In recent years, King Ning has been preparing for the rebellion intensively. Raising an army and manufacturing weapons are extremely expensive things, not to mention a large amount of money is required to bribe the powerful officials in the court.

Therefore, in order to plunder talents and wealth, King Ning used all possible means to embezzle and seize millions of people's land and official land. He also colluded with thieves, on the one hand, he directed the thieves to plunder wealth everywhere, and on the other hand, he used them to attack local officials who refused to rely on them.

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As a result, the people in Jiangxi are living in dire straits, and local officials are also in danger.

Precisely because Prince Ning's reputation was so bad, there were very few talents who were willing to take refuge with him. Over the years, Liu Yangzheng, a failed candidate, had sincerely served him.

Prince Ning obviously realized that conquering the country could not rely solely on a group of thieves, so he had recently increased his efforts to recruit talents.

At today's dinner, Crown Prince Ning is here to recruit talents, and his first target is naturally Xu Jin.

However, as soon as Xu Jin opened his mouth, he called Fei Hong his master and regarded himself as his disciple. His tone was full of respect for Fei Hong, and he did not feel "gratitude" at all for helping him become the leader of the case. Therefore, Brother Zhu, the eldest son of Prince Ning, was unhappy.

If Mr. Liu hadn't repeatedly told him to be courteous to Corporal Xian before coming to Shangrao County, with his usually domineering temper, he might have exploded on the spot.

Eunuch Lai Yi said with a smile: "Hey, it turns out that Mr. Xu is a disciple of Mr. Fei Ge. It's no wonder. Mr. Fei Ge won three yuan in a row and was awarded the title of Scholar at the age of thirteen. He is a prodigy in Korea. He is really a famous teacher.

Become a great disciple!"

The imperial envoy Guo Zirui glanced at Prince Ning, who looked unhappy, and couldn't help but murmur to himself. He thought that the head of the case pointed by Lu Kang must have attached himself to Prince Ning's Mansion, but he didn't expect that it turned out not to be the case. Hey, this is actually interesting. He smiled.

Echoed: "What Eunuch Lai said is that Xu Xiaoyou has not been crowned, so he is probably not yet an adult. He has won the title of government examination case, and is another prodigy!"

"Master Guo, Eunuch Lai is so complimentary!" Xu Jin said humbly.

Jiang Fangjie next to him was very unhappy when he heard this, but it was two imperial envoys who praised Xu Jin, how could he dare to refute it.

Lu Kang obviously noticed Prince Ning's displeasure, so he immediately introduced him: "This is Jiang Fangjie from Guixi County, the second place winner in this government examination, and he is also a talented scholar!"

Jiang Fangjie stood up quickly and said humbly: "Master Futai praised me so much that I am ashamed of myself. I would like to take this opportunity to toast to His Highness the Crown Prince, the two imperial envoys, and Master Futai!"

Jiang Fangjie placed His Royal Highness the Crown Prince before the imperial envoy. It was obvious that he was trying to flatter Crown Prince Ning.

Sure enough, Brother Zhu, Prince Ning's sullen face, suddenly smiled and raised his wine glass in response. The two imperial envoys also smiled and raised their glasses.

Lu Kang secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said cheerfully: "Come, let's raise a toast together and wish you all the best in the college examination in August!"

Xu Jin also raised his glass, and he still had to do this superficial work.

After three rounds of drinking, the atmosphere seemed to be much more harmonious. Prince Ning stood up and said loudly: "My father's birthday is approaching, and talents from Guangxin Mansion are gathering tonight. I would like to borrow flowers to offer to Buddha.

Are you talented people willing to write a poem to celebrate my father's birthday? Regardless of whether it is good or not, I will reward you with a reward of ten taels of silver. If your poem is good and is selected, I will reward you with a heavy reward of one hundred taels of silver."

As soon as this statement came out, the whole audience was whispering!

