At the end of September, when the weather turned cooler, Wang Xu took the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal and headed north to Chang'an.
Chang'an, located in the hinterland of Kyushu, was the ancient capital of thousands of dynasties and the political center of the Wu Dynasty.
There is a palace, a cabinet, two chambers, six ministries, five temples, nine supervisors, and thirty-six divisions here. A brick was thrown and hit three people. Two of them may be officials of the seventh rank or above, and the remaining one is also a relative of the emperor.
Here are hundreds of poems about gifted men fighting over wine, and here are princes and princes sleeping in restaurants.
There are heroes climbing walls, luoli waiting to be married, monks walking around the streets, and scholars aspiring to become princes.
The theater is open all day long, courtesans compete for beauty, and the sheds set up on the roadside may not be tea places but casinos. The peddlers carrying firewood and selling fuel are always informed faster than the government.
There is a tofu seller named Sai Xishi in the east of the city. She is actually an ugly girl who has not gotten married in her thirties.
There is a Thanksgiving Temple in the west of the city. The monks there wear gold and silver and wear wigs at night. They are the most aggressive people in the brothel.
There is a chess king in the south of the city. It is said that he can play games with the sky and beat the sky with one piece, but no one has ever seen him play chess.
There are hundreds of large and small casinos in the north of the city. Most of the gamblers are military men and eunuchs. It is said that someone once found the bellyband of the harem queen here.
This place is called Chang'an. You can see princes, generals, princes, and vassal kings on the streets.
The person playing marbles with the urchins on the roadside may be the former chief minister, and the fisherman catching fish by the river may also be the current uncle of the state.
This is the foot of the emperor. If you love someone, please send him to Chang'an. There are countless glory and wealth here.
If you hate someone, please send him to Chang'an. This is a place where people live in a state of intoxication and do not believe in love. Many people's dreams end here.
"Chang'an, I'm here!"
Sitting on the carriage and looking at the majestic ancient city in front of him, Wang Xu couldn't help but smile.
This is Chang'an, where his dream begins, where he will cultivate his moral character, organize his family, govern the country, and bring peace to the world.
"This is Jinshan Mansion, the young master of the Wang family?"
The carriage entered the city gate, and a boy dressed as a servant stopped Wang Xu's carriage.
Wang Xu opened the car curtain and asked: "Who are you?"
The visitor came up with a flattering look on his face, nodded and bowed and said, "Young Lai San, a servant of the Xue Mansion, has been waiting here for the young master for a long time."
"Oh, it turns out the teacher sent me."
Wang Xu nodded and asked, "What are your instructions, teacher?"
Lai San stepped forward to hold the horse and replied: "My lord said, let the young master go directly to the house. There is plenty of place to live in the house. Even if you want to move out, you have to get familiar with the place first. Chang'an is not like Jiangnan. Here there is a mixture of dragons and snakes.
You will suffer big losses if you are not careful."
Xue Mushan knew that Wang Xu would come, but did not know the specific date. Lai San had been here for five days.
According to Xue Mushan's intention, he wanted Wang Xu to live in the Xue Mansion. After all, Wang Xu was unfamiliar with this place, and no one would say anything if he lived in the teacher's mansion.
"Lead the way."
Wang Xu did not refuse and directly asked Lai San to lead the way. He had to discuss with the teacher whether he would live in Xue Mansion.
Along the way, Wang Xu and Lai San chatted, and the people who asked the most questions were the owners of the mansion.
Xue Mushan is a northerner and comes from a large family with many descendants.
Unlike in Jiangnan, Xue Mushan lived in seclusion in Jiangnan, alone, with no one around him.
Being an official in Chang'an is the so-called seventh-rank official in front of the prime minister. As a cabinet minister, there will be many people who come to seek refuge.
As they chatted, Lai Sanzhi answered all questions, and Wang Xu also had a general impression of the Xue Mansion.
Among the Xue Mansion, the biggest one is of course Xue Mushan, followed by Xue Mushan’s wife and Wang Xu’s mistress, Jia Shi.
Mr. Jia also comes from a wealthy family. He is now sixty-five years old. Because of his old age, he is not very involved in things now.
The person in charge of the Xue family is the eldest daughter-in-law of the Xue family.
The second generation of the Xue family has two boys and three girls. The daughter has already been married. Among the two boys, the eldest is a member of the sixth rank in the Ministry of Etiquette, and the second is a minister of the seventh rank in the Inspectorate.
Considering their age and Xue Mushan's authority, a junior official of rank six or seven is simply not worth mentioning.
It can be seen from this that the second generation of the Xue family is somewhat unsatisfactory, and there is no one who can take the lead.
