No, gentlemen also guard against

Chapter 302 Preparing for the Birthday Ceremony

"What are Tanlang thinking?"

On the second floor of Yunshui Pavilion, at a dining table next to the window, Li Fusu put down his wine glass and looked at his friend with a blushing face and a curious tone.
"fine."

Ouyang Rong came back to his senses, looked away from the peaks of the twin peaks in the distance outside the window, shook his head, lowered his head and continued to cook.

Yan Liulang hissed at the spicy food and did not look up. He explained intermittently: "Ming... Ming Mansion is busy... on a big thing recently. It is related to the people's livelihood in Xunyang. I will not be idle during the holidays."

"I see."

Li Fusu nodded.Ouyang Rong didn't say much, and he didn't ask too much. If it involved matters involving Prince Xunyang's Mansion, his friends would definitely tell him.

Li Fusu smiled and said: "Liu Lang, please eat slowly. These spicy dishes are all ordered for Tan Lang. Didn't I order non-spicy dishes for you? Why don't you put your chopsticks in Tan Lang's direction?"

"Hehe." Yan Liulang scratched his head:

"Isn't it because Mingfu doesn't know how to use chopsticks? Maybe he's afraid of the spicy food. I tried some, but I don't believe it. I won't be able to eat spicy food."

Li Fusu smiled helplessly. Taking advantage of Ouyang Rong's free time during the holiday today, he finally made an appointment to have a meal together. One of them looked out the window the whole time, thinking and distracted;

Ouyang Rong suddenly raised his head and asked strangely: "Is this spicy?"

After a pause, he took a few more bites of the dishes in front of him, "It's not spicy. Could it be slightly spicy?"

Yan Liulang was sweating profusely: "..."

Li Fusu had no choice but to say: "Tanlang, these dishes are already the spiciest here." After thinking for a while, he explained: "Maybe this one is not as good as the chef from Yunshui Pavilion in Longcheng."

After hearing this, Ouyang Rong couldn't help but think of the quiet figure of a delicate and mute woman.

He pursed his lips and looked around the relatively quiet second floor.

There is also Yunshui Pavilion in Xunyang City, which should be a chain store with the same owner as the one in Longcheng County.

Today, Ouyang was going to sleep in, but Li Fusu and Yan Liulang came home early and took him out to play and eat.

After not getting together for a long time, Ouyang Rong had no choice but to agree.

Sometimes taking a vacation is just a different way of working.

The Spring Festival of this era is called "Yuanzheng", and it is the grandest and most solemn day for the people of the Zhou Dynasty.

The central and local officials of the Great Zhou Dynasty had a holiday of seven days.

There is a saying that after ten years of Yuanzheng wine, the joy becomes deeper.

It can be regarded as the Golden Week of this era. The entire Xunyang City is immersed in the celebration of saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new, and it is many times more lively than in the past.

Xunyang City is not the sacred capital of Luoyang. There are no civil and military officials coming to pay homage, and there are no major court meetings or grand furnishings.

As a local official, it stands to reason that Ouyang Rong, a long-time official, has quite a lot of free time. After all, the entire Jiangzhou lobby is closed for the holidays.

However, on the first day of the holiday, Ouyang Rong was dragged by his junior sister to go shopping for a day.

As we all know, women do not have a stamina bar when shopping, and men charge twice as fast.

Ouyang Rong was naturally as tired as a dog, but he didn't show it at all in front of his bright-eyed junior sister.

Fortunately, the next day, good news came from Wang Caozhi about the progress of the Xunyang Grottoes cooperation. Ouyang Rong found an excuse to temporarily get rid of his clingy junior sister and go to work.

However, such busy work is the same as before when there was no holiday.The old man died from hard work.

After finally finalizing the fundraising matter with Wang Caozhi and the others, Ouyang Rong was dragged out by two friends today to give him a rough fuck.

He shook his head and took a bite of food.

Ouyang Rong turned around and asked about Prince Xunyang's Mansion. He was slightly relieved to learn that the situation was still calm there.

The three of them talked and laughed for a while, and then Li Fusu asked suddenly:
"By the way, does Tanlang know that Miss Xie's birthday is coming soon?"

