The moment he walked into Goulan, Shen Shuren felt a little unreal in his heart.
"I didn't expect that when I came to the Ming Dynasty and set foot in an entertainment venue for the first time, it was because of this kind of chance coincidence. It's really not as good as God. In the future, you have to leave a little more room for maneuver."
After some self-reflection, Shen Shuren finally adjusted. By the way, under the introduction of his cousin, he got to know some scholars who were gathering together.
Chen Shuren's cousin is a number one person. His name is Zhang Huangyan, also known as Cangshui. He is from Ningbo Prefecture. He is slightly distantly related to Chen Shuren's late mother Zhang. So just now Shen Shuren gave Zheng Hongkui During the introduction, he was introduced as "Zhang Cangshui".
Zhang Huangyan's relationship with the Shen family is actually quite distant. In terms of closeness, he cannot get many resources from the Shen family.
However, Shen Tingyang was a generous man who spared money and liked to support the underachievers. He saw that the distant nephew of his late wife was talented in both literature and martial arts. He was not only good at reading but could also ride and shoot, and he had received a lot of support over the years.
Zhang Huangyan is two years older than Shen Shuren, just twenty, and he also has the reputation of being a scholar.
This year was the year of the provincial examination again. He was supposed to go to Nanjing to take the exam, so he went to his uncle in Suzhou a few months in advance. While waiting for the ship in Taicang, he held a meeting at his own Goulan private venue to make friends with other scholars who were waiting for the ship to take the exam.
Historically, this Zhang Huangyan has left his mark in history. In the second year of Yongli, when Shen Tingyang was defeated and died for his country, Zhang Huangyan and another general Zhang Mingzhen were both in Shen Tingyang's army. But they relied on disguises to disguise themselves. They became ordinary soldiers and successfully broke through the siege to save their lives - of course, their breakout was not all for survival, and they still persisted in leading the troops to resist the Qing Dynasty.
Zhang Huangyan persisted for another seventeen years after Shen Tingyang's death. It was not until Zheng Chenggong died of illness that he realized that the situation was over. He did not want his subordinates to die in vain again, so he disbanded the remaining troops. However, he still insisted not to surrender to the Qing Dynasty. He lived in seclusion on overseas islands and was finally captured by the Qing army. He preferred death to surrender and was killed.
…
Thinking that this distant and cheap cousin would be regarded as a national hero in the future, Shen Shuren quickly adapted to him after the initial unfamiliarity.
Zhang Huangyan didn't know what plans his uncle and cousin had. He just got a temporary request from the manager of the Shen Mansion to help hold off his cousin and Zheng Hongkui for a while.
Fortunately, he was also a smart person and didn't ask too many questions. He soon started chatting and laughing with Zheng Hongkui, which greatly relieved Shen Shuren's social pressure.
In particular, Zhang Huangyan also had some martial arts skills. When chatting with a military attache like Zheng Hongkui, he would not act like a scholar, which made Zheng Hongkui feel a bit like he was acquainted with his friend.
Seeing that the situation was under control, Chen Shuren finally relaxed. Then, out of curiosity when he entered the hook bar for the first time, he was quickly attracted by the Kun Opera on the stage and began to appreciate it with great interest.
In the late Ming Dynasty, there were also three, six or nine grades of Goulan. Those who performed private dramas behind closed doors were larger in scale and often engaged in skin-flesh transactions. However, this kind of place that opened the door for literati to hold gatherings was more like that of later generations. Theater.
It's just that there was no "selling tickets to watch the theater" in the Ming Dynasty. This kind of hall had to have a benefactor first, who was willing to pay for the venue, and then made friends through literature and let others enjoy the theater.
It's not all a waste of time for those who enjoy acting. They will give some money to the singers as a reward, but they don't force it.
A gentleman talks about justice but not profit, so selling votes is vulgar.
Today is Zhang Huangyan's venue, so they are all in the private seats on the second floor, while those who are enjoying the show are in the lobby downstairs.
