The music of the painting boat sounded, and the painting boat flowed down the river with the sound of music. Wang Shuqiu leaned on the railing and looked out of the boat, there were green buildings on both sides of the river, and the lights were on at the beginning of the day, reflecting in the river, which increased the brilliance. I only heard a Yashilang voice say: "Stop the instrumental music!" ”

The musicians stop playing. Na Yashi pointed to the young man who was shaking the folding fan beside him, and said: "This son's name is Yuan Zhegui, a native of the capital, and he is a scholarly family. He pointed to the young man beside Yuan Zhegui and said, "This son's name is Cao Wenhai, and he is the master of Zhenjiang." Introduced in turn, he said: "This son, called Yan Jiang, is from Yangzhou." Wang Shuqiu's heart moved, this Yan Jiang was from Yangzhou, and couldn't help but glance at him, but he didn't know him.

Na Yashi continued: "This son's name is Dong Min, and he is the young dart head of the Nanjing Flying Dart Bureau. Speaking of this, he coughed and said, "This son's name is Wei Junchang, and he is the youngest son of the prefect of Suzhou." This Wei Junchang stood up and arched his hand. In the end, Na Yashi introduced himself: "In Xia Yu Yanbo, he is the most untalented talent in Nanjing. Everyone laughed.

Wang Shuqiu secretly wondered: It turns out that they are still meeting for the first time, but how can they be together? Yu Yanbo said: "You are all good friends of Xiaosheng, I really didn't expect to appear in Nanjing at the same time." Xiaosheng thought that everyone was a polite gentleman, so he discussed with Wei Gongzi and invited everyone to come and make friends together. As the saying goes, all brothers in the four seas. It is rare that everyone here is willing to appreciate the face, and Xiaosheng will give you a glass first. Everyone smiled and saluted each other.

Yu Yanbo said: "Originally, Xiaosheng invited everyone to come, and he should bear all the expenses, but Xiaosheng is a poor and sour talent, and he is really powerless. Fortunately, Wei Gongzi donated generously, mainly against customers, and contributed to this meeting, and Xiaosheng was grateful. This thin cup Xiaosheng wants to toast Wei Gongzi alone! Wei Junchang said with a smile: "It's just a coincidence, thanks to Brother Yu's blue eyes, so that I can be effective." If you want to toast Brother Yu, you can't be ashamed. ”

Cao Wenhai got up and said: "Wei Gongzi is righteous and thin, he is really a Zheng Zheng man, it is better for everyone to pay tribute to Wei Gongzi together." The others stood up in unison and toasted to Na Wei Junchang. Wei Junchang raised his glass and said: "I can make good friends, and this trip is not in vain." Come on, let's do it together. ”

Cao Wenhai said again: "Yurongtang's boat is the most expensive boat in the Qinhuai River, if it weren't for Wei Gongzi's righteousness and wealth, how could everyone drink and talk here." Wei Gongzi, Cao Mou, I would like to give you a drink! Wei Junchang smiled and drank the wine in the dry bottle. Here, you toast me, and I toast you. The smell of wine spread throughout the painting boat, arousing Wang Shuqiu's addiction to alcohol, and she hurriedly wiped the Yujin that was about to flow out with a handkerchief.

During these days, Wang Shuqiu had not touched a drop of wine, and her heart was already itching. Seeing that this group of gentlemen was so drunk, she couldn't help but be greedy, but she knew her identity very well, so she hurriedly turned her head and looked at the painting boat driving in the river outside the boat.

After a while, an oncoming painting boat with a lantern written "Yurong Hall". Wang Shuqiu said secretly: It's Yurongtang's ship again. There was a laugh of men and women in the painting boat, and one of the women's voices was very high, listening to her voice, looking at her figure in the painting boat, nine times out of ten it was Bingqin. Wang Shuqiu secretly wondered: No wonder she didn't see anyone for a day, she was on the boat.

