When Zhang Yue arrived at the Chen Mansion in a carriage, it was already after You hour.
At this time on the streets of Bianjing, many people have already rested early and are waiting for work tomorrow.
But for restaurants and bars, there are still many drinkers and diners gathered inside.
But seeing two lanterns lit in front of Chen Xiang's door, the old servant Zhongbo, who was familiar with Zhang Yue, happily introduced him: "Sanlang Jun, the master and his wife are waiting for you. They have all calculated that today is the day of liberation."
The day when the results will be released."
Zhang Yue was both happy and ashamed at the same time and said: "Mr. Lienlei and Mistress have been waiting for so long. Thank you very much, Uncle Zhong, for leaving the door for me."
"There's nothing to be thankful for."
As soon as Zhang Yue entered, Chen Xiang heard the voice in the hall and stepped out and asked: "How did Sanlang do in the exam?"
As soon as Zhang Yue saw Chen Xiang, he immediately bowed down and said, "Student, thank you sir. My kindness is as deep as a mountain!"
Then the teacher's wife also stepped out, looked at Zhang Yue and said in surprise: "Sanlang, are you in high school?"
Zhang Yue bowed to his teacher's wife again and said: "To my teacher's wife, fortunately, the student has lived up to his command and won third place in the high school's Imperial Examination!"
Chen Xiang was overjoyed when he heard this and said: "This is good, this is good. I will say that your classic meaning is better than policy theory, and policy theory is better than poems and poems. I was worried about your poems and poems before, but now that you are ranked third, it really makes me understand."
What a worry. Get up quickly!"
Chen Xiang wanted to help Zhang Yue, but saw that Zhang Yue did not move.
Seeing this scene, the master's wife said: "Now that you have passed, master and apprentice, let's have a drink. Uncle Zhong went to the alley to buy some fresh fish and fruits. Sanlang, don't leave tonight. I'll clean up the guest room. You can sleep here. I
Let’s warm the wine first.”
After the master's wife finished speaking, she left first.
Chen Xiang looked at Zhang Yue and asked, "Do you have something to say?"
Zhang Yue said: "Reporting to Sir, the student's poems did not write '葑'."
"What?" Chen Xiang was a little surprised, "You mean you didn't write it?"
Zhang Yue lowered his head and said: "The student overestimates his ability and fails to live up to the good intentions of the teacher."
Chen Xiang was silent for a while after hearing this, then helped Zhang Yue up and said with a smile: "If you didn't write it, you didn't write it! Should I still blame you? Come in and talk."
Zhang Yue did not expect that Chen Xiang would be able to explain away what he had been worrying about for several days.
Immediately the two of them came to the hall and sat down. Chen Xiang said: "You will silently read all the poems, poems, poems, policies and discussions in the examination room in a while, and I will help you take a look."
"Yes, students have already agreed." Zhang Yue immediately took out the poem bag he carried with him.
Under a glass lamp in the hall, Chen Xiang began to read Zhang Yue's manuscript.
Zhang Yue sat down in a dignified manner, but he saw Uncle Zhong coming back carrying a fish weighing two or three kilograms, and a lot of candied fruits.
The mistress took the fish and walked to the kitchen to cook it. Uncle Zhong turned around and locked the door. He turned back and smiled at Zhang Yue.
Soon the fire was lit again in the kitchen, and the fish was stewed in a large pot. The mistress mashed the ginger and garlic in a mortar, waited for the water to boil, and then put them into the pot to stew. This is a cooking technique that the mistress is familiar with.
The aroma of fish soup reached Zhang Yue's nose.
Chen Xiang said: "Your poetry writing this time is acceptable, and your strategy and analysis are excellent, so it is not surprising that you are ranked this way. However, your poetry ability passed the interpretation test, but was lacking in the provincial examination. If you want to
If you try to go further, you must guard against arrogance and impetuosity, and from today onwards, you must calm down and study."
Zhang Yue said: "The student has remembered it."
Chen Xiang looked at Zhang Yue and asked, "Tonight is your moment of pride. Do you know the purpose of letting you study here and study articles?"
Zhang Yue said: "Sir, you are afraid that the students will get carried away."
Chen Xiang nodded and said: "That's right. You are only sixteen or seventeen years old now. Even if you are twenty-six or seventeen years old, you still can't make up your mind. At this age, it's easy to be happy and sad. If you are too proud of something, it's not a good thing.
It's like having a sudden windfall, but it's hard to keep it. I've seen too many young talents who were once proud and then fell to the bottom.
.”
"I'm not talking about you. When I was young, I was very ambitious and didn't know how to measure. I didn't realize this until I was thirty-five or six years old. Nothing comes for free. Once you get it, you should cherish it. The most important thing about studying is the energy
, it will be very difficult to get it back in the future if this strength is slack. I have said this to many people, many of them are your senior fellow apprentices, but those who can hear it will understand even if I don’t say it. Can’t you hear it?
It’s all in vain if you say it.”
Having said this, Chen Xiang let out a long sigh.
Zhang Yue thought to himself, yes, those who should wave must still wave, and no one can stop it.
He kept Chen Xiang's words in mind and said, "The students have been taught."
Chen Xiang said: "I will talk to you again about the deficiencies in the poems."
Zhang Yue immediately took his mind back and listened to Chen Xiang's lecture attentively.
Soon the mistress had stewed the fish and put it aside and said with a smile: "Don't lift the lid yet, I will warm the wine for you. Three years old green and red wine."
Chen Xiang said: "There is no need to warm the wine."
The master's wife said angrily: "I've never seen you like this. The disciples all took third place in the examination. Outsiders would say you are so stingy."
Chen Xiang burst out laughing, and the mistress looked strangely as she opened the lid, and immediately the aroma of fish soup filled the hall.
