Sign in: The female supporting character in the book disrupted the heroine's glory

Chapter 623 Colleagues in the Zhuangyuan Hall

The exterior of the Zhuangyuan Hall is well decorated. It is located in a separate courtyard and is very spacious.

As soon as he entered, he saw lush trees in the yard. There were five houses in a row, three of which had windows. Jiang Youzhen could see the scene inside the house just by standing at the door.

Some of the windows have rolled-up curtains with tassels hanging from the bottom, swaying in the breeze. On the high table by the window is a gourd vase with flowers in full bloom, and on the opposite wall are paintings and calligraphy, showing elegance everywhere.

From Jiang Youzhen's point of view, he could also see an official sitting by the window on the other side, who was writing something furiously.

When you step into the house, you will see a very spacious study, which should be two rooms connected together.

All the furnishings in the house are elegant and have a low-key luxury.

There were several tables, with a total of four people, some sitting and some standing, some talking, and some reading and writing.

The books on the bookshelf are neatly arranged, and the scent of ink is everywhere.

This was equivalent to an office for several people in his previous life. Seeing an unused table in the back corner, Jiang Youzhen glanced around. If he wanted to find a window seat, the only option was the window row at the back, which at least could get some sunlight and warm breeze.

"Excuse me, gentlemen! This is the newly promoted editor, Lord Jiang."

Mu Yuan coughed lightly and reported to the officials.

Several people turned their heads at the same time and cast their eyes on Jiang Youzhen, completely ignoring Mu Yuan.

There was also a handsome young man with a delicate appearance. They had received news before that this year's top scholar had fallen off a horse and needed to rest in bed for some time. They didn't expect him to come so soon?

"So you are the brilliant and talented number one scholar, Lord Jiang. Nice to meet you! Nice to meet you!"

One of the men with a goatee bowed towards Jiang Youzhen. He had a kind look and clear eyes, a typical scholar-official and gentleman.

Mu Yuan stepped forward and introduced immediately, "This is the editor Huang Mintao Wan!"

"It turns out to be Lord Wan Huang. I'm honored to meet you!" Jiang Youzhen saluted quickly.

Huang Mintao was from Shanxi Province and his family was very wealthy. Three generations before him were graphite merchants, but later they gave up business and turned to literature. After three generations of merchants, he passed the imperial examination and became the top scholar, which was a great honor for the family.

"You're welcome, Lord Jiang!" Huang Mintao nodded with a smile.

Before coming, Jiang Youzhen had already figured out all the four people in the Zhuangyuan Hall. Asan even knew their backgrounds and families very clearly, and even knew what had happened in each of their homes recently.

"I heard that Lord Jiang fell off his horse and was injured, but now he seems to be fine." At this time, a man came over and looked Jiang Youzhen up and down with an ambiguous look in his eyes.

This man was white and beardless, and was over thirty years old. He had narrow eyes and a gloomy gaze, and he looked like someone who was not easy to mess with.

"This is Lord Wu Mian!"

"Master Wu, I have heard of you for a long time!"

Wu Mian, a native of Suzhou, came from a family tradition of farming and studying.

There was a clear division between the northern and southern factions in the court, and every year there was a north-south divide in the imperial examinations. Because there were more vacancies for officialdom in the southern imperial examinations, this always caused dissatisfaction among the northern faction.

However, the literary culture is prevalent in the south of the Yangtze River, and there are many talented people. Those who can pass the imperial examination and become the top scholar are considered to be outstanding, so it is normal for them to be a little arrogant.

He and Wu Yong, the attendant who had just been standing at the gate of the Hanlin Academy, were from the same clan and were cousins ​​within the fifth degree of mourning.

However, the relationship between the two is not good and they don't seem to interact much.

This person started exposing other people's shortcomings right away, and his tone and demeanor were very arrogant. He is not a good person.

Wu Mian reluctantly bowed, "Nice to meet you!"

At this time, the official sitting by the window put down his pen. Jiang Youzhen looked over and Mu Yuan immediately introduced him, "This is Lord Wang Xingzhi!"

Wang Xingzhi was a native of the capital. His ancestors were scholars, and he could barely be considered a family of scholars. However, the highest official his ancestors held was only a county magistrate. He was the first high-ranking official in his family, and he would be enshrined in a high place in the ancestral hall in the future.

This person is a nerd, serious and somewhat straightforward.

"Lord Jiang!" Wang Xingzhi stood up and bowed to Jiang Youzhen quite solemnly.

"Sir Wang, I have long admired you!"

Jiang Youzhen quickly returned the greeting and observed etiquette. It was their first meeting, and because of the bonus of first sight favorability, the other party had a good impression of Jiang Youzhen.

Of course, Wu Mian is an exception, because he has always looked down on others, and Jiang Youzhen is no exception, so the system favorability is not omnipotent.

At this time, a thin man with a smiling face came over. He was also in his thirties, with a long face and a handsome appearance.

"This is Lord Luminglu!"

Jiang Youzhen exchanged greetings with the other party. This man had a kind attitude and was more approachable than Wannianhe, who was still a little aloof.

But Jiang Youzhen didn't dare to underestimate him, because Asan had previously inquired about the news and found out that this man was a smiling tiger.

There is a story behind this person. His name has a good meaning and carries the expectations of his family.

Lu Ming, a native of Jianye, was an ordinary citizen. He had enough food and clothing, but no surplus.

His mother was the second wife of his deceased mother, who gave birth to two daughters in succession, but then died of hemorrhage during childbirth. Less than a year later, his father remarried.

His father had high hopes for him as he was the only boy in the family. However, the family had no money to send him to a famous teacher, so he married his eldest sister to a butcher.

Unexpectedly, the butcher was cruel and would take his anger out on her every day. He would not allow her to eat, talk, laugh, or sleep. After a long time, she became discouraged and could not bear the humiliation, so she hanged herself.

After his death, Lu Ming went with his father to the butcher's house to seek an explanation. In order to settle the matter peacefully, the butcher took out twenty taels of silver and settled the matter.

This matter was spread everywhere, saying that the men of the Lu family were cowardly, greedy for money and afraid of death.

There was also a second daughter, who also married the wrong person. She married a fifty-year-old man as a second wife and received a betrothal gift of one hundred taels of silver.

From then on, Lu Ming had been relying on his brother-in-law to support him in the imperial examinations and enter officialdom, which often caused him criticism.

However, after coming to the capital, few people knew about this matter. In addition, this person was a smiling tiger, knew how to behave, and had good popularity on the surface, but Jiang Youzhen knew that this person should not be made close friends.

"Where is Lord Jiang going to sit? We have been here for several years and the desks have been set up." Lu Ming smiled a little embarrassedly.

Jiang Youzhen pointed to the last desk near the window and said, "You are all seniors, so it's okay for me to sit here."

Huang Mintao smiled at her and said, "Sir Jiang, if there is any inconvenience, please let me know."

The remaining two pretended not to hear and started reading the book.

"Sir, I'll go and clean it up. Please wait a moment!" Mu Yuan said as he rolled up his sleeves and began to wipe the tables and chairs. Although someone cleaned the table every day, no one sat at this table, so there was naturally some dust.

The four of them looked over in surprise, and seeing Mu Yuan being so attentive, they had different expressions on their faces.

"Mu Daizhao is working for Lord Jiang?"

Huang Mintao had an indescribable strange look on his face, and for a moment he didn't know whether he should sympathize with Jiang Youzhen or envy him.