Rong Tang spent a long time silently recalling the past while drinking tea.
He and Lu Jiaxi were not close friends. Linyuan Academy was the most famous academy in Dayu. It recruited students every spring, and the enrollment range included common students, descendants of merchants, and descendants of royal families. It could be said that as long as one was sincere in learning and had some qualifications and passed the entrance examination, one would not be rejected.
In every dynasty and generation, there will be top scholars coming from Linyuan Academy. In the hearts of scholars all over the world, the status of Linyuan Academy is comparable to Mount Tai.
In the eighth year of the Qingzheng reign, Lu Jiaxi entered Linyuan Academy, in the ninth year of the Qingzheng reign, he participated in his first flower-picking event, and in the tenth year of the Qingzheng reign, he took part in the imperial examination.
Rong Tang vaguely remembered that he was a second-class Jinshi, entered the Hanlin Academy as a Shujishi, and was later transferred to the Ministry of Rites in the eleventh year of Qingzheng.
In the previous two lives, the case of Ding Laibao had not occurred, and there was no chivalrous man offering a tiger. Emperor Renshou did not promise a place in the Imperial Academy as a prize for this flower-picking meeting. Rong Tang originally thought that Lu Jiaxi was just a junior of Ke Hongxue who came to get some points.
In this life, the first person in the Zhehua Society can directly enter the Hanlin Academy as a scholar; the one who reported Ding Laibao to the authorities was Lu Jiaxi, a young master of a merchant family who went out of town to study; Su Huaijing wrote in his own handwriting that he had been to Lu's Bookstore...
What a coincidence.
It was such a coincidence that Rong Tang couldn't help but suspect that Lu Jiaxi was Su Huaijing's man. And in previous lives, the male protagonist might not know how many such small characters behind the scenes were actually big villains.
If this is really the case... Rong Tang felt an indescribable palpitation, but it was not nervousness, but admiration that made his blood surge.
It is really interesting to witness your previous failures from a different perspective.
Rong Tang put down the teacup. He and Su Huaijing did not respond to Ke Hongxue. The latter raised his eyes and stared at him with a smile. Rong Tang could do nothing about it and said, "A few days ago, I asked my brother to go to Lu's Bookstore to buy two inkstones for Huaijing. They were very good, so I asked this question."
Lu Jiaxi hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "It is an honor for my family to be loved by the prince. If the prince does not mind, I will send the four treasures of the study, pens, inkstones, and inkstones to the Ningxuan Palace regularly in the future."
Rong Tang had never seen anyone so eager to give money. He choked a little and said, "Don't bother, Master Lu. I'm not in good health and can't sit at my desk all the time. I don't need those treasures. As for the writing materials that Huai Jing needs, they have been paid for by my half brother. There's really no need to trouble Master Lu again."
The people in the red-painted building looked at each other, and Lu Jiaxi said a few polite words. Su Huaijing had already peeled half a plate of after-meal fruit and handed it to Rong Tang with a smile: "Tangtang, eat some fruit."
Rong Tang glanced at him, and thinking about the presence of outsiders, he didn't say much. He ate two lychees, leaned lazily on the railing, looked into the distance, casually taking in the scenery of Songyuan, and didn't pay too much attention to their conversation.
The team is still short of one member, but Lu Jiaxi should have asked about it long ago. Because of Rong Tang, Su Huaijing would not take the initiative to ask about Sheng Chengli's whereabouts.
As for Rong Tang, he would be crazy to care about the hero.
He just casually asked the system: "How is the male protagonist in this world chosen? Is it entirely because of the author's preference?"
When Rong Tang was a reader, his perspective followed the author's arrangement throughout the story, and he didn't think about whether the protagonist had chosen the wrong person. After crossing in, the system task was hanging in front of him, and he didn't have the time and energy to think about it.
But now that he had some free time, Rong Tang suddenly became very curious.
