Chapter 223: The Truth About Humanity (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
Ten days have passed in the blink of an eye.
After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the weather is no longer as hot as before, and it can be described as a clear and refreshing autumn day.
Except for Guangyue Prefecture and Jiaozhou, the southernmost part of the Wei Dynasty, the rest of the area was cool and pleasant with a gentle breeze.
But the people of Wei were busier than ever before.
After the autumn harvest, farmers prepare for winter and the following year by building dikes, stabilizing irrigation canals, plowing and turning the soil, and so on.
The merchants haven't changed much; they're busy all year round, regardless of the weather or season.
Even scholars are busier than before.
Most students are busy preparing for the upcoming county, prefectural, provincial, and annual examinations.
During the Wei Dynasty, the county-level examinations in the nine prefectures and three counties were held at irregular times, mostly concentrated between September and January of the following year.
Students who pass the county examination can participate in the prefectural examination in February, and the provincial examination will be held within a few months after that.
Passing the provincial examination would grant one the title of "student," commonly known as a Xiucai.
To participate in the provincial and metropolitan examinations, one must first obtain the "student" qualification through the imperial examinations.
In general, by autumn, students throughout the Great Wei Dynasty were preparing for the various exams that were to come.
Even the scholars who had passed the imperial examinations were no exception; if they wanted to retain their status, they couldn't miss the annual examinations.
However, even after the Mid-Autumn Festival, while preparing for various exams, students still find time to join in the festivities.
For example, what famous poems were published during the poetry gatherings held in various prefectures and counties during the Mid-Autumn Festival?
Even the most famous courtesans in various brothels were discussed by students.
Most of them were due to reasons such as "pretending to be cultured" or "talented men being romantic."
Students have long been accustomed to this; every year during the Mid-Autumn Festival and Lantern Festival, poetry gatherings are held frequently, with famous and excellent works coming one after another.
Therefore, in previous years, in the month following the Mid-Autumn Festival, students from all over the country would argue about which poem was the best.
The debate was even more intense than the discussion about which courtesan was the most beautiful and talented.
However, this year's situation is somewhat different.
Or rather, eccentric.
It's not that no one is discussing it anymore, but rather that with the arrival of the poem "Shuidiao Getou" from Shuzhou, all the famous works lose any meaning in the face of it.
Even those poems by renowned poets, which have many admirers, cannot deny that "Prelude to Water Melody: Mid-Autumn Festival" is the best of all the Mid-Autumn Festival poems this year.
This wasn't just one place, but the entire territory of the nine provinces and three prefectures of the Great Wei Dynasty—a conclusion reached by more than half of the students.
Even the senior scholars of the academy, who had not appeared for a long time, couldn't help but express their admiration:
“The highest form of lyrics is to avoid deviating from the original meaning. Chen Qingzhou’s line, ‘I want to ride the wind and return, but I fear that the jade palaces and towers are too cold at such heights,’ is ethereal and profound.”
"The unrestrained and cheerful style of 'Prelude to Water Melody' is truly a brilliant expression of nature."
"The first half of this poem is as if it were written by a celestial being who has been banished to earth, while the second half is poignant and beautiful, fully expressing the human condition."
The phrase "capturing the essence of human life" is enough to show the high regard that many scholars have for "Prelude to Water Melody: Mid-Autumn Festival".
However, there are many different opinions from different places, but it can generally be summarized as "the best Mid-Autumn Festival moon-themed poem throughout history".
Jiangnan Prefecture, Jinling.
As the former capital of a previous dynasty, Nanjing is known for its "five hundred years of prosperity".
With Zhuque Avenue as the central axis, the neighborhoods and markets on both the east and west sides were extremely prosperous, stretching for nearly a hundred miles.
Especially along the banks of the Qinhuai River, there were numerous brothels, inns, and taverns, attracting a constant stream of travelers.
From morning till night, there is not a moment when it is not bustling and noisy.
Fortunately, some of the houses on both sides of the strait are relatively far from those noisy places, otherwise it would be difficult to live there.
