The sun was high in the sky, the sunlight was warm, and golden rays were shining on the world. Outside the Linhuai Marquis Mansion, a large sedan chair carried by four people was parked steadily outside the door. It had a silver top and a black cover, and a big "Yan" character embroidered in gold thread on the curtain of the sedan chair.
Zhu Ping'an followed the steward out of the Linhuai Marquis Mansion and was shocked by the sedan chair at first sight. This sedan chair carried by four people was a treatment only third-rank officials could enjoy. He was a commoner without any official position, so why would Yan Shifan send someone to pick him up in this sedan chair
The frame-up shouldn't be so blatant, right?! A smart man like Yan Shifan shouldn't be so stupid, right?!
"Sir, please get in the sedan chair. The palace examination will be held tomorrow. Our master is afraid that you will be tired and your performance will be affected, so he sent his sedan chair to pick you up." Seeing that Zhu Ping'an looked confused, the steward stepped forward to answer his questions immediately. He stood respectfully in front of the sedan chair, pulled open the curtain, and half-bowed to invite Zhu Ping'an to get in the sedan chair.
When enemies come, we will fight them; when water comes, we will block it with earth. Now that things have come to this, Zhu Ping'an is no longer polite. He has never sat in a sedan chair carried by four people.
So, Zhu Ping'an bowed his hands and thanked him, then bent over and got on the sedan chair. After Zhu Ping'an got on the sedan chair, the steward waved his hand, and then the four burly men standing on both sides of the sedan chair bent over and lifted up the sedan chair, and went steadily all the way to the east.
Zhu Pingan took out the white jade hairpin from his sleeve while sitting in the sedan chair. This white jade hairpin was a crown hairpin. In ancient times, people followed the local customs in clothing and hairstyle. When wearing a crown, they would use a crown hairpin to fix their hair. Zhu Pingan bought this when he accompanied Zhang Siwei and others to visit the capital. This crown hairpin was made of silver inlaid with jade. The white jade was carved into a roaring tiger, and a silver stick was swallowed in the tiger's mouth. The two were combined to form this crown hairpin. At that time, there were also gold inlaid jade hairpins in the store. The reason why Zhu Pingan bought this silver inlaid with jade was mainly because it was cheap.
Now I wear this hairpin because I value its silver probe. I always see ancient people using silver to test poison in TV dramas and novels. I think most of the poisons used by ancient people can be tested with silver, at least most of them. Yan Shifan's meal is definitely not a good one. If there is poison, I dare not take the risk. Although Yan Shifan should not be so blatant to poison at the banquet, what if there is a chronic poison or a strange poison? It is better to test the poison with silver to be prepared.
The feeling of riding in a sedan chair is not good, it is bumpy up and down. It is more uncomfortable than riding a horse, and is far less comfortable than modern means of transportation. The speed is not very fast either, because it is carried by people, so how fast can it be? There are probably two reasons why the ancients liked to ride in sedan chairs. One is to save effort, and the other is probably the sense of superiority of privilege.
The journey seemed a bit far. After sitting in the sedan chair for about an hour, they had not yet reached their destination. Zhu Pingan was bored sitting in the sedan chair. He reviewed the top scholar's essay that he had reviewed a few days ago, and studied the questions given by the emperor at that time and the historical background at that time.
When Zhu Ping'an had tried to finish a policy essay, the sedan finally stopped.
"Mr. Zhu. We've arrived at Zhuangyuan Building." The steward's voice came from outside the sedan chair, reminding Zhu Ping'an that they had arrived at their destination.
"Thank you." After getting off the sedan chair, Zhu Ping'an bowed to the people carrying the sedan chair to express his gratitude.
This is the Zhuangyuan Building. Zhu Ping'an also heard of this restaurant for the first time. He had never heard of it before. This Zhuangyuan Building is three stories high. It is tall and majestic, a bit like a palace. It is made of three materials: brick, stone and wood. The carved railings, jade masonry and glazed tiles are wafted in the wind. The aroma of tea and wine blows in the air. The Zhuangyuan Building does not have the atmosphere of a champion, but instead has a luxurious atmosphere.
