Chapter 23 Peach Forest, Ink Scene

Chapter 23 The secluded environment of peach forest, a beautiful scenery of ink

The schoolchildren had already put a few tables borrowed from the people next to them in the peach forest. Mr. Dou took Leng Xuanrong to the middle of the schoolchildren. Only then did Leng Xuanrong find that today seemed to be the younger students in the dyeing studio.

After asking Mr. Dou, I realized that there was no requirement for painting in this imperial examination. This was just a course to strengthen their own cultivation, so older schoolchildren no longer studied this.

Mr. Dou told Leng Xuanrong with a smile that in fact, several of his students are outstanding in this regard, but in the eyes of the world, those students can only concentrate on studying honestly and can't bring them here today.

A student spread out the rice paper used by Mr. Dou, pressed the paperweight on his four feet, took out the inkstone box, took out an inkstone from it and placed it, put an ink block in it, and then put a few small plates next to it. Next to the plate were several palm-sized celadon jars, and then put a round belly pen to wash, and finally at hand The position was carefully placed with a black brush.

Leng Xuanrong is familiar with several things on this table. The rice paper is a good texture. The paperweight looks snow-white, like a cold jade, and the carving is a strange bird. As for the name, Leng Xuanrong can't call it. And Leng Xuanrong has also heard of the inkstone box. It should be the ebony inkstone box carved by the master of the imperial city, as well as the blue and white pen washing of the Minghe county official kiln. In addition to Hanyu paperweight, these things seem to have been said by the little clerk in the Yanmo Pavilion that day.

Leng Xuanrong's eyes finally fell on the brush. It's okay not to look at it. Leng Xuanrong looked carefully and suddenly opened her eyes wide. She almost screamed.

Isn't this brush the "night general" taken away by Mr. Liang?

How can it be here...

Leng Xuanrong suddenly remembered that Mr. Liang said that day that he would not give this brush to the shopkeeper Han, but to find someone who cherished the brush to keep it properly. The person he mentioned is actually Mr. Dou!

By the way, Mr. Dou did know Mr. Liang Sanzi...

Leng Xuanrong recalled that she heard what the waiter said in the dyeing dust study that day, and her back was a little cold. That day, Mr. Liang asked Mr. Dou to go to the house. Did he just want to talk about this brush?

Mr. Dou saw Leng Xuanrong staring at the "Night General" brush, smiled bitterly and whispered, "Miss Leng, I just said I wanted to find the girl for this matter."

After saying that, Mr. Dou nodded his hand and asked the primary school children to start studying ink.

He stood at the table, looked at the peach blossoms around him with his hands on his back, and began to tell the key points of painting for the schoolchildren. As soon as Mr. Dou opened his mouth, the noisy schoolchildren suddenly calmed down and listened carefully for fear of missing a sentence.

Even Leng Xuanrong put down his doubts for the time being and listened carefully.

For a moment, Mr. Dou reached out and opened the small porcelain jars with palms and saw silver vermilion, ochre, white powder and other colorful paints inside.

He stopped talking, looked at the scenery in the distance, turned his head to look at Leng Xuanrong, smiled indifferently, picked up the "Night General" brush, and began to paint.

When Mr. Dou was painting, there was silence around him. Everyone watched with breath, and even his breathing was much calmer.

It didn't take long for this beautiful peach blossom to fall on the rice paper written by Mr. Dou.

After Mr. Dou received the last sum, the schoolchildren and Leng Xuanrong breathed a sigh of relief.

Leng Xuanrong looked at the beautiful scenery of peach blossoms on the paper and couldn't help admiring it secretly. In her previous life, she only heard people's praise of Mr. Dou, but she didn't expect that there were really such talented people in the world.

"It's a pity..." Mr. Dou held the washed pen in his hand and sighed, "The resentment is so bad. No wonder this pen falls with subtle sadness..."

Leng Xuanrong looked at Mr. Dou puzzledly. Mr. Dou waved to the students and asked them to paint separately. After that, he turned his head and said to Leng Xuanrong, "Miss Leng, do you know this brush?"

Leng Xuanrong frowned slightly and said, "If I'm right, this is the 'night general' that my father once collected."

Mr. Dou nodded, and then took another small box from the side. After opening it, he asked Leng Xuanrong, "So does Miss Leng know this pen?"

Leng Xuanrong took the brush and looked carefully, looking at Mr. Dou in surprise, "Is this... the 'mei Niang' born from the same origin as this 'night general'?"

"Exact."

Mr. Dou said, putting both brushes in the box and handing them over to Leng Xuanrong.

"Miss Leng, to be honest, these two brushes were given to me by the third son of Lord Liang, the county magistrate of Yan County. I heard that this 'night general' was given by Miss Leng to Mr. Liang in order to pay off the gambling debt owed by her father, and this 'mei Niang' was acquired by Mr. Liang from his family after the death of the shopkeeper of Yanmo Pavilion... Alas, although I don't know about this matter, I always feel sorry for Miss Leng. ......”