Unfortunately, Sun Fu, who had just arrived in Jinling from Shuzhou, bought a small courtyard near several brothels.
Every day before dawn, drunken patrons would whine and groan as they walked past the courtyard gate.
Even worse, some people urinated on the wall outside the door, which made Sun Fu's wife so angry that she wanted to curse.
But these aren't even the worst of it.
The most outrageous of all were the girls at the brothels.
This was probably because the Sun family were scholars, and whenever they passed by, scantily clad girls would throw flirtatious glances into the courtyard.
Sun Fu naturally ignored it.
But his son, Sun Yunfeng—a handsome scholar—suffered more.
Although Sun Yunfeng was over thirty and had a calm personality, when he was in Shuzhou Prefecture, where had he ever been to the brothels in the south of the city?
Let alone experiencing such a thing, the chance to even see a courtesan is extremely rare.
So this vigorous middle-aged man always felt a little uncomfortable whenever he met the eyes of those girls.
Blushing, heart racing, and many other things.
Sun Fu had no good solution to this, so he only gave a word of advice: one should not mistreat one's wife who has shared hardship, and told his wife and daughter-in-law to keep an eye on her at all times before letting the matter drop.
"Tomorrow morning, I will go to the Li family's private school to teach. Yunfeng, you should also find a shop and continue doing what you used to do."
"Father, I've remembered it."
Sun Yunfeng, of course, dared not refute Sun Fu's words, and readily agreed, continuing:
"I have tried using water from the Qinhuai River and spring water from Zijin Mountain in the past two days, and both can be used for brewing."
"It's just that the taste is a bit worse, since the water from the Chishui River is sweeter."
"It's not bad, it's enough for our family to make a living."
After chatting for a few minutes, Sun Fu got up and went to the study, where he took out the poems that Chen Yi had given him and began to read them, as usual.
The more he looked at it, the happier he became, and then he took out his brush and ink to copy the running script.
He himself is not good at calligraphy and his level is not high, but for a scholar, reading and writing are innate, so his love for calligraphy models goes without saying.
Copy it twice.
He carefully put away the calligraphy copybook, preparing to study the strokes of the running script.
But before he could even begin to sketch, Sun Yunfeng rushed over and said urgently:
"Father, Mr. Juyi from Jinling Academy has come to visit."
Sun Fu was taken aback. "Who did you say?"
“Mr. Juyi, he is currently in the courtyard, you…”
Just then, a figure appeared outside the study and bowed slightly to Sun Fu:
"Brother Changming, I apologize for disturbing you."
He showed no signs of aging, had a square face, a mustache, and a tall, thin build. He wore a white long gown underneath a blue scholar's robe.
Just by standing in the room, his refined and scholarly demeanor emanates from him.
Sun Fu hurriedly stood up and bowed, saying, "It must be my fault for not being hospitable enough. Please forgive me."
A person's name is like the shadow of a tree.
Mr. Juyi was not only a great teacher at Jinling Academy, but also a renowned Neo-Confucian scholar.
He had many disciples, many of whom served as officials in the imperial court.
His status in Jinling and even Jiangnan Prefecture was roughly similar to that of Mr. Yue Ming of Guiyun Academy.
However, Mr. Juyi is obviously more well-known than Mr. Yueming.
Sun Fu knew these things, but he had no dealings with Mr. Juyi and they had no relationship.
I really didn't expect Mr. Juyi to come looking for him.
"Brother Changming, you're too kind."
The two sat down, and Sun Yunfeng and his wife went to boil water to prepare tea.
A few polite words.
Mr. Juyi smiled and said, "Brother Changming must be wondering why I have come today."
Sun Fu did not deny it, and nodded, saying, "I have long admired Mr. Juyi, but I have never had the chance to meet him, which does give me some doubts."
"Haha...That's how it should be, that's how it should be."
"My visit here today is also due to a fortunate coincidence."
After a pause, Mr. Juyi asked with a smile, "Brother Changming, have you heard about the Mid-Autumn Poetry Gathering?"
