According to Ning Yi's previous plan, he had planned to go to Yushan Academy after running one round outside. Now that he was soaked, he had no choice but to go back and change. It was already early August of the lunar calendar. It was not a good feeling to go home after being drenched. His physical fitness did not seem to have improved much. He would probably catch a cold the next day. Fortunately, he did not go far before he met someone he knew. It was Elder Qin's concubine, whom he had met a few times.
When Ning Yi went out to exercise, he naturally did not choose the direction that led to the downtown area. He was most familiar with the street where he often played chess with Elder Qin. Elder Qin's concubine was called Yunniang. She was in her thirties and had been a prostitute in her early years. However, she did not seem to be seductive. Ning Yi had seen her bring lunch to Elder Qin a few times. Rong Zhi was dignified and generous. He could even exchange a few poems with Elder Qin during their conversation. At this time, he met Yunniang on the road. She was dressed like a peasant woman with simple clothes and braided hairpins. She carried a rattan basket with fresh fruits and vegetables that she had just picked from the nearby fields. When she saw Ning Yi, she was surprised.
After a brief greeting, Yunniang asked what happened. Ning Yi pointed to the Qinhuai River not far away and said, "He fell into the river." Yunniang smiled slightly and did not ask further. She only asked Ning Yi to follow her to the house nearby and said, "The autumn wind is strong. If you walk back like this, I am afraid you will catch a cold tomorrow. Young Master Ning is Master's good friend, so don't stand on ceremony. Master is also at home now … Oh, he said yesterday that you haven't been playing chess these days. "
Ning Yi and Elder Qin played chess on a nearby street. He only knew that Elder Qin lived here, but he had not been to the specific location. At this time, he followed Yunniang into the house and saw the old man reading an ancient scroll in the living room. At this time, his expression was solemn and serious, even faintly revealing an authoritative dignity, quite different from the expression he had when he set up the chess stall by the river. Seeing someone come in, he raised his head and squinted his eyes for a few seconds before reacting, looking a little dumbfounded. Yunniang walked over with a smile. Before she said anything, he nodded. After all, it was indeed clear at a glance what the most important thing to do was.
"Ask Xiao Hong to prepare some hot water. Yunniang, go and get a set of Da Lang's clothes … Haha, little friend Liheng, what's going on with you?"
After arranging the business, the old man laughed. In his laughter, there was a sense of schadenfreude in his laughter, as if he had obtained a good move in chess. In fact, after playing chess these days, the old man could be said to be very familiar with it. Usually, the old man would not be polite to call him boy Liheng. It was probably because he saw him in a difficult situation that he smiled and called him little friend, but his expression was also quite happy. Ning Yi also smiled helplessly and spread out his hands. After all, the old man's concubine was present, so he could not casually say, "You old man, you are taking pleasure in my misfortune."
Compared with the Su family's courtyard in Jiangning City, which could be said to occupy a vast area, the Qin family's house was not big, and the degree of wealth was naturally not comparable, but it could still be regarded as a good rich family. From front to back, it was well taken care of, making people feel fulfilled. The house, which was full of the fragrance of books and life, had a kind of foundation that made people feel at ease. Although Yunniang personally went out to pick the fruits and vegetables in the morning, in fact, there were a few maids and servants in the house. A family that could afford to support a few servants was, after all, not a family that was financially good.
Elder Qin's first wife was a very amiable and amiable woman. She used to be a peasant woman, but she did not have the stingy or mean character of ordinary peasant women. Now in her fifties, she usually managed the house and took care of some fruits. Just now, the abandoned garden that Ning Yi saw Yunniang picking the fruits and vegetables out of was personally cultivated by Madam Qin and her family. Elder Qin himself probably also helped. Perhaps it was because of this kind of temperament that he could take care of the house so well. Madam Qin and Yunniang had a good relationship. Such a husband and wife could probably be regarded as a model family under the system of polygamy.
