Five miles northeast of Jiyang City, there is a mountain named Fenghuang. The mountain is gentle, and the slopes are densely covered with pines and cypresses, with orchids, bamboos, wintersweet and other flowering trees in between.
Mountain springs are spiraling up the stone steps, and pavilions and pavilions are inlaid on the ground. On the top of the peak, a platform is built with rammed earth, and a two-story Phoenix Tower is built for viewing all directions.
The news that Taishou Yang convened the county's talented people for a gathering at Fenghuang Mountain in Renri was widely known years ago. There were private rumors among the nobles that Taishou Yang intended to recruit talented people from those who attended the gathering to serve as assistant officials and subordinates.
This made those scholars who had already been confirmed but not yet awarded an official rank flock to it, and some people set off for Jiyang City after the first day.
On the sixth day of the first lunar month, scholars wearing turbans, loose robes and loose belts, applying powder and incense became more and more common in the city. These people called friends, chatted or traveled together, which made guesthouses and wine shops busy. Prosperous.
A total of more than 20 people from the Yin, Deng, and Cen families were invited to stay at the Sanyou Inn of the Deng family.
Most of these people are around thirty years old, and they have been appointed senior officials for nearly ten years. They were not awarded official posts because their grades were not high. This time I came with full expectations, hoping to enter an official career.
Yin Dun came with the crowd, but he had no intention of taking the opportunity to become an official. The ninth-grade officials and assistant officials did not take him seriously.
He came to the party for two reasons. First, there were more than 200 people attending this party. It was a rare large gathering in the county. As a famous young talent in the county, of course he had to show up. The county's reputation was related to his personal future and his family. Rise and fall.
Secondly, Yin Dun wanted to enhance his relationship with Yang Anxuan. The more he interacted with him, the more he felt that Yang Quanqi was unpredictable. Yang Anxuan would definitely show off his talents in the future, and he wanted to see this man's talent with his own eyes.
Yang Anxuan was very happy to learn that Yin Dun had come and took him into the restaurant to show his friendship as a landlord.
Yang Anxuan had a good impression of Yin Dun. This young man was two years older than him. He had a face like a crown jewel, delicate features, a handsome figure, a calm temperament, and calm manners in speech and behavior, which made people feel good about him. He could be called a humble gentleman and as gentle as a jade.
The two of them stood together. Yang Anxuan looked "rough" in comparison. He had a strong and straight figure after practicing martial arts for many years. His face was handsome and tough but a little too dark and strong. From the eyes of the people of the time, he was just a martial artist.
As soon as Shen Zheng passed, the lobby of Shengfeng Restaurant was filled with guests, and the private rooms on the second floor were almost full.
Shopkeeper Xu changed his gloomy look and welcomed the guests with a chubby smile. He estimated in his mind that the income in these two days would be worth at least half a month.
Yang Anxuan and Yin Dun sat by the window, chatting while eating. The private rooms separated by wooden boards have poor airtightness, and the conversation and laughter in the adjacent private room can be heard clearly.
"Dear dear friends, have you ever heard that 'if you lose three points in the snow, you will get nothing, but if you lose a plum, you will get a good fragrance'?"
Yang Anxuan was stunned. This was what he said when he commented on Yin Huizhen in Yinjiabao. How did it reach other people's ears.
After glancing at Yin Dun, Yang Anxuan listened quietly. Yin Dun's expression remained unchanged. Following his grandfather's instructions, the clan members spread these ten words everywhere. It seemed that many people in the entire Xinye County had heard of them.
"Brother Shixuan is ignorant. In the past few days, this cross has been spread everywhere in the city, saying that there is a girl from the Yin family who is very beautiful..."
"Could it be that the Yin family has produced two queens? Tsk tsk. The women of the Yin family are known for their beauty. If you can marry her, your life will be in vain."
"Brother Qi, why don't you urinate and look after yourself? How dare you, a child from a poor family, to marry a daughter of the Yin family."
Yang Anxuan listened to these discussions and looked at Yin Dun in surprise. Needless to say, the cross was spread by the Yin family secretly. What was the Yin family's intention? An idea flashed in Yang Anxuan's mind and he understood.
