Chapter 004 Famous in Jinling
"Young Master, you said earlier that you wanted to learn from all the young masters. Why did you say it like this? The little lady has read your answer, but she doesn't look like the kind of person who steals poems and steals." Li Fengchun was also a little annoyed. Well, in addition to recruiting guests, the most important thing for her to hold a poetry meeting is to make friends with talented people all over the world. She wants to be famous all over the world like Ma Xianglan, so naturally she won't offend anyone, but she also wants to say a few good words for Zhao Cheng.
While everyone was criticizing him, Chen Cao stood up and said with an innocent face: "You are just speaking based on the facts. How can you be the prime minister if you can't tolerate others?"
This group of people were speechless for a moment, then Zhao Cheng said: "I wonder if such a brother has any good works. Can you write it down and let me wait and see? Even if Zhao admits defeat, he must be convinced of the defeat." .”
Scholars in the Ming Dynasty were notoriously petty. If you said something to them, they would refute you with ten sentences. Otherwise, it would appear that they had not learned Confucianism well, and would be laughed at by their peers.
Zhao Cheng's fellow countryman, the young master who had been speaking for him, also stood up and said: "I am Gu Linsheng, a native of Suzhou, the 46th Juren of Wanli, my father Gu Dazhang, who is a member of the Ministry of Punishment, and I am Gu Yuncheng, the Minister of Nanjing Taipu Temple." Grandfather too."
hiss...
Everyone in the cabin took a breath of cold air, but Gu Linsheng's self-announcement meant that you, kid, be careful, there is someone above me.
Chen Cao didn't know who Gu Yuncheng was, but Gu Dazhang was a well-known person. He was the first Donglin Six gentleman to die in the Tianqi Dynasty. Chen Cao still liked Wei Zhongxian in his heart. After all, this guy was ruthless in suppressing the Donglin Party. If this were not the case, it is estimated that the lifespan of the Ming Dynasty would be shortened by a few years due to the Donglin Party.
"It turns out it's Mr. Gu. I'm disrespectful." Chen Cao smiled and raised his hand towards Gu Linsheng.
Gu Linsheng was also very happy when he saw this. That's right. The young masters here are all highly talented. They are either academics or scholars. There is not a noble dandy. Those who can come up to the second floor are all people who are familiar with Confucian classics, like Chen. There is really no such thing as cheating.
Before Gu Linsheng was satisfied enough, Chen Cao said again: "Despite this, I think Mr. Zhao's literary talent is still limited to judging people."
"You guy..." Zhao Cheng didn't say anything, but Gu Linsheng was about to take action as he spoke.
Who is Chen Cao? He was born into a general in the Duke of Wei's family, and not to mention his family's martial arts skills. Taking off his clothes and covering himself with tendons would make the helpless scholars in front of him lose half of their courage, not to mention that there is a general of the Five Cities Army and Horses Department next to him. Flag officer Song Che was beside him.
When he saw Gu Linsheng taking action, regardless of his identity or the family behind him, he stood in front of Chen Cao. Song Che, who was already taller than Gu Linsheng, reached down and grabbed his wrist.
"It hurts, it hurts..." Gu Linsheng shouted three times, and he suddenly understood. The young man in front of him was definitely the son of a noble official. This person who dared to fight against him despite his background had quite a military attitude. , at first glance, he is a guard of the family.
"It's so polite..." Chen Cao shook his head with a smile.
As the saying goes, a gentleman talks but does not act, and Gu Linsheng suffers a loss. A large group of scholars in the cabin watched as if watching a play how this high-ranking official's son suffered a loss of silence. However, this group of scholars has one characteristic. They do not speak out when they are ignorant. Incitement comes in droves.
Zhao Cheng saw that Gu Linsheng had suffered a loss, so he shouted: "Dear brothers of the same age, this guy is talking nonsense here and is beating people. How can we let it go?"
In Chen Cao's time, if you incited national sentiments, you had to be arrested and imprisoned for fifteen days, but now it is the most popular method among scholars. The remaining people in the cabin were incited by Zhao Cheng and rolled up their sleeves one after another. They wanted to take action, but what was interesting was that the group of people was kicked coldly by Song Che, and they all stopped where they were and yelled, unwilling to take another step.
Chen Cao sneered when he saw this. It was true that "the scholar's rebellion failed in three years." Apart from shouting slogans, this group of people would not take the initiative except for their own interests.
Seeing this, Zhao Cheng shouted angrily at Song Che: "You reckless man, let go of Brother Gu."
"Shixiu, don't hurt anyone," Chen Cao let go of Song Che's hand, let go of Gu Linsheng, and then cupped his hands and said, "My brother is very strong. If I hurt Mr. Gu, I hope Mr. Gu will forgive you. I am here." I have to apologize to the young master for this."
