"Master Xiang, you see, I have invited Master Liang Zhen here."
Jia Sidao was lying on the Grand Master's chair, still with his eyes closed, and murmured: "Jia Xuan, Lian Zhen has only been away for a few days. How could he come back so soon? I just miscalculated the date and let you go. of."
"The poor monk Lian really met the Grand Master."
After hearing this, Jia Sidao suddenly opened his eyes. He saw Yang Lianzhenjia clasping his hands together and saluting. He smiled and said, "Hey, it's really the master who is here. How come the master came so quickly this time."
"Returning to the Grand Master. The poor monk was worried that he would miss the Grand Master's important event. After delivering the letter, he immediately set off to return to Lin'an. The poor monk just returned to Yanfu Temple at Haishi today (9 p.m.). No, he hasn't sat down yet. Re then saw Mr. Jia Xuan hurriedly entering. So the poor monk followed Mr. Jia to the Prime Minister's Mansion to pay a visit to the Grand Master."
"Well, master. Please sit down. Jia Xuan. Let's get some good wine and food. I and the master will have a nice drink."
"Yes. Prime Minister. Master. Please wait."
After Yang Lianzhenjia sat down, he took out a letter from his arms and handed it to Jia Sidao: "Master, this is the reply that the people from the north asked the poor monk to bring back."
Jia Sidao opened the letter and read it carefully. The letter was Hao Jing's personal reply. The content was roughly: Mongolian Hao Jing paid a visit to Jia Taishi of the Song Dynasty. The letter was received. I know the reason. The matter of Wulihan. I thanked Tai The cooperation of the masters. The power of the world will be divided for a long time. The current situation is turbulent. I, the Mongol Khan Kublai Khan, have great talent and strategy. The Mongolian cavalry is invincible. The Khan will rule the world just around the corner. I, the Khan, courtesy of the Xian Corporal, appreciate the ability of the Taishi very much. However, the Song Dynasty The emperor has always been fatuous and incompetent. Now that a new emperor has ascended the throne, he is bound to be envious of talents and talents. The master's great achievements will shock the master, and there will be trouble in the future. If the master is free in the future, he can come to the north at any time. He will be treated with the courtesy of a student.
"Haha." Jia Sidao smiled after reading it. "Thank you for your hard work, master."
"Grand Master, you're welcome. It's an honor for me to be able to serve Grand Master. By the way, people from the north also asked me to bring a gift to Grand Master." Yang Liazhenjia said as he took out another exquisite colorful The pottery pot said, "Grand Master, please take a look. This is it."
"These people from the north are so polite." Jia Sidao took the jar and looked at it. The jar was semicircular with many small holes on it. The box was made of high-quality pottery made of pure mud. There were paintings on the surface. Goldfish, water plants and other colorful patterns.
"Could it be that one?"
"What? This poor monk has never seen it. He doesn't know what's inside. The grand master will know if he opens it and takes a look."
Jia Sidao opened the lid and took a look. He nodded and said, "Cricket. It's really like that."
Yang Lianzhenjia pretended to be enlightened and said: "No wonder the poor monk can hear noises from time to time. It turns out that it is this thing that makes the noise."
"This is still the end of autumn. If it were the end of summer or the beginning of autumn, the sounds would be more frequent."
"This little cricket is very particular."
"Well, crickets usually start chirping in July in the summer. They will stop chirping at the end of autumn and the winter solstice when the weather turns cold. Yes. This is a top-quality cricket produced in Ningjin."
Ningjin County in Shandong Province was known as the number one cricket county in China in later generations. Because of its unique geographical conditions and environmental microclimate, Ningjin crickets not only have a wide variety of species, but are also very good at fighting. The custom of fighting crickets began in the Tang Dynasty and became popular in the Song Dynasty. By the Southern Song Dynasty, cricket fighting had become a very popular activity at that time. Cricket fighting was also called "fighting to promote weaving. Fighting crickets". According to historical records, Jia Sidao was a good player at this. He also wrote the book "Promoting Weaving". Shu. Ningjin Cricket Fighting has been quite famous since ancient times. He has always been a leader in this way.
