Chapter 36: Serving as an Auditor in the Northern Song Dynasty
"Have you heard? The guy who sued you yesterday..." Song Shiyi found it hilarious just thinking about it. "Chen Zedong, wasn't he carried out on the spot?"
Su Jinghe didn't even look up. He was holding a piece of paper and writing something on it. He perfunctorily said to Song Shiyi, "Hmm? And then?"
"And then! Hahaha!" Song Shiyi really found it funny. "And then the imperial physician said, said, said it was fake! Hahaha, he didn't even come to the morning court today. Did you notice? Hahaha!"
Song Shi patted Su Jinghe's shoulder while smiling, but he didn't pay attention and added a little flaw to Su Jinghe's affairs.
"Tear it up." Su Jinghe looked at the paper that was torn crookedly in his hand and remained silent.
It would be fine if he had any expression, but it was this expressionless look that was the most frightening. Song Shiyi thought he had gotten into some big trouble, and he carefully wanted to see what Su Jinghe had written on the paper, but he was afraid that it was something he couldn't see, so in the end he only dared to look at Su Jinghe's face.
"No...are you okay?"
Song Shiyi was so scared that he became insane.
Su Jinghe still didn't reply. He sorted out the papers in his hand, lowered his head and thought for a minute, then looked at Song Shiyi again.
"I see. This is still too slow. Let's do something more efficient!"
"Ah?" Song Shiyi was stunned, not knowing what Su Jinghe was going to do. As a result, the other party did not give him any room to think, and just took the pen and paper and walked away, muttering as he walked.
"I have a printing press, but I don't use it. I'd be a fool to do it myself and draw the grid. It's too much trouble."
Huh? What's going on? Why is printing needed?
Song Shiyi jogged along to catch up, and what Su Jinghe was muttering made it even more difficult for him to understand.
"I'm eating an orange. That doesn't seem right. It should be "I'm eating an orange." That's right."
Huh? What on earth is going on?
Song Shiyi listened to Su Jinghe repeating sentences like "eating", "like to eat", "forgot to make it" over and over again, and felt that he was about to figure out what Su Jinghe was doing, but he was just one step away from completing it.
When he arrived at the Secretariat, he was even more confused when he heard what Su Jinghe wanted to print.
"Why do you have to cut the paper into pieces of the same size? You...didn't you cut the empty space on the paper in advance?"
"Yes, yes." Su Jinghe spoke excitedly about his plan, "Didn't His Majesty ask us to start teaching the little prince how to speak fluently? I think it's not that the little prince can't do it, he's just lazy."
"Hey?" How could he say that? In this Zhongshumen where people come and go and have so many ulterior motives, it is not something a serious person would do to make random comments about the young prince.
Song Shiyi just subconsciously tried to stop Su Jinghe, but suddenly thought of something and stopped.
Song Shiyi just felt that he was used to cleaning up the mess for Su Jinghe, and he had already forgotten about his fame from the battle yesterday.
With the real-life example of Chen Zedong, I guess few people would dare to mess with him again.
"Can you, me, him, or it draw more? Just paper ones? Don't you want to make some wooden signs or something so that the little prince can take them more easily?"
Look at this service attitude, it's so considerate. Song Shiyi recalled that when he came here to print and copy, they were afraid that he would waste the country's resources on his own trivial matters.
"Actually, I want to make a harder kind of paper, but I don't know if we can make it here." Su Jinghe wanted to make a card-like shape, and it wouldn't take long...
"Sure." As soon as Su Jinghe finished speaking, the other party agreed firmly, "No problem, we can do it here."
"Is the size still this big? Does it just require printing? Is there a quantity requirement? If it's under 100, you should be able to pick it up tomorrow, or we can deliver it to you."
Look at this attitude!
Song Shiyi was still wondering if he had been too self-critical, but now it was all true. The evidence was irrefutable! How could he be treated like this?
"Hey? Is this all right?" Su Jinghe's eyes lit up. "Tomorrow, I'll come get it tomorrow. I'll have a new order by then, and I want to do it here. Don't worry, it's for teaching purposes only, not for fun!"
