Zhang Zhou wanted to regard this return to Nanjing as a journey to find his roots. Naturally, when he came to Nanjing, he could not only focus on official duties, but basically just "eat, drink and have fun".
On this day, he and Lin Yi, who was dressed in scholar uniform, went to the Nanjing Theater together. However, before the play started, Lin Yi kept looking at Zhang Zhou with her eyes. Every time she looked at Zhang Zhou, she would be shy. Lowering his head, Zhang Zhou even lost his ability.
"I'm talking about Yi'er. Ever since I came back from Liaodong, you've always looked at me like this. You often make me distracted by your husband. Do you know that this is a crime?"
Zhang Zhou joked with a smile, and then pinched Lin Yi's cheek with his hand.
It feels pretty good.
Lin Yi looked a little blushing. She probably knew what Zhang Zhou meant. She said: "I... just want to learn more."
Zhang Zhou said: "If you love learning, you must be a good student, and you must also have a good husband. The music on the stage today is for you to learn. Listen carefully after a while, and if you have learned it, go back and sing it to me."
"Qupai?" Lin Yi asked curiously.
Zhang Zhou nodded slightly and said: "That's right, study hard, female classmate. There are still guests to receive in the private room next to my husband. I will come back later to test the results of your study."
"Well." Lin Yi suddenly realized something and asked, "Just... just me?"
A woman, a married woman, was alone in a public place. Even though she was in a private room, she felt very uncomfortable.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said, "If you want to see guests, come as soon as you go."
…
…
In the private room next door, Tang Yin and Xu Jing were sitting there. Even though there were refreshments on the table, they were in no mood.
They didn't know the purpose of Zhang Zhou's summons, especially Tang Yin. After arriving in Nanjing, he was confused about his errand and had no idea how to start.
"Bang." The door opened.
When they saw it was Zhang Zhou, they quickly stood up to greet him.
"Sit, sit, sit, I asked you to come here to relax, listen to some music, and meet a guest by the way." Zhang Zhou said with a smile.
Tang Yin looked around the stage outside the private room window and saw guests gathering. His look told Zhang Zhou that he didn't think there was anything that had to be discussed in such a public place.
After Xu Jing waited for Zhang Zhou to sit down, he quickly stood up and poured tea for Zhang Zhou, and asked by the way: "Master Zhang, I wonder who he is?"
"You'll know it when you see him. He is a famous person in the Ming Dynasty today." Zhang Zhou seemed to be playing a riddle, "He is closely related to the three of us."
Tang Yin and Xu Jing looked at each other, confused and confused as to who it was.
There was another sound of opening the door. This time it was Liu Gui who opened the door, but he saw a smiling old man standing at the door, it was Cheng Minzheng.
At first, Tang Yin and Xu Jing seemed to have casually stood up to receive the "special guest". When they saw it was Cheng Minzheng, the two of them immediately straightened their backs and their muscles were slightly twitching, as if they had been petrified in an instant. They stood at attention. .
"Scholar Cheng... no, it's time to call him Shilang Cheng." Zhang Zhou smiled and said to Tang and Xu, "You must have heard by now that Bachelor Cheng has moved to the Ministry of Civil Affairs as Zuo Shilang and will soon return to Beijing to take up his post."
"Everywhere, I serve the imperial court." Cheng Minzheng naturally had a happy face.
After being sent to Nanjing for more than a year, he finally managed to survive the clouds and see the moonlight, and he could return to the capital as the left minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, which meant that he was just one step away from becoming the minister.
Tang Yin reacted first, cupped his hands and said, "Student Tang Yin, see Bachelor Cheng."
"Oh, Bohu, why are you so open-minded? You don't have to be a student to be a student. Being a minister in the same dynasty is not that important." Cheng Minzheng is not open-minded.
He has an easy-going personality, otherwise he would not have the habit of meeting ordinary scholars. He even did not know how to avoid suspicion when he was about to be selected as the examiner, which almost ruined his political future.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "Master Cheng, please take a seat."
"Okay, okay." After Cheng Minzheng took his seat, Tang Yin and Xu Jingcai sat down nervously. The previous slackness was gone, and they turned into a cautious and slightly frightened look.
The two of them thought of Zhang Zhou's words again, and instantly understood what the so-called "shared ties" meant.
It’s not too long ago. A year and a half ago, weren’t we tied to a rope? If Zhang Zhou hadn't untied the knot, he might be floating around now.
…
…
Xu Jing served tea again, and Cheng Minzheng accepted it with a smile.
