"Brother Zi Zhang's works are truly unparalleled. None of the works in Langya Pavilion can compare with your article."
Tian Ren, Ren An, and Sima Qian were invited to Langya Pavilion today to see if any good works would come out.
It's a pity that I watched it for a long time.
I haven't found any better articles.
then!
Tian Rencai said to Sima Qian in such a flattering manner.
At the end of the competition, the works will be presented to the emperor for viewing. And Emperor Wu liked people with literary talent, so Sima Qian's articles would naturally attract his Majesty's attention.
The future prospects are limitless.
Plus!
His father Sima Tan was Taishi Ling, so Tian Ren complimented Sima Qian and established a good relationship with him.
After hearing Tian Ren's words, Sima Qian smiled faintly and said, "My dear friend, I'm sorry. I have traveled all over the world and I know that there are mountains beyond the mountains. I can't take it for granted."
Ren An on the side said with a smile: "Zizhang is too humble. Even if your article is not unprecedented, it can easily win the first place in this competition. When the time comes, we will win the million Dashang, don’t forget to invite us to drink at the best restaurant in Chang’an!”
Tian Ren also took advantage of the situation and said: "Yes, I want the best restaurant. This is a million-dollar reward. I have never seen so much money. After you take it, don't be stingy!"
Sima Qian laughed and said: "If I can really get it, I will definitely invite you to the best restaurant. How about going to Chang'an Le? I heard that it is jointly opened by businessmen from the Li family and the Sang family. It should be the best in Chang'an city. It’s a restaurant.”
The Sima family has always been on good terms with the Li family, which is somewhat similar to the relationship between aristocratic families.
Are you saying that there were no aristocratic families in the Western Han Dynasty?
right! Not right either!
Starting from the Warring States Period, those so-called aristocratic classes were defeated one after another in the Qin Unification War, the Anti-Qin War, and the Chu-Han War, leaving a serious void in the middle class of society!
then!
The newly rising scholar class and the achievements of the Han Dynasty quickly filled this gap.
There are relatives of the emperor in the front, and heroes and nobles in the back.
The most typical example is Yang Xi, who became the fourth and third prince of the Yang family starting from the time when Xiang Yu was cut into pieces and made a marquis.
certainly.
The Four Generations and Three Dukes are completely different from what is mentioned in "Three Kingdoms". The one mentioned is Yuan Shao's ancestor.
But he is already a latecomer.
After all!
The germination of aristocratic families began in the Han Dynasty.
When Ren An heard what his friend Sima Qian said, he immediately shook his head and said, "How can Chang'an Le be the best restaurant? It's just an imitation of other people's Here Le Restaurant."
"Let me tell you!"
"It's better to have fun here."
However, Sima Qian still stubbornly believed that Chang'an was better.
after all!
It was a restaurant owned by the Li family, who had good relations with the Sima family. From his standpoint, it was hard not to recommend the Li family's Chang'anle!
So later, Ren An and Sima Qian started a debate about which of the two restaurants was better.
Tian Ren didn't care about this.
Anyway, his father, Uncle Tian, is the Prime Minister of Lu and has nothing to do with any family. He is happy to have a leisurely life and not offend anyone.
At this moment.
He found that many people were watching a work in front of him, and many people in the crowd were admiring it, so he interrupted the quarrel between the two and said, "Zichang, Shaoqing, you see there are many people in front of you. It’s not like we’ve produced another great work.”
Hear the words.
Sima Qian and Tian Ren stopped arguing.
I saw many people in front of me commenting on the work.
in this way.
Naturally, they are not unfamiliar with it. Sima Qian's article came out a few days ago, and it was also the same situation.
Ever since!
Ren An clapped his hands and said, "Hey, what's the use of arguing about which restaurant is better? We don't run it. Come on, my dear brother, let's go and see what good articles come out."
"
"Shaoqing is right!" Sima Qian also laughed.
Subsequently.
The three of them squeezed into the crowd to watch. Only then did they realize that what attracted the attention was not an article, but a painting!
The painting is so delicate that one can even clearly see every background tree, including the horse's mane.
Lifelike!
The most shocking thing is the girl on the horse!
It seems to be looking at it from another angle.
The girl's perspective is still staring at you.
For a moment.
The three of them seemed to be trapped in the scene in the painting, and they were all fascinated. It took a long time to come back to their senses.
"What kind of painting technique was used to paint the place so realistically? It's amazing! Brother Zi, now, I'm afraid your article will meet your opponent." Ren An said in shock.
And what happened here.
On the second floor not far away, Huo Guang and Wei and his wife had a full view.
At this moment.
Mr. Wei said excitedly: "Old Biao's paintings are indeed outstanding. They have only been put up for a long time, and they have already attracted so many people to stop and stop. After a while, I am afraid that they will be more famous than the articles Sima Qian wrote a few days ago." .”
However.
Compared to Mr. and Mrs. Wei's happiness.
Huo Guang frowned tightly and said nothing.
because!
He felt it was not enough.
