Chapter 287 Lover

The hall is a place to receive guests, but it is not a good place to receive close friends. After Chen Heng entered the house, he took Xue Biao and led Baoqin towards the pavilion in the backyard.

Xue Biao looked at Chen Heng with an anxious and expectant look. The long-lost feeling caused by the change in identity disappeared immediately. On the way, he laughed out loud and joked: "It's been half a year since we last met. It made me think we hadn't seen each other for ten years."

"What you're saying is that you only have a few decades in your life." Chen Heng glared at him, "If it takes so long, I won't even be an official anymore. I'll find you and beat you up first."

"Okay, okay." Xue Biao couldn't stand him for a while, so he had to smile and compromise, "After all, he is an official. If he can't say more than three words, he will beat someone."

Although the small pavilion in the backyard of the county government office is not as exquisite as the Qingzu Pavilion of the Chen family in the capital, it is better than the spacious one. Sitting there, even the summer breeze blowing in your face becomes cooler.

Pan You'an took Chen Heng's favorite refreshments and led several servants from the mansion to wait under the pavilion. The three people above were already eager to talk.

"Tell me about your stay in Guangzhou." As soon as Chen Heng sat down, he couldn't help but ask the Xue brothers and sisters.

"What can I say?" Xue Biao spread his hands and said with a smile, "You know my temperament. In addition to indulging in landscapes, reciting poems and painting, there is no one else who doesn't love. If you ask me, you might as well ask me Sister. She has bought a lot of property there. "

When Chen Heng heard this, he looked at Bao Qin in surprise. He originally thought that the two brothers and sisters went to Guangzhou Mansion simply to escape the winter. Unexpectedly, my good second brother also managed his own business.

"Brother, don't be surprised." Baoqin, who is seventeen years old, is even more elegant than before. The eyebrows under the little hat make it difficult to distinguish between male and female, which is really amazing.

Baoqin took the initiative to get up and pour tea for his two brothers, and then explained aloud: "At that time, Qiupu Second Street was completed, and the number of craftsmen in Yangzhou was more than doubled. The weaving they produced every year was already in the warehouse. It’s piled up like a mountain. Brother, you know the weaving bureaus in Suzhou and Hangzhou.”

Baoqin said a long string of words in one breath, and after hurriedly drinking a cup of tea, he continued, "They always try to lower the price of our weaving fabrics. Since this journey is difficult and uncomfortable, several of the merchants on our streets have I’m thinking about going to Guangzhou to see what I can do.”

Seeing that the tea in Baoqin's cup was empty, Chen Heng hurriedly carried the teapot to fill it for her, and asked: "Aren't the merchants from Guangzhou also coming to Yangzhou to get the goods? Wouldn't it be better to give the goods to them directly?"

"It's okay to leave all the power to them." Bao Qin nodded, but said helplessly, "But you still have to rest assured that your job is in your own hands. Hundreds of merchants on the street are also being punished by the Weaving Bureau of Suzhou and Hangzhou. ”

Chen Heng can also understand the mood of Bao Qin and the others. After all, the current laws do not provide protection measures for merchants. If you really want others to take the goods, turn around and run away or steal it for yourself. Thousands of miles away, if I really want to rush to Guangzhou to file a complaint, I'm afraid I won't be able to find anyone.

"That's fine. It's just a pity that I didn't inform you about the rebuilding of the port in Songjiang before you went to Guangzhou." Chen Heng shook his head. If Xue Baoqin had known about it earlier, he might have saved himself a tiring trip to Guangzhou.

Who says it isn't? Bao Qin showed a smile, supported her chin with her hand, and half leaned on the stone table. Pointing at the fresh fruits and vegetables on the plate with one finger, he said: "It may not be a bad thing. At least it is always good to go to Guangzhou to see the world."

Chen Heng had never seen Guangzhou Mansion during this period. After hearing this, he asked: "What is Guangzhou Mansion like now?"

Baoqin thought for a while and replied: "Compared to Yangzhou and Jinling, it's exactly the same." Xue Biao added: "When it comes to making a living and doing business, I think Guangzhou is even better than our hometown. . The people there love to be adventurous and troublesome. In addition, Governor Shen has been in charge for many years, and the people are really prosperous and open-minded."

After listening to this, Chen Heng couldn't help but sigh and said: "It's a pity that I don't know if I will have the opportunity to go to Guangzhou once in my life and see the local customs with my own eyes."

This is also the disadvantage of being too early, Chen Heng thought in his heart. But if he didn't take up an official position early, the Chen family wouldn't be able to afford to study hard for several years. That means raising a strong labor force at home, not only eating and drinking for free, but also spending extra money to buy pens, ink, paper and inkstones.

Chen Heng shook his head and smiled, which fell into the eyes of the Xue family brothers and sisters. The latter looked at each other and smiled tacitly. Xue Biao suddenly opened the folding fan and said: "I knew you would gossip like this. Changqing, go get my drawing."

