Chapter 184 [VIP]
The fact that Marquis Wuping was not dead was undoubtedly good news. Upon returning to the inn, Wang Ying wrote a letter overnight and sent it back to Jizhou. He didn't know if the news had reached back yet, but he still wanted to tell his brother Sui.
The next morning, Wang Ying took Chen Qingyan to Qinglong Street to check out the house. After confirming that there were no problems, the two went to the brokerage to sign the contract and pay the deposit. The remaining money could be paid after the transfer of ownership.
With the housing issue settled, Chen Qingyan decided to visit the Hanlin Academy. Once Huai Di arrived in a few days, the two of them could go and register together.
Upon arriving at the Hanlin Academy in the morning, Chen Qingyan informed the attendant at the entrance, and soon Li Bin came out to greet him.
"I thought you wouldn't be able to come for a while, I didn't expect you to arrive so soon."
Chen Qingyan cupped his hands and said, "After all, I'll be working here in the future, so I'm quite curious."
Li Bin chuckled, "Come in with me, I'll show you around the Hanlin Academy."
The Hanlin Academy was located on Xuanwu Street, only two miles from the imperial city, a half-minute walk away. The compilers and probationary officials of the Hanlin Academy, besides managing historical records, official documents, and the examination system, also drafted imperial edicts for the emperor, thus frequently having the opportunity to meet him.
Opportunity is also a test. Some people, with their high emotional intelligence and talent, gain the emperor's favor and will surely be promoted quickly. Of course, there are also those who are stubborn and fail to seize opportunities, and they probably won't be able to stay in the capital after their three-year term.
Chen Qingyan is undoubtedly talented and has good emotional intelligence. Although he can't exactly say one thing to one person and another to another, he generally won't offend anyone. So as long as he doesn't make any major mistakes, he has a good chance of being promoted to a position in the Sixth Department in three years.
The Hanlin Academy was divided into three courtyards. The outer courtyard was for ordinary servants, while the middle courtyard was for the probationary scholars who were responsible for compiling historical records. They were all successful candidates in the imperial examinations from previous years, and some of them liked the job and stayed there after their three-year term.
Jiang Lin is one of them. He is forty-six years old this year. He was a Jinshi during the Tianwu era and has been working in the Hanlin Academy for almost twenty years. He is considered a veteran of the Hanlin Academy.
"Lord Jiang, this is Scholar Chen. You've been wanting to inquire about him for a while, and I've brought him to you today."
Jiang Lin stood up and carefully examined Chen Qingyan, saying, "Truly, heroes emerge from among the young. I read one of your untitled poems before and have always wanted to meet you in person. I never expected you to be so young!"
"Lord Jiang, you flatter me."
"That line, 'The journey to Penglai is not far, and the bluebird diligently seeks out the way,' is truly brilliant! I heard that you are a disciple of Master Liang. I wonder when I will have the honor of meeting your master."
"My master likes to travel around, and he might come to Kyoto at any time."
After exchanging a few words, a servant came to deliver a message. Jiang Lin cupped his hands and said, "I have official business to attend to. Let's talk again in a few days after Scholar Chen takes office."
"Definitely." Chen Qingyan watched the person leave and continued to stroll around with Li Bin.
"There aren't many things to do every day once you get to the Hanlin Academy, but you can't skip shifts, otherwise it'll be troublesome if the palace summons you and you can't find anyone."
Li Bin pointed to a room in the backyard, "This is where I work. The other rooms are empty. I'll tell you more about them when you come over."
Li Bin has completed his three-year term this year. After the handover, he should be transferred to another location next February. It is still uncertain whether he will stay in Kyoto or take up a post elsewhere. He will wait for his mentor to make the arrangements.
Once inside, Li Bin brewed tea, and the two began to discuss Chen Qingyan's examination paper. "I saw that when you took the imperial examination, you advocated using war to stop the fighting on the border, and your essay was very brilliant. However, I have a slightly different opinion."
"Brother Li, please speak freely."
Li Bin took out a scroll from the drawer and spread it on the table. "Now the Turkic army has retreated to Luntai. This place is far from Yangguan and Yanmenguan. There is no need for the defeated and remnant army to pursue them relentlessly."
