Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 31 0030 [Read less and get bullied]

The father and son ran all the way back, and found that there was no one in the pavilion. They became more and more anxious, so they could only ask the nearby teahouses.

The tea households said that Brother Qi had already returned home.

Rural children are not so expensive, as long as they don't encounter wild animals, they can run all over the mountains at a few years old.

But Bai Qi waited for them not to return, so he went to the tea workshop, where many villagers at the foot of the mountain were helping.Just by asking, I found my grandmother and mother, and had a working meal outside the workshop.

The father and son descended the mountain in the dark, Shen Yourong was feeding the silkworms, and Grandma Yan was feeding the chickens.

The child was almost lost, Zhu Guoxiang was quite ashamed, cupped his hands and said: "Madam, we are busy buying land, so we forgot about Brother Qi..."

"It's okay," Grandma Yan was a little unhappy about this, but she didn't feel offended, and asked instead, "Can you buy the land?"

Zhu Guoxiang said: "Counting the barren slopes, there are more than [-] mu."

Grandma Yan was really happy for them, and she completely dismissed the idea of ​​marrying her daughter-in-law. She said: "This is really a celebration, Mr. Zhu finally bought a property and settled down. Mr. Zhu is the Geng this year?"

"Miangui, 35 years old." Zhu Guoxiang casually mentioned his age.

Mrs. Yan said: "I'm only 35, I need to find a wife next time. There is a cousin outside the old white member, and his granddaughter is eighteen this year. Her family lives next to the Bai family's mansion, and several tile-roofed houses have been built. The girl was originally appointed. Dear, I was already looking forward to a better life, but the man got drunk and drowned in the river. Later, he talked about a marriage, and the man suddenly raised Xie Jing, and was spotted by a rich man in Yangzhou. He shamelessly regretted the marriage and remarried. To this day, it is Zhu Xianggong's good match."

"There's no rush for the continuation." Zhu Guoxiang actually wanted to say, I think your daughter-in-law is quite suitable.

"How can you not be in a hurry?" Grandma Yan became more and more enthusiastic, "Mr. Zhu nodded, and the old lady will go to talk about it some other day. The girl has also read books, and she is very familiar with "The Precepts for Women". I don't like it, it's hard to find a husband's family in the countryside, so this marriage can probably be negotiated."

Shen Yourong suddenly came out with silkworm sand: "Auntie, Second Sister Bai has already promised her kiss."

"Are you talking about kissing again?" Grandma Yan was taken aback.

Shen Yourong said: "I only found out by picking tea today that she was engaged to the nephew of Yu Jiaao, a senior official. I heard that Yu Silang had been studying abroad all year round and had never returned to his hometown to get married. The woman changed her name in a rage. Kiss me. Yu Silang is 22 this year, and Second Sister Bai is [-] this year, and they are a good match."

Mrs. Yan thought about it carefully, and said to Zhu Guoxiang: "Don't worry, Mr. Zhu, the old lady will help you find it."

Zhu Guoxiang didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "I'm not in a hurry."

Zhu Ming counted the money in the room with an oil lamp, and came out with five hundred Wen coins: "These days, I'm bothering you two. In addition to eating and drinking, I also borrowed beans and salt to feed the horses, and the houses can only be built after the villagers finish planting rice seedlings. These five Please accept the hundred cash, we have to stay for a while."

"It's too much, too much, if you really want money, just give a hundred cash." Grandma Yan quickly refused.

Zhu Ming pressed it forward: "Not much, that skinny horse is quite edible, with beans and salt, and a lot of straw, it can eat two people's meals a day. I have been practicing martial arts for the past few days, and my strength is exhausted quickly. Mrs. Shen Don’t sell the saved eggs, please cook an egg every day from now on.”

The five hundred Wen money was pushed back and forth, but Grandma Yan couldn't bear it, so she had to reluctantly accept it.

Shen Yourong glanced at Zhu Guoxiang, said with a smile, "Then I cook two eggs a day, and Mr. Zhu should also make up for it."

"Cook three, Brother Qi is growing up, and it's just right for the three hens in the family to lay eggs." Zhu Guoxiang liked that child very much, and he was much more obedient than his own son.

"Then cook three." Grandma Yan also wanted her grandson to eat better.

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law went into the house with the money, took out a locked box and opened it, and counted the deposits in the box by the way.

They worked hard today, Mrs. Shen earned 28 Wen, and Grandma Yan earned 21 Wen, and they were able to pick up two work meals for free.In the next two or three days, I will go to the mountains to pick tea, and I estimate that I can earn about 200 Wen in total.

Of course, this kind of good thing to make money is only a few times a year, and only large-scale tea picking requires their help.

Especially late spring tea at the end of spring, the quality is not very high, and it can’t be sold at a price, and the wages for tea pickers are correspondingly reduced.

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law counted and counted, and counting the five hundred cash given by Zhu Ming, the total cash in the family was more than six guan.