Imperial envoy Guo Zirui stroked his beard and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, your filial piety is commendable!"

The eunuch Lai Yipi smiled and said: "The prince is offering a reward today to buy a birthday message for the prince. It will become a good story in the literary world in the future!"

"Exactly!" Magistrate Lu agreed repeatedly.

Xu Jin frowned, tonight's main course is here. Asking for a birthday greeting for Prince Ning is only superficial. In fact, it is asking the scholars present to choose sides. As long as he writes a birthday greeting for Prince Ning, it is tantamount to attaching himself to Ning.

In the palace, the black and white writing is being held. This is a handle. In the future, King Ning will rebel. Even if these scholars do not follow, these poems fall into the hands of the court and they will be traced and implicated. Even if they are not beheaded in the end, I am afraid that their career will be over.

Therefore, Prince Ning's move can be said to be insidious and very effective.

The candidates present were able to pass the government examination, and they were all those with above-average IQs. Naturally they understood the powerful relationship, so they just discussed it in whispers, but no one dared to respond.

Prince Ning's eldest son, Brother Zhu, was originally smiling, but now the smile on his face gradually faded away, and he felt a surge of anger in his heart. This group of sour scholars, this prince, has lowered his arrogance enough to show his shamelessness.

Face.

Prince Ning winked at Lu Kang, who quickly said with a smile: "Xu Jin, you are the head of the case in this house, and your poetry is well-known. Why don't you contribute a poem first to add to the fun?"

Xu Jin said with seriousness: "Master Futai, students are exhausted tonight and really can't think of good poems. Let others do it!"

There was a roar at the scene, with some people snickering, others applauding in low voices, and secretly giving a thumbs up: "Well done, Mr. Xu, who is not afraid of power, a true gentleman and a true hero!"

Xu Jin's "Bamboo and Stone", "Bu Shuzi Yong Mei" and "You Yuanxiao" are all excellent poems handed down from generation to generation. Now they have been spread. Even the girls in brothels have composed songs and sung them, especially the song "You Yuanxiao".

"Lantern Festival", I don't know how many girls in the boudoir have been obsessed with it.

Therefore, no one here believed that with Xu Jin's poetic talent, he could not write a mere birthday poem.

Prince Ning's face turned dark and he stared at Xu Jin with cold eyes. However, it was of no use. Xu Jin didn't look at him at all and just sat calmly.

Xu Jin was not an idiot. He knew clearly that King Ning would rebel in the future and the result would be the annihilation of all nine clans. How could he be willing to get involved with King Ning and give him the black and white evidence?

So no matter how fierce Prince Ning's eyes were, he would never write a birthday message to Prince Ning tonight. He was betting that Prince Ning would not dare to openly commit murder. After all, this was not his fiefdom, Nanchang.

At this time, Jiang Fangjie stood up and said: "Haha, I think Xu Jin is a person with a false reputation. He can't even write a birthday poem. He is not a talented student. I am willing to offer a birthday poem to the prince. I hope everyone can correct it.

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Prince Ning looked slightly relaxed, nodded and said: "Prepare pen and ink for Mr. Jiang!"

Soon, servants brought in the bookcase and the Four Treasures of the Study. Jiang Fangjie left the table calmly and walked to the bookcase to start writing.

Some of the candidates present came forward to watch, and some expressed disdain and contempt while sitting in their original seats. Xu Jin naturally sat calmly and calmly.

It has to be said that Jiang Fangjie still has some talent. He quickly wrote a birthday message "Man Jiang Hong", which won a lot of applause.

"Okay, Mr. Jiang is very talented, and I will reward you with a hundred taels of silver!" Prince Ning said loudly with a smile on his face.

As soon as the words were spoken, a maid came out carrying a tray with ten silver ingots on it, each ingot worth ten taels of silver. There was a burst of exclamation from the scene.

Do you want to know what the concept of one hundred taels of silver is? It is equivalent to one hundred thousand RMB. When such a large bundle of money is taken out, the visual impact can be imagined.