The last sentence is really a bit like covering one's ears and stealing the bell.
But even if it was for fun, Song Shiyi would only give it his all! They were playing games in class, so it didn't matter who they played with.
"It's okay to play around. Our Director Bi was discovered and promoted by you. He's wanted to thank you for a long time. He said it's okay for you to use his quota to do your work."
After saying this, the man seemed to suddenly realize that he shouldn't have said it. He looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to him, so he hurried to explain.
"It's not corruption. We have our own trial and error indicators..."
"I know, I know. It's just, um... how did he know I was related? But let me be clear, I definitely didn't promote him. I just heard that there was such a person as him. And the one who recognized his talent was His Majesty."
The expression on Su Jinghe's face was full of words like "No way, who said it was mine?"
There's no way to hide anything.
Seeing that the man looked embarrassed, Song Shiyi thought he didn't know the reason, so he hurriedly interrupted him.
"Maybe it's what Mr. Zhang said. Mr. Zhang thinks highly of you and always praises you in front of various people."
This is a true story.
Su Jinghe felt that he was truly lucky to have such a boss.
"The boss really praises me for everything, but I didn't contribute at all."
Speaking of this, Su Jinghe seemed to have thought of something.
"But this deck of cards is definitely profitable. Why don't we contact the Printing Department and the Ministry of Revenue to see if we can find a place to sell the cards?"
No way, just because someone praises you, you give them money-making ideas?
Song Shiyi pulled Su Jinghe and said, "Why don't you leave this idea to Donggong to make money? After all, your current position is..."
She has been completely labeled as "a member of the Eastern Palace" by rumors.
I don't know how these words got through to Su Jinghe's mind. He just turned it around and the meaning of the words changed.
"Shall we let His Majesty and the Empresses do it? It seems possible. As an educational toy, we can run an advertisement saying that even the Eastern Palace is playing it... If this sells well, it can also increase the popularity of our royal family. From His Majesty to the Crown Prince, it will be memorable."
In other words, he hadn't become a traitor yet. Looking at Su Jinghe's natural ability to "flatter", Song Shiyi said that it rose to "making the royal family more popular among the people". He didn't even take sides in advance and was still thinking about His Majesty in his heart.
"This should be pretty good." Song Shiyi had nothing to say. He just felt that his talent in being an official was really not as good as Su Jinghe's.
As he walked back with a pile of papers, Song Shiyi was still thinking, "Should His Majesty really open this shop?"
"Ah? You're still thinking about this? That's great. How about you think about it today and integrate the games we played with the princes before, and then write to His Majesty, asking for permission to open a store in the name of the royal family, selling educational toys."
Su Jinghe thought for a moment and said, "We can also improve the bikes that the young princes used and sell them. But if we really want to sell this, we have to sell it together with the big bicycle."
After Su Jinghe invented the bicycle, he rarely rode it, but the two little princes were very happy.
He really felt that without rubber, riding this pure wooden bicycle was really tiring, and it was worse than riding it with his legs.
But the kids love it.
When Song Shiyi first heard this, he was wondering why he was so talkative. Now, he had an extra job to do out of nowhere. But after listening to him, he suddenly understood.
"Ah, do you think His Majesty is pushing for progress because he suspects we're not working every day? So organizing these is to show His Majesty that we're not just eating for free? Okay, I'll start organizing today!"
Huh? Is that what I was thinking?
Su Jinghe was surprised, he himself had not thought of this.
Isn't the core of opening a store to make money? Letting the two princes be the spokespersons is just the right way to attract all the children. As for the previous ones, there are naturally homework to copy, so there is no need to think about new ones.
But after Song Shiyi said this, he also thought of it.
Damn it! I'm so dedicated to my kids every day, reading and playing with them, and they've gradually become familiar with so many words! At most, I haven't even started teaching them how to write yet... But for kids under three to start practicing calligraphy, that's too much! They're actually rushing them to learn... Terrible East Asian parents, terrible royal families! It's different when there's a throne to inherit. You have to win at the starting line, right?
Oh, this teacher is truly unfitting. If the parents want to fight, I have to fight, not to mention that this parent is my biggest boss! If the king wants his subjects to die, they must die!]
