It was past midnight, and he had already gone to bed at home. Fang Jun did not return home, but went directly to the Wei Mansion in Yongxingfang. After all, Wei Zheng was considered a great man of his generation, and keeping vigil for him was a way to express his admiration and respect.
The night leaks deeper, the lights in the Wei Mansion in Yongxingfang are bright, and the smoke is lingering.
In the mourning hall, the descendants of the Wei family were all kneeling beside the mourning body wearing sackcloth and mourning. Two female family members were burning paper money in a pottery basin, crying sadly and muttering some words in memory of their ancestors...
The entire Wei Mansion was enveloped in a sad atmosphere.
Fang Jun was led by the steward of the Wei family to the side hall on the side of the mourning hall. Many ministers who had a good relationship with Wei Zheng were keeping vigil here tonight, and most of them Fang Jun knew.
Wei Shuyu came over to say hello: "Erlang, have you had your meal? Although you are busy with official duties, you should also pay more attention to your health."
He used to dislike Fang Jun quite a bit, thinking that he was a stick with no virtue and talent, who was just doing whatever he wanted with the power of his father. Later, after many contacts, especially after his father Wei Zheng asked Fang Jun for red sandalwood for longevity materials without hesitation, his impression gradually changed.
Wei Shuyu is also a smart man. In the past, when his father Wei Zheng was around, everyone had to give him some face, and he could be more noble. But now that my father has passed away, he will be the backbone of the family from now on. It is absolutely forbidden to be willful anymore. Even if many officials in the court cannot have close friendship, they cannot offend him.
Especially popular officials like Fang Jun who have some connections must be currying favor...
Fang Jun said hurriedly: "Brother Wei, you don't have to be polite. I just have some sundries that need to be dealt with, so I have been away for a long time. I hope Brother Wei can forgive me. If I have anything to do, it doesn't matter, so don't be polite."
He is a docile donkey. If someone respects him for a foot, he will give him a foot in return. If someone takes a chestnut from him, he will destroy him for three fights...
The two of them exchanged polite words. Wei Shuyu had other chores to do, so he left for the backyard.
Someone called Fang Jun: "Erlang, come and sit down!"
Fang Jun followed the reputation and saw that it was Cheng Yaojin.
This old goblin had been close friends with Wei Zheng for many years. They had slept together on a big kang in Wagang Village. Although they were already used to life and death, when Wei Zheng passed away, he still stayed here all day long as a friend.
Fang Jun walked over, greeting the surrounding officials one by one on the way.
People in the court, such as Fang Xuanling, Gao Shilian, Xiao Yu, etc. were high-ranking nobles, and their friendship with Wei Zheng was not very close, so they did not keep vigil here. The officials who were close to Wei Zheng were only fourth- and fifth-rank officials. When they saw Fang Jun, they all stood up to pay their respects.
There is no way, although this guy is young and his official position as Minister of War is not bad, but the official position of General Youtunying is already the third rank, and he is on an equal footing with prime ministers such as Shizhong, Zhongshu Ling, and Liubu Shangshu, which makes people sigh. The ceremony is very respectful.
Facing this young man who will surely dominate the court in the future, you must be rude only if you have a bad brain...
Fang Jun hummed and said hello, and sat down next to Cheng Yaojin, only to find that the two people beside Cheng Yaojin were none other than King Jing Li Yuanjing and Xue Wanche. Because Li Yuanjing had his back to Fang Jun and was playing chess with someone, Fang Jun had not noticed it before, so he had to stand up again and said, "Wei Chen has met His Highness King Jing."
"Oh, Erlang, no gifts, no gifts."
Li Yuanjing glanced at Fang Jun, said lightly, then turned his head and continued the game.
He no longer has any patience for Fang Jun, who always gives him face and doesn't respond to his "calls". He just has to live with his face...
Fang Jun was indifferent to his indifference, thanked him, and sat down next to Cheng Yaojin. He took the tea offered by a servant of the Wei family and took a sip.
Li Yuanjing wore a plain robe today, with the golden crown on his head removed, and a snow-white linen belt around his waist. He is Wei Zheng's son-in-law, but he has the status of a prince. This is considered to be a filial piety.
In Fang Jun's previous life, if a relative or friend passed away, everyone would get together to play poker or mahjong during the vigil. Otherwise, who could survive the long night? But in ancient times with strict rules, if someone got together to play mahjong without a fuss, they might be kicked out by the host...
Playing chess is different.
Playing mahjong is entertainment and gambling, while playing chess is a game of chess and an elegant affair, and will not be considered disrespectful to the deceased.
Fang Jun had nothing to do, so he held a teacup and watched Li Yuanjing play chess with the unknown old man.
I thought it was Go, but unexpectedly it was chess...
