The Red Mansion

Chapter 78 Emperor Taishun: This child can be cultivated

Jiang Nian nodded respectfully and slowly unbuttoned his shirt, revealing a birthmark next to his belly button.

The birthmark looks like three clouds, with a big one in the middle and two smaller ones on both sides.

Emperor Taishun gazed at the birthmark, his expression calm, yet a wave of emotion welled up within him. He had personally touched the birthmark when Jiang Nian was first born. Fifteen years had passed, and while Jiang Nian's appearance no longer resonated with him, the birthmark felt like a keepsake from the past, evoking a deep, tender feeling within him.

Jiang Nian straightened his shirt and took the initiative to say to Emperor Taishun, "My mother has some last words for me to convey to Your Majesty."

Emperor Taishun nodded slightly, signaling Jiang Nian to speak.

Jiang Nian asked, "Your Majesty, do you still remember Jiang Xuelian by the Xuanwu Lake that year?"

Emperor Taishun remained silent, his heart aching slightly as if pricked by a needle.

Jiang Nian took out an old handkerchief and said, "Before my mother died, she wrote a poem on this handkerchief. The blood stains it into red flowers. I hope Your Majesty will take a look at it."

Emperor Taishun asked Jiang Nian to present his old handkerchief. When he took it, he felt pain in his heart and gave it away again - it was his handkerchief from many years ago!

Emperor Taishun unfolded the old handkerchief and saw blood congealed into a red flower with a poem written beside it:

It's hard to say goodbye when meeting each other, and Dongfeng is powerless and can't help.

When the silkworm is dead, the silk will be exhausted, and the torch will turn into gray and tears will begin to dry.

Xiao Jing, but the clouds change, Ye Yin should feel the moonlight cold.

There is no way to go to Pengshan, and the blue bird is diligent to look around.

This is Li Shangyin's "Untitled".

meaning is:

Meeting is hard, parting is even harder. The east wind is weak, and the flowers wither. The spring silkworm spins silk until death, and the candle burns out before tears dry up. When I look in the mirror in the morning, I fear my black hair will turn white. When I recite poetry at midnight, I feel only the cold moonlight. Pengshan is far away, but there is a way to reach it. I wish the bluebird would be so attentive and visit me.

After reading it, Emperor Taishun couldn't help but feel tears in his eyes, and he felt an unbearable pain in his heart, and regret arose!
After Jiang Nian was born, he returned to Shenjing City and never set foot in Jiangning again. He hadn't seen Jiang Xuelian in over ten years. Jiang Xuelian never saw him again until her death.

Emperor Taishun suddenly thought of Jiang Nian's name—back when he was in Jiangning, he had personally named her "Yuan Yi," and Jiang Xuelian had chosen "Jiang Nian." The character "Nian" signified both her longing for Emperor Taishun and her hope that he would miss her and their son.

For more than ten years, although Emperor Taishun missed Jiang Xuelian, he never took the initiative to go to Jiangning to see Jiang Xuelian, nor did he let Jiang Xuelian come to Beijing to meet him.

Now, it’s too late to regret!
The woman has been dead for more than two years, leaving behind deep longing.

Emperor Taishun sighed inwardly, "Did she regret anything before she died? Did she regret meeting me? Did she regret falling in love with me and having a child with me?"

This feeling is like the autumn wind sweeping the fallen leaves, desolate to the bone.

Emperor Taishun could only sigh and feel sad.

Originally, Emperor Taishun had already decided that even if he personally examined Jiang Nian today and found that he was a man of both civil and military talents, and a genius, he would not rush to appoint him to an official position and would not allow him to enter the court too early.

However, at this moment, due to the lingering guilt towards Jiang Xuelian, Emperor Taishun has changed his mind and intends to follow Prince Zhongyi's suggestion yesterday...

Emperor Taishun wiped away the tears from his eyes, his expression returning to seriousness. He turned to Jiang Nian and said, "You ranked 33rd in the Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination."

Jiang Nian was delighted.

Emperor Taishun then said calmly, "Yes, I have already dismissed you. I will not allow you to pass the imperial examination."

After hearing this, Jiang Nian looked calm, neither surprised nor annoyed.

He had anticipated this and had figured out the reason.

Emperor Taishun simply explained: "You are not suitable for the provincial examination!"

