On September 15 of the ninth year of orthodoxy, when Shen Yichen was still thinking about how to visit Qian Xili, Cheng Guogong suddenly came to the West Chamber.

Seeing Shen Yichen, Zhu Yong didn't beat around the bush, and asked directly: "When you came to visit Hu Shangshu a few days ago, did you do anything rude?" ”

"Back to Grandpa, I didn't exceed the rules."

"Then why did his attitude towards you plummet, did you know that the examination was conducted by the Ministry of Rites?"

In addition to the conventional name of "Chunqiu", there is also a title of "Lifu", which is related to the imperial examination in charge of the Ministry of Rites.

"I know it below."

Isn't it ridiculous and generous that a scholar doesn't even know which department he is in charge of?

"Now that you know, can you still break the relationship with Hu Shangshu?"

Chengguo Gong Zhu Yong's tone was indifferent with a hint of anger, how many literati wanted to cling to the officials of the Ministry of Rites but could not get it. Shen Yichen has such a good opportunity, but he doesn't know how to cherish it, and he can offend people when he visits him last time.

Seeing that Shen Yichen didn't speak in the face of the reprimand, Zhu Yong snorted coldly and added: "Find an opportunity to come to the door to make amends in the future, Hu Shangshu will definitely not investigate it for the sake of my face." ”

Although Zhu Yong, the Duke of Chengguo, didn't know what happened, in his concept, no matter what the reason, Shen Yichen had to bow his head to Hu Hu and admit his mistakes.

The reason is simple, people are under the eaves and have to bow their heads. The Ministry of Rites is in charge of the imperial examination, and it is even very likely that the chief examiner himself is served by the Ministry of Rites, and it is very easy to suppress the ranking of candidates.

Even if Hu Hu takes into account the identity of his in-laws and does not do anything to suppress him, if Shen Yichen does not improve his relationship with him, it is impossible to get preferential treatment.

Xie Yuan is not equal to the Yuan, the champion, in addition to enough hard power in the world, external factors are also an indispensable part of many times.

"Back to Grandpa, I'm afraid I won't be able to compensate for this crime."

"What did you say!"

The atmosphere suddenly became cold, and in the face of Shen Yichen's disobedience to himself again and again, Zhu Yong, the Duke of Chengguo, also reached the limit of his patience.

And this time, his subjective thoughts are still for Shen Yichen's good.

"Because my estrangement with the great uncle is not a personal grudge, but a difference in Taoism."

"You are a person who has not yet been weakened, what do you say?"

"Then should I devote myself to Hu Hu and be a knife against Wang Zhen?"

Shen Yichen also felt a sense of grievance welling up in his heart, and began to call him by his name when he talked. Chengguo Gong Zhu Yong has always been such a strong style, he likes to force his ideas on others, and he doesn't delve into what happened behind the scenes.

When he heard Shen Yichen's words, Zhu Yong was stunned, with his experience of ups and downs in Guanhai for so many years, he didn't need to go into detail to understand what had probably happened.

I saw that Zhu Yong's face with anger calmed down, and was replaced by a majestic and fierce aura.

"Okay, good, the means are really good, the chess pieces have all been selected to the head of the Chengguo Mansion, I really think that if I don't enter the genealogy, I won't be my Zhu Yong's son!"

Zhu Yong's face was grim, and he muttered to himself, not realizing the change in his title for Shen Yichen in this sentence.

At the same time, when Shen Yichen heard this, he looked at Zhu Yong, the Duke of Chengguo, with a surprised face, his eyes were full of shock, and he wondered if he had heard it wrong.

He really couldn't imagine that the title of son would come out of Zhu Yong's mouth one day.

Chengguo Gong Zhu Yong didn't pay attention to the change in Shen Yichen's expression, and instead said to him: "In a few days, I will personally take you to visit the Qian Zhangyuan of the Hanlin Academy, and the official of the Kedao Dynasty has already put him on the list, please ask for a decision." ”

"If nothing else, the chief examiner of this year's examination is Qian Zhangyuan, and my father wants to see who dares to break ground on the head of the Chengguo Mansion!"

The selection of examiners at all levels in the Ming Dynasty was presided over by the Kedao Yan Officer, and finally the Ministry of Rites and the Emperor were asked to adjudicate.

Because the Kedao Yanguan is a relatively independent group of supervisory bodies, the selection by them can prevent the ministers of the DPRK and China and various dignitaries from arbitrarily placing private individuals as examiners to the greatest extent.