No, um...
Song Shiyi felt a little numb after listening to Su Jinghe's sudden abuse.
Ah, every now and then, Su Jinghe refreshes some new "swear words", but His Majesty is not angry at all, and even coaxes people. Our Majesty really has a very good temper. No wonder he will be "Renzong" in the future...
Even Song Shiyi felt that His Majesty was worthy of the title of "Ninja Master"!
East Asian Parents·Terrible·Song Renzong, who had the throne to inherit at home, closed his eyes when he heard such scolding, and then when he opened his eyes, there was no emotion in them, and he looked at his ministers quite calmly.
"Look, I've already arranged a punishment for him."
The small group held a meeting. In front of Song Renzong, besides Lu Yijian, there was also Fan Zhongyan. Not only the two of them, but there were also other people, so it was unbearable to watch.
Finally, Han Qi came to the rescue and said, "When the time comes, you can ask someone else to come and practice calligraphy..."
There is really no way around it. Su Jinghe's calligraphy is too mechanical and lacks artistic sense. Such a font is popular in the imperial examinations, but when written by the emperor, it should look a little better.
After all, it’s our Song Dynasty!
Han Qi thought so, but he never expected that Su Jinghe would later take advantage of everyone and ask all the ministers to write a report.
But when the time came, he happily wrote it. After all, it was a calligraphy copybook for the young prince! Who could refuse such an honor? No one.
"Class, class!" Su Jinghe's hands were busy again, sorting papers. "Let's play a game today."
The paper in his hand currently does not look like a "playing card", it is still pure paper. After all, he still has to attend class today, so he will just play with ordinary ones today.
Su Jinghe didn't hide it, "Today, everyone has to say the words they see, including us, Xinglai. Can you do it?"
When it comes to games, Zui Xinglai never says "no". He happily raises his hand and says, "Yes!"
"I can do it too!" Princess Fukang was also very happy. "Just say it out loud, okay? I can do it too. I can even write it down!"
Su Jinghe did not teach the child to write, but the child was being taught at home. He knew that the two ladies had given him a message, asking him how he should persuade Zui Xinglai to write as well.
It is said that Empress Cao and Consort Miao would practice calligraphy with Princess Fukang, and then Princess Fukang would take his own paper and pen and silently draw cats.
If Zui Xinglai were to succeed the throne, wouldn't our Song Dynasty have another cat emperor? Hmm... I hope he's a dog-loving emperor like Yongzheng, and also diligent in his work.
"No need to write. Next time, when we all know how to write, we can write by ourselves and then exchange sentences."
Su Jinghe looked at Zui Xinglai and said, "Zui Xinglai, you have to work hard. You are the only one in the room who can't write by yourself!"
Zui Xinglai widened his round eyes, which looked very similar to a cat, and said, "Oppress the child!"
The boomerang of fate had hit Su Jing and himself in the head in just a few months, not even ten years later.
"Okay, okay, I won't pressure you. Take your time and learn. Let's play a game today. If you come across a word you don't know on the paper, you can raise your hand and ask me. But you'll lose 2 points for each question you ask, and 3 points for each wrong one. You'll get 1 point for forming a complete sentence. The initial score is 10. You have one hour to see how many points you can get."
"Hey? Isn't this a competition?" Princess Fukang understood the rules and her first question was, "Shall I team up with Xiaobao?"
"Yes, it's a collaboration. You two can work together, but each person can't come to me and speak three times in a row. If you say it twice, Zuixing has to speak once. You can't repeat any sentences."
"I'm talking about the short version." Zui Xinglai also understood, "You can say it!"
No, both are very smart.
Su Jinghe watched the two children below thinking about tactics and wondering how His Majesty would test them. He became lost in thought.
[Sigh, I don't know what the future emperor, Zhao Shu, is doing now. I look at these two children and they seem pretty normal. Where's Zhao Shu? Let me see.]
Su Jinghe's thoughts really made people wonder if there were surveillance cameras installed in the court.
It may also have been installed directly on Song Renzong.
He held a meeting with his small group of senior executives, and the topic of their conversation was "Zhao Shu".
