surnamed Wang

Chapter 285 Dream

Several major events have occurred in the capital recently.

The first one is that Pan Yuanzheng, the former King of Anbei, was thrown into prison. The specific reason is unknown to the outside world. It is only known that it is the decree issued by His Majesty himself. There is no room for relaxation. Even many ministers in the court do not know the details.

The second thing is that the candidate for the chief examiner of this year's Enke has been decided, and it is Lian Lilian, the once famous son-in-law.

A few years ago, both inside and outside the court had high hopes for him, but in the end he chose to marry the royal family.Although he was criticized at the time, his sudden entry into an official position made many people speculate whether he had been keeping a low profile all these years. Many scholars in the south of the Yangtze River even said that he "retired bravely" and should be a model of contemporary scholars.

You know, it was these fellow Jiangnan scholars who belittled Lian Li the most at the beginning. Now that he has shown signs of making a comeback, he hastily changed his tone and regarded him as a role model for young people. The four characters of "seeing the wind and making the rudder" are brought into full play.

As for the last thing, it is today's marriage.

There was news from the palace that Emperor Shun was going to appoint a queen, but this woman was neither a daughter of a wealthy family, nor a female family member of a prominent eunuch, but a female headhunter.

The majestic king of a country wants to appoint a head catcher as his queen. Not to mention the history of the dynasty, even if you search the history of the entire Central Plains, there is no such precedent. Even if the woman came from the four great god catchers, she is still in a low position, and she is not in the same family as the emperor of the dynasty. wrong.

There were also many discussions among the people about this matter, and Emperor Shun naturally ignored these voices, and directly handed over this hot task to the Ministry of Rites.

Finally, I looked through the history books again, and found the sentence "Nie's surname comes from Jiang's surname, and the ancestor of the surname is Jiang Ziya", so he made up the identity of "Jiang Taigong's side branch" for the future mother of the country, which can be regarded as a well-known family.

……

In the imperial study room, Nie Yingxue was looking at a brochure with a smile on her face. After she read it from beginning to end, she finally couldn't help laughing and said:
"The officials from the Ministry of Rituals actually installed Jiang Taigong, who is far from me, as my ancestor. It's hard for them."

Emperor Shun, who was behind the case, seemed to have long been accustomed to women's innocuous banter, and still bowed his head while reviewing the memorial.

"By the way, how do you plan to deal with Pan Yuanzheng?"

The woman fiddled with the folder in Hui's hand and asked suddenly.

Wang Bingde stopped the vermilion pen in his hand, raised his head and said:

"Of course he was killed according to the agreement. Why, do you have another opinion?"

The woman said thoughtfully:

"Lu Feng, an old minister of the Northern Yuan Dynasty, insists on having trouble with a down-and-out feudal lord, don't you think there's something strange about it?"

Emperor Shun put down the brush in his hand, closed the folder in front of him, and said:

"According to Lu Feng, Pan Yi was the first to step into the palace, and then killed many Lu family members in front of him. Old General Pan has long since passed away, and his father's debt is paid by his son, so Pan Yuanzheng is required to pay his life."

Nie Yingxue tapped the memorial regularly with her fingers, and said after a while:

"If this is the case, wouldn't it be better to kill Pan Ziqian, who is the county king? The white-haired man will send the black-haired man, and this will be a complete revenge."

After Nie Yingxue finished speaking, she found that the other party was staring at her in a daze. She subconsciously touched her face and said in doubt:
"what happened?"

"I'm thinking, it's better not to offend you in the future."

"..."

After half a month of hasty preparation, the imperial examination came as scheduled.

Enke in the capital can only be called the provincial examination. Even if he won the first place, he is not the champion, but Jieyuan.

After passing the provincial examination, you can be counted as a candidate, and then you have to go to the capital to participate in the general examination, and after the general examination, there will be a palace examination, and finally the current Ninth Five-Year Master will determine the top three candidates.

There are examination rooms in every province for the township examination, and it is usually held in the local tribute college. Candidates, no matter they come from poor families or noble families, will inevitably suffer nine days and six nights of torture. They must pass three consecutive examinations before and after to complete the task.

In order to prevent cheating, special personnel will conduct inspections outside the examination room. One is to prevent people from carrying the cheat sheet, and the other is to determine whether they are referenced by themselves. The inspection is so strict that candidates may even be required to take off their clothes.

But even so, every time the township examination will still find out many cheaters, as to whether any of the remaining people are lucky enough to be fooled, it is not known.

Answering questions in the Gongyuan is a boring and difficult job. Each cell has two boards, which is not as spacious as a better prison cell, and eating, drinking and drinking for three days and two nights must be carried out in it.

