Denghuaxiao

Chapter 255 Extra (Yan Shuang): An Old Friend Entered My Dream (Part )
There is a painting hanging in Yan Xu's study.

The painting depicts a sunset in the mountains, which is bright and brilliant, in stark contrast to the dull and boring colors in his study.

By chance, a colleague from the court came to his study once. When he saw the paintings that were very different from the style of his study, he thought he was a painting lover, so he spread the news. Those officials who tried to make friends with him then searched everywhere for authentic works of famous artists and gave them as gifts. Unexpectedly, he was dismissive of all the authentic works and had them all returned.

The people who were turned away were puzzled. If he was not a painting lover, why would he hang such a painting in his study? In fact, if you look closely, although the painting is delicate and colorful, it is still far from the works of a real master painter. But Yan Xu loved it like a treasure.

Yan Xu turned a blind eye to outsiders' speculation.

Every day, I would use a soft broom to gently sweep the floor, open the window halfway to prevent the wind from blowing in, put a desk under the wall, and light a heater in winter to prevent frostbite...

People in the Privy Council secretly said that Yan Xu treated the painting like a peerless beauty, but showed no mercy to real beauties, and was a "weird man".

There were also people in the court gossiping that Yan Xu was rejected by the wife of Duke Zhaoning when he was young, which caused resentment and jealousy in his heart, which twisted his personality and led to such behavior.

He always listened coldly without saying a word.

The guard came in from the door and whispered, "Sir, the carriage is ready."

Yan Xu said "hmm", put away the silk broom he was using to dust the hanging flowers, and turned around: "Let's go."

The carriage went to Danfengtai.

When autumn arrives in Shengjing, the maple leaves at Danfeng Terrace are the best. Today it rained again, the teahouse window was half open, the drizzle was like smoke, and the red leaves on the mountains were like fire. He sat there, quietly looking at the peaks in the distance.

"The river is empty, the trees are falling, the wild geese are crying sadly, the frost has penetrated the red maples, and the grass has withered... The butterflies don't know that they are just dreams, and they follow the spring scenery to the cold branches..." A white-haired old man hummed while serving him a pot of tea and a plate of crab shell yellow. He stroked his beard as he looked at him and smiled, "Guest, you are here again this year."

He nodded calmly.

Every autumn, Yan Xu would come to the teahouse at Danfengtai to drink tea. The owner of the teahouse had known him for many years and would reserve a window seat for him every year. Every time he came, he did nothing but watched quietly and left after drinking a pot of tea.

"Others always come on sunny days, but you choose a rainy day." The old man sighed and laughed, "Over the years, there is only one guest who comes to enjoy the maple leaves on a rainy day. Oh, no," the old man seemed to remember something and continued, "A few days ago, a young man came, also on a rainy day. He waited in my teahouse until midnight, and the lights were all turned off."

Yan Xu lowered his head and drank his tea: "Has he waited for the person he wanted to wait for?"

"I heard that we have waited."

"Really?" Yan Xu put down the teacup and said calmly, "Then he is luckier than me."

"Where is the guest? Are you planning to wait here forever?"

"Can't you?"

The old man laughed.

"I am old now, and half of my body has already been buried in the ground. I don't know when the teahouse will be closed. If the guests want to wait, there will be no tea and snacks on the table."

He was silent for a moment, then said, "I understand."

The old man stood up tremblingly, and walked away with his cane. He took two steps, then stopped and said in a calm voice: "The maple leaves of Danfeng Terrace are red every year. I still remember the girl next to the guest. Now no one eats this crab shell yellow."

"It's common to not be able to wait for someone. After all, there are only a few people as lucky as that young man."

"So many years have passed, there is no need for you to be too persistent. Finish this pot of tea and leave early."

After saying that, he walked away slowly.

There was only one person left in the teahouse, and a drizzle was falling outside the window.

Next to the teapot on the table, there was a plate of crab shell yellow baked to a crispy orange color. He never liked these greasy cakes, but he lowered his head, slowly picked up one and put it in his mouth.

"Cha-"

It was as if a woman's joyful laughter came from my ears: "Isn't it delicious? I didn't lie to you, the crab shell yellow in this teahouse is the best!"

He suddenly closed his eyes.

……

In fact, someone told him about this teahouse, and that person also liked to order the crab shell roe.

Thanks to her, he knew that there was such a great place to enjoy the scenery on the high platform with red maple leaves.

Yan Xu was born in a family of a fourth-rank civil official. He was a bastard born to his aunt, who was cowardly. After accidentally offending his mistress, he was punished and caught a cold, and died soon after. After his aunt died, his father treated him even colder, and his mistress was mean. He couldn't stay at home, so he tried to make a living on his own, and by chance he became a minor official in the military room.

He was very skilled, usually calm, and worked desperately. There were many such people in the barracks. However, when he gave up his credit to his superiors several times, the look on his superiors' faces gradually changed.

He soon won the favor of his superiors.

A fast and sharp knife is not only meticulous in its work, but also knowledgeable and interesting. No matter where it is, it is loved by the superiors.

He was promoted quickly and gradually came to prominence in the Privy Council.

His father looked down on him at first, then gradually changed his attitude towards him, and then became close to him. He only felt disgusted. Later, there was a riot in the barracks, and he was alone to suppress it, so he was seriously injured and left a long scar at the corner of his eye.

After that incident, he became a military marriage officer.