Sun Fu smiled wryly and said, "I have just arrived in Jinling and settled in. I have not yet learned about the situation of the poetry gathering here."
Mr. Juyi shook his head, "It's not in Jinling, but at the Mid-Autumn Poetry Gathering of Guiyun Academy in Shuzhou."
"oh?"
"The other day, I received a letter from Shuzhou. The Mid-Autumn Festival poetry gathering at Guiyun Academy produced a fine work entitled 'Prelude to Water Melody: Mid-Autumn Festival'."
Sun Fu's heart stirred, and he vaguely guessed Mr. Juyi's purpose in coming.
Then Mr. Juyi continued, "The one who wrote this poem is none other than my former student, now the son-in-law of the Xiao family, Chen Yi, Chen Qingzhou."
Sun Fu's previous guess was confirmed, and he muttered to himself, "No wonder."
No wonder Mr. Juyi came looking for me at this time.
"Sir, have you come to inquire about Chen Yi because you heard that I used to stay at the Xiao family's residence frequently?"
"Qingzhou is indeed very talented, especially in poetry, he..."
Mr. Juyi raised his hand slightly to show his understanding and said, "My student has been intelligent since childhood, and I have no doubt about his literary talent."
"I've come here solely to seek confirmation from Brother Changming—has Qingzhou truly reached perfection in calligraphy?"
Sun Fu suddenly realized and nodded, saying, "That's true."
Upon hearing this, Mr. Juyi's smile widened even more. "It seems the rumors are true. Qingzhou wrote lyrics on the winding pond, revealing a fairyland through the artistic conception of calligraphy."
"It's a pity that I am in Jinling, which is far from Shuzhou, otherwise I would definitely go there to see Qingzhou's calligraphy style."
Sun Fu's heart stirred. He got up, went to his desk, picked up a brocade box, and returned to his seat, saying:
"If it were anything else, I might not be able to satisfy Mr. Juyi."
"However, just before I came to Jinling, I happened to receive a calligraphy scroll as a gift from Qingzhou, which he wrote in the style of Yuanman Calligraphy."
Mr. Juyi's smile faltered for a moment, and he said in surprise, "Please forgive me," before taking the brocade box, taking out the calligraphy scroll, and gently unfolding it.
Suddenly, golden light shone brightly, and a scene of endless yellow sand appeared.
"...Do not worry about having no friends on the road ahead, for who in the world does not know you?"
As Mr. Juyi read the poem and gazed upon its magnificent and uplifting imagery, he couldn't help but exclaim in admiration:
"This must be the 'running script' mentioned in the letter from Shuzhou, Qingzhou. His calligraphy has truly reached a level that others cannot even imagine."
As a senior professor at Jinling Academy, he had naturally seen many treasures.
There are calligraphy copies left by the calligraphy sages of the previous dynasty, as well as those written by the calligraphy sages of the present day. Calligraphy copies that represent the perfect realm of calligraphy are also quite common.
But in his eyes, no calligraphy copybook could compare to the one in his hand.
It has nothing to do with artistic realm, but rather because "running script" is a new style, different from the new style of Wei Qing script.
Seeing his expression, Sun Fu smiled and said, "Sir, you are right. Given time, Qingzhou will surely become a master calligrapher."
He was, after all, one of Chen Yi's family, so naturally he had to say a few words in Chen Yi's defense.
Mr. Juyi nodded, "It's a pity he went to Shu Prefecture and I'm afraid he'll never be able to return in this lifetime."
Sun Fu's heart stirred slightly, and he asked, "I heard that Qingzhou was quite talented when he studied under you."
Why did he remain silent for so long afterward?
Upon hearing this, Mr. Juyi paused for a moment, then sighed and said, "Mr. Yueming also wrote to me about this issue a few days ago."
"If I were to say that I knew nothing about it, perhaps neither Brother Changming nor Mr. Yueming would believe me."
"But that's the truth, and I now feel a bit regretful and remorseful."
At this point, Mr. Juyi pondered for a moment, then said "never mind," and continued his narration:
Five years ago, during a break at the academy, Chen Yi returned to the Chen family in Jiangnan Prefecture.
