The journey of the only child of a peasant family to take the imperial examination

Zhang Ping'an heard the prince whispering a few words of scolding beside him, as if trying to dissuade the second prince from doing this, but the second prince seemed not to hear it, and it didn't have any effect.

Still doing my own thing.

Since they couldn't even restrain the crown prince, the surrounding civil and military officials naturally wouldn't say anything. They could only pretend not to see anything, continue chatting and laughing, and quietly move their horses a little further away from the second prince.

"Dad, lower your head," Xiao Yu'er suddenly said in a crisp voice. Then, with a clever look, he covered his mouth and leaned close to Zhang Ping'an's ear, asking softly, "Dad, didn't you say that this is not good for the servants? It's too cruel. Then how can the Second Prince beat people at will and even beat them to death?"

Obviously he also saw what happened just now.

The hot air blew against his ears, making them itchy. Facing his son's puzzled eyes, Zhang Pingan touched his head and explained in a gentle voice: "Everyone has their own personality and heart. You are still young and can't do much. The most important thing is to cultivate good character first."

"Oh!" Xiao Yu'er tilted his head after hearing this, obviously not satisfied with this answer. He leaned close to his father's ear and continued to ask, "Dad, didn't you say before that if a child is not raised and taught, it is the father's fault? Why doesn't the Second Prince's father, the Emperor, care? Is it because they are royals that they can be treated specially?"

"It's not necessarily that I don't care, it's probably that I just didn't manage it well. Okay, let's not bring up this topic anymore. What did Dad tell you before?" The surroundings were noisy and there were many ears and eyes. Seeing that the topic was getting more and more dangerous, Zhang Pingan had to interrupt his son's curiosity and raised his tone.

Fortunately, Xiao Yuer is not completely unaware of these things. The concept of class has been instilled and influenced by the people around him since he was a child. Ever since he was old enough to understand, he knows that people are different.

It was just because his biological father Zhang Ping'an came back and his teaching method was different from that of the previous teachers. The two slightly contradictory ideas collided in his mind, so he had this question.

After listening to Zhang Pingan, he immediately covered his mouth obediently, and his voice came out from his small palm: "I know, be careful with what you say and do!"

"Little smart boy!" Zhang Ping'an looked at his adorable son and couldn't help but rub his son's head again.

The colleague closest to him was Lord Wang, the Privy Councilor, who was also holding a child in his arms. The child was the eldest great-grandson of the family, only four or five years old, and looked slightly younger than Xiao Yuer. Perhaps because he had been spoiled since childhood and had an extraordinary family background, the child was quite arrogant and had learned to look down on others at such a young age.

Just now, Xiao Yuer was talking to him from time to time and they had a pretty good relationship.

After the two families got to know each other, the child began to call Zhang Ping'an "Uncle" according to their generation. His voice was clear and crisp, and he looked like a little adult, so cute and adorable that even though people knew that the child was arrogant, they couldn't dislike him.

At this moment, the Wang family's child was puzzled after seeing this heartwarming scene between Zhang Ping'an and his son. He raised his head and asked, "Great-grandfather, don't you always say that a gentleman hugs his grandchildren instead of his sons? My father never hugs me, so why does Uncle Zhang always hug Xiao Yu'er?"

Lord Wang smiled awkwardly upon hearing this, and hadn't figured out how to respond yet.

Then Xiao Yuer could not wait to answer loudly: "Of course it's because my father loves me very much, that's why he holds me. Not only does my father often hold me, he also often takes me to the farm in the suburbs to play in the water. It's so much fun!"

Not to mention the arrogance in his words, they were full of boasting.

Sure enough, after hearing this, the child's eyes immediately showed envy.

As if that wasn't enough, Xiao Yu'er continued to show off his knowledge, shaking his head as he sat on his horse, saying, "And you only know one side of the story. The Book of Rites says that a gentleman embraces his grandchildren, not his sons. It means that during ancestral temple sacrifices, it is the grandchildren, not the sons, who represent the deceased. This is the meaning of 'Zhao Mu Mu Ji Mu'. It doesn't mean that a father can't embrace his son. If you over-interpret individual words, you'll be trying to find a sword by carving a mark on the boat. The current emperor even held his son on his lap and played with him. It's a way of expressing intimacy. My father would only embrace me because he loves me. You don't understand!"