The beautiful face of Yin Huizhen flashed in his mind. Such a beautiful person should be sent to the palace by her relatives to marry the fool Sima Dezong, so what if she could become a queen? Yang Anxuan couldn't help but sigh.
Hearing Yang Anxuan's soft sigh, Yin Dun's heart tightened, and the darkness hidden in his heart seemed to be seen through.
Not daring to look into Yang Anxuan's eyes, Yin Dun raised his glass and poured wine into his mouth. He choked on the spicy wine and coughed repeatedly, crying.
…………
At two o'clock in the morning, before the mist in the mountains had cleared, a crowd of people appeared.
Jiyang City is surrounded by mountains, and Phoenix Mountain is the first choice for people to climb and travel.
Vendors have long turned the foot of the mountain into a market, with shouts of "Qibao Soup" and "Pancakes" coming and going. Children are playing and jostling in the crowd, calling for children and girls, making it very popular.
Scholars began to climb the mountain on the mountain road. Some walked together in twos and threes, chatting and laughing loudly as if no one else was around. Some were accompanied by servants, carrying a few baskets of banquets. Some were accompanied by beautiful maids, holding harps in their bare hands, which frightened the birds in the forest. The child screams and spreads its wings.
People climb high to seek good fortune, and ladies can also travel. After Chenzheng, there are more oxcarts at the foot of the mountain.
The woman wore a flower on her head and walked gracefully along the mountain path, attracting many scholars to look at her with disdain. She put on a pose that she thought was romantic. She sang to the wind and slapped the tree to pretend to be cool. In exchange for two or three coquettish smiles, she felt more and more like she was in her bones. It's also a bit crispy.
At the end of the Chen Dynasty, Yang Quanqi's motorcade appeared at the foot of the mountain, accompanied by officials such as Liu Zhi, the five sense officers, Ren Xuanguang, and Guo Zhuo, the Confucian scholars.
Since Yongjia's migration to the south, local official schools have been in decline, with "only the name of building a school, but no reality of promoting Taoism." On the contrary, private schools and family schools have flourished.
The official school of Xinye County had magistrates and scribes, but did not recruit students.
In addition to some officials from the government office, Wei Zhong, Wu Shaozhi, Gao Yun and others, who were all famous in the county, also came with them. The chief secretary, Chen Shen, was unwell and did not come.
There are many three brothers from the Yang family. Yang Anxuan did not ride in a car, but rode on a tall horse. His majestic appearance and long sleeves fluttered in the wind, attracting hot looks from many girls.
The crowd gathered around Yang Quanqi up the mountain, and the scholars along the way came forward one after another to greet him and introduce themselves to their families. Yang Quanqi smiled and nodded, and responded with a few gentle words from time to time. Those scholars who were fortunate enough to have the governor's warm words to inquire, all had a rosy look on their faces, and they were like the mountain. The red plum blossoms complement each other.
In early spring, the weather was still cold. Yang Quanqi walked at the front with his head held high, followed by a long procession. The breeze blows on your face and your short beard flutters, which makes you a little tipsy. A man should be a hero and take the lead.
There are people guarding Wenfeng Pavilion near the top of the mountain. Today, the county governor is gathering with the county's talented people on the Phoenix Terrace. No idlers can get on the stage.
Someone had arranged the Phoenix Tower in advance. Yang Quanqi and others went into the building to rest, and ordered the accompanying scholars to do their own thing without being rigid. The poems should be composed and finalized after the ceremony.
Grade evaluation has become fashionable. Calligraphy, poetry, music, painting, Go, etc. are all evaluated. Even appearance, demeanor, and eloquent speech are all artificially evaluated, and they are also divided into nine grades.
Half of the purpose of gathering Yang Quanqi today is to make Yang Anxuan famous. Before coming, Yang Quanqi asked Yang Anxuan about the poems he had prepared. Yang Anxuan changed "Ascend the Stork Tower" to read, "The phoenix rises with the sun, and the water flows eastward. If you want to see a thousand miles away, Take it to the next level”. Yang Quanqi greatly appreciated it and thought it could be considered a top grade piece.
"You go and look for scenery and compose poems, and then come back for the tasting." Yang Quanqi said to the three sons beside him: "There are talented people in the county outside. You go and make some friends and spread your knowledge."
