Top Scholar

Chapter 192 Riddle
By the Ming Dynasty, Chinese customs had evolved, and the Qingming Festival had become a three-in-one festival.

It combines the Cold Food Festival and the ancient Shangsi Festival on the third day of the third lunar month.

The poem "Bathing in the Yi River, enjoying the breeze at the Dance Altar, and singing as I return" written by Su Lu is Zeng Dian's description of the Shangsi Festival.

Bathing in the river is called "fuxi," a ritual to cleanse oneself of dirt and dispel misfortune. Dancing in the wind is called "wuyu," a dance performed to pray for rain.

In addition, the third day of the third lunar month is also called the Girls' Festival. When a girl turns fifteen, she usually holds a "hairpin ceremony" on this day, which represents her formal adulthood and that she can talk about marriage.

Nowadays, the third day of the third lunar month has been incorporated into the Qingming Festival, so on this day, girls from all families will participate in the "Shangsi Spring Play", wearing beautiful dresses, walking by the water, playing and picking orchids, and singing and dancing.

Su Lu knew this, which was why he wanted to bring his younger sister along...

~~
The two brothers got up before dawn, packed their things for the trip, and made themselves as presentable as possible. After breakfast, they even brushed their teeth carefully...

Hearing that the young master and young lady were going on a spring outing, Steward Tian prepared snacks and food overnight and brought them over. He smiled and said:
"Although it may not be as refined as that of a wealthy family, it has its own unique flavor. It is all local Hejiang flavor, and it will be a novel experience for them."

"Uncle Tian, ​​you've gone to so much trouble." Su Lu felt like he was becoming inseparable from Steward Tian.

"Hehehe, it's nothing, just a small favor." Steward Tian smiled and reminded, "It's almost time to head out."

“That’s right, we can’t keep them waiting.” Su Lu nodded and called out to the west room, “Tian Tian is off!”

"Hey, I'm here!" He Tiantian responded crisply, lifting the curtain to come out.

She wore a light pink jacket with cloud patterns on the collar and cuffs, paired with a dark blue horse-face skirt embroidered with gold thread at the hem. Her jet-black hair was styled into two buns, tied with a red tassel headband adorned with pearls, giving her a gentle and graceful appearance with a touch of playfulness and liveliness.

Everyone's eyes lit up. Tian Tian usually dressed simply and had never dressed up so carefully before.

"Oh, whose little lady is this?" The brothers were delighted and clapped their hands in praise.

"I can't let my brothers down..." He Tiantian said shyly, twisting her handkerchief.

"Hahaha, my daughter has grown up beautifully!" Su Youcai laughed loudly. He then glared at the two brothers and said:
"Why are you two all slicked-back and powdered? Are you just going for a spring outing?"

"Can we pick flowers if we don't go for a spring outing?" Su Tai said in a muffled voice. Ever since the couple was separated, the relationship between father and son had become somewhat strained.

"Let's go, let's go." Su Lu quickly pulled away his second brother, who had suddenly entered a rebellious phase, to avoid their father's wrath and forbidding them from going.

"This kid's started talking back now?" Su Youcai said, looking at Su Tai's strong back.

"That's a good thing," the proprietress said with a smile. "I was just worried that this child was too gentle and would be bullied."

"That's true." Su Youcai said with a wry smile, "Qiu-ge'er has been disobedient since he was a child. I thought his brother was different, but it turns out he just hasn't reached the right age yet."

"Do you listen to the old man?" the proprietress asked quietly.

"Haha, that makes perfect sense." Su Youcai laughed, scratching the back of his head. "The men in our Su family are all incredibly resourceful! They never need help from their families to find wives! I never expected even the most honest Xia Ge'er to be the same!"

"Can you guess who he went to see?" the landlady asked.

"Is there any need to guess? Last night he talked in his sleep for a while and chuckled for a bit..." Su Youcai said with a wry smile.

The two slept separately after arriving in Luzhou, since they had a child...

