Who doesn’t know how to write poetry?
However, can the universe in poetry and the hills and valleys in one’s heart only be expressed in poetry?
Hai Sanlang was a talented boy, known as a child prodigy since childhood. But Chang'an was full of child prodigies, and Yan Erlang, who could write "Watching Mayflies for Ten Thousand Years", stood out from those child prodigies, which made Hai Sanlang particularly dissatisfied.
But no matter how unwilling he was to accept it, he had lost today - he could write gorgeous poems, and he could write tactful and neat words, and he could say that Yan Erlang's poems were ordinary and poor. But he could not come up with a sentence with a greater momentum than, or even with the same momentum as, the sentence "Watching Mayflies for Ten Thousand Years".
At the Xingyuan Banquet, everyone looked at the young man who was squeezed back by Yan Erlang with sympathy. Hai Sanlang was distraught and pale, and felt embarrassed to lose to an examiner with mediocre talent. But the officials in Chang'an thought that if Yan Erlang, who was so good-tempered and broad-minded, could get angry, the Hai family would be finished.
Before anyone could do anything to remedy the situation, Mu Wanyao arrived. Everyone was frightened when they saw the princess holding a whip. However, Mu Wanyao remained calm, even smiled at them, and walked towards her husband.
When she first entered the building, she was full of anger, and she wanted to vent her anger for Yan Shang. Why should Yan Shang be humiliated by them? But Yan Shang vented his anger himself, and now she felt a little relieved.
Mu Wan stood in front of Yan Shang, holding the whip tightly, her lips trembling. There was still traces of pain in her eyes, and she looked at him: "Let's go and pay our respects to His Majesty."
Yan Shang knew that she wanted to scold the emperor, so he smiled at her and said, "We are family, why should we be so formal?"
He turned around and bowed to the people who were seeing him off, saying that he was drunk and wanted to go home with Her Royal Highness the Princess.
The emperor was in Ziyun Tower at this time, secretly watching Hai's disrespect to the examiner Yan Shang, but he didn't show up. When the emperor heard that Princess Danyang was coming, his scalp suddenly went numb, thinking that his sixth sister would come to question him aggressively.
The emperor felt that since Yan Shang was young and held such a high position, it was nothing for the nobles to say a few words to him. He also wanted to consolidate his throne - he liked to see the nobles and the poor fighting against each other.
But he was guilty, and he became restless when he heard that the princess had come. After drinking two cups of tea, the eunuch told him that the princess and her husband had left. The emperor was stunned, his face flushed, and he felt deeply ashamed.
He just felt that everyone else knew exactly what he was thinking, and they were just laughing at him.
Everyone is laughing at him!
But he had pretended to be ignorant for so many years. As a prince, he lived such a miserable life, and he also wanted to govern the country well... His talents were exhausted by the years. He was in middle age, living a mediocre life, and was bullied by those powerful ministers, but he did not dare to get angry.
How did his father govern the country? Why were the ministers afraid of his father but not of him? Was he going to kill people? But he couldn't command anyone now. If he killed everyone, who would work for him?
...Well, Yan Shang is still the best.
Have no desires and no demands, and share your worries.
-----
The night is pitch black, and under the bright lights, the blue waves and red lotus are so lovely.
Mu Wanyao and Yan Shang, surrounded by palace servants, walked towards the carriage parked outside the apricot garden. When they were halfway there, a palace eunuch caught up with them, panting, and said that Yan Erlang had been wronged, and that His Majesty had given him some good land and houses, and the deeds had been sent back to the princess's residence.
After Yan Shang dealt with these eunuchs, he used them to comfort the emperor, while Mu Wanyao stood by with a half-smile and watched coldly. The eunuch who was delivering the message did not dare to meet the princess's eyes, fearing that the bad-tempered princess would say something unpleasant and embarrass the emperor.
After seeing off the eunuch, the two men were about to leave when a new person came after them.