If you are lucky, you may be able to smell the roast chicken next door. If you are unlucky, you may be able to smell the fart next door.

However, these difficulties are nothing compared to the title of the gold list. I have experienced ten years of hard work, and it is not a few days away.

The reason why so many scholars choose to go to Beijing to take the exam is because the conditions of the Gongyuan in Beijing are better than other places. Although it is still a small single room, at least there is a warm meal every day, so you don’t have to eat dry food there.

This year, Enke was ahead of schedule, just in time for the hottest time. Just the second day after the start of the exam, the whole exam room began to smell of sweat, and some candidates began to answer the papers shirtless, regardless of their image as scholars.

Consort Lian Li, as the chief examiner this year, is very sympathetic to the difficulty of the candidates. After all, he came here in the same way at the beginning, so he ordered his subordinates to bring some ice cubes to cool down the candidates, and distribute well water every once in a while. Scholars die in foreign lands.

After finally staying up late at night, the examinees had to endure the torture of mosquitoes, and their mental and physical strength were almost to the extreme.

A few of them had foresight and developed a whole body of tendons early on. It is said that scholars can't carry their shoulders or hands, but these guys are so strong that they can almost kill a cow.

After three days and two nights, except for a guy who spun a ginseng during the exam and was slightly excited, everyone else hurried to the outside of the Gongyuan as if they had been beaten by frost.

Lian Li happened to know that guy who gnawed roast chicken and ginseng during the exam. He was the son of a servant in the court.Compared with those poor children who were only willing to eat cornbread from the beginning to the end, this high-ranking child simply regarded the imperial examination as a spring outing.

This is the way of the world. It is already a great gift for the common people to take the exam with the famous family. If you want the other party to eat the same food and wear the same clothes as yourself, it is a big joke.

Even if the servant boy was just an ordinary tribute in the end, and a certain kid from a poor family became the top one, but the officialdom is still smoother for the rich kid, this is the reality.

Lian Li sighed helplessly, put away the answer sheet, and walked towards the palace.

……

Recently, a fortune teller with suspicious behavior came to Longxi Bay. He neither set up a stall nor wandered around. Every time he came, he went straight to the school and stayed all afternoon.

If it weren't for Ah Yue who would chat with him for a while every day, I'm afraid this old man would have been arrested as a tomb robber long ago.

It's no wonder that the villagers think so. Recently, a group of tomb robbers appeared in Linxian County. They were also dressed as Taoists, and their name was quite famous.

In the school, Ah Yue finished today's lecture. As soon as the students left, an old man entered the courtyard calmly.

"Young friend Ayue, I am a poor man."

Ah Yue couldn't help but froze when he heard the voice, thinking that this old man is too idle.

When the old man entered the room, Ah Yue said helplessly:
"Master Taoist, I really don't have that much time to chat with you. Things are going to change soon. I have to go home and put away the dried salted fish. Look..."

A Yue's words couldn't be more obvious, even if he is old and thick-skinned, he is too embarrassed to stay any longer, so he stroked his beard in embarrassment and said:
"Little friend, Pindao actually came here to say goodbye this time. I feel really sorry for bothering you for so many days..."

As the old Taoist said, he took out a scripture book from his pocket, "This is left by Master Poor Dao, and I should leave it to my little friend as a souvenir."

Although Ah Yue was a little tired of being old-fashioned, but after getting along for a few days, he developed feelings for him. Now the other party said goodbye and gave him a book, which made him feel a little guilty, so he quickly cupped his hands and said:

"No reward for no merit, this is absolutely impossible."

"Take it." The old man directly stuffed the book into the opponent's hand, "Take it as my compensation for you."

Ah Yue was confused, and just about to ask, he saw that the old man had turned and left.

"Strange guy."

A Yue scratched his head and said to himself, somehow, every time he looked at the back of the old man, he would feel a sense of familiarity and the urge to go up and give him a stick.

After the figure of the old Taoist disappeared completely at the door, Ah Yue lowered his head and looked at the scripture book in his hand. The book seemed to be old, and there were only three words written on it—the scripture of rebuilding.

……

It was already dusk, the sun was setting, and the sloppy old man was walking alone on the country road with a broken sail. In the afterglow of the setting sun, his face was uncertain. At this moment, the old man suddenly stopped and looked up.

I saw an extra woman in front of me at some point. The woman was dressed in green clothes and held a slender sword in her hand.

"The girl must be Ah Qing, right?" the old Taoist revealed the identity of the other party.

"Exactly." Ah Qing said expressionlessly.

"Girls can't kill me."

"Why?"

"Because Pindao can help girls."

Ah Qing didn't answer, and asked the old Taoist to continue talking.

