Chapter 19 019 "I'll give you seven words: Discuss politics only, don't criticize people..."
On the fourth day of the first lunar month, the Hou family held a banquet to entertain relatives and friends. Luo Lan and Pei Xingshu, as relatives of the third wife of the Xiao family, were also invited.
Luo Lan had visited the Marquis's residence several times and was quite familiar with Deng Shi, Yang Yanzhen, and Li Huaiyun. In addition, the women mostly chatted about family matters when they sat together. Luo Lan, like her sister, was very good at such occasions. When someone asked her a question, she answered with a smile. When no one paid attention to her, she listened to others chatting with a smile and took the opportunity to observe the noble ladies in other residences. They were comfortable and at ease.
Or rather, Luo Fu's skill in socializing stemmed from having an older sister who was adept at navigating any situation. From a young age, Luo Fu loved to stick close to her sister. Her sister learned accounting from their mother, and Luo Fu followed suit. When her sister went with their mother to argue with lazy and cunning tenants, Luo Fu went along too. When her twelve or thirteen-year-old sister witnessed the refined manners of wealthy young ladies and wanted to imitate them, Luo Fu, at six or seven, began to imitate her sister. Later, when her sister married a wealthy and talented man, Luo Fu's standards for her future husband rose significantly.
The student surpasses the teacher; Roland is the "blue," and Rosé is the "green."
Just as Rosé had once envied her sister's good marriage, this past winter, Roland also envied her younger sister's marriage into a noble family, her ability to meet more noble ladies in the capital, and even her visit to the imperial palace. In their envy, the two sisters temporarily switched roles, with Rosé meticulously sharing her high-society knowledge with her sister, and Roland listening attentively, taking notes and learning as she went, because Roland believed that sooner or later she would also find these things useful.
As for the female guests, Luo Lan had the care of her sister and Deng Shi and others. As for the male guests, Pei Xingshu, who was attending the grand banquet at the Marquis's residence for the first time, only knew Xiao Rong and his four sons. Xiao Rong had to entertain dukes and important officials such as Li Gong and Yang Sheng, while Xiao Hu and Xiao Lin had to entertain their respective wives' relatives, brothers, colleagues, and close friends. After exchanging a few pleasantries with him, they went off to do their own things. Only Xiao Yu stayed with him the whole time.
Pei Xingshu, with his keen eyes, quickly realized that his brother-in-law seemed to have poor interpersonal relationships. So many noble sons of similar age to Xiao Yu were all gathered around Xiao Hu and Xiao Lin, and not one of them went to Xiao Yu's side.
Today, the Xiao family is hosting the event, so Xiao Yu's situation is very unusual!
Xiao Yu also noticed that Pei Xingshu had been paying attention to those noble sons and that Pei Xingshu seemed to be speculating about his relationship with others. Remembering his wife's repeated instructions that morning to make sure he took care of his brother-in-law and prevent him from being neglected, Xiao Yu took the initiative to explain: "I am a scholar, while they all pursue martial arts, so we don't have much contact."
Pei Xingshu smiled, but in his heart he was convinced that there was more to the story, because he could also get along well with his brother-in-law Luo Song, who was a martial arts master. Literary and martial arts had never been obstacles to making friends.
Inside the main hall, Yang Sheng was the only high-ranking civil official invited to the Marquis's banquet today. Although his two sons were also civil officials, they were out socializing with their peers and were not qualified to come into the main hall.
Li Gong and other dukes and military men gathered together, and soon they displayed the boldness, ruggedness and uninhibited manners of military generals. The topic of conversation was the third Northern Expedition that the emperor was preparing for this summer. Some regretted that they were unable to participate in the last Northern Expedition because they were serving in the south. Some cursed the Yin Kingdom for colluding with the Hu people and losing their integrity. Some even made sarcastic remarks about the grain transport that he was in charge of!
Yang Sheng didn't bother arguing with these brutes. He took his teacup and walked to the south window where several pots of flowers were placed. He casually admired the flowers while observing the younger generation scattered in the courtyard and corridor.
As Yang Sheng watched, he noticed Xiao Yu, who was only entertaining one guest. Xiao Yu had a handsome appearance that could easily deceive people, something Yang Sheng was already used to. However, the man next to Xiao Yu, around twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, was handsome, refined, and had an elegant demeanor...
