What Zhang Xuezheng said was true, but Old Man Gu thought he was being modest.
Literary men are all about saving face, and it’s really hard to talk about this kind of thing directly.
Old Man Gu understood, smiled and changed the subject: "I heard that Mr. Zhang will return to Beijing at the end of this year?"
Zhang Xuezheng nodded: "I just want to go back to Beijing to celebrate the New Year. After the New Year, I will decide which yamen I will go to."
Speaking of this, he also had a headache.
Now that I am getting older, I am moody now.
Anyway, I am not satisfied with this or that.
Zhang Xuezheng was afraid that he would be transferred back, and soon he would be randomly sent elsewhere like others.
It would be better to be an academic advisor here.
Seeing the troubled look on his face, Old Man Gu smiled and said, "Master Zhang is a capable and accomplished man, and he will definitely not be like those who have no achievements."
Zhang Xuezheng smiled bitterly and said: "I can only ask the prince for good luck."
The two of them exchanged pleasantries, and what they said was quite superficial.
Old Man Gu and Zhang Xuezheng had some interactions in the past.
Although he is a grateful person, his personality is a bit old-fashioned.
It's quite difficult to ask him about something.
After some pleasantries, Zhang Xuezheng changed the subject and asked: "By the way, the prince came to see me because of a peasant boy, which really made me a little curious."
"I wonder what the relationship between this son and the prince is?"
"Although this official will be transferred next year, he can still speak for himself among the academic officials in Jiangling Prefecture."
"If it's someone with whom I have a close relationship, I have to say hello in advance before I can leave with peace of mind."
The smile on Old Man Gu's face remained unchanged: "It's not someone we have a close relationship with."
"It's just that this young man happened to have saved the old man once, and the old man was grateful, so he wanted to help him."
"Now that I have helped, the kindness has been repaid."
"You won't have to remember this anymore."
Although Zhang Xuezheng has some relationship with him now, this person will be transferred back to the capital immediately.
It is impossible for Old Man Gu to tell everything about himself.
If he accidentally lets it slip, things will be difficult to handle.
Zhang Xuezheng laughed a few times.
I see......
But I guess you haven't repaid the kindness yet.
He could only say: "This guy has good literary talent and will become a great person in the future."
"Your Majesty, you really have a good eye."
You came and said some things to me, but I didn't get any news.
But when the cup of tea was finished, Zhang Xuezheng suddenly whispered: "I don't know if the letter to the prince should be sent to the provincial government or here after the official returns to Beijing."
Is this news that you want to send to the capital?
It can be regarded as a sign of sincerity.
Old Man Gu's smile deepened: "Old man, I will return to the palace soon. If Mr. Zhang wants to write a letter, just send it directly to the palace."
Zhang Xuezheng said yes and bowed his hands.
The two of them had another cup of tea, and just then a servant came in with a framed painting.
"Master, the painting paper has been framed."
Zhang Xuezheng took a look and became more interested.
He directly reached out and took it, showing it to Old Man Gu.
"Your Majesty, please take a look."
"This is the thank you gift given to me by Su Yu, the leader of this court examination case."
"I heard that this painting note was made in a bookstore, so Su Yu copied down all the poems that the students wrote for me last night."
"Although this gift is not expensive, it is of great significance."
"It's a pity that I have to be transferred back to Beijing soon, otherwise I really want to take this young man as my apprentice."
Zhang Xuezheng said and couldn't help but sigh.
What a bad coincidence.
Old Man Gu took a look.
Isn't this the drawing paper produced by Su Yu's bookstore?
When it was first made, I gave some as a gift to myself.
He also sent someone to the provincial government to give it to Mr. Zhao.
Now it is estimated that Old Man Zhao has received this gift.
This drawing paper is indeed a good thing, but Old Man Gu is not a scholar and has no appreciation ability, so he looks at it for a few times before looking away.
but......
He glanced at the poem above.
"Huh? This poem..."
Seeing that Old Man Gu noticed the poem, Zhang Xuezheng happily introduced it to him: "This poem was written by the students on the spot."
"I selected a few well-written poems and asked Su Yu to copy them."
"I have to say that Su Yu's calligraphy is very good. It's really pleasing to copy these poems onto this painting paper."
Zhang Xuezheng was full of praise for this gift.
Seeing that Old Man Gu was interested, he first shared his joy with him.
But he also had some regrets.
"It's a pity that I ordered the case myself. Although the article is good, I can't write poetry."
"If he can compose a decent poem, even if it's not good enough, I will definitely rank his poem first!"
"Can't compose poetry?" Old Man Gu paused.
Pointing to the poem on the drawing paper.
"You said this Su Yu can't compose poetry?"
Did he hear it correctly?
His grandson-in-law can’t write poetry?
Zhang Xuezheng said: "That's right."
"On the other hand, the poems written by the two classmates who came from the same county as him and supported each other were not bad."
"Each one is more artistic than the other."
Old Man Gu pointed directly at those two songs: "Master Zhang said, but these two songs?"
Zhang Xuezheng lowered his head and saw that it was really the case.
With this finger, he pointed out the two songs he said?
He was a little surprised: "How did the prince see it?"
Old Man Gu smiled sarcastically.
Not only did he see it, he had also heard these two poems before.
After Gu Changle returned to Fucheng, he kept whispering in his ears that his husband was very talented.
I said that I sent two poems to express my gratitude to my mentor. They are both very good works.
Gu Changle read it to him several times, and it was difficult for Old Man Gu not to hear it even if he wanted to.
"These two poems..."
Old Man Gu coughed lightly.
His grandson-in-law is good at everything, but he can't let others say bad things about him.
How can he not compose poetry? He's so good, isn't he?
"Unfortunately, when I was chatting with that little friend Su Yu, I heard him read it."
"Just before the hospital exam."
"And it seems that I heard that he was forced to make a living, so he gave these two poems to his classmates and got some writing fees."
"In this way, we can pay for the college entrance examination."
Snap.
The lid of the tea cup in Zhang Xuezheng's hand fell down with a sound.
He asked blankly: "Does the prince mean what he said?"
Old Man Gu grinned and said, "Old man, what am I doing to trick you with all this?"
"But since you gave it to someone else, it belongs to someone else."
"It's normal that he didn't mention this to Mr. Zhang."
Zhang Xuezheng looked down at the two poems that he was quite satisfied with.
Suddenly he smiled.
"I see……"
"Good! It's really a good poem!"
...
Old Man Gu drank two cups of tea and then stood up to say goodbye.
Zhang Xuezheng sent him out personally.
Old man Gu went out and got into his carriage.
After watching the old man leave, Zhang Xuezheng also turned around and returned home with his hands behind his back.
Soon, he called his butler.
"That student named Su Yu, go and see where he is now."
"After checking it out, go to the accountant to pay one hundred taels and give it to him in my name."
