The following days were spent very leisurely, drinking tea, reading, shopping, and practicing swordplay every day.
Li Mu has been to the Qinhuai River many times and is familiar with the surrounding area. One day he and Xiao Chan were wandering around and found a quiet place by the river. Not only was the scenery beautiful, but there were not many people around.
There are many talented and beautiful people who come here for an outing.
Li Mu recently wanted to find a quiet place to practice martial arts. Although the Songhe Boxing Sutra and Yangwu Swordsmanship are good, they will get tired of practicing them every day.
Other kung fu practices practiced in the Su Mansion are too loud and eye-catching, easily attracting attention, so they can only be found outside.
This place is just right. Although there are many talented people and beautiful people during the day, it is different in the morning. Most of these talented people and beautiful people don't get up so early.
So, every now and then, Li Mu would get up before dawn and come to this place along the Qinhuai River.
Either practice boxing, play swordsmanship, or just sit cross-legged, facing the rising sun, exhaling the dense purple energy. Although there is no obvious improvement in kung fu, it is more important than anything else to feel comfortable.
This morning, Li Mu got up early as usual and finished washing. He already had toothbrush and tooth powder, although the taste was indeed a bit worse. He walked out of the yard and went out through the side door. There were a few rays of white light in the sky, which was still a little dim.
Occasionally, when meeting maids or stewards from other courtyards, they would call me “auntie” and say hello.
After leaving the courtyard of the Su family, we took a shortcut all the way to the Qinhuai River.
At this time, the sky was dim, and on the Qinhuai River, shrouded in light mist, boats were floating slowly. Occasionally, boatmen and tired fireworks women could be seen standing quietly on the bows of the boats.
The hustle and bustle of the night is gone, and a new day has begun. Li Mu goes back and forth here, and often encounters tired, hurried people by the river, many of whom are still disheveled. Most of them spent the night in a boat.
.
He soon arrived at his destination. During the day, the place was full of men and women outing, and it was quite quiet at this time.
After practicing for more than half an hour, it was already bright and the banks of the Qinhuai River were gradually gaining popularity. Li Mu put away his sword and returned to the Su family along the Qinhuai River.
At this moment, a very beautiful woman with a bare face in the distance ran over in a hurry, carrying a kitchen knife.
Li Mu was a little surprised, and then heard a hen's clucking. It turned out that the woman was chasing a hen. The hen seemed to be aware of the approaching danger and ran around desperately in the woods. Although the woman persisted, she could not catch it at all.
Can't live.
One person and one chicken, one chasing and the other escaping. The hen was chased so fast that she panicked and ran away in the direction of the Qinhuai River. The woman still did not give up. Not only that, the speed was even faster.
The hen seems to have a life-or-death vendetta.
When the hen saw the pursuers behind her and the river in front of her, she couldn't stop herself and jumped into the river decisively.
The woman seemed to be anxious. She chased him so far and was about to catch him when the hen was about to jump into the river. While running, she threw out the kitchen knife in her hand and struck at the hen.
Unfortunately, the hen fell into the water smoothly, and the kitchen knife not only missed it, but also fell into the water.
The woman seemed to be stunned for a moment, but because she was running too fast, she couldn't stop herself at the riverside, and was about to fall into the river. Li Mu looked at the scene just around the corner speechlessly, and with a sway, he was behind the woman.
At the moment when the woman was baring her teeth and waving her arms, unable to maintain her balance, she fell into the river and was about to fall into the water. The long sword in her hand with the scabbard was thrust horizontally towards the water, and she was gently moved towards the woman. The woman was struck by this force.
Diode stood up, took a few steps back, and sat down on the grass. Then he shouted "Ah" and looked at the river with lingering fear.
Li Mu said: "Don't scream, it's okay. Be careful next time."
Only then did the woman realize that she had been saved by the young man next to her. She quickly stood up and made a blessing: "Yunzhu, thank you, Master, for saving your life."
Li Mu looked her up and down and saw that it was really Nie Yunzhu.
"You're welcome, it's just a matter of hands."
Then he pointed to the hen in the river: "Are you still chasing it?"
Nie Yunzhu shook his head in frustration, feeling very depressed.
Since she left Jinfeng Tower two years ago and built a two-story building on the bank of the Qinhuai River, she has spent almost all the money she has saved over the years.
On the other hand, the maid Hu Tao has always been with her, dependent on each other, just like sisters. The two of them live together and make ends meet.
However, she is still good at poetry, lyrics, music and music, but she is not good at these short-lived jobs. Most of them have to be shouldered by Hu Tao, so she can only do what she can.
