Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 411: Full of Knowledge
When Yang Yuan brought Xiao Qingtang back to Qingshi Lane, he thought of the grand occasion when he won the title of Jieyuan last time, and so he came up with a plan.

He went to a nearby store to buy some things and disguised himself.

Next to Houshi Street is Zhongwazi, where there are many actors and actresses.

So there are shops nearby that sell props such as wigs and fake beards.

After Yang Yuan disguised himself, Xiao Qingtang was responsible for reconnaissance ahead, while Yang Yuan followed behind, sneaking back to Fengwei Building safely.

However, although he avoided the hurdle of neighbors, there were still many people who were qualified to visit him directly.

Yang Yuan met the Goose King first, and Zhao Qu felt like he had found a treasure when he saw Yang Yuan.

When there was no one else around, Zhao Qu pulled him aside and kept asking him how he had passed the exam.

Yang Yuan said shyly, "Your Majesty, Yang Yuan is actually educated, right? A few days ago, when I was on duty at the Yulong Zhizuo Yamen, I was reading the Spring and Autumn Annals at night.

I just felt that I was not like those scholars who had focused on studying since childhood. I didn’t think I was that kind of person, so I didn’t dare to try to take the imperial examinations.

Last time, you kindly sent me the test questions, so of course I accepted your kindness. However, if it weren’t for your test questions, I think I might not have failed last time…”

Zhao Yu's jaw dropped in surprise: "In other words, you didn't ask someone else to write the essay that won the first prize last time?"

Is Li Shishi an outsider?
That's my wife!

So Yang Yuan nodded confidently and said, "Yes, that article was written by me... myself!"

Zhao Yu was shocked and exclaimed in delight: "What a hidden gem! What a hidden gem! It turns out that Erlang has such literary talent! Gosh, gosh, gosh, gosh..."

Zhao Yu was singing with his neck bent, when Xiao Qingtang came running in and said, "Master, master, master, Master Qiao, the prefect of Lin'an, and Master Yan, the magistrate of the Lin'an South Court, are here to visit us."

Zhao Yu's face changed when he heard this, and he immediately stood up and said, "Erlang, you go meet them, and I will go down from the other side."

Yang Yuan was surprised and asked, "Your Majesty, why are you afraid of them? Why are you hiding?"

Zhao Yu said sternly, "If it were in the past, it wouldn't matter if they saw me. I would even hope they saw me so that I could support you. But now it's not possible!"

Zhao Yu knocked Yang Yuan's shoulder heavily with his folding fan and said solemnly: "Erlang, you are a truly talented person. You passed the provincial examination and won the provincial examination with your real talent and knowledge.

Well then, I must be extremely careful when dealing with you, and try not to let anyone know.

Otherwise, if people misunderstand that you have achieved your current success because I helped you, it will be very bad for your reputation!"

Yang Yuan was deeply moved after hearing this. This Zhao Qu could be considered as his half-brother.

Without further ado, Zhao Yu hurriedly explained, "Since you passed the exam based on your real ability, I am relieved.

I never go to court meetings, and I never attend imperial meetings. That is, the coronation ceremony, to give my brother some face.

It’s different now. When your palace exam comes, I will definitely be there! This time, I want to see you win the top prize with my own eyes! Goose, goose, goose…”

After Zhao Qu finished speaking, he turned around and left with eight burly sumo wrestlers.

He went down the stairs from the other side, thinking that he had made a mistake and actually found a truly talented person with a wealth of knowledge for the Song Dynasty. He couldn't help but feel proud. He couldn't help but look up and shouted again: "Geese, geese, geese~~~"

Yang Yuan was downstairs on the other side, and was diligently inviting the two officials, Qiao Zhen and Yan Ding, to the living room.

There was a sudden cry of geese in the corridor. The laughter was so unique that Qiao Zhen and Yan Ding could not help but turn their eyes over.

Then I saw a man dressed as a young man, holding a folding fan in his hand and covering his face with it.

