The Bookish Scholar of the Red Mansion

After following his grandfather home, all the men, including Chen Heng, were ordered by Zhou to climb up and down to work. The old Chen family has a lot to do today. Not only does it have to clean its own home, but it also has to clean the master's house next door.

When his wife Wang Xianming and his wife went to Yangzhou to celebrate the festival, Chen Gaishan asked for the key to their courtyard.

There's no one who doesn't clean up their house during the Chinese New Year. Chen Gaishan attaches great importance to the sense of ritual in this aspect, Hurry up, I think it will snow tonight.

Dad, is it true? Chen Huaijin, who was cleaning the window, looked up at the sky. The sun is warm, except for the slightly thick cloud cover. No matter how you look at it, today should be a good weather day.

Chen Gaishan snorted lightly and ignored his younger son. A farmer lives with the weather and the fields all his life. Over time, he naturally has his own way of looking at the sky. If you tell Chen Huaijin this kind of thing, the other party will not be interested.

Dad, the water is here.

Shuangxi carried a small wooden bucket and staggered to his second uncle's side. Chen Huaijin looked into the bucket and saw that most of the water had been spilled on the aisle. However, he still encouraged: Shuangxi, you are so sensible, you can help the family at such a young age.

The person who was actually responsible for carrying the water was Chen Heng. After putting down the bucket, Chen Heng raised his hand to wipe his sweat and said, Second uncle, I'll go to my sister's place to check. If you need anything, call me again.

okay.

The family worked from morning until afternoon to clean the house. Mrs. Zhou and her two granddaughters were left playing with lanterns and other things at home. Chen Gaishan took the men at home and cleaned the courtyard of his master's house.

After so much work, the sky was already dark. After a sumptuous dinner at home, there was also a ceremony on New Year's Eve, which was to worship the Kitchen God.

In places like Shanxi Village, the Kitchen God and the Earth God are more popular than the God of Wealth. At night, every household will take out the incense burner, put incense, light candles, and place offerings. The whole family comes together to pray to the Kitchen God for happiness and health in the coming year.

That night, Chen Heng was half asleep when he vaguely heard a faint sound coming from outside the window. He turned over and didn't care. It wasn't until he got up the next day that he saw a world covered in silver.

It's snowing.

Shuangxi, who was still lying in bed, couldn't wait to get out of bed when he heard Chen Heng's cheers. Not long after, he put on his coat and melon skin hat and ran after Chen Heng's butt.

Brother, brother, play with me.

Chen Hengchang laughed happily and took his younger brother to squat on the ground to build a snowman. As a result, the snow was only halfway piled when grandma Zhou drove her back to the house to escape the cold.

There will be nothing going on at home until New Year's Eve. Chen Heng simply sat in front of the window, facing the white world, lowering his head and reading a book.

Outside the yard, the sound of children setting off firecrackers could be heard from time to time. Listening to their laughter, Shuangxi, who was detained reading a book with his brother, felt very envious.

After all, his brother was still young, so Chen Heng was worried that overdoing it would make the child tired of studying. He stood up and took out something from his baggage.

Double Happiness, look, what is this?

Wow, it's candied haws of water?! Shuangxi couldn't care less about the firecrackers outside. His mind was immediately attracted by the red strings of things.

You follow your brother and finish the book obediently, and you can eat this string of candied haws on a stick, okay? Chen Heng smiled and turned the candied haws a few times.

Shuangxi nodded naturally, staring at the candied haws with his big eyes, as if he was afraid that it would disappear.

Come here, brother will teach you how to recite the Three Character Sutra. Chen Heng waved to his brother.

Shuangxi knows, brother is talking about the beginning of man, right?

Hahaha, that's him.

Chen Huaijin, who had gone out for a visit in the morning, heard the sound of reading coming from the wing as soon as he returned to the yard, and couldn't help but stand there with his eyes closed and smile.

Chen Qi, who was passing by, looked at his careless appearance and scolded him, What are you doing? If you have nothing to do, just go and lie down in the house. What are you doing blowing in the wind in the yard?

Brother, you don't understand. Chen Huaijin looked at the disappointed Chen Qi and complained, You said you didn't take care of me like Heng'er did to Shuangxi when you were a child.

Chen Qi sneered and was too lazy to pay attention to this idiot, I didn't see anyone early in the morning. Where did you go?

