125 Dragon-Head Cliff Different Space
The girl once again changed out of her sports-style school uniform today. Underneath, she wore a plain-colored dress with a light blue coat draped open over it, matched with white sports leggings.
On her head, she wore a white baseball cap, with her long twin ponytails hanging down her back, brimming with youthful energy.
"Cough, cough." Zhou Meimei coughed lightly. She had just acted a bit too excited. As a great female leader, she had to appear more intellectual and wise.
"Meimei, your outfit today really suits you." Shirou said with a soft smile.
"Hehe, thank you." Hearing the compliment, Zhou Meimei immediately beamed, hugging the boy's arm and swinging it back and forth.
Wan'er and Lingyue, walking behind, helplessly covered their faces.
In fact, even the heroic spirit Wu Zetian inside the little girl couldn't bear to watch. Since her Master, who could summon her, really did resemble her when she was young—equally smart and quick-witted.
But Zhou Meimei was only fifteen years old—what was with this obsession with handsome men?
One had to know that Wu Zetian herself only developed such inclinations after her husband Li Zhi died at the age of fifty-six, and in her whole life, she had only favored four male companions.
Compared with most emperors with three thousand concubines and those who changed wives several times a month, she was far more loyal and affectionate.
Yet Zhou Meimei was now completely captivated by male beauty. It always felt like sooner or later, this child would run into trouble because of men.
"Shirou~! Am I cute today?" Zhou Meimei was still clinging to the boy's hand, asking.
"Mhm, very cute." Shirou smiled and patted the girl's head in reply. Seeing her act so spoiled reminded him of his little sister Komachi at home, when she tried to butter up family members to get what she wanted.
"Hehehe, right? I'm very cute. Though of course, that's only natural." The girl laughed blissfully.
"This is bad, this is bad. At this rate, the princess will become useless." Wan'er said worriedly.
"Ugh, I also want to be patted on the head gently by a handsome guy…" Lingyue muttered jealously nearby.
At that moment, the other students from Xunyang Branch, who had come to participate in the exchange event, also walked forward.
"Good morning, everyone." Shirou greeted the students from Xunyang Branch.
"Good morning, everyone. Welcome to Mount Lu. Today, we'll be guiding you around."
Zhou Meimei adjusted her mood at once, and as the representative, asked Hiratsuka Shizuka: "So then, Hiratsuka-Sensei, do you have any instructions?"
"Everything's up to you! Don't feel restrained because I'm here, just have fun and enjoy yourselves!" Hiratsuka laughed heartily, then lowered her voice to add a request: "But… just make sure not to miss that three-tiered waterfall."
"Got it. We'll arrange for Sandiequan tomorrow morning." Zhou Meimei nodded.
"Thanks, that's fine then." Hiratsuka agreed. With a DSLR camera hanging around her neck, she was actually very invested in this pilgrimage-like trip.
"Well then, please come with us." Zhou Meimei spoke to everyone with a smile after conferring briefly with her classmates.
"Understood. We look forward to your guidance today." The students from Chiba Branch bowed in thanks.
"No, no, it's us who should ask for your guidance."
After exchanging greetings, the group followed Zhou Meimei and the others inside.
They first arrived at a gate with a plaque inscribed "Huajing" (Flower Path). Inside, peach trees were everywhere, along with flowerbeds. At the center was a violin-shaped lake.
On the lake was a small island, connected by a curved bridge. They saw peacocks being raised there, and further in stood the stone statue of a famous poet. Behind it was a white-walled cottage built in his memory when he had once been demoted to Jiujiang as a vice-governor.
It was said that in a peach blossom path in this garden, Bai Juyi once recited his poem Peach Blossoms of Dalin Temple, with its famous lines: "In the mortal world, April's flowers have all faded, But on the mountain temple, peach blossoms are just blooming."
"Shirou, Shirou, take a photo of me with Bai Letian!" Kasumigaoka Utaha tugged at the boy's arm, stuffing her mirrorless camera into his hand.
She then ran to the two-meter-high stone statue, urging him quickly. After all, her favorite poet was Bai Juyi—whom she both admired and loved—believing that he was no less than Li Bai, and feeling regretful for his fate.