Then Zhang Zhou asked about Cheng Minzheng's schedule for returning to Beijing. Cheng Minzheng smiled and said: "Your Majesty has an order to come here. He said it is not urgent and he can arrive within two months."
Zhang Zhou said: "Shilang Cheng is really calm."
"Harmful!" Cheng Minzheng sighed in a tone that was different from others, as if an old-fashioned man was talking to young people about his life experience, "I have been an official for half my life, and I have seen through everything. If I don't push it, why bother to make myself miserable? In the capital city The land is like a dragon's pond and a tiger's den, but this city of Nanjing is a good place to raise idle people."
Zhang Zhou asked with a smile: "Young Master Cheng is wrong to say that. Your Majesty is full of expectations for your return to the capital, and you will still try your best to assist His Majesty."
"That's it, that's it." Cheng Minzheng said while rolling his eyes at Zhang Zhou.
It seems to be saying, why are you pretending? I don’t understand your character, and you don’t know my character?
We are both the kind of people who can just hang around and never get involved in the limelight, just looking for freedom.
Tang Yin asked: "Why is Your Majesty so... lenient on Minister Cheng's return date?"
Cheng Minzheng smiled and said: "We still have to help Nanjing's literary flourishing, but he said that there are many scholars coming to Nanjing this time, and famous Confucians are not uncommon, including those from Lingnan, Jiangxi, and yes, there is also Xue Jingzhi of the Weinan School. They are all here, and a group of people from eastern Zhejiang also came..."
When talking about people from various schools of thought, Cheng Minzheng spoke like a treasure trove, his eyes filled with excitement.
Zhang Zhou said: "We have seen a lot of Mr. Cheng, right?"
"ah?"
Cheng Minzheng suddenly lost his temper, then smiled awkwardly and said, "You can't change your bad habits in this life."
Zhang Zhou smiled and shook his head and said: "If meeting people in the literary world is a problem, then there are many people with problems in the world. Being picky is not the foundation of scholarship. I believe that His Majesty will not let Cheng Shilang down in a short time. I will preside over the examination. Minister Cheng, just feel free to go see me."
"Mr. Lai Guo, what you said... sounds very pleasant to me. In fact, I have also met Zhan Yuanming from Lingnan. He came here in mourning clothes, and his heart is full of obsessions. I will help you. Sweat."
Cheng Minzheng seemed to be watching the fun and not taking it too seriously.
Xu Jingdao: "The Lingnan School has only scratched the surface of the Xinxue. How can it be compared with Master Zhang's attainments?"
Cheng Minzheng glanced at Xu Jing.
That weird look in his eyes seemed to be sarcastic to Xu Jing. You surnamed Xu are so unprincipled. You are a classmate of the same subject who participated in the joint examination. Now you are calling someone "Master Zhang". You are devaluing yourself. Isn't it shameful?
But when Cheng Minzheng thought about it again, he was not Zhang Zhou's equal, or even inferior to Zhang Zhou in terms of status?
No one needs to laugh at anyone.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "I think I would like to have a good discussion with the people from the Lingnan School. However, my own reputation is not that important. I came to see Minister Cheng this time to discuss a more important matter."
"Oh?" Cheng Minzheng asked curiously, "This reputation in the literary world involves settling down in the Ming Dynasty academic circle. Don't you care, Mr. Lai Guo?"
Zhang Zhou shook his head and said: "It's just a name outside of me. Outside of me, it's all just floating clouds."
"Haha." Cheng Minzheng smiled.
He didn't have the nerve to ask.
If you don't care about your reputation, what do you care about?
Zhang Zhou asked: "Does Mr. Cheng know that the prince is also leaving for the south and may arrive in Nanjing in the next two days?"
"Ah!?" Cheng Minzheng was so shocked that he almost couldn't sit still.
"Master Cheng, there is no need to be surprised. The prince left the palace on his own and was found by the Jinyi Guards many days later. Because they had already passed Xuzhou, and if they were escorted north rashly, it would be better to follow the prince's wishes and go to Nanjing for a walk, which can be regarded as letting the prince read. Tens of thousands of books traveling thousands of miles will enrich his knowledge." Zhang Zhou stated the benefits of Zhu Houzhao's coming to Nanjing.
Cheng Minzheng looked nervous and said, "I'm just afraid something will go wrong."
Tang Yin said: "It's okay to come. On his way south, the prince followed several scholars from Beijing to the south. Therefore, he avoided the pursuit of the Jin Yiwei at the beginning of the journey, until his majesty passed the letter to Duke Lai. , then..."