"I will really take better care of these two children." Song Renzong looked at the others with a serious expression. "Maybe my other self just didn't raise them carefully enough, always thinking about having more children. If I don't have any more children, I'll just raise them. In the future, either a boy or a girl will ascend the throne. Is that not okay?"
"Your Majesty, regarding the Empress..."
"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is still young..."
After Su Jinghe pointed out that "he just didn't want someone else's child to succeed to the throne", Song Renzong also thought about it himself.
Between Zhao Shu and Fukang succeeding to the throne, he still wanted Fukang to take the throne.
Su Jinghe was absolutely right, he just wanted to leave the throne to his children.
But the ministers were quite pessimistic.
Let’s not talk about it for the time being, aren’t the animals in the other world raised with great care?
Besides, there is still a long time and many variables. It is not safe enough to have only two little princes.
"Otherwise, there will be one more person in name, which will also be considered as one more target." Lu Yijian said it quite coldly. He also knew that if Song Renzong was really unwilling to accept it, he could only give Zhao Shu this position at most.
Unexpectedly, his proposal was not approved by Song Renzong. When he sent the person away, he really didn't want to take him back at all.
"The child is not at fault either. Even if he doesn't get involved..."
When the two sides were confronting each other, Su Jinghe's voice rang out clearly.
[Zhao Shu should be an eight-year-old child now, right? He's about the same age as our Su Jingxian. He should be studying now, right?]
Eight years old is probably the age for going to school, but why did he say "my Su Jingxian" so naturally? Zhang Dexiang thought that Su Jinghe was not young anymore and he should get married and have children, so that he could not raise his cousin as "his own child".
[Huh? Wait... no?]
What's wrong?
Lu Yijian felt a little uneasy when he heard Su Jinghe's series of questions.
Seeing that His Majesty was truly determined not to have another child, whether the motorcycles and men of the Song Dynasty could have another choice depended on whether His Majesty was willing to accept Zhao Shu. If anything happened to Zhao Shu, the Song Dynasty...
There were others who were as worried as Lu Yijian, including Song Renzong.
Song Renzong just didn't want him to be the emperor, but he didn't say that he wanted such a young child to have an accident.
No way! Back home, his father doesn't care at all, leaving the child to fend for himself? The people taking care of him also have no sense of responsibility? Are they so bold? They're just cutting corners in their care? It's almost noon, and they're feeding the child cold porridge... and they haven't even arranged a teacher for him... I'm so impressed.
Could it be that the ministers later persuaded Song Renzong to take Zhao Shu back home, not only because Song Renzong had no male heir, but also because they couldn't stand Zhao Shu's miserable life in their own family?
No way?
Han Qi couldn't understand how a father could be so cruel.
"Let him fend for himself? Why? Isn't this his own child?" Song Renzong was so scared that he spoke.
Even as an emperor, he didn't let his children fend for themselves!
It also has something to do with the fact that he doesn't have many children. He only has a few small things, but he takes them more seriously than his own eyes... Especially since he almost had an accident last time, he took them even more seriously.
But after reviewing the situation, Song Renzong felt that he had been very careful last time. Although he left both children with Su Jinghe, but!
Su Jinghe had more secret guards around him than he did! Not to mention that he left behind most of the palace maids and eunuchs and left with a simple package.
When they arrived at the Imperial College, the bad guy didn't directly encounter the two children...
Of course... originally this reason was perfect, but the assassination of Su Jinghe himself made the area around Su Jinghe the most dangerous place.
But no matter what, Song Renzong could not put himself in the shoes of his cousin Zhao Yunrang.
"Maybe it was to avoid suspicion, but it was a bit too much."
This is not difficult to guess. The fact that Zhao Shu was adopted by Song Renzong is the fundamental reason why Zhao Yunrang avoided suspicion.
"Perhaps they are worried that if they bring him back, their father-son relationship will be too close, which will affect their relationship with His Majesty?"
Ah, family love...
This made Song Renzong feel particularly guilty, as this was indeed not the case.
When Zhao Shu was in the palace, he treated people as mascots...
