The world of film and television begins from childhood

Li Xuejiu, the teacher in charge of teaching the children in the Marquis' Mansion, has packed his belongings and is ready to leave the Mansion. Zhou Tong tries his best to keep him for Zhou Chen's sake.

Li Xuejiu is already over fifty years old, which is considered old age in this era, and his hair and beard are all gray.

"Shuyuan has passed the imperial examination and I have nothing more to teach you. As long as you perform normally in the spring examination, you will definitely be on the list of candidates. I don't need to keep you here anymore."

Speaking of Zhou Chen's success in passing the imperial examination, although he was very surprised, he was also proud of it. He had been teaching in the marquis's mansion for several years and had produced a first-class Jinshi and a provincial examination champion, which was enough to be proud of.

Although he passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi, he only ranked third. Later, he waited for several years before being sent out to serve as a ninth-rank official. It took him more than ten years to be promoted to the seventh rank. When he had the opportunity to be transferred to Bianliang, he offended his superiors because of a mistake at work, and failed the assessment, which led to his career being unsuccessful. In the end, he had to retire.

After wasting decades, he ultimately did not make much progress in his official career. Later, Marquis Zhongjing offered him generous conditions and he accepted the invitation to teach in the marquis's mansion. In the blink of an eye, several years had passed.

He is already old and lacks energy, and he also wants to return to his hometown. Now he has taught a first-class Jinshi and a first-class scholar. Even if he returns to his hometown, he will be respected by countless students because of his reputation.

In addition to the wealth and other rewards bestowed upon him by the Marquis' Mansion in recent years, he would be able to live a good life if he returned to his hometown, so he didn't want to stay in the Marquis' Mansion any longer.

There is another reason, that is, the remaining illegitimate sons of the Marquis' Mansion have limited talents. Even if he continues to stay, it is almost impossible for him to achieve the same results as Zhou Chen and Zhou Tong.

He still understands the principle of retreating while one is ahead.

Seeing that Li Xuejiu was determined to leave, Zhou Tong knew that it was useless to persuade him any further. He could only sigh and say some words of gratitude.

Li Xuejiu gave Zhou Chen many more instructions. He used to think that Zhou Chen was not as good as Zhou Tong, but now it seems that Zhou Chen might be the type of person who would achieve success late in life and suddenly become enlightened.

Of course, he also hoped that Zhou Chen would pass the imperial examination next spring. If Zhou Chen could, it would be of great benefit to him.

Zhou Chen suddenly remembered something: "Li Xuejiu, I remember your hometown is Yangzhou, right?"

"Yes, my hometown is Yangzhou. It has been several years since I went back. My grandson has grown up and is old enough to start studying."

When talking about his grandson, Li Xuejiu couldn't help but smile kindly.

Zhou Chen said: "The journey from Bianjing to Yangzhou is long, and the students are willing to send the scholar back home."

Zhou Tong was startled and wanted to stop Zhou Chen immediately, but thinking that Li Xuejiu was still here, he had to hold back.

Li Xuejiu smiled and said, "I am not yet unable to move. I appreciate Shuyuan's kindness. You still have to participate in the Spring Examination next year. During this time, you should stay in Bianjing and study hard. Don't waste your precious time for me."

Zhou Chen said, "I understand what the scholar means, but I think that reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. I have never left Bianjing since I was born. Although I have read a lot of books, they are all rote studies. I am a middle-level scholar, but I know that I am just lucky this time. In fact, I may not be that talented."

"I have been thinking these days that maybe going out for a walk and a look can broaden my horizons and increase my knowledge, which may be more beneficial for the next spring examination. For example, those students who go to Beijing to take the exam naturally have more experience than those of us who have lived in Bianjing for a long time."

"this?"

Li Xuejiu and Zhou Tong looked at each other, not knowing how to answer Zhou Chen's question.

Zhou Chen's words seemed to make some sense, but upon further consideration, they were problematic. After all, most of the scholars of this era studied very hard and had weak bodies, so traveling thousands of miles was simply unrealistic for them.

Zhou Tong said, "I can't make the decision on this matter. If you want to go out, go and talk to mother yourself. But I don't think there is much hope. Mother won't be willing to let you go."

"It all depends on people."

