Xiangye

Chapter 160 Exam Questions Released
"Mr. Chang Qi, what's the matter with you, you don't look very well?" Shu Richang looked at Li Zhen worriedly.

In the evening, when the sun was setting, the clouds in the sky were covered with a golden border.

The wind blows, but with heat.

Red lanterns have been lit on the city wall, and in the light and shadow, there are inexplicable gentlemen with potbellies everywhere, bowing and talking.

Looking at Gao Linghan, the chief envoy of Shaanxi in the distance, Li Zhen hurriedly said: "Ri Chang, please keep your voice down, don't let Mr. Gao hear you, you will be in trouble. I have eaten really well these few days, but I can't bear it." Living."

Hearing what he said, Shu Richang shook his head and said, "Don't say it's you, even though I am in the prime of life, I still feel uncomfortable after eating all these running water mats."

Li Zhen said distressedly: "Everyone envies you. I passed the exam and got a lot of money, but who knows the suffering. Don't raise money and get a lot of money, but lose your life in these thirteen dynasties. ancient capital."

Shu Ri said in a long way: "Mr. Li's dragon-horse spirit will surely live a long life."

"Everyone wants to live a long life, but it depends on God's will. Fortunately, I will enter the examination room in a few days, and I can finally escape from the sea of ​​suffering. Let's gather our energy and deal with the present first!"

That's right, after eating big fish and meat all day long, even the dragon liver and phoenix marrow will taste like nothing in the end.

At this time, the two great masters were eager to have some pickles and millet porridge.But no, Gao Linghan would show up on time when it was time for dinner, followed by a group of weird local gentry.

These people came to compliment him on what he wanted to do. Master Li Zhen had been in the officialdom all his life, so he naturally knew clearly.Naturally, the money for apprenticeship in the local area must be collected, which is the rule of the court.But you can't do the thing of leaking the test questions. If you do that, you are violating the law of the country.When Old Li was about to retire, it was naturally impossible for him to risk his beheading and miss the evening.

He came to Shaanxi this time to take the exam for money, but it is not worthwhile to lose his name for money.Moreover, as a scholarly leader, he values ​​fame more than the sky.In his heart, Li Zhen planned to be vague and just deal with these things.

Helplessly, the elderly have a weak stomach, and when they see the sky is full of oil and water, they can't stand it immediately.In the past few days, when the flames came up, a stream of blood spurted out, and the wife's blood was still fierce.It was said that the doctor came to see a doctor, and only then did he know that hemorrhoids had occurred. He prescribed a prescription, and told him not to drink alcohol, and to eat more vegetables and fruits.

Once the hemorrhoid was committed, he lost too much blood, Li Zhen's face became paler, and his body had no strength.

In the past, he was the chief envoy of the two provinces and the Imperial College Jijiu. He was also a person with long sleeves and dance skills, and was good at socializing.When other people talked to him, there was no sentence, and the appearance was dull, which made the banquet venue awkward.

Every time the banquet ended, a group of people would come over immediately, cheering and embracing, and the stars were holding the moon. I don't know how many hands were stuffed into his sleeves and pockets.

When I got back to the room in Kui Sutang, I took off my sweat-drenched clothes, and the posts were all over the bed.Looking closely, there are all gift lists with a number written on them.There are 300 taels of silver, there are 100 taels, and at most one comes from a big salt merchant in Xi'an City, with 1000 taels.This person had a reputation for raising people, and was originally a big landlord.Later, I communicated with the chief envoy, Si Yamen, and got a lot of salt quotations from the salt transport department every year, and it broke out immediately.There are three sons in his family, the second of them can still read, and he just passed the examination as a scholar. He wanted to go further on this imperial examination road, so he came here to ask the great masters to support him.

In the Ming Dynasty, doing business was never a good way out, especially selling salt, which required an official background.You are an ordinary person who rashly got involved in this business, and you don't even know how you died.Only with a decent reputation can the family be safe in the country.

Li Zhen naturally knew what the salt merchant was thinking, but getting the money would be a hot hand.It is not too much to take one or two hundred taels of apprentice silver, but when you reach a certain amount, you will resolutely not touch it. If you take it, you have to do things for others.

Grandmaster Li has made up his mind in the past few days. When attending the banquet, he will pretend to be confused, laugh, nod indiscriminately, and never promise to others.How to agree to accept this money, I summed up with Shu Richang and set a standard of 300 taels. Anything below 300 taels might as well be accepted, and if it exceeds this figure, it will be returned.

The gentry had money, and if they dared to use money with the two great masters, they must have worked hard with the chief envoy.This Gao Linghan doesn't know how many benefits he has gained, how much favor he has sold, but he just has a heart.In addition to arranging local people to come and eat with them every day, I also accompany them to visit the places of interest in and outside Xi'an, such as the Big and Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Huaqing Pool, and Lishan Mountain.

The two masters were originally from literati backgrounds, and when they saw the scenery of the ancient capital, they would naturally sing and dance.However, they are not idiots, so they naturally know that Mr. Gao is just playing with their questions.Sure enough, after the poem was sung, Gao Linghan brought the topic to the classics. At this time, Li Zhen just laughed a few words and said, "Let's continue to compose poems." Or he pretended to be tired and dozed off.

Just today, they toured all the scenery inside and outside the city of Xi'an, there was really nothing to see, Mr. Gao simply put the banquet on the city wall, saying that he wanted to drink wine with the wind, he was very happy.

