After that, Yang called Zhang Yue over and basically talked about the engagement.
Yang also revealed the inside story she knew to Zhang Yue.
It turns out that Ouyang Xiu not only acted as the guarantor of his marriage to the Wu family, but also played a role in brokering the marriage, including Ouyang Fa and his wife Wu who ran errands on their behalf.
Only then did Zhang Yue understand what happened.
The official politics of the Song Dynasty were somewhat different from those of the Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Yuanzhang, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty, first killed all the heroes, and then carried out the empty seal case and killed all the civil servants. Therefore, all officials after the Ming Dynasty were in danger. Official politics was not as intricate as the Song Dynasty, and officials did not dare to engage in blatant politics. marriage.
For example, Shen Shixing, the chief assistant of the Wanli Dynasty, and Xu Xuemo, the Minister of Rites, were officials in the same dynasty, and the two were sons and daughters. This was impeached by the censor, forcing Xu Xuemo to resign.
Marriages between officials in the Ming Dynasty were basically from the same hometown. For example, Shen Shixing and Xu Xuemo were from the same hometown. The two had no intention of forming a party at the beginning. At that time, the official ties of contact were through teachers and students, who were born in the same year, or even as sons of the Nian family.
But the Song Dynasty was different. The most important official relationship in the Song Dynasty was in-laws.
For example, the prime ministers' families of Lu, Han, and Wu took the lead in doing this, so that many of the current prime ministers were the sons-in-law of the previous prime ministers. On the contrary, in the Ming Dynasty, there were very few cases of father and son prime ministers or weng son-in-law prime ministers.
Ouyang Xiu himself is a good example. As for Zhang Yue, he regarded him as his nephew, so when they met, he expressed his intention to arrange Zhang Yue's marriage.
Zhang Yue didn't think much about it at that time, thinking it was just a friendly kiss. In the past, none of the seven aunts or eight aunts had ever said kiss to you, but Ouyang Xiu's proposal had a different meaning.
Therefore, the marriage between Zhang Yue and the Wu family was unexpected, but it was vaguely destined.
If the recommendation had been made earlier, how Zhang Yue met Ouyang Xiu would have depended entirely on the recommendation of Zhang Wangzhi and Zhang Youzhi. Ouyang Xiu had a very good relationship with the Zhang family in Pucheng. They had been in contact with each other since Zhang Dexiang. Historically, it was Ouyang Xiu who recommended Zhang Dun for the imperial examination.
As for Zhang Wangzhi, why did Zhang Wangzhi recommend Zhang Yue?
In addition to Zhang Yue being their student, the most important thing is that Zhang Yue comes from the Pucheng Zhang family.
Therefore, unless Zhang Yue is determined to be a salty fish, as long as he works hard, he will run into Ouyang Xiu sooner or later.
It can be said that the marriage is destined.
However, what is better about Ouyang Xiu than the nepotistic officials is that he also values talents and supports people such as Sansu and Zeng Gong...
Having said that, Ouyang Xiu also arranged the marriage between Wang Anshi and Wu Chong's children.
Wang Anshi was recommended to Ouyang Xiu by Zeng Gong. Why did Zeng Gong recommend Wang Anshi to Ouyang Xiu? Because Wang Anshi's mother was Zeng Gong's aunt...
Later, Wang Anshi's younger brother Wang Anguo also married Zeng Gong's sister...
Some people jokingly said that the old and new party struggles in the Northern Song Dynasty were one group of relatives fighting another group of relatives. It is not unreasonable.
Yang Shiyan: "It's a verbal agreement right now. The two parties haven't exchanged posts, but they still have to move around. I'll take care of the etiquette and gifts for you, but there's no need to go there these days. Mrs. Wu is going back to her hometown to visit her relatives."
"I want you to pay me a visit when Wu Dacao and his wife return to Beijing."
Zhang Yue said: "Just follow the second aunt's orders."
After hearing this, Mrs. Yang happily said to Zhang Yue: "Thanks to Bachelor Ouyang for your marriage, you have to move around his house frequently. What kind of person is Bachelor Ouyang? He has favored you, so why should you do this?" My second aunt is happy for you from the bottom of my heart about your marriage."