After saying that, Xiao Yuer asked his father for confirmation, "Dad, do you think I'm right?"

Zhang Pingan smiled helplessly. He hadn't expected his son to remember what he had said so clearly. Seeing his son's expression of begging for praise, he could only nod and said respectfully, "You are right. Your Majesty is the supreme ruler. Your every word and action can be a model for the world. You have read the Book of Rites thoroughly, so you can naturally interpret the saying that it is better to embrace grandchildren than sons."

Xiao Yuer was even happier with someone supporting him from behind, and he looked at his friend next to him proudly.

The Wang family child was still a little dissatisfied. He had been studying in the family since he was three years old. What he heard today was obviously inconsistent with the teachings he had received in his daily life.

But Lord Wang was worldly-wise. Seeing that even the emperor was involved, he didn't want to cause any more trouble because of the children's quarrel, so he just gave a look to silence his great-grandson who wanted to say more.

The Wang family child finally shut up, but he still looked very angry and stopped talking to Xiao Yuer.

Xiao Yu'er was even less interested. The two children turned their heads away and ignored each other.

"I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, Lord Wang."

After all, Lord Wang was much older than him and had considerable experience in the Privy Council, so Zhang Pingan leaned over and said something to ease the atmosphere.

"They are just children. We adults don't need to get involved," Lord Wang waved his hands and smiled, seemingly not taking it to heart.

By noon we arrived at the royal hunting ground. I heard that it was built on the basis of the royal hunting ground of the previous dynasty with some minor renovations.

When the war broke out, this place was occupied by the Tatars. The Tatars grew up on horseback and were naturally fond of riding and hunting. Therefore, although the capital city was destroyed by them and the people's lives were difficult, this area of ​​the royal hunting ground was still well-maintained with abundant grass and water, and many animals of various kinds were kept in captivity.

"We're finally here, even with my old bones," Lord Wang couldn't help but support his lower back and sigh when he saw the destination.

"Rest for a while when we get to the tent," Zhang Pingan said with a smile, then he got off the horse swiftly and carried his son down.

"It's good to be young." Looking at Zhang Ping'an in riding clothes and his handsome and agile figure, Lord Wang would be lying if he said he was not envious. At his age, he basically has identity, status, fame and fortune. The only thing that cannot be retrieved is the passing of youth.

It was difficult to respond to such remarks, otherwise it would sound like showing off. Zhang Pingan cleverly changed the subject and talked about something else. Everyone waited quietly outside and entered the venue in order. The two children made various expressions to each other, and no one knew what they were talking about.

Although it is late autumn, the power of the autumn tiger cannot be underestimated. Everyone is bored waiting outside.

After Zhou Ziming finally settled the concubines and princes and arranged for the guards to patrol, everyone was finally allowed to go in.

However, when they were almost reaching their respective tents, the second prince suddenly rushed out from the bright yellow tent in the middle, his face full of anger and his eyes so gloomy that they seemed to be dripping with tears.

Then he quickly snatched a horse from the guard beside him, without even looking at the road, he just whipped the horse hard, mounted the horse and rushed out of the camp quickly.

When passing by Zhang Ping'an, the horse's hooves stirred up a gust of sand.

Fortunately, Zhang Ping'an was quick-witted and pulled Xiao Yu'er and Lord Wang, the grandparents and grandchildren, to the side, so they were not injured.

Those people at the camp gate were in trouble. Zhang Ping'an didn't look closely, but he heard a commotion over there with people and horses falling to the ground. The guards immediately jumped on their horses and followed behind to chase.

Making such a big noise during the autumn hunt was indeed a bit arrogant. Zhang Pingan couldn't help but frowned fiercely, then cast his gaze towards the bright yellow tent not far away.

At this time, the prince came out at some point and stood at the door of the tent. The midday sun was very scorching, and he was facing the backlight, so his expression could not be seen clearly.

But it is conceivable that Zhou Ziming must be furious about this matter, and he doesn't know what happened.

Lord Wang carefully wiped the sweat off his face and calmed himself down. He couldn't help but frown, but he didn't say much. He just said, "Let's go into the tent and settle down first. With so many guards here, nothing should go wrong."

"Okay, OK," Zhang Ping'an nodded. He was arranged to stay in the same tent with Lord Wang.