On a crisp spring day during the Xining period of the Northern Song Dynasty, when the morning light was low, many flower sellers in Bianliang, the capital, had already entered the flower gardens in the suburbs and were waiting to collect flowers. When it was daybreak, the horse-h

一

On a spooky spring day in the Xining period of the Northern Song Dynasty, when the morning light was fading, many flower sellers in Beijing Bianliang had already entered the flower gardens in the suburbs to wait to collect flowers. When it was daybreak, the horse-head bamboo baskets were filled with delicate flowers. They picked up their burdens and walked out of the flower garden one after another and walked towards the city.

At this moment, two people, an old man and a young man, suddenly jumped out from the roadside. The gray-haired old man stretched out his arms—to be precise, stretched out his sleeves—to stop a flower vendor named Xu Hexuan. The boy, who looked about sixteen or seventeen years old, looked at them blankly and kept making babbling sounds.

Everyone was shocked. What was this old man and mute boy without hands going to do? What problems do they have with the honest Xu Hexuan?

The old man looked at Xu Hexuan, who was in his thirties, lovingly, and said: "Xuan'er, after many years of separation, my father has finally found you. I have bought you a flower shop in a good area of ​​the capital. From now on, you There is no need to go through the wind or the rain."

Xu Hexuan's face flashed with joy, but it turned into anger. He swept the old man's empty sleeves and sneered coldly: "Do you know this? How high are the house prices in Bianliang? Why don’t you give me a flower shop? Go ahead and coax your mute son!”

At this time, the mute boy was extremely anxious and whined at Xu Hexuan. Call. He pointed at himself, then at the old man, and waved his hands repeatedly, as if denying his relationship with the old man.

When the old man heard what Xu Hexuan said, he stared at him and shouted: "You traitor! I can tell you, if you don't recognize your father, I will sue you to the government! When the time comes, the government will take care of you!"

花The vendors understood that this disabled old man was Xu Hexuan's father. Although he was disabled, his clothes were not slovenly, just stained with a few ink stains. Come to think of it, he doesn't make a living by begging. Could it be that he relies on his mute son to support him? The flower vendors whispered and accused Xu Hexuan. Regardless of whether the incident at the flower shop was true or false, they should not have been so disobedient to their father.

At this time, Xu Hexuan's good mood had been messed up. He also squinted his eyes, glanced at the old man contemptuously, and said coldly: "If you want to sue, go ahead and sue. The official knows that you, a disabled person, often visited brothels back then. Let's see how you can show off to others!"

Then The old man was so beaten that he couldn't get off the stage in front of everyone. He suddenly raised his foot and kicked over the two horse-head baskets carried by Xu Hexuan. Seeing this, the young man on the side immediately rushed forward and tried to hold the horse head basket, but he was still a step too late and the basket full of flowers fell to the ground. Xu Hexuan saw that his whole day's livelihood was ruined by his father, and his eyes turned red in anger, and he bumped into the old man.

The old man was caught off guard and fell backwards. The young man yelled and stepped forward quickly to protect the old man, but it was a pity that he was a step too late. I saw bright red blood flowing out of the old man's head, and the young man's hand stayed in mid-air, shaking from side to side in confusion. Xu Hexuan was also so frightened that his face turned pale and he collapsed on the ground.

This is awesome! The flower vendors knew that people's lives were at stake, so they quickly went to the government office to report the matter.

Soon, the police and gangsters came to the scene of the crime. Fortunately, there was no danger, and the old man regained consciousness after receiving treatment. The context of this case was clear and there were many witnesses. Xu Hexuan was immediately arrested and imprisoned.

What surprised people was that the injured old man begged the prefect to spare Xu Hexuan. It can be seen that the magistrate hates unfilial people the most, and said that he must severely punish the rebellious son, so he immediately reported the case file to Dali Temple , and only waited for the approval from above before sending Xu Hexuan to the border.

二

On this day, Liu Wenzhi, the prime minister of Dali Temple, who was nearly 70 years old, read the case of Xu Hexuan. He read it several times, pondered for a moment, put on casual clothes, and went to a flower shop in Bianliang City. The injured old man was found in the backyard.

The old man is Xu Hexuan’s biological father, named Xu Yi, who is over sixty years old. The mute boy was his adopted son, named Xu Fengtian.When the two of them saw Liu Wenzhi's old age and came to inquire about the case in person, they felt a sense of respect and hurriedly knelt on the ground and kowtowed. Xu Yi choked with sobs and begged: "Master Liu, although the villain's rebellious behavior is reckless, there are causes and consequences. I hope you will observe and let him go."