"Master is very knowledgeable. Even this little bug understands it so well. Hey, Master. Look, there is a line of writing inside this cover."
"Exactly. The words on it are too small. I'm dazzled by them. Master, please read them to me."
"Yes. Grand Master." Yang Lianzhenjia thought. "I heard that Grand Master is proficient in this way. I specially give this thing to express my feelings."
After hearing this, Jia Sidao said: "This northerner is quite interesting. Just in time, the wine is here. Master has been traveling all the way. He should be hungry by now. Let's eat wine and vegetables. Jia Xuan, go and buy my two fine wines." The tiger and the lion brought the cricket and had a fight with this Ningjin cricket."
"Grand Master, this humble monk would like to give you a drink."
"Okay, master. Here we go."
Yang Lianzhenjia drank it all in one gulp. Then he filled up the wine for Jia Sidao and himself and said, "Grand Master, how are you these days?"
Jia Sidao drank all the wine in his glass: "It's hard to explain in words. Master, you are an expert outside the world. How can you know the cruelty of the world."
Yang Lianzhenjia showed doubts and said: "Grand Master, it seems that you have something on your mind. You are the leader of hundreds of officials in my court. What else can I worry about?"
Jia Sidao sighed: "Master is right. I am under one person. But I still have to be restricted by others."
Yang Lianzhenjia smiled and said: "The grand master is joking. Who else in this world can control you, sir."
"Master Liangzhen, all the Bodhisattvas in your Buddhist sect are people with great supernatural powers. Don't they also want to listen to the Tathagata Buddha?"
Yang Lianzhenjia was shocked and said: "The grand master's intention...could it be..."
Jia Sidao hurriedly interrupted: "Master, don't talk about this. Drink and drink."
"Okay. The poor monk will offer another toast to the Grand Master." How smart Yang Lianzhenjia was. At this time, he also guessed that Jia Sidao was in a bad mood. It seems that the struggle for imperial power in the Song Dynasty that Master Hao Jing mentioned has indeed entered a fever pitch. situation.
After a while, Jia Xuan brought two exquisite boxes and a white pottery bowl: "Master Xiang is here."
"Well, Master. Are you good at this?"
"Go back to the Grand Master. The poor monks will watch the excitement. As for the secrets, I have to ask the Grand Master for guidance."
"Master, the game of cricket fighting is very popular in our dynasty. From the dignitaries to the common people, monks and nuns, they are all good at it." Jia Sidao put the Ningjin crickets and his original tiger into the white Bo Zizhong. "Master, please look carefully."
The tiger in the bowl is all black and has a huge body. Its wings are vibrating violently and its teeth are grinning. It is obvious that it does not take its opponent seriously. The head of the Ningjin insect is slightly yellow, although it is slightly smaller overall. No. But it can also be regarded as a burly one among crickets. It also has sharp teeth and shows no weakness. The most special thing is that its flapping wings have seven bamboo-like horizontal stripes.
"What a seven-section Ningjin insect." Jia Sidao couldn't help but praise.
"Grand Master. What is it?"
"Lian Zhen. Listen to me carefully." Jia Sidao seemed to be in a good mood. "Ningjin and Ningyang are the most popular crickets in the world. This one is huge and completely black and comes from Ningyang. I named it Tiger." .Among the crickets, it is called the black-headed cricket. The common people call it the black-headed general. It is a superior cricket that can sing and is good at fighting. It is a typical northern tough insect. The Ningjin insect is both a northern and southern insect. It has the characteristics of the southern worm, that is, it has the big body, big head, top, big legs, and good skin color. At the same time, it has the physique of the northern arid area worm, its tenacious fighting spirit, endurance, bite and ferocity. It has the ability to be invincible when bitten to death. The intensity of it.”
"This little cricket has a lot of knowledge."
"Haha. Master, look at the wings of this Ningjin insect. It has seven horizontal stripes. This is the stick insect known as the Ningjin cricket. Generally speaking, a cricket with more than five segments can be called top grade. A cricket with more than seven segments can be called top grade. It is very rare. If it is a nine-knot cricket, it can be called the best among crickets. It is a pity that I have never seen a nine-knot cricket."