However, no matter how strict the rules are, at the level of Cheng Guogong, it is very easy to know who the examiner is in advance.

In the past, Zhu Yong was hindered by the duke's face, and he was in the Xun Qi group, so he was unwilling to show favoritism too much in the civil collective. So at most, it is to help the children of the relatives and introduce them to the examiner to get a familiar face, and how much appreciation they can get from the other party depends on their own ability.

What Hu Hu did today simply violated Zhu Yong's bottom line, and his life creed was built on the prosperity of the family.

Regardless of whether Shen Yichen is in the genealogy or not, he has the blood that belongs to the Duke of Chengguo, and if you want to use him as a chess piece, then see if this chessboard can accommodate the chess player Duke of Daming.

In order to ensure that Shen Yichen would not be pressed in the rankings, Zhu Yong was ready to go down in person!

Looking at the appearance of Zhu Yong, the Duke of Chengguo, who was full of aura, Shen Yichen felt for the first time what is the power of the Duke of Daming.

The predicament that he was worried about yesterday was as simple as a pediatrics in front of Zhu Yong. What kind of public opinion, suppression, and handles, these are all fart, and they go directly to visit the examiner, and blatantly "hint" that the other party treats their son preferentially?

After all, the Tumubao change has not yet happened, and the Xunqi Group is not the kind of mascot in the late Ming Dynasty......

In addition, Zhu Yong came forward to solve another problem for Shen Yichen, that is, how to find the right time to visit Qian Xili.

The room teacher is different from the seat teacher, and the relationship with the candidates is much worse, just like the difference between the class teacher and the teacher of other subjects.

Under normal circumstances, Qian Xili would not be like Wang Ying, who could be called an unconditional support for Shen Yichen. Therefore, when visiting him, you have to pay more attention to etiquette and proportion.

After saying these few words, Zhu Yong, the Duke of Chengguo, didn't care about Shen Yichen's reply, and directly turned around and walked out of the West Wing Courtyard.

Because this kind of scene is no longer just Shen Yichen's personal matter, but also related to the face of the Chengguo Mansion, he must show his power to the outside world.

A few days later, Zhu Yong, the Duke of Chengguo, took Shen Yichen to the Qian Xili Mansion of the Hanlin Academy.

Compared with Shen Yichen's respectful appearance when he visited alone in the past, this time it was completely reversed, and Qian Xili was respectful in front of Cheng Guogong, and the etiquette was extremely thoughtful.

You must know that Qian Xili is not a soft bone that tends to be inflammatory, when the original Honglu Temple was rebuilt into the Hanlin Academy, the cabinet Sanyang came to watch the ceremony, and he insisted on not setting up a seat, and said that this was not the Sangong Mansion.

In the past two years, Wang Zhen has been in power, and dignitaries have visited many times, and Qian Xili is also ashamed to submit to the eunuchs, and would rather write to the old man to return to his hometown.

But in the face of a real wealthy aristocrat like Cheng Guogong, Qian Xili still didn't dare to slack off. After all, there is still a fundamental difference between controlling the real power of the military and politics and resting with the country, and the temporary prosperity of eunuchs.

The two greeted each other politely, basically without Shen Yichen's share, and they didn't even have the opportunity to draw out the relationship between the teacher Lin Zhen.

After a few words of greeting, with Zhu Yong's character, he began to go straight to the topic: "Qian Zhangyuan, this time I came to the door to disturb, and my father had something important to ask for." ”

"The grandfather is serious, and the officials can't afford it."

Words like "seeking each other" are naturally Zhu Yong's kind words, so he didn't continue to talk nonsense, and said bluntly: "Shen Yichen will participate in next year's examination of the Yi Chou Subject, and Qian Zhangyuan will serve as the chief examiner, and I hope to take care of one or two." ”

Hearing Cheng Guogong's words, Qian Xili was simply shocked, because he didn't know that he would be selected as the chief examiner of the examination.

I was full of doubts before, why the Chengguo Guild suddenly brought Shen Yichen to visit, it turned out that the other party wanted to take the imperial examination for favoritism!

To tell the truth, Qian Xili has served as the chief examiner of several township examinations and general examinations, and has also seen countless people who want to find him to smuggle through the back door. But like Zhu Yong, who is so "blatant", it is the first time he has seen it.

Especially Qian Xili, as a civil official, is still a department with a strong literary atmosphere like the Hanlin Academy, and he is usually used to twisting and turning euphemisms. When faced with the style of a military general like Cheng Guogong, he suddenly couldn't react, and he didn't know how to answer.

