Fenghou

"I've already told Steward Tian and Aunt Wen."

Lv Xiu pulled her husband and smiled, "Don't be angry with this kind of person, it will spoil the atmosphere tonight, let's rest early!"

"What about Cher?"

"I asked Ah Ying to take it for me for one night, and the wet nurse will come tomorrow."

"Rest and sleep!" Chen Qing got up and closed the door, then turned around and picked up his wife's legs and walked towards the bed, "Hey! The lady seems to have gained weight."

"nonsense!"

Lu Xiu punched her husband's shoulders twice, "Tell me clearly, where are you getting fat?"

Chen Qing chuckled twice, blew out the lamp, and carried his wife into the curtain...

Early the next morning, Chen Qing came to the official room refreshed. He had just sat down when Zhang Xuan, who joined the army in the recording room, stepped forward to salute and said: "Yesterday, the humble officer has already investigated clearly."

"How to say?"

"He is indeed the grandnephew of Zhong Shidao. His father Zhong Lie inherited Zhong Shidao's heir, so he is actually Zhong Shidao's grandson. This time he came to Jingzhao to take the imperial examination."

Sure enough, he is the grandson of a teacher, Chen Qing asked again: "Where is his father now?"

"His father originally lived in Jingzhao, but because of the Jin army's invasion, the whole family moved to Chengdu."

Chen Qing nodded, "I see. There is one more thing. The Internal Affairs Hall is not in use for the time being. It will be closed. The second wife is pregnant. You can pick a few capable men and take more care of it."

Hearing that the second lady is pregnant and resting, Zhang Xuan is both happy and worried. The joy is that he will be reused again, but the worry is that he may not have the ability of the second lady. Even if he finds a few capable subordinates to work together, it may be difficult to achieve The talent of the second wife.

"The humble official must work hard to live up to the trust of the envoy."

"Go! Invite Zhang Sima here and say that I have something important to discuss with him."

Zhang Xuan hurried away, and not long after, Sima Zhang Xiao came to Chen Qing's official room, smiled and cupped his hands and said: "I heard that the second lady is pregnant, congratulations to Xuan Fushi!"

"Thank you, Sima, please sit down!"

Chen Qing asked Zhang Xiao to sit down, took a map of Jingxiang and spread it on the table, and said slowly: "Zhang Jun led an army of [-] to attack Liu Guangshi, and the army is currently stationed in Yuezhou to confront Liu Guangshi. Zheng Ping sent an eagle letter from Chengdu, Liu Guangshi sent his confidant Li Miao to ask us to buy kerosene, willing to pay a high price, I want to hear Sima's opinion."

Zhang Xiao quickly asked, "What's the price?"

"Pay 40 yuan to buy [-] barrels of kerosene."

"Hehe! Twenty sticks a barrel, this price is very good!"

"The price is very attractive, but I don't want to have anything to do with Liu Guangshi."

Zhang Xiao suddenly understood that the Xuan Fu envoy wanted to do this business, but he didn't want to bear the reputation of collusion and rebellion, so he asked himself to think of a strategy that would balance both ends.

Zhang Xiao thought for a while and then smiled: "It's actually simple. The envoy of Xuanfu should publicly express his attitude and draw a clear line with Liu Guangshi. He can make it clear to the court that he is willing to send troops to assist the court army to destroy Liu Guangshi. Of course, this is just ours." With a clear attitude, the imperial court will definitely not agree to our sending troops.

Then, the last method was used to trade kerosene, using the so-called big businessmen to make private transactions. After the transaction was completed, an announcement was made, saying that Li Longwu, a big black market businessman, had been seized and secretly smuggled weapons and materials to Liu Guangshi. Merchants deliver military supplies to Liu Guangshi, offenders will be killed without mercy! "

Chen Qing couldn't help laughing, "How could a big businessman get [-] barrels of kerosene?"

"Xuan Fushi, this kind of thing is actually not important. No one will care whether it is reasonable. Even the court may not know that Liu Guangshi has kerosene. It's very simple. Liu Guangshi's kerosene was seized by Zhang Jun. He will definitely hide this precious strategic material in his own army and will never report it to the court, so the key is the attitude of the Xuanfu envoy. As long as the Xuanfu envoy's attitude is in place, then any accusations against the Xuanfu envoy will be Overwhelmed by Xuan Fushi's clear attitude."

