The day before New Year's Day.

Throughout the day, many horse-drawn carriages came to Pyongyang, and there was an endless stream of them. After entering the city, there are officials in front of the road, and there are light cavalry guards in the back, shouting loudly, going around the city for a week, and then turning into the south of the city, entering the Tsinghua Pavilion.

This Tsinghua Pavilion was built in the former Goryeo and was originally used for other purposes. Deng She took the meaning of "beautiful and beautiful" and "Hanlin Qinghua", renovated it, and simply used it exclusively to receive foreign scholars.

Some time ago, he ordered all localities to recommend Xiucai, and there was a special requirement at that time, such as Liaoyang and Shuangcheng, which are relatively far away, and those that are relatively close to Jiangdong and Shun'an, must be sent a batch before New Year's Day, so as to participate in a series of ceremonies held on New Year's Day.

There is a saying that "the new year and the new atmosphere", and this is also conducive to declaring to the people of Haidong the image of the province and facilitating the development of governance in the coming year.

With such a political factor, the work of receiving scholars was very important, and Deng She handed it over to Wang Zongzhe. He is the champion again, and he is the third yuan in the company, and there is no more suitable than him.

Wang Zongzhe did a good job. He can connect the three yuan, other skills may not be available, the four books and five classics are familiar with the heart, not only learned, but also etiquette, everything is done meticulously, so that people can not find the slightest mistake; Sitting down to talk about scriptures and books is more of a sideline, and the head is the Tao.

A busy day passed by in a flash, and the sky was about to be darkened.

Wang Zongzhe easily took a moment, found an excuse, slipped out of the guest hall, asked his subordinates, and said, "The scholars who should come, have you arrived?" ”

His voice was a little hoarse, but full of energy. When he interacts with readers, he is like a fish in water and does not feel tired. And Haidong's readers, the level is generally not high, talking to him, he seems to stand out from the crowd, and he is a little bit of a pleasure to get back to the former high school champion, the stars hold the moon. Compared with the oppressive life over the years, it is inevitable to be excited.

A subordinate looked through the roster and replied: "The scholars from Jiangxi, Cishan, Jiangdong, and Longgang have all arrived, and those from Shun'an have also come, but only Yongrou has not yet come." ”

Yongrou is the farthest, there are mountains to obstruct, you need to bypass it far away, and it is reasonable to walk slower on the road.

Wang Zongzhe drank two cups of tea, relieved the dryness of his mouthpiece a little, wiped his mouth, and said, "You go out and wait, when they arrive, come and inform the official immediately." ”

The staff member answered, waited to leave, remembered something, hurriedly turned around, and asked, "It's getting late." Someone from the kitchen came to ask, may I ask my lord, when will the meal start? ”

Wang Zongzhe thought for a moment and said, "Let's talk about it when the Yongrou scholar comes." ......, you can tell the cook to serve some snacks first. ”

The staff member did as promised.

Wang Zongzhe had to wait for Yongrou's scholars to come, and then start the meal, which was considered. Although Yongrou is a small county, there are quite prominent surnames in the county, and among the scholars who come, there are especially the tribes of the Shenyang Bian clan. Deng She once explained that when dealing with the people from the Bian family, he must be warm and thoughtful, and he must not be lazy.

Goryeo Bian, originated in China, the surname of the book, after the original Yin Shang Wei Zhong, Wei Zhong was enshrined in the Song Dynasty, and spread to the son of Song Ping, the grandson of the son of Zibian is Situ, with the ancestor as the surname, there is the Bian clan. As far as Goryeo is concerned, there are Huangzhou Bienshi, Gaizhou Bien and so on. Speaking in detail, Shenyang Bian's is a lineage of Huangzhou's Bian's.

During the reign of Emperor Gaozong of the Southern Song Dynasty, Bian Xuan lived in Huangzhou, Goryeo from the floating sea in the south of the Yangtze River in China, which is the origin of the Bian clan in Huangzhou. Six to Bian Shun, the Mengyuan envoy Tuo Duoer went to Goryeo to supervise the construction of ships to conquer Japan, but returned to China with Bian Shun and recommended him to Shizu, who named him a thousand households on Shenyang Road and made him live in Shenyang.