"Aren't you worried anymore?" the proprietress asked with a smile.

"Sigh, I've thought about it carefully, and those seventeen or eighteen-year-olds are really stubborn. The more you stop them from doing something, the more they want to do it. I can stop them from going out to play, but can I stop them from going to school?" Su Youcai sighed.
"So, it's better to guide than to block. Xia Ge'er is a sensible child at heart; we'll have to wait for him to figure things out himself."

"So raising a son isn't easy either," the proprietress laughed. "I thought raising a daughter would be the only troublesome thing, seeing how sensible Xia and Qiu are."

"It's all the same! Let's not talk about these depressing things!" Su Youcai put his arm around the proprietress's slender waist and said, "Let's go, sister, shall we go for a spring outing?"

"What should we do if we run into them?" the proprietress asked shyly.

"If we run into them, we'll just have to set an example for them." Su Youcai laughed heartily.

"You're getting more and more outrageous..." The proprietress gave him a shy pinch.

~~
The three brothers waited at the street corner for a short while before the Zhu family's carriage arrived.

"Brother, and brother's brother, get in the carriage!" Zhu Ziming jumped off the carriage and greeted them with great enthusiasm.

"Oh, is this my little sister?" Miss Zhu lifted the sedan curtain and, seeing the lovely Xiao Tiantian, happily greeted her, "Come here to your older sister."

Little Tiantian looked obediently at her brother, and Su Lu smiled and said, "Go ahead."

She then timidly stepped forward to greet them, and was pulled into the sedan chair by Miss Zhu with a smile.

"Such fine weather, why not walk instead of riding?" Zhu Zigeng led his younger brothers out of the carriage, only instructing his servant to put their belongings back in.

The group of young men in spring shirts chatted and laughed as they followed the carriage through Dahe Street and arrived at the Linjiang Gate in the east of the city.

Then, She Yunluo's luxurious carriage was already waiting outside the city gate for a long time.

"Why are you all so slow?!" She Yunlu sat on the carriage shaft, craning her neck to wait. When she saw that Su Tai, who was a head taller than her, was also among them, she snorted and said, "I thought he wouldn't come."

"Is this what you call being anxious about gains and losses?" Huang E laughed as she lifted the carriage curtain and stepped off the carriage using the stool brought by the maid.

Su Lu saw that she was wearing a light blue cross-collar spring shirt, with a light green gauze inner layer that looked like smoke and rosy clouds, paired with a sky blue pleated skirt that made her look dignified. Her double-looped hair was tied up with a moon-white ribbon, and two strands of hair fell over her shoulders. Her skin was as white as snow, and she was stunningly beautiful, yet elegant and lively, like a banished fairy strolling in spring.

Huang E spotted him immediately and happily curtsied, saying, "Brother Hongzhi, we meet again."

"Miss Huang, it's been a long time," Su Lu said with a smile, returning the greeting.

"Sister Huang, are you ignoring all of us Zhu brothers?" Zhu Zijing teased.

"There has to be an order, right?" Huang E curtsied again with grace and said, "Greetings, brothers."

"Hahaha, we're officially friends now." Zhu Zigeng and the others laughed loudly. "Alright, hello Brother Zhu, hello Second Brother Zhu, hello Third Brother Zhu..." Huang E readily agreed and greeted them one by one with a smile.

"That's enough, you don't want it to happen again, do you?" Miss Zhu led Xiao Tiantian out of the sedan chair and scolded her brother in an annoyed tone, "Act like a big brother."

"How come we don't look like anything anymore?" Zhu Zijing laughed.

"And who is this?" Huang E asked, seeing He Tiantian.

“This is my younger sister, surnamed He,” Su Lu hurriedly introduced. “Sister, this is your elder sister from the Huang family.”

"Greetings, Miss Huang, and greetings to my sister." Tian Tian quickly bowed and greeted her.

