Even though Orange was impatient, the “dragon in the sky” that the King’s advisor spoke of could only be seen at night.
In the courtyard of the Wang family, paper lanterns hung, soft bamboo mats were laid out, small tables and cushions were placed, along with sweet tea, pastries, and a dish of dried yellow croaker.
Everything was ready; they were just waiting for the dragon to arrive.
The Wang family children were all there, as was Zhan Mei.
Zhenyi sat next to her eldest sister, looking at the food on the small table, and asked, “Does the dragon eat these too?”
Hearing the child’s innocent question, everyone laughed. Shuyi picked up a pastry with her handkerchief and brought it to Zhenyi’s lips, laughing, “The dragon doesn’t eat them; they’re all for the little worms in my second sister’s belly!”
Hearing that it wasn’t for the dragon, Orange stretched out a paw and grabbed a dried fish to nibble on.
The old man sat in his rocking chair, leisurely telling the children about the folk legends of the “Spring Dragon Festival.”
On the second day of the second lunar month, the dragon raises its head, which is known as the Spring Dragon Festival.
Legends always have a mythical quality, and the children listened with rapt attention.
At the end, Wang Zhefu told the children that while ghosts and gods are not to be believed, many legends of this land are not without foundation. They reveal the long-standing wisdom of our ancestors. For example, the legend of the dragon raising its head can be clearly traced back to celestial phenomena.
Wang Zhefu then spoke to the children about the Twenty-Eight Mansions.
“According to their directions, the Twenty-Eight Mansions are divided into four cardinal directions: east, south, west, and north, known as the ‘Four Symbols.’ Each symbol contains seven mansions. The seven mansions of the east form the Azure Dragon…” The king pointed to the stars, patiently explaining, “Look at these eastern mansions. The first mansion is the Horn (角) mansion, which is the dragon’s horn; the second mansion is the Neck (亢) mansion, which is the dragon’s throat… and the last two, the Tail (尾) mansion and the Winnowing Basket (箕), form the dragon’s tail.”
The seven mansions form the dragon. On the night of the second day of the second lunar month, the Horn (角) mansion slowly rises from the eastern night sky, marking the “Dragon Raising its Head.”
“From tonight onward, the time when the dragon’s head emerges will advance each day; this shifting of the stars has its own inherent pattern.”
The old man’s finger moved slowly, and Zhenyi and Ju Zi’s gazes followed it. “In this daily change, the Azure Dragon constellation’s footprint appears as the sun rising in the east in spring, moving south in summer, setting in the west in autumn, and hiding in the north in winter… until it reappears on the second day of the second month of next year, just like tonight.”
Zhenyi asked, lost in thought, “Grandfather… spring brings forth life, winter brings rest; isn’t this the way of the four seasons for all things?”
“That’s right!” King Fu smiled, nodding in approval. “All things in heaven and earth are interconnected; this is precisely the principle!”
Zhenyi gazed at the starry sky, suddenly realizing that heaven and earth are vast yet constant, changing yet orderly, and this mystery of “order” requires humankind to explore and measure it.
How can it be measured? Who can measure the height of the heavens?
For a moment, Zhenyi felt incredibly small. The vast universe and stars before her enveloped her, dazzling her yet stirring her soul.
Her eldest brother was drinking tea, playfully teasing an orange; her second brother and Zhan Mei were conversing quietly, occasionally asking their grandfather about poetry and literature; her eldest sister said she had to go back, as she had to attend school the next day… These voices seemed to pass through Zhenyi’s ears like a membrane; she could hear them, but not clearly.
Shortly afterward, Wang Jie also returned home; he also had lessons the next day.
Wang Yuan felt a little sleepy and rose to bow to his grandfather, who was sitting in a rattan chair.
Seeing this, Zhan Mei also rose. He had come with Wang Yuan and Wang Jie, and now that they had left, it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to remain alone.
However, Wang Yuan, who had only taken two steps, suddenly turned back and pulled Zhan Mei to sit down again: “…Leaving my second sister alone is too lonely. Let’s risk our lives to keep her company tonight!”