After Ning Yi took a hot bath and came out in new clothes, Madam Qin looked up and down at his attire. She was very pleased. "Old Master, when Young Master Ning wears these clothes, he looks a bit like Dalang." Ning Yi looked at the clothes. They were indeed the style of a young man, and the cloth was also new. It must be the clothes of Elder Qin's son. The old man had two sons, and both of them were out of town. Hearing Madam Qin's words, Elder Qin nodded. Then, he asked Ning Yi why he fell into the river. Ning Yi told him about the unlucky incident that happened earlier, and the old man laughed again.
"You little brat, you're really despicable to slander someone's innocence."
"That's too much of a backstab …"
"Haha … but … backstab? Is there an allusion to this sentence? "
"…" It was not good to talk to a learned person, asking for allusion for no reason. When playing chess, Ning Yi smiled and explained, "It's a long story." After a while, Madam Qin prepared breakfast, and together with Yunniang called Elder Qin and Ning Yi over. During the meal, they chatted about Ning Yi's first few days of lessons at Yu Shan Academy. In Elder Qin's view, Ning Yi was a complete rookie in teaching. Naturally, he couldn't help but ridicule Ning Yi for misleading the students. Then, they talked about the Mid-Autumn Festival.
"Pu Yuan Poetry Gathering … the Pu family's six boats, interesting, but the people who went there did not have any talent in poetry. If one were to say that it was the Still water Poetry Gathering of the Pan family that caused many scholars to flock to like ducks …"
"Oh, scholars — — very talented ones?"
"Haha, it's hard to say what they think. There is always some talent in poetry. Every year at the Mid-Autumn Festival, there are always a few good poems from the Still Water Academy. The Pan family has three generations of Hanlin scholars. If they have talent and desire to be famous, they are always willing to go there — — "
On the night of Qinhuai's Mid-Autumn Festival, there were many poetry gatherings, big and small. Often, there would be some hidden competition between the poetry gatherings. One poetry gathering produced a good poem, another poetry gathering produced an even better one. Often, it would be hyped up that night, and in the next few months or even years, it would become a legend. Of course, there were also the hype of various merchants and even the government behind the scenes. But in any case, the reputation of Qinhuai River was set off in such an atmosphere.
The Pu Yuan Poetry Meet and the Still Water Poetry Meet were one of the most influential poetry gatherings that night. Although the Pu Yuan Poetry Meet was called the Pu Yuan Poetry Meet, in fact, it was made up of six big boats that drifted on the Qinhuai River all night, drinking and reciting poems, watching fireworks and lights on both sides of the river, and there were also various performances on the boats.
The Pu family was originally a wealthy merchant, but the merchant status was low. After becoming rich, they wanted to lean towards the direction of scholars. Unfortunately, such a thing could not be done in a few years or even a decade. His family was very big, and in recent years, there were a few talented scholars, slightly better than the Su family, but now in the eyes of the world, it was still not a scholarly family. The Pu Yuan Poetry Meet on the Qinhuai River was famous for its grandeur, extravagance, and liveliness. But most of the people who attended were similar to the Pu family with merchant backgrounds or connections, such as Xue Jin and Su Tan'er, just to join in the fun. If there were self-proclaimed scholars who wrote poems, the other half was used to make connections and discuss business. The quality of the poems varied. It was the most extravagant poetry meet, but it could not be compared to the top poetry gatherings.
The Still Water Poetry Meet was a gathering of the true top scholars in the Qinhuai River region. The Pan family was a true scholarly family, with three generations of Hanlin scholars. This generation's Pan Mingchen, as a Hanlin scholar, was also the assistant minister of the Ministry of Rites. The poetry gatherings held by his family had always attracted the attention of many scholars who wanted to obtain scholarly honors. Of course, if one really wanted to obtain the qualifications to participate in the poetry meet, one must have a certain level of talent or sufficient connections. Apart from some scholars who had long been famous to receive invitations, every year before the Mid-Autumn Festival, there were also many scholars who came to the Pan residence to send their name cards, presenting their poems in hopes of gaining favour. And in addition to this, many famous courtesans of the brothels also felt it was an honour to be invited to participate in the Still Water Poetry Meet. This was completely different from the Pu Yuan Poetry Meet, spending a large sum of money to invite people every year.