Fortunately, Bai Sanlang has been helping, and the family of Mrs. Shen has been reduced to a fifth-class household. Many exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes are not required to be paid.
Grandma Yan fetched a piece of soft linen cloth, moistened some vegetable oil on the cloth, then untied the rope that stringed the money, and wiped it carefully one by one.

Shen Yourong also helped to maintain the iron money, so as not to rust when used in the future, while wiping it, he said with a smile: "Today in Chashan, Bai Sanlang told me that he can help Brother Qi enter elementary school, and it is the kind that does not need to pay tuition."

"No need to pay tuition? That's great!" Grandma Yan was even more delighted.

The Sanshe Law established by Wang Anshi set the national official schools into four levels: primary schools, county schools, state schools, and imperial schools.There are five grades in each school, with one exam every [-] days, and the fastest time to graduate is [-] days.However, if they fail the exam, they may also be punished by demotion, and Tai students can be directly sent back to the state school to study.

After Cai Jing came to power, he immediately restored the Sanshe Law and promoted official schools across the country. The ultimate goal was the same as Wang Anshi's—abolish the imperial examinations!
Or rather, it has been abolished.

Nine years ago, Emperor Huizong of Song Dynasty issued an imperial edict officially abolishing the imperial examinations. Scholars had to study in government schools and be appointed officials from the graduating class of Taixue.

The steps are too big, and it is easy to scratch the egg. In the face of numerous objections, we can only adopt the dual-track system of entering higher education and imperial examinations.

The current situation is: the imperial examination is held every three years, and seven to 800 Jinshi are awarded.The tribute examination is held once a year, and more than ten Tai students are selected, which is equivalent to the background of Jinshi.

Shen Yourong continued: "A few years ago, government students not only did not pay tuition fees, but also had free board and lodging at school. Cai Xianggong (Cai Jing) lost his official position, and the court changed the rules, and the state students and below have to pay money to eat. live."

Grandma Yan was a little puzzled: "It is said that Mr. Cai is a traitor, how can he treat students so well?"

"I don't know," Shen Yourong speculated, "maybe bad people sometimes do good things, just like those tyrants who build bridges and pave roads."

Mrs. Yan said: "It would be great if I can continue to study in government schools, and I can save a lot of tuition fees."

Shen Yourong said: "I asked Bai Sanlang, and he said that state schools are not allowed to study, and state students are not allowed to take the imperial examination, but are only allowed to continue to enter the imperial school. The imperial school is only available in Bianliang, and our state school in Yangzhou takes two or three years. Only then can you get a tribute quota. Then you entered the Taixue to study, and you can only rely on your connections to become an official, unless you are talented and educated, you can't be suppressed by others."

"Then we must not let Brother Qi study in Taixue, and we have no money to give gifts, so we will be trapped when we go to Bianliang." Grandma Yan said quickly.

Shen Yourong smiled and said: "Auntie, don't worry, imperial education is very expensive, even peasants can't get in if they want to."

Grandma Yan wiped the iron money carefully, hoping that her grandson would grow up soon and be able to take the imperial examination like her son.Even if you can't pass the Jinshi exam, as long as you win the Juren, you can still find a decent job in the city.

At that time, even if she dies from exhaustion and illness, she will be able to rest in peace.

Outside, Zhu Guoxiang sent Bai Qi to the door: "Brother Qi, go in by yourself and play with your mother. I have some things to read."

After sending the child away, Zhu Guoxiang took his son back to the house, lit the oil lamp and asked, "Is there a dictionary in ancient times?"

"What does Dean Zhu want to do?" Zhu Ming asked back.

"I'll take a new name myself." Zhu Guoxiang said.

Zhu Ming said: "There are only rhyme books, which are barely equivalent to dictionaries."

Zhu Guoxiang dragged out the box under the bed, rummaged for a while, and finally found "The Rhyme of the Ministry of Rites", but unfortunately there was only a fragmented volume.

Just this thing, once could be brought into the examination room.

Because there were too many cheaters who took the opportunity, Song Zhenzong banned them, and instead asked the examiner to prepare a few rhyme books, which are convenient for candidates to borrow and look up at any time-there are too many candidates, and they often cannot be borrowed, so the poetry and prose examination is a tragedy.

Don't think too much about the ancients. Even the famous officials and Confucian scholars in the Song Dynasty often overturned their poems and Fu, because the rhymes are complicated and they are easy to remember wrongly.

When writing poems in ordinary times, it is possible to produce rhymes, and even the flatness can be disobeyed.

The poetry test is more rigid than the stereotyped essay.

Take Fu as an example, the title comes from Jingshizi, it is possible that you have never even heard the name of that book.It not only restricts the rhymes to death, but also stipulates the order of using rhymes, and it also needs to start, inherit, turn and connect, and connect the eight rhymes.

