Chapter 360 — The Ruckus
Purple Streets of Chang'an · Page 1 of 4
In the imperial examinations, whether an essay won the chief examiner's favor depended chiefly on whether it was well written—and if one wished to write well...
Dou Heng stared at the dragon-and-phoenix ink sticks in the rosewood box, so furious his beard and eyes fairly bristled. "A fine one you are, Wan Yuan! Such excellent ink, and you hide it away—are you afraid I'll come asking for a piece?"
After all, he had two sons about to sit the examinations.
Dou Huaiying chuckled. "It simply never crossed my mind. When the time comes, I'll find a way to get you a few good sticks."
Dou Heng's expression softened a little.
Dou Huaide spoke to Song Yan in a low voice. "How stands that matter, in the end?"
"It being the New Year, I haven't run into Wang Ge," Song Yan said. "Once the Lantern Festival is past, I'll go into the palace to find him. The seals are shut for the holidays anyway—whatever Fan Shichou might want to do, he can't do it now."
Dou Huaide nodded.
Dou Heng barked across at them. "A grown man ought to have nothing he cannot say aloud! Whispering in each other's ears like that—what sort of scholars are you supposed to be?"
Dou Huaide was the youngest son, lively by nature, and had never feared Dou Heng. Emboldened by the fact that they were guests in the Yunqi Temple Alley house, where Dou Huaiying indulged the children in everything, he answered glibly, "I want to go stroll the Beichan Temple Alley with our fourth brother-in-law—could I say that out loud, too?"
"Not a gate on that mouth of yours!" Dou Heng's eyes went round as bronze bells. "Do you want to be confined to the house?"
Dou Huaiying and Song Yan both burst out laughing.
Yet Dou Huaide's foolery had, after all, lightened the mood of the study.
When men sat together, they spoke either of women or of court affairs.
With two of the younger generation present, women were naturally out of the question—so court affairs it had to be.
Song Yan's heart stirred. He asked first about Dai Jian: "...I hear he came from humble origins, and so sets uncommon store by silver and gold. Is there any truth to that?"
A son-in-law who was no scholar would naturally know little of such circles. It was rare for him to show curiosity. And with nothing better to do while sitting idle, it might serve as a word of warning to the young ones.
Dou Huaiying, of course, told all he knew and left nothing unsaid. "Who says Dai Jian sets store by silver and gold? The one who truly prizes wealth is Chancellor Yao, who comes of an old great house. He is a master of reckonings and served six years as Minister of Revenue—even the Emperor has quietly borrowed silver from the Ministry. They say that in his household, even the maid who sweeps the floor can do sums, and every household expense is entered in the ledger. If some later age should compile a treatise on food and commodities, I say there'd be no need to hunt up any sources—just take Chancellor Yao's account books, and you'd know the price of everything in our day!"
As he spoke, ...