She was not idle every day. She embroidered some beautiful brocades, occasionally embroidered handkerchiefs from shoe soles, and went to Jinfeng Tower to teach piano music every few days. This was how she maintained the family.
However, since Hutao got sick last month, she has inevitably had to take on these housework tasks. Washing clothes and cooking may seem simple, but the clothes are never as clean as Hutao, and the food can only be cooked.
Swallow.
Two days ago, I bought a hen from a neighbor's house and wanted to replenish Hutao's health. Unexpectedly, I didn't dare to kill the chicken. After a few struggles, when I tried to kill the chicken, the chicken ran away.
She chased all the way, and the more she chased, the more angry she became. In the end, the chicken fell into the river, and she almost fell into the river. Fortunately, she was saved.
Li Mu saw her frustrated look and said with a smile: "Go back, it seems you can't kill this chicken today."
Nie Yunzhu's face turned slightly red, and then he said: "I haven't asked Mr. Gao for his name yet."
Li Mu did not pretend to be mysterious: "Ning Yi, Ning Liheng."
Nie Yunzhu Wanfu said: "It turns out to be Mr. Ning, who saved my life, Yunzhu..."
Before she could finish speaking, Li Mu waved his hand and said, "Why are you so polite? Goodbye, you can go home too!"
Nie Yunzhu watched Li Mu go away, looked at the hens still flapping in the river, and then hurried home in a hurry.
…
When Li Mu returned home, Su Tan'er and several maids had also gotten up.
There, Xiao Chan was gesticulating and practicing the Songhe Fist Sutra, while Xiao Chan was running forward and backward, giving instructions and corrections one by one.
Ever since Li Mu taught Xiaochan the Songhe Fist Jingjing, the little girl would show off and practice for a while in front of several little girls every morning. Several people saw her valiant and heroic appearance and were envious of her. She also often listened to
Xiao Chan praised how good this Kung Fu was. It not only strengthened her body but also kept her good-looking. After practicing it, she could follow her uncle around for a day without getting tired.
The little girls couldn't bear it and wanted to learn immediately.
When Xiao Chan told him the news triumphantly, Li Mu flicked her forehead. It took him nearly a month to teach Xiao Chan, just to get this girl to practice Songhe Quan according to the standards, let alone several people.
Little girl.
So I entrusted the important task of teaching to Xiaochan, and he would give some advice when he had time.
The few little girls are quite enthusiastic about learning and are already able to imitate the gourd. Even Su Tan'er can't help it and has been quietly following along recently.
Seeing Li Mu, Xiaochan said happily: "My uncle is back, I will bring you some water to wash you up."
Xiaochan was also used to Li Mu often going out to exercise early in the morning. According to her understanding, she would sweat when exercising and would naturally need to wash up when she came back.
Li Mu smiled and said: "You can teach them here, I can just fetch water myself."
Xiao Chan said: "How can that be done? Xiao Chan will fetch water for my uncle first, and then teach them later." After saying that, he ran away with small steps.
Li Mu smiled, said hello to Su Tan'er, and returned to the room.
At noon, after lunch, Xiaochan began to mutter in his ear again, talking about trivial things about the Su family.
However, this time there is news about him.
During this period of time, he had nothing to do and was free, but it was not an option to stay like this forever. Someone from the Su family suggested finding something for him to do.
Many people agree.
Some people suggested that he work as a bookkeeper in a certain store or as a shopkeeper in a small shop, but Su Tan'er's father, his cheap father-in-law, rejected the idea.
He seems to prefer that Li Mu go to a private school run by his family and become a teacher. After all, Ning Yi used to give people the impression of being a poor scholar.
This position is leisurely, does not involve in family disputes, and can also be engaged in learning, without some intrigues.
However, Mrs. Su finally suppressed the matter for the time being, saying that after a while, Li Mu would be allowed to make his own decision on what he wanted to do.
Probably during this period, Li Mu's behavior was different from what he had heard before, and he wanted to observe more.
This is because Li Mu did not deliberately hide it. Except for some things that are not suitable for display, such as super high martial arts, the rest can be done as they should.
After all, the days ahead will be long, so it’s better to live a more relaxed life.
According to Li Mu's guess, Mrs. Su actually wanted him to go to a private school to be a teacher, to be free, not to get involved in family struggles, and to be respected by others.
This is good for him, Su Tan'er and the Su family.
After a while, if nothing messy happens, it will probably be settled by arranging for him to become a teacher in a private school.
In the afternoon, it started to rain again. There is so much rain in Jiangnan.
Occasionally, through the window, you can see the master and servants opposite, holding oil-paper umbrellas, laughing and joking, coming and going.
Seeing Xiaochan's helpless look, Li Mu could only smile and give her a break. After a while, he could hear the sound of several maids chattering and playing backgammon.
