At that time, Fan Zhanghou and the youth from the Imperial Astronomer had a discussion in front of the Emperor and Empress. In the end, six people stayed until the end. Among them, Chen Wang and the zhuangyuan Li Jifu had a good chat, the "Imperial Brother-in-law" Yan Chiji chatted with Song Keli, and he, Fan Zhanghou, got along well with the crazy Sun Yin on chess. Interestingly, his experience in the bureaucracy of the capital followed this trend. Li Jifu was often an honored guest of the Chen Manor, and in the Hanlin Academy, Yan Chiji and the young phoenix of the Song Family studied history together. It was said that they got along very well. Although Fan Zhanghou and Sun Yin were not close friends, they would occasionally talk about the state of the world. Today, Fan Zhanghou met with Sun Yin and then went to the Xinran Pavilion together. In Great Peace City, many officials would laugh and say, "High officials ride thin horses and don't show off their wealth." But Sun Yin, who had been banished, was different. He openly bought a tall horse from Beiliang and rode this horse to and fro every court meeting and when he was on duty. It was very eye-catching. Today, Fan Zhanghou had the good fortune to ride a horse with the wind. He rode the same horse with Sun Yin. When they arrived near the Xinran Pavilion, where there were many carriages and tourists, Fan Zhanghou flipped off the horse and couldn't help but rub his butt. Sun Yin, this guy, really rode in Great Peace City.
Fan Zhanghou was going to suffer. When Sun Yin saw Fan Zhanghou's sorry state, he gloated.
They arrived at the Xinran Pavilion one after the other in an inconspicuous carriage. Two men wearing simple but elegant green robes stepped out. Sun Yin saw that they were Chen Wang, the assistant of the Left Scattered Cavalry, and Li Jifu, the Zhuangyuan scholar. He originally thought that, according to Sun Yin's noble nature, he would at most give them a sidelong glance and then ignore them. Unexpectedly, Sun Yin actually took the initiative to pull him forward. Li Jifu, who also saw the two of them, obviously did not expect Sun Yin to greet them. He could not conceal the incredulity in his eyes. On the other hand, Chen Shaobao, who was the most successful official in the entire Liyang Dynasty, whose official career was comparable to that of Jin Saburo, did not show the slightest bit of surprise. He warmly smiled at them and said, "Brother Sun, Mr. Yuetian, let me make it clear in advance that I still won't drink today. I can only use tea as a substitute for wine.
Sun Yin coldly snorted and said, "So what if you drink tea? I'll drink wine. Let's each have a cup. I can still make the assistant go to the toilet four, five, six, or seven times."
Chen Wang bitterly smiled and cupped his fists to beg for mercy. "Brother Sun, please don't bully a fellow countryman. I implore Brother Sun to point the spearhead at Ji Fu. Otherwise, Mr. Yuetian is also fine."
Fan Zhanghou smiled and said, "Assistant Minister, you can't just rely on your high official status to divert trouble to someone else. It will damage the reputation of the court."
Li Jifu looked at the three people who were talking without restraint and felt a little envious. Although he had many private gatherings with the Assistant Minister, who was both a relative of the Emperor and an important official of the court, he had never really let loose. Every time he returned home from a gathering, he would even think carefully about whether there was something wrong with his words or if there was something wrong with his words or if he had been rude. It was no wonder that Li Jifu was worried about personal gains and losses. Everyone knew that Chen Shaobao, who was the number one official of the Emperor, would soon have a place in the small court meeting. Moreover, compared to other officials in the capital, Li Jifu knew more reliable insider information. The Secretariat of the Liyang imperial court had been empty for decades. After Qi Yanglong took over, it could be said that there were many things waiting to be done. Chen Wang, who was the assistant minister of the Left Scattered Cavalry in Menxia Province, although he was already a third-rank official, it was very likely that he would be transferred to the Secretariat of the Secretariat within a year or two and take up the position of assistant minister of the Secretariat that no one had yet "confirmed". There were many assistant ministers in the three provinces and six ministries, but the assistant minister of the Secretariat of the Secretariat was undoubtedly the most important one. It was not that the Hanlin Academy did not have a good title, but it was the trend. However, these rules did not affect Chen Shaobao. A thirty-year-old assistant minister of the Secretariat of the Secretariat might not be considered shocking in the old Liyang dynasty, but Li Jifu dared to say that this was a feat that would never be repeated in the future.
Zhao Youling, Yin Maochun, Jin Lanting, all of them had their eyes fixed on the title of "Grand Secretary".
However, only Chen Wang was so absent-minded and leisurely strolling.
Perhaps many people present at the time did not expect that this gathering at the Xinran Pavilion in the second year of the Auspicious Era would leave behind many popular and elegant stories in the history of the future.
Dong Juran, who was personally praised by Tantanon as "the son of the Dong family has ghosts and gods, whose writing is like a spring breeze," wrote the famous poem "Xinran Pavilion". Huang Quan, the young artist who had helped Tantanon make an exception for Qi Yanglong, was personally spread out on rice paper by the assistant minister of the Ministry of Rites, Jin Lanting. After getting drunk, he splashed ink and painted a painting that was hung in the imperial study that day, "Drunken Eight Immortals". As for the poem that spread throughout the capital almost overnight, it was started by Sun Yin, followed by Jin Lanting, Yan Chiji, Song Keli, Chen Wang, Fan Zhanghou, and Gao Tingshu, a total of sixty-four people. Together, they wrote this world-shaking long poem.