Zhou Chen was not worried at all. With how much Zhou Xu doted on him, she would definitely agree as long as he was firm in his attitude.

As for Li Xuejiu, he didn't care at all. He was originally planning to hire a car to go back alone. If Zhou Chen accompanied him, the journey would be safer and not boring.

Just as Zhou Tong expected, when Zhou Chen told Zhou Xu about this, Zhou Xu immediately disagreed and was unwilling to let him leave Bianjing and go to Yangzhou.

However, after Zhou Chen's soft persuasion, comfort and pleading, Zhou Xu finally softened her heart and agreed to let Zhou Chen send Li Xuejiu to Yangzhou, but she set a deadline for Zhou Chen that he must come back before the end of the year.

Zhou Chen naturally agreed without hesitation. There were still three months left until the end of the year, so it would be enough time to make a few trips to Yangzhou.

So a few days later, after being seen off by his mother, brother and sister-in-law, Zhou Chen left the Marquis' Mansion and Bian Jing with Li Xuejiu.

During the time in the Marquis' Mansion, Zhou Chen also met his other brothers and sisters. Although they had the same father but different mothers, the relationship between the legitimate son and the illegitimate son was naturally not very good. On the contrary, his relationship with his two illegitimate sisters was okay.

Under Zhou Yexiong's control, the gap between legitimate and illegitimate sons was huge in the Marquis' Mansion, which was completely different from the situation in the Sheng Mansion in the plot. Not only did the illegitimate sons not compete with the legitimate sons, they had to be respectful even when facing the legitimate sons. Therefore, the illegitimate sons rarely appeared in front of Zhou Chen.

Zhou Chen's memory of his father was limited. Because he was stationed in the northwest all year round, Zhou Yexiong spent limited time at home. Even when he was at home, he spent most of his time teaching his eldest son Zhou Tong and seldom communicated with him.

This is a father who puts family inheritance first. He always puts the family first in everything he does. He is a qualified head of a large family, but not so qualified for his own small family.

On this trip, in addition to Shui Quan, Zhou Chen was also accompanied by Mrs. Zhou Xu, who arranged ten guards for him. All of them were loyal servants who had signed indentures.

Although the current government claims that the world is peaceful, there are still bandits and pirates. It is definitely safer to have guards with you when traveling.

Of course Zhou Chen would not refuse his mother's kindness. He not only brought guards, but also a lot of gold and silver jewelry.

They have to travel by land first, then by water, and finally by land again. If they are not in a hurry, the whole process will take about ten days.

More than ten days later, Zhou Chen and his party finally arrived safely in Yangzhou City.

The journey was relatively smooth. Maybe we were lucky because we took the official road and did not encounter any bandits when traveling by water.

At the invitation of Li Xuejiu, Zhou Chen took his people to Li's house.

Li Xuejiu was a retired official of the seventh rank, which naturally meant nothing to him in Bianjing City, but he was still quite prestigious in Yangzhou City. The Li Mansion in Yangzhou City was also a large mansion, and it was a famous family in Yangzhou.

Li Xuejiu specially arranged Zhou Chen in the best villa in the mansion and allowed Zhou Chen to move freely. However, Zhou Chen was very tactful and did not move around. He just stayed there quietly and sent his men to Yangzhou City to inquire about the situation of Sheng Mansion.

Zhou Chen traveled thousands of miles from Bian Jing, of course not to escort Li Xuejiu, his ultimate destination was naturally the Sheng family.

It was just a coincidence that Li Xuejiu's hometown was Yangzhou, otherwise he would have to find other reasons to inquire about the Sheng family's situation.

A few days later, Sheng Mansion!

Sheng Mansion was the residence of Sheng Hong, the Tongpan of Yangzhou. As the Tongpan of Yangzhou, Sheng Hong's rank was only below that of the prefect, and he was a sixth-rank official. In Yangzhou City, he was also a nobleman from a prominent family.

Sheng Hong in the plot seems to be a stupid and funny person, but in fact it is not the case. Sheng Hong is actually a shrewd person who is good at dealing with people, observing people's words and expressions, and manipulating people with his sleeves.

The fact that he was able to be promoted from a ninth-rank official in a cold and miserable place to Tokyo, and finally become a high-ranking official in the imperial court, is enough to show that he is capable and very shrewd in doing things.

