The deep ice is three feet thick, and the plain snow covers thousands of miles.
My heart is like pines and cypresses, how can your love be the same?
——"Song of Four O'clock in the Midnight: The Deep Ice is Three Feet Thick" Anonymous (Northern and Southern Dynasties)
…
The two were chatting, and they heard the commotion outside the mansion.
Before the two of them could go out to inquire, a man with a big belly wandered in. It was Li Cong, Prince of Qing.
Prince Qing Li Cong and Changsun Yanxing coincidentally came here. They were extremely happy to see each other and burst into laughter.
The eldest grandson Yanxing asked: "What kind of wind brings you here, my lord?"
Prince Qing Li Cong pointed at Bai Fu and said with a smile: "I heard that the Ministry of Internal Affairs gave this mansion to Fu'er and it will be handed over today. I'll come over and take a look.
Although this house is large, it has not been repaired for a hundred years, so it is probably in a dilapidated state. I asked the craftsmen in the house to come over to help, tidy up the place and add some furniture. After it is renovated, it will be returned to Fu'er.
"
Bai Fu hurriedly saluted and said: "You must not show your love to me. I can just clean it up myself. I don't dare to trouble the master craftsmen in the palace."
Li Cong, the king of Qing, smiled and said: "Do you, the seventh-rank official in front of your lord, still remember the grudges you made back then?"
Bai Fu also laughed when he recalled the first time he attended King Qing's night banquet.
Changsun Yanxing smiled and said: "Fu'er, in this polo competition, King Qing bet heavily on his own team and made a lot of money. You should let this old rich man spend a little more, otherwise he will have too much money and be in trouble. Haha
.”
Qing Wang Li Cong smiled and said: "It's true, I've made a lot of money this time!
Among these big casinos, I, Gao Lishi and Mrs. Guo Guo bet the most money. They lost so much that their faces turned green. Haha, it was so happy!
Therefore, Fu'er, you must not refuse. Otherwise, I will have no choice but to buy another house for you!"
Bai Fu refused again and again, unable to refuse, so he could only accept.
Hundreds of craftsmen from Prince Qing's Mansion poured into the mansion, weeding weeds, repairing tiles, and patching up paint. They started working in full swing and it was very lively.
…
Prince Qing and the other three came to the pavilion by the lake to drink tea. The servants had already cleared the pavilion, laid out leather mats, lit charcoal fire, and made hot tea.
Prince Qing held the hand stove and said to his eldest grandson Yanxing: "Have you made up your mind? When will we set off?"
Changsun Yanxing nodded and said, "While His Majesty Long Yan is so happy, can we leave in two days without further delay?"
Bai Fu looked at the eldest grandson's banquet in surprise.
The eldest grandson Yanxing smiled and said: "According to the Taifu's suggestion, our eldest grandson family is planning to develop in the Jiangnan area. On behalf of the family, I will go to Yangzhou first to purchase real estate and manors. In a few days, I will go to Luoyang, and then board the ship in Luoyang, along the
Follow the Grand Canal and go down the river."
Another elder was about to leave, and Bai Fu felt very sad.
Changsun Yanxing said: "Every banquet in the world must come to an end. Fu'er, don't be sad, we will meet again." After saying that, he looked at Qing Wang Li Cong.
Prince Qing Li Cong nodded and said, "Brother Yanxing, don't worry. I will take care of the things you told me."
Li Cong looked at the sky, his expression darkened, and he said: "If it weren't for this python robe, I would really like to see thousands of mountains, walk on thousands of rivers, practice immortality and visit Taoism with you, and be free and easy."
…
When King Qing was sent out of the palace, Changsun Yanxing pointed to the alley and said with a smile: "Look, who is here?"
Next to the carriage at the entrance of the alley, a petite beauty was wearing a silver fox fur coat, a white mink snow hat, and a red cloak, which was particularly eye-catching.
Her gentle smile was as bright as the spring breeze. It was Dugu Xiaozhong.
Changsun Yanxing patted Bai Fu on the shoulder and said with a smile: "You young people, let's talk. I'm going back home first. I will come to see you again before I leave."
The eldest grandson boarded the car at the banquet and left.
Dugu Xiaozhong walked up to Bai Fu and said: "I am weak and afraid of cold and wind, so I didn't go to the finals on New Year's Eve. I heard that Brother Fu stood up and turned the tide.