Chen Qingyan hesitated for a moment and said, "Even a centipede with a hundred legs will not fall down when it dies. Moreover, the Turks are well-fed and strong, and their desire to invade our Great Wu has not died. If we cannot take them down in one fell swoop while their momentum is low, I am afraid they will launch a counterattack in the future."
"But war has far too many implications. Besides the soldiers who died on the border, there are also the provisions and warhorses that were sent from all over the country. This has caused immense suffering to the people in various places. How can they even talk about making a living?"
“Brother Li only sees the current suffering of the people, but he doesn’t realize that if the barbarians invade, it will be a living hell. You and I have both read history books. Four hundred years ago, the barbarians came south and caused great suffering. The people were displaced and even wrote our Han people into their diet. They said, ‘Let’s cook the meat, let the bones rot, we don’t envy the sheep, and our flesh and blood are separated.’ Do we have to experience such a tragedy again?”
Li Bin said, "Our Great Wu Dynasty is not the Jin Dynasty, and the Turks could not have become such a great force. Brother Chen is really overthinking it."
"Born in hardship, die in comfort. We who have entered officialdom should share the Emperor's burdens and cannot help but think more."
The two didn't continue their conversation because they didn't see eye to eye. Chen Qingyan also felt awkward and left after a while, making an excuse to get up.
Back at the inn, Wang Ying was teaching Yuanbao to read. They had agreed that Wang Ying would start Yuanbao's education after he finished the imperial examination, but he had been too busy to find the time since he returned.
"How's your study going?"
Wang Ying rubbed her forehead and said, "I suspect your son has ADHD."
What is ADHD?
"He can't sit still for even a moment. He can only learn three or five words before he wants to go out and play."
Chen Qingyan looked at his son and asked, "Is that so?"
Little Yuanbao blinked innocently and nodded, "Recognizing characters is too boring, I want to play hide-and-seek with Mu Tou and Brother Chun Sheng."
Wang Ying tapped the table with a ruler. "Make sure you understand these sentences before you go!"
"Let me teach you, you can take a break."
Wang Ying quickly gave up her spot and went to the side to find some peace and quiet. Chen Qingyan, as expected of someone from a scholarly background, was more skillful in teaching Yuanbao. Learning to read was not about rote memorization, but about telling Yuanbao the content of each sentence and the stories behind it.
The little guy listened intently, occasionally asking questions, and quickly memorized all those sentences.
"Go have fun."
"Oh~" Yuanbao cheered and ran to find Mutou and the others.
Wang Ying gave her husband a thumbs up, "As expected of the top scholar, you are truly an expert in your field of study!"
Chen Qingyan smiled helplessly, "I'm just teaching Yuanbao what my father taught me."
How was your trip to the Hanlin Academy?
Chen Qingyan sighed heavily, "The Hanlin Academy is good, but..."
"What's wrong?" Wang Ying pulled him to sit down next to her.
Do you still remember Brother Li, with whom I had dinner a few days ago?
"I remember, your name is Li Bin, right?"
"Today I went to the Hanlin Academy. He took me on a tour and then suddenly started discussing the border war with me. However, we had different political views and exchanged a few words. I felt that his attitude towards me had become much colder."
Wang Ying reassured him, "Oh, I thought it was something serious. It's normal for officials in the same court to have different political views. We'll just have to let everyone express their opinions and see whose they are adopted by the emperor. If all the civil and military officials had the same political views, then the emperor would probably be worried."
"How so?"
"Think about it, if all the ministers have the same ideas, wouldn't that render the emperor power meaningless? What if the emperor's ideas differ from those of the ministers?"
Chen Qingyan chuckled and said, "This is the first time I've heard of your idea, but it does make sense. However, I'm afraid it will be difficult for you to befriend him after you enter the Hanlin Academy."
"Don't worry, a gentleman seeks harmony without uniformity, while a petty person seeks uniformity without harmony. Besides, you have Brother Huai with you. You two are from the same school, so he will never disagree with your political views!"