"Hey." The child under the pavilion responded. This person ran out, but Bao Qin had already leaned over and explained to Chen Heng: "This is the little book boy my brother took in in Guangzhou."

Chen Heng blinked to indicate that he understood. When the little book boy left and returned, he untied the scroll in his arms and spread out the long painting with Pan Youan. A scene full of fireworks and bustling atmosphere stood before everyone's eyes.

In the painting, you can see that the streets are intertwined with each other and there are dense crowds of people. The paving of the factory shed is clear-cut. This painting must have been painted on a spring day when flowers were blooming, because beside the tourists stopped on the long street, there were bright peach and willow trees, and the ripples on the river were like silk. This scene really made Chen Heng happier the more he watched it. He suddenly pointed to the long painted river and asked aloud: "You should be moving in spring, but why are dragon boats here?"

When it comes to this, Xue Biao gets excited. After adjusting his body, he led Chen Heng to the front of the painting, pointed to a dozen or twenty dragon boats on the river, and said: "They Guangzhou people call this a race, even though everyone only comes out at the Dragon Boat Festival. In fact, every village and village, As early as the beginning of spring, water drills began.”

"Hahahaha." Chen Heng laughed. It turns out that Guangzhou people's love for dragon boat racing has such a long history. He had only seen similar scenes on the Internet a few times before, and this time he looked at Xue Biao's paintings.

I saw only ten or twenty dragon boats, carved with dragon heads and tails to show their wrath. There are twenty people sitting nearby holding large spears, whichever is more powerful. Use a colorful canopy in the middle and embroidered umbrellas with flags and flags at the front and back to choose the most beautiful ones. The bow of the boat broke through the waves, tilted slightly, and seemed to fly into the sky. The more viewers look at it, the more they look at it, and the more they look at it, the more they praise Xue Biao's superb painting skills, which has already attracted everyone's attention.

"The painting is good, the painting is really good. Even the shapes and expressions of each person are painted lifelike." Chen Heng turned his head, looked at the smug Xue Biao, and said sincerely, "Congratulations, Xue Shanshui's name will be used in the future. I’m afraid it will be louder.”

"If you were not to be an official, with your hard work in calligraphy, you should have taken a step further." Xue Biao raised his eyebrows. He may not dare to listen to other people's compliments. Chen Heng would be happy to listen to dozens of flattery flatterers.

"The ambition is not here, the ambition is not here." Chen Heng said with a smile and pulled Xue Biao to sit down again. They and Bao Qin continued to exchange the customs and knowledge of Guangzhou, and the Xue family brothers and sisters finally turned the topic to the Chen family.

What else is there to say about the Chen family? People living their daily lives are just firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar and tea. Chen Heng smiled and talked about recent developments, then suddenly lowered his voice and told two old friends about Master Pei and his wife.

It’s impossible not to talk about this matter. We are all from the same academy. Don't talk about it now, if it drags on for a few days, Xue Biao will definitely blame him to death afterwards.

The brother and sister, who were still rejoicing at their reunion, immediately lost their tongue. After hearing what happened, Xue Biao said with emotion, "Now I know what it means to have a son who wants to raise a child but not be loved by him. I originally thought that when I came back this time, I would visit the mountain chief and the master's wife, and show off my reputation outside. I stopped by to pay a visit to my mentor and his wife. Draw a picture...hey."

Bao Qin, however, was speechless at all and remained stunned in place. His eyes gradually turned red, and after a few breaths, he was able to suppress the sadness in his heart. She entered school late that year, and Teacher Xie was particularly worried about her. He would often leave her alone and speak gentle words of concern.

Who would have thought that I would only go to a distant place once. After returning, heaven and earth were separated forever.

With a slight nasal sound, Baoqin raised his fan, clasped his fists and bowed, saying, "Brothers, I'm going out for a while."

The two brothers knew what she was going to do, and they didn't say anything to let anyone know. He just sat silently, watching the girl leave and everyone left. It wasn't until the figure disappeared into the bamboo forest in the distance that faint cries could be heard carried by the wind.

Everyone lost the excitement of the conversation. Until Daiyu came back, the three silly geese all looked dejected. What was Daiyu thinking? After just a few glances, she knew where the problem was.

"The spirit of the mountain chief and teacher is in the sky. When I see the three of you like this, I am afraid that I will have to fall asleep tonight and give you a hard slap on the hand."

It may not be easy for others to say this, but when Lin Daiyu said this, Bao Qin was really amused. The latter quickly said coquettishly: "Sister Lin!"

"You still know how to call me sister? In the past few months, I haven't even replied to a few letters. I am still tired and I have to write to you again and again. I can't understand it after a while. Don't even think about leaving this house today. Just keep it for me. Be a watering flower girl.”

