The Jiade Hall has a diligent room, which is different from the Guozijian, for the children of the Zhao Ting clan in Liyang to study. Because the princes of the same lineage, except for the prince of the East Palace, all need to be crowned kings and go to other places when they grow up, so the diligent room is mostly in Jingjun. The place where princes and daughters learn and teach, and a few descendants of princes who have been entrusted with meritorious service can also enter this place known as the small royal study, which is regarded as a family honor. Industrious house, Fu Shaobao, two general leaders, Xuezheng, and more than 20 other masters with aloof status, who taught Confucian classics respectively, and each of them was appointed by the emperor as a separate mentor for a prince or grandson. It is not the dynasty's contemporary literary giants and Confucians, but occasionally the Dahuangmen with profound knowledge and high morals come to give lectures. The group of sons and grandsons of the dragon and the sons of the honored nobles entered the diligent house at the age of ninety, entered and exited, and lived for five hours every day, day after day, year after year, until they were married and ennobled. Read a lot. This tradition, from the first emperor to today, has been unshakable for twenty years. Moreover, the rules and regulations of the Diligent Room are complicated and extremely strict. Students who enter the school do not hold fans in summer and do not add charcoal in winter. At that time, the first emperor who won the world immediately wrote the plaque "Respect the teacher and respect the way" to warn future generations. Today's son wrote the couplet "Stand up with sincerity, study and understand" and hang on both sides, except for the prince Zhao Kai who has an obscure origin, including the prince Zhao Kai. All the children, including the prince of seal script Zhao Wu, have spent a long time in the diligent room. If Huang Menlang in the capital is said to have a detached status and is expected to be a marquis in the future, then the lecturer in the diligent room is even more so. The well-deserved mainstay of the Qing Dynasty is already the leader of the dragon, and has the reputation of "quasi-emperor teacher". As for the two positions of Shaobao and Shaofu, they have always been real, one person is false, and the two masters of the Song family have dominated the literary world for 30 years. This is still hard to come by. The previous young Fu Ma Rong was the mentor of the former emperor and the current emperor. He was not well-known outside the capital. However, when Ma Rong died of illness four years ago, His Majesty the Emperor and the Empress personally went to the mourning hall of Ma Mansion to wear hemp and mourning , for a night of vigil.
After Ma Rong's death, the positions of Shaofu and Shaobao were both vacant, and the honorable families of Tai'an City believed that Qiyang Longhui, who had just entered the capital, would temporarily serve as the Shaobao, as a transitional position between the past and the future, and then became the official leader of the Liyang Dynasty in one fell swoop. , but a "young man" who is not qualified for his qualifications and reputation suddenly broke into everyone's eyes and won the position of Shaobao. Far from being as eye-catching as the top three, he entered the Imperial Academy and served as the Huangmen Lang, and he was equally tepid. It was not until he became the living man of the Imperial Study in the Imperial Palace that he was scrutinized by the big figures in the capital, but it was only limited to this. , but then this person was quietly promoted to the doctor of the Kaogong Division, assisted the official minister Zhao Youling and the old boss "Chuxiang" Yin Maochun, and successively participated in the Beijing inspection and the local appraisal. No big deal, this scholar who can be regarded as a young man in the temple is really amazing. During the three-year Beijing inspection, this person still does not show his mountains and dews, but in the southward evaluation, this person's He was really ruthless. He took off the official hats of Pingzhou governor and six county guards in one go. It only took three months. He was quickly transferred back to the capital, otherwise the government and the public firmly believed that this person would die in the south. en route. So much so that when he broke the rules and became a hard-working housekeeper, most people became a little numb. This person's promotion route in the officialdom was too remote and hidden, and he never had the opportunity to give others a cold heart. In the end, they only knew that he was going In the past few years, she married an unknown princess. She is a relative of the emperor, neither big nor small. Even drinking flower wine did not happen once.
