Chapter 28, Qixi Festival

When Sanchuan Heping came over again, everyone was sitting around Fang Ming's room drinking tea and chatting. The door was ajar, Fang Ming's room was the first one closest to the courtyard, and anyone who entered the aisle would pass through this room first. Ah Lang sat near the door of the room, keeping an eye on the movement outside, and before Mikawa Heping stepped on the wooden steps in front of the door, he already knew that someone was coming.

Ah Lang opened the door, Fang Ming stood up and invited Sanchuan Heping into the house for a cup of tea. Sanchuan Heping bowed, walked over and knelt on the mat next to the coffee table, took a cup of tea handed by Zheng Yuanji, drank it all, and said, "Thank you!" Miss Masami asked me to invite you to participate in the Tanabata party held in Fuchu tonight. The dinner party starts at seven o'clock, and already guests are arriving, so if you are interested, you can take a stroll around the courtyard now. ”

Zheng Yuanji asked, "Sanchuan-kun, please tell me what are the arrangements for tonight's party?" ”

"The Gonghe family has to hold a Qixi party every year, and the female dependents of the Gonghe family are responsible for initiating the event invitation, and most of the female dependents of several neighborhoods around will come to participate, because this party is a rare gathering for women in a year, of course, many young men will also come to have a good time, so everyone has been looking forward to it for a long time. The competition is mainly for young women of marriageable age, and is judged by reputable elders in the neighborhood. This year's event was initiated by Ms. Masami, so she had to greet guests at the door, so she couldn't come and invite you personally. ”

Zheng Yuanji asked with great interest: "So you still have to compete?" What kind of competition is it? ”

"The young girls who participated in the competition were all registered in advance, and they were usually women in their twenties. The main event of the competition is the cooking competition, where the participating girls bring their own dishes, and several judges will taste them and select the best chefs according to their cooking skills. In addition, there will be some interesting games and prize lantern riddles, and those who win more prizes are recognized by the neighborhood as Qiao Sister! The so-called competition is actually of an entertaining nature. ”

"Ahh It's so much fun! Dandan, let's go and have a look! Zheng Yuanji jumped up.

So everyone got up and walked out of the wing.

The sky was still slightly brightened by the sunset, and when everyone walked out of the wing, they saw that the backyard had just been decorated. The trees are hung with colorful lights, tied with red ribbons, the street lights in the yard are all lit, in order to match the festive atmosphere tonight, the street lamps are replaced with red bulbs, and many red lanterns are also hung in the yard, and the red lights everywhere make the yard full of warm and festive atmosphere. Under the eaves of the middle room, several red lanterns are hung, gently swaying in the breeze. In the courtyard, several long cases were also placed in the gazebo under the trees, and a few lanterns were hung to illuminate the gazebo. The bridge deck of the small bridge by the pavilion is covered with a red carpet, the railing is wrapped with a golden gauze scarf, and there are many magpies hanging with transparent silk threads creatively above the bridge deck, as if there are really a lot of magpies gathering and flying on the bridge, building a magpie bridge, waiting for the cowherd and the weaver girl to meet here.

In the middle of the wings on both sides of the backyard is the back door of the mansion, which is also a two-story wooden gatehouse. Tonight, too, two dazzling red lanterns are hung with two white Chinese characters "Tanabata".

Downstairs, a beautiful woman in a bright red kimono greets the arriving guests, and she is none other than Masami Miyai. The number of guests gradually increased, including men and women, most of them young people, and the guests all wore kimonos to attend the party, and some girls and their companions carried all kinds of food boxes in their hands. People enter the courtyard in the flickering of colorful lights.

Dandan happily walked to the bridge and looked up at the magpies with a childlike innocent smile on their faces. Zheng Yuanji walked up to her, gently holding her waist with his right hand, and plucking a few magpies with his left hand. Dandan also touched the magpie's mouth with his fingers, as if he was playing with a real finch. Zheng Yuanji whispered in her ear: "Today is Valentine's Day, and the magpies are matchmakers, they have witnessed the love of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, and also witnessed my love for you." ”

Dandan looked around, then looked sideways at Zheng Yuanji, and smiled slightly, "Flamboyant, sweet words." Who knows if your words are true or false? ”

"I swear to the magpies, and I speak from my heart."