Ouyang Rong immediately replied: "I know, the day after tomorrow."

Li Fusu asked curiously: "Did Miss Xie say it herself when she was shopping the day before yesterday?"

"No, my mentor mentioned it in a letter before and I have never forgotten it."

"Then does Miss Xie know that Tan Lang knows her birthday?"

Ouyang Rong thought for a moment and replied, "I probably don't know. She hasn't mentioned it to me these days."

Li Fusu asked, "Has Tanlang prepared any gifts?"

Ouyang Rong smiled, took a bite of food, and didn't answer.

Li Fusu suddenly realized: "I understand, Tan Lang is preparing to wait till that day... Want to give her a surprise?"

Ouyang Rong glanced at his serious friend, chewed vegetables on his cheeks, and said vaguely:

"It's just a birthday, and Junior Sister is not the kind of person who likes ostentation. Dalang, you, uncles and aunts, they don't need to make it too grand on that day.

"It's fine if you all get what you want. Give her some sincere gifts and have a bowl of longevity noodles. She will definitely be happy."

Ouyang Rong's tone was serious.

He recalled that when he was shopping not long ago, the little junior sister was as lively as a little girl, complaining about changing into men's clothes and going out to hang out, and smiled.

How could he not know what kind of temper the little junior sister is like?

Is it okay to just handle it?
However, recently for some unknown reason, the junior sister seems to be going against the grain. She is sometimes close to him and sometimes far away from him. I don't know if it is intentional.

Anyway, these days, Ouyang Rong often wants to take the initiative to find her, but recently, he happened to be discussing with Wang Caozhi and other wealthy businessmen about the preparations for the excavation and construction of the Xunyang Grottoes at the Shuangfeng Peak.

Busy as he was, Ouyang Rong barely suppressed this impulse.

Are you kidding me? I don’t want to lose face, senior brother?
Ouyang Rong nodded.

"My father and mother originally meant this. Tan Lang also told us to keep a low profile before."

Li Fusu nodded, but there was a look of embarrassment on his face:
"However, recently, some of Miss Xie's relatives, like her aunt, came to the Xie family in Chen County to celebrate her birthday. In the past two days, Miss Xie has been accompanying them to visit Xunyang City. .”

"Is there still this?"

Ouyang Rong raised his eyebrows slightly. No wonder the junior sister didn't come to see him in the past two days. It seemed that not only was he busy, but the junior sister couldn't get away either.

"Then has the mentor returned to Xunyang?"

Li Fusu shook his head: "Mr. birthday."

"I see."

Ouyang Rong nodded: "I'll see you later when I have a chance."

Li Fusu: "I guess I can see you in the future. I heard from my sister that Miss Xie's aunt is planning to hold a birthday party for her, which may be a bit grand."

After a pause, he said with some strange emphasis:
"Anyway, the invitation will definitely be sent out in these two days. Tanlang is Mr. Xie's disciple and Miss Xie's senior brother, so he will definitely not miss it."

"Oh." Ouyang Rong glanced at him and responded.

"Tan Lang should be there by then, right?"

"If there's an invitation and there's nothing else important, I won't spoil the fun." After thinking about it, Ouyang Rong added: "Although I don't want to disturb my aunt and niece's intimacy, if I have some free time, I still want to give my junior sister a bowl. Longevity noodles."

"I feel a little embarrassed to eat the noodles served by my junior sister so often." Ouyang Rong smiled and said, "Let her have a taste of my cooking skills."

Li Fusu looked at his friend who was a bit calm and calm, and his expression was hesitant to speak.

Ouyang Rong turned around: "What do you want to say?"

Li Fusu said in a slightly reminding tone:
"Tan Lang, although Miss Xie is approachable, kind-hearted, down-to-earth, and has a good relationship with us, no matter what...

"She comes from the top wealthy families in Jiangzuo. She is one of the only direct daughters of the younger generation of the Xie family in Chen County. She is also outstanding. She is a woman with the fifth surname who is well-known in the eyes of the poor noble families in the world..."