"Since you are prepared to participate, has little friend Liheng prepared any poems? The Pan family also have a few chess friends, if you are interested, you can ask for an invitation."
After Elder Qin finished, he looked across the table at Ning Yi. Ning Yi shook his head with a smile, "I don't understand poetry, I'm just going to Pu Yuan to watch the fun."
He had refused lightly, and Elder Qin could not say anything more. After breakfast, the sun was already high outside, and Ning Yi had to leave for Yushan Academy. After seeing him off to the door and watching him leave, Yunniang smiled and asked Elder Qin, "Master, could it be that Young Master Ning really doesn't understand poetry?"
"Little Yun 'er, what do you think?"
Yunniang blinked her eyes, "Is he lying?"
"Haha, whether he knows or not, I also don't know. If the first few people said so, I would believe it. But now, it's hard to say. " Old Man Qin shook his head and smiled, "I've seen many people in my life. I've seen young people who are either fishing for fame or truly talented. As for those who are truly knowledgeable, some follow the teachings of Confucius and Mencius and are gentle and upright, modest and courteous. There are also those who are wild and unconventional, flamboyant and unrestrained, but they are truly talented and always amaze others. But no matter what, these are all just the same things. Only this Ning Family brat, I really can't understand what he's thinking. "
"When I first played chess with him, I felt that he took an unconventional approach. Every time he made an aggressive move, it always made me think. I just thought that he was a flamboyant and quick-witted young man. He didn't talk too much when he spoke. But after playing for a long time, I found that his way of playing chess was right and strange, and he was not bound by rules at all. After chatting for a while, I also felt that although this Ning boy spoke casually, he was calm and diluted inside. Occasionally, he would say thought-provoking things, which sounded novel, but in fact, it was not far from the truth. "
"I remember a few days ago, when I mentioned that he was going to school to teach, he casually mentioned a few words. Teaching is not to teach people how to do things, but to teach people how to do things. The ancient sages wrote books to establish their theories, and the most important thing was to talk about the ways of the world and the operation of people's hearts. After understanding these things and knowing how to do things, that is a real scholar. At that time, he said it casually. If those shallow people heard it, I'm afraid that they would label him as a crazy student, but … the truth, it is indeed the truth. See the mountain is the mountain, see the water is the water, see the mountain is not the mountain, see the water is not the water, and then return to see the mountain is the mountain, see the water is the water. Only then can you understand the book. Well, don't spread his words, or I'm afraid it will bring some trouble to people. "
"I know."
"We've only known each other for a short time, so it's still too early to draw too high a conclusion. But when we played chess, he also said a few poems that fit the occasion. Those poems were very good, but I've never heard them before. If it's just about poetry, I don't believe that he doesn't understand."
Elder Qin turned around and walked back, and Yunniang followed, "Then why does Young Master Ning always keep a low profile, no matter what …"
"That's why I don't understand, but there's one thing I understand." Speaking of this, Elder Qin frowned slightly, then shook his head and sighed softly, "Like what you said, Little Yun, some young people, even if they have talent and learning, can hide their strengths and bide their time, or can deliberately hide their inadequacies, can endure loneliness, and can resist a moment of temptation. This is also in the hope that they will have more achievements in the future, and one day, become a fish that leaps over the dragon gate and soars to the sky. But, for any of these people, they will not choose to marry into a merchant's family as a son-in-law before they become famous. Since ancient times, how many of those who marry into a merchant's family can achieve great achievements? Alas, if he really is a great talent, it's really a pity … "
Speaking of this, Elder Qin still felt a little pity. It was normal for men to have the desire for fame and wealth, or to say, ambition. Based on these days of contact, even if this Ning Yi had a little ambition, he would not marry into a merchant's family. At this time, the people's wisdom was not developed, and the difference between uneducated people and educated scholars was very easy to see. Not to mention whether he was really talented, but a person with such a way of talking and bearing would not starve to death by doing anything. Why would he run to marry into a family?
*****
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
