The world of film and television begins from childhood

Ke Zheng put his hand on Zhou Chen's shoulder and looked at him with admiration: "Well, you are great. You didn't let me down."

Of course, he knew everything about Zhou Chen's affairs back then, but there were too many interests involved, so even he couldn't help Zhou Chen.

Fortunately, Zhou Chen's growth did not disappoint him. Although he failed to make achievements in the civil service, he truly defended his country and guarded the border.

He considered himself a clean person, but he would fully support anyone who had made contributions to the court and had abilities and talents.

Unlike Xiao Qinyan, an ambitious man who was more concerned about his own power, he was more concerned about the situation in the world as a whole. That's why he strongly opposed the queen's party and wanted the emperor to appoint a crown prince, support the crown prince, and let the crown prince govern the country. This offended the queen and ended up being demoted.

Zhou Chen replied respectfully: "Master, I will never forget your teachings."

Ke Zheng praised: "Okay, as long as you can remember what I said, remember the word style and character, you will be worthy of being my disciple."

Xiao Qinyan suddenly interrupted and said, "After the Lime Chant was released, who in the world doesn't know Ke Xiang and his disciple, the Loyal and Brave Marquis?"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone around agreed.

Zhou Chen's poem "Lime Chant" indeed caused quite a stir when it was first published.

On the one hand, this poem is indeed profound in artistic conception; on the other hand, this poem praises the famous Ke Zheng, Prime Minister.

Led by Xiao Qinyan, a group of people came to the main courtyard in a grand manner, and then walked into the main hall to sit and wait for the birthday banquet to begin.

Most of the guests who came to celebrate Xiao Qinyan's birthday today were first-class civil officials. Besides Zhou Chen, there was only one other military officer and nobleman, the Duke of Anguo.

So naturally, Zhou Chen sat together with Duke Anguo.

Duke Anguo was also a maverick among the nobles. Although he was a duke, he was fond of romance, literature, and liked to join the circle of literati.

Although the Duke of Anguo holds the title of Duke, in fact, his position in the court is not high. He mainly relies on the virtue of his ancestors. In addition, his own ability is average. Therefore, the current Duke of Anguo's Mansion is not as good as Zhou Chen's Loyal and Brave Marquis Mansion in terms of strength and foundation.

"Lord Zhongyong, your poem about lime is really great. When you are free, come to my house and we can discuss it together."

Looking at the Duke of Anguo who was trying to get close to him, Zhou Chen's expression remained unchanged, but he felt a little disgusted in his heart and just responded verbally.

There was still constant shouting outside the courtyard. There were so many people giving gifts. The servants in the Xiao Mansion were carrying the birthday gifts in waves and were extremely busy.

While dealing with Duke Anguo, Zhou Chen was also observing the others, especially Qi Mu, who he was paying close attention to.

However, this Qi Mu is indeed a shrewd person. Since he came to the Xiao Mansion, he has been like an invisible man, almost silent, sitting quietly below Ke Zheng.

"Meet the loyal and brave Marquis!"

Suddenly, a man with a smile on his face walked up to Zhou Chen and greeted him with a smile.

"Master Lei."

This person is Lei Jing, the current Si Gong of the Imperial City Division. He is also one of the more important characters in the plot. His appearance highlights his ability to survive.

Insidious, greedy, two-faced...

It is no exaggeration to say that many negative words can be used to describe this Lei Jinglei Sigong, but we have to admit that this guy's ability to protect his life is really good, and he can have connections with many factions.

For such people, as long as there is no conflict of interest, Zhou Chen's principle is not to exclude, not to approach, but not to be hostile either.

Lei Jing approached Zhou Chen enthusiastically: "I have heard from Deputy Envoy Gu that he has a good relationship with you, Lord Marquis, so I have always wanted to visit you, but unfortunately I have never had the opportunity. It is a great honor for me to be able to sit at the same table with you today."

