National Tide 1980.

Chapter 1324: So Unhappy

When I woke up, the ceiling was illuminated by the reflection of the sun.

The breeze lifted the curtains, and the blurred window frame moved with the flow of light, like a slowly moving train, taking people far away.

In this lovely, comfortable and peaceful illusion, Han Yingming once thought that he had returned to his home in Tokyo, Japan.

However, when the sunlight came into the room through the gap in the curtains, it shone through the white wall onto the three-drawer table.

The call of the thrush outside the house reminded him where he was as he gradually regained consciousness.

Then he immediately realized that he had overslept in his courtyard house in the capital again.

Although I still want to stay in bed for a while, watching the tiny dust particles flying in the sunlight and being in a daze for a while.

But his status as a guest was a shameful motivation that forced him to give up this comfortable laziness and hurry up to get up.

Fortunately, although he got up late, he could also determine that it would not be too late.

Otherwise, once half past nine and the temperature of the sun rises, the ceiling that was opened last night for stargazing and ventilation will definitely be closed again, and there will be no trace of sunlight in the room.

It’s just strange that people often don’t sleep well in unfamiliar places.

Especially for an old man of his age, who doesn't get enough sleep to begin with, and when he comes to a foreign country without air conditioning, he might suffer from insomnia.

But the strange thing is that in this place, he slept soundly and deeply from the first day.

It has been almost a week since he came here, and he spends more time in his dreams every day than in his own home. This is really a problem that puzzles him.

If you think about it carefully, the weather in Beijing is indeed hot, but it is quite cool in the morning and evening, which is probably the biggest blessing.

Moreover, there are refrigerators and fans in the house, and awnings and sunflower fans outside. In addition, there are several ice basins placed from ten o'clock to six in the afternoon, so people will not be affected by the summer heat at all.

In addition, the spaciousness and tranquility of the garden, the sound of leaves rustling in the wind at night, and the chirping of various insects are probably also one of the reasons.

Such natural sounds can only be clearly perceived in a quiet environment.

Just like the capital city in the middle of the night, with bright stars in the sky.

Yes, in Beijing, you can see the Milky Way clearly across the sky.

Han Yingming couldn't remember how long it had been since he had seen such a Milky Way.

But in the past, when Keiko was just born, he could see the Milky Way with his naked eyes in Japan.

But in today's extremely developed and brightly lit Tokyo, all of this has become the most luxurious memory of yesterday due to the increasingly serious light pollution, forcing people to admit the truth that "there is gain and loss".

These gifts from nature are like a mirror that allows humans to examine themselves, clearly reflecting how, while human society has benefited from technological development, it has also shattered the original pastoral life.

Perhaps only the current capital city can allow people to relive this almost forgotten happiness.

Just like the morning when Han Yingming woke up.

Although it was already 8:30 in the morning, it was not hot at all and it was so comfortable.

Bright and joyful sunlight slants into the cool air, and everything is clearly black and white, light is light, and shadow is shadow.

The air is cool and the sun is hot. When they come into contact with one place, the coolness is just beginning to warm, and the heat is just beginning to cool.

In the midst of the uneven balance between cool and warm, the flowers are blooming and the leaves are glistening with dew.

Walking into the yard, the pomegranate tree in front of the east room door was still in shadow, and its leaves were dark green.

But the several lotus pots in the middle of the yard have already seen the sun.

The pink buds turned orange, and bright white water droplets floated on the tender green lotus leaves.

When the breeze blows, the lotus leaves will tremble left to right, swaying as if dancing in the morning light.

A few dragonflies were flying back and forth in the middle of the yard, flashing like flowing lightning.

Suddenly, a blood-red bird took a look at the flowers on the pomegranate tree, then flew out from the ceiling and into the blue sky.

Suddenly, one carrying a piece of jade on its back flicked at the lotus bud and then turned away.

Needless to say, in such nice weather, after washing up and having breakfast, Han Yingming must have been eager to go out for a walk.

Or you can head west along the alleys to Jingshan Park to climb the mountain and take a good look at the Forbidden City under the blue sky.

Or you can go to Beihai Park in the west to row a boat and rent a boat to go boating on the lake.

Or you can just go fishing for fun by the Tongzi River or the Shichahai Lake.

Alternatively, you can go to Lai Jin Yu Xuan under the old cypress tree in Zhongshan Park, brew a pot of tea, and listen to the cicadas chirping while drinking tea to relieve boredom.

This is still the nearby ones, and the Reclining Buddha Temple, Biyun Temple, Summer Palace and Old Summer Palace, which are farther away, are also good places to spend the summer.

In short, although the weather in the capital is hot, people can avoid it.

