Ping An Biography

Cooperating with Su Liangchen to make a drama book, Zhang Ning came home only to find out that the Zhang family's story had been spread in the neighborhood, probably that Zhang Xiaomei will marry a rich man in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and she will soon become rich and powerful.These rumors must have been produced by the family members who were eager to show them off. They couldn't have come from the Su family. The rich man's family had nothing to do with the common people on Liren Street.

Zhang Ning mentioned this matter when he saw his uncle, and his words were very displeased: "Little sister's business has not yet been announced, and the character has not been written off. You have publicized it early. If the matter fails in the end, how can we step down? ?”

"Who used it for publicity? The mouth grows on other people, can we control it so leniently?" Zhang Jiujin argued.

Zhang Ning thought, it's really strange, can the news be known by the neighbors for no reason?It's not surprising that people have vanity, but you boasted about your wealth early on, why do you still open that shop and do a small business, and the women in the family are still busy working all day long?Isn't this embarrassing yourself?

It was dusk, and the men were talking at the door of the main room early, while the women were busy preparing dinner.He looked back and saw Zhang Xiaomei coming out of the kitchen with a basin to pour water. They looked at each other. She continued to work, but she looked up from the window from time to time.

"Since it wasn't said by one of us, that's fine." Zhang Ning is inconvenient to argue with his elders. No matter whether he wins or not, no one will say that he is right. It is wrong for the younger generation to disobey the elders. The current moral order is like this.He asked again, "A few days ago, you and your aunt went to meet the second young master of the Su family, how was it?"

Zhang Jiujin was full of praise immediately: "The son of a rich family is very particular about etiquette. The second young master doesn't pretend to be big, but he is very decent in his few words. You can tell that he is not ordinary, and he doesn't have the profligacy of that dandy. Frivolous, not bad not bad."

The cousin echoed: "He is also tall and burly, with a lot of momentum, and he has been studying all the time, not like a rough guy."

Zhang Ning responded with a few words, knowing that the little girl had no role to speak in front of the elders, and did not ask her in front of everyone.After dinner, he saw her enter the house and the lights upstairs were turned on, so he went to the door of the wing room and knocked.

He seldom enters the little sister's boudoir, after all, he has grown up, and it would be unreasonable to rush into the girl's room for nothing, but tonight because he had something to ask her alone, he went in.The Zhang family's economic situation is actually quite good, but at this time the people advocated diligence and thrift to build a family, and some money was either saved, bought land, or lent.I saw that everyone in the girl's room was as old and simple as Zhang Ning's, but it looked a little different. There were small flowers embroidered by her on the window curtain, and there was a bead curtain hanging in front of the bed, but the beads were not pearls. , is a kind of small nut on the tree, which is decorated with red thread.Her room didn't seem to have any valuables, but it looked delicate, flexible, clean and tidy, like a small family jasper.

Seeing that the younger sister was unhappy, Zhang Ning forced a smile on his face and asked kindly: "I heard you saw someone? How is the second young master? Does he look pleasing to the eye?"

Zhang Xiaomei sat down on the stool next to him, and said weakly, "It's not ugly if it has a nose and eyes."

"It's enough not to be ugly. People can't just look at the outside." Zhang Ning said, "Are you satisfied with the rest?"

Zhang Xiaomei didn't answer, he was silent for a long time, and then said insincerely: "As my cousin said, maybe the Su family mentioned this marriage for the purpose of marriage. But don't worry about it, other people want to be married by the official matchmaker, and they are the original spouse, let alone The Su family is a well-known big family, even ordinary people are very concerned about this aspect of virtue." He pretended to be relaxed and said with a smile, "Don't make a fool of yourself, you have never thought about the good days of the Su family. A child? Many girls have this dream of endlessly beautiful clothes, gold and silver jewellery, and a pampered status..."

"Who still has time to dream!" Zhang Xiaomei said angrily, "I think Uncle and the others like to dream, and they want to get rich all day long."

Zhang Ning sighed: "You can't blame them. The calmness after abandoning fantasy is not something everyone can achieve. It has nothing to do with how old you live... This marriage is ultimately up to you. I listen to you. Then if I don't nod, uncle is just an uncle after all, and he has no right to force it."

The little girl lowered her head and said: "Let's think about it again, brother is right. I don't mean to be rich and powerful. Second Young Master Su doesn't look bad. Let's see if he is pretending after a while."

Hearing what she said, Zhang Ning felt a little uncomfortable.Could it be that he wished to hear his younger sister say that he didn't like him, and hoped that she would speak ill of Mr. Su?People's hearts are really contradictory, haven't I been persuading her to choose a good husband and son-in-law, and now I meet someone she says is good, why do I feel this way?Insincere generosity... But what if you don't show generosity?

Maybe I, like my uncle, are also dreaming and fantasizing, how can it be so easy to abandon the realm of fantasy.

