The next day, considering Shen Di's status as prime minister and the invitation letter handed to him, Tang Ji went to Shen's house honestly.
Outside the gate, the guards of the Shen family had known Tang Ji for a long time and did not stop him when they saw him. Instead, they bowed respectfully.
The area of Shen Mansion is roughly the same as that of Ji Ranju, but the layout is relatively simple and elegant, and some places have a sense of age. What Tang Ji still remembers most is the door with peeling paint, but this can This shows that the Shen family, as a large family in Beijing, has gone through many changes over the years.
"Master Tang, I'm in the house, just go in." The housekeeper of the Shen family was an amiable short old man. When he smiled, his face was full of wrinkles. After speaking, he spread his hands and made a gesture to Tang Ji. The action of "please".
Tang Ji nodded slightly and walked into the house.
This is not the living room or lobby of the Shen family, but a side hall. There are no fancy decorations inside. The walls are covered with paintings and calligraphy. There is a desk on the right side of the door with several books on it. There are many green plants on one side and the lighting is very good. The other side is similar to a reception hall. There are five seats for the main seat and the guest seat. Behind the low table in the front, Shen Di is kneeling on the soft seat with his hand in his hand. Holding the brush, I don’t know what to write on the rice paper.
He noticed Tang Ji's arrival, but without raising his head, he said casually: "Here he comes? Sit down!"
Tang Ji was not polite either. He had been invited here twice before. He walked to the soft mat on the side in a familiar way, pulled up the cushion and sat on it.
Shen Di wrote two more words, and then raised his eyes slightly: "Master Tang, I heard that you entered Wenyuan Pavilion very early to study etiquette. Qin Hong never told you that sitting with a basket on your back is very arrogant and rude. Are you looking down on the other party’s performance?”
Tang Ji pursed his lips. Didn't he sit like this the last two times? What's wrong with this old man today? He put away his legs, sat up cross-legged, and asked with a smile: "Prime Minister Shen, are we going to discuss etiquette today?" ?Forget it, I understand a lot of things, but my knees feel uncomfortable after kneeling for a long time, so I will go back if nothing happens."
This is just the right time to go shopping with Ranran!
Seeing this, Shen Di became a little uneasy, and quickly raised her hand to motion for him to sit down, with a look of helplessness on his face. In the past, when chatting or talking with other officials, the other officials always behaved well and spoke in a serious tone, unlike this brat in front of him. Shaking his head: "Today let's talk about the article."
"Article?" Tang Ji looked suspicious.
"After the first two negotiations, I found that your inability to write is not just an act!" Shen Di replied, and couldn't help but feel a headache again. Fortunately, he said in front of His Majesty half a month ago that he just didn't have enough time. Finally, he knew that Your Majesty Why did you smile and didn't answer at that time, and then looked at Tang Ji: "I am very curious. Your articles are not logically organized and your sentences are not smooth. Why can you write so many poems that can be passed down through the ages?"
Tang Ji touched his head in embarrassment. After a long time, the other party still found out. But naturally he couldn't tell the other party that he still had hundreds or thousands of poems in his head. After thinking about it, he replied: "It's not true." To hide it, Xianguan was injured and fell into a coma. After receiving the guidance of an immortal in his dream, he had the ability to write poems!"
Listening to his serious nonsense, Shen Di raised his hand and stroked his beard. After thinking for a while, he asked: "Immortal? Are they similar to the characters in your "Journey to the West"?"
"Yes, that immortal is called Li Bai, and he is titled Immortal of Poetry!" What Tang Ji copied the most was the poems of the great poet Li Bai. It is not too much to say that he suddenly realized something and continued: "Xiang Shen, "Journey to the West" "It was written by Wu Cheng'en, it has nothing to do with me!"
Shen Di shook his head: "I accidentally heard Princess Zhaoyang talking about "Journey to the West" a few days ago, so I asked about it."
Hearing this, Tang Ji frowned slightly, Li Yue, this damn girl, actually betrayed herself!
Shen Di did not continue the topic, and instead said: "Since you have received guidance from the immortal, you should work harder on your articles. If you know that the most talented scholar in Ning Guo's articles are not as good as those of a young child, all the scholars in the world will laugh at you!"
"I didn't say that I was the most talented person in Ningguo." Tang Ji complained softly, but he missed his status as the most talented person in Huaizhou.
Shen Di was too lazy to chat with him and raised his hand to signal the maid to serve tea.
The girl in red dress turned her eyes slightly, picked up the tea set placed on the tea table against the pillar, touched the teacup lightly with her finger, and brought it to Tang Ji: "Master Tang, please."
"Leave it alone." Tang Ji waved his hand casually.
The girl in red nodded slightly, put down the tea cup, and reminded softly: "Master Tang, this tea will change its flavor when it gets cold."
After saying that, she walked back to the tea table and brought another pot to Shen Di.
Shen Di nodded slightly, picked up the tea cup and smelled it: "Indeed, in order to entertain you, I can use fine tea leaves, which will become astringent when cool."
Tang Ji rolled his eyes. He really didn't like drinking tea, but since the other party said so, he couldn't refuse anymore. He picked up the teacup and took a sip, without forgetting to praise: "Good tea!"
Watching the two of them drink tea one after another, the girl in red standing not far away raised her lips slightly.