So after some thought, he arranged for the guards to call the rangers Fei Xie and Zhao Ji. Without saying a word, they were rewarded with a large amount of money.
After Fei Xie and Zhao Ji received the money, they looked at each other and asked with some confusion: "What is Huo Yilang doing?"
"Activity funds, after all, there is a package plan to be made to rescue Hero Guo. I still have some money, so I can't let the knights pay for it themselves or go hungry, right?" Huo Guang said lightly.
Huo Guang knew the nature of the rangers very well.
After a meal of wine and meat, you can stab the brothers in both sides.
Ask for some money!
I can stab the brothers again.
Huo Guang treated them to wine and meat last time, and gave them money this time. Invisibly, he had gradually bribed these rangers.
Anyway, nothing else.
The so-called Huo Yilang's reputation has already risen in the knight-errant circle.
After Fei Xie took the money, he asked with some confusion: "Huo Yilang, what is the next plan?"
"Promote that painting, I want you to do it, everyone inside and outside Chang'an City will know it. And, to build momentum for it, say that the painting is better than Sima Qian's prose. As for why you do this, don't ask why, Shanren I have a clever plan!" Huo Guang said softly.
See this.
Feixian nodded and said, "Okay, I'll contact the other rangers and just do as you're told."
immediately.
Zhao Ji and Fei Xie bowed their hands to Huo Guang and left.
At this time, Huo Guang's eyes turned to his painting again, and he inadvertently smiled.
What does building momentum mean?
In fact, it is easy to understand and can be understood as "brushing".
For example, brushing subscriptions when writing online articles, brushing orders on Taobao, etc. Anyway, they are using their own special means to gain maximum traffic for themselves.
then.
Under Huo Guang's operation.
For a while.
His oil painting soon became known to everyone in Chang'an City, so many people came to see it.
A few days later, even the people in Langya Pavilion were crowded.
Huo Guang was afraid of a stampede, so he immediately ordered people to limit the number of people entering and exiting to a certain number to ensure that no accidents would occur.
And with the appearance of Huo Guang's oil painting.
Various other paintings gradually began to appear in Langya Pavilion, most of which were ink paintings.
but.
In terms of fame, most of them are not as good as their bosses.
Ma Qian's article. In addition, other types of calligraphy and paper works, such as lyrics, songs, and poems, have gradually increased in number.
After all, the article Sima Qian's article scares many people away, so they won't waste more time dwelling on it.
The development of Fu in the Han Dynasty was not much worse than that of articles. Of course, many Han Fu appeared in the competition.
The issue is!
Pearls and jade come first, no matter how many good works related to calligraphy and paper come out later!
in general.
The debate over the top spot has fallen on Huo Guang's oil paintings and Sima Qian's articles. Although some people often argue about this, under Huo Guang's operation, most people support his painting.
Only a small number of people still support Sima Qian's article.
At this time.
Dong Zhongshu from the Gongyang sect, Duke Xiaqiu Jiang from the Guliang sect, and a dark-skinned old man from the Zuozhuan sect.
The three of them gathered in front of the oil painting of "Girl on Horseback".
Because of their different factions and differences of opinions, most of the time when the three of them get together they will quarrel.
Many people know that the teachings advocated by the Gongyang Sect state that revenge can be repaid even in ten lifetimes, and they say that the Confucian scholars of the Gongyang Sect dare to kill people with swords, so they should not be humiliated.
This statement is not accurate.
What is hatred?
For example, the hatred of family and country, the hatred of killing one's parents, the hatred of taking away one's wife, etc...
If someone kills someone after a quarrel, that is not called revenge.
That's called murder.
Let’s just talk about the three major schools of Confucianism: Gongyang School, Guliang School, and Zuozhuan School!
What about a quarrel?
In Confucianism, too much happened.
Almost every day they were pointing at each other's noses and calling their faction's doctrines nonsense.
Take Ram Pie for example.
His teachings were the most radical, but he was also criticized harshly. Even the disciples of the Guliang sect were able to find problems in every detail of various remarks made by the Gongyang sect. The inconsistencies even a great scholar like Dong Zhongshu could not explain.
But it's obvious.
The Gongyang faction is the most hardline, but in modern times, it is a hawkish mindset, which is in line with the temperament of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.
As soon as Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty left.
His descendants were not so warlike and became close to the Guliang sect, and Confucianism gradually entered the so-called "corrupt Confucian" mentality.
now.
The leaders of the three major factions looked at the oil painting with different expressions on their faces.
The old man from the Zuo Chuan sect looked as if the matter had nothing to do with him.
Duke Xiaqiu Jiang of the Guliang sect looked at the oil painting, held his beard and said with a smile: "Hahaha, Mr. Dong, although I... I, my disciple of Guliang, did not get the best results this time But if I compete for the top spot, I’m afraid it won’t fall to you...you, the ram.”
Dong Zhongshu heard this.
Then he snorted and said, "That's none of your business, Gu Liang's!"
Duke Xiaqiu Jiang put his hands behind his back and said, "It has nothing to do with me... me and Guliang, but I am Le... Lele is happy to say so!"
The words fell.
