"What's wrong?"
Zhao Yang stepped forward slowly and glanced at the three people standing in front of Zhang Yaozuo.
Two of them, Zhao Yang, had met before and were the waiters in his elegant room, while the other one guessed from his clothes that he was a steward on this floor.
"Brother." Zhang Yaozuo turned around and saw Zhao Yang. The anger on his face subsided a little, and he explained in a hateful voice: "When I sent someone to book a banquet, I also ordered the famous flower cards in Fanlou. I never thought that this guy would tell me at this moment. Me, the two flower cards I called were invited away..."
The so-called huapai refers to the female entertainers who accompany the banquet. Being able to sing and dance is their basic skill. Those with higher standards, such as Li Shishi in the Southern Song Dynasty, are quite proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, and even know how to recite poems and compose poems. Their talents and knowledge may not be as good as those of their students. The daughter of a wealthy family.
This type of women is very common in Bianjing. The low-end ones sell singing in street tile houses and goulan. If they become famous, they will be invited to sing in large and small troupes, guilds and restaurants, and their titles will gradually increase with their reputation. There are some changes, such as Za Zhuo'er, Guangpao'er, Miss, Head of Line, Record of Things, and even everyone, famous people, etc.
Fan's Restaurant in Xiaotianshui Lane is no exception, except that Zhao Yang and Fan Chunren didn't shout.
Fanlou is said to be the first of the 72 restaurants in Bianjing. The flower cards stationed in the building can naturally be called famous prostitutes in the capital - it should be noted that prostitutes at this time only sold their skills and not their bodies. Those who sold their bodies were called prostitutes.
Of course, although one does not sell oneself while performing arts, if one meets a literary talent one admires, or even a student who goes to Beijing to take the exam, and they fall in love with each other, they invite him or her to be a guest. This is also regarded as a good story by contemporary literati, but most of them do not end well.
Zhao Yang was not very interested in this kind of women, especially the famous prostitutes who were used to seeing the rich and powerful, even though he knew that these women were not motivated by their own wishes, but had a rough fate and had to do it in order to make a living.
Neither look down upon nor provoke, this is his attitude towards this kind of women.
"Who is it?" Zhao Yang asked curiously, surprised that someone would not give Zhang Yaozuo face.
After all, Zhang Yaozuo is not what he used to be. Although he was serving as Minister of Affairs and Ministry of Works before, the former had a high position but had little power. Apart from being able to see officials from time to time and freely enter and leave the palace without being restricted by the palace, he had no other privileges. The latter was even more He was purely a salary official; but now, Zhang Yaozuo has become a powerful official who knows the affairs of Kaifeng. He is a fifth-rank court official, equivalent to the mayor of the capital in later generations, and even has more power. There are actually people who deliberately want to lose face to him - - The other party obviously did it on purpose. Because they couldn't offend Zhang Yaozuo, they would definitely come forward to explain. Even though they knew this, the two flower cards were intercepted by the other party. The other party obviously deliberately did not give Zhang Yaozuo face.
Furthermore, the other party has a greater background, and Fan Lou cannot afford to offend him.
"Liu Congguang and the Li brothers." Zhang Yaozuo said bitterly.
"Who?" Zhao Yang had no impression of this.
Zhang Yaozuo glared at the trembling steward, raised his hand and asked Zhao Yang to move to a corner of the corridor, and explained in a low voice: "Liu Congguang, deputy envoy of Qunmu, this person is the second son of the late Taiwei Liu Mei." …”
"Qunmu? Department of Qunmu? The one who manages the horse administration?" Zhao Yang had a rough impression and asked puzzledly: "Although it cannot be said that it is not important, it cannot be said to be an important position, right?"
Zhang Yaozuo shook his head and said: "Brother, I misunderstood. His deputy envoy of the herds is nothing, not even his father Liu Mei. The key lies in the Empress Dowager Zhang Xianmingsu..."
Seeing that Zhao Yang was confused, he lowered his voice and said, "That is the late Queen Mother Liu."
"Oh." Zhao Yang suddenly realized, and then asked doubtfully: "Are Liu Mei and Queen Mother Liu siblings?"