Yu Yanbo's voice came from here: "Yuan Gongzi is from the capital, I don't know what news there is in Beijing?" As soon as Wang Shuqiu heard the news from Beijing, she hurriedly listened attentively.

Yuan Zhegui said: "There is no big news in Beijing City, but there is bad news from the border pass. And they were busy asking what was the matter. Wang Shuqiu's heart also sank, and he heard that the master said that the golden slave violated the border pass, and he also went to assassinate the golden slave's khan master, so far there is no news, I don't know if he succeeded. I heard Yuan Zhegui say that the matter of the border pass is not the same thing as the invasion of the border pass by the gold slave. Yuan Zhegui sighed: "The dynasty is sluggish, the officers and soldiers are corrupt, and with 400,000 people, they actually lost to tens of thousands of gold slaves, and the whole army was wiped out, but it's a pity, hateful, sad!" ”

Dong Min slapped the table and said indignantly: "Exactly! It is really not infuriating to think that my Ming general is mighty and wide, but he was defeated by the little gold slave. Yuan Zhegui said: "The Jin slave succeeded, a large area of the country outside the customs fell, and the people lived in dire straits, and were wantonly ravaged by the Jin slave, which is really distressing." All the streets and alleys in Beijing are talking about this defeat, and they all sigh. Now the scholars in the capital have jointly written a letter, asking the emperor to revitalize the dynasty, punish corruption, and clean up the world. It's a pity that the stone sank into the sea. The emperor still doesn't go to court, and the eunuchs are looting everywhere, which is really angry and resentful. It's not my little brother talking nonsense, maybe the truth is worse than what I said. ”

The defeat they call was the first battle between the Ming Dynasty and the Later Jin, known as the Battle of Sarhu. The Ming Dynasty was outnumbered by many enemies, and still returned with a miserable defeat, throwing away its armor and being extremely embarrassed. This battle also fundamentally changed the strategic thinking of the Ming Dynasty, which was originally based on attack and defense, but now it has been changed to only defend and not attack, which can be described as a declining day.

Wang Shuqiu was secretly worried about the master, since the golden slave had won a complete victory, the master's assassination of Nurhachi was likely to fail. I only hope that he can get out of the way. At the same time, she is worried about the Ming Dynasty, she is also a descendant of the Zhu family, and now the country is declining, losing a lot of land, and there are many domestic contradictions, the people are displaced, and the suffering is unspeakable, this is what she witnessed with her own eyes, and she also experienced a massacre of hungry people. When I think about it, I feel that I am sinful. Is being sold to the Qinglou by herself a punishment from God! When I thought that this was God's arrangement, I only felt that this was atonement, and even if I died 10,000 times, I couldn't make up for so many unjust souls.

Wang Shuqiu's heart has been frank, and to suffer a little more here is to give more explanations to the wronged souls. I used to be saddened by this dark place, but now I have thought through it, and this is to atone for the heinous sin I have committed. No matter what more suffering lies in the future, she will face it calmly. Even if you sink forever, there is no resentment.

The group of gentlemen was sad for a while, and Yu Yanbo slapped the table and said, "Xiaosheng invites everyone to have fun, how can you mention these annoying things." The so-called 'there is wine today and drunk today, don't care about tomorrow's right and wrong!' 'Come, come! Drink! Cao Wenhai also slapped the table and said, "That's right! The affairs of the imperial court are handled by the people of the imperial court, and it is futile for us to worry. ”

Wei Junchang said: "Play music!" After a pause, he said: "It's a pity that Yurongtang's red card was not invited, otherwise it would be more fun." Cao Wenhai smiled: "That's right! If you want to come, you can come to the best, and the vulgar powder can sweep our wine by sitting here, so it's better not to come. He saw that there were only six of them on the ship, except for a pair of musicians and a few turtle slaves, and that none of the servants and scholars who usually followed him had come, so he said half-jokingly and half-seriously.