"this……"
Cheng Minzheng was too embarrassed to mention it just now.
The emperor looked at the prince like a treasure, but he could actually let the prince leave the palace? Can you still leave the capital? How could he still be found after traveling thousands of miles south?
Are all the palace guards working for a living?
In the end, it was Zhang Zhou who took action to find the person?
Zhang Zhou said with a smile: "It is inevitable that the prince will go south to Nanjing, so I want to use this grand event in Nanjing's literary world to make the prince famous, so that scholars all over the world can feel the prince's desire to learn, and to demonstrate the attitude of the Ming Dynasty prince in scholarship. . Let him win the respect of scholars all over the world."
"Cough cough cough..."
Cheng Minzheng originally planned to take a sip of tea to suppress the fear in his heart, but who would have thought that Zhang Zhouyi would choke on the tea when he said something.
As expected, it’s hard to say anything surprising.
"Lai Guogong...the identity of the prince...should not be made public...or...ahem..." Cheng Minzheng couldn't speak clearly.
Judging from Cheng Minzheng's style of dealing with people, he still couldn't accept such an out-of-the-box idea.
Not to mention him, even Tang Yin and Xu Jing next to him were dumbfounded.
No wonder Zhang didn't rush to send him back to the capital after finding the prince, but secretly escorted him all the way to Nanjing. Is his relationship planning for the overall situation? To make the prince famous? How far can the reputation of a naughty kid who is only ten years old go?
Zhang Zhou sighed: "I also know that the prince has a special status, and it must be difficult to help him achieve his goals. But not only is Cheng Shilang here, but also Bohu and Hengfu are here? It's better to work together."
Cheng Minzheng almost wanted to say it.
Don't.
Just go up, don't take me with you.
I don't have that ability.
Xu Jing's head was full of thoughts and he said: "Lai Guogong, do you think this is the case? When discussing studies in the literary world, let the prince go out more often to sit and discuss with the scholars, and then you openly recruit him as a disciple. This not only highlights the prince's reputation , also shows your status?"
Tang Yin said with a straight face: "Don't talk nonsense."
Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "I think Father Heng's proposal is quite good. I don't necessarily have to follow what you say, but the approach is correct."
Cheng Minzheng was listening, a little confused.
Mr. Zhang, you said you don’t care about fame? I think you want to make a name for yourself by accepting the prince as your disciple, right? And with the prince endorsing your spiritual philosophy, why don’t all the Lingnan and Weinan schools step aside?
A person who can accept the prince as his disciple, who would dare to question his academic thoughts?
If you want to say you know how to play, you should ask someone who knows how to play.
Tang Yin said with a fearful look on his face: "Will this put the prince in danger?"
Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "Bohu, didn't you tell me that the prince attended many literary conferences on his way south? It is said that many people appreciated him and thought that he had great attainments in psychology. This shows that the prince is not only good at writing He has a talent for studying scriptures, and he can even make a name for himself academically early. Your Majesty's teachings to the prince...are considered to be painstaking, and Shi Lang Cheng knows this."
"Um."
Cheng Minzheng nodded helplessly.
As a former Hanlin scholar and one of the lecturers in the East Palace, Cheng Minzheng certainly knew how much nonsense Zhu Houzhao was and how hard the emperor worked to teach his son.
It is said that a loving mother often fails her son, which is reflected in Zhu Houzhao. Without a strict father, he cannot raise a good son.
Zhang Zhou continued: "If the prince can increase his confidence in learning by participating in cultural conferences, and be more able to focus on studying and studying after returning to the capital, then it will not only help his majesty and the prince, but also the long-term stability of the Ming Dynasty. "
Tang Yin was speechless after hearing this.
Sure enough, the hat got bigger and bigger, and shouting slogans was Zhang Zhou's specialty.
Tang Yinxin said, no wonder my career achievements are not as good as this one, it's because I'm not thick-skinned enough.
Cheng Minzheng nodded helplessly and said: "In this way, it is indeed a good deed, but I am afraid that it will backfire... Well, can everything proceed as planned?"
"Doesn't this require the help of Minister Cheng?" Zhang Zhou looked at Cheng Minzheng with a smile, "The prince's reputation in the literary world must also be entrusted to you, Bachelor Cheng. This will be very helpful for Bachelor Cheng to return to Beijing and take office."
Cheng Minzheng understood it as soon as he heard it.
This is a test for me emotionally.
