The Eighteenth Century of Xuyang in the Red Chamber

Yangzhou's style of writing was prevalent, and girls' gatherings also regarded reciting poems and prose as a traditional content, and those who entered Chunwei were almost all children from decent families in Yangzhou, so most of them had some contacts with each other.The girls also know each other well. In this way, Lin Daiyu is quite special. She had almost no communication in Yangzhou for a few years, then went to the capital, and came back to continue to keep her filial piety. Who knew her?Therefore, in private, for Chunwei's entrance exam, there are quite a few girls who are looking forward to No.1. Who knows that Lin Daiyu will appear suddenly, you should be the first!You are so young!As soon as the name came out, I went home and asked who it was. Why haven't I heard of it?Come on, blow up!It's nothing more than a nine-year-old girl who competes with our eleven or twelve, you still win!Is it too embarrassing?Of course not all girls think this way, but there are a few who are really uncomfortable.For example, the excellent Miss Zheng San that Lin Daiyu mentioned to Xu Yang.

Miss Zheng San's boudoir name is Jinhua, and she is the old daughter of Zheng Zhihe, a fellow magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture. Although she has two older sisters, they are both descendants of concubines, and they are much older than her. When she was enlightened, the two sisters were already married.She has four older brothers from the same mother, and two half-brothers from the same mother. There is only one daughter left in the family, and she is the youngest. Her father loves her like a pearl in the palm of his hand. She was educated with her nephews since she was a child. .

This Ms. Zheng San is also up to the mark. Mr. Ming Ming taught her just by the way, but her homework is better than that of her nephews who are about the same age as her. It was only gradually pulled down by the nephews.But that's it, she thinks she is better than the Four Books and Five Classics, and there is no one in Yangzhou who is about the same age as her. After all, she knows most of the girls who took the Chunwei exam together, and they are indeed talented women, but at most Just like her.So she felt that she was likely to be the first in the exam. Even if she was not the first, she would not be able to escape the two familiar girls. It depends on who is lucky.

Chunwei's rules are very humane, after all, it's not good-looking after the exam, and girls want face.Therefore, only the top three are announced, and the latter are not in order.Therefore, some girls are fighting for this to be on the list.But as soon as the results came out on the day the list was released, Zheng Jinhua was No. 2, which is fine. The problem is that No. 1 is the daughter of the patriarch of the Xunyan Censor Lin. Who is this?Why did it suddenly appear!What's even worse is that her father cheerfully told her after get off work, now you will be compared, right?Master Lin's daughter is only nine years old, three years younger than you!Miss Zheng San's face was elongated at that time, and she didn't smile all night, and she continued to be angry the next day... In the end, she was caught by her mother, Mrs. Zhou, and gave her a hard reprimand.

Mrs. Zhou is also a famous lady. She has been married to Zheng Zhihe for more than 30 years. The husband and wife are very affectionate. Although they have two concubines, they are all from maidservants.The two concubines each gave birth to a son and a daughter, but Mrs. Zhou herself gave birth to four sons and a daughter. Now that her husband is getting older, those two old concubines belonged to her.

The door is rarely entered, and the relationship between husband and wife is getting deeper.

Mrs. Zhou is very good at raising children. The oldest of her four sons is 31 years old. The eldest son, who is 7 years old, and the second son, who is 13 years old, were brought up by their parents. He only brought his wife and youngest son and daughter to take office; Three sons, the remaining fourth is as old as his eldest nephew.Since there is only one girl left in the family, Zheng Jinhua, Mrs. Zhou is very concerned about her.

Zheng Jinhua had a temper tantrum on the first day, but Mrs. Zhou didn't take it seriously, what a little girl!It is inevitable to be competitive, but she still loses her temper the next day, and Mrs. Zhou is a little unhappy.He called his daughter over and asked her why she was angry, but Zheng Jinhua was too embarrassed to say anything.Mrs. Zhou said angrily: "I don't know what you think! It's nothing more than being overwhelmed by a girl younger than you, and I'm not angry! If you have the ability, you can learn better than her in the future! So angry Who is showing your face? Could it be that if you read the family book well, you will be offended?"

Zheng Jinhua has always been spoiled and her parents seldom reprimanded her. Now her mother scolded her like this, and she couldn't help crying: "Where am I like that? I just feel ashamed, a little girl who is three years younger than me They are all better than me, I am usually so proud, now that I see someone else, where should I put my face?"