"Well, it's getting late, so I'll go down first. When you make up your mind, tell me...you don't have to be swayed by uncle and cousin's words." Zhang Ning stood up pretending to be indifferent.The younger sister didn't keep him either, and when he went out to the eaves, he couldn't help shaking his head mockingly.

There was still a vague scent of sweet-scented osmanthus in the air, and he reached out his hand to take out the auspicious talisman from his pocket. The first time he got this thing, it was also in the scent of sweet-scented osmanthus, and he remembered it very clearly.

Standing behind the window, Zhang Xiaomei slightly raised the curtain, reluctantly wanting to see him go back to the room, but saw him stop under the eaves, holding a red thing and gently put it in front of his mouth.She looked at what he was holding curiously, but the light was too dim but she couldn't see clearly.

……

Elegance and subtlety after letting go of utilitarian vanity is Zhang Ning's favorite feeling, just like Fang Ling's play. <The cold pear garden has finally opened, and the situation is as optimistic as expected.The first night was full of guests, and those who were invited were all people of some status in Nanjing City. These people had no shortage of money and were potential regular customers.People excitedly came to see the first scene of Xinliyuan, and they came for the new song "Suqiang". This period has been widely spread in Jinling, and tonight they can hear what it is.

Of course Zhang Ning was going to join in the show, and he sat in a good seat in the lobby with Mr. Su and a few celebrities.There is a seat on the wooden building, and the place is high and has a good view. It is really a VIP seat, and you can watch it from a high position without rushing.Overlooking the hall is full of people, the sitting and standing positions are full.

After waiting for a while, the gongs and drums were beaten amidst the noise of voices, and the first person to come up was the last one, reading the story wedge.Mr. Su wanted to say something, but he turned his head because he was a little troubled, but his voice was unclear, as if he was saying that Brother Pingan wrote the lines or something, Zhang Ning couldn't hear clearly and had to smile back.

The play started, and most people began to watch the play seriously, and finally the noise gradually subsided.After the end, the musician knocked on the wooden clapper, and in the clear rhythm, a white dress came to the stage. Mr. Su and others immediately opened their eyes and looked at the stage intently. Zhang Ning also recognized it immediately. It was Fang Ling who came out of Danjiao.

She was not wearing a costume, she was wearing a plain collared skirt, a simple pair of jade hairpins in her hair, and a silk fan in her hand. She walked onto the stage gracefully. At first glance, she looked like a lady at home. , very elegant.But her face was painted with thick drama makeup, which was as thick as the Peking opera makeup that Zhang Ning had seen. It was impossible to tell what the face of a real person looked like. Just by looking at the face, you might not be able to tell the difference between a man and a woman , like a mask.

The wooden clappers beat the rhythm, and the flute and flute sounded together for a while. Fang Lingjian on the stage simply sang with a fan. Fang sang "It's enough to wear no makeup", and the hall immediately fell silent.

Her posture and technique are as if done by hand, there is no sense of artificiality at all, and she is very soft, slow and charming, like her usual demeanor, and like a special light dance;There is no hustle and bustle and no colorfulness, but there is a subtle lingering fragrance and a thousand bells of tenderness. Just at the beginning, it is very contagious and brings people into the realm of lingering and sentimental feelings.

Countless judges in the gradually large hall fell silent, leaving only the moving singing and orchestral melody, which made the voice more penetrating, and it seemed to linger on the wooden beams in the hall after every sentence go.

The setting of this play is not as realistic as modern film and television. You can see it as a play at a glance, and the way of singing and acting the story is completely different from the usual way of talking and living.But once you enter the play, it is as if you are on the scene, and there is endless room for fantasy.Zhang Ning felt that he was dreaming with his eyes open.

Zhang Ning woke up from the dream with thunderous applause in his ears, and secretly sighed that Fang Ling was indeed talented in the art of opera, perhaps hiding her was a kind of obliteration. <Han sings well too. "

<b寒，忽然想起咱们还没见过她的芳容。平安兄瞧，她画着这种妆，明摆着不让人看到她的真容嘛。”

"If you don't wear costumes, you really don't need to wear that kind of makeup." Someone echoed. <What does Han look like? "

"No." Zhang Ning insisted, "She is a married woman, so it may be inconvenient to show her face. I heard that this pear garden was funded by her husband."

"Madam Gu, hehe, I don't see the real face of Lushan Mountain. Her husband is also a mysterious person. I sent someone to inquire about it a while ago, and I only said that he was a tea merchant, but no one has ever seen anyone." Su Liangchen shook his head and sighed. road.

Their disguised identities are to avoid the government's spies. No matter how many friends Mr. Su has, how can he start to investigate?

"Listen to the opera, after tonight, you may have a good time." Mr. Su said, after thinking for a while, he added, "Let's change "The Story of the West Chamber" later, and maybe we can listen to another good song." play."