Zhang Chong has always felt that he is a very lucky person. Although his father was just a county magistrate, he had no worries about food and clothing since he was a child. After studying, he went smoothly all the way to Jinshi. When he was studying in the Imperial College, Jijiu felt that he knew etiquette.
Knowing how to advance and retreat, regardless of the status gap, he betrothed his youngest daughter to him. After marriage, the husband and wife respected each other as guests, and both the son and the daughter were smart and lovely.
If there were any ups and downs, it would probably be the days when he and Yang Shen and others were imprisoned in a sack a while ago. Recalling the black circles under His Majesty's eyes after being beaten, Zhang Chong couldn't help but feel excited. Unlike Yang Shen who was demoted and was still able to stay.
In the capital, my friend He Mengchun was directly assigned to Hainan. If nothing unexpected happened, he might never come back in this life.
He is a smart man, and he knows that he can escape unscathed, not only because of God's great grace, but also with the help of Zhang Cong and Xian Ruxing. Logically speaking, he should pay a visit to his house, but when his father-in-law found out about this, he persuaded him.
The reason is that everyone except him was punished this time, which is enough to attract people's attention. If he continues to associate with people with bad reputations such as Zhang Cong and Xian Ruxing, he will easily gain a bad reputation.
Zhang Chong couldn't refute his father-in-law's words, but he always felt guilty and burdened with guilt. These days, he always had trouble sleeping and eating. He dealt with official duties all night last night. He planned to sleep until the afternoon today, but he got up before noon.
The clear voices of his wife and daughter came from the courtyard, and Zhang Chong smiled. Since masks became popular in the capital, his wife often wore them to gather with other close friends in her boudoir. Women also began to form associations. As the daughter of the Imperial Academy’s Jiuxiang
, her knowledge is naturally not bad, and she is now quite famous in the poetry club.
I got up and put on my clothes, opened the door and went out. I saw my four-year-old daughter sitting on the stone bench in the pavilion. Her fleshy calves were swinging back and forth. She was leaning against my wife and she was begging for something. When I got closer, I realized that it was Tao.
Want to listen to the story.
Seeing his wife's helpless expression, Zhang Chong stepped forward with a smile: "I'm sorry that my daughter is so eager to learn. Why don't you tell me about it? How about my father telling you about it?"
The wife rolled her eyes at her and scolded her softly: "Go away, stop making trouble for me. She has been listening to picture books all morning and has done nothing. Now she has to eat."
Zhang Chong stood aside politely. He always listened to his wife when it came to the education of his children, "But what is a picture book? A new story book?"
The wife didn't reply, she just took out a book from the pile next to her and handed it over.
As soon as Zhang Chong opened it, he couldn't help laughing.
I saw a short and fat fox drawn in the center of the book. Although the lines are simple, the expression is very accurate, successfully depicting the slyness of this animal.
Turning to the second page, the fox walked under the grape trellis and drooled while looking at the grapes. The story is very simple, that is, the fox said the grapes were sour after not eating them, but the monkey proved that the grapes were sweet. Each article only has
A simple line of words, the language is innocent and simple, and most of the rest are pictures.
After reading it, Zhang Chong was thoughtful and said to his daughter: "Nanny, what do you think after listening to this story?"
The daughter blinked her big round eyes and said in a sweet voice, "I want to talk to the little fox and the little monkey!"
"Stupid!" The son who had been hiding behind jumped out and said: "I told you that foxes can't talk! This tells us that we must insist on what we want to eat!"
When Zhang Chong saw his son, he frowned slightly and said with a straight face: "At this time, shouldn't you be practicing calligraphy in the study? Why are you here?"
The son was so frightened that he quickly shrank back, and his wife helped him: "Forget it, forget it, with this picture book, let alone a child, even I couldn't help but read it again and again. Doing this can be considered learning."
Indeed, the book was much more interesting than his son's enlightenment book. Zhang Chong looked through the other books and found that they were all similar stories about using small animals to make sense. Originally they were only in black and white, but there were some colors in the middle that seemed to be painted on later.
of.
Mrs. Zhang explained on the side: "Nowadays, it is very popular among children to use paints at home to color small animals. What you have on your hands is what our girls painted."
As mothers began to walk around the streets, the children gradually had their own social circle. Before, his children would surround him every time he took a break at home. Now they are clamoring to leave the house every day, Zhang Chong thought with some sourness.