Chen Qingyan's eyes lit up upon hearing this, "A gentleman seeks harmony without uniformity, Aying, you are absolutely right!"
*
After staying at the guesthouse for five or six days, the paperwork for the house was finally completed. Wang Ying paid the remaining money and finally got the keys, and could move out of the guesthouse!
Staying in the guesthouse these past few days has been like burning money; it really hurts my wallet.
After packing up and checking out of the house, we drove the carriage to Changping Road on Qinglong Street.
"We've arrived at the next house."
“Whoa!” Strychnine pulled on the rope. “The location of this new house is really good. There are bookstores, painting studios, and shops selling antiques and cultural artifacts not far in front.”
Most of the people living here are officials from the capital. These things are the easiest to sell. Who says people in ancient times didn't know how to do business? They were all smarter than monkeys!
Wang Ying got off the carriage and took out the key to open the gate.
Tianju and Ma Zhandong drove the carriage into the courtyard. Chen Qingyan took Yuanbao down, and the little guy ran around in the courtyard.
"This will be our new home from now on. Do you like it?"
"I love it! With such a big yard, Brother Wood, Brother Chunsheng, and I can play cops and robbers again!"
Chen Qingyan smiled and shook her head, telling the two children to take good care of their son, while she went inside to help Wang Ying tidy up the house.
There's basically no need to add any more furniture to the main room; the tables and chairs are all there, though a bit old, but Wang Ying doesn't plan to replace them for the time being. She simply doesn't have enough money; buying the house has already cost her a large portion, and the remaining money needs to be saved for future living expenses and opening a shop. She can't afford to spend it recklessly.
Wang Ying planned to change the bed in the bedroom. She asked Ma Zhandong to find some bricklayers to convert the bed in the west room into a heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove), so that it would be much more comfortable to sleep on in winter.
The east and west wing rooms are not needed at the moment, and they are already furnished, so we will leave them untouched for now.
The servants live in the back room, and now they are short of a cook and a maid to clean. He plans to give this job to Ma Qianzi, and also to give him some training.
Moving to a new house naturally calls for a celebration. In the evening, the three of us had hot pot. All the ingredients were placed in the experimental field beforehand, so we could just take them out and use them. We also cooked a lot of dumplings together.
While eating, Xiao Yuanbao suddenly felt a lump in her throat and tears started falling.
"What's wrong?" Wang Ying thought her son had eaten too much chili and quickly handed him some water.
Yuanbao shook his head and said, "I miss my grandmother. The dumplings I just ate were made by her."
Li always liked to make a few dumplings with brown sugar filling, and Yuanbao had just eaten one with that filling.
Wang Ying hugged her son and comforted him, "Good Yuanbao, don't cry. Your father will take you back home during the New Year."
Chen Qingyan said, "Didn't you say last time that the time was too short and you didn't want to go through all that trouble..."
"Then the two of us will go back, and you can stay in Kyoto and work overtime!"
"Alright..." Chen Qingyan quickly buried his head in his food. His husband was angry, how could he dare to say a word against it!
*
Li, who was far away in Jizhou Prefecture, also missed Yuanbao. She would often mutter to herself, "Judging by the days, they should have arrived in the capital. I wonder how they are being settled."
Qingyun, munching on a snack, said, "Don't worry, with your sister-in-law here, everything will be arranged perfectly."
Looking at her daughter's belly, Li frowned and said, "Eat less. Your belly is getting bigger and bigger these days. Be careful you don't suffer during childbirth."
Upon hearing this, Qingyun reluctantly put down her food. The doctor had mentioned during the last pulse diagnosis that her belly was larger than that of a normal pregnant woman, and advised her to reduce her food intake to prevent the baby from becoming too large and making delivery difficult.
"But I feel hungry and anxious shortly after I finish eating."
Li held her daughter's hand and said, "Bear with it. Childbirth is like walking through the gates of hell for a woman. This is your first pregnancy, so you must not make any mistakes!"
"oh."
As they were talking, Lin Sui hurried back from the shop. "A messenger just delivered a letter. It was written by my sister-in-law. I quickly brought it back to show my aunt."
"Quickly, open it and read it aloud."
A note from the author:
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