Mr. Dou sighed again and continued, "Now that the shopkeeper Han has passed away, these two brushes can also get together. I know that this 'night general' is a precious thing for your father, so I dare not take it for myself. Miss Leng, please take these two brushes away together so that you can keep them for a lifetime.

Leng Xuanrong was still feeling that it would not be easy to get the brush back when it arrived at Mr. Dou's hand, but the sincerity in Mr. Dou's eyes made Leng Xuanrong a little at a loss. She looked at the two wooden boxes in her hand and didn't know what to do for a moment.

At this time, Mr. Dou gently stroked the painting he had just painted and whispered, "These two brushes originated from two infatuated people. They suffered from lovesickness when they were alive, so they could not be buried in one place after leaving. The sadness has been soaked in these two brushes for a long time... Looking at the painting drawn by the 'night general', it should have been a little heroic. Love, but now there is only desolation..."

Leng Xuanrong looked at the painting on the table and felt uncomfortable. She didn't have Mr. Dou's feelings, let alone whether there was pride or desolation in the painting, but Mr. Dou's words and deeds made Leng Xuanrong deeply feel the delicateness and softness of the man's heart.

"Mr. Dou..." Leng Xuanrong suddenly opened her mouth. She carefully put the two boxes on the table, and then said, "Xuanrong has a merciless invitation. I don't know if Mr. Dou can help me with this."

Mr. Dou seemed to be a little surprised, but he still nodded and said, "Miss Leng, please say that as long as I can do what I can, I will do my best."

Leng Xuanrong pushed the two boxes in front of Mr. Dou and said, "These two brushes have been separated for a long time. Now that they can be reunited in Mr. Dou's hands, they must have this fate with these two brushes. Xuanrong asked Mr. Dou to keep these two brushes by his side to prevent them from leaving again.

Mr. Dou was even more surprised to hear the words. He never thought that the cold girl in front of him would make such a request.

This cold girl is really unusual.

Mr. Dou looked at the two boxes side by side and thought for a long time before saying, "Miss Leng... In this way, I'm afraid your father will feel distressed..."

Leng Xuanrong immediately smiled and said, "Mr. Dou, I have a way to make my father happy." With that, Leng Xuanrong pointed to the painting on the table and said, "My father is also a literati. In addition to collecting pen, ink, paper and inkstone, he also liked poetry, calligraphy and picture scrolls. Why don't you ask Mr. Dou to write a poem on this painting and give it to your father?

When Mr. Dou heard this, he immediately smiled happily.

After thinking for a moment, he took out the "Mei Niang" brush, dipped it in fragrant ink, and wrote a poem on the rice paper.

Poem says:

Qingfeng Cuiling Carmine

Daimei pink temples

Pearl and jade fall and die

The black box is waiting for today

When writing this poem, Mr. Dou took a long breath as if he had made some wish. He no longer refused the two brushes and carefully put them away, and the calligraphy and painting was given to his attendant to frame them and then sent to Leng Xuanrong.

After saying this, Mr. Dou seemed to be much more relaxed. But Leng Xuanrong was not in the mood to enjoy the flowers just now.

It's not because she was distressed by these two brushes. She had already figured it out before she handed over the two brushes to Mr. Dou. In the future, she, her father and Yan Liang will face a lot of difficulties and dangers. If you want to give these two brushes to someone to keep, Mr. Dou is undoubtedly the best candidate.

What annoyed Leng Xuanrong was actually what Mr. Liang did.

He undoubtedly planned everything before that, and it may even be related to the tragic death of the Korean shopkeeper. Leng Xuanrong wondered if Li Duen would secretly collude with Third Prince Liang without telling her? If that's the case, it will be troublesome...

Thinking of this, Leng Xuanrong hurriedly said goodbye to Mr. Dou.

When she spoke, Leng Xuanrong found that Mr. Dou heard that he was leaving, and there was a lonely look on her face for a moment. She was a little surprised and felt that she might have gone wrong.

Mr. Dou insisted on sending Leng Xuanrong out of the peach forest, and the two waved goodbye.

Turning around a street corner, Leng Xuanrong accelerated her pace and went straight to Lijia Gambling Village.

Along the way, Leng Xuanrong couldn't help recalling Mr. Dou's expression when he left. It was not until she arrived at the gate of Li's gambling house that she suddenly found that there seemed to be something wrong.

This Li family gambling village was originally the most lively place in the whole Yan County. The shouts of those people in the gambling village can be heard clearly across most of the street, but today, this street seems to be surprisingly quiet.

Leng Xuanrong stood in front of the door and looked at it for a long time and found that there was not only no sound in the gambling house, but also the person who guarded the door here before seemed to be there.

What's going on? Is there something wrong with the Li family's gambling house? Or what happened to Li Duen?

Leng Xuanrong's heart was suddenly full of doubts.