Beijing, midwinter.

The ground is cold and the snowflakes are as big as your hands.

The snow fluttering all over the sky has plated a thin veil on the bustling capital, and there are not many people scattered on the royal road on the street.

The charcoal seller pulled the car and walked slowly in the ice and snow.

At a glance, the huge capital looked a little deserted in an instant.

But the tavern teahouse is particularly lively.

Outside, goose feathers and heavy snow are falling, and the people in the capital meet with friends to drink in the tavern to warm up, hit the bowl and sing, and live out the atmosphere of the New Year.

A burly man with a bearded face and dark skin took a sip of wine, and looked at the side wearing coarse linen clothes, his skin was also a little dark, but he could clearly see a little bookish air between his eyebrows.

"Recently, the capital has not been peaceful, and the people from the Criminal Department are searching for people from house to house."

"I heard that it was Da Chu's fine work that mixed into the capital, and he wanted to use next year's spring to blend into the court......"

"It's Da Chu's people again......"

The burly man took a sip of wine, wiped his mouth and said, "What do you say those who are emperors think?" There is such a big piece of land in the world, you also fight, he fights, the head of the fight is broken and bloody, and it is we ordinary people who die......"

The slightly bookish man suddenly panicked, and hurriedly said: "Insulting the monarch's father is a crime that belongs to the following crimes, and it should be punished as great disrespect, this is an unforgivable crime!" If someone listens to it, you and I won't have enough ten heads! ”

The burly man waved his hand impatiently.

At this moment, a young man in white walked up, carrying a bamboo bookcase and an umbrella that had been put away.

The young man in white had pale skin and clear eyes, but his cheeks were a little red from the cold.

He slowly put down the bookcase and said softly: "There are no empty seats in the tavern, two brothers, can you allow me to sit here?" ”

The slightly bookish man looked at the scholar appearance of the young man in white, and felt close.

He looked at the young man in white with a warm smile and said, "It's okay, sit down." Xiaoyou also came to participate in the Spring Festival, right? Where did it come from? ”

The young man in white nodded and said, "From Jiangnan." ”

After that, the man looked at the young man in white with a little more appreciation in his eyes.

Since ancient times, talented people have been born in the south of the Yangtze River.

Among the literati and writers from the past and present, half of them are from Jiangnan.

I don't know if the smoke and rain in the south of the Yangtze River are too hazy, or if the crossing bridge and willows there are natural poems, and they can always give birth to so many talented people who cherish their family and country.

Now the four major families of Jiangnan Province, King Lu and Li Zheng, all have entered the court as officials, among which the Lu family has risen to the apex of the official, and there is no seal, it is the first assistant of the dynasty, and one person is above ten thousand people.

This person's name is Lu Li.

Since Lu Li left home to participate in the scientific examination, he was admitted to the Hanlin Academy.

In the next few years, he continued to rise, until now he is the first assistant of the official residence, but he has never returned to his hometown in Jiangnan, and he has never even exchanged letters, as if he wants to completely cut off everything in the past.

The world speculated that Lord Shoufu did not have a good time in the Lu family back then.

That's all for later.

The slightly bookish man poured a glass of wine for the young man in white.

The young man in white took a sip lightly and said softly, "I just heard the two of you talking about the content, and I have a little doubt. ”

The man said, "Tell me about it." ”

"The Holy Lord issued a decree that the Ministry of Punishment should thoroughly investigate the capital, and it is bound to catch the fine work of the great Chulai, but how big is the capital, and there is such a big movement, isn't it a surprise to the snake?"

The slightly bookish man frowned slightly.

The burly man slapped the table and said indifferently: "What's so doubtful about this, the imperial city is full of His Majesty's eyeliner, after the criminal department releases the news, that person will definitely panic, as long as he makes heavy troops guard the key point of customs clearance from Beijing, it will be effortless to catch him!" ”

The young man in white turned the wine glass in his hand and spoke softly again: "Have you ever thought about where the news of Da Chu's fine work came from?" This person wants to enter the court by taking advantage of the Spring Toad Palace, which shows that this person is confident that he must have merit, and maybe he will be a talent in the world......"

The young man in white paused and did not continue.

The burly man suddenly frowned and was silent for a long time.

