fake gentry

Zhai Tang lived in seclusion in the southern mountains of Xunyang for more than ten years, farming for food and refusing any gifts from others, always leading a life of poverty.

Gan Bao and Zhai Tang were close friends. When Gan Bao was the governor of Shian, he specially sent someone to deliver a boatload of goods to Zhai Tang and instructed his subordinates to tell Zhai Gong to be honest and modest, and to leave the boatload of goods after delivering the letter.

Zhai Tang, however, sold the goods and exchanged them for silk, which he then sent to Gan Bao.

Nanshan is Lushan.

Young gentry often came to Mount Lu in groups to travel and hold various gatherings, but these were all small-scale events.

However, when Zhai Tang decided to hold a gathering of scholars, it immediately caused a sensation throughout Jiangzhou. The prefect of Xunyang County regarded it as a top priority. Unfortunately, there were not many young scholars in the county, and none of them were outstanding.

But the neighboring Yuzhang Prefecture was different. It had many prominent local families, even more scholars living in the area, and dozens of aristocratic disciples passing through. This gathering was truly a gathering of distinguished people.

With Zhai Tang's reputation, which Jiangzhou gentry member wouldn't want to come and make a name for themselves?

Even if you don't become a familiar face, being able to attend such a grand event is something to talk about.

"My lord, why aren't you wearing those fine clothes?"

Ah Heng looked at Xie Hong and asked, puzzled.

Xie Hong wore a plain-colored linen robe with wide sleeves, a plain-colored turban on his head, a simple linen belt around his waist, and a pair of low-toothed wooden clogs. His attire was simple and clean.

"I'm going to pay my respects, not to challenge them." Xie Hong was very satisfied with his appearance, stuffed the invitation into his pocket, and turned to walk out of the cave.

Liu Chong and Chen San were already prepared, and more than a dozen refugees were waiting at the cave entrance. When Xie Hong came out, Liu Chong asked Aheng the same question: "Brother, aren't you afraid of being turned away dressed like that?"

Chen San seemed to have guessed Xie Hong's intention and laughed, "Young Master Xie is too cautious."

The remaining refugees looked at Xie Hong respectfully, their eyes filled with an indescribable fear, lest Xie Hong gain the judgment of a renowned scholar and be directly appointed to an official post, abandoning them.

Meanwhile, the craftsmen and laborers of Dongshi Fortress were overjoyed, their words filled with the hope that Young Master Xie would rise to great heights. In that case, Ah Heng and Ah Ling would be daughters of the Dong clan, and the Dong clan would naturally rise in status as well.

Yesterday afternoon, Ge Hong and Xi Zhong had already left. Xi Zhong, having participated in this gathering of refined scholars, was about to set off for Jiankang via Yangzhou, and then head north to Yanzhou.

It was Xie Hong's idea for the three of them not to travel together.

He wanted to see who was plotting against him. If Ge Hong and Xi Zhong were with him, the other party might not have shown up so easily.

Chen San continued to impersonate his old servant, Liu Chong remained his bodyguard, and he took the lively and clever Aheng as his maid, leaving Li Shi and A Ling to guard the house.

Xie Hong led Aheng onto the oxcart, Chen San led the ox, and Liu Chong cleared the way. When the four of them and the cart were still a few miles away from Huangshiyan, oxcarts began to appear one after another on the main road.

As we drove further ahead, we encountered a traffic jam.

Laughter and conversation filled the air, revealing the so-called scholarly demeanor of this era. Unfortunately, Xie Hong's attention was entirely focused on the cow dung scattered all over the road.

It smells so damn strong.

The organizers' execution was far too weak; didn't they even know to send someone to maintain order?

Fortunately, not far along, clerks from the Chaisang County government began to appear, but they selectively guided the group.

Young scholars from humble backgrounds could choose whether or not to attend, while those with some degree of social standing or reputation were led by servants. Scholars with both social standing and reputation were led by clerks themselves.

If one encountered a famous scholar who even had an invitation, then the county clerk would personally attend to him.

When it was Xie Hong's turn, he calmly took out his invitation, and immediately a clerk came to clear the way for him, while the other young scholars could only curse and cause all sorts of trouble.

This is the spirit of the Wei and Jin dynasties. People who follow the rules and regulations will never catch the eye of others. You have to do whatever is eye-catching. Even if you run naked in public, no one will laugh at you. On the contrary, they will give you a thumbs up.

Xie Hong asked the clerk a couple of questions and learned that the current governor of Xunyang was named Zhou Guang.

Xie Hong couldn't help but purse his lips.

