Three hundred and fiftieth chapters touch stone into gold
Paozi River is not a river, but a depression in the southeast corner of Chongwenmen. Rainwater accumulates, forming several long strip lakes of various sizes. There are many tall locust trees and weeping willows on both sides of the bank. The lake water is clear and the trees are bright. It can be seen all year round.
The scenery is pleasing to the eye. Duoxi, a wealthy gentleman in the capital, built a villa and garden here. Zhang Lianfang spent 8,000 taels of silver to build a house on the north bank of the Paozi River two years ago. It is completely in the Shanyin architectural style, with three couplets in the hall, bright steps, and old buildings.
Trees stand tall, cloisters and rockeries, painted pavilions are dim, painted with gold and dyed, and the carvings are exquisite. Although it is the middle of winter, the pavilions and pavilions are hidden among the bamboos and ancient cypresses, and they are still beautiful and beautiful——
Near noon, Zhang Dai and Zhang Yuan drove to the bank of Paozi River. They saw someone playing on the ice bed on the frozen lake. Zhang Dai said enthusiastically: "We also went to play on the ice in the afternoon. This fun is something we don't have in Jiangnan."
——Jie Zi, you wouldn’t worry so much about the country and the people that you would skip all the fun, would you?”
Zhang Yuan said with a smile: "I should have fun. I'm just worried to death. What's the use? I can do as much work as I can. As far as the disaster situation in Shandong is concerned, I have tried my best. If I insist on a three-year-old child
If you swing the sledgehammer, you will hit yourself."
Zhang Dai praised: "Jie Zi has a clear mind. Uncle Zhong is worrying too much."
Zhang Yuan asked: "Why does Uncle Baosheng worry so much?"
Zhang Dai said: "Uncle Zhong said that you should just lift a child, and don't be too meddlesome. If you are too sharp, you will be jealous. Uncle Zhong is worried that you can't control the situation of Fu Que's letter, but it's good like this today."
The two brothers entered Uncle Zhong Zhang Lianfang's mansion. Zhang Yuan turned around and said to Mu Zhenzhen: "Follow me."
Mu Zhenzhen tensed up and was a little nervous. She had just heard about Dong Qichang. Dong Zuchang and his son also lived by the Paozi River. What did the young master mean by telling her to follow closely? Could it be that Dong's people would be detrimental to the young master here?
Mu Zhenzhen followed Zhang Yuan and opened the curtain into the hall. She suddenly felt that there were two worlds. Outside the curtain, water dripped and turned into ice, but inside the curtain was as warm as spring. She suddenly understood that the young master did not want her to wait outside to freeze -
The house was full of guests, and the hall was full of laughter. Zhang Lianfang liked to make friends and was rich. The house was always full of guests, and the bottles of wine were always full. Seeing Zhang Dai and Zhang Yuan come in, Zhang Lianfang got up and came over to ask about the joint disaster relief.
Nodding, he turned around and said to his friends in the hall: "Everyone, take a look at the talents of the descendants of our Zhang family in Shanyin. They are unparalleled in the south of the Yangtze River and there is no need to boast." He gestured to Zhang Dai with a smile, and Zhang Yuan introduced himself.
Zhang Dai and Zhang Yuan bowed together and said:
"Zhang Zongzi Zhang Dai of Shanyin has met all the sages."
"Zhang Yuan and Zhang Jiezi of Shanyin have met all the great masters."
There were seven literati and Confucian scholars present, and they all stood up to return the courtesy. They did not dare to claim to be seniors. Zhang Lianfang's two nephews had already passed high school examinations at a young age, and they might be young Jinshis in two months. How dare they ask for help, let alone Zhang Lianfang?
Yuan's current reputation can be said to be like thunder. He often walks by the Paozi River. How could he not know that Dong Qichang was disgraced by Zhang Yuan and fled from Songjiang to the capital? Moreover, two of the seven people had a close relationship with Dong Qichang——
Zhang Lianfang introduced his seven friends to his second nephew. These seven people were either famous people who were good at poetry, calligraphy and painting, or were masters in music and Go. They were also members of the "Chi She", a society formed by Zhang Lianfang in Beijing.