So, it's kind of interesting.It's just that Li Zhen was old and couldn't stand the heat, but the wind was strong here, and when it blew, his body was so cold that he couldn't bear it, and suddenly he felt drunk, and couldn't drink any more, so he walked slowly on the city wall with Shu Richang.

Gao Linghan was a scheming person, and he followed from a distance.

Hearing the two talking, he smiled and said, "Mr. Chang Qi, Shu Xie Xiu, why don't Master Gao know?"

Seeing him hear their conversation, the two were a little embarrassed.

Shu Ri said: "Gao Buzheng has sharp ears."

Li Zhen: "The scenery here is quite interesting, but the wind is strong, and the old man can't stand it. But you gentlemen in Shaanxi are too enthusiastic, so you have to cheer up, so as not to disappoint them."

Gao Linghan said repeatedly: "Oh, blame me, blame me."

At this time, the three of them happened to walk to the edge of the gate tower.At this time, the sunset suddenly closed, and the eyes were dark.But a round of bright moon that was not yet full appeared in the sky, showering down the clear light.The road outside the city is milky white, like fog, snow, and frost.

Li Zhen, who was walking, stopped suddenly, cast his gaze outside on the road into the city, and was stunned.

Shu Richang also praised: "Good scenery!"

Seeing that the great masters liked the scene, Gao Linghan hurriedly asked his subordinates to set up a table of wine and food in the city tower, this time he didn't call other gentry over to accompany him, he just sat by himself to accompany Li and Shu to drink.

After a while, another old man with a pipa and a huqin came into the tower and babbled and sang.The huqin is long and long, the pipa is whispering, and the singing is soft and waxy with Wu Yin.

Gao and Shu are two great masters, one is from Huzhou, and the other is from Jiading. Suddenly, they feel that the song is right for their appetite, and they can drink freely.

Li Zhen didn't know how much rice wine he drank. He was old and valued good luck.Each meal is no more than half a bowl, and no more than three glasses of wine.In the past few days, the fish and meat have been eaten, and the body is already unwell.Now that the wind is blowing and he has eaten so much wine, his belly should be churning.

It's strange to say, but at this moment, his whole body is slightly crisp, with an indescribable joy, and he feels that his mind is extremely flexible.

The road outside the city was illuminated by the moonlight for a long time, and it became brighter and brighter. Suddenly, an old woman was seen stumbling along the road supported by a twenty-eight-year-old woman.Although they were far away, Li Zhen could clearly see their faces.

The older woman was in her early sixties, her face was covered with wrinkles, her hair was already grey, and she was wearing a black beige.As for the young man, he has a melon-seeded face, willow-leaf eyebrows, a small nose and a small mouth, and his skin is so white under the moonlight that it seems to be transparent.

Li Zhen saw the faces of the two of them clearly, and was taken aback. He couldn't help pointing to the city, and said in a voiceless voice: "Isn't that my mother and my daughter-in-law who just passed through the door? Why did you come to Xi'an?"

Gao Linghan and Shu Richang glanced at each other, then Gao Buzheng said with a smile: "Grandmaster is drunk."

"No, no, no, not drunk, not drunk." Li Zhen shook his head and murmured: "Mother, Xiaoci, what are you doing here... It's early in the morning, you are weak, why are you here to see me off. It’s not that I’ve never been out before. It’s not a few miles from Huzhou to Hangzhou. I’m going there by boat. Isn’t it just a rural exam? I’ve studied for so many years and took so many exams. Is it possible? I'm still afraid..."

"Don't worry, I'll definitely win this exam. Haha, to tell you the truth, I've already guessed this year's topic, and this case is still not a case for me... Mother, Xiaoci, wait until I win the exam , you just wait to enjoy the blessing... The son said on the river, the dead are like husbands, and they will never give up day and night... Life is too short, I have been born for ten years, how can I not be hit, how can I not be hit..."

While talking, he suddenly stood up, quickly walked out of the tower, and crawled towards the battlements: "Go back, go back, don't worry."

Gao Linghan and Shu Richang were stunned for a moment, and when he got out, they came back to their senses and hurriedly chased him out.

I saw that Grandmaster Li fell back to the city wall as soon as his body softened, and lay on the ground, snoring loudly.

Gao Buzheng shook his head and smiled wryly: "Grandmaster is drunk, come and send the masters back to the Gongyuan."

On the second day, when Li Zhen woke up, he saw that the bed was surrounded by long suits, all of them wiping away tears: "I was scared to death, sir, you were so drunk last night, and you don't know how you are, how about you?" Tell the doctor to come over and prescribe some medicine?"

"No, I'm fine." After drinking, Li Zhen sat on the bed blankly.The situation last night clearly appeared in front of my eyes, and tears welled up.

Yes, that was 60 years ago.In the early morning of that day, I left my family to go to Hangzhou to participate in the provincial examination. My mother and my wife Xiaoci who had just passed the school got up early and sent me to the road.That day was also the same moonlight.

After so many years, I originally thought that the past had faded into the depths of my memory.But, looking back now, it's like yesterday.He was still the boy who was doted on in front of his mother, and the little husband who was cared for and cherished by his wife.

He remembered that when he went to the provincial capital to participate in the township examination, he was the first case in the high school, but when he returned to the village, he saw the cold body of his wife Xiaoci. .

……

"God's will, God's will!" Li Zhen, who was almost 80 years old, cried like a child, and murmured: "The questions for the Jinke Township Examination already exist."

(End of this chapter)