Chen Qing nodded, he is not a pedantic person, 40 yuan can do a lot of things, and can greatly improve the conditions for running schools in various states. Chen Qing immediately called Zhang Xuan and said to him: "Zhang Sima said a lot Good suggestion, after you ask Zhang Sima, sort out these suggestions, and let me have a look at them first. After I agree, I will send it to Zheng Bing Mashi in Chengdu immediately, and add another one, and add 40 pieces of silk on the basis of 20 yuan. .”

"Understood, do it right away!"

……

There are many vegetable vendors on both sides of the south gate of Jingzhao. After decades of continuous evolution, a spectacular open-air vegetable market has been formed. From vegetables and fruits to grains, from poultry eggs to all kinds of meat, there are almost everything that one expects to find. Many sell needles, thread and brains , selling all kinds of snacks, selling cheap jewelry, all kinds of small stalls selling clothing and cloth also come to join in the fun. They start selling before dawn every day, and they don't start closing until the gate of the city. It is very lively from morning to night.

The magistrate Lu Wei not only ignored it, but supported this kind of market. It is rumored that he has written to the Fushifu, requesting that the South City Gate be closed all night and organize a night market. Get ready to apply for a night market stall.

The reason why the vegetable market and night market are so popular is mainly related to the residents in the Nanchengmen area. This is the residential area of ​​the low-level people in Jingzhao City. Hundreds of thousands of people live here. The low prices of the vegetable market and night market guarantee their livelihood. Life.

Zhong Huan looked around in the crowd, and after a while, he saw Lin Jianqing on the edge of the city gate. He seemed to be waiting for someone, with an impatient expression on his face.

Chapter 633

At this time, a large carriage passed by Zhong Huan. Suddenly, Zhong Huan saw a tall and thin man in the carriage, and there seemed to be two young women beside him. Zhong Huan quickly lowered his head and pretended to be shopping.

The carriage stopped beside Lin Jianqing, Lin Jianqing got into the carriage, the carriage turned around slowly, and drove towards the city, Zhong Huan rode on the rented green donkey, and followed the carriage unhurriedly.

The carriage only walked a few hundred steps, and then stopped at the entrance of an alley. The tall and thin man got out of the carriage with Lin Jianqing and two women in red skirts, and walked quickly into the alley.

Zhong Huan slowed down, pretending to be passing by the alley, he just glanced at it, and he knew the situation in the alley by heart.

In the alley, there were seven or eight rascals standing against the wall, each with their hips crossed and their chests folded. The tall and thin man was talking to the gangsters and Lin Jianqing, while two women in red skirts stood behind the tall and thin man.

Zhong Huan didn't know, so he went around and came back, only to find that there was no one in the alley, and the carriage was also missing.

When Zhong Huan was wondering, he suddenly heard a woman shouting, "Help! Help us!"

The voice came from the vegetable market. There was a commotion in the vegetable market. People from all directions ran over. Zhong Huan also urged his donkey to run towards the vegetable market. The woman walked forward, and the two women were terrified, crying like pear blossoms with rain, and kept calling for help. The people were angry and condemned the rascals one after another.

Zhong Huan recognized the gang of rascals and the two women, who were discussing things in the alley just now!

He suddenly realized something, and simply folded his hands on his chest, watching the play coldly.

The leader of the rascal shouted: "It's only natural to pay off debts. If they can't pay back the money, they should be sold to a brothel. If you want to save them, bring them five hundred coins!"

Everyone gasped, unexpectedly asking for five hundred coins, no one dared to do anything more.

Someone beside him sighed: "These gangsters are known as the seven tigers in the south of the city. They bully the market, lend usury, force the good to become prostitutes, and do all the bad things. How could they owe five hundred guan? They must have gotten out of it with a lot of money. Poor two girls!"

Suddenly someone shouted, "Stop!"

The crowd cheered for a while, and finally someone came forward.

Zhong Huan sneered, as expected, Lin Jianqing came out to save the weak woman.

"Lang Lang Qian Kun, do you still have Wang Fa in your eyes when you rob people's daughters?"

