[Red Mansions] The Road to Empress Dowager

On the one hand, the two houses in Jia's mansion are changing places and tearing apart, on the other hand, Tu Yuanyi takes Xing Xiuyan for a spring outing in his busy schedule, and on the other hand, it is a major national event.

The Spring Festival, which lasted for nearly half a month, is in full swing.

Among them is Jia Huan, who is only fourteen years old this year.Jia Huan thought that he had fought hard in the college entrance examination and survived the ancient Qiu Wei, and whether he was mentally prepared for Chun Wei, or was he driven crazy by the environment.

For example, candidates were locked in a small room in the Gongyuan, where they ate, drank, and littered. In the autumn period of Jinling, the weather was extremely hot in early September, and the smell in the room was stinky in just one day.And he was going to go twelve days without a bath in that kind of weather.

If it wasn't for the fact that he came from the countryside in his previous life, and his hometown was also short of water, how would he be able to stand it on the body of the little ancestors in the present?

But now he insists on overcoming everything with an ambition to surpass others.

This spring is another hardship.Compared with the previous dynasties, the saint took pity on Juzi, and Enzhun delayed the start of ten days just to make the weather warmer.

But what do you mean by cold spring!A ten-day delay is of no use at all!

There is no heating, no floor heating, no small sun, and even the wind blowing into the small house can't stop it.

In those few days when it was extremely cold, he had already worn several large woolen clothes, and it was still terribly cold while sitting and writing, trying desperately to keep warm—by shaking.Fire and charcoal stove?After he came in, he found that there was not enough charcoal, so he had to save some, otherwise he would not be able to survive the next few nights and get sick, and the biggest tragedy would be that he would die if he passed the exam.

In the end, Jia Huan, in the spirit of success or benevolence, rolled up a thin quilt and survived all the stereotyped poems, prose, classics and righteousness.

Jia Huan has his own dark side, his background largely determines his character, if he is as "kind, beautiful and pure" like Jia Baoyu, he doesn't know where he is.

But in order to change his destiny, his determination is beyond the reach of others.

In the past few years, he insisted on reading the Four Books and Five Classics, and he had memorized them fluently, such as the stereotyped essays. Before he went to Jinling, he got many model essays from Jia Zheng, and he didn't know how many he had memorized.Stereotyped style is also as proficient as ancient literati.

Jia Zheng is pedantic, vain, and arty, but his respect for scholars is still half-hearted.In the original book, he also pointed out a province's academic administration, which was in charge of the provincial scientific examination, and he had served as an academic administration for three or four years.Therefore, Jia Zheng has quite a collection of books, but it is a pity that he has limited aptitude or does not study hard in essence, just pretending to be forced, and he has no real talent and learning.

In the end, Jia Zheng's study was more expensive than Jia Huan. Jia Huan wanted to study and improve. Even though he was a bastard, Jia Zheng was happy to see him, especially after he was elected.Basically, he had nothing to do with Jia Huan about anything related to reading. Jia Baoyu couldn't get such benefits. What he feared most was reading.

However, Mr. Cao judged that everyone in the world has both virtues of good and evil. Even Lin Daiyu’s kindness has a history of making fun of Grandma Liu as a mother locust in public. The original sin of "respecting the wife".

Of course, Jia Huan is also a person of "two endowments of good and evil".

No matter how vicious and selfish Jia Huan was, he had no background in modern times to be able to reach his status at that time, so his IQ was naturally not bad.When he treated Xin Xiuyan like that back then, naturally the "evil" side in his bones exploded. At the beginning, he liked Xin Xiuyan very much, and of course he was sincere in chasing her.

But Xin Xiuyan has been in love with him for two years, but she is more and more focused on work, and he can't feel her passionate love for him, but as a rural person, he actually likes her independence and kindness.

At first, he was worried that Xin Xiuyan would look down on his poor hometown, and he also subsidized poor students in his hometown to study for his own peace of mind and to win her favor.His worry was unnecessary, she looked at him with tolerance, understanding and even a little admiration.His father came to see him in Dacheng and he happened to be with a client. She picked him up and took him to play, buy clothes and see a doctor, which moved him very much.

It's just that her work became more and more busy later on, and at that time she was a little conservative and didn't want to live together right away.He was partying with his brothers, and was accidentally discovered by them. He had been in love for a year or two, but he hadn't been married yet, so he was laughed at.

He was in great pain, so he called Xin Xiuyan, but she was in a rush for a project again, and he was in a hurry to speak, so he blamed her, and his former love turned into resentment.

This is like Pandora's magic box being opened, just like countless tangled family ethics dramas, human nature is good and evil, good and evil are sometimes in a single thought.And after throwing away his integrity, he thought that he must make Xin Xiuyan regret it, and even did what he did later, including testifying that Xin Xiuyan had stolen Hua Zhenzhu's advertising idea.