"Okay, I got it." Ouyang Rong couldn't help but laugh. He looked around and didn't find the little junior sister checking the post. He smiled at his friend and said:
"She's not here. It's useless for you to praise her like this. Well, it's okay. I'll tell her next time and tell her that Da Lang was praising her so well behind her back that she would wear her braids."

Li Fusu laughed dumbly.

At this time, Yan Liulang, who had been immersed in challenging Ouyang Rong's "slightly spicy" dishes, hurriedly put down his chopsticks and gasped for air. He raised his head and drank several mouthfuls of cold water, leaning back on the chair.

After taking a long breath, Yan Liulang finally recovered, turned his head weakly, agreed with Li Fusu, and suggested together:

"Mingfu, if you have free time, go and find Miss Xie more often. Maybe once you find her, she will be happy for a long time."

Ouyang Rong looked up at him and said "Yeah".

Li Fusu asked with concern: "Has Tanlang prepared a gift? It's better to prepare the gift more carefully. Do you need me and A-mei to prepare a good one for you?"

Ouyang Rong shook his head: "You don't need to bother me."

"Da Lang, please prepare one for me." Yan Liulang rubbed his hands:

"Although I don't know if Miss Xie will invite me to this birthday party, but just in case."

His face was not red, his heart was not beating, and he said longingly: "I, Yan Liu, are so old that I have never attended such a birthday party for a wealthy family with five surnames." Li Fusu didn't pay attention and nodded, "Okay, I'll prepare one for you too. share."

Not long after, Li Fusu and Yan Liulang discussed the matter of giving gifts. Ouyang Rong was cooking alone beside him and did not join in.

From time to time, he looked in the direction of the peaks of the twin peaks, frowning slightly as if thinking about business matters.

From time to time, he turned to look at his chat friends and shook his head slightly.

……

After lunch.

In the afternoon, Ouyang Rong did not accompany Li Fusu and Yan Liulang to Chaisangfang for a stroll.

Returned to the Huaiye Lane mansion early.

He walked straight through the bamboo forest, returned to Yinbingzhai, and walked into the west wing where the sundries were kept.

Ouyang Rong took out a pile of bamboo objects and placed them in the yard.

Taking advantage of the rare clear sunshine in winter, Ouyang Rong sat on a small bench in the yard and continued to cut bamboo with his head down, weaving bamboo strips with flexible techniques.

It was faintly visible that the bamboo product he was weaving in his hand looked a bit like a pair of open umbrella ribs.

"Didn't Tanlang make several objects called abacus? Why are you still busy with these recently?"

Ye Weilai carried a plate of fruit and walked into the bamboo forest courtyard. When she saw Ouyang Rong with his head down and concentrating on his handiwork, she asked curiously.

Ouyang Rong said without raising his head: "After finishing the abacus, let's make another oil-paper umbrella."

"Oil-paper umbrella?"

"Well, give it away."

"Are you saying thank you to the girl?"

"Ah."

The silver-haired girl's blue eyes were envious: "Tan Lang is interested."

Ouyang Rong shook his head, "My craftsmanship is not very good, it's a bit slow."

Ye Weilai said softly: "It is light on etiquette but heavy on affection."

She walked over and wiped the sweat from Ouyang Rong's forehead.

Ouyang Rong has been making this oil-paper umbrella intermittently for ten years. It can be regarded as after making the abacus, so he just made it casually.

These days, every time after finishing the official work in Jiangzhou Hall and cooperating with Wang Caozhi and others, whenever he had free time, he would devote himself to it, completing a little bit every day, slowly.

The second day, afternoon.

In the yard, on the bench between a pile of bamboo strips, Ouyang Rong suddenly leaned back and let out a long breath.

In my hand, a brand new oil-paper umbrella is finally completed.

He opened the oil-paper umbrella and tried it back and forth. After a while, he nodded with satisfaction.

"You should like it." He muttered.

...It's better to prepare Tanlang's gift with more care...

Li Dalang's instructions at noon vaguely sounded in Ouyang Rong's ears.

"The white paper on the umbrella is too monotonous. How about adding some calligraphy to make it look more elegant and refined?"

Ouyang Rong closed his umbrella, stood up instantly, and went out with his umbrella.