Few interested people went deep to ask the bottom line, and when they learned the truth, they became more and more confused. Is this person from Beiliang? Originally, it was surprising that the imperial court produced a prosperous Jin Sanlang, but unexpectedly, this son's momentum was even more powerful. It should be known that Jin Lanting's advancement was not very glorious. It is said that he first relied on an old King Liang's recommendation letter entered the officialdom in the capital, and later he squeezed into the officialdom with the elegant game of Lanting Shuxuan. As a fellow countryman of Guozijian You Jijiu, he has a clean background and a clean path to advancement. As a princess, there has never been any gossip about the value of husbands and wives in these years. And these years in the capital, whether it is the short-lived Huang Menlang of the Imperial Academy, the longest-lived Donggong Shishang, or the more short-lived Living Lang, he is always regarded as a scholar who is quite close to the emperor's family. I am afraid that even if he I shouted all over the street that I was the death of Beiliang, but no one wanted to believe it.
He is Chen Wang, a scholar who was born in a poor family in Beiliang.
Of course, everyone in the capital should honorably call him "Chen Shaobao".
Today, the diligent room is only at 3 o'clock, and the sky is still dark, and it is already full of books. Students over the age of 15 are enrolled in Shangfang, and the age division of women is calculated separately. They can only drop out of school until they get married and get the approval of the tutor. Today is Confucianism Day, and there is an elder in each of the three rooms citing the Confucian classics of Zhang Shengren, the degree of difficulty will naturally vary. Outside the servant room of the diligent room, there stood a "young scholar" in a purple robe and a mutton jade belt bestowed by the emperor. It is not allowed to wear mink hats and fur coats in the room, and it is the same in the bitter winter. At this time, there is only a small copper stove in the room under the master's lecture. The children of the family are no different when they study in a private school. Most of them have red cheeks and cowering hands and feet. Taking advantage of the gap between the master's reading, he quickly lowered his head and took a breath of hot air on his frozen fingers. Outside the house, besides this scholar who is dressed in a special way and is quite unfamiliar to ordinary people, there is also an old eunuch in the palace who can wear a big red python robe, standing cautiously outside. It's no wonder that he has to keep an eye on the hardworking room to prevent any accidents, but he has been standing here for more than ten years, and he has changed seven or eight robes. Strict, how can there be any accidents? No matter how domineering the Zhao family's children are when they walk out from here as adults, when they are studying, who doesn't stand respectfully like him, while they sit there obediently, studying and endorsing? Rao Zhao Wu and Zhao Fengya are well-known princes and princesses, as long as they enter the hardworking room and sit down, they all behave with their tails between their legs. The old eunuch looked outside the house. After the winter in the yard, there was an extra big red lantern hanging on the branch. He sighed quietly. He heard that it was not peaceful outside. The remaining thieves on Guangling Road found a man named Jiang from somewhere. The little girl said that the country will be restored when the country is restored, and many old guys in the palace who escaped from the Xichu Palace are now terrified. I mistakenly think that I have a stagnant heart and drink to relieve my sorrow. It seems that the big and small barbarians in the west are not stopping, the big barbarian Bei Mang is going to make trouble, and the little barbarian Bei Liang is also making trouble. He has seen some storms in his life, but he just doesn't understand that these guys are living in peace. What are you fussing about? Even the lord Chief Assistant is obsessed with ghosts, you said that you, Bi Yan, are not as old as an eunuch like me, but you have already become so old as an eunuch, why are you still not satisfied? Isn't this clearly a suicide attempt? The old eunuch is not here
At this time, a small figure appeared on tiptoe outside the courtyard, trotting in with a cat waist, and when he saw the old eunuch who looked like a door god, he immediately felt like a concubine, and the old man only dared to smile in his heart. , but he is also very pampered, but this child has always been a doormat in the servant room. After all, the title of Feng Junwang can scare people outside the palace, but no one really takes it seriously here, and the little guy is weak. , and soft-tempered, he was bullied all day long and dared not go home to complain to his elders, even if he put on a pair of festive new boots, he would be trampled into old ones by those naughty bastards, the old eunuch has seen it several times The child hid under the courtyard wall and cried disfigured. He looked at the sickly pale little face of the child, and the pitiful appearance of covering his mouth desperately so as not to cough out loud. Although the old eunuch felt a little distressed, how could he, an eunuch, dare to violate the rules set by the late emperor? He was demoted twice, and then three times, until there was no more to be demoted, and he was directly expelled from the diligent house. About ten years ago, in the hands of His Majesty the Emperor, there was a lawless old prince who was the eldest grandson of Du Miao, and was directly demoted to the status of a commoner. You must know that the prince and the first emperor are still brothers of the same country, and even uncles of the current emperor!
