The First Great Ancestor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 57
"The position of secretary-general has been vacant for a long time. I have decided that a disciple of the Zhu family in Haozhou, Junyan from Huaizhong, Lin Qiaochu from Youyan, and Zhu Xiu, a hero from Hebei, will serve as the secretary-general of our Zhangyi Army!"

Squadway waved his hand, and his sonorous voice officially pushed Zhu Xiu to the front of the stage.

Zhu Xiu dusted off his sleeves, stood up and bowed to everyone, holding his head slightly high and smiling, showing humility in his pride and extraordinary in his low-key.

But his face couldn't help but feel a little hot, and he gouged out Lao Shi's eyes fiercely. This black guy didn't even talk to him before he started bragging about him. He really dared to brag about Lin Qiaochu, a handsome scholar in Huaizhong!
After Shi Kuangwei finished his grand introduction, no one in the hall responded. You looked at me and I looked at you. They all lowered their eyelids without saying a word, and the scene fell into an eerie silence.

Xue Xiuliang looked at Zhu Xiu with fierce eyes and smiled cruelly, as if he had evil intentions.

Xue Xiuming gently moved the tea lid, smiling without saying a word.

To the back on the left, an old man with mostly gray hair and a green robe stood up tremblingly, cupped his hands and said, "May I ask, handsome man, how old is this Zhu Langjun? Who did he study under? What fame did he have? In the past, What positions have you held?”

"This is the magistrate of Anding County, Wen Tai!"

A subtle reminder sounded behind Zhu Xiu. He turned his head and saw that it was Pei Jin, the commander-in-chief.

Pei Jin picked up the tea cup and took a sip of tea as if nothing had happened.

"It's Duke Wen, I'm sorry." Zhu Xiu bowed and saluted.

Wen Tai snorted, as if he didn't bother to chat with an unknown young man, and raised his voice: "Commander, please tell me! Why does this man serve as secretary-general?"

Shi Kuangwei's face was a little ugly, and he said with a tiger face: "Magistrate Wen doesn't know that the Zhu family in Haozhou is also a family of scholars for generations. Zhu Xiu worshiped under the family of Mr. Siyou, a famous scholar in Tanzhou when he was young, and devoted himself to studying for many years. Geography, classics and history, etiquette, music, poetry and books are all familiar!
When he was in Cangzhou, Zhu Xiu once served as the marching staff of the Tianxiong Army. Marshal Guo Wei also praised him full of praise and wanted to entrust him with important tasks!I asked Shuai Guo for talents after many requests! "

Zhu Xiu glanced at Shi Kuangwei, whose face remained expressionless. This black guy lied and boasted in a serious manner, but when he told the truth, he laughed and cursed.

All the officials were whispering among themselves. Everyone knew the famous name of the Tianxiong Army. How could Zhu Shaolang be the marching advisor of the Tianxiong Army at such a young age?And is he still valued by the Privy Councilor Guo Wei?

Haozhou Zhu family?a family of scholars?never heard of that!

Mr. Siyou, a celebrity in Tanzhou?This is even more unheard of!

Xue Xiuming and Xue Xiuliang looked at each other, surprised and more doubtful.

Wen Tai was also surprised. At first glance, this young man's resume seemed quite deceptive.

Xue Xiuming put down the tureen and said with a gentle smile: "Young Master Zhu has a handsome appearance and a gentle demeanor. I guess he comes from a noble family. It's just Mr. Siyou, a famous scholar in Tanzhou. Forgive me for my ignorance, I have never heard of him."

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a chorus of agreement in the hall.

"I went to Hebei two years ago, and I have never heard of Tanzhou having famous names like Siyou!"

"Look at his age, he's only fifteen or sixteen, a young man, even if he can read and read from the womb, how much knowledge can he accumulate? The handsome man's praise is too much!"

"That's right! It's inappropriate to let a young man serve as the secretary-general of the Changyi Army! It's really inappropriate!"

As if being encouraged, Wen Tai cheered up and said loudly: "Even if Zhu Shaolang is young and talented, he is not enough to serve as the Secretary of the Changyi Army!"

Shi Kuangwei said with a dark face: "Who knows about Mr. Siyou in Hebei? Who doesn't know about it? Zhu Xiu is his close disciple, how can he fake his abilities?"

Xue Xiuming smiled lightly and shook his head.

The objections of the officials resounded below: "Just being a famous scholar and a disciple is not enough to prove that this person has the ability to be the secretary-general of the Changyi Army! Besides, no one knows if there is such a person in Tanzhou!"

"Why don't you ask the handsome master to postpone the arrangements until the war in Fengxiang is over and the road to the east is clear? Send someone to investigate the background of this son in detail and make arrangements before it's too late!"

Shi Kuangwei got angry, slapped the case and stood up, glaring and yelling: "I brought Mr. Zhu back from Hebei. Don't I know whether he is capable or not? With his talent, he is more than enough to be a secretary in charge!"

Seeing that the handsome man got angry, the opposition in the hall suddenly died down, but all the officials were still unconvinced and insisted on opposing a young man who appeared suddenly to enter the top ranks of the Zhangyi Army.

Xue Xiuming smiled and said: "Don't be upset, commander-in-chief. We are only considering the foundation of the Zhangyi Army, and we are not intentionally making things difficult! After all, the secretary-general is an important assistant in a town, and he has too many confidential matters. He must have the talent and background to It’s better to have someone you can trust take charge of it!”