It was under the leadership of Sheng Hong that the second branch of the Sheng family gradually prospered.

Sheng Hong was originally just a powerless illegitimate son of the Sheng family. He grew up under the care of his stepmother, Old Madam Sheng. Old Madam Sheng even went to the family of the former Grand Tutor Wang to ask for marriage for him, and he married the youngest daughter of the former Grand Tutor Wang, now Madam Wang.

Sheng Hong's father was a top scholar in the imperial examination. He was handsome, talented, and won the heart of the only daughter of Marquis Yongyi. His career was smooth and his marriage was happy in the first half of his life.

However, the originally promising situation was destroyed by this third place scholar himself. He married the only daughter of Marquis Yongyi, but ended up favoring his concubine over his wife, which led to the early death of the eldest wife's son. The Sheng Mansion gradually declined from then on.

But Old Lady Sheng was a strong and resolute woman. After her husband passed away, she raised Sheng Hong, the illegitimate son born to her concubine, alone, and supported his studies and preparation for the imperial examinations. She also asked Old Lady Sheng to marry him to the niece of Old Lady Wang for his official career. This gave Sheng Hong the opportunity to become an official, and his career gradually became more and more successful.

After Sheng Hong became rich, he also married two concubines, Lin Xiaoniang and Wei Xiaoniang.

Sheng Hong, a bastard's son, did not learn the lesson from his late father. Instead, he began to favor his concubine over his wife. He favored his concubine Lin Qinshuang much more than his wife, Madam Wang, so that the backyard of the Sheng Mansion was a mess. Even Madam Wang's housekeeping power was given to concubine Lin Xiaoniang.

The saying "like father, like son" is probably true. It's just that Sheng Hong is luckier than his father. He has a stepmother, Old Madam Sheng, who can protect him from the wind and rain.

Sheng Hong favors his concubine over his wife, and spends most of the month staying at Lin Xiaoniang's Linqi Pavilion. Today he happens to be resting in Linqi Pavilion.

Sheng Hong, who had taken off his outer shirt, was sitting on the Luohan bed, drinking and enjoying Lin Xiaoniang's service, reciting a few lines of poetry from time to time, feeling comfortable and relaxed.

"Honglang's literary talent is so outstanding that I am truly convinced and admire him immensely."

Lin Xiaoniang twisted her waist and sat in Sheng Hong's arms with a seductive look on her face. She put her arms around Sheng Hong's neck with a look of arousal.

Sheng Hong laughed triumphantly and touched Lin Xiaoniang all over, teasing her until she became coquettish and angry, which made him even more satisfied.

The reason why he doted on Lin Xiaoniang was that he could enjoy the pleasure of being a man with Lin Xiaoniang, which he could not enjoy with Madam Wang.

Madam Wang would not blindly cater to him like Madam Lin did. Instead, she had a very bad temper. If she disagreed with something, she would start yelling. She was not delicate or lovable at all.

Sheng Hong's eyes were blurry and he was drunk. He hugged Lin Xiaoniang and was about to take action.

"My lord, my lord."

The sudden shout startled Sheng Hong. His body trembled and he immediately roared in anger.

"What are you yelling for? What are you yelling for? Can't you see I'm going to rest?"

Anyone who is interrupted at this critical moment will become angry, even if he can tell that the person speaking is his right-hand man.

"Dong Rong, you'd better be busy, otherwise you'll get ten strokes of the cane yourself."

Dong Rong's voice sounded again outside: "Master, the concierge just delivered a visiting card and reported that the person who delivered the visiting card claimed to be a servant of the third son of the Marquis Zhongjing of Tokyo."

"what?"

Sheng Hong in the room screamed, hurriedly pushed Lin Xiaoniang away, and rushed over to open the door without even putting on his clothes.

Dong Rong was standing at the door. When he saw Sheng Hong coming out, he lowered his head slightly.

"Tell me again, who sent the visiting card?"

"My Lord, he is said to be the third son of the Marquis Zhongjing's mansion in Tokyo."

Sheng Hong's face was solemn. "I know the Marquis Zhongjing's Mansion. It is a well-known Marquis' Mansion in Tokyo City. Why would the third son of their family come to Yangzhou and send a visiting card to our family?"

