Volume 3: The Land of Jingchu Chapter 226: Jinling Style
"Wen Ju, you are very familiar with Ni Heng and Ni Zhengping, right? He will come to Jinling later, saying that he is coming to deliver a document of self-defense to Huang Zu." Bai Tu asked Kong Rong.
In fact, it was a declaration of war. However, Huang Zu was only a prefect, and the document he wrote to the General's Mansion could only be a "self-defense" in name.
"Zhengping... That's right. When we were in Xuchang, Zhengping and Dezu (Yang Xiu) were both young people that I had high hopes for," Kong Rong said solemnly.
"Ah, since he is talented, Wen Ju should have recommended him to me earlier." Bai Tu said with regret.
Of course, Bai Tu was just being polite.
Unexpectedly, Kong Rong answered directly: "Zheng Ping's talent can help the king gain fame in prosperous times, but it is useless in troubled times, so I did not recommend him to Bai Gong."
White picture: ...
You are worthy of being Lao Kong. Ni Heng will cry if you do this!
You call this "looking favorably upon Ni Heng"? In history, Kong Rong recommended Ni Heng only after he had more and more conflicts with Cao Cao, right?
Are you hoping to get Ni Heng to help you anger Cao Cao to death?
"According to Wen Ju's opinion, can this person be used?" Seeing this, Bai Tu asked directly.
After weighing the pros and cons, Kong Rong said, "You can serve as a liaison for the Ministry of Rites."
Okay, Bai Tu can see it, the big talents and small talents are just Confucian-style flattering each other, but in fact the real people know everything clearly in their minds.
"The tongue is also important, but if all the verbal battles are directed at yourself, it's better not to have them." Bai Tu said.
Bai Tu is not afraid of people pointing out his mistakes, he advises the genius Yan Xiang, and now he specializes in this.
It's just that Yan Xiang has reasons and evidence to criticize, which can make Bai Tu realize his mistakes. But when he gives examples, it always makes people feel upset... But compared to realizing one's own mistakes, this can be overcome.
And Ni Heng... judging from Zhou Yu's letter, this guy is just a troll who spouts useless and crap words.
Of course, Bai Tu also understood that since Kong Rong put him on the same level as Yang Xiu, it meant that... although Ni Heng was not a genius and even had limited strategic vision, he was by no means useless and must have been clever in some aspects.
"Zhengping is also a person who has read the books of sages. As long as he can be convinced by Lord Bai, there is no possibility that he will betray us. If... Lord Bai feels that Zhengping is useless, he can just allow him to live in seclusion and avoid the chaos." Kong Rong explained for Ni Heng, proving that they were not just fake friends regardless of age difference.
Kong Rong's meaning is very clear - Ni Heng has no principles like me. As long as he likes you, whatever you do is right. Can the Confucian scholars' affairs be said to be upside down? If you really can't handle it, just give him a place to live. I can make him behave himself and not cause trouble.
Bai Tu and Kong Rong chatted for a while about the translation of ancient books...
Wang Su is very intelligent and has a unique talent in translating and researching ancient books. The only problem now is... there are no newly unearthed ancient books.
Bai Tu estimated that once he conquered Jingzhou, he would be able to make some shocking discoveries to the Confucian scholars.
As for digging out the pre-Qin Confucian classics that have not been passed down from Yangzhou?
This is a bit difficult...
After all, in the pre-Qin period, Wu and Yue were considered the least pure among the "Xia" tribes, and were even considered by the Central Plains to be closer to "barbarians". Even the Chu State, before it became powerful, fell into this category.
Confucius, who believed that "it is better for the barbarians to have a king than for the Chinese to have no king", had never been to the land of Wu and Yue. The only "south" he had been to was to the capital of the Chu State - Yingdu, and he had never crossed the Yangtze River.
Among the seventy-two sages, there was only one southerner—Yan Zi.
That is why Confucius said, "My door is bent, my way is to the south." However, Yan Zi did not return to the south, but settled down in the State of Lu.
Therefore...it would be a bit unreasonable for Bai Tu to forcibly excavate some ancient relics in Yangzhou.
Once we get to Jingzhou, things will be different!
The famous incident of "Seeing Two Children Arguing About the Sun" took place in Yingdu, which is now near Jiangling and Jingzhou City. Bai Tu had a premonition that he would definitely discover something, so he asked Wang Su and Kong Rong to translate and interpret it in advance.
Apart from Bai Tu, Kong Rong and Wang Su, only Lü Lingqi, who was with Bai Tu, knew about this matter. Whenever Lü Lingqi heard such topics, she would roll her eyes.
This is the secular perspective. How can these ordinary people understand Bai Tu's preparations for a rainy day?
"You call this preparing for a rainy day?" Lu Lingqi asked.
"Huh? Did I say it out loud?" Bai Tu asked in surprise.
"No, I saw that..."
After inspecting the ancient book translation work in preparation for a rainy day, Bai Tu left the Ministry of Rites.
…
A few days later, Ni Heng arrived in Jinling.
Although he was very rude and was driven out of Chaisang by Sun Ce, the reception from the Ministry of Rites was quite good after he arrived in Jinling. At least there was an inn and reception.
"Mr. Ni, you must have traveled a long way. Please come this way," said the young official from the Ministry of Rites.
"It's not so tiring to measure the great territory of the Han Dynasty with my own legs!" Ni Heng started to argue.
This official from the Ministry of Rites obviously knew something about him, but he just smiled at him and ignored him.