Xue Xiuliang laughed rudely and said: "Previously, we proposed to appoint Li Guangbo, a descendant of the Li family of the Dingnan Army, as the secretary-general, but it was rejected by the handsome master. I thought that when the handsome master went to Hebei this time, he could bring back a great man with a world-famous reputation. Talented man, I didn’t expect that after waiting for a long time, I got such a wild boy with no hair! In view of his humble position, this boy is not as good as Li Guangbo!"

Shi Kuangwei's face was as dark as the bottom of a pot, his curly beard was trembling, and there was anger in his lowered eyelids.Xue Xiuming pretended to reprimand: "Shut up! It makes sense not to use Li Guangbo as commander-in-chief. If this young master Zhu can be valued by the handsome master, he must be outstanding. How can you be rude?"

"Yes! I have a rough temper due to my humble position, and I was rude for a moment. Please don't blame me, handsome!"

Xue Xiuliang clasped his fists and lowered his head, but Zhu Xiu saw a contemptuous sneer on his face.

Shi Kuangwei was sitting in the middle, and the two Xue brothers, one on the left and one on the right, seemed to regard him as a doll.

Zhu Xiu looked at the expressionless Shi Kuangwei, and suddenly felt some sympathy in his heart.

As a military commander, he was hampered in appointing his subordinates and was even ridiculed by his subordinates. Lao Shi felt a little aggrieved for being such a military commander.

No wonder when he returned to Jingzhou, he was not as happy and carefree as when he was in Hebei.

Brother Xue's influence in the Changyi Army was deeper than he imagined.

Xue Xiuming waved his hands with a smile, and the hall suddenly became quiet.

"Well, since Marshal Jie proposed that Zhu Shaolang be the secretary, why not let me do a simple test. If Zhu Shaolang's knowledge and talent are enough to be qualified for this position, then I will follow Marshal Jie's wishes. If not, haha, let's choose another one. It’s good for talented people to take on this important responsibility!”

Xue Xiuming twisted his beard and smiled.

"Xue Sima has a very good idea!"

"Xue Simanai was born as a Jinshi. He will set up the examination questions. It will be clear at a glance whether he is a talented person or a false scholar!"

Shi Kuangwei was a little anxious. He knew that Xue Xiuming still had some ink in his stomach. Zhu Xiu was young after all, so he might not be able to cope with it.

Lao Shi was unwilling to give in, but he had no choice but to give in to prevent Zhu Xiu from being laughed at and completely ruining his reputation in the Changyi Army.

Just when Lao Shi was about to speak, Zhu Xiu took a step forward, smiled and saluted, "I wonder how Xue Sima wants to take the test?"

Lao Shi's eyes widened, and Zhu Xiu gave him a reassuring look. Let's see how Xue Xiuming will come up with the question first. It's best if he can show off his skills. If not, then give up first. Anyway, shame is worth money if you care about it. , it’s really worthless if you don’t care.

However, Lao Shi's anxious look, worried that he would be embarrassed, really made Zhu Xiu feel warm in his heart.

Xue Xiuming stood up, took a few steps, and said, "Do you know the specific responsibilities of Secretary Zhang?"

Zhu Xiudao: "This position comes from the record office and the history set up by the princes and generals in the Han Dynasty after they opened the government. Later, the record office was changed to join the military. It was in charge of pilgrimage, condolences, appointments, sacrifices, prayers and orders, In matters of promotion and demotion, he is also responsible for the records, documents, letters and other affairs of the army's war situation and military supplies."

Xue Xiuming nodded and said calmly: "As a secretary in charge, I usually need to write articles to report to the court, issue notices and documents to appease the soldiers and civilians under my jurisdiction, and it is indispensable to play with pen and ink articles. If you want to write a qualified article, I think you must at least have a Juren Because of his fame, this position has been alternately held by Mr. X and Judge Song."

Zhu Xiu cupped his hands and smiled and said: "Xue Sima's article must be extraordinary. I hope I will have the opportunity to read it in the future."

Xue Xiuming smiled slightly, twirled his beard and said: "You have never taken the merit test, so no one knows how talented you are. However, since it was recommended by Commander-in-Chief, I will not embarrass you.

For you, Ce Wen Zou may be too difficult, and silent recitation of scriptures is too simple and child's play, how about this, you write a Fu on the spot, most of you here are well-known, and can give you some pointers.If the prose is decent, it means that your knowledge is quite solid, and you can be a secretary of this branch. "

Zhu Xiu opened his eyes wide and looked at Xue Xiuming, who had a gentle smile on his face, and felt a chill in his heart for no reason.

Good guy, let him write a poem?

Isn’t this difficult?

Even though he had recited many famous articles when he was taking ancient Chinese literature in his previous life, who knows what tricky and weird questions this bad boy named Xue would come up with.

During the Tang Dynasty, the Jinshi subjects were mainly composed of essays on classics, current affairs, and poetry. Among them, essays were the most troublesome and the most important part of the scientific examination!
As the saying goes, those who get the essays will win the imperial examination. If the essays are written properly, more than half of the merits of Jinshi will be obtained.

Who doesn't have a headache for essays as a failed scholar?
Xue Xiuming asked him to write a poem on the spot, which was obviously to make things difficult for others.

Killing with a soft knife is really ruthless!

(End of this chapter)