"Master Lei, you are too polite. We are officials in the same court, and we are the same. We should be closer to each other."

"My Lord, you are right."

Lei Jing became more excited when he saw that Zhou Chen was so easy to talk to. Zhou Chen was now a new upstart in the court, so he naturally wanted to get closer to him.

Now he has secretly established contact with Xiao Qinyan and Qi Mu. If he can establish a good relationship with noble representatives like Zhou Chen, his position in the court will be extremely stable in the future.

The side courtyard was a resting and preparation place for the many official prostitutes from the Jiaofangsi who were about to perform. Song Yinzhang stood in front of the window holding a pipa, looking towards the main hall.

Zhang Haohao, who was putting on her makeup, saw this and walked over slowly.

"Sister Yinzhang, what are you looking at? The people sitting in the courtyard are either important officials of the court or nobles from famous families. People like us cannot get close to them."

Song Yinzhang was shocked and said hurriedly: "I didn't see anything, good sister."

Zhang Haohao said with a smile: "It's normal for you to be curious. After all, you have never seen such a scene before. Today's birthday banquet for Mr. Xiao is only slightly smaller than that for the Eighth King. Ordinary people don't have the opportunity to see it."

Having said that, she couldn't help but raise her head proudly.

Compared with others, her advantages are very obvious. She has even been seen by the emperor and performed in front of him. She was praised by the emperor and given colorful clothes.

"Don't be nervous later, just follow me, I will give you some advice."

Song Yinzhang said gratefully: "Thank you, Haohao sister."

Zhang Haohao smiled slightly and was about to speak when suddenly a shout of "The imperial edict has arrived" came from outside the door.

"The imperial edict from the palace has arrived. Please receive it."

As soon as they heard Eunuch Cui's shout, everyone in the hall walked into the courtyard, and Xiao Qinyan walked in front with his son.

Eunuch Cui unfolded the imperial edict in his hand, and Xiao Qinyan and his son knelt down to receive it, while the others stood aside.

Although the Song Dynasty was a feudal dynasty, people did not kneel often. Even when meeting with officials, they did not need to kneel all the time.

"I have received the favor of Heaven..."

Zhou Chen stood in the crowd, listening to Eunuch Cui reading the imperial edict. The content of the imperial edict was very simple. In short, it was all praises for Xiao Qinyan...

Most of the women from the Jiaofang Bureau in the side courtyard had never come into such close contact with an imperial edict in their entire lives, so they all hid in the house with excitement and curiosity, looking at it from afar.

At this time, Zhang Haohao began to show his rich experience and vision and introduced everyone in the hospital.

"Look, the one who received the decree is Mr. Xiao, and the one kneeling behind him should be his son."

Then she waved her hand and pointed: "The one behind is Prime Minister Qi, and the one on the right is Old Ke Xiang Gong, Xiang Gong Xiao's mortal enemy. This time he was dismissed from his post and will be a local official outside the capital. But you should have heard of the Lime Chant some time ago, that poem describes Old Ke Xiang Gong."

"The person who wrote the lime song is the young man standing on the left of Mr. Lao Ke. Don't underestimate him because he is a famous young hero, a young general of the Song Dynasty, and a loyal and brave hereditary marquis. I don't know how many ladies in Tokyo are fascinated by him."

When introducing others, Zhang Haohao's tone was very calm, but when she introduced Zhou Chen, her emotions fluctuated.

Because people like Xiao Qinyan and Ke Zheng, although they all have high status, are old after all. Zhou Chen is not like him, who has a high status and is young, and has a very high reputation and fame.

"Sister Haohao, is that official the famous Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery? Why is he so young?"

"Of course, he is a young general praised by the emperor himself, so of course he is very young."

"This loyal and brave marquis is not only young, but also handsome and elegant, and he exudes an air of nobility."

The girls were more interested in the younger Zhou Chen and started discussing him in low voices.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 996: Birthday Banquet Begins, Inexplicable Hostility

"I heard that this loyal and brave marquis has not married yet. I wonder which young lady will be lucky enough to join the loyal and brave marquis' mansion."

