For Lu Deguang, the Minister of Rites, this job was already relatively leisurely in the court. Although I sit in the lobby of the government office, major matters are only handled by my superiors, and I only have the name of a counselor. Although he consulted, Lu Deguang often said nothing during the deliberations. He knew that he was a person with a good reputation. He was known as a filial son in his hometown, and as a talented man full of articles both inside and outside Nanjing. This reputation was not in vain. Lu Deguang recalled proudly that he passed the provincial examination when he was sixteen years old, and passed the national examination when he was nineteen years old. He was awarded Jinshi, but returned to his hometown in glory!
He opened his eyes, and there was a ray of warm light coming from the gap between the lush and huge pine tree crowns outside the window.
After that, he rose to prominence and became the magistrate of a state so remote that his name had even been forgotten. It was he who cultivated land for the people with light taxes and rectified laws and regulations, and the people became rich for a while. Before Lu Deguang left, the people surrounded him for more than three floors. They were all crowded with people, and some even grabbed the rope of the carriage to keep Lord Zhizhou away.
He recalled such scenes no less than twice. After all, he had served in too many state capitals, and the people generally had this attitude. After thinking about it, Lu Deguang chuckled. He became energetic, stood up from the chair, and walked to the window to make the pot of tea.
His promotion to Beijing was a coincidence. In order to win over the people, Liu Zhennian recommended him to the court as an official in order to win over. However, Lu Deguang refused to give in and impeached Liu's cronies repeatedly and impartially. Liu Zhennian did not take action against him out of some minor concerns. When someone threatens him with this, he will say harsh words.
"I have never been a liar." Lu Deguang said those words calmly.
He swayed the teapot slowly, and after a while he poured it out. His face appeared in the tea. His white hair reflected in the cup was as dull as silver, and his eyebrows were half black. The bridge of his nose was straight underneath, and although his face was wrinkled and covered with skin, it was It still has a majestic spirit. He looked at the cup and was stunned for a while, then raised his hand and drank it all. Lu Deguang went into the room and took out his court clothes, put them on, looked at a pair of bronze mirrors, tightened his cuffs, tugged on his front, and strode out. He received the order last night and was entrusted by Quanzhi Gongju. Since the examination would not be held until tomorrow, he went back to the Ministry of Rites to arrange his duties. "Sir." The waiter came forward and said. When Lu Deguang saw this official, he was very friendly. His surname was Li Yong, and he had been following him for several years. He had long been Lu Deguang's confidant, so he was not unfamiliar with him and called him by his name: "Li Yong, but someone wants to see me?"
Li Yong smiled: "Your Excellency, you have been in the exam for several years, and your predictions are not very accurate: there are indeed candidates who sent someone to see you."
"Anyone can see me? Let him go, it must be those things... You remember what I said, I have never been a liar!" Lu Deguang's eyes were on fire, and he shook his head disdainfully. Li Yong said: "Why don't you meet me, my lord? I heard that I was sent here by the son of an lord in the court."
"Let's meet. If you are really here to have a joint, I'll face you..."
Lu Deguang saw the man wearing a felt hat. After he came in, he closed the door gently and immediately took off the hat. His cunning eyes came out of the hat. He knew at a glance that something was up to him, so he hesitated in his heart.
He saw that this man was quite old, and the hand holding the hat was pale and dull, with a lot of calluses on it. He was not the kind of person who was pampered and pampered. The man watched Li Yong carrying a large box of things in, and he opened the box neatly. He didn't know what was in the big and small boxes inside, but Lu Deguang had already hesitated and stared at the boxes in confusion.
"I don't dare to open it," the man's voice was rough, with a thick accent, "You should know what it is." He then picked up a box, the corners of the box were inlaid with gold, and when he picked it up, the gold light was dazzling. Times brighter.
The words he just said still echoed in his mind, and he was extremely sad for a moment, and even his clear eyes were stained by the sadness.
"What's your name?" Lu Deguang was extremely confused.
"Sir, my name is Cheng Congyuan, and I am the servant of Ye Long, the censor of the Central and Left Capital of the DPRK. The young master of the family wants to take the imperial examination, so... it is not respectful."
"The name is unknown. The fraud prevention is so strict, why do you give me money?" Lu Deguang only looked at the box without glancing at him, as if he was angry.