The steps were given, and now he was at a disadvantage. Gu Linsheng had no choice but to go down the steps, so he said angrily: "Brother, if you compose a better poem than Brother Zhao today, that's all. If you can't compose..."
Looking at Gu Linsheng who looked at him coldly, Chen Cao sneered and shook his head: "Here is the pen and paper."
Li Fengchun, who had been watching the excitement without saying a word, suddenly became interested when he heard that Chen Cao asked for pen and paper. He moved his butt slightly, trying to see clearly what Chen Cao was writing.
After writing it for several minutes, Chen Cao left the paper with the ink still wet on the table, then cupped his hands towards everyone and said, "Everyone, I'm leaving."
Hidden merit and fame...
Gu Linsheng grabbed the wet rice paper and looked at it. The more he looked at it, the greener his face became. The more he looked at it, the faster the anger in his heart dissipated. Then he sat down on the chair like a deflated rubber ball.
Zhao Cheng took the paper from Gu Linsheng's hand and said word by word: "If life is just like the first time we met, why is it that the autumn wind is sad to draw a fan, and it can easily change the heart of an old friend, but it is said that the heart of an old friend can change easily. After finishing speaking in Lishan at midnight, Tears, rain, and bells will never complain. How can I be lucky enough to be a man in brocade, and my wish will be the same as the wings and branches."
After finishing reading, Zhao Cheng, like Gu Linsheng, sat limply on the chair, chanting the word "impossible" repeatedly.
After listening to Zhao Cheng's recitation, the well-educated people in the cabin secretly gave Chen Cao's poem titled "Mulan Ci" a high score in their hearts.
The maid Xiaolan stepped forward and picked up the rice paper and handed it to Li Fengchun. After Li Fengchun read it, he remained silent for a long time, and then a drop of crystal clear tears fell on the wet paper.
The signature is in four big characters-----Nalan Rongruo...
'He is Nalan Rongruo, the popular Nalan Rongruo. Behind him is the unfinished Dream of Red Mansions...' Li Fengchun thought in his mind blankly.
After the students in the cabin saw the signature on the rice paper and the Mulan poem written on it, they all expressed their appreciation, which was completely different from the previous indignation with Chen Cao.
"Gaocai, it turns out he is Nalan Rongruo. Who in Jinling City doesn't have a copy of Dream of Red Mansions and The Legend of the Condor Heroes? Today he actually met the real person."
"The artistic conception of this Mulan poem is so heart-warming that it can be described as extremely sad and sorrowful. We feel that we are not as good as we are..."
"Not as good as, not as good as..."
"If you write such a poem, even if you say those words, they are still true..."
Being mentioned in this way, Zhao Cheng, who was already soft, hated Chen Cao even more. He made it clear that he had caused a huge humiliation to himself, which would make anyone feel uncomfortable, let alone that he had a petty second-generation official friend.
The maid Xiaolan walked to the middle of the cabin and said: "Gentlemen, my lady said that the first person today is Mr. Nalan. Gentlemen, please go back."
The crowd dispersed like birds and beasts. Obviously, what happened today will spread throughout Jinling City in a short time, and the Mulan poem written by Chen Cao will also be popular throughout the Ming Dynasty.
...
After Nalan Rongruo's Mulan Ci became famous, an imperial edict came from Beijing. Emperor Taichang Zhu Changluo passed away. The whole country mourned for three months. The candidate for the new emperor was also decided. Zhu Youxiao, the prince of Emperor Taichang, ascended the throne and chose the reign name Tianqi.
Nanjing has a special status. After the death of the emperor, the city must be banned for a month just like Beijing, including marriages and all entertainment activities such as opening restaurants and brothels. However, as the saying goes, the sky is high and the emperor is far away. In addition to mourning, Nanjing still has a lot of private entertainment life.
It was rumored that after Li Fengchun met Nalan Rongruo, he stopped painting and never saw anyone. Naturally, Chen Cao didn't know that he had won the girl's heart. Li Fengchun also sent his maid Xiaolan to inquire about Chen Cao's residence.
There are three people who know that Chen Cao's name is Nalan Rongruo, namely Li Xiang, the boss of Juxianju, shopkeeper Zhou Decai, Song Che, and the half-know shopkeeper of Shuxiangfang. Therefore, unless Li Fengchun is lucky, how can he find out about Nalan Rongruo? Who is Lan Rongruo and where does he live?
What Chen Cao didn't expect was that Li Fengchun was not a group of people. She first thought that the bookstore that published Dream of Red Mansions for the first time should know about Nalan himself. After asking around, she found out that Nalan was the first person to publish Dream of Red Mansions. Juxianju in the west of the city.
"Miss..." Xiaolan quickly ran into Li Fengchun's room and gasped: "Miss, I heard that Juxianju in the west of the city is the bookstore where Dream of Red Mansions first appeared, and it is said that Mr. Nalan himself came to Juxianju in person Ju Tan’s book publishing matters.”
