Mingchen:
It’s been nearly a year since we last met in Wuhan. Are you doing well in Leshan? Has the nursery received the donation from Richard Hospital a few days ago?
Everything is fine in Chongqing. Richard Hospital is back on track. Uncle Jing is being taken care of by Richard. You can rest assured... The war in the Jiang family is still going on. My stepmother and "uncle" still regard Xiaobei and me as thorns in their eyes. I don't care about this. The only thing that worries me is Xiaobei. I know nothing about business. I can only judge from the poker table. In recent days, more and more ladies and celebrities have tried to win me over. I'm afraid they are all after Xiaobei. But I also heard that Xiaobei has a feud with others in the business world. There is a Mr. Jin from Jin's Trading who has many conflicts with the Jiang family in business. It is rumored that Mr. Jin is related to Mr. Xu from the Central Bureau of Investigation. By the way, do you still remember Fu Qiudi? Now the streets and alleys of Chongqing are rumored that she has some ambiguity with Mr. Xu. In short, it's a mess...

After reading Gu Nanqiao's letter, Jing Mingchen stood with his chin in his hand for a long time.
Years ago, Jiang Gubei escorted her and the children to Leshan. As soon as they settled down in the Leshan Nursery, Jiang Gubei returned to Chongqing. In the past six months, she and Jiang Gubei were in two different places and had no contact. She only knew that Jiang Gubei had moved the Jiang family business to Chongqing before the war, but she didn't know that he had so many conflicts with others in the business world.
The sun had completely set, and the cold air was intruding through the window before she lowered the window. The room was completely dark, and the oil in the oil lamp on the table had run out. She bent down to open the cabinet door, fumbled to take out a small candle and lit it, and finally there was a little light in the room.
She used the little light to write a reply to Gu Nanqiao.

Southern buckwheat:
Dear readers, the remittance from Richard Hospital has been received. Thank you to you and your spouse on behalf of our children.
Everything is fine in Leshan. Although Leshan is a small city in the southwest, it has beautiful scenery and simple folk customs, and is not inferior to big cities like Wuhan and Chongqing...

Having written this, she looked up and looked around.
In the dim light, the room was bare, with only a bed, a table, and a chair, and nothing else that could be called furniture, not even a wardrobe. The clothes she brought from Wuhan were still in a large rattan box. Recalling the cloakroom of the three sisters in Wuhan, which was bigger than this room, Jing Mingchen could only smile bitterly and sigh.
She didn't mean to lie, but her father was now a patient at Richard Hospital, and with her mother's temper, she would definitely have become close friends with Nan Qiao, and the content of the letter she wrote to Nan Qiao would most likely be discovered by her mother.
Leshan is indeed a place with beautiful mountains and rivers and simple folk customs, but these cannot eliminate the embarrassment of outsiders. A university, a nursery and all kinds of people suddenly poured into the small city, and the originally comfortable life suddenly became cramped and tense. In addition, the Japanese blockade, prices continued to rise, and the nursery received limited government funding, so everyone had to live frugally.
Winter has passed and spring has come. During the recent season change, there has been a high incidence of epidemics, and Jing Mingchen is busy and exhausted every day.
She thought about it and wrote in the letter:

There is only one thing I would like to ask you for help. There is an epidemic in the hospital recently and the medical room is running low on medicine. Could you ask someone to bring some quinine to the nursery? I would be very grateful.

After writing the letter, she folded the letter into three and stuffed it into an envelope, planning to go to the county post office to mail it tomorrow.
Suddenly the door was pushed open, and a cool breeze blew in, accompanied by a ray of light from an oil lamp and a lazy voice: "Hey, Miss Jing, are you writing a letter? To whom? To your lover?"
A young girl, two years older than Jing Mingchen, was leaning against the door. The dim light reflected a charming face that seemed to be smiling but not quite smiling. The texture of her face was like an oil painting, but there was no such a beautiful yet frivolous look in the oil paintings of the Renaissance.
Jing Mingchen was annoyed with her, so he quickly stuffed the letter away and asked her, "What are you doing here?"
The girl walked to the table with the oil lamp in her hand, tilted the lamp and poured half of the oil into Jing Mingchen's lamp: "Don't be so angry, I see that your lamp oil is used up, so I'll give you half of it. You have to use the candles sparingly, for emergencies."
Jing Mingchen said stiffly: "Thank you so much, it's getting late, I'm going to sleep, good night."
The girl shrugged, turned around and walked away gracefully.
Jing Mingchen followed her and slammed the door shut as soon as she left.
She walked back to the table and sat down, blew out the candle, propped up the window to let the moonlight in, and stared at the moonlight in the courtyard outside with her hands on her face. The girl just now was also a teacher in the nursery. Her surname was Ren, and everyone called her Miss Guan. Miss Guan was frivolous and coquettish. She often flirted with the men who came and went in the nursery. She always spoke to the opposite sex in a coquettish tone, as if she habitually wanted to get some benefits from the other party.
