In the front hall of Xu's mansion, everyone sat down as host and guest. Xu Jie naturally sat in the main seat. Yang Jisheng sat on the carved pear wood chair on Xu Jie's left, the handsome guy with balm sat on the carved pear wood chair on Xu Jie's right, Zhu Ping'an sat next to the handsome guy with balm, and Wang Shizhen and Zhang Siwei sat behind Yang Jisheng on the left.
"You don't have to be so reserved in front of me. I was also your age, and I also paid a visit to Master Xia like you." Xu Jie was very kind and had no airs at all. He sat in the main seat and chatted with Zhu Ping'an and the other two, which immediately brought them closer.
Xu Jie took the initiative in most of the conversation. He asked the three about their hometowns and addresses, whether they were used to living in the capital, whether they had any difficulties in their lives and studies, and encouraged them to be humble and prepare well for the palace examination. He acted like an elder in the family.
In the eyes of Wang Shizhen and Zhang Siwei, Xu Jie was a humble man, which made them very grateful and their impression of Xu Jie rose to a very high level.
Zhu Ping'an's face was full of gratitude, just like Wang Shizhen and Zhang Siwei, and he was ready to go through fire and water for Xu Jie, but his heart was relatively calm. He had read Mr. Dangnian Mingyue's masterpiece "Those Things in the Ming Dynasty" in modern times, and he had some understanding of Xu Jie, the former principal of the Imperial College. Putting down his airs and being humble, chatting with these new tribute students was just like the mentality of Principal Jiang of the Whampoa Military Academy. The purpose was not just to encourage them to study hard. Who knows if there will be a few first- and second-class fierce men in the future. Winning over the team was one of the important purposes.
Of course, Mr. Dangnian Mingyue was not Xu Jie's worm, and Zhu Ping'an only took Mr. Dangnian Mingyue's words as a reference.
What you hear is not as good as what you see.
What kind of person is Xu Jie, what kind of person is Yan Song, what kind of person is Emperor Jiajing, what kind of Ming Dynasty is this era, and so on, Zhu Ping'an still has to use his own eyes and his own thoughts to slowly observe this Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Ping'an's innate simplicity and mediocre appearance gave him a natural disguise. In the eyes of Xu Jie and others, Zhu Ping'an, Zhang Siwei and Wang Shizhen were not much different from the previous batches of new tribute scholars who came to pay homage. They were all grateful for Xu Jie's humble attitude.
"After we parted at the post station that day, I didn't expect to meet Brother Zhu here today, and I didn't expect that my friend at the post station would become a famous scholar today." After Yang Jisheng waited for Xu Jie and Zhu Ping'an to finish their greetings, he smiled and spoke to Zhu Ping'an, his voice as deep and hoarse as that day.
"Brother Yang, you're joking." Zhu Ping'an smiled a little embarrassedly.
Yang Jisheng's words attracted everyone's attention, including the handsome guy sitting in the chair to the right of Xu Jie. When they first entered the room, Zhu Ping'an and the other two did not attract his attention. Today, he saw too many new tribute students like Zhu Ping'an who came to visit his teacher Xu Jie. These people did not give him the impression that they were outstanding, but when he heard Yang Jisheng mention the word "Huiyuan", a terrifying light flashed in his eyes.
"Oh, do you know each other, Brother Nian?" The handsome guy looked at Yang Jisheng and asked casually.
Zhang Siwei and Wang Shizhen were also a little curious about this. They had never heard Zhu Ping'an mention Yang Jisheng before.
"Oh, I first came to the capital some time ago and met Brother Zhu at the post station." Yang Jisheng said lightly.
"Thank you, Brother Yang, for that day. Otherwise, I would have to sleep in the wilderness again." Zhu Pingan stood up from his chair and thanked Yang Jisheng again. Really, the post station was high and low that day. If it weren't for Yang Jisheng, I would have to sleep in the wilderness. It was really not easy to find an inn at that time.
"It's just a small favor, don't be polite, Brother Zhu." Yang Jisheng didn't take what happened that day to heart.