"Five years is not a long time. Look at those special titles. How many years does it take to get such a title, from the time when you are young to the time when you are old? If you don't work hard, I am afraid that not only will this marriage not be possible, but also the fame will be difficult."
Having said this, Yang encouraged him.
Zhang Yue said with a smile: "Second aunt is relieved, but I will be focused on studying when I return to Taixue this time."
"It's not only important to study, but also to make friends. Don't think that just because you have a reputation, fame is important," Yang added, "Your second brother also told you..."
Zhang Yue frowned and said, "Second aunt, don't tell him about this matter."
Yang paused and said, "Sanlang, it's been so long. There is a flesh-and-blood friendship between brothers..."
Zhang Yue said: "Second aunt, I met Brother Dun at Mr. Gu Ling's house that day. He said that he just looked down on my brother and me, and thought that we could raise dragons in this shallow water place. That's why he He said that life should be thrown away when it is time, and there is no need to linger on it. He certainly made sense, but I was left behind by him."
"When the police officer brought people to raid my house, my brother and I had already died once. I don't have this second brother. So what if he is now in fine clothes and fine food, and is the fifth-ranked Jinshi? He still doesn't feel that what he did back then There is something wrong with it."
After listening to Zhang Yue's words, Yang sighed: "Sanlang, I shouldn't mention the second brother's matter in front of you. I know you are a kind person. As long as the second brother apologizes, he will never say this." Out."
Zhang Yue saw Yang saying this: "Second aunt, I don't expect him to admit his mistake. Please forgive me for my nephew's incomprehensible words. Please leave now."
Yang stood up and said, "That's all. Sanlang will be diligent and enterprising in the next five years, and don't ask about anything else."
After Zhang Yue left the Yang Mansion, Zhang Yue's eyes were a little moist. He usually wouldn't quarrel with outsiders even if he was extremely red-faced and angry, but for some reason he shed tears when quarreling with his family.
Next, Zhang became more and more attentive to his studies. In addition to sending the engraved seals to Shujizhai, he spent his weekdays at Taixue and Chen Xiang studying hard in preparation for the Imperial College Examination in August next year.
At the end of the year, Zhang Yue thought that he had not been to Ouyang Xiu's house for some days, so he hired a carriage to go there.
The wind and snow did not dampen the bustle and bustle of Bianjing City, with cars passing by on the streets.
Zhang Yue got out of the car and went to the door.
At this time, several carriages and horses were parked outside the door. Zhang Yue knew that a visitor was coming, and the door was talking to several of the visitor's servants.
The servant's speech contained some of the accent of Sichuan and Sichuan, and he seemed to have known the Ouyang family for a long time.
There is an endless stream of people coming to Ouyang Xiu's house to visit him every day. This sight is not unusual for Zhang Yue.
When Zhang Yue arrived, the servant saw Zhang Yue and smiled and said: "The husband of the Zhang family is here. The master is waiting for guests. The big man and the third man are in the front hall. The little man will guide you."
"Don't dare to work." Zhang Yue waved his hand and walked closer.
A servant on the side asked: "Who is this scholar?"
The servant smiled and said: "You just came to Beijing from Shuzhong and don't know me. Let me tell you slowly..."
Ouyang Xiu's mansion in Tianshui Lane is a courtyard with three entrances. Zhang Yue is quite familiar with the road.
Zhang Yue walked to the front hall and saw Ouyang Fa and Ouyang Pei chatting with a young man.
When Ouyang Fa saw Zhang Yue, he smiled and said to the young scholar, "Ziyou, I'm here to introduce you to a good friend."
Zhang Yue thought to himself, Ziyou is from Sichuan again, could it be...
Zhang Yue looked at this young man, who was wearing a blue robe. At first glance, he felt that he was very solemn and quiet.
Zhang Yue saluted and said, "Zhang Yue met Brother Ziyou in Xiapu City."
The other party also returned the courtesy and said: "It turns out to be Mr. Zhang Sanlang. I just heard that my uncle talked about his famous name. My name is Su Zhe in Meishan, and Ziyou is my cursive character."
