Chapter 128: If Xu Jieyuan doesn't come out, what can we do?

Chapter 128: If Xu Jieyuan doesn't come out, what can we do?

Chapter 128: If Xu Jieyuan doesn't come out, what can we do? (Subscribe)
Yingtian Prefecture, the Inspectorate Censorate, and the rear residence.

It's a sunny and clear day today.

In a pavilion surrounded by rockery and flowing water, Inspector Feng and Governor Zhou sat opposite each other, while Feng Wu was in charge of serving wine.

"I didn't expect that boy to really pass the exam." Zhou Tixue sighed with emotion and said slowly with a hint of sourness: "You got a good deal."

Feng Xun'an was indignant: "It's just Jieyuan, I'm the second-class candidate."

As for scholars, unless they hold a particularly high position, generally speaking, their status is mainly determined by their ranking in the imperial examinations.

The first place winner is indeed very impressive, but the second place winner is the undisputed fourth in the world in the imperial examination.

You, the Nanzhili Jieyuan, are known as the best Jieyuan in the world, but the problem is that this is not "recognized" by the imperial court!
Feng Wu couldn't help but said, "Dad, when you took part in the provincial examination, you only ranked fifth."

It turns out that those who ranked second to tenth in the provincial examination were all called Yayuan.

"That's also the top scorer in the Five Classics!" Inspector Feng added.

Zhou Tixue laughed, "Someone has already copied out the top ten essays in the provincial examination. I've seen Xie Quan's essay, which is better than yours in the last provincial examination. But he only ranked sixth. So, even if you ranked fifth in the provincial examination, it doesn't mean that your real level is fifth. You may be lower."

Feng Xun'an did not refute, but just sighed: "Wen Yuan's talent is beyond doubt, but it's a pity that he was in the Yijing room with Xu this time, so he had to bear this loss."

Because the top five in the provincial examination were the top five in the Five Classics, the first place in each of the Five Classics rooms was named the top one.

Xie Quan and Xu Qing were in the same I Ching room, so even though his essay was one level higher than the other four top examiners' in the eyes of the examiners, he could only rank sixth.

Zhou Tixue nodded gently: "In the world, good fortune and disaster are interdependent. Considering the friendship between Wen Yuan and Shen Mo, if he wins the Five Classics Top Prize, it will inevitably be too eye-catching and cause criticism. The current position is just right."

Inspector Feng: "What happened to Shen Junshan this time? After the provincial examination, he did not hold the customary banquet and went straight back to Beijing."

Zhou Tixue shook his head: "How should I know? He is a person who is sometimes impatient and sometimes slow-tempered. He can drive others crazy."

Feng Xun'an frowned: "He left too hastily. Now the pressure is probably on Xu kid."

Isn't it true? The chief examiner of the provincial examination left in a hurry, so naturally more attention was focused on the top winner.

No gold is pure, and no one is perfect.

Once you are in the public eye, even the smallest flaw can be pointed out.

If the wood is beautiful in the forest, the wind will destroy it; when it is piled up on the shore, the current will be turbulent; if the walking is higher than the people, the crowd will not be against it.

Zhou Tixue: "With a father-in-law like you here, there is nothing to be afraid of."

Feng Xunan said unhappily, "You are leaving soon. You are a high-ranking official now, so you can gloat over my misfortune as much as you want here."

It was not difficult for him to protect Xu Qing, but there would inevitably be people who would make a fuss about the relationship between Xu Qing and him. Things in officialdom were not that simple, and sometimes one had to avoid suspicion.

Therefore, Feng Xun'an could only protect himself from open attacks, but it was still difficult to defend against hidden attacks.

Zhou Tixue: "It's difficult for you, but it's even more difficult for me. You think the Lingnan issue is that simple. The previous governor left a huge mess behind. The Lotus Sect just left, and now the Heshan Dao is taking the opportunity to expand its power. The Heshan Dao is more troublesome than the Lotus Sect. After all, the Lotus Sect is mainly composed of Han people, while the Heshan Dao is mostly barbarians. If I'm not careful, it will provoke a rebellion by the chieftains, and my life and property will be in danger."

The Dayu Dynasty was particularly tolerant of the barbarians and natives in these border areas. Once they were provoked to resist and cause chaos, the governor would often be in trouble.

If the Han people revolted, it would be simple. We could just send troops to suppress them and get credit for it.

