Chapter 114 Scholars Building Scholars Building
As we left the bustling commercial area, the number of shops gradually decreased, but the road became wider and wider, and it was still very lively with a lot of traffic. As we went forward, there were fewer and fewer houses, and magnificent gates began to appear on both sides of the road.
There is no need to look at anything else. Just the pairs of majestic stone statues at the gates tell you that this is not a place where ordinary people live, not to mention the tall eaves that can be vaguely seen within the walls.
Even on such an aristocratic street, there is a blue-grey stone wall that seems out of place. However, this place occupies a large area, with blue bricks, red tiles and red painted gates, which makes it more elegant than the surrounding magnificent mansions.
On the plaque with gold characters on a black background were written three majestic and imposing words: Shizilou.
It was the work of Emperor Gaozu, and also represented the extraordinary status of the Shizi Building in the Great Zhou Dynasty.
It is most appropriate to describe this place as a place where great scholars chat and laugh, and where unlearned people come and go. Especially at this time, the people staying in the Scholars' Building are all students preparing for the imperial examinations, and each of them carries the scent of books.
"We've arrived at the Scholars' Building." Xu Zifeng said with a smile, "Come on, I'll take you inside."
Su Fengzhang raised an eyebrow, but saw Xu Zifeng smiling and explaining, "I used to come here often to meet friends, so I'm quite familiar with it."
Su Fengzhang immediately understood what he meant and followed him in.
Before I even entered the door, someone came to greet me. It was indeed a scholar's building. Even the shopkeeper was more elegant and less materialistic. He didn't look like a doorman doing business, but rather like a scholar.
He was also wearing a blue shirt and greeted with a smile, "Isn't this Mr. Xu? I haven't seen you for a few months. I believe you must have passed the imperial examination. Congratulations."
Xu Zifeng was clearly very familiar with this shopkeeper. He smiled and said, "Shopkeeper Liu, you're too polite. This is my good friend Su Fengzhang. He's about to take part in the imperial examination next year. I'd like to ask Shopkeeper Liu to arrange a quiet room for him."
Seeing that he was a good friend, Shopkeeper Liu knew that they must be close. Then, seeing Su Fengzhang's handsome appearance, he felt a surge of favor and said with a smile, "It's not difficult. Please follow me, young master."
After entering the Scholars Building, Su Fengzhang realized that this place was really spacious and larger than it looked from the outside.
Shopkeeper Liu led them westward, explaining as they walked, "The Scholars' Building faces south and is divided into two buildings, east and west. The courtyards and rooms are arranged in the same way. Most southern students live in the west building."
Su Fengzhang understood as soon as he heard it. The dispute between students from the north and the south had lasted for many years, and even forced the court to separate the list into north and south to ease the conflict. Although there was news this year that the current emperor wanted to merge the list again, the Scholars' Building probably did not dare to let people from these two factions live in the same building.
Walking around the small garden in the middle, Manager Liu led Su Fengzhang into a room on the second floor. "Mr. Su, please take a look at this room. It's quite suitable. It's neither too high nor too low, so it gets the sunlight. It's not facing the street, so it won't be noisy."
Su Fengzhang took a look and was satisfied. He smiled and said, "This place is great. Thank you, Manager Liu."
"As long as Mr. Su is satisfied, the waiter will come back to check you in later. I won't bother you anymore." Shopkeeper Liu said goodbye with a smile.
Xu Zifeng came over and looked at the house, then said, "It's okay."
Su Fengzhang smiled and said, "It's not just okay, this is already one of the best rooms in the Scholars' Building. If it weren't for Brother Xu's consideration, Manager Liu probably wouldn't have arranged it this way."
Xu Zifeng couldn't help but say, "Brother Su, are you really not going to change your mind? This house is nice, but there are people living on both sides, and across the street are those northern literati. If they get noisy, it will be really annoying."
"If it's really noisy, I'll have to ask Brother Xu to find me two balls of cotton so I can plug my ears and concentrate on reading the books of sages." Su Fengzhang joked with a laugh.
Xu Zifeng frowned slightly, but he didn't continue to persuade her. He sat for a while and then left.
As soon as he left, Su Arong, who had been silent the whole time, finally spoke up: "Erlang, this inn looks really nice. The rooms are big and bright, and there's even a small courtyard downstairs. How much does it cost?"
Su Fengzhang was flipping through his books one by one and putting them away. Hearing this, he smiled and explained, "The Scholars' Building is not an ordinary inn. After all, it is a royal property."
"As long as you have the certificate of a Juren, you can participate in the next spring examination and stay in the Scholars' Building for a small fee."
"There is such a good thing. It's good to be able to read." Su Arong said with emotion.
He was very quick and nimble and quickly packed up their luggage. The room arranged by Manager Liu was very spacious. In addition to the bed, there was also a special small couch, which was enough for two people to sleep on.
Not only that, there was even something like a stove in the room. Su Arong was very happy when he saw it: "There is also a stove. It will be convenient for us to cook something to eat in the house when the time comes."
There are bookcases and desks, and Su Fengzhang deeply feels that even in the Scholars' Building, it is impossible for every room to be like this. It is really thanks to Xu Zifeng that he can live here.
