On the afternoon of March 11 in the first year of Jiajing.

On the eve of the Jiangnan Oiran Competition, Yangzhou City was very lively, and the Yangzhou Mansion Yahou Hall was also full of people, and there was an endless stream of gentry who came to visit Yangzhou Governor Jiangping. It's just that the faces of these gentry are not very good-looking, some look solemn, some are worried, some are angry, and some are swearing and cursing.

Scolding whom?

scolded Xu Jin, who was ordered by the Qincha, and Xia Yanbei, the deputy envoy of the Qincha, and scolded them for being despicable and shameless, embarrassed and traitorous, and singing double reeds to harm the gentry of Yangzhou Mansion.

It turned out that at noon today, Xia Yan, the deputy envoy of the Qincha, suddenly posted a document at the major city gates, severely reprimanding the gentry of Yangzhou Mansion for bribing the Qincha with gold and silver beauty, intending to let the Qincha raise his noble hand when clearing the land, so as to pass the test in confusion.

The most important thing is that the tone is extremely harsh, scolding the gentry who gave bribes and bloody dogs, and at the end of the article, it is also stated that in order to show punishment, all the property sent by the gentry for bribing will be confiscated and handed over, and the land will be strictly enforced from these people.

As soon as Xia Yan's reprimand document stamped with the seal of the Qin Cha came out, the entire Yangzhou city was boiling in an instant, and the heat instantly overshadowed the Oiran Contest that was to be held tomorrow. Finally, Xia Yan saved face for these gentry, and did not post the list and amount of bribes, otherwise the entire Yangzhou city would be blown up by this "big melon".

The common people at the bottom happily ran to tell each other, and praised the two Qincha for their honesty, wisdom and wisdom. And those gentry who were pitted were dumb and ate Coptis chinensis, and they couldn't say anything about their suffering, so they could only come to the door one after another to ask for explanations.

Of course, the ten daring gentry didn't dare to go to the Qin Cha to ask for an explanation, they just ran to the prefect Jiang Ping, and the salt transport envoy Shi Haoran complained about his grievances, hoping that these two tall people could come forward to negotiate with the two Qin Cha.

In the East Flower Hall in the back hall of the palace, Jiang Ping, the prefect of Yangzhou, walked back and forth with his hands behind his back in frustration, and his eyebrows were almost wrinkled together. Since Xia Yan, the deputy envoy of the Qin Mission, posted a reprimand document at noon, there has been an endless stream of officials and gentry who came to him to complain, he didn't even sleep at noon, and he had already met with five groups of gentry in just half an hour, and finally appeased these people and left, and poured a stomach of tea.

"My lord, there are still a lot of people waiting for you outside!" The butler cautiously reminded from the side.

Jiang Ping waved his hand irritably, at first he and Shi Haoran thought that Xu Jin, a young man, would be easy to settle, but he didn't expect this kid to play such a hand, it was really bad enough. This trick not only pit a lot of money for the gentry of Yangzhou Mansion, but also let them throw themselves into the net, if the fields at home are fine, who will send silver and bribe?

Therefore, Xu Jin's trick not only made a lot of money, but also found out who had illegally concealed or encroached on the land without much effort.

However, these are not the main reasons for the irritability of the Jiang Governor's Mansion, after all, if the land concealed and encroached upon is found out, the most it can be returned is to be returned, and it is a big deal to fine some money and silver. However, if the collusion with pirates and smuggling is discovered, it is not as simple as fining some money, it is a matter of losing the head.

Although he was not directly involved, he accepted money from gentry such as Zheng Bancheng, provided convenience for them, and acted as a protective umbrella for smuggling. Therefore, since the pirates of Dongsha Island were exterminated by Xu Jin, and the news of the capture of the pirate leader Chen Sipan was transmitted back to Yangzhou, Jiang Ping has been restless.

Just now, Jiang Ping met with Zheng Bancheng and others who came from Dongtai County, and learned the news that the pirate leader Chen Sipan had woken up, so he was even more uneasy.

Jiang Ping paced back and forth with his hands behind his back for a while, then went straight to the back, changed into a suit and left in obedience to the back door, heading for the Yamen of the Salt Transportation Division.

……

The winding path leads to the secluded place, and the flowers and trees in the meditation room are deep.

Daming Temple covers an extremely wide area, the houses are continuous, planted with all kinds of flowers and trees, and the winding path is deep and deep. The residence of the presiding Huijing Zen master is in the middle of the temple, that is, the left side of the Tibetan scripture building, and the road in the courtyard is paved with stone slabs.

