Although Xiao Fu himself did not like reading, after reading Lin Zikui's articles, he knew that he was a man of great talent, a talent that even the emperor who became a Taoist priest was willing to give advice to.
There will be no problem passing the imperial examination, but as for whether he can become the top scholar...
Xiao Fu thought that with Emperor Wen Tai's extreme personality, Lin Zikui was outspoken, young and naive, and would be eaten alive in the officialdom. During the palace examination, it was very easy for him to make a few mistakes and anger Emperor Wentai, which would result in him being stripped of his honors at the very least and being beaten with forty military sticks at the worst.
It seems that Emperor Wen Tai cannot preside over the palace examination.
Thinking of this, Xiao Fu wrote another letter:
"Third brother, my junior fellow apprentice is in trouble. Come quickly to the Sixteen Caves Mountain Xingzhiguan."
After writing, he rolled up the letter, tied it to the pigeon's legs, and let it fly away.
Xingzhi Temple is built on the mountainside, surrounded by the Linqi River behind it. The surface of the river is almost frozen, and the cold air gathers on the mountain peaks.
Lin Zikui can't live without this "rabbit fur coat" now.
Xiao Fu saw that he always wore it and never changed. Of course, he knew that this was because Lin Zikui had no clothes to change, so he continued to write a letter and sent it to the Duke of Changguo's Mansion.
Before the carrier pigeon flew into the Duke of Changguo's mansion, it was intercepted by a master from the palace. After unfolding the letter and reading the contents, he was a little confused, but he still obeyed the imperial order and copied it down word for word. After releasing the pigeon, the Jinyiwei returned to the palace with the letter.
Kneeling in the imperial study, he reported: "Your Majesty, this is a secret letter from the Duke of Changguo and the Marquis of Dingbei."
"Hurry, bring it up!" Emperor Wen Tai's face was a little swollen and red, but he looked energetic and no longer in the pain of the past few days. Every time he doubted whether he was completely cured, the poison would take effect and torture him beyond recognition.
Emperor Wen Tai spread out the letter containing the secret contents, his expression furious.
The letter only read:
"Mom, my son has no clothes to wear. He has lost weight recently, so he needs something smaller. Send me some more meat. I am hungry."
Emperor Wen Tai was surprised: "That's it? Nothing else?"
Jinyiwei buried his head: "No."
"Ridiculous!" He threw the memorial and slammed the table in anger, "The witchcraft incident must be related to Xiao Fu. How can it be such a coincidence! This secret letter must be misleading. I should have thought of it earlier. The Duke of Changguo and the King of Yunnan are relatives! How could the family of the King of Yunnan be so honest!"
At this time, the eunuch came in and quietly walked to the side of Emperor Wentai: "Your Majesty, I have something important to report."
"Speak." He sat down unhappily.
"The Queen Mother sent someone to Miaojiang to find a Gu master. I heard that this Gu master has a unique secret method that can track the whereabouts of the mother insect. The person who holds the mother insect must be the one who cast the Gu, Your Majesty!"
Upon hearing this, Emperor Wen Tai immediately stood up and said, "Quick, please invite the person in!"
The eunuch brought the person in.
"I bow to your majesty. Long live your majesty."
The Gu Master was a dark-skinned old man. One look at him made people feel as if he was covered with bugs. Emperor Wen Tai hesitated, hiding the disgust in his eyes, and said, "Master, please stand up. I heard that you have a way to track down the person who cast the Gu."
"Yes, yes," the old man took out a pitch-black jar, "This is the King of Insects that I have raised for my entire life. No poisonous insect in the world can escape the King of Insects' sense of smell."
Emperor Wentai was overjoyed: "Great! If you can find the culprit for me, I will reward you handsomely!"
The old man chuckled and said, "However, I need three bowls of blood from the person who was poisoned to feed my insect king first. I don't know if... Your Majesty is willing to do so."
The skin on Wen Taidi's face trembled: "You are so brave!"
The old man still smiled and said, "Your Majesty, this is the only solution I have. There is no other way."
What this means is that you have to choose between bleeding or continuing to feel pain.
Emperor Wen Tai gritted his teeth and stared at him: "Okay, it's just three bowls of blood!"
"Sir, I have seen your actions."
Tang Mengyang was sitting in the carriage, just waking up. He lifted the curtain, got out of the carriage and ordered, "Move all the things down."
He brought some incense to burn and also brought some things for Lin Zikui.
Tang Mengyang didn't know where Lin Zikui lived, so he could only ask after entering the temple. A Taoist priest showed him the way: "Mr. Lin lives in the Xixin Hall in the backyard. Did you see the blessing tree? Go down this road and go west."
Two servants carried his things, a heavy box.
When they arrived at Xixin Hall, Lin Zikui was studying with his head covered. Mo Liu saw him first and shouted, "Sir, it's Master Tang!"
"Brother Tang?" Lin Zikui put down the book. He was not as happy as Mo Liu. He turned around and warned, "Don't talk about the second young lady."