"Hey." Zhang Yaozuo had a playful smile on his face and whispered: "Everyone knows the secrets, I don't know. ... Empress Dowager Liu's family fell into poverty when she was young. She was fostered in her mother's family, and later she became a prostitute, and finally married Shu. Gong Mei, a local silversmith, and his wife moved to the capital to make a living. Due to the difficulty of making a living, Gong Mei wanted to... well, sell her and remarry someone else. By chance, she was finally dedicated to Zhenzong, who was still the prince at the time... Empress Dowager Liu Since he had no brothers or nephews, he recognized Gong Mei as his brother, and Gong Mei also changed her name to Liu Mei..."
Zhao Yang opened his mouth and was stunned for a long time before saying: "It seems that Liu Mei treated her well before."
Zhang Yaozuo looked at Zhao Yang with a strange expression, and then coughed lightly and said: "I won't talk about those rumors. In short, the Empress Dowager Liu regards Liu Congde and Liu Congguang, Liu Mei's sons, as her nephews. Even a man named Wang who was favored by the officials at that time The palace lady was the daughter of Wang Mengzheng, a wealthy family in Jiazhou. Empress Dowager Liu also made the decision to marry her to Liu Congde, so I know how much she was pampered... Unfortunately, Liu Congde was not blessed and passed away at the age of only twenty-four. "
"Stop making sarcastic remarks." Zhao Yang patted Zhang Yaozuo lightly, frowned and asked, "But isn't Queen Mother Liu...what's that?"
"Yes, but Liu Mei's two sons have known each other since childhood. Under the guidance of Queen Mother Liu, they are like brothers, so they naturally have deep feelings. Furthermore..." Zhang Yaozuo looked around and lowered his voice: "Liu Congde has a son. His name is Liu Yongnian, his mother is the Wang family, and the officials treat him far better than the royal children. He was brought up in the palace at the age of three, and was given the position of Chongban in the inner palace. When he left the palace at the age of twelve, he became the training envoy of the Lianzhou regiment... He is twenty-nine years old this year. He has the power to know the affairs of Daizhou, and he is as favored as you, my brother... The strange thing is that when the Queen Mother Liu was still alive, her mother Wang could freely enter and leave the palace and even be banned from the harem; and the Queen Mother After her death, she was still the same. Later, because of a scandal in Wang's father's family, Wang was implicated and banned from entering the palace. However, she soon returned to her former self and could freely enter and leave the palace and the harem... Do you understand what I mean?"
Zhao Yang listened to the official's gossip with great interest. Seeing Zhang Yaozuo winking, he chuckled and said, "That's a good story. I'll tell the official about it later."
Zhang Yaozuo panicked when he heard this and begged for mercy.
"Okay, okay, keep talking."
Zhang Yaozuo breathed a sigh of relief and continued: "In terms of favor, Liu Congguang is not as favored as Liu Yongnian, but he has been with the officials since he was young. The officials also treat him like family, and he married the daughter of King Zhao Yuanyan of Jing, who was only seventeen years old. He is the defense envoy of Chuzhou, and the limelight is no less than yours. ... I have always heard that this man likes to associate with literati. I am not surprised that he is entertaining guests and friends here today, but I have never offended him. Logically, he should not Will make things difficult for me..."
Zhao Yang understands this very well and knows that Zhang Yaozuo's arrogance and domineering attitude are only for his own good. He will not offend anyone he cannot afford to offend.
"Where are the Li brothers?"
"The Li brothers are the sons of Li Yonghe." At this point, Zhang Yaozuo suddenly asked: "The biological mother of the official family is not actually the Queen Mother Liu. Do you know this?"
"I know, Concubine Li Chen."
"Ahem, it should be the Empress Dowager Zhang Yi." After a slight correction, Zhang Yaozuo continued to explain: "Li Yonghe is the younger brother of the official's biological mother, the Empress Dowager Zhang Yi, and the uncle of the official family. At that time, Empress Dowager Liu had no children, so she saw Empress Dowager Li giving birth to a child. The official family took him and raised him as his own son, but the palace and Empress Dowager Li were afraid to say anything. However, Empress Dowager Liu also compensated the Li family's officials. Not only did she make Li Yonghe worship the prime minister, but she also gave birth to nine sons. At the age of 18, he was awarded the rank of Chongban of the Inner Palace, an eighth-grade military rank, which is not low... His eldest son Li Zhang is now the military commander of the Wusheng Army and the commander of the front division of the palace..."
