Volume 4: Gathering of Sages Chapter 517 I am also desperate
Fang Qing used to think that Song Hunzi was a soft-hearted guy. However, when he watched Song Juren being pressed on the spring stool today, and then the thick bramble was picked up and hit hard, and Song Juren did not struggle or beg for mercy, he still felt that his usual view of Song Hunzi was wrong. This guy at least knew right from wrong.
However, what he heard next was a scream like a pig being slaughtered - Aw!
Immediately afterwards, Song Hunzi's familiar voice of cursing rang out: "I have failed my mother, but you are not her. Even the family rules don't punish you so severely. Are you trying to kill someone... Ouch! Stop it, stop it right there! If you continue to hit me, someone will die... Ouch! I tell you, I am the one chosen by the emperor, otherwise how could I have passed all the tests and killed all the generals... Ouch!"
Mr. Song's endless chatter was mixed with the same old screams without any creativity. Fang Qing was angry and amused at first, but then he heard Mr. Song start to curse the Guangdong Song family's profit-seeking style hidden under the appearance of meritocracy. His original intention of watching the fun and joking gradually disappeared, and he could not help but pondering it carefully.
Song Huishou, who seemed to have a clear mind at first, gradually became ugly. He left Fang Qing by his side just to be a witness and to put some psychological pressure on his nephew. After all, no one wanted to see his mortal enemy being beaten, so that he could then tell him to stop. But he didn't expect that Song Juren, a big mouth, would even drag his entire family into it.
In a rage, he couldn't help but shout: "Shut this kid's mouth for me, and then give him twenty whips to teach him a lesson for his mother!" Anyway, the thorns of the whip have been removed, so it can't do any good!
"My mother would never teach me this. Even if she hit me, she wouldn't hit me this hard. Aaaah!" After being hit again and screaming, Song Juren's mouth was finally gagged again, and then he was tied tightly to the spring stool. However, the executioner did not do anything else, but looked at Song Huishou with some hesitation.
Fang Qing had seen enough of the excitement and quickly stood up, his face full of righteousness: "Song Huizhang, you want to teach the younger generation a lesson. Logically, I, an outsider, should not interfere, but you are not the head of the Song family, nor are you the father of this kid. You should not regard yourself as an elder and carry out such a private punishment!"
Mr. Song, who had just been beaten so hard that he was howling in pain, finally got a chance to breathe and wanted to applaud Fang Qing. However, his hands and feet were tied and his mouth was blocked, so he could only struggle hard and make noises. As a result, he failed to show support and made himself look even more pitiful.
After realizing this, he immediately shut up, but tried to look up, hoping to see the reaction of Song Huizhu. However, Fang Qing's back of the head blocked his view completely, and he was so angry that he almost wanted to curse - but of course he couldn't curse...
When taking off the gag and untying Fang Qing just now, Song Huizhu did it himself - regardless of whether Yue Shanzhang had expelled him from the sect, he was a juren after all, and he had lived with his nephew in Zhang Garden before, so he would not add insult to injury. So at this moment, when he treated Fang Qing's advice, he was definitely much more polite and courteous than when he faced Song Juren just now.
"My dear nephew, you don't know that I really feel sorry for his mother!"
Originally, Song Huishou intended to appeal to Mr. Song's emotions and reason, but now he simply used them to deal with Fang Qing. He told Fang Qing emotionally how Mr. Song's mother raised him with great difficulty and supported his studies, and moved three times to give him a stable study environment... Anyway, all the stories of virtuous mothers in ancient and modern times were changed by him and applied to Mr. Song's mother.
It even got to the point that Mr. Song himself couldn't help but wonder when his strong mother, who used to roar like a lion and control her cowardly father so much that he dared not raise his voice, became a person who endures humiliation and is bullied?
However, although Fang Qing and Mr. Song were familiar with each other, they were not familiar with each other's parents. At this moment, he was unknowingly led astray by the cunning and treacherous leader Song.
Besides, he didn't agree with Mr. Song for not taking the imperial examination and instead had the crazy idea of taking the examination to be an imperial chef. Therefore, he listened and looked at Mr. Song at the same time, and finally he couldn't help but turned around and rushed to the spring stool.