Seeing that it was his eldest brother asking, Chen Huaijin looked around and then whispered: I went to the third brother's house and gave them something.

After hearing this, Chen Qi sighed silently. If Qisuo and his mother-in-law hadn't had a filial piety period, according to his father's wishes, he would have invited them to celebrate the New Year together.

In a few years, we'll invite Qisuo and his mother to celebrate the festival together. I think dad also has this idea.

Um.

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Unlike Master Xu and Master Jin who stayed in the academy to celebrate the New Year, Mei Xuezheng's hometown is in Zhenjiang, which only takes half a day to get there from Guazhou Ferry in Yangzhou.

The Mei family has many relatives, but they are not well-known in Zhenjiang. It wasn't until Mei Xue passed the Jinshi examination and entered the Hanlin Academy that he became prominent. The alley where they lived was renamed because of Mei Jin. In Xiaoyunfang in the east of the city, whenever you say Jinshi Alley, you will definitely know that you are talking about the Mei family.

When such a prestigious celebrity comes home to celebrate the New Year, it is natural that neighbors come to visit and say hello. Mrs. Mei greeted and sent them off one by one with a smile. After being busy for several days, she had some free time today.

I see you are in a good mood.

Holding the soup in one hand and closing the door with the other, Mrs. Mei walked into the study and looked at Mei Jin who couldn't let go of the book.

The two have been married for more than 20 years and have two children. The older one has passed the national examination and is working hard for the examination. The younger son was still young and was usually loved by the two of them, so he was not in a hurry to take the imperial examination.

Madam, you don't know something. Mei Xuezheng raised his eyebrows proudly and put down the book in his hand, My colleagues in the court suddenly sent me a letter at the beginning of the month.

Seeing that he was deliberately selling things off and showing off that he was well-informed. Mrs. Mei bent over and sat on a chair nearby and asked cooperatively: What did the letter say?

Mei Jin chuckled and said, His Majesty intends to improve the official schools in Yangzhou, Suzhou and other places. In a few years, even the provincial examinations may be held directly in the capital.

What about Jinling? In the future, students from these places will no longer have to go to Jinling to take the provincial examination? Mrs. Mei exclaimed, this must be such a big deal.

It should be just a temporary measure. Mei Xuezheng shook the spoon a few times. It was only in the past few days that he figured out the meaning of His Majesty's move. It was even more difficult to explain the inside story to his wife now.

The four major families in Jinling City, including the Zhen family who had served as imperial chariots four times, were all deeply favored and trusted by the Supreme Emperor. If you really think about it, I am not that close to His Majesty.

These distinguished families received money from Yangzhou salt merchants on one hand, and made friends with talented and obedient students from aristocratic families. The combination of the upper and lower parts has already become a towering tree hidden in the forest. If it is eradicated with the power of thunder, it will definitely damage the muscles and bones, and easily cause turmoil in the world.

Your Majesty now uses capable ministers to govern Yangzhou, Suzhou and other places, and separate the rural examinations from Jinling. What I want is nothing more than to slowly prune the branches and leaves of the big tree. When all the branches and leaves of the big tree are cut off, it will be the day for your majesty to cut down the tree.

What does that have to do with you? Mrs. Mei asked angrily. This is one of the bad things about scholars, they like to tell off the truth.

Hahaha, Madam, since we want to be promoted to an official school and hold a rural examination, then the imperial court cannot send a Hanlin Xuezheng to preside over the imperial examination and the provincial examination? Mei Xuezheng said very proudly, as if the position of Xuezheng had already fallen into his pocket. .

Have you made any friends in the court? Mrs. Mei was surprised and happy, Why did such a good thing happen to you?

It's precisely because I don't have many friends in the court that your Majesty would like me, a person who can't stand the stage. Mei Jin couldn't help but shake her head, her lips became increasingly uncontrollable, and she finally laughed.

Think about it, no one wanted to come to Yangzhou at the beginning. They pushed me around and threw me out as the unlucky one. Unexpectedly, I didn't expect that now they are writing to me one by one, with hidden congratulations in their words. .Ha ha ha ha.

Amitabha, Amitabha. With the blessing of Bodhisattva, I have to go to the temple to burn more incense this year. Infected by her husband's emotions, Mrs. Mei couldn't help but clasped her hands and said happily.

After the Chinese New Year, let Jia'er also go to the academy to study while I can still talk in the academy.

