Wulong Mountain in Jinling was said to have been formed from a black dragon in the vast Taihu Lake to the south. The mountain was not high, rising like a clenched fist. Tens of thousands of plum trees grew thickly from its foot to halfway up its slopes, above which lay verdant bamboo groves. On the summit, however, ancient pines twisted and soared. Among them stood Jizi Hall, which, like Yanling Jizi Temple in Qu'a, was dedicated to the ancient worthy Jizi. Gu Kaizhi's grandfather's elder cousin Gu Rong had rebuilt this hall fifty years earlier, and now it once again bore the mottled marks of time.
At the first light of Dawnlight, Zhang Tongyun came to invite Lu Weiwei to visit Wulong Mountain with her. Accompanied by a group of maids and servants, they rode in carriages to the plum groves at the foot of the mountain, five li away. Gazing at the great swaths of red plums, white plums, green plums, and Three-Leaf Plums blooming in the thin morning mist, Lu Weiwei could not help recalling her meeting with Chen Caozhi on Plum Ridge in Huating that mid-spring. Even the plum blossoms on Plum Ridge had not been as luxuriant as these.
Zhang Tongyun said with a radiant smile, "Weiwei, this is my first visit to Wulong Mountain too. When I returned to Wu Commandery with Master Gu last year, we spent only one night at the estate and had no time to look around. Besides, the plum blossoms weren't out yet."
The maid Duan Chu suddenly asked, "Lady A-Tong, why hasn't your Master Gu come to keep you company?"
Zhang Tongyun smiled. "I'm keeping Weiwei company, while Master Gu has other friends to entertain."
Duan Chu was very clever. From Zhang Tongyun's smiling expression, she guessed that