Chapter 23 Feng Chu
Chapter 23 Feng Chu
With the help of the Guo brothers and the yamen servants, Xu Qing and his family quickly moved into the old Gu family residence. Now it is called the Li residence.
Although the courtyard with four entrances and exits is not small, it is nothing in the officialdom.
Many retired old men from Nanzhili no longer like to build houses, but prefer to construct gardens.
Nowadays, there are many low-key, luxurious and meaningful gardens in Jiangning Prefecture, Yingtian Prefecture, etc.
In the Middle Ages, the nobles did not build gardens, but forts and manors, which came with their own entire defense system and were truly small kingdoms.
Now we only build some gardens. Even if they are too luxurious, they are just embellishments and pose no threat to the imperial power.
If the emperor can't stand this, then the only option is for him to fall into the water.
Li's house has four courtyards, namely the front courtyard, the middle courtyard, and two backyards, east and west.
The front yard is generally used for holding banquets and banquets, the middle yard has the main hall and living room and is used for private gatherings, and the backyard is used for living.
Each courtyard is independent, with a big gate for entry and exit. Once closed, they will not disturb each other.
Xu Qing lived in the east courtyard, which was the courtyard where the previous two owners lived.
Li Gongyu was originally afraid that there was an ominous person living here, but Xu Qing was not afraid. He convinced Li Gongyu by saying that a gentleman should not talk about strange and supernatural things.
Anyway, if there is really anything wrong with it, I can just move out when the time comes.
However, on the first night after moving in, Li Gongyu still cried.
Because the yard where Xu Qing was born was much bigger than this one, he should have always lived in a large house like this.
With a yard, there must be servants, but the Li family only has three people, so they don't need many servants. They are mainly responsible for cleaning, guarding the door, etc.
The rich and powerful usually use their own children and rarely buy slaves, unless their family background is very clean. The general wealthy families like to use employment contracts, firstly because it is cheaper, and secondly because it is not easy to use and it is easy to replace people.
Li Dianshi naturally chose the employment contract form.
With Li Dianshi's identity, it would be easy for him to go to the pawnshop to select people.
However, Xu Qing did not ask for anyone to serve him. He lived alone, took care of himself, and went to the west courtyard for meals.
As for boiling water for a bath?
He now takes cold showers to exercise, and the East Courtyard has its own well, making it convenient to get water.
By the way, there is a phoenix tree in the yard, and not far away is a well. At the wellhead there is a word written by the former owner of the yard, Gu Feng, from the Book of Poetry:
"The phoenix sings on the high hill; the phoenix tree grows in the morning sun."
There are stone benches and stone tables under the tree, which was where Gu Feng used to read and meet friends.
In May, the weather had gradually become hotter, and Xu Qing sat under the paulownia tree, enjoying some shade.
However, when looking at the ancient well from the position of the stone table, I always feel a chill. But the Qi and blood of the Crane Shaped Posture are not afraid of this bit of coldness at all.
What's more, he is young and full of vigor. He has nothing to do on weekdays, and he is always full of energy when he wakes up in the morning.
A Taoist named Zhang once said that it is good to practice martial arts while still a boy!
Xu Qing stayed there for two days and didn't feel anything unusual.
Every morning, he would start practicing Crane Posture and exercising his Ming Jin.
I don’t know if it’s because he has mastered the Crane Posture or because he lacks breathing techniques and new prescriptions, but Xu Qing’s Crane Posture has found it difficult to make any progress.
His current progress almost all comes from the natural development of his body.
As for the heat generated by practicing the Crane Shaped Posture, it has a very small effect on the improvement of physical fitness. It seems that the body is at a bottleneck and cannot absorb the heat at all, even with the guidance of the soul.
But Xu Qing discovered another effect of heat, which is that it can quickly heal injuries.
Because he was trying to use Ming Jin to kick some hard objects, there were some bruises. However, with the heat generated by the Crane Shape Post, the bruises disappeared in a short while.
Therefore, he began to consciously use the healing properties of heat to train his ability to withstand blows.
"The stone is too hard, and ordinary wooden stakes can't withstand it." Xu Qing's eyes fell on the sturdy old sycamore tree in the yard. Isn't this a natural wooden stake suitable for practicing boxing and kicking?
