't know what kind of vine is raised on the shelf, the raw dense and beautiful, the roots are thick like the old dragon, but the branches and leaves are delicate and delicate like skillfully cut out, covering the day, only a little sunlight is sifted in, reflecting the eyes of people, as if the gap between dream and wake, fine and insignificant. When turning a corner. I heard a "whoosh" sound. Bai Mian was startled, and when he turned his head to look, there were two huge clay pots installed under the corridor, and the ones planted in them were originally bowl lotuses. to autumn. It's starting to wither. The leaves and stems are half yellow and half green, and there are a few lotus pods in between, but they are not cleaned up. The sparse and dense one is there, but it has a special charm, and it can be painted in ink - a fish under the lotus stalk, which is green scales, as long as chopsticks, flicked its tail, and drilled down, it was just scared Bai Mian's roar. After all, Bai Mian was young and felt fresh, and wanted to come to the side of the tank to see what was going on, but the mother-in-law pulled her away and muttered: "This ghost thing, when you see someone coming, you just jump like this." Wait for a splash of water, and look at the disease when it's cold! This thing is naughty. ”

"Is it lonely?" Bai Mian didn't think so for a reason, and didn't dare to speak, followed her mother-in-law to a room, entered the door first a small Beijing embroidered goose rank Ruicao through the clouds of the screen, turned around, a carved beauty couch against the wall, a blue magnetic stepping chair in front, all paved with jade bottom orchid cushions, a carved round table under the window, four arc-backed wooden chairs scattered next to it, also covered with chairs, from the couch to the table a rectangular white background twill checkered carpet, a few paintings and calligraphy hung between the walls on both sides, a mouthful of eight treasures behind the table, and some jade antiques were furnished. Although the room is not large, it is cleanly cleaned and well furnished, but it is much more comfortable than sitting in the hall.

Bai Mian quietly squinted her eyes and was admiring, and the mother-in-law had already bent her knees and replied, "Mrs., the cousin girl is here." Bai Mian was stunned, and a voice from behind the Ten Scenes Cabinet said, "Really? Sister Mian, are you here?! ”

The voice is familiar to Bai Mian, her cousin Bai Xu Ning, and now Xie Bai's family. It's not been a few months since we got married, right? The tone of the voice is full of peace and joy that will not be found in a maiden, like the sunshine on the table, overflowing with gold. Bai Mian lowered his head and shrank back half a step.

Xie Bai had already come out and held Bai Mian's hand affectionately. Her cuffs with a red background and green edge weaving clouds and xialuo revealed a pair of gold phoenix bead bracelets, a pair of beautiful ivory carved bracelets, and a peony and red jade inlaid treasure ring on her fingers. Bai Mian looked down at his hand with low self-esteem. Xie Bai swept her up and down and said, "It's hard to be a sister, in fact, you don't have to be so wronged, your cousin-in-law's family is very polite." ”

These words are because Bai Mian did not wear filial piety clothes.

Bai Mian came to seek refuge with her cousin Xie Bai, just because when her parents went out to visit relatives, they encountered robbers, and they didn't even leave their bones, but they heard that they were dead. Bai Mian cried to death, and after supporting her at home for more than half a year, she couldn't hold on, so she had to go to her cousin.

As a filial daughter, she should still be wearing mourning clothes, but when she thought of her cousin's newlywed, she wore a white linen mourning dress to someone's house, wouldn't she bump into people's bad luck! Therefore, I had to dispose of it from the right, changed to a white dress, and only took a color, but the material and style were all homely, even the hair and the decoration of the whole body, only silverware, plain belts, and no hemp strips.

This is a matter of etiquette. Just like during the national funeral, the people of the whole country wore filial piety for the monarch, and it does not mean that everyone has to cut sackcloth, only take white and prohibit joy. However, Bai Mian is so subordinate to the right to be wronged.

Xie Baishi is still as smart and transparent as before, and when he said a word, Bai Mian's eyes were hot: "Cousin...... That's where it comes from. My sister and brother-in-law are newly married, so it's reasonable, how can I clash like that. Even in front of the elderly, it is disrespectful. My cousin is willing to take me in, and I'm already grateful. ”

As the saying goes, people respect me for a foot, and I respect people for a foot. Xie Baishi misses the old feelings and is polite. If Bai Mian really dares to take it seriously, change back to a full set of linen mourning clothes, and there is no need to stay in the corner under the fence.