Mejia is their youngest son, who is just eleven years old this year. When Mei Jin first came to Yangzhou, she was in a very low mood and felt that her career was difficult, so she did not take her children with her.

good.

How could Mrs. Mei refuse to agree? What a great official in a government.

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The New Year is approaching, and the Yangzhou government office is also very quiet.

When Wei Yinghong got the time, he rushed ahead of Ruhai to invite Pei Huaizhen and his wife to celebrate the New Year together. Lin Ruhai had no choice but to choose a day to come to the door with gifts.

As soon as these three people met, they had a habit of running to the study. A lot of things happened in the court this year. As His Majesty's confidants and people in the situation, they were naturally much better informed than others.

So Yangzhou is going to hold a provincial examination? Pei Huaizhen had caught a cold not long ago and was not in good spirits. He was resting his head on the stove.

Yes, Master Pei. Wei Yinghong nodded with a smile, then pointed at Lin Ruhai and said, This is Ruhai's strategy. If you want to master martial arts, you must first master culture.

Lin Ruhai smiled and shook his head, not daring to take credit for himself. He handed a Tang Pozi into Pei Huaizhen's hand and moved it towards the other party. Now that everything has been decided, he can tell Pei Huaizhen the whole story of the plan.

At the end of August this year, King Beijing died. The people of the Taishang Emperor's line were on standby, fearing that the Kyoto Jiedushi would fall into His Majesty's hands. Your Majesty knew that if he insisted on acting, he would definitely disturb the atmosphere in the court.

The most important thing for a political person is to fight without losing. It is easy to cut down trees but difficult to plant them. Just thinking about killing ministers to do whatever you want is the way to ruin a country.

Since it is not easy to use force, Lin Ruhai took the opportunity to suggest that His Majesty should throw someone out from time to time for everyone to argue, make noise and confuse the situation.

On their own side, they quietly removed Yangzhou, Suzhou and other places from Jinling. The idea of ​​​​destroying the nobles of Jinling first, and then sending them to the court.

This is also the reason why Wei Yinghong rebuilt Yangzhou Academy and invited Pei Huaizhen to serve as its director. They originally thought that this matter would be planned for ten years, but they did not expect that the death of King Beijing would bring the opportunity right before their eyes.

Now that His Majesty has been on the throne for twelve years, he has long held the title of righteousness in his hands. It is certainly gratifying to get the troops and horses outside the capital now. If you can't get it, sooner or later it will be His Majesty's meal.

Only civil servants are the top priority. If the successor cannot be screened well, Jinling Xungui will always be given to the Supreme Emperor. The party struggle will only become more and more fierce, and the disaster of Tang and Ming Dynasty will happen again.

As long as the officials of the Supreme Emperor's line are replaced smoothly, there will be no disturbance in the court. An old emperor who abdicated and lived deep in the palace had nothing to worry about.

Well done, you did better than me. Pei Huaizhen nodded happily. The two young people he had selected had already begun to play a role in the court.

After saying this, Pei Huaizhen paused for a long time before sighing, The Emperor is still old.

Neither Wei Yinghong nor Lin Ruhai had ever experienced the court of the Supreme Emperor, and they did not have deep feelings for this old man who was like Emperor Ming of the Tang Dynasty in his later years.

If he had been young, he would have known that he could only bring peace to the world, but he could not rule it. How could he make such a mistake?

After listening to Pei Huaizhen's words, Wei Yinghong also agreed. Looking back at the past dynasties, except for the founding of the country and the use of foreign troops, there are few examples of military generals and nobles climbing over civil servants.

The reason lies in the imperial examination, which is held once every three years. In each session, there are many Jinshis in the top three and two rankings. Without them, there is no way to control the court and govern the world.

The three of them said nothing more, just looking at the north wind whizzing by outside the window, blowing an inch of snow off the branches.

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After worshiping the Kitchen God on Little New Year's Eve, the adults in the family begin the final preparations before the New Year's Eve. Spring couplets are always indispensable, and this matter naturally fell on Chen Heng. He wrote a couple: good year, good times, good luck, more wealth, more blessings and more luck.

Jixiang is exactly the name Chen Gaishan chose for his infant third brother.

A double happiness, auspiciousness. I hope our family can be as successful as this year.

At the New Year's Eve dinner table, Chen Gaishan announced his decision to his family.