"The commander of the front office of the palace? This is bigger than Cao Yi's official... I have been to the front office of the palace several times, but why haven't I seen it?" Zhao Yang said in surprise.
Zhang Yaozuo was a little surprised when Zhao Yang mentioned Cao Yi and explained: "Although they are all relatives, the official family thought of their debt to their biological mother, so they treated the Li family favorably. If not, how would the official family have separated their cherished eldest daughter Princess Fukang and Li family the year before last?" Is Yonghe’s sixth son Li Wei engaged?”
"Oh." Zhao Yang suddenly understood, and then Zhang Yaozuo continued: "As for the fact that I haven't seen you before, it's just because Li Zhang is not in the capital at the moment. The second son of the Li family, Li Xun, knows Xiangzhou and is not in the capital. The Li brothers that the steward just called were Li The third master of the family is Li Ju, the fourth master is Li Qi, the fifth master is Li Yao, and the sixth master is Li Wei."
Zhao Yang raised his eyebrows and said, "The prince-in-law also comes to a place like this?"
Zhang Yaozuo sneered and said: "After all, I am fifteen years old. I miss women..."
When he was half-sentence, he looked at Zhao Yang and immediately stopped speaking with a sarcastic look on his face.
Zhao Yang didn't bother to argue with him, and chuckled: "Then which side did you offend? Or did you offend both parties?"
Zhang Yaozuo shook his head and said: "It's said to be two sides, but actually it's one side. Although Empress Dowager Liu took away the official family to raise her, she never treated Empress Dowager Li and the Li family badly. Therefore, brothers Liu Congde, Liu Congguang and Liu Yongnian have also been with the Li brothers since childhood. We are close to each other, and to this day, the two families are even closer... As for offending, I don’t remember offending them, we don’t offend each other.”
"We are both relatives, and we haven't had any contact with each other before?"
"Well..." Zhang Yaozuo showed a bit of embarrassment: "It is true that we rarely interact with each other, but we have always kept the same."
Zhao Yang thought for a while and said: "Is it because you have the right to know the affairs of Kaifeng Mansion?"
"Ah..." Zhang Yaozuo was suddenly startled, his face darkened, and after thinking for a while he said, "Maybe it's possible."
It’s not surprising that he relied on nepotism to reach an important position in the capital, especially the arrogant and domineering Zhang Yaozuo, who usually took care of the dishes. He relied on Zhang Guifei, who often did illegal things in the palace and relied on the favor of the officials. The important positions in the capital are full of enviable prefixes. Even if they are both relatives, Liu Congguang and the Li brothers may not be able to teach Zhang Yaozuo a lesson.
Furthermore, they could indeed offend Zhang Yaozuo and even Concubine Zhang.
"Okay, let's forget it." Zhao Yang patted Zhang Yaozuo's arm with the back of his hand.
"Forget it?" Zhang Yaozuo opened his eyes wide and said angrily: "I don't know how arrogant the official's statement about the Li brothers is. He said that if I am not angry, I will go find him."
"You want to go?" Zhao Yang asked with his eyes squinting.
"Uh..." Zhang Yaozuo's momentum froze, and his tone slowed down and he said: "It's a big deal if these people don't give me face. Aren't I afraid that my brother will be unhappy..."
He would not dare to provoke Liu Congguang and the Li brothers alone, but if Zhao Yang could help him vent his anger, he would dare to ask Kaifeng Mansion to send someone over.
Zhao Yang roughly guessed what he was thinking, and said indifferently: "Okay, but it's not worth the conflict over two singing cards. If the trouble gets bigger, the officials will also be in trouble, so you can start again. A few can do it.”
"Really forget it?" Zhang Yaozuo opened his eyes wide.
Zhao Yang raised his eyebrows, patted Zhang Yaozuo lightly, and walked back to the Shuixian Ya room where he was.