Of course, this is also related to the fact that the natives hid in the mountains and built strongholds. Once a rebellion broke out, the amount of military pay the imperial court would have to spend to quell it would be incalculable.

If these natives came down from the mountains, they would be as easy to govern as the Han people.

Therefore, the best way to govern the natives is to educate them, so that they can truly integrate into the Central Plains civilization and accept the rule of the dynasty.

This is a huge project that will last for hundreds or even thousands of years. It may even be interrupted due to the rise and fall of dynasties, and will have to start all over again.

In addition, the living environment in Lingnan is much worse than that in the Central Plains.

Therefore, since ancient times, the scholars and officials of China have believed that serving as an official in Lingnan is tantamount to exile.

Feng Xunkan ignored his brother-in-law's plight and said sourly, "You can't be an official in Lingnan for the rest of your life."

Zhou Tixue coughed and said, "If you think this is a good job, lend me Xu Qing and go with me to Lingnan. Anyway, if he stays in Nanzhili, there will definitely be constant trouble."

"No!" Inspector Feng and his daughter said in unison.

Zhou Tixue smiled slightly and said, "Look at you, father and daughter. You are so anxious when I say this."

Feng Xunan sneered: "I don't know what you are planning. You want to tie my son-in-law to your Taicang Zhou family's boat, but it won't go that smoothly."

He no longer pretends and just reveals his cards.

Zhou Tixue: "Don't you want to pull him into your Dongzhou School?"

Feng Xunpan: "I haven't thought about it that way."

"People in your academy will definitely think so."

"I really have nothing to say to you, Qing'er, please get out." Old Feng waved his hand and left the pavilion angrily.

Feng Wu held his forehead with his hand, he had a headache!
Zhou Tixue was not angry. He smiled and took out a box from his sleeve and said, "This is Sanqu Lingshen. It is a gift from your uncle for your marriage."

There are nine types of spiritual ginseng in the world, and three types are already rare top-grade ones.

When the spiritual ginseng reaches the sixth level or above, it can even transform itself and escape into the ground. Even a martial arts grandmaster would find it difficult to catch it in the mountains by his own strength.

In order to become a martial arts grandmaster or even to make further progress, in addition to elevating one's realm, one often needs natural treasures such as the transformed spiritual ginseng to make elixirs to assist in practice.

It is almost impossible to find a treasure of this level alone.

Therefore, if top-level masters of internal organ training, or even stronger martial arts masters, want to make further progress, they will rely more on secular forces to search for all kinds of training resources they need.

This is true for martial arts practice, and even more so for Taoism practice.

However, compared to martial arts, Taoist masters have more advantages in establishing religions and winning people's hearts. It is easy for them to establish a powerful religious force on their own, and even deeply participate in the cause of dominating the world in troubled times.

Feng Wu certainly knew what a three-curve spiritual ginseng meant to a cultivator. She hesitated for a moment and declined, "Uncle, you are going to Lingnan, where there are many miasma and poisons. You should keep it for yourself."

Although she was reluctant, she declined.

And she has a big secret in her heart.

"Once my soul has cultivated to the point of manifesting itself, I can go and open the Xuantian Treasure House that Master mentioned. By then, I will surely find treasures better than the Three-Turned Spiritual Ginseng."

The Xuantian Treasury is an astonishing secret that her master, the Blue-Eyed Fox, accidentally obtained. It contains not only a large number of gold, silver, treasures and weapons, but also the natural treasures and elixirs that practitioners dream of.

Zhou Tixue: "I have another one here. Besides, if I don't prepare a generous gift for you when you marry, your mother will blame me in heaven."

Feng Wu shook his head: "Uncle, don't lie to me. How can there be more of this kind of spiritual ginseng? Unless you take out another one for me to see."

Zhou Tixue was choked when he heard this.

He tried to pass it to Feng Wu several times, but Feng Wu refused to accept it.

Zhou Tixue had no choice but to give up and said, "Since you don't want to accept the three-qu spiritual ginseng, I will give you a painting instead."

"What kind of painting? It must be very valuable."

Zhou Tixue smiled and said, "That is the now-disappeared Quanzhen Dao. The Chongyang Patriarch statue was enshrined in Chongyang Palace in the past. The Chaotian Temple Master wanted it, but I didn't give it to him. I heard that Gongming likes these things, so I'll give them to you as a wedding gift. Don't refuse this time."

"Well, thank you uncle." Feng Wu said happily.