At this time, the presiding Huijing Zen Master was wearing a robe, and Baoxiang was solemnly sitting on a futon under a Bodhi tree, and two tables were set up outside the zhang, Tang Yin and Wen Zhengming, one of the four great talents in Jiangnan, were sitting behind the desk, each holding a portrait of the presiding Huijing Zen Master.

It was very quiet, except for the occasional birdsong, which was the rustling sound of Tang Bohu's paintings. Tang Bohu used the sketching method he learned from Xu Jin, and the charcoal fell on the paper rustling.

Tang Bohu's own attainments in painting are extremely high, since he learned the sketching method from Xu Jin, and immersed in it for a few years, his level is now higher, and he has far surpassed Xu Jin, a half-hung master.

I saw Tang Bohu's pen, the solemn treasure of Zen Master Huijing has jumped on the paper, it looks vivid, just like a real person, if Xu Jin sees it here at this moment, he also has to slap his hands and admire, this old ticket holder can mix up the name of a great talent, relying on real talent and real learning.

Look at Wen Zhengming on the other side, this is the same as Tang Bohu's four great talents in Wuzhong, known for calligraphy and Danqing, at this time he is using the traditional painting method to paint a portrait of Huijing Zen Master, looking at the posture has the meaning of competing with Tang Bohu.

Different from the realism of sketching, the traditional portrait painting method pays more attention to the likeness. For example, the portraits of ancient emperors that have been handed down to this day are all straight noses and square mouths, solemn and solemn, while women have round and dignified faces and flat breasts, trying to hide the curves of women as much as possible.

At this time, the portrait made by Wen Zhengming was like this, obviously drawing the ear chakra of Zen Master Huijing larger, and the earlobes were thickened and lengthened, and the smile was more kind, making him look more Buddha-like, and he almost didn't add a circle of brilliant Buddha light behind his back. Despite this, Wen Zhengming's attainments are also unquestionable, and his penmanship is extremely old, if it is a Sotheby's and Christie's auction that has been handed down to later generations, it is estimated that it will be auctioned for tens of millions.

"Brother Ziwei's sketching method is becoming more and more exquisite, congratulations!" Wen Zhengming saw that Tang Bohu was about to finish painting, so he came over to watch it and couldn't help but exclaim.

Tang Bohu, an old ticket passenger, couldn't help but say with a smile on his face: "I have been immersed in this way for several years, and now I feel that I have entered the house." ”

Wen Zhengming had a peaceful and pure temperament, and he had long been accustomed to the arrogance of his friend, so he smiled and retreated to continue painting.

At this time, Zen Master Huijing, who was sitting upright, couldn't help but stand up, walked to Tang Bohu's side and took a look, his eyes couldn't help but light up, and he clasped his hands together and said: "Amitabha, Tang Gongzi really deserves his name, this painting is very wonderful!" ”

Tang Bohu laughed and quipped: "That's a big monk, you look good!" ”

"Huh!" Monk Huijing stroked his long beard and laughed heartily.

Wen Zhengming, who was at the next table, also smiled, but suddenly looked down thoughtfully at the portrait he had drawn, and then looked up at Monk Huijing carefully.

At this moment, a monk hurriedly walked over and reported: "Presiding, Lord Shi is visiting from the salt transport." ”

"Please come to the meditation room for a while." Zen Master Huijing said peacefully, and the monk bowed and retreated.

Wen Zhengming smiled and said: "Since there are distinguished guests visiting, then we will say goodbye first, and the portrait will be painted, and we will send it to the host another day." ”

Tang Bohu nodded and said, "I have to revise this painting again, and I will give it to the great monk when I go back." ”

Wen Zhengming and Tang Bohu are both frustrated people in the field, especially Tang Bohu, who has always been proud of his talents, and after returning to Suzhou from Nanchang a few years ago, he was even more unwilling to contact with the people in the officialdom.

Zen Master Huijing didn't keep it, and asked the little monk to send the two out after a few polite words.

"Brother Ziwei, don't you think Zen Master Huijing is a bit kind, it seems that you have seen it somewhere?"

The two walked out of Daming Temple and went down the mountain along the stone steps, Wen Zhengming asked as he walked. Tang Bohu sighed lightly and said, "It turns out that Brother Zhengming also feels this way, who do you think you look like?" ”

Wen Zhengming smiled bitterly: "I can't tell who it is, anyway, it's a little familiar." ”

Tang Bohu said with a smile: "Well, since you can't think of it, why bother yourself, I heard that Miss Cuiqiao has composed the song of "Funeral Flower Words", let's go to the door to ask for a glass of wine, maybe we can listen to it first!" ”

While chatting, the two went down the mountain and headed for the north gate of Yangzhou City.