According to Xu Yi, he and his wife used to work at Shufeng Saltworks. Salt people. Many years ago, there were successive disasters there and the people were displaced. During the escape, his wife gave birth to a son. Since Xu Yi had little education, he was only nicknamed Gou'er. Later, I heard that the disaster situation in my hometown had improved, and my wife wanted to go back. Xu Yi couldn't resist her, so the family of three returned to Shufeng Salt Farm.

Although the situation of the Yan people improved at that time, they still had to borrow money to survive. Because Xu Yi failed to repay the money on time, his hands were chopped off by thugs sent by the creditor. Although the perpetrator was severely punished by the Salt Supervisor, Xu Yi was left with a lifelong disability. In despair, he threw himself into the sea, but was saved by the Salt Supervisor, who taught him a skill and returned it to Xu Yi. Yi's son was named Xu Hexuan. The salt supervisor said that he hoped that when this son grows up, he can soar into the sky and make a difference like Yunhe.

Xu Yiqin studied hard for a year, and the family no longer had to borrow money to survive. However, his job required frequent visits to brothels and dealing with leading courtesans. Over time, it was inevitable that he would act on the spot and spread some frivolous scandals about Meng Lang. . He originally thought he had concealed it very well, but he didn't know that there is no impermeable wall in the world. Regarding his "dissolute behavior", his gentle and virtuous wife just cried secretly, but his son Xu Hexuan hated it in his heart. When Xu Hexuan was seventeen years old, after he had a big quarrel with Xu Yi, he took the initiative to leave a divorce letter to Xu Yi for his mother, and then took his mother away from Shufeng.

Xu Yi went to look for his wife and children, but Xu Hexuan was determined to conceal his whereabouts, and his journey was like nothing. He also desperately hoped that his wife and children would write to him, so he did not dare to leave Shufeng for even half a step. What's more, he already has some reputation in Shufeng, and it is easier to make money here, so he plans to make more money so that he can have dignity in front of his wife and children when the family reunites in the future. Later, when he was lonely, he adopted a mute and abandoned child and named his adopted son Xu Fengtian, which means flying like a phoenix for nine days. From then on, he and Fengtian depended on each other. It was not until last year that Xu Yi received a letter, which was the news that his wife had died of illness.

It turned out that before his death, his wife begged the neighbors to write it to him. Back then, his wife and Xu Hexuan came to the capital and continued to sell flowers. Speaking of the old events, his wife gradually understood Xu Yi's difficulties. Unfortunately, the capital and Shufeng were far apart, and the couple would never have the chance to see each other again...

Xu Yi was heartbroken, and rushed to Bian with Xu Fengtian after a long journey. Liang spent all his savings to buy a prosperous shop, and found his son Xu Hexuan, who made a living selling flowers in a flower garden. He originally wanted to reunite his family, but unexpectedly, the father and son got into a fight as soon as they met.

Old Xu Yi burst into tears and murmured: "It's my fault that I was so eager to recognize my son that I provoked Xuan'er. Otherwise, he wouldn't have accidentally hurt me."

Xu Yi is a few years younger than Liu Wenzhi, although Liu Wenzhi was born in the salt people, but his conversational skills were extraordinary. Liu Wenzhi became even more curious. What kind of skills did the salt supervisor teach him back then, and why did he need to frequent brothels?

Liu Wenzhi asked tactfully: "Brother Xu, how have you lived these years? With my situation, it is really difficult to earn such a huge sum of money to buy a flower shop."

Xu Yiyong Sleeve wiped his tears and said with shame: "Back then, the Salt Supervisor saw that I had some talent, so he personally taught me calligraphy so that I could live and work in peace. But, I, I failed my benefactor!" Liu Wenzhi couldn't believe it. Xie Di asked: "What happened?" Xu Yi sighed repeatedly and said: "Don't mention it, don't mention it, I am ashamed of my benefactor!" Immediately, Xu Yi ordered Xu Fengtian to put out pen, ink, paper and inkstone, and he used He picked up the penholder in his mouth and wrote a few words on the paper. The font was majestic, simple and powerful, and the writing process was so smooth that Liu Wenzhi was so shocked that he almost became ashamed.

When Liu Wenzhi finished reading the poem, his expression gradually became sad, and he said nonchalantly that he still had official duties, and left the flower shop with his heart full of thoughts. Xu Yi stared blankly at Liu Wenzhi's back, still worried about Xu Hexuan, and hurriedly followed him out, knelt down on the street with a plop, and shouted to Liu Wenzhi's back: "Master Liu, please help me." My son! It’s my son’s fault for not being a godfather, it’s me who harmed him!” Liu Wenzhi waved his hand from afar without looking back, and staggered away.

