Encountering Obstacles

Author: Loeva

Encountering Obstacles

After Xu Zheng talked with his cousin Xu Rong, although he didn't show any expression on his face, he was actually a little moved.

He has almost never left the capital in his life.

Since the Xu family has been taking root in Beijing for decades, even if their original place is not in Beijing, they have already gone through the relevant procedures so that their children can take the imperial examination in Beijing. From the county examination to the township examination, Xu Zheng was in

He took the exam in Gyeonggi Province and has never been to other places. At best, when he was a child, he went back to his hometown with his grandparents and parents to pay homage to his ancestors. But he was still young at that time, and he traveled by boat and car all the way, and was closely guarded by his parents.

, not to mention seeing the local customs and customs everywhere, even members of this family rarely see him, that is, the elders who are close to each other and have a relatively high status in the family have only met him a few times. When it comes to traveling thousands of miles, Xu Zheng is the one who has traveled thousands of miles.

No experience.

But scholars should not work behind closed doors. They should go out more often to see people's livelihood and people's affairs, so that they can write good articles and know how to be an official. This truth has been said by many senior scholars. Xu Zheng clearly understands this and has also heard that

Wu Shaoying, a student of Qin Bai, Marquis of Yongjia, had excellent grades when he was studying in the Imperial College, but he never passed the examination. Later, he studied abroad for a year and traveled thousands of miles, and then studied for a period of time with Qin Bai, his mentor when he was a boy.

In terms of reading, I had just finished high school with good grades in the top 26. This shows that it is very reasonable for this scholar to go out more and increase his knowledge.

Xu Zheng was born in the capital and grew up in the capital. He even took the imperial examinations in the capital and rarely had the opportunity to go out. As he studied for a long time, he also realized his shortcomings. He never worried about the vocabulary of his articles. In the Four Books and Five Classics,

He also memorized all the words and phrases by heart, and he also had a certain degree of confidence in the poems and songs. However, every time he asked his senior teachers to correct their own articles, the comments he received were similar: the basic skills are solid and the principles are clear.

, has outstanding literary talent, but it cannot be said that he has any extraordinary insights. Once he encounters topics related to government affairs and people's livelihood, his writing is too shallow and seems immature. The whole article is scholarly and clichéd, but it is not eye-catching.

A bright place.

With this level of writing, if you are lucky and encounter a topic that you are good at, and meet an examiner who likes articles with beautiful words, you may be able to try your hand at ranking in the second and lower grades; if you are unlucky and encounter a topic that you are not good at,

Or if you encounter an examiner who prefers practicality, it is normal for you to fall into the top three, let alone fall into the top three.

Xu Zheng has been famous for his talent since he was a child and has a high self-esteem. How could he allow himself to fall into such a situation? Even Qin Jian could give up the imperial examination and try again just because he didn't want to fall into the top three, let alone someone who had always been rejected.

People praised Xu Zheng. In order to ensure that he would not fall into that situation and make countless people laugh at him, Xu Zheng felt that it was necessary to take advantage of the fact that it was still early before the college entrance examination, go on a study tour, increase his knowledge, and also make up for himself.

shortcomings.

Sometimes he would feel regretful. It would have been better if his grandfather had not resigned from office and had a stroke, or if his father had recovered smoothly after paying filial piety. Even if the two members of the Xu family had not separated and turned against each other, he could still follow his elders.

He went to the government offices to see the truth in person, and listened to the elders who served as officials talk about the principles of officialdom, so that everyone would not judge his articles as being too immature. He did not think he had any shortcomings in this area, but since

Everyone says this, and of course it is not without purpose. He must find ways to improve his shortcomings.

However, when he mentioned the idea of ​​going out on a study tour in front of his parents, his mother, Grandma Xu, fiercely opposed it. Grandma Xu treated her son like a treasure, holding it in her mouth for fear of it melting, and holding it in her hands for fear that it would melt.