Without saying anything, he snatched the thornless bramble from the executioner's hand, raised it and hit Mr. Song's buttocks twice. Mr. Song, who had just recovered from the blow, was completely stunned by the blow. It took him a long time to roar in anger. However, the gag turned all his curses into "mumbles", which almost made him explode with anger.
"You have failed to live up to your mother's teachings and violated her wishes... Song Hunzi, you deserve to be beaten. You should reflect on yourself!"
After saying this, Fang Qing threw away the bramble and turned away angrily. However, under Song Huishou's eyes, no one stopped him. After he had disappeared, Song Huishou came to the spring stool with a smile, took a handkerchief handed over by a servant, bent down and wiped the sweat from Song Juren's forehead with great consideration.
"A gentleman can be deceived by tricks. Fang Qing is not like you. He is a gentleman after all." He smiled at Mr. Song, then stood up straight and said in a sighing tone, "You said that the Song family is only interested in profit. This is not wrong. After all, how many descendants of the Song family are there now? How many small clans are dependent on the Song family? How many businessmen and even ordinary people depend on the Song family for their livelihood?"
"So, the family needs someone to serve as an official, even if it's a business... a Confucian businessman is always better than an ordinary small businessman, and can enter and exit the door of high-ranking officials."
Having said this, Chairman Song sighed.
"However, if you really like cooking and want to be a royal chef in the capital, or even open a shop selling sweet soup, that's not impossible, but how can you do it without consulting me? Do you know that after you made such a fuss, the Guangdong Song family has become a joke in the eyes of others? Especially since you actually took refuge in the Zhaoguogong Mansion and Zhang Garden!"
"Others truly appreciate your talents and are willing to help you sincerely, but the people in the clan are only interested in profit and are forcing you to take the imperial examination against your will? If you don't want to go to the examination hall, can I still force you to go?"
To be honest, how could Song Huishou, who had been in the business world for twenty years, be compared to Song Juren, a young boy? After reprimanding him righteously, he glanced at the executioners next to him. He was about to order them to step back while he continued to use soft tactics on Song Juren, when he suddenly heard a commotion outside the door. Then, the door was pushed open. It turned out that Fang Qing had returned.
Not only did he come back, Fang Qing even shouted, "I suddenly feel something is wrong. If Song Hunzi's mother was really that virtuous and always reminded him, he wouldn't have been wasting his time! Song Huishou, don't tell me that he is so great just because he passed the exam and became a juren. I know what kind of talent he has. If he hadn't been wasting his time, he would have been the first in the case and the first in the provincial examination without any problem!"
Hearing this, Mr. Song immediately revealed a gloating smile. It was not because of Fang Qing's high evaluation of him, but because Fang Qing saw through the flaws in Mr. Song's exaggerated words just now.
A gentleman can be deceived by his good ways, but the problem is there is another sentence next: it is difficult to deceive him by his wrong ways!
It means that a gentleman can cheat in a reasonable way, but it is difficult to cheat in an unreasonable way!
Fang Qing, this young and naive man, can indeed be considered a gentleman. The most important thing is that he has made a lot of progress now!
Song Huishou had never expected that Fang Qing, who had just proudly told Mr. Song that he could easily deceive him, would actually come back like this! Although he had already trained himself to be extremely thick-skinned, he would not fail because of this, but his smile was obviously a little unnatural. However, when he spoke, it was still very clear and sincere.
"My dear nephew, you should know that there are many children in the Song family. Although my second brother, as the head of the family, tries his best to treat them equally, there are still some relatives and friends who are distant from each other. If this kid hadn't been successful in his studies, his elder brother could be in charge of the family's affairs in Guangzhou, and his younger brother could receive so much support in the family school, would his family really be able to be content with a small fortune?"
"His mother has a hot temper and has offended many of her sisters-in-law and relatives. He is the same. You call him Song Hunzi. There are countless people who dislike him outside! If he can really become the imperial chef this time and be appreciated by the emperor, it will be fine. But if he makes a mistake in this step, he will not be able to pass the imperial examination and his reputation will be ruined. How many people at home and outside will not only laugh at him, but also add insult to injury!"
This time, Mr. Song's joking expression froze on his face. Although he had argued in front of Princess Yongping, saying that his cousins were all Jinshi, and he was at least a Juren, which was not bad, and that if he couldn't be a royal chef, he could take the Jinshi exam, and it didn't matter if he really didn't pass, anyway, there would be subsidies from the clan... But all this was based on a certain premise.