"To be honest, during this trip, Pindao will send letters to the capital every month to report his whereabouts. If contact is suddenly lost, His Majesty will definitely send someone to investigate.

Now that the prince has lost his memory, he can't pose any threat to His Majesty. Pindao is sure to persuade His Majesty to give up chasing and killing you. "

Ah Qing's expression was still calm, but there was hesitation in her eyes. After a long time, she opened her mouth and said:

"Why should I trust you?"

"The prince has fallen to this point, and the poor are more or less responsible, and the girl has no choice. You can't escape for a lifetime."

……

After nightfall, Longqi Bay is as quiet as ever, except for the sound of distant waves and the occasional barking of dogs.

At the dining table, Ah Qing, as usual, brought a piece of fish with the bones removed for the man from time to time, and the two talked very little.

After dinner, Ayue cleaned up the dishes and talked about trivial matters in the village. Aqing, who had been silent all this time, suddenly raised his head and said:
"Would you like to marry me?"

Ah Yue was taken aback when he heard the words, and then he reacted, his face flushed immediately, and he faltered and said in a low voice:
"Of course I do, I'm afraid I'll wrong you."

The woman's gaze was much firmer than his, "You can do as long as you want, and we don't need dowry and dowry, just like now..."

As Ah Qing was talking, she was suddenly stunned, because although the man opposite had a smile on his lips, there were two lines of tears on his face, and deep sadness was revealed in his eyes.

"What's wrong with you?" Ah Qing asked softly.

A Yue touched his cheek when he heard the words, and then his eyes showed surprise, even he didn't realize that he was crying.

He said hastily:
"Maybe I'm too excited, haha, I should have known that today I would ask that old Taoist to help me calculate the auspicious days."

……

It was late at night, and the men and women living under the same roof had their own thoughts. The woman's eyes were full of worry, while the man's face was full of doubts.

Ah Yue tossed and turned for a long time, his mind was like a ball of paste, and he couldn't fall asleep for a long time. Finally, he simply sat up and lit the oil lamp, and began to read the scripture left by the old Taoist.

Opening the first page of the book is a poem:

My family grows their own field, which can breed spiritual seedlings and live for thousands of years.The flowers are like golden buds, the buds are not big, and the seeds are like jade grains, and the fruits are round.

"Oh, it turned out to be teaching farming, but it's a pity that the land here is full of saline-alkali land, so we can't use it." Ah Yue muttered regretfully.

But when he continued to read, it seemed that it was not that simple.

"Cultivation depends entirely on the soil of the middle palace, and irrigation must rely on the spring of the upper valley. One day when the merits are complete, you will be the Penglai Daluo Immortal."

A Yue repeated these few sentences, always feeling very familiar, as if they were some kind of Taoist practice method.

Then he subconsciously crossed his legs and began to meditate with his eyes closed.

Unknowingly, Ah Yue seems to have come to another world, where the place is gray, surrounded by the sound of howling wind, only a little red light in the distance.

He was a little dazed now, he had forgotten who he was, and he just wanted to get to that bright place quickly, so he started to move forward a few steps, at a faster and faster speed.

I don't know how long I walked, and finally came to the side of the light.

Ah Yue squinted his eyes, trying his best to see the bright face clearly, it seemed to be a beetle.

Just when he was hesitating whether to move forward, the beetle also found him, and immediately there was a buzzing sound, and the beetle flew towards him like crazy.

Ah Yue turned pale with fright, and hurriedly backed away, the speed was so fast that he could be hundreds of miles away in the blink of an eye, and when he opened his eyes, he was already back in the room.Glancing at the oil lamp, it seemed that it had only been a while, but he was already in a cold sweat just for a while.

A Yue, who calmed down, recalled the blood-red beetle just now, and didn't feel scared, but had a very intimate feeling.

A Yue couldn't figure it out, so he shook his head to suppress this absurd idea, closed the scriptures and murmured:

"In the future, don't practice this kind of thing randomly, otherwise it will be easy to go crazy."

Then he blew out the oil lamp and fell into a deep sleep.

……

In the dream, a woman in red was standing in the distance. This was not the first time he had such a dream. Whenever he wanted to see the other person's true face clearly, the woman's face would become blurred.

This time he didn't look at the other person's face at all, but stood quietly in place, waiting for the dream to wake up.

At this moment, the woman in the dream moved for the first time, and then walked towards him step by step, A Yue felt a blur in front of his eyes, and then a sharp pain came in his head.

"do not forget me."

The woman said.

"who are you?"

"I'm……"

Before the woman finished speaking, A Yue's eyes blurred again, and when he came back to his senses, he found himself wearing a red shirt, sitting on a tall horse, watching the bride get into the sedan chair with a smile on his face.

……

(End of this chapter)