Chapter 128 Don’t know what is good and what is bad?
After listening to Zhao Liangli's brief explanation, Li You understood the whole story.
The second master of the Zhao family, Zhao Liangyi, who is sitting on the chair, has achieved political participation from the left of the third-grade Huguang Grain Reserve Road. This is a very important official position. In recent years, Huguang has become a large grain-producing area on par with Jiangnan. Zhao's political participation can also be regarded as His achievements are remarkable and his assessment results are outstanding. According to the official practice of the country, he is planned to be promoted to the third rank of inspector.
But a problem arises. Zhao Liangren, the eldest son of the Zhao family, serves as the deputy censor of the capital. The Metropolitan Procuratorate is in charge of supervision. In addition to criminal duties, the inspectors also have supervisory functions in the local area. Such officials are collectively called Feng Xianguan. Then some people started to attack and criticize the officials. Xianxian officials are the eyes and ears of the country. If the two Zhao brothers were both censors, it would be easy for them to deceive the court and make the court unclear. How to set an example and correct all officials?
In order to avoid suspicion or avoid being criticized by the officials, Mr. Zhao Er was forced to stop serving as an inspector. However, the actual position of the third-rank official was limited, so in the end, the imperial court assigned him the position of Minister of Rites in Nanjing...
Officials in Nanjing are basically empty-ranked, and are mostly used to house demoted or retired officials. Although in the past ten years, because there is no governor in Nanjing and the governor has been in charge of Nanjing, the situation has been slightly better, but it has also changed. If you don't understand the nature of Nanjing officials, they are just idle officials.
Zhao Liangyi, who was extremely ambitious and wanted to make a difference, found out that he was going to be an official in Nanjing. It was like being poured cold water on his head. Some political opponents brought up some old cases to attack him. In anger, Zhao Liangyi resigned and returned to his hometown. But Zhao Liangli looked at his second brother's spirit. Feeling depressed, he called a group of people to have a gathering today to relax and entertain Zhao Liangyi.
Li You originally wanted to tell Zhao Liangli what happened to Magistrate Mao early, but standing at the door was really not the place to talk. Besides, the second master of the Zhao family was back, so he probably had to make the final decision on some things. After thinking about it, Li You decided to wait. , he didn’t know much about the temperament of the second master of the Zhao family, so he had to observe it first before making any plans.
In fact, today's scene should not be considered a banquet, but more like drinking tea and chatting with a few snacks. Li You glanced around the hall and saw that four or five guests were already seated. He also saw behind the second master of the Zhao family There was a young man in his twenties with a sickly face standing at his side. He was very surprised, how could he find a sick man as his follower? But why did this sick man look so familiar? Li You looked at it carefully several times, but he couldn't remember where he was. I had seen it before. I didn’t think much about it and quickly took my seat.
As soon as Li You settled down, he heard someone at the door saying, "I'm late, please forgive me." He looked over and saw that it was Magistrate Mao. Li You secretly thought something was wrong. Why was he even here? How could he accuse the gang? shape.
When Magistrate Mao saw Li You, he was slightly stunned. He knew that Li You had a friendship with Zhao Liangli, but he only thought it was a casual acquaintance in poetry and didn't care. He never expected to meet Li You at Zhao's house today. It seems that he underestimated the relationship between Li You and Zhao Liangli and should not have left him in the cold.
Everyone at the table knew that they were here with Zhao Liangyi to relieve their boredom, so they talked about local customs, anecdotes about famous people, etc. Li You could barely get in the conversation.
I saw Zhao Liangli introducing his brother again: "This is Mr. Li. He is now working in the government office."
Zhao Liangyi showed some interest and said to Li You: "I also have some insights into the art of poetry. I have read many of your masterpieces, but I feel that the styles are changeable and the atmosphere is myriad. Some are charming, some are angry, some are fragrant, and some are affectionate. There are some who are sad and generous, and some who are humorous. I really can’t believe that it was done by one person. I am very relieved to think that there are outstanding people and talented people in Wu County.”