Of course, on this day, how could the Xinran Pavilion only be filled with handsome heroes and not beautiful women? The three most popular courtesans in the capital, each with their own merits, went up the stage one after another. They either danced or sang, especially the woman who had once been on the Rouge List, Li Baishi, who was known as the best in both voice and appearance. Her solo dance could be said to have shocked everyone. What was even more surprising was that after that day, there was no news of Li Baishi in Great Peace City. She disappeared so decisively, as if she had never been in this world. Afterwards, based on the words she said at the banquet, people guessed that she had fallen in love with an unknown swordsman and wanderer. From then on, they went off to roam the jianghu together.
There was no wind and rain, and the wind naturally dissipated.
The people at the banquet didn't leave until late at night. Li Jifu was already drunk to the point of unconsciousness. Chen Wang, the highest-ranking official and the only one who did not drink, wanted to personally take Li Jifu away, but was urged to stay. He really couldn't leave and could only ask someone to take Li Jifu back. That person was the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Jin Lanting. He personally helped Li Jifu back to the carriage with Gao Tingshu. Sun Yin also left late. He came with two people, but left alone, as if there was no one around. He rode his horse wildly, smelling of alcohol, and shocked many of the graceful ladies of the large families in the capital. Under the crowd's instigation, Fan Zhanghou and Wu Congxian had another "battle of who's first and who's last". Both sides played their best moves one after another. Although Wu Congxian lost the game, he didn't lose his momentum, which made the spectators exclaim in satisfaction. After this game, Wu Congxian vaguely established Fan Zhanghou's second place in Liyang's Go. Yan Chiji, Song Keli, and that fellow villager nicknamed Kong Wu Chi left together. "Xinran Pavilion," "Drunken Eight Immortals," and "Heroes Travel to the Capital" were all given to this young relative of the Emperor. He would immediately send them to the Imperial Palace.
Deep in the night, the lights were still bright. There were only a dozen people left in Xinran Pavilion. Everyone in the capital knew that Chen Wang, who usually did not touch alcohol, was the last to leave. Fan Zhanghou and Wu Congxian had already finished their game of Go. The latter and a group of friends left in high spirits. The people still in the pavilion were all new nobles in the Great Peace City. They were also willing to put down their faces to get close to Chen Wang, a high official in the central government. However, they were all scholars. Even if they drank too much, their chatter and actions did not diminish their scholarly habits. And Chen Wang was never the kind of person who liked to put on airs, so he got along well with them. In the end, it was unknown who was still unsatisfied, so they spent some money to call over a musician who had earned money in this gathering. The woman held a pipa in her arms and did not wear any makeup. Although she was not a national beauty, under the flickering lights, there was a hint of lovely and moving feeling. She was very timid. It was clear that business at the banquet today was slow and she did not attract any business. She was not like the other women of the same trade. While they were tired, they had already returned full of money. This woman sat on a small stool prepared outside the pavilion. Before she played the pipa, she quickly glanced at the people sitting on the prayer mats in front of the pavilion. There were more than a dozen people, most of them sitting on the prayer mats on the steps. The steps had different heights. At the highest point sat two young men side by side. She could guess that since these people were able to appear in Xinran Pavilion and not far from the pavilion like most of the scholars, then they should be the most important people at the banquet today. They were the true important people of Great Peace City. Even if they were not today, they would be in the future. She was lost in thought for a moment. She was very curious what it would be like if these young masters who were waiting for her pipa played put on their official robes.
The young master who had hired her to sing was sitting at the bottom of the steps. He smiled and reminded her in a gentle voice, "Miss, it is time to start."
Her pretty face blushed and she appeared slightly nervous. She said softly, "Young master, please wait a moment. Allow this servant to test the sound."
Hearing the woman gently twist the strings of the pipa, Fan Zhanghou, who had intentionally or unintentionally sat next to Chen Shaobao, said with a slight smile, "This is the typical technique of the Wu Family of Jiang Zuo in our Xiangzhou. The lower part is the strength of the upper part. The tone is not high, the rhythm is not rushed, and it is slow. It is not as full as the big bows of the north, but it has its own unique charm. Due to this, the song is also a small tune with the charm of Jiangnan. After drinking too much, it is very comfortable to listen to this song. "
Chen Wang smiled and nodded. He said softly, "I only learned about the pipa when I came to Jing. In my hometown, there is a saying about the drum on horseback. In the past, I was just a poor scholar and did not go to the border to study. I am ashamed to say that even if I wanted to pretend to be cultured, I would only be a laughingstock. Therefore, in these years, I have sensibly not attended banquets and gatherings. Other people say that I am not good at raising Wang, that is really flattering me. "
"The name of the song, Daughter's Red, refers to the Jiangnan water, Jiangnan wine, and Jiangnan women …"
Then he heard the woman's clear and melodious voice reciting the first part of the song. Fan Zhanghou was surprised. He smiled and said, "What a coincidence. It refers to the Daughter's Red Wine. My hometown has this custom since ancient times. When a daughter is born, they will bury a jar of wine. When the wine is drunk, it is the day the woman gets married. In addition, there is also the Zhuangyuan Red, which is taken out for banquets when the man in the family obtains scholarly honors … "
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