Top Scholar

Chapter 433 Zhu Zhishan, the Six-Fingered Madman

The two-masted official ship sailed down the river, its apricot-yellow flag bearing the inscription "By Imperial Decree to Take the Examination" fluttering in the river breeze.

Huang E and She Yunluo stayed temporarily at the Nanjing Zhuangyuan Mansion because the latter vomited while eating lion's head meatballs, and a doctor was called in to check and found that she was pregnant...

The date should be on the way here.

Su Lu was both impressed and shocked that his second brother and sister-in-law had been working in the wilderness every day, enduring wind and rain, yet they hadn't neglected anything.

She Yunluo wanted to go north with them, but considering the cold winter and the fact that the latter half of the journey would be by land, she was ultimately forced to stay. Huang E naturally stayed behind to accompany her second sister-in-law, and they would go to the capital next spring after the ice thawed.

However, Su Lu didn't need to worry about being lonely on the journey. Besides his classmates, there was also the six-fingered genius Zhu Zhishan on the ship.

"Hey, Brother Zhishan, what are you doing on our boat?" Su Lu didn't notice him for quite some time after he started sailing.

“I’m going to take the exam too, my dear brother.” Zhu Zhishan said with a smile, “I even told them I was your friend before they let me on the boat.”

He winked at Zhu Zihe and the others, saying, "Now do you believe me? Su Jieyuan and I are old friends."

"We've only met once," Su Lu complained.

"I even treated you to flower drinks..." Zhu Zhishan said, his eyes wide.

"No, no, don't talk nonsense!" Su Lu quickly covered the Six-Fingered Pervert's mouth and changed the subject, saying, "Why didn't Brother Zhishan go to the capital with the candidates from Suzhou?"

"Oh dear, there's nothing I can do. My son is also going to the capital to take the imperial examination..." Zhu Zhishan sighed.

"How dare you swear at people?!" The scholars were furious and wanted to throw him into the river.

"No, no, it's a real son, the kind that he and his wife had together." Zhu Zhishan quickly waved his hand to explain, "He's a new candidate for the imperial examination this year, just like you. If I go to the capital with him to take the exam, wouldn't it be awkward for both of us?"

"I understand." Su Lu felt completely empathetic and told everyone not to make things difficult for Zhu Zhishan anymore. Then he asked him, "Where is Brother Bohu?"

"He's gone back to Peach Blossom Village in Suzhou. He said he was afraid of being reminded of the past, so he wouldn't see you off. He just wished you good luck on your journey to the capital," Zhu Zhishan said.

"Alas, Tang Jieyuan is a pitiful man..." the crowd said with sympathy.

“He’s not pitiful at all.” Zhu Zhishan curled his lip and said indignantly, “In just a few days in Nanjing, he abducted Shen Jiuniang, a famous courtesan from Jinling, and took her back to Suzhou for the New Year.”

"He's quite wealthy," Bai Yunshan exclaimed. "The famous courtesans in Jinling are all made of gold; a single tea set costs fifty taels!"

“He doesn’t even have to pay, you know that?” Zhu Zhishan said, “The lady of the house pays for all the expenses, and they still flock to him.”

"Great!"

"I admire you!" The group of scholars immediately stood in awe. Zhu Zihe teased Baiyun Mountain, saying, "Compared to Tang Jieyuan, you're just a fake scholar who spent money."

"A talented scholar? More like a scapegoat! He's been to several tea parties, spent three hundred taels of silver, and hasn't even gotten a hand in front of her!" Lei Jun bluntly exposed.

"Don't slander me out of thin air! I didn't spend that much money!" Baiyun Mountain became Hongyun Mountain.

"So they really didn't touch hands!" The classmates burst into laughter. "Hahaha!"

Su Lu also burst into laughter, his gloomy mood from last night dissipating considerably...

~~
That night, the official boat stayed at Guazhou Post Station at the mouth of the Grand Canal.

This time, the grand scene of the entire city's officials and people welcoming Su Jieyuan was not repeated, which made Su Lu feel relieved but also a little disappointed.

