Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 25: The Horror of Divination
Liu Bi helped his grandfather onto the sedan chair, and strong guards from the palace had already lifted the sedan chair and sent Liu Yanxiu to Shuyun Villa on the mountainside.

Prince Jiashun accompanied Zhang Tianshi up the stairs, pointing out the mountain scenery along the way.

The young man with a long sword on his back followed Zhang Yuzhen all the way. With his eyes moving, he noticed that Zhang Yuzhen had been intentionally or unintentionally examining the young man who was accompanying him on the sedan chair.

The young man was wearing a bright red gorilla felt cloak, which made him very eye-catching in the snow. The Xiuyu hairpin on his head reflected a warm light in the sun.

When the group entered the gate of Shuyun Villa, the young man with the sword on his back saw that there was no one beside Zhang Yuzhen, so he stepped forward and asked:

"Father, you have been looking at that boy, but do you see anything strange?"

The voice was like the sound of a yellow oriole singing in a valley, very beautiful and pleasant, it was actually the voice of a girl.

She knew that her father Zhang Yuzhen had inherited the family's secret skills since childhood and was best at divination. Just now, she saw him examining Jia Cong for a long time and calculating with his fingers, so she knew there must be a reason.

Zhang Yuzhen said dimly, "That child has a natural look and is full of spiritual energy, something I have never seen in my life.

But looking at the three stops and twelve palaces, the fate is erratic, the vitality seems to be cut off but not cut off, and it also contains the secrets of the heavens. It is almost unlike that of a mortal. I have never seen such a strange fortune-telling. "

The girl who had changed her hairpin into a hat was shocked when she heard this. She had been influenced by her father since she was young. Although she had not yet learned her father's skill, she also knew the importance of it.

He looked at the young man walking in front of him with confused eyes. His life seemed to be cut off and yet not cut off. He was not a person in this mortal world. Could he not be a living person? Could he have died? Although it was a bit absurd, he couldn't help but shudder.

……

There was originally a huge natural open space on the hillside of Qifengling. The grandfather of the current emperor, Emperor Hongxuan, built a small palace based on the natural terrain.

It is now the Shuyun Villa. However, after it was built, Emperor Hongxuan only stayed there twice before he passed away due to illness. Since then, the villa has been vacant.

When Prince Jiashun turned sixteen, he wanted to move out of the palace and live somewhere else. He loved the scenery on Qifeng Mountain, so he asked the retired emperor for this villa.

Jia Cong saw that the Shuyun Villa was full of luxuriant flowers and trees, scattered pavilions and towers, clear waterside pavilions, and winding corridors, which had a sense of wild beauty that was deep and remote.

The person who built this villa must have been a great man with great vision.

……

There is an open space to the south of the villa. A doorway more than half a person's height is opened at the base of the wall and covered with fine steel wire mesh to prevent wild animals and outsiders from breaking in.

The clear and rushing Nanxi River in Qifengling is led into the villa through this doorway. The fine steel wire mesh can keep out wild beasts and foreign enemies, but it cannot block the clear stream.

A canal more than half a person wide was dug out on the open space, winding and winding through the entire villa. The stream was introduced and flowed along it, merging into the artificial lake in the north of the courtyard.
The big lake is leaning against a steep cliff, and the lakeside is planted with plum blossoms of various colors, blooming in the snow and exuding fragrance.

At intervals on both sides of the stone channel, there were low tables made of bluestone, with embroidered cushions spread beside them, and on the tables were pots of fragrant tea and wine, with incense burning, and large umbrellas erected above them.

It was the hour of Si at this time, and the morning sun was shining warmly on this south-facing open space. Even on such a cold day, it did not feel the slightest bit chilly.

Those who were going to attend the literary gathering had arrived one after another, and were led to their pre-arranged seats by maids from the palace.

These people were seated in order from north to south along both sides of the stone channel according to their age and reputation.

There is a spacious stone pavilion near the lake with three seats. The canal extends into the pavilion, meanders in the center of the pavilion, and then extends into the lake.

Jia Cong saw clearly this series of ingenious arrangements. This clear channel was naturally used for the purpose of winding water flowing wine cups.

Not far from the stone pavilion there is a desk with writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstone on it. On the desk there is an incense burner with an animal head emitting curls of green smoke.

Prince Jiashun, Liu Yanxiu, Zhang Yuzhen and the other three have now taken their seats in the stone pavilion.

Among them, Liu Jing'an held the most respected position in the literati circle. Almost all the literati participating in the literary gathering came to pay a visit to this contemporary literary master to show their respect and courtesy.

When Jia Cong saw the slightly plump Brother Jinrong, he also stepped forward to greet Liu Jing'an. The old man just nodded slightly in return.

Judging from Brother Jinrong's expression, he wanted to find something to chat with Emperor Wenzong, but when he saw Liu Bi standing outside the pavilion with a cold look, he stopped his actions in embarrassment.

This scene made Jia Cong, who was standing aside, a little confused.

Seeing his expression, Liu Bi did not hide it from him and said angrily, "Brother Cong, this guy is not a good person. You must be careful when you meet him next time."

Seeing that people kept coming up to greet her grandfather, Liu Bi pulled Jia Cong a few steps away.