The Zhuangyuan Building was probably newly built not long ago, and it does not have a sense of historical accumulation. I don’t know how this building dares to be called the Zhuangyuan Building!
The steward led the way and took Zhu Ping'an into the Zhuangyuan Building.
"Welcome Master Zhu, and wish you success in the imperial examination."
As soon as Zhu Ping'an stepped into Zhuangyuan Building, he heard uniform female voices. Then he saw eight maids in gorgeous palace costumes kneeling and bowing to him in unison. It was obvious at a glance that they were well-trained.
"Hahaha, Zihou is here, come upstairs quickly, Brother Donglou has been waiting for you for a long time." A man came down the stairs and greeted Zhu Ping'an.
By the way, didn't Luo Longwen catch me and scold me at the last banquet? Why is he so enthusiastic now? It's so fake, with a smile on his face, as if I know him very well and have a good relationship with him.
Sure enough, today’s banquet is not a good one!
Zhu Pingan was convinced of this from Luo Longwen's smile. If he could make someone who always disliked him smile, it must be that today's banquet would achieve the result he wanted. The result he wanted was that Ouyang Zishi would be the top scorer in the imperial examination, and as for me, Zhu Pingan, I would be fine.
Then
"Hehe, hello, Lord Luo. I haven't seen you for a few days. It feels like a long time. For the past few days, Lord Luo's voice and smile have been echoing in Ping An's mind. Lord Luo came to meet me today, and Ping An is overwhelmed with fear."
Zhu Ping'an bowed to Luo Longwen with a silly smile on his face. The smile on his face was several times brighter than Luo Longwen's, as if Luo Longwen was a relative he hadn't seen for many years. His words were also quite sincere and came from the bottom of his heart.
Then, the smile on Luo Longwen's face became a little stiff, and he felt that the smile on Zhu Ping'an's face was too dazzling.
Voice, appearance and smile!
This is used to describe the remembrance of the deceased! Did you do it on purpose or unintentionally? However, looking at Zhu Ping'an's sincere smile, Luo Longwen felt that the word "Zhu Ping'an's voice, appearance and smile" was just a misuse. Zhu Ping'an's performance in Yan's mansion that day was not righteous and proud, and his words and deeds seemed quite sensible. However, would the problem of using the wrong word happen to Huiyuan
But for today's matter, let it go. He dared not ruin Donglou's business. The smile returned to Luo Longwen's face.
"Look at what Zihou said. Come upstairs quickly. Today we are here to cheer you up for the palace examination. You are the protagonist. Brother Donglou and the others have been waiting for you for a long time." Luo Longwen invited with a smile.
"Sir Luo, please come in first." Zhu Ping'an stood in front of the stairs, bowed to Luo Longwen with a smile on his face, and was very respectful to Luo Longwen.
"please"
"please"
The two of them politely gave way to each other again, and then Luo Longwen went upstairs first, followed by Zhu Pingan.
"Haha, our Zhuangyuanlang is here, please take your seat quickly and tell the waiter to serve the wine and food." A one-eyed fat man who was surrounded by people on the second floor of Zhuangyuan Building saw Zhu Pingan, stood up with a hearty smile, invited Zhu Pingan to take his seat, and then told the waiter to start serving the food.
"Master Yan is so kind, I am so overwhelmed." Zhu Ping'an bowed and stepped forward, sincerely apologizing to Yan Shifan and the others, "I am sorry to have kept you waiting for so long, I am sorry."
In addition to Yan Shifan and Luo Longwen, there were five other people on the second floor of the Zhuangyuan Building. Yan's family had some impression of them from the last time, but they were not sure who they were exactly, but they were certain that they were all members of the Yan Party.
...