"Yan Jun! Yan Jun!
"Mr. Yan!"
Mu Wan raised her eyebrows and saw Yan Shang frowning slightly. As expected, she was very dissatisfied with this title.
The night was dark, the palace lanterns were bright, Yan Shang, wearing a crane cloak, turned around and gently scolded Hai Sanlang who was chasing after him: "Hai Sanlang, don't call me like that. Since you don't want to be my master, I can't call you 'husband' either."
Hai Sanlang was young, and his face still had the innocence and high spirits of a young man. He came after him breathlessly, and was first scolded by Yan Shang. His face flushed slightly, and he defended himself, "Yan Jun is the co-prime minister, with the same position as the prime minister, so it is not wrong to call him 'sir'. Of course, I also want to call Yan Jun 'teacher', but I know that I have done many wrong things before, and Yan Jun may not want to recognize me calling him that.
"I'm here to apologize to Yan Jun! I shouldn't have been so difficult for Yan Jun at the banquet. I just thought, thought..."
Yan Shang smiled: "You think I have no talent or virtue, and I am young, so how can I be the chief examiner to preside over the imperial examination? What can I use to test you?"
He sighed, "It doesn't matter. There are many people who say this behind my back. You are just the first one who dares to provoke me in person."
He looked at Hai Sanlang with gentle eyes and reminded him, "You are still young and have been spoiled by your family since childhood. When you first arrived in Chang'an, you made a few friends and were praised as a 'genius'. It is inevitable that you are complacent and think you are extraordinary. But today you should know that it is easy for me to embarrass you.
"You were instigated by others to play against me. Have you ever thought that if I deliberately make things difficult for you in the future, will those who instigated you help you a little?"
Hai Sanlang was stunned. After all, he was also from a noble family. When Yan Shang said that, his mind froze and his blood froze. He realized that he was abrupt and bold. He hesitated: "So, Mr. Yan will not make things difficult for me in my career in the future?"
He still smiled when he spoke.
He joked: "It depends on my mood."
Hai Saburo felt uneasy.
Mu Wanyao looked towards Yan Shang unconsciously. She didn’t expect that he was not angry at all when being embarrassed by the junior today. He seemed to be in a good mood... He was just joking.
Hai Sanlang muttered, "Well... I just don't understand. If Yanjun could write a sentence like that just now, why didn't he teach me earlier, and did it today? People in Chang'an say that Yanjun has no talent, and I thought so too, but tonight I realized that if Yanjun is willing to work hard on poetry, he may not be worse than me.
"Since Mr. Yan has such ability, why don't you use your heart?"
Yan Shang looked at him silently, as if thinking about something.
Kaisaburo questioned again.
Yan Shang: "Who are you asking this question for?"
Hai Sanlang was stunned, and then he instantly understood what Yan Shang really wanted to ask. He felt humiliated for a moment, ashamed and unwilling to accept it, and trembled all over: "Even though I am from the Hai family, it does not mean that I have to consult my family on everything. Yes, what I did tonight was instigated by some of the children in my family... But it was also my own frivolity. I will be careful in the future and not be used by others.
"Although I am from the Hai family and seem to be in opposition to Lord Yan...but I am not limited to the difference between aristocratic families and poor families! I am myself, not a puppet of the Hai family!"
Mu Wanyao stood by and said coldly: "Of course you can say this when you are young. Go back and tell your father and grandfather about it and see if they will break your legs."
Hai Sanlang said in a clear voice: "I know that His Highness has a grudge against my family, but I have not harmed His Highness. His Highness is seeking to settle accounts with my grandfather and father, and I have not done anything wrong to His Highness."
In the evening, he shook his head and curled his lips sarcastically.
Yan Shang interrupted Mu Wanyao's ridicule of the young man and said softly, "If you are asking this question for yourself, then I will answer it. Do you know how many official duties I have to deal with every day? Before the cockcrows, I have to get up. Before daybreak, I have to go to the Secretariat to discuss the next day's affairs with several ministers.
