The official ship went all the way south on the canal, and when it encountered a large wharf, it always had to dock for a day to replenish supplies, and the local officials also took the opportunity to board the ship to visit Lord Qincha, and naturally Cheng Yi and gifts were indispensable. In this way, the official ship stopped and stopped, and arrived in Suzhou after 20 days.

The ship docked, Wang Qiang, Zhang Xiaodong and others left the ship and landed, just arrived on the shore, the wharf immediately gongs and drums were noisy, the sound of firecrackers was densely resounded, Suzhou officials and gentry of all sizes gathered on the dock to meet Lord Qincha and the new prefect, a cadre of officials to pay homage to the ceremony, Zhang Xiaodong led Wang Qiang on the official sedan chair, Wang Qiang watched the street scene through the window, only to see that this Suzhou Mansion is indeed prosperous and rich, the street is bustling, the crowd is surging, Wang Qiang glanced at Zhang Xiaodong worriedly and said: "Brother Zhang, we are our own brothers, You can't have prepared it here too, right? ”

"Hahahaha!" Zhang Xiaodong replied with a smile: "Brother, you are too worried, Suzhou has always been so prosperous, there is no need to prepare anything?" Believe it or not, there are a lot of people begging for food on the street? ”

Wang Qiang went out to take a closer look, and there were indeed some ragged beggars begging from shop to shop with sticks in their hands, and he was relieved.

Zhang Xiaodong said on the side: "Most of these begging people came from the north, and now the cities of Nanjing and Hangzhou are full of hungry people from the north who have come to escape the famine. We've got a porridge shack here, too. ”

------

Wang Qiang's Qin Gang Xingyuan was arranged in a mansion vacated by a wealthy merchant in Suzhou, this house has three entrances inside and outside, the house is spacious and tall, the carved beams and painted pillars are very luxurious, the owner in order to please Wang Qiang, the furniture and other daily necessities are replaced with new ones, and the housekeeper, maid, mother-in-law, cook and other envoys are all left to serve.

Zhang Xiaodong's new official has a lot of affairs, coupled with the handover of the work of the city department, he is busy. Tian Jingming led a group of household officials to travel around various yamen every day to implement the matter of raising military rations. The most idle is Wang Qiang, who takes a few guards to visit the places of interest in Suzhou during the day, and has local officials and gentry to visit or feast at night.

In the afternoon, Wang Qiang woke up from a nap, and when he got up, he sat in the living room in a daze, wondering where to go for a walk in the afternoon, and the servant came to report that there were guests coming to visit him during his nap, and he had been waiting in the side hall for half an hour. Wang Qiang ordered the guests to come over. After a while, the family led a young man into the living room, Wang Qiang got up to meet him, the young man was medium-sized, well-proportioned, handsome, the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, and his face was smiling, like a warm spring breeze, which made people feel close at first sight. The young man stepped forward and bowed down with his fists and said, "Zhang Xiaoping, a merchant in Suzhou, meet Lord Qinchawang." ”

"Oh? Zhang Xiaoping! So who are you and this Zhang Xiaodong? Wang Qiang asked.

"Yes, Zhang Xiaodong is my brother." Zhang Xiaoping nodded and said.

"Haha, it turned out to be my own brother, come and see." Wang Qiang said happily.

"Master Xie." Zhang Xiaoping sat in the guest seat, and said respectfully: "I have long heard my brother talk about adults, and I have always admired the demeanor of adults. I was a layman a few days ago, and when I returned this morning, I heard that my lord had arrived in Suzhou, so I came to pay a visit. ”

"Well, Zhang Xiaodong and I are good brothers, you are not outsiders, let's be brothers in private, those politeness on the official face will be waived, how about it!"

"It's better to be respectful than to obey your fate, my brother said that the adult is a broad person, when I saw it today, sure enough, the adult has been in Suzhou for some time, but are you still used to it?" Zhang Xiaoping relaxed and said.

"Well, there's nothing I'm not used to, it's just a little stuffy." Wang Qiang raised his feet and tilted his face, pouted his teeth, and said with an annoying look: "You Suzhou is a bigger place, I have walked around these pavilions and pavilions enough, I am bored, don't you have any fresh things?" ”

Zhang Xiaoping observed his words, pondered Wang Qiang's thoughts in his heart, smiled for a while and said in a low voice: "Of course there are fun places, but your identity is inconvenient." ”

"You mean the green house, the brothel?" Wang Qiang squinted his eyes at Zhang Xiaoping, with an excited and curious look.