Judging from every clue, whether in terms of background or character, Su Huaijing is clearly more suitable to be the protagonist than Sheng Chengli.
Lu Jiaxi is not a particularly important character. Even his going to the Ministry of Rites was suggested by Mu Jingxu and Ke Hongxue. He did help the male protagonist with some things in the later period. Logically speaking, he should not be Su Huaijing's person.
Rong Tang frowned slightly when he thought of this, and became a little doubtful.
What if Lu Jiaxi was indeed a minor figure in the male protagonist's camp because of Ke Hongxue in his previous two lives
So was it the butterfly effect brought about by the Shen Feiyi incident or some other reason that caused him and Su Huaijing to intersect in this life
He was lost in thought and didn't notice that the conversation had died down. Su Huaijing came over, picked up a white, tender and juicy lychee with a small fork, and brought it to Rong Tang's mouth: "Tangtang, ah—"
Rong Tang opened his mouth subconsciously, and a sweet and cool taste entered his mouth. He blinked his eyes lightly, his teeth began to chew mechanically, and he looked up at Su Huaijing.
"What are you thinking about?" Su Huaijing asked.
I was wondering what your relationship is with Lu Jiaxi.
Rong Tang looked at him for a while, then turned his head and spit the lychee pit in his mouth into his hand, and asked, "Didn't you write to me before saying that you bought a few storybooks for me? Did you bring them to Songyuan this time?"
Su Huaijing paused for a moment, then smiled with curved eyebrows: "I brought it here. Do you want to see it today?"
Rong Tang nodded: "Yeah, I'm too lazy to go out."
"Okay, I'll give it to you later." Su Huaijing said.
Ke Hongxue spoke up at the right time: "If the prince doesn't leave the courtyard, can you lend us your wife?"
Rong Tang glared at him and was about to speak up, but he caught a glimpse of Mu Jingxu frowning slightly, and his desire to scold Ke Hongxue disappeared.
Why scold him? Someone will take care of his outspokenness.
Lu Jiaxi said cautiously, "Why don't I write a poem? Before the meeting, the teacher at the academy tested our knowledge and gave us a poem with the theme of peony."
Rong Tang caught the key words: "Peony? On the first day of the flower-picking party, Sheng Chengxing asked questions about peony?"
Lu Jiaxi was stunned for a moment, then said blankly, "Ah? That's right."
Rong Tang didn't say anything. Ke Hongxue smiled and waved her folding fan. She took a lychee from his plate and threw it into her mouth. She said slowly, "How is it? Is the prince interested in leaving the hospital now?"
Rong Tang pursed his lips, feeling a little unhappy.
Emperor Renshou had a full harem, and although he treated the empress with respect and love, Queen Wang was, after all, nearly forty years old, and it would be difficult for her to become pregnant again.
Concubine Hui was domineering and her mother's family was powerful. She gave birth to two princes. A sorcerer even falsely claimed that her youngest son was born with a prosperous emperor star. Although she was not the queen in the palace, she was almost the same.
Peony is the queen of flowers, and peony is the prime minister of flowers. The two easily make people think of the mother of the country and the favorite concubine.
It's not surprising that the theme of Sheng Chengxing's flower picking party is peony, but he actually used peony as the opening, which is really -
Everyone knows Sima Zhao's intention.
Rong Tang's expression turned cold, and Su Huaijing said, "If Tang Tang doesn't want to go out, then don't go. I can go alone."
Rong Tang shook his head: "No, together."
Ke Hongxue immediately smiled: "Come on, let's go and take a look. The performers coming to Lanyue Pavilion today are the most popular opera troupe in Beijing, Ziyu Troupe. I've been thinking about it for a long time."
Rong Tang's momentum, which had just been raised, dissipated for the most part at once, and he looked at Mu Jingxu helplessly.