That night, after Liu Wenzhi calmed down, after thinking about it, he felt that this disobedient case was only caused by the Xu family’s father and son’s years of resentment. If they could find a way to let the Xu family’s father and son clear up their past suspicions, it would be much better than simply punishing Xu Hexuan. .

三

On the second day, Liu Wenzhi sent someone to notify Xu Yi to come to the government office. When Xu Hexuan was interrogated, Xu Yi was asked to recount his experience. But Xu Hexuan didn't believe it, and called Xu Yi a bunch of nonsense, believing that it was just a lie that Xu Yi made up to clean up his frivolous behavior in the past. Seeing that the father and son were in a stalemate, Liu Wenzhi asked Xu Hexuan: "If I can find a witness to prove that your father is telling the truth, will you forgive him? After all, you only have this one elder relative now." In the end. , Liu Wenzhi also said sincerely: "You can't just look at his bad side, it's unfair to him. You also have children. You don't want your descendants to hate you for the rest of their lives because of misunderstandings." ? If you are really sent to the border, what will happen to your wife and children? "

Xu Hexuan saw that the old Liu Wenzhi not only had no airs, but was also so concerned about his case, he couldn't be stubborn anymore, so he remained silent. He nodded loudly.

Liu Wenzhi decided to set out to verify Xu Yi's experience in person. After nearly a month of traveling and traveling, he arrived at Shufeng Salt Fields. After careful investigation, he collected a lot of evidence to prove that what Xu Yi said was the truth.

After returning to the capital, Liu Wenzhi, together with several other Dali Temple ministers, signed the conclusion of the review of the case of the Xu family and his son. The Xu family's rebellion was settled, and three generations of the family were reunited. Xu Hexuan took his wife and children into the house behind the flower shop. The people all applauded Liu Wenzhi for his hard work and integrity.

But at this moment, Liu Wenzhi submitted his resignation to the court. The common people who got the news felt sorry and reluctant to give up on his resignation.

When Liu Wenzhi left the capital, it was already late autumn when the yellow leaves were falling. Many people bid farewell with tears, and the three generations of the Xu family even knelt down. Before getting on the carriage, Liu Wenzhi whispered to Xu Yi and his son: "You don't have to thank me. I want to thank you for this case, so that I can have a chance to redeem myself. This time I went to Shufeng, it can be regarded as my cheating for personal gain." "When they heard this, the Xu family and his son were surprised.

In fact, when Liu Wenzhi asked Xu Yi about the situation in the flower shop, he saw that the words Xu Yi wrote with a pen in his hand were actually written by his father during his lifetime, and he realized that the kindness in Xu Yi's mouth was his father Liu Yong. If he hadn't heard what Xu Yi said with his own ears, he wouldn't have known that his father, apart from his "famous reputation" of "composing lyrics according to orders" and "often relying on brothels", was actually an upright and honest man with great righteousness.

Liu Wenzhi hates his father. Liu Yong left home when he was less than a year old. Liu Wenzhi's mother passed away three years later because of lingering depression in her heart. Later, the Liu family expelled Liu Yong from the house. After that, the young Liu Wenzhi grew up under the guidance of his uncle. Therefore, he has always been resentful of Liu Yong's ruthlessness and unrighteousness, so much so that when he learned of his father's death from illness many years later, he did not go to the mourning hall to pay his respects.

While at Shufeng, Liu Wenzhi remembered what he said when Xu Hexuan was interrogated in Dali Temple - one should not only look at his father's fault, but should look at it comprehensively. He couldn't help but feel moved, so during his stay in Shufeng, on the one hand, he wanted to verify Xu Yi's experience, and on the other hand, he also wanted to explore his father's footprints in Shufeng. He wanted to personally prove what kind of person his father was.

Liu Wenzhi learned that after Liu Yong left Shufeng after three years in office, in order to commemorate him, the people carved the stone "A Guest Stay" he wrote before he left in the building where he lived. This can also confirm how high Liu Yong's status is in the hearts of the people.

One day, Liu Wenzhi walked into Xingshan Temple accidentally and found that there was a side hall in the temple, which was dedicated to Liu Yong. Many deeds of Liu Yong's integrity and love for the people were engraved in it.

At that moment, Liu Wenzhi's eyes blurred with tears, and he gradually realized that the popular image of Liu Yong, frivolous and frivolous, had been processed and amplified countless times. A romantic talent, a group of brothel girls, in the eyes of ordinary people, there are few sexy stories, and there are few people who are not willing to spread them. As they are passed around, the fakes become true, and there is no chance to clean themselves up.

