Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 103: Dangerous Entry Wall

Wu'er thought about the past two years when she accompanied the Third Master to study in Luocang Mountain. She had never experienced such a good life in her life.

She laid out paper and ground ink for him every day, and cooked soup for him with her bare hands. Every time she was on duty at night, the Third Master always had a lot to say while lying in bed.

He would hum strange and pleasant tunes for her and tell her some bizarre stories. The Third Master grew up in the mansion all his life, but he seemed to have been to many places and lived for many years.

Although Wu'er sometimes feels it's a little strange, she still likes to listen to it. She hopes she can live like this with San Ye for the rest of her life.

……

Jia Zheng has been claiming to be sick and staying at home these past two days. He is indeed sick because of the bad things that have happened in the past few days, and he is too ashamed to go to the government office to face his colleagues.

A few days ago, the messenger from the Ministry of Rites came to announce the good news that Jia Cong had won the first place in the imperial examination. How glorious it was for the Jia family back then, but now it is so embarrassing and humiliating.

When he heard that the students taking the academy examination had colluded with each other and went to the Ministry of Rites to report Jia Cong, he was already panicked.

He held a low-ranking official position and had no qualifications to attend court, but after court was adjourned yesterday, Qiu Qingyuan, Langzhong of the Water Conservancy Department of the Ministry of Works, sent a trusted family member to report to him what had happened in court.

At that time, Jia Zheng almost died.

Congge'er relied on his own real talent and knowledge to get the first place in the case, but there are people who are so vicious and jealous of his talent that they use his mother's lowly status to deprive him of his title!

He was born in the Jia family, who raised him for more than ten years. He was a legitimate descendant of the Jia family and the Rong state. How could he become the son of a prostitute? It was truly the most absurd thing in the world!

But he held a low official position and had hardly ever participated in court meetings, so how could anyone appeal for his injustice?

The Jia family had been a noble family for generations, and they had made friends with military officers who were also noble. But how could these rough guys get a say in the dispute over the imperial examination system?

Only high-ranking civil servants can mediate in such matters.

However, the Jia family is a family of military honors and is naturally insulated from the civil service community. It would be a joke if any civil servant spoke up for the powerful and meritorious military honors at such a critical juncture.

The Jia family now has a relative who is a civil servant, namely Li Shouzhong, the father of Jia Zheng's eldest daughter-in-law Li Wan, who was once the chief academic officer of the Imperial College.

But everyone knows that Li Shouzhong is a relative of the Jia family. Even if he is willing to come forward to lobby for them, it probably won't be very persuasive.

The Jia family was a noble and aristocratic family who enjoyed wealth and luxury without realizing it. But when something really happened, they couldn't find anyone to help. Thinking of this, Jia Zheng felt a chill in his heart.

As time went by, Jia Zheng, as the eldest son of the Rong family, could see more and more that the Jia family was in a declining plight.

Originally, Congge was very successful in the imperial examinations and was sure to become a great help to the Jia family in the future, but he did not expect to encounter such a disgusting thing.

……

Seeing her husband's pale face and listless spirit, Mrs. Wang was very worried and advised him, "Cong'er is very good at studying, but it is his family background that has ruined him. This is also fate.

It's not anyone's fault. Even if you can't study in the future, you can still live in the mansion. You should relax."

Jia Zheng glared at him and said, "What are you talking about? If a boy like Cong doesn't study, wouldn't it be a waste of talent? Will he end up living in the backyard like Baoyu?

If all the disciples in the sect become like this, no matter how much wealth and honor one has, it will not be able to withstand such waste. "

When Mrs. Wang heard this, her face changed. How come my Baoyu has become a lazy person? He just doesn't like studying. If he really studied hard, how could he be worse than Jia Cong?

"Yesterday, the Ministry of Works sent a message that the Censor of the Censorate in the court accused Cong'er's birth mother of violating all three rites and was unworthy of being the eldest wife and concubine of the Jia family. How could an outsider know so much about such internal affairs of the family!
It must be that there was a servant in the family who was careless and spread the word, giving people a handle to deal with him, which led to Cong'er being in trouble today. If I find out, I will not let him off easily!"

Mrs. Wang's face changed slightly when she heard this.

The couple was thinking about their own things when suddenly a maid came to report that a Mr. Liu Jing'an and a Mr. Zhao Chongli had sent invitations and came to the house to celebrate the old lady's birthday. The old lady asked the second master to go and meet them.

When Jia Zheng heard this, he sat up, surprised. One was a great scholar of the time, and the other was the president of Qingshan Academy. Why would they come to visit at such a critical moment?
Jia Zheng hurriedly dressed and went to Rong Xi Tang.

Because Rongqing Hall was only the secondary hall of Rongguo Hall, it was where Lady Jia lived and received relatives on a daily basis.

Rong Xi Tang is the main hall of Rongguo Mansion. People like Liu Jing'an and Zhao Chongli should naturally be received in Rongguo Main Hall.

