I studied in modern times

Chapter 954: Naming the Youngest Son
Cai Que's residence was given to him by Zhao Xu's father after the Yuanfeng Reform in recognition of his contributions to the official system reform.

Since it was bestowed by the emperor, it is naturally the standard residence style of scholars and officials in the Song Dynasty.

The outer gate is covered with brambles, and there is a wall photo as soon as you enter the door.

The rocks are jagged, the peaks are steep, the distant mountains are dark blue, and the picture is like a thousand miles.

Zhao Xu knew at first glance that this must be the work of Guo Xi!

Speaking of which, Guo Xi's current worth has risen sharply.

It is said that he does not paint for others easily now. If you want to ask him to paint for you, you have to prepare a fee of at least one thousand strings of cash.

Mi Fu fainted in the toilet crying - last year Zhao Xu ordered Feng Jing to buy seven paintings of Mi Fu on the market and collected them in the library of Funing Palace.

All in all, the total cost was less than four hundred strings of coins, with an average price of just over fifty strings of coins.

All I can say is that no matter what era, the value of something like a work of art has never been linked to the author's artistic achievements, but only to the author's identity and status.

Passing through the wall painting, the attic building in the front hall of Cai’s mansion comes into view.

The walls of the corridors were all coated with pounded hemp soil.

The so-called hemp soil is made of lime, crushed hemp and soil as a slurry.

Because of the Bian Jing Academy, Zhao Xu is now very familiar with this kind of material.

So he knew that good pounded soil should be like the one used by Cai Que's family, fine and solid, not afraid of erosion by wind and rain, and lasting for hundreds of years without cracking.

So it is expensive.

For the first term of the Bian Jing Academy alone, five thousand strings of cash were spent on hemp and soil!

It was Shen Kuo who improved the preparation method of hemp soil, making it possible to standardize and mass-produce it.

The hemp soil painted on the walls of Cai Que's house must have cost at least two thousand strings of cash!
Walking out of the corridor, the front hall of Cai Mansion comes into view.

The standard layout of a scholar-official's house in the Song Dynasty - three small halls surrounding the main hall in the middle, with seven entrances arranged in sequence.

On the left and right sides of the Shitang, there are sub-houses. On the north and south ends, they have the same layout as the Shitang, with seven entrances.

Zhao Xu knew that this was only part of the Cai Mansion.

This is probably because the residences of scholars in the Song Dynasty were divided into two parts: the front hall and the back house.

The front hall is the place where the male host meets guests, discusses matters, drinks, and recites poems with friends.

The rear house is where the female owner manages household chores, teaches servants, and where children study.

Men are responsible for external affairs, while women are responsible for internal affairs!

If it is the home of a Taoist scholar with strict family education, the rules are even more strict.

Even children behave in a polite manner under such constraints and teachings.

How to observe etiquette?

Men should not engage in private matters during the day without reason, and women should not peek into the house without reason.

Men should hold candles when walking at night. Women who want to go out through the middle door for some reason must cover their faces (wear a veil or a hat that can cover the face).

Even - even between brothers and sisters, they should avoid meeting each other directly on weekdays.

Servants were also separated by gender.

The male servants were outside and the female servants were inside.

But Cai Que is obviously not that kind of Taoist scholar, and he cannot be a Taoist scholar.

Therefore, following behind Zhao Xu, it was not only his sons who surrounded him.

Even his wives, concubines, children, and grandchildren followed behind him.

It’s just that men and women are separated into different teams.

Of course, when they arrived in front of the meeting hall, the women all bowed four times and then left - the meeting hall is where men discuss matters and it is also a sacred place!
The so-called Shitang is the main hall in the folk society.

The main hall of ordinary people's homes evolved from the bedroom of the pre-Qin period. According to etiquette, common people offer sacrifices in the bedroom, and they can do so as long as it is righteous!
Therefore, even in ordinary people's homes, the main hall is not a place that women can easily step into.

Because this is actually the family temple.

It is a place to worship the ancestors.

It is also a place for worshiping ancestors and gods.

It can only be used during weddings, sacrifices, rituals and the coming-of-age ceremony for adult men.

Of course, the scholar-officials had their own family temples and ancestral halls.

Therefore, this main hall became the office hall.

However, its status and sacredness remain unshakable.

Even though the new school of thought was much more open-minded than those Taoist scholars in the old school, women were still not allowed to enter the hall, or even get close to it.

Zhao Xu naturally did not respond to the courtesy of the women in the Cai Mansion, but just nodded slightly.

“Your Majesty…” Cai Que bowed and led Zhao Xu to the front of the office hall, then he quietly apologized, “Your Majesty has come to visit me, but I have not cleaned the house or burned incense. I have rudely offended you, and I deserve death!”

"Please forgive me, sir!"

Zhao Xu sneered: "This is my fault, what does it have to do with you, sir?"