At this moment, several girls downstairs were singing hard. They were of average stature and appearance, but their singing voice was quite melodious and sad. It was obvious that the performance was not high quality.
Chen Shuren listened for a while and heard what seemed to be a black joke about the late traitorous minister Yan Song of this dynasty.
This play is actually famous, called "Feng Ming Ji". It was created by Wang Shizhen, a local scholar in Taicang in the early years of Wanli, so it was performed many times in the local area.
Especially today's serious literati gatherings are not suitable for singing obscene lyrics and songs, and they prefer to choose dramas that criticize the government.
It's a pity that Shenshu people are not educated enough and don't know much about these anecdotes.
He just listened to Kunqu Opera for a while, and rested for a while. During this period, he secretly glanced out the window at the street several times.
About half an hour later, Shen Shuren saw that his attendant Shen Fu had come back in a hurry and winked at him at the top of the stairs. He understood and made an excuse to change clothes, leaving Zheng Hongkui there to chat with Zhang Huangyan.
After draining the water, Shen Shuren took advantage of the time to wash his hands and asked softly: "Is everything tidied up at the dock?"
Shen Fu poured out the hand water and replied: "It's ready, you can go at any time."
Chen Shuren took a handkerchief and dried it carefully: "Where was the sailor who caused the trouble? How did he deal with it? After all, he didn't make any mistakes. It was just a coincidence."
Shen Fu: "Don't worry, he has been transferred. He told other sailors that he was on sick leave, and secretly rewarded him with some money for his loyalty to his duties."
Chen Shuren nodded: "That's good, you prepare the car first and leave after the song is finished."
As Chen Shuren said that, he returned to the private seats on the second floor and continued to listen to the play.
He was careful and knew that after he had listened halfway and went out to change clothes, he would suddenly disappear, which would easily arouse Zheng Hongkui's alert. Anyone with a little knowledge of intelligence work would understand that at this time, he must at least listen to the song in front of him calmly.
Not long after I sat down again, the song "Ming Feng Ji" in front of me also reached its climax. The plot is roughly "Zeng Xian, a famous anti-Tatar general in the Jiajing Dynasty and the minister of the Ministry of War, was killed by Yan Song, and was finally avenged."
The scholars enjoying the show downstairs applauded one after another and could not help but talk loudly and criticize the government.
After all, the Ming Dynasty is also facing a multi-front war. Most of the civilian governors were convicted by Chongzhen. This plot made the scholars feel very involved and started to complain, thinking that the emperor should not kill the scholar-bureaucrats indiscriminately.
I saw a scholar who threw a handful of copper coins on the stage, slapped the table, and said with indignation:
"The imperial court does not distinguish between merit and demerit, and Zhongliang is wronged. It is deplorable! Since Zuo Liangyu was defeated by Zhang Xianzhong at the beginning of the month, I heard that Your Majesty has dismissed Xiong Wencan, the supervisor of the six provinces, and imprisoned him.
Now that thieves are so rampant, Li thieves and Zhang rebelled against surrender, but surrendered again, and survived repeated defeats. However, the Imperial Supervisor immediately charged him with the crime as soon as he was defeated! If this continues, wouldn’t it be heartbreaking! I’m afraid the Ming Dynasty will be over!”
This was originally none of Chen Shu's personal affairs, but when he heard that the scholar associated Xiong Wencan with the murder of Zeng Mian in the Jiajing Dynasty, he suddenly felt something bad in his heart. He quickly glanced at Zheng Hongkui with the corner of his eyes, lest the Zheng family would think too much.
Three days ago, when Shen Shuren first crossed over, Suzhou had not received news that Xiong Wencan was imprisoned, but as time went by, the situation was obviously deteriorating day by day.
As expected, Zheng Hongkui's expression changed slightly, and the corners of his mouth twitched, but quickly returned to normal. He obviously knew the key.
Shen Shuren felt that he had to pretend to be a novice and pretend not to understand, so he couldn't persuade him in person. In desperation, he had no choice but to kick his cousin Zhang Huangyan quietly under the table and give him a look, suggesting that he should stop the trolls downstairs. Scholar.