"While we are discussing this, we have to go to the court. The court discusses everything every day. Before your majesty has figured out what the ministers are going to discuss in the morning court, I have to find out first. There can be no mistakes in the court. I have to settle the ministers and observe your majesty and help him out.
"After the morning court session is over, I have to go to the Imperial Study and then to the Secretariat. After that, I have to go to the Ministry of Personnel. For lunch, I have to rush back to the Secretariat. Sometimes people from the Hongwen Academy come, and the palace guards come, and I have to take care of them... Sometimes His Majesty thinks that a minister is not useful, and he will call me over to ask questions and directly ask me to do something.
"Which county has a flood, which state is asking for tax cuts this year, which county has a militia uprising... These are all things I have to worry about, and I have to work until the middle of the night before I can go to sleep.
"Hai Sanlang, tell me, where do I find the time to study how to write poetry and prose? What do the things I'm busy with all day have to do with poetry and prose?"
The young man looked embarrassed and thoughtful. Yan Shang sighed, "You are still too young. You write poems and essays all day long. You think that if your poems and essays are amazing, you can become an official and a good official. But how is being an official related to poems and essays? I discussed this with the Shangshu last year and wanted to reform the imperial examination system. Unfortunately, it happened that your Majesty ascended the throne and the matter was delayed.
"Treasure this title of No. 1. It may be your last."
Yan Shang asked the stunned Hai Sanlang. It was a cold day in March, so he coughed twice and said a few more words, "Since you are a top scholar, how do you want to be an official in the future?"
Hai Sanlang said blankly: "I don't know, I just learned well, I think the exam is easy, so I just take the exam casually..."
Yan Shang smiled.
Hai Saburo asked ashamedly: "Should I seriously consider this issue?"
Yan Shang sighed, “Think about it.
"Is being an official for the benefit of the family, or for the people and the world? Is it to protect the people you cherish from being bullied, or to realize your personal ambitions?
"How do the people of the Wei Dynasty live? How do we balance the interests of our families and individuals? How do we deal with the situation when something we treasure is discarded like a piece of trash? These are all things you should start to consider now. It's good to be young and full of vigor and vitality. It's worth being young. I'll give you a word of advice - don't waste your youth."
Hai Sanlang blushed and benefited a lot from what he said. Yan Shang refreshed his cognition and made him look at his future from a new perspective. After Mu Wanyao and Yan Shang left, Mu Wanyao looked back at Hai Sanlang and saw that the young man was staring at the two of them with admiration, his eyes burning.
Hai Sanlang's eyes were filled with desire, he wanted to catch up but didn't dare to. He stared at Yan Shang, hoping that Yan Shang would look back at him, so that he would have the courage to follow him... Unfortunately, Yan Shang didn't look back.
Mu Wanyao thought mischievously: Another person who was let down by Yan Er’s “heartlessness”.
-----
Back in the carriage, the space was small, and Mu Wanyao immediately stuffed the incense burner into his sleeve. Yan Shang leaned against the wall of the carriage and felt the warmth. Mu Wanyao did not stop, holding the ginger soup that the maids had been watching over the fire, and fed it to Yan Shang.
Mu Wanyao was busy running around, and only when she saw his face turn from pale to rosy did she feel satisfied.
Yan Shang took her hand and asked her to sit down and stop working. Mu Wanyao saw that he looked much better, so she was in the mood to sit with him.
The carriage started moving. In the carriage, Mu Wan held Yan Shang's arm and smiled at him, "Now you really have the bearing of a superior. That Hai Sanlang is impressed by you. I think he will chase after you in the future."
She was very excited: "Your advice to Hai Sanlang today is just like the night your teacher gave you advice. I was standing by that day and saw you kowtow to Mr. Liu and call him 'teacher'. You said you became an official to serve the people, and you said you would take this path no matter how difficult it is... I was so excited when I heard that. I never thought that after only a few years, you could give advice to others.