"If you want to talk about being rude, it's me who is being rude to my husband!"

Under normal circumstances, he should first issue an edict to Cai Que, and then ask the Cai family to clean the inside and outside carefully and fumigate all the houses with incense, just like Zhao Xu did three years ago when he visited Wen Yanbo's mansion and the residences of Han Jiang and Lu Gongzhu.

However, Zhao Xu's attack this time was sudden. After Cai Que received the news, he only had time to clean up briefly before the emperor arrived at his doorstep.

But it is precisely this that shows how deeply Cai Que is favored by the emperor!

"I dare not!" Cai Que said carefully, "Your Majesty's presence at my house is a great honor for me and my family for generations to come!"

Zhao Xu nodded, then looked at the hall with the door open in front of him, and said, "It's cold in Bianjing, my lord, please come in and talk to me!"

"Yes!" Cai Que bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, I respectfully request that you move to the service hall!"

He led Zhao Xu into the main hall of his house, and then respectfully invited Zhao Xu to sit down in the main seat.

Then he brought all the male members of the family to the hall and bowed in a proper manner to express his gratitude.

Thank you for your visit and thank you for your presence.

Zhao Xu sat on the cushion that was probably urgently prepared by Cai Que's family, looked at the men in the Cai Mansion, and said softly: "My lord, my dear ministers, please stand up quickly!"

"I came here today to comfort you for your hard work in governing Fujian. You don't have to stick to the many customs and etiquette!"

"Everyone, sit down! Everyone, sit down!"

Under the guidance of Cai Que, everyone was grateful and thanked him profusely.

Afterwards, at Zhao Xu's repeated request, they each sat in their respective seats according to their status.

As the host, Cai Que naturally sat in the first seat below Zhao Xu's left.

After Zhao Xu and the others sat down, he followed the story and said to Cai Que, "Please, sir, introduce to me the wise officials who are here today!"

"I respectfully obey your imperial orders!" Cai Que stood up, bowed, and began to introduce himself.

Starting with his younger brother Cai Shuo, he introduced them one by one.

Zhao Xu always maintained a polite smile, nodded from time to time, sometimes approving, sometimes praising.

Everyone in the Cai residence was extremely excited.

After all, it is a great honor for a scholar to be able to present his name before the emperor!

Even if Cai was indeed the prime minister, most of his family members would never be able to appear before the emperor in their entire lives.

For example, Cai Shuo has been in the Military Equipment Bureau since the eighth year of Yuanfeng.

But he had never spoken to Zhao Xu - at most, he would go to the Wende Hall to pay his respects to Zhao Xu on the occasional first and fifteenth day of the lunar month. The emperor's attendance at the court was only for ceremonial purposes.

Not to mention talking, even his face could not be seen. One could only vaguely see his figure on the throne.

But this time when he was introduced by Cai Que, he was praised by Zhao Xu himself, who also mentioned his many contributions in the Military Equipment Supervision Bureau and the Military Equipment Manufacturing Bureau. He also encouraged him to keep up the good work and make contributions to the country.

This person is called Cai Shuo. He was immediately moved and excited.

The emperor knew that he had been cooperating wholeheartedly with Shen Kuo for the past three years, and he remembered his contribution - even though he only reported for duty at the Military Equipment Bureau every day and drank tea and read newspapers.

After a long time, he even hired a woman who could sing in a brothel to sing for him in the office to entertain him.

Everyone in the Military Equipment Bureau scolded him.

They said he was sentenced to prison for three things: incompetent, talentless, and useless.

Some people even joked that even if a pig was put in the position of the Military Equipment Supervisor, it would be better than him.

But Cai Shuo still went his own way. He let him curse, the bright moon shone on the river, he let him mock, the gentle breeze blew over the hills, and he was not moved at all by what outsiders said.

This was because before Cai Que left Beijing, he specifically told him that the Military Equipment Inspectorate could not compete with the Military Equipment Manufacturing Bureau.

He is definitely not a match for Shen Kuo!

Rather than focusing on manufacturing the military equipment bureau and offending Shen Cun Zhong for no reason.

It’s better to drink tea, read the newspaper and listen to music.

What does the Bureau of Weapons Manufacturing want?
Give them all!
It’s not his stuff anyway!
I don’t feel sorry for my son!
Cai Shuo has no other advantages.

Just one thing - listen to your brother.

However, in the past two or three years, he had been shaken and had been worried.

But today, all hesitation and doubt are gone!

Cai Shuo decided to continue drinking tea and listening to music in the Military Equipment Bureau until the government transferred him away.

Because he had already received the reward - the emperor's personal praise.

Since his brother is already the prime minister, the emperor's praise is much more important than promotion!
For example, during the Shaosheng period, Cai Wei specifically went against the old party and racked his brains every day thinking about how to kill the old party members.