Zhang Huangyan was stunned at first. Although he didn't understand what the Shen family was up to, he was very intelligent. In addition, he had already received care and wanted to help hold Zheng Hongkui down.
So after some speculation, he realized that the topic Shen Shuren wanted to stop was probably related to the Zheng family.
So Zhang Huangyan stood up and apologized: "Brother Zheng, I can't listen to people talking about government affairs. Once I hear it, I can't help but argue with others. You talk, I'll go down and take a look."
Chen Shuren also took advantage of the situation: "In that case, we still have things to go to the dock, so why not just come here today."
Zhang Huangyan said cooperatively: "Okay, I won't give it away. I'll move around more when I have time in the future."
However, it was too late after all. Zheng Hongkui had already been attracted by the discussions of those scholars, and said in a cold tone: "Don't worry, we have been chatting for so long. If you don't waste this time, you can just listen to what they have to say."
Chen Shuren had no choice but to keep his character and watch the show silently, letting his cousin deal with the talented people.
The only thing he could do was to hold Zheng Hongkui back: "Uncle Shi, since you are interested, it's okay to listen, but I am an ignorant person, so I won't be embarrassed if I don't go down there."
Zheng Hongkui was also illiterate and was impatient to drop his book bags with the scholars. This arrangement suited him well, so he followed Shen Shuren and watched the play on the railing on the second floor.
After Zhang Huangyan came downstairs, he raised his hand to the scholar who had just talked eloquently: "I'm Zhang Huangyan from Yuyao. Do you dare to ask me your surname? My brother just talked so eloquently, but I am a little confused and want to ask for advice."
The scholar was about twenty-five or six years old, and he was also waiting for the boat here. When he saw that Zhang Huangyan was the host of today's treat, he was not rude at all, but just held his hand indifferently:
"Return to the village from Kunshan! Don't take advice seriously! I think that although Xiong Wencan is reckless and gullible, it has been more than a year since Zhang Xianzhong faked his surrender. During this period, the court did not take any action to remedy the situation. Is this Xiong Wencan's fault alone? If ministers all do so much. If you don’t do something right, if you don’t give me a chance to make meritorious deeds, who will dare to make suggestions for the court in the future?”
Zhang Huangyan listened quietly and retorted casually: "Brother Gui's words are wrong. Li, Zhang and other thieves are known to be capricious. In the seventh year of Chongzhen's reign, Shaanxi Chen Qiyu suffered this loss. He falsely surrendered under the false belief and allowed the thieves to come out. The situation in the Wagonxia Gorge was in danger, and then it was repeated again and again. Xiong Wencan has learned from past mistakes this time, and he made the same mistake again. It is not an injustice to be put in jail and questioned."
When Na Guizhuang heard what he had learned from Chen Qiyu, he didn't think of how to refute it and was speechless for the moment.
However, there was another scholar next to him, who seemed to be about the same age and with a delicate appearance, but he took over the conversation and started talking:
"What Brother Zhang Xian said is quite inspiring. I'm here in Kunshan, Gu Jiang. I thought that even though Xiong Wencan deserved his punishment, the court's treatment was really not a strategy for the country."
Zhang Huangyan had obviously heard of the other party's name, and returned the favor: "It turns out to be Brother Tinglin, and I just want to ask Brother Tinglin for his advice."
Gu Jiang was not polite, and analyzed straightforwardly: "There is no doubt that Xiong Wencan has harmed the country. But if you look carefully, it is not difficult to find that he has successfully recruited seven or eight thieves in the past two years.
But now, the only one who surrendered and rebelled is Zhang Xianzhong. The other thieves initially wanted to keep their peace. This shows that Xiong Wencan’s vision is at least 70-80% accurate.”
Zhang Huangyan frowned and corrected: "What Brother Tinglin said seems to be inconsistent with the facts, right? The imperial palace newspaper clearly stated that Luo Rucai, the third battalion of Junzhou, and the fifth battalion of Gezuo all rebelled, and Hubei, Henan, and Anhui were all destroyed.
