Chapter 27 The Twenty-seventh Festival

Leaving Jianyang Mansion, Zeng Guofan and others took the straight road back to Beijing, which greatly shortened the itinerary. In only fifty days, the group who presided over the Sichuan Provincial Examination entered Beijing safely. It was not until I arrived at the Imperial Academy that I found out that Zeng Guofan had been promoted to Youchunfang Youshuzi of Zhan Shifu, from the fifth rank to the fifth rank. Changshun was also transferred from the palace guard to the personal guard of the fourth son of the emperor Yi, and Taizhuang was assigned to The sixth son of the emperor, Yixin, served as a bodyguard.

Yi and Yixin are the two princes who are favored by Emperor Daoguang. Some people infer that the future heir to the throne must be one of them. It is said that a monk found it out of "Tui Bei Tu". The authenticity is yet to be tested. Zhao Ji also paid the Ministry of Excellence, and each examiner also has his own reward.There are more than a dozen people in the middle of Sichuan, everyone has a share, and everyone gets a reward. It is really rain, dew, sweet spring, and the emperor's grace is mighty. It was almost noon when the documents were handed over, Zeng Guofan went to a roadside restaurant and ate a bowl of wontons, naturally the kind without spicy peppers, and then hurried to Mu's residence to pay homage to his master.

Seeing Zeng Guofan, Mu Zhang'a was really very happy, he gave up his seat and invited tea.Zeng Guofan personally presented a box of hair tips bought for his teacher in Chengdu, and a can of Shangxia water specially poured in the Three Gorges for soaking hair tips, and he took out a tattered handle of unidentifiable color from his sleeve Xiangfei Bamboo Fan. Mu Zhang'a laughed, and said, "Don't be like this in your life." He gently pushed the tip of Mao away with his hand, and opened the shapeless fan indifferently.After the fan was fully unfolded, Mu Zhang'a sat up straight suddenly, and two lights of surprise shot out from his eyes.On this very worn-out fan, a small shrimp clearly curled up in a piece of weeds in the water, and Lao Zhongtang was even more surprised by the small characters written by Liuru Lay.He put the fan flat on the case, took a magnifying glass, and looked at each place in detail.

This small bamboo fan Zeng Guofan has repeatedly appraised, and it is indeed a top-grade painting by Tang Bohu.Tang Yin seldom touches his eyes when painting shrimps, and it seems that he only touches them twice in his life.This fan was probably drawn by Tang Yin for Qiuxiang when he was very excited. It is said that the other sisters in the Tang family were jealous for a while. This bamboo fan was bought by Zeng Guofan in a time-honored antique shop in a deep alley in Chengdu.There is no way to investigate why Tang Xueshi's Dotting Shrimp ended up in Sichuan. The old shopkeeper offered two hundred taels, and declared that it would be refunded if it was not true.Zeng Guofan didn't take it too seriously at the beginning, he was determined that it is impossible for the works of Jiangnan's top talent to flow to the hinterland of Sichuan.But after careful inspection, he concluded that this is the real thing, and it is one of the only two dotted shrimps by Tang Xueshi that the ancient players in the capital have been looking for for a long time!Undoubtedly, the price offered by the boss is not high at all.Tang Yin's works usually cost between fifty taels and two hundred taels of silver, but this eye-catching shrimp is far more than two hundred taels. Zeng Guofan's estimated price for it should be between five hundred taels and one thousand taels , possibly higher.

Judging from the price offered by the old shopkeeper, it can be seen that this Xiangfei bamboo fan is treated as an ordinary work of Tang Yin.Zeng Guofan decided to buy this fan for fifty taels, and taking out one more tael would have exceeded his own budget. Very useful, not easy to unpack. Before entering Shu, Xiangxiang's father, Zeng Linshu, was going to bring his family and two younger brothers to Beijing to visit him. At the same time, he also asked Zeng Guofan, the elder brother of Hanlin, to personally guide the two younger brothers who had just entered the county school.Zeng Guofan's eldest son, Jize, has also grown to five years old, and Zeng Guofan has not yet seen his son's small appearance.Because of the test in Sichuan, he had no choice but to write a letter to explain the reason and tell his father and family to come slowly.Zeng Guofan's one thousand taels of silver was planned to be used by the family after returning to Beijing.