As soon as Jia Zheng entered Rong Xi Hall, he saw an old man with gray hair sitting on the left side of the hall. He was wearing a green Taoist robe, and he looked vigorous, with a calm look in his eyes, flashing with a wise and profound light.

Next to the old man sat a man in his fifties, with thick eyebrows, eyes like bright stars, a flowing black beard, and an elegant and vigorous demeanor, with a charming demeanor.

Jia Zheng hurried forward and saluted: "Mr. Jing'an and Mr. Zhao have come. Jia Zheng was unable to greet you from afar. I hope you two senior scholars will forgive me for my apology."

The gray-haired old man smiled and said, "Cun Zhou, there is no need to be polite. The reason why I am here today is to celebrate the Madam's birthday. Shanzhang Zhao and I have come to congratulate you."

As he spoke, he pointed to the birthday gift in the hands of the old man behind him and said, "These are some crude birthday gifts that Zhao Shanchang and I prepared. They are not meant to be a token of respect."

Jia Zheng quickly stood up and thanked him solemnly, his face full of gratitude, and asked his family to send the birthday gift to Rongqing Hall.

When leaders of the literati like Liu Jing'an and Zhao Chongli came to celebrate the birthday, it was a sign of great respect and honor. It didn't matter what gift they gave; even a piece of paper would be valuable.

Liu Jing'an added, "Besides, it is for your nephew Jia Cong. When I saw that he had wisdom, I recommended him to study at Qingshan Academy, and he lived up to my expectations.

He has studied very hard in the past two years and has won the first place in the examination. Young people are indeed to be feared.”

After hearing this, Jia Zheng felt sad: Cong'er was naturally a good candidate, but now even the title of first place was to be deposed. He didn't know what Master Jing'an meant by bringing up this matter again?

"When Master Zhang and I first met your nephew at the Nanxi Literary Society, we saw that he was a young man with a clear mind and outstanding talent. At that time, Master Zhang and I both admired his talent.

Tianshi Zhang even made a divination for your nephew, saying that he would have an extraordinary life. If your nephew had not been born into a wealthy family, Tianshi Zhang would have sent him to Longhu Mountain to become a Taoist priest."

Jia Zheng was also stunned when he heard this. He knew that Zhang Tianshi of Longhu Mountain valued Jia Cong very much. Even when he went to Qingshan Academy to study, he specially asked Xuantian Palace to arrange a villa for him to stay in.

It turns out that there is such a reason behind this. Zhang Tianshi, the leader of the Taoist sect, had already seen through the hexagrams that Cong Ge'er was extraordinary. But if he was extraordinary, why did he suffer such a misfortune now?
"Back then, Tianshi Zhang knew that his affinity with your nephew was limited, so he advised me to accept your nephew as my disciple, so as to prevent such a talented person from being lost."

When Jia Zheng heard this, he suddenly became excited. Zhang Tianshi actually persuaded Jing'an to accept Jia Cong as his disciple!

He has always been a bit pedantic, but at this moment he suddenly had an inspiration.

……

Who is Liu Jing'an? He is the contemporary literary master of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and the first champion of the imperial examination in the Yongxi year of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Before he was forty, he was famous for his literary and political achievements, and was admired by scholars all over the world. If Congge worshipped Master Jing'an as his teacher, with this contemporary literary master as his teacher, his humble background might be covered up!

Thinking of this, Jia Zheng's mood, which had been mostly dead in the past few days, seemed to come back to life. He couldn't suppress the joy on his face, but he looked at Liu Jing'an with some trepidation.

“But your nephew was still young at the time. If I had accepted him as my disciple too early, I’m afraid it would have caused a lot of gossip, which would not have been good for the child’s studies and growth.

Now that he has made some progress in his studies, I am eager to recruit talented people and would like to take your nephew into my school. What do you think, Cun Zhou?"

When Jia Zheng heard this, he was surprised and delighted. What could he think of this? Of course it couldn't be better!

Just now, Master Jing'an did not mention a word about Jia Cong being deposed as the first in the case. He knew that Jia Cong was in danger now, but he was sincere in wanting to accept Jia Cong as his disciple. This was like finding charcoal in the snow.

Jia Zheng felt inexplicably grateful for the noble behavior of the great literary master.

Zhao Congli, who was standing by, was also surprised when he heard that Liu Jing'an suddenly wanted to accept Jia Cong as his disciple.

……

Two days ago, Liu Jing'an received a letter sent by express horse from his former colleague in the Ministry of Rites. The letter said that dozens of students taking the academy examination had complained to the Ministry of Rites, demanding that Jia Cong's first place in the case be dismissed.

Knowing that the situation was serious, Liu Jing'an went to Zhao Chongli to discuss countermeasures.