Everyone in the Privy Council knew that there was such a ruthless man as him. When he went mad, he would not care about his life. The long scar at the corner of his eye seemed to have become a kind of mark. When people saw him, they would think of his ferocious appearance with blood all over his body when the blade of his sword swept by. Everyone kept their distance from him.

Yan Xu didn't care at all. On the first day after his promotion, he asked his father to move his aunt's wooden plaque to the ancestral hall.

My aunt was of low status, and her tablet was not originally qualified to be placed in the Yan family ancestral hall.

However, rules are always determined by people.

When you are at a high place, the rules can be changed. After his aunt's tablet was placed in the ancestral hall, he went to Danfeng Terrace. He didn't have any hobbies, and his life was dull. When he was not on duty in the barracks, he just wanted to sit alone and look at the mountains and rivers. Anyway, others were afraid of him, and they mocked him for his weird and fierce personality, but he didn't care.

The maple leaves on the Red Maple Terrace can't talk, and the autumn wind never interferes. He sat quietly, listening to the rustling sound in the grass.

He thought it was an assassin who was out to kill him. During his time in the Privy Council, he became an open target, and countless people wanted him dead. He quietly waited for the assassin to make a move, and then planned to kill him with a knife, but he didn't expect that after a long time, the assassin didn't move.

Until there was a "pop" sound, and an exasperated voice came from the bushes: "It's almost October, why are there still so many mosquitoes!"

It was a young female voice.

He frowned and saw a woman jumping out from the bushes behind him.

The woman was very young, wearing a pomegranate-colored long dress. Her eyes and eyebrows were delicate and lively. When she saw him looking at her, she seemed to realize that she was exposed, and smiled embarrassedly. When she smiled, a pair of dimples were revealed on her cheeks.

Yan Xu looked at her coldly, and with a movement of his long sword, the object in front of the woman flew towards him and fell into his hand.

"Hey, that's mine!" the other party shouted.

Yan Xu remained unmoved.

Just now he saw the other party trying to hide this thing secretly, and his expression was extremely evasive.

When he unfolded the thing in his hand, he was slightly stunned.

It turned out to be a painting.

The ink on the painting had not yet dried, and on it was painted a picture of maple leaves in the sunset. The colors were extremely beautiful, and he himself was prominently depicted in the painting, with only his back to the painting.

He couldn't see his own back, so for the first time he realized how lonely he felt sitting there looking at the shadows of maple leaves.

"I'm sorry," the woman whispered, "I was painting here and happened to see you. I thought you were suitable for the painting, so I painted you in without your permission..."

Before she could finish, Yan Xu tore the scroll into pieces.

"Hey!" she said anxiously, "Why did you tear up the painting?"

"Who asked you to draw me?" He said coldly and fiercely.

When other people saw the scar on his eye, they were frightened. But this young lady was very courageous. She shrank back for a moment and then continued to speak loudly: "You are sitting here to be painted. All things in this mountain, people, mountains, water, leaves are scenery. I paint my scenery. What does it have to do with you?"

landscape?

Yan Xu found it incredible. What kind of scenery was he? Yet this woman was so confident.

She even pulled his sleeve, refusing to give in. "You destroyed my property, so you should pay compensation. Don't think you can just let it go. My guards are not far away. As long as I shout, they will rush over and take you away."

He didn't want to get entangled with the other party and threw down a silver coin.

"You want to get rid of me with just a little silver? Who do you think I am?" The other party stuffed the silver back into his hand.

"What do you want?"

"It's easy." The woman said, "Just sit here and let me draw another one."

Yan Xu was speechless.

He didn't know why the other party was so obsessed with painting him. He was not as handsome as Pan An. He had an ordinary appearance and looked ferocious and terrifying. Ordinary women would retreat away from him, but this man was not afraid at all and even approached him actively.

"Impossible." He turned and walked away.

"Hey, don't go," the other person followed him, "You are the soul of this painting, just let me paint a picture."

"absurd."

Yan Xu felt that this woman had a strange mind.

He treated her coldly and threatened her, but it was all in vain. He was actually not good at getting involved with others. In the past days, the knife could cut off all entanglements.

But he couldn't just kill a powerless woman with one knife here.

The woman looked at him, as if she could sense his determination not to be painted no matter what. She finally took a step back, thought for a moment, and said, "How about this, there is a teahouse in this mountain. The crab roe in the teahouse is the best. You treat me to a bowl of crab roe, and we'll call it a day."

He stood still.

"Come on," the woman took two steps, and when she saw that he didn't move, she turned back and urged him, "If you're late, you won't be able to catch the first pot."

He should have turned around and left without paying any attention to this person, but perhaps because the teahouse she mentioned had a beautiful view, or perhaps he was attracted by the world-class tea she mentioned, he finally followed her.

Just as the woman said, there was a teahouse hidden in Danfengtai. The owner of the teahouse was an old man and there were only a few customers in the teahouse. The woman called out a few dishes familiarly and sat down with him at a window seat.

The refreshments were served promptly.

A pot of tea and a plate of crab roe.

He picked up the teacup and took a sip. The tea was very bitter, but the fragrance lingered on his teeth and cheeks after he drank it. It was indeed a good tea.

The woman put the messy painting silk book box aside, wiped her hands, picked up a piece of crab roe and tasted it: "The first pot is really delicious! Do you want to try it?"

Yan Xu turned his head away.

She smiled, with sweet dimples on her cheeks.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Su Ningshuang. What's your name?"