Chapter 62 The eldest son actually smiled.
Jiang Wei lifted his robe and sat down, looking at Zhao Xian and saying, "Mother, I did indeed hear the last two lines of this poem when I was a child, and the middle two lines are also very familiar to me..."
As he turned the pages, pointing to verses that Zhao Xian was also familiar with, Zhao Xian felt a little irritated. One Jiang Liangxu had left, and now Jiang Wei was giving her hints.
However, judging from Jiang Wei's expression, he was genuinely puzzled, unlike his father who was deliberately implying that she was the original owner of the body.
"Listen to what your father said," Zhao Xian said, turning her face away.
She was so embarrassed. What could she say? That she had forgotten everything she learned a few years after graduation?
Zhao Xian suddenly felt something was wrong. If Jiang Liangxu's statement was true, then she was the original owner of this body. But according to Jiang Wei, he had heard about it when he was very young.
Jiang Wei was eighteen years old. He had heard about it when he was a child, which meant it had been at least ten years!
Zhao Xian couldn't figure out when the original owner of this body had transmigrated. If she had transmigrated when she was a child, she would have already been living in ancient times for many years when she met Jiang Liangxu, and these memories should have been blurred long ago.
Judging from the poems she still remembers, they are all the most classic ones, and they are almost the same as those she can remember now.
Human memory fades over time, so it's unlikely that she was reborn or entered the body at a very young age.
On the contrary, it would be most reasonable for someone to say a few words to a child before or after marriage.
Zhao Xian suddenly became very curious: had the original owner of this body ever tried to find her way home all these years?
When she first arrived, she could sense the original owner's emotions and recall her long-buried memories when she saw Zhou Shi.
But why didn't I see any memories of the pre-modern era from the original owner's memories?
Jiang Wei shook his head: "It has nothing to do with Father. It was something Mother used to recite when she held my younger brother. There was a folk song in it, and I remember it went something like this: 'When will the moon be clear and bright? I raise my cup to ask the blue sky, but I wonder what the celestial palace is like...'"
The boy's voice was clear and unique. Even though he usually had a cold face and didn't like to smile, his singing was even clearer and warmer than his speaking.
Zhao Xian raised her hand to cover her face. "Alright, please shut up."
Do we really have to drag her out and publicly execute her?
Jiang Wei was initially unsure, since he had only heard of these poems in his childhood and there were no written records of them. He had a good memory, and after reading these poems, he could recite a few lines fluently. He began to wonder, "Mother, please enlighten your son: who wrote these poems?"
Zhao Xian looked up at her eldest son seriously, "Is it possible that I really don't remember, or that you're mistaken?"
This is something I can't talk to Jiang Wei about. If I do, she'll have to explain a lot, and I don't know if there's anything I shouldn't say.
Moreover, she didn't really remember many of these poems, nor could she remember them all. She had forgotten or couldn't distinguish the poems of many poets and authors. She couldn't tell him these things, for fear of misleading him.
Zhao Xian suspected that his probing questions might have ulterior motives: "These poems are all good poems. You can read and learn from them. Why do you know so much about them?"
Zhao Xian was missing Jiang Liangxu a little right now, and as his father, he was the most suitable person to handle it.
Jiang Liangxu is really different; she doesn't know how many of her own stories the original owner of this body told him.
At least, when the two talked about certain things, Jiang Liangxu could respond naturally, and Zhao Xian didn't need to explain much, saving her a lot of trouble.
Jiang Wei picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said, "I would like to verify whether this person who wrote this collection of poems is truly talented or just a fame-seeker."
"Based on your childhood memories, you can't tell the difference?" Zhao Xian didn't believe it.
Jiang Wei held his teacup, glanced at his mother, and from those words alone, he already knew what the poetry collection was all about. He then said, "His Majesty praised the author of this Mingxuan Poetry Collection in court yesterday. After court, I went to the bookstore. This poetry collection is now priceless. It's not only sought after by scholars, but also by young ladies."
"I've heard many colleagues discussing it both in and out of court, and my son even saw officials from the Ministry of Rites flipping through it with great interest."
Zhao Xian raised her hand and couldn't help but say, "Get to the point."
These matters have nothing to do with the Jiang family or the Lu family. Previously, when Jiang Wei helped deliver news from the court, he would only talk about the Lu family or the loss of military intelligence documents from the Privy Council, and he would not say anything else. But today he suddenly became very talkative.