[Alas, Zhao Shu is also pitiful. He is obviously the biggest victim in this matter, but Song Renzong, who took him in as a "brother-in-law", summoned him and dismissed him at will.
When he was in the palace, Empress Cao was still looking forward to the relationship with His Majesty, so she didn't pay much attention to him...
As a result, now that I'm back home, I'm still living worse than outsiders...
No wonder, he became sensitive and suspicious after becoming emperor, and his relationship with Empress Cao was not good... He was bedridden for many years, which must be because he was not well taken care of now.
Well, now that I think about it, he's truly a rare healthy child in the Zhao family, but his spirit remains as fragile as ever. Pureblood, ah pureblood.]
What misunderstanding do you have about our Zhao family? My spirit is not fragile at all!
Song Renzong didn't understand and wanted to explain, but now it seemed that what he wanted to explain was something else.
The ministers in front of him looked at him with disapproval.
"Children should be taken better care of. If it's just..."
"It's not me, it's me. He had good food and drink when he was in the palace... Empress Cao's small kitchen was even more abundant than the imperial kitchen..."
Following Su Jinghe in shouting "Empress Cao" revealed that Song Renzong really had a bad relationship with Empress Cao at that time, but no one cared about it now.
"Your Majesty, why don't you take him back? Even if you just confer a title on him, no one will dare to neglect him." Some people really love the child.
It’s not that I don’t have money, so how can I still not be able to provide my children with enough food, clothing and other expenses?
This really isn't my fault! Why am I being blamed for someone else's dad's problems?
Even though they were cousins who grew up together, Song Renzong wanted to ask Zhao Yunrang to cut ties with him. At least he was not that cruel!
[But I can't bring this up either. Tsk... If I also say that I heard from somewhere that Zhao Shu is not doing well, wouldn't it really become like I have some ideas about the next leader of the Song Dynasty?
Forget it, let’s just live our own lives. Should I find a way to get some money for the child and send it over secretly?
Will I be misunderstood too?
I'm a nobody, so I don't think anyone would think I'm a ruthless character like Huo Guang, who can make things happen with a flip of his hand, right? The kid is really pitiful... Is there anyone who can care about him...?
Okay, okay, I care about you, I care about you!
Song Renzong was annoyed by this nagging.
"If you can bring him back, I can, but I really won't let him be my heir!" Song Renzong said firmly, "Even if she becomes the empress in the future, I won't let her be my heir. I still want my child to succeed me!"
In the past, no one had Su Jinghe's brain, and no one would have thought that a girl could become an empress. Now that Song Renzong has thought of it, he told others.
"As long as you are willing, you can support the empress! I know your abilities. Even if there really is a pig on the throne, you can maintain the stability of the Song Dynasty."
Your Majesty, you really don't know how to praise people!
Zhang Dexiang even wanted Su Jinghe to flatter him more in his heart, so that Song Renzong could learn how to praise people normally.
How can we accept this "even if it is a pig"? If we accept it, it means that the emperor is a pig!
【Hey hey! 】
Su Jinghe exclaimed again, which made the bosses tense up, fearing that they would hear something that would raise their blood pressure. What was even more uncomfortable was that they had no way to stop it even if they heard it.
I've always said that the Zhao family has good genes; there aren't many stupid children. Fukang is incredibly smart, asking Zui Xinglai to expand on the same sentence and say several at once.
Fortunately, it's not bad news, but this...
"I think I'm teaching Zuixinglai how to speak!" Song Renzong praised his idea. "Zuixinglai never speaks in complete sentences, but only in short ones. I want him to learn."
Yan Shu was shocked when he heard this, "Your Highness the Crown Prince is still young..."
"It's still a matter of forcing things to grow..." Lu Yijian felt a little sorry for their little prince. It was very smart of him to be able to speak in short sentences!
Han Qi even expressed his support, "In the Imperial College's introductory classes, many children don't officially start studying until they are five years old. Your Majesty should pay attention to the children's teaching progress, but don't be too anxious."
No? You weren't so kind when you urged me, were you?
Song Renzong was so confused that he didn't know how to respond, and just silently replied, "I'm not in a hurry."