Li You said modestly: "My lord, you are overly complimentary."
"A person who returns home and is idle should not be called an elder." Zhao Liangyi sighed.
Zhao Liangli interrupted with a smile and said: "Mr. Li is also good at pointing out objects to compose a poem. He can compose a poem in an instant. He has the style of Cao Zijian who composed a poem in seven steps. If you don't believe me, please give it a try and pick up the topic at will."
It was probably Zhao Liangli who was trying to make fun of others... Li You was helpless with his temper.
Mr. Zhao Er also felt that what he heard was not as good as what he saw, so he laughed at himself: "I am going back to my hometown in embarrassment this time, so I will resign as the subject. Please Mr. Li not to be stingy with his talent."
Li You's mind wandered, and he could only think of one song in a short period of time, so he chanted: "If you mistakenly spend your whole life as an official, it is easy to lose your reputation if you abandon your job. Song Yun dares to hate the wind and frost, and the fish and birds still think about the broadness of the world. Gu Xin has a heart.
In the escape, why did the cart come out of Changqian? Others should not laugh at Tao Hongjing, Shenwu had long been crowned."
The tone of this poem fully expresses a feeling of regret for becoming an official. Although the background of the original work is completely different, the tone is very suitable. Li You feels that scholars should appreciate it. This has been the trend in these years, no matter how much you love power in your heart
Officials who are in the position will not publicly say that they are greedy for power. Every poem they write must show that their spiritual yearning is indifferent, leisurely and elegant, and that being an official is tiring, painful and helpless.
Zhao Liangyi was surprised and said: "It is true that the title can be written immediately and the poem can be written out of words. It is even more rare that it is of the highest quality. It is well-deserved!"
Everyone also said hello in unison, praising that it was Mr. Li who wrote quickly and well. But now this kind of praise can no longer make Li You excited and secretly happy. After hearing it too much, he became immune to it.
Zhao Liangyi added: "The meaning is very good, but it's a pity that I am not in a good mood and I feel ashamed."
Mr. Zhao obviously still wants to serve the country. Although he has returned home temporarily, he is not willing to retreat.
Li You secretly analyzed in his heart that it seems that Mr. Zhao Er is a very frank person and should be quite broad-minded.
Zhao Liangli shouted: "Second brother! You can't be obsessed by Mr. Li's poems and become a hermit. Our Zhao family still needs you to light up the front door!"
At this time, Magistrate Mao suddenly said: "The words in Mr. Li's poem are sincere. In my opinion, they are not randomly pieced together to suit the situation. Perhaps they are implicitly self-narrative."
Zhao Liangli turned to Magistrate Mao and said, "Mr. Li is serving under you, so it means he was punished by you and no longer wants to be an official?"
Magistrate Mao laughed along with Zhao Liangli's words and said, "It's indeed my fault. There are many misunderstandings. It was me who delayed Mr. Li." He then said to Li You: "From now on, Mr. Li must be brave enough to do his job."
A magistrate, speaking on this topic, gave enough face, and obviously showed his kindness to Li You. But did Li You dare to respond in a friendly manner?
Even if I chop off my hand, I can’t pick up your olive branch. Li You secretly said, “Prefect Mao, you must not be nice to me. Whoever you are nice to now will be unlucky in the future.”
How can he completely draw a clear line with Magistrate Mao when everyone else is watching? Li You had an idea and said to Magistrate Mao: "When I had nothing to do, I wrote a poem and presented it to Lord Mao. If you don't encourage farmers to grow mulberry trees, don't raise rivers."
, the people in the south of the city burst into tears. When the national tax is raised for three liters and one dou is collected, how high will the price of rice rise day by day?"
