The Happy Life of Small Officials in Northern Song Dynasty

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Facing Zhang Yuan's untruthful words and Zhang's nursing home's covetous eyes, Su Jin didn't feel uncomfortable at all. Instead, he walked in the rain and commented on Zhang's home.

"Master Zhang is really an elegant person. The garden is lush with flowers and trees, and the layout is quiet. Under the drizzle, the fresh green is very attractive, and it has a taste of the southern courtyard; spring comes late in the northwest, and the south is already full of flowers at this moment. But here, I can re-appreciate the meaning of early spring, which is very pleasing to the eye."

"Hmph, did Mr. Su come here to enjoy the sight of spring? I'm afraid that's not what he meant."

Su Jin smiled and said: "Of course there are other purposes, but it's just a matter of feeling. From the layout of the court, it can be seen that although Mr. Zhang is in the Xia Kingdom, he never forgets the layout of the Song Dynasty; A few more swallows fluttering in the rain, and it's more like the South."[

Zhang Yuan said with a straight face: "Master Su, it's better not to worry about other things. Think about your own situation. Even if you become a Swift, it will be difficult for you to escape from Xingqing Mansion this time."

Su Jin laughed loudly and said: "Master Zhang is so spoiling the scenery, well, before you take me to ask for credit, how about we enjoy the spring rain here?"

Zhang Yuandao: "That's natural, the visitor is a guest, there must always be some way of hospitality, since you like the scenery in this courtyard, let's make tea and snacks on the small pavilion over there, come and clean up the pavilion, Put on the tea set."

Su Jin smiled and said, "Very good, please!"

Zhang Yuan led the way, Su Jin and the woman in red followed behind, the three of them turned around a clump of whirling weeping willows, and a small pavilion appeared in front of them, with flying eaves, green tiles, gray fence and green steps, which was very chic.

Su Jin looked up at the plaque on the eyebrows of the pavilion, and said with a smile: "Sigui Pavilion, what a name! It must have been inscribed by Mr. Zhang himself. I don't know if Mr. Sigui Nanguo, or Chaotang Sigui is old? Or both. It's all possible."

Zhang Yuan snorted and said, "You guessed it wrong. These three words were bestowed by the emperor's imperial pen. They express the desire for a talented person by borrowing a loved one's return. If you force yourself to explain, you are a bit smart."

Su Jin smiled slightly, stepped up to the pavilion, patted the railing and sang softly: "The grass is green, the poplars are green, you care about your thoughts; I think about you, you don't see me, I wait quietly for you to return; I ask my beloved, will you return? My hometown also waits." Looking back at you, thousands of slender, fluttering steps, meeting each other; thinking, but you don’t see it, foolishly waiting for comfort and asking people, will you not return? Waiting for you to return, asking loudly, will you not return? Hu ah not returning? Ask Yuan Xi, sing softly, wait, wait for you to return, ask me, Hu not returning? Hu not returning?"

This tune is peculiar, it is by no means like the current popular tunes, but it is euphemistic and touching.

Zhang Yuan was disturbed when he heard it, and when Su Jin finished singing, he said quietly: "Unexpectedly, Master Su can also sing village songs. This kind of song that is not on the stage can also be used to pollute people's eyes and ears."

Su Jin smiled, sat on the stone bench in the hall, and said: "I just laughed, I don't know why, as soon as I arrived in the northwest, I thought of the scenery of the Song Dynasty, and all these worries naturally filled my heart, Mr. Zhang Don't be offended, you and I are considered old friends, don't look at anything else, just because I came all the way here to visit, you will forgive me for my gaffe, won't you?"

Zhang Yuan sighed and said: "That's right, but I will never forget the situation when I was teased by you in Weizhou. You came here with a feather fan and scarf, and I only saw the cunning star under your clothes." Heart."

Su Jin laughed and said: "It seems that I have broken Master Zhang's heart. If that's the case, I can't make up for it here. I came here this time to make up for it. It's up to each other that day. Things."

"Compensation?" Zhang Yuan sneered and ignored Su Jin's words. It was obvious that this kid was playing tricks again, and the best way was to ignore him.

The tea on the stone table was already boiling, so Zhang Yuan reached out for the teacup, took the tea bag, made tea, put a cup in front of Su Jin and said, "Let's use the tea."

Su Jin nodded and thanked him, took a cup to his nose and sniffed it, then suddenly threw his hand into the mud outside the railing, Zhang Yuan said angrily, "What are you doing? Could it be that my tea is poisonous?"

Su Jin waved his hand and said, "Master Zhang, don't misunderstand me. I just didn't expect Master Zhang to fall to such a point. If I guessed correctly, this tea is probably last year's autumn tea, right? Could it be a gift from me, Song Sui?" One batch of the [-] catties of tea? Hey, how can the tea be drunk? Sansi is very stingy. The tea leaves given to you are all old tea after autumn. Master Zhang should drink this tea anyway."

Zhang Yuan's face turned red, and he said sullenly: "It's not thanks to you, you pretended to be innocent, you arranged all this, didn't you? I only have this kind of tea here. You can drink it if you can. , don’t come here to humiliate the old man.”