He turned and left.
Also leaving was the dark-skinned little old man from the Zuo Chuan sect.
Only Dong Zhongshu was left looking at the oil painting. Looking at the girl in the painting, he frowned slightly.
There is no other reason!
Just because she looks too... like Dong Xun.
"Strange, strange, really strange. Could it be that the girl in this painting is..."
.......
.......
In the blink of an eye, more than ten days have passed. The competition on calligraphy and paper creation has ended, and Langya Pavilion will no longer accept new works.
And after the competition is over.
Dong Zhongshu, Xiaqiu Jianggong and others also selected the ten best works in this competition, and the attendant Sang Hongyang presented them to His Majesty.
The servant is your majesty’s closest minister!
In Hanwu
During the imperial period, people could even enter and leave the palace directly without any so-called edicts.
at this time.
Sang Shizhong took the ten works and said to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty: "Your Majesty, these are the ten works selected for this calligraphy and paper competition. In terms of literary attainments, Sima Qian, the son of Taishi Ling, has the best articles. good!"
The Sima family is on good terms with the Li family.
The Li family had some relationships with the Sang family merchants. Naturally, Sang Hongyang, who was a member of the Sang family, was the first to introduce Sima Qian to them.
After Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty read Sima Qian's article, he said calmly: "Is Sima Tan's son? Well, his literary talent is not bad."
"correct!"
"How many books and papers were sold in this competition?"
Sang Hongyang cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, almost half a million pieces of writing paper!"
"Half a million pieces of paper? Calculated as one dollar per piece of paper, that's only half a million dollars! As far as I know, the amount you paid for the top spot this time is a million dollars. Doesn't that mean I'm still at a loss? Five hundred thousand?" Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty suddenly frowned.
Look like that.
It seems that this million was paid for by him.
But that's right.
From the perspective of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, everything in the world belonged to him. The money paid by the minister is the money paid by him.
At this time, Sang Hongyang quickly wiped the big beads of sweat on his forehead and said, "Your Majesty, this is all Huo Yilang's idea. According to him, it is to facilitate the spread of writing and paper in other counties in the future."
"If it's expensive here in Chang'an and cheap in other places, it will be profitable."
"When businessmen get involved, I'm afraid there will be trouble."
However.
Faced with what Sang Hongyang said, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty did not answer anything, but continued to read the following works.
original.
He thought that although Sima Qian's article was very good, others could not be much different.
But I didn't know that I was watching.
The articles written by later generations are getting worse and worse as they are written.
As for Han Fu and so on.
For Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, who had long been accustomed to seeing Han Fu written by Sima Xiangru, how could the Han Fu written by others be of any interest to him.
Immediately.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sighed and said: "This younger generation seems to be getting worse and worse in terms of literary talent. What kind of mess are they writing? Can this be called Fu?"
"Huh?"
"This painting... is really excellent, giving people a lifelike feeling. Sang Hongyang, why don't you introduce it first?"
Sang Hongyang immediately said nervously: "I don't know who painted this painting, but it was signed Qilin Caizi. I really don't know how to introduce it!"
Qilin talented man?
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty looked down, and sure enough, the painting was signed with these four words.
only.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty looked at these four words and couldn't help but laugh. He said: "Haha, such a fortune...Hey, no, I seem to have heard of it somewhere!"
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty thought about it.
suddenly.
Huo Guang's face suddenly appeared in his mind, and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty immediately guessed who painted it.
Only that brat could create such a novel painting.
Who else could it be?
Thinking of this, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty looked at Sang Hongyang and asked, "Did your Sang family businessmen pay half a million for this million-dollar gimmick?"
"Yes, Your Majesty, I have worked hard for this..."
Sang Hongyang started talking loudly about how helpful he was and how loyal he was to the emperor.
However.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty didn't listen to a word, he just waved his hands and said: "Then it's decided, this painting will be chosen for the first place!"
"okay!"
"Please step back. That's all for today. I'm a little sleepy and need to take a nap."
"No!" Sang Hongyang immediately exited the palace.
After seeing Sang Hongyang withdraw, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty picked up the
The painting looked up. A girl riding a horse, what a youthful feeling.
Look at the painting.
In a daze, he seemed to have returned to the scene where he and Wei Zifu were playing together.
He was still very young at that time!
How high-spirited!
It’s just that time makes people grow old. When people reach middle age, they are no longer able to do many things. The prince Liu Zhi is also growing up, and he is almost at the age where he needs to find a tutor for his prince.
Thinking about it...
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty fell asleep like this.
only.
Liu Che in the dream was not too good. He dreamed that a knight sneaked into the palace and assassinated him.
When a sword seals the throat.
He woke up with a start.
At this moment, Liu Che looked pale and was sweating profusely. Even for a person like him, nightmares are inevitable.
But ancient people would not say that nightmares are caused by physical weakness.
they think.
What you see in your dream is a sign of good or bad luck.
So after Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty woke up, he squinted his eyes slightly, and a trace of murderous intention was inadvertently revealed, and he whispered softly: "Ranger..."