"This magpie is fake, I'm real."

"Of course, how can a magpie compare to you? You're my canary. ”

"Hmph, I'm not a canary, and I didn't keep it in a cage for you to watch!" Dandan glanced at Zheng Yuanji, and used his hand to remove the hand around his waist.

"Yes, yes! I was wrong. I'm sorry! You are not a canary like a vase, you are my golden phoenix, you are the king of birds! ”

Dandan couldn't help but snort, "I'm neither as noble nor a bird as a phoenix, you're a bad bird!" Hehe. As he spoke, he knocked Zheng Yuanji's head with his hand.

"Oops, it hurts." Zheng Yuan reacted exaggeratedly, feeling happy in his heart.

Fang Ming was too lazy to look at the two of them on the bridge**, looking around and enjoying the night view in the garden.

Aaron and Pony stand at the head of the bridge, observing the garden. In the crowd, most of them were tourists in kimonos and male and female attendants of the Miyaai family, except for the two men in suits standing straight at the entrance of the back gatehouse, which stood out very conspicuously, and their attire looked out of place with the kimonos of the guests tonight. These two people look like housekeepers at a glance, but Ah Lang doesn't care about them, and Ah Lang's attention is unconsciously attracted by another woman next to Masami. She is wearing a kimono with a purple background and pink petal pattern, a head taller than Yamei, a slender face, a pair of red phoenix eyes, a pair of willow leaf cold eyebrows, a tall nose bridge, and slender lips. The light in his eyes flickered, although he was smiling when he greeted the guests, but as soon as the smile was closed, it immediately showed that the cold was compelling. She had been standing beside Masami to accompany her, but she exuded a sense of arrogance that controlled the whole situation, as if the actions of anyone around her could not escape her sight.

Ah Lang reclined on the railing of the bridge under the shadow of the trees, pretending to watch the flowing water under the bridge, allowing the pony standing in front of him to hide half of his body, peeking at the woman carefully, and quietly taking a picture of her appearance with his mobile phone. He asks Pony, "Did you notice the woman next to Miss Masami?" ”

"Well, I've seen her a long time ago, isn't she Yami's maid? It feels a little different. ”

"I've been observing her for a while, and seeing that her demeanor and temperament are by no means the identity of a maid, I just saw Masami talking to her with an attitude that seemed to be in awe of her. There was a fierce murderous aura emanating from her body. Even though she didn't stand still and didn't look at us, I think she's been keeping an eye on us and beware of this woman. ”

The pony pressed Wang Lang's shoulder with his hand, "Boss, it's because your aura is so strong that people can't help but notice you." But fortunately, you are a bodyguard, so you are not afraid to say that you have been a soldier before. ”

"Well, hopefully I'm overly sensitive, but trust my instincts, it's always good to be cautious."

Before coming to Japan, according to Director Song's deployment, Wang Lang will get in touch with Li Qiutong tonight, but Wang Lang does not know whether Li Qiutong will appear at tonight's party, and has been looking for her in the crowd. If he meets Li Qiutong, he will contact her through the agreed code, because although Wang Lang is already familiar with Li Qiutong's appearance, Li Qiutong does not know Wang Lang. If Li Qiutong did not show up for the party, then he would use a satellite phone to get in touch with her at the appointed time, that is, at ten o'clock tonight.

Before the party began, the older guests sat down to rest on the stone benches in the corridor and the courtyard, everyone was a neighbor, they all knew each other, it was rare to get together like today on weekdays, and at this time they naturally chatted about homely things. Of course, young people can't sit still, they gather in the courtyard in twos and threes, some good sisters meet and have endless private words, some tie poems and their wishes on the wishing bamboo, and some young couples come to the no-man's corner to tell their hearts, and more people play and take pictures in front of the magpie bridge and under the lantern. The garden is getting more and more lively.