He couldn't help but laugh at himself inwardly, realizing that his popularity wasn't truly his own; the moment he stopped getting traffic, his true colors would be revealed...

He quickly and silently reflected on himself, reciting in his heart: 'Remain unmoved by favor or disgrace, and treat it with indifference.'

"Don't be sad." Zhu Zhishan stood beside him with a smile and said, "This means those people let you go..."

Upon hearing this, Su Lu looked at the seemingly foolish Zhu Zhishan in astonishment. "Brother Six Fingers really has the face of a pig, but his mind is sharp!"
"Hey, don't be so surprised," Zhu Zhishan laughed. "I'm an old scholar who passed the imperial examination in the fifth year of the Hongzhi reign. I've eaten more salt than you've eaten rice."

"Is the imperial examination really that terrible? How could a great talent like Brother Zhishan fail the exam after fifteen years?" Lin Zhihong asked softly from the side.

"It's not that scary, it's just that because I have a more famous maternal grandfather, the examiners are always reluctant to choose me," Zhu Zhishan sighed.

"Who is your maternal grandfather that everyone hates?" the crowd asked curiously.

“It’s Wugong Bo,” Zhu Zhishan said with a wry smile.

"Yes!" everyone said in unison.

The Earl of Wugong was Xu Youzhen, the Grand Secretary during the reign of Emperor Yingzong.

He accomplished two major feats in his life: first, he launched the coup d'état; second, he caused the death of Yu Shaobao…

"Hey, look at you all, it wasn't me who killed Yu Shaobao..." Zhu Zhishan said awkwardly.

“Brother Zhishan, since you’re convinced the examiners won’t choose you, why bother going through all that trouble?” Su Lu asked.

“Aren’t sycophants in power right now? What if they don’t like Junior Guardian Yu?” Zhu Zhishan whispered. “That makes perfect sense!” No one could refute it.

At this point, the boat planks were in place, and the candidates wrapped themselves tightly in their coats and, with the help of their pageboys and attendants, steadily stepped ashore.

The afterglow of the setting sun bathed the entire ferry crossing in a warm, golden-red hue, while the four powerful characters "Guazhou Ancient Ferry" on the stone archway in the center of the dock exuded an ancient and profound charm.

The scene before me makes one involuntarily recall the verses of our predecessors:
"A lone sail hangs high by the setting sun, the Yangtze River stretches to the distant sky."

The tide recedes at Guazhou ferry crossing, and the reeds rustle in the evening mist.

"Qingqiu Zi's poem must have been written at this time and place; it's so fitting!" the candidates exclaimed.

The reeds on the bank rustled in the evening breeze, and wisps of smoke rose from the courtyard not far away—the Guazhou Post Station where they would stay for the night.

Guazhou Post Station, located at the confluence of the Grand Canal and the Yangtze River, was a grand post station with seven bays across its facade. It was equipped with eighty horses, ten boats, and over one hundred postmen.

Comparing it to Wang Shouren's Longchang Post Station, it's like comparing heaven and earth...

The postmaster had already received the report and led two postmen to greet them, bowing and saying, "Your humble servant is here on the orders of Yangzhou Prefecture to await the arrival of Su Jieyuan and the candidates for the metropolitan examination!"

"This is a rather harsh reduction in treatment..." Zhu Zhishan said in a low voice, "It would be good to make it look good, even if it's just a little bit of a formality."

"Playing the sorceress and pretending to be a ghost..." All the candidates rolled their eyes at him, realizing that this guy was a despicable person.

Su Lu, however, remained calm and politely greeted the postmaster.

Upon entering the post station, the postman served tea, and the scholars presented their fire tokens and travel permits one by one. The postmaster carefully checked them and, finding them correct, led them to the guest rooms in the east courtyard.

"Our post station is located in a strategic location and is very busy. Even though it's the end of the year, accommodation is still in short supply." The postmaster explained with a smile as he led the way. "So we can't arrange single rooms for you gentlemen. Please forgive us."