As the saying goes, money can make the grindstone go round, and money can make the grindstone go round. Under the heavy reward, several candidates were eager to try. They could get one hundred taels of silver for writing a poem. This is definitely a chance to get rich in the blink of an eye.

Those who were not firm were naturally moved.

Several candidates stepped forward to give speeches one after another, and each received a reward ranging from twelve to fifty taels, so more people followed suit.

Xu Jin couldn't help but shook his head secretly, this is how people die for money and die for food. Sometimes people's vision is as short-sighted as that of a bird. Is it worth it to lose your future and even your life for a hundred taels of silver?

When Prince Ning saw that more than a dozen people had presented poems, he couldn't help but feel proud. There is nothing in the world that cannot be done with money. If there is anything, it is because the money is not enough!

"Xu Jin, if you submit a poem to celebrate your birthday, I will reward you with three hundred taels of silver!" Prince Ning said with a smile.

As soon as these words came out, everyone's eyes turned to Xu Jin. Jiang Fangjie was both envious and jealous. Why did His Royal Highness value him so much? Could it be that his talent and learning were really not as good as his?

Xu Jin suddenly stood up and said: "Thank you Prince Ning for your kindness. I am willing to present a birthday poem to the prince, but the reward is not necessary!"

Prince Ning was overjoyed, haha, he knew that when he had no money, he could not do it, and the money was in place. Even your iron-clad Arhat was shaken, and he laughed loudly and said: "Come, I will personally polish the ink for Xu Case!"

Brother Zhu took the initiative to ignore the second half of Xu Jin's words, thinking that he was pretending to be aloof, and secretly handed him three hundred taels, which he accepted happily.

The candidates who were still present showed contempt. Xu insisted that he was still tempted. He was still tough despite all the hardships. He had no backbone and was greedy for money!

Several classmates from Xinjiang Academy lowered their heads in shame. It was so shameful!

Xu Jin ignored the complicated glances around him, walked to the desk and began to draw.

Everyone couldn't help but be dumbfounded. What was Xu Jin doing? Painting?

Prince Ning frowned, but he was also curious about what Xu Jin wanted to do, so he watched quietly.

Xu Jin had learned sketching before. Although he was using a brush now, he could still draw a simple picture with just a few strokes. The picture showed a woodcutter carrying a large load of firewood.

Chai came down from the mountain, looking very proud...

When everyone was confused, Xu Jin started to compose a poem next to him: "Picture of Picking Woodcutter"

When a woman calls her husband, she turns around and listens. The woodcutter must have a light load. The rain last night made the moss slippery, so don't go to dangerous places with green moss.

After Xu Jin finished writing, Lang Sheng recited the whole poem, then cupped his hands and said: "This "Picture of Woodcutter" is dedicated to the prince by His Royal Highness Prince Lao. I am too drunk to drink, so I say goodbye!" After that, he left directly.

The whole place was deathly silent. Xu Jin's poem was not a birthday poem at all, but a remonstrance poem, and it was a poem to remonstrate to her husband in a woman's tone.

"It rained last night and the moss is slippery. Don't go where the moss is dangerous."

This is clearly a reminder to Prince Ning not to take risks, otherwise he will fall to his knees, or a hungry dog ​​will grab his shit or something like that!

"Xu Zhiding is so brave to offer such a poem. Doesn't he think his life is too long?"

But more people secretly applauded, and some young middle school students were so excited that their blood surged, and they stood up suddenly, saying goodbye and leaving.

"I'm too drunk to drink, so I'll say goodbye!"

"I'm too drunk to drink, so I'll say goodbye!"

Several classmates from Xinjiang Academy stood up and left. Although we are not as talented and courageous as Mr. Xu, we can still express our attitude. We must not let Mr. Xu walk alone.

How can I say that I have no clothes, but I share the same robe with you, how magnificent!
Chapter completed!