Jiang Nian replied respectfully, "I understand. Actually, I feel deeply ashamed that Your Majesty granted me the qualification to be a student at the Imperial Academy and took the trouble to enable me to take the Shuntian Prefecture Provincial Examination."

Emperor Taishun snorted softly: "It's good that you know!"

Emperor Taishun's tone slowed down slightly, and he said, "However, you are quite capable to have ranked 33rd."

Jiang Nian replied: "It was a stroke of luck."

Emperor Taishun thought Jiang Nian was being modest, but in fact what Jiang Nian said was true - he was on the list this time because of luck.

Emperor Taishun stared at Jiang Nian and slowly said, "I've heard that you have an exceptional memory, almost photographic. Is this true?"

Jiang Nian replied respectfully, "I don't deserve such praise. However, it is true that I have a slightly better memory. This is the grace of my parents, a natural gift, not something I can boast about."

Emperor Taishun: "..."

His eyebrows moved slightly.

Prince Zhongyi couldn't help but smile and thought to himself, "This boy is clever!"

Emperor Taishun was pleased with Jiang Nian's answer, but he pretended to be solemn and said in a deep voice, "Slippery tongue! I don't like flatterers!"

Jiang Nian's expression remained unchanged as he replied respectfully, "What I said is true. It's not an exaggeration. Your good memory is truly the result of your parents' care and support!"

Emperor Taishun said, "Since that's the case, I will examine you to verify your authenticity."

Jiang Nian said, "How does the emperor wish to examine me? I will obey."

Emperor Taishun had already made up his mind and asked calmly, "Can you recite the Book of Changes?"

Jiang Nian answered without hesitation, "Yes."

Emperor Taishun raised his eyebrows, his eyes like lightning, staring directly at Jiang Nian: "Don't be so arrogant! What I'm asking is, can you recite the whole thing?"

Jiang Nian looked calm and answered again, "Yes."

At the beginning of his time travel, he had already studied and memorized the entire "Book of Changes".

He knew that Emperor Taishun loved the Book of Changes.

Emperor Taishun was named "Yuan Yi" primarily because it was inspired by the character "Yi" (Yi) from the Book of Changes. Furthermore, Emperor Taishun's sons were all named using characters that radiate "sun," symbolizing brightness and prosperity, a nod to the Book of Changes' concept of the Way of Heaven, "Da Ming Zhong Shi (Great Ming Ends and Begins). Yi (Yi) is a character that radiates "sun." Emperor Taishun snorted, "Words are not enough. Let me test you."

Although the Daqing imperial examination emphasized the meaning of classics, it did not require scholars to memorize the "Book of Changes"; they only needed to read it thoroughly. The "Book of Changes" is the first of the "Five Classics", with more than 20,000 words, and is obscure and profound, so memorizing the entire text is difficult.

Emperor Taishun stood up, walked to the bookcase, and took out a copy of the Zhouyi. The book was ancient, its pages yellowed, showing that it had been read often. He casually opened a page, glanced at it, and said lightly, "Recite the 'Yi Gua'."

Jiang Nian looked calm, bowed his hands, and then recited aloud:

"(Wind and Thunder Benefit) Xun is on top and Zhen is on the bottom.

[Yi]: It is beneficial to go somewhere. It is beneficial to cross a large river.

The first nine, it is useful for big works, very auspicious, without blame.

Six-two: Ten tortoises of the same rank may be added to the number, and they will not be able to disobey. Eternal loyalty is auspicious. The king will offer sacrifices to the emperor, which is auspicious.

Six-three, Yi's use of evil things, no blame. There is trust. Zhonghang tells the public to use the jade.

On June 4th, Zhonghang told the Duke, and he agreed and moved the country with Li Yong as his base.

Nine-five, there is trust and kindness in the heart, do not ask, it is extremely auspicious. There is trust, kindness and kindness in my virtue.

"Shangjiu, no one can help it, or it may be attacked, and the mind cannot be stable, it is ominous."

The voice is clear and the recitation is completed quickly without any hesitation.

After hearing this, Emperor Taishun's eyes flashed with surprise.

Prince Zhongyi nodded slightly, his eyes showing approval.

He Yun felt proud and seemed to be honored by it.

Emperor Taishun remained calm, flipping to another page and saying calmly, "Recite the 'Feng Gua' again."

Jiang Nian remained calm and recited aloud:
"(Thunder and Fire are abundant) Zhen is above and Li is below.

Feng: Heng, the king grants it. Don't worry, it's best to be at noon.