"I know you officials have a lot of tricks up their sleeves." Cheng Congyuan smiled slyly, which made Lu Deguang angry. He stamped his foot and said disdainfully: "I have a lot of tricks up my sleeve? Let me tell you, you are a slave everywhere. There should be a lot of money to be greedy! But I am different, how can I join in the corruption!" His voice was slightly trembling, and he didn't know whether it was guilt or anger. After saying that, he lifted up his official robe and sat on the chair.
Cheng Congyuan took his time and found pen and paper on his desk. Lu Deguang looked up at him and saw Cheng Congyuan writing as he said, "My father's handwriting is like this..." Lu Deguang looked at that On the paper, the words "Zhi" and "Ye" were written. It didn't look very good, but it was quite different from ordinary people.
He picked up the paper and asked: "What... does this mean?" Cheng Congyuan smiled again and said: "No matter what book or article, these two words are the most common. When you review the paper, you only pay attention to these two words." I understand. You can see that my grandfather's strokes are quick and light. The word "ye" is narrower. I am the best at handling other people's words, and they are not as big as mine. respectively."
"If the other examples are similar, then isn't it all for nothing?" Lu Deguang looked at the two words carefully and asked.
"If you are still worried, we have made an appointment to ask me to do a question on 'Those who have perseverance have perseverance'. You are right when you see this question."
"He sent you here?" Lu Deguang was still a little scared.
"My lord, do you think I dare to make my own decision? Don't worry. After we discussed it, I told me that I will definitely write according to this." Lu Deguang nodded doubtfully, and saw Cheng Congyuan put on his hat, but still did not forget to respectfully say After making a deep bow, he walked away.
Lu Deguang asked Li Yong to give him a gift, and he took advantage of the time to unpack the box; he took out a small box and opened it gently. There were five grains of silver in sequence inside, and a little bright light shone in. His pupils made him unable to open his eyes for a while. He hurriedly knocked on the box and carefully put it back in its place. But this white blocky thing lingers in my mind, and I can even notice the back and forth of its lines very clearly. He felt that he had never been so fascinated by silver.
No one expected that Cheng Congyuan would go to Lu Deguang's government office lobby. This time I left early and returned quickly, and I didn’t have to worry about long on the road. He hurried back to his apartment after a long journey, and saw that Ye Yongjia had just woken up from sleep. A hearty smile appeared on his face: "I just got up! The exam is not around the corner, so I need to think about a topic."
"Sir, I have been worrying about this for several days, and there is nothing I can write about."
Cheng Congyuan replied: "I have found a good topic for you, just think about 'Those who have constant wealth have perseverance'. Don't mention anything about current affairs and political affairs. That can only be said after you become an official!"
Ye Yongjia listened deeply to his master's words and immediately drafted the topic. He wrote two or three drafts. When it was handed over to Congyuan for review, Mr. Cheng was uncharacteristically just praising and saying that there was nothing wrong with it, which made Yongjia even more confident.
All this did not worry Cheng Congyuan too much. Not long after Ye Yongjia returned to his apartment after taking the entrance examination, the results were released. As expected, Ye Yongjia chose to be a tribute scholar. Although the ranking is not high, it is enough to cheer up Ye Yongjia. He laughed loudly, walked around, and sometimes talked to himself. When he saw Cheng Congyuan coming in from outside the house, he shouted in a low voice: "Mr. Cheng, I want to see the emperor... When I come back, I will be a Jinshi!" I said this several times, and actually shed tears as I said it, lying on the table and sobbing.
Cheng Congyuan was also sincerely happy, with slightly red eyes. After being stunned for a while, he stepped forward and patted Ye Yongjia on the shoulder, laughing loudly: "Why are you crying! With your talent and learning, why don't you take the imperial examination? I want to see a Jinshi master when I come back!" Ye Yongjia raised his head and held on tightly. Holding Cheng Congyuan's hand: "I...I am here today, thanks to Mr. Cheng...I will show you a Jinshi when I come back!" His voice was trembling and his hands were shaking. Cheng Congyuan held his hand, held it tighter, and said word by word:
"I'm waiting for you to come back!"
The morning fog in Baohe Hall has not yet receded, and many candidates are lined up outside the hall. Many officials are walking around inside the hall. There are tables and chairs placed horizontally and vertically inside, and papers on the tables are scattered in a pile. The ministers handed it over for personal review, not the emperor, but the prime minister of the dynasty. The candidates didn't know it yet, but for the ministers, this was a common occurrence.