"What?" Wang Zhongzheng asked, standing at the door of the elegant room and watching.
Zhao Yang shook his head slightly.
At this time, Zhang Yaozuo also walked over with a look of reluctance, walked back to the trembling steward, and said with a cold face: "It seems that for my brother's sake, let's forget about it today. You can choose a few more for me." If there is anything wrong with the beautiful flower card that is good at singing, you will not have to open the building! If your master does not seal the building during the introduction, I will seal it for him!"
At the end of the sentence, he touched the steward's chest with his finger and spoke threatening words, which frightened the steward's face and turned pale. He agreed repeatedly, and then thanked Zhao Yang with a mixture of curiosity and gratitude.
Zhao Yang waved his hand, and after saying hello to Zhang Yaozuo, he patted Wang Zhongzheng on the arm and returned to the Shuixianya room together.
At this time, in the Shuixianya room, Wang Ming and the other nine royal guards saw Zhao Yang entering, and they all raised their heads with inquiring expressions on their faces. However, when they saw Zhao Yang waving his hands, they went back to drinking and eating.
Compared to the group of people who only cared about eating and drinking at one table, the other table seemed more lively. Xu was intoxicated with wine and had a free-spirited mind like Shen Dun, Wen Tong, and Lu Dafang. He took the lead in reciting poems and writing poems while holding a wine glass, and had a stable personality. For example, Fan Chunren, Qian Gongfu, Huang brothers, etc. were gradually infected and started to applaud and harmonize.
Including Zhang Yaozuo's nephew Shi Butong also relaxed a little.
"What's wrong?"
When Zhao Yang returned to his seat, Fan Chunren caught a glimpse of Zhang Yaozuo who had followed him in with a gloomy face and asked softly.
"Little things."
Seeing that Shen Yu, Wen Ting and others at the same table stopped having fun and looked at each other, Zhao Yang waved his hands indifferently. Then he saw everyone looking at Zhang Yaozuo's gloomy face intentionally or unintentionally, so he simply explained the matter briefly to avoid misunderstanding. .
At this time, everyone knew that Zhang Yaozuo had invited them to entertain the flower cards, and it was the most famous one. Unfortunately, it was intercepted by Liu Congguang and the Li brothers.
Zhang Yaozuo, who had always been arrogant and domineering, actually had the time to swallow his anger?
Qian Gongfu, Shen Yu, Lu Dafang, the Huang brothers and others were quite surprised. At the same time, they also expressed their approval and understanding of Zhao Yang's measures to calm things down - there is really no need to fight with Liu and Li's relatives just because of two flower cards. Make grudges.
Lu Dafang said even more naively: "Everyone here is a clean and self-sufficient person. We can just have fun on our own. There is no need to ask for a sign from the building."
Fan Chunren and others agreed.
Zhao Yang smiled and said, "Brother Da Fang, it's too late."
As soon as he finished speaking, the previous steward led five young, beautiful and well-dressed women into the room.
Zhao Yang asked Zhang Yaozuo with a strange expression: "Did you call the rest?"
"How could that happen?" Zhang Yaozuo shook his head and said, "I just called ten people according to their rankings, five in one room."
Zhao Yang couldn't help laughing. He didn't know whether Zhang Yaozuo was just spending money to vent his anger, or whether he wanted to save some face in front of his subordinates in the elegant room next door. Anyway, it was not him who spent the money.
I have to say that the steward was very discerning. When I heard Zhang Yaozuo calling Zhao Yang his brother before, I guessed that this young gentleman might be the most distinguished guest in this elegant room. Not only did he include five outstanding geishas among the ten, He arranged for people to enter this elegant room, and specially arranged for the youngest and most beautiful person to sit behind Zhao Yang and serve him alone.
The other four women were seated at the four corners of Zhao Yang's table.
As soon as these five women appeared, all the scholars in the room became a lot more restrained without realizing it. Except for Wen Tong, who had been married for a long time, he still maintained his seemingly bohemian attitude, admiring the beauty to his heart's content. Everyone else could not help but sit upright.
Among them, the most eye-catching ones were Lu Dafang, Shen Liao and Huang Xu. They were all at a loss and had reddish faces.