Not to mention Qian Xili, even Shen Yichen was dumbfounded when he heard it, although he knew that Zhu Yong's style had always been direct, but he didn't expect to be able to say favoritism so simply and rudely, is this the power of the powerful?

However, this also proves one thing from the side, that is, the fraud of the Chengguo Mansion of Ying Tianfu. Although Zhu Yong used his power to suppress the continued fermentation of public opinion, the mastermind behind it may not really be him, which is obviously a lack of experience in favoritism with civil officials.

"This, this...... Xie Yuanlang is talented and intelligent, even if he does not take the official exam, he will definitely be on the gold list. ”

Qian Xili was given to Lei by Zhu Yong, and he didn't know what to say, but he was also the leader of the "Prime Minister" place, how to say that he still wanted face, and it was impossible to so blatantly agree to Chengguo's public examination for favoritism.

"Qian Zhangyuan, there is no suspense in the title of the township test to solve the yuan gold list, what my father wants to take care of is the ranking of the examination."

Zhu Yong, as a super-grade national prince, either did not choose to make a move, since he had already visited the examiner in person, it was impossible to simply use a few polite words to send it away.

The township test Xie Yuan could have been admitted to the Jinshi without accident, Qian Xili is equivalent to saying nonsense, Zhu Yong wants to ensure that the ranking of the examination is that only if he is high enough to be in the palace examination can he get enough attention from the emperor.

Faced with Cheng Guogong's pressing step by step, Qian Xili's face was full of embarrassment, and beads of sweat faintly appeared on his forehead.

You Chengguo Gong really want to take care of the rankings, so you can use some unspoken rules, after all, Shen Yichen is talented, and he is still Lin Zhen's disciple, so he will definitely be treated preferentially.

But opening the skylight and speaking brightly violates the spirit of Qian Xili's scholar, and makes him feel a little unacceptable.

"Grandpa, the system is a scholar, the whole department is Heng, and the lower officials will try their best to ensure that Xie Yuanlang's articles are reviewed, and I hope that my grandfather will understand."

The eight words of the system and the whole department are the mottos of the chief examiners of the Ming and Qing dynasties. The translated meaning is that the emperor issued an order to select talents, and the full power to select the middle was in the hands of the marking officer.

The so-called greater power, greater responsibility, this sentence is to warn the examiner to stick to their own standards, because the result of your judgment will determine the fate of the scholar's life!

Qian Xili said this, in fact, it can be called a helpless move, and he can only hope that Cheng Guogong can understand and take a step back.

In fact, if it weren't for Hu Hu's incident and touching Zhu Yong's bottom line, even if he was a high-ranking person and was used to being direct, he would not be so aggressive.

It's good that I've been in officialdom for decades, and being kind to others is the truth of doing good to myself, how can I not understand it?

It can only be said that Qian Xili hit the muzzle of the gun inexplicably.

Just when the atmosphere was a little solidified, Shen Yichen stood up and arched his hand and said: "Lord Zhangyuan, there is no favoritism in the late life, it is enough to be treated fairly in the trial review." ”

To be honest, Shen Yichen did not have any thoughts of favoritism, whether it was today or when he wanted to visit Qian Xili before. At most, within the scope of the rules, I hope to win the familiar face of the examiner.

Therefore, with Qian Xili's sentence, it is enough to try to ensure that your article is reviewed, which shows that you can compete with real talent and learning, without worrying about being ranked by related households.

It's just that after Zhu Yong heard this, he frowned slightly, and his requirements were too low, right?

"This official is a scholar for the country, and he should read the file fairly, which Xie Yuanlang can rest assured."

"Besides, Xie Yuanlang is a disciple of the official's protégé, and he has to be called the official master retrospectively."

In fact, seriously speaking, this teacher-master relationship is a bit reluctant. However, Qian Xili mentioned it, and it was clear that he wanted to pull in the relationship between the two sides, and it was also good to become the heart of the country, and Shen Yichen still had this bit of eyesight.

So he immediately saluted and said, "Learn Shen Yichen in the evening, and meet the master." ”

The sudden scene made Cheng Guogong Zhu Yong a little confused. He had heard that Shen Yichen worshipped the champion Lin Zhen as his teacher, but in different official groups, he was not very clear about the relationship between various teachers and protégés in the civil and official circles.

Zhu Yong really didn't expect that Shen Yichen could be involved in this relationship with Qian Xili, and he knew what else he would do.

"It turns out that Qian Zhangyuan and Yichen still have this close relationship, it seems that my father is too worried."

