A powerful minister of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 15: Slender Gold ~ Larva
When ordinary people hang calligraphy and paintings, they always have to be from famous artists.

Even if you can't afford to hang a calligraphy by a famous calligrapher, it has to be inscribed by your superiors or good friends.

This is called elegance.

But Song Xuan dared to hang his own words.

No matter how you look at it, he seems to be a shameless person!

"I always feel that this handwriting is somewhat familiar, but I can't remember where it is."

Song Shou stopped and looked thoughtful.

"I remembered."

It was Yan Shu who spoke first:
"It's because Xue Yao's handwriting from his summer trip to Shicong is somewhat similar to Twelfth Brother's. He must have imitated it."

After hearing Yan Shu's words, Fan Zhongyan also visited that scenery.

He recalled carefully, and became somewhat suspicious:

"But these characters aren't all like that. I always feel like this kid has mixed in some styles from other calligraphy masters. He's still groping in the dark, so his style isn't quite mature."

"Xiwen is right."

Yan Shu stroked his beard and sighed.

This kid Song Xuan has a lot of hidden abilities, but what he has revealed now is probably just a tiny bit.

Song Shou has always been result-oriented, and Song Xuan has not shown any talent in studying.

After all, it is not easy to pass the imperial examination.

Song Shou knew that Song Xuan was quite knowledgeable in poetry, but so what?

Liu Sanbian became famous for his lyrics.

But he has failed the exam four times.

How many chances can you have to fail the exam four times in your life?

If you fail to pass the imperial examination, even if you have great talents, it will be difficult to continue your career.

There is no future!

Could it be that I really would hold hands with a prostitute, look into her eyes with tears in my eyes, and be speechless?

That's not what a real man does!
Liu Sanbian wanted to pass the imperial examination and even wrote many flattering poems to the emperor for this purpose.

Unfortunately, the imperial examination has its own rules.

You can't make the list just by writing a flattering song.

Only Jinshi were qualified to write flattering poems to the emperor.

In particular, the flattery of the emperor in the Song Dynasty started with Liu Sanbian.

Song Shou didn't want Song Xuan to follow in Liu Sanbian's footsteps.

Even if Song Xuan entered Yingtianfu Academy, he still had to be encouraged.

Fan Zhongyan heard a customer say that Shi Erlang's shop was going to be sold because it was not making enough money.

However, Yan Shu understood the reason why Song Xuan spread the news to the outside world, and he was unwilling to continue to stay in this small Lema Town.

This kid should have gone out and seen the world a long time ago.

Yan Shu even had some anticipation for how much trouble this boy would stir up after entering the court in the future.

Instead, Fan Zhongyan told the waiter that he and Song Xuan were old acquaintances and came to visit today.

The clerk noticed that the three gentlemen were scholars, and since his young master had a wide circle of friends, he went up to report.

Song Xuan, who was practicing calligraphy, raised his eyebrows when he heard that Mr. Fan was coming to visit.

No way?
Then I saw Fan Zhongyan and the other three coming upstairs, each sipping a cup of cold soup.

Song Xuan and the other two quickly saluted.

"This tastes very different from the drinks I've had in Tokyo. Even if I were to open a shop in Tokyo, it would definitely be a popular place."

Yan Shu walked around the room holding a bamboo tube in his hand:
"I heard that Twelve Brother's shop was going to close due to losses. I was the first one to disbelieve it."

"Hahaha, I can't hide it from Mr. Yan." Song Xuan took over the conversation:
"My second brother is a gambler, and no matter how much money I make, it's not enough to fill the hole.

Plus, I'm going to take the entrance exam for Yingtianfu Academy, and I'll have to study a lot in the future, so I might as well cut off my own path to avoid being indecisive and unwilling to put my all into preparing for the exam."

"A good man with ambition."

Fan Zhongyan praised Song Xuan.

If he had studied hard in the academy for a few years and passed the imperial examination, he would have had a better future than running this cold paste shop.

Not only can you have money and status, but you can also work for the country and the people and realize your ambitions!
Yan Shu, however, grasped the key point that Song Xuan's second brother was a gambler. This guy must have covered up for his second brother a lot in the past.

Now that he had done all he could and was too lazy to fill this bottomless pit anymore, he started to cook the books, which was a great improvement. He was a smart man.

Some people are not worth saving.

Because they are in the abyss and will pull you in too.

Indecisiveness leads to disaster.

Song Shou went over to read the calligraphy practice post by the genius Zhang Fangping.

Ok.

Very pleasing to the eye.

Standard Tang Kai script.

Unlike Song Xuan, who wrote a weird thing and dared to hang it up openly.

This place is Lema Town, a small place with not many literate people.

I have no ability to appreciate.

If this happened in Tokyo, Song Xuan's behavior would be laughable.

Not to mention Fanlou, even the other 72 official stores would not be so brazen as to do such a thing.

Yan Shu glanced at the post where Song Xuan practiced calligraphy and found that it was much better than the one hanging downstairs.

"Where did you imitate these notes from?"

"To answer Mr. Yan's question, when I was young, I went out for a walk and stopped at the inscriptions on the cliffs of Shicong River. I thought the calligraphy was beautiful, so I memorized it and later began to imitate it."

Hearing Song Xuan's answer, Song Shou glanced at Yan Shu in surprise.

It is indeed there.

Is this the world of child prodigies?
It seems that Song Xuan is not a country boy who has never left home and is ignorant of the world.

Did he visit Tokyo at such a young age?
But I heard that he doesn't have a good relationship with his family. Could it be that he sneaked out on his own?
Song Shou didn't ask any further questions.

Fan Zhongyan exclaimed in surprise.

Compared with the character roots below, Song Xuan has indeed made great progress, and it is not just imitation.

The words carved on the cliff are indeed beautiful.

He also remembered it in his mind, but he couldn't write it down in a similar way.

"Twelfth brother has made rapid progress."

When Fan Zhongyan saw several people looking at him, he put down the calligraphy in his hand and smiled.

"It's more than just rapid progress, it's practically the beginning of a new school of thought."

Yan Shu was amazed.

Sure enough, writing temporarily on the steps and writing quietly at a desk are two different states.

"Ah, gentlemen, you are too kind."

Although Song Xuan said these words, he was actually quite pleased with himself.

Because of the promotion of Xiao Sanye in The Grave Robbers' Chronicles, he put a lot of effort into this Slender Gold style.

"Did Twelfth Brother leave home when he was young?"

"Well, I'm bored and always want to see the outside world."

Song Xuan laughed a few times and didn't say much.

Suddenly arriving in the Song Dynasty, even though he was young, Song Xuan wanted to travel around and see the world, not to mention that he lived on the border of Kaifeng Prefecture.

It’s so convenient to follow the caravan to Tokyo.

If it weren't for family reasons, Fan Zhongyan would have wanted to travel around and broaden his horizons, otherwise why would he always carry a sword with him?

Many scholars have the idea that reading thousands of books is like traveling thousands of miles.

However, given the current situation in the Song Dynasty, many people are studying hard to pass the imperial examinations.

As for traveling thousands of miles, most officials are sent to other places and will not stay in Tokyo, so there are plenty of opportunities to travel.

Yan Shu put down the bamboo tube in his hand and nodded repeatedly:

"Twelve Brother is not a slovenly person, but I don't know if he can adapt to group life. The academy is not a one-person-in-one room."

(End of this chapter)