Mrs. Zhou suddenly couldn't laugh or cry: "Are you still afraid that others will laugh at you? Who laughs at you? The girl from the Lin family is No.1, and you are second. Who has nothing to laugh at you? Isn't this a piggyback on yourself!" He wiped his tears and burst out laughing.

Mrs. Zhou said again slowly: "Are you unconvinced in your heart? Do you want to surpass her?" Zheng Jinhua did not speak.Mrs. Zhou sighed: "Even if you beat her, what are you proud of? She is three years younger than you! What's more...do you know how she studied? The teacher Master Lin invited her was Jinshi This year, Master Lin personally taught her, Master Lin was a prodigy! Although your father loves you, how much time does he have to teach you to study?"

Zheng Jinhua couldn't care less about being angry now, but was just surprised: "There is someone who loves my daughter more than my father? Miss Lin is so lucky!"

Mrs. Zhou sighed again: "I don't want such a blessing! Do you know why Mr. Lin has been in Yangzhou for more than three years, but you have never seen Miss Lin? Why does his father love her so much? This is her fate! Mr. Lin is only ten years younger than your father, but he doesn't even have a son. How could he not love this daughter like the apple of his eye? Her mother passed away three years ago, and his father didn't want to remarry and make her feel wronged. He was so cruel that he sent her to the grandparents' home thousands of miles away. It was not until Master Lin brought his sister here last year that he took his daughter home again. Such a girl has no mother and no brothers. , is married.

No matter how good the family is, how can it be comfortable if there is no support from the mother's family!Her father didn't have a son, so he raised her as a son, and that's why he taught her knowledge all day long!You are very happy to play and fight with those girls every day, but Miss Lin has kept her filial piety for three years. For three years, what else can she do when she is bored at home and does not study?But when you compare with her, what does she envy you? "

Miss Zheng San is just a bit spoiled at home, but how could she be an ignorant child? When she heard this, the tears she had just wiped fell again: "It's so pitiful, I won't argue with her anymore, Anyway, she is small, so it doesn't matter if you let her go everywhere."

Mrs. Zhou said with a smile: "That's not necessary. If it is you, do you like others to deliberately let you go? Just don't bully them! They are all similar girls, don't you like them the most and learn well? Why don't you come here again? One, you have another companion!"

So the mother and daughter laughed together.

In fact, Mrs. Zhou had other thoughts in her heart, but she didn't say it out loud.

Yangzhou is not the capital of a province, so the biggest official in the whole prefecture was Zheng Zhizhou's immediate boss Yangzhou prefect Mr. Gu. Mr. Gu's daughter was married long ago, and his granddaughter is still young.So among the girls in Yangzhou who are about the same age, if Zheng Jinhua says she is the second, no one dares to be the first. Even if there are one or two ladies around her who are as good as her in appearance and talent, their backgrounds are far behind.On the contrary, the daughter of Xia Shoubei's family and Zheng Jinhua are both the daughters of fifth-rank officials, but the problem is that military officers have no status as civil servants of the same level, and Xia Qianjin has a military father, who was taught to be straightforward and didn't like to sing Poetry and Fu, I want to kidnap girls to play polo with her all day long, and Zheng Jinhua is not in the same style.

Zheng Jinhua is favored at home, and she is the tallest girl in the world when she goes out. Who can provoke her?Besides, she is beautiful, talented, and cute, so she has always been a top talent among girls.Mrs. Zhou doesn't care about her acting like this. She should be like this in the first place. Even if she gets married, she can continue to be majestic. Mrs. Zhou loves her daughter so much that she has made up her mind not to let her marry far away. Just look for someone by my side, watch from time to time, and never let her be wronged.

But now that he was in school, he suddenly got the news that Mrs. Lin's daughter had taken the exam in advance, and what was even more deceitful was that the little girl was already a blockbuster if she didn't sing!Mrs. Zhou is so entangled in getting the first place in the exam!Can you not know your daughter's temper?Normally, when others were inferior to her, they gave way to her, so she didn't pinch her.But now, what a scam!Although Lin Ruhai is not the direct supervisor of the prefect and prefect, but he is also a third-rank official!The position of patrol salt censor has always had the right to send confidential letters directly to the emperor. To put it bluntly, he is the emperor's confidant.The only only daughter, who was famously loved by her father like her life, would such a girl let others?Mrs. Zhou wouldn't believe it even if she killed her!The character of my daughter, alas, when I think about it this way, I feel

Stomach pain... There was a quarrel just after the results came out, what should I do in the future?Then he quickly called his daughter over to explain the truth.