"With the imperial examinations approaching, his promotional efforts are unfair." Jiang Wei also noticed that some students were jealous of the poetry collection, and some had even jointly written a petition to sue Langmingxuan for seeking fame and fortune.
The imperial examinations are just around the corner. If this matter causes a stir, Jin'an will never be at peace.
Zhao Xian immediately understood what he meant: "You want to find out who wrote these poems and then expose him?"
“My son isn’t that free; he just doesn’t want some students to use this as an excuse to cause trouble during the imperial examinations.”
Unfortunately, officials in the Ministry of Rites greatly admired Lang Mingxuan, and if he were to be accused of 'fraud in the imperial examinations,' it would trigger a bloody storm.
If he had no childhood memories, he would only appreciate these poems. However, the more he read them, the more doubtful he became, and he had to seek verification.
Zhao Xian casually said, "Then let's maintain fairness and impartiality. That way, even if some people are unhappy with his hype, if someone has real talent and passes the exam, the court will have a reasonable basis for its decision."
After speaking, Zhao Xian stared at Jiang Wei with some doubt: "Speaking of which, aren't you from the Dali Temple? These things aren't your business, why are you meddling in them?"
Jiang Wei put down his teacup, sighed softly, and stood up, saying, "The trouble is that my son is one of this year's examiners."
Jiang Wei knew that the Emperor originally wanted his father to be the examiner, but the incident of the military intelligence documents being concealed caused the Emperor to change his mind and appoint him instead.
Many people in the court objected, saying he was too young to take the position.
"Son won't bother Mother any longer, Mother, please rest."
The examiners were divided into groups of three, each with different preferences. Some liked ornate language, others preferred practicality, and there was also a neutral, indecisive person who was like a fence-sitter. The examiner would favor the two ministers with strong opinions, whoever was more assertive and justified.
Therefore, the talents selected through the triennial spring imperial examinations easily fall into different camps.
When Jiang Wei first took on the role of an examiner, he was unaware of which of the three categories he belonged to.
Seeing him get up to leave, Zhao Xian nodded slightly and didn't try to stop him.
She was unaware of the affairs of the imperial court, and even if a commotion broke out, it was beyond her ability to resolve.
However, just as Jiang Wei turned around, Zhao Xian suddenly remembered a method she had read in a novel or heard about before, and said:
"Can't the exam papers be copied before they are graded? The copied exam papers don't have names written on them, only numbers. That way, the graders can't tell which exam paper belongs to whom by the handwriting or the name. Wouldn't that be fair and just?"
Jiang Wei paused, turning back to look at his mother.
But then her mother blinked and shook her head, saying to herself, "This method is not good either; it's too troublesome, after all, so many people are taking the exam."
Jiang Wei suddenly laughed. He was still young and cheerful, and when he laughed, all the maturity he had was gone. "Mother's method is excellent."
He originally intended to send the other party a letter, asking them to indicate who wrote the poems, thus ending this publicity stunt.
However, without evidence, mere words are useless.
Instead of trying to stop people from creating hype, it would be better to ensure the fairness of the imperial examinations, which would also silence the dissent of those students.
After Jiang Wei left, Granny He came into the room with an extremely shocked expression on her face. "This old servant thinks I saw the eldest young master smile."
This was the first time in all these years that she had ever seen this before; she thought she was seeing things.
Zhao Xian pursed her lips. She didn't find the idea funny at all. On the contrary, it would increase her workload a lot, and she was afraid it would be rejected outright.
Especially since he was a newly appointed examiner, this kind of behavior could easily make him a target, and I don't know what he was laughing about.
Zhao Xian: "Perhaps he suddenly thought of something happy."
But it's good that he's so young; if he always has a stern face, even his daughter won't be affectionate with him.
-Outer Courtyard Guest Rooms-
After her brother sent someone to deliver a message, Li Lianniang finished her work and went to the guest room with her maid: "Brother, what do you want to see me about?"
Li Linsu was brewing tea and reading in the pavilion in the courtyard when he heard this. He put down the book of poems in his hand and raised his hand: "Sister is here. Please sit down and try the tea I brewed."
As he spoke, he poured a cup for Li Lianniang.