The emperor has never lived in the East Palace for a day. Due to the death of the former prince, the late emperor was undecided about his succession. Several princes were fighting for power. The emperor was even almost assassinated by the guards, and his life was not safe. Fortunately, he waited until the death of the late emperor before he came to Beijing to take the throne. But the emperor was extremely strange. His face was dull, and he could not see any joy, anger, sorrow or joy, which made people unpredictable. Except for going to court on weekdays, he rarely summoned the ministers and ministers. It was said that he liked to play chess in his room, but no one played with him. Playing chess: Because every time he plays with himself, he doesn't let anyone get close to him; he never gets tired of playing, and it's rumored that he often ends up in a draw.
The eunuchs secretly said that the emperor did not know how to play chess. At night, the emperor knew it somehow and said to the eunuchs unintentionally: "I am very good at chess." The eunuchs were so frightened that their clothes were wet with sweat and they quickly kowtowed and admitted their mistake. . But the emperor didn't look at them, staring blankly at the sparse stars, Gu Zi repeated:
"I play chess very well."
Ye Yongjia and a group of candidates knelt in front of the hall, never daring to raise their heads. Ye Yongjia expected that when he raised his head, he would be able to see the emperor's face. He sketched the emperor's appearance in his mind, sometimes handsome and mighty, sometimes solemn... He slowly raised his head with various speculations, but he didn't see any emperor.
Shocked. He looked around, and all the candidates were also very surprised. I saw an old minister with white beard and hair standing aside, looking steadily at the frightened candidates, without any panic: "Don't be surprised. The emperor has always been ill, so he cannot come to this hall in person to summon all the students. So he asked The veteran came here to review the papers, discuss the top three with the officials, and then report back."
The prime minister sat calmly on a chair at the side of the palace, took out several bundles of ink scrolls, and opened them one by one. "The first A, first place... will be awarded the title of Jinshi." The candidate behind Ye Yongjia stood up, walked to the front and knelt down. "The first and second place...will be given the rank of Jinshi." The prime minister glanced around with bright eyes.
…
Ye Yongjia's ears and eyes were extremely sharp. Hearing his name stung his ears, and then he knew who the Jinshi status belonged to. His joy was uncontrollable. "Ye Yongjia, the 70th and second best, is awarded the rank of Jinshi."
Ye Yongjia's lips and teeth trembled, and he knelt down behind the dozens of candidates step by step. He looked at the majesty in vain, and his heart suddenly pounded. Suddenly he felt his hands were cold, and when he lowered his head, he saw that his sleeves were wet. He hurriedly wiped his tears with his sleeves.
"Sir! Sir!" Ye Yongjia waved his sleeves, with a smile on his face, and hugged Cheng Congyuan as soon as he saw him; Cheng Congyuan patted his shoulder blades hard: "I have fought for the Ye family! When I return home, sir I will happily prepare a banquet for you..."
Ye Yongjia's eyes filled with tears: "No matter what you are like, sir, I respect you the most!" After saying that, he knelt down, called "Mr. Cheng" and kowtowed. "Master, please speak nicely..." Cheng Congyuan hurriedly picked up his arm, and when he saw his face, he sighed and shed tears.
"I have been extremely kind and righteous to you..."
The return of Lord Jinshi was not too public, but the ceremony was indispensable. Ye Yongjia was first surrounded by a chaotic crowd and arrived at the ancestral grave of the Ye family in Jinan; then he went to the Ye Zhongjing Gong Temple and paid homage to his uncle. Ye Yongjia was extremely disgusted with these etiquettes, and his mood was filled with anger. Cheng Congyuan saw that he was confused and taught in a low voice: "I am not a child anymore, why do I still do everything like this? I will have to take care of things in the future, and I will have more things to think about. Now I'm getting impatient." Ye Yongjia agreed.
They got off their horses and headed towards the inner courtyard of Ye Mansion. Ye Long was sitting in the main hall and slowly raised his eyebrows. When he saw the two of them kneeling on the ground, he stood up and slowly stroked Congyuan's silver-white head: "Without the teacher's guidance, Quanzi would not be what he is today. Although you are not a serious invitation, , but no one can teach you better than you... I will call you sir!"