"That won't work. I don't want to be a nasty guest who won't leave and disturbs your couple's good life." Bao Qinzuo smiled and stepped forward, holding Yinglian's hand. He looked left and right carefully. After a long time, he complained to Chen Heng, "Brother, you are really ruthless. Sister Yinglian looks like this, even if you can't show off the gold and silver, use some." Bi Chai and Jade Hairpin are also worthy of it. Such a good-looking person is as good as water in the clear soup for you. "

"Good sister, I don't blame him." Before Chen Heng could explain, Yinglian hurriedly patted Baoqin's hand, her brows showing her return to nature, she smiled before saying anything, "It's what I teach the children to do on weekdays. Nvhong, I don’t want to wear the pearl hairpin given by my husband and sister Lin.”

Baoqin listened to Yinglian's tone and saw that she did not look aggrieved. Finally he said with relief: "That's great. It seems that my elder brother still cares. Sister Yinglian finally stops hiding from people's eyes when she speaks."

"Did I avoid people when I spoke before?" Yinglian was a little in disbelief. She always knew about her own affairs.

Baoqin looked at Daiyu and then at Chen Heng. The three of them showed a tacit smile and lowered their voices together. Yinglian didn't have this habit at first. It was a little habit that she gradually got into after following Fengshi.

Baoqin took a step back, looked at the two sisters again, and suddenly said regretfully: "Emperor Nv is nothing more than that. I wish I could try it myself for my eldest brother."

Ridiculous, how absurd. Bao Qin, why did you end up like this when you went for a walk in Guangzhou? What exactly does Guangzhou Prefecture have? ? ? Chen Heng was stunned when he heard this. But Daiyu blushed, put her hand on Bao Qin's face, and retorted: "Really speaking, you are the master of the palace this month, who is taking advantage of who among us?"

"Anyway, you can't make it easier for others to go." Xue Baoqin laughed and teased, "Sister Lin is just different after getting married. I thought you would be like before..."

Seeing Xue Baoqin behave like a hesitating and foolish duck, Daiyu finally couldn't stand it anymore, rushed up to hold Baoqin in her arms, and began to rub her face and bully her. How could Chen Heng dare to look at this scene for too long? He turned his head and said to Xue Zhu, who was hiding together: "What do you want to eat tonight?"

"Eat whatever you want." Xue Biao already knew from Chen Heng's mouth that the Chen family kept filial piety in private. Meat and wine must not be served well.

"Okay." Chen Heng nodded and started to talk dryly. They waited until the three women calmed down before they sat up straight with coughs.

Their two families were close friends, and only one table was set up for tonight. The three beauties sat together, and the two stinky men were close to each other. They talked about their own things, and the atmosphere was finally quite lively.

…………

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At midnight, the county government's runners personally sent them off. The Xue brothers and sisters sat in the carriage and drove towards the last inn in the city. Today's reunion was generally happy.

Xue Ke half leaned on the carriage and complained to Baoqin: "This Zhixing, not only did he get married, but he also started to talk about me and asked me what kind of girl I like? It's really uncivilized. Can you ask directly about this matter?"

"Then what should I do about this matter, brother?" Baoqin blinked, she heard what her brother meant.

"He should have secretly brought the girl's portrait and let me choose carefully." Xue Ke said with a smile, and then asked his sister, "Didn't your sister Lin ask you about your marriage?"

"Why didn't she ask?" Xue Baoqin spread her hands and said helplessly, "Did you guys collude secretly? You all stared at my dish and started eating."

"How could that be possible?" Xue Ke said unhappily, shaking his fan hurriedly, and said guiltily, "Coincidence, it must be a coincidence. It is said that last year your family wanted to arrange a marriage for you, and you ran to Guangzhou. What excuse are you going to use to hide when you go back this time?"

In order to be a shield for his sister, he even gave up his own blind date. He was delayed in Guangzhou for so long this time, and he wanted to delay it any further. Xue Ke knew that he was a man and could wait. After all, Baoqin was a girl, and I don't know how much gossip there would be in the future.

"Who said I want to go back?" Baoqin smiled and said something that shocked Xue Ke.

"What? You want to stay in Songjiang?"

"The port has just been built here, and the best land is here. Brother, you can't miss it, right?" Baoqin said righteously, as if she had planned this long ago.

Hearing his sister's words, Xue Ke couldn't help muttering, "After all, it's your marriage, which is more important."

"Brother, you should worry about yourself." Xue Baoqin glared at him, "When will you find a sister-in-law to give an explanation to your parents? That's the most important thing."

"It's obviously your business, why do you bring it to me again?" Xue Ke spread his hands, feeling helpless.

The two siblings were happily bickering, and the coachman suddenly spoke up, indicating that the inn had arrived. The Xue siblings hurriedly got off the car and were instructing the servants to move the gifts to the upper room, when they suddenly saw two figures walking over with their arms around each other.

In the dark, both parties thought they were passers-by. It happened that the waiter of the inn came out with a lantern to greet the guests. Everyone looked at each other under the light, and Xue Pan immediately exclaimed: "Cousin, cousin?"

What a waste, how come I met him here. Xue Ke cried out in his heart that he had bad luck today, and could only reply dryly: "Cousin."

Oh, I'm not in a good state today. I wanted to explode, but after thinking about it, I decided to wait until Friday to explode and take care of my body.