Wen Tong couldn't help laughing, pointing at Shen Liao and laughing at Lu Dafang and Huang Xu: "Xuda is still young, so it's understandable. How come you two are so miserable?"
Lu Dafang and Huang Xu's faces turned red, causing others to burst into laughter. The five geishas also pursed their lips in secret joy, thinking that they probably liked this kind of young literary talent the most.
"It's better for me to show my shame first. I can't just sit back and let Magistrate Zhang use the money in vain."
The most liberal Wen Tong immediately called the boy serving the banquet to get paper and pen, and composed a poem on the spot:
The spring breeze blows, the peach blossoms bloom, and the swallows return to build new nests.
The boat ripples, and the bluestone path is filled with laughter.
I have nothing to do, knock chess pieces, sit in front of the window and watch the clouds drift.
The fairy looms in the clouds, and the fame is exchanged for wine but not for peaches.
Shen Tuo sipped his drink and looked at it curiously. He almost burst into laughter when he saw it: "Brother Yoke, what are you talking about?"
Qian Gongfu also looked around curiously, and then he couldn't laugh or cry. He shook his head and said: "I have to bear with the false reputation and sing in a low voice instead of pouring a cup!... Liu Sanbian Ruozhi and Brother Ke borrowed his words and phrases to write such crooked poems. , I will definitely fight for you."
Qian Gongfu also joined in the fun and teased: "Brother Yu Ke, you really need to be careful. Liu Sanbian is working as a writer in the Secretariat Department."
Wen Tong didn't take it seriously, spread his hands and said: "He beat me to death, but I am only at this level."
As he said that, he handed the piece of paper to the geisha nearest him: "Thank you."
The geisha took it and couldn't help but laugh after reading it carefully. She sang Wen Tong's poem with great difficulty while holding back her laughter. Her graceful voice was mixed with uncontrollable laughter, and everyone present and others could hear it. The four geishas all laughed, and the previously restrained and awkward atmosphere in the room suddenly disappeared.
"Good poem, good poem." Zhao Yang took the lead in applauding. He liked Wen Tong, a free and uninhibited scholar.
"It's indeed good." Zhang Yaozuo also clapped his hands and agreed. Not only was he catering to Zhao Yang, but he also saw Wen Tong's intention.
"A prize, a prize, a prize." Wen Tong accepted the praise from Zhao Yang and Zhang Yaozuo without shame despite the boos from Shen Yu, Qian Gongfu and others.
With Wen Tong pretending to be silly and joking, the rest of the group also became interested. You would compose the poem and I would compose the lyrics. After that, the nearest geisha would sing it.
They couldn't bear to learn from Wen Tong and write limericks. They wrote some poems that were more suitable for the season, which made Wen Tong say it was boring.
After two full rounds of drinking, the four geishas sitting in the four corners also showed off different singing timbres, except for the geisha sitting behind Zhao Yang. Apparently the students also had the discernment to know that it was Zhang Yaozuo. Arranged exclusively for Zhao Yang.
Seeing this, Wen Tong couldn't help but tease Zhao Yang: "Why does Jing Xing neglect a beautiful woman?"
Zhao Yang was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously turned to look at the geisha sitting behind him, who immediately showed a pitifully aggrieved look.
"I can't write poetry." Zhao Yang shook his head.
The five geishas looked at Zhao Yang in surprise, but the students present were not surprised, after all, Zhao Yang was so old.
Shen Tuo smiled and said: "If you don't know how to compose, you can recite it. You can also sing Tang poems or Song lyrics. Choose one and invite everyone from Qin to sing it. You can't neglect a beautiful lady and let her sit like this, right?"
The term "everyone" in his words can be roughly understood as "lady", which is the most respectful honorific for geishas.
And the reason why he called the Qin family was just because the geisha was called Qin Yunu. It was probably not her real name, but a stage name, a fancy name, a flower name, or something like that.
After hearing Shen Yu's words, everyone said good-bye and gave advice to Zhao Yang. Some people praised Li Bai, some praised Du Mu, some praised Bai Juyi, Liu Yuxi, and even the contemporary Liu Yong. Anyway, they were all poets who were close to famous prostitutes in the world.
