The mother and daughter of the Gu family took Fusu to travel for a few more days and returned to Chang'an. Pen Fun Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 The father and son in the family knew that they were about to enter the city, Gu Qingfeng rode to the city gate early to wait for their carriage, Gu Qingxuan and Gu Qinghuan discussed the matter of entering the spring tomorrow, first went to the test site to walk around the environment to familiarize themselves, and came back before they arrived home.

As Gu Qingxuan thought, Gu Qinghuan, who originally disdained to submit public papers and ask for the sponsorship of people from the Ministry of Rites, was also a little anxious when he saw that other students were looking for ways to invest in the bank. He has been paying attention, found an appropriate juncture and talked to Gu Qinghuan, persuaded him to write an article, sent it to Dong Yehong, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, and officially worshiped him as his protégé, and asked him to sponsor him after the exam.

Gu Qingxuan relieved Gu Qinghuan: "Qinghuan, my father knows that you don't disdain to rely on public rolls to gain fame, and you are still not very happy in your heart, right?"

Gu Qinghuan said: "Yes...... I always felt that this was tantamount to fraud...... The Ministry of Rites is okay, after all, the emperor directly inspected it, and he didn't dare to come nonsense, but how many of those who gave other big officials and royal families invested in bank papers were not fake articles and asked for sponsorship in gold and silver, which is really unfair! It corrupted the morale of the scholars! Some time ago, someone actually took a lot of money to beg me to write articles for them, and it was really unreasonable! I really don't understand what is the benefit of sponsoring them in the selection of talents before and after the test!

Seeing him so indignant, Gu Qingxuan smiled and said: "Don't worry, this paper is of great benefit, the scholars submit the paper before the exam, and the officials guarantee it, and the exam paper after the exam comes out, and the students are selected by the two-volume comprehensive evaluation of culture, which can not only select truly talented people for the imperial court, but also an assessment of officials, and the officials can also prove that they are talented. …”

"I remember that a few years ago, many candidates came to my father to invest in the bank, and there were many talented people, why did my father never sponsor him?

Gu Qingxuan shook his head secretly: "No, you have to know, everything has good and bad sides, great success and great profit are double-edged swords, I don't accept protégés, I just don't want to make trouble." ”

"Did my father have long expected that this kind of examination system would have today's crooked style?"

"Who wouldn't have expected that? It's just that I'm more cautious. He said.

"When my father took the imperial examination, didn't there be such a thing as submitting papers? It can be seen that the examination system has changed for decades, and this submission of papers to the examination will not last long!" Gu Qinghuan said with a flick of his sleeves.

Gu Qingxuan looked at him and said, "Okay, it's best if you have this foresight, if you really can't see this kind of unhealthy trend, it would be good if you went to abolish it, it depends on whether you can enter the court as an official, and my father is waiting to see you show your strength in the court to purge the official rule!"

Gu Qinghuan also laughed, and then thought about it: "Eh, father, is this paper submitted for the exam advocated by the emperor alone? Or did someone advocate it?"

Gu Qingxuan replied: "Someone has proposed it. ”

"Who?"

"Today's Xiangguo, the official of the year, Lu Yuanzhi. ”

"Ahh

"Me. ”

Gu Qinghuan was speechless, and wanted to ask again, but he heard the housekeeper greet him from afar: "My lord, the eldest young master, the lady and the young lady are back!"

The father and son immediately walked quickly to the front yard, and when they met Shen Lanxi and them entering the mansion, Gu Qingfeng also surrounded them.

Gu Qingxuan first glanced at Gu Qingning carefully, and then stepped forward to support Shen Lanxi, it was natural for the family to reunite. Gu Qingning introduced Fusu to her family, saying that she was a lonely and dumb girl they took in in Luoyang City, and she would be her personal maid in the future.

Gu Qingfeng couldn't help asking, "Sister, why did you lose a lot of weight when you went out for a walk for two months?"

Gu Qingning only said: "It's nothing, on the way there, I encountered heavy snow and contracted wind and cold for a while." ”

Gu Qingxuan, who was walking hand in hand with Shen Lanxi, heard their conversation, looked back at Gu Qingning, and asked, "Is it okay now?"

When she met her father's eyes, she inevitably felt weak and replied, "Okay, father, it's all right." ”

Gu Qingxuan frowned and nodded: "Okay, it's good......"

Gu Qinghuan was also relieved: "It's okay, it's good to ......"

The Gu couple entered the main house, Shen Lanxi cleaned up the dust by herself, Gu Qingxuan sat on the chair, looked at her back, and asked, "......What is the matter?" It's all solved?"

Shen Lanxi was startled and turned to look at him: "Husband, what are you talking about?"

Gu Qingxuan stepped forward and said helplessly: "Madame, why should I hide it from me, although I don't know the specific reason, I don't believe that you and Qingning just went to Luoyang to relax and look at the flowers." ”

"Why?" she bowed her head.

He said: "Since we left Luoyang and came to Chang'an twenty-four years ago, we have never been back, you have completely cut off contact with your mother's family, what kind of place Luoyang is for you, don't I know? So when you pretend to be relaxed and say that you want to go to Luoyang to enjoy peonies, I know that you have something to hide from me, and it is a big ......."

Shen Lanxi bowed his head and was silent, he held her gently trembling hand, and said instead: "Madam, you are no more intelligent, if you are afraid that you will not have a little flaw in others, why haven't you successfully told a lie in front of me?

She shook her head, raised her face, looked at him with tears in her eyes, and said solemnly: "Qingxuan, promise me, forget your current doubts, promise me, never ask Qingning the truth about this matter, never! You promise me! Just this time! Let me lie to you once!"

Seeing her like this, Gu Qingxuan was stunned for a moment, then nodded indifferently and promised: "Okay, I promise you, I will never ask Qingning about it, and I will never have any more doubts." ”

The family gathered in the main hall for lunch, and after chatting for a while, Gu Qingfeng couldn't stay at home anymore, and wanted to go to his master to practice swords, so Shen Lanxi allowed him to go, Gu Qingning was a little tired from the journey, and went back to the house to rest first. In the front yard, only the Gu couple and Gu Qinghuan remained, their father and son played around the stone table, Shen Lanxi watched the chess embroidery on the sidelines, did not hear the sound of people, only listened to the chess pieces knocking down, accompanied by the warm spring breeze, it was not a quiet situation.

Outside the gate of the mansion, there was a sudden sound of the carriage stopping, but after a while, Tang Bo stepped in first to report: "My lord, the servants of the ministry and others are visiting." ”

"Officials?" Gu Qingxuan and Shen Lanxi glanced at each other, slightly puzzled: "You found it so quickly? It's really me underestimating the people of Yushitai......

Then more than a dozen people entered the front yard directly, although they were not soldiers, but they were also menacing, and Fang Liang, the servant of the front department, glanced at Gu Qingxuan contemptuously, and saluted slightly: "Lord Gu is so interested, he took a leave of absence for two months and didn't ask about political affairs, presumably this chess skill has been completed, right?"

Gu Qingxuan disagreed, "Didn't Fang Shilang come to discuss chess with the old man today? Or has he found the evidence of the old man's "corruption" and summoned the old man to the Ministry of Justice for trial?"

Fang Liang said: "No, Lord Gu, you have long been a matter of the Imperial Historical Observatory, as for the top of the Imperial Historical Observatory, our officials can't worry about it, I am here today to invite your eldest son Gu Qinghuan to the Ministry of Officials for trial, Gu Gongzi was accused of bribery, and the evidence is true!"