Mu Jingxu turned his gaze to Ke Hongxue, his eyes filled with a few traces of ice and snow that could freeze people to death. Ke Hongxue noticed the gaze of his senior schoolmate and instantly became timid. He went down from the attic and did not dare to say another word until he took a boat to the island in the middle of the lake.
But when he got off the boat, he heard the sound of opera coming from the Lanyue Pavilion on the shore. He was fine again! She turned her head and looked at him with a sparkling look that Rong Tang was very familiar with in his previous life but had never seen in this life. The meaning in her eyes was self-evident.
: You understand me, right? Bro!
Rong Tang doesn't understand, and Rong Tang doesn't want to understand. Even if Rong Tang understood, he would be led into a trap by you again if he just responded casually.
Tangtang felt sad and silently moved closer to Su Huaijing. Su Huaijing naturally lowered his hand, grabbed Rongtang's finger, and took him to Lanyue Pavilion.
Rong Tang lowered his eyes and glanced at the two people's clasped hands. The villain's white hands, which looked spotless and bloodless, were covered with layers of scars, each of which made him feel both shocked and distressed.
Rong Tang didn’t dare to say for sure whether the dew would cut his fingers, but the mark left by the broken porcelain cup should definitely not appear on Su Huaijing’s hand.
He was clearly panicking, and in order to stop himself, he reached out to grab a pile of broken porcelain pieces without any precautions, causing his palm to get cut.
Rong Tang felt that all the displeasure he had just felt at the teasing of Su Huaijing in the letter had dissipated, and he reached out and grabbed the fingertips that were holding him.
Su Huaijing didn't know what he understood, he just stopped, frowned slightly, and said: "May I ask you two adults, where is the Fifth Prince now, why haven't we met before?"
Rong Tang was stunned and turned his head to look at Su Huaijing, but he could only see his tall and straight features and handsome profile. For a moment, he didn't know what emotion he felt.
Mu Jingxu replied: "The Fifth Prince is not feeling well and is resting in his room. He will not be with us for the next few days."
Su Huaijing's expression relaxed a little. He was about to move forward with Rong Tang, but he saw Ke Hongxue shaking a fan, with an expression like a red-crowned rooster, arrogant and with a slight contempt.
"So I say, you have a really bad eye, Senior Brother. Sheng Chengli has been sick and frightened for the past two months, and we don't know how long he can live. You are the only one who treats him like the apple of your eye."
Lu Jiaxi lowered his head and stared at his toes, not daring to say a word, pretending that he hadn't heard any disrespectful remarks. Su Huaijing's expression was slightly surprised, and his eyes moved between the two of them and then retracted, holding Rong Tang's hand and walking forward.
Only Rong Tang's expression did not change at all, as if he had heard nothing.
Ke Hongxue looks down on the male protagonist. Not only does he look down on Sheng Chengli, he even looks down on all the princes of Emperor Renshou, including Emperor Renshou himself.
Rong Tang had heard this several times, but he was curious and asked him, "Since you don't really obey Sheng Chengli, why do you have to give so much for him?"
Not only did he ask Imperial Tutor Ke to endorse Sheng Chengli, he also spent large amounts of gold and silver to help him build connections. Such a playboy with a head full of romantic thoughts was actually willing to go to the Imperial College and take the position of Junior Tutor to look after the Fifth Prince.
His heart is clear to the sun and the moon, and to the heaven and earth. Everyone has always thought that Ke Hongxue is the most loyal minister under Sheng Chengli. No one would have thought that he doesn't even think highly of the male protagonist.
After hearing his question, Ke Hongxue just smiled, his eyes passed through the sky, and fell on an unknown point among the stars, and asked back: "Who else can I choose besides him?"
The second prince has a master helping him, the third and sixth princes have the support of the Grand Marshal and have no shortage of advisers, the seventh prince is young, and the fourth prince is really useless and can't even get a ticket to succeed the throne.
After much selection, in this huge palace, only Sheng Chengli could be picked out.
