For Lu Deguang, the waiter of the Ministry of Rites, this errand is already relatively idle in the court. Although he sits in the lobby of the government office, as long as the boss is in charge of major affairs, he only has the name of a senator. Although he was senatorial, Lu Deguang often did not say a word during the discussion. He knew that he was a person with a clear reputation, and he was a well-known filial son in the township back then, and he was a talented man full of articles inside and outside Nanjing, which was not in vain. Lu Deguang recalled to himself that he was sixteen years old and passed the township exam; At the age of nineteen, I will take the exam, and I will be the same, until I am given a jinshi, but I will return home!

He opened his eyes, and there was a warm glow in the gap between the leafy, large pine canopies outside the window.

Since then, he has risen to the top, and he has been the governor of a state so remote that he has forgotten his name, and it is he who has cultivated land for the people with light taxes, rectified the law and discipline, and the people have become rich for a while; Before Lu De left, the people surrounded more than three floors, and the official road was crowded with people, and some even grabbed the rope to keep Lord Zhizhou.

Such a scene is no less than two times in his recollection, after all, there are too many state capitals he has served, and the people are generally in this posture. After thinking about it, Lu Deguang chuckled, he got energetic, stood up in his chair, and walked to the window to make the pot of tea.

It was a coincidence that he was promoted to Beijing. In order to win the hearts of the people in the court, Liu Zhennian recommended him to join the court as an official, intending to win him over. But Lu Deguang refused to be convinced, and repeatedly impeached Liu Party's cronies impartially, but Liu Zhennian did not take action against him out of a small concern. When someone threatens him with this, he unleashes cruel words.

"I'm from different streams." Lu Deguang calmly said that sentence.

He shook the teapot slowly, and after a while he finished pouring it, his face was visible in the tea, and his white hair reflected in the pot was as white as silver, but his eyebrows were half black; The bridge of the nose below is straight, and although the skin on the face is wrinkled, it still shows a majestic spirit. He looked at the lamp and was stunned for a long time, and then raised his hand to drink it all. Lu Deguang took out his court clothes and changed into them in the room, looked at a pair of bronze mirrors, pulled the cuffs tightly, tugged at the placket, and then strode out. He received the order yesterday night, and was sent by the right to know the tribute, because the test will not be held until tomorrow, so he will go back to the Ministry of Rites to arrange shifts. "Your Excellency." The hall official who was on the shift stepped forward and said. Lu Deguang was extremely kind when he saw this cousin, his surname was Li Mingyong, he had been following him for several years, and he had long been Lu Deguang's confidant, so he was not unfamiliar with his mouth, and called his name: "Li Yong, but someone wants to see me?" ”

Li Yong smiled: "The adults have been open for a few years, and things are not expected to be ordinary: it is true that some candidates have sent people to see you." ”

"Can anyone see me? Let him go, it must be those things...... You remember I said, I'm never from the same stream! Lu Deguang's eyes were on fire, and he shook his head disdainfully. Li Yong said: "Why don't you see it, I heard that it was sent by the son of an adult in the court." ”

"See, if it's really here to pass the joint, I'll ...... it in person"

Lu Deguang saw that the man was wearing a felt hat, and when he came in, he gently closed the door, and immediately took off his hat, and his treacherous eyes came out of the hat, so that he knew at a glance that there was nothing good, and he hesitated in his heart first.

He saw that this person was not young, and the hand holding the hat was pale and had a lot of calluses on it, so he should not be the kind of person who was pampered. The man's eyes watched as Li Yong brought in a large box of things, and he opened the box neatly, and he didn't know what was in the big and small boxes inside, but Lu Deguang had already hesitated and stared at the boxes suspiciously.

"I don't dare to open it," the man's voice was rough, with a thick earthy accent, "Your Excellency should know what it is." Then he picked up a box, the corners of which were inlaid with gold, and when he picked it up, the golden light was dazzling.

The words he had just said were still ringing in his mind, and he was so sad for a moment that even those clear eyes were stained with this sorrow.

"What's your name?" Lu Deguang was extremely dazed.

"My lord, my name is Cheng Congyuan, I am the servant of Yu Shi Yelong, the left capital of the court, and the young master of the family wants to be admitted to the Jinshi, so ...... Not a tribute. ”

"The roll must be named. The fraud prevention is so strict, what is the use of you giving me money? Lu Deguang only looked at the box, not glancing at him, as if he was angry.