No matter stereotypes or just telling jokes, Zhang Lianfang is a person who enjoys life very much.
Among these seven people, Zhang Yuan has heard the names of two people for a long time. One is Shen Defu, whose courtesy name is Huchen. He is the author of "Wanli Yehuobian" and is very knowledgeable. The other is in the past Wen years, whose courtesy name is Bailing, and the number one player in Go in the late Ming Dynasty.
A master, when Dan Ran was eleven years old, he was taught chess skills by Bai Ling for a few days——
Shen Defu is short in stature and has a lot of witty words. However, the over-100-year-old in his twenties is a man who sits blankly and seems out of place among a group of scribes who joke a lot. But he happens to be a member of the gimmick club. Zhang Lianfang and Zhang Dai,
Zhang Yuan said: "Don't look at this hundred-year-old brother who is dumbfounded, he often makes a blockbuster."
Zhang Dai said: "Let Jie Zi play a game of chess with Mr. Guo later. Jie Zi is very powerful at chess."
Zhang Yuan hurriedly said: "How dare you, Mr. Guo is a national player, I'm just having fun in my free time."
Zhang Lianfang knew that Guo Bailing's chess skills were not accessible to ordinary people. They and Guo Bailing's disciples all had to accept five pieces or more. He said: "The number one player in the capital is Lin Fuqing. Bailing has always wanted to challenge him, but Lin Fuqing has
The high-status person ignored him, thinking that the young Bai Ling wanted to use him to become famous. I want to make Bai Ling a success and plan to set up a bet of 100 taels of colored silver in Longfu Temple during the Lantern Festival next year for Bai Ling to challenge Lin Fuqing.
Yinzi will definitely agree to the game, one game every day, five games in a row, who do you think can win?"
Shen Defu and the others know how powerful Lin Fuqing is. He has dominated the capital for thirty years and has faced all the famous players. No one can beat him. He is a rising star who is over 100 years old, but after all, he is still young. I am afraid he is not Lin Fuqing's opponent. Due to his age,
Bai Ling Mianzi, all of them smiled and didn't answer, only Zhang Yuan said firmly: "It must be Mr. Guo who wins."
Guo Bailing glanced at Zhang Yuan in surprise and said, "Zhang Jieyuan will go to high school next spring."
Zhang Lianfang laughed and said: "You two really flatter each other - serve wine and have a banquet."
When the banquet began and everyone was sitting down, Zhang Lianfang saw the beautiful maidservant Hu following Zhang Yuan, so she asked Zhang Yuan who this woman was.
Zhang Yuandao: "She is my nephew's concubine."
Zhang Dai added: "Excellent in martial arts and loyal."
Zhang Lianfang smiled and said: "Since you are my nephew's concubine, then go to the inner courtyard to have dinner with my concubine." If you are a maid, you can only go to the kitchen to eat. Zhang Lianfang's concubines are in groups, and they are jealous every day, which is very lively.
Mu Zhenzhen looked at Zhang Yuan with his faint blue eyes, and Zhang Yuan smiled and said: "Go ahead, don't be afraid of people laughing at your big appetite, just eat."
Mu Zhenzhen blushed and followed a maid into the back hall.
Here Zhang Yuan was drinking and joking with Uncle Baosheng and his friends. Less than two seconds later, Mu Zhenzhen came out. Zhang Yuan asked her if she had eaten. She nodded, and the maid who came out with her covered her mouth.
Laughing, Zhang Lianfang asked the maid what she was laughing at.
The maid said: "This sister went in, and the ladies were talking around her. This sister didn't know what to say, so she just ate the vegetables, hehe."
Mu Zhenzhen burped again and his face was so red that it was bleeding.
Zhang Lianfang laughed and said: "My concubines are also good at teasing. I married them in Yangzhou, Datong and Beijing. These Jiangbei girls are bullying us Shaoxing people for being country people."
