Linzhi

Ever since he returned to Beijing that day, Emperor Jiayou granted He Rong a ten-day vacation, but he really didn't go to court, and he rarely went out. Even after sitting for an entire afternoon, nine out of ten visitors were rejected by him on the grounds that he was unwell.

Xue Tan was one of the rare guests he put into the mansion. The newly appointed minister of the Ministry of Rites was exhausted trying to recruit scholars. Seeing His Royal Highness An Wang Youzai Youzai half lying on the wicker chair reading a book, his heart broke in two.

"Your Highness is really stealing half a day's leisure!" Xue Tan felt more and more bitter about his life, "I'm afraid that all the civil and military affairs of the court can't compare to your immortal life!"

"Hey, Xue Shangshu from the Ministry of Rites is here!" He Rong raised his eyelids and glanced lazily, "But you are wrong, I am not stealing half a day off."

Xue Tan teased: "Could it be that you are busy reading idle books?"

The two are familiar with each other, and they talk more casually in private.

He sneaked a glance at the title of the book in He Rong's hand, "Mei Chun Xin Hua".

Xue Tan suspected that his eyes were dazzled, so he glanced repeatedly.

"...His Royal Highness King An actually watched the legend of the market's love affairs?"

Not only did He Rong not change his face, he also handed the book to read: "The words and sentences are quite good, do you want to read it?"

"I don't have that fate!" Xue Tan pretended to be pitiful, "It's hard to come here today, and I finally escaped from the sea of ​​suffering temporarily. I can only ask His Highness to take you in and let me have a leisure time!"

He Rong pointed to the sour plum soup on the table: "Let me reward you with a bowl!"

"Thank you, Your Highness, for the reward!" Xue Tan pretended to salute, regardless of whether He Rong had drunk it or not, he really picked it up and took a big sip, and finally smacked his lips: "It would be even better if it was wine."

He Rong: "Drinking in broad daylight, only you, an alcoholic, can do it."

Xue Tan smiled wryly: "I really want to drink, but I don't even have time to drink recently! Try to find a way to get a scholar, whether it's my house or the yamen of the Ministry of Rites, there are people guarding the door every day, let alone invitations." That's it, the desks are stacked up, and they can be even with the official documents!"

He Rong raised his eyebrows: "Who is looking for you frequently? Want to intercede?"

Xue Tan: "Who else can there be? Our Prince's Highness, of course, he is definitely impossible to come forward. It is a man named Jiang Yue. I remember that he has an official position in the East Palace."

He Rong is quite familiar with this name, after all, he just met a few days ago. "East Palace Sheren."

Xue Tan patted his thigh: "Yes, that's him! He wants to invite me to dinner all day long, and he also knows that I like to drink, and he is addicted to alcohol, so he sent me a lot of old wines. Jia, where do you get so much money to buy good wine? So where does the wine come from, can't I guess with my ingenuity?"

He Rong was noncommittal about his boast: "What did he ask you for, how many people did he want to squeeze in?"

Xue Tan: "That's not true. The people on the list are actually scheduled to meet and answer in the Xuanzheng Palace, but there are different rankings."

As soon as he started, He Rong understood.

After Emperor Jiayou came to the throne, he didn't have any big ideas of going to war and pioneering and innovating. He just wanted to live in peace and stability. A lot of incidents happened.

But it also brings disadvantages, that is, the emperor who doesn't want to make trouble must be a lazy emperor. Emperor Jiayou adhered to the principle of "If you can sit, don't stand, if you can lie down, don't sit", he became the king of Lu and ascended the throne Afterwards, his figure has undergone significant changes from the original thin and thin body, and now it is becoming more and more round.Chia

Emperor You not only reflected his "laziness" in his figure, but also listed "simple everything" and "save trouble if he can save trouble" as his motto when dealing with government affairs.For example, trying a strategy to recruit scholars, every time you meet with your Majesty, there are about dozens of people who ask and answer questions in front of the emperor, but it is impossible for Emperor Jiayou to ask everyone in detail. If you ask about a dozen people symbolically, the rest will be It was done by the officials below.Well, if these ten or so people can get a good impression of the emperor, their official career will undoubtedly be much smoother in the future, and there will be no difficulty in being promoted.

In the past, the first few were all monopolized by the children of the aristocratic family. They hired famous teachers since they were young, and they have read poetry and books. He was also favored by the late emperor, not to mention becoming a minister of the Ministry of Rites, it is still unknown whether he can stay in the capital to serve as an official.

He Rong asked: "He wants you to move the people at the back to the front so that His Majesty can ask them?"

Xue Tan nodded: "Yes, Jiang Yue said, there are a few people here who have real talents and real learning, and they are also well-known among scholars, but they did not perform well in the test, and their rankings fell behind. People are also quite appreciative, asking me to adjust the ranking, anyway, it is just to give them a chance to show their faces in front of His Majesty."

He Rong: "I'm afraid it's more than that. If you show your face, it will be easier to stay in Beijing. And I'm thinking, it's not just His Royal Highness who can make you in such a dilemma, but other people are also looking for you gone?"

Xue Tan: "Hey, as expected of His Royal Highness King An, you can predict things like a god!"

