Misty Rain of the Old Times

Chapter 325 An appointment?

Guixiang Street in the west of the city is wide and clean, with green trees on both sides and numerous courtyards and pavilions. The people living there are either rich or noble.

When Chen Xuan and his companions arrived here, the moon was already above the treetops. It took them several hours to travel across half of the capital city.

The Holy Capital City is so huge that ordinary people cannot even walk across the entire city in a day. Many people who have lived here for their entire lives cannot claim to know even one tenth of the city.

The public security is good in places where wealthy families gather, and there are Wu Hou patrols on the streets. Chen Xuan and his friends were interrogated when they arrived. After all, they were strangers, so they fully understood that it was their duty.

Chen Xuan and his companions had clean identities and complete documents, so after learning about their whereabouts, Wu Hou personally showed them the way and brought them to their "doorstep" before leaving.

Although it was clearly to confirm whether the identity was true, Wu Hou's actions really did not make people feel any resentment.

Just kidding, if you don’t have a good eye for the streets, you’d have offended countless people and ended up in a mess.

Besides the lanterns at every door, there were also streetlights every ten or so meters, lanterns hanging from wooden poles. Where could such public facilities be found in a small rural area? How many candles would be consumed in a single night on a street several miles long? But guess what? The wool comes from the sheep.

Xiaomingju, a three-courtyard house not facing the main road, is the residence that Gao Jingyu prepared for Gao Jingming in advance.

The plaque on the door was still new, and Chen Xuan seriously suspected that "Xiao Ming" was Gao Jingyu's nickname for his younger brother.

When they arrived, there were already people waiting at the door. The maids, servants and guards who had been prepared in advance were all present. There were fifteen people in total, including maids to sweep the floor, servants to do the shopping, old women to do the laundry and cooking, and several guards. It was a complete set.

It’s great to be rich. Gao Jingming was only coming to stay for a while, but he actually prepared a set of "villa" and servants.

After entering the yard and exchanging a few pleasantries, Gao Jingming asked Wei Song to be the manager here and get familiar with the place as quickly as possible. As a personal secretary, this was his job, while Geng Hong was responsible for the security.

Although this place was arranged by Gao Jingyu, no one had any objection to Gao Jingming's decision.

After traveling for more than ten days, they were not exhausted. After getting familiar with the environment, they each settled in their own room. It was still early, so while Wei Song and Geng Hong were busy inside and outside the house, Chen Xuanze and Gao Jingming were drinking tea and chatting in the yard.

This area is quiet. Even if there is no curfew in the capital, the hustle and bustle of the city cannot affect here. It is quite pleasant to drink tea in the summer evening breeze.

"Young Master, what are your plans next?" Chen Xuan asked while chatting, looking at Ye Zhaoqing whose fingertips flickered.

Ye Zhaoqing refers to fireflies. I never thought that there are fireflies in the populous capital, but there are not many. Unlike small places in the countryside, they are in large groups like stars in the summer.

Gao Jingming smiled and said, "I don't have any plans. The exam will start in more than a month, so I have to prepare actively. I'll let Wei Song and the others handle the registration."

"This is good. I can stay at home and ignore what's happening outside. I'll try my best to pass the imperial examination and then shout that the number one scholar Gao Jingming is my buddy. I'll be very famous. Then there's a high probability that they won't charge me money even if I go to teahouses or brothels." Chen Xuan nodded, still thinking about this matter.

Although if he showed off his skills, not only would he be able to eat, drink and have fun for free, but there would also be many people rushing to give him money, but how could such a thing be as good as getting something for free from others?

Shaking his head, Gao Jingming laughed and said, "It's not that easy, just do your best."

Releasing Ye Zhaoqing from his fingertips, Chen Xuan said with a fierce gleam in his eyes, "It's actually very simple. Do you want me to help you get a set of exam questions? As long as you ask, I will definitely get them for you. Otherwise, I will find out which candidates are a threat to you and trap them in advance, making them unable to take the imperial examination. Then the top prize will be yours."

"No, Xuan, don't do anything rash," Gao Jingming waved his hand quickly. Based on his understanding of Chen Xuan, it seemed that he was not joking and was capable of doing such a thing.

That would be too much. It's obvious that he wants to expose the truth. Once he really does that and the matter is exposed, not only will the top scholar be killed, but the whole family will probably be destroyed.

Chen Xuan immediately said with regret, "Don't be so pedantic. As long as the goal is achieved, the process is not important. Besides, Master, you don't really think the so-called imperial examination is fair, do you?"

Come on, nothing is fair in this world, especially not in the imperial examinations. It seems everyone's qualified based on genuine talent and knowledge, but why is it that in the end, most of those on the list are connected to aristocratic families? Are the rest truly talented and knowledgeable? If you look closely, you'll find that most of them are more or less connected to aristocratic families. The few who are truly talented and knowledgeable are probably just there to make some people look less shameful.

No matter when, the so-called fairness is the greatest unfairness. This kind of thing should not be delved into too deeply, because it will make people lose their luster for the world.

"There's no need to do such a thing. I believe in myself. Even if I can't pass the imperial examination and become the top scholar, I will still have no problem becoming a Jinshi," Gao Jingming said with a sigh of relief.

The premise is that everything goes smoothly. Chen Xuan muttered in his heart, but he didn't care and said, "Okay, it depends on you. In any case, try your best to be the top scholar. I also want to leave my name in history."