Princess Zui Xinglai and Princess Fukang were even happier when they were praised by Su Jinghe.
"Come on, let's add this word to the sentence!"
Princess Fukang took out an "orange" and showed it to Zuixing.
"Orange!" It didn't stump Zui Xinglai, as it was a word he knew.
"I'm reading an orange book!"
"Something seems wrong." Princess Fukang thought for a while, took out another "tree" and took away the "book", wanting her brother to put it together again.
"Orange Book? Okay, okay, let's study it and arrange for Orange Book to be available for us!"
Su Jinghe smiled and wrote down the idea, "Not bad, at least I know that oranges can be placed here!"
"Of course I know!" Zui Xinglai proudly puffed out his chest.
"That's right, my brother is quite clever." Princess Fukang rubbed Zui Xinglai's head. "He already knows so many characters, he's not stupid."
"Very smart, your sister is even smarter!" He knows how to praise people. The way Zui Xinglai looked up at his sister with a silly smile on his face was just like a puppy.
Su Jinghe also felt warm at heart, and then -
[Alas, two children doesn't seem to have room for a third. If Your Majesty really takes Zhao Shu back and gives him to Empress Cao to raise, it wouldn't be great if the three children don't know each other. But even if they do, it doesn't mean they'll have a good relationship all of a sudden... Even with pets, you have to worry about whether they might react to stress.]
Why did I think of this again? Weren’t we just “playing”?
Song Renzong didn't understand. He originally thought that he could just get away with it and agree to it first, and then talk about it when he really brought the person back.
"This seems to be a problem..." Su Jinghe's words made others worry about this as well.
"No, wasn't he just outside the palace? And he was brought into the palace? What's the difference between that and me continuing to raise him!" Song Renzong opened his eyes wide.
Unexpectedly, someone immediately answered, "Then when will Your Majesty give him this title and let him open his own government office?"
What is status...
Alas, if he really had to give it, Song Renzong would actually be reluctant to even give this.
"We have to find out about this matter logically and then see what happens. The child is still young, and it doesn't seem right to give him a title without a reason..."
It can be seen that His Majesty really dislikes this child.
All of a sudden, the other ministers also understood that if His Majesty was really forced to pass the throne to Zhao Shu, there would probably be no other way.
Should I really start preparing to become the "Empress"?
Some people have already started to make secret plans.
The teaching quality at Su Jinghe's place is quite good, and the results are remarkable.
"The fundamental purpose of our game today is to get Zui Xinglai to speak a complete sentence! Now that we've accomplished that, remember to tell your father tonight about this, Your Highness the Crown Prince. Let His Majesty know that we're not just playing around every day; we're really learning!"
How do you achieve this relaxing feeling when talking to your own children?
Song Shiyi admires Su Jinghe very much in this regard.
"Also, if you score more than 50 points today, you will receive our mysterious grand prize. Now let's take a survey to see if you have a favorite dynasty or favorite..." Su Jinghe was about to announce the reward to them with a mysterious smile.
"Cat!" Before Su Jinghe could finish his words, Zui Xinglai gave the answer that everyone knew.
"Okay, the gift prepared for our most excited guest will be something related to kittens!"
Su Jinghe was planning to make a deck of cat cards for him, but he hadn't decided on a theme yet.
"As for me... I've been listening to my sister telling stories about the Three Kingdoms recently, and I like Lu Bu! He's very strong!" Princess Fukang's eyes lit up when she mentioned "Lu Bu". It seemed like she really liked him.
The Three Kingdoms, well, it seems very suitable for making a Three Kingdoms Kill card game...
Su Jinghe got a little excited when he thought about this. "Do you like the battle mode cards? For example, if I play a 4 and you play a 5, and you have a bigger number than mine, you win."
Where is this battle?
Song Shiyi didn't understand.
Princess Fukang thought about it and seemed to be able to put herself in the situation. "If I play Lü Bu and you play Guan Yu, then I win?"
"That's the truth!" Su Jinghe continued, "We can also have Red Hare cards. Lü Bu can equip them, and so can Guan Yu!"
"It becomes stronger with them, and weaker without them? That seems very interesting, I want it!" Princess Fukang looked at Su Jinghe with her bright eyes, and the two hit it off immediately.
