Chapter 101 Appreciation Appreciation
"Ah, first of all, Xiao Feng'er, you are the top scorer!" Wen Zhu hugged Su Fengzhang's neck and shouted.
Su Fengzhang was also happy in his heart, but in order to prevent him from suffocating to death, he quickly pulled his hand down: "I told you not to call me that."
Wenzhu, however, was completely oblivious and shouted, "Let's go home and have a drink to celebrate."
Su Fengzhang followed him out, saying helplessly, "If you want to drink, drink on your own. Don't always use me as an excuse. My husband already talked to me a few days ago and asked me not to drink with you."
Wen Zhu chuckled and said nothing. It was his father's fault for being so strict. Except for his favorite student Su Fengzhang, Mr. Wen didn't give face to anyone else. Isn't he just greedy?
"Brother Su, congratulations on winning the first place in the imperial examination." A voice shouted, and Lu Mingchuan came over happily.
Seeing that it was him, Su Fengzhang smiled and said, "Congratulations to you, Brother Lu, for taking the top spot in the imperial examination."
After passing the provincial examination, one becomes a Juren. The first place is called Jieyuan, the second place is called Yayuan, the third, fourth and fifth are called Jingkui, and the sixth is called Yakui. Lu Mingchuan was the fifth place in this provincial examination.
The two exchanged pleasantries for a while, and Lu Mingchuan suddenly brought up something: "Brother Su, there's something I'm not sure if I should say."
Su Fengzhang laughed and said, "Why can't you just say it? Even if you say I'm unworthy of the title of Jieyuan, I won't hit you."
Lu Mingchuan laughed heartily, feeling relieved. "A few days ago, someone asked me about you in great detail. At first, I was reluctant to tell him, and it was difficult to say. But his words implied that he was helping Lord Fang to find out."
"I figured it wasn't a bad idea, so I told him what I knew. But the more I thought about it these past two days, it felt more and more strange. If he was Lord Fang's subordinate, it wouldn't be difficult for him to find out what he wanted to know. Why would he ask me?"
"That attendant looks unfamiliar, and his accent doesn't sound like someone from Qingzhou Prefecture. I don't know where he came from."
Su Fengzhang frowned slightly, his expression calm as he said with a smile, "I believe Brother Lu didn't say anything bad about my bad habits. I would like to thank Brother Lu for his kind words."
Lu Mingchuan laughed, patted his shoulder and said, "After all, we have lived and eaten together for several months. How could I say anything bad about you? Brother Su, I will go back first. We will get together another day."
As soon as he left, Wenzhu frowned and said, "Who would ask him about you?"
Su Fengzhang suddenly remembered the changes in his ranking in several provincial examinations. For a moment, he seemed to have grasped a clue in his mind, but it disappeared before he could find the source, and became even more vague.
"Never mind. Qingzhou Prefecture is so big, it's too difficult to find someone. I just want to ask a few questions."
Wen Zhu said, "I always feel like someone is behind this. Otherwise, why would they do such sneaky things? It's obvious they're not good people."
Su Fengzhang also thought so, but they had no power and influence, and it was impossible for them to mobilize a large number of people to look for someone.
Finally, he could only say: "If the enemy comes, we will stop him with our troops; if the water comes, we will block it with earth. We are upright and have nothing to fear."
Wen Zhu thought so too, but still said, "This Lu guy isn't a good person either. He's too cunning. We didn't tell him before, but now that you understand Yuan, he's rushing to tell us."
Lu Mingchuan's character was clear to see during the few months they spent together. It wouldn't be wrong to say he was a bad person, but if you say he was a good person, he had a lot of little tricks up his sleeve.
Su Fengzhang's definition of him is that they can be ordinary friends, but there is no need to be close friends.
The cavalry hurriedly beat the drums, rejoicing at your recent trophy win. Floating chrysanthemums in the golden jars urge the feast to begin, their red petals heralding the arrival of spring. I once accompanied him to visit Yu Xue, and now, with old age, we meet again, writing poems about Nanshan. When will we share the joy of peace and prosperity, a night filled with the sounds of music and flutes.
The day after the results of the provincial examination were announced was the Lu Ming Banquet. On this day, the prefect Fang hosted a banquet for the successful candidates and the inner and outer curtain officials.
When Su Fengzhang rushed to the door, he happened to meet Lu Mingchuan, and the two walked in together.
Before entering the yard, they could hear the song of "Deer Singing" playing from afar. Su Fengzhang and the other man looked at each other, thinking that they were late, and quickened their pace to walk into the yard.
After walking around the corridor, I found that there were not many scholars present. It was just that the musicians from the government office had arrived early and played music.
"This must be the Jie Yuan Lang, I've heard a lot about you. I'm Xu Zifeng, and I'm the runner-up in this provincial examination."
The man who was speaking was in his early thirties, looked quite young, and had a very handsome appearance. He seemed to be very popular, at least when Su Fengzhang came in just now, he saw him surrounded by a crowd.
When someone took the initiative to greet him, Su Fengzhang naturally did not lose face: "Brother Xu, you are too polite. I am Su Fengzhang. I am sorry for my disrespect."
Xu Zifeng acted very familiar, reaching out and pulling him inside. "I've heard of your name, Brother Su, for a long time, and have always wanted to learn from you. It's a pity that we never meet by chance, but I didn't expect to run into you during the provincial examination."
"Now you are the first place winner and I am the second place winner. It is obvious that my skills are inferior to yours. Brother Su must teach me well in the future."