Jing Mingchen didn't like her very much. Relatively speaking, she quite liked the dean, Miss Cao. Miss Cao had short hair that reached her ears, and she was as neat and tidy as her hair, giving off a feeling of a heroic woman.
Miss Cao also graduated from Jinling Women's University, so she was her senior. Miss Guan was from Shanghai, and I heard she graduated from a school in Shanghai. Strangely, she seemed to have never received any letters, and no one came to the nursery to look for her.
A frivolous woman with a mysterious background, Jing Mingchen kept his distance from her.
But Miss Guan seemed to find her quite interesting and always teased her. She would only walk away with a smile when she made her angry.
Neuropathy!
Jing Mingchen thought angrily in bed.
Turning around and seeing the moonlight in front of the window, she couldn't help but think of her old friend again. Nan Qiao said in the letter that Jiang Gubei had encountered some troubles in his business. What was going on? She couldn't explain it clearly. And there was Fu Qiudi. Why was there Fu Qiudi again?
Forget it, I'll ask Jiang Qianmo about it when I have time, she thought vaguely before falling asleep.
Jiang Qianmo moved to Leshan with the school last year and is now in the second grade. Jing Mingchen and Jiang Qianmo had no contact in Wuhan. After arriving in Leshan, Jiang Qianmo often came to the nursery to play with the children on weekends. Among the teachers, Jing Mingchen and Jiang Qianmo got along best. Both of them came from Wuhan and had some overlap in the social circles in Wuhan. Jiang Qianmo had also heard of the nickname "Little Master Jing", so he jokingly called her "Third Brother".
Thinking about Jiang Gubei, Jing Mingchen waited for him for a long time. Strangely enough, he was always around when there was nothing important to do, but he disappeared when there was something important to do. I don't know what he was busy with, and I haven't seen him for more than half a month.
During this time, a major event happened in the nursery. The director, Miss Cao, disappeared, leaving behind only a letter saying that she had an urgent transfer and that a new director would soon take over her job.
The weekend after Miss Cao left, Jiang Qianmo finally came.
Jiang Qianmo is only seventeen years old this year, a young man who is still growing. He has a round and fair face, a pair of curved smiling eyes and a turned-up smiling mouth. He always looks smiling, as if he is not serious.
Today, he had a worried look on his face. He looked around as soon as he arrived at the nursery, and he seemed absent-minded when he was teaching the children to sing.
As soon as the children dispersed, Jing Mingchen quickly pulled him aside, and the two of them squatted down under the crabapple tree: "I want to ask you something. Your sister said in the letter that your brother encountered some trouble in business. Do you know what exactly happened?"
Before Jiang Qianmo could speak, a familiar voice suddenly sounded from behind: "If you want to know, why don't you just ask me directly?"
Jing Mingchen turned around and saw Jiang Gubei standing behind her, looking at her through a tree of blooming crabapples. He was tall, and his handsome face was half hidden behind the pale pink crabapple flowers, revealing a pair of smiling eyes.
In April, a gentle breeze blows by, causing flower petals to fly, sparse shadows to sway on the ground, and a faint fragrance to float in the air.
In an instant, thousands of trees and flowers bloomed in Jing Mingchen's heart.
Jiang Gubei brought Gu Nanqiao's reply, as well as a large package of urgently needed medicines for the nursery, including quinine, which Jing Mingchen requested in the letter. Jing Mingchen thanked him happily, and suddenly seemed to have thought of something, so he took out some of the medicines from the pile and packed them up, and told Xiao Sanzi: "Send these to the neighbors next door."
The third child went reluctantly. Jing Mingchen explained to Jiang Gubei, "The children are unruly and don't get along well with the neighbors. They are called uneducated people from the Lower Yangtze River. I heard that their child is also suffering from malaria. I sent some medicine to ease the relationship."
Jiang Gubei looked at her with interest: "After not seeing you for a few months, Miss San has learned how to deal with people. If Mrs. Jing knew about this, she would probably cry about how hard it is for her little girl to suffer."
Jing Mingchen blushed and changed the subject: "Why are you here?"
There was really no place to sit in her room, so Jiang Gubei had to push the things on the table inwards and sit on the corner of the table with his long legs crossed: "Come and see Qianmo, and also come and see if there is any business to do in Leshan."
Jing Mingchen was curious: "What business can be done in Leshan?"
Jiang Gubei laughed: "Wherever there are people, there is business. Besides, so many people have suddenly poured into Leshan. Building houses, digging wells and extracting salt, which one is not a business... You are not going to accuse me of being a cunning businessman again, are you?"
Jing Mingchen stamped his feet: "What ancient history of your past life are you still bringing up!"
Jiang Gubei smiled, spread his hands and said no more.