Ke Hongxue picked up the wine glass, looked up to the moonlight, and didn't look at Rong Tang. Instead, he smiled and said, "My Lord, I don't know if you still remember that the Dayu Palace ten years ago was just like this night sky, with twinkling stars and bright moonlight."
That was the best of times, an era so great that one could even indulge in dreams just thinking about it. However, it was destroyed forever by a rebellion and no longer exists.
-
It was a beautiful spring day in April. There was wind on the island in the middle of the lake, and the water was rippling. The morning light fell on the lake, reflecting ripples like a mirage.
The sound of opera came from the pavilion. Rong Tang and his group of five walked through the apricot blossom forest and entered the Lanyue Pavilion, where they were led into the building by a servant.
Sheng Chengxing was leaning on the railing on the third floor, looking down at the music being performed on the red stage on the first floor with a smile on his face. His expression was not arrogant, but inexplicably carried a sense of condescension, beyond his reputation as a gentleman and erudite, more like a naughty child who knew he was born in a high position, so he stood on the top of the mountains and overlooked the world.
Rong Tang didn't like him very much. Compared with Sheng Chengming, he even disliked Sheng Chengxing more.
But Sheng Chengxing stood on the railing, his eyes moving aimlessly, and when he caught a glimpse of Rong Tang, he smiled, raised his hand, and mouthed, "Cousin."
There was no choice but for Rong Tang to go up.
Ke Hongxue and Mu Jingxu saluted the Third Prince. Sheng Chengxing didn't even nod his head. He walked to Rong Tang warmly, stopped him from being polite, folded his hands and held his hands, and greeted him in a very intimate manner: "Cousin, are you feeling better? Ayuan told me that you were coming, and I didn't believe it at first. If I had known it was true, I should have informed my father and asked him to send a carriage from the palace to pick you up, so as to save you some hardship on the road."
Rong Tang was unhappy, but said calmly, "Thank you for your concern, Third Prince. Mother knows that I am not in good health, so the carriages and horses I use for traveling are all made of special materials. Although they are not as noble as those used by the royal family, they are far better than most ordinary carriages and horses."
Upon hearing this, Sheng Chengxing's smile faded a little. He didn't know whether it was because Rong Tang had offended him or because of the princess that Master Rong had mentioned inexplicably.
Everyone in the world knows that Princess Ning Xuan is the Queen's biological sister. Rong Tang's words sounded reasonable and neither humble nor arrogant, but he mentioned the Queen's sister in front of Concubine Hui's eldest son. Anyone who thought about it would feel that something was wrong. There are so many taboos in the Royal Family that they are too numerous to count.
The Third Prince can take the initiative to mention the Queen and the Princess to Prince Ningxuan, but if Rong Tang mentions anyone related to Queen Wang to him, Sheng Chengxing will become suspicious.
He couldn't tell whether Rong Tang was just saying it casually or deliberately. The corners of his lips remained in a constant position, his eyes slowly became inquiring, his hands relaxed, he casually picked up a paper fan at his side, unfolded it and shook it gently, saying: "If this is the case, I'm sure the Queen Mother will be relieved."
Sheng Chengxing was originally surrounded by a group of young men who had been shining in the capital in recent days. When they pushed him forward, Rong Yuan stepped forward and bowed to Rong Tang, saying, "Brother."
Rong Tang didn't nod, his eyes fell over. Rong Yuan bowed and stood up without being called. He smiled and said, "Brother, you have been in better health these days. I wonder if you have a good time strolling around Songyuan this time?"
Su Huaijing stood beside Rong Tang and had already grabbed Rong Tang's fingers again. His eyes dropped to hide the gloom under his eyes. His fingertips were slowly but impatiently stroking Rong Tang's hand, as if he wanted to completely replace the marks just left by Sheng Chengxing.
Rong Tang didn't even twitch his hand, letting him go. He just cast his eyes lazily at Rong Yuan and coughed twice. He wasn't too weak, but he wasn't in good shape either. He didn't answer his half-brother's question, but asked, "Have you greeted your sister-in-law?"