.How can we say that Zhang Xianzhong is the only one who refuses to repent?"
Gu Jiang shook his head. He had a photographic memory and could confidently remember all the family treasures: "You didn't read the Di newspaper carefully. The original text clearly stated, 'I offered my loyalty to Gucheng and robbed you in Fang County. So nine
All camps are against each other'.
Do you see the problem? Luo Rucai is indeed the same, but there is a difference in sequence, cause and effect, and the key is the word 'tribulation'. If the court is clear and clear, and will not cause anger and suspicion, those traitors may not be because of 'Be with me'
When other bandits who were supported rebelled, they thought, "Will the court be suspicious of me and want to rebel too?" In the end, they became suspicious of each other and were forced to rebel.
From this point of view, if the court was so eager to capture Xiong Wencan, did it increase the fear of other bandits who were ordered to be safe by Xiong Wencan?
I don’t know what Zhang Xianzhong said when he robbed Luo Rucai and sacked the fifth camp on the left. But judging by common sense, it is probably the above. That’s why I say that the imperial court’s recklessness encouraged the thieves’ power.
.”
When Zhang Huangyan heard this, he didn't know how to refute it. Even his cousin hinted at his mission and couldn't care about it for the time being.
After thinking about it, he could only express his admiration for Gu Jiang's high opinions for the time being, and wanted to buy him a few drinks and ask for advice behind closed doors.
As for Shen Shuren, who was leaning on the railing on the second floor and watching, his mood became increasingly sinking.
When he saw Zhang Huangyan stopping Guizhuang just now, he thought the situation was controllable, mainly because he had never heard of an unknown person like Guizhuang.
But after Gu Jiang came on the stage and refuted Zhang Huangyan, Shen Shuren immediately screamed that something was wrong.
He could tell that Gu Jiang was very knowledgeable and very dialectical in looking at problems, so he was not an easy person.
What's more important is that this is a great philosopher who has left his name in history - Gu Jiang is Gu Yanwu!
Chen Shuren had a slight sweat on his forehead, fearing that the situation would get completely out of control.
Next to him, Zheng Hongkui's expression became more and more ugly. Finally, he looked like he was breaking a jar, and he suddenly criticized: "The scholar downstairs is very knowledgeable. The imperial court is not just killing the donkey, but accompanying the emperor is like accompanying a tiger."
What!"
Speaking of this, Shen Shuren's thoughts started to spin, his brain calculated rapidly, and he finally made up his mind.
He knew that it would be too fake to continue pretending to be a novice, so he acted like he had just realized something:
"Why is Uncle Shi so unfair to Xiong Wencan? Ah! Come to think of it, your Zheng family seems to have relied on Xiong Wencan to support you back then, right? No wonder, it's righteous to feel unjust when your benefactor is in trouble."
Zheng Hongkui couldn't help but be stunned.
If Shen Shuren continued to act stupid just now, then he should be more vigilant towards the Shen family.
However, Chen Shuren suddenly made it clear what he was saying, and he was a little unsure. Still thinking that Chen Shuren was really unlearned and unskilled, he was indeed so slow to respond.
He adjusted his expression, roughly stroking his steel-needle beard, and laughed loudly: "My nephew noticed it. Yes, our Zheng family was also under Governor Xiong Zhao'an back then, so we are a little indignant."
Chen Shuren rolled his eyes, pretending that he had just thought of it, and lowered his voice and exclaimed: "Since you are also favored by Xiong Wencan, then according to what Mr. Gu said, you must be careful recently and be more cautious and courteous, so as not to be troubled by the court. Suspicion.
By the way, my nephew read the letter from the Imperial College inviting me to study in Nanjing a few days ago. It also invited Governor Zhu’s nephew and my nephew Zheng Sen. I wonder how you arranged your nephew’s studies. ?
I have already reported illness. If my nephew delays it any longer, the Imperial College may not look good. Alas, I originally wanted to be a classmate with Zheng Xiandi, but unfortunately I can't let go of the woman from Suzhou."