Zhang Xiaoping was relieved, and said with a smile: "The colorful boats on the Suzhou River, the tea house and wine shop, the dancing girls and courtesans, are beautiful, it is a scene in the south of the Yangtze River, famous far and near, and you will be happy and happy when you get there." ”

Wang Qiang was itchy by Zhang Xiaoping, he didn't have a chance to patronize such a place even in modern society, and said secretly: "If there is such a fun place, what kind of grandson is there, hurry up!" But after pondering for a while, he sat down slowly, thinking: "No, this emperor has more eyeliner spies, maybe his every move will be watched, I am a eunuch, I have stayed in the palace, if the matter of this kiln reaches the emperor's ears, then I must not be clicked." His uncle, why did God let me be reincarnated as a eunuch! I couldn't help but feel frustrated when I thought of this.

Zhang Xiaoping guessed Wang Qiang's thoughts and smiled secretly: "Although this person is a eunuch, he is also a man of temperament. He leaned over to Wang Qiang and whispered: "My lord, although the imperial court explicitly prohibits officials from going to Fireworks Willow Lane to have fun, but if you change into civilian clothes and go quietly, it will not be in the way, you are born in this realm, and others don't know you, and if you go there to drink and listen to the music, even if others know, it is not a big deal." ”

After listening to Zhang Xiaoping's words, Wang Qiang's heart and eyes moved again, and he secretly thought: "Also, I'll listen to the tune and see the dancing or something, even if Chongzhen knows it, it won't be good, damn, what's wrong with the eunuch, are the eunuchs also human!" Thinking of this, he stood up and whispered to Zhang Xiaoping: "I said brother, you are more familiar with the ground in Suzhou than me, everything is arranged by you, in short, it is safe to be safe." ”

"Rest assured, my lord, everything is arranged by myself, and everything is guaranteed to be foolproof."

In the evening, Wang Qiang was dressed as a rich boy and brother, and quietly came to Linfeng Pavilion accompanied by Zhang Xiaoping. That Linfeng Pavilion is close to Suzhou Creek, is the most high-end and most famous brothel in Suzhou, the corridor in the wide courtyard is nine songs, the shade is luxuriant, the birds are singing and the flowers are fragrant, more than a dozen independent small buildings in the courtyard are chic and exquisite, it is a typical Jiangnan architectural style, from time to time from the attic comes out the elegant sound of the piano, through the window, you can vaguely see the figure of the woman's slender figure, or stroke the qin, or dance, or look at the window, or talk about wine. Wang Qiang and Zhang Xiaoping came to a building under the guidance of the turtle slave, and sat down in front of a table of eight immortals in the lobby. ”

Wang Qiang sipped the tea, carefully observed the guests around him, all of them were dressed as rich businessmen or sons, and after only a while, he saw the fat old bustard trotting in like a gust of wind, waving a handkerchief in his hand, and shouting as he walked: "Oh, a few masters, I can make you wait for a long time, my wife is guilty, I will accompany you." ”

A young man dressed as a boy sitting at the door got up to meet the old bustard and said eagerly: "Mom, you have to arrange for me today no matter what, I have been waiting for five days." ”

The old bustard stopped, raised the handkerchief in his hand, raised his head arrogantly and said: "I said Sun Gongzi, why are you here again, I persuade you to die of this heart, we are round and fairy-like characters, not to mention five days, everyone who waited for the last month has it." Besides, we have a lot of other girls here, you can change whichever you want, it's not round? After saying that, he left the boy with a cold face, and went straight to a wealthy businessman in his forties who was sitting at the head of the house, and the grandson looked helpless, sighed and turned around and went out.

When the old bustard came to the rich merchant, he grabbed the man's shoulder and said flatteringly: "Alas, my master Qian, which gust of wind blew you here, you are a distinguished guest, say, who do you want?" Fengxian is still Caiyun, or the two of them are waiting for you together, but you have to be careful of your own body and bones, hehehehehe. The old bustard said with a smile.