The first nine, meet his match, even if it takes ten days, there will be no blame, and there will be honor in going forward.

Six two, the barn is full, and the sun is at noon. Go and get the suspected disease, there is trust and it will be auspicious.

Nine three, it is abundant and plentiful, foam is seen at noon, the right arm is broken, no blame.

Nine four, the barn is full, the Big Dipper is seen at noon, and the master is a good person.

6.5. The incoming chapter brings congratulations and praise, which is auspicious.

Upper Six: Fill the house, build the house, peek through the door, it's empty and no one is there. If you don't see him for three years, it's bad luck.

I still finished reciting it quickly and without any hesitation.

Emperor Taishun was surprised. At this point, he was convinced that Jiang Nian could indeed recite the entire "Book of Changes".

However, this only proves that Jiang Nian has memorized the "Book of Changes", but it is not enough to prove that Jiang Nian has an extraordinary memory.

Emperor Taishun already had a plan in mind.

He took another imperial edict from the table and said to Jiang Nian, "This is the edict I wrote in my own handwriting yesterday. You are to read and recite it on the spot. I want to see how many hours it takes you to recite it."

Jiang Nian stepped forward, took the decree with both hands, took two steps back, and read it carefully.

The edict was written in neat handwriting, the ink still fresh, and it read:

"The Emperor, by the Will of Heaven, decrees:
I believe that the emperor, ruling the country, is committed to benevolently educating the people. During the last years of the Jianwen reign of the Ming Dynasty, some remnants of Shanxi and Shaanxi, who refused to follow Emperor Chengzu, were confiscated and subjected to menial labor for over three hundred years, a situation unfitting for a prosperous era. I hereby issue a special decree: All menial households in Shanxi and Shaanxi are to be investigated and their registration removed from the register, with all converted into civilian households. The prefectures and counties where they reside will immediately compile a register and enroll them in the baojia system, allowing them to cultivate the land and pursue their respective occupations. Local officials and gentry must no longer treat them as menial laborers or oppress them at will. Any treacherous local officials who exploit these pretexts to extort money will be severely punished by the relevant officials.

To eliminate the bad policies of the previous dynasty and correct the good rules of the present age, your department should immediately follow my instructions and implement them, ensuring that long-standing customs are completely eradicated, so as to fulfill my sincere wish of changing customs and enjoying peace together.

This is it.

The Emperor shall obey the order of the Supreme Emperor."

The meaning of this decree is that the descendants of Shanxi and Shaanxi who were registered as "music households (official prostitutes)" because they did not submit to Zhu Di in the late Jianwen period of the Ming Dynasty should have their "music households" registered and become civilian households.

Jiang Nian lowered his head and concentrated, memorizing it in his heart.

After a moment, he raised his head and said respectfully to Emperor Taishun, "I have taken note of this."

Emperor Taishun raised his eyebrows slightly, secretly surprised: "How could it be so fast?"

He remained calm and said calmly, "Since that's the case, just recite it."

Jiang Nian bowed and recited aloud: "The Emperor of Heaven and the Mandate of Heaven has decreed: I believe that the emperor who rules the world should nurture the people with benevolence..."

He actually recited it. Although there was a mistake and a pause, the overall flow was smooth.

After hearing this, Emperor Taishun was convinced that Jiang Nian's excellent memory was indeed true.

He sighed inwardly, "Just now, Yi'er said that his memory benefited from his parents' upbringing, and that's true. However, although I am the Son of Heaven, I do not have such extraordinary abilities. If I did, it would be of great benefit to my complicated government affairs."

He admired Jiang Nian in his heart, but he still pretended to be stern on his face. He said in a deep voice: "Although you have a good memory, don't be arrogant and complacent because of it. You must remember the four words 'Pride will lead to failure'!"

Jiang Nian replied respectfully, "Your Majesty has taught me this, and I will keep it in mind!"

Prince Zhongyi, who was standing by, saw this and chuckled inwardly, "Fourth Brother has always been mean and strict with his sons. However, the way Fourth Brother is disciplining Yi Ge'er shows his appreciation for him!"

Emperor Taishun couldn't help but sigh in his heart: "This child is worth cultivating!"

The author likes to use foreshadowing when writing. This chapter involves the foreshadowing of the "Book of Changes" at the beginning of the book.

I have updated more than 10,000 words today, and starting tomorrow I will update 8,000 words a day.

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(End of this chapter)