"In that case, the father will no longer bother, and he will take his leave."

Cheng Guogong understood Qian Xili's words, but in fact, he had already metaphorically taken care of Shen Yichen.

Now that the matter has been done, there is no need to stay and continue to be polite, just get up and leave.

"Xiaguan sends off grandpa."

Qian Xili also hurriedly got up to see off the guests, and at the same time he was relieved in his heart, fortunately, Shen Yichen, this kid, was on the road, otherwise he really didn't know how to reply in the face of the power and coercion of Chengguo.

Before getting into the carriage, Shen Yichen bowed to Qian Xili again and said, "Excuse me today, I thank my master for studying here." ”

Shen Yichen followed the path of a civil official, and he knew very well that for a noble official like Hanlin, face and integrity were a very important thing, and he could even die for it.

Therefore, under the backdrop of Cheng Guogong, the more modest he behaves, and the more he gives face to Qian Xili, the more he can win the favor of the other party.

Sometimes to develop contacts, you don't have to rely on money and power, as long as you can do what you like, you can get twice the result with half the effort.

Sure enough, seeing Shen Yichen's respectful appearance, Qian Xili's face was polite for a whole time, and finally showed a knowing smile.

He waved his hand and said, "They are all close people, no need to be polite, you can come to the house at any time when you have time." ”

This sentence came out, which means that Qian Xili officially regarded Shen Yichen as his own person, instead of the nominal "master" before.

The carriage "squeaked, squeaked" and drove towards the Chengguo Mansion, and Shen Yichen and Zhu Yong sat in the car and looked at each other speechlessly, completely lacking the previous closeness in the Qian Xili Mansion.

Having said that, the previous kind was abnormal, but now this is the norm.

But this time, Shen Yichen had some mixed feelings in his heart, because he could clearly feel that Zhu Yong, the Duke of Chengguo, came to help, not only for the benefit of the government, but because he was really angry.

Regardless of the reason for the birth of this anger, it is because Hu Hu hit the idea on the "part" of the Chengguo Mansion, or it is simply related to his "son".

At least this time, Cheng Guogong is no longer the indifferent and ruthless appearance.

After being silent for a long time, seeing that he was about to arrive at the mansion, Zhu Yong said: "In the past few days, Mrs. has talked to me about your marriage, and it will be eighteen after the New Year, so it is time to consider setting a family business." ”

Anyway, the orders of the parents and the words of the matchmaker are the established etiquette of this era, even if Shen Yichen has not entered the genealogy, Cheng Guogong has to take the initiative to assume the responsibility of his father and help him choose a good match.

After all, the age of eighteen years old was placed in the ancient eunuch family, and many children could run and play on the ground, and Shen Yichen couldn't even make up his mind about his family.

In the eyes of the outside world, it will also be gossiped.

"Grandpa, after the New Year, it is spring, and the eldest husband is not in the world, so why should he be at home."

Shen Yichen couldn't expose his relationship with Chen Qingtong, you must know that in ancient times, giving and receiving privately was also an operation that violated the law of etiquette.

If you don't tell the fact of private conferral, and simply let Cheng Guogong find a matchmaker to propose marriage to Taining Hou, then it is estimated that in the eyes of Zhu Yong and Chen Ying, it is not a violation of etiquette, but a violation of IQ.

So I can only prevaricate with the reason of starting a business first and then starting a family, and in fact, the time for spring is very tight, and I don't have time to fall in love.

"Well, after I take the high school exam, I will think about marriage."

Cheng Guogong naturally wouldn't be reluctant, if it weren't for the fact that the Lin family kept mentioning it in the past few days, and the atmosphere in the carriage was a little awkward and he had nothing to say, he probably wouldn't have specifically told Shen Yichen about it.

During the conversation, the carriage stopped in front of the gate of Chengguogong, and Zhu Yong jumped out of the carriage first, followed by Shen Yichen.

The two of them walked into the mansion one after the other, and still no one spoke, but the atmosphere today was a little different from the past, with a little more warmth.

"Shen Yichen, if I give me another chance to enter the genealogy, what choice will you make?"

Cheng Guogong Zhu Yong didn't look back when he said this, and he couldn't see the expression on his face.

In fact, Shen Yichen already has an answer to this question, but every time the words come to his mouth, he is involved in all kinds of complex relationships in his heart, which is a mess.

"Grandpa, in fact, I care more about whether you remember that in the small courtyard on the corner of Yingtianfu Street, there is a woman who has been waiting for you for more than ten years."