Suddenly one of the girls mentioned that Zhou Chen was still unmarried, which immediately made all the girls curious, and some even had a gleam in their eyes.

Zhang Haohao snorted coldly, "Stop dreaming. A nobleman like the Loyal and Brave Marquis, who is hereditary, will definitely marry a royal relative or a noblewoman from a famous family. The best we can do is to show off our skills in front of him."

She had lived in the Jiaofangsi for more than ten years and had long seen the reality clearly, knowing what was true and what was false.

However, most of the people here are women in their teens and twenties. Born in misery, they are also easily trapped in fantasy. She doesn't want these people to make mistakes, so she can only shatter their fantasy dreams.

Zhang Haohao turned to Song Yinzhang and said in a gentle voice: "Sister Yinzhang, these nobles can just look at it, don't think too much, otherwise we will be the only ones who get hurt."

Song Yinzhang nodded sensibly and said, "Thank you for your reminder, Sister Haohao."

"Let's go change clothes first."

After Eunuch Cui finished reading the imperial edict, he did not stay and left the Xiao Mansion directly.

Xiao Qinyan was overjoyed after receiving the imperial edict. The emperor personally issued an edict to congratulate him on his birthday. Few people in the world today can enjoy such an honor.

He respectfully took the imperial edict, sent Eunuch Cui away, and then handed the imperial edict to his son Xiao Wei behind him.

But after Xiao Wei took the imperial edict, he turned around and handed it to Guan Jia Zhongshu with one hand.

This scene made everyone in the courtyard change their expressions, especially Xiao Qinyan and the housekeeper Zhongshu.

Uncle Zhong couldn't believe it. He didn't expect his own young master to be so disrespectful. Xiao Qinyan was so angry that his face changed drastically and he looked at his colleagues nervously.

Ke Zheng, Qi Mu and others were all looking at Xiao Wei's actions in astonishment. Fortunately, Uncle Zhong reacted quickly, took the imperial edict in a hurry and left in a hurry.

In order to avoid embarrassment, Xiao Qinyan bowed deeply to everyone.

"please!"

Everyone stopped staring at Xiao Wei and returned the greetings.

"Congratulations to Mr. Xiao on his birthday!"

When Zhou Chen passed by Xiao Wei, he looked at him with interest.

It is said that a good father will have a good son, but this Xiao Wei is really a good son. He has no ability and a bad temper.

If we can say that he has any advantages, it is that he has more family affection than Xiao Qinyan, and he has not done anything extremely evil in the plot.

It is no wonder that Xiao Qinyan values ​​Gu Qianfan so much. If all his sons are talented like Xiao Wei, if he does not place his hopes on Gu Qianfan, would he place them on a son like Xiao Wei?

For someone like Xiao Wei, even if he stayed in a powerful family, it was estimated that he would not be able to withstand his decline for long.

After everyone entered the main hall, Xiao Qinyan announced the start of the birthday banquet, and then the dancers and official prostitutes from the Jiaofangsi began to perform.

There were so few forms of entertainment in that era. Only a few people were qualified to invite the Jiaofangsi to perform in celebration. Most people would just hire some singing girls and dancers to perform at home to liven up the atmosphere.

This kind of banquet is of a relatively high-end type. Those present are all prominent figures in the court. Each person has his own table, with clear distinctions.

The lively scene of toasting each other at the wine table in later generations would naturally not appear. Apart from talking and chatting, people were more focused on watching the performance.

The geishas in the Jiaofangsi were more beautiful than each other. Not only were they beautiful in appearance, they also had outstanding skills, and were proficient in dancing and playing musical instruments.

This purely human-powered performance is more realistic and looks more natural and smooth than the technologically processed performances of later generations.