"Master, it's nothing..." Cheng Congyuan's voice was dry and he swallowed hard. "It's not easy for me either..." He slowly raised his head, his eyes red.
Ye Long suddenly became speechless. He turned around and walked over without looking at Cong Yuan. Ye Yongjia was also silent.
"...Master Jinshi has come out of the house!" Ye Long seemed to sneer and turned back to the inner room.
Cheng Congyuan stood up immediately and saw Ye Yongjia still frozen there. He helped him up with his hands and said with a smile: "Can't you hear it? I am complimenting you!" He did not move at first, then he woke up and numbly He said "Oh" and bowed to Cheng Congyuan in a hurry, then followed Ye Long into the back room. Cheng Congyuan stood in the hall and sighed heavily.
Around the end of the year, Ye Long received an order to return to work as soon as possible. At this time, Ye Yongjia also entered the capital again and was awarded military science to Shi Zhong. This was agreed upon by the ministers considering Ye Long's face. But just a few days after Ye Yongjia started working in Beijing, Ye Long was about to enter the court again. Seeing that there was no one in charge at home, Cheng Congyuan thought about it many times and finally wrote a letter asking his master to come back.
Ye Yongjia was a little overwhelmed when he opened the letter. Cheng Congyuan went straight to the point and asked him to report for leave and return home. However, it was the first time that he decided on such a big matter, and Ye Yongjia was very scared.
But after all, these words came out of the abyss, so he did not hesitate at all. He immediately asked for leave in the name of "on the anniversary of the death of my ancestors, I should return to my hometown to attend sacrifices." The ministers were well aware of the details of this invitation. , also submitted a request because of his interaction with Ye Long, and the emperor was very considerate and approved immediately.
Ye Yongjia left Beijing in a hurry and spent several days traveling. When he got home, the sun had already set for most of the day. He wanted to see his father quickly, so he opened the door alone. It was dark inside. Only when a servant standing behind the rockery led him with an oil lamp, and the dim light flickered up and down, was he able to find the main road a little clearer. Ye Yongjia turned around and saw the slave. He was short in stature and his complexion was as dark as coal, probably due to the dim light. His hair was disheveled, covering half of his forehead, and his eyes were looking around, always uneasy.
"Why didn't Mr. Cheng come?" His tone was full of contempt. "My servant saw that Mr. Cheng was tired and told him to take a rest. Sir, he left early."
"oh."
The servant held the lamp and bowed to clear the way. After a while, Ye Yongjia no longer disliked him so much that he actually asked him: "What is your name?" The servant turned around and said with a smile: "The villain's name is Kou Zhong, he is insignificant. , I forgot about it after I asked..." He was talking to Ye Yongjia, not paying attention to the road, and suddenly stepped on the ground; the lamp swung for three times, and he slipped and rolled on the grass slope. Ye Yongjia stopped in a hurry, but saw Kou Zhong getting up on his own, still holding the lamp tightly in his hand. Suddenly in shock, he raised his eyes and saw Cheng Congyuan striding towards him, surrounded by a circle of oil lamps and shouting:
"Kou Zhongli! You don't do anything in your daily life. You don't say a word when the master comes back, so you go and look for a familiar face!"
Kou Zhong stumbled and fell to the ground again. He stood up immediately, unable to stand up straight, and hurriedly ran back. Before Ye Yongjia knew what was going on, Cheng Congyuan led a few people and came over with his face flushed.
He stopped him hastily: "What's wrong with that guy called Kou?"
Cheng Congyuan took a few breaths and gritted his teeth and said: "This guy likes to fawn over me. I want to kill him! Seeing that he couldn't please me, he came to take advantage of me again and wanted me to take care of him. I I really took pity on him and gave him an acre of land behind the house. He took two or three times the money from opening a household and put it in his own purse, so the master immediately removed him. Good day, he got the news early and told me to rest Come on, come and see me yourself! Think about trying to get me to work for you. Don’t trust him. If people like this get involved, they might run away with their money one day!" He said righteously. "It's not honest for such a person to be allowed to patrol the night... I might as well arrest him and expel him!"
After saying that, he asked someone to get it, but Ye Yongjia did not give way. After a long time, he sighed: "That man is quite pitiful... Mr. Cheng, just spare him once, just once. Isn't that feasible?"