He took out fifty taels of silver and put it on the cabinet, and said sincerely: "I only have fifty taels. If you sell it, I will pack the fan and return it to me. If you don't sell it, please put the fan away. I have collected enough money and come to pick it up again." .” The old shopkeeper is an old antique, and his eyesight is also poisonous. From the few steps Zeng Guofan walked into the hall, he can infer that this is an official family from Beijing, but he can't tell the position or rank, so he can only judge from his behavior. Analysis is no ordinary petty official.Zeng Guofan was dressed in casual clothes that day, with a green coat and a cap, and he was dressed like a scholar.

The old shopkeeper stared at Zeng Guofan's face first, then slowly put the fan back into the cabinet, and at the same time pushed the silver out, saying: "Master, you should always put away the silver." Zeng Guofan sighed helplessly and put away the money. Pick up the silver and slowly turn around.A scene that appeared in an antique shop near Beijing Liulichang three years ago appeared in front of his eyes. On the wall of this antique shop, he found a pair of couplets written by Liu Yong, an academician during the Qianlong period. He admired it for a long time and admired it , decided to buy it and send it back to Xiangxiang for my younger brothers to write.Unexpectedly, when the shopkeeper offered the price, it was ten taels of silver without any discount.

When he saved enough money to buy it again, the couplet had already been sold.Whenever he thinks about it, he regrets it.People say that rich families hide antiques, and wealthy families buy calligraphy and paintings, which is absolutely true.Although Zeng Guofan is a poor scholar, he also loves antique calligraphy and painting, but because of his lack of money, he missed many top grades!The moment Zeng Guofan walked out of the store, he looked back suddenly, with infinite nostalgia in his eyes. "Guest officer, take a step slowly," the old shopkeeper suddenly ran out of the counter, and asked, "Dare to ask your name?"

"I'm Zeng Guofan." Zeng Guofan cupped his hands and said helplessly. "You dare to be Master Zeng who came to Sichuan from the capital to preside over the provincial examination?" "It's right down." "It's no wonder you can't get any more silver. It seems that you don't take any extra silver as the rumors say! Come on, this fan is only fifty taels for the little old man!" Zeng Guofan was so excited to get this Concubine Xiang bamboo fan that he didn't sleep well all night. "Disheng," Mu Zhang'a said as he put the fan on the case, "you got another treasure! Tang Jieyuan's paintings of shrimps are not dotted, and there are only two works with dotted eyes handed down!"

Zeng Guofan knew very well that when giving a gift, you should give something that the other party really likes but is hard to get.He stood up and said with a smile: "Teacher, how can I afford the Concubine Xiang bamboo fan! This is specially given to my teacher by my disciple, please accept it." Mu Zhang'a immediately beamed with joy, took his hand, and said politely: " How dare you do it, how dare you do it! Disheng, General Fengtian’s Mansion sent the old man a few fresh lobsters today, and I will have a sip with the old man after a while. Have you ever met a famous doctor in Sichuan this time?"