Just as the words of praise popped into Yang Sheng's head, he suddenly became alert. He used to find Xiao Yu pleasing to the eye in every way, but who knew if this person was the same kind of person as Xiao Yu?
Just then, Xiao Rong, who had been with Li Gong and the others for a while, came over to flatter him.
Yang Sheng gestured with his chin toward Xiao Yu and the other man, casually inquiring, "Who's next to Yuanzhi?"
Xiao Rong glanced at him and laughed, "He's his brother-in-law, also from Guangling, Yangzhou. He went to the capital to prepare for the imperial examinations before the new year."
Yang Sheng: "Judging from his dignified appearance and impressive demeanor, he has a very good chance of passing the imperial examination this year."
Xiao Rong said happily, "Since he has gained the favor of the Left Prime Minister, this lad might really be able to pass the exam this year. It is said that a word from a wise man is worth more than ten years of study. Why don't you give them some pointers, Left Prime Minister?"
Yang Sheng gave a perfunctory "hmm": "It's not really guidance, just some common mistakes made by previous candidates that I can remind them to avoid. It all depends on whether they can take it to heart."
Xiao Rong flattered them a couple more times and happily sent someone to call the two over.
A moment later, Xiao Yu led Pei Xingshu to stand under the eaves to the left of the main hall entrance, while Yang Sheng and Xiao Rong stood on the eaves, looking down from above.
"This junior, Pei Xingshu, pays his respects to the Prime Minister," Pei Xingshu said, bowing respectfully.
Yang Sheng smiled and told him to get rid of the formalities, ignoring Xiao Yu who was being handed to him by Xiao Rong. Yang Sheng first inquired about Pei Xingshu's experience in the imperial examinations. He learned that Pei Xingshu was twenty-eight years old this year and had missed one autumn examination and one spring examination due to the passing of his grandparents. Yang Sheng encouraged him, saying, "Good things come to those who wait. Accumulate knowledge and experience before you can unleash your potential. I expect you will find the classics and poetry to be no challenge. As for the current affairs questions, I have seven words for you. If you can do them, you will have at least a 70% chance of passing the imperial examinations."
Pei Xingshu was overjoyed and cupped his hands, saying, "I hope the Prime Minister will enlighten me."
Yang Sheng stroked his beard and glanced at Xiao Yu indifferently: "Discuss politics, not personal matters."
The seven words were quite straightforward. Pei Xingshu first thanked him, then pretended to be pondering their deeper meaning.
Xiao Rong glared at his son: "Aren't you going to thank the Prime Minister for his advice?"
However, before Xiao Yu could respond, Yang Sheng turned and went inside, leaving Xiao Rong no choice but to follow.
Pei Xingshu saw this and the examination questions from three years ago came to mind. The third question in the exam was about the way of a virtuous minister.
The seven words from the Left Prime Minister were less a reminder to him and more a warning to Xiao Yu.
Pei Xingshu had been wondering why Xiao Yu, who was able to pass the provincial examination in the capital area and was a son of a nobleman who was related to the prime minister by marriage, with his outstanding talent and top-notch connections in the officialdom, could at least have become a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations).
Could it be that Xiao Yu offended a high-ranking official in the court during his exam, and even the Left Prime Minister couldn't help him smooth things over?
If it were last year, Pei Xingshu wouldn't have had such an unbelievable thought, but now he already knows that Xiao Yu even dared to beat the grandson of the Duke of Dingguo, so what powerful and influential officials in the capital would Xiao Yu not dare to offend?
"Yuanzhi, what do you think of the seven characters of the Left Chancellor's name?" Pei Xingshu asked tactfully.
Xiao Yu exchanged a glance with his brother-in-law, who had missed two imperial examinations, and said, "Listen to him."
Pei Xingshu's tense heart instantly relaxed. He never thought of offending the ministers of the court in the imperial examination. What he was worried about was that Xiao Yu would continue to make foolish mistakes. Now that Xiao Yu has learned his lesson and listened to advice, Pei Xingshu no longer needs to tell his wife the truth about Xiao Yu's failure last time, so as to avoid the two sisters having to go through another fright.
.