Early the next morning, Li Mu went out for exercise again. When he came back, he met Nie Yunzhu again in the same place where she almost fell into the water yesterday.
However, this time what she was holding was not a kitchen knife, but a long bamboo pole with a fishing net tied to it, stained with some silt from the river.
Li Mu said: "Miss Yunzhu, what are you doing?"
When Nie Yunzhu saw it was Li Mu, he felt a little embarrassed and whispered: "I'm fishing for a knife."
Then he added: "The chicken is back again, and I will kill it with a knife today."
Li Mu said: "Come back?"
Nie Yunzhu nodded and explained quickly: "The chicken was bought from Aunt Chen's house a few days ago. The chicken did not drown and ran back to Aunt Chen's house. Aunt Chen found out this morning and sent it back to me."
Li Mu smiled and said, "Aunt Chen is pretty good, she brought the chicken back again."
Nie Yunzhu said: "Yes! Aunt Chen is very nice. She knows that I don't dare to kill chickens, but she still teaches me!"
The two chatted for a while, and Li Mu learned about Nie Yunzhu's residence, which was a two-story building by the Qinhuai River outside Lixu. There was a small terrace sticking out on the other side of the river, and there were not many neighbors nearby.
It's a very elegant place.
Li Mu had just passed by that small building, but he didn't expect that this was Nie Yunzhu's residence.
After chatting for a few words, Li Mu waved and left again.
Nie Yunzhumu watched him go away, with a look of curiosity on her face. In the past, she was also good at dancing and knew a lot of people. This young master named Ning always did something unexpected.
Shaking her head, Nie Yunzhu continued to fish for her kitchen knife.
…
At noon, Li Mu and Su Tan'er had lunch together and exchanged a few words. Su Tan'er said, "Does your husband like the poetry meeting?"
"Poetry meeting?" Li Mu said.
Su Tan'er said: "It's the beginning of August now, and there are still more than ten days left, which is August 15th. The Qinhuai River Festival will hold a lantern festival, and there will also be many poetry festivals. The Puyuan Poetry Festival held by the Pu family is relatively famous.
, I also sent us a name card today. If my husband wants to go, Tan'er can go with him."
Li Mu said: "Poetry meeting? Don't you want to do poetry?"
Su Tan'er smiled and said, "That's not necessary. There will be many performances and various lanterns that day. If your husband has some poems, you can try them out."
Xiaochan nodded: "Yes, yes, uncle, there are so many performances!"
Juan'er echoed from the side: "The lights are also very beautiful, and there are beautiful fireworks... maybe Miss Qilan will also perform."
The three little girls chatted for a while. At the age of fourteen or fifteen, the world lacked entertainment, so they were obviously yearning for such a lively scene.
Li Mu smiled and said: "Okay, if you have time, I'll go and take a look."
The next day, while watching chess by the Qinhuai River, we accidentally talked about the poetry meeting.
The old man who was watching the chess game said: "If we talk about our poetry gathering in Jiangning, there is also the Pan family's Zhishui poetry gathering. Every Mid-Autumn Festival poetry gathering, there are always a few good poems coming out there. Countless talented people don't flock to it every year.
"
One person laughed and said, "That's natural. If someone from the three generations of the Pan family is a scholar and wants to be famous, he can gain a reputation through the Poetry Society."
Then we talked about several poetry gatherings, one of which was the Puyuan Poetry Society. The Pu family was originally a wealthy businessman. After getting rich, they naturally wanted to go further and always rely on poetry and books. A scholarly family is always better than a wealthy businessman.
So he spent a lot of money to hold the Puyuan Poetry Festival every year.
This has allowed the Pu family to produce several talented and famous children over the years, which is much better than the Su family, but it is still not a scholarly family in the eyes of the world.
However, the Pu family's Puyuan Poetry Party was the most luxurious. It consisted of six large boats connected into one. They floated on the Qinhuai River all night, drank wine, recited poems and watched fireworks. There were also various performances on board.
In addition to some specially invited literati, many of those who went there were merchants' homes similar to the Pu family.
This is how Su Tan'er's famous post came about. On the one hand, it is arty, but on the other hand, it is also a good place to build relationships and discuss business.
However, although the Puyuan Poetry Fair was luxurious, it was incomparable with the other top poetry fairs in terms of literary style.
After chatting about the poetry meeting for a while, Qin Siyuan suddenly said: "Little friend Ning should be participating in the Puyuan Poetry Meeting this time."
Li Mu said: "I should go and join in the fun."
Qin Siyuan smiled and said: "It's a pity that if you study hard for a few years, you won't be able to make a name for yourself."