"You've become as good as your teacher!"
Yan Shang said softly: "It's been almost ten years."
Mu Wan shook her head in dissatisfaction: "How can it be ten years? It's only seven years."
The carriage swayed slightly, and the people in the carriage became unstable. Yan Shang said, "So many years have passed... My teacher is about to retire, and I can be called 'teacher' by others."
It was Mu Wanyao who started the conversation. Seeing him sad, she was still unhappy: "Why are you talking so dejected and old-fashioned? It's as if you are already in your seventies or eighties. You are only in your twenties... and you are already sick!"
At the end, she gritted her teeth again.
Yan Shang gazed at her with eyes as soft as a clear lake.
Mu Wan shook his chin, "Why, did I say something wrong? It's March, and you're wearing so much, and you start coughing after just a few words. You're sick, right? The imperial physician told you to rest, and said that if you keep going like this, you'll die early. I see you don't take it seriously, so I guess you're preparing to die before me, leaving me in this world to raise beautiful boys and have fun all day long."
Yan Shang smiled: "That's great."
Mu Wan shook her eyes as if spitting fire: "I told you I want to keep a bunch of lovers and you said yes!"
Yan Shang held her wrist and said softly, "I mean, you just handed me tea and put on my clothes, which made me feel dazed. I felt that you were not the prince I knew. Now that Yaoyao got angry, I realized that you are still you."
Mu Wan shook her head and stared at him, saying coldly: "Do you like to be abused? Do you think I haven't changed because I scold you?"
She pointed at his nose and scolded him: "If it weren't for you just now, I would have solved these things with a whip. It's just a Hai family, don't I dare to offend them?"
She began to complain about Yan Shang's temper, saying that he was too peaceful. She also said that the emperor was not good to them, that the emperor was cunning and narrow-minded, and that Yan Shang was busy running around and exhausted... She talked for a long time, holding his arms tightly, and when she talked about the extreme hatred, she trembled all over.
She really felt that those were all humiliations, and that God was unfair to Yan Shang. He was such a good person, why did he have to endure the oppression of the emperor, the humiliation of the younger generation, and the temptations of others!
Yan Shang looked at her and suddenly said, "Why don't I resign?"
Mu Wan shook: "..."
She froze for a moment, looking up at him.
Yan Shang: "My health... has made you worry for so long. The official duties have been piling up recently, and His Majesty can't leave me for a moment, and I feel that I can't hold on any longer. Moreover, the things His Majesty has entrusted to me are all trivial matters. Others can do it, but he insisted on asking me to do it, simply because he thinks I can be trusted, and he has no requirements. It's a good thing that His Majesty trusts me, but I am really too busy to treat me as a tool that can be called at any time.
"The noble families, the poor families, and the eunuchs, three forces are fighting each other. I stand in the middle, no matter whether it is the noble families or the eunuchs, they all want to win me over. I have to deal with these things every day... These things are too tedious and too boring.
"And Yaoyao, you are so unhappy. I was thinking for a moment... I want to resign and return to Lingnan, spend more time with my father and brother, and recuperate in the countryside."
He lowered his eyes, and suddenly said with embarrassment: "I know you were born in Chang'an, and you like Chang'an. But I want to resign and return to Lingnan... I don't know if you are willing to go to the countryside with me. If you don't want to, forget it."
Mu Wanyao immediately held his hand, her eyes like stars: "I do."
Yan Shang raised his eyes.
She said quietly, "I already hold great power. I can't go any further. If I go any further, I might be used as a scapegoat. I can already use my power to protect myself from being bullied, so I want to pursue other things. I have always liked the world of Second Brother Yan...
"Brother Yan's world is different from mine. Brother Yan's world is always full of birdsong and gardens, a paradise, full of unrealistic ideals and dreams, as if they were fake. But this dreamlike ideal makes my heart beat... Wherever Brother Yan goes, I will go there."