The slightly fat brother Jinrong had been squeezed by the crowd, looking a little depressed. Liu Bi glanced at the man with a look of contempt in his eyes. "Brother Cong, you don't know that the man is Wu Jinrong. He was a second-class Jinshi in the eighth year of Jiazhao. He was appointed as a Hanlin Academy Scholar. He is also a noble man with extraordinary talent and learning.

Because he came from a poor family and had no connections in the court, he spent two years in the Hanlin Academy. His peers were all given real positions, but he remained silent.

So he began to make friends everywhere in order to find some opportunities.

Somehow, he got to know Cai Xiaozhang, the second son of Cai Xiang, the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet.

It's just that Cai Xiaozhang was a playboy, and he was just taking him out for fun. He would never really find a way out for him, and it dragged on for several months without any clue.

Once he went to Cai's house to visit Cai Xiaozhang, hoping to see if he could get close to his father Cai Xiang. However, he unexpectedly saw the third daughter of the Cai family and was stunned by her beauty.

This fellow was so blinded by greed that he even thought of attaching himself to a powerful person to advance his career. He sent poems and gifts to the young lady.

The daughter of a cabinet minister would not care about such dirty things, but Wu Jinrong made quite a fuss, which resulted in some rumors outside.

After hearing the rumors outside, Miss Cai felt extremely ashamed and even wanted to die.

When Cai Xiang found out about this, he was furious. This man was a ruthless scholar. How could he not retaliate when someone stepped on his face? What's more, the man was a simple-minded scholar with no background at all.

No one knew what tricks he used, but at the end of last year, the Ministry of Personnel announced that they were going to transfer Wu Jinrong to a third-class lower county to be the county magistrate, and he would be issued a certificate of official position after the new year.

The Cong brothers may not know that if the first- and second-class Jinshi are sent to serve as officials outside the capital, they will at least start as the chief official of a county.

Being a deputy official in a lower county is tantamount to being demoted, and your career as an official is effectively ruined."

Jia Cong glanced at Wu Jinrong who was standing outside the crowd. It was really shameful for a man who was a second-class Jinshi to want to use a woman to advance his career and economy.

Suddenly, he saw a young scholar of medium build walking up to Wu Jinrong and saying something. The two of them kept looking at him, and Jia Cong began to feel suspicious.

I just heard Liu Bi beside me continue to say: "It would be fine if he became the county magistrate, he could still have some integrity, but he is still evil and is struggling.

He had stayed in the Hanlin Academy for several years and was well-informed. He actually found out that the emperor had transferred Zhou Junxing, a military officer from Dezhou, back to the capital to take charge of the Court of Inquisition.

When the previous emperor was alive, the Court of Inquiry had great power and was looked up to by all civil and military officials. Now that the emperor has reopened the Court of Inquiry, I am afraid it will be of great use.

How could a scheming person like Wu Jinrong not know the pros and cons of this? He actually came up with the idea of ​​joining Zhou Yanluo. It was said that he took advantage of the holiday and rushed to Dezhou overnight.

In the end, he came back quietly, and no one knew whether the matter was accomplished or not. At that time, he was regarded as a laughing stock in the official circle of Shenjing.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Yanluo returned to Beijing on the fourth day of the first lunar month and went to the palace to meet the emperor that day. He recommended Wu Jinrong to the Court of Inquiries as a Censor-in-Chief. Everyone was very surprised when the news came.

Zhou Yanluo is a cruel official who will not do anything without profit, but he is willing to stand up for Wu Jinrong. No one knows the reason.

But in order to advance his career, Wu Jinrong shamelessly turned to Zhou Yanluo, a cruel official who was regarded with suspicion by both the government and the people. There was no denying his poor character.

Almost all of his classmates in the Hanlin Academy broke off all ties with him.

He was invited to the literary gathering, and now the prince must be regretting it. He doesn’t want to let this fellow tarnish the reputation of the Nanxi Literary Gathering.”

The Nanxi Literary Society has always invited celebrities and people of outstanding talent and learning. The compilers, editors, and scholars of the Hanlin Academy are all the best among the first and second class Jinshi.

It goes without saying that these people are highly talented and knowledgeable. Although not all of them were invited this time, more than half of them were present. Among them was Wu Jinrong, who had not yet come to Zhou Yanluo's aid at that time.

As for his affair with Miss Cai, it could only be regarded as an affair between Jinshi Lang Zhimu Shaoai. Although it was a bit absurd, it was not enough to damage his reputation.

Otherwise, given Prince Jiashun's character of being well-educated, respectful and indifferent to political affairs, he would never have invited someone with a tarnished reputation like Wu Jinrong to bring criticism to himself and the Nanxi Literary Society.

Jia Cong had experienced the intrigues and deceptions of later generations and knew that Zhou Yanluo was a petty and vicious person. He would never easily open his eyes to others unless he wanted to gain huge benefits.

Wu Jinrong must have given Zhou Yanluo something he desired in order to get him to help him get an official position, but no one knows what that something was.

Wu Jinrong was a second-class Jinshi. He used all means to pursue his personal career and completely disregarded the noble status of the Shujishi. This was quite rare.

Although he is despised by others, this person is decisive and daring enough to take action and risk the wrath of the world, so he can be considered a powerful character.

Just now I saw him and another young student, they seemed to be pointing and spying on me. Judging from their expressions, I'm afraid it's not a good thing, so I have to be more careful.

(End of this chapter)