To The Land of Nevernight

In the bitter cold wind, two armored guards stood guard in front of the mansion with their spears in hand.

Suddenly, a thin figure walked quickly from the corner of the street.The guard standing on the left was about to yell at him, but when he saw the person clearly, he smiled and said, "Young Master Tang, you didn't leave until noon, why are you here again today?"

These guards are all veterans who have retired from the battlefield. It is said that they were injured on the battlefield.They were originally from the Gusu Mansion, and they couldn't do other jobs after they were disarmed and returned to the fields. Liang Daru took the initiative to recruit them and became guards.They were originally soldiers and ruffians in the army, but when they entered Liang's mansion, each of them was imbued with Liang Daru's culture, and after a few years they became refined and polite to others.

Tang Shen said: "Brother, please inform me, I want to see Lord Liang."

"You wait."

After a while, Tang Shen was led by the housekeeper to Liang's study.

Liang Song is painting. What he painted is an orchid rooted between the cliffs and swaying in the cold wind.A young man in a green robe is studying ink for him. This person's name is Xu Hui, and his style name is Yuzhi. He is Liang Daru's cousin.

Seeing Tang Shen coming, Liang Daru looked up at him and continued to paint.Holding a fine brush in his hand, he wrote and swished the ink, while saying: "Why did you come back after an hour. But I forgot something, let Yuzhi go and get it with you."

Tang Shen took three steps forward and took out something from his sleeve.

"gentlemen."

Liang Song looked up and saw something in Tang Shen's hand, he was slightly taken aback.

After a while, Liang Song said with a smile, "Yuzhi, you go out first."

Xu Hui made a bow and left the study.

Tang Shen raised his arms, held the invitation with both hands, and bowed to salute.

Liang chanted: "Yuzhi is gone, why don't you come and grind ink for me."

Tang Shen stepped forward, and he handed the invitation to Liang Song. Liang Song took the invitation and put it on the corner of the table, and began to draw again.Tang Shen rolled up his sleeves, picked up an ink ingot, and grinded the ink on the inkstone.In Yanghao's writing, the orchids in the cliff are noble and elegant, but there is silence in the study.

After finishing painting an orchid, Liang Song said, "Why is it here again?"

While studying the ink, Tang Shen said, "Come to make an apology to Mister."

"Oh, apology? Did you do something wrong?"

Tang Shen thought for a while: "Maybe the kid did nothing wrong, but he didn't do anything right either."

"Tell me what you did right and what you did wrong."

"Three days before the Double Ninth Festival, Mr. gave the boy an invitation card, please enter the house for a briefing. The boy was right. He guessed that the date was at noon of the Double Ninth Festival. He and his husband enjoyed the chrysanthemum in the pavilion. However, until now, the boy has made mistakes. One thing."

"what's up?"

"Arrogant, self-satisfied and carried away."

Liang Song put down his pen and said with a smile: "The old man didn't say that, you little boy, you will find trouble for yourself."

Tang Shen also put down his ink: "Sir, if you don't say that, then I feel even more ashamed. I'm not talented. I once said that I can't forget, and I recited the Four Books and Five Classics. However, I also said it twice, and I read it for five or sixty years. Even the old scholars in the book dare not say such big words. I haven't understood the anagrams on the invitation. Now I understand that the husband only said to appreciate the chrysanthemums, and he sincerely invited me. He also hid the word "Chongyang" in the poem , I want to tell me that the kid is still very superficial, and there are people outside of him, so don't be rampant."

Liang Song looked at Tang Shen for a long time, and said, "You have said everything I wanted to say. You have said what I didn't want to say. You little Tang Lang really left me speechless."

He said he had nothing to say, but Liang Daru stroked his long beard with a look of relief.

Seeing that Liang Daru was not angry, Tang Shen secretly heaved a sigh of relief.He continued: "Before coming, the kid heard a story."

"Oh, what story?"

Tang Shen hesitated for a moment, and said: "In the third year of Kaiping, outside Wuyuan City, the Liao army invaded with menace." After Tang Shen finished the first sentence, Liang Daru's complexion changed, his lips moved, but he didn't speak.Tang Shen continued: "The Liao people suddenly launched an attack, and Wuyuan City was short of soldiers and horses. It was a drought year, and there was not much food and grass in the city. It seemed that the imperial court's reinforcements would arrive in ten days, and the Liao army surrounded Wuyuan City. live."