He went straight to Xingzifang, followed the address in his memory, and found Yuan Huaimin, who was lying on a bamboo chair and basking in the sun.

"Last time I saw you were pretty good at painting. Can you help me add a painting to this umbrella?"

Ouyang Rong spoke concisely and to the point, and held out the oil-paper umbrella.

Yuan Huaimin, who was sleeping on a bamboo chair in the courtyard, suddenly woke up:
"What painting?"

"Pictures are suitable for giving away. Well, actually, poems and so on are also suitable."

Ouyang Rong said with a smile: "Brother Huaimin, isn't he a great poet?"

"Don't think about poetry. I don't compose poetry easily, as it can easily scare ghosts and gods. Well, I'll give you a good picture."

Yuan Huaimin was full of pride and righteousness.

Ouyang Rong twitched the corner of his mouth: "That's okay."

"correct."

Yuan Huaimin turned around and said, "Brother Lianghan, I was quite inspired by my time with Dongmei a few days ago. How about..."

Ouyang Rong said casually: "What inspiration, the inspiration of being kicked by it?"

Yuan Huaimin looked a little confused, waved his hands and said:
"No, it's a picture of a horse taking a bath. Why don't you draw Dongmei on it?"

"No."

Ouyang Rong said with a straight face: "Can you stop worrying about your bathing pictures? You should be more trustworthy as a gift to a girl."

Yuan Huaimin looked regretful and said in a regretful tone:

"It's a pity that I have such a unique talent. All right, I'll just show you a picture of a lady wearing a hairpin. Women will definitely like it. I know a little bit about it."

Ouyang Rong suggested: "Don't just know a little bit, come up with someone who is good at it."

"Hey, I know a little bit about being humble. Do you understand being humble?"

Ouyang Rong said in a nonchalant tone: "That's up to you, just don't doodle."

"no problem."

Yuan Huaimin took the oil-paper umbrella with a solemn expression and turned towards the bathroom.

Ouyang Rong was stunned: "What are you waiting for?"

"You have to take a bath...not...you have to bathe and change clothes before you can paint."

"..." Ouyang Rong was speechless and waved his hands as if to dismiss: "Okay, okay, hurry up."

"okay.,"

Not knowing what his quirk was, Yuan Huaimin took a bath and scented himself seriously before walking into his study and painting behind closed doors.

Leave Ouyang Rong in the hospital

An hour passed and the door did not open.

"Done yet?"

Ouyang Rong couldn't help but stepped forward, banged on the door, and urged Yuan Huaimin to hand in the manuscript reluctantly.

Ouyang Rong opened the umbrella and took a look. He found that there was no ghost or mistake in drawing the talisman, and he was slightly relieved.

As for the quality of the paintings, in the eyes of Ouyang Rong, who had seen too many exquisitely colored pictures in his previous life, these ladies with hairpins were definitely not as good-looking as real people.

He just thought it was okay to look at.

Not wanting to listen to Yuan Huaimin's self-promotion, Ouyang Rong put away his oil-paper umbrella, turned around and left.

As the sun set, Ouyang Rong returned to Huaiye Lane. Outside the door, there was a little maid with a bun face waiting for him.

It's Li Guo'er's personal maid, Cai Shou.

"Sir, this is the invitation letter for Miss Xie's birthday party tomorrow. Please accept it. By the way..."

In addition to the gilded invitation, she tilted her head and handed over another thing:
"Thank you, Miss Xie, for visiting the young lady this afternoon and asking her to deliver a gift to you."

"Give me a gift?"

Ouyang Rong was puzzled: "Isn't it her birthday gift? Why are you giving me a gift?"

Cai Shou shook her head: "Anyway, Miss Xie asked my lady to take care of it. She has been having trouble getting out recently. Miss Xie said that she asked you to put it away properly so that you can... use it as a backup."

"As a spare?" Ouyang Rong looked curious, took it, and weighed it in his hand. It seemed to be jade, which was very valuable.

Looking at Cai Shou's lively figure leaving, he touched his chin:

"Why is it so mysterious to hold a birthday party..."

(End of this chapter)