He pretended to get up and cupped his hands: "Please accept the official's bow!"

He Rong picked up the empty bowl that was drunk by the other party and wanted to throw it at it. Xue Tan laughed and quickly avoided it.

"Who is still looking for you? Li Kuan? My second brother?"

Xue Tan: "That's impossible. Duke Heng won't do such things that are out of character. His Royal Highness Ji Wang has just returned from a victorious battle, and he doesn't have frequent contacts with officials in the court. They are officials from some aristocratic families. I heard that This time, there are quite a few children from poor families in the selection of scholars, and they also came to block me, telling me to be fair and strict, and not to break the rules of the court. What do you think I can do? I am not a person inside and outside, this should be the Minister of the Ministry of Officials, Liu How could such a troublesome thing become my trouble?"

He Rong: "Because they know that Liu Zhong belongs to His Royal Highness, it is useless to warn Liu Zhong. Now His Royal Highness obviously wants to promote more poor children, so they all came to you."

Xue Tan: "Looking at it now, there is an undercurrent in this court hall, and there is a seesaw rivalry between each other. It seems to be a bit of a factional struggle."

He Rong: "Why?"

Xue Tan spread his hands: "Parties are united against differences, what is it if it is not a party struggle?"

He Rong: "From the previous dynasty to this dynasty, although the aristocratic family has also experienced the baptism of war, it has not hurt the root, but has become more deeply rooted and leafy. They have monopolized knowledge and monopolized most of the officials in the court. Over time, they must take it for granted. , but forget that neither the emperor nor the people are willing to see such a situation, and the rise of the humble family is inevitable."

Xue Tan: "So, you also support His Royal Highness?"

He Rong shook his head: "I support the reuse of poor families, but not in this way. If those people are not capable enough, they are forcibly promoted, and in the end, not only will they not be able to become arms, but they will be hindered. But it is not easy for the prince, and the family does not get close to him Moreover, the relatives and relatives of the emperor represented by Li Kuan did not get close to him, and the only ones he could win over were those from poor families."

Xue Tan scratched his head: "That's true, but the prince is still too impatient, if he can figure it out slowly..."

He Rong: "Why do you draw it slowly? Officials from a poor family, like you, are rare, and many of them are Jiang Yue's. The half bucket of water is clanging. The prince is eager to employ people now, so he can only settle for the next best thing. I don't understand, but I can't help it."

Xue Tan beamed and said, "It's really not easy to be praised by you. In your eyes, I'm already a rarity?"

He Rong: "That's just a casual remark."

Xue Tan groaned: "Then I don't care, words that are spoken are like water that is poured out, and it's hard to get back when it's covered!"

He Rong sighed: "Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites, if someone hears that you are so useless, then you will be the Minister of Rites. What's more, others will think that I taught you how to use it. I'm sorry for this man."

Xue Tan laughed loudly: "I noticed that after you went out for a trip, you became more lively when you came back! It seems that the mountains and rivers of Nanyi really nourish people, and they have made His Royal Highness King An a sneer!"

He Rong had a good time: "There is a real Nanyi person outside, you can get closer to him, so that you can take care of your rough skin!"

When he said this, Xue Tan realized that besides the two of them and the maidservant, there was actually another person in the yard, but the other person had just hid in the tree and was covered by leaves, so he didn't see him for a while.

Xue Tan wondered, "Did you bring a monkey back from Nanyi?"

He Rong ignored him, but said to the people on the tree: "Sang Lin, stop busy, come down and rest."

"But I haven't stuck much yet!"

The figure on the tree fell to the ground three times and two times, holding a sticky pole in one hand, and a net in the other hand, which contained a lot of cicadas.

Xue Tan: "Why did you catch it?"

He knew that some high-ranking officials and dignitaries felt noisy in the summer, so they asked the servants to stick sticky sticks to stick the cicadas, but this had little effect, the trees were full of insects, and it was futile. People in places like this.

Sang Lin wiped off his sweat and said with a smile, "Fry the bugs!"

Xue Tan suspected that not only his eyes were broken, but his ears were also broken.

He Rong couldn't see his rustic appearance, so he said, "It's a Nanyi dish. Sang Lin said that you can fry it if you know it, so I insist on making it."

Xue Tan blinked: "Then can I have wine with fried cicadas?"

Sang Lin: "Of course, I brought a few jars of wine from Nanyi, how about giving you a taste some other day?"

Xue Tan rubbed his hands and salivated, "It's better to hit the sun than to choose a day, let's do it today!"

Sang Lin looked at He Rong, He Rong waved his hand, there was nothing he could do with them.

When the young man went to move the wine jar with the maid, Xue Tan suppressed his smile.

"Your Highness, to be serious, it's not the right time for you to come back. From my point of view, there may be a good show between the crown prince and King Ji. If you just watch the fire from the other side, it's nothing more than a lively one. You are close, don't burnt."

"You said something wrong." He Rong said.

Xue Tan was puzzled.

He Rong: "It's not about to happen, it's already started."

He raised his head and looked at the sky, looking far away, it was as blue as water, and there was no cloud in the sky.

I wonder if the sky in Nanyi is also so clear and blue?