"He has not come to the academy since then. I wrote to the Chen family and sent someone to visit them, but the answer I received was that Chen Yi had already become a student of another teacher."
"At first I felt a little uncomfortable, but considering that the Chen family has a history of hundreds of years, it would not be difficult to find a more knowledgeable gentleman, so I did not inquire about the matter again."
"But later, Chen Yi did not appear in the imperial examinations for two consecutive times, and I realized that something was wrong."
"But before I could even send a letter to inquire, news spread from the Chen family of Jiangnan Prefecture that they wanted Chen Yi to marry into the Xiao family of Shu Prefecture. By then... it was too late."
Sun Fu frowned slightly and pondered, "Does the sir know why the Chen family is acting this way?"
"Is it really true, as the rumors say, that Chen Yi was harmed by his stepmother, which led to his tragic end?"
Mr. Juyi sighed and shook his head, saying, "I don't know."
"But based on my understanding of the Chen family, there are probably some secrets behind this matter that are unknown to outsiders."
"Leaving aside Madam Cui Yu of the Cui family in Qinghe, the Chen family of Jiangnan Prefecture alone, a prestigious family that upholds family traditions and rules, could not possibly prevent a talented man like Chen Yi from taking the imperial examination and entering officialdom."
"Even if Cui Yu dislikes him, he will only let him leave the Chen family to have his own descendants, so as not to damage his reputation."
"Besides, neither Chen Xuanji nor Chen Xuandu are short-sighted or incompetent."
Sun Fu nodded slightly, "This matter is indeed strange..."
What exactly were the purposes of the Chen family of Jiangnan Prefecture and the Cui family of Qinghe in getting Chen Yi to marry into the Xiao family?
Suddenly, a possibility occurred to him—was he being usurped?
No, that can't be right. How could Qingzhou do such a thing?
After Mr. Juyi left, Sun Fu sat alone for a long time, but in the end he did not think that Chen Yi was the kind of person who wanted to plot against the Xiao family.
However, what he believed was always his own personal opinion.
If Chen Yi cooperates with the Chen family of Jiangnan Prefecture, or is instructed by the Chen family, it will naturally affect the safety of the Xiao family.
After thinking for a long time.
Sun Fu sighed, "Born to be a dragon and an elephant, a koi leaping upwards, they should be able to turn misfortune into good fortune."
He decided to observe the situation further in the coming days, and if he noticed anything amiss with Chen Yi's actions, he would definitely write to the old Marquis.
"I hope Qingzhou doesn't have bad intentions..."
...
Shuzhou, the residence of the Marquis of Dingyuan, Chunhe Garden.
It was just past Shen Shi (3-5 PM).
The sky suddenly became much darker.
Large swaths of dark clouds quickly gathered, and a torrential downpour began.
It splashed onto the pond in the yard, making a continuous pattering sound.
Xiaodie exclaimed and quickly covered her head with her hands, running towards the bamboo grove to gather the clothes that had been drying during the day.
Chen Yi sat calmly in the pavilion drinking tea, while Xiao Wuge next to him frowned as he read and wrote.
These days have been unusually calm for him.
No one came to visit or talk about the Guiyun Academy's calligraphy and learning center.
No one came to ask him about the winding pool, the painted boat, or the Five Poisons Sect.
It was as if he had been forgotten.
Although Chen Yi was happy to have some peace and quiet, he was still worried about his martial arts and medical skills being exposed, so he paid some attention to rumors.
I've been following this for several days.
The final conclusion was that Yan Fusha and the others disappeared without causing any trouble.
There was only one rumor circulating in the city: "A master of the third rank has been spotted outside Shuzhou City, suspected to be one of the villains who burned down the summer grain in Tiebi Town."
It was also said that several chief criminal officers and centurions from the Shu Prefecture Criminal Division had gone to see it.
There has been no further news since.
Chen Yi knew that Liu Zhaoxue of the Liu family in Jingzhou must have sensed something, otherwise she wouldn't have returned to Jingzhou so quickly.