He sat on the table and looked down at her, one of his long legs dangling in the air, his toes always almost touching her calf, which made her a little nervous. Jing Mingchen lowered his eyes and asked, "Since you are here to investigate the business, you should stay for several days, right?"
Jiang Gubei said "hmm", with a strong nasal tone but still a smile: "I will stay for a few more days. I'll trouble Miss San to show my hospitality."
Jing Mingchen nodded like a chick pecking at rice: "Of course, of course."
However, it was not until the next day when Jiang Gubei was squatting in the backyard laying bricks to build a pigpen that he suddenly understood.
He took a brick from Jing Mingchen's hand, smoothed the mud surface and laid it on the ground. He raised his elbow to wipe the sweat off his forehead and sneered at Jing Mingchen: "Miss Third is really doing your best to be a good host... You're using me as a farmhand!"
Jing Mingchen smiled guiltily, handing over bricks while explaining: "We can't help it. The nursery is short of funds, so we have to find ways to increase revenue and reduce expenditure. We can raise some chickens, ducks, pigs, etc. to improve the children's meals. If there are any extra ones, we can sell them at the market. You don't know how expensive an egg is nowadays!"
Jiang Gubei looked at her, and the tenderness in his heart sprouted like a flower bud in the spring breeze. In order to facilitate work, Jing Mingchen wore a cloth shirt and trousers, without makeup, with sweat and mud on her face, and her face was rosy, like a pretty little village girl. This is Miss Jing San, a lady of the Jing family, how could she worry about the price of eggs?
After not seeing her for a few months, her hair had grown a lot longer, and she could barely tie it into a short braid, which she tied with a rubber band and put behind her neck. After working for half a day, her bangs fell behind her ears. Jiang Gubei reached out to help her put them behind her ears and put one hand on her shoulder: "Don't move."
He stood up, grabbed the branch of a nearby crabapple tree, plucked a crabapple flower, and used the branch to tie up her bangs and pinned them on her temples: "This way your hair won't fall down."
Jing Mingchen held his breath and waited for him to finish hairpinning. After he turned around to continue laying bricks, he stretched out his hands and pinched the tips of his ears that were burning.
When he leaned over just now, a faint smell of wild rice enveloped her. For the first time, she felt that the smell was not unpleasant, as if his tobacco scent was mixed with the scent of crabapple.
But how can the crabapple have a fragrance?
Jiang Gubei was also a good worker. Before lunch time, he had already built the pig pen and chicken coop. Jing Mingchen took him back to his room to wash his hands. When he came back with the basin, he saw him picking up the book he had placed on the table to read.
She placed a French version of "A Tale of Two Cities" on the table, one of the few books she brought from Wuhan.
When Jiang Gubei saw her coming back, he raised the book in his hand and asked, "What book is this?"
Jing Mingchen put down the basin and said, "It's a novel by the British writer Dickens. It tells the story of the French Revolution. It's very good. I have been reading it since I was fourteen."
Jiang Gubei laughed: "If a book can be read for ten years, it must be very interesting. It's a pity that I don't know French."
Jing Mingchen was surprised and said, "I heard from Mingyu that you worked in a customs brokerage firm in Shanghai. How come you don't know French?"
Jiang Gubei explained: "Li Xingchang's business back then was mostly with the British, with very few French customers, so someone who knew French was in charge."
Jing Mingchen nodded: "Yes, compared to English, fewer people speak French. I learned to speak French because the church school I attended was run by French people. Since elementary school, I have learned French more fluently than English. However, the original language of this novel is English, you can find it and take a look."
Jiang Gubei smiled and shook his head: "The English I know is just some daily expressions and business terms. I'm afraid I still need some effort to read novels."
Jing Mingchen thought for a moment and said, "That doesn't matter. Wait for me to translate it into Chinese for you."
Jiang Gubei chuckled and said, "Well, I'll wait for good news, great translator."
Jing Mingchen also smiled, quite shyly, and she herself realized that her recommendation was a little too hasty. But that's how people are, they always want to share the things they like with the people they like, and he couldn't refuse even if he wanted to.
Suddenly, an uninvited guest showed up, breaking Jing Mingchen's good mood. Miss Guan came in with a brand new towel on her arm and a bar of soap in her hand. She came up to Jiang Gubei and said, "Mr. Jiang, you've worked really hard today. I have some unused towels and soap here... Oh, Mr. Jiang also likes A Tale of Two Cities. I like this book very much, too, and I especially like this passage in it..."
Jing Mingchen sneered and sneered at her words. Would someone like her like "A Tale of Two Cities"? What a paragraph, just like those pretentious people, who only read the opening paragraph "The best of times, the worst of times"! Looking at her, she wanted to stick to Jiang Gubei and poke his eyes! She said: "I'm sorry, Miss Guan, that book is mine. Mr. Jiang doesn't understand French and has never read "A Tale of Two Cities."
