Great Ming Dynasty Wen Chao Gong

Chapter 194 Shulhaqi Pays Tribute
On the outskirts of Beijing.

Zhang Xiao takes Lu Zhang to climb Xiangshan Mountain together.

"Wenhua, are you really not planning to take the imperial examination this year? Now I am idle here. You can do all the big articles in the officialdom. It's not like you don't know how to write eight-part essays. It's better to give it a try. "Yes." Zhang Xiao said to Lu Zhang.

"The student knows that his boss is in a bad mood right now, so he can't leave him alone," Lu Zhang said.

"As you said, I'm in a bad mood. I can go hiking, fishing, or even farming. Why should I bother you to accompany me?"

"My boss, don't be too disappointed. They are all a bunch of young people. Your Majesty will not be deceived by them."

"Look at you, if you keep saying this, I really won't take you with you next time you come out."

"The student realizes his mistake and asks his employer to forgive him."

"You don't need to be so serious. You have to be very cautious when doing errands for His Majesty. Now that you don't have to do errands for the time being, you have some free time. It would be nice to go out to climb the mountains and see if the water is good. If in a few months, this mountain forest will be covered with red leaves, That’s what it looks like.”

"My boss, although these red leaves are beautiful, if you wait for the brilliant red leaves to fall, it will be winter."

"I, the Commander-in-Chief of Jianzhou Guards, command Shuerhaqi, to pay homage to Your Majesty." Shuerhaqi saluted respectfully to the aloof emperor.

"Captain Shu, you two brothers did serve under me that day, but that was a long time ago. You are now the leaders of the Jianzhou Department, your brother is still General Longhu, and you are also the commander of the Jianzhou Guards. Envoy, if I hadn't had Uncle Ning Yuan who was favored by your Majesty, my military rank would be as high as yours. Why should I be so polite? Besides, I'm no longer the commander-in-chief of Liaodong. Now I just spend my days leisurely, chatting about my death. "Commander Shu, you are here." Li Chengliang looked at the overly enthusiastic Shuerhaqi and really didn't know what to say.

"As long as the court approves, the vassal is willing to stay."

"This is not possible. The imperial court has its own system. You still have to go back when the time limit is up. Your Jianzhou Department has also been to the capital many times. You are familiar with the capital. However, you cannot move around at will. If you want to go anywhere, you still have to go with us. The Ministry of Rites has said that you should not walk around casually to avoid unnecessary trouble. "

"My boss, I heard here that Shuerhaqi from Jianzhou is coming to the capital to pay tribute. According to the distance, he should arrive in the capital soon."

"The vassals obey your orders."

In the Jinluan Palace, Shuerhaqi met the emperor of the Ming Dynasty. In the past, although he could go to Beijing to pay tribute, the only one who could meet the emperor was his brother. It's different now. As a representative of the Jianzhou Ministry, I was actually received by the Ming Emperor.

"That's unnecessary. Before the Japanese invaded Korea, Korea was right next to you, so I agreed to your request to send troops. Now Yang Yinglong is far in the southwest, thousands of miles away from here. If you had many inconveniences in the past, it would be easy for you to acclimate. You As long as we guard the border, we will make the greatest contribution to the imperial court.”

"I also heard that you have contacts with Mongolian tribes and Korean envoys. Is this true? Even if you are a foreign vassal, you cannot conduct diplomacy privately. You must pay attention to it in the future."

"Your Majesty, the previous conflicts with various ministries were all misunderstandings. The Jianzhou Ministry will never take the initiative to cause trouble. Please rest assured, Your Majesty. The vassal ministers heard that Yang Yinglong, the chieftain of the Southwest, is defying the world's disapproval and raising troops to rebel. The vassal ministers are willing to lead thousands of Jianzhou Elite soldiers, go to the southwest to help in the battle."

"Boss, have you heard any news recently?"

"Yes, winter is coming soon." Zhang Xiao said with emotion.

"What's the news? I haven't paid attention to government affairs for a long time recently. Now that I'm under suspicion, it's hard to ask for news from my colleagues in the Hanlin Academy."

Then the next day, Shuerhaqi came to Uncle Ningyuan's mansion.