Mengyuan's officers, many hereditary, passed on the son of the pass, while the son of the forgiveness, the son of the Anbo, three generations inherited the position of the thousand households of Shenyang Road. Last year, Bian Amber fell ill and died. He has a younger brother named Bian Anlie.

In the eleventh year of Zheng, the current king of Goryeo returned to China to succeed to the throne, and Emperor Yuan sent an envoy to escort him, accompanied by three generals and six bachelors. Among the six bachelors, there is a Bian Su, who is the second son of Bian Ambo; And Bian Anlie is the head of the three generals, and his cousin Bian Anxu also came with him.

This Yongroubian clan is a branch of their lineage. Deng She instructed Wang Zongzhe to receive him carefully, and his intention was not asked.

After waiting for more than half an hour, Wang Zongzhe went in and out many times, and the scholar of Yongrou finally came. Wang Zongzhe personally greeted the door, it was already dark at this time, and several carriages entered the museum against the backdrop of torches. The servants lifted the curtain and put the shelves, and three or four men bowed and came out.

Deng She imitated the bus system of the Han Dynasty, and the carriages that sent the scholars were all prepared by the state and county governments in various places as a courtesy.

Wang Zongzhe stepped forward quickly and said with a smile: "Look at it immediately, why are you too late?" After a long time, he was very enthusiastic, and he didn't rush to ask for his name, but said, "It's cold, and the road is hard." Ladies and gentlemen, please come into the hall quickly, and prepare hot tea to warm your body. ”

Someone introduced: "This is the imperial history of our province, Lord Wang." ”

Even the middle school Sanyuan Wang Zongzhe, his name even Deng She, who has only studied in private school for a few years, knows it, not to mention these talents who are buried in the cold window, with a high school jinshi list, and once become famous in the world, it is known as the greatest wish in life? It can be said that everyone knows and everyone knows. Otherwise, the province's successive documents for recruiting talents would not all take him as a call.

Everyone returned the salute and admired each other for a long time.

Wang Zongzhe smiled and groaned, invited them in, and took the opportunity to look at everyone.

Yongrou came a total of four scholars. Two are over half a hundred years old, one is in the prime of life, and the other is young. This ratio of old, middle-aged and young is basically the same as that in other places.

He noticed that the older two were more restrained, showing that they were courteous, respectful, and cautious in their speech. Just for the sake of who left before and who left, the two of them humbled for a long time. The man in the prime of life is more open, since getting out of the car, the two eyes have not stopped, things are slipping, looking at people and things to see decorations, and his eyes always stay in the golden place. There are also maidservants in the museum, young and beautiful, he looks twice, and the ugliness is swept away.

The last one was young, but in his early twenties, with a face like a crown of jade, a lofty instrument, and a family-style demeanor.

Wang Zongzhe looked around and had a little bit of a number in his heart.

When everyone entered the hall, the early scholars stood up to greet them. Everyone came from Pyongyang, had a lot of contacts with each other, greeted each other familiarly, and sat down separately for a long time.

Wang Zongzhe asked for his name at this time, which was similar to what he guessed, two old people, no reputation, just a local old Confucian. The one in the prime of life, surnamed Lu Mingcao; The young people, that is, the people from the Bian clan that Deng She attaches great importance to, are called Bian Anhe, and in terms of seniority, they are the younger brothers of Bian Anlie.

Waiting for the maid to serve tea, Wang Zongzhe smiled and said: "As soon as the princes of Yongrou arrive, everyone will come." All of you are Haidong talents, gathered together, presumably the lord will know about it, and he will be happy. ”

In the seat on the right, there is a humanitarian: "The prime minister is the first person to decide on Liaodong, and the first thing to do is to recruit sages." He is not talented, he is among them, and he does not dare to be arrogant, but he also deeply feels the sincerity of the prime minister's respect for Confucianism. At a time when the world is boiling and martial arts are rampant, the prime minister's move is really an outlier, and he is really young and handsome, and it is a blessing for my people. ”

The person whose surname is Cui Mingbei, is from Jiangdong, and among the scholars he has visited, he is the most flattering.

Wang Zongzhe nodded with a smile, and heard someone on the left sneer. He glanced at it and saw that it was a talented man in his thirties, with a short figure and an extremely ugly face, named Yin Quan, a native of Shun'an, who came in the afternoon. From his arrival to the present, he has not said half a word, only sneering twice from time to time when others are flattering.