Cheng Congyuan's face suddenly turned pale, and he said anxiously: "I think he is pitiful, but these servants in the house are very pitiful, so why do you allow them to do whatever they want? This guy has also been greedy for a lot of money! Maybe there is something wrong with him behind the scenes. I still have a lot of money..."
Ye Yongjia smiled apologetically and said, "I listen to Mr. Cheng... but it's getting late today. Let's kick him out tomorrow!" Cheng Congyuan stared at him blankly. Ye Yongjia walked to the front and called a few people around Cheng Congyuan: "You are also tired. Go back and rest early."
"You go away, I'll tell you." Cheng Congyuan also agreed.
"Understood." Several people saluted and headed towards the other end of the road.
Cheng Congyuan picked up the lamp that he threw on the ground. When he saw that it was still bright, he took it to Ye Yongjia and said, "Do you know what it's like to be a master?"
"Things are complicated. I haven't taken care of the house, so I always ask Mr. Cheng for advice on everything."
"It's really uncomfortable!" Cheng Congyuan laughed and looked at Ye Yongjia calmly, "This family is good, but we have to change our approach. From now on, I am no longer alone. I have to think that I am the owner of this house. , There is no name on the plaque of the house! There is only one 'Ye'. The house has no mercy, will not pity people, and will not be kind to people. As long as it cannot fail..." Cheng Congyuan stopped. Ye Yongjia's expression became solemn. "If you fall, 'Ye' will still be able to survive for several generations; but if 'Ye' falls, this ancestral business will be completely gone. I only care about the life of this mansion, and don't care about the lives of others..."
Cheng Congyuan suddenly put the lamp in Ye Yongjia's hand, and his appearance was clearly visible in the darkness. "Even if I put a knife on my neck for the Ye family! I won't complain!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. The lamp in my hand trembled. When these words came out of Cheng Congyuan's mouth, he felt horrified, but after Ye Yongjia shuddered, his eyes became firmer.
"Mr. Xie Cheng's teachings." He said calmly.
"I understand..." Cheng Congyuan sighed helplessly.
Ye Yongjia got up earlier than usual this day and was already sitting in the meeting hall around Maochu. He ate his tea leisurely and suddenly stood up. When he saw Cheng Congyuan who had just arrived, he smiled and said, "Mr. Cheng got up early." "Where?" Cheng Congyuan bowed, "I have an ordinary day." Lidu is here at this hour, but my appearance has changed since I came up!"
Ye Yongjia glanced at the outside of the hall with his peripheral vision: "My mother is not in good health. If the whole family relies on Mr. Cheng, how can I do it? I must take charge of the Ye Mansion so that my father and Mr. Cheng are not so tired... "Cheng Congyuan nodded and smiled. Ye Yongjia raised his eyes and looked out of the hall, impatience gradually showing on his face. After pacing a few times, he talked calmly with Cheng Congyuan for a while. He also looked out the door from time to time, scratching his sleeves anxiously, but kept pressing the button. He is angry and refuses to break out. His face became more and more embarrassed.
When Cheng Congyuan saw what he was doing, he quickly stood up and said, "Sir, I'm going out for a while."
He left the main hall. He was speechless at first, but suddenly he stopped and shouted in all directions: "You slaves, how long have you been sleeping for! You haven't come by this time!" This shout was nothing less than a loud thunder. , rolling in from the meeting hall to every door and room. Sure enough, not long after, a dozen stewards were getting dressed and rushed over. One of them hurried up to meet him and smiled attentively. Cheng Congyuan ignored him and kicked him up. The man bent over and staggered a few steps. , fell to the ground, turned over but didn't dare to get up.
Cheng Congyuan cursed: "Why are you so unruly when the master is not around? What's wrong with the family funeral? Master is tired of waiting, and you are still complaining like this... Get out of here! Get out of here!" Several slaves saw Cheng Congyuan. The blue veins popped out and he knelt down in panic.
Mr. Cheng retorted again: "If you have the ability, kneel down and show me to the master, what's the use of kneeling on me? Let's see what the master says..." Several slaves kowtowed, and all of them ran into the meeting hall like dogs; only the one who fell on the ground The slave was dusting off his clothes when Cheng Congyuan scolded with an eyebrow:
"Hurry up and beat the master!"