Zhenyi would have to wait until after midnight to see the “dragon claw.”
Zhan Mei looked at that small figure and inexplicably felt that she wasn’t lonely at all, and didn’t even care about them.
Fortunately, Wang Yuan’s “risking our lives to keep her company” was just an excuse. He suddenly realized that his second brother was going back to rest for tomorrow’s homework, so if he didn’t go back, wouldn’t he have a legitimate reason to sleep in and not do his homework tomorrow?
Wang Yuan thought he was a genius.
This genius soon fell asleep.
Zhenyi stayed up until midnight, but her eyelids began to grow heavy uncontrollably, especially with Ju Zi’s particularly soothing snoring.
Zhenyi finally leaned against her eldest brother and fell asleep. Seeing this, Zhan Mei turned and softly called, “Miss Chun’er…”
Chun’er, wrapped in a blanket, jolted awake.
With Zhan Mei’s help, Chun’er carried her young mistress on her back.
Zhenyi groggily opened her eyes a little: “Has the dragon claw appeared yet?”
Zhan Mei softly replied, “Not yet, we’ll see tomorrow.”
Zhenyi responded, then heard her grandfather’s voice chuckle, “The little one can’t stay awake any longer… take her back to sleep.”
Zhenyi asked sleepily, “Why isn’t Father sleepy?”
Wang Yuan yawned, his voice muffled: “Father is at an age where he needs less sleep… we can’t compare. It’s said that fifty or sixty is the prime age for taking the imperial examinations, while we young people should be sleeping.”
Wang Yuan waved his hand wearily: “Let’s go, let’s go back to sleep…”
Chun’er carried Zhenyi on her back and left with Wang Yuan.
Zhenyi, half-asleep, nestled on Chun’er’s back, murmured, “Chun’er… I’m seven years old now. After today, you can’t carry me anymore.”
Chun’er felt a warmth in her heart: “Chun’er has plenty of strength; I can carry Miss for the rest of my life!”
A seven-year-old child already has weight, and a seven-year-old cat—of course, Orange always used the modern age reckoning, so by that standard, it was six years old this year. A six-year-old cat’s weight was not to be underestimated, especially one of Orange’s colors.
The moment Zhan Mei picked Orange up in his arms, he realized he had somewhat underestimated cats.
Orange, fast asleep, was also held by Zhan Mei. With a human willing to serve it, Orange didn’t stand on ceremony—besides, it only saved itself some effort, while the other party got the chance to hold a cat. Being held by a cat was like his ancestors’ graves emitting auspicious smoke.
Orange quite liked the young boy’s scent—a faint woody aroma, simple, fresh, and clean… Anyone who frequently works with wood knows that only the finest wood possesses that fragrance.
Orange thought to herself, “Those eighteen godfathers were definitely worth it.”
Not long after, Orange caught a faint scent of pear blossoms mixed with the fragrance of ink on another young man who came to visit—quite pleasant.
Recently, Zhenyi was reading poetry, and came to the lines: “The willow’s color is tender golden, the pear blossoms are fragrant white snow…”
As the poem was read aloud, the “Spring Equinox” mentioned in Li Bai’s poem arrived.
The word “equinox” in Spring Equinox signifies the equal division of day and night; on this day, yin and yang are each in half. Moreover, the third month of spring is now halfway through, and this time, spring is divided in half, hence the name Spring Equinox.
The grass grows, and the orioles fly, the willows are green.
Under the bright spring sun, Zhenyi was pulled by her elder brother to hide behind the artificial hill. Ju Zi and Wang Jie were also there; the three of them and the cat were peeking at Defeng Pavilion.
Inside the pavilion were guests, a father and son of distinguished bearing. The father appeared to be in his thirties or forties, while the son was a handsome young man of fifteen, sixteen, or seventeen, with fair skin, a tall stature, and a jade-like face.
Wang Yuan, crouching low, peeked at the young man and whispered his assessment: “A good-looking fellow… he could rival me.”
“…” Wang Jie and Zhenyi exchanged a furtive glance, offering no comment on their elder brother’s assessment.