At the same time as the counties and counties recommended the scholars, an official document was also sent. It describes in detail the various circumstances of the recruited scholars, such as their local reputation, their academic knowledge, family background, personality preferences, and so on. This Yin Quan, whose reputation is not small, and his knowledge is not low, and the evaluation given to him by Yin of Shun'an Mansion is: "There are angry words every day, or the heart of the remnants." In other words, he regarded himself as a remnant of Goryeo and had a psychology of resistance to Haedong,—— typical of not supporting and cooperating.

Wang Zongzhe pressed the dislike in his heart, pretended not to hear it, and said with a smile: "The lord is eloquent and strategic, and he is not comparable to a thief." In the troubled times, meeting the Lord is not only a blessing for the people, but also a blessing for you and me! The official heard that when Cui Gong was a child, he was famous in the township, and he once had the reputation of 'before the fifteenth year, he had the hope of Tsinghua', which is in line with the meaning of this Tsinghua Museum. In addition, Cui's generation is a famous family in Jiangdong, and Cui Gong has entered this museum today, which will be of great use and just around the corner! ”

Cui Bei was humble.

Wang Zongzhe boasted that 'Cui's generation is a famous family in Jiangdong', which is a little exaggerated. But the first half of the sentence says that he has the reputation of 'before he is fifteen years old, he has the hope of Tsinghua', this sentence is genuine, not false at all. Cui Bei is a young man with early wisdom, a famous talent in Jiangdong, and has always boasted of being handsome.

What is Junjie? As a handsome man, of course, you must know the current affairs.

On one side is the thriving Haedong, and on the other side is the declining Goryeo, which one should you choose? Go without saying. In fact, from the day Deng She captured Liaoyang, Cui Bei had the heart to vote, but there was no way. Therefore, Haidong's recommendation order, without waiting for the official to be recruited, he took the initiative to ask early.

Among the scholars who came, there were those who were similar to Yin Quan, and there were also those who were similar to Cui Bei.

Wang Zongzhe said a few words, and when he saw that the people who came from Yongrou had not said a word, he did not say more, but he made a look and motioned for the maids to start serving the meal.

There are dozens of sergeants in the hall, and each person has a desk in front of him. Wang Zongzhe understood Deng She's intentions, and knew that he was thrifty or not luxurious, and the meals he prepared were not sumptuous, four dishes and one soup, but the taste was excellent, and the color and flavor were complete. Considering that there are also big-bellied men among the readers, Koryo rice is free to supply and eat as much as you like.

This goryeo rice is nothing, but it is by no means something that ordinary people can eat. Not to mention that the king of Goryeo restricted the people to eat rice, but only said that the origin of Goryeo rice is mostly in the south, and there is little output in the north. Even Dunshe doesn't eat it every day.

As soon as the dish was served with two flavors, someone outside the hall hurriedly trotted in, came to Wang Zongzhe's seat, and whispered in his ear. Wang Zongzhe's face changed, he got up, and said, "Princess, the prime minister is here." ”

The hall was silent, and then there was a constant buzz, and many people exchanged their heads and whispered about it.

Yin Quan and the others looked disdainful, ignored them, and took care of themselves and chewed and ate a lot. Cui Bei and the others threw down their chopsticks in a panic, tidied up their appearance, or were nervous, or unexpectedly surprised, and stood up respectfully. They guessed that Deng She would come, and they thought they would wait until after dinner, but they didn't expect to come so early.

Two guard-looking men came in and looked, and without saying a word, turned their heads and went out.

Everyone guessed that Deng She should have appeared, but after waiting for a short time, they didn't see Deng She appear, but the official who came in to report the news before came in for the second time and beckoned Wang Zongzhe to go out. Wang Zongzhe arched his hand to everyone, hurriedly lifted his official robe, and walked out.

The crowd was at a loss and didn't know what it meant. Cui Bei was bold, glanced outside the hall, under the dark night, the torches in the courtyard were blown by the wind, sometimes bright and dark, the figures were longing, and occasionally the neighing of horses came, adding a little bit of the deep cold of the night.

Someone couldn't bear the silence and asked in a low voice, "What?" ”

"Maybe it's not there yet?"