That is, the clan can really give him subsidies! Just his mother and the people he has offended, that's really a lot! So he must have a backer, otherwise if there is a problem in the future, his brothers and parents will be unlucky because of him, then he is too bastard!
So, when Song Huishou took out the gag from his mouth with a gloomy face and then untied him himself, Mr. Song thought of the few hits on his buttocks he had just received and did not dare to say anything rude anymore.
He then said honestly: "I know what my uncle said. But I am really not good at being an official. You see, I can argue with the princess when I am in a hurry. What if I and my boss..."
"Of course I know you're not suitable for being an official!" Song Huishou interrupted Song Juren angrily and said sternly, "But if you really become a royal chef with your personality, do you think you will offend the people around you? Do you think Princess Yongping, who was made to cry by you before, will make things difficult for you? Do you think you can get out of the palace alive with your bad mouth?"
This time, even Fang Qing, who had just rushed back because he thought something was wrong, couldn't help but agree with what Song Huishou said.
He was indeed quick-tongued, but in comparison, this Song guy was just a mean-mouthed person, much more wicked than him! If he really angered the emperor, empress dowager, concubines, princes, princesses, etc., any one of them would just press their little finger and this guy would be dead!
Just as he was about to speak, Mr. Song said quietly, "I don't want to be an imperial chef, I just want to participate. Who knew I would always be the last one to pass? I'm desperate! With the little skills I have, if I really go to the palace to be an imperial chef, wouldn't that be a joke?"
You also know it's a joke! Song Huishou glared at his nephew with a look of disappointment, but he was somewhat relieved that this kid knew the importance of things. But then he heard what Mr. Song said next, and he was immediately furious.
"That's why I have to try my best to curry favor with Miss Zhu and Dr. Zhang! One of them is a daughter of heaven who goes in and out of the palace just like her own family, and the other is a popular and trusted minister of the emperor. If I'm really unlucky and am summoned to the palace to be a royal chef, they can at least take care of me, right? Besides, Miss Zhu has said that she is willing to help me open a shop. If I'm really kicked out..."
"That's enough!" Song Hui Shou doubted if he would have a heart attack if he continued listening to this damned boy. He took a deep breath and decided to give up saving this boy who was obviously hopeless, but he still remembered the purpose of tying him back, so even though he was impatient, he had to continue speaking earnestly.
"You useless boy, do you think you can cling to those two people's thighs whenever you want? Don't you see that Dr. Zhang has so many students? Not to mention the Third Prince, there are also the Duke, the former Minister, a future consort and a future groom, and even his own second brother-in-law is trying to curry favor with him! Those students can really do practical things, but what about you? You can only cook sugar water!"
Knowing that he could not give Mr. Song any chance to speak, Mr. Song spoke rapidly, "Zhang Chen was able to manipulate a bunch of merchants in Xingtai, including the eldest prince, while Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu supported and helped each other to gather all the scattered textile workers in Xingtai and suppress those big textile owners... Second Master Zhu is Miss Zhu's brother after all."
"Lu Sanlang is even more capable, and he can do anything. Even the emperor praised his ability, and his father had to look at him with new eyes. I also heard that Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu brought back colorful cotton from Xingtai this time, and people outside even shouted the word "auspicious". What about you? Tell me, who can compare with you?"
Although Song Huishou's words hit his soft spot, Song Juren still grumbled unconvincedly, saying that he didn't want to compete with others at all. At this time, Fang Qing couldn't help but ask in surprise: "Colored cotton? Isn't cotton all white?"
Although he had not really worked in the fields like Zhang Shou, Fang Qing at least knew that cotton was white - this was when cotton was hardly grown in Guangdong. Although he was a scholar, he was not so pedantic in Zhaoming Academy, which focused on agricultural science, and he also worked in the fields himself.
When he asked this question, Song Huishou, who had been waiting for someone to bring this up, was immediately delighted. He nodded seriously and said, "That's right. It's because we've never seen such colored cotton before, so it's rare! If it's really confirmed, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu will definitely be rewarded by the emperor. Fortunately, the climate and land in Guangdong are not suitable for growing cotton..."
Hearing Song Huishou's endless chatter, Song Juren was immediately dissatisfied. But at this moment, he heard a sudden commotion outside the door, and then the door was suddenly pushed open, and then he saw Ah Liu with an expressionless face.
