Perhaps it was because it had not rained for almost a whole year. After the winter of the thirty-eighth year of Hongzhi, continuous rain and snow began to fall across the northern land, adding biting moisture to the cold.
"The weather in the Little Ice Age was really changeable. There was too much rain and snow this winter, which was not a good thing."
Liu Jin's mansion in the capital.
Because of the marriage of his younger son Liu Qing, Liu Jin returned to the capital for the first time in the past two years, and he was not in a hurry to return to his hometown. Calculating the time, in a few months, his three years of filial piety will be completed.
"Time flies, and the years fly by. In the blink of an eye, it will be the thirty-nineth year of Hongzhi. I am about to be forty-six years old, and I will be celebrating my fifth birthday soon."
Thinking of this, Liu Jin really lamented that time passed so fast. In the blink of an eye, he was about to reach the fifth hour.
"Master, Master~"
"The chief minister of the cabinet, Mr. Han, is seriously ill!"
Just as Liu Jin was thinking about it, the housekeeper of the house hurriedly came to report.
"Han Wen is seriously ill?"
When Liu Jin heard this, he immediately frowned.
If you think about it carefully, Han Wen is indeed very old now. Calculated, he is now over eighty years old, and he is an old minister who can compare with Liu Jian.
This Hanwen is Han Qi, the Prime Minister of the Northern Song Dynasty. She can be said to be a queen of a famous family, and she was also a genius when she was young. She was a Jinshi in high school when she was only in her twenties.
In history, Han Wen himself had already reached the high position of Minister of Civil Affairs, and he was a very popular minister. Later, during the Zhengde Dynasty, because he offended the eunuch Liu Jin, he was forced to resign and go home, and was fined with almost all his family property.
, once my life was very downcast and poor.
Later, after Jiajing ascended the throne, he was reinstated, and finally died of illness after working for a few more years.
Calculating the time carefully, he did die of illness at about this age.
Historically, Han Wen's evaluation was very high. Liu Jian evaluated him as a national supporter for 150 years, and at that time, he was the only one who supported Han Guandao. Emperor Jiajing evaluated him as an upright person who swore loyalty to himself and advocated for the rule of law.
The mountains are hard to shake, the sweet and misfortune forgets home, the water and frost remain unchanged, the world looks up to its wind, and the gods wish it a long and healthy life.
From this it can be seen that Han Wen has not dishonored the reputation of his ancestor Han Qi. Not only has he become a highly respected official, but he also has a very high evaluation. He is upright and worthy of being a prime minister from a famous family.
"Prepare the car~"
After thinking about it, Liu Jin decided to read Korean.
Back in time, there were not many people that Liu Jin could admire. Wang Shouren was one, Zhu Houzhao was one, and Korean was also one.
Unlike Liu Jian, Liu Jian was able to be the chief assistant of the cabinet solely because he was the teacher of Emperor Hongzhi. To be honest, his talent was really not that high. Compared with Li Dongyang, Han Wen, Yang Ting and them, there was a big difference.
.
The key is that Liu Jian actually did not take away the filial piety and writing fees from his subordinate officials. For example, Liu Yu, the trilateral leader, relied on sending money to Liu Jian and building relationships with his fellow villagers, so he got his recommendation and rose to prominence.
.
It's Liu Yu. He is not a good official, nor a good person, but it is such a person who sat in a high position and held great power under his recommendation.
Korean is different. He is similar to Liu Jin. He never leaves pen and ink for others, so naturally there is no money for retouching. He also never accepts favors or charcoal favors from others. He is very upright and a person with a breeze in his sleeves.
Sitting in the car, Liu Jin looked at the patter of winter rain outside the car window. According to the past situation, it would have almost snowed at this time, but now the temperature seemed to be a little higher.
If I don't go to see Han Wen now, I might never see him again in the future.
According to the rules, he will return to his hometown soon to continue to observe filial piety. He cannot stay here in the capital forever. If he is unfilial like that, he will definitely be criticized and impeached.
Maybe I won’t be able to see Han Wen again after I go back for a few months, so I’ll go see him now.
Here in the Hanwen Mansion, the entire mansion was silent at this time, and the servants were all cautious, for fear of making any mistakes at this time.
Mr. Han is seriously ill, which is undoubtedly a heavy blow to the Han family.
The Han family's success is naturally inseparable from Han Wen, the chief minister of the cabinet. As long as he is around, the status of the Han family will be different.
Now that he is seriously ill, and coupled with his old age, over eighty years old, it is really hard to say whether he can survive it once Han Wen collapses.
This is like losing the biggest tree of the Han family. The children of the Han family will not have such an easy life in the future.
For an ordinary family, having an elderly person in the family is a burden, but for an official family like the Han family, Han Wen is the backbone of the family, the anchor of the sea, and cannot fall down no matter what.
"Liu Jin and Duke Liu are here~"
When the Han family was grieving, Liu Jin came to the Han mansion and soon met Han Wen, who was seriously ill.