She curved her eyes, eagerly hugged Yan Shang's waist, and rubbed against him. She was domineering and arrogant just now, but now she was silly and sweet like a little girl: "I am willing to go back to the countryside in Lingnan with my brother to farm! I like to go to the countryside with my brother to farm! My brother resigned, and I will support him.
"I want to raise Brother Yan Er to be plump and healthy, and live a long life with me!"
Yan Shang blushed and couldn't help laughing.
He pushed Mu Wan who had been rubbing against him, and she made him feel a little uncomfortable, but he just hugged her and smiled. When she had enough of her longing, he whispered: "But before I resign, I must first solve the three forces of the aristocratic families, the poor families, and the eunuchs who are not giving way to each other. I want to make these three families stable. In this way, after I resign, they will not cause chaos in the world."
Mu Wanyao closed her eyes and leaned against his neck. She said sweetly, "I will listen to Second Brother Yan."
Yan Shang grabbed her shoulders and told her to stop rubbing against him. He coughed and joked, "Then I have to cooperate with Sister Yaoyao."
Mu Wan shook his head and looked up.
Seeing that he blushed deeply because he said "sister" in normal times, he moved his eyelashes after saying it. She looked at him teasingly, and he was a little annoyed for a long time: "Why are you looking at me like this? Can't I call you? I just want to say that I want to cooperate with you to solve the three forces together-Yaoyao, it seems that we have never cooperated like this since we got married."
Mu Wanyao corrected, "Not after marriage, even before marriage, we have never worked together seriously. We often fight side by side, but we never have any strategy. We rely entirely on our tacit understanding and understanding of each other.
"So... Brother Yan, are you going to join forces with me today?"
Yan Shang: “Yeah.”
Mu Wan looked at the hand they held, smiled with pursed lips, and was quite excited. What would it be like for her and Yan Shang to work together again after they had grown a lot?
-----
Hai Sanlang had been pestering Yan Shang since he heard what Yan Shang said that night. Yan Shang didn't pay much attention to him, but he was still a teenager after all, and he was quite stubborn, so he insisted that Yan Shang accept him as a student. No matter how Yan Shang said that he was still young and didn't want to accept students, and just wanted to have the friendship between the examiner and the examinee, Hai Sanlang didn't listen.
Since Hai Sanlang refuses to listen to advice and Yan Shang has already tried to persuade him, he might as well take advantage of Hai Sanlang.
The Hai family held a banquet in Beili to apologize to Hai Sanlang. Yan Shang took advantage of the situation and turned the banquet into a trap. When the Hai family was ignorant, Yan Erlang was poisoned at the banquet. The Hai family naturally distanced themselves from the matter and investigated who poisoned him with great fear.
After Yan Shang’s poison was cured, he began to investigate Beili.
Beili is the place of fame and fortune in Chang'an where the nobles like to hang out. There are too many secrets and too many tacit secret deals hidden here. If the court does not investigate, there will be no trouble. Once it investigates, there will be evidence everywhere. When Yan Shang started to investigate Beili, he was naturally opposed by many people.
But Yan still had a reason - "If someone in Beili dared to poison a fifth-rank official, wouldn't someone dare to poison Your Majesty in the future? Or maybe it's not Beili that has a problem, but the Hai family who wants to poison me?"
The Hai clan leader could only bite the bullet and stand up to express his support for Yan Shang: "The Hai clan would never dare to harm Yan Suchen! Beili is in a mess, and we really need to investigate it thoroughly!"
In order to clear herself of suspicion, Hai has to work hard for Yan Shang.
Hai Sanlang looked puzzled and said, "Father, why are we so afraid of Yanjun?"
The Hai clan leader shook his head and smiled bitterly. His naive son thought that this matter was a personal grudge and that Hai Sanlang was a top scholar, but he didn't know that this matter had become a factional dispute in the court.