Xu Qing's legs and hands were still tied with sandbags, and he also thoughtfully installed a target on the trunk of the sycamore tree. He could practice both boxing and daggers.
While practicing boxing, kicking and dagger, Xu Qing gradually felt that his crane-shaped stance was ultimately mainly for strengthening the body, and it did not have any powerful killing moves.
Li Gongyu was also unwilling to teach him real lethal moves. After all, Xu Qing was still a teenager. If he got too excited and killed someone, his future might be ruined. Because nowadays, ordinary people dared not offend Xu Qing. Those who dared to fight with Xu Qing were definitely not ordinary people.
The Dianshi is okay when dealing with ordinary people, but if he really meets someone with a gentry background, he is nothing.
Moreover, what Li Gongpu said made a lot of sense. With Xu Qing's attainment in the Crane Shape Posture, which was even higher than his, he would run away whenever he encountered trouble. Unless he was a very famous thief, ordinary people would not be able to catch up with him.
Xu Qing couldn't refute it this time.
When facing a strong enemy, running fast is more effective than having strong fighting ability.
A fake martial arts master surrounded Shaolin Temple by himself; a real martial arts master fought and retreated, and could steal and cheat...
Actually, no matter what you say, running fast will give you an advantage whether you win or lose.
If you win the fight, the other party can’t escape; if you lose the fight, the other party can’t catch up with you.
Based on Li Dianshi's work experience, if you really want to kill someone, it is better to have a crossbow than a dagger, sword, or killing moves.
One arrow from a powerful crossbow would kill even those who have practiced hard qigong such as the Golden Bell Cover and Iron Cloth Shirt.
Therefore, if the common people get bows and arrows, hide crossbows and wear inner armor, it is equivalent to rebellion.
No matter how knowledgeable the common people are, they cannot understand as well as the imperial court!
So even though there are many weapons being resold in the government's armory, the crossbows and armor are stored separately, and even the matching arrows are marked. Once they are discovered, they can be traced back to their source.
"I understand the principle, but there are always special circumstances. I still have to find a way to learn some real skills!" Xu Qing knew that some things can be done without, but cannot be absent.
But the most important thing right now is to pass the provincial examination.
If possible, it would be nice to be the first in the provincial examination.
The first place in the county examination, prefectural examination, and imperial examination is also called the Little Three Yuan. Getting this title can be used as a talisman even if you fail to pass the examination.
However, he had the guidance of County Magistrate Wu for the county examination and prepared for more than two months. With his accumulation from his previous life and his absolute concentration, he was able to produce an excellent eight-part essay.
He is now in disgrace after the government examination.
Of course, he was the first in the county examination. Even if Zhao Xiong had taken refuge with the prefect and wanted to do something bad, it would be almost impossible to dethrone him from the prefectural examination.
Although the prefect had the final say on the prefectural examination, the education commissioner had the duty of supervision. If the top candidate in the county examination failed the prefectural examination, it would definitely alarm the education commissioner.
Of course, if Xu Qing's essay in the provincial examination is too bad, it will indeed give others an excuse.
After much thought, Xu Qing decided to meet his mentor, County Magistrate Wu. What he wanted was not to pass the provincial examination without any problems, but to get the first place in the provincial examination, which would be the best.
If you have a dream but don’t try, how do you know if it will succeed?
After all, apart from Xu Qing's family, the one who least wants Xu Qing to rank too low in the palace examination is Magistrate Wu.
"County Master, you wouldn't want me to rank too low and embarrass you, right?" An idea popped up in Xu Qing's mind.
...
...
"Student Xu Qing, I am here to meet my old mentor."
"I was wondering why there was a magpie calling today. It turns out that the little phoenix has arrived."
Little Phoenix was the nickname that County Magistrate Wu had given to Xu Qing at the Li family's housewarming party.
Because Gu Feng was a famous local official, people called him Mr. Fengwu. Xu Qing moved into his old courtyard and was the top scorer in the county examination, so he was nicknamed "Young Phoenix" by Magistrate Wu.
If Xu Qing becomes a second-class Jinshi in the future, this temporary joke will become a good story.
By then, County Magistrate Wu will be able to enhance his reputation and have a greater chance of being remembered by future generations.
As an official, seeking wealth is for worldly desires; seeking fame is the real purpose.
As the saying goes, fame and fortune, fame comes before fortune.
(End of this chapter)