Zhang Yue lost his voice and said: "It turns out Xiao Su..."
Zhang Yue said quickly: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I have long admired my name."
Su Che smiled gently and said: "I have heard Sanlang's three-character poem. It is simple and easy to write and catchy. I have tried to teach my children to recite it. But there is one thing I don't know. I don't know how Sanlang knew that my father's alias was Laoquan. ?”
Zhang Yue felt a little ashamed when he heard this.
Su Zhe said: "This time I watched my mother's funeral. I went back to my hometown with my father and brother to hold the funeral ceremony. I chose a place called Laoquanweng on the edge of the village as my Su family's treasure land. The reason why this place is called Laowengquan is Because some people say that on moonlit nights, it is common to see a handsome old man with white hair sitting here, but when he walks in, he disappears. Therefore, my father named him Laoquan. At this time, Sanlang's three-character poem had not yet spread to Shu."
It turns out that the name Su Laoquan came from this. In the second year of Jiayou's reign, Su Xun's wife Cheng died of illness. After the father and son returned to their hometown, Su Xun chose the land of Lao Wengquan to build a house, and then he named himself Su Laoquan.
Zhang Yue thought to himself, is it that difficult for me to just copy a poem?
So he smiled cheekily and said: "There must be God's will in this!"
Su Zhe was stunned when he heard this, but had no words.
Ouyang Fa brothers all laughed. They didn't know that when Su Zhe and his family entered Beijing from Meizhou, they met a monk on the way.
At that time, one of their servants was possessed by an evil spirit, and the monk came to rescue him. When they were leaving, the monk, father and son said, "If you go to the capital, it will be auspicious to meet you early. This is a noble person."
Everyone was puzzled at the time. The Su family father and son even chose to enter the city from the west of Beijing early in the morning on the third day of the year, but they did not see any noble people.
Now Zhang Yue blindly guessed Su Xun's number in the Tao, and Su Zhe thought to himself, this Zhang Sanlangjun, Xing San, there is another character "zao" in the character Zhang, could it be that he is the noble man the monk said?
Su Che and his brother both believed in the theories of Buddha, Laos, ghosts and gods. But he didn't show it, but silently observed Zhang Yue.
At this time, there were slightly rapid footsteps in the courtyard.
Zhang Yue looked outside the door and saw a man wearing a light blue shirt approaching.
Zhang Yue looked carefully and saw that he had high cheekbones and thin and long cheeks. Su Xiaomei once made fun of his appearance, saying that it would take a year for a tear to flow to the corner of his mouth.
Zhang Yue has also recently learned to read people. According to the fortune tellers, men with high cheekbones are very ambitious, independent-minded, and have political ambitions.
"Brother Zizhan (brother)!"
Ouyang Fa's brother Su Che both stood up to greet him.
Zhang Yue also stood up to greet him. Su Shi smiled in greeting, then looked at Zhang Yue while stroking his short beard and said, "Who is this young gentleman?"
Su Che stepped forward to introduce him, and Su Shi also greeted Zhang Yue.
Ouyang Fa pulled Su Shi to sit down and said, "I just heard Ziyou mentioned that I would pass by the Three Gorges to see the magnificent scenery. I only heard half of it now. Brother Zizhan, how is the scenery of the Three Gorges?"
Su Shi sat down and talked endlessly.
This time their father and son left Sichuan, first walking on land for nearly a month, and then boarding a boat from Shifo, Jiazhou, to see the beauty of the Three Gorges along the way.
Although the scenery of the Three Gorges is beautiful, the waterway is very dangerous, with turbulence and dark rocks.
Ouyang Fa and Zhang Yue couldn't help but feel excited when they listened to Su Shi's description of the scene of a group of people riding a boat rushing down the current in the wild waves as fast as galloping horses.
Su Shi was talking all the way, and the three of them were unconsciously fascinated. Sometimes they saw rough waves here, and occasionally they looked up and saw an isolated hut on the cliff. The woodcutter went up the mountain to chop wood with the blue sky on his back, and the goshawk soared among the mountain tops.