Talking and laughing, after the banquet, Zhang Lianfang had many tricks and asked his servants to carry up a big stone that he bought at Wang Gongchang for fifty taels of silver the day before yesterday. It weighed more than thirty kilograms, was oval in shape, and had no sharp edges, just like
It was ordinary riverbed gravel. It was placed solemnly on a natural table made of iron pear wood. Zhang Lianfang looked at everyone with a smile——
Zhang Dai knows Uncle Zhong's vision. Uncle Zhong does not do business in Beijing, does not buy land, and does not make usury money, but he has endless money. Why? It is because of his brilliant eye for identifying calligraphy, painting and antiques that he has a lot of money. Spending fifty taels of silver to buy such a big stone is definitely not like Yan Ke who wasted his money randomly. There must be his reasons. He immediately joked: "My uncle is very generous. It costs fifty taels of silver to buy a Taihu stone."
"Is there such an ugly Taihu stone?" Zhang Lianfang laughed loudly and said: "When I was buying stones at Wang Gong Factory the day before yesterday, there was another person fighting with me. I offered twenty taels and he offered twenty-one taels. I was too lazy to fight. He talked nonsense and directly mentioned fifty taels, and the man said you buy it, you buy it, so I bought it - did anyone here laugh at me, Zhang Baosheng, for calling me a fool?"
Shen Huchen said with a smile: "How dare you? Brother Baosheng has the touch of gold."
Over a hundred years old looked at the stone and said: "In my hometown Wuxi, this stone can be pressed into an urn to make pickles."
Everyone laughed.
Zhang Lianfang asked the servants to carry the iron pear wood table and the expensive big stone to the courtyard outside the hall. It was late noon, and although the weather was cold, the direct sunlight made it a little warm. Everyone looked left and right, and the stone reflected the sunlight. There is nothing strange about it. Shen Huchen said: "I don't see the jewels. Brother Baosheng, please click on it quickly. It will turn into brilliant gold."
A bucket of water had already been placed beside the tables. Zhang Lianfang picked up a ladle of water and said, "Look carefully, everyone." He slowly poured the water in the ladle onto the stone and asked, "Did you see anything?"
Everyone shook their heads.
Zhang Lianfang poured another ladle of water and asked, "Did you see anything?"
Everyone still shook their heads. Isn't it just a stone? If you water it, flowers will grow. Shen Huchen sighed and said, "The stone is about to freeze."
Mu Zhenzhen whispered in Zhang Yuan's ear: "Master, the moment I saw the water flowing over the stone, the cracks in the stone glowed with green light."
When Zhang Lianfang heard this, his eyebrows twitched and he said with a smile: "You have good eyesight. My nephew, you, my concubine, have good eyesight. Just this little green light is as green as a parrot or an emerald. I dare to conclude that there is something in this stone." A good jadeite is worth no less than three thousand gold."
Everyone said "Wow", the stone bought for fifty taels of silver was worth three thousand taels of silver in a blink of an eye. Zhang Baosheng had a good way of making money.
Faced with everyone's exclamation, Zhang Lianfang remained calm, and then a jade worker came in and cut out the stone to get the jade on the spot. Zhang Lianfang wanted to show off in front of everyone. The jade worker had been waiting for him for a long time, and it didn't take half an hour to complete the work together. A water-green jade weighing seven or eight kilograms with a stone skin appeared in front of everyone. Zhang Lianfang said: "I will carve a dragon tail cup and a combined cup with it. Three thousand gold is more than enough."
Everyone admired Zhang Baosheng's eyesight. These thirty kilograms of stone were really thirty kilograms of gold.
Although Zhang Yuan was also amazed, he said in his heart: "People in the late Ming Dynasty were extravagant. Many useless things were sought after for sky-high prices. The rich people didn't know where to spend their money."