These gloomy human nature and dark history did not affect Jia Huan's knowledge and ability to do things.

However, Chunwei received three questions on the day of the exam, and asked to answer each question within three days.

The first question, Poetry and Fu, Jia Huan is a descendant after all, and he has some descendants in his stomach.After he attracted Jia Zheng's attention in the past, he didn't often write poems like other traversers.

Because no matter how good you are, good poems and good words are limited, and good steel must be used for the toughness of the knife.It is enough to make Jia Zheng pay attention to improving his living conditions at home.Jia Zheng already felt that he could be cultivated, so why should he use resources to satisfy his vanity.

He needs to go all the way to scientific research, and when he comes to the officialdom in the future, will there be no time to write poems?Isn't it too ridiculous to write good poems and good words for later generations in the early years, but when you meet someone who may be your noble person, you will be exhausted at the critical moment?

Jia Huan is not the kind of person who will give up subsequent benefits for the sake of short-term vanity.

Therefore, for the topic of poetry, he just wrote the poems that he had prepared a long time ago, and it took very little time.

The second question is about the meaning of the scriptures. There are explanations of the meaning of the scriptures in the Four Books and Five Classics and my own understanding. There are also questions similar to "cloze and fill in the blanks". Jia Huan is naturally helpful in this part.

The third question is eight-part essay, but only one word is given: benevolence.

Such a word really made him difficult. The core of Confucianism is benevolence, but it is a cliché, he is young, and he is a half-hearted ancient. How can he compare with those old scholars?He passed the Juren examination in Jinling, thanks to the examination skills he had learned from later generations, and he had memorized some materials that he had prepared for Jia Zhu from Jia Zheng.

But now it's the Jinshi exam, and the competition is much fiercer. How can you break out of the encirclement with such skills?

Since the Song Dynasty, Confucian scholars have often grasped "Zi said: 'Only the benevolent can be good and can hate benevolence'", thinking that benevolence is necessary to hate evil as hatred.

How can "Jen" solve the problem?Jia Huan thought of what the current emperor had done after he ascended the throne, and he still respected the law.So he said "I haven't seen anyone who loves benevolence and hates people who are not benevolent." The standard of "benevolence" should not be influenced by personal likes and dislikes.Personal views are always biased. A person only sees his own good, but does not see his own bad. If he sees the bad of others, he will kill him. How terrible that is.From this, he wrote the countermeasures. First of all, benevolence should be "inclusive" to be "lenient". .Based on this, Jia Huan introduced the impartial "law". This is the most extensive benevolence.Then, he discusses the purpose and means of "benevolence" and "law" in detail.

An article is written, revised and polished several times, and finally written clearly and correctly on the answer sheet in a pavilion style.

Twelve days of spring finally passed, and Jia Huan, like all the candidates, walked out of the Gongyuan with vain footsteps. Zhao Guoji was waiting outside the Gongyuan.

There were also many family members waiting outside, Jia Huan finally found Zhao Guoji and a driver sent by Rongfu from the crowd.Jia Huan felt cold in his heart, he was the only person in Jia's mansion who participated in the Spring Festival, and they were so neglectful!Jia Huan, as a despised concubine, was sensitive to whether the government neglected him or not.

But he saw other relatives coming to pick him up one by one, including the Shi family who he didn't know yet.

Father and son Shi Bai and Shi Rui didn't go to the yamen today, they came to pick up Shi Cong and Shi Li in person at the gate of the Gongyuan. The father, son, uncle and nephew were very affectionate and caring, and there was a servant boy who took good care of him, helped him into the car, and brought him snacks and a water bottle. ginseng tea, these will not be described in detail first.

Jia Huan was supported by Zhao Guoji into the green cloth carriage, served by him to eat and drink, and listened to him talk about the changes of the past few days.

"Master was demoted?! And moved out of Rongxi Hall?" Jia Huan couldn't help being stunned. Even if he didn't have any real feelings for Jia Zheng, before he came here, Jia Zheng didn't care about him as a bastard at all, he was just a little boy. Like a frozen cat.

But he also understands that without Jia Zheng, his son would hardly have the opportunity to study. Studying in modern times is considered a luxury for rural children, let alone in ancient times.

And no matter how selfish he has a dark side, even in modern times he can't do things that break through human relations, let alone the ancient times when filial piety was greater than heaven.He is "unfilial" to Mrs. Wang, but Mrs. Wang is not his biological mother and has never loved him. From the perspective of a modern person like him, she is actually a person who has nothing to do with her.

It was enough for him to use the evidence to make her stop suppressing him in terms of filial piety. Jia Zheng didn't care much about "protecting his wife", he was more focused on gaining fame.

In the original book, Jia Baoyu gave titles to the residences in the Grand View Garden, showing his elegance and talent. Jia Zheng has a lot of face in front of Qing Ke, and he is proud of it, let alone how much reputation his son, who is only 13 years old, can bring him. Fishing for reputation capital?