There were four mountains of flesh in front and behind him, two in a row, blocking the corridor completely.

As these mountains of meat passed by, the guests walking in the corridors and the waiters serving food had no choice but to move to the nearest private rooms.

Yang Yuan was shocked, but fortunately Zhao Yu covered his face with a folding fan, so Qiao Zhen and Yan Ding did not see his appearance.

Otherwise, they would definitely recognize this person as His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin at a glance.

During the coronation ceremony, His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin stood lazily beside the emperor.

From time to time, his eyes would widen and then fill with tears. It was clearly a scene of him trying to hold back a yawn. They were left with a very deep impression.

……

For three consecutive days, guests came in droves.

Scholars of the same examination, officials of all levels in the district, wing, and county, and Leng Yuchan, a former subordinate who came to visit with his colleagues from the Privy Council, etc.

Even the matchmaker, Mother Liu, came specially, pretending to look for Luxi under the pretext of finalizing the details of the Mid-Autumn Festival wedding, but she actually pulled Yang Yuan aside to chat for a while.

As soon as she came out of Fengwei Building, she held her head high and chest out, and said everywhere: I have spoken to Wenquxing, and I have held Wenquxing's hand.

At that moment, people from the street pulled their children forward and asked her to use the hand that had touched Wenquxing to touch their children, so as to gain some energy.

So Mother Liu used the "Moding Dafa" to deceive people all the way...

Moreover, thieves started to appear in "Song's Flavor Restaurant".

The thief didn't steal anything valuable, just a blade of grass in the yard, a flower under the porch, a pot under the porch...

The thieves are either customers who come to dine in the restaurant or neighbors, and what they steal are not valuables, so it is difficult to hold them accountable.

Soon, it developed into people stealing soil from the yard.

It is said that if you take this soil back and make tea with it for your children to drink, the children will be full of talent and will become great people in the future.

If the waiters at Fengweilou had not been keeping a close eye on it, a hole would have been dug in the foundation of the back wall of Songjia Fengweilou facing the river.

This is not an exaggeration. Not to mention this era, in the 21st century, when a writer named Mo won the Nobel Prize, his old residence experienced such a scene, let alone this era.

Even a handful of soil or a piece of stone in the house could be remembered by the fanatical people. Yang Yuan could not rest from morning till night. Seeing that this was not a solution, the palace examination would be held in a few days, so he had to leave some time to prepare, right?
So on a dark and windy night, when the fourth drum was about to end and the fifth drum had not yet sounded, during the brief period between the night market and the morning market, a vegetable truck was parked in front of Fengwei Building.

The food cart stopped for a while and then drove away from Fengwei Building.

Yang Yuan was secretly transferred to the Yang family mansion in Renmeifang.

Luxi and Dan Niang arrived shortly afterwards, and even the waiters were useless, for fear that they would know that Wenquxing had moved here and accidentally let it out.

Luxi and Danniang took the bedding and cleaned up the master bedroom of the Yang family mansion.

Lu Xi said to Yang Yuan, "My second brother has passed the provincial examination and it is time for him to show his prowess in front of others, but he has been showing his prowess for too long and has been busy with social events. If this affects the palace examination, it will be a serious sin.

In the next few days, my second brother will prepare for the palace examination. Luxi and Sister Danniang will prepare three meals a day and deliver them to you on time."

On the other side, Dan Niang pulled Qingtang aside and told him earnestly, "Now, these few days, you should serve Erlang well here. Erlang needs to cultivate his mind and prepare for the palace examination to win the first place.

Now you are the only one left in this house to serve. You must remember that when you are free and bored, you can walk around the house as you like, but don't disturb Erlang's peace and quiet."

Qingtang's eyes were shining green and he nodded his head like a chick pecking at rice.

Dan Niang glared at her fiercely and said, "Don't think that I don't see through your little tricks. Anyway, you are absolutely not allowed to disturb Erlang's peace these days.