"I know that you officials have a lot of methods." Cheng Congyuan smiled slyly, which made Lu Deguang angry, he stomped his foot and said disdainfully: "I have a lot of methods? I'm telling you, you're a minion, and you should be greedy for a lot of money everywhere! But I'm different, how can I be in the same stream! His voice trembled slightly, and he didn't know if it was weakness or anger. After speaking, he took off his official robe and sat on the chair.

Cheng Congyuan was not in a hurry, he found a pen and paper on his desk, Lu Deguang raised his eyes to look at him, and saw Cheng Congyuan writing, while saying: "My master's words are like this......" Lu Deguang looked at the paper and wrote the words "zhi" and "also", which is not very good-looking, but it is more different from ordinary people.

He picked up the paper and asked, "Is this ...... What do you mean? Cheng Congyuan smiled again: "No matter what book or text, the most words are these two words, when the adult examines the file, just pay attention to these two words to understand." You see that my father's 'zhi' pen is in a hurry, and the point is light; this 'also' word, my grandfather writes narrower. I'm the most proficient at other people's words, and it's not much different from what my father wrote. ”

"If other things are written similarly, then wouldn't it be for nothing?" Lu Deguang looked at those two words carefully and asked.

"If you still don't worry, let's make an appointment and let my master do a question of 'those who have constant birth have perseverance', you can see this question."

"He sent you?" Lu Deguang was still a little scared.

"My lord thinks, I dare to make my own decisions? Don't worry. After the discussion was decided, I told the master that the master would definitely write according to this. Lu Deguang nodded suspiciously, and when he saw Cheng from the abyss, he still didn't forget to make a deep bow respectfully, and then walked away.

Lu Deguang asked Li Yong to send one to him, and he took advantage of the time to pick up the box; He took out a small box and opened it gently, and there were five pieces of silver in the order, revealing a little bright light, which shot into his pupils, causing him to be unable to open his eyes for a while. He hurriedly knocked on the box and carefully put it back in its place. But this pure white lumpy thing lingered in my head, and even the back and forth of its lines could be noticed very clearly. He felt like he had never been so fascinated by silver.

No one guessed that Cheng Congyuan would go to the lobby of Lu Deguang's government office. This time, I went early and returned quickly, and I didn't have to wait long on the road. He hurried back to the apartment, and when he saw that Ye Yongjia had just woken up, a hearty smile appeared on his face: "Ye just got up!" This exam day is not long in coming, and you have to consider a topic. ”

"Sir, I've been worried about this for days, and I can't do anything to write."

Cheng Congyuan replied: "I found a good question for my master, so I just proposed 'those who have constant birth have perseverance'." Don't think about what is wrong with the government, that's when you become an official! ”

Ye Yongjia listened to the master's words, and immediately drafted the topic, wrote two or three drafts, and handed them over to Cheng Congyuan for judgment, but Mr. Cheng was unusual, just praised, saying that there was nothing wrong, which made Yongjia more confident.

All this did not make Cheng Congyuan too worried, Ye Yongjia entered the exam and returned to the apartment not long after, he was put down, and Ye Yongjia unexpectedly chose Gongshi. Although the ranking is not high, it is enough to make Ye Yongjia excited. He laughed loudly, paced around, and sometimes talked to himself; Seeing Cheng Congyuan coming in from outside the house, he lowered his voice and shouted, "Mr. Cheng, I want to see the emperor...... When I come back, I'm a Jinshi! He said it several times in a row, and as he spoke, he burst into tears, and fell on the table and whimpered.

Cheng Congyuan was also sincerely happy, and his eyes were slightly red. After being stunned for a while, he stepped forward and patted Ye Yongjia's shoulder, laughing: "What are you crying about!" According to the master's talent, how about taking the test? Come back to see a jinshiye! Ye Yongjia raised his head and grabbed Cheng Congyuan's hand: "I...... I can have this day thanks to Mr. Cheng...... I'll let you see a jinshi when you come back! His voice trembled a little, and his hands trembled. Cheng Congyuan held his hand, grasped it tighter, and said word by word:

"I'll wait for my grandfather to come back!"