Jia Zheng naturally didn't care about his disrespect to Mrs. Wang, and Wang Ziteng was also his backer, so he would not easily pursue Mrs. Wang's guilt.

The confrontation between Jia Huan and Mrs. Wang is only hidden, and no one can touch the other for the time being.

After listening to Zhao Guoji's narration, Jia Huan wondered why the emperor did this for no reason.Is Xin Xiuyan supporting Mrs. Xing?But Jia Amnesty was also demoted, obviously no one got a good one.

The emperor was mean and ungrateful, but looking at history as a modern person, he was much more merciful than Zhu Yuanzhang, and he did not seize the meritorious officials and officials to remove them by excuses.Once the emperor and the courtiers, every emperor ascends the throne, if the disobedient ones are arrested and killed, then who will be arrested?

Jia Huan went back to the East Courtyard where everyone in the second room lived except Baoyu and Jia Yuanchun. Aunt Zhao and Tanchun had been waiting here.Xichun used to live in Baoxiali in Mrs. Wang's courtyard. Now that Jia Zheng and Jia She have changed houses, Xichun didn't follow her. Originally, Mrs. You wanted to take her back to the East Mansion, but Xichun thought the East Mansion was dirtier and was not happy. , Yingchun kept her, and she continued to live in Rongfu.

As soon as Aunt Zhao saw Jia Huan, she went up to hug him and said, "My Huan'er, you're back... are you hungry?"

Although Jia Huan grew up, Aunt Zhao often "loved" him like this, but now she is fourteen years old, she didn't want to be like this, so she pushed her.

"Auntie, I'm fine, I have to go to greet the master."

Tanchun looked at this younger brother with various feelings in his heart.In the past, she always thought that she was the young lady of the Duke's Mansion, but now even the lord has been stripped of the fig leaf to see the "real body" - just an eighth-rank petty official, and the owner of the Rong Mansion was just dreaming.What dignity does she have as a concubine from an eighth-rank official family?

Baoyu has not sought to make progress so far, no matter how much she supports and protects him when he is a young man, he himself still lives by the old lady's doting, and the old lady doesn't know what to do without him.

Now, her only hope is her "brother prodigy", who she looked down upon in the past as a "sneaky, lowly, dark-eyed" person.

Jia Huan was at odds with his wife. As a daughter, she was raised by his wife since she was a child. How could she not be in a dilemma?But she couldn't think about it too much.

Tanchun said softly: "Huan'er, it's good that you come back safely. My aunt misses you all day, even if the housework is not going well, my aunt doesn't worry about everything. The only thing she misses is you."

Jia Huan looked at Tanchun, nodded lightly, and said, "I'm not in the mansion, please be filial to my aunt for me. I'm going to see the master."

Jia Huan went to Jia Zheng's house. At this time, Jia Zheng had been hiding for several days without seeing anyone, and the cleaning men were no longer around.Even, a few days ago, the three young princes brought a group of people to visit, and they sneered at him in public without paying attention to subtlety and hospitality. I am afraid of visitors.

After the meeting, Jia Zheng asked about the scientific research in detail, and Jia Huan answered them one by one, including a few excellent poems written by poems and prose. wonderful.He also heard that some of the scriptures and meanings of his questions were actually done, and he was a little bit more determined.

It's just stereotyped articles, he wrote...too out of line, he called him "Zi Zi Kuang Lang", but then thought of "law", and couldn't help but think of what he had just suffered, isn't it just "violating etiquette and law, and overstepping court regulations"? ?

If the sage prefers the "law", how could the examiner not know?This year's chief examiner is none other than Zhang Boyan, a Grand Tutor of the LongTuge University, who is a grand tutor personally conferred by a sage.

Jia Huan may not have no chance.

……

Xing Xiuyan is on the desk in the wing room of Ganlu Hall, holding a quill pen and writing her own "The Wind and Cloud of the Late Ming Dynasty". Before, Kawen didn't want to write too "high and complete" when he wrote about Tushi, but he violated the taboo if he didn't write like this , it's Calvin.

At this time, she thought it would be better to show the "emperor's hegemony" from the side characters, less subjective descriptions of the Tu family, and better use events and other people's events to set off.

For example, how the four kings and eight princes surrendered one by one, and the four kings fought and cooperated in the early stage.

At the end of Shen Shi, Tu Yuanyi actually stepped into her room.Tu Yuanyi was so weak when it came to women that he was favored by the emperor, but the government never relaxed, except for Xiu Mu, who rarely came to her room at this time.

Xing Xiuyan hurriedly got up to say hello, "Why is the sage so early today?"

Tu Yuanyi lifted the hem of the dragon robe and sat down on the couch. She took the tea served by Jin Yao and handed it to him with familiarity.

