On February 2, the dragon raises its head.
At dusk, in a secluded place in the town called Mud Bottle Lane, there was a lonely and thin young man. At this time, according to custom, he was holding a candle in one hand and a peach branch in the other, shining on the beams, walls, and wood. On the bed and other places, people beat peach branches with them, trying to drive away snakes, scorpions, centipedes, etc., and muttered something that was an old saying passed down from generation to generation in this small town: On February 2, candles shine on the beams, peaches hit the wall, and there is no place for snakes and insects in the world. Tibetan.
The boy’s surname is Chen and his given name is Pingan. His parents died young. The town's porcelain is extremely famous. Since the founding of this dynasty, it has taken on the important task of "supervising the burning of sacrificial vessels for mausoleums". Imperial officials have been stationed here all year round to supervise the affairs of the official kilns. The helpless young man became a porcelain potter at an early age. At first he could only do menial chores. After working hard for several years with a bad-tempered master, he just figured out how to make porcelain. As a result, the world is unpredictable, and the town suddenly lost the talisman of the official kiln building office. Dozens of kilns shaped like crouching dragons around the town were all ordered to shut down overnight by the government.
Chen Pingan put down the newly folded peach branch, blew out the candle, walked out of the house, sat on the steps, looked up at the bright starry sky.
The young man still clearly remembers that the old master who only accepted him as a half-disciple, his surname was Yao. In the early morning of late autumn last year, he was found sitting on a small bamboo chair, facing In the direction of the kiln head, I closed my eyes.
However, there are only a few people who are as sharp as Old Man Yao.
For generations, the small town craftsmen who only knew how to make porcelain did not dare to overstep the boundaries of the official kilns for firing tributes, nor did they dare to sell the porcelain in their collections to the people privately, so they had to find other ways to make a living. The 20-year-old Chen Ping'an was also kicked out. After returning to Mubo Alley, he continued to guard the dilapidated old house. It was almost a bleak scene where the family was surrounded by walls. Even if Chen Ping'an wanted to become a prodigal, he had no way of doing it.
After being a wandering ghost for a period of time, the young man really couldn’t find a way to earn money. Relying on his meager savings, he could barely fill his stomach. I heard a few days ago that A street away, in Qilong Lane, a foreign old blacksmith named Ruan came. He announced that he would accept seven or eight blacksmith apprentices. He would not pay wages but would take care of the food. Chen Pingan hurried to try his luck. He never thought that the old man was just a blacksmith. She glanced at him sideways and turned him away. At that time, Chen Ping'an wondered, is it possible that the job of blacksmithing depends not on the strength of the arms, but on the quality of the face?
You must know that although Chen Pingan looks weak, his strength should not be underestimated. This is the physical foundation that the young man has trained during his years of making porcelain and drawing blanks. In addition, Chen Pingan also follows an old man named Yao. , traveled all over the mountains and rivers within a hundred miles of the town, and tasted all kinds of soil around it. He worked hard and was willing to do any dirty work without any sloppiness. It's a pity that Lao Yao never likes Chen Ping'an and despises the young man for his lack of understanding. He is just a lump in the elm and is far inferior to his disciple Liu Xianyang. It's no wonder that the old man is partial. The master leads him in, and the practice is personal. For example, it is also boring and boring. , Liu Xianyang’s skill in just half a year is equivalent toChen Pingan has worked hard for three years.
Although he may not need this skill in his life, Chen Pingan still closed his eyes as usual, imagined that there was a bluestone slab and a wheel in front of him, and began to practice drawing blanks. Practice makes perfect. .
About every quarter of an hour, the boy will rest for a while and shake his wrist, and the cycle repeats.
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It wasn't until he was completely exhausted that Chen Ping'an got up and walked in the courtyard while slowly stretching his muscles and bones. No one had ever taught Chen Pingan these things, it was just a secret he had figured out on his own.
The world was completely silent. Chen Pingan heard a harsh sarcastic laugh and stopped. As expected, he saw his peer squatting on the wall, grinning, not hiding his disdain. look.
This person is an old neighbor of Chen Pingan, and it is said that he is the illegitimate son of the former supervisor. The master was afraid of criticism from Qingliu and impeachment, so he finally returned to the capital alone to report on his work and handed the child over to a well-known person. The friendly officials took over and helped to take care of them. Nowadays, the town has inexplicably lost the qualification to make official kilns. The superintendent responsible for supervising the kiln affairs for the imperial court has no way to save himself. How can he care about the illegitimate son of a colleague in the officialdom? He dropped some money and became furious. Rush to the capital to settle relations.
The neighbor boy who had unknowingly become an outcast still lived a leisurely life. He took his personal maid around all day long in and out of the town, doing nothing all year round, and never did anything for him. Money has been worried.
The loess courtyard walls of every house in Niping Lane are very low. In fact, the neighbor boy can see the scene of the courtyard without standing on tiptoes. However, every time he talks to Chen Pingan, he prefers to squat. On the wall.