"Well said!" The surrounding people applauded.

Chong Huan really couldn't stand it any longer. If he guessed correctly, it was increasing his virtue. After all, once the news of heroes saving the United States spread, Lin Jianqing would have the aura of justice and the courage to stand up. Qing's brother-in-law, the future is immeasurable.

Zhong Huan felt that he had already guessed the truth, that tall and thin man must be Chen Qing's subordinate, and he was ordered to arrange all this.

It's ridiculous, I really thought that Chen Qing was an unselfish person, but unfortunately it was still unavoidable, so he shook his head and turned to leave.

On the other hand, Lin Jianqing is still expanding the halo effect of heroes saving the beauty.

……

Before dawn, a staff member yelled loudly in the corridor, "Get up! Get up! Scholars taking part in the imperial examination, get up quickly, the exam is about to begin!"

The last sentence woke up all the sleeping scholars, Zhong Huan sat up all of a sudden, and asked nervously, "What time is it?"

"Don't worry, it's not dawn yet!"

Chao Qing sat on the edge of the bed and slowly put on his shoes. Seeing that Su Ce was still asleep, he picked up his own pillow and threw it hard, "Xiao Su, get up quickly, the exam is about to start."

The yard and the dining hall were crowded with scholars who were washing and having breakfast. The inn even ordered seven bullock carts for the scholars in advance to take them to the examination room, but they ignored them when they came back.

The three simply cleaned up, ate something and went out. According to the regulations, they could only bring test vouchers and nothing else.

"There are exactly three seats left here!"

The three of them were lucky, squeezed into an ox cart, and there happened to be three seats left, the man waved and shouted, "The third one, let's go!"

The bullock cart shook, and began to walk slowly, heading north of the city at a leisurely pace.

There were 12 people sitting in a bullock cart, and the two rows sat facing each other. There was only a moment of silence, and everyone began to talk to each other.

Chao Qing asked with concern: "What's going on with Lao Zhong these two days, he's a little depressed?"

"It's nothing, I suddenly feel that nothing is interesting, and I'm confused about the future." Zhong Huan said sullenly.

"The old man is thinking about his fiancée! Are you afraid that you won't pass the exam and you won't be able to get married?" Su Ce smiled from the side.

"I miss you!" Zhong Huan gave him a dissatisfied look.

"Have you heard of it?"

A scholar said loudly: "Some of our scholars bravely fought the rogues and rescued two weak girls. It has spread in the past two days."

"I heard that the scholar seems to be called Lin Jianqing, one fights seven, without fear, his nose is bruised and his face is swollen, and he firmly refuses to give in. He saved the reputation of the two weak women, really give us scholars long face."

"I've also heard that this incident was a big one, the government issued a warrant, and those scoundrels ran away, and I also heard that eighteen gentry from Jingzhao wrote a joint letter recommending him to the School Persuasion Department! "

"What does it mean to recommend to the Persuasion Administration? Can you be admitted without taking an exam?"

"As long as the grades are not too bad, you should be able to make an exception for admission! After all, there is a rule that those with outstanding moral character can be admitted first."

Everyone was talking about it, and Zhong Huan showed a sneer of contempt on his face. He probably spent a lot of money to publicize it everywhere!

The bullock cart stopped in front of the gate of the examination room, and everyone jumped out of the bullock cart one after another. The money for the cart was settled by the inn, so they didn't have to worry about it.

At this time, the sky was not yet completely bright, but many scholars had already come, and they walked towards the camp one after another.

Chao Qing asked in surprise, "Aren't you going to check and frisk?"

Su Ce shook his head and smiled, "You were asked to come with me that day but you refused to come. Now you're talking in layman's terms. Today's poetry test, what's the point of carrying the note?"

"That's right!"

Chao Qing reacted, and then frowned again, "But what if someone takes the exam for you?"

"This is not something you should care about, let's go!"

The three of them walked into the big camp quickly, and walked to their respective sub-examination rooms. Their seats were easy to find, which exam room, which district, and which number. There were lanterns hanging above the gate of each sub-examination room, and it was written Clear, which exam room.

Then there is also a tent hanging in front of each large tent, on which the district is written, and an examiner will check the examination voucher at the door. If the verification is correct, the scholar will go in to find his seat, but once he enters, he cannot come out again.