Su Huaijing paused slightly, lowered his head, raised his eyebrows, turned his head to glance at his little Bodhisattva, and his unhappy mood was miraculously smoothed out in an instant.
He slowed down his movements and searched the Lanyue Pavilion quietly, trying to find a source of water where he could wash his hands.
Rong Yuan was surprised for a second, then he smiled, clasped his fists again, bowed, and said respectfully: "I wish you all the best, sister-in-law."
Su Huaijing accepted his gift, nodded slightly and returned it without any intention of exchanging pleasantries.
Rong Tang's expression eased a little, and he answered Rong Yuan's question, "We just arrived yesterday afternoon. I was a little sleepy, so I slept for a while. I took a walk around the island in the middle of the lake twice in the evening, and I haven't set foot in other places yet."
Among the three sons of Ning Xuan Wang, the eldest son Rong Tang was a notorious sickly person in Yu Jing. In contrast to his elder brother who was a sickly person, the second son Rong Zheng gradually became a famous person among the sons of Ning Xuan Wang's mansion. So many people thought that after Rong Tang passed away, Ning Xuan Wang's mansion would fall into the hands of Rong Zheng.
People would occasionally mention Rong Zheng when chatting, but rarely mention Rong Yuan.
He completely hid himself under his two brothers, not competing or showing off, like a calm lake.
However, Rong Tang knew clearly that he was not as kind as he appeared. If Rong Zheng was like a reckless and stupid tiger, Rong Yuan was a poisonous snake lurking in the dark and hiding from the environment. He might pounce on the enemy at any time, bite open his blood vessels and inject poison into the body.
Rong Tang didn't like communicating with him, just like he didn't want to chat with Sheng Chengxing. After a few greetings, he said he wanted to leave.
Sheng Chengxing did not stop him, but finally condescended to look at the people behind Rong Tang, and said with a smile: "Mr. Mu and Mr. Ke are both first-class scholars, even my father has praised them. My cousin is with them, it seems that he is determined to win the championship this time?"
Rong Tang said: "I have never been to school. I am just here to make up the numbers. I don't care about this."
Sheng Chengxing asked again: "I saw Fifth Brother's name on the name card handed over this morning. Why isn't he with you guys?"
Rong Tang really didn't want to talk this time. He lowered his eyebrows and leaned towards Su Huaijing in annoyance. So Ke Hongxue stepped forward and smiled and bowed: "To reply to your Highness, the Fifth Prince has just recovered from a serious illness some time ago and has not yet fully recovered. He rushed all the way from the palace and was exhausted on the road. Last night, he was blown by the wind on the lake... and now he is sick again. He is now recuperating in the yard."
"So..." Sheng Chengxing paused, and said, "I really should rest well, otherwise my fifth brother will be critically ill again after returning to the palace after the flower-picking party. If the emperor blames me, I really don't know who to complain to."
He smiled, his eyebrows slightly curved, a gleam of light flashed in his peripheral vision, and asked Ke Hongxue casually: "Master Ke, you are the most idle person, not interested in worldly affairs. Why are you interested in teaming up with the fifth brother this time to get some fame in this world?"
Ke Hongxue closed her fan and begged for mercy, "I didn't want to do this. Before I came here, Grandpa repeatedly reminded me that I am a teacher after all, and if students have no one to rely on, I should be their arm and help them. My senior brother felt sorry for me and took the initiative to accompany me. He also happened to get along well with Master Rong, so we formed a team to avoid being bored. Before the flower picking party was over, I was annoyed by those poems and essays and went back to Fengyue Tower to find Sister Ying and Sister Yan."
Sheng Chengxing was slightly startled, then burst into laughter: "Master Ke is still so humorous and witty when he speaks."
Ke Hongxue smiled and replied, "It is my humble servant's honor to have your Highness smile. However, there is one more thing I would like to ask for your help."