Now that I think about it, it's such a pity. If I had known you were going to play, I would have gone even if I was seriously ill."
When Bai Fu faced Dugu Xiaozhong, he always felt a little guilty and said, "It's just good luck. I didn't expect that I could come back in the end."
Dugu Xiaozhong smiled generously. She took a wooden box from the maid's hand and handed it to Bai Fu.
Dugu Xiaozhong said: "Brother Fu, I am leaving Chang'an with my parents. Before leaving, I will give you this box of chess pieces as a souvenir.
This box of chess pieces was a gift from my master when I entered Duan. It has been with me for many years. I hope Brother Fu will treat her well, think of people when he sees things, and see chess as his face."
Bai Fu was shocked and said, "Why do you want to leave too?"
Dugu Xiao nodded and said, "This is what Grandpa meant.
Taifu Xu sent a letter from Fei Ge a while ago, asking us to leave as soon as possible, but His Majesty has never given permission.
For some reason, after the Lantern Festival, His Majesty showed mercy and allowed the aristocratic family to leave the capital. Grandpa and his eldest grandson together decided to go south immediately in case something changes."
Speaking of this, Dugu Xiaozhong's slender eyelashes were dotted with sparkles.
Dugu Xiao opened his red lips lightly and said softly: "Brother Fu, let's say goodbye. I hope we can meet again in the future."
…
The carriage drove slowly away. Dugu Xiaozhong was reluctant to leave, leaning out of the car window and looking back frequently.
Two goodbyes in one day.
Bai Fu was in a low mood and opened the chess box in his hand. The chess pieces were as delicate as jade and crystal clear in color. They were strong but not brittle, heavy but not slippery.
…
Everyone dispersed, and Bai Fu squatted alone on the steps of the inner hall, looking at the grass in the inner courtyard, his mood waning.
As the setting sun shines, a ray of rays of light shines on the stone sculptures. The stone lions and tigers lying in the grass and wild flowers are covered in golden armor, as if they are alive. The tiger is sitting on the dragon's plate, ready to come out.
Bai Fu was very curious, so he walked leisurely to the stone sculpture, pulled out the weeds, and looked at it carefully.
The style of these stone carvings is rich and deep, rough and simple, bold and unrestrained, concise and expressive. Most of them are carved according to the natural shape of the original stone, using techniques such as round carving, relief carving, and line carving.
The stone tiger in front of Bai Fu was originally a piece of undulating and irregular stone. Under the stonemason's carving knife, the lines were sparse and hard, and the knife was sharp and smooth, turning it into a "mountain tiger" roaring in the forest.
The tiger's head is ferocious and unruly, with thick hair. The tiger's neck muscles are strong, accumulating strength. The tiger's body stripes appear without carving. The tiger's tail is rolled up on its back, soaring into the air and ready to pounce.
…
The stone horse is full of energy, strong and powerful. Its back is like a dragon, its neck is like a rhinoceros, its bones and tendons are tall and its muscles are strong, and it can travel thousands of miles a day as fast as flying.
The master craftsman fixed the stone sculpture at the moment when the horse is frightened and is about to gallop but has not yet fully jumped up.
The horse's neck is high-spirited and majestic. From the neck to the back, from the back to the hooves, the curvature is textured, and the muscles are tight, as if the whole body's strength is mobilized, and it leaps into the air with one pedal. It is like an arrow on the string, unstoppable!
"The frosty sky dawns, and the howling wind leaps with alarm!" Bai Fu admired sincerely.
…
While Bai Fu was admiring the stone carvings with a lamp, two masked men in black lurked secretly on the eaves in the distance.
"Your Highness, what should we do? Will Bai Fu discover our secret?" someone asked quietly.
"It shouldn't be possible now, but as time goes by, it will cause unnecessary problems." Another person replied.
"It's better to strike first, or else we..." The man in black's eyes flashed coldly, and he made a gesture of wiping his neck.
The other person frowned deeply, his eyes wandered, and he couldn't make up his mind.
"Your Highness, it is true that we have no grievances against Bai Fu. But for the sake of the great cause, we can't care about much. Please think again!" This man said sarcastically and pressed forward step by step.
Another person was angry and said: "What are you thinking about? Even if I don't object, can you kill him?"