Miss Guan looked back at her, with surprise in her beautiful eyes: "Oh, really? Does Mr. Jiang know English? I happen to have an original English book to lend you. Why don't you go to my room and get it?"
She wanted to lure him into the room! Jing Mingchen was furious. He stepped forward and said in a threatening tone: "Loin de lui. (Stay away from him.)"
Miss Guan blinked innocently: "The love of beauty is something that everyone has."
Jing Mingchen gritted his teeth: "C'est mon fiancé." (This is my fiancé.)
Miss Guan shrugged in defeat: "Well, I came here to tell you that lunch is ready."
She turned and walked out. Jing Mingchen looked at her from behind with his chin up, looking very proud. When she turned around, Jiang Gubei was looking at her in confusion: "What did you just say?"
Jing Mingchen answered perfunctorily: "Nothing, just reciting the lines in the book. Let's go and have dinner."
Jiang Gubei originally thought that he had fulfilled his duties as a farmhand by building a pigpen and a chicken coop. Unexpectedly, the next morning, Jing Mingchen told him with an apologetic look on her face that she still had something to do today, which was spring plowing.
Well, could he just watch a group of women and children from the nursery reclaim land alone? He had no choice but to follow them.
There is a piece of wasteland near the nursery. Miss Cao used her connections to ask the government for it, intending to reclaim the land and cultivate it. This would not only provide some food for the nursery, but also help train the children's living skills.
The area of ​​the wasteland was not small, more than ten acres. It was impossible to work with manpower alone, so the nursery borrowed some farm tools and a few oxen from nearby farmers.
This reclamation mission was difficult, and the nursery mobilized all its laborers and also found some outside help. Jiang Qianmo brought a few classmates from Wuhan University to help. The group got up early and met in the wasteland. It was almost dawn when they set out, and the dew had not yet dried when they arrived. There was a pleasant smell of green grass in the air in the fields in the morning. There were no crabapples in this field. Jing Mingchen smelled the light smell of baicalensis on Jiang Gubei, and he still thought it smelled as good as yesterday.
They were all young masters and young ladies from the city, and none of them had any experience in plowing the fields, so they asked a neighbor to be their instructor. This neighbor was the family to which Jing Mingchen had delivered quinine, and for quinine's sake, the elder brother was very generous to them and not only agreed to teach them, but also brought his own oxen.
He divided the group of people into several teams, demonstrated to them how to plow the land, and then everyone started working in groups.
Jing Mingchen was naturally grouped with Jiang Gubei. The two of them took a plow and were about to go to the field. The neighbor's eldest brother shouted at them: "Master and Miss, are you going to dance? Take off your shoes and roll up your trouser legs!"
Jing Mingchen and Jiang Gubei looked at each other for a long time, and Jing Mingchen smiled: "I didn't expect that there are things you don't understand."
Jiang Gubei bent down to untie his shoelaces: "What's so strange about this? I'm just a businessman, not the Monkey King who caused havoc in the Heavenly Palace."
Jing Mingchen was wearing shallow cloth shoes, and with a swing of her left and right, her two white feet stepped on the black soil. She bent down and rolled up her trouser legs, which reached her knees, revealing a section of her calves. She was 24 years old, but because of her small frame, she looked like a 16 or 17-year-old girl who had not yet reached adulthood.
Jiang Gubei tied the rope around his shoulders, and Jing Mingchen held the plow from behind. Jiang Gubei was only wearing a white shirt and trousers, and the rough hemp rope was pressed against his back, sliding along his back muscles and shoulder blades as he exerted force. Jing Mingchen's face got a little hot when he saw this, and he quickly turned his head away to look at others.
She didn't know that Jiang Gubei was the same as her.
Sometimes when he bent down, he would see from the corner of his eye her bare feet behind him, stepping on the wet black mud, with fertile soil coming out from between her toes. The sharp contrast of black and white was very eye-catching.
Wherever she walked, there was a string of small footprints, which sometimes disappeared in his footprints, just like that year by the river in Yichang.
After all, there is strength in numbers. After two days, the work was almost done.
On the third day, it was finally Jiang Gubei and Jing Mingchen's turn to use the oxen and the plow cart. Jing Mingchen had been waiting for a long time and was impatient to jump on the ox's back, but the old ox seemed unwilling to be tamed by a girl and stubbornly refused to lie down for her to ride on. Jing Mingchen said all the nice things and her face turned red. Jiang Gubei smiled slightly, put his arm around her waist, and with his long arms, he sent her to the ox's back: "Let's go!"
The old ox, which had worked all its life, was already an expert at plowing the land. It knew how to pull the plow cart forward without being driven. Jing Mingchen rode on the ox's back and smiled, "Am I being lazy?"
She swung her legs, her white, tender feet had some wounds from two days of farming, and were still covered in wet black mud.
