"Master-" The scholars guarding the bridge hurriedly stepped forward to greet them, and the man waved his hand and ordered them to stand back, stretched out his hand on the young man's shoulder, looked at him with a smile, and suddenly his face changed, and he retracted his palms and said in a low voice: "Girl, we are all righteous men and gentlemen, you must rush to the mountain, what do you want?" ”

The young man gave him a slap and his face turned crimson, and when he heard this, his face turned pale, and he said in surprise: "You, who are you?" How to recognize ......"

Qian Qianyi's secret guest from afar was Cao Huachun, the eunuch of the commander of the East Factory, who secretly came to Suzhou with the head of the East Factory and lived in the West Garden in the Huabu of Xiatang outside the gate. The West Garden is the private residence of Xu Taishi, the Shaoqing of the Taifu Temple of the Jiajing Dynasty, when he returned to his hometown and expanded the old house into the East and West Gardens. The West Garden was rebuilt by the Guiyuan Temple in the Yuan Dynasty, and there are still a few monks left in the temple. After Xu Taishi's death, his son Xu Rong sat on the mountain and ate empty, the family was declining day by day, and the family business was scattered within a few years, and the two houses went through more than 40 years of wind and rain, unable to repair, and became dilapidated. Cao Huachun took a fancy to the tranquility of the West Garden, and was close to Tiger Hill, so he wrapped up the entire West Garden and made it a temporary office space.

The time is about to pass, Cao Huachun sits in the West Garden Linshui Xuan to eat tea, the abbot of the temple Maolin monk ordered people to send a neat table of fasting rice, he has a big appetite, eat enough, then the remaining dishes are rewarded with a few close long followers, get up and walk to the edge of the release pool, look at the colorful carp shuttling back and forth in the pool for a while, walk up the lake pavilion with his hands, see a dark cyan turtle lurking under the stone steps at the corner of the pavilion, break a wicker to tease, the big turtle jumped into the water with a bang, disappeared when he landed, Cao Huachun was bored, sat in the pavilion, Looking at the water, I was stunned. A stall head flew in and presented a red line waist salute post, and reported: "Factory father, someone comes to worship." ”

"Who?" He was shocked, and secretly wondered how the news had leaked.

The head of the stall hurriedly said: "Master Overseer, the old friend who came to call Feng Xianggong must not be an outsider. ”

"Oh? Order him to come in! Cao Huachun was relieved. Leaving Beijing to go south, he did not take the waterway, and followed the official road all the way to the south. Passing by Zhuozhou, just in time for the temple fair in April, I thought that my uncle's old friend Feng Quan's family was in Zhuozhou, and I took the opportunity to visit. Feng Quan was a scholar in the forty-first year of Wanli, and because of his attachment to Wei Zhongxian, he was appointed to the Wenyuan Pavilion University Scholar and the Household Department Shangshu, and the Shaobao and the Prince Taibao. After Chongzhen succeeded to the throne, when he copied Wei Zhongxian's house, he found the birthday poem he made for Wei Eunuch, who was servile and humble, and really did not have the dignity of a minister, so he was punished with a rod and demoted to a commoner. Cao Huachun saw Feng Quan, because he had been in seclusion for many years, he didn't have to be cautious when he spoke, and he showed a little tone between small talk. That Feng Quan is also a figure who has been trained in officialdom for a long time, and he knows the world well, knowing that if he does not encounter an important event, the emperor will not send eunuchs out of Beijing.

Cao Huachun took out the big red prayer post, the worship post was made of Jinling cloud brocade, up to a foot and a half, more than five inches wide, and it was made of a few lines of small characters in real block script with a red gold silk plate: "Cao Gonggong left and right: specially prepared for the music banquet, a little bo, waiting for condescension in vain, and looking forward to it." Slim elementary school student Ruan Dacheng round sea hundred worship. ”

Cao Huachun thought that the best friend Feng Quan said in Zhuozhou was this person, and laughed secretly in his heart: This Ruan Dacheng's appearance and resume are not very clear, I only remember that he has been a clerk for a few years, and at the beginning of Chongzhen's succession, he was listed as a rebel and resigned from his post to live in Jinling. This person is an old friend of Feng Quan, and he must be not young, but he is called a small student with contempt, which is really a strange anecdote, the flesh is extremely numb, but he feels very useful in his heart, and asks: "What is Quyan?" If you play with those winding waters, it is the turban of the poor literati, which is not very interesting! ”

"Governor, the music banquet here is to eat wine while listening to the music, and there is no turban. Haven't you heard of the three major classes in Jiangnan? The close-fitting long man is a native of Nanzhili, with a mouthful of Jingbai sandwiched Wu Nong's soft words, bowing down and smiling.