"It's not ten days, they only arrived in half a month."

Tang Shen was stunned for a moment: "Yes, it took half a month. The general guarding Wuyuan City saw that the people and soldiers in the city were trapped and unable to get food, so he took out [-] taels of silver and gave it to the commander of the capital at that time, asking him to leave the city secretly. , to raise food and grass."

That was 21 years ago, in the third year of Kaiyuan, when the new emperor ascended the throne, some troubles occurred, which seriously injured the national power.For ten consecutive years, the people of Liao invaded frequently, causing the people to live in dire straits.

Wuyuan City was not adjacent to the Liao people, so there were only more than [-] defenders in the city.Unexpectedly, the Liao people took advantage of the drought in the Song Dynasty to suddenly attack and captured Youzhou City overnight, and the army forced them to Wuyuan City.The general who defended the city was named Zheng Yuanping, who was born in a reckless family. He was a reckless general who fought the world with his own hands.

The Liao people forced the city, and Zheng Yuanping guarded it for three days, but there was no food in the city.Zheng Yuanping found Liang Song, the commander of the capital, and he knelt down on his knees, asking Liang Song to take [-] silver to go to Xixia and come back to save people.

Zheng Yuanping: "Wuyuan and I will live and die together."

At night, Liang Song avoided the defenders and went to Xixia.There is a waterway from Xixia to Wuyuan. If you take the waterway to transport grain, you can avoid the spies of the Liao people.But at that time, Xixia, Liao and Song Dynasty were all friendly states and formed alliances.Liang Song found a Xixia businessman who was greedy for one hundred thousand taels of silver, but worried about getting involved in the war.

Liang Song was in his early thirties at the time and was a well-known talent in the Song Dynasty.Seeing that the days passed, there was no food or grass in the city, and the Liao people forced the city, he immediately knelt down, grabbed the ground with his head, kowtowed until his head was bleeding, and asked the Xixia merchant to send out two boats full of grain and grass , sent to Wuyuan City.

It's a pity that Wuyuan City was already broken when he arrived, and Zheng Yuanping's head was chopped off by the Liao people and hung on the top of the city.

Tang Shendao: "At that time, seeing that Mr. Zheng had failed General Zheng's entrustment, he drew his sword and planned to apologize with death. Fortunately, he was rescued by the people accompanying him."

Liang Song seemed to think of people and things from more than 20 years ago. He sighed and said, "It's been more than 20 years. In the tenth year of Kaiyuan, the Song Dynasty defeated the Liao army in Shuozhou. Why do you bring this up again today?"

Tang Shen walked under the desk, bowed respectfully, and said, "The boy was born in the countryside, and he only knew frogs and insects since he was a child, but he didn't know the world. Today, I heard an old scholar talk about this, and the boy finally understood that Mr. What does it mean that you don't care about the latitude, but you worry about the death of Zong Zhou, and you will reach Yan."

Liang Song looked at him: "Then tell me what it means."

Tang Shen raised his head, his eyes were full of energy, and he said word by word: "Everyone is responsible for the rise and fall of the world!"

Liang Song's body trembled, and he didn't move for a long time.

After a long time, he murmured to himself, "Everyone is responsible for the rise and fall of the world."After a while, he laughed loudly: "Yes, everyone is responsible for the rise and fall of the world! You are right. Do you know why the old man gave you this invitation card, or why he gave you that invitation card in Zhaojia Village that day?" Famous post?"

Tang Shen was stunned.

He had never thought about this, but now that he thought about it carefully, he suddenly felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, and realized his ignorance.

From the moment he traveled to ancient times, he has been aloof, thinking that he is a thousand years later, more intelligent and knowledgeable.Whether it is Master Zeng or Liang Daru, he has never really taken these ancients too seriously, and has always been high-spirited and defiant.Even if he didn't express it, he still had such thoughts deep in his heart, but he never noticed it.Now that I find out, I'm really ashamed.

Tang Shen was ashamed, he said frankly, "I don't know, kid."

Liang Song: "Because, you and I are very similar!"

"what?"

"The prodigy who never forgets, the old man has also seen. There are ten talents in the world, and he has eight out of them. Let me say that the old man was selected as a scholar at the age of 12, and won the Juren at the age of 16. At the age of 21, he won the first prize. Tang Shen, how dare you say , At the age of 21, can you be ranked as a Jinshi?"