The breeze blew her clothes, and the gray coat was filled with wind. She was like a dove wanting to fly away with the wind. Miss Jing San had never done such things as riding a cow to plow the land. She was so happy that she couldn't suppress it, and she flew all over the sky like a butterfly breaking out of its cocoon. Jiang Gubei suddenly wanted to tease her: "Pretty country girl, sing a folk song for me to hear."
Jing Mingchen tilted his head and thought for a while: "Folk song... I don't know the Sichuan one, can the Guangxi one do?"
She had a classmate from Guangxi who once taught her to sing a folk song.
Jiang Gubei didn't expect that she would really say: "Anywhere."
Jing Mingchen thought for a moment, cleared his throat, and began to sing:

The mountains are beautiful, the water is clear, the sun is high, and the wind is blowing.
The little boat came over, rocking all the way.
For the sake of my beloved, I am willing to get up early and work hard no matter how long the journey is.
The mountains are beautiful, the water is clear, the sun is high, and the wind is blowing.
I'm thinking about him all the time, I'm really anxious.
I can't sleep because of my sweetheart. I'm just afraid that he can't find me. What should I do?
The mountains are beautiful, the water is clear, the sun is high, and the wind is blowing.
I ran slowly and finally arrived at the land temple.
I would rather accompany him, accompany him until old age. I don't want anyone else except him, does he know that?

Her voice was childish, lacking the high and loud momentum of folk songs, but Jiang Gubei was distracted by her voice.
The rapeseed fields not far away are shining with golden light, the river farther away is shimmering, the mountain breeze blows through the dusk, and birds fly past the setting sun, bringing the rustling sound of leaves.
All the sounds in heaven and earth harmonize with her singing.
"I don't want anyone except him. Does he know that?"
Before saying goodnight, Jiang Gubei asked Jing Mingchen, "You won't ask me to go mining with you guys tomorrow, will you?"
Jing Mingchen blushed and said angrily, "Why do you always think the worst of others? Go to bed quickly. There will be a good show waiting for you tomorrow."
The good program she was talking about was river cruise.
Leshan is located at the confluence of the Minjiang River, Qingyi River and Dadu River. The name of the county means "the wise enjoy water and the benevolent enjoy mountains". It is spring, the time when flowers are in full bloom and the river is warm. It is the perfect time to take a boat trip on the river.
Jing Mingchen specially changed out of his usual simple clothes and took out his old student clothes from the rattan box. He wore a light pink cotton cheongsam with a white wool cardigan over it, paired with light-colored socks and black round-toed shallow-mouthed leather shoes. When he went out, he even picked a crabapple flower and pinned it on his temples.
However, her excitement disappeared completely when she saw Miss Guan.
Miss Guan was wearing an emerald green brocade cheongsam, which shone brightly in the morning light. She had a very feminine figure, with curves in all the right places, and her exposed arms were white and slender.
Compared to her, Jing Mingchen was like a schoolgirl who had not yet fully developed.
How could she know their schedule for today! She invited Jiang Gubei, Jiang Qianmo, and a few Wuhan University students who helped yesterday.
She looked at Jiang Qianmo viciously, and Jiang Qianmo leaned close to her ear to apologize: "Third brother, I'm sorry, I didn't know how I let the news slip yesterday..."
Jing Mingchen snorted coldly. Why else? Lust has blinded his mind. Look, his eyes are almost glued to Miss Guan!
Superficial man!
Jing Mingchen got on the boat angrily, and suddenly heard a "ouch". He turned around and saw that Miss Guan sprained her ankle when getting on the boat, and was supported by Jiang Gubei.
My mood became worse and worse. This Miss Guan must have done it on purpose.
However, when the boat glided on the water and the river breeze brushed across his cheeks, even the worst mood was dispelled. There were many crabapples in Jiazhou, with swaying shadows of trees on both sides of the river and bright pink clouds. Jing Mingchen looked at Jiang Gubei and seemed to smell the imaginary fragrance of crabapples again.
Her face turned red, she turned around, lay on the side of the boat and used her hands to touch the river water. The sun shone on the river, but the water was not cold. Some petals were blown into the river by the wind and drifted with the water. Jing Mingchen picked up a petal with his fingertips, raised his hand and looked at it over and over in the sunlight. Her fingertips were pink and transparent, just like the petals of the crabapple tree.
Suddenly, Miss Guan asked, "Miss Jing, is the river water warm?"
Jing Mingchen was languidly exposed to the sun, and replied lazily, "It's warm."
Miss Guan laughed: "It is true that the duck knows first when the river water warms in spring."
Several young students were also amused. Jing Mingchen realized that she had set a trap for him, and angrily tried to stand up, but her movements were too big and she almost fell off the boat. Fortunately, Jiang Gubei reached out and grabbed her, pulling her hard and hugging her tightly.