After that, Su Shi told some fairy tales about Goddess Peak, and the three of them were even more mesmerized.
In the end, Su Shi said that during his trip, the two brothers had more than a hundred poems in couplets, which were titled "Collection of Journey to the South" and had been commissioned to be published. Each of them would receive a copy as a gift.
All three of them were happy.
Zhang Yue smiled and said, "You deserve it."
Ouyang Fa from the side said: "Brother Zizhan likes gold and stone. Wouldn't you like to engrave a seal on it and give it as a gift?"
Su Shi asked in surprise: "Will Du Zhishan be engraved with a seal?"
Zhang Yue smiled and said, "I know a little bit."
After saying that, Zhang Yue handed an idle seal he brought with him to Su Shi. Unexpectedly, Su Shi couldn't put it down after seeing it, and couldn't help but ask: "Sanlang, you are so accustomed to the method of this chapter. I wonder if you can teach Su."
Zhang Yue couldn't help laughing and said: "Okay."
Su Shi laughed loudly when he heard this, while Su Zhe wiped his brother's sweat. It was like this for the first time when they met. Fortunately, Zhang Duzhi didn't refuse.
Soon a servant came here and said to Ouyang: "The master is hosting a banquet in the mansion to entertain the guests of the Su family. I also heard that Mr. Zhang Sanlang is here and he will also attend the banquet."
Zhang Yue listened and thought, "Okay, so Sansu will meet him together."
Zhang Yue followed everyone to the main hall.
But I saw Ouyang Xiu chatting with an old man who knew his destiny.
This old man is most likely Su Laoquan.
Su Shi and Su Che passed the Jinshi examination in the second year of Jiayou, but they have not yet been awarded an official rank. As for their father Su Xun, they have not yet passed the Jinshi examination.
Of course, Su Xun's articles were extremely well written. Zhang Fangping, the top scholar in the Song Dynasty, read Su Xun's articles and sighed, "Zuo Qiu mastered Mandarin, Sima Qian was good at narration, and Jia Yi mastered the royal way, and the king also embodies it."
Later, Zhang Fangping wrote a letter recommending Sansu to Han Qi and Ouyang Xiu.
When his two sons were awarded Jinshi, Su Xun wept with joy and wrote a poem: "It is easy for an old man to reach the imperial examination, but it is difficult for an old man to ascend to the imperial examination. It is difficult for a child to pick up mustard." '
This poem is quite 'Versailles'.
In the third year of Jiayou's reign, Song Renzong felt that such a talented person should not be left behind, so he asked Su Xun to take the examination in Sherenyuan, but Su Xun refused to go.
Su Xun wrote to his friends and explained that he was very embarrassed when he had to take exams at an advanced age and have others weigh the quality of his essays. My writing does not meet the examination standards. If the court feels that my writing is not good, it will be used. If it is not good, it will not be used.
In the fourth year of Jiayou's reign, the imperial court once again summoned him to take the exam in Beijing.
It happened that Su Xun's two sons had also finished mourning their mother, so the father and son moved from Shu to Beijing.
After Su Xun came to Beijing, he met Han Qi and Ouyang Xiu, father and son, three noble men in their official careers.
He came to see Ouyang Xiu today not to seek an official position for himself, but to hope that Ouyang Xiu could support his two sons.
The two brothers were both junior and senior, and the eldest son Su Shi was so talented that even Ouyang Xiu praised others. Thirty years later, no one knew about my articles, only Su Shi's.
Although the second son Su Zhe is slightly less talented, he is steady and cautious.
Both of my sons are talented people who can be developed. My father, an old man in his late fifties, is running into obstacles everywhere and has accomplished nothing. If they follow their own footsteps, they are afraid that their achievements in officialdom will be limited in the future.
Therefore, Su Xun approached Ouyang Xiu and asked him to take care of his two sons. It didn't matter whether he was an official or not.
However, Su Xun did not expect that at this time, Ouyang Xiu and Han Qi had some differences of opinion in the court over tea.