At this time, the tiger in the bowl couldn't hold it any longer and started to rotate around the Ningjin insect, waiting for an opportunity to find a favorable position. At the same time, it kept chirping. However, the Ningjin insect moved slowly, only keeping its yellow head facing the tiger.
Suddenly, the tiger seemed to have discovered the opponent's flaw. It raised its head, kicked with its feet, and rolled its long tentacles. It attacked bravely. Ningjin Chong did not flinch and started fighting the tiger head-on.
The two bugs were extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, they had already fought several times.
The tigers relied on the advantage of moving first, attacking more and defending less, and gradually forced the Ningjin insects to retreat step by step.
"The Grand Master's Tiger is truly worthy of its reputation."
"It's hard to say. This Ningjin insect seems to have not tried its best."
Just as Jia Sidao said, when the Ningjin insect was forced to the wall of the bowl, it suddenly made a sharp chirping sound. Its wings vibrated extremely fast. The wings seemed to be slightly wider than before.
"Ah." Jia Sidao exclaimed.
"Master. How about it?"
"This. This turned out to be a top-quality nine-segmented Ningjin insect." Jia Sidao laughed excitedly. Compared with the affairs of the court, it seemed that he was happiest when fighting crickets.
Jia Sidao's laughter seemed to have infected the nine-segmented Ningjin insect. In just a moment, the Ningjin insect began to counterattack. The cricket's moves of head and kick were all used to its fullest, and it was able to win back in an instant. Yang Lianzhenjia couldn't help but secretly thought: "This cricket's offense and defense are actually in line with martial arts."
After a while, the tiger had shrunk to one side, dejected, and obviously lost the courage to attack. The Ningjin insect raised its head and chest, arrogant, and did not pursue it. It seemed that it did not pay attention to the tiger at all. There was a kind of A master approaches the enemy with a demeanor of disdain for his opponents.
Yang Lianzhen praised: "Haha. It's wonderful."
"Yes. Not bad. Jia Xuan. Keep it and take good care of it."
"Master Prime Minister, why don't you compete with the lion?" Jia Xuan asked.
"What a fart comparison. This is the Nine-section Ningjin Insect, the invincible best in cricket fighting. How can a lion be its opponent?"
"Yes. Thank you, Prime Minister."
"Jia Xuan. Go get some more food and wine."
"Yes. Mr. Xiang."
"Master Lianzhen. I can't wait to invite you here this time. I want to ask the master to give me a fortune teller again and check out the feng shui."
Yang Lianzhenjia said: "Master, the poor monk only knows a little about physiognomy. The great master trusts the poor monk so much, which makes the poor monk ashamed."
"Master, there is no need to be self-effacing. I recently sent people to conduct an investigation at Yanfu Temple where you place orders. They all confirmed that, master, you are an expert in physiognomy and medical skills. This is absolutely unmistakable."
"That's good. It's better to obey orders than to be respectful. The poor monk should give the Grand Master another chance to meet him."
Yang Lianzhenjia carefully looked at Jia Sidao's face, and then looked at the appearance of his hands. He looked strangely and said, "Master, the poor monk has only been away for more than ten days. How come he has changed so much."
Jia Sidao's heart sank. The joy of the cricket fight had long been forgotten: "Master, speak frankly."
"Yes. Grand Master. The poor monk told me directly. Grand Master still remembers what the poor monk said last time. Grand Master, is there a black line in your official palace?"
"Remember."
"Looking at it again today, this black streak seems to be exploding."
"What's the explanation?"
Yang Liazhenjia sighed and lowered his voice and said: "Grand Master, this black line is the line of offense. The outbreak of black lines means that Grand Master you have great disharmony, or even conflict, with your superiors. In other words, In other words, the status of Etai Master is in conflict with the current emperor. And it is a deep conflict."
Jia Sidao thought, "It's really accurate." After a moment of silence, Jia Sidao said slightly nervously: "Master, although you and I have not known each other for a long time, I don't treat you as an outsider. Just tell me. How should this matter be resolved?"