Wei Junchang said with a smile: "There is wine and food, how can there be no beautiful woman to match?" Look, here it is! I saw the painting boat slowly approaching the shore, and sure enough, I saw a group of women dressed in fancy clothes waiting on the shore, and they all chattered when they saw the painting boat, and they seemed very excited. As soon as the deck was lowered, all the women came on board, and a total of six women came, all of them with light fans, slow sideburns and buns, soft and charming. All the gentlemen were overjoyed, and Cao Wenhai was even more happy to close his mouth, and said, "Wei Gongzi has caught enough of our appetite." ”

Wei Junchang smiled: "It's not all, you see! Several servants came up to the boat with wine jars and vegetable baskets. And the people rejoiced more. The table was filled with food and wine. Cao Wenhai had already hugged a bewitching woman, and said with a smile: "Master Wei, what kind of girl is this, all of them have beaten Xi Shi." Wei Junchang said with a smile: "Although I didn't invite the red card of Yurongtang, I feel sorry. So in the next thought, you are all good friends, how can you be disappointed when you meet for the first time, and it can be very incompetent to replace Brother Yu as the host. Everyone laughed, and some of them took the opportunity to kiss the girls on the cheeks.

Wei Junchang said again: "So I invited the red cards of the six green buildings below." Brother Cao, what you are holding is the red card of Wanhualou, called Yixiang. Cao Wenhai said happily: "Really! Do you really smell good? I smell it! As he spoke, he sniffed at that Yixiang, and his form was extremely lazy. Wei Junchang said again: "Brother Yuan's this is the red-card Nanlian of Yuxiao Pavilion. Yuan Zhegui pinched Nanlian's chin and said with a smile: "You quickly become a lotus seed, let me eat it!" Nanlian coquettishly said: "I hate it! ”

Wei Junchang said: "Brother Yan is next to the red card spring smoke of the Xianfeng Courtyard. Yan Jiang brushed the green silk of the spring smoke, smelled it, and said, "It's so fragrant!" Wait a minute, I'm going to turn you into smoke. Chunyan smiled and nudged: "I don't know who will turn into a wisp of smoke first." Yan Jiang laughed. Wei Junchang said: "Brother Dong's side is the red card Qianlan of the Red Leaf Court. Dong Min stroked that Qianlan's red lips and said, "Your two thin lips are so charming, wait a minute, help me blow a wonderful flute!" Qianlan patted him lightly on the shoulder and said, "Death!" ”

Wei Junchang said: "Brother Yu, next to you is the Red Card Hate Mountain of Nanfo'an. Yu Yanbo asked, "Are you a nun?" The hated mountain said angrily: "You are the monk!" Wei Junchang said with a smile: "Brother Yu doesn't know, there are often Shi'an Temples in the place where the fence is ticked, no, this is the red card Xiaomei of Dongfeng Temple." Do you dare to say that she is a monk? Yu Yanbo shook his head and said: "Beauty is like a flower, how can it be a stinky bald donkey." Cao Wenhai leaned over and grabbed Xiaomei's breasts, and laughed: "I can tell you for sure, this person is definitely not a monk, how can a monk have a pair of tits?" The crowd burst into laughter.

Wang Shuqiu secretly said: These so-called literati will come out with all their ugliness when they see women. Wei Junchang said: "These six red cards plus Yurong Hall's Bingqin are collectively called Qin Huai's Seventh Sisters. Yuan Zhegui said: "In this way, it is worth the trip." Cao Wenhai slapped the table and said: ",!" Xiao Hao coughed. Wang Shuqiu leaned on the railing and played a song "Mei'er Laugh" to help this group of gentlemen.

The sound of this flute is like a beautiful woman being coquettish in front of her lover, whispering for a while, high-pitched for a while, and tactful for a while, which makes all the gentlemen full of interest, and the words and actions are becoming more and more unscrupulous. The whole painting boat is full of joy and joy, full of spring.