Sansu and his son were both world-famous sages, and both Han Qi and Ouyang Xiu wanted to capitalize on their fame. Su Xun was speechless talking about his two sons, and Ouyang Xiu didn't make any promises, so he couldn't help but feel worried.
When Ouyang Xiu saw Zhang Yue and others arriving, he smiled and said, "Mingyun, the kids are here, let's take a seat first!"
At that moment, Ouyang Fa introduced Zhang Yue to meet Su Xun again.
Su Xun was worried. Although he didn't expect why Zhang Yue could sit at the table, he didn't think about it carefully.
As for Zhang Yue, he breathed a sigh of relief. If someone asked, how did you know that I called myself Laoquan? How about that?
Everyone went to the back hall to sit down. Ouyang Xiu was hosting a banquet for guests, so the cook at the house was always preparing dishes.
This meal is very rich.
Even though there were children around, Su Xun still said: "Bachelor, when I named the second son, I saw that the wheels, spokes, and cover all had responsibilities for the car, but Shi (the armrest) was the only one who did nothing. Without Shi, he is not a car. I named my dog Shi because I was afraid that he would not be a car."
"As for the ruts, all the chariots in the world travel along the ruts, but when it comes to the performance of the chariots, the ruts never follow them. Even if the chariots are destroyed and the horses are killed in the future, they will not be blamed for running in the ruts. Such ruts are between disaster and blessing. Even though it’s useless, it’s not an exaggeration.”
Zhang Yue sighed in his heart after hearing Su Xun's remarks.
This is how a father's beloved son has a far-reaching plan. It is good for Shi to be the exterior decoration of the car (country), but he does not have to bear its responsibility.
Ru is the sign of the wheel of a chariot. If you participate in the work but things don't work out in the future, you won't blame yourself.
Zhang Yue suddenly remembered Su Shi's poem, "Everyone raises his son to be smart, but I have been deceived by my intelligence throughout my life." But the child is stupid and reckless, and he will come to the minister without disaster.
I have to say that the three of them, father and son...
At this moment, Ouyang Xiu said: "A few months ago, the imperial court issued a decree to open the system science department, and Chen Qian and I were admitted to the fourth class of the system science department. The Emperor has said that entering the fourth class of the system science and technology department is the same as the two or three Jinshi."
"I think Ming Yun might as well let them give it a try?"
Su Xun's eyes narrowed when he heard this. He originally wanted Ouyang Xiu to arrange an official career for his two sons, but he didn't expect that Ouyang Xiu encouraged Su Shi and Su Zhe to take the exams.
He knows how difficult it is to make science. Unexpectedly, Ouyang Xiu pointed such a path to their brothers.
The first pass was recommended by two ministers.
In the second level, you have to write 50 articles for the ministers of the two systems to comment, and only then can you qualify for the exam.
As for the most difficult one, it is the system-based examination. The questions range from the Eleven Classics and Commentaries, the Seventeen Histories, the Seven Martial Arts Books, etc.
The examiner will ask six questions, called the Six Secret Pavilion Essays.
These six questions, each of more than 3,000 words, must be written within one day and one night.
That's at least 18,000 words, so there's no time for you to think about it, you just start writing.
In the end, the prime minister and other ministers personally judged the top and bottom, and they were assessed twice. Those who finally entered the fourth level had to pass the imperial examination of the emperor.
Ouyang Xiudao: "The next academic examination should be in August of the year after next. If we start preparing now, we may be successful by then."
Su Xun said: "The difficulty of the pavilion examination..."
Ouyang Xiu smiled and said, "Ming Yun just needs to think more about it."
Hearing this, Zhang Yue also knew how difficult it was to prepare for the examination. Su Shi and his brothers could now directly serve as officials. In fact, there was no need to spend another two years preparing for the examination.
But unless you are extremely confident in yourself.
In the Jinshi examination in the second year of Jiayou's reign, one of Su Shi's brothers ranked first in the top four and the other in the fifth. If they had done well in the examination, their career would have been shortened by several years.
ps: This chapter is based on Mr. Lin Yutang’s "The Biography of Su Dongpo".
