Records of the Lost Cases of Helaitang in the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 86 Two-headed snakes fight against the red chain snake in the cave
Qingxiang Pavilion is a major place at the south end of Canglang Pavilion Garden. It is shaped like a row of five galleries and is a good place to enjoy chrysanthemums and osmanthus.

Half of the classmates from the outer dormitory were here now. There were original seats in the Qingxiang Pavilion, but the steward of the Chu family brought some brocade mattresses with carved silk and ink for the scholars to lean on. The seats were arranged very cleverly, not according to table seats. Place a high table in front of this place, place some cups, and a few fruit saucers.

Yang Dalang was right. Xie oranges, wind chestnuts, bone-in abalones, autumn white pears and other local specialties were placed randomly. It was obviously a high-standard banquet.

Seeing Huang Yuntai choose a seat by the window, Wang Heng took a seat on his right. As soon as he sat down, a boy came to pour tea. It was a native tea from the Dongting Mountain in Dongting. It was called Jingsharen. Fragrance, Huang Yuntai is from Dongting Xishan, the two people smelled the fragrance and talked about this tea.

Someone in the audience started to quarrel, and the reason for the quarrel was that Tang Bohu, a talented man from Suzhou in the Chenghua Dynasty, had only passed away for a few decades, and the romantic affairs of Liuru layman were still talked about by Suzhou people.

Xuesheng, a classmate from the outer house, was a little fat man. He said with joy, "Tang Jieyuan has nine wives and concubines, enjoying the blessings of everyone. I just don't know which room is Qiuxiang, the three-smiling and merciless one in Taishi Hua's family?"

The story of Tang Jieyuan’s scent of autumn stems from one of his acrostic poems:

I paint the long blue river water, and I love the sadness of the maple leaves on the pavilion at night.
The autumn moon shines brightly on the Buddhist temple, and cigarette smoke curls around the sutra tower.

The first words combined are "I love Qiuxiang".

Mei Sheng, who was the leader of Xuesheng, was thin and handsome, and he claimed to be a lover. Hearing this, he sighed and said: "I read from the notes of Tang Bohu's contemporaries that Qiuxiang returned to the Wu family and was not tolerated by the eldest wife, so he died in depression. The Three Smiles of Qiuxiang is really Tang Bohu's hate. Besides, Tang Bohu is just a poor scholar, and the beautiful pictures of Qiongcuo Dajiu and so on are all made up by ignorant common people."

Suzhou people attach great importance to family names. Tang Bohu was the first scholar in the provincial examination in the 11th year of Hongzhi's reign. He is known as the most talented scholar in the south of the Yangtze River and is naturally admired by all parties.

Xuesheng glared angrily and said: "Our Wu County Tang Bohu is only a poor scholar. I wonder where Brother Mei got in the county examination and whether he will go to Changzhou County to study?"

Mei Sheng asked himself that he was justified, but he didn't expect Xuesheng to be reckless. He was a foreign student now, and of course he had never entered the county school to become a student member. Yi, snorted and said: "Xue Laoer, is Tantai Mieming one person or two people?"

Xuesheng's eyes flickered. His personal book boy did not follow him to serve him. Seeing that there was no one around to remind him, he said bravely: "Tantai Mieming, of course there are two people."

Everyone in the Qingxiang Pavilion couldn't help laughing. They laughed softly because they were worried about Xuesheng's face. Xuesheng understood Mei Sheng's way, stretched out his fat hand and wanted to punch him.

Seeing that a conflict was about to break out, the owner, Mr. Chu, happened to be making arrangements outside at this time. Wang Heng, Huang Yuntai and others were not familiar with Xuesheng Meisheng, so they would not act as peacemakers.

Yang Dalang calmly held Xuesheng's fist and said, "Old man, please don't hurt brother Chu's happy day."

Xuesheng had a nickname among the city's dandies, called "Two-Headed Snake". He had always been cunning. He showed a puzzled look and said: "Yang Dalang, you are so lenient. Do I still have to report to you when I have a fistfight with Mei? "

Adding "jiali" after the surname is a common saying in Gusu, which means that the person does not want face, but only wants to "jiali". He is a layman who only cares about benefits. In fact, it is a nickname among people from the same class.