Mrs. Zhou will not point out to her daughter that Miss Lin's background is higher than hers, so she can't be offended, children are not raised like this!Their family hasn't reached the point where they want their own children to curry favor with Shangguan's children... But at least don't provoke them on purpose, right?So some words made Lin Daiyu very pitiful, and Zheng Jinhua wished to slap her chest on the spot and say that she would treat Lin Daiyu like a younger sister, and Mrs. Zhou breathed a sigh of relief.My daughter knows that she is really coquettish, but her kindness is also true. As long as she thinks about it, if Miss Lin is not a particularly difficult person to get along with, she won't have any problems.

Similar scenes happened in other people's homes.Originally, the daughters of officials and eunuchs, the mothers had already talked about how to get along with girls, but suddenly there was an extra Lin Daiyu, who was also the jewel in the palm of Lin Ruhai, who was the highest grade in Yangzhou, and she got the first place in the exam.Mothers who knew that their daughters were high-minded told their daughters one after another. In such a family, most of the mistresses are very educated, and like Mrs. Zhou, she convinced her daughter.There are also some daughters of families who are quiet and responsible, so there is no need to talk about it.

If you think about it, you know, who can enter Chunwei, who is stupid?It's not like a man who enters school for the imperial examination. To be honest, he really depends on reading to change his destiny. The most important thing is to read well.These families allow girls to read Chunwei is actually just to increase their chips for the future, but the essence is impossible to change. The basic tone is set long ago, and the purpose of reading is to let them go more smoothly. .So Chunwei is a good place to learn knowledge and increase the friendship of future ladies.Who came here specifically to offend people?Is your brain trapped by the door?

So when Lin Daiyu came to school, although most of the other female students knew each other, she still didn't neglect her.Especially Zheng Jinhua, she was the little leader of some of this group of girls, and she had been brewing her emotions for several days, so as soon as she entered the door, she came straight to Lin Daiyu and called her sister repeatedly.He asked her why she was so good at reading, and exchanged Lin Daiyu's purse with Lin Daiyu's purse embroidered by herself. Seeing that she was short, she was clearly still a child, and found that Lin Daiyu's needlework was not as good as hers: Lin Daiyu was sincere, Seeing that the purse given to her said that she had made it by herself, she didn’t feel ashamed to just take the prepared one. She blushed and took the one she just made from her body, explaining that she didn’t do much sewing and only carried such a handmade one with her. do something.

Zheng Jinhua suddenly felt that this younger sister was very real, and thought that she was taught to read by her father all day long, and no one cared about anything else at such a young age. What her mother said was right, she was indeed pitiful.Zheng Jinhua, who is usually the most proud, is so friendly, and other girls came to say hello one after another. When they heard that she had just returned from Beijing, someone asked about the interesting things in Beijing, what are the customs, but some other girls thought about it. Lin Daiyu got up and couldn't go out in Shouxiao at that time, so she hurriedly changed the topic.

Lin Daiyu really didn't expect that the classmates here are so amiable, and they are all so considerate even though they just met for the first time, and her mood immediately improved.She is used to being with the sisters there in Jia's mansion, but no matter how good the sisters there are to her, after all, in her own home, she is the master in her attitude. Although she is close to her, she is just like ordinary friends or The relatives are not the same... But the school here is different, everyone is the same classmate, Lin Daiyu's father is the oldest official, and she herself is the youngest, so she doesn't care about her father, just because she is so young, no one will I am ashamed to compare with her.

Before the husband came, she had already called her sisters around, and there was even a youngest daughter of the master Wang's family. , Playing with everyone is counting my little one, calling my sister all day long, haha, there will be someone younger than me, hurry up, call me sister, I listen!It turned out that Miss Wang was born on the 26th of the twelfth lunar month. She was eleven years old, but she was only nine years old. She was actually only a little over a week older than Lin Daiyu. It would not be too late to go to school next year, but the girls who are close are all this year. I came to take the Chunwei exam. I was afraid that there would be no acquaintances next year, so I had to work overtime to make up lessons, so I got in... I thought I had to be the youngest, but I came to Lin Daiyu, and found that I could be called sister by others, and I was proud of myself terribly.