The old eunuch stopped the sweaty grandson of King Fengjun, and said with a cold face: "If the miscellaneous family remembers correctly, this is the second time you have been late. You go in first, the miscellaneous family will record it, and then hand it over to the patriarch government."
The child coughed and said intermittently: "Grandpa Liu, I really didn't mean to be late... I, I got a cold..."
The old eunuch waved his hand, not wanting to listen to the child's excuses. The emperor's family matters are not big or small. This is the truth taught by the seniors in the palace to the juniors with countless bloody facts. He is just a slave, why bother
At this moment, the old eunuch noticed a dazzling purple around him. He was even more surprised when he came back to his senses and was about to salute when the man shook his head with a smile. Can bend down a lot. The scholar in the purple robe and jade belt walked up to the old man, took the cold little hand of the child who was afraid to cry, and with a little force, opened his five fingers, only to find that they were coughing up blood. The scholar glanced at the teary-eyed child, smiled softly, patted his head, and without speaking, took his other hand and crossed the threshold of the lower room. The speaker in the room was an old scholar who was born in the literary world. Mingsu glanced at the scholar's robe, then at the late boy, showing displeasure on his face, but no matter how far this literary figure is from the gossip of the officialdom, after all, he still has some fear of the deep meaning of that purple robe, stop After reading, he stretched out his hand to grab a bamboo whip from the desk, and said to the child with a straight face, "Zhao Li, stretch out your hand."
The child was about to go forward to accept the punishment, but the thirteen-year-old scholar said warmly: "Han Jiangdu, Zhao Li arrived late not because he was naughty, but because he had a cold and coughed up blood at a young age, so he insisted on entering the room to study." , after all, the situation is justifiable, and the clan mansion's demotion is unavoidable, but can this bamboo punishment be avoided?"
The old pedant snorted coldly, "Exempt from the bamboo punishment? How decent is it?!"
The scholar still smiled lightly and said: "The law is nothing more than human feelings."
The old pedant glanced sideways at this late student who was "a latecomer living far away", and said with a sneer, "Law, emotion, reason, which of the three is greater and lesser, even Qi Dajiu does not dare to speak nonsense. where?"
Chen Wang, who was destined to become the first Shaobao master in the Xiangfu years, said calmly: "The younger generation is self-taught, and there is no teacher. It's just that Chen Wang secretly believes that as long as there is a truth, it doesn't matter how big or small it is. Confucian Zhang Shengren said Emperors, princes and ministers say it, as do traffickers and pawns."
The Master Han sneered and said, "Then Han must ask one more question. Anyone can tell the truth, but who can prove it?"
Chen Wang laughed softly and said, "It's nothing more than the four characters of the conscience of heaven and earth. The sky is fair, and the earth is sympathetic. The two are not mistaken. People are not grass and trees, so how can they be ruthless? People are not beasts, how can they lose the heart of compassion? "
Mr. Han's face was ashen, and he held tightly the bamboo whip that had beaten the palms of countless dragon sons and grandsons. Others would respect you if they followed suit. I, Han Yusheng, don't take you, a barbarian from Beiliang, seriously!
The old pedant was about to get angry when he suddenly found a distinguished guest wearing a bright yellow python robe standing at the door. He quickly put down his bamboo whip and got up to bow. .
Zhao Zhuan laughed and said, "It's a sin to bother Han about his education. There is one thing that needs to be explained to Han. On the way for Zhao Li's little nephew to come to the diligent room, I held him back for a long time and asked him how he was. When the time comes, I will personally go to the clan's mansion to inform. As for the bamboo punishment, if Han Daodu is afraid of breaking the rules, I will punish Xiao Li'er. Besides, this child suffers from the cold very badly, and I I also want to tell Han that reading is important, but after all, the body is the top priority. It doesn't matter if we read and study, it doesn't matter if you read dead books. Humans are not beautiful..."