Su Fengzhang finally understood why he was so popular. He seemed to have no grudges about his ranking, and his words and actions were full of familiarity. He had a warm smile on his face, and it was really hard to dislike him.
"Brother Xu, what you said makes me ashamed. We can just exchange ideas, but there's no need to give any advice." Su Fengzhang followed his words.
The two of them were chatting back and forth, and seemed very lively. Lu Mingchuan next to them couldn't get a word in.
At this moment, Prefect Fang came in with the examiners. Prefect Fang and Bachelor Wang walked side by side, both with smiles on their faces, and it was obvious that they had a good relationship.
After the ceremony, Prefect Fang laughed loudly and said, "The three-year competition has come to an end. We have selected talented people for Your Majesty. Today, we will serve you as a guest and drink with you. Come, drink this cup to the full!"
Everyone present raised their glasses and drank them all.
The wine provided at the Luming Banquet was probably osmanthus wine, which had a strong floral aroma, was sweet in the mouth, and also carried the joy of the provincial examination.
At this time, the actors sang "Yo Yo Lu Wu", and the prefect simply walked into the group of scholars and drank with them one by one, showing a certain degree of courtesy and magnanimity.
He walked up to Su Fengzhang, looked up at his appearance, and suddenly burst into laughter, saying, "Sir Wang, didn't you ask me yesterday who Su Fengzhang was? This talented person must be Su Fengzhang."
Master Wang followed and his eyes lit up when he saw Su Fengzhang.
Although most officials were dissatisfied with the emperor's selection of people based on appearance, in fact, everyone has a love for beauty. Lord Wang was obviously one of them. Seeing Su Fengzhang's elegant appearance, he liked her even more.
He laughed heartily and said, "He is indeed a man of good character. When I was examining the papers, I was wondering what someone with good handwriting would look like. Now that I have seen it, it is true that his handwriting reflects his personality."
Prefect Fang, not knowing what he meant, smiled and said, "This Su Juren is not only good at calligraphy, but also good at reading and writing. His character is also quite outstanding."
Wang Xueshi was intrigued when he heard this: "Oh, could it be that Lord Fang knows Mr. Su?"
Prefect Fang shook his head and smiled, "I don't really know him, but Mr. Su was the top scorer in last year's college entrance examination, so I remember him vividly."
"When I mentioned his outstanding character just now, it wasn't because he was personally selected as the top candidate."
"Then why?" Master Wang asked curiously.
Prefect Fang said with a smile, "Sir Wang, have you ever heard of a piece of music called 'Song of the Yearly Flowers'?"
He had a good idea of who Wang Xueshi was when he heard this. He looked at Su Fengzhang with a hint of surprise in his eyes: "Could it be that this Su Xiucai is..."
"That's right." Prefect Fang nodded.
"Mr. Lin died unjustly. According to the rules in Qingzhou Prefecture, it is not appropriate to bury people who died suddenly, for fear of affecting the local feng shui. However, Mr. Su was able to go against the public opinion and bury him in the village. It can be seen that he is a man of loyalty and righteousness."
When Master Wang heard this, his eyes softened when he looked at Su Fengzhang. Scholars valued the loyalty of a gentleman. Su Fengzhang was just a small scholar at the beginning, but he was able to do this for his deceased friend. It can be seen that he is indeed loyal and righteous.
On the contrary, Su Fengzhang frowned inwardly. He really didn't want others to mention Lin Changqing frequently and tell others about his tragic death as his achievement.
At this moment, he bowed and said, "The students just did what they were supposed to do. It's really not worth mentioning."
"If everyone in the world could do what they should do, there wouldn't be so many injustices." Scholar Wang couldn't help but sigh, especially when he thought about the chaos in the capital today.
"That's true." Prefect Fang also said with a smile.
At this time, Xu Zifeng beside him also said loudly: "Master Fang and Master Wang are absolutely right. For Brother Su, this matter is just a trivial matter with just a flick of the wrist, but I don't know how many people can't even fulfill this responsibility. This shows Brother Su's noble character."
Prefect Fang then looked at Xu Zifeng. He smiled slightly and asked, "Zifeng, you've grown so big in the blink of an eye. I can hardly recognize you."
"Junior pays his respects to Lord Fang." Actually, Xu Zifeng's age is not much different from that of Prefect Fang, but Prefect Fang has been an official for many years and is an old colleague of Xu Zifeng's father, so it's not surprising that he says he is the junior.
"So you are from the Xu family. No wonder your writing is so well done." Master Wang said lightly. It was unclear whether he was praising or criticizing. He seemed to be in a low mood.
Xu Zifeng seemed not to hear the hidden meaning in his words and said with a smile, "Thank you for the compliment, sir. I will shamelessly accept it."
Prefect Fang drank a glass of wine with them, and the subsequent candidates were not very outstanding.
Taking advantage of the lively atmosphere over there, Xu Zifeng approached Su Fengzhang and said, "Brother Su, please forgive my intrusion, but I really like "Song of the Flower of the Year". Seeing you today, I admire you even more. That's why I want to get closer to you."
Su Fengzhang felt goosebumps rising when he heard this. He glanced at him and said, "Brother Xu, this story is just a small piece of gossip. It's not worth your praise. Come, I'll toast you a glass. We won't talk about this matter today."
After hearing this, Xu Zifeng really didn't mention it anymore. He drank a glass of wine with a smile and started talking about other romantic things.
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