Compared with the crude and tacky name of Chen Pingan, the boy next door is much more elegant, named Song Jixin. Even the maidservant who depends on him has a formal name, Zhigui.
The girl was standing on the other side of the courtyard wall. She had a pair of almond eyes and was timid and weak.
On the other side of the courtyard gate, a voice said, "Are you selling this maid?"
Song Jixin was stunned for a moment, then turned around to follow the voice and saw that it was someone with eyebrows. The smiling young man in brocade clothes stood outside the courtyard with a completely unfamiliar face.
Beside the boy in brocade stood a tall old man with a fair face and a kind expression. He gently squinted his eyes and looked at the two boys and girls in the adjacent courtyard.
The old man's gaze swept across Chen Ping'an without stopping, but he lingered on Song Jixin and the maid, and his smile gradually grew stronger.
Song Jixin squinted and said: "Sell! Why not sell!"
The young man smiled and said: "Then you tell me a price."
The girl glared His big eyes were full of bewilderment, like a panicked young elk.
Song Jixin rolled his eyes, stretched out a finger and shook it, "Ten thousand taels of silver!"
The young man in brocade looked as usual and nodded.: "Okay."
Song Jixin saw that the young man didn't look like he was joking, so he quickly changed his words: "It's ten thousand taels of gold!"
The corners of the young man's mouth turned up and said : "I'm just teasing you."
Song Jixin's face was gloomy.
The young man in brocade no longer ignored Song Jixin, shifted his gaze and looked at Chen Ping'an, "Thanks to you, I was able to buy that carp today. After I bought it back, the more I looked at it, the happier I became. I thought I must thank you in person, so I asked Grandpa Wu to take me to find you overnight."
He threw a heavy embroidery bag to Chen Ping'an and said with a bright smile: " This is a reward, and you and I will settle the matter."
Just as Chen Ping'an was about to speak, the young man in brocade clothes had already turned around and left.
Chen Pingan frowned
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Head.
During the day, I accidentally saw a middle-aged man walking on the street carrying a fish basket. He caught a golden carp as long as the tail of a palm. It jumped fiercely in the bamboo basket. Chen Pingan After just one glance, I felt very happy, so I asked if I could buy it for ten cents. The middle-aged man originally just wanted to reward his five internal organs temple, but when he saw the profit, he sat down and raised the price. The lion opened his mouth. , I would not sell it unless I had thirty cash. Chen Ping'an, who was cash-strapped, had so much spare money, and he really couldn't bear to part with the golden carp, so he followed the middle-aged man greedily, trying hard to get the price down to fifteen cents, or even twenty cents. Just when the middle-aged man showed signs of relenting, a young man in brocade and a tall old man happened to pass by. Without saying a word, they bought the carp and the fish basket for fifty cents. Chen Pingan could only watch them walk away, helpless. .
Keeping an eye on the backs of the grandfather and grandson walking further and further away, Song Jixin withdrew his fierce eyes, jumped off the wall, seemed to remember something, and said to Chen Pingan: "Do you still remember the first month? Those four legs?"
Chen Pingan nodded.
How could I not remember? It’s just so fresh in my memory.
According to centuries-old customs in this town, if a snake crawls into your house, it is a good sign, and the owner should never expel it or kill it. On the first day of the first lunar month, Song Jixin was sitting on the threshold basking in the sun, and then a small thing commonly known as a four-legged snake scurried into the house under his nose. Song Jixin grabbed it and walked into the yard. When he fell out, he never thought that the four-legged snake, which had been thrown to pieces, became more and more frustrated. Time and time again, Song Jixin, who never believed in ghosts and gods, was so angry that he threw it away in a rage. When they arrived at Chen Ping'an's yard, they never expected that Song Jixin would see the four-legged snake curled up under his bed the next day.
Song Jixin noticed that the girl tugged on his sleeve.
The young man had a mental connection with her, and he subconsciously swallowed the words that had reached his lips again.
What he wanted to say was that the extremely ugly four-legged snake had a bulge on its forehead recently, like a horn on its head.
Song Ji Salary ExchangeHe said one sentence, "Zhigui and I may leave here next month."
Chen Pingan sighed, "Be careful on the road."
Song Jixinhan He said half-heartedly: "I definitely can't move some items away. Don't steal things unscrupulously while my house is empty."
Chen Ping'an shook his head.
Song Jixin suddenly burst into laughter, tapped Chen Ping'an with his finger, and said with a playful smile: "You are as timid as a mouse, no wonder you have no noble son from a poor family. Don't say that you will be bullied by others in this life, maybe in the next life." There is no way to escape."
Chen Pingan remained silent.
They each returned to the house. Chen Pingan closed the door and lay on the hard wooden bed. The poor young man closed his eyes and murmured in a low voice: "Peace in pieces, peace every year, peace in pieces, peace every year... …”
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ps3: Long time no see, here comes the sword!
(End of this chapter)