Go is very popular in the Tang Dynasty. It has been loved by the royal family since the Southern and Northern Dynasties and has been vigorously promoted. The great ancestor of this dynasty, Li Yuan, even played with Pei Ji all night long before he launched an army. This shows how much he loves it...
Chess is relatively rare.
There are different opinions on the origin of chess, and there is no definite definition, but generally everyone agrees that it was invented in ancient China. During the Warring States Period, there were already official records about chess. For example, "Chu Song: Zhaohun" states: "To cover the chess, there are six books; to divide the cao and advance together, to force each other; to become an owl, to fight, and to call the five whites." ". There is also a record in "Shuo Yuan": Yongmenzi Zhou used the qin to see Lord Mengchang and said: "You are a ruler who can lead a thousand chariots at a single step... Yan then plays chess and dances with Zheng Nu."
Modern chess is said to have been created by Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Yuwen Yong, and was only finalized in the Song Dynasty...
This is the first time Fang Jun has seen Xiangqi after traveling through time.
The chessboard is an eight-by-eight black and white grid, and the chess pieces are three-dimensional in shape, moving on the grid instead of at intersections. The chess pieces are three-dimensional in shape, more like chess...
Is it possible that the origin of chess is really in China?
Xue Wanche squinted at Fang Jun. Seeing that he was looking attentively, he asked, "Fang Erlang can also play chess?"
Fang Jun said: "I understand a little, I understand a little."
I do understand a little bit.
Playing chess is related to IQ. In his previous life, he was an academic master. He was not bad at either Go or chess. Professional chess players were naturally not as good as him, but he could also be regarded as the best among ordinary amateur chess players. He has won the top three places in various chess competitions in the city.
It's just that the gameplay of Tang Dynasty chess is completely different now, and the experience of the previous life is not of much reference. But after a while, after getting familiar with the gameplay, I feel that it is not very interesting. There are fewer chess pieces and the board is smaller. The changes are not as profound and complicated as those of later generations. It is even better than backgammon. More is worse than worse.
He saw Li Yuanjing's mistakes in playing chess with others and felt deeply disdainful. However, in order to express his modesty, he only said that he "understands a little"...
Xue Wanche thought that he was trying to make a fool of himself. Even if he could write a few good poems, how could he be proficient in something as profound as chess? To stand up to the sky means to understand the rules.
I still understand a little bit, but you know nothing...
It happened that the man who was playing chess with Li Yuanjing was checkmate at this time, so he gave up and left. Xue Wanche pulled Fang Jun and said: "Come on, let's play a game and let someone learn about Fang Erlang's chess skills."
Li Yuanjing stood up and gave up his seat with a smile. Xue Wanche was a bad chess player, but he didn't think Fang Jun could beat Xue Wanche and was happy to see Fang Jun defeated.
Fang Jun shook his head and said: "I usually play chess with others, so I need a bonus. If I don't have a bonus, I won't be able to cheer up. Is it any different from grinding my fingers?"
Xue Wanche felt more and more that Fang Jun was pretentious, so he said, "Then let's add some bonus."
Fang Jun still shook his head: "Isn't this bad? After all, Wei Gong is in mourning. Isn't our game disrespectful to Wei Gong?"
Li Yuanjing waved his hands and said disapprovingly: "Games are for refined scholars. Wei Gong is best at playing chess in his life. This is to commemorate his ancestors. How can it be considered disrespectful? As long as the lottery prizes don't use those messy things, copper coins are enough."
Emotional coins are regarded as elegant things in his eyes...
But he was Wei Zheng's son-in-law, half-master of the Wei Mansion, and a prince. If he said it was okay, others would naturally have nothing to say.
Fang Jun thought for a while and then said to Xue Wanche: "What kind of bonus does General Xue want to add?"
Xue Wanche said: "Winning two out of three games, winning 10,000 yuan, how about that?"
Everyone in the hall who was whispering was shocked when they heard this. Such a big prize?
Unexpectedly, Fang Jun shook his head, took off a jade pendant from his waist and threw it on the table, saying calmly: "Hetian Meiyu, I bought it from a Hu merchant from the Western Regions a few days ago for 90,000 guan. If General Xue has the ability, Just win it away.”
There was a sound of air-conditioning sucking all around, what a big deal! However, everyone felt relieved when they thought that this was the "God of Wealth" of the Tang Dynasty.
Xue Wanche's face twitched and he stared at Fang Jun, speechless for a long time.
If we talk about family property, although the distance between him and Fang Jun is not the distance between the stars and the moon, it is still about the distance from Mount Tai to Mount Hua... The ten thousand-guan lottery that I thought was very proud was thrown away casually. A piece of jade has already been crushed. Even if Xue Wanche wins every round, it will take eighteen rounds to win back this piece of jade. It's already dawn...