The Qian Ye took out a silver ticket from his sleeve pocket, handed it to the old bustard, stared at her and said, "Let Yuanyuan sing me a song, this thousand taels is yours." ”

"This ------" the old bustard had an embarrassed expression, hurriedly attached to Qian Ye's ear and chirped a few words, and then reluctantly handed the silver ticket back to Qian Ye, and Qian Ye said angrily: "Alas, it's really disappointing!" Forget it, let's call Fengxian and Caiyun, let Uncle I get out of the fire. After saying that, he got up, and a turtle slave hurriedly stepped forward and helped Qian Ye upstairs.

Wang Qiang heard that several people were looking for Yuanyuan to no avail, and couldn't help but ask Zhang Xiaoping curiously: "Who is this Yuanyuan?" It's so hard to please. ”

Zhang Xiaoping leaned over Wang Qiang and whispered: "This round circle is the top brand of Linfeng Pavilion, it looks like a fairy, and it is proficient in singing, dancing and piano painting. I've only seen it once in the next, and it's still unforgettable. ”

"Oh." Wang Qiang pondered in his heart: "There is such an outstanding woman in this wind and dust, round, round?" Chen Yuanyuan! Wang Qiang thought in his heart, and Zhang Xiaoping said in his ear: "Yes, yes, yes, it's Chen Yuanyuan, adults have also heard of it?" ”

Wang Qiang couldn't help but be shocked in his heart, he didn't expect that the famous beauty in history Chen Yuanyuan was actually here, he knew something about Chen Yuanyuan, and he was angry at the crown, saying that Wu Sangui surrendered the Qing Dynasty for this Chen Yuanyuan, led the Qing soldiers into the customs, and destroyed Li Zicheng. Could it be that he can actually see Chen Yuanyuan! This is God's eyes, and it is not in vain that I came to this world!

At this time, the old bustard had already finished assigning other guests, turned around and walked to Wang Qiang, leaned on the armrest of Wang Qiang's chair and looked Wang Qiang up and down, and said with a smile: "Yo, I said that this little brother, look at you, look at you, look, this white and pure, really handsome, came out with the adults in the family behind his back, right?" As he spoke, he reached out and stroked Wang Qiang's shoulder.

Zhang Xiaoping stretched out his hand beside him and gently removed the old bustard's hand, and said with a smile: "Don't make a mistake, our prince has a precious status, you have to be careful." The old bustard raised his head and recognized Zhang Xiaoping, knew his identity, saw him sitting under Wang Qiang, realized that the identity of this little white face was not trivial, and hurriedly smiled and said: "Oh, it was Zhang Ye who came, looking at my old woman's clumsiness." She hurriedly bowed to Wang Qiang and said: "Wang Gongzi, you must be here for the first time, the girls in my Linfeng Pavilion are all excellent, or I will find a few, you can take a look and pick a satisfactory one." We're ------ here."

Wang Qiang was still thinking about himself, his eyes were straight, and he muttered: "Chen Yuanyuan? ”

Seeing Wang Qiang's obsessive demeanor, the old bustard said in embarrassment: "This master, this can make the old man embarrassed, Yuanyuan can't see guests today, you still have to change it." ”

Zhang Xiaoping said: "Why? Don't you think our lord's identity is not enough? I'll tell you, our lord ------" The old bustard interrupted Zhang Xiaoping's words and said: "Master, you misunderstood, I won't tell you, Yuanyuan has been concentrating on composing a new tune these days, and she won't see any guests when she says it, this is her rule, if she makes the Yuanyuan girl unhappy, it will cost my wife's life." The day before yesterday, the prefect had a banquet, and he invited Lord Qincha from the capital to ask us to sing the song but was also refused. ”

Hearing the old bustard say this, Zhang Xiaoping also felt embarrassed. At this time, Wang Qiang had already come back to his senses, and said with a little disdain: "What's so difficult about composing a tune, as for being so evil, you tell her, Master I will have a lot of tunes, keep her unheard of, if you don't believe it, let her have a long insight!" As he spoke, he opened the fan in his hand and shook it gently.