Jia Cong entered Qingshan Academy two years ago. He studied very hard and always ranked among the top in the quarterly and annual examinations. All the teachers in the academy praised him, and the headmaster Zhao Chongli also thought highly of him.

When Zhao Chongli heard that he was selected as the first in the academy examination, he was very happy. The academy has produced another outstanding talent this year. With Jia Cong's talent in imperial examinations, I am afraid that he will be able to leave his name in Lingxing Pavilion in a few years.

At this critical juncture, news came that Jia Cong was reported because of his background. Naturally, people felt unfair for him and did not want such a good talent to be ruined.

Yesterday he and Liu Jing'an returned to Shenjing together and each made their own plans.

Zhao Congli visited many civil servants who had graduated from Qingshan Academy and entered the officialdom, hoping that they could give Jia Cong advice and save Jia Cong's future in official career.

Although the court was complicated, the case of Jia Cong being accused involved the confrontation between the Ministry of Rites and the Censorate, as well as the ancestral system of the imperial examination system and the social etiquette.

His requests might not work, but he could at least do his best and leave the rest to fate.

Today, Liu Jing'an asked him to come to the Jia Mansion again, and it was just an excuse to pay tribute to Lady Jia's birthday.

The purpose is to meet Jia Cong and try to help him out of his predicament.

However, he did not expect that Liu Jing'an came here to recruit a disciple, but after thinking about it, he understood his old friend's intention.

Mr. Jing'an was using his lifelong literary fame to protect Jia Cong from the wind and rain and to offset the haze brought to him by his humble background.

Zhao Chongli was shocked. Master Jing'an really had good intentions and his regard for Jia Cong reached an unprecedented level!

Jia Zheng was also very excited: "My nephew is so blessed that he is valued by Master Jing'an and is even accepted as a disciple. Naturally, there is nothing I cannot do. Jia Zheng would like to express his gratitude here."

As he said this, he stood up and bowed solemnly to Liu Jing'an.

Liu Jing'an said in a gentle voice: "Cunzhou, there is no need to be like this. This is the fate between me and your nephew. Cunzhou, you really have the demeanor of an ancient gentleman. Jia Cong is not your son.

You are so caring and protective of him. If you were not here, I am afraid he would have had a harder time these years. I admire you for having such a broad mind."

Jia Zheng was flattered by Liu Wenzong's praise, and even said that since Jia Cong was his nephew, it was his duty to treat him like this.

Zhao Chongli on the side said with a smile: "Master Jing'an, you wanted to accept a disciple without informing me in advance, so I could prepare a gift for you."

Liu Jing'an also laughed and said, "Jia Cong is a student of your academy. You are the academy's principal, and he is also your student. Why should you come to see him off?"

Zhao Chongli also laughed after hearing this.

Here, Jia Zheng asked the maid to go to Qingzhizhai to call Jia Cong to Rongxitang to become his disciple.

……

When Jia Cong heard the message from the maid, he was also surprised. He quickly put on his clothes and rushed to Rong Xi Tang.

Jia Zheng smiled and repeated Liu Jing'an's purpose of coming.

In recent years, Jia Cong studied in Luocang Mountain. Because he lived close to Liu Jing'an and received the Annotated Collection of Four Books from him, he often visited him to ask for advice.

The old man and the young man had already gotten along very well. When she heard that he suddenly wanted to accept her as his disciple, although she was happy, she was still a little confused.

"I am very grateful for your kindness, old senior, but my reputation has been tarnished and my honor as the first in the case will be revoked by the court.

If I become your disciple now, it will definitely damage your reputation, and Jia Cong feels uneasy. "

No one noticed at this moment that the old servant behind Liu Jing'an showed a look of horror and confusion on his face when he saw Jia Cong enter the hall for the first time.

Zhao Chongli, who was standing by, was secretly surprised when he heard this.

If it were someone else, when they were facing misfortune, if they were suddenly favored by a great figure like Liu Jing'an, they would probably be overjoyed and bow down to him.

But this young man was faced with great events and a God-given opportunity, yet he remained neither arrogant nor impatient, and his thoughts were calm and careful, and he spoke frankly what was in his mind.

He is so young, but he has such a broad mind and character, which is really impressive.

For a person like this, it doesn't matter if he encounters temporary difficulties. Sooner or later, he will be able to hold his head high.

Liu Jing'an looked at the young man with a burning gaze and said with a smile: "The innocent are innocent. As long as you are upright and honest, you will have nothing to regret. Even if there are many slanderous words in the world, it doesn't matter!"

Jia Cong looked at the old man with reverence. He knew in his heart that the old man accepted him as his disciple just to use his good reputation throughout his life to protect him from disasters.

I don’t know how I can repay such deep kindness.

A surge of admiration surged in his heart: "Cong Ming will remember your teachings, Master. My dear teacher, please accept my disciple's greetings." After saying this, he bowed deeply towards Liu Jing'an.

(End of this chapter)