Chen Qi would naturally not object. He liked both names Jixiang and Ruyi very much. Only the second uncle was covering his mouth and laughing. Chen Gaishan felt strange and asked, What are you laughing at?

Dad, I was thinking of the nickname you gave Heng'er back then. Hahahahaha, let's look at the name you gave him now. Chen Huaijin grinned and didn't pay attention to Chen Gaishan's darkening face.

Mrs. Zhou was thinking that tomorrow was the first day of the Lunar New Year, so she didn't want to make a joke about her youngest son being beaten again. She hurriedly came out to smooth things over, What's wrong with the name Ergou? Let me tell you, after Ergou was born, our family The days are getting better day by day.”

Chen Gaishan nodded in a muffled voice. Chen Huaijin wanted to explain his intention aloud, but Chen Qi had already kicked him under the table to signal his heartless brother to stop causing trouble for him.

Everyone eats first, let's talk while we eat. The second aunt also took the opportunity to change the subject and said to Mrs. Zhou, Mom, after we finish eating, I will accompany you to light some incense.

Every year at midnight, Ms. Zhou would take her daughter-in-law with her to burn incense and pray for blessings at the Tutu Temple in the village. However, this year Ms. Gu will have confinement at home, so only her second aunt can accompany her. .

Mrs. Zhou responded with a smile: This year, bring the two sisters Chen Qing and Chen Xian with us. It will be more lively with more people.

Girls from farm families are early to understand. Although they don't have as many rules as those from wealthy families, they still have to learn the customs during the New Year and festivals.

Men naturally have similar tasks, which are usually given to them when they go to the ancestral hall to worship ancestors. But this year it's not their family's turn. The adult men in the family will only need to make a trip there.

There's no rush. ​​Chen Gaishan still felt sorry for his granddaughter and said, It's rare for a theater troupe from the county to come to perform this year. Let's take the children there first to see the excitement. If they are not tired when they come back, you can take them there.

There was no opera troupe in the village in previous years. I heard that someone in Xiatang Village next door made a fortune outside. When he came back this year, he told Li Zheng in the village that he had invited a troupe from the county to liven up the village.

However, this kind of thing only wants to be seen by the people in his own village, and it is easy for other people to gossip about him. Li Zheng from Xiatang Village was also smart and directly chose the location where the stage meets Shanxi Village. It is easier for people from other villages to come here.

They just need to take advantage of the name, ask someone to write two lines of names, and stand on both sides of the stage. This not only makes them famous, but also won't make people look ostentatious.

The two sisters, Chen Qing and Chen Xian, were eager to agree. At the same time, I promised my grandma that I would never feel sleepy while burning incense. While looking forward to the excitement on the stage.

After dinner, Chen Gaishan took the whole family and went out directly. Only Mrs. Zhou and her second aunt held Ji Xiang and stayed at home to accompany Mrs. Gu who could not go out.

Originally I didn't want to take Shuangxi, but I couldn't help the child crying all the time. The second uncle's heart softened, so he held him in his arms and warned him not to run around, so this boy got this opportunity.

It's a nice weather tonight, with a bright moon in the sky and no clouds in the sky. The stars in the sky twinkled directly above the stage. When Chen Heng arrived, the place was already crowded.

Chen Qi put down the two benches he carried from home and found a position on a slightly higher ground outside. Chen Qi pulled Chen Huaijin to jump on the stool. After repeatedly confirming that there was no problem, he pulled Chen Qingsan and his sister to stand up.

Grandpa, I heard that at the end of the opera, you will throw candies, is it true? Chen Xian blinked her bright eyes. She was not very interested in listening to the opera. I just had dinner, and I was already thinking about what to eat for a while.

Chen Gaishan smiled and said, If you can sit to the end, then think about whether you want to go up and grab the candy.

Sister, do you want it? Chen Heng rubbed his hands and whispered to Chen Qing, If you want to eat it, I will grab it for you.

There are so many people, why did you go there to join in the fun? My sister didn't want to eat, so she came to watch the fun. After all, Chen Qing was the oldest, and her words were extraordinary.

It's started, it's started. Shuangxi, in his second uncle's arms, suddenly pointed to the distance and shouted.

As Shuangxi finished speaking, the crowd also cheered. A man in Tsing Yi wearing a costume walked out of the curtain and danced through the night with a flick of his sleeves. Drums and gongs sounded one by one, a colorful ball exploded from the air, and a long couplet with black characters on red paper fell down.