The folding fan was rewarded to him by Chongzhen, the old bustard has seen a lot of dignitaries and nobles, is a knowledgeable person, only to see that the fan is inlaid with gold edges, bright yellow silk wrapped handle, the fan pendant is a piece of topaz, at a glance it is a royal thing, the old bustard was shocked, determined that Wang Qiang is a royal relative, and hurriedly laughed and said: "Good my lord, forgive my wife for being clumsy, I didn't see that you are a nobleman, you wait, I will talk to Yuanyuan." With that, he trotted out.

Wang Qiang drank tea and waited for a while, and the old bustard came back in a hurry, and said with surprise on his face: "Okay, my lord, that round girl actually agreed, please come with me." Wang Qiang followed the old bustard out of the building, but Zhang Xiaoping stayed in a funny way.

Walk along the stone road in the garden into the backyard, cross a wooden bridge, enter a bamboo forest, a gust of wind blows, the green bamboo swaying, rustling, adding a quiet and elegant, making people feel refreshed and happy. In the middle of the bamboo forest, there is a three-story bamboo building, the old bustard let Wang Qiang into the living room of the bamboo building, sat on the couch in the south head, two maids stepped forward, waited for Wang Qiang to take off the cotton robe, and put the melon and fruit fragrant tea, lit the incense burner, and then the old bustard waved his hand and took the two maids to retreat, and gently closed the door.

Wang Qiang was the only one left in the hall, very quiet, waited for a long time, and did not see Chen Yuanyuan appear, Wang Qiang sat there alone and waited, and said in his heart: "This Chen Yuanyuan is known as the first beauty in the world, it must be more beautiful than Concubine Li, how beautiful is that!" I don't know what it looks like? Why hasn't it come out for so long? This beautiful girl is a big shelf, the same in ancient and modern times, it won't be annoyed and don't want to see me. He thought about it and became a little uneasy.

After waiting for a while, only to hear the sound of the stairs, Wang Qiang raised his eyes and saw a woman wearing a white veil down the stairs, the woman lightly swept her moth eyebrows, lightly touched her red lips, and smiled with apricot eyes, revealing a kind of earthly charm in the elegance, like a white cloud slowly falling down. Although he had enough psychological preparation, Wang Qiangyi was shocked by Chen Yuanyuan's beauty, he wanted to stand up to greet him, but he was stunned halfway through getting up, he stared at Chen Yuanyuan with straight eyes, only to feel that his heart was hit by something, and his mind was suddenly blank, what Concubine Li, Cai Ling'er, what Monroe, Zhang Ziyi's were all gone, I only felt that all the beauties in the world were covered by the light of Chen Yuanyuan in front of me.

Chen Yuanyuan has been through the dust for a long time, and has seen many guests of all kinds, and almost all men who see him for the first time will have gaffes, so she just felt funny when she saw Wang Qiang standing there with his body hunched like a shrimp. Yuan Yuan ignored Wang Qiang, and walked straight to the couch opposite Wang Qiang and sat down, with a guqin on the low table in front of the couch. Chen Yuanyuan's ten fingers lightly picked, a quiet and elegant music floated out, Yuanyuan played an ancient song, called "Qingxin Mantra", listening to the tune, Wang Qiang was like being in a quiet valley, the spring water was dingdong, the breeze was coming, the mood was slowly calming down, he sat on the couch, closed his eyes slightly, and his body and mind were completely immersed in the melodious music. With a series of plucking of the round ten fingers, the sound of the piano rose like a bead, and then abruptly stopped, and silence returned to the room.

Wang Qiang opened his eyes, looked at Chen Yuanyuan opposite, and saw that she was fifteen or sixteen years old, although she had the color of wind and dust, she couldn't hide her purity and immaturity, like a hibiscus with water, and couldn't help but feel a feeling of pity and closeness in her heart, and she had the idea of trying her best to protect this girl.

Chen Yuanyuan saw that Wang Qiang had returned to normal, so he got up and squatted Wanfu and said, "I've seen the son." ”

Wang Qiang also got up and arched his hand and said: "You don't have to be polite, the girl is really as beautiful as a fairy, and it is really a blessing to see the girl in the next life, and it is not in vain to come to this world!" After speaking, he bowed to Chen Yuanyuan.

