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Rustling of the leaves is another sea
墨書 Inktalez
Guo Jia only saw Jia Xu's tears three times in his life. The first time was when Jia Xu traveled a long distance to study at The Imperial College of Bing Yong. With his reticent nature and outstanding academic performance, he stood out from the privileged background of the imperial family. With his different accent, Jia Xu pursed his lips and didn't like to talk to many people. He only recited quietly in his own yard after evening classes.
At that time, Guo Jia loved to make trouble, and his repetitive shouts annoyed Jia Xu. Looking at the notice board, Jia Xu couldn't understand why people like that could trample on him and make him second best. So, he didn't even give Guo Jia a good look that day.
Guo Jia was puzzled by the change in Jia Xu's demeanor and carefully considered his recent actions. That night, he went to Jia Xu's courtyard, only to find no official language practice or bright candlelight, just a quiet and still atmosphere.
Guo Jia pushed open the door and looked around, debating whether to enter the inner room. Then he heard a low sob, so faint that Guo Jia almost thought it was a figment of his imagination. He pushed the door open and, illuminated by the moonlight, saw Jia Xu huddled at the foot of the bed, burying his face in his knees, his beautiful long hair cascading over his body.
Guo Jia approached and pushed Jia Xu's hand, asking why he was crying, Wenhe? Jia Xu slapped Guo Jia's hand away, leaving a red mark on his back. Guo Jia took the opportunity to press against Jia Xu, complaining about the mark.
Jia Xu angrily pushed Guo Jia away, but there were no tears as expected. Guo Jia still held Jia Xu's hand and said, "Come, I'll take you to a place that will make you happy."
Guo Jia looked sickly, but his grip on Jia Xu's hand was unexpectedly strong as he pulled him outside. They passed through the dim academy, through intersecting palace paths, until gradually the palace paths turned into mountain paths. The green grass brushed against their clothes, and Guo Jia's hand clenched tightly, as if afraid Jia Xu would break free. His chest heaved, his face flushed with urgency.
Jia Xu was dragged along like this until they arrived at a desolate, uninhabited water area, where the reeds swayed in the wind, obscuring the towering lotus in the distance.
Jia Xu asked, "Why did you bring me here?" Guo Jia replied, "Calm down, just wait a little longer," leaning against Jia Xu.
The surrounding sounds of insects, birds, swimming fish, the rustling of reeds in the wind, and Guo Jia's panting were all mixed together. After about half an incense stick's worth of time, a faint light appeared, then gradually, patches of bright fireflies formed a starry sea on the ground. Jia Xu stood still, staring blankly at the scene.
Guo Jia held Jia Xu's fingertips, rubbing the calluses gently and said, "Don't mind the temper of some people in the academy, they are all pampered young masters. Wenhe, there's no need to bother with those people..."
Without hearing Jia Xu's voice, Guo Jia turned to look at Jia Xu and saw a glistening tear reflecting the moonlight falling down, hanging on his slightly thin chin due to staying up late studying, and finally hitting Guo Jia's heart.
Article 2: Picking Lotus
Guo Jia was not in good health during his time at academy, he didn't have a serious illness, but he had a persistent slight cough and low fever. He also loved to go out and play wildly, and would sneak back over the wall in the middle of the night.
Jia Xu had agreed to return a few moments ago, but he hadn't returned for a long time. Jia Xu couldn't carry a lantern, so he climbed over the wall where Guo Jia often went to look for him. The temperature on the mountain was always a bit lower than at the foot of the mountain, and even in the height of summer, the nights were chilly. After searching for a long time around the places Guo Jia often visited, when he finally ran into Guo Jia, Jia Xu was so angry that he was about to mock him, but then he noticed something was wrong. Without caring about anything else, he kept his distance and reached out to touch Guo Jia's forehead, which was burning hot.
He asked him where he had been, and Guo Jia smiled and brought the lotus seedpod and lotus flower in his arms to Jia Xu, saying, "Last time during the poetry game, I promised to pick lotus flowers for you, but I missed the last flowering season after slipping and falling into the water. Look, I searched for a long time to find these!"
Jia Xu was really both angry and amused, with the smell of alcohol and the fragrance of flowers intertwined on his body. When he was carrying a stove down the mountain, Guo Jia who was holding the lantern on his back couldn't sit still, whispering in Jia Xu's ear that he would sing a ballad he had heard last time they went out. "The grasshopper chirps softly, it suits you well, singing with great enthusiasm," but he sang it very unclearly, and later Jia Xu couldn't hear what he was saying.
It was a long, long time later that Jia Xu realized that Guo Jia was actually singing a blessing for Wenhe.
Later, Guo Jia fell seriously ill, looking so weak that it was almost as if he were already dead. Xun Yu went out with the master to give lectures, while Guo Jia, acting spoiled and cute, asked Jia Xu not to tell Xun Yu. Jia Xu agreed and took care of Guo Jia for over half a month.
Later, when Guo Jia's pierced ear became infected and he was in a daze, he woke up when Jia Xu slowly approached the bed. Despite being unable to open his eyes, Guo Jia fumbled and managed to touch the red string on Jia Xu's wrist. He struggled to speak due to the fever, and after a long wait, he managed to say a few words.
Jia Xu chose to walk away and brush off Guo Jia's hand, putting it back under the covers and reassuring him that they wouldn't tell the senior, and to sleep peacefully.
Guo Jia thought slowly, " Wenhe is really silly, I actually wanted to say 'don't leave'."
Oh, the old-fashioned Wenhe stood by the academy wall, and after much thought, finally lifted his leg to step on the raised Guo Jia brick on the wall, propped himself up on the wall, and flipped out.
As he sat on the wall, he suddenly remembered that Guo Jia had also sat on the wall once, blowing a whistle at the crowd, and when he was hit by an orange, he flipped off the wall and was caught by his fellow brothers playing below, laughing and running away.
Later on, when Jia Xu was close to death, he dreamt of Guo Jia sitting on the white magnolia tree in front of the academy, smiling at him and saying, "Come and catch me, Wenhe."
Jia Xu scoffed, "With my legs crippled by you, how can I catch you?" But the young man in the dream, Wenhe, sighed and walked over. As he did, Guo Jia jumped down, scattering into a flurry of white magnolia petals.
A long time later, Jia Xu finally learned that Guo Jia was singing the well-wishing song "Wenhe" for a long and healthy life.
① From the "Book of Songs," the "Locust Ode" in the Wind section.
It means: Wishing prosperity for the descendants of others and the flourishing of their family.
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