Mo Liu nodded in response, and Lin Zikui stood up: "Brother Tang, why are you here?"
He had just taken off his hat when Tang Mengyang came in happily: "I came to see you. How are you? How is this practice?"
He immediately saw the coin in Lin Zikui's hand: "Hey? Brother Huaifu, is this a coin?"
Lin Zikui didn't have time to put it away, so he could only nod: "Yes."
"Let me see, let me see, where did you get this rare thing?"
"A gift from a noble person."
"Huh? What kind of noble person would give you such a valuable gift?"
Lin Zikui shook his head: "My Lord, you never told me your name."
Tang Mengyang put on the visor and said, "I saw Prime Minister Xue also had a pair in the court. They look similar, but yours is smaller and made of silver, while his is made of wood. I have been curious about what it feels like when I wear it."
When Yuan Qing asked the craftsmen to research and create it, he specifically reminded them: "The materials and sizes must be differentiated."
So Tang Mengyang didn't think about it that way at all. He was simply curious about who the noble person Lin Zikui was talking about was.
Since Lin Zikui avoided the question, he didn't want to ask any further questions, but he noticed that Lin Zikui was wearing an expensive mink fur coat.
Tang Mengyang also asked him: "After you put it on, can you see the words clearly?"
Lin Zikui nodded: "Yes."
"Is that so..." Tang Mengyang lowered his head, not knowing what he was thinking, "Very good, very good."
After playing for a while, Tang Mengyang handed him the wooden box he brought: "This is something I brought specially for you. Take a look. Do you like it?"
When he opened the box, he found a clean thick quilt, two new cloaks, some writing brushes, inkstones, and some snacks. He also brought him some medicine: "This is what Doctor Wang prescribed for you. I thought you didn't have any medicine here and it would be troublesome to get it, so I got it for you."
No one noticed that there were three more heads outside the door.
From top to bottom, they are: Yuanwu, Xiao, and Jinzun.
Yuan Wu said: "It seems that Tang Mengyang is very good to Master Lin. He is so considerate and even buys snacks for him."
Xiao Fu's expression was very ugly.
However, to his surprise, Lin Zikui was so polite that he did not refuse it. Instead, he accepted it and thanked Brother Tang.
Tang Mengyang: "You and I don't need to thank you. What is your relationship with me?"
Xiao Fu's face darkened again: "Isn't this damn gay disgusting?"
Tang Mengyang: "I am ashamed. I have been busy with my brother these days and have not been able to take care of you. As a result, you have to come to Xingzhiguan. If you came to me, you wouldn't have to come. If you need money, you have to come to me!"
Lin Zikui shook his head slightly and said, "I don't need anything. It was my own idea to come to Xingzhiguan. It's quiet here. Thank you, Brother Tang, for your concern."
Tang Mengyang didn't believe it at first, but when he looked at the gleaming silver sable fur on Lin Zikui and the charcoal in the house, he began to believe it again. It seemed that Lin Zikui had really met some noble person. He felt a little uneasy: "In a few days, it will be Laba Festival. Beijing will be very lively. There will be a poetry competition held by students of this year's college. However... I think you don't want to participate, right?"
"Yes." Lin Zikui sat quietly and nodded, "You know, Brother Tang, I shouldn't have been in the limelight. The lesson I learned last time was enough for me to remember for the rest of my life."
"Yes... yes, I guess so, but don't be afraid, my dear brother. I will escort you in this imperial examination. You know how to keep a low profile. Before the examination, don't show off. No one will do anything to you."
Lin Zikui, who was only fourteen years old at the time, had no idea that the examination hall was like a battlefield. He stole the show at the poetry competition and embarrassed the nobles.
Then misfortune struck.
There was a reason why he accepted Tang Mengyang's kindness so calmly.
Xiao Fu's face turned uncertain after hearing this: "What does he mean by that? What's the lesson from the last time he showed off?"
Yuan Wu guessed, "Didn't Master Lin come to Jinling to take the imperial examination three years ago? Did something happen? Lord, you see, Master Lin is young, but his character is quite mature. I thought all scholars were like this, but if you think about it carefully, if it were someone else, the top scorer in the 14th grade, a genius, with such talent at the age of 17 or 18, wouldn't he be very proud?"
Xiao Fu did not respond, but just looked at Lin Zikui. He was not wearing a hat, but he seemed to sense something and looked over here.
Both heads hid backwards, and Xiao Fu grabbed Jinzun's hair and pulled it back.
Tang Mengyang also looked over there: "Brother, what's that over there? Why do you keep looking over there?"
"Nothing." He looked away. "Brother Tang, do you want to visit the Xingzhi Temple? I'll take you there."
“I couldn’t ask for more.”