If it was before, Tang Shen might still have the confidence to say that he has this possibility.But he is no longer arrogant now, he knows that in ancient times, it was as difficult as reaching the sky to pass the Jinshi examination.

The imperial examination is held once every three years, and 300 Jinshi are collected each time, with an average of only 100 people a year.

These 100 people are looking at the entire Song Dynasty, not a certain prefecture or a certain state!In later generations, Tsinghua University and Peking University admitted tens of thousands of people a year, but in ancient times, there were only 100 Jinshi students every year.Scholars all over the world are taking the exam with you, and they are all your classmates.

Tang Shen said: "I dare not."

Liang Song looked at Tang Shen's humble and ashamed appearance, and felt even more satisfied. He sighed and said, "Of course, you are too similar to this old man. Tang Shen, 24 years ago, this old man was also like you, feeling that the world is in my hands. But You have to remember that there are things you can't do in this world, and there are people you can't save. Have you ever seen the bones of thousands of miles outside the city of Youzhou, and the blood is flowing."

Tang Shen said sincerely: "Sir, I am arrogant."

"Okay, come here, you little Tang Lang, you still look proud and complacent like before, which suits you better. But what you said is true, everyone is responsible for the rise and fall of the world!"

No matter how thick-skinned Tang Shen was, he was a little shy at the moment.Where is he proud and complacent, Mr. really can't speak.

Liang Song: "When are you going to study?"

"Uh, this..."

"I'm afraid you won't be able to catch up with the county exam next year. There are only three months left. You haven't even learned the stereotype system, have you?"

Tang Shen lacked confidence: "No..."

Liang Song: "Next month, go to the government school to study."

Tang Shen was surprised and said, "Sir, isn't the government school only for those who pass the examination as a scholar?"

"My students can go too."

Tang Shen said in surprise, "Sir?"

Liang Song laughed and scolded: "You naughty little Tang Lang, since the Double Ninth Festival, you have come to visit me several times, isn't it just to worship me as a teacher?"

Tang Shen pretended to be stupid: "The boy just wants to see Mr."

"Okay, let's go."

Seeing Tang Shen off, Liang Daru looked at his thin back, feeling relieved and amused at the same time.He rolled the orchid picture into a scroll and put it away, took out the letter paper, and began to write a letter.At the end of writing, he thought for a while and added another sentence.

"...You old boy, you accepted a good student 18 years ago, and you showed it off to me over and over again for 18 years. Do you know that I also accepted a student today, and he also has the unforgettable memory of Zifeng?" Ability. And my student, who is only thirteen years old, said a word to me."

"The rise and fall, everyone is responsible!"

"Did Zifeng say this when he was 13 years old?"

Sprinkling ink proudly, after finishing writing the letter, Liang Song called his nephew, "Send the orchid picture and the letter to Shengjing, to that old boy."

"Yes."

On the other hand, until he walked out of the gate of the Liang Mansion, Tang Shen was a little light-headed.

Liang Daru was right, Tang Shen didn't come to visit him for no reason from the very beginning, but he had selfish intentions: he wanted to worship Liang Song as his teacher.

Liang Daru is not a person who does not accept students. It is said that ten years before Kaiyuan, when he was the commander of the capital and when the first emperor was still in power, he also accepted a few students.It's a pity that most of these students died in battle, and one died of illness many years ago.Perhaps because he was getting older, he stopped accepting students.

Logically speaking, Tang Shen is not qualified to make him an exception, but Tang Shen has one confidence: Liang Bowen personally gave him his own name card.

Even if Tang Shen doesn't leave the officialdom in the future, the title of "Liang Bowen's student" can make him not worry about other things.

But now, Tang Shen sincerely wanted to worship Liang Song as his teacher.

He doesn't have that kind of integrity, but he respects that kind of people.The world can have one less Tang Shen, but the world cannot do without people like Liang Song.

When he got home, Tang Shen saw his younger sister waiting outside the door.Seeing himself, Don Juan hurried over.

Tang Shen was still a little proud at this moment, he smiled and said, "Ah Huang, guess what I did just now."

Tang Juan stomped his feet: "Bad Tang Shen, I don't care what you do, something happened at home, why don't you hurry in!"

The author has something to say: How do I feel, today you guys have to start guessing, the age of our next door Lao Wang...

Old Wang next door: Huh?I am very young.

13-year-old little mantis: What, what are you talking about?