Lin Jianqing also came to the gate of the examination room in a carriage. He was very nervous and handed the test voucher to Li Toutuo with trembling hands. The man, the man glanced at Lin Jianqing, took the test ticket and walked directly into the test room.

"Does it matter?" Lin Jianqing asked worriedly.

"Are you worried that he won't pass the exam?"

Li Toutuo sneered and said: "He was born as a Jinshi. He worked as a bookkeeper in a small county in Sichuan. His family owed a buttock of debts before he came out to be a knife catcher. As long as he passes the exam for you, he can earn 100 taels of silver. Will he agree?" ?"

"I'm not worried about whether he can pass the exam, I'm worried about whether he will be caught?"

"Don't worry! The test papers are anonymous, and there is no name on the test table. The test vouchers are just glanced at when entering the big account. As long as the examiner doesn't know you, as long as he keeps silent, who will know who he is?"

"What's his name?"

Li Toutuo was very contemptuous, this Lin Jianqing is really an idiot, he has explained so much by himself, and he is still asking such stupid questions.

"You don't need to know, it's not good for you to know!"

At this time, several scholars walked past their carriage talking and laughing. Lin Jianqing was so frightened that he quickly put down the curtain and said, "If you don't want to say anything, then hurry up! I'm afraid of being seen."

Li Toutuo smiled slightly, and shouted to the coachman, "Let's go!"

The coachman waved his long whip, "Drive!" The carriage started slowly and drove towards the city...

Chapter 634 Imperial Examination

In the largest big tent in the first examination room, a team of Chen Qing's personal soldiers brought a sealed gold box. Before Jiang Yanxian gave the topic of the poem to Zhao Fusheng too early, there was a possibility of leaking the topic Sex, so Chen Qing made the proposition again, and ordered the soldiers to send it at the last moment.

The gold box was placed on the square table, and the main examiners looked at each other. The gap on the gold box had been sealed by molten silver juice. How could they open it?

Yan Jun said to Zhao Fusheng: "Please order Zhao to check whether there is any trace of being opened."

Zhao Fusheng picked up the heavy gold box and looked at it carefully, shaking his head, Yan Jun pulled out an extremely sharp dagger, cut it gently along the gap, and finally pried the gold box open. Inside was a wooden box, wooden box Here is Chen Qing's question.

When everyone looked at the title carefully, the first one was a poem title, "Expressing feelings through objects, or expressing feelings through scenery, either poems or words are fine." 'The topic is not difficult. Basically, every scholar will write a few poems expressing their ambitions, but the key is that there are only 100 candidates for admission. If everyone writes well, it depends on who can write better.

The second is Fu titles. Fu began in the Han Dynasty. It is a style of writing that has been passed down for thousands of years. It pays attention to literary talent and rhythm, and has the characteristics of both poetry and prose. "Ode to the Autumn Sound" by Su Shi, "Ode to the Former Red Cliff" by Su Shi and so on.

Chen Qing's topic was, "Taking the Anti-Golden Response to the Country as the Main Line. The topic can be drawn up by yourself, with about a thousand words." '

The questions are not difficult, it depends on the level of the scholars.

More than a dozen examiners began to quickly copy the questions, paste them on the wooden frame, and after the second drum beat, the soldiers sent them to the battalions to show them to the scholars.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The first drum sounded, the gate of the examination room was closed, and all scholars had to enter their accounts to prepare for the examination.

Chao Qing's seat was next to the tent, which was not a good seat. The proctor would walk around beside him, which would definitely affect his concentration.

Every scholar has a pen, ink, paper and inkstone on his desk, as well as paste, name note, and a cup of clear water, which is used to grind ink. The first thing a scholar should do is to grind ink , and then test the pen, there are three manuscript papers on the table, but they are not official test papers.

Today's poetry and fu test takes three hours, and it ends at about 01:30 in the afternoon. I missed lunch time, but the test room does not provide lunch or tea, and it is only allowed to hand in papers half an hour in advance at most, which means It means that if you eat less in the morning, many people will be hungry.

If anyone wants to relieve himself, he will be accompanied by the supervising soldiers of this account to the toilet account at the end.