.
The child's hands were unsteady and the brush was difficult to use, so the drawings were inevitably a bit messy. Zhang Chong felt distressed when he saw this and said, "After this, the book won't be usable anymore."
"You can buy more if you don't need them anymore," Mrs. Zhang smiled nonchalantly, "These new books are only three to five cents each. Now there are dealers buying old ones. I heard that second-hand ones only cost one cent, and ordinary people can afford them.
, husband, please rest assured."
"So cheap?" Zhang Chong's eyes widened in shock. Nowadays, buying a better book on the market costs nearly one yuan. Although these picture books are relatively thin, three or five articles are too exaggerated.
Not only that, Mrs. Zhang also introduced him to some literacy cards that were sold together with the picture books. Each card only had about seven or eight words on it. They were also rich in pictures and texts, and even included words and sentences.
"This thing is not only used by children, but many adults also buy it. I heard that our little girl has learned almost a hundred characters with it."
Zhang Chong checked the literacy cards again and found that they were indeed easy to understand and full of childishness. Confucian scholars regard it as their bounden duty to educate the people, so how could they not be happy to see this?
He was so excited that he said three good words in a row. Zhang Chong couldn't help but sigh: "This is a great contribution to the world. I don't know which bookstore owner did it. I must report this to the court. I must
Commend this man!”
Mrs. Zhang hesitated for a moment, and then hesitantly said: "It's not a bookstore merchant. These things all come from the palace. I heard that the real person Xian is in charge of printing and selling. Even the short stories are ordered by her."
It was re-edited after being collected from the private sector.”
Zhang Chong was stunned. He had been worrying about the standard of interaction with Xian Ruxing these days, and finally he met him again with his child.
"Husband..." Mrs. Zhang hesitated for a long time, and finally said: "Although I have never met that Taoist priest, and I don't know what happened in your court, but as a woman, it must be difficult for her to walk in this world. This
Sometimes, even a little kindness is good."
Zhang Chong had a complicated look on his face and did not reply to his wife's words. He simply explained a few words and went to the Yamen.
Although the Household Department is not as powerful as the Personnel Department, it manages a wide range of things, and everything related to money is under its control. For example, there are only four departments in the Personnel Department, while the Household Department has fourteen, large and small.
There are more than five hundred officials. Although Zhang Chong, the head of the household department, is only of the sixth rank, he is extremely busy every day, so even if he takes a break, he still comes to work that afternoon.
The secretary's office had prepared tea and snacks. When his colleagues saw him coming, they only said hello in a hurry and continued busy with the matters at hand. Zhang Chong was also used to it, sitting directly on his chair to handle government affairs.
Time passed little by little, and in a blink of an eye it was three o'clock in the morning. The officials began to go home one after another. One of them complained while packing his things, "My wife and children are addicted to those picture books now, and they ignore me every day when I go home. It's really
Yeah, is that thing that interesting?"
A person next to him chuckled and said: "Don't tell me, I helped my daughter color two books in my spare time a few days ago. It became very popular among those handkerchiefs, and the children started to draw according to my colors.
And I entrusted my daughter to teach me, oh, how can I have time to play with a bunch of children..."
Although he complained on his lips, everyone could hear the complacency in his words. Thinking that the other party always showed off his painting skills on weekdays, everyone couldn't help but roll their eyes.
At this time, Zhang Chong, who had been listening quietly at the side, suddenly said: "Colleagues, look at the picture books and flashcards that are beautifully printed and cheap, which are indeed beneficial to young children and students. I am ashamed to say that, as the imperial court
Mingguan, I am busy with official duties all day long and neglect to educate my children. Now it is a rare opportunity, why don't we hold a competition together?"
"What competition?" Everyone was puzzled.
Zhang Chong had a quick mind, otherwise he would not have grasped the holy will in the court and was the first to propose lifting the tribute and collecting the merchant tax. He only thought about it for a moment and then smiled and said: "We can discuss the content further, such as
Write reflections based on picture book stories, or draw animals in picture books, etc. In short, try to get the children to participate.”
Everyone's eyes lit up after hearing this. This would not only increase the chances of getting along with the children, but if it was successful, it would also give their children the opportunity to be known as "prodigies". It would serve multiple purposes with one stone, so they all responded positively.