"She probably didn't suspect me. I guess she thought it was those two people from Tiebi Town, just like everyone else."
At the same time, Chen Yi knew that Liu Zhaoxue would come back again.
The reason is simple.
After the Mid-Autumn Festival, five Xinglinzhai restaurants opened in succession in Shuzhou Prefecture.
Although it wasn't located near the Xiao family's pharmacy, competitors are enemies, and as soon as Xinglinzhai opened its doors, it took over the business of all the pharmacies in Shuzhou.
Even Baicaotang's daily sales of medicinal herbs have decreased significantly, let alone other pharmacies.
Fortunately, Baicaotang and Xiaojia Pharmacy mainly sell tea drinks, and they barely managed to earn 50,000 taels of silver more than last month.
There's not much to say.
Under these circumstances, he didn't believe that the Liu family of Jingzhou and Liu Zhaoxue would simply leave Xinglinzhai unattended.
In addition, Chen Yi also paid attention to the follow-up situation of the summer grain harvest in the three towns.
The news of Old Master Xiao and Liu Hong being punished by the Emperor had been circulating for several days, but it has now subsided.
Few people in or outside the city mentioned this matter anymore, as if it had been forgotten.
However, many people say that Liu Hong has recently issued several announcements at the Provincial Administration Commission.
Regarding taxes, there were provisions for corvée labor for canal repairs, as well as arrangements for the annual examinations of all scholars.
Incidentally, this last point is also somewhat related to Chen Yi.
He was a scholar himself.
If one does not participate in the annual examination, or does not perform well, one may very well lose even the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations).
Chen Yi didn't care about this, but Xiao Wan'er did.
For two consecutive days, they came to ask him what he thought, and their words implied that they were trying to persuade him to take the annual examination this year.
He also said that he would not participate in the imperial examinations in the future, and that there were many benefits to having the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the county-level imperial examinations).
Benefits such as exemption from corvée labor, not having to kneel before officials, and not being subject to arbitrary punishment were all enjoyed by those who achieved the title of Xiucai (秀才).
It can be pondered repeatedly.
Chen Yi still doesn't plan to participate.
As the son-in-law of the Marquis of Dingyuan, Xiao Jinghong's husband, and a teacher at Guiyun Academy, what does it matter if he doesn't have the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the imperial examinations)?
As for the Xiao family...
The burning of Tiebi Town had a greater impact.
Not only did they have to spend money to buy grain and fodder for Tiebi Town, but they also had to pay grain taxes to the three towns, resulting in a significant loss of money.
It is said that the old man was in excruciating pain day and night.
In addition, there were a few minor matters.
If his own martial arts have already reached the sixth rank of perfection, he will soon be able to break through to the fifth rank.
For example, Yan Hai of Baicaotang has already led his men out of the prefectural city to investigate the situation of other pharmacies in other counties and towns of Shuzhou.
As Xiao Wan'er prepared all the regulations for the Medical Academy, she would soon travel to the Xiao family's fiefdom to survey the academy's location.
For example, Pei Guanli wrote a letter to Granny Shan to complain, but she has not yet received a reply.
If Xiao Jinghong had sent a letter, saying that the construction of the market was progressing well, and that the two markets would be completed in another half month.
Its size was comparable to the East Market of Shuzhou Prefecture, with a total of one hundred shops.
like……
As Chen Yi pondered these thoughts while watching the raindrops falling on the pond, he heard footsteps behind him.
"Second son-in-law, young master Wu Ge, the eldest young lady invites you to have dinner together."
Chen Yi was slightly taken aback and turned to look at the newcomer, "Fairy Tingyun?"
Xie Tingyun winked at him and chuckled softly, "Young master, Tingyun has lived up to expectations."
Did I manage to fulfill my mission?
"How many people did the Tianshan Sect send?"
"Exactly one hundred and twenty-seven people, no more, no less."
How much? One hundred and twenty-seven?
Chen Yi clicked his tongue in surprise. Had Xie Tingyun brought all the disciples of the Tianshan Sect with him?
(End of this chapter)
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