And the daughter of Xia Shoubei's family suddenly said angrily: "Don't pretend, don't pretend! I'm exhausted!" She suddenly got into the crowd and pulled Lin Daiyu's hand, saying: "Can you ride a horse? I'm about to die of suffocation. No one plays with me! My mother forced me to pretend to be a lady and let me learn from Zheng San! What are you learning, Zheng San has a louder voice than me!"

Zheng Jinhua said angrily: "Bah! You have a loud voice! Who won't accompany you anymore? It's obvious that you always dislike me! When I played cuju, I said I was dressed in a mess, and when I was riding a horse, I thought I ran slowly! You are a grandson, who can tell me?" Can you jump as high as you? After pretending for a few days, my son made a bet with them to see how long you can bear it, and you will show up after school starts? Be careful, Han Yiren will break your leg!"

Xia Qianjin held Lin Daiyu's hand and smiled: "Don't mention my mother! I heard some bad words yesterday, sobbing and crying for half an hour! What did you say that I should be as gentle as her... Seeing Lin Daiyu's very virtuous smile, she sighed again: "I have convinced you, you always smile like this without showing your teeth, I am tired just looking at it! I am different from you, I am a military general, and I have a long history of family education." Rude, forcing me to imitate everyone's beauty is to draw a tiger but not an anti-dog..."

Before the words were finished, a group of girls had already laughed together, and one girl, Chen, covered her belly and said, "She also said that she was rude, but the allusions and idioms are good! Han Yiren was really wrong. A girl who is already so powerful, she will be as fast as she gets on the horse." Those who can wield a big knife, and learn allusions to teach others, but who else can stop you?"

Xia Qianjin's name is Meifeng, which is a bit vulgar, but she is straightforward, and immediately retorted: "Why do you have to rule me? Why do women have to be ruled to be submissive? My grandfather, my father, my uncle Uncles are all military generals. My grandfather used to say when he was alive a few years ago that he went on an expedition for more than ten years. My grandmother took care of five children alone. I don’t know how hard it is. I wove homespun clothes and sewed them myself! I was poor and had no man to back me up. If I hadn’t been tougher, I would have been bullied to death by others! My uncle, my father and my five brothers are all officials in the imperial court, and my youngest uncle is the general manager of the sixth rank. Grandpa has been fighting abroad all the time. Isn’t it because my grandma taught me well? I still think my grandpa What you said to Dad is right, even a girl can’t just be submissive and virtuous. Knowing what is right and what is wrong, naturally obeying what is right, and seeing what is wrong can bring him back to the right path. It's really amazing!"

Lin Daiyu was dumbfounded, the girls she had met in the past were only a few girls from the Jia family, and Shi Xiangyun, Xue Baochai, the most ambitious Tanchun, all she wanted was to be respected in the house, Where have I seen such a heroic girl like Xia Er.I wanted to interrupt but didn't know what to say, so I accidentally asked, "Sister Xia can wield a big knife?" Second Miss Xia was talking vigorously, when she suddenly heard Lin Daiyu's question, she was taken aback, and the person next to her was With a smile, her little face turned red: "Listen to Zixuan's nonsense! How can I wield a big knife? My brother only uses a big knife! I just know how to whip a few times!" Then said in a low voice: "Turn back Come to my house, and I'll teach you how to dance a sword!" Lin Daiyu nodded blankly, and then another girl started making noises, saying that she had finally found a good one.

Until class, when the teacher came, Lin Daiyu was still smiling. How did she have so many friends in these years?All the outstanding ones are so amiable. No wonder my mother never forgot to let her go to school. It turns out that going to school is such a happy thing.

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The author has something to say:

Zheng Jinhua, the youngest daughter of Zheng Zhihe, a fifth-rank fellow acquaintance, is a bit arrogant but simple in nature.

Xia Meifeng, the daughter of the fifth-rank defense Xia family, can ride a horse and dance a sword, and she is straightforward on the outside and inside.

Wang Qianqian, the youngest daughter of Lord Wang, the head of the seventh rank, is innocent and cute, and she is only one year older than Lin Daiyu.

Chen Zixuan, who came from the Chen family in Yangzhou, a family of five Jinshi, is the eldest daughter of the eldest son of the Chen family.Gentle and elegant, she is a standard lady.

These are the main classmates of Lin Daiyu who appeared today. Compared with others, these few people have higher official positions in their fathers or better family backgrounds, so they can generally get along with Lin Daiyu on an equal footing.Although I always say that I hope girls can socialize independently, after all, their background will affect their friendship to a certain extent.