Although this portrait has a great origin and is very precious, antique paintings and calligraphy are not life-saving things. The Taicang Zhou family has a lot of rare treasures in their collection, and giving away a portrait of the founder of Chongyang is not a big deal.

What's more, when her mother married her father, Taicang Zhou didn't even give a dowry.

This can be considered as making up for my mother's regret.

This is also the reason why Feng Xifeng hopes that Xu Qing will marry Feng Wu after he passes the imperial examination. Although this may cause outsiders to gossip about him, it also makes up for his regret in the past.

If he had been the top scholar in Nanzhili, or even the top scholar in the Five Classics, their marriage would have been approved by Zhou of Taicang.

Now he has all these, but his wife is long gone, so what’s the use.

Therefore, he didn't want Feng Wu to be criticized by the Zhou family when he got married.

After all, aristocratic families are often the most snobbish.

Zhou Tixue had obviously been prepared for Feng Wu's rejection of Ling Shen. The portrait was with the servant who accompanied him. He ordered the servant to hand the painting to his cousin and then left, ready to take the selected scholars to Lingnan to take up his post.

Among these scholars, there were many members of the Fushe Society.

Feng Wu took the portrait and returned to the main hall in the backyard.

When Feng Xun saw that she accepted the gift, he did not ask any questions, but said, "When someone from the Xu residence comes to propose marriage, try to get you married before the New Year."

Feng Wu was surprised: "Dad, you don't want me to stay with you until the end of the New Year."

Feng Xun-an: "I will leave sooner or later anyway, so I don't mind this year."

Feng Wu asked suspiciously, "Do you have a lover and are afraid that I will be a nuisance if I stay at home?"

Feng Xun'an had a dark face, "Look at you, you are just irritating me by staying at home. If I had known, I shouldn't have let you learn Taoism. You have developed your lawless personality now."

Feng Wu curled her lips: "It's up to you and mother."

Feng Xunan was so angry that he walked over for a while and then slowly said, "I don't care who Xu will be in the future. Since you are married, you should follow him wherever he goes. You are my only daughter. No matter what happens in the future, we will always share the joys and sorrows together. So you can rest assured to be the mistress of the Xu family. Your father will not hold you back."

He felt that although Xu Qing had escaped danger many times along the way, he was always too hasty. This kind of person would either succeed or fail miserably.

However, since his daughter has already made her choice, he has no reason to regret it.

When it comes to marriage, he and her mother are role models. Can he really blame his daughter for this?

In this case, he could only accept any outcome.

I hope Xu Qing was just young and hot-tempered before and couldn't stand humiliation. After getting married and having children, he can become more stable.

In fact, he didn't know that Xu Qing was worried that he might not live for many years. Once he had offspring, he would only fight for every day and do his best to pave the way for future generations.

But Feng Xifeng was just as puzzled as many other old foxes. Xu Qing was obviously a wise man, so why didn't he take the long-term into consideration?

It is difficult to explain simply because of youthful vigor.

Feng Xifeng was puzzled, but the matter was done, what else could he do?

What's more, it was Xu Qing who saved Feng Wu from his spiritual injury.

No matter what, he is Feng Wu's benefactor.

Here, Inspector Feng was waiting for the Xu family to send someone to propose marriage.

...

...

On the other hand, as Xu Jieyuan's affairs came to an end, he finally had some rare free time. He planned to ask Prefect He to be a matchmaker and propose marriage to Inspector Feng on his behalf.

Of course, since Magistrate He could not leave Jiangning Prefecture, he could only communicate through letters. However, Magistrate He also had his own connections and asked a big shot from Yingtian Prefecture to speak for him.

This person was Li Wendi, the Governor-General of Southern Zhili.

It must be said that this Governor-General has been in office in Nanzhili for two years and has no sense of existence at all. As a frontier official, he is definitely an expert among experts to be able to do this.

In fact, the Governor-General of Southern Zhili was not a permanent position. The real administrative and military power of Southern Zhili was often in the hands of the Yingtian Governor, and under him were the Provincial Governor and the Inspector General...

Now, the former Yingtian governor has just left office and the position is temporarily vacant. In addition, Li Wendi deliberately reduces his presence, so the governor and the inspector are currently the two most influential figures in the civil service sequence of Southern Zhili.

The governor at that time was named Ling, and he had close contacts with the Duke of Wei.

Inspector Feng arrived at the right time, just in time to check and balance the provincial governor.

On the other hand, Xu Qing was quite surprised that Prefect He was able to ask the Governor-General of Southern Zhili, Li Wendi, to come forward.