Su Jin cupped his hands and said: "How dare I insult Mr. Zhang, I specially brought this year's new tea to Mr. Zhang, Duan Yun, take out the tea and boil a pot for Mr. Zhang to taste."

The woman in red beside her was Yeli Duanyun. Seeing Su Jin's order, she hurriedly asked someone to move the things on the carriage down. Several large boxes and cages were placed beside the pavilion. After they were all opened, there were various silks and satins and various Ye Li Duanyun took out a tea bucket, took out a handful of green tea leaves, and brewed them for Su Jin and Zhang Yuan.

Su Jin said: "This is Lingnan Yunwu tea, which grows on the top of ten thousand high mountains. The climate in Lingnan is warm and humid, so there is new tea in the first month. I spent a lot of money to order people to collect this small pot. To tell you the truth, I am also today. Tasting it for the first time, it is said that the tea is as green as a flower, and after entering the water, it will give off a cloudy fragrance, and today I want to see if it is so."

Zhang Yuan has a lot of knowledge, so he naturally knew what Su Jin said was true. He looked down and saw that the tea leaves were floating in the cup. It was like a plate of big green stamens blooming, and the aroma filled his nose. Xiang's mind also seemed to be much clearer.

"Please accept Zhang Zhongshu, and these ordinary things are all given to Mr. Zhang as a meeting gift. Mr. Zhang will never say no." Su Jin pointed to those boxes and cages.

Zhang Yuan thought: "An ordinary thing?"These gifts are at least worth tens of thousands of dollars. Is this kid really here to make an apology?No, you must not be fooled.

"Master Su came to look for this old man just to give this old man a gift, right? Although you have caused me to lose all face and great Xia's national prestige, but as you said, there is nothing wrong with it "To give such a rich gift today is really superfluous, I can't ask for it."

Su Jin said: "Take it, it's not easy for me to bring it all the way here, so why don't you still want me to take it all the way?"

Zhang Yuandao: "Unless you say what you want, it will definitely not be accepted."

Su Jindao: "I have already said that the purpose of my visit today is to make an apology, the gift is second, and there are other great gifts."

Zhang Yuan frowned and said, "Oh? I want to see what a great gift it is."

Su Jin smiled and said, "I'm here to save Master Zhang's life."

Zhang Yuan was taken aback for a moment, then burst out laughing, pointing at Su Jin's nose, he was out of breath, his beautiful beard flew up, and his body trembled violently.

"Hahaha, you're repeating your old tricks again, deliberately saying some alarmist words. I knew you didn't come here with good intentions. Can you treat this place as Weizhou City? Hehe, the old man has limited endurance, and I don't want to listen to your ramblings. After taking you into the palace and handing it over to the emperor, can the emperor still talk sweetly in front of you? He can't wait to eat your flesh and skin you." Zhang Yuan gritted his teeth and looked ferocious.

Su Jin burst out laughing, took a sip of tea and said, "Master Zhang, don't scare me, the two countries have peace talks, how dare he kill me even if I stand in front of Li Yuanhao."

Zhang Yuan sneered and said: "If you are on a mission on official business, of course you can't do anything to you. If you sneak in privately, you can be executed as a spy; You are no different from slaughtering a pig or dog."

Su Jin raised his hand and said, "You are ruthless, but what good will this do for you, Mr. Zhang? Mr. Zhang retreated to the bank of Heishui Lake, which means that the day will be when the sun sets and he will come out again. Could it be that Mr. Zhang expects to hand me over to me?" Can we make a comeback, can we compete against Wuzang Yepang and regain power, can we gain Li Yuanhao's trust again? Mr. Zhang has been shrewd all his life, so he won't be able to settle this account."

Zhang Yuan got up abruptly, pointed at Su Jin and said, "What exactly are you going to do? Why do you know so much about the situation in my Great Xia? Do you want the old man to be your answer in the Song Dynasty, so that you can destroy the Xia Kingdom while taking advantage of the chaos?"

Su Jin waved his hand and said: "Don't get excited, how could I let Lord Zhang do such a thing, I have already stated my intention, why do you have to speculate; I am here to give you advice to avoid the imminent murderous disaster."

Zhang Yuan waved his hand and said: "Don't waste your time, the old man retires and doesn't care about political affairs, what's the danger of killing him?"

Su Jin sneered and said: "The tree wants to be quiet but the wind doesn't stop. You have played a number of times in the court to impeach Wuzang Huanpang. According to Wuzang Huanpang's temper, will he let you go? He will let you enjoy the countryside? You dream you."

Zhang Yuandao: "So what? The emperor is here, what dare he do to me?"

Su Jin smiled and said: "If the emperor is not here? Who will protect you?" [

Zhang Yuan was dumbfounded and said: "The emperor is in the prime of his life, at least there are still 50 years left, no, 100 years to live..."

Su Jin spat and said: "Forget it, don't deceive yourself, you and I both understand, these days, who knows if there will be life tomorrow? Even the emperor, how many of them will die well? No Zang clan gave birth to a little prince, This is the beginning of your swords and swords in the Xia Kingdom, you have a background in history books and classics, you should understand what kind of troubles the current situation will lead to, don't pretend to be confused, and carefully consider your position."