"What three big classes?"

"My lord! These three classes are famous all over the Yangtze River, and I don't know how many people dream of seeing these famous singers! But I don't know at all! Seeing that your old man is busy all day long, he really doesn't have this leisure. The first of the three major classes is the Shaoxing Zhang Dai family class, followed by the Jinling Ruan Dacheng family class, and the Changzhou You Dong family class. What other sachet class, pipa class, unicorn class, serial class, raccoon yarn class, golden flower class, embroidery class...... It can only be regarded as a small class that does not enter the stream. ”

Cao Huachun snorted lightly in his nose: "This Ruan Dacheng is so unreasonable, I think we are traveling in the mountains and rivers, walking around at will, and we want to go to Jinling to watch a play?" ”

"Governor, you don't have to work to go to Jinling, he has brought his family to Suzhou."

"Hmmm! So why wait until tomorrow? No need to talk back, let's go and see it overnight! ”

Cao Huachun's temporary motion was too busy for Ruan Dacheng. The stage has just been set up, he has enlarged the group and went back to rest, but he didn't expect Cao Huachun to come to watch the play overnight, so he had to hurriedly gather everyone. Fortunately, the servants in the home class are all well-trained, and the costumes and repertoire are all ready-made, and in less than a meal, they are roughly ready, and Ruan Dacheng hurriedly went to the gate to wait. Not long after, a small blue sedan chair stopped in front of the door, Cao Huachun dressed in Confucian clothes and got down in the sedan chair, and saw a round-faced, bearded, wearing a Ge robe and a Dongpo scarf to greet him, and said with a smile: "Distinguished guests are coming to the door, and they are shining." Please! ”

Cao Huachun didn't want to be public, listening to his words, he didn't reveal the secret in half a sentence, he secretly liked it in his heart, and stepped into the middle hall, the man put him in the upper seat, bowed his head, and said: "Ruan Dacheng, a decommissioner of the imperial court, visited Gonggong Cao, the emperor Sheng'an." ”

"Flatten, get up and speak." Cao Huachun frowned, a demobilized and abandoned waster is logically no longer qualified to ask the emperor about his life, he looked at Feng Quan's face, couldn't bear it, and asked: "It seems that Brother Ruan Shi is under the forest, and he still has Wei Que in his heart!" ”

Ruan Dacheng hurriedly bowed and said, "Father-in-law smiled." The student has been away from Beijing for many years, and suddenly met his father-in-law, and he couldn't help himself for a while. ”

"That's it. Is the play ready? ”

"I was about to invite my father-in-law to the table. Just ......"

Cao Huachun listened to him groaning and asked, "If you have anything to say, you don't have to spit it out!" ”

"Yes, yes. On the father-in-law, there is another person in the house, saying that he has had several relationships with his father-in-law, and wants to meet his father-in-law, but I don't know if he can be gracious? ”

"Where did it come from?"

"The surname is Ma, the name is Ying, the word Yaocao, and the students are the same Jinshi of Wanli for 44 years, and he was just dismissed from the post of governor of Xuanfu last year, and he lived in Jinling." Ruan Dacheng looked at Cao Huachun's face and replied carefully.

"Oh! We know a thing or two about this matter, Ma Shiying is also a reckless man who has no eyes, he went to the Xuanfu and did not visit the eunuch Wang Kun, which is fine. used thousands of taels of official silver to give gifts to the powerful people in the court, but he refused to use some blood to block Wang Kun's mouth, what kind of qualifications Wang Kun has, let's let him have a few points! How can you swallow this bad breath? Such a stupid talent who doesn't know how to advance and retreat, and only cares about the front and the back, no wonder Wang Kun can't tolerate him. He is asking for his own hardships and does not complain about others. ”

"Father-in-law Mingjian, Yaocao was also confused for a while, so he was negligent, he really didn't underestimate the prince, and he had the intention to go against him. Now Yaocao can't regret it, and she hopes that her father-in-law will rescue her. Ruan Dacheng took out a big red gold paper from his sleeve and presented it respectfully.