"Cat!" The most excited person next to him insisted.
"If I make it in cat form, will people say I don't respect history..." Su Jinghe thought for a moment, "Make two, one in human form and one in cat form! I'll arrange for a beautiful manuscript then, but it'll be a little slow. Can you guys wait?"
"Yes!" Zui Xinglai nodded firmly.
Princess Fukang didn't care how long it would take, "It can wait~"
——
"What? Yan Su?!" Su Jinghe was shocked.
Song Shiyi didn't understand. "Didn't you ask me to find someone whose drawings were cuter? This is it. What's wrong? This person?"
The next moment Song Shiyi knew what had happened.
[Holy crap, a big shot like that isn't dead! No...wait, it seems like it was this year...]
"You..." Stop thinking about it.
Song Shiyi was shocked. Everything else was fine, but even this big guy could hear your thoughts!
Yan Su, who had been called out in person and told that he would "die this year", had not yet reacted when Su Jinghe's hand came up to shake his.
"Boss! Are you really going to draw us this little job?"
Yan Su, who is 79 years old this year and 80 years old in lunar age, is a very serious person as his name suggests. However, he is not serious at all when he paints, but very cute.
"I heard you want to draw the cats of the Three Kingdoms characters. That's very interesting. Let me do a few strokes."
[I…I…Ahhh, thank you so much for coming! Is this just a case of fools having luck? Damn, I'm so lucky to be able to play with cards drawn by such a great guy! I'm so lucky!]
Yan Su was a little overwhelmed by such heavy praise. He had just been told that he was going to die, but he didn't experience such a big emotional fluctuation.
"Maybe I won't paint much. I'm old and lack energy. Some of the work may need to be supplemented by my apprentices."
[Hey, Yan Su, it's actually Yan Su, the pioneer of literati painting! His painting skills are comparable to Wang Wei's, hey...]
Su Jing and this person were completely immersed in the excitement of having commissioned an article from a big shot.
"This..." Yan Su looked at Song Shiyi and another person, wanting them to come to the rescue.
"You don't only like this one, do you? Don't forget there is another big boss!" Song Shiyi's words made Su Jinghe look at another person.
"My name is Wang Mian." The man smiled reluctantly.
[I haven't heard of it. Is it from the Painting Academy? No, it was Emperor Huizong who started to develop the Painting Academy. Emperor Renzong didn't seem to care about it.]
The Hanlin Academy of Painting was established during the reign of Emperor Taizong of Song, and many talented painters were recruited, but only Emperor Huizong of Song cared about their skills.
After all, Song Huizong was particularly fond of calligraphy and painting, and to other emperors, he was like a human camera.
Of course not!
Song Shiyi looked at Wang Mian and smiled a little awkwardly.
This person was sent in by Emperor Renzong of Song Dynasty...
He was not a candidate who came in through the back door to gild himself, but someone who came in through the back door to act as a shill for Song Renzong.
It was a eunuch beside Song Renzong, who was arranged to come here——
Because Song Renzong himself also wanted to paint!
Three Kingdoms characters! Song Renzong wants to draw them!
As for whether to draw one, two or many pictures, let’s not talk about it for now. At least there is a sense of participation.
Song Renzong was afraid of being accused of being a playboy and wasting his time, so he could only arrange the eunuchs around him.
Even Song Shiyi is the only one who knows the deep-seated reasons behind this matter!
Su Jinghe actually doesn't care whether the painter is famous or not.
"Teacher, it's great that you have your own team! I'm planning to make a 54-card deck first. I haven't decided on the specific characters yet, but the lineup will probably be divided into Wei, Shu, Wu, and Other. For example, people like Lu Bu will be Others... Um, scattered soldiers? That doesn't sound very good. Let's just call them heroes."
"Since time is so tight, maybe one person can draw one or two, and even better, get a few more people! We'll try to finish it in ten days!"
Oh, so that’s how it is.
Song Shiyi and Wang Mian looked at each other. If that was the case, then it would be easy for His Majesty to paint.
"After all, it's for the princes to play with, so the art academies can also participate." Song Shiyi added.
