Chapter 20 Five taels of clothing

In Fengtian Hall, Emperor Hongzhi started to work diligently after breakfast. Today, three members of the cabinet took a rest, so there were no ministers in the hall.

Kaifeng Prefecture in Henan received relief silver from Taicang, and the disaster situation was alleviated a lot. In September, once the Yellow River flood season is over, they can rest assured to spend the disaster year.

After reviewing the memorials at hand, Emperor Hongzhi thought of the crown prince Zhu Houzhao.

What's wrong with me? I haven't seen him come to make me angry for two days. I actually miss him a little. It feels like someone who has greeted me for more than ten years suddenly doesn't come to greet me today.

Could it be that this child has been well-behaved because of my beating?

It would be better if he behaved well, so that the Empress and I could live a few more years. Holding a glimmer of hope, he said to Xiao Jing, "Have you been studying these days?"

Xiao Jing said in a flattering manner, "Your Majesty, it's strange to say that recently the Crown Prince and Censor Yan often stay in the school until the hour of Xu, and they seem to have made a lot of progress."

"Nonsense!"

Xiao Jing was frightened and his heart trembled. It was a good thing for the Crown Prince to read until late at night, why did he make a fuss...

"Given the Crown Prince's personality, it is a great blessing to be able to concentrate on reading for an hour. Why did he read from morning to late at night? Why didn't he report it earlier!" The more Emperor Hongzhi thought about it, the more strange it felt.

Last time, when the Jiazi Mansion was in trouble, an official from the Censorate was used to settle the matter. This time, if he caused another treasonous incident, he couldn't be given another official.

Emperor Hongzhi thought of something and his face changed with anger: "Has Yan Kesong finished his duty?"

"Not yet. The companions of the Eastern Palace have not come to report to me." There are descendants of Xiao Jing in the Eastern Palace, just in case the emperor asks at any time.

Emperor Hongzhi immediately went to the Eastern Palace, worried about Yan Kesong. The prince had threatened to take revenge on Yan Kesong. When he arrived at the Eastern Palace, he saw the prince Zhu Houzhao reading by candlelight at night.

Xiao Jing was about to say a few good words for the prince, but saw Emperor Hongzhi sternly said: "Zhu Houzhao!"

The sudden roar scared Zhu Houzhao. Emperor Hongzhi looked at him like an angry tiger, ferocious and terrible. He felt wronged but dared not say a word.

Emperor Hongzhi was also afraid that he would cause some trouble. The prince who was so naughty and unrestrained studied until late at night, thinking about it, he felt that there was something fishy.

This rebellious son must have heard the news and knew that he was coming, so he pretended to study. This was not the first time.

I don't know what tricks he used to keep Yan Bianxiu in the East Palace to make things difficult for him.

Emperor Hongzhi looked at Yan Kesong: "My dear Yan, if this rebellious son is threatening you, if you are not comfortable saying it, just nod your head and I will know it."

Zhu Houzhao said pitifully: "Father..."

"Shut up!"

Zhu Houzhao swallowed back the words "I am your son". He was usually a person who did nothing, but today he did something, and no one believed him.

Yan Kesong bowed and said: "Your Majesty, Your Highness did not threaten me, and the prince is indeed studying."

Emperor Hongzhi was stunned. After a long time, he gradually showed a smile of satisfaction. This was all because of Yan Kesong. Emperor Hongzhi thought of Yan Chengjin. Yes, if he could teach such a well-behaved son, he would definitely be able to teach the prince.

…………………………

After the autumn examination, the weather became cooler and the yellow leaves in the courtyard were swept down by the autumn wind, leaving only empty branches, and the wind gradually felt colder.

Early in the morning, Chunxiao turned out all the quilted clothes and cotton jackets at the bottom of the box. These were the clothes worn by the previous "Yan Chengjin".

The willow cabinet had a very poor storage effect. It was placed in the corner of the house all year round, damp and leaking. At this time, it exuded an indescribable musty smell.

I don't know how many bacteria it has been contaminated with. Now that he has silver, Yan Chengjin naturally refuses to wear these clothes that have the risk of infection.

Autumn is here, and winter is not far away.

It takes more than ten days for a skilled tailor to make a good fur coat. If you make new clothes now, you can wear them when the weather is cooler.

After the fall, Chunxiao and Qianjin are still wearing the clothes of the servants of the Yan Mansion. They are quite cool. I guess they have no clothes to spend the winter. People like He Neng who are thick-skinned and thick-skinned are fine, but the two sisters will definitely catch a cold, and a cold will spread...

Counting the chefs and doormen, there are more than a dozen servants in the Yan Mansion.

"Call the housekeeper."

After a while, the housekeeper came hurriedly: "Young master, do you want to see me?"