Cao Huachun only glanced at it slightly, and put it into his sleeve casually, he saw a lot of handwriting written on it, and knew that the gift was expensive, so he smiled indifferently and said, "Please ask him to come out!" ”

A short and thin man stepped forward to greet him, Cao Huachun nodded with a smile, stood up, and asked, "What kind of play is it today?" ”

"Although Gonggong Cao came here, although the world ranked the student's home class second, but in recent years, the students have concentrated on arranging a few new plays, and their reputation has been on a par with Zhang Dai's home class." Ruan Dacheng rushed to lead the way, boasting with his eyebrows.

"Just pick your best show!" Cao Huachun walked while looking at the quiet surroundings of the courtyard, but seeing the ancient trees and the fragrance of flowers, this courtyard must be the ancestral business of which family, although it is a little decadent, but it can still see the prosperous scene of the past.

"Then let's take a look at "Swallow Notes"!"

"It's a new play, right? We really haven't heard of it. ”

Ma Shiying smiled and said, "My father-in-law is right. This is a new play written by Brother Yuanhai, with clever words and writing, and it is the joy of a generation of Zhongxing, which is no less than Tang Ruoshi's "Four Kinds of Jade Tea Hall". ”

"Brother Yaocao praised it." Ruan Dacheng stroked his beard and said with a smile: "If you talk about the ingenuity of the writing and the scenery, the legend of the students can be regarded as new, not out of the ordinary, comparable to Mr. Ruoshi." If you talk about self-composing and self-entertainment, you should do what you do, sing songs on the board, and make your debut; Family savings excellent Ling, personally explained, eyes, reasonableness, tendons, strings of bamboo shoots, gags, and eyes, so that the people know their meaning, know their fingers, Mr. Tang still has no place! My father-in-law has followed the emperor for many years, and his vision is high, so he still needs to ask for advice! ”

Although Cao Huachun is a high-level talent in the inner study hall, he read most of the temple articles that are loyal to the monarch and serve the country, and has never dabbled in opera and literary songs, and has been on an errand in the palace for many years, but he just watched a few times at the "Peony Pavilion" and "Pipa Story" during the Niangniang Qianqiu Festival, as for "The Story of Huansha", "The Story of the Embroidered Shirt", "The Story of Handan", "The Story of Nanke", "The Story of the Purple Hairpin", etc., it is even more unheard of, but at first out of Beijing, looking for a lively. He said perfunctory, followed the two of them around the verandah and the alley, the front suddenly opened up, it was an unusually open garden, the lanterns were hung high, bright as day, the house slaves and servants were busy, a tent was set up out of thin air on the edge of the pool in the garden, and a hall was in the middle, there were several columns in the middle of the hall, and the four front pillars were hung with couplets. There is a Nanmu partition fan behind the stage, there are landscape figures painted by famous artists, the upper and lower doors of the big red silk hanging on both sides lead to the backstage, there are wooden ladders on the left and right sides of the stage to go up and down, and a table of eight immortals is placed in the center of the stage. Looking around, the pines and cypresses are lush, the green waves are rippling, the dancing pavilion and song platform, the red eaves are towering and green, it is really a good place for pleasure and happiness.

Cao Huachun just sat down, a house slave brought a big food box up, a delicate maid opened the lid of the box, and successively brought out eight large and eight small sixteen dishes, including squirrel mandarin fish, snail shrimp, Yipin Guan Yan, Uvengalus pond slices, spiny eel tubes, white sauce cabbage, Xiangyou eel paste, catfish lung soup, scallop saltwater shrimp, cherry meat, fine dew tendons, melon dried whitebait wontons, Jiangnan water eight treasures, the whole braised duck, and a casserole, which is steaming inside, is the fragrant Wansan hooves, and finally comes up with a blue and white bowl, Served with shiny golden crab roe wings. Cao Huachun was about to raise the chopstick, and the maid served a four-color appetizer fruit plate: golden dates, golden kumquats, white sugar bayberry, and nine tangerine peels. Ruan Dacheng personally filled the pot with wine, and the three of them raised their glasses and drank together. Cao Huachun ate the first dish, shouted well, and rewarded one or two silvers, and even when he ate crab roe and grilled wings, he was full of praise and rewarded ten taels of silver. Ruan Dacheng saw that he was eating happily, and waved his hand to the stage, the class master understood, and the hole flute was blown lightly, and the play started at any time.