Sheng Chengxing waved his hand and said, "Just say it."
Ke Hongxue said: "I hope that next time His Highness sees my grandfather, you can tell him that I am really a useless idler who can't be anyone's arm. I just want to get drunk in the arms of a beauty and be a romantic wanderer. Don't assign me these thankless tasks anymore."
Sheng Chengxing clapped his hands and laughed when he heard that. He spread out his paper fan and shook his head, saying, "I dare not tell this to the Grand Tutor. If my father knew about it, he would say that I was talking nonsense and offended the Grand Tutor's ears. He might punish me by making me copy Buddhist scriptures to inform the ancestors. It's better for you, the third place winner, to explain to your grandfather yourself."
Ke Hongxue kept pretending to be sad until the group finally separated from Sheng Chengxing.
As soon as Su Huaijing disappeared from the sight of Sheng Chengxing and others, he led Rong Tang to find a water source, lowered his head and quietly wet the handkerchief, carefully and considerately wiping Rong Tang's hands over and over again.
Ke Hongxue put aside his overly contrived expression and watched for a long while as if he was watching some kind of spectacle. When Su Huaijing used a new scented towel to wipe Rong Tang's hands, he could no longer bear it. He took a step forward, bumped Rong Tang's back with his shoulder, and asked, "My Lord, where did you find this wife? She's so gentle and considerate. If you take her out, won't a lot of people be jealous to death?"
The force was not strong, even very light. Perhaps considering that he was a patient, Ke Hongxue even joked appropriately. However, Rong Tang's attention was completely on Su Huaijing's hands, which were still covered with fine scabs and were about to be blistered away by water. In a moment of carelessness, he was knocked forward by him.
Su Huaijing immediately put his arm around Rong Tang's shoulders, looked forward sharply, and stared at Ke Hongxue, without any disguise of casualness and calmness.
Ke Hongxue was startled, realizing that he had made trouble. He immediately took a half step back, straightened his face and apologized: "I was rude and offended the prince. If you two want to punish me, Ke will not argue."
Ke Hongxue's peach-shaped eyes are extremely beautiful. I heard that his mother is an orphan who was rescued by Ke Xuebao when he was doing business in Jiangnan. She has the gentleness and affection of a southern girl, as well as the strength and stubbornness unique to lonely people. Ke Hongxue looks very much like her.
Master Ke usually smiles, and his peach blossom eyes are used to seduce people at a glance, as if they can speak. It is rare for him to be so serious. Rong Tang was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously said: "It's okay."
Su Huaijing was like a beast whose fur had been smoothed. The fierceness in his eyes disappeared in an instant. He raised his hand to smooth out the wrinkles on Rong Tang's clothes, put away the handkerchief, and left the hand-washing area.
Ke Hongxue still had some indescribable fear, so she walked to Mu Jingxu and called out softly, "Senior brother."
Mu Jingxu raised his eyes and glanced at him, and asked, "Are you free?"
Knowing full well that Prince Ningxuan was a person who couldn't be touched, he still insisted on sticking to him again and again like a dog-skin plaster. If he hadn't really hurt him, it's hard to say whether he could still be standing here now.
Su Huaijing and the other two walked in front. Ke Hongxue frowned and looked at their backs, saying softly: "I know that too, I just feel..."
He paused, and Mu Jingxu looked at him intently.
Ke Hongxue laughed: "I just feel like we really did have a connection in our past lives."
As soon as he saw Rong Tang, he felt that this young master should be a fellow traveler like him. It was suitable for him to climb up a high place to admire the stars today, and ride a horse to Yu Jing to invite a girl from a rooftop to wave her sleeves tomorrow.
How come... he is a sickly person who won't live long
When Ke Hongxue thought of this, his expression became indifferent again and he turned his head to glance at Mu Jingxu.
It seems that I have lost some weight.
(End of this chapter)