Han Yusheng hurriedly smiled and said, "Your Highness is serious, you are serious."
His Royal Highness came to intercede, Han Yusheng didn't dare to care about every detail, he didn't feel that he was insulting gentlemen, he only thought that Zhang Shengren would act like himself when he was alive.
Well, didn't Chen Shaobao say before that law is nothing more than human feelings.
Zhao Zhuan rubbed Zhao Li's little head, and said with a smile, don't forget to ask your aunt for more sweets, and then let the old eunuch lead Zhao Li to an imperial doctor. He walked with Chen Wang on the dark path, and after a moment of silence, he joked: "Chen Wang, it seems that you are not going well as a young guard."
Chen Wang laughed it off.
Zhao Zhuan stopped, looked at this guy, and asked seriously: "It is said that one side of water and soil nurtures one side of people, but you and our tough Jin Sanlang are both from Beiliang, why are you so different? "
Chen Wang hesitated for a moment, shook his head and laughed at himself: "There is a difference between water and soil in one side, and I think that when I, Chen Wang, was practicing calligraphy in the snow with firewood, Master You Jijiu was thinking about how to make high-quality rice paper. "
Zhao Zhuan said helplessly: "With your temperament, who would dare to let you be released as a magistrate."
The "who" obviously does not refer to it in general, but refers specifically to him, His Royal Highness, who can even supervise the country.
Chen Wang smiled and said, "If it's released, I'll be a county magistrate if I'm exhausted. If the official hat is bigger, it will really be difficult to wear it."
Zhao Zhuan patted him on the shoulder, "Think I'm stupid, would I be willing to be overqualified?"
Chen Wang didn't answer.
Zhao Zhuan suddenly asked: "How do you evaluate Lord Shoufu and Qi Jijiu?"
Chen Wang said bluntly without the slightest bit of taboo: "Zhang Julu is a man who is harsh and fearsome, like a scorching summer. Qi Yanglong is a man who is gentle and lovely, like a warm winter. Both of them are close to each other no matter their ability to govern the country or their own integrity A saint. It is my honor, Chen Wang, to be an official with them."
Zhao Zhuan sighed: "It's a pity that one mountain cannot accommodate two tigers."
Zhao Zhuan quickly smiled and said, "Wang Xionggui, Minister of the Household Department, may go to Guangling Road to serve as an economic envoy. Do you have any thoughts on the vacant position? This small temple, Yin Maochun, is absolutely despised. You Don't worry about arguing with him."
Zhao Youling, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, Bai Guo, Minister of the Ministry of Rites, and Wang Xionggui, Minister of the Ministry of Households.
In addition to a prime minister, Yin Maochun, who was once the favorite student of the first assistant Zhang Julu and Tan Tanweng, after careful calculation, now it has been reduced to only Wang Xionggui, who is recognized as the least talented among the four sons of Yonghui, who is still insisting on being the master of Zhang Lu. Support the facade.
It sounded like even Wang Xionggui was going to leave, and he was going to be the envoy of the Guangling Daoist Economic Commissioner, which is a big joke in the world. The implication of the imperial court is that even the blind should understand.
To kill Feihu, cut off the wings first!
Chen Wang just shook his head and didn't speak.
Zhao Zhuan hummed, and reflected on himself: "I was too hasty. I didn't help you, but made you a target of public criticism. Half a hundred miles away!"
Zhao Zhuan seemed to be talking to himself, "Father patrolled the border quietly, just procrastinating like this, delaying the court meeting, doesn't seem to be a problem."
Chen Wang, who was once commented by Ma Rong as "knowledgeable and conscientious", did not say those two words.
But Zhao Zhuan looked at the pale sky in the east, his eyes were already quietly hot.
Supervise the country.
After Zhao Zhuan looked away, it was His Highness the Crown Prince who was gentle and gentleman like jade again, and said with a smile, "I heard that Mr. Yuan traveled all over the world, and he brought someone with him."
Chen Wang asked: "Can you say?"