I don't know if Xiao Qinyan arranged it deliberately, but he and Ke Zheng were at the top, followed by Zhou Chen and Qi Mu. Zhou Chen was obviously young, but his position was second only to Xiao Qinyan and Ke Zheng. After them were Duke Anguo, Gao Guancha, Lei Jing and others.

A performance takes less than half an incense stick of time, but there is no break in between, so the performance is still very strenuous.

But these geishas from the Jiaofangsi were chosen to perform here, so naturally they all had unique skills. They performed several consecutive shows without any major mistakes and were very smooth.

The shows were performed one after another, but the atmosphere in the hall was not very good, but rather a bit depressing.

One of the main reasons was due to Ke Zheng, the elder. He had never given Xiao Qinyan a good look since he came to the Xiao Mansion.

But no one found it strange, because in everyone's eyes, Ke Zheng and Xiao Qinyan were incompatible, and Ke Zheng's downfall was also caused by Xiao Qinyan. In addition, Ke Zheng looked down on Xiao Qinyan, so it would be strange for him to give him a good face.

Ke Zheng could have not come, but since Xiao Qinyan personally invited him, he didn't want to show weakness, so even though he was unhappy, he still came.

Some people may think that Ke Zheng did this on purpose and lacks magnanimity, but those who truly understand Ke Zheng and the relationship between Ke Zheng and Xiao Qinyan will definitely not think so.

Zhou Chen sat at the desk, drinking a little wine, and watched a number of programs in a row. He was now a little aesthetically fatigued.

After looking around, he found that Gu Qianfan had not appeared yet. He didn't know whether he hadn't arrived yet or he was not planning to come.

Because of his reminder, Gu Qianfan knew in advance that Qi Mu was using him, so he couldn't guess whether there would be any changes between Gu Qianfan and Xiao Qinyan, the father and son.

Zhang Haohao and Song Yinzhang, who were the last to appear, were standing at the door of the main hall waiting.

Zhang Haohao had become accustomed to this kind of waiting over the years, so she behaved very well and did not lose her manners, waiting patiently.

But Song Yinzhang, who was holding the pipa, could not hold on any longer. She was frail to begin with, and holding the pipa, which was quite heavy for her, she stood straight for more than a quarter of an hour and was already sweating profusely. Her body was weak and she could not hold on any longer.

Seeing that Song Yinzhang was very tired, Zhang Haohao comforted her: "Sister Yinzhang, it will be our turn soon, just hold on for a while."

Song Yinzhang whispered, "Good sister, it's already been half an hour, I can't hold the pipa anymore."

Zhang Haohao knew that Song Yinzhang had been stripped of his membership in the imperial court, so he didn't have to be forced to come like she was. However, Song Yinzhang was still willing to play for her, so she couldn't bear to see him suffer too much.

"If you really can't hold on, just put it on the ground for now."

Upon hearing this, Song Yinzhang felt relieved and immediately quietly placed his beloved pipa on the ground.

But as soon as she put it down and had no time to catch her breath and relieve her tired body, the maid standing at the door turned sideways and scolded her in a cold voice.

"Take it up, and don't be disrespectful."

Song Yinzhang was startled and reflexively picked up the pipa on the ground.

Zhang Haohao glanced at the maid and whispered to comfort her: "The prime minister's doorman is a third-rank official. This little devil is the most difficult to deal with. Just bear with it."

Song Yinzhang held the pipa tightly with great effort. Now she understood that she had only seen the glory of Zhang Haohao before, but in fact, Zhang Haohao was not as glorious as she imagined. Behind the glory, she didn't know how much bullying she had endured.

She thought that if she could be as outstanding and successful as Zhang Haohao, she would not be bullied. It turned out that everything was just her self-righteousness.

But she was still somewhat thankful that she had gotten rid of her status as a prostitute, otherwise, things would have been even worse.

Suddenly, she felt dizzy and her body fell to the side uncontrollably. Just as she was about to fall to the ground, a pair of hands suddenly appeared and supported her body.