Especially for people like Han Yingming who have plenty of free time, they don’t have to worry about the morning and evening, and their food and drink are taken care of by others. They can live in the Garden Hotel for free.

Whether he was in Yunyuan, in the park, or outside the city, he could perfectly avoid the summer heat.

There were so many places he could go and so many sights he could see.

To be honest, his mentality has completely changed now.

Even though he still felt that the capital was generally backward, the bustle and fun of this ancient city in summer had long touched his heart, allowing him to experience the kind of leisurely and simple life pleasure that he could not find in Tokyo, Japan.

Especially the Temple of Heaven Park, which Han Yingming liked from the bottom of his heart.

For no other reason than that the Temple of Heaven Park is full of towering ancient trees and pine and cypress forests. It was originally one of the royal gardens and is also the best place for Beijing residents to escape the summer heat.

The more important reason is that it is the result of the hard work of his son-in-law and is a park planned by Ning Weimin.

After so many years of development, the Temple of Heaven Park has become a leader among Beijing's tourist attractions in terms of infrastructure, sightseeing content, entertainment projects, shopping, and food and beverage. It is almost a place that Beijing's travel agencies must recommend to foreigners.

The number of tourists visiting here every day is almost catching up with the Forbidden City.

Cultural relics, costume photography, various exhibitions, amusement rides, folk music, music performances, book sales, antiques and used goods...

There is something to see, something to hear, something to play, and something to stroll around.

Cold drinks and snacks, Chinese and Western food, pastries, tea and coffee...

There is food to eat, drink to drink, rest to rest, and sit to sit.

In fact, let alone Han Yingming, a foreigner who likes to visit the Temple of Heaven, even among the local people in Beijing, young or old, male or female, how many of them don’t like this place?

In addition, the Temple of Heaven Park and Ning Weimin’s own territory are almost the same.

Just because of his face, Han Yingming, as his father-in-law, receives special treatment wherever he goes.

Not to mention Zhang Shihui, Luo Guangliang, and Xiao Tao, those people who spent every day in the Temple of Heaven Park making money were very respectful to Han Yingming and called him "Uncle".

When Luo Guangliang and Xiao Taozi saw him, they would take the initiative to ride their tricycles to send him off, and Zhang Shihui would flatter him with good food and drinks.

Even the people from the Temple of Heaven knew him. All the employees from top to bottom in the Temple of Heaven remembered Ning Weimin's kindness, and everyone's income had increased.

So no one dared to collect his ticket money, let alone ask him to queue.

They all treated him like a god and coaxed, worshipped and praised him.

This kind of enjoyment feels so wonderful, no wonder he has a special liking for it.

To put it bluntly, for Han Yingming, because he had a son-in-law like Ning Weimin, he was treated as a VIP wherever he went in the Temple of Heaven Park, and he enjoyed privileges wherever he went, and he didn't even need to ask for it. Even if the emperor visited China and came to this place, he probably wouldn't be as comfortable and happy as him.

So as the wedding preparations enter the final stage, even Matsumoto Keiko and her daughter have serious things to do.

If Han Yingming really wants to go out these days, there will be no one to accompany him, but that doesn’t matter.

He can still enjoy himself and be very free.

Anyway, he doesn't have to squeeze into the bus when he goes out, because he can call a taxi, and he can also ask Luo Guangliang and others to pick him up.

In particular, Jiang Nianyun prepared twelve bicycles at the gatehouse of Yunyuan for the convenience of Yunyuan's guests.

If he wants to save trouble, he can just choose a bike to ride. Isn't it convenient to be self-reliant?

On this day, Han Yingming went out by himself on his bike. He didn't go anywhere but went to the Temple of Heaven.

He is familiar with the road and can find it by himself.

It doesn’t matter if he doesn’t know Chinese, he knows most of the Chinese characters on the street, and eating, drinking, defecating and urinating are all no problem for him.

And for insurance purposes, he carried a brochure of Yunyuan with him, so that if anything happened he could just call them.

People will definitely not get lost.

What’s interesting is that he has even adapted to the local customs and let himself go in terms of dressing.

Nowadays, he rarely wears formal clothes. Instead, like ordinary old people in Beijing, he wears a big white vest, shorts and cloth shoes.

A folding fan, a newspaper and a large teapot filled with tea were also placed in the basket.

To be honest, if he didn't speak, no one would think he was Japanese.

And when he arrives at the Temple of Heaven, he will at least have to stroll along the central axis from north to south and then from south to north and back.

No matter whether it is the Zhai Palace, the South Kitchen, the North Kitchen, or the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, he will find a place to stroll around. Only then will he think of finding a place to sit down and rest, sweat a little, and have lunch at the same time.

For him, there are many choices now.

There are ways of eating in the park, and there are also benefits outside the park, which will directly affect the afternoon activities.

