Bai Shan replied on his behalf, "The two of us are from the Bai family in Longzhou."
Mr. Zhuang also turned slightly to introduce Man Bao who was following behind, and said with a smile, "This is my eldest disciple Zhou Man."
The middle-aged scribe was taken aback.
He didn't recognize Mr. Zhuang, but he had heard of Zhou Man.
And Zhou Man has a husband, and the story of two juniors is also widely circulated in the capital.
Zhang Chen only felt pain in his arms again, and couldn't help looking past them to Zhou Man who was standing behind.
Man Bao raised his head to meet his gaze inexplicably, with a puzzled expression on his face, why did he keep walking and not leave
Zhou Man is still very famous in the capital, in fact Bai Shan is also famous, especially among literati, the two of them are loyal, benevolent and filial, he did not expect to meet them.
Zhang Chen met them again, and when he got to the top of the mountain and found a place to sit down and set out drinks and snacks, he sighed with a few people: "I took part in the Entrance Examination, and I failed the exam at that time, so I thought it was the autumn list If there is a chance, who knows, it will not work, alas..."
Mr. Zhuang comforted him: "Although there are two subjects in a row this year, there are many people who took the exam. Brother Zhang, don't be too discouraged."
Zhang Chen listened to this kind of consolation too much, shook his head and said: "If I fail this year, I may not be able to take the exam next year. Wait for another two years, and I will be older."
Mr. Zhuang laughed, "No matter how old you are, can you still be as old as me?"
Zhang Chen looked at Mr. Zhuang, who was in high spirits, and then at the three young men who were sitting on the other side of the mat, and sighed even more, "How can I compare with Mr., Mr. has such a talented student, even if he doesn't serve in office all his life, he is worth it. "
Although Mr. Zhuang felt that what he said was right, he could also hear a sense of depression. He opened his mouth, but he still didn't try to persuade him.
It's not easy to talk deep, so he raised his hand and toasted him with a glass of wine.
They sat for a while, and Mr. Jiang and others finally came up the mountain. When they saw Mr. Zhuang and his disciples, they laughed and said, "I guessed that you went up the mountain, and it's true."
They didn't take the addition of Zhang Chen whom they didn't know to heart, anyway, the Chongyang Climbing was just climbing the mountain, looking at the scenery, drinking and being happy.
The three older ones were free and easy, while the three younger ones were carefree. Only Zhang Chen was depressed and frustrated, and sat aside in a daze.
Mr. Jiang and the others also brought up wine, and seeing that he seemed to be in a bad mood, they simply raised their hands and poured him a drink.
Everyone stayed on the mountain until the evening, Zhang Chen got drunk, and finally Daji and Mr. Jiang's entourage recited it together.
The carriage wobbled back to Beijing. The three of Man Bao rode on the horses and chased each other to the capital. After leaving the carriage for a long distance, they turned their horses and ran back.
They are still too young to understand Zhang Chen's frustration.
What's more, no matter Man Bao, Bai Shan or Bai Erlang, they don't think being an official is a very important thing in this world.
There are so many things people can do in this world, becoming an official is just a choice.
On this point, they are even more open-minded than Mr. Zhuang, a man who has weathered the storm.
Mr. Jiang lowered the curtain, looked away from the window, and smiled with Mr. Zhuang: "You three disciples seem to be more advanced than before."
Mr. Zhuang smiled and said, "They have grown up too."
Mr. Jiang sighed sadly, "You can see that they have grown up, but I am growing older. I am getting older day by day, but the children in my family have not improved at all."
Mr. Chen said with a smile: "Every time I see you, I will hear you envious, and my ears will get callused."
"Don't you envy? You don't envy you and you don't say a few words in private."
Mr. Zhuang laughed loudly, waved his hands indifferently and said, "Just say it, I don't care."
"If you envy you, you naturally don't care." Mr. Jiang thought of something, turned around and searched in his luggage, and found a bundle of manuscripts for him, "This is the calligraphy I practiced recently. Look at Bai Shan's calligraphy, let's see if he wants to copy it."
Mr. Jiang's handwriting is very famous. I heard that even the emperor has a collection. Mr. Zhuang immediately took it and thanked him for Bai Shan.
Mr. Jiang shook his head and said: "I will never receive such a good disciple in my life, so I can only look at him with envy and envy, and I am satisfied to be able to give advice from the side."
After returning to the city, Mr. Zhuang ordered Zhang Chen, who was lying in his carriage, to be taken to the inn.
Mr. Jiang raised his eyebrows and asked with a smile, "Why don't you take it home? After all, he is a scholar who can take part in the imperial examination. He still has some skills, and maybe he can be accepted as an assistant."
Mr. Zhuang shook his head and said with a smile: "I'm a ninth-rank official, what kind of staff do I need? It's just to read books in the Chongwen Museum and explain some scriptures to the prince."
He said: "Man Bao doesn't need it anymore, she is an imperial physician, she only cares about curing diseases and saving people, and compiling medical books, she doesn't need a staff who advises and advises. As for Bai Shan and Bai Cheng, they are still too young, and they don't know when they will be official. "
Mr. Chen is straightforward, "I thought it was because you looked down on him."
He said with a smile: "I think his words have the intention of defecting, so I poured him wine, thinking that if you push the boat to bring him back, the staff will be safe, but you don't have such intentions."
Mr. Zhuang shook his head, smiled and turned his head to look out of the window. His three naughty disciples came back from a distance on horseback, laughing happily.
He said: "If the way is different, we should not conspire with each other, not to mention that people don't care about us, master and apprentice."
But I'm afraid it lies in the prince who is behind them.
Mr. Jiang naturally thought of it too. After all, he was a good friend, so he couldn't help but asked, "Are you all doing well in the East Palace?"
Mr. Zhuang nodded with a smile, "His Royal Highness is becoming more and more humble, so we are all doing well."
The correction and improvement of the prince's character can be said to be seen by the entire court. This time the emperor invited the old man and ministers to dinner, and the prince was the one who held the pot and poured wine.
He had lost the irascibility of previous years, and he was able to handle the previous few errands. Although the imperial censor impeached him every now and then, it was not a big deal, and he seldom scolded the ministers in court.
Therefore, the ministers headed by Wei Zhi looked very pleasing to the eyes of the prince today. Everyone had a beautiful palace banquet, and then someone mentioned the matter of Prince Gong's return to Luozhou.
Prince Gong stayed in Beijing for too long, and it's time to go back to Luozhou. You can't keep him under house arrest in the palace, right
The emperor pondered, remembering the queen's opinion, he shied away from the matter, saying that today is the Double Ninth Festival, and everyone only respects the elderly and does not talk about state affairs.
Wei Zhi, who opposed Prince Gong's return to Luozhou, breathed a sigh of relief.
Prince Gong is in the capital, if he has been locked in the palace, then it is better to stay in the capital; when the emperor wants to let him out one day, let's bring up the matter of Luozhou.
As long as he is under house arrest in the palace, there is not much he can do.