Zhao Xu specifically praised his intelligence and filial piety, and at the same time took off a jade pendant he was carrying and gave it to him, encouraging him to continue working hard and serve his father well.

……

Cai Que introduced all the more than ten male members of the Cai family who were present.

Zhao Xu asked, "Prime Minister Cai, why isn't the Imperial Ancestral Hall official I bestowed upon you this year here?"

When Cai Que heard Zhao Xu mention the son born to him by his beloved concubine Pipa, he was immediately terrified and said, "Your Majesty, my son is still in his infancy. I dare not offend you!"

"No problem!" Zhao Xu said with a smile, "I like children very much, and have someone bring them up!"

"Yes!" Cai Que bowed his head and kowtowed again to express his gratitude.

He ordered someone to change the wet nurse who was taking care of his young son and take him to the corridor outside the hall.

He then ordered his son Cai Wei to carry him to the hall.

When Zhao Xu saw this, he stood up and stretched out his hand. Under Cai Que's fearful look, he took the little guy who was only seven months old.

The little guy is very good-looking.

She has a delicate and delicate face, with a pair of black eyes that roll around.

He was not afraid of strangers. He did not cry or make a fuss when Zhao Xu held him. He even showed a cute smile.

Seeing this, Zhao Xu reached out and touched his little face, then praised: "Good!"

Then he looked at Cai Que and asked, "Does your son have a name?"

Cai Que bowed excitedly and said, "Your Majesty, my son is still young and has only been given a nickname, 'Little Parrot'!"

"Little parrot?" Zhao Xu blinked and remembered what he knew in his previous life.

"It's indeed a clever little parrot!"

"How about this!"

"If you don't mind, how about I give this child a name?"

"This is truly a blessing for my child, and a great fortune for me!"

The emperor personally bestowed the name, and the political subtext contained in it is almost equivalent to - this child will be kept by the emperor's side in the future!
It is equivalent to giving you a ticket to a lifetime of wealth and prosperity.

Not only was Cai Que surprised and moved when she heard this.

The other Cai family members present were also delighted.

But he didn't know that Zhao Xu was rewarding him!

Reward the mother of the child in his arms, Pipa, Cai Que's concubine who was exiled to Xinzhou and died with Cai Que.

In Zhao Xu’s previous life, Cai Que fell into trouble and was demoted.

The once glorious Cai Mansion fell into ruin in an instant.

Cai Que himself was almost deserted by his friends and relatives - his wife divorced him and his son-in-law broke off ties with him.

He had only one concubine, a concubine named Pipa, and a parrot that could call Pipa, who followed him.

Therefore, when Zhao Xu learned that Pipa, the concubine who followed Cai Que to Fujian, had given birth to a son, he decided to give wealth and honor to this infant child.

Not only was he specially granted an official position after he was born, but he was also granted an official position by imperial decree.

Now we have to give it a name.

After a brief pause, Zhao Xu said, "Qu Yuan wrote in his poem: The road ahead is long and arduous, but I will continue to search for it!"

"My husband, you are a contemporary Confucian official, and your writings are well-known throughout the world!"

"This child should inherit the aspirations of the prime minister, continue the work of the sages, and seek the way of the saints!"

"Let's take Qu Yuan's poem and name it 'Xiu Yuan'!"

"May he study diligently, seek truth with wisdom, never be discouraged by setbacks, never be arrogant when he wins, and always be consistent in his pursuit of the great path!"

Cai Que was overjoyed when he heard this: "The emperor has shown me favor by bestowing the name 'Xiuyuan' on me. How dare I not obey the emperor's order and thank him?"

The other members of the Cai family bowed and said, "Your Majesty, we are honored by your grace. We bow our heads and bow again!"

……

After this episode, Zhao Xu listened to Cai Que’s work report in Fujian over the past two years.

Of course, Tsai Que only spoke positively of the good things.

There is no mention of hidden worries and problems, only talk about achievements and the future.

I am only grateful for the policies and grace of Zhao Xu and the court.

As a result, the meeting between the emperor and the prime minister, in which he came to comfort and encourage him, turned into an occasion of praising and glorifying him.

Zhao Xu was praised as the greatest emperor of all time. It seemed that although he was sitting in the city of Bianliang, his light shone across thousands of mountains and rivers and warmed the hearts and bodies of the people of Fujian.

In Cai Que's description, the people of Fujian seemed to be some of the people he had seen in modern news.

Every day I am either grateful for the kindness of Emperor Zhao or basking in the kindness of Emperor Zhao.

Zhao Xu listened and benefited greatly from it.

He also had an idea in his mind. He wanted to ask Feng Jing to find someone to refer to Cai Que's description and write a report titled "Fujian People Celebrate the Official's Holy Day Together."

Let the people of Bian Jing know—although this winter is very cold!
But Emperor Zhao is making preparations to solve the bug that there is no sun in Bianjing City!

(End of this chapter)