The two of them went out like this. Xiao Fu was not far away, squatting on a tree and eavesdropping. He heard that Tang Mengyang was very sweet-mouthed. He kept praising Lin Zikui's talent, but said that his personality was not suitable for being an official: "The officialdom is turbid. It is impossible for you to be an honest official, a good official. If the water is too clear, there will be no fish. If a person is too clear, he will seem out of place. You are so conspicuous, who will approach you? Otherwise, don't be an official, come to my brother's house, and be my staff. My adoptive father trusts me very much. When he dies a hundred years later, I will most likely take over the position of the cabinet's prime minister."
But Lin Zikui didn't buy it at all, and blocked it back without leaving a trace: "I have an engagement with the Xiao family. If I don't have a reputation, how can Master Xiao marry his daughter to me? Brother Tang, I know you are doing this for my own good. Brother Tang is right. If the water is too clear, there will be no fish. But people's hearts must be clear."
"Okay, I really can't do anything to you." Tang Mengyang raised his hand and patted Luoxue on his shoulder. Lin Zikui tried to dodge but didn't get away in the end.
"What is he doing?" Xiao Fu was extremely angry. "Damn it, Yuan Wu, go beat him up for me!"
Yuan Wu clenched his fists and said, "Okay, damn it, I can't stand it anymore."
Tang Mengyang had only one day off. He came and left on the same day. Yuan Wu followed him. On the way back to Beijing, Tang Mengyang was robbed and his face was swollen and he was left with only his underpants.
After he left, Lin Zikui went to the Wenchang Temple to burn incense. He spent twenty cents to buy a prayer plaque, wrote a few lines of words with a small regular script brush, and walked to the 800-year-old osmanthus tree. He heard from the Taoist priest in the temple that the tree had a twin, whose whereabouts were unknown.
The osmanthus tree is tall, with lush branches and leaves, providing shade. It is hung with prayer cards left by pilgrims, and the red silk is swaying in the wind. Because the tree was tall, Lin Zikui had to climb up the stone railing surrounding the osmanthus tree to reach it. Normally, pilgrims also have to climb.
However, if he wanted to climb up, he would have to dirty the fur coat given by the second girl.
Lin Zikui was unwilling, so he stretched out his arms and stood on tiptoe to hang it. He was able to reach it, but it was inconvenient to wrap the red rope around it and tie a knot.
Just as Lin Zikui was trying to reach it by standing on tiptoe, a hand reached out from behind him.
The arm was very long and stretched high. The fingers naturally took the prayer card in his hand, hung it on the branch, and tied an ugly knot.
Lin Zikui put his heels down and looked up. Xiao Fu's chin was pressed on the top of his head. His voice was a little low: "Qi Fu, Lin Lang, what are you writing?"
This angle made Lin Zikui dizzy for a moment, and he subconsciously said, "Marry you."
Xiao Fu rubbed his chin against his soft hair and said with a smile, "I think so too."
"Will it not work if I say it out loud?" Lin Zikui looked annoyed, "I shouldn't have said it."
Xiao Fu considered and said, "You wrote about marrying Miss Xiao Er, right?"
Lin Zikui nodded: "It's written as Miss Zhaoling. Xiao Zhaoling."
Xiao Fu nodded: "That's the spirit. Everything depends on human effort. If you are sincere, your wish will come true."
In the middle of the night, the Xingzhi Temple was quiet and everyone was asleep.
Xiao Fu came out holding a lantern and put it aside. He reached out and fiddled with the osmanthus tree for a while and found the sign that Lin Zikui had hung at 4 p.m. today.
However, he had tied a knot into it, making it very difficult to remove. After a long time and with patience, he finally managed to take it off.
Only then did Xiao Fu see what he had written.
"I wish to have a harmonious relationship with Miss Xiao Zhaoling, to have a mutual understanding with you, to be happily married, and to live in harmony with you."
This line of words is truly like a bright moon shining through, leaving no room for guessing! The lotus carved on the tablet, under the bright night sky, is bathed in the light of the moon, like a star, like a moon, like a dream, like a shadow.
Xiao Fu held the sign in his hand, but he felt as if he had never touched such a heavy object before. The weight pressed on his heart and could not be shaken off: "This feeling is so heavy, but a single word can make a huge difference. Lin Zikui, you, you..."
After a long time, he took out the brush he carried with him, first erased the word "girl", then erased the word "Xiao", hesitated for a long time, and then added a small word "Xiao" in the gap.
After he changed it, the lines became:
The gods are above, and the sun and the moon are our mirrors.
Today I wish that Xiao Zhaoling and I can be in harmony with each other, have a mutual understanding, get married happily, and live in harmony with each other.
Lin Zikui
Winter Solstice in the Year of Yi Hai
Xiao Fu used his skills to jump onto the tree and hung the tablet on the treetop again, hanging it high up so that Lin Zikui could not find it, let alone take it down.
The author has something to say:
Many years later, Xiao turned the tables and said: It was you who wrote my name, Xiao Zhaoling, on the shrine with your own hands, and wanted to marry me.
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