After falling, I wish I could keep him at home and watch him every day. I am afraid that he will be bullied outside, or get bumped into. How can I be willing to let him go far away? In the past, Uncle Xu

When he was taking the imperial examination, he didn't travel all the way to study. At most, he went back to his hometown to worship his ancestors. Xu Zheng also worshiped his ancestors. This was enough for him to go out. If you want to gain more knowledge, go to see Lin Zhong, a scholar.

That’s all you need to know about your predecessors. You can also read more about the travel notes of predecessors, so you don’t have to work hard on your own.

Grandma Xu tried to persuade Xu Zheng: "What nonsense are you listening to Xu Rong? He knows how to make a fuss? He is not even a child! Why should you listen to him? If you have the ability, he passed the examination first.

, please give my son some pointers! It’s true... He only went to school for two days, and he didn’t even know if he had memorized all the "Four Books", so he started to be arrogant. He thought that if he climbed up to the fifth girl of the Qin family, he would not have to worry about it in this life.

?Brother Zheng, please ignore him. You are the one who wants to join the cabinet and pay homage to the prime minister. The Wenqu star in the sky has descended to earth. How can Xu Rong, a dandy, compare with you?"

Xu Zheng reluctantly advised his mother: "My child didn't come up with this idea just because of my brother's words. A senior had already pointed out my article, saying that my child's knowledge was shallow and he was not good enough for the exam. In order to take the exam for the next subject.

Only when children can be more confident can they want to increase their knowledge. Furthermore, going on a study tour is not just a matter of sightseeing. Children can also visit celebrities from various places and ask for their advice, so that they can also learn something from them.

Jinyi. The child promised his mother that he would not go to those remote villages, nor would he travel alone. When the time comes, the child will go with several people who were in the same year of the provincial examination, and they will go to prosperous cities, and bring a few more entourages, that's it.

."

Grandma Xu disagreed: "Do you think it's enough to bring two more people with you? How can you be more comfortable than at home when you go out? Your body is not very strong. If you don't adapt to the climate and get sick on the way, wouldn't it be wrong?

The sky is not responding to the sky and the earth is not working? Just give up this idea and don’t worry your mother. When my mother was young and unmarried at home, there was an uncle who also said that he wanted to go out to study. He was not short of money and entourage.

He knew that he was not accustomed to the climate and conditions on the road, and suffered from three kinds of illnesses. He finally got better, but he encountered a storm while riding on the boat, and the boat capsized. Several people traveling with him died, and several of them were Juren! Several families

They all cried as if the sky was falling. My clan uncle’s family was almost bankrupt, so they fished out the body, buried it, and transported it back to their hometown for burial. Because that clan uncle was an only son, his parents, wife and daughter had no idea how well they lived afterwards.

Desolate. Brother Zheng, you are the only child of your father and me. In the future, we will have to live together. If anything happens, how will your parents live? How will your sisters live? You should be filial to your parents.

, don’t think about traveling far away. If you really want to see the world and people’s livelihood, our Zhuangzi in the suburbs of Beijing has the autumn harvest. How about you go with the housekeepers at home to enjoy the autumn scenery? Although Zhuangzi is smaller, it can still be used if it is cleaned.

Resident. If you have anything to ask, just call the head of the village over to talk. It's the same thing."

How can this be the same?

Xu Zheng was helpless, but his mother didn't agree with what he said, so he had no choice but to give up the idea of ​​going on a study tour.

Originally, this matter was just the internal affairs of the Xu family's house. They had discussed it among themselves and no outsiders would know about it. But because Mrs. Xu was resentful of Xu Rong's advice to Xu Zheng to go away, she personally went to the door of the Xu family's second room.

After a lot of scolding, the second cousin of the Xu family knew it. Although Mr. Xu and Mrs. Xu felt that their son was too kind and knew how to persuade their cold-hearted cousin when he had good deeds, they faced the eldest brother Xu.

The eldest grandma was naturally trying to protect her children. The two families had another big quarrel, and Mistress Xu even went to Chengenhou's house to complain. Qin Jian inevitably heard about it.