Yan Su understood after hearing this. "The two paintings together have 108 pictures. If one person can only draw one, I know some people who can draw it."
The boss’s connections!
Su Jinghe's eyes lit up, "That's great!"
"In fact, there are many people in the court who are good at painting. If you don't require them to be extremely skilled in painting, I can do it too." Song Shiyi tried to recommend himself.
Su Jinghe tilted his head and thought about the paintings Song Shiyi had painted at the kiln factory before. "You and those who are better than you should have no problem, but do you really want to participate?"
Song Shiyi was a little confused.
"It's in the same deck of cards as the boss's painting..."
This person's level is afraid of comparison. Su Jinghe's words really made Song Shiyi retreat a little.
But he quickly regained his confidence, saying, "There's always someone who's a little behind, and I'm willing to be that last one!"
Your Majesty still wants to participate, and Song Shiyi will volunteer to be the last one.
Song Shiyi didn't know what level His Majesty was at, so he thought about drawing one good and one bad picture to use as a backup!
Later, more and more people got the news, without Su Jing and himself knowing.
"Three Kingdoms Figure Paintings" and "Three Kingdoms Figure Cat Prints" became popular in the court of the Song Dynasty and even in Bianliang.
That is, five days after the ten days had passed, Su Jinghe was surprised to find that his uncle and aunt who were on vacation were both at home.
"Are you okay today?" No one answered Su Jinghe's question.
Not only that, his cousins were also gathered here, each of them had a piece of paper spread out in front of them, holding a pen and looking worried for some reason.
Su Jinghe walked over and was surprised to find that they were either paintings of people or cats.
Aunt Cheng Jiamin's cat paintings are unique.
"The cat on the white horse and silver spear, eh, Zhao Yun?"
Cheng Jiamin was also finishing up at this time. She laughed when she heard it, "Exactly!"
"It became popular in Bianjing to paint characters from the Three Kingdoms or cats. I thought of painting a cat, which is interesting. Look, a cat wearing armor and riding a horse is more distinctive than other cats." Cheng Jiamin is quite satisfied with his paintings.
Su Jinghe found it interesting at first, then suddenly discovered a logic.
This is very similar to the logic in cartoons... Cats and horses are obviously both animals, but it doesn't feel far-fetched to see a cat riding a horse. People have subconsciously positioned both of them.
Su Xun had also finished his painting. He unfolded it and said, "Look, I drew Zhou Yu! Doesn't he look like a man of both civil and military talents?"
Can you really tell this from the painting?
Su Jinghe leaned over to take a look and found that it really worked.
"You're wearing armor and holding a feather fan. Are you sure Zhou Yu would do this?"
Because the painting was too exaggerated, Su Xun blushed immediately when Cheng Jiamin criticized his character design.
"This is just artistic processing. Look, you are like a cat riding a horse, and I didn't say you were wrong." Su Xun tried to fight back, but with little effect.
The cutest painting in the whole show was by Su Jingxian. He drew a cat, a particularly cute cat.
"You can't tell it's a cat related to the Three Kingdoms." At this moment, Su Xun was a bit like a god who would kill anyone who stood in his way, and he was also finding fault with his son.
Su Jinghe watched the family's completed paintings and thought belatedly.
"Why is this suddenly popular in Bianjing? Could it be me..."
Everyone knows that we need to draw characters from the Three Kingdoms, right?
"Yeah, it seems that if you draw successfully, you can submit it for publication. Although it seems that there is no payment, many people still submit it."
Su Xun thought for a moment and said, "Many people in our college have submitted their works."
Wait... lots of people, submitting articles?
Su Jinghe had a bad feeling.
And the premonition soon came true.
When Su Jinghe saw so many paintings at work, he let out a wail of despair.
"I really don't have a good aesthetic sense, so please don't ask me to review so many manuscripts!"
How did I become an examiner in the Song Dynasty? Su Jinghe didn't understand. Su Jinghe looked at Song Shiyi, trying to get redemption.
All he got was Song Shiyi's same decadent smile, "Try hard..."
My heart is so tired! Song Shiyi wants to escape but can't!
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