Su Fengzhang opened the window and looked down. From his position, he could have a clear view of the entire yard below. The small yard was filled with pavilions and towers, and what was even more rare was that there was a crabapple tree planted in the yard.
This crabapple tree must be quite old. It is already early winter, but the tree is still full of water-red fruits. Shizilou must have deliberately not picked them because they look bright red and cheerful.
After tidying up a bit, Su Fengzhang looked up and said, "Arong, put down your things and let's go out for a walk to familiarize ourselves."
"Erlang, aren't you tired?" Su Arong asked, "If you are tired, I can go and take a look alone first, or wait until tomorrow."
Su Fengzhang smiled and said, "I'm not tired, I'm very energetic."
So the two of them put down their things and walked out of the room. They didn't meet many people along the way. It was not known whether it was because he came out at the wrong time or because there were not many scholars staying in the Scholars' Building at that time.
The yard looked quite large from upstairs, but it was only a few steps down to the top. Su Fengzhang took a look around and felt that it was boring, so he simply went back to the huge crabapple tree.
It is rare to see crabapple trees in the south, and those that can be seen are mostly potted, rarely of this size.
Su Arong couldn't help but look up and said, "This fruit looks bright red with thin skin and thick flesh. I wonder if it tastes fresh and juicy."
Su Fengzhang laughed and said, "Why don't we ask Shopkeeper Liu and pick one to taste?"
Su Arong quickly shook his head: "That won't do. That would be too embarrassing."
Su Fengzhang smiled and said, "I heard that some people in the north use crabapple to make candied haws. If you see them, buy a bunch and try them. If they taste good, buy more."
"Hey!" Suddenly a ball of paper was thrown down from upstairs. Su Fengzhang looked up and saw someone sticking his head out from the third floor, waving at him vigorously.
He pointed at the paper ball on the ground, then pointed at his nose. The man shouted, "Brother, this is for you."
Su Fengzhang was puzzled, but Su Arong had already picked up the paper ball and handed it to him. When he opened it, Su Fengzhang was delighted. There was a picture of a garden party painted on it. It was vivid with just a few strokes. Wasn't it the scene of them watching the crabapple tree just now?
Just as they were looking at the paintings, the man upstairs ran down quickly. When he saw them, he smiled widely. "Hello, brother. My name is Hetang, the He of harmony is precious, and the Tang of this crabapple tree."
"My name is Su Fengzhang, the Fengzhang as in Tianwen Fengzhang." Su Fengzhang also said politely.
Who knew that when He Tang heard it, he said repeatedly: "No, no, it should be the Feng Zhang as in Long Zhang Feng Zi."
Su Fengzhang was stunned for a moment, then saw He Tang already holding his arm in a familiar manner. He smiled and said, "Just now, when I looked down from upstairs, I was dazzled when I saw Brother Su. He is even more pleasing to the eye than this crabapple tree. I thought it would be a pity if I couldn't get to know him."
"So you thought of making friends through painting?" Su Fengzhang asked with a smile.
He Tang nodded and said, "That's right. Brother Su, are you satisfied with this painting? I was in a hurry just now and failed to capture your graceful demeanor."
Su Fengzhang raised his eyebrows slightly and said bluntly, "Of course I'm not dissatisfied. Listening to what Brother He said, Su is almost overwhelmed by the praise."
He Tang laughed heartily: "I am speaking the truth. I don't like to talk to people I don't like."
"Brother Su, I'm from Linzhou Prefecture. I just arrived in the capital yesterday. Where are you from?"
"Linzhou Prefecture? Then we can be considered half fellow villagers. I am from Qingzhou Prefecture." Su Fengzhang smiled. This was also a coincidence. Linzhou Prefecture and Qingzhou Prefecture are adjacent to each other and the distance between the two sides is very close.
"Qingzhou Prefecture?" He Tang exclaimed when he heard it, grabbed his hand and said, "Su Fengzhang, could it be that you are the talented Su Fengzhang who wrote 'Song of the Year Flower'?"
After learning about this, He Tang said even more excitedly, "Brother Su, I love 'Sui Hua Yin'. I've read the storybook more than a hundred times and can almost recite it by heart. Compared to the music, I prefer the storybook. The writing on it is really great. I didn't expect to meet you today!"
"Brother Su, I'll treat you to a drink. Can you tell me more about 'Sui Hua Yin'?"
It has been more than a year since the publication of "Sui Hua Yin". Su Fengzhang did not expect to meet a book fan again, and an extremely enthusiastic book fan at that. For a while, he felt overwhelmed.
"Brother He, I just arrived today and haven't packed my luggage yet. I'm sorry." Su Fengzhang declined politely.
He Tang didn't force it upon hearing this. He just said with a look of regret, "No wonder I fell in love with you the moment I saw you. It turns out we've known each other for a long time. Isn't this fate?"
"Brother Su, if you're tired, go and rest early. I live on the third floor. When you're free, just come find me. Anytime is fine."
After finally returning to the room, Su Arong sighed deeply and said, "This guy is a little too enthusiastic."
Su Fengzhang also smiled: "But it's better than being difficult to get along with."
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