Zhang Lianfang and Shen Huchen went back to the hall to drink tea. Zhang Dai and Zhang Yuan took Feng Hu and Mu Zhenzhen out of the back garden. Behind Zhang Lianfang's garden was a narrow small garden about fifty feet long and ten feet wide. At this time, the lake was frozen, and a large area of ice was crystal clear. There were two ice beds dragged by manpower, sliding quickly on the ice. It only cost six cents to drag them back and forth from south to north. A group of children gathered around and competed for each other. Riding is a way for poor people to earn some money to support their families in the winter. Zhang Dai and Zhang Yuan shared an ice bed and were dragged back and forth for two times. Zhang Yuan was not happy riding on the ice bed, so he tied non-slip bristles on his leather boots. He dragged Zhang Dai for a while with a woolen belt. Zhang Dai laughed and asked Zhang Yuan to sit while he dragged the ice bed. He also asked Mu Zhenzhen and Feng Hu to come and play with him. They played for half an hour and slipped numerous times. Not feeling cold at all, Zhang Yuan thought that he would call Jinglan tomorrow and the Jinghui sisters would also come here to play——
In a garden on the opposite bank, Dong Qichang, who was pale and slender, was wearing a large cloak and holding a hand stove. Beside him was Dong Zuchang. The father and son looked at Zhang Dai and Zhang Yuan playing on the ice dozens of feet away through the gap in the fence. Dong Zuchang
Henhen said: "They were having a great time."
Dong Qichang didn't say a word, just looked at it with his slightly swollen eyeballs squinting.
Dong Zuchang said: "If Zhang Yuan Chunwei is allowed to be proud, then our Dong family may never be able to stand up again. Dad is already old -"
Dong Qichang snorted, glared at his son, and said, "You're a waste, you can't help your father at all. I have to do everything myself."
Dong Zuchang said: "Dad is worried about his son. A few days ago, Gongyuan——"
"Shut up." Dong Qichang shouted: "Don't mention it to anyone, do you hear me?"
"Yes." Dong Zuchang lowered his head.
…
Zhang Dai heard that Uncle Zhong said that the garden on the other side was Dong Qichang's villa. He pointed it out to Zhang Yuan and said, "Teacher Qian's residence is not far from here. Shall we go and visit now?"
Zhang Yuandao: "I haven't prepared a ceremony for Zhi today. Let's go tomorrow. Teacher Yang will also go there."
At the beginning of the afternoon, Zhang Dai ordered a carriage to take Zhang Yuan and Mu Zhenzhen back to the East Fourth Archway. The old servant of the Shang family answered the door and said: "Uncle Zhang, several people came to visit Uncle Zhang today. The post is here, and there is another person who has been waiting here.
.”
While they were talking, a person walked out of the hall and crossed his arms to Zhang Yuan and said, "Master Zhang, I've been waiting for you for a long time." It was the young eunuch Gao Qiqian whom he had seen outside Chaoyang Gate yesterday. He was not wearing palace attire, but
Act like a book boy.
Shang's old servant said: "This young man came here before noon and has been waiting for more than two hours."
Zhang Yuan said hurriedly: "I went to the Hubu Yamen early in the morning. I'm sorry." He pulled Xiao Gao aside and asked in a low voice: "Did Eunuch Zhong ask you to come see me?"
Xiao Gao smiled bitterly and said: "It's Eunuch Zhong who wants me to invite Young Master Zhang to meet me. No matter what time it is, I have to wait for Young Master Zhang, so I've been waiting here. It doesn't matter if I wait a little longer. Even Eunuch Zhong also
Having been waiting in the house by Shicha Beach, and having been out of the palace for so long, Eunuch Zhong must be extremely anxious, and he will definitely blame the villain for not being able to do things."
It is not uncommon for rich and powerful eunuchs to often buy mansions outside the imperial city. Although Zhong Benhua is not stingy, he worked as the head of the Hangzhou Weaving Department for several years and accumulated a lot of savings. Last year, he returned to Beijing and lived in ten houses north of the imperial city.
A property was built next to Chahai Temple——
Zhang Yuandao: "I'm really sorry. If I see Eunuch Zhong, I will definitely explain. Little Eunuch Gao, let's go now."
Before going out, Zhang Yuan looked at the name cards left by the other two visitors. One was his senior brother Xu Guangqi, and the other was signed by Quanzhou Hong Chengchou——
Zhang Yuan raised his eyebrows slightly and thought to himself: "Hong Chengchou, I have been famous for him for a long time. Why did he come to see me?"
…
When Xiao Jinghui heard that Zhang Yuan was back, he happily went out of the second gate, but the old gatekeeper said that Uncle Zhang had gone out with someone else again.
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