"It's alright, it's warmer to be crammed together in a large dormitory," the candidates laughed. They had just passed the imperial examination and hadn't yet picked up any airs of being wealthy gentlemen.

Several wintersweet trees in the courtyard were in full bloom. The charcoal brazier in the main room was burning brightly, making the room less cold. The walls were covered with fine white hemp paper, on which were pasted vermilion notes that read "May you succeed in the imperial examinations," clearly prepared specifically for candidates.

Hundreds of poems have already been written on the white hemp paper, and judging from the dates of the signatures, they all belong to candidates who took the imperial examination this year. The postmaster smiled and said, "This is called 'Inscription on the Plum Blossom List.' Su Jieyuan and everyone else should also leave their calligraphy for good luck."

"Then next year, which high school can be sold for money, right?" Zhu Zhishan, as always, saw through it and spoke it out.

"No, I can keep them as souvenirs." The postmaster smiled sheepishly, recognizing Zhu Zhishan's six fingers, and said, "Master Zhu, this post station has already collected five of your works."

Zhu Zhishan blushed and said, "I'll save one more for you, so we can have a lucky six."

Not long after the postmaster left, dinner was delivered.

One by one, everyone lifted the lid of their food buckets and saw that tonight's main dish was Yangzhou fried rice, each grain distinct and glistening with oil, paired with braised duck of rich color and fragrant aroma, as well as steaming millet porridge and a large jar of pickled vegetables... all of which were provided to them free of charge by the post station according to regulations.

The candidates couldn't help but sigh, "Having an official position really makes a difference." Back when they went to Chengdu for the imperial examinations, not only did they have to pay for lodging at the post station, but they also had to buy groceries and cook for themselves.

While the scholars were eating, their servants had already made up their beds.

After a quick wash, everyone went up to the communal sleeping area. Many people squeezed together, blankets touching blankets and shoulders pressed together, which was quite warm.

Before lights out, everyone pestered Zhu Zhishan to tell them anecdotes about the Four Great Talents of Jiangnan.

Zhu Zhishan immediately perked up, sat up, and said with great enthusiasm, "Let me tell you my own story. Our Suzhou prefect was promoted last year by giving money to Eunuch Liu. After taking office, he naturally became even more ruthless, extorting money from the people and causing widespread resentment."

"As soon as December arrived, he still wanted to appear cultured and asked me to write a couplet for him. So, in front of all the officials, I wrote the couplet: 'Tomorrow brings spring, how unlucky! All year round, bad luck and little wealth.'"

"That's ruthless, buddy! He's openly cursing you to your face." The other candidates couldn't help but admire him.

"Won't he turn against you?" Some people were worried for him.

"Of course!" Zhu Zhishan laughed. "He immediately lost his temper and accused me of insulting my superior, demanding that the provincial education commissioner strip me of my academic title. But I laughed and said, 'Don't be so hasty, my ancestor. You misinterpreted the sentence.'"

"Then how should we cut it off?" everyone pressed.

"That's what he asked too. I casually replied, 'Tomorrow is auspicious for spring, no bad luck; few misfortunes throughout the year, plenty of wealth!' The meaning was immediately reversed!" Zhu Zhishan laughed and said, "He knew I was doing it on purpose, but he could only grit his teeth and accept it."

"Haha! Brilliant, brilliant!"

"As expected of the Six-Fingered Madman, he even managed to insult him without leaving him with a chance to retaliate!" The scholars cheered, urging him to tell another story about Tang Bohu...

“Tang Bohu’s jokes are all bawdy jokes,” Zhu Zhishan said with a troubled expression.

"Who would listen to a vegetarian version?" the crowd roared with laughter.

"Hahaha!"

Su Lu leaned back on his pillow, listening to his classmates' laughter and chatter, and for a moment he felt as if he were in another world. He thought he would never be able to return to this carefree and boring life again.

He stopped thinking about the uncertainty of the future, and instead immersed himself in this precious peace. Surrounded by the lively atmosphere and warmth of the room, he fell into a deep sleep, lulled by the sound of the river.

(End of this chapter)