Help the prince become famous, so that the prince can change his mind and become interested in learning, and at the same time make the emperor look good... Then when I return to the capital, I can first be the left minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and then I can aspire to be the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, the Minister of Rites, etc. I have the opportunity to join the cabinet... If I can't do this well, then Zhang Bingkuan will definitely tell His Majesty that I don't have much ability, and then the left minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs will probably be the end of my official career.
Scholars can be killed but not humiliated...
"I will do my best, this is also my duty as an official in the East Palace." Cheng Minzheng said with a cupped hand.
Tang Yin glanced at Cheng Minzheng and said to himself, if you want to say that you have no principles, it's because your old Cheng's principles are like paper.
…
…
Let’s get down to business.
It’s time for some fun…
There were no opera singers on the stage, but two women, one older and one younger, who were born like sisters. It was far-fetched to say they were mother and daughter, because Zhang Lushui looked young, that is, a girl of sixteen or seventeen years old. The posture, and Xiao Janggeum is also much taller than when he left North Korea.
"Who is it?"
Around the stage, spectators were already questioning.
"Don't make any noise. This is the girl from Bangbang who has been singing little tunes these past two days. If you don't want to hear it, get out and make room."
"Shh!"
Everyone in the audience held their breath and concentrated.
Because most people come here because of its reputation, mainly because the pair of women dressed in exotic costumes look very gimmicky, and the songs they sing are indeed very recognizable.
"Outside the pavilion, beside the ancient road, the green grass reaches the sky..."
Fanbang concert begins.
First is "Farewell".
The music was all brought over by Zhang Zhou, so it would be meaningless to ask women from the Ming Dynasty to sing it directly, but if Zhang Lushui and Jang Jin came out to sing it, it would appear very charming, and the number of listeners would increase dramatically.
Moreover, it is a relatively prosperous place in the south of the Yangtze River. Due to its rich products, Jiangnan in the Ming Dynasty suffered less natural and man-made disasters. Especially during the Hongzhi period, the society was enlightened. Southern opera flourished in the surrounding area, and various entertainment projects also emerged.
If the concert is held in an area like Beijing, where the folk customs are relatively conservative and the people's ability to accept new things is average, it will not be easy to gain a reputation.
The two girls sang with full concentration.
no way.
This is not only their means of making a living, but also almost the basis of their lives. If not...who knows what their master, the evil Duke Lai Guo of the Ming Dynasty, will do with them.
In addition, singing songs is not too difficult for them.
At most, he can sing what he has learned and put it into a good performance... Zhang Lushui has spent more than 20 years in this kind of entertaining job, and is very used to it. He only entertains guests ranging from North Korean dignitaries to dignitaries. They have become ordinary people who spent money to buy tickets in the Ming Dynasty.
Sing a song.
The scene was quiet, no one cheered or said anything bad.
For ordinary people, this kind of singing tune is too strange. How can ordinary guqin and pipa music be so graceful?
Then came the second song.
It’s “The Call.”
It was a piece of music "tailor-made" and copied by Zhang Zhou for Jang Geum.
Perhaps Zhang Lushui and Jang Geum felt a sense of loss of being wandering away from home, or maybe they felt that the song itself was about them. When they sang this song, they seemed to be more fully immersed in it.
When the song was being sung, the audience below had long forgotten the meaning of the argument, and they all gathered around the stage as much as possible, even ignoring the refreshments on the table, just to hear it more clearly.
…
…
The second song ends.
There could have been other songs, but then the two women bowed with the etiquette of Korean women and turned back to the backstage.
The audience immediately started shouting: "Don't leave, sing a few more verses."
"You can sing it twice more!"
Those who paid for the tickets only listened to two songs, so naturally they felt unsatisfied.
The manager of the theater hurriedly came to the stage and said: "Everyone, please forgive me. The two young masters are members of the noble family. They only come to sing a few lines occasionally. If you want to hear it, please come early next time."
"What little master? Do you know what kind of territory this is? Come out and sing if you let me! Believe it or not, your theater was destroyed?"
There are always some arrogant and domineering people in the audience.
The shopkeeper was also very polite: "My young master followed our Duke of Lai State to go south."
In a word, it's quiet down here.
Someone shouted: "Who wants to smash the building? Count me in?"
"Hahaha……"
Everyone in the audience was booing.
"There will be another performance next. If you want to watch it, you can continue to watch it. If you don't want to watch it... there will be no more performances today. Please forgive me. Master!"
The theater quickly called for the Southern Opera troupe to come on stage and sing some clichéd Southern Opera.
(End of chapter)