Zhao Zhuan smiled helplessly and said, "Why don't you and I talk about it? That person is Song Keli, the young phoenix of the Song family who is regarded as a phoenix in distress."
Chen Wang wondered: "Isn't Song Keli a county magistrate in an upper county north of the Guangling River? This person has made a lot of achievements in suppressing bandits. This outstanding achievement was just deliberately suppressed by the superiors."
Zhao Zhuan took a deep look at Chen Shaobao, then squinted his eyes with a smile, and pointed at this cautious guy with a tight mouth, "Pretend, continue to pretend. Others don't know Mr. Yuan's plan, You, Chen Wang, will miss the point? The Song family was destroyed in an instant, what happened on the surface and what happened under the table, the old foxes in the first five or six rows of the temple, in fact, most of them can see 'one clear', but they can see 'two Chu' Yes, there are not many, Mr. Shoufu and Yin Maochun must be counted as two, and even if there is only one person left, there must be you, Chen Wang."
Chen Wang didn't admit anything, but he didn't deny anything either.
Zhao Zhuan said with emotion in a low voice: "Yin Maochun, Bai Guo, and Song Dongming were all the hidden candidates in Mr. Yuan's favor. Even if the latter two are out, Yin Maochun should be the next chief assistant no matter how you look at it." , I didn’t expect Song Keli to be robbed in the end without making a sound.”
Chen Wang hesitated for a moment, and said, "Mr. Yuan chose Song Keli, but Mr. Shoufu also made a choice."
Zhao Zhuan was really ignorant of this matter, very curious and said: "It must not be Wang Xionggui, nor Zhao Youling, who could it be?"
Chen Wang said calmly: "The Minister of Rites, Bai Guo."
Zhao Zhuan laughed subconsciously, apparently not believing this ridiculous statement: "Baiguo? Impossible, impossible, although Baiguo has a good reputation in the government and the public, especially in the official circles of the capital, everyone is close to him, I also quite appreciate this He is a bohemian and extremely talented minister of the Ministry of Rites, but if you say that Zhang Julu, after more than ten years of selection and selection, finally chose Baiguo, which he gave up once, as the next owner of that Gulu, I wouldn't believe it if he was killed. !"
Chen Wang said indifferently: "The lower officials can't really beat His Highness to death."
Zhao Zhuan was stunned for a moment, and then burst out laughing. In his heart, Chen Wang was an old man who never joked. This sentence really made him grow up. Just after laughing, Zhao Zhuan began to think.
In order to pave the way for himself, it is not an exaggeration to describe the father as exhaustive and painstaking. Among them, the most headache and pain for the father is undoubtedly the blue eyes of the prime minister. After Zhao Zhuan himself recognized the merits of Mr. Shoufu, he absolutely did not like Zhang Julu at all. Zhao Zhuan, the fourth prince before His Royal Highness, is extremely jealous of this chief assistant who has no selfish desires even though he is in power. If Zhang Julu is just a Confucian sage who devotes himself to learning, the worst thing is that he will be made into a statue by the court as a god. The altar is placed beside Zhang Shengren, which is very simple, but Zhang Julu is different. He puts more emphasis on merit than knowledge, and is a typical powerful minister. Deep down in Zhao Zhuan's heart, he felt that Zhang Julu was a living dead without the slightest trace of life, and wished he could stay away from him with respect.
If Zhang Julu really chose Bai Guo, the proud student of the past, as Chen Wang said, as the "tomb guard" after his death, then Zhao Zhuan would have to carefully weigh the pros and cons.
Song Keli, whose wings need many years to plump up, will be easily dealt with by Zhao Zhuan in the future even if he has no wrists.
This is just foresight.
Because every new emperor is never afraid of any new courtiers, but only those old courtiers.
Obviously, Baiguo may become a serious problem that is close at hand.
This is near worry.
Chen Wang didn't disturb His Highness the Crown Prince's trance, waited for a while, and seeing that he still hadn't recovered, he turned back and left lightly.
After a long time, Zhao Zhuan opened his arms and stretched comfortably, turned his head to look, but did not see Chen Wang.
Zhao Zhuan left alone.
It was also dawn.