.In the end, even the Minister of Household Affairs heard about the incident and expressed his desire to participate.
Seeing this, Zhang Chong felt relieved. He should be able to return some favors and sleep more easily in the future.
…
In Cining Palace, Xian Ruxing stood in the center of the courtyard, looking at the little heads with their heads lowered, feeling a little complicated.
After hearing Zhang Chong's proposal, she sponsored a sum of money without saying a word, and said that the current picture book is the first edition, and there will be a second and third edition in the future. At that time, she can choose from the winners' works.
Select some and add them to the attached page. After knowing this, people in the capital became even more crazy. You must know that the maximum age for participation in this competition is within seven years old. What is the concept of publishing a book and establishing a biography at the age of seven! Even if Xian Ruxing repeatedly emphasizes, it is not
Even if I publish a book, no one will listen to it, so they all buy picture books and take them home to teach their children.
The participants this time were basically only civil servants. For the nobles, even if they worked hard for a hundred years, they would not be able to compare with these top scholars, but it would be too embarrassing for their children to lose. So they planned to use the nobles to use them.
They are all good at building relationships and going through the back door.
So many noble female relatives went to the Empress Dowager Jiang to intercede, hoping that Xian Ruxing, the editor of the book, could give her some special training. The Empress Dowager Jiang had just entered the harem and was worried that she could not find an excuse to have a good relationship with the empress dowagers. After hearing this, she quickly
Xian Ruxing called over.
Of course the Queen Mother had to give her face, so Xian Ruxing had no choice but to bite the bullet.
Naturally, she didn't know much about writing articles, but after receiving exam-oriented education in her previous life, it can be said that she was the best person in Ming Dynasty who knew how to take exams. She knew that the easiest way to quickly improve her grades was to memorize by rote, so,
The nightmare of the children of the Xungui family begins.
Not good at writing? Memorize it!
Don’t know how to convert codes? Memorize them!
Don’t understand what it means? Don’t worry so much, you’ll just memorize it.
These kids don't have to take the top exam, as long as they can write a few sentences like Xian Ruxing from time to time, it's enough to bluff people.
As expected, in just ten days, the children's literary talent improved by leaps and bounds, and their speech became more and more organized. The nobles thanked Xian Ruxing one after another. But when the results came up, the children became sad and angry. Once in the home school,
He himself is a king and hegemon, and the gentlemen are employed by the government and dare not take care of them at all. However, even his own parents have to deal with this one carefully. After being naughty and causing trouble to the accused parent, he will be beaten up. Thinking of it,
I couldn't help but shed tears even if I had to stay in the hands of the big devil for a while.
Xian Ruxing had no choice about this. She had calculated so hard that she ignored China's millennium-old tradition of raising chickens. She originally wanted to rely on picture books to make a comeback and become the most popular person among children in the capital. Unexpectedly,
The previous rumors about eating boys and girls were self-evident, but the children were as scared as rats when they saw him, and they didn't dare to make any mistakes.
Xian Ruxing held his forehead and asked the waiter to collect the test papers, saying that that's all for today's study, and that there is no need to come over in the next few days, and he will inform you after the next class.
The children were so relieved that they almost cheered, and were all smiles when they were finally led away by the chamberlains.
After they left, Xian Ruxing entered the Queen Mother's palace. Inside, Zhu Houcong looked at her with a half-smile, "Hey, our old scholar is back?"
Empress Dowager Jiang lightly scolded her son, and then looked at Xian Ruxing gently, "I have worked hard these days, Master Immortal."
Xian Ruxing shook his head. He was just taking care of the children, so he wasn't too tired. But...she turned to look at Jiajing and asked curiously: "Why doesn't Your Majesty show up? Maybe half of these children are here for you."
The honorable nobles are not stupid, and naturally they cannot spend so much money just for a small competition. Zhu Houcong is a famous filial son. He always runs to Cining Palace when he has nothing to do, and Xian Ruxing is also in the heart of the emperor. The child is likely to meet His Majesty the Emperor here.
, if you catch the emperor's eye, your future will be bright.
Zhu Houcong frowned and said in disgust: "Why do you have to show up? I hate those brats the most. I would rather meditate or play with cats when I have time."
Xian Ruxing: "..." I almost forgot. Historically, the person in front of me has caused great harm to even his own children. He is really disgusted with the world and people. At present, it seems that the essence of his character has not changed much.