Idle courtiers

Chapter 379
After a day of heat, sweat broke out all over his body, and when it was time for Shen Shi, Zhou Nan's whole body was stinky, and he felt as if he had been fished out of a kimchi jar.

He hurriedly hired a sedan chair and returned home, ready to take a bath and change clothes, then eat and sleep.

As soon as he entered the house, someone came to report: "Master, Mr. Shi is here, and he is reading in the study."

Zhou Nan felt strange, this Shi Wenjiang was a person who liked to wander around, and he liked to visit various yamen and friends in the capital when he had nothing to do on weekdays.

The only thing is that I don't go to Zhou Nan's house very often, saying that Mr. Zhou doesn't have wine and beauties here, and there is no gossip here, so it's boring.

It was strange that he was waiting in the study today.

Seeing Zhou Nan, Shi Wenjiang threw the "Xuanhe Legacy" on the table, and said with a smile, "Seeing that Si Zheng's face is flushed, it's obvious that today's harvest is not small!"

"It's red, it's hot." Zhou Nan smiled, put down the palace flower and the jade pendant, took two sips of the tea handed over by the servant, and asked, "What is Wen Jiang thinking about today?" If you come here, you will never be able to invite me in the past."

Shi Wenjiang did not speak, but picked up the palace flower and the jade pendant to look at repeatedly, and praised: "Excellent product, it is indeed a good thing in the palace, it is an eye-opener. Sizheng, you and I are guests and hosts, and we get along well." Happy. I’m leaving now, so I’ll just give it to me. I won’t be able to eat in the future, and I can exchange it for some money. The aristocratic families at Suyang’s side like this kind of stuff in the palace the most, and it should be able to sell for a good price .”

Zhou Nan laughed: "Wenjiang, this thing is worth more than a hundred taels of silver. The salary I give you is quite a lot. You can't be too greedy."

Shi Wenjiang: "Look at how stingy your lord is, it really makes people feel uncomfortable."

Zhou Nan recalled Shi Wenjiang's words just now, and asked in a low voice: "What, Wenjiang, you want to leave, but did I offend you? If so, I am here to apologize to you." A rare capable official.

Mr. Zhou is used to throwing it to Master Shi whenever he has something to do. Besides, the two are about the same age, have a deep relationship, and get along very happily.

He now said that he would resign and leave, which surprised Zhou Nan.

Shi Wenjiang suddenly snorted: "The reason why I came to the capital to look for an adult at the beginning was because Shi's family was poor and really needed this money to support my parents and raise children; second, you had an old relationship with my father; third, I I am a lively person, and I always want to visit this prosperous place in the capital. Maybe in the future, when my lord can display his ambitions, I, an aide, can also find a career. Looking at the current situation, my lord doesn't even cherish his own future. , What else can I do? It’s better to go back, it’s better to go back.”

This was already quite blunt, and Zhou Nan was even more puzzled: "Why did Wen Jiang say such a thing?"

Shi Wenjiang picked up the jade pendant: "Si Zheng, do you know what this thing is called and what is it used for?"

Zhou Nan: "But I don't know."

Shi Wenjiang chanted leisurely: "The mid-autumn toad vomited and turned yellow, and mistakenly identified Liu Lang as Ruan Lang. If you want to show righteousness and donate Ming pendant, fold mandarin ducks, it's Yunxiang that delays the festival. Si Zheng is worthy of being a master of poetry. This "Nanxiangzi" "It was really well done."

Zhou Nan's heart moved: "Is this a pen?"

"Yes." Shi Wenjiang nodded and said, "There are two kinds of pendants. One is the decoration on the hats of eunuchs in the palace, and belts are also used to refer to father-in-laws. This is why people in the palace are called powerful and powerful. A man from the yamen is the head of the big pen."

Zhou Nan: "Wen Jiang is really knowledgeable."

Shi Wenjiang: "The pendant also has another meaning, a woman's earring. Hehe..." At this point, he laughed angrily: "Zimu, if you want to give a Ming pendant as a gift, Her Royal Highness really gave you one, isn't it Don't you understand what that means?"

Zhou Nan: "What do you mean?" I felt bad.

Shi Wenjiang: "Historical records say that in ancient times, most women did not obey women's morals. Sometimes they escaped while their husbands were asleep and had a tryst with their lovers. The husband drilled a hole in her ear and fastened two metal rings In this way, when the woman moved a little, the earring made a sound, so she had to give up the idea of ​​a tryst. Therefore, the earring is given to the wife by the husband to represent the chastity of the woman.”

"I've heard people say that the government and the public have a bad opinion of Her Highness the princess, and she gave Junming pendant as a way of expressing her will to the lord. If you are not the king, don't marry!"

"Ming Zhi!" Zhou Nan was shocked: "Ming Zhi, isn't this madness? What relationship do I have with her?"

Shi Wenjiang was furious: "It doesn't matter, so why do you say mandarin ducks and weddings? You just wait to be the captain of the son-in-law? The son-in-law of the royal family is so easy to do, you still want to do it?" Let go of your future. Sizheng, you said that I have followed a son-in-law like you, what other way out? Rather than wasting time with you, I might as well find another place to make a living."

Speaking of this, Master Shi was heartbroken.

Zhou Nan knew he was wrong: "I was in a hurry at the time and wrote lyrics casually?" As for whether the song "Nanxiangzi" was appropriate, he couldn't control it.

"Can this be done casually?" Shi Wenjiang was still angry.