Except for Su Shi's kind of talented writer, all the officials who came from the Jinshi department hated the poems and prose in the imperial examination.Therefore, Wang Anshi and Sima Guang, although the party disputes played out the dog's brains, they joined forces to cancel poetry and prose from the imperial examination.

Opening the rhyme book, looking at it casually, Zhu Guoxiang threw it back.

He can not understand……

When the book is in use, I will hate it. Zhu Guoxiang intends to take the table characters again, but he doesn't know what is suitable.

It is a joke to take words indiscriminately.

Seeing his father's depressed face, Zhu Ming sat beside him holding back his laughter, and finally couldn't hold back anymore, so he went to the latrine to pee.

Zhu Guoxiang thought alone: ​​Xiang means auspicious omen, and Guoxiang is the auspiciousness of the country.Is it called Anbang, or Xingbang?It doesn't seem to sound good, but it's not as good as Yuanzhang... Oh, it's so annoying, that bastard is just bullying Lao Tzu's bad ancient Chinese!

……

Rural rich people usually eat two meals, but there are snacks to fill their stomachs.

Tonight's meal is very sumptuous, firstly to celebrate the tea harvest, and secondly to entertain two distinguished guests.

The old lady of the Bai family took the main seat, the two distinguished guests took the second place, and all the female relatives of the family also came to the table.

The family status of women in the Song Dynasty was much higher than that in the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties.Especially in the Northern Song Dynasty, Neo Confucianism was not only not distorted, but it was not even fully formed.Later generations also attributed Wang Anshi's new learning to the category of Neo-Confucianism, but at this time Xinxue and Neo-Confucianism belonged to deadly rivals.

The distortion of Neo-Confucianism began in the Yuan Dynasty.

"The white-headed old woman has red flowers in her hairpin, and the black-headed woman has three buns. She sleeps on her back and goes up the mountain. Picking mulberries is already busy picking tea..." Bai Chongyan's official wife is called Zhan Youniang. She pondered the poem twice and said with a smile, "This little scholar Zhu, writing poems is so interesting, it seems that he is really a genius."

Bai Chongyan highly praised him: "Not only is he talented in poetry, but he is also very proficient in classics and history."

Li Hanzhang interjected: "This man drew the directions of Pengcheng, Xiayi, and Lingbi cities in a casual manner. It can be seen that he has already been familiar with geography, which is beyond the reach of ordinary scholars."

"Indeed." Bai Chongyan nodded in agreement.

Take Bai Chongyan himself as an example. Although he knows the names of these cities, it is absolutely impossible to tell their directions.

Bai Dalang's regular wife Liu Niangzi suddenly said: "I heard from the servant girl that Mr. Zhu has traveled all over the world, and he has also sailed overseas. The sea is also like the Han River. There are water bandits. They are called pirates. Zhu Mister once led a merchant ship to fight against the pirates in Nanyang. There is another big island in the south of Nanyang, and there are cannibals on the island..."

Bai Chongwen didn't like to hear this, so he interrupted his wife and said, "Make up some stories to deceive those foolish men and women, and you actually believe it?"

"It's so vivid, even if it's made up, I'm afraid it's really sailed to sea." Liu Niangzi said.

Li Hanzhang said: "The father and son must have been to many places. It must be true to sail to sea. My family is in Chuzhou (Huai'an), and I traveled to the south of the Yangtze River when I was young. I also heard a lot of overseas experiences in Hangzhou."

The fat guy Zheng Hong became interested and asked, "What is the sea like? But it's really full of water? Can you go to the other side of the sea by boat? What's the other side of the sea?"

Li Hanzhang pondered: "Perhaps, there are many islands. I heard from merchants in Hangzhou that there are also small countries overseas with different customs and languages."

"I met Xiyi in Bianliang," Bai Chongyan said, "They have settled in Tokyo for many years, and I heard that their ancestors came from the farther west of the Western Regions. Some people say that Persia in the far west can also come to my Great Song Dynasty by boat." .”

Zheng Hong asked Bai Dalang's wife: "What overseas stories has Mrs. Liu heard?"

Mrs. Liu replied: "I also heard it from the maid, and the maid heard it from others, and I couldn't understand it when it was passed on. There is also a daughter country. The country is full of women, and there is no man. Even the country The Lord is also a woman."

"Daughter's Country," Zheng Hong's eyes lit up, and said wryly, "I wish I could come here in person!"

Mrs. Liu said: "That little Zhu Xiucai told many stories. I can't remember them clearly, but I still remember the story of the Monkey King. It is said that Empress Nuwa refined stones to mend the sky, and there is a piece of five-color stones that is not used up." ..."

Mrs. Liu spoke very briefly, with dry details, which had nothing to do with vividness.

But just these, Zheng Hong has already become interested, eager to know the follow-up plot.

This guy has only two hobbies, one is eating, and the other is playing. He has already read all the poems, stories and dramas on the market. How can he resist hearing new stories?
(End of this chapter)