"Swallow Notes" is written in the Tang Dynasty Huo Duliang and the prostitute Hua Xingyun and Li Feiyun The story of joys and sorrows, a total of forty-two plays, half of the hours are difficult to finish, Ruan Dacheng only chose one of the "Escapes", Xian Yu Ji stole the test paper of his friend Huo Duliang, won the champion, the chief examiner Li Andao of the Ministry of Rites wanted to marry his daughter Feiyun Xu to him, for the righteous daughter Hua Xingyun Dao broken, Li Shangshu ordered him to go home to retest, Xian Yu Ji handed over the white paper, escaped from the dog hole. The sheng pipe and flute played in unison, and a Wen Chouer in a gorgeous costume came up, and then an old man in a white beard in official clothes, and after a while, a slightly charming woman came up, and the three of them staggered and rapped. Ruan Dacheng took advantage of the gap between rapping and pointed out and explained: "Father-in-law, please see, the one who pretends to be Hua Xingyun is Zhu Yinxian, the head of our class. It's really like something, and it's cute. ”

Cao Huachun began to feel lively and fun, and saw that Zhu Yinxian was really outstanding, with a pink face and peach cheeks, and a thousand charms. That Zhu Yinxian caught a glimpse of Cao Huachun looking at him with good eyes, and used all his means, singing very hard, his tone was soothing and euphemistic, clear and long. After all, Cao Huachun is a castrated eunuch, and he has no capital to like women, and after watching it for half an hour, he feels a little tired, the lyrics of Kunqu Opera are like a book from heaven, and he can't hear a word clearly, and after listening to it for a long time, he can't help but be anxious, dizzy and swollen, and he has the patience to hear Xian Yu and flee in a hurry, and get up to the water pavilion on the side to rest. He looked at Ruan Dacheng and Ma Shiying's unfinished appearance, and praised perfunctorily: "Mr. Yuanhai is really talented, but after all, the drama belongs to the small road, and it is a pity to indulge in it." ”

"Father-in-law Mingjian, students are actually unwilling, but they have no way to serve the country." Ruan Dacheng's face was full of Qi.

Ma Shiying bowed and said: "Back then, the Donglin Party controlled the government and government, and the appointment of people only relied on the selfishness of one party, even the emperor deceived them. Brother Yuanhai couldn't get used to their willfulness, and wrote "Donglin Point General Record" as a metaphor, but it was regarded as a eunuch and listed as a reverse case, and there is really no justice in the world! Fortunately, there are also ministers like my father-in-law, who are clear about right and wrong, we are unjustly killed, and we are very grateful in our hearts. When he said this, he hid his face and wept.

"Huh?" Cao Huachun put down the teacup and asked, "We heard that every time Mr. Yuanhai went to Wei Zhongxian's Mansion to pay respects, he would ask for his name when he left, so that when he searched Wei Mansion, he didn't see any credentials, but is there such a thing?" ”

Ruan Dacheng's face turned red and said, "My father-in-law is right. The student was forced by Wei Zhongxian's obscenity and had to go to the house, but he always had a loyal heart in his chest and did not want to flatter and seek advancement, so he took back his name. I didn't want the Donglin Party to attack them with this, and the students had to abandon the official and return to their hometowns with hatred. ”

"Those Donglin Party people regard themselves as high-minded, in fact, they are the most narrow-minded, the so-called non-my race, their hearts will be different, it is difficult to tolerate people, every day to attack as a thing, the court affairs are corrupted in their hands, and they can no longer be connived at messing around!" Ma Shiying gritted his teeth and said: "That Donglin giant Li Sancai, Brother Yuanhai calls him Chao Gai, the king of Tota, but in fact, he is a greedy and despicable villain!" The traitor seems to be loyal, the big fraud seems to be straight, he commits the four major crimes of greed, hypocrisy, danger, and arrogance, deposes and goes home, steals the imperial wood, builds a private house, and the mansion is like a palace, but he is the intestine and lung of a courtier? Father-in-law, Donglin pretends to be a clear stream, and everything he does is such a dirty thing, hiding dirt and dirt, and being embarrassed, how can there be any king and society in his eyes! They say that those who think the court thinks it is wrong, and those who think it is wrong think it is right, and they oppose the court, and it is clear that there is no king and no father, and they must not be tolerated! ”

Cao Huachun was heartbroken when he heard him, as if he had the hatred of killing his father and taking his wife, he shook the folding fan in his hand, closed it again, and rubbed a double-tangled jade pendant on the handle of the fan. The jade pendant was strange in style, faintly revealing a few blood spots, and under his repeated rubbing, a breath of agarwood slowly emerged. He put it under his nose and sniffed it a few times, and said quietly: "Most of the Donglin Party members are already in the past, so there is no need to worry. You are making such a denunciation, which is a big fuss. ”

Ruan Dacheng got up and arched his hand and said, "Father-in-law can't underestimate them. Now the ghost of Donglin is not gone, the fallacy is still there, many descendants are still forming a party, and the resumption of the society is not only the remnants of Donglin, but also more than Donglin! ”

"Is it so powerful?"