Zhou Nan sighed: "At that time, I was too anxious, and there was nothing I could do. Don't worry, Wen Jiang, I would never die as the consort captain. His Majesty promised me personally."

"How to say?"

Zhou Nan explained in detail how he regarded him as Lan Daoxing when Jiajing Weifu cabinet Xiyuan was on duty at the time.

"So that's the case. I said that my lord is so simple in the emperor's heart, and the holy family is extremely prosperous. It turns out that there is such a chance meeting between the emperor and his ministers. The emperor is dignified, he speaks golden words, he speaks well, and what he said can't be returned." Shi Wenjiang's face looked good. Some: "However, the premise of this matter is that the adults must pass the current provincial examination, otherwise the problem will be troublesome."

Zhou Nan: "Also ask for advice."

Shi Wenjiang analyzed: "Although Emperor Jiajing is the emperor, he is also a father. Any father hopes that his daughter will have a good home. Sir, you have signed up for the Shuntianfu Township Examination. The imperial examination is related to the national talent ceremony. Even the emperor can't intervene. If Si Zheng wins the Juren, the Jinshi Imperial Examination is considered to be basically successful, and he is a scholar, so naturally he doesn't need to be the son-in-law of the royal family. But if he doesn't win, hehe."

"It will be two years until the next township examination. Who knows what will happen in these two years? The palace will deal with a miscellaneous official. I'm afraid that none of the officials from the right track will be able to speak for you. Maybe it will happen. At that time, my lord will be dismissed from office by randomly picking a mistake, deprived of fame, and have no hope of imperial examination for life. When there is no way out, will you, Si Zheng, be a son-in-law or not?"

Zhou Nan's sweat came out again.

Shi Wenjiang: "I know you regret it, who told you to tease the princess?"

"Stop saying such things, what should I do?"

Shi Wenjiang: "What else can I do, study hard, take the exam to be a juren, that's all I've said, leave!"

Looking at his back, Zhou Nan smiled wryly: cleverness was misunderstood by cleverness, and if he was not careful, Zhou himself lost his way.

Thinking of this, our Master Zhou hurriedly took out the stereotyped essay he had written, and shouted: "Wotou, go hire a sedan chair. I'm going to my teacher's house, and I won't be back tonight."

When the book is in use, you will hate it, and you will know the value of time when the exam is approaching.

"The article is well written, and I really like it." After reading the three articles submitted by Zhou Nan and correcting them for a long time, Wang Shizhen nodded again and again with a look of relief.

Zhou Nan asked: "Teacher, can the student win this time? If the question is not hit... what should I do?"

Wang Shizhen: "Actually, with your current level of craftsmanship, you can still fight for fame. The big exam is approaching, so you must relax your mind and let go of your obsessions."

"Then teacher is not sure that these three articles are the exam questions?"

Wang Shizhen: "The teacher is neither the Taishang Laojun nor the Tathagata Buddha, how do you know?"

Zhou Nan: "If you can't get a single question, you can only rely on your own ability to do it. The students are not educated, so I'm afraid this time I'm not optimistic." Yes, let's look at the three articles handed over to Wang Shizhen. Circled a little bit, it was still changed beyond recognition, and it also dealt a severe blow to his self-confidence.

Wang Shizhen: "I know I'm worried at this time, I'm not going to go down and memorize it."

"Yes, teacher." Zhou Nan had no choice but to go back to the guest room, transcribe the article that had been corrected by the teacher, and memorize it by heart.

But he didn't know what Wang Shizhen was thinking. With his current level of craftsmanship, if he knew the exam questions in advance, he could still get good grades if he did it himself.It's just that in ancient China, strict teachers and high-achieving apprentices were emphasized, and teachers were usually very stingy with students' praise.Naturally, he will be criticized as shit, so that he can correct his learning attitude.

Staying at Wang Shizhen's house for one night, Zhou Nan went to the Supervisor of Rites the next day and chatted with some Bingbi for a while, and said that he wanted to change his get out of class with other teachers because he was busy with the exam.

The person in charge of ceremonies was very generous, saying that this was a trivial matter, Mr. Zhou had a class tomorrow, and then transferred the next class to the day after tomorrow, and held it for two consecutive days, so as to free up time to prepare for the exam.The imperial examination is a major event, and everyone can understand it.

Zhou Nan thought of the case of Master Shigong, although it was a bit presumptuous to ask, she couldn't help but open her mouth.

One Bingbi said that this matter has been discussed with the cabinet.Although the case of Governor Wang was handled when Yan Song was in power, and the Yan Party was cleaned up, it is time for him to be rehabilitated.But it is also true that Governor Wang suffered a defeat, and it can only be handled impartially in accordance with the imperial court system.

Fortunately, this defeat was the result of a combination of various factors, and Governor Wang could not be responsible for it alone.

All the ministers at home and abroad discussed it, and decided to remove all the officials and titles of Mr. Wang, and sent him back to his hometown to be under the care of the local officials.

Now Governor Wang’s petition has arrived at the Department of General Administration, and after it is handed over to the cabinet to draw up a bill to give advice on how to deal with it, and then handed over to the Supervisor of Rites for approval, Mr. Wang can return to his hometown in Taicang, Suzhou, for retirement.

Zhou Nan let out a long breath, the master finally saved his life, as long as he is alive.

However, after the old man was sent back to Taicang, he had to report to the government every year and holiday to report what he had done some time ago, and he was not allowed to leave his hometown for the rest of his life.

However, the Wang family in Taicang is a prominent local family, and they would not be embarrassed if they wanted to come to the government.

(End of this chapter)