Everyone was surprised when they heard it. This poem clearly criticized Mao Zhifu for his unreasonable diet, excessive taxation, ineffective governance, and boiling public resentment. It also satirized the recent rise in rice prices. Has Mr. Li lost his mind and gone crazy? He dared to do this so blatantly.
Insult someone in person and directly go to an official, especially when the official has just shown kindness to you. With such qualities, it would be a pity not to be a strong-willed public official, some people thought.
Magistrate Mao's face was livid. He was somewhat wise and finally restrained himself.
Zhao Liangyi frowned and felt unhappy, feeling that Li You was too arrogant and ignorant of dignity. Zhao Liangli was baffled. With his understanding of Li You, he would not be so ignorant of good and evil. What happened today?
Indeed, ignorance of good and evil seemed to be the most common point among everyone present. How could they know what Li You was thinking.
Li You looked around and sighed in his heart, after a while, you will know how wise I am, but now I really have no close friends.
During the quiet moment, the sick young man standing behind Zhao Liangyi suddenly fainted and fell to the ground, causing panic. Zhao Liangli shouted to the servant: "Quickly go and ask for the doctor in the mansion!"
Li You grabbed a servant and asked about it, and then he realized that this young man who looked familiar was the only son of Mr. Zhao Er, the fourth in the family. But the four sons were weak and sick, so they did not go to office with their father and stayed at home.
Keep it up. Recently, his father returned home. He wanted to fulfill his filial duty so he supported his sick body to serve his father, but now he couldn't support it anymore.
The servant knew that Li You was friends with the third master, so he sighed without telling anyone else: "The second master's house is not crowded, the fourth master has no children yet, and his health is like this, ugh..."
After such trouble, the party naturally ended hastily. Li You left the Zhao Mansion to see that it was still early, and when he was about to get up from the sedan chair to return to the Yamen, Zhang San, the chief attendant, came over and said: "I have something to report to the master, Madam Fu.
The place to settle down is on the way back to the Yamen."
When Li You heard this, he wanted to stop by and take a look. If there was anything wrong, he had to take care of it. After walking for a quarter of an hour, Zhang San led the sedan into a certain alley, stopped outside a door, and pointed:
"This is it."
Li You asked Zhang San to wait outside and went to knock on the door himself. Not long after, a middle-aged man opened the door from inside, probably Madam Fu's distant uncle. He asked doubtfully: "Who is the junior official?"
"I am a relative of Madam Fu. Is she here?" Li You replied.
The middle-aged man invited Li You in.
When Li You walked to the yard, he saw Mrs. Fu standing in the yard, gesturing to the middle-aged woman opposite: "You guys are too slow, hurry up and clean up the debris in the room. Otherwise, there are so many dirty things, call me."
How to place it!”
The middle-aged woman was scolded, but she had a flattering look on her face and nodded repeatedly.
What a restless bitch, why did my offspring end up in your belly? Li You couldn't help cursing in his heart.
Madam Fu turned around and saw Li You, then came up to greet her: "Li..."
I just said one word and got stuck. I didn't know what to call him. It was obviously inappropriate to call him Uncle Li.
At this time, the middle-aged couple came up to Li You and said to them, "I want to go out to make a living. Please speak slowly if your relatives have anything to say." After saying that, they left.
Li You asked: "What's going on?"
"The two of them are ignorant. They heard that a relative of a government official sent a concubine to join him, so they fawned over her." Mrs. Fu said disdainfully.
Li You began to worry, what kind of moral character would a child born to such a shallow and philistine mother have?
When Mrs. Fu saw that Li You was silent, she took the initiative to say something: "I miss Brother Jie."
Thinking of Brother Jie, Li You was stunned. The face of Brother Jie flashed in his mind, and the shadow of the fourth son of the Zhao family flashed in his mind. After a comparison, he found that Brother Jie was simply a young version of the fourth son.
The eyebrows, eyes, and face are very similar. No wonder he looks very familiar to Mr. Zhao!