Miss Guan quickly held back her laughter and apologized: "I'm sorry, I saw you were almost asleep, so I just made a joke."
Jing Mingchen was held in Jiang Gubei's arms. His arms were soaked in the sun and were so warm that she didn't want to leave.
At this moment, she didn't want to retaliate so much.
Jiang Qianmo suggested: "What's the point of just touring the river? Let's learn from the ancients' Lanting Gathering and have a Leshan Gathering, with wine flowing on the winding river and toasting each other, how about that?"
His classmate responded immediately: "Good idea, I happened to bring some wine."
He took out a wine flask from his backpack, tied it to the side of the boat with a belt and put it into the river: "Let the river water soak it to remove the heat. Let's make a rule that everyone can tell a story about Leshan before they can drink."
The boat followed the current and the giant Buddha could be vaguely seen in the distance. Jiang Qianmo raised his hand and said, "I'll go first! Look at the giant Buddha behind you."
The Buddha is as majestic as a mountain. The mountain is the Buddha and the Buddha is the mountain. He is full of compassion and overlooks the world.
Jiang Qianmo narrated the story: "This Leshan Lingyun Giant Buddha was built in the Tang Dynasty. It is said that there were many shipwrecks at the confluence of three rivers. A monk named Haitong could not bear to see the suffering of the people, so he called for the construction of Buddha to suppress the evil spirits. Strangely enough, it is said that since the construction of the giant Buddha, there have been no more shipwrecks. The name of the Buddha's compassion has also spread throughout the world."
After saying this, he clasped his hands together in the direction of the Buddha, chanted "Amitabha, may the Buddha have mercy on me", and with a smile on his face, he pulled the wine jug out of the river and took a big gulp.
A classmate from Wuhan University sneered, "I don't believe in the Buddha's mercy. If the Buddha really has spirits, then isn't the disaster China is suffering from more severe than the floods during the Tang Dynasty? Why doesn't the Buddha show any spirit? You are a scholar, but you believe these nonsense. I think it is probably because the rocks were cut and the broken rocks fell into the river, which affected the river course and alleviated the flood."
Jiang Qianmo felt a little embarrassed after hearing this. Jiang Gubei, who had been silent the whole time, spoke up, "It is indeed compassionate, but the compassion is for people instead of stone statues. The Lingyun Giant Buddha was built during the Kaiyuan period of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, and was not completed until the reign of Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty. It took nearly a hundred years, and it also experienced the entire process of the Tang Dynasty's decline from prosperity during the An-Shi Rebellion. China's affairs were in turmoil for a hundred years, and the construction of the Giant Buddha was suspended several times, but in the end, such a mountain-like Buddha was still erected."
Jiang Qianmo looked at Jiang Gubei gratefully, and the classmate also took a step back and said to Jiang Gubei: "Mr. Jiang, what you said makes sense."
Jiang Gubei smiled faintly and took the wine pot from Jiang Qianmo: "I propose that we all toast to the ancestors who practiced Buddhism thousands of years ago with a glass of wine."
He tilted his head back and took a sip of wine, then handed the jug to Jing Mingchen who was sitting next to him.
Jing Mingchen took the wine jug and put the mouth of the jug to his lips. Thinking that Jiang Gubei had just drunk from it, a surge of heat rose to his face.
The wine pot was passed around in everyone's hands, and after offering sacrifices to the ancestors, the game continued. This time it was Jing Mingchen's turn. She thought for a long time and said, "There is a Hanshan Temple outside Gusu City, and there is also a Lingyun Temple in Leshan City. Zhang Ji has a poem that has been passed down through the ages, saying that the bell of the Hanshan Temple outside Gusu City can reach the passenger ship at midnight, which shows that the temples have to ring the bell at midnight, but there is no Lingyun Temple, not only at night, but also during the day. Guess why?"
The others shook their heads, eyes full of curiosity. Jing Mingchen was very satisfied: "Because there is a legend. It is said that Maitreya Buddha cast a bell and sank it in the Minjiang River to calm the four sea dragon kings who were stirring up trouble. As a result, the monks of Lingyun Temple accidentally fished out the bell, and then hung it in Lingyun Temple and rang the bell three times a day. The dragon king couldn't stand it, so he made clouds and rain. For a time, the water levels of the three rivers rose, and Jiazhou was flooded. Finally, Maitreya sank the bell back into the river, which saved lives. Since then, Lingyun Temple has had a rule of not ringing the bell."
After Jing Mingchen came Jiang Gubei. The Wuhan University student was a little proud: "Mr. Jiang, you have never been to Leshan before? This time you are only staying in Leshan for a short time. I am afraid there is no anecdote to tell you except the Big Buddha. Why don't you let me do it for you?"
Jiang Gubei smiled slightly: "That's not necessary. Although I have been here for a short time, I have talked a lot. I chatted with the boatman on the boat and he told me a story about Jiazhou. Do you know that there are 'Ten Don'ts' in Jiazhou?"