After the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, the Xiao family did not hold any more banquets, for fear that the noise of relatives would disturb Xiao Yu who was preparing for the exam. Even at the family banquet on the Lantern Festival, Xiao Rong, who rarely saw Xiao Yu, was much more amiable towards him. After all, he was his own father, and who wouldn't hope that his son would pass the imperial examination and become an official?
Luo Fu treated Xiao Yu even better. She instructed the kitchen to prepare more of Xiao Yu's favorite dishes and soups for him every day. She would give him as many libations as he wanted at night. Even on days when Xiao Yu would find excuses to stay in the central courtyard, Luo Fu did not insist on sending him back as she had last year. This was because whether she could become a true official's wife and receive an additional salary on top of the couple's monthly allowance depended entirely on Xiao Yu's performance in the imperial examination.
In early February, the weather warmed up a bit, but the underfloor heating in each room of the Marquis's residence was still on.
Taking advantage of the strong midday sun, Xiao Yu asked Chao Sheng to bring out a quilt that he had personally instructed the embroiderers of the Marquis's mansion to sew and air it out.
The imperial examination began on the ninth day of the second lunar month and ended on the seventeenth day of the second lunar month, lasting for nine consecutive days with three sessions. The candidates ate and slept in a small cell assigned to them at the examination hall.
Three years ago, when Xiao Yu took the imperial examination, Deng helped prepare his bedding, but Xiao Yu didn't sleep very comfortably. So this year, he took care of everything himself, including choosing his favorite foods for the nine days' worth of provisions.
Luo Fu finally sensed her husband's confidence. Since Xiao Yu had arranged everything so well, Luo Fu took the opportunity to visit her sister and told her about the situation in the examination hall that Xiao Yu had personally shared with her. Her sister then helped her brother-in-law fill in any gaps in his knowledge. For example, she suggested preparing two sets of cotton balls to plug his ears, since some candidates snored loudly at night, and also preparing several strips of thin cotton cloth to hang on his ears to prevent him from being bothered by the unpleasant smell in the examination cells!
Roland: "...It doesn't sound like they're going to take an exam, it sounds more like they're going to suffer."
Luo Fu had no words to refute, because Xiao Yu's expression when recalling the imperial examination back then really looked like she had endured too much suffering.
The tense preparations finally arrived on the night before the exam, the eighth day of the second lunar month.
While the other scholars were probably conserving their energy, Xiao Yu insisted on staying in the backyard. He first had an exceptionally long time with his wife, and even after it ended, he was still reluctant to leave, holding her soft, yielding wife in his arms, smelling her hair, nuzzling her neck, and kissing her shoulder. His head was still quiet, but his hands were still wandering around under the covers.
Luo Fu: "...It's only nine days. I'll be back after the exam." The couple are both in the capital, so it's not even a short separation.
Xiao Yu: "You've never been inside, you wouldn't understand."
The zither board, used as a table during the day, was pieced together into a bed at night. It was so narrow that even turning over was difficult. Xiao Yu, who was still single at the time, found it hard to bear. Now that he had gotten used to sleeping with his sweet and soft wife, if he had to go through it again, Xiao Yu would regret why he didn't like martial arts and insisted on studying back then.
Luo Fu didn't really understand, but she knew that Xiao Yu needed to get enough sleep tonight, so she firmly rejected his second attempt.
The next morning, Xiao Yu was about to set off, and his second brother Xiao Lin and his servant Qing Chuan escorted him to the examination hall.
Luo Fu wanted to see him off further, but if she really chased after him to the examination hall, it would only make Xiao Yu a laughingstock among the other candidates. So she only saw him off out of the Marquis's residence.
Xiao Yu got into the carriage with a flourish, and no one could have guessed how affectionate he had been with his wife last night, let alone that he had taken three of her handkerchiefs with him, saying he would keep them to remember her at night.
Luo Fu didn't find it sweet at all; she was afraid that he would focus too much on missing her and neglect his serious scientific research.
Outside the Gongyuan Gate.
The carriage finally stopped. Inside, Xiao Lin pulled his third brother, who was about to get off, and whispered, "Father asked me to tell you that if you fail the exam again, he will send you and your wife back to your hometown and let you live a hard life in the countryside. Whether you can return to the capital depends entirely on your performance in the next imperial examination."
Xiao Yu just smiled, shook off his second brother's hand, and got out of the car.
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Author's Note: Here it is! 100 little red envelopes! See you at the second update tonight!
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