Yan Chengjin: "Make a few winter clothes for each servant in the mansion at the rate of five taels of silver per person."

A servant only gets about five taels of silver a year, and five taels of silver can only make a few sets of clothes? The housekeeper was anxious. This was not the way to spend the money.

He had to spend nearly a hundred taels of silver at once, and that money was earned by the master day and night.

The housekeeper said: "Young master, the servants in this mansion will be over soon, so why not make two fur coats for you and the master?"

"As the housekeeper of the Yan Mansion, you actually forgot the fifth rule of the Yan Mansion."

"I didn't forget it, young master, don't ask too many questions." The housekeeper said.

"Do I need to explain it to you clearly?" Yan Chengjin picked up the wolfberry tea and took a sip with a snort.

The housekeeper had served in the Yan Mansion for many years, so he naturally had clothes to wear in winter, but the servants might not have that. In the past, the Yan Mansion could barely make ends meet, and the wages paid to the servants were extremely low.

More importantly, cold weather can easily cause diseases. In this dynasty without antibiotics, colds can also take lives. If the servants of the Yan Mansion accidentally catch a cold, they will certainly infect him.

Even in wealthy families, people often die of colds in winter. The ancients were accustomed to it and didn't think it was a big deal, but he had to be on guard.

"If anyone saves a tael of silver, I will break your legs and throw you to Jiming Mountain to feed wild dogs!" Yan Chengjin warned solemnly.

"I'll do it right away!" The housekeeper trembled.

Chunxiao and Qianjin looked at Yan Chengjin with strange eyes.

It is said that the young masters of wealthy families spend money like water, but when the young master spends money, he still thinks of them. Except that he sometimes looks at them with strange eyes, he doesn't seem to be as bad as he says.

Five taels of silver can buy several good cotton jackets. If you buy needles and thread to sew by yourself, it is enough to buy new clothes for the whole family.

Chunxiao took Qianjin's hand, took a step forward, and said timidly: "Young master, Qianjin and I have learned tailoring from our mother since we were young. We can make clothes. Just buying needles and thread and cloth can save you a lot of money."

"No!"

"This young master just said that you are not allowed to save a tael of silver!" Yan Chengjin was like an angry little tiger, scaring the two sisters so that they dared not speak.

A few days later, the first batch of clothes arrived.

Yan Chengjin put on a fur coat made of hundreds of taels of silver. Wang Bushui did a good job. The lining was very soft and made of the best mink fur. He felt very warm after wearing it for less than a moment.

The fur coat continued the style of the Yan Mansion. It was plain on the outside and looked like an ordinary coat without any fluff.

As autumn deepened,

the capital city did not feel bleak, but became unusually lively.

Cheng Minzheng was very confident in his son's talent and asked Li Guang, the eunuch of the Imperial Household Department, to check. In the first three exams, his son's ranking was ahead of Yan Chengjin.

This time, he had great confidence that he could win over the Welcoming Pine. He was very pleased that the capital city would finally have the voice of the poetry and prose school again.

The housekeeper of the Cheng Mansion got drunk and leaked the news. Now everyone in the streets of the capital knows that the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue Cheng Minzheng and the great writer Yingkesong are competing for their sons. For a while, people bet and cheer.

Yan Chengjin shook his head after hearing this. It is impossible to lose, and it is impossible to lose in this life. All the questions of the provincial examination have been guessed and completed.

However, everyone's eyes are focused on Yingkesong, because Yingkesong is too dazzling, and few people pay attention to Yingkesong's son.

So, this competition is still a contest between Cheng Minzheng and Yingkesong. It depends on who teaches better.

Yan Kesong naturally doesn't want to cause trouble, because Cheng Minzheng is the Zhanshi of the Eastern Palace Zhanshi Mansion.

Now, everyone in the Zhanshi Mansion knows the identity of Yingkesong, that is, Yan Kesong.

The competition between the two attracted the attention of other Hanlin, and the chief examiners of Shuntian Mansion are both two officials of the Eastern Palace, which is interesting.

Yan Kesong has been an official for more than ten years, and has only met Cheng Minzheng a few times. They only glanced at each other from a distance and never said hello. How could there be any hatred?

Today, Cheng Minzheng, who had been on leave for many days, came to the Zhanshi Mansion. The Hanlins of the Left and Right Spring Offices were waiting for the missing Zhanshi to come back to work.

Cheng Minzheng was quite polite to Yan Kesong and said loudly: "Sir, I have heard of your great name for a long time."

"Sir, I really don't deserve to be called this by you, Mr. Cheng!" Yan Kesong's rank was much lower than Cheng Minzheng's position as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites.

"I heard that my nephew also participated in the Shuntian Prefecture Provincial Examination. I wonder how he did?" Cheng Minzheng asked with a smile.