"Brother Yuanhai is by no means alarmist, he is really worried about national affairs. The Donglin Party members just opened a academy, lectured, and made a few innocuous complaints, which could be ignored and left to him! Which dynasty and generation did not have a few gossips? But this resumption of the society is different, needless to say that their momentum far exceeds that of Donglin, distributing leaflets to gather, widely collecting the public, just saying that they are not satisfied with the Qing Dynasty and the government, and the members of the court and the central government have cited each other, and the members of the society have been selected and sent to the official office one after another, and many people who seek fame and fortune are running through their doors in order to make a fortune. In a few years if this continues, the power of the Restoration Society will be all over the court, and it will be difficult to do politics if you don't want to! At that time, the emperor is afraid that it will be difficult to control. ”

"Hmph...... Zhang Pu wants to restore the society to chaos the world, but it's just a fool's dream! Long live how holy he is, how can he be kept in the dark? Dongchang doesn't eat white rice either! Cao Huachun sneered.

Ma Shiying was overjoyed and nodded: "Fortunately!" The emperor has already been aware of this...... Then why don't you send someone to hunt it down? ”

"This is not to lead troops to fight, to fight and kill at every turn, it is bound to give birth to a lot of gossip and wrong, and it is really a holy virtue that hurts the Lord of Long Live, and it is not allowed to be sloppy! To deal with these scholars, we must use strategy, not force alone. Cao Huachun glanced at Ma Shiying, and asked with some disdain: "You are still a two-list jinshi, don't you know the straight pen of Qi Taishi and Jin Donghu?" We are merciful for the long live master, not to complain to his old man. "That Qi Taishi and Jin Donghu are the good history of Qi and Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period, writing straightforwardly, not concealing it, even the boy who has not been in the morning knows a thing or two, Cao Huachun said so domineeringly, Ma Shiying's face was ashamed.

"Father-in-law Gao Jian!" Ruan Dacheng listened to Cao Huachun's ridicule, and felt a little unhappy in his heart, but after thinking about it, he felt that it had a deep meaning, and hurriedly smiled: "The emperor is one of the few Taoist saints since the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, so naturally he can't kill in vain, give people a handle, and leave a filthy name." Besides, when the imperial court is employing people, how can it hurt the hearts of the world's talents and block the road to employment because of the abandonment of the people of the restoration society? ”

"Then, wouldn't that condone the reckless behavior of the Restoration Society?" Ma Shiying hesitated, he turned his head to look at Cao Huachun and said, "Father-in-law must think of some way to suppress their arrogance." ”

"It's not that there is no way, it's still the sentence just now, Dongchang doesn't eat rice, and it won't let them become bigger!"

"That's, that's nature." Ruan Dacheng and Ma Shiying bowed down and praised.

"Don't look at the fact that the Fushe is full of people at the moment, and it is very lively, but in fact, it is just a plate of scattered sand, Zhang Pu just relied on the imperial examination to enter the office, which temporarily attracted the hearts of the people. But to knead loose sand into clay figurines is a delusion. He can't open the door of Lilu at home, and he still has to rely on the imperial court, if we break this trick of his, it will be difficult for him to lead the society. ”

Ruan Dacheng's eyes rolled and asked, "Is my father-in-law saying that the next branch of Beifu will be repulsed to the fullest?" ”

"It's not just Beiqiu, but even Jinling's township test must be a little measured, and you can't be as indulgent as you did three years ago."

Ma Shiying said with a smile on his face: "My father-in-law's plan is unexpected, and it is indeed a clever plan to draw salary from the bottom of the kettle!" ”

"If this is the case, the resumption of the society will be self-defeating and vanished. In less than three years, I am afraid that it will be difficult for them to survive in Shilin. Ruan Dacheng said gloomily: "At that time, if they dare to take risks, justice will be wiped out, just like a saint punishing the young and righteous, to see who dares to go against the court in the future!" ”