"Why did Lord Wang go out?"

"The prime minister called it, right?" Some people speculate, "The prime minister is familiar with the art of war, and pays attention to knowing himself and his opponent." Or, if you want to know about the reception first. ”

"That's reasonable, just wait for Lord Wang to come back."

Everyone whispered and guessed. After a while, Wang Zongzhe was alone and turned back, which surprised everyone again. Cui Bei was bold and asked, "Dare to ask your lord, prime minister?" ”

Wang Zongzhe sighed and said, "The prime minister heard from the guards that the princes are still eating, and they don't want to disturb you at this time. Therefore, I will retire to the hospital and wait until the public meal is finished, and then come to see each other. His tone was respectful, and he looked deeply moved and honored.

As soon as the word came out, everyone had different thoughts.

There are jaw-dropping and unbelievable. There is a tremor on the face, and it is changed from reserved. There was a slight stunned, and then sneered. Cui Bei was grateful, took his crown, knelt down, kowtowed outside the hall, and said: "Now in the depths of winter, the wind is cold like a knife. For a mere and other poor people, the prime minister is willing to suffer the cold of the night wind with a body of ten thousand gold. Although the ancient Zhou Gong can't reach it! True Lord, too. ”

He stood up, turned his eyes to everyone, and said in a generous voice: "It is the prime minister's intention to wait for the prime minister. But as the people of Haidong, the prime minister is like our parents, how can there be parents waiting outside the hall, and the children in the high hall, and receive them in a grand manner? "Call the maidservant, "Remove the food, I'm full!" ”

"I'm full, too!"

"I'm full, too!"

Seven or eight people shouted in quick succession, urging them to evacuate their meals. Wang Zongzhe looked at it, and among the few people who came from Yongrou, the strong man Lu Cao was also among the people who asked to withdraw the meal. Although the two old men did not speak, they were obviously quite moved, and only the young man Bian Anhe still did not say a word.

In the midst of the noise, a discordant voice suddenly sounded.

When everyone looked at it, it was Yin Quan, who picked up a chicken leg from the plate, and while chewing it, he picked up the wine jug and swallowed a few bites. After eating the chicken legs, he threw them on the ground, his hands were greasy, and he didn't take the paper towel on the desk to wipe it, put it in his mouth, and sucked it.

Cui Bei glared angrily.

He sucked carefully with ten fingers, and flipped through the other dishes with his chopsticks. Four dishes and one soup, two meat and two vegetarian dishes, two meat dishes, one chicken, one venison. The venison had been eaten by him in the morning, and only two dishes of vegetarian dishes remained. He knocked on the table and sang: "The long puff is back, and there is no fish to eat!" ”

Wang Zongzhe became more and more displeased, endured his anger, and said: "There are many fish in the coastal area of Pyongyang. This chicken and a deer were specially instructed by the prime minister. If Yin Gong is a good eater of fish, he will prepare a special one for Yin Gong tomorrow, okay? ”

Goryeo is surrounded by the sea on three sides, and seafood is not rare, even if it is poor, there is fish to eat. Dunshe did not prepare fish for them, but chicken and venison as a sign of hospitality. Yin Quan's attitude is inevitably ignorant of what is good or bad. Cui Bei reprimanded: "Crazy life! In front of the prime minister, dare to do this! ”

Yin Quan ignored it and sang about the case by himself.

Everyone in the hall looked at each other, and some of them were familiar with him, for fear that Deng She would hear it, and in a fit of anger, he couldn't say that he would be unable to protect his head, so he pulled his sleeve and persuaded him softly. Yin Quan still ignored it, closed his eyes and raised his head, crossed his legs on the desk, and asked loudly: "'Zhou Gong spit and feed, the world returns to the heart', ask Er Cui Bei, do you know who wrote this poem?" ”

Written by Cao Cao. Who is Cao Cao? The people have been infamous for thousands of years, usurping the ministers of the Han Dynasty.

Yin Quan was in front of him, pointing at Sang and scolding Huai and scolding Deng She. He didn't want to come, but after listening to the persuasion of his teacher, he was unwilling and reluctantly came. The more time passed, the more blocks were backlogged in his chest, and when he saw Deng She's means of winning people's hearts just now, his disgust became even stronger, and he hated Cui Bei's flattery even more, thinking that he had lost the face of Haidong Shizi.