Before the morning fog of the Baohe Hall receded, the hall was filled with many candidates, and there were many ministers walking around in the hall, and tables and chairs were placed horizontally and vertically inside, and the rolls on the tables were scattered into a pile. It was not the emperor who was handed over by the ministers for personal reading, but the prime minister. The candidates didn't know it yet, but for the ministers, it was a common thing.

The emperor has never lived in the East Palace for a day, because of the former crown prince, the first emperor was indecisive about the succession, several princes fought for power with each other, and the emperor was even almost assassinated by the guards, and his life was not guaranteed. Fortunately, he waited until the death of the first emperor before he entered Beijing to succeed to the throne. But this emperor is extremely eccentric, his face is blank, and he does not see the slightest joy, anger and sorrow, which makes people unpredictable; On weekdays, except for the court, he did not summon the ministers of Zaifu, and it is said that he liked to play chess in the room, but no one played against him: because he played with himself, and did not let people approach; It's fun to play, and it's rumored that it's often a tie.

The eunuchs spoke in private, saying that the emperor could not play chess; In the evening, the emperor somehow knew, and unintentionally said to the eunuchs: "I have played a good game." Frightened, the eunuchs were sweaty and wet, and hurriedly kowtowed to admit their mistakes. But the emperor didn't look at them, stared at the sparse stars, and Gu Zi repeated:

"I'm playing very well."

Ye Yongjia and a class of candidates knelt in front of the hall, never daring to raise their heads. Ye Yongjia expected that as soon as he raised his head, he would be able to see the face of the Son of Heaven. He sketched the emperor's appearance in his heart, sometimes handsome, sometimes dignified...... He slowly raised his head with all kinds of speculations, but he didn't see any emperor.

Stunned. He looked around, and the candidates were also very stunned. I saw an old minister with a white beard standing aside, looking at the surprised candidates steadily, without any panic: "Don't be surprised. The emperor has always been ill, so he can't come to this palace in person to summon all shalves. So he asked the old minister to come to read the file, agree with the officials on the top three, and then report it. ”

The prime minister sat calmly on the chair on the side of the hall, took out several bundles of ink rolls, and uncovered them one by one. "First Place...... Bestow the Jinshi and the first. I saw the candidate behind Ye Yongjia stand up and walk to the front and bow down. 1st and 2nd place...... Bestow the Jinshi and the first. The Prime Minister glared brightly.

……

Ye Yongjia's ears and eyes were extremely sharp, and when he heard his name, his ears stinged, and he knew that the person who belonged to the Jinshi title couldn't help but be happy. "The seventieth Ye Yongjia of the second class is given to the Jinshi and the first."

Ye Yongjia's lips and teeth trembled, and he knelt down behind the dozens of candidates step by step, looking at His Majesty in vain, and his heart suddenly felt in his heart; Suddenly, my hands were a little cold, and I looked down and saw that my cuffs were wet, so I was busy wiping my tears with my sleeves.

"Sir! Mr! Ye Yongjia flicked his sleeves, smiled, and hugged Cheng Congyuan as soon as he saw him; Cheng Congyuan patted his shoulder blade hard: "The master fought for the Ye family!" When I return home, my lord will be happy to give you a banquet......"

Ye Yongjia burst into tears: "No matter what the master is, I respect Mr. the most!" "After that, he knelt down and shouted 'Mr. Cheng' and was about to kowtow." Master, you can speak well......" Cheng Congyuan hurriedly picked it up, and when he saw his face, he sighed and burst into tears.

"The lord is benevolent to me, and he has done his ......"

Jin Shiye's return to the house was not too public, but the ceremony was essential. Ye Yongjia was first surrounded by a chaotic crowd and arrived at the ancestral tomb of the Ye family in Jinan; Later, he went to Ye Zhongjing's ancestral hall and worshiped his uncle. Ye Yongjia was extremely disgusted with these etiquettes, and his emotions were full of anger, Cheng Congyuan saw that he was eight or nine, and taught in a low voice: "Ye is not a child, why is everything like this?" I have to take care of things in the future, and I have more things to think about, so I am impatient at this time. Ye Yongjia agreed.

They dismounted and walked towards the inner courtyard of the Ye Mansion. Ye Long sat in the main hall, slowly raised his eyebrows, and saw the two of them kneeling on the ground, so he stood up with one hand and slowly stroked Congyuan's silver-white head: "If there is no teacher to teach, the dog will not be today." Although you are not a serious invite, there is no one who teaches better than you...... I'll call you a gentleman! ”

"Master, it's nothing......" Cheng Congyuan's voice was a little dry, and he swallowed hard. It's not easy...... "He slowly raised his head, his eyes red.