Except for Jiang Qianmo, everyone else looked confused. Jiang Qianmo raised his hand excitedly: "I know!"
The classmate said awkwardly: "You two really are brothers!"
Jiang Gubei continued, "There is a folk song about these ten things that cannot be done, which says that there is a horse that cannot be ridden, a cow that cannot be led, a steamer that cannot be steamed, a mill that cannot be pushed, a comb that cannot be combed, a mullet that cannot be eaten, an old flute that cannot be played, a mouse that cannot be caught, and a fifth watch that cannot be played. These ten things that cannot be done include ten places of interest in Leshan, namely, Maer Mountain, Niuer Bridge, Steamer Field, Mill Field, Brush Street, Wuyou Temple, Laoxiaoding, and Wang Haoer. As for the fifth watch, it is related to Su Dongpo. It is rumored that when Su Dongpo lived in Leshan, he borrowed the sea from the Dragon King to create land and agreed to return it at the fifth watch. In order to preserve this land, the people of Leshan have stopped playing the fifth watch since then."
Jing Mingchen held his chin and listened with great interest. After listening, he counted and felt something was wrong: "There are only nine. Didn't they say that there can be no more than ten? What is the other one?"
Jiang Gubei glanced to the side with a smile on his face, pretending not to hear. Jiang Qianmo laughed, "Third brother, I advise you not to know."
Jing Mingchen looked at him stupidly: "Why?"
Jiang Qianmo stopped talking, and suddenly Miss Guan shouted, "Look, do we look like we are heading to the Peach Blossom Spring?"
Everybody turned around and looked in the direction of the boat, and sure enough, the river ahead was gradually narrowing, the water was clear and blue, a gust of wind blew down countless crabapple blossoms on both sides of the bank, the sun was at its brightest at noon, making the river surface sparkle, and the boat was drifting in this river of glittering petals, as if it was carrying them to the Peach Blossom Spring where "there was no Han Dynasty, let alone Wei and Jin Dynasties".
After finishing his work as a long-term worker and doing business, Jiang Gubei stayed in Leshan for a few more days to conduct investigation and then returned to Chongqing to handle the business there.
Jing Mingchen sent him to the dock. They passed by a suspension bridge, which swayed and creaked when they walked on it. Jing Mingchen opened his arms and held the railing to keep his balance, still walking carefully: "Some time ago, Nan Qiao said that you had some trouble in your business. What about Mr. Jin, Mr. Xu, and Miss Fu? What's going on ?"
Jiang Gubei answered her, "It's nothing. Both Jiang and Jin are involved in the construction industry, so competition is inevitable in the business world. Mr. Jin sees me as his biggest rival, and I have to thank him for looking up to me. It's just that he is too dishonest, and I don't want to be his rival. He is the brother-in-law of Mr. Xu of the Central Bureau of Investigation. Mr. Xu has been paying attention to Qiu Di recently, so he came up with a dirty idea that he couldn't show on the stage. He wanted to spread the news that Qiu Di and I were in an ambiguous relationship, so that his brother-in-law, Mr. Xu, would see me as a rival in love from now on."
Qiudi Qiudi, she called him so affectionately. Jing Mingchen asked cautiously, "What about you and Fu Qiudi..."
Jiang Gubei stopped and looked at her with both anger and amusement: "Qiu Di has a husband. Her husband Jiang Tao is my good friend at Gezhi Middle School."
Jing Mingchen muttered, "But people say that Jiang Tao is a playboy who only knows how to use Fu Qiudi's money..."
Jiang Gubei interrupted her with a word "be careful". He stretched out his long arms and put them around her waist. He held her in his arms, turned around and put her on the other side of the bridge. A little child ran over, causing the bridge to shake violently. Jing Mingchen leaned in Jiang Gubei's arms, his heart swaying up and down with the suspension bridge.
Jiang Gubei said softly: "Don't worry, the relationship between Qiu Di and me, and between Jiang Tao and Qiu Di, is not as the legend says."
The bridge finally returned to calm, and Jiang Gubei let Jing Mingchen go: "As for you, I heard that Miss Cao from your nursery is missing."
Jing Mingchen nodded: "He said he was transferred and left very suddenly, leaving only a letter."
Jiang Gubei sneered: "I'm afraid it's not that simple. I heard that Miss Cao was taken away by the Central Investigation Department."
Jing Mingchen was shocked: "You mean, Miss Cao..."
Jiang Gubei nodded: "In short, your nursery is not a paradise, you have to be careful in everything. I heard that the new director who is about to take office is not a kind person who is easy to get along with."
The bridge had come to an end. Jiang Gubei jumped off the bridge and turned back to wave at her: "Go back. I'll come to see you guys when I have time."