Zheng Hongkui was beaten so openly that he couldn't get down the stairs, so he gritted his teeth and said: "How is it possible? My nephew has been practicing martial arts since he was a child and is very healthy. I heard that his family has arranged for him to go north today. But southerners don't like the north. Water and soil, before going to Nanjing, I will probably stay in Suzhou for a few days to get used to it. By then, I will have to walk around a lot with my nephew."
Chen Shuren held up his hands and said, "It should be done. I can't help but think about all the talented people."
After a series of probing attempts, everyone simply spoke up and forced the Zheng family to express its stance that they would not directly and openly refuse the imperial call.
Chen Shuren also secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Unexpectedly, he turned disadvantage into advantage and took advantage of Gu Yanwu's opportunity to refute his cousin Zhang Huangyan. Instead, he made his words clear and moved the matter forward.
The follow-up arrangements fell into place. The "Feng Ming Ji" on stage had already been sung. Zheng Hongkui and Shen Shuren got into the car one after another and headed straight to the dock.
Before going out, Shen Shuren also said goodbye to Zhang Huangyan, and then met Gui Zhuang and Gu Yanwu, who were discussing with Zhang Huangyan, to get to know each other and share a few words of their own opinions.
Gu Yanwu's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he said that he would definitely ask for advice next time he had the chance.
…
After getting on the bus, we arrived at the pier in a short while. The follow-up plan finally went smoothly.
As soon as Shen Shuren got out of the car, he summoned the captain of a Shen family passenger ship and handed him the letter in a grand manner, asking him to take it to Nanjing.
The captain of the Shen family also expressed embarrassment and said that during the inspection before sailing today, he just discovered that the process of applying hemp and paulownia oil during the last maintenance was not done properly. He was afraid that water would seep from the numbed area, which would delay the departure. sailing days.
Chen Shuren pretended to be angry and scolded: "Why did you make such a mistake? That's all. Fortunately, I'm not in a hurry with this letter. You should keep it first and take it to Nanjing after we set sail in two days."
Zheng Hongkui was on the side, his eyes lit up after hearing this, and he took the initiative to take care of everything: "Hey, it's not a big deal, it's just that we need a ship to send a message. We have a ship to Nanjing today, nephew, why don't you let me Let the messenger take our ship."
Shen Shuren put on a face-saving expression: "Why is this so embarrassing? Our Shen family is also a big owner of hundreds of ships. In fact, there are at least five or six large ships at Liujiagang Pier every day. Today is really unusual. Coincidentally, it happened that a large number of ships loaded with Su embroidery and set sail yesterday. In fact, there will be other ships coming back tomorrow."
Zheng Hongkui raised his hand and pressed it, and said with a kind-hearted smile: "I know, I know, my nephew, why should I worry so much? No one doesn't believe that your Shen family has many ships, it's just a letter, it takes just a little effort."
Only then did Shen Shuren return to his "self-esteem was satisfied" state: "In that case, it's time to work."
With that said, he asked the messenger to board the Zheng family's boat.
Everything that followed was naturally a matter of course. After the letter arrived on the Zheng family's boat, it was opened and read not long after, and the content was indeed Shen Tingyang's request for a long leave for Shen Shuren.
It is said that he is not in good health and will not be able to get naturalized in the Imperial College before this year's provincial examination. After missing the deadline, there will be no time to enroll in the Imperial College in the next three years, so there is no need to rush.
Of course, Zheng Hongkui and even the Zheng family in Fujian would not know all this news immediately, because they would have to wait for the Zheng family ship to arrive in Nanjing and then return to Suzhou to bring this news back. It would take a long time. a few days.
On the other side, after confirming the Shen family's cooperation, Zheng Hongkui also reported the Shen family's situation overnight, and wrote down some of his own experiences, thoughts, and rumors.
I suggest that my eldest brother Zheng Zhilong send his eldest nephew Zheng Sen to Suzhou as soon as possible, so as to show a sincere gesture of cooperating with the court and give the court some face.
He didn't know that what he saw and heard was what Chen Shuren wanted him to see and hear.