Li Fengchun was overjoyed and wanted to go to Juxianju in person to inquire about it. However, thinking of his identity, he became embarrassed again, so he said: "Xiaolan, this matter is left to you. If you find Mr. Nalan, take this thing with you." Leave it to him."
In the Juxian residence, Li Xiang was looking at the rice paper in his hand in trance. What was written on it was the Mulan poem that Chen Cao made some time ago: "If life is just like the first meeting, why is the autumn wind sad... Why are you so fond of the painting fan?" A promiscuous woman composed poems with such artistic conception."
There was pure jealousy in his words. Xiaochun saw his young lady looking at the rice paper without moving, and then said: "Miss, that Chen Cao is just a libertine, how can he write such artistic conception of poetry? Maybe he came from Some great genius could have plagiarized it."
"Xiaochun, which talented man is willing to be used as a spearman by a villain?" Li Xiang looked at Mulan with a resentful look and said: "Now it seems that it is a pity that he has no chance to participate in the imperial examination. If he reaches the top once, Like Mr. Yangming, he will be famous throughout the Ming Dynasty."
"Tsk..." Xiaochun sneered and said: "Miss, these people are just praising him when they say he is a soldier. Nowadays, there is no great talent in our Ming Dynasty who is not a Jinshi. He is just a general of the Duke's family. It is said that It’s still in name only, and the post of Jinyiwei General Banner is also Enyin’s. Without power and influence, how can he be the center?”
"If you dare to speak ill of Mr. Nalan in front of me again, I will not forgive you."
Xiaochun had never seen her young lady get angry before, but now that she saw Li Xiang getting really angry, she secretly sighed, nodded and laughed, but in her heart she became even more disdainful of Chen Cao.
"Miss," the maid Xiaoxue quickly walked into the back hall and said, "Miss, there is a woman outside who comes to inquire about Nalan Rongruo, saying that she is looking for an old friend."
"Miss, my maid recently heard that Li Fengchun from Qinhuaihe was asking around about Nalan Rongruo, could it be?" Although Xiaochun didn't deal with Chen Cao, it was obvious that his lady had fallen in love with Chen Cao. The promiscuous woman became hostile.
As expected, Li Xiang frowned slightly after hearing this, and then said: "Xiaochun, go and tell her in person, just say that Mr. Nalan himself said that he will not see anyone."
Chen Cao had an important thing to do today, which was to come to Juxianju to get the bonus share after taking out the book. As soon as he arrived at the gate, he saw Li Fengchun's maid Xiaolan standing at the door holding a bundle. The woman Chen Cao basically couldn't see it. Forget it, let alone this little lolita of fifteen or sixteen years old: "Hey, isn't this Miss Xiaolan?" Chen Cao joked: "You lady is not feeling happy in your childhood, so I specially asked you to come here to buy books to spend the day of lovesickness. ?”
In Chen Cao's time, this was a typical teasing remark, but in Xiaolan's heart, it was a sign of friendship for her own lady. Of course, Xiaolan saw that Mr. Nalan, who had made her miss food and drink since he showed up that day, actually appeared. In front of his eyes, tears suddenly filled his eyes: "Mr. Nalan, I...my young lady..."
Xiaolan was tongue-tied for a moment and was so happy that she couldn't speak. Zhou Decai, the shopkeeper inside the door, saw an old acquaintance coming in. He laughed and cupped his hands and said: "Oh, what can I say? Magpies are chirping non-stop today. It turns out to be Mr. Chen." Qi comes to the door, please come in quickly, the boss is waiting for you, Mr. Chen Qi..."
"Mr. Chen Qi?" Xiaolan recited silently in her mind.
Chen Cao didn't continue teasing Xiaolan. He really had no interest in this kind of maid. Occasionally, the thought of forcing herself on her was just a whim.
The speaker was unintentional, but the listener sounded intentional. Chen Cao's words of teasing Xiaolan were overheard by Xiaochun who came out to deliver the message. He immediately felt disgusted with Chen Cao, then he had evil thoughts, and then turned around and headed towards the inner courtyard.
"Chen...Mr. Nalan..." Xiaolan shouted loudly. Seeing Chen Cao turn around and look at her, she blushed and said, "My lady asked the maid to inquire about Mr.'s residence. Fortunately, I am here today." This time I met you, sir. This is my young lady asking your maid to hand it over to him after seeing him. Please be sure to serve him."
With that said, regardless of whether Chen Cao agreed or not, he handed the baggage to Chen Cao, and then trotted away with a blushing face.
Zhou Decai was well versed in human affairs and said with a smile: "It seems that Mr. Chen Qi is quite popular with women in his life. He actually let a young lady in his boudoir be so affectionate towards you. So, so..."