"Yes, yes." Shirou, a bit helpless, took out the camera and agreed. This senpai, not only a Mount Lu fanatic, but also a Bai Juyi fanatic. Yet compared with her usual sharp tongue, she looked much cuter like this. He took a picture of her hugging the statue with a girlish charm.
"Hmm… since the camera has Wi-Fi, I should send this to Eriri. It might be amusing."
Li Bai was the unrestrained Poet Immortal, Du Fu the worried Poet Sage who longed to shelter all the poor. But ever since Tang poetry was introduced into Japan, Bai Juyi had been adored by all levels of society, from the emperor down to the nobility. For a long time, the Japanese especially preferred him. Collections of his works, the Bai Shi Wen Ji (Collected Works of Bai), were compiled, and lectures and poetry gatherings were held, where nobles and officials imitated his style.
On the one hand, Bai Juyi's poetry was straightforward and plain, "so that even old women with white hair could understand"—easy to grasp. On the other hand, his contented, easygoing attitude resonated with the Kyoto aristocracy of the Heian era, who had lost political power and, with no strong figures to reclaim land from the warlords, turned to escapism, indulging in beauty, romance, and landscape poetry.
Thus, his leisurely and sentimental poems, such as "In the mortal world, April's flowers have all faded, but on the mountain temple, peach blossoms are just blooming," gave the fallen nobles joy in nature. Meanwhile, works like The Song of Everlasting Regret describing rebellions and the decline of imperial power, evoked their sympathy. How could he not be beloved by emperors and nobles alike?
Minamoto no Raikou and her Four Heavenly Kings were generals of this era.
The virtuous wife Tamayori also, in the late Heian period, sneaked into the palace to indulge in debauchery with the emperor, causing him to fall gravely ill. She was later driven out by Abe no Seimei and many other strong figures, though the exact means are unclear.
Later, Minamoto no Yoritomo, elder brother of Minamoto no Yoshitsune, established the Kamakura shogunate, ending the Heian period. The samurai class officially took power, and the nobility completely declined, leaving the emperor as a puppet. From then on, the imperial court never revived—whether in the Muromachi period of Ashikaga and Ikkyu, or the Sengoku period of Oda Nobunaga and Miyamoto Musashi.
Thus, influenced by generations of frustrated aristocrats, Bai Juyi continued to be highly revered even into the Tokugawa era, becoming the most famous and influential Chinese poet in Japan.
After that, the group took a special bus to Jinxiu Valley.
This valley was known for its strange peaks and stones. There was a natural cave called Immortal's Cave, seven meters tall and more than ten meters deep.
There was also the Sky Bridge, a massive boulder jutting from the cliffside, like a stone bridge suspended in midair.
Acting as tour guide, Zhou Meimei introduced: "There's also a legend here. Back when Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youliang fought at Poyang Lake, Zhu Yuanzhang, at first weaker, was forced to flee up Mount Lu. But pursued to the cliff's edge, with no escape…
A golden dragon descended from the sky and transformed into a rainbow-colored stone bridge. Zhu Yuanzhang quickly led his soldiers across and escaped. The bridge then collapsed, preventing his pursuers from following. Later, Zhu Yuanzhang was able to turn defeat into victory."
"So this means originally, there was no bridge here?" Shirou asked, looking at the sheer cliffs.
"At least since the Ming dynasty, it's been like this. Still, I rather like these kinds of legends. Just like the legends about the peerless Empress under the sun and moon." Zhou Meimei shrugged.
Hiratsuka Shizuka complained: "Isn't this just photo fraud? Ugh, whatever, let's hurry to the next scenic spot."
On the western peak of Mount Lu, there was a rectangular pond, its green waters divided into two by a small bridge. Its waters flowed year-round. This was the Great Heavenly Pond.
Here stood Mount Lu's oldest temple, founded in the Eastern Jin dynasty. Zhu Yuanzhang later granted it the name Huguo Tianchi Temple. Though now abandoned, many ancient structures remained around it—stone walls, pavilions. Outside the temple stood a twenty-meter-high stone pagoda, surrounded by tall pines.
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