Chapter 803: The Scholar
After the Imperial College erected the stele and inscribed the names, it only meant the end of the official activities. There were still many activities regarding the new scholars among the people, and even the new scholars would hold activities with each other.
Sun Shan not only bought a big gold bracelet for Su, but also bought souvenirs for Huang, Yun Jie'er, his four sisters and Sun Bomin.
When they returned to He's house, Sun Dingnan handed him the invitation.
When he opened it, he found out that Li Jian, the third place winner in the imperial examination, had invited him to participate in the garden party tomorrow.
The origin of Tanhualang comes from the poetic Apricot Blossom Banquet during the Sui and Tang Dynasties.
There were two youngest, most outstanding and handsome people at the banquet, who were called "Tanhua Envoys". Tanhua Envoys were required to travel around famous gardens to pick flowers.
The most beautiful flower will be selected from among the many flowers and will be used as the theme for poetry and lyrics on that day.
The scholars will appreciate the flowers in front of them and express their aspirations and expectations.
Later, word spread that the Apricot Blossom Banquet was no longer there, and that Tanhualang specifically referred to the third place.
However, there is no Apricot Blossom Banquet, but there is an unwritten rule that the Tanhua will organize the new Jinshi to visit the garden and appreciate the flowers together.
Everyone hopes to become the number one scholar, but whenever the number one, number two and number three scholars are born, the number three scholar is often the most talked about.
Especially the common people, they like to follow the Tanhua.
Sun Shan took a look at Li Tanhua's invitation. It seemed that he was continuing the old rule and inviting these new scholars to play together and build relationships.
According to legend, the Tanhua is the first choice for the prince consort.
Li Jian is married and has children. Haha, the princesses in the palace have no chance.
Sun Shan put the invitation aside and asked Sun Dingnan to find various Beijing tabloids for him in the past two days.
Then I opened it and found that the contents were varied and gossipy enough.
Sun Shan looked at one of the tabloids' report about their parade in silence.
The tabloids first commented on the handsome young men among the new scholars.
The description of the top scholar and the second place scholar is as follows: refined and elegant, handsome and majestic, and it seems that all the beautiful words in the world have been used.
Especially in the description of Du Zhuangyuan, all the beautiful idioms are used without any expense, and of course the word "unmarried" is emphasized.
Haha, Sun Shan now knows exactly what the tabloids are thinking.
The target audience of this gossip tabloid should be unmarried girls in Beijing, otherwise the word "unmarried" would not be emphasized.
Sun Shan continued reading. The tabloid also selected a few good-looking new scholars for special description.
Oh, it’s “unmarried” again. Wow, my heart is filled with spring love.
Later, Sun Shan saw the content about himself, but the tabloid glossed over it, only saying that he ranked last in the palace examination, a true top four winners, the last one.
When Sun Shan saw the description in the tabloid, he thought the content was acceptable, as long as it didn't mention him.
He then took out the most popular newspaper in Beijing, "Beijing Tabloid", and read it.
When Sun Shan saw the contents, he was so angry that he wanted to vomit blood.
Sun Shan seriously suspected that the Beijing Tabloid was his anti-fan, otherwise how could they have put him on the headlines again.
"Big news! The reverse four-prize winner is even more popular than the four-prize winner!"
"Shocking! An admirer of Jinshi Sun had a physical conflict with officers and soldiers, just to see Jinshi Sun's face"
"Secret Revealed! Why Admirers Are Obsessed with Mr. Sun!"
"Watch it now! Let's take you into the mental journey of Mr. Sun's parade!"
Sun Shan: ...
Good job on your "Beijing Tabloid"!
Without even reading the content, Sun Shan wanted to catch the editor of the tabloid and stab him!
Sun Shan suppressed his inner anger and looked down.
The tabloids described the grand scene of the parade that day, with the top scholar receiving flowers and Sun Jinshi receiving dead fish. The top scholar rode a horse gracefully and Sun Jinshi ran after him with his short legs!
What about thousands of young girls screaming at the number one scholar, and Mr. Sun Jinshi winning the hearts of old men and women.
Sun Shan was so upset when he saw this. This "Capital Tabloid" was really powerful. They actually dared to write like this. Aren't they afraid of offending him, the newly-minted Jinshi and the future Lord Sun?
Then I became discouraged because I heard that "Beijing Tabloid" has a powerful background.
Even if he wrote it, if he went to court, Sun Shan might not win and would get into trouble.
It is rumored that there is a fifth-rank official who has a mistress in his mansion. It would have been fine if she was just an ordinary mistress, but she is a widow. She is discovered by the first lady, so she goes to catch the mistress.
After being reported in the "Beijing Tabloid", the fifth-rank official became not only a topic of conversation but also a topic of conversation.
The fifth-rank official received a severe punishment.
The fifth-rank official became more and more dissatisfied the more he thought about it, so he went to the headquarters of "Beijing Tabloid" to cause trouble.
As a result, before he even set foot in the tabloid's door, he was beaten out by the bodyguards who were guarding him closely.
The fifth-rank official was not convinced and went to file a complaint, but the tabloid only sent a small manager to respond, who didn't even get to see the boss' back.
Finally, the government, in accordance with the principle of seeking truth from facts, sentenced the fifth-rank official to lose.
Because what the "Capital Tabloid" described were all facts, and it also said that telling the truth should be encouraged, the fifth-rank official was so angry that he vomited blood and went home to recuperate.
When Sun Shan saw the gossip about him written in the Capital Tabloid, he seemed to be unable to do anything except endure it.
Suppress your inner anger and continue reading.
Damn it! The tabloids even came to interview the audience.
The tabloid asked: Excuse me, why are you so obsessed with Mr. Sun? After all, he is not very good-looking.
Citizen A said: What are you talking about? Mr. Sun is obviously very handsome, but you actually said he is just average. What kind of look is that?
(Oh, it's obvious that Citizen A is a die-hard fan of Sun Shan, with a lot of filters.)
The tabloid asked again: "Okay, if you say he's handsome, then he's handsome. Excuse me, is it because Mr. Sun Jinshi is handsome that you came out to deliver sausages to him today?"
Citizen A said: Of course not! Mr. Sun is not only handsome, but also has good luck! I came here today to try my luck!
The tabloid then interviewed another person.
The tabloid asked: Hello. I saw you carrying a fish today. What are you doing?
Citizen B said: "I gave it to Mr. Sun. Eating fish is good, it's smart."
The tabloid asked: Are you an admirer of Mr. Sun?
Citizen B nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, yes, I like Mr. Sun the most. I don't like anyone else except him. Even if the top scholar is in front of me, I only have eyes for Mr. Sun!"
The tabloid asked: After all, Mr. Sun doesn’t look that good. What can attract you and make you keep chasing after him?
Citizen B rolled his eyes at the tabloid: Just standing there, Mr. Sun attracts me. I want to go crazy for Mr. Sun, I want to be crazy for Mr. Sun, I only like Mr. Sun!
Sun Shan: ...
This "Beijing Tabloid" is very dedicated. It interviewed many audiences and chased after Sun Shan like a die-hard fan of Sun Shan.
At the end, he even wrote that he also received the "Zhuangyuan Cake" distributed by Mr. Sun.
He also said that he took a bite and found it a bit sweet, and hoped that Mr. Sun could improve the taste next time.
Sun Shan was extremely upset. How could a editor from the Beijing Tabloid sneak in that day?
He didn't even know?
Sun Shan couldn't help beating his chest and stamping his feet. If he was discovered, he would definitely put a sack on him and beat him up.
Alas, such a good opportunity was missed, tears in my eyes~~~