If you dare to flirt with Erlang and make him waste his attention on you, I will chop off your little hoof!"

Qingtang quickly shook her head: "No, no, I wouldn't dare. The master is such a big man, he has seen and experienced everything. I am just a little girl, how can I have the ability to seduce him."

Dan Niang blushed and scolded, "What have you seen and eaten? Don't talk nonsense, you little bitch."

Qingtang blinked and said, "Master, what if I didn't act like a bitch to you, but you wanted to eat me, what should I do?"

Dan Niang said: "Needless to say, I'll chop off your little hoof just the same!"

Qingtang suddenly looked bitter.

Dan Niang sneered, "There are so many beautiful girls in 'Nianhua Xiaozhu', and Erlang has never been seduced by them. How could he have the appetite to eat a little girl who hasn't even grown all her hair?
Normally, I would let you do whatever you want, but at this moment, you must not be ignorant of the seriousness of the matter."

Qingtang stuck out the tip of his tongue, then tugged at the corner of her clothes, and said with a smile: "Don't worry, mother, I know the seriousness of the matter. I will serve the master well and wait for the master to bring back a champion!"

……

The day Yang Yuan saw the list of successful candidates, he went to "Yulongzhi" to ask for leave.

Generally, officials who hold official positions but have no official titles and are going to take the imperial examinations will prepare for the exam in advance.

Although he is still in office, he had actually been suspended from his duties long ago.

It’s just that Yang Yuan’s situation was rather special, so he was not suspended until this time.

The officers and soldiers of the Yulongzhi had never cared about imperial examinations.

Not to mention that someone won the provincial championship, even if someone was chosen as the top scholar, they were too lazy to find out.

They are totally not on the same system.

But Yang Yuan switched from military to civil service, and was the provincial champion who passed the examination for the current Yulong Zhidu Yuhou.

This has to attract the attention of people in the military system.

Whether it was the imperial guards, the garrison troops or the local militia, they all spread the news that a military officer had gone to take the imperial examination and won the first place in the Ministry of Rites test.

This was something that made the warriors very proud.

Some soldiers didn’t even know what the “Ministry of Rites Test” or “Provincial Champion” meant, but that didn’t stop them from excitedly telling more people the news.

Commander-in-chief Mo Long accompanied Yang Yuan to the Palace Front Department with great envy and asked for leave from Palace Commander Zhao Mi.

At this moment, a sedan chair took Liu Wanrong out of the palace.

From this moment on, Liu Wanrong would restore her real name, Liu Yanran.

Liu Wanrong was one of the few concubines who needed to be sent out of the palace, but had to stay in the palace for two months.

Because only one month has passed since Zhao Gou's death.

One month before the emperor's death, during this period, all the concubines favored by the emperor had to stay in the palace.

After two months, the imperial physicians in the palace confirmed that they were not pregnant, and only then were they allowed to leave the palace.

The rules in the Song Dynasty were not as strict as those in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. At that time, whenever the emperor visited a concubine, there would be eunuchs following, monitoring and recording it on the spot.

Instead, the concubine who was favored by the emperor was required to go to Hemen the next day and take the initiative to thank the emperor for his grace.

The eunuch on duty at Hemen would record the name and time of the concubine who came to thank the emperor for his grace.

This means you need to proactively declare it yourself.

In recent years, Zhao Gou has preferred young girls who are ignorant of love affairs, but many of them have not reached the legal marriage age in the Song Dynasty, so he always uses Liu Wanrong as a shield.

The person who went to close the door and thank the emperor for his grace and whose name was recorded in the files was of course Liu Wanrong.

Therefore, it was not until this time that Liu Wanrong was allowed to leave the palace.

At this moment, Yang Yuan went to the Palace Front Office to apply for suspension from his post and prepare to take part in the palace examination.

By the time Yang Yuan had completed the formalities and walked out of the Hening Palace Gate, Liu Shangqiu had already left in a sedan chair an incense stick's time later.

(End of this chapter)