"Don't talk about me. What about you, Xuan? What are your plans next?" Gao Jingming asked, changing the subject.

Sitting bonelessly on the chair, Chen Xuan said, "We have arrived in the capital. Young master, you plan to study hard behind closed doors. I will have almost nothing to do, so of course you will eat, drink, have fun and enjoy life." "I'm not envious at all," Gao Jingming said sourly.

After stretching, Chen Xuan stood up and said, "I won't talk nonsense with you anymore. Let's go to bed. From tomorrow on, you will be responsible for the hard work and I will help you enjoy the freedom. We have a clear division of labor and live a life worthwhile."

"How about we switch?" Gao Jingming looked at his back and said with a smile. In fact, as long as he wanted, he could still live a relaxed and comfortable life, but if he really did that, he would not be Gao Jingming.

When he was young, he studied at Liuyu Academy and farmed in his spare time. He knew the difficulties of farmers. Under Chen Xuan's subtle guidance, he "accidentally" got cassava, and he reported it excitedly, hoping that the court would promote it so that more poor people could have more opportunities to have enough food. At that time, he didn't even consider what he could get, but reality poured cold water on him.

At that time he was wondering why it was like this?
It is obviously a good thing that benefits the country and the people. The most ridiculous thing is that some people think that it is not good for the country if ordinary people eat too much!
It shouldn't be like this. At that time, he had an idea to do something, so he gave up some "meaningless" things and concentrated on studying hard. He used the imperial examination as a stepping stone. Only when he stood at a certain height could he truly implement his ideas. Otherwise, everything would be empty talk...

If I were to change Hammer, I'd already laid down and done with it, how could I be expected to live a hard life again?
Chen Xuan pretended not to hear. He was about to leave for a rest when he suddenly thought of something. He turned around and said with interest, "By the way, Master, you've come to the capital, but you haven't met the Young Madam yet. When are you going to visit her?"

"Let's talk about it after the imperial examination to avoid distraction. It won't be long anyway," Gao Jingming pondered. He understood the priorities of things. Lifelong events were important, but the imperial examination was more important at the moment. After more than ten years of hard study, it was time to verify what he had learned.

Chen Xuan said with a bored look on his face, "It's an arranged marriage. Aren't you worried that the young lady might not be compatible with you? Or that she might not be very good-looking?"

"When marrying a virtuous wife, appearance is not important. As for personality, husband and wife will be one, and they can discuss everything together. There is no reason for them to be incompatible," Gao Jingming said, shaking his head.

Chen Xuan was speechless. He stopped playing and left...

As he said, the next morning, Chen Xuan strolled out under Gao Jingming's resentful gaze, with nothing on him except silver and money.

The little girl Su Roujia was not at home and there was no one to help take care of him, so he was dressed very casually. His hair was simply tied up at the back, loose so that it was not messy. He was wearing a blue and white long gown and flip-flops.

Flip-flops are very popular in the summer. From nobles to ordinary people, they are convenient and cool to wear. They are not exclusive to Chen Xuan's hometown, but are just leftovers.

Despite this ancient background, people had a lot of fun in order to stay cool in the summer, and many people didn't even wear pants under their hems. Otherwise, what do you think such long hems were for?
Anyway, Chen Xuan's lazy and casual attitude makes him look like a real scoundrel when walking on the street.

Guixiang Street is the residential area of ​​wealthy families. It is not very interesting. Chen Xuan goes wherever there is excitement, without any clear goal.

Coming to the bustling streets, Chen Xuan ate as he walked, trying the so-called delicacies of the capital. The experience was not good. The prices were much more expensive than other places, and the taste was not very good, but he did not waste anything.

When he saw a bookstore, he walked in and bought a general map of the capital, which cost him two taels of silver.

When arriving in Beijing, of course the first thing to do is to understand the general situation. Yesterday it was too late and I didn’t have time.

However, the maps available to the public only give a general idea. They are not as detailed as military maps, but they are sufficient.

He stuffed the map he bought into his sleeve without looking at it immediately. After leaving the bookstore, Chen Xuan looked around and waved to a errand boy who was waiting for work. The errand boy came over and asked bluntly, "How much does it cost to deliver a letter to the Shuiyun Road Convenience Hall?"

In big cities, there are many people who help run errands. They are organized. As long as you have money, there are plenty of people to serve you.

After hearing this, the other party thought for a moment and said, "Sir, Shuiyun Road is a bit far. It takes half a day to go back and forth. Two coins of silver."

It's really not easy to live in the capital. Running an errand for half a day costs two coins of silver, which is almost a month's income for a waiter in Yang County.

Chen Xuan didn't care. He gave the money and handed the other party a letter saying, "Send it to me as soon as possible."

"Don't worry, I'll make sure to deliver it to you, sir." The other party took the job and turned to leave.

This is not a big deal, and Chen Xuan is not worried that the other party will take the money and not do the job. Otherwise, if they find an organization of people like them, it will not be a matter of a word.

The letter was, of course, addressed to his good friend, Tingfeng Jushi. The content was simple: "I've arrived in your place. Would you like to meet me?" "If it's inconvenient, please reply." Then there was Gao Jingming's current address.

He was not sure whether he could meet his good friend Chen Xuan, with whom he had been exchanging letters for many years. After all, the other party had been mysterious for so many years and no one knew her true identity. Chen Xuan would not force it, nor would he investigate specifically to satisfy his curiosity.

……

(End of this chapter)