Bai Tu had also made preparations long ago. After Ni Heng asked to meet him, Bai Tu picked a time when he had nothing else to do and planned to meet him alone...
For Ni Heng's personal safety, Bai Tu specially asked Taishi Ci to pick him up - not because of Taishi Ci's high martial arts skills, but mainly because of Taishi Ci's good temper.
Ni Heng was really stubborn. He had clearly washed and rested for a day, but he was still wearing the old clothes he had taken off when he was in a hurry to travel the day before. It seemed that... he had sewed patches on the torn and broken places overnight.
Although Taishi Ci had heard some of his stories, he still frowned and asked, "Sir Ni, don't you want to change your clothes?"
"Why should we change it? Common people all over the world can wear it, but Lord Bai can't stand seeing it?" Ni Heng said, stretching his neck.
Taishi Ci suddenly understood why his lord asked him to come... Hearing this, he shook his head, ignored him, and turned around to lead the way.
Ni Heng had been traveling these days and was exhausted from the long journey. He was angry and was ready to start a fight with others about his own experience, so he dressed like this on purpose.
"I can walk all over the country, but why would I need a carriage for the few steps from the post station to the general's mansion?" Ni Heng raised his hand again after seeing the carriage.
Upon hearing this, Taishi Ci did not stop him - he could sit or not.
Ni Heng originally wanted to show everyone on the street the unfair treatment he had suffered, and at the same time demonstrate his spirit of being content with poverty and living a simple life, but...
When he walked down the street with his head held high, he found that the people of Jinling avoided him with disgust when they saw him!
It’s not that the people of Jinling despise the poor and love the rich, but it’s okay that he’s wearing shabby clothes, the key is... this guy also smells.
Who is this guy?
Hasn't he heard that the clerks in the Ministry of Civil Affairs' medical clinic go from street to street every day to preach epidemic prevention knowledge and remind everyone to pay attention to hygiene?
In the world of Cheng Ji, people's dress is inherently "extravagant". Walking on the streets of Jinling, although not everyone is wearing silk and satin, even those wearing starched and somewhat old cloth clothes still look very energetic. You will never see people who are half-dressed on the main streets - in some small alleys and tavern alleys, some people like to dress casually.
Ni Heng felt a little embarrassed by the look of the passers-by, but he was even more embarrassed to get on the car, so he quickened his pace.
When they reached the main road, Taishi Ci led him to walk on both sides of the road. Ni Heng couldn't help but ask, "Is it the etiquette of the general's mansion to have a Confucian scholar walk by your side?"
"No, it's the 'rule' of the General's Mansion. When Bai Gong walks on weekdays, he also walks on the side of the road." Taishi Ci said.
"That road..."
Before Ni Heng finished asking his question, he saw a huge carriage rattling past in the middle of the road, answering Ni Heng's question - of course the middle of the road is for carriages!
"People have to give way to livestock? Is there such a rule? What's more... who is this person? He is using eight horses to pull a carriage. Even the emperor of Han Dynasty wouldn't have such a grand ceremony, right?" Ni Heng said with some hurtful words.
However, Taishi Ci was unmoved and simply said, "Take two quick steps and you will see who is riding in the car."
Ni Heng was also serious about it, so he trotted forward for a while, and saw that the huge carriage stopped by the side of the road.
At first, Ni Heng was still a little confused. Although this was a main road in the city, there were neither government offices nor noble mansions around it, let alone any romantic places. Instead, if he turned left, it should be a market town, and at first glance, it was a relatively low-end market town!
What is the owner of this "luxury car" doing here?
The car door opened, and a group of "simple"ly dressed people of all ages walked out, about seven or eight of them. To say simple was compared with Ni Heng's psychological expectations. Although they were all more neatly dressed than himself, they were still far inferior to the servants of wealthy families.
Normally, those who can sit in the car with the master must be very important servants. How could their clothes be inappropriate?
And after all this, Ni Heng did not see the host. Instead... seven or eight people on the roadside, holding various small items they had just bought, got on the carriage.
"This... is rented to civilians?" Ni Heng also noticed that they paid, but it was only two cents.
"It's not a rental, it's a bus that tours the city. Common people can buy a ticket and ride it." Taishi Ci said.
Ni Heng nodded when he heard this, and after thinking for a moment, he smiled - Taishi Ci always felt that this guy was taking notes in his mind, and if he took out his notes and looked at them, he could see the word "杠" between each word.
Along the way, Ni Heng also saw many new things, and even asked Taishi Ci to take him through the market.
Thanks to Bai Tu's efforts, the small commodity economy has quietly recovered starting from Jiangdong.
Of course, if Ni Heng starts looking from outside the city, he will find that the number of large workshops around Jinling, especially on the east side towards Beigushan, is particularly astonishing!
Having remembered the key points, Ni Heng came to the General's Mansion with full confidence, and then...
"Huh? What happened to Mr. Ni?" Taishi Ci saw Ni Heng standing outside the hall, as if he had seen something extraordinary. He stood still outside and couldn't help but ask.
"Nothing, nothing? Is that Bai Gong in there?" Ni Heng's expression was one of "guilty" that Taishi Ci had never seen before. Although he didn't know why, Taishi Ci still felt very happy when he saw him showing this expression.
"Of course it's Bai Gong." Taishi Ci felt a little puzzled by Ni Heng's question.
Ni Heng's strategy is very special, which allows him to see things that others cannot see...