"Dong Rong, where is the person who sent the visiting card?"

"I've already left. Here's the visiting card."

Sheng Hong hurriedly took it and opened it. The content of the visiting card was very simple, stating that he would visit in person the next day and leave his name as Zhou Chen, the third son of Marquis Zhongjing.

"The surname of the Marquis Zhongjing is Zhou, that's correct."

With doubts in his heart, he didn't bother to be intimate with Lin Qinshuang, and hurried back to the house to let Lin Xiaoniang dress him.

Lin Qinshuang heard what Sheng Hong and Dong Rong said just now. She asked carefully while helping Sheng Hong dress.

"Hong Lang, I just heard you mention the Marquis' Mansion. Do you still have any relationship with the Marquis' Mansion?"

To her, a sixth-rank official like Sheng Hong was already a remarkable figure, not to mention the dignified Marquis of Tokyo's Mansion, which was something she could never reach.

"Don't ask around. This is not something you can ask about."

Sheng Hong scolded angrily. Although he doted on Lin Qinshuang, he was still rational. He could leave the affairs of the inner house to Lin Qinshuang, but he would not let Lin Qinshuang interfere in the affairs outside.

Lin Qinshuang said coquettishly: "Honglang, don't be angry, I just asked casually, okay, okay, I won't ask anymore."

Sheng Hong ignored her. After putting on his clothes, he hurriedly left Linqi Pavilion and went straight to Madam Wang's Weiruixuan.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 1104 Sheng Hong, Wang Ruofu, and Old Lady Sheng

Wei Rui Xuan!

Wang Ruofu, the eldest lady of the Sheng Mansion, was angry and mad.

"Master has gone to Linqi Pavilion again. Why didn't God send down a thunderbolt to kill that little bitch? It would be a relief if she was killed."

"My lord, is that little bitch really that good? She's so pretentious and droopy. Damn it. What a sin I've committed to meet such a little bitch. She makes me feel like a mistress and a concubine. In the whole Yangzhou city, which mistress is as frustrated as me?"

Seeing Madam Wang dancing and cursing angrily, Aunt Liu, the most capable and loyal woman around her, was about to try to persuade her.

"Madam..."

"The master is here, madam, the master is here."

Wang Ruofu's cursing suddenly stopped, and her expression changed in an instant. She asked happily: "The master is here? Didn't he go to Linqi Pavilion?"

No one could answer her because Sheng Hong had already strode in, so she went to greet him with a happy face.

"Official..."

Just as she was about to say something nice, Sheng Hong spoke quickly: "My lady, something big has happened."

Wang Ruofu was interrupted and almost choked, but when she heard Sheng Hong say that something big had happened, she immediately looked panicked.

"What's the matter, sir?"

Sheng Hong said, "The mansion has just received a visiting card. Please take a look at it first." Then he handed the visiting card to Wang Ruofu.

Wang Ruofu took the visiting card and opened it to read. She did not have much talent and could not play music or calligraphy with Sheng Hong, but she was not really illiterate.

"The Third Young Master of the Marquis Zhongjing's Mansion came to Yangzhou to send a visiting card to our family. What's going on?"

"I don't know either. I don't even know the Marquis Zhongjing's Mansion. I wonder if the Yue family has some connections with them, so they want to pay a visit?"

Wang Ruofu looked confused: "Ah, my parents? I don't know about that."

Seeing that she couldn't give any advice, Sheng Hong couldn't help but mutter, "It's really useless to ask."

But his words aroused Wang Ruofu's dissatisfaction. She glared and shouted, "What do you mean it's useless to ask? My father deserves to be enshrined in the imperial temple. If he didn't come for my Wang family, could he be coming for your Sheng family?"

Sheng Hong had a look of disgust on his face. This was why he didn't like Wang Ruofu. She was too vulgar and too unrefined.

"What's going on with the third son of the Zhongjing Marquis's Mansion?"

"Forget it, let's go ask my mother, maybe she will know."

Although Sheng Hong felt that the Sheng family's current status was due to his own efforts, it was undeniable that whenever he couldn't make up his mind, the first person he thought of was his stepmother.

Wang Ruofu heard this and said, "Going to the old lady's place? I'll go with you."

Sheng Hong did not refuse, and the two of them hurriedly walked out of the room.