Chen Heng knew that the words on it were words like thanking Li Qingyun, a native of Xiatang Village, because he was the one who wrote the words. In terms of Go, Chen Heng's understanding is limited. But his calligraphy, after being tempered in the academy, has surpassed many others.

The first performance today is Jade Dragonfly. This play is very famous in Yangzhou and Suzhou, and is no less famous than Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai.

But the content of this play is a bit like Xu Xian's son Xu Shilin saving his mother. However, compared to the bizarreness of the story, it is not inferior to The Legend of White Snake.

It is about a talented man named Shen Guisheng in Suzhou. He was dissatisfied with the advice of his elders to get married, so he took refuge in Fahua Nunnery. He came here because he fell in love at first sight with a nun during the Lantern Festival.

Chen Heng couldn't figure out for a moment how this boy named Shen could become interested in nuns. In short, the two people expressed their love for each other, and the boy named Shen left the family heirloom Jade Dragonfly as a token of love.

Soon, the nun had a child named Shen.

He is really a fierce man, Chen Heng sighed once again.

I wonder if the person who made up this drama is a member of the Taoist sect. It was really too bad to let this nun give birth to the child in Fahua Nunnery.

Later, when she met Shen Guisheng's first wife, she ordered the servants to search the Fahua Nunnery. The nun asked the master in the nunnery to quietly send her newly-born child out of the temple.

At this point in the play, the content of the first day is over. Li Zheng from Xiatang Village brought a few strong men with him, carrying piles of rice cakes, bacon, half a pig's feet and other items and placed them on the stage as a thank you.

The Tsing Yi actor who played the nun came out with a plate and sprinkled sugar on the children who gathered around.

After grabbing the candies, everyone can go home and prepare for the final New Year's Eve. As usual, Chen Qi carried the stool and Chen Gaishan walked in the front carrying the lantern.

Chen Heng followed his two sisters and walked in front of his second uncle.

Brother, don't fall in love with nuns in the future. Chen Qing still felt a little weird after watching the play. It's terrible. How can I give birth in a temple without fear of punishment from the Buddha?

Chen Heng was a little dumbfounded by this inexplicable warning and said: Sister, don't worry. Your brother is not that stupid.

What's wrong with nuns? They two really love each other after all. Chen Xian retorted, If you ask me, the first wife is the one. Isn't it beautiful to be an adult?

Chen Qing couldn't say anything. He wanted to refute but couldn't think of words. He hesitated for a long time before saying, My brother can't do it anyway.

That's true. If my brother finds a nun, grandpa may be... Chen Xian made a shaky gesture. She probably still remembered the incident where Chen Huaijin fainted Chen Gaishan this year.

Chen Heng smiled and shook his head, Second sister, weren't you crying the hardest at that time?

I cried because I was worried about grandpa, but isn't grandpa in good health? Chen Xian spread her hands, looking like Chen Huaijin's optimist.

Chen Huaijin didn't know what his daughter said. He was still dealing with the issue of double happiness later.

Dad, do we have any heirlooms in our family? Tell me quietly. I won't tell my brothers and sisters.

Yes, why not. Chen Huaijin sneered, Your grandfather has a stick, and it will be a family heirloom left to you from now on. You can use it as a token of your love.

Shuangxi looked horrified, Is it the stick you used to hit daddy?

What, you don't like it?

Give it to brother, give it to brother. Let him give it to the female monk. Shuangxi hurriedly shrank to Chen Huaijin's neck. Now that he thought about the scene of Chen Huaijin being beaten, he was still frightened. For a while, he was really scared to death when he saw Chen Gaishan.

What are you doing? Walk faster.

Chen Gaishan stood at the front, urging the whole family to follow quickly, and then everyone speeded up their pace slightly.

When she got home, Ms. Zhou had already prepared the things for worship in the evening. She was just waiting for her second aunt to pack up Shuangxi and let the men take care of the house. Then he took the female relatives and set off to the Tutu Temple.

Not long after Zhou went out, the sound of firecrackers symbolizing the New Year began to sound in the middle of the night. Chen Heng leaned on the bedside and turned over to sleep while breathing heavily.

Wenhe came here in the second year.

The second volume is over. This chapter is 6,000 words long. I will go have dinner later and post the content of the third volume. It is easy to get hot when writing in summer and cold when writing in winter. Only writing in spring and autumn is the most comfortable.