Mu Zhang'a knew very well that Zeng Guofan's ringworm was serious, so he would visit famous doctors wherever he went.But he didn't mention anything about the framing Zeng Guofan encountered in Luoyang, as if it happened overseas, but also as if it never happened.Zeng Guofan showed joy: "Mr. Xie, remember!" Then he repeated how Bao Zhijun asked Yixingtang for help and how the old shopkeeper of Yixingtang gave ointment. Zeng Guofan said: "Unexpectedly, Yixingtang's plaster is really different. The disciples put on two plasters. Before entering Beijing, they felt very itchy all over. When they took off their clothes, they were scabbed, and the internal poison was obvious. I went to some, but when the tide hits, the itching still flares up, it’s up to me to pay attention to it in the future. I sat in the office room all morning today, and I feel very stable.” Mu Zhang'a laughed and said, "Although Disheng went to Sichuan this time, he endured some hard work, but it was worth it. He was promoted and got a plaster prescription..." "This is also the result of the teacher's cultivation." Zeng Guofan smiled and shook his head, "How is the teacher's health recently?" "It's still the same, six percent can eat and four percent can sleep." Mu Zhang'a stroked his beard and said. Looking at the smiling Mu Zhanga, Zeng Guofan had mixed feelings. Although he was wary of Mu Zhanga's clique and selfishness, he never dared to forget the ancient motto of "one day is a teacher and a lifetime is a father".Therefore, every time Mu Xiang's birthday or festivals, Zeng Guofan would write a few words and send them to the mansion to show his filial piety.Before entering Shu, he had already made up his mind to find a rare thing to give to his mentor.This is also the reason why Zeng Guofan had time to visit temples and antique stalls on his way to Shu.Although it is not due to his own interests, it is also due to Zeng Guofan's sincerity to make his mentor happy. Mu Zhang'a has neither money nor power, but this kind of sincerity is the only thing he lacks.Mu Zhang has been an official for decades, and has thousands of former officials. He thinks highly of Zeng Guofan because this student can make up for the word "sincerity" that he lacks. After the meal, when Zeng Guofan was about to leave, Mu Zhang'a said, "Dasheng, you should be more careful when you do things these few days. The emperor has been in a bad mood recently and has reprimanded several ministers. According to the imperial doctor, the empress has a disease. Strange disease, abdominal swelling and no diarrhea, I have not eaten for three days, it is a very strange Qi syndrome." Zeng Guofan's heart sank suddenly.No wonder today's Imperial Academy has lost the lively atmosphere of the past. Everyone is extra careful when talking and walking.It seems that no one wants to get into trouble at this time.Zeng Guofan returned to the mansion in dismay, and Zhou Sheng followed him early. "Master," Zhou Sheng whispered, "the soldiers from Sichuan have been waiting for you for a long time, and they didn't say a word when they asked. It seems that there is something to be delivered. The younger one made him a pot of tea and just drank it in the main room. .” Zeng Guofan took a closer look, and it turned out that it was the general who came with him, so he felt relieved, sat down and asked, "Have you done all the things assigned by the military?" It's all done, and I'm going to return to Sichuan tomorrow to return to my job." "Thank you for your hard work." Zeng Guofan remained silent for a while, "Escorting the poor students all the way, the hardships are always self-evident. Zhou Sheng, go seal ten taels of silver and hand it over to this old man." "Thank you, my lord!" The soldier knelt down slightly, and suddenly pointed to the corner of the room with his hand, and said, "Please write a reply note to me, so I can go back and do business with the army." Zeng Guofan looked over with his fingers, Only then did I find a three-foot-square wooden box in the corner of the room, like a wooden cabinet for porcelain clay in Jingdezhen. The mouth of the box was sealed with the big purple flower seal of the Sichuan Governor's Yamen.Needless to say, this is naturally a gift from the Baozhi Army to Zeng Guofan. "It's really hard to guard against!" Zeng Guofan muttered in his heart, and then raised his voice, "Zhou Sheng, please open the box." The box was quickly opened, and forty official coins appeared neatly in front of Zeng Guofan's eyes. Each envelope was fifty taels, and forty envelopes were two thousand taels, which was equal to one piece of Cheng Yi!Facing the two thousand taels of neat silver, Zeng Guofan pondered for a while, then picked up a pen and paper, and wrote a thank you letter to Baoxing, which was nothing more than humble words such as being grateful for the care and receiving it. I got the reply letter from the general manager and went back to the inn happily.Zhou Sheng sent it straight to the outside of the gate before closing the door. But Zeng Guofan asked Zhou Sheng to open a bamboo box in the bedroom, and he took out an oiled paper bag from it, then closed it again and put it back in its original place.This oil-paper bag has been with him since he entered Hanlin in Beijing. It has been with him for five years and has never left.