Lao He is really not an ordinary person.

However, Li Wendi will also be leaving his post at the end of the year.

This was also one of the reasons why Magistrate He was able to invite Li Wendi. He was about to leave, so he had no psychological burden.

After Xu Qing found a matchmaker, he had some rare free time and basked in the sun in the yard.

But before he could rest for long, an uninvited guest came.

"Gongming, you are so carefree even when disaster is imminent."

The visitor was Xie Quan, the same year that Xu Qing took the provincial examination.

Mr. Xie walked into the yard and sat next to Xu Qing without any hesitation.

After sitting down, he regretted it.

Why is it so cold in this shabby yard when the sun is shining brightly?

When he saw Xu Qing was actually wearing only a single layer of clothing, he admired the boy's virility and vigor. The little girl from the Feng family was blessed.

Xu Qing lazily opened his eyes: "Mr. Xie, please be patient. Qiuxiang, come and serve Mr. Xie some tea."

Xie Quan had visited Jiangning Prefecture these days and indeed found that Xu Qing had done a lot of good things and was quite popular among the people. However, this was also where the problem went wrong.

Now there are rumors everywhere among the people that one can attach his land and person to Xu Gongming, thereby avoiding taxes and labor service and living a life in paradise.

There are people behind the scenes fanning the flames, so the situation is getting worse and worse.

What's strange is that Xu Qing did not send anyone to Fushe's members to clarify the matter, and even the Jinguang Temple, which had a close relationship with him, did not make any move.

Let the situation develop.

At first he thought that Xu Qing was busy with the social activities of becoming the top scholar, and also had his marriage to plan, so he couldn't get away.

This is also a common trick used by the gentry. They tie you up with mundane affairs, and then start making trouble when you are not prepared.

Looking at Xu Qing's expression now, it seems that he has already made up his mind about this matter.

At this time Qiuxiang brought the tea bowl.

Xie Quan was thirsty, so he picked up the tea and took a big sip.

Xu Qing smiled and said, "Mr. Xie, how about this tea?"

"not bad."

Xu Qing smiled slightly: "This tea is called Daughter's Tea. It is made by young virgins picking fresh buds and leaves with their lips and storing them between their chests. Their body temperature is used to 'primarily bake' the tea leaves, so it naturally has a unique frankincense aroma."

When Xie Quan heard this, he was surprised by the wonderful taste. He took another sip and tasted it carefully: "It seems to have a hint of frankincense aftertaste."

Qiuxiang beside him laughed secretly, what kind of girl's tea is this? The young master is always fooling people.

Xu Qing said seriously, "I plan to do some tea business. At that time, for every ten tea bricks, I will also send a portrait of a tea girl picking this tea. If Mr. Xie thinks this tea tastes good, remember to promote it to my friends."

"This is a trivial matter. Has Gongming known about the rumors outside?" Xie Quan has now come back to his senses. This is Xu Qing's plan to use his name to sell tea. However, this tea does have a good gimmick and the quality is also very good.

"What rumor does Mr. Xie want to spread?"

"Now the people outside are saying that if Gongming doesn't come out, what will happen to the people? Someone is deliberately fanning the flames, trying to lift you up high, and then induce the people of Jiangning Prefecture to enthusiastically offer you land and become dependent on you.

This dynasty has its own laws. The number of people and fields that can be exempted from tax by the Juren is limited. When many ignorant people come, it will be a disaster if you accept it. If you don't accept it, you will definitely be blamed by many people. You must be cautious about this matter."

Xu Qing chuckled: "Mr. Xie came to see me just for such a small matter?"

Xie Quan said sternly: "Gongming, the resentment is not big, but people are the ones to be feared; the boat that carries you can also capsize you, so you should be very careful. Gongming has established himself in the world with benevolence and righteousness, so he should be careful not to be burdened by benevolence and righteousness."

Xu Qing: "Sir, your words are good and valuable. I will definitely keep them in mind. Actually, one of your words is wrong. The people are not ignorant."

"Why?"

Xu Qing: "Humans are the most intelligent creatures in the world, and even ordinary people understand the benefits and disadvantages. They say these words and want to do these things, not because they are ignorant. They also understand this truth, so they want to take advantage of the opportunity. Because there are benefits if they come, and there is no loss if they don't come. This is human nature."

Xie Quan thought about it and realized that this was indeed the truth.

There are no ignorant people; they are just driven by interests.