"Han Gong~"
Liu Jin looked at Han Wen on the hospital bed. He was very thin, with gray hair, wrinkles on his face, cloudy eyes, and a very poor mental state.
"Liu Jin!"
Seeing that Liu Jin was coming, Han Wen cheered up and waved to everyone around him to get down. He had something to have a good chat with Liu Jin.
"Mr. Han, take care of yourself!"
"I'm over eighty years old, that's enough. But if I leave now, you will be in trouble by then."
"If I had waited until your filial piety period expired before I left, the situation might have been different."
Han Wen thought for a moment and then said.
If Liu Jin's period of filial piety expires, it won't matter if he leaves at any time. With Emperor Hongzhi's favor and trust in Liu Jin, Liu Jin will definitely be allowed to serve as the chief minister of the cabinet again.
But Liu Jin still has a few months left to observe his filial piety. He can't just leave now. He must hold on and survive these last few months.
"I actually don't take this matter to heart. No matter whether I am an official or not, it is not very important. Sometimes, being without an official makes me feel lighter."
Liu Jin smiled and said.
When I came to see Han Wen myself, I didn’t mean to let Han Wen stick around for a few more months, but I just wanted to come and see Han Wen and see him.
"If other people say this, I won't believe it. But if you, Liu Jin, say this, I will."
When Han Wen heard this, he smiled and said.
He already knew clearly what kind of person Liu Jin was over the years. He was definitely not a person who was greedy for power.
"I have no regrets in my life."
"I studied hard when I was young, achieved success in my studies, and succeeded in my ambition at a young age. My career was smooth sailing without any setbacks."
"After becoming an official, I can be loyal to the emperor and do some practical and good deeds for the people. This is enough. I have not insulted the reputation of my ancestors. I will have the honor to see my ancestors after my death."
There were bursts of memories in Han Wen's eyes, recalling his life.
Han Wen's life perfectly explains the life of a scholar in the Ming Dynasty. He studied as a young man, achieved success in his studies and was successful at a young age. His official career was smooth and smooth, he was a very popular minister, he was loyal to the emperor, he benefited the people and did good deeds. This is what scholars in the Ming Dynasty meant.
lifetime.
Scholars like Wen Zhengming, although they claimed to be talented and learned, could not even pass the examination. His life can be regarded as a typical and representative example of the failure of scholars in the Ming Dynasty.
There are many scholars who failed to pass the civil examination. Wen Zhengming is just one of them, and he can be regarded as a representative of scholars in the Ming Dynasty. He took the provincial examination nine times, from his 20s to his fifties.
From a young man to a white-haired old man, he has been on the road to science and technology exams all his life.
There are also scholars like Zhu Zhishan, who took the exam four or five times before passing the exam, and then took the exam seven times but failed to pass the exam. In the end, he could only become a minor official of a seventh-grade county magistrate.
Although he was full of reluctance and felt that his talents could not be used, Zhu Zhishan actually surpassed most scholars of this period.
It is the dream of countless scholars to be able to pass the Juren examination and go to the capital to take the examination. Although they have not been admitted to the Jinshi many times, they can be regarded as an epitome of scholars in the Ming Dynasty.
As for scholars like Liu Jin, Xie Qian, Wang Hua, Wang Shouren, etc. who succeeded at a young age and had a bright career, after all, they are still very few.
Taking Xie Qian as an example, Xie Qian was actually similar to Liu Jin. When he was young, he was not only talented, but more importantly, he was also handsome. When Xie Qian went out to study and stayed in the houses of landlords and gentry, he would be attracted by the landlord's daughters.
Secretly, he actively wanted to devote himself to Xie Qian. It can be seen that when he was young, he was not only talented, but also had first-class temperament, appearance, etc.
But scholars like Liu Jin and Xie Qian are in the minority after all. You have to know how many outstanding people like Wang Shouren only took the national examination three times before entering high school.
The road to the imperial examination is actually not that easy. This road is full of ups and downs, far more cruel than the college entrance examination in later generations. Of course, once you can get out of it, the future is bright.
"Liu Jin, you have achieved success at a young age and have a bright career. You have been appointed to the position of a powerful minister early. This is not a good thing. You should think more about your own future in the future."
Han Wen looked at Liu Jin. His life was pretty good, but compared with Liu Jin, he seemed to be inferior a lot.
Liu Jincai is the most successful example of Ming Dynasty scholars in this matter. He became the number one scholar in high school at a young age, then married a lovely wife, was appreciated by the emperor, rose to prominence, and became a highly respected minister at a young age. Such a life is what countless scholars dream of.
Life.
But in Han Wen's view, such a life is actually too sharp and too smooth.
"I understand, thank you Mr. Han for your advice!"
When Liu Jin heard this, he was slightly moved. Han Wen gave him the same advice as Zhang Mao at the end.