Chen Yuanyuan heard Wang Qiang praise himself so bluntly, and he also liked it in his heart, and said in his heart: "This person is straightforward, not as hypocritical as some literati and bigwigs." Then he smiled and said: "Thank you for the compliment, I just wrote a song "Pure Heart Mantra", what does Childe think?" ”

Wang Qiang truthfully said what he felt just now, which is the artistic conception described in the song, Chen Yuanyuan secretly said in his heart: "Seeing that this son is young, but he can participate in the deep meaning of the song, he is a bosom friend of the slave family." She sat down slowly, and said in a mansheng voice: "There is another song here in the slave family, please pay the son." After speaking, she pulled her ten fingers and played a song of Yangzhou slow, and sang soothingly: "When is the bright moon, ask the wine to the sky, I don't know what year the heavenly palace is, what year is ------ tonight", this lyric is the words of the great poet Su Shi of the Song Dynasty "When is the bright moon in the water tune song head".

In modern society, this song has also been adapted into a song, which is very popular, and Wang Qiang can also sing it, this lyric Wang Qiang is familiar, and he can't help but shake his head and respond to the beat. After Chen Yuanyuan finished singing, Wang Qiang got up and applauded: "The girl plays well, and she sings better." It just so happens that I can sing this song too, but the tune is slightly different, so I'll sing it to you. After speaking, he hummed softly, Wang Qiang sang a modern adaptation of pop songs, the tune is beautiful and tactful, with classical charm, and not as light as the ancient songs, although his voice is average, but the tune is very accurate, Chen Yuanyuan heard it, was surprised, and said in his heart: "I didn't expect this person to be an elegant person." She is deeply familiar with the rhythm, and when Wang Qiang sang the second paragraph, she actually stroked the strings to close Wang Qiang's singing, and Wang Qiang sang more and more emotionally. After singing the last sentence: "I hope that people will last a long time, and they will be together for thousands of miles." After that, Chen Yuanyuan's piano sound also followed from high to low, and the aftermath was ethereal, and it stopped for a while. Both of them were immersed in the song and were relatively speechless, and they both added a good impression of each other in their hearts.

Chen Yuanyuan has seen a lot of literati and scholars, and he is used to being flattered and sought after, and he also feels that his piano skills are superb, so he heard the old bustard say that Wang Qiang wanted her to have a long insight, and he was not convinced, so he was willing to agree to see Wang Qiang, and he originally had the idea of comparing with Wang Qiang, but Wang Qiang's song was really extraordinary, which made her heart break, she got up and said: "Mr. is really an elegant person, this song is beautiful and beautiful, I don't know who made it, Mr. can give the score to the slave family, so that the slave family can learn." ”

Wang Qiang smiled secretly in his heart: "Don't talk about the score, I don't know if this tune is running or not, fortunately, there is no problem with intellectual property rights here, even if there is, it is also mine." Then he smiled and said: "The girl praised it falsely, in fact, I don't know the rhythm, let alone compose music, but I saw that the girl just played and sang beautifully, so I improvised this song to make the girl laugh." ”

"Oh? Was it an impromptu gesture? It really makes the little woman admire. Chen Yuanyuan praised in his mouth, but in his heart he thought that Wang Qiang was bragging.

"It's nothing, the girl wants to listen to it, there will be a lot of tunes in the next place, but my voice is rough, I'm afraid of polluting the girl's ears." Wang Qiang said.

"Really? Can that gentleman give another lesson for the slave family to learn? Chen Yuanyuan said lightly.

"Okay." Wang Qiang said. He felt that if he sang modern pop songs, it was estimated that Chen Yuanyuan would not understand, and he should find some soulful and simple songs with soothing tunes to fit the current situation, so he thought for a while, cleared his throat, and sang: "Hongchen has its own infatuation, Mo Xiao's infatuation is too crazy, if it weren't for a cold ------" This is a song by Anita Mui called "Plum Blossom Three Alleys". The lyrics of this song are euphemistic and affectionate, which is completely different from the style of ancient songs and lyrics at that time. Chen Yuanyuan usually has a lot of lustful people among the guests, so he has heard a lot of obscene words, but listening to Wang Qiang's songs is affectionate, expressing his heart directly, and he doesn't feel a little blushing.