Mei Sheng and Xuesheng were both sons of officials in the city. Although they had quarrels from time to time, they regarded each other as being of the same rank.

Mei Sheng is nicknamed the Red Chain Snake in the Cave. If he can't get out of the cave easily, he will be killed in one move when he does.

Yang Dalang's family was rich but not expensive. He was always a follower of Mr. Chu. Mei Sheng had always looked down upon him. Seeing that Yang Dalang wanted to take care of him, he said slyly: "There are seven orifices in life, and Yang Dalang has already opened six." Xuesheng said. He sneered and said, "It's obvious that he knows nothing."

Mei Sheng was talking excitedly, shaking his head and saying, "It's like the gongs and drums have been beaten four times."

A classmate asked appropriately: "What do you mean?"

Xuesheng piped up and said, "It doesn't make sense, it doesn't make sense." The people in the Qingxiang Pavilion suddenly burst into laughter.

Yang Dalang had good intentions and claimed to be honest, but he made a fuss inside and out. Fortunately, he was used to being a helper, so he endured a mouthful of old blood and returned to his seat.

Wang Heng sat by the window, a little far away from the main table, and said softly to Huang Yuntai: "There are so many people in the city, and I, who have neither money nor knowledge, dare not speak."

Huang Yuntai looked at him and said quietly: "As long as you have an honest intention in everything, no one can cover everything."

Wang Heng said with a smile: "In that case, I have a question: Brother Yuntai is so knowledgeable, why did he come to Ziyang Academy to be a lay student with us who know nothing about him?"

Huang Yuntai said angrily: "Xiao Wang, how can you learn to speak glibly? Our knowledge is not equal to half a pound."

Wang Heng said sternly: "Brother Yuntai, please don't hide it from me. In Shiwen class, Master Zhu taught some key points of eight-legged essay, such as breaking the topic and intercepting and constructing. I see that you are confident. Master hasn't said which page to turn to yet. Why don't you tell me which page to turn to?" I just started looking at it, brother Yuntai must have a career."

Huang Yuntai sighed slightly and said in a sad tone: "I come from an ancient farming and reading family. My ancestors took the imperial examination as early as the two Song Dynasties. My family is quite wealthy, my brain is not stupid, and I am willing to I have spent more than ten years studying, but I have decided to donate to prison and give up some dignity. As soon as the procedures are completed, I will go to Nanjing Imperial College to sit in prison. "

Wang Heng was shocked: "Brother Yuntai, why is this happening?"

"It can be faster to donate to prison. It is very important for me to obtain the status of prison student as soon as possible." Huang Yuntai whispered: "My father died young, and the situation at home is really difficult to describe."

Wang Heng felt worried and changed the topic with a smile.

When Mr. Chu was surrounded from left to right and returned to Qingxiang Pavilion, the banquet officially began.

Unlike the last time when you were enjoying chrysanthemums and eating crabs, this time you were imitating the Tatar barbecue. The waiter wore a prairie leather jacket and shuttled between the banquet seats with a bunch of beef and mutton that were roasted until they were dripping with oil. He kept giving them raw slices of meat. Since they were eating large pieces of meat, the drink in the cup was naturally strong wine.

Wang Heng was not good at drinking. He was afraid that three bowls of wine would not be enough and would only moisten his throat. Huang Yuntai ate meat with his head down and took a few sips from everyone who offered a toast. He was very popular and no one drank to him.

During the banquet, Yang Dalang was almost drunk. He was sitting on the left hand of Mr. Chu, right in the center of the banquet. Everyone in the banquet toasted to him frequently, because he had just had a quarrel with Xuesheng Meisheng, and a group of dandies in the city might not deal with Xuesheng Meisheng. The opponents took turns to drink him. He believed that he had a good drink capacity, but he didn't realize that the wine was too strong. After a few drinks, his eyelids became heavy, his consciousness gradually faded, and he knew something was wrong. He couldn't help but vomited, and his front was a mess.He knew that he had made a fool of himself, so he hurriedly resigned.

(End of this chapter)