The bookish man's pupils gradually dilated, but he looked at the white-clothed young man with a hint of doubt.

The young man in white looked at the man, drank all the wine in the cup, and said with a light smile: "The wine is still good for others." I took my leave under it. ”

Then he picked up his bookcase and got up to leave his seat.

The man in a coarse linen coat with a slightly bookish atmosphere looked at the wine in the cup and couldn't come back to his senses for a long time.

The burly man scratched his head, looked at his friend beside him, and then at the young man in white who was walking towards the door of the tavern, confused.

……

The young man in white stretched out his hand out of the door, and the snowflakes fell on the palm of his hand, feeling a chill.

"The snow in the capital is indeed much better than the snow in the south of the Yangtze River."

The young man in white clenched his fist and withdrew his hand, stood with an umbrella, and walked out of the tavern.

Deserted streets.

The young man in white stepped on the snow and made a "creaking" sound.

This year's winter was extremely cold, and the young man in white exhaled a heavy breath of white air, as if he was about to vomit out the boredom in his chest.

Why did he say that to the two drinkers who met in Pingshui?

The young man in white was a little stunned, and before he knew it, the umbrella had been blown away from his hand by a gust of wind and fell to the ground.

The young man in white picked up the umbrella and put it away.

Snowflakes fell one after another on his white robe.

Sad that the Imperial City is in the passing place, and the palace is made of soil. The people are also suffering in prosperity, and the people are suffering in death.

After a while, a layer of snow visible to the naked eye had fallen on Bai Yi's body.

The mortal people are living in misery, and it is bitter enough, and it cannot be bitter anymore.

I can't get you out of suffering, I can only ask you to stop being so ignorant, in the eyes of those high-ranking people, how are the people different from pigs and dogs? How is it different from knife fish?

The young man in white thought of the slightly bookish man.

"I think you have seen it, the chessboard under the storm in the capital, even if you can't see who is playing the chess, and where the chess is played, but at least you see the chessboard, and there is only so much I can do......" The young man in white moved his mouth slightly, saying a fragmented thought that only he could hear.

……

Inside the tavern.

The slightly bookish man looked at the wine in the glass, shook his head and smiled bitterly.

He looked at the burly man beside him who was drinking and eating, and his expression was very painful.

For people like us, this life stops here, even if they see the corner of the chessboard. It's better to live a life in a muddle, which is the best ending for us......

"The wine is cold."

The slightly bookish man drank the wine in his glass in one gulp, looked at the snowflakes flying in the sky outside the door, and was silent.

……

……

Deserted streets.

A charcoal seller suddenly appeared in the distance.

He pulled the cart full of charcoal and walked step by step in the direction of the young man in white.

Step by step, very slowly, very slowly.

But in the blink of an eye, the charcoal seller had already appeared in front of the young man in white.

He dusted off the snow on the shoulders of the young man in white, and said in a hoarse voice: "In this cold and snowy place, why don't you use an umbrella?" ”

The young man in white looked at the charcoal seller in front of him who couldn't see his face clearly, and said softly: "The road I have to walk is far, far away, so far that this umbrella will eventually be destroyed because it can't bear the weight of the snow." ”

The charcoal seller said helplessly: "After walking for a while, don't you just tilt your umbrella and let the snow slide down?" ”

"It's always slippery, there's always some left, isn't it? After a long time, the remaining snow accumulates more and more, and the umbrella will eventually break. The young man in white looked at the charcoal seller and said softly.

The charcoal seller was silent.

He glanced at the snow on the wooden canopy, then pulled up the cart full of charcoal and slowly walked past the young man in white.

The young man in white remained motionless, staring ahead.

The charcoal seller walked step by step, very slowly.

Finally, the young man in white turned around, looked at the charcoal seller who was about to go away, and said softly: "Yunzhuang! ”

The figure of the charcoal seller froze.

He took off the hat above his head and turned his head to look at the young man in white.

It was a face that was not old, with haggard eyes, chapped lips, and a hint of pity between the eyebrows.

He sighed, looked at the young man in white and said, "Xu Qing." ”

The young man in white forced a smile and said, "Long time no see." ”

On this day, the snow in the capital was extraordinarily heavy, and the falling snow seemed to cover everything in the world.