The three of them responded in unison and stepped out of the Phoenix Tower. The three young masters of the prefect's family naturally had no worries about having no one to greet them, and a group of people immediately gathered around to greet them.
Yang Anxuan dealt with it with a smile on his face, until Yin Dunxun came, and the two took the opportunity to walk away and have a moment of peace.
Seeing Yang Anxuan wiping his sweat, Yin Dun smiled and said: "Young Master Taishou has infinite glory. Others can't ask for it, but you can't avoid it."
"This is not my scenery, it is clearly my father-in-law's scenery." Yang Anxuan shrugged and laughed self-deprecatingly.
This habit of shrugging is brought about by the past life, and it can be regarded as a kind of miss.
Another person came over while he was talking, and Yang Anxuan had to smile again and greet the person.
In half an hour, I got to know thirty or forty people. What I really remember are the five or six people who were reminded by Yin Dun, including Xinye Gaoguang, Chaoyang Wei Ziye, and Anchang Gongsunhe.
Several desks and desks were brought out from the Phoenix Tower, pens, inks, paper and inkstones were laid out, and the scholars were invited to compose poems. Ren Xuanguang and Guo Zhuo inspected the works with their hands behind their backs. When they encountered a masterpiece, they ordered others to put it away.
Yang Anxuan saw that there was a good saying in Yindun, "The mountains are full of mist, and the willows are new when you climb high", which was also put away by the petty officials.
In two quarters of an hour, more than thirty poems were collected. Ren Xuanguang ordered them to be taken to the second floor and handed over to Yang Quanqi, Liu Zhi, Wei Zhong and others for evaluation.
Soon, two poems were rated as high-grade, eight as medium-grade, and nine as low-grade. Yin Dun's poem was rated as high-grade.
Calling the person who submitted the poem into the building, Yang Quanqi smiled and said, "I will give you three cups of wine for the top grade, two cups for the middle grade, and one cup for the bottom grade, as a reward."
Liu Zhi said with a smile: "Mr. Yang, wait a minute. I have always heard that the Third Young Master has a good family background and outstanding literary talent. Why not let him compose a poem for everyone to appreciate together."
This was discussed in advance, and everyone agreed.
Yang Quanqi stroked his beard and said to Yang Anxuan, who was standing beside him: "Since you are kind to me, An Xuan, you can also write a poem and ask the elders for advice."
Yang Anxuan bowed in response, bowed to the people around him, and started walking in the hall.
Everyone secretly curled their lips, the poem must have been written long ago, how can one learn to write a poem in seven steps?
"The phoenix rises day by day, and the water flows eastward. If you want to see a thousand miles away, go to the next level."
As soon as he finished speaking, flattery sounded, "Wonderful, what a poem", "This poem is excellent, it must be of the highest grade", "The third young master is really talented, this year he will definitely be of the highest grade"...
The poem was a masterpiece. Yang Anyuan looked at Yang Anxuan jealously. He didn't expect Lao San to find someone to write such a good poem. The poem I bought for five hundred dollars back then was far inferior to this one. I don’t know how much this poem cost.
Yang Quanqi's face was full of spring breeze, and he was about to announce that this poem could be rated as a top grade poem with a few polite sentences. Suddenly, a voice suddenly sounded, "Wait a minute, this poem was not written by the Third Young Master."
There was someone who refused to give Yang Taishou face, and everyone was dumbfounded.
The speaker was Confucian Guo Zhuo. Seeing everyone's attention, Guo Zhuo calmed down and said: "This poem was written by Master Wu. Years ago, Guo accompanied Master Wu on a trip to Phoenix Tower and clearly heard that this poem came from Master Wu. "
Wu Shaozhi shook his sleeves, sighed, and said, "Brother Guo, why are you bringing this up?"
Everyone looked at Yang Anxuan. It was normal to buy poems, but it was thought-provoking that Guo Zhuo revealed it in person.
Yang Anyuan was secretly happy that the third child actually spent money to buy Wu Shaozhi's poems. The most terrible thing was that others knew about it. Now he was embarrassed and embarrassed.
Yang Quanqi flew into a rage and stood up, angry that the three sons were self-defeating and resentful that Guo Zhuo had evil intentions.
As soon as this incident came out, An Xuan's reputation was ruined. Not to mention being designated as a top grader, he might even have no chance of becoming a top grader.