Tu Yuanyi looked at her manuscript and chuckled lightly: "My concubine has worked harder than me, but did my father send someone to remind me?"

Xing Xiuyan smiled and said: "It's rare that the old sage is willing to polish the concubine, and the concubine should work hard."

Tu Yuanyi glanced at Zhao Gui, and Zhao Gui's eyes were very clear, and all the maids who waited on him retreated out of the room.

Xing Xiuyan's face flushed instantly when she thought of Tu Yuanyi's lack of integrity.

Seeing her blushing appearance, Tu Yuanyi saw that she was swallowed by his bone scum after being together for a long time, and she had a connection with her heart, so she couldn't help but smiled: "What is my concubine thinking? Come and sit down."

Xing Xiuyan moved over and sat beside him, she was not so shy usually, it was because they had just returned to the palace from vacation in Lishan.Those days, he was so outrageous that even a woman who would throw herself down and tease the emperor couldn't bear the shame of him.

However, Tu Yuanyi asked some serious matters about the Rongfu, and the flush on Xing Xiuyan's face gradually faded.When asked about certain characters—

"Jia Huan? What happened to him?" Xing Xiuyan was stunned.

Tu Yuanyi said: "In my previous life, Cui Ming was the examiner for this year's Chunwei, but he... I ordered Zhang Boyan to be the examiner, which is very different from the original one. Jia Huan... At a young age, he actually won the Jinshi. The Jia family also has This kind of genius? You used to say something contradictory several times, and I don't know it very well." Cui Ming is the father of Concubine De, and now he has been transferred to work as a school errand.

In fact, for the emperor who is in charge of the country, the Rongguo Mansion is too small, and the parents just listen to the short story after hearing it.

"He won the Jinshi?" Xing Xiuyan was still very surprised.

Tu Yuanyi said: "Zhang Taifu was a double-cultivator of Confucianism and Legalism. Although Jia Huan's articles are immature, they suit Zhang Taifu's appetite. Jia Huan is the concubine son of Jia Zheng, the concubine brother of Jia Baoyu, the second wife of the Jia family. But it came back to life."

What Tu Yuanyi did at the time was naturally intended to attack Jia Yuanchun, and besides, the emperor like Jia Zheng really hated him.Of course, he also flattered his daughter-in-law a little bit, and lowering Jia She to the title also allowed him and Mrs. Xing to live in Rongxi Hall.But as an emperor, it's almost enough for him to do this kind of thing, otherwise he would really lose his status.It's just that he deliberately left an extra move, so that the three little brothers and princes who were to be trained had a very bad impression of Jia Zheng.

But Xing Xiuyan didn't tell Tu Yuanyi about Xiren and Jia Huan, it's really irrelevant to her life, she can't remember to mention it to him.

"This...not...he is Zhao Jiahuan!" Xing Xiuyan couldn't help thinking, Zhao Jiahuan is really not easy, the ancient Chinese Jinshi is not at all more difficult than the Qingbei test in modern times.

Tu Yuanyi Junrong looked at her solemnly, and asked coldly: "How do you know it's him? Have you seen him? When did it happen?"

Xing Xiuyan thought about Zhao Jiahuan's past and present life in his heart, and said casually: "I heard that he went to Jinling for the scientific examination when I went to Jia's mansion before I entered the palace. This man has a lot of ruthlessness, but I just didn't expect him to be a Jinshi now. How old is he! But I think he also graduated from a prestigious school back then, and the school’s ranking was even higher than mine, but he didn’t go abroad for postgraduate entrance examinations in order to make money as soon as possible to support his family.”

Tu Yuanyi narrowed his eyes: "You actually remember it so clearly that you haven't forgotten it for more than 100 years."

"I don't know how I still remember it, maybe they came here too." Because it's been too long, many people in her previous life are blurred, but Zhao Jiahuan and Hua Zhenzhu can remember clearly.

Tu Yuanyi sneered: "Do you think he is talented now, and what happened in the past...is also excusable?"

Jinshi is not easy to pass the exam. Tu Yuanyi has been an emperor for decades, and he has met many people. When A Piao has been in the private sector for 200 years, he has studied hard for ten years, and most of them can't even be a scholar.

But Jia Huan was able to pass the Jinshi examination in seven or eight years because of chance and tricks, and it is not something ordinary people can do.

Xing Xiuyan said objectively: "He is quite talented in the first place, otherwise, would I have fallen in love with him back then? It's not that there is an excuse, I don't want to pursue the past."

Tu Yuanyi said: "So, do you still want me to give your old lover wealth?"

Xing Xiuyan was taken aback for a moment, only to be a little surprised. After thinking about it, he is a standard feudal emperor. Even if he is her only man, he will inevitably have lumps in his heart about her past.

In other words, he would be jealous, of course, he would never admit it.