Wang Qiang regarded Chen Yuanyuan as a celestial person, his heart was full of admiration, and there was no idea of dividing it, he saw Chen Yuanyuan smiling shy and smiling like a begonia, and he couldn't help but sigh in his heart: "How could such a good girl later marry Wu Sangui, a big traitor, and become infamous through the ages, this is also so unfair, no!" I'm going to have to stop this anyway. He sighed lightly, and did not care about taboos, and said: "Alas, round girl, you are so beautiful and so versatile, how can you fall into the dust!" What a pity. ”

Chen Yuanyuan said with a look on his face: "Don't hide the son, the slave family's original name is Xing Yuan, his parents died when he was a child, and he depended on his grandmother since he was a child, and when he was thirteen years old, his grandmother was bedridden, and the family had no income, and he was in debt for his grandmother's treatment. Later, a merchant saw that I was embarrassed, and offered to pay back the money for me, but he wanted to sell me to the workshop to be a singer, in order to see a doctor for my grandmother, the slave family had to agree, so I came here, learned singing, dancing, piano painting, and gave the stage name Chen Yuanyuan. The slave family is an ominous person, and he only blames himself for his miserable life. ”

Wang Qiang listened, sympathized with Chen Yuanyuan in his heart, and said: "Yes, this red face ------" He wanted to say that the red face is not suitable for use here, so he quickly changed his words and said: "This red face has a thin life since ancient times, this god is jealous and red-faced, anyway, it may not be a good thing if this one is too good-looking." So there is a word to persuade the girl, I don't know whether to talk about it or not. ”

Chen Yuanyuan chuckled and said, "Childe, it's okay to say it. ”

"Okay, then you're welcome." Wang Qiang got up, paced around the room and said slowly: "In the troubled times, it is not uncommon in history for the heroes and the strong to rise together, fighting each other for a treasure, and seeking a woman's hatred for the country. The girl is amazingly beautiful, better than an immortal, it can be described as the treasure among people, this small Linfeng Pavilion may not be able to accommodate the girl. I am worried that in the future, someone will cause a bloody storm in order to compete for the girl, and it will cause hatred for eternity. ”

Chen Yuanyuan saw that Wang Qiang made this grand statement at a young age, which was a little sensational, and said with a light smile: "The slave family has fallen into the dust, whether to go or stay is not up to myself, and besides, I am just a woman, why is it bloody and bloody, and the country is hated, and the son is afraid that he will be too worried." ”

Wang Qiang saw that Yuanyuan didn't believe it, and didn't know how to explain it, so he said eagerly: "I don't understand this matter in half a sentence, no matter what, anyway, if there is a person named Wu Sangui who wants to marry a girl in the future, you must not agree, otherwise you will have a lifelong hatred!" ”

Chen Yuanyuan said strangely: "Who is Wu Sangui? The slaves have never heard of it, nor have they seen it. The slave family is still young, and the matter of marriage is not firmly in the mind of the son. ”

Chen Yuanyuan felt that Wang Qiang was a little nonsense, and his words naturally brought out some dissatisfaction.

Wang Qiang said helplessly: "Okay, I hope the girl doesn't forget what she said today." ”

Wang Qiang's words were disinterested, the two sat silently, and suddenly heard the knocker on the door, and a maid came in and saluted Wang Qiang and said, "Childe, Zhang Gongzi, who came with you, said that he had something urgent to see you." As soon as the words fell, Zhang Xiaoping said outside the door: "Prince Wang, my brother sent someone to deliver a message, please return home quickly, there is something important to discuss." ”

When Wang Qiang heard this, he had no choice but to say goodbye to Chen Yuanyuan. When I returned to my residence, I saw Zhang Xiaodong and Tian Jingming waiting anxiously in the living room, and when they saw Wang Qiang, Zhang Xiaodong stepped forward and said: "My brother is back, let me find it easily, the emperor has a will, it is an urgent transmission of eight hundred miles, I am afraid there is an urgent matter." ”

"Oh!" Wang Qiang saw a yellow box on the table, and hurriedly stepped forward to open it to watch, inside was an edict from Emperor Chongzhen, saying that the military situation in the northwest had changed, and asked Wang Qiang and Tian Jingming to quickly escort the grain and grass back to Beijing, and there must be no mistake.

The three of them all saw Chongzhen's will, and were silent for a while, it seems that something happened in the northwest!