Otherwise, if there is a father who is in the cabinet, his son will be ranked third or fifth grade, even if he is not only rising to success.
A sixth-rank Yuanwailang in his fifties, and a seventh-rank scholar in his forties may not be able to reach the fifth rank by the time they retire and return home.
The third generation of the Xue family is also not very reliable. The elder's family has been around for a long time, and they have failed in exams every year. The second generation's family is simply a bunch of dudes.
The only good news is that the eldest daughter of the second Xue family was selected as a show girl three years ago. This year, because Xue Mushan successfully held the Wansou Banquet, she caught the attention of the Queen Mother and was promoted to the position of Nine Guests.
One step away from becoming a concubine.
"Young master, you don't know that on the day of the Wansou Banquet, tens of thousands of old people over sixty years old gathered in the capital to celebrate the birthday of the Queen Mother, which made the Queen Mother extremely happy. When the Queen Mother was happy, the current emperor was also happy, and he praised the master.
He handles things neatly and is a capable minister!"
When we talked about Wansou's banquet, Lai San's face lit up.
Speaking of which, Xue Mushan's position in the court is very embarrassing. As the third-in-command in the cabinet, he is suppressed by the chief minister and the deputy minister.
In addition, as an important minister of the Zhu Party and not favored by the Holy Emperor, his hands and feet have inevitably been tied up in these years, and he has been reduced to a yes man.
The longevity banquet was held this time, allowing the saints and the people to celebrate together, which left a strong mark in the history books. Finally, we made a turnaround and could eat more bowls of food.
"It's not easy being a teacher!"
After hearing what Lai San said, Wang Xu could not imagine how embarrassed Xue Mushan was in the court.
Fortunately, he had no intention of becoming an official in the court, otherwise Wang Xu would have had a headache just thinking about the intrigues in the court.
"Prince, we are here."
After twists and turns, the carriage entered Beicheng, and Xue Mansion came into view.
Because the imperial palace is in the north city, most of the residences of dignitaries are concentrated in the north of the city.
The same is true for the Xue Mansion. The bright red door and the two stone lions at the door give off the official style at first glance.
However, the official families in Chang'an were grand but not as luxurious as the Jiangnan nobles.
This is inevitable. Under the emperor's feet, those who have money must be restrained, otherwise it will be too wide to write movable characters on the door.
One day someone from the palace came to see it, good guy, it is more luxurious than the palace, you must be a corrupt official.
Therefore, the houses of officials and officials in Chang'an generally do not focus on luxury. Unless it is a house gifted by the Holy Emperor, the area will not be too large.
The same is true for the Xue Mansion. The house has three entrances and three exits. If you really want to compare it, it is not as good as the Wang Family in Jinshan Mansion.
There are not many servants in the family. The east courtyard belongs to the eldest son, and the west courtyard belongs to the second son. Xue Mushan and Jia live in the backyard, and the front yard is used to receive guests, so the vacancy rate is very low.
There are only a few dozen servants in the entire Xue Mansion, not to mention none of the singers and dancers.
On average, the master of the Xue Mansion only has two or three people waiting on him. You must know that in the aristocratic families in the south of the Yangtze River, there are seven or eight people waiting for an unweaned child, not counting the rough ladies who carry water and sweep the floor.
.
"The teacher is still as simple as ever."
After entering Xue Mansion and looking at the scenery inside, Wang Xu smiled and said to Lai San.
Lai San responded in succession and replied: "Today's holy emperors are simple. I see the wise and think about them all, but I can't stand the luxury of the merchants' homes. Otherwise, the officials and censors will have to gossip again."
Having said this, Lai San brought Wang Xu to the living room, and while greeting the maid to serve tea, he said: "The master has not come back from the previous court, please wait a moment."
Wang Xu smiled slightly, lowered his head and drank tea without any rush.
After half a stick of incense, the teacher did not come back, but his wife, Mrs. Jia, came out.
Mrs. Jia, who had white hair and seemed to be in good spirits, walked in with an eight or nine-year-old child without the support of the servants around her.
"Disciple Wang Xu, I have seen the old woman." Seeing Jia coming in, Wang Xu quickly stood up and saluted.
Mrs. Jia looked at Wang Xu with a look of fondness on her face, and continued: "Good boy, your teacher has talked about you a lot, praising you as something rare in the sky and hard to find on earth. After seeing you today, you are indeed a great talent."
Wang Xu couldn't accept this, so he could only smile.
But standing next to Mrs. Jia, the child who was brought in said in a childlike voice: "Grandma, this is the big brother that grandpa often praises. I heard that he is very good at reading. I can ask him to be my husband."
?"
Mrs. Jia was stunned when she heard the sound, and her eyes became a little more moved.