If he was in the park, he would usually go to the Saigū cafe to eat some simple Western meals.

He is not picky and does not mind whether the sandwich or macaroni tastes authentic. The most important thing is that it is easy and convenient to eat.

It's not like when he went to the Tan Palace Restaurant, even if he said, "Keep it simple, don't make it too much trouble."

But Zhang Shihui always pretended to obey him but secretly disobeyed him. Every time he brought him at least four plates and eight dishes, and a bottle of wine, he would always say, "It's just a light meal. I'm sorry to have treated you badly."

To be honest, an old man of his age doesn't have much appetite in the summer.

For lunch, just a bowl of noodles, a few fried dumplings, or a bowl of lotus leaf porridge and a few buns are enough to satisfy your appetite.

This is the same for both Chinese and Japanese.

Looking at a table full of dazzling dishes but not being able to eat them and having to throw them away as a waste, I feel like I am committing a sin and I blame myself for being so extravagant.

So he didn't dare go there again, and usually just drank some coffee at noon to fill his stomach.

As for the afternoon after lunch, the weather was getting hotter and he would sweat if he moved, so he didn't feel like going out for a walk.

At this time, he would usually go to the teahouse in Beishenchu ​​or the teahouse outside the east gate.

Those places were well chosen, with gentle breezes.

Order a pot of tea, eat a few pieces of watermelon, and listen to some folk art performances. It couldn't be more relaxing.

Everything else will be discussed after we avoid the scorching sun before 2 o'clock.

It doesn’t really matter that he doesn’t understand those programs.

Because both the big drum and the qin book have rhythmic tunes and singing styles.

To him, those special and melodious rhythms were like an exotic opera, and he didn't even need to know what was being sung to appreciate it.

He also liked to flip through the newspaper in this melodious atmosphere, and perhaps write one or two articles in the notebook he brought with him.

He now writes down in detail everything he experiences in the capital almost every day.

He didn't want to easily forget such a wonderful life here, and he also wanted to return to Tokyo to tell those people who made him fear the capital - they didn't know this city well enough. The capital of China was much more interesting and enjoyable than they knew. The capital was actually a very magical place.

And after 2:30 in the afternoon, he can go out again.

At this time, he would either visit the used book stalls or the flea market stalls, and almost every time he would bring something back.

He couldn't tell whether it was because of the influence of his son-in-law that he was beginning to like Chinese culture.

It was because Ning Weimin and Kang Shude both liked collecting cultural relics that he consciously catered to their tastes.

Anyway, when he was doing this, he did feel a kind of cultural pleasure and did gain something.

Just like today, he found some original Japanese books from the war period at a bookstall, and also took a fancy to a cat-shaped porcelain pillow.

He only spent more than 50 yuan to buy all of them, but he knew that these books alone could be sold for at least 50,000 yen when he brought them back to Japan.

The cat-shaped porcelain pillow was his favorite. It actually had nothing to do with money. He was very satisfied with it whether he used it for a nap or as an interesting decoration.

And so, he rode his bicycle back home contentedly.

However, this beautiful day is far from over, but has just begun.

Because he knew that when he returned to Yunyuan, a dinner filled with the joy of reunion would be waiting for him.

This meal is when the most people gather, and those who are busy during the day will come back.

Whether it is Kang Shude, Jiang Nianyun, his son-in-law Ning Weimin, or his wife and daughter, no one will be absent and they will definitely gather together under the ceiling in the yard to have dinner.

Maybe the dinner was not very sumptuous by banquet standards.

Maybe it's just some home-cooked meals like pancakes, mixed tofu, scrambled eggs, fried mushrooms, and winter melon meatball soup, but the feeling of everyone getting together, drinking some wine and chatting is the best.

And after dinner, they would sit in the yard to enjoy the cool air and chat.

As the sky gradually darkens and the ceiling above opens, a little starlight will twinkle among the lotus leaves. The cool breeze will also bring fireflies to the ceiling, like falling stars. The tuberose will also gradually emit fragrance, further accentuating the romance of the summer night.

This kind of family happiness is actually what the elderly need most and what they yearn for most.

Especially for him, it is rarely available in Japan, so it is extremely precious.

So, how could he not be happy, how could he not be happy?

He didn't know what heaven would be like, but judging from his life experiences over the past half of his life, the few days he spent in the capital were like being in heaven.

Such a capital city is really great. Not only is it fun, lively and colorful everywhere, making this old city seem to be full of magic, but it also gives him happiness that he could never imagine in Japan.

Even though I may only be able to sit with my wife and daughter for a few hours after dinner every day.

But the magical thing is that his relationship with them has never been so harmonious and harmonious.

To be honest, if he could always live happily like this, he would be willing to settle here for a long time.