Huang E, unaware of Su Lu's complicated family relationships, assumed she was his cousin and quickly grabbed Tian Tian, ​​laughing happily, "What an adorable little sister! Now I finally have someone to call me 'older sister'!"

While everyone was busy exchanging pleasantries, She Yunluo and Su Tai also locked eyes.

She Yunluo sulked and didn't say anything, just glared at him and pouted.

Su Tai scratched his head and sighed.

She Yunlu raised her fist.

Sutai patted his belly.

She Yunlu crossed her index fingers together.

Su Tai nodded and gave a thumbs up.

They both laughed happily...

~~
After the two sides met, they headed along the official road towards Baoshan, which was two miles away.

Leaving the dock outside the city, there are vast paddy fields stretching out like mirrors along the roadside, reflecting the azure sky and floating clouds.

In the paddy fields, farmers wearing bamboo hats and with their trousers rolled up are planting rice seedlings. They don't even need to measure; they simply plant the seedlings in straight rows, as if they were weaving a green brocade for the earth.

The young men and women, who rarely ventured out of the city, were all delighted to see this vibrant rural scene, and their laughter echoed through the fields…

On She Yunluo's large vehicle.

The four girls also pulled back the car curtain, chatting and laughing as they admired the beautiful rural scenery outside.

"Yunluo, what kind of riddle were you and Su Tai talking about just now?" Miss Zhu asked.

“Yes.” Huang E and Tian Tian also looked at She Yunluo with curiosity.

"What do you think?" She Yunluo said in a great mood.

"We can't guess it." Huang E shook her head. She'd rather beat ten lantern tigers than try to solve She Yunluo's riddle. It was completely nonsensical; there was no way she could figure it out!
She Yunluo stopped being mysterious and said smugly, "I glared at him first, meaning 'You weren't going to come out, were you?'"

He scratched his head and sighed, as if to say, 'You're angry, how can I not come out?'

"I raised my fist again, meaning, 'If you make me angry again, I'll punch you!'"

He patted his belly, meaning, "You have the magnanimity to hold a boat."

I gestured ten, meaning 'You have to come out with me ten times.'

"He nodded and gave a thumbs-up, meaning 'No problem!'" She Yunlu couldn't help but smile smugly after saying this.
“My mother is right. You can’t just coax a man; you have to teach him a lesson.”

"I see..." The girls suddenly understood and felt very impressed.

Unexpectedly, the two had reached a point where they understood each other perfectly, and everything was understood without words.

~~
Behind the carriage, the young men also asked Su Tai curiously.

"What secret signals are you two exchanging glances with?"

"Just a normal greeting," Su Tai said.

"What kind of normal greeting is this?" everyone pressed. "We just don't understand."

She gestured with her lips towards me, asking if I had eaten.

I sighed, meaning I hadn't eaten well.

"She raised her fist and told me that she had brought a lion's head meatball today."

I patted my stomach and said I wanted to eat.

She gestured ten, meaning she brought ten.

I nodded and gave her a thumbs up... telling her not to worry, I'll eat it all!

"Then we all laughed happily." Su Tai finished speaking with a grin on his face, perhaps looking forward to the ten lion heads.

"Is this how simple and unpretentious you martial arts students are?" the Zhu brothers asked incredulously. Zhu Zijing laughed and said, "I thought you were making an agreement to sneak off on a date later."

"How could that be?" Su Tai shook his head, embarrassed, and said, "We're just ordinary friends."

"Get lost..." Zhu Zijing jeered, "We'd believe your brother if he said he and Huang E were just ordinary friends, but you two, not even a ghost would believe that."

"Haha, that's true." The Zhu brothers burst into laughter. "Hongzhi, you'd better work harder. Your progress is much slower than your brother's."

Even Zhu Zihe wholeheartedly agreed, saying, "This is what they mean by 'a woman pursuing a man is like piercing a thin veil, but a man pursuing a woman is like climbing a mountain.' It seems we need to lend a hand!"

(End of this chapter)