Ye Long suddenly stopped talking. He turned his head not to look at Congyuan, and walked over by himself, Ye Yongjia was also silent.

“…… There is a scholar in the house! Ye Long seemed to sneer and turned back to the inner room.

Cheng Congyuan immediately stood up, saw that Ye Yongjia was still frozen there, helped him up, and said with a smile: "You can't hear it?" Sir, this is a compliment to you! He didn't move at first, and then he woke up, numbly 'oh', and panicked towards Cheng Congyuan before following Ye Long into the inner room. Cheng Congyuan stood in the hall and sighed heavily.

Around the end of the year, Ye Long received an edict to return to work as soon as possible. Ye Yongjia also re-entered the Beijing Division at this time and gave the military department to the middle of the matter, which was agreed by the ministers in consideration of Ye Long's face. But a few days after Ye Yongjia was in Beijing, Ye Long was about to enter the court again, and seeing that there was no one at home, Cheng Congyuan thought about it many times, and finally wrote a letter asking his master to come back.

As soon as Ye Yongjia opened the letter, he was a little at a loss. Cheng Congyuan got straight to the point and asked him to report for leave and go home, but for the first time to decide such a big thing, Ye Yongjia was very afraid.

But after all, this remark came out of the abyss, so that he did not hesitate at all, and immediately entrusted the name of 'the ancestor died on the day, when he returned to his hometown to participate in the sacrifice', and asked for leave; the ministers knew the bottom of this invitation carefully, and also played the request because of the intersection with Ye Long, and the emperor was also very affectionate, and immediately approved it.

Ye Yongjia left Beijing in a hurry, spent several days of travel, and when he arrived at home, the sun had already fallen for most of the day, and he wanted to finish seeing his father quickly, so he opened the door alone, and it was a little dark inside. It was only until a slave standing behind the rockery carried an oil lamp to attract it, and the shimmer shook up and down, so that he could find the road a little. Ye Yongjia turned around and saw the minion, who was short in stature, his complexion was probably due to the light and darkness, and he looked as dark as coal; His hair was loose and covered with half of his forehead, and his eyes were looking from side to side, always restless.

"Why didn't Mr. Cheng come?" His tone was full of disdain. Seeing that Mr. Cheng was tired, the slave specially told him to rest. Master, leave early. ”

"Oh."

The slave carried the lamp and bowed down to open the way, and after a while, Ye Yongjia was no longer so disgusted with him, and actually asked him, "What is your name?" The minion turned his face and smiled: "The villain's name is Kou Zhong, it's insignificant, and the master forgot about it after asking......" He said to Ye Yongjia, and he didn't concentrate on looking at the road, and suddenly stepped on the air under his feet; The lamp flickered three times, and he slipped and rolled on the grassy slope. Ye Yongjia hurriedly stopped, but saw Kou Zhong get up by himself, and the lamp was still tightly held in his hand. was stunned for a moment, and when he raised his eyes, he saw Cheng Congyuan striding over, surrounded by a circle of oil lamps, and shouted:

"Kou Zhongli! What don't you do on weekdays, don't say a word when you see the master come back, and go to ask for a familiar face! ”

Kou Zhong stumbled and planted himself in the ground, and immediately stood up, unable to straighten up, and hurriedly ran to the back. Ye Yongjia didn't know what was going on, so Cheng Congyuan led a few people and rushed over with a red face.

He hurriedly stopped: "What's wrong with that guy called Kou or something?" ”

Cheng Congyuan took a few breaths, gritted his teeth and said: "This guy is good in front of the master, and the master is annoying to kill him!" He couldn't see it, and he came to rub my light again, wanting me to give him something to take care of. I really pity him, and give him an acre of land behind the house; He took two or three times the money from the households and put it in his own money bag, and the master immediately withdrew him. Good today, he got the news early and said let me rest, and I will come to see my grandfather! Pondering the climb to the master's office. Don't believe him, if these people are in charge, they can't say if they run away with the money one day! "He's righteous." This kind of person is not honest when he makes a night patrol...... Just call him and expel him! ”

After speaking, he asked someone to get it, Ye Yongjia didn't give way, and sighed for a long time: "That person is quite pitiful...... Mr. Cheng spared him once, just once, I don't know if it's feasible? ”

Cheng Congyuan's face suddenly turned pale, and he said anxiously: "Master looks at him pitiful, but these minions in the house are quite pitiful, so Master allows them to do nonsense?" This guy is also greedy for a lot of money! Maybe it's more than the money behind it......"