The mistress filled two bowls of fish soup and placed them on the table for two people. Chen Xiang raised the fish soup and said with a smile, "I will use this fish soup to congratulate you on your passing. Don't be too shabby."
Zhang Yue raised the fish soup and said with a smile: "Students like to drink the fish soup stewed by my wife the most. Sir, my wife is so kind that the students will never forget it."
Mrs. Chen Xiang laughed when she heard this.
Zhang Yue immediately took a sip of the fish soup. The shredded ginger covered up the fishy smell just right, leaving a sweet taste in his mouth.
For him, this bowl of fish soup is better than countless delicacies from the mountains and seas.
The wife looked at Zhang Yue's expression and asked, "I didn't add anything except ginger and garlic. It's very bland. I don't know if it suits your taste."
Zhang Yue thought of his feelings just now and couldn't help but said: "The taste in the world is pure joy."
The master's wife tasted it carefully and said with a smile: "What a saying, 'Taste in the world is pure joy'."
Chen Xiang thought to himself that although Saburo's poems and poems were difficult to compare with others, sometimes the beautiful lines he picked up by hand puppets were so superb that it was really puzzling.
Tonight.
The Zhangjia Hotel next to Zhouqiao was bustling with activity.
Si Bo stood in front of the hotel and came up to greet the drinkers.
There were also countless geishas dressed up in gorgeous costumes. Some of them wore low tube tops, revealing a large area of white.
There are also people with small feet wearing narrow socks and bow shoes. Many drinkers can't take their eyes off the narrow crest of the bow shoes.
Wang Kui and He Qi were also in the restaurant. Wang Kui was also very fond of feet, but he didn't like them as much as He Qi.
Now Wang Kui and He Qizheng are sitting with their friends.
Wang Kui is now the prince of the state, and he has as many friends as he wants. But they will look down on those who are jealous and cling to him or who are fair-weather friends.
The people they were socializing with tonight were all wealthy and idle people in the capital. In the yamen, as for the servants and singers who were supporting them, they were not ordinary people either.
Sibo didn't do business on weekdays, he just stayed in the wine shop all day long, waiting for the rich.
Don't think this business is easy.
Ordinary servants just run errands for rich people and earn some hard-earned money.
The powerful Sibos are all human beings, and they are very articulate. They talk about people and ghosts, and so on. They usually attract these rich people and go wherever there is good food and fun, causing them to corrupt a lot.
money.
Sibo also gained a lot of benefits from it.
Nowadays, in Zhangjia Restaurant, the table between Wang Kui and He Qi can be said to be filled with fine food and delicious food.
There are many dishes that Wang Kui has never eaten in his life, or even seen before. The wealthy people on the side are talking about Wang Kui in every word, and there are also a few servants who are pumping fists to add to the fun.
Two good-looking prostitutes wearing bow shoes sat on the left and right next to Wang Kui.
A servant said to the woman: "This is Guo Ziyuan. Do you know what Guo Ziyuan is? You must keep him company today."
The two prostitutes chuckled when they heard this, then looked at Wang Kui lovingly, and then lowered their heads shyly.
Wang Kui felt that the other woman's feet were constantly touching his calves under the wine table. After a while, another pair of women's feet came over and seemed to have taken off their shoes.
When Wang Kui's soul was wandering in the sky, the woman next to him handed a glass of wine to his mouth. A wealthy businessman smiled and said: "Wang Guoyuan is a huge amount, I need to drink three glasses in a row."
Wang Kui couldn't push it, and he didn't want to push it either, so he drank three cups in a row.
The prostitute on the other side seemed a little jealous, so she took a sip and held it in her lips, then moved it towards Wang Kui's mouth.
Wang Kui has never enjoyed such a battle in his life.
He had drank flower wine in his hometown before, but he thought it was very vulgar. They were not as charming as the Bianjing prostitutes.
He heard He Qi say that among the 1.5 million people in Bianjing, there were tens of thousands of official and civilian prostitutes. Including those who were good at work or who had given up their livelihood due to old age, the number was at least over 100,000.
When he first arrived in Bianjing, the prostitutes looked at his poor appearance and didn't even look at him, but now he could feel the enthusiasm of these prostitutes, which was half money and half his reputation.
This is such a wonderful feeling to become a master.
Wang Kui drank a little too much wine, so he let go of his reserve. At this moment, he felt the prostitute's jade feet beside him rubbing against each other. With a thought in his mind, he grabbed Yingying's jade feet in his hand and pinched them hard.
Seeing Wang Kui and the two prostitutes entangled together, everyone laughed, so they drank and ate each other, making it lively.
After all this effort, Wang Kui was already half drunk.
The businessman on the side said: "Guo Ziyuan is already drunk. You have all served me well. You will all be recorded in my account today. It doesn't matter. Guo Ziyuan and Brother He are both my best friends."
Wang Kui felt so good at the moment that He Qi also took a prostitute and left. He glanced at the two people beside Wang Kui and felt envious.
Autumn nights are cold.
Zhang Yue had finished drinking the fish soup and was carefully correcting his article in accordance with Chen Xiang's instructions at Liuli Deng.
He Qi and Wang Kui were each lying on the woman's embroidered couch.
Huang Lu went to bed early in Taixue as usual.
Fan Zuyu and his grandfather Fan Zhen arrived together to thank the examiner Chen Zhu.
Han Zhongyan waited at home all night and finally told Han Qi, who had just returned home, the news that he had passed the examination. Han Qi asked a few questions but did not praise him, which disappointed Han Zhongyan, who had always longed for his father's approval.
As for Sun Guo and Huang Haoyi, the two frustrated men were tossing and turning on the bed.
Everyone spent the first night after the test with various emotions.