After Li Lianniang sat down, Li Linsu spoke again: "It's like this, I've invited a classmate to come and discuss poetry and literature tomorrow. He has a younger sister who is home alone and he's worried about her, so he'll come along. But my friend and I are both men, and I'm afraid that the young lady might feel uncomfortable. I'd like to trouble you to take care of her."
“Sure, no problem at all.” Li Lianniang agreed without hesitation. Her brother was preparing for the imperial examinations and his studies were his priority. Helping to entertain his classmate sister was no big deal.
Li Linsu gestured with his hand and said, "The tea should be cool enough now. Quickly try the tea that your brother brewed and see how it tastes."
Li Lianniang picked up her small teacup, took a sip, and smiled, "Brother is entertaining guests tomorrow, so I'll instruct the head kitchen to prepare a table of food and wine for you all. You can chat at your leisure. By the way, does your classmate and his sister have any dietary restrictions? If so, please inform the head kitchen to avoid them when preparing the dishes."
Li Linsu thought for a moment, recalling that he hadn't noticed the other person having any dietary restrictions when they were classmates, and shook his head: "Just prepare the normal amount."
After mentioning the exact time the other party would arrive, Li Lianniang didn't disturb Li Linsu's reading and returned to her own courtyard.
The next day, Li Lianniang was still dealing with household affairs.
After the start of spring, the snow melts and the weather gradually warms up. Although it is still so cold that people stomp their feet, the mansion needs to start preparing clothes for the servants for spring and summer.
The household makes clothes for the servants twice a year, once in spring and once in autumn, four sets each time, varying in thickness and length.
After finishing the household affairs, Li Lianniang looked at Cui Tingyue: "My brother's classmate is visiting the Jiang family today and brought his sister along. It's not appropriate for a young lady to stay with men, so I had someone fetch her to the backyard. Will you help me entertain the guest later?"
Cui Tingyue shook her head: "I won't stay with my sister-in-law's guests. I recently acquired a collection of poems, and some of the verses are so beautiful that I need to go back and figure out how to embroider them on both sides."
Seeing that she said that, Li Lianniang did not insist. She originally thought that since her brother, classmate, and sister were not yet married, they might be able to play together.
But she had something to do, so she let it go.
Calculating the time, Li Lianniang returned to Yunzhu Garden, estimating that Danruo would bring the person over soon.
While waiting, she picked up the Mingxuan Poetry Collection and started reading. It was brought back by Jiang Wei. Some of the poems were so tragic or beautiful that she couldn't put it down.
Thinking of Cui Tingyue's words, she wondered why she didn't use poetry to create paintings, and with that thought, she felt a little itchy.
However, she has guests to entertain today, so we'll have to postpone it to another day.
In the courtyard, a young maidservant hurried in from outside and happened to meet Chi Lan, who was coming out of the house. She quickly whispered, "Sister Chi Lan, something bad has happened! Sister Danruo is arguing with someone."
Chi Lan's expression wasn't too shocked. Dan Ruo was impatient and intolerant of injustice, so she must have caught someone doing something wrong again. But there shouldn't be anyone in the manor who would dare to talk back to her now. "Who did she argue with? Was it someone from the front yard?"
Thinking that the young mistress had sent Chi Lan to pick up the person, the only place where a quarrel could break out was in the front yard.
The maid shook her head and said, "No, it was because he had a fight with the younger sister of Young Master Li's classmate. That girl came to the Jiang family before; she's the same woman who claimed to be the eldest young master's savior last time."
Chi Lan instantly recalled the incident before the Lunar New Year, "That Miss Lang who was so arrogant in front of the eldest young mistress before the Lunar New Year, but then cowered and ran away when she saw the mistress?"
The maid nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, that's her."
Chi Lan hurriedly turned around and went into the house to report the matter to Li Lianniang: "Young Madam, Danruo has a quick temper. Last time, that Miss Lang said some unpleasant things, and this time she still dared to come to our door. She is really hateful. I will go to help Danruo right away. But should we send that Miss Lang out of the mansion directly or invite her into the inner courtyard?"
If the young master hadn't been there, they would have been kicked out immediately, but unfortunately, the other party was invited by the young master.
Li Lianniang paused for a moment after hearing this, then remembered who that Miss Lang was. She put down the poetry collection and said, "Prepare the sedan chair, I'll go see for myself."
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