"Shulhaqi, this is the first time I have met you. I have met your brother a few times. You two brothers have worked hard for many years to be able to unify the Jianzhou Department. It was not easy. All the previous tribes came You have already defeated them miserably. In this case, you must live in peace with the various ministries and do not start war easily. If there is any conflict or injustice, you must not send troops privately. Of course, you must go to the capital. It's not easy at all. You can submit the memorial to the Liaodong Governor's office first, and the Liaodong Governor will also report the memorial to me. "

"Your Majesty, don't worry, I, Shuerhaqi, still understand this rule." Shuerhaqi agreed, patting his chest.

"Reporting to your majesty, before the nine-department coalition besieged our ministry, the Mongolian Horqin tribe was among them. We interacted with the Horqin tribe because we wanted to resolve the previous grievances. We had no other intentions. The Jianzhou ministry also had no contact with Buyan Khan. As for North Korea, The reason for the exchange was that many border residents from the Jianzhou Ministry and North Korea had crossed the border with each other before. Our ministry was also worried about causing conflicts, so we discussed with the envoys sent by North Korea to determine the border, and both sides restrained the border residents. "Shulha. Qi quickly argued.

"It's hard to say this. The Jurchen tribes are at war and at peace, so it's not surprising that Nurhachi wants to keep a hand. He came to Beijing to pay tribute before, mostly to reassure the court. Now that this level of purpose has been achieved, and there are protons in Beijing, he Naturally, there is no need to rush to Beijing anymore.”

"Oh? Shuerhaqi himself came to pay tribute? It's not Nurhaci who came?"

"If that's the case, then let's not do it again. How long do you want to stay when you come to Beijing to pay tribute this time?"

"Yes, I also find it very strange. Could it be that the Jurchen tribes are now at peace again? Nurhaci wants to personally guard the Jianzhou tribe and dare not go out at will?"

"Mr. Li, do you still remember what I told you before?" Shuerhaqi asked.

"What happened?"

"It's just that I want to marry one of my daughters to General Zizhen. General Zizhen said that I need to ask for your consent, Commander."

"How old is Rubeidu, and he is a general guarding one side, how can I control him? I have nothing to disagree with, let's see what Rubai thinks. Now the Jianzhou tribe has not defeated the Jurchen tribes Or do you want to ask the court for help with something?" Li Chengliang asked.

"No matter who is replaced by the imperial court as the commander-in-chief, Mr. Li is the commander-in-chief of the Liaodong Army recognized by our two brothers. Whenever Mr. Li has any instructions, the Jianzhou Department will work hard to cooperate." Shuerhaqi complimented.

"If that's the case, then I'll write a letter to Rubai. Your daughter will marry my son and grow up like this. Don't feel wronged in the future." Li Chengliang reminded.

"Commander, it's Shu's honor to serve for him." After coming out of Ning Yuanbo's place, Shuerhaqi turned around and went to Tongwen Hall. After all, his own nephew goes to school there.

Tongwen Hall is already expanding its enrollment, not only providing foreign language training for officials and supervisors, but also opening several new subjects. However, the scholars in the capital are busy with the imperial examinations, and Tongwen Hall simply cannot fill the student pool, so they have to use Zhang Xiao. The idea given by the dog-headed military counselor is to open the school and welcome citizens and friends, especially parents, to visit, as long as it does not interfere with normal classes. Even with permission, it is possible to audit a course.

Shuerhaqi can naturally be regarded as a parent, so he entered the campus smoothly.

Shuerhaqi originally wanted to see if his nephew was slacking off at school, but when Shuerhaqi saw Chu Ying, he was shocked. Because his nephew was not listening to the class at all, but attending class.

Shuerhaqi forcibly suppressed his inner shock and found a corner to listen to his nephew's class. The name of the class was Jurchen Language and Culture.

Chu Ying also let herself go on stage, telling everyone a few Jurchen sayings, explaining Jianzhou Jurchen folk customs, and how the Jurchens hunted and farmed. What Shulhaqi didn't notice was that although most of the students below were just listening for fun, the students sitting in the first two rows were paying attention to the lecture and taking notes seriously.

Shuerhaqi was listening to his eldest nephew's lecture below. He felt strange no matter how much he listened, but now that he had sat down, Shuerhaqi still finished the whole lecture.

"Uncle, why are you here? Is my Amma here?" Chu Ying asked happily when she saw Shuerhaqi.

"Your Ama did not come this time. This time I went to Beijing to pay tribute on behalf of the Jurchens. But your Ama specifically asked me to see how you are studying now and whether you have learned anything real. But Don’t waste your time in vain.”