Xu Qing: "The world is bustling with people, all for profit; the world is bustling with people, all for profit. So it's all for their own interests."

"Gong Ming's words really hit the nail on the head."

Xu Qing: "Since it is a matter of interests, we can only speak with interests. Clarifying the rumors at this time will not calm everyone's greed. As the saying goes, it is easy to defeat the thief in the mountain, but it is difficult to defeat the thief in the heart. It is nothing more than a piece of cake for Xu to defeat the thief in the mountain. But if the thief in the heart is not eliminated, there will be no peace in the end."

Xie Quan: "Gongming is very far-sighted, I am not as good as him."

Xu Qing smiled casually, "It's nothing more than talk on paper. Whether it will succeed or not depends on the actual results. Now that you know that this matter is imminent, it seems that it's time to take action."

Xie Quan was insulted, so how could he know that this matter was imminent?
Xu boy, please explain it to me!
He just complained in his heart. At this moment, he was more curious about how Xu Qing would solve this matter. Xie Quan asked:
"What is Gongming going to do? Do you want my help?"

Xu Qing: "Sir, please come with me to the government office early tomorrow morning."

Xie Quan was very curious, "What does Gong Ming want?"

Xu Qing: "To cure a disease, one must first remove the root cause. The same is true for removing the evil in one's heart. Of course, we must solve it from the root. Sir, there is no need to ask any more questions. We will know the answer tomorrow."

...

...

Jiangning Prefecture, Hu Family Compound.

The old man of the Hu family retired from the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works of the Six Ministries of Tianjing last year. Among the wealthy people in Jiangning Prefecture today, the Hu family owns the most land and the largest garden. The old man is still alive, so naturally his words carry great weight.

The current head of the Hu family, Mr. Hu, had studied at Songyang Academy, one of the four largest academies in the world, for ten years and had a deep network of connections. Now he was at home preparing for the next year's Enke examination.

Not long ago, I also organized and participated in a literary gathering where Xu Qing was entertained.

"Master, the government office has sent someone to summon the heads of all the families in this government office to meet at the government office tomorrow."

"If you don't go, just say that the master is sick." Mr. Hu's heart skipped a beat. At this time, the issue of autumn grain had already passed. What good could come of it if the government office looked for them, the gentry and powerful people?
"Well, they said that the government office has kept records of the heads of various families' participation in literary gatherings in recent days, and has also sent people to monitor the doctors who have come in and out of various families recently. If a head of a family finds an excuse not to come, it can only mean that he is trying to defy the court..."

"Fuck, Xu Gongming, you bastard." The head of the Hu family couldn't help but curse. No wonder Xu Qing never refused to participate in various literary gatherings these days. He was always friendly and even took the initiative to invite the runners from the government office and county office to come and maintain public order.

This is a legitimate way to monitor their physical condition.

The head of the Hu family is well aware of the moral character of the heads of various families. If he had informed them in advance, it would have been possible for them to connect with each other and refuse together.

Now, there must be someone who wants to go.

If others go and you don't, then you are a fool.

Don't think that the gentry will be united.

The reality is that other families are eager to see the strong families defeated so that they can eat their corpses.

If the family in front doesn’t fall, how can the family behind it come forward?

Similar things happened in every household in Jiangning Prefecture, and they also discovered that outside their own courtyards, there were bailiffs from the prefecture, the Embroidered Uniform Guards, and the Internal Factory Guards monitoring them.

"You can't afford to play this, right?" Many family heads were defeated.

They are just spreading rumors. You, Xu, can't afford to play tricks on me. Let's get serious.

But they had no good solution. In the past few months, everyone working in the Neichang, Xiuyiwei, and the government office had received benefits from Xu Jieyuan.

They don't ask you to risk your life. You can get paid for passing a message or standing guard outside, so why not do it?

Moreover, Xu Qing's gentle and polite attitude at the literary gathering a few days ago really confused most of them.

I thought that after Xu Qing passed the imperial examination, he finally understood that the government office was the government office of the imperial court, but Jiangning Prefecture was the Jiangning Prefecture of the gentry; Xu Qing was now also a part of the gentry, so there was no need to engage in internal strife.

As a result, they were all deceived.

So early the next morning, all the prominent gentry and family heads in Jiangning Prefecture came to the government office, even those who were really sick came.

This incident also made some of the family heads who came here feel quite disappointed.

Why isn't there anyone with guts?

Pooh!
(End of this chapter)