Seeing that she was sensible, Xie Baishi became more and more compassionate, and asked her mother-in-law to clean up the room for her to live in, and told her to treat her like a young lady. Bai Mian knew what to do, she didn't dare to be as delicate as a young lady, she rushed to do something, except for the work that was too stupid for her to interfere, and she shared the rest for Xie Bai's family. Xie Bai's treats her more and more, secretly thinking about cultivating her as a good helper, dealing with her for a few years, and when she is older, she is willing to paste a little dowry to help her find a good husband to help her husband and wife get better in the future, and can also be used as Xie Bai's arm outside.

Bai Mian guessed what Xie Bai meant, and knew that his fate depended on Xie Bai's family, and he was obedient to Xie Bai's family.

Until one day, Bai Mian helped tidy up the study.

It was the first time she had entered her cousin-in-law's study. I saw that the room was arranged brightly, a row of large windows by the south, a few bushes of pine and bamboo were planted outside, but a greenery was taken, and the sun was not blocked, the furniture was rosewood of the whole hall, the craftsmanship was not that kind of trivial style, the structure was just and simple, the lacquer color was subtle and moist, and the exquisiteness of the system was shown everywhere. There is nothing on the desk except for a sour branch carved pen shelf, a blue ground fine magnetic pen wash, a cyan teary eye inkstone, and a few thin books. On the east side, there are three large bookshelves in a row, with small copper locks on the lower drawers, and thin bamboo curtains on the open shelves above, and you can vaguely see that the books inside are full.

Bai Mian had to help dust off and arrange a few utensils. Xie Bai's family thought that his subordinates were stupid, and he was afraid of being tired when he was pregnant, so he handed it over to Bai Mian.

On that day, Master Xie from eighteen years ago should not have been in the study.

But he showed up.

appeared, and there was nothing else to do, only a pen and paper, as if to be a scholar. Bai Mian didn't see him many times, and every time he felt that he had a kind of majesty, which made people weak. This is especially true on this day. She whispered hello and wanted to run away. Master Xie took the pen and asked, "I heard that you are also literate?" ”

Bai Mian said: "Back to my brother-in-law's words, I only read the daughter's scripture, and I didn't count as learning any words." ”

Master Xie shook his head and said, "What words!" You are not a subordinate, so you don't have to learn the tone of the five men. ”

Bai Mian's face flushed, and he replied. Master Xie said again: "Don't be too humble. I know you've read poetry books, so write a sentence? ”

Bai Mian wanted to excuse himself, but Master Xie took a pen that was not thick or thin, dipped it in ink for Bai Mian, tried the pen on the Yueqing lotus petal pen in the Baishe kiln, and handed the pen to Bai Mian.

Bai Mian still liked to practice pen and ink back then, and he was unfamiliar for more than a year, and he also had some itchy skills, so he took it and drew on the paper: "Don't worry about people." ”

It was she who looked at the sentences in the neighbor's playbook, and she didn't understand it very well, but she only felt beautiful, and she couldn't help but write it.

It's lined up vertically, and the word sorrow is very open. Master Xie's eyebrows moved slightly, and he said: "I want to cross the river with sorrowful words, and my heart is divided into two halves, why did I come here?" ”

Bai Mian was dumbfounded, and he didn't know where to start.

Master Xie pointed to that sentence and said, "Do you know how to explain this sentence?" ”

Bai Mian didn't understand.

Master Xie stared at her for a while, and then suddenly smiled.

People who have always been so strict laughed, but the lines of their facial features melted very slightly, like the ice flowers on the window in the cold winter, a little blur.

Bai Mian only felt a little foggy in his heart.

Master Xie's voice also softened: "Do you miss it?" ”

Bai Mian read: "Don't let Qiuxin people can't afford it." ”

Master Xie's smile became more harmonious.

No one explained this poem to Bai Mian, she met her face to face in the script next door, but she was just ignorant and knew how to see flowers in the fog, and she thought it was beautiful, but she couldn't tell what this "beauty" was. She doesn't recognize so many words, she doesn't even know the word "sorrow", and it just so happens that the six words on the neighbor's play book are written vertically, so she took it upon herself to disassemble the word sorrow into the word "autumn heart" to recognize, only the poem is always five words, seven words, seven words are just right, where to guess that it was originally a sentence in the word, there are only six words. Fortunately, the famous sentence in Wu Mengchuang's "Tang Duoling": "Where is the synthesis of sorrow, leaving people's hearts in autumn", it is also to disassemble the word sorrow to make poetry, so Master Xie touched the poetry, but felt that Bai Mian was elegant and cute, so he smiled.

I heard that any sincere smile lasts no longer than a snap of a finger. Shorter than epiphany. If it goes on for a long time, it's all a false laugh.

After snapping his fingers, Bai Mian retreated from the study. Master Xie is the original Yan sù again. (To be continued......)