"Uncle, don't underestimate me. I can still do well in my studies at Tongwen Hall. You saw it just now, uncle, and now I'm starting my own classes."

"Didn't you come to Tongwenguan to study? Why are you here to teach?"

"Uncle, Tongwen Hall has regulations. As long as students are good enough in their studies and have expertise to teach, they can apply to Tongwen Hall to start classes. As long as the course is successfully started, they can be regarded as teachers in Tongwen Hall, and Shu Xiu will come and get it. . I am the only one from the Jurchen tribe in this huge Tongwen Hall. If I want to offer such a course, naturally no one can compete with me." Chu Ying explained.

"The imperial court still values ​​us Jurchens so much?"

"Uncle, the name of our school is Tongwenkan. Of course, all kinds of languages ​​and characters can be learned. I am willing to teach, and there are also students who want to come and listen. Then this class can be opened, and it is not as far away as you think. Where is the imperial court? It's up to you." Chu Ying poured cold water on his optimistic uncle.

"But no matter what, you can still go to school here and come to class. Although it is not a serious teaching, it is still rare and valuable. After returning to Foala City, I want to talk to your Ama and praise you. ”

"Thank you uncle."

"I heard before that Mr. Zhang Minglue proposed the Tongwen Museum to the court. Did Mr. Zhang give lectures in the Tongwen Museum?"

"Mr. Zhang has always been here, but since Mr. Zhang became the consort, he has been here much less often, especially since I heard that Mr. Zhang went to other provinces for business some time ago, and I haven't seen him for a long time. But uncle, you also It’s a coincidence that Mr. Zhang just came back these days and started teaching again. Mr. Zhang’s class will be available soon.”

"Oh? Then I'll go and listen too." Shuerhaqi suddenly became interested.

The uncle and nephew rushed over. The place where Zhang Xiao had class was already crowded. Compared with this place, Chu Ying's class was like a child playing house.

However, Shuerhaqi's identity was different after all. Under the arrangement of the accompanying head of the etiquette department, both uncle and nephew sat in the front row. Zhang Xiao naturally recognized this old acquaintance, but he just nodded. Then the class started.

"Everyone, what we talked about a few days ago was all about world history. In fact, we are a bit far away from you. This time we will talk about something more practical. What themes can be written in this novel and what methods can be used to write it. Everyone Which of your own strengths can you use to write unique novels? "Zhang Xiao was really tired of talking about world history, so today's class decided to talk about writing.

However, Zhang Xiao was satisfied that although the content of the class had been changed, everyone still listened very carefully. Zhang Xiao searched the few remaining courses on literary theory and literary history in his mind, chatting about the development of Chinese novels, and kept talking. A novel about the Ming Dynasty.

"Today's class is over for the time being. If you have anything to ask, you are welcome to ask. Everyone, hurry up and wait until the time comes." Zhang Xiao said to the students in the dark crowd in the audience.

"Mr. Zhang, you have studied ancient and modern times, both at home and abroad. Do you have this method of novel writing in foreign countries?"

"The method of novels is also available in foreign countries, but the format is different from our Chinese ones. European novels, for example, originated from the dramas and epics of ancient Greece and Rome. There are also many dramas in Europe now, such as one in the UK. A man named Shakespeare wrote many plays and told many stories about emperors and generals. These plays can be read as novels. "

"Mr. Zhang, you have written many novels yourself. In your opinion, what type of novels do you write?"

"My novels are roughly divided into two categories: historical novels and martial arts novels. Even martial arts novels tend to be more historical. Students who read historical stories in history books can reasonably expand on this story. , maybe you can write a good historical novel." Zhang Xiao encouraged.

"Mr. Zhang, when you write novels, do you use the past to satirize the present, or use foreign countries to satirize your own country?"

"This student, your question is very good. You can tell me your name, and I will give you a special reward when I go back."

The class was over and Zhang Xiao was just about to get off work. The head of the Ministry of Etiquette stopped Zhang Xiao and signaled that Shuerhaqi wanted to see him for something.

"Captain Shu, what do you want from me?" Zhang Xiao asked politely.

"Mr. Zhang, I have some things I want to ask you in person. I wonder if I can visit you." Shuerhaqi said.

Zhang Xiao looked at the head of the Ministry of Etiquette next to him, who nodded.

"Of course there is no problem. I will tell you the location of my Prince Consort's Mansion. Remember, I can no longer live in the original house." Zhang Xiao reminded.

(End of this chapter)