He was not good at drinking, he was already hot-headed, so he simply relied on the power of wine, regardless of whether he asked, and then said: "Come in time for dinner, what does the Prime Minister mean?" Since the Prime Minister wants to be the Duke of Zhou, how can we, as the children of the Prime Minister, be innocent and not understand the will of our parents and cooperate? It's also good to help the prime minister pass on a good name to the world. Do you say yes? Cui Gong! ”

Cui Bei was speechless, his face was red, he didn't care about arguing with him, and hurriedly said to Wang Zongzhe: "My lord, Bei is definitely not what he meant!" ”

Yin Quan's words, which are tantamount to scolding Deng She for being treacherous and hypocritical, deliberately picking a good time to show favor to everyone.

Everyone in the hall, when they heard this, they all screamed in shock, the timid legs trembled, and the bold ones couldn't help but thump in their hearts. Deng She is young, everyone knows it, young and vigorous, how can he stand such insults? Yin Quan's reputation is very good, and immediately several people attended to worship him, pleading for him, and said: "Yin Quan is not strong enough to drink, and he speaks falsely, please don't be angry." ”

They knew that Deng She was in the courtyard, and the words in the hall could be heard nine times out of ten, so whether it was Yin Quan, or Cui Bei, or the person who interceded for Yin Quan, they all raised their voices and said it to Wang Zongzhe on the surface, but in fact, it was said to Deng She.

Wang Zongzherao was not used to Yin Quan, to be honest, he was also startled by his boldness, and suddenly vaguely heard the sound of a scabbard in the courtyard, remembered the scene of Deng Shedang's murder on the street a few days ago, and thought: "This person is dead!" ”

The sound of the sword unsheathed was not only heard, but also heard by everyone in the hall, and the atmosphere became tense, and everyone was sweating profusely on a cold day. Wang Zongzhe sighed and said to the few people who pleaded: "Get up." Mr. Yin, you are rich in learning and reading poetry and books, don't you know the truth that disaster comes from your mouth? If you admit your mistake,......"

Before he finished speaking, Yin Quan laughed, drank the remaining half pot of wine, shouted happily, and said, "Good wine!" Wine! ......, alas, the place to drink is not right. ”

He was drunk and hazy, nodded a few people, and asked, "Liu Gong, Zheng Gong, Quan Gong, do you remember?" A few years ago, you and I went to Wangjing to take the exam together, and the north and south were heroic,...... Reminiscing about the afternoon bridge in the past, there were many heroes in the seat. The long ditch flows silently, the apricot blossoms are sparse in the shadows, and the flute is played until dawn.

"Haha, this situation and this scene are still vivid, how do you know that things are people and everything is resting in the blink of an eye. ......, this beautiful country, picturesque rivers and mountains, three thousand miles of splendid rivers and mountains, this Pyongyang, this northern boundary, is no longer owned by my king, and it has fallen into the hands of thieves, and the monkey is crowned, just like a human being! Haha, haha. ”

He wept bitterly, wept profusely, and looked up to the sky and laughed.

Dozens of people in the hall had the same thought: "This person is dead." ”

Outside the hall, the footsteps gradually approached. Everyone turned their heads in unison, except for Yin Quan, crying and laughing, no one spoke, and the air was suffocating. A guard with a knife walked in, expressionless, his hand pressed the hilt of the knife, and walked straight to Yin Quan's seat. The few people who interceded for Yin Quan were as pale as earth and completely desperate.

In the almost frozen air, there was another sound of footsteps, slight, squirming. The eyes of the people hurriedly turned to see that behind the guard, two maidservants appeared at the door of the hall, holding a wooden plate with a lid on it.

What's on the plate? Some people didn't know what they thought, and they were horrified: "Isn't it a human hand? Someone may have guessed the truth and couldn't believe it: "How is it possible! ”

The guard and the maidservant approached Yin Quan, the maid put down the wooden plate, and the guard lifted the lid. It's steaming, obscuring everyone's sight. The aroma is mouth-watering. The guard said respectfully: "The general is in the courtyard, I heard that Mr. said that it is good to eat fish, and he specially ordered the chef to make a new work, please eat it for Mr." ”