Jing Mingchen didn't walk back until his figure disappeared from her sight. Thinking of Jiang Gubei's words, she was heavy-hearted and unknowingly walked into Leshan County.
It was time for dinner, so she sat down in a restaurant and ordered a bowl of noodles. When the waiter brought the noodles, she suddenly thought of the boat trip that day, so she asked the waiter, "Brother Xiaoer, do you know what is the Ten Things Not to Do in Leshan?"
The waiter answered readily: "Of course, I am a local from Leshan!"
He recited the "Ten Don'ts" to Jing Mingchen like a bamboo tube pouring beans. Jing Mingchen thanked him, and as soon as the waiter left, he blushed and poked his chopsticks into the noodles: "Rogue, rogue, rogue!"
It turns out that the last one "can't" means: there is a daughter who can't sleep.
The new dean arrived on the third day after Jiang Gubei left.
Jing Mingchen took one look at the new dean and knew that what Jiang Gubei said was true. With a pair of slanted eyes with more white than black, it was clear that he was not a kind person who was easy to get along with.
As soon as Dean Chen, who had droopy eyes, arrived, she called everyone to a meeting and gave them a lecture. She stood on the stage with her hands on her hips, like a compass. Her husband sat behind her, and his eyes moved cunningly over the female teachers below the stage. When he moved to Miss Guan, his eyes were almost glued to her.
Dean Chen started with some polite words, then quickly changed the subject to rectifying the nursery: "It must be rectified. Look at what you are like now. I went to the library and took a look. What kind of books are there? To be frank, it is not unjust to accuse you of promoting communism!"
The audience was completely silent, and the atmosphere was extremely depressing. Dean Chen changed the subject and became kind and persuasive: "I know that this has nothing to do with you. It was all the idea of ​​Dean Cao before..."
Suddenly someone jumped and raised his hand. It was Xiao Sanzi.
Jing Mingchen looked at him worriedly, and Xiao Sanzi winked at her. Jing Mingchen couldn't help but become more worried. This little guy has a good relationship with Dean Cao and is very clever. He might want to speak up for Miss Cao.
Sure enough, after being called to speak, Xiao Sanzi put on an innocent face and asked, "Dean, what does red mean? I know red means red, but Dean Cao is very white, as white as milk. I think he is not as red as you. You are so red, like a flower."
There was a burst of laughter from the crowd below. The new dean had a red birthmark on his face from his forehead to his right eye.
The laughter ignited Dean Chen's anger like a fuse. Dean Chen threw the speech manuscript in his hand and narrowed his eyes: "Look, this is the good child educated by your Dean Cao. What's your name? Put him in solitary confinement for a day and don't allow him to eat."
The audience fell silent for a moment. Dean Chen continued with satisfaction: "Reform is imperative. I came here to correct the trend. Now let me talk about the direction of the next reform. First, replace the textbooks..."
Director Chen was the first to make the first move after taking office. He was determined to use Xiao Sanzi to establish his authority. As soon as he finished giving a lecture, he personally locked Xiao Sanzi up in an empty room. There was no solitary confinement room in Leshan Nursery School before, so this room became the solitary confinement room from then on.
While eating, Jing Mingchen secretly hid a steamed bun, intending to sneak away to deliver the meal to Xiao Sanzi after late at night.
She didn't dare go out until the second watch. She tiptoed towards the confinement room, but saw a small figure squatting there. It was Congwen.
Congwen was also here to bring food to Xiao Sanzi. Jing Mingchen told him to go back first, and he broke the steamed bun into small pieces and stuffed them into the gap. While feeding him, he warned him, "When your father Jiang left, he told me that the new dean is not a good person and has some connections with the Central Bureau of Investigation. He told me to be careful. You too, you have to choose the right time to be clever. What if someone finds evidence against you and kicks you out of school?"
Xiao Sanzi didn't care: "I don't care. If I get kicked out, I'll join the army!"
Jing Mingchen found it funny: "How old are you? No one wants you to join the army."
Xiao Sanzi made a face and said, "Why not? Miss Cao told me that some of the child soldiers there are younger than me."
Jing Mingchen was startled and shuddered, and the steamed bun in his hand fell to the ground: "What did you say? What about them?"
Xiao Sanzi realized that he had said something wrong and stopped talking. Jing Mingchen calmed down: "You called me mom, you shouldn't hide anything from me."
Xiao Sanzi hurriedly explained: "No, it's just that I promised Miss Cao... I also found out by chance."
Jing Mingchen interrupted him: "Okay, I get it, you don't have to say it anymore, and from now on you are not allowed to tell anyone else, not even Congwen. Also, fighting is a matter for adults, you are still young, I don't allow you to mention it again."
The third child agreed obediently, and Jing Mingchen stuffed the last piece of steamed bun in: "I'm going back, you should go to bed early, apologize to the dean tomorrow, and come out first."