Through various inquiries, Liu Wenzhi learned that Liu Yong died of illness in Runzhou , which was Liu Wenzhi's birthplace. Immediately, Liu Wenzhi burst into tears. Come to think of it, before his death, his father must have been thinking about his son, who "will be the end of the world once we part". Today, father and son have been separated for more than 20 years. That night, Liu Wenzhi, with white hair and gray beard, stayed in the side hall, holding the feet of his father's statue, like a child, with tears streaming down his face.

At that time, he made plans to resign and return to his hometown.

四

After learning the truth, Xu Yi said angrily: "Master Liu, last time I told you that I had failed my benefactor. I wonder if you already knew the whole story in Shufeng? I, I was really obsessed at that time. How could you treat your benefactor like that?"

Liu Wenzhi shook his head and said with a slight smile: "You and I are just ordinary people, and we will inevitably do things that we will regret. When we can see our own hearts clearly and correct our mistakes, there is no greater good.”

It turns out that back then, Liu Yong taught Xu Yi to write with a pen in his mouth. In order for him to make money as soon as possible to support his family, Liu Yong, who was quick-thinking, asked Xu Yishu to write the work every time he wrote a new poem, and sent it to the brothel with the inscription "Liu Yongshu". Those brothel girls admired Liu Yong's talent and knowledge, and his calligraphy works were quickly snatched up by them.

At that time, some people were jealous of Liu Yong's talent and fame, and they were also jealous that Xu Yi, a disabled salt man, had turned into a calligrapher and had a lot of income, so they began to instigate their relationship. They said that Liu Yong seemed to be helping Xu Yi, but in fact he made high profits from it, many times Xu Yi's income. Xu Yi listened to the slander and began to distance himself from Liu Yong. He also said that Liu Yong was an unfair official and was a villain who was just trying to gain fame. However, when Xu Yi established his own business, no one paid attention to his calligraphy works, so he had to seek Liu Yong's forgiveness. Liu Yong puts past the blame and still cooperates enthusiastically with him.

Liu Yong served for three years. Before leaving Shufeng, he also told the brothel girls who admired him to take more care of Xu Yi's business. In order to repay his kindness and atone for his sins, Xu Yi proposed to engrave Liu Yong's "Living as a Guest" in the former residence of his benefactor. Later, he took the lead in donating money to build a statue of Liu Yong in Xingshan Temple...

After Xu Yi finished talking about this past incident and said goodbye to Liu Wenzhi, he and his children and grandchildren watched Liu Wenzhi's carriage disappear from sight.

The business of Xujia Flower Shop is booming day by day. In order to increase the variety of flowers, Xu Hexuan himself learned the superb technique of grafting flowers and trees. The ingenious Xu Fengtian quickly became a qualified gardener under the guidance of Xu Hexuan.

Xu Yi often came to his wife's tomb, and with tears in his eyes tenderly decorated her tomb with flowers, just like he dressed his wife with his own hands. Every time, he had to ramble on about a bunch of common things before leaving... Now that he was finally reunited with his wife and children, he couldn't help but miss Liu Wenzhi in the distance even more.

After Liu Wenzhi resigned and returned to his hometown of Runzhou, he found the benefactor who buried his father - Runzhou Zhizhou Wang Anli. Wang Anli, who is in middle age, is the younger brother of Wang Anshi, a famous writer and reformer. Wang Anli admired Liu Yong's talent, and felt sorry for him. Twenty years after his death, his coffin was still stored in the temple. A cemetery was found for him to be buried a few years ago.

During the Qingming Festival the following year, Liu Wenzhi moved Liu Yong's cemetery to the foot of Beigu Mountain in Runzhou, and specially invited his cousin Liu Qi to write an epitaph for his father. In the drizzle, he thought about his father's lonely life, tears welled up in his eyes, and he immediately filled out a copy of "Jiangchengzi":

Occasionally youmeng dressed in military uniform, carried his luggage, and crossed the Qingjiang . If you want to write a letter from home, your spirit will soar. As soon as I woke up, I realized that Yun Miaomiao was looking for ink marks and making a fuss.

The spring rain of Lili is full of meaning, the dream soul is long, and the Yao wine is sent to you. The silence in the distant tomb has broken people's hearts several times. Complaints were timid back then, but now, the road is desolate.

Since then, Liu Wenzhi has been settling in Runzhou. He often dreamed that he was still a child with a yellow mouth, holding his father in one hand and his mother in the other, happily watching the paper kites flying in the sky. Every time he woke up, he felt that the "morning wind waning moon" in his father's poems was now the "morning wind full moon".

■Author: Mei Lanxin

is selected from " Folk Literature " 2021.6