Chen Cao rolled his eyes at him without saying anything. Then he realized something. In the Ming Dynasty, anyone who was attracted by a brothel woman and promised him his body was a good story. In the eyes of scholars, it was a beautiful thing. Don’t you hear that staying overnight with prostitutes was a common problem in the Ming Dynasty’s official circles? That was a fashionable thing in this era, and it was still the same even in the last years of Chongzhen, let alone the Taichang period.
When Xiaochun turned around, Chen Cao followed him into the inner courtyard. Seeing Li Xiang sitting at the stone table in the inner courtyard reading a storybook, he smiled and said, "Oh, Boss Li is so elegant."
Li Xiang had a good impression of Chen Cao from the first time he saw him. Now Chen Cao is famous in half of southern Zhili as Nalan Rongruo. Who doesn't want to see his true face? If those who claim to be great talents are allowed to see Chen Cao, You are only seventeen years old, so you should be mad at him.
"Mr. Nalan, please sit down." Li Xiang also changed his name for Chen Cao, which made Chen Cao feel very comfortable. Seeing Chen Cao holding a baggage in his hand, he smiled and said, "Sir, you think your bonus money is You can’t pack it, so why did you bring the baggage to pack it?”
"What? Miss, that prostitute's maid gave it to him." Xiaochun said with a look of disgust.
Li Xiang doesn't think highly of prostitutes, let alone prostitutes that everyone wants to ride: "It seems that Mr. is very popular."
In fact, Chen Cao didn't like Xiaochun very much. He often had the urge to press her to the ground and rub her: "I don't know what it is, I haven't opened it yet."
"Xiaochun, bring me some tea, sir."
Chen Cao lowered his head and glanced at the tea stems floating in the teacup, and his heart suddenly became angry. He raised his head and glanced at Xiaochun who was squinting at him, and wanted to take action. However, in front of Li Xiang and thinking about his own money, he suppressed it. Still smiling: "Boss Li is so polite. I won't drink the tea. I'll get the money and then leave. I have something else to do."
"Xiaoxue, go get Mr.'s banknote." Li Xiang nodded and ordered, then raised his head and looked at Chen Cao faintly and said: "I really didn't expect that Mr., a martial artist, who is so good in the storybook, can actually do it. To write such a masterpiece, I have a heartless request for you, and I hope your husband will agree to it."
"You said..." Chen Cao was lusting after Xiaochun and had no idea what Li Xiang was talking about.
"Sir, can you write a poem for the little girl?" After Li Xiang finished speaking, he lowered his head to drink tea because she blushed.
"Hey, I thought it was a big deal," Chen Cao looked at Li Xiang with a smile and said, "Boss Li is so generous. We are old acquaintances again, so what if I give you a song?" He immediately said casually: "Well... I have it. ...The sun is setting in the majestic sorrow of separation, and the whip is pointing eastward to the end of the world. The falling red is not a heartless thing, it turns into spring mud to protect the flowers. How about it?"
Chen Cao looked at Li Xiang with interest, and then admired how many poems she had memorized. However, she didn't know Li Xiang's mood at the moment, and she couldn't describe it. In Chen Cao's opinion, this poem had a good artistic conception, but in this ancient person In his eyes, especially the talented woman, Li Xiang immediately heard the admiration and liking for the woman expressed in the poem, so he blushed even more, and was speechless for a long time.
Chen Cao took the banknote, one thousand five hundred taels, so much. If it were exchanged for silver, it would not be bragging. Mr. Chen couldn't take it away at all. He had to use a car: "Then I would like to thank Boss Li. Mr. Chen will take his leave. .”
When Chen Cao turned around and left, thinking about hiding his merit and fame, a maid caught up with him with a teacup, looked at Chen Cao cautiously and said, "Sir, your tea..."
Chen Cao was originally in a very comfortable mood, but when he saw this bowl of white steaming tea with tea stems floating on it, he immediately became angry. He then took the teacup, looked around, pointed to the latrine in the distance and said: " Little sister, is that a latrine?"
The maid nodded with some fear, and saw Chen Cao walking over, and with a very handsome backhand, he poured all the tea into the closed latrine door. Just as she was about to curse, she heard a scream from the latrine behind her, and then There was a painful scratching at the hut door.
Chen Cao calmly turned his head and looked at the maid and said, "You didn't see anything, do you know?"
The maid nodded blankly, and Chen Cao continued: "You can't say anything, can you?"
The maid still nodded, and Chen Cao added: "If you say so, I will take off your clothes and spank you..."
"Ah..." The maid screamed in fright and ran away.
Chen Cao smiled and turned to look at the latrine. The scratching sound was loud, indicating that the people inside were seriously injured by the scalding tea. Chen Cao looked around and saw that no one was there. He placed the teacup beside the flower stand and disappeared without a trace.