Ye Yongjia smiled apologetically: "I listened to Mr. Cheng's ...... But it's not early today, tomorrow, tomorrow, I'll expel him! Cheng Congyuan stared at him dumbfounded. Ye Yongjia walked to the front and called a few people around Congyuan: "You are also tired, go back and rest early." ”

"Let's go, I'll tell you." Cheng Congyuan also echoed.

"Understood." A few people saluted and went to the other side of the road.

Cheng Congyuan picked up the lamp that was thrown to the ground, and when he saw that it was still brighter, he took a picture of Ye Yongjia: "Do you know what it's like to be at home?" ”

"It's a lot of work. I didn't care about the house, and I consulted Mr. Cheng for everything. ”

"It's uncomfortable!" Cheng Congyuan laughed, and looked at Ye Yongjia calmly, "It's okay to say this, but you have to change the way." Ye is not alone since then, he has to think that he is this house, and there is no name on the house plaque! There is only one 'leaf'. The house is ruthless, it won't pity people, and it won't be kind people, as long as it can't fall ......" Cheng Congyuan stopped. Ye Yongjia's expression was solemn. "If you fall, the 'leaf' will still be able to reach for several generations, but if the 'leaf' falls, the ancestral business will be completely gone. You only care about the lives of this house, don't care about the lives of others......"

Cheng Congyuan suddenly put the lamp in Ye Yongjia's hand, and his appearance was clear in the light and out. "Even if the master is for the Ye family, the knife is on my neck! I don't complain! He was hoarse. The lamp in his hand trembled. These words came out of Cheng Congyuan's mouth, which made him feel terrified, but after Ye Yongjia shuddered, his eyes became more and more determined.

"Mr. Xie Cheng's teachings." He said calmly.

"Ye is a ...... understand," Cheng Congyuan sighed helplessly.

Ye Yongjia started earlier than usual this day, and he was already sitting in the conference hall at about the beginning of his life. He ate his tea unhurriedly, and suddenly got up, because he saw Cheng Congyuan who came from Fang, he smiled and said, "Mr. Cheng got up early." "Where," Cheng Congyuan said, "I usually come here at this hour, but after the master came up, he changed his appearance!" ”

Ye Yongjia swept the hall with his residual light: "My mother's body is not good, if the family relies on Mr. Cheng alone, how can I be willing?" It is necessary to take charge of the Ye Mansion, so that Dad and Mr. Cheng are not so tired......" Cheng Congyuan nodded and smiled. Ye Yongjia raised his eyes and looked out of the hall, his face gradually showed impatience, paced a few times, he calmly talked with Cheng Congyuan for a while, and looked out of the door from time to time, scratching his sleeves anxiously, but he kept pressing the anger and refused to attack. His face became more and more embarrassed.

When Cheng Congyuan saw his actions, he hurriedly got up and said, "Master, I'll go out." ”

He went out of the main hall, and at first he was speechless, but he suddenly stood still, and shouted in all directions: "You minions, how long will you sleep?" It's not a long time coming! The shout was like a loud thunderclap that rolled from the council chamber to every door and room. Sure enough, it didn't take long for a dozen stewards to come over with their clothes on, and one of them quickly greeted him, smiling at him diligently, Cheng Congyuan ignored it, kicked up, and the man bent over and staggered a few steps, fell to the ground, turned over but didn't dare to get up.

Cheng Congyuan scolded: "If the master is not here, you are so unruly? What's wrong with the funeral at home? The master and others are all annoying, and they are still grinding like this...... Get out of here! ! A few minions saw Cheng Congyuan's bruised muscles, and knelt down in a panic.

Mr. Cheng refuted again: "If you have the ability to kneel to the master, what's the use of kneeling me?" Look at what the master said...... "Several minions kowtowed and said yes, and all of them ran into the council hall like dogs; Only the slave who fell to the ground was dusting off his cloth clothes, and Cheng Congyuan scolded with a horizontal eyebrow:

"Hurry up and get out of the way!"