This fellow was the second son of the famous general Zhou Fang and a confidant of Wang Dun. He was quite brave and quick-witted, and he led a thousand men to follow Wang Dun when Wang Dun launched his rebellion.

Upon learning of Wang Dun's death, he immediately persuaded his elder brother Zhou Fu to leave the rebel army, which led to the army's collapse. He then captured the rebel general Qian Feng and went to Jiankang to plead guilty, thus saving his family. He was even granted a baronial title and eventually died in office as the governor of Xunyang.

His son later became a prefect.

Xie Hong looked down on this guy to some extent.

As we traveled further along the road, we saw more and more oxcarts, and gradually, some of the more luxurious ones appeared. These were high-class oxcarts, with oilcloth curtains hanging outside the carriages to protect them from rain and sun. Normally, the curtains would be rolled up to make it easier to enjoy the scenery.

Xie Hong had an invitation, so he had a smooth journey. His dilapidated oxcart blended in with these luxurious oxcarts, much like a three-wheeled motorcycle appearing in a Mercedes convoy.

But Xie Hong kept his eyes straight ahead, a smile on his face, completely ignoring the surprised looks from others.

Who is this person?

"I don't know."

"I seem to see a shadow of Wei Shubao from back then."

Immediately, someone agreed, saying, "Wei Shubao's handsome appearance is perhaps too effeminate, while this young man is full of vigor and charm, and I think he is even superior to Wei Jie."

Someone else immediately retorted: "This is utterly absurd! Wei Shubao is fair-skinned and handsome, a true gem, the most dashing man in Jiangnan. What is this kid compared to him?"

Then someone laughed and said, "Stop arguing. Look, they don't care at all; they've already walked away."

On a distant oxcart, Zhang Xun, the patriarch of the Zhang clan, stared intently at Xie Hong, who sat gracefully, a cold smile creeping across his face.

Based on the intelligence gathered, Xie Hongruo's appearance and demeanor are indeed no less impressive than Wei Shubao's.

In this era, few people can grow to be 1.8 meters tall. Xie Hong has a tall and handsome figure and is exceptionally good-looking. It would not be an exaggeration to call him the most handsome man in Jiangzhou.

Unfortunately, this kid is an imposter. Today is the day he is utterly disgraced, and also the day Xie Kun is filled with shame and embarrassment.

Once the matter is accomplished, the position of Prefect of Yuzhang will be Luo Shao's for the taking, and at least several members of the Zhang family will be able to take up official positions. Even if they are just lowly clerks or clerks like county assistant or clerk, they will certainly be able to become county magistrates in the future.

Zhang Xun immediately instructed the old servant leading the ox: "Hurry up the mountain."

In this day and age, there are quite a few people who falsely claim to be from aristocratic families.

After the Yongjia Rebellion broke out, many aristocratic families fled south in panic. Their family genealogies were either lost or incomplete. Even those with official records showing who was who, what official position, and what title they held, still had loopholes to exploit.

As long as the lie isn't exposed or goes too far, people generally won't investigate further.

But once exposed, it would certainly be a capital offense.

The Nine-Rank System established a strict official genealogy system. The imperial court set up a special genealogy bureau to keep the genealogies of noble families. The records were verified three times, along with those of the family and the local officials in charge of the genealogy. The difficulty for a commoner to impersonate a top noble family was equivalent to rebelling and becoming emperor.

Of course, there is another situation, which is when lower-ranking gentry pretend to be higher-ranking gentry. This is equivalent to internal gentry compatibility, and everyone will turn a blind eye and let things slide.

Because some prominent families have been wiped out, making it impossible to trace their origins, the authorities are unwilling to investigate such cases of impersonation.

Because the extermination of a noble family is officially recorded, isn't this a symbol of the gentry's loyalty and the flourishing of imperial power?

But if a commoner dares to impersonate a member of the gentry? You say you're a member of some prestigious family?

Sorry, I accidentally blew it to death.

But there are exceptions.

The most typical example is Tao Kan.

The Tao family is now a poor family, but their political power is too great. Before long, Tao Kan will force himself to have a genealogy recognized, turning the Tao family into a local gentry family, and the imperial court will have to happily issue him a genealogy.

Even someone as powerful as him didn't dare to find someone from a prestigious family to impersonate him.

Luo Shao and others believed that Xie Hong was probably an imposter from a lower-ranking aristocratic family who coveted the status of the Xie clan of Chen Commandery.

After all, Xie Hong's appearance speaks for itself; he couldn't possibly be from a humble background.