Listening to everyone's recommendations, Zhao Yang looked back at the geisha surnamed Qin behind him. Suddenly a song came to his mind. He turned to Shen Tuo and said, "Brother Wentong, please lend me a pen and paper."
Is this going to be a poem?
Shen Yu was a little surprised, but he didn't say anything to avoid misunderstanding and make Zhao Yang unable to step down.
I saw Zhao Yang taking the pen and paper and writing slowly on the table. Fan Chunren, who was sitting next to him, originally thought that Zhao Yang was going to memorize the poems of his predecessors. When he turned around, he was surprised and let out a soft sigh.
Everyone present was smart. Seeing Fan Chunren's reaction, they guessed that Zhao Yang was probably not reciting the poems of his predecessors. Curious, they all sat up and looked up.
Later, when Zhao Yang made the last stroke, he handed the paper to the geisha surnamed Qin: "The calligraphy is a bit ugly, please don't be offended, and see if you can sing it."
Qin Yunu took it carefully. When he saw the writing on the paper, the subtle color on his face flashed away. Then he tried hard to identify the writing and whispered softly: "The play is about to change, the sleeves rise and fall, singing joys and sorrows, singing separation and separation, it has nothing to do with me. . The fan opens and closes, the gongs and drums ring and fall silent, who can tell what is in the play and who is not in the play. I am used to blending joy, anger, sorrow and joy into the ink, so what if the lyrics are sung through, the bones and ashes are all mine..."
Yes, Chi Ling, for some reason, what came to Zhao Yang's mind at this time was not the poems of famous poets such as Li Bai and Du Mu, but a song from later generations.
Everyone here listened quietly. Although they felt that the poem written by Zhao Yang was neither in compliance with the rules nor in rhyme, it was quite meaningful, so they frowned and listened. When they heard Qin Yunu read "Troubled Times" Duckweed endured watching the beacon fire blazing the mountains and rivers, but he dared not forget about his country despite his humble position, even if no one knew about me." When he said this, everyone was shocked.
At this time, Qin Yunu was still chanting softly: "The people in the audience walked by, but the old color was nowhere to be seen. The people on the stage sang a heartbreaking farewell song."
The words of love are hard to write down, her singing must be reconciled with blood, the curtain rises, the curtain falls, who is the guest..."
When the last word of guest fell, the elegant room was silent. Not only were everyone present speechless in astonishment, but the five geishas also had mixed emotions.
After a long time, Shen Tuo exclaimed: "This... is neither a poem, nor a word, nor does it rhyme, but... it is very amazing! Is this written by Jing Xing?"
Zhao Yang shook his head and said: "It's not me. As far as I know, it was done by a person named Qingyan. I don't know the others."
"I have never heard of anyone who can make such words..." Shen Tuo frowned.
The rest of the people also echoed.
Zhao Yang thought to himself: After more than a thousand years, you have heard of ghosts.
"Duckweed in troubled times, can bear to watch the beacon fire burning the mountains and rivers... I guess they are mostly poets in the late Tang Dynasty, not as good as the Five Dynasties countries." Qian Gongfu guessed.
Zhao Yang didn't say anything. He turned around and asked Qin Yunu, "Can you sing?"
Qin Yunu, who was still immersed in the lyrics, was startled and asked excitedly: "Really... the little official really wants me to sing?"
"Sing, I also want to hear what charm you can sing." Zhao Yang nodded.
Hearing this, the other four geishas all looked at Qin Yunu with envy. After all, during the Tang and Song Dynasties, there were many singers who sang a beautiful poem that made them famous. This was also the reason why poets such as Li Bai and Liu Yong were popular among geishas all over the world. Reasons for admiration.
Qin Yunu suppressed the excitement in his heart and began to sing softly, probably using a contemporary rhyme. Although it sounded a bit uncomfortable to Zhao Yang, the soft and gentle tone had a unique flavor.
And while everyone was listening quietly, there was a sudden bang, the door of the elegant room was opened, and a group of people filed in.
"Whoever wrote the lyrics dared to write about the flames of war burning mountains and rivers!"
"..." Zhao Yang glanced at the person coming.