The Hai clan leader said, "What we are afraid of is not Yan Erlang, but the charge of 'murder'. The last charge of murder was given by the prince, and this time it was given by an official appointed by the court... People say that our Hai clan is not legitimate because we murdered the prince. And with this charge, our clan will never be able to make a name for ourselves! If we want to make a name for ourselves, we must get rid of the charge of 'murder' in Chang'an this time no matter what!
"Now that we have offended Yan Erlang, if we don't want to be charged with murdering an official appointed by the imperial court, we must listen to Yan Erlang. Yan Erlang is not targeting us... You can rest assured that he is targeting the forces behind us."
What Beili and Hai family, it has come to this...Yan Shang wants to rectify the entire officialdom and clear up the order in the officialdom!
The Hai clan leader stared at his son deeply, put his hand on Hai Sanlang's shoulder, and said solemnly: "Sanlang, just wait and see! You are the newcomer of our family... No matter what, we will support you!"
-----
Yan Shang was rectifying Beili, using the rectification of Beili to investigate all the illegal activities of the noble families. This move was very damaging, involving the dispute between the noble families and the poor families. The emperor stayed away from them and did not dare to participate in or help any of them.
Liu Xianggong's son Liu Gong came to ask Yan Shang for mercy, but Yan Shang was ruthless and did not give face to his teacher. Liu Gong wanted to find another one, but was scolded by his father, so he cooperated with Yan Shang awkwardly.
The emperor was terrified, always worried that someone would get killed. At the same time, the emperor's harem was also restless.
Concubine Huo, who was sent to the palace by Mu Wanyao, was pregnant. Chunhua, who was the Concubine Xian, came to visit her because they were originally from the same princess's mansion. Chunhua was depressed, and Concubine Hai, who was sent to the palace by the Hai family, saw that Concubine Xian was so depressed, so she asked Chunhua to come over to talk.
Lady Hai was simply trying to sow discord between Lady Chunhua and Lady Huo in order to target the princess.
Chunhua was on the princess' side in her heart and didn't say much, but she was hesitant and puzzled as to why the princess was so good to Concubine Huo - when Concubine Huo was pregnant, the princess went to the palace to visit her every day and sent precious items to her palace to protect the fetus.
As for the spring flowers, the evening swaying is almost invisible.
Are years of friendship no match for the princess’s interests?
While Chunhua was so upset, something happened to Lady Huo. Mu Wanyao was staying in Lady Huo's palace, talking to her, when she suddenly complained of stomachache and asked the imperial physician to come, and the baby was aborted.
Mu Wanyao was extremely excited and wanted to find out who had harmed Lady Huo. The emperor was shocked and felt pity for the beautiful woman who was crying so hard that she burst into tears, so he wanted to investigate the harem thoroughly.
The investigation led to Chunhua's son.
-----
A child was ignorant and secretly added saffron and other drugs to the medicine given to the Homi people. If no adults talked about this in front of the child, how would the child know?
Mu Wanyao raised her eyebrows, looked at the emperor's hesitation and Chunhua's astonishment. Chunhua had been with the emperor for several years. Although the emperor did not love her, he felt sorry for her. Moreover, Chunhua was born in a princess's mansion, why was Mu Wanyao so heartless to Chunhua?
Hai Meiren was in her own palace. When she heard Chunhua was pushed out, she couldn't help but raise her lips. She wanted Chunhua and Huo Meiren to have a quarrel, Chunhua and Mu Wanyao to lose their hearts, and Mu Wanyao to lose control over the emperor - Hai Shi couldn't murder the prince, but she could get rid of him with the help of others.
But in this world, the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Until the last moment, it is unclear who is the chess player and who is the chess piece.
Mu Wanyao and Yan Shang were playing chess in the princess' bedroom, each holding their own chess pieces. They sat in charge of the chessboard, looking around, waiting for the other players to enter the game.
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