Qin Jian told Qin Hanzhen: "I see that cousin Xu knows some truths, but his parents are not understanding people. They try to interfere with him, thinking it is for his son's good. He thinks of his filial piety and refuses to disobey his parents.

I don’t even dare to give him a few more words of advice. I’m afraid my eldest cousin Xu’s score in the next national examination will be bad.”

Qin Hanzhen said funny: "Aunt Xu would actually extrapolate things that are obviously good for Xu Zheng. Is she stupid? What if Xu Zheng really fails to pass the exam for this reason?

What is she going to do?"

Qin Jian sighed: "Grandma Xu has always had great confidence in cousin Xu. How could she think that he would fail the exam? She would only think that cousin Xu would win the first prize sooner or later. Even if he misses for a moment, he must at least be a legend.

Probably because Cousin Xu has been praised a lot since he was a child. Everyone said that he is extremely intelligent and has a rare talent for reading. It is no wonder that Grandma Xu is so optimistic about her son."

Qin Hanzhen disagreed: "Who hasn't heard of the story of Shang Zhongyong? No matter how talented and smart Xu Zheng is, he must have a good teacher to teach him and no one else will lead him down the wrong path. Xu Zheng

Grandma is acting like this and Uncle Xu is silent, isn't there a more reliable teacher who can advise Xu Zheng?"

Qin Jian shook his head: "He has consulted with many famous teachers since he was a child, but he has not formally apprenticed to a certain famous master. At that time, the Xu family was still somewhat famous, and Mr. Xu's knowledge was also good. The Xu family must have felt that his cousin Xu did not apprentice to a famous master.

Is it necessary for others?" He paused, "It's also possible that the Xu family's reputation among scholars at that time was not very good. Real celebrities looked down on his family and were unwilling to officially accept disciples. At most, they wanted to meet Xu's cousin.

He has a good temperament and occasionally gives some advice; but those who are willing to accept cousin Xu as their disciples are looked down upon by the Xu family, so they are delayed."

Qin Hanzhen vomited: "How stupid. Is it really just to have a teacher to teach you about your studies? The teacher's connections are also connections. If you give up because your vision is too high, you will only suffer.

Own."

When the Xu family was in trouble, they would only turn to the Xu family and the Cheng'enhou Mansion. They never thought of relying on other connections. They were really spoiled by the Xu family. Qin Hanzhen recalled that his grandfather Qin Bai accepted several students.

They love each other and help each other, and get along well with several of Qin Bai's friends. Isn't this a network of connections? Things like connections can't only be obtained through in-laws. The Xu family can be considered a scholar for generations? Just pick some crooked connections.

Go left.

Qin Jian was also sighing for Xu Zheng. Now he felt more and more pity for Xu Zheng. However, it was a pity, and he had no strong intention to help his cousin. He himself was already busy preparing for exams and preparing for the wedding.

I am out of breath, where can I have leisure time to make Grandma Xu unhappy?

He said to Qin Hanzhen: "My grandma also asked Grandma Xu after she heard from Second Grandma Xu about cousin Xu's trip. However, Grandma Xu said that now cousin Xu is preparing for the exam and if he wants to travel, he can wait until

Let’s talk about it after the examination and palace examination are over.” He estimated that his grandmother Xu had already guessed that there would be Enke next year, and now there were only a few months left, so Xu didn’t force it.

Qin Han really wanted to say that if Xu Zheng failed the entrance examination, it would be really appropriate to go out and travel again, but before he could say anything, Zhao Mo hurried in from the door.

Qin Hanzhen saw his expression changed drastically, so he couldn't help but stood up and asked, "What happened?" Qin Jian also stood up and asked with concern.

Zhao Mo frowned and said, "I just came back from the palace and saw the Youbian Town Emergency News rushing past the street towards the palace gate. I'm afraid something has changed in Liaodong!"
Chapter completed!