"Oh. That's my fault. Zhongfang and Ping'an know each other, but I'm afraid you don't. Come, let me introduce you, this is Yang Jisheng, the Deputy Director of the Ministry of War's Chariot and Vehicle Department. His courtesy name is Zhongfang." Xu Jie smiled self-deprecatingly, then pointed at Yang Jisheng and introduced him to Zhang Siwei and Wang Shizhen.
"Zhang Siwei (Wang Shizhen) greets Lord Yang." Zhang Siwei and Wang Shizhen stood up from their chairs and bowed to Yang Jisheng.
"I have heard of Lord Yang's great name for a long time. That day, Lord Yang submitted a memorial to impeach Qiu Luan. We all regard Lord Yang as a role model." Zhang Siwei went on to say, praising Yang Jisheng highly.
"So is Shizhen." Wang Shizhen had even greater respect for Yang Jisheng.
"Not worthy of it. I am just fulfilling my duty as a subject." Yang Jisheng shook his head slightly, and then said, "Don't call me sir. I am older than you. You and Brother Zhu should just call me Brother Yang."
"Thank you, Brother Yang."
Zhang Siwei and Wang Shizhen really admired Yang Jisheng. When Yang Jisheng was demoted to Didao Dianshi for impeaching Qiu Luan for opening a horse market, the two of them spoke frankly to Yang Jisheng and praised him highly. Now that Yang Jisheng asked them to call him "big brother", they naturally would not refuse.
After Xu Jie introduced Yang Jisheng, he pointed to the handsome guy to his lower right and introduced him to Zhu Ping'an, Zhang Siwei and Wang Shizhen: "This is Zhang Juzheng, the editor of the Hanlin Academy. His courtesy name is Shuda. He was admitted as a Jinshi in the same class as Zhongfang, one class earlier than you."
Zhang Juzheng?!
When Zhu Pingan heard the three words "Zhang Juzheng", he felt as if he was struck by lightning. Damn, this handsome guy with balm on, this guy who he almost ordered a curry for gay, turned out to be Zhang Juzheng!!!
If this talented person knew that he almost categorized him as a soap-picking enthusiast, his career would be in trouble.
Zhang Siwei, Wang Shizhen and Zhu Ping'an were different. When they heard Xu Jie introduce Zhang Juzheng, they did not feel much. It was almost like when we hear our tutor introduce a senior brother, "Oh, senior brother," that's it.
Yang Jisheng dared to speak out and advise General Qiu Luan, who was at the peak of his power and had a large army under his command. This kind of courage made Zhang Siwei and Wang Shizhen a great senior.
Compared with Yang Jisheng, Zhang Juzheng was not well-known and was not a prominent figure. For them, Zhang Juzheng's current title of editor of the Hanlin Academy was attractive. The Hanlin Academy was a place for cultivating talents and raising their profile. In the Ming Dynasty, there was a convention that only Jinshi could enter the Hanlin Academy and only Hanlin could enter the cabinet. However, despite this, there were many people in the Hanlin Academy, and not everyone could make a name for themselves.
Zhang Siwei and Wang Shizhen were not as knowledgeable about history as Zhu Ping'an, so they were respectful but not admiring Zhang Juzheng as introduced by Xu Jie.
"Meet Master Zhang."
So, after Xu Jie finished the introduction, the two of them stood up from their chairs and bowed to Zhang Juzheng.
"Meet Master Zhang."
Zhu Ping'an was a little late. He only reacted and stood up to greet Zhang Juzheng after Zhang Siwei and Wang Shizhen saluted Zhang Juzheng.
Zhang Juzheng could see clearly the difference between the attitudes of Zhang Siwei, Wang Shizhen and Zhu Pingan, who was distracted and arrived a beat late, when they greeted him and when they greeted Yang Jisheng. He was extremely intelligent himself and could guess the reason for their difference.
But they are just superficial people!
Zhang Juzheng was very shrewd. He knew what was going on in his mind, but he didn't show it on his face. He stood up from his chair with a slight smile and said, "You're welcome. Just call me uncle." (To be continued.)