Chapter 267 Lurking
Chang'an was too large to be managed, so it was divided into two parts by Zhuque Street. The western city was named Chang'an County and the eastern city was named Wannian County.
Most government offices and nobles live in Wannian County. In comparison, Chang'an County has more of a bustling and urban atmosphere.
Yong'anfang is one of the 55 fangs under the jurisdiction of Chang'an County. It is about four miles long and more than two miles wide. It would be a large community today.
Recently, a scholar of average appearance, unsteady legs and relatively old age moved into Yong'anfang.
He was obviously from Dongdu, but he went to Chang'an to take the entrance exam for the Academy. His knowledge was probably average.
The neighbors in Yong'anfang soon had new things to talk about.
"Oh, keep your mouth shut. I think Mr. Bai is a very honest person. As a scholar, it's good to have that kind of thought. It doesn't matter whether he can pass the exam to Bai Ma or not. Our Chang'an Academy doesn't make much difference, right?"
Fang Zheng pointed at the woman who was chatting under the tree and enjoying the cool air and said a few words: "Besides, Mr. Bai's leg is injured, but he is not lame. I think he has been much better in the past two days. Don't call him a cripple. Even if he is really lame, we can't look down on him. We have to show the tolerance of Chang'an people. Do you understand?"
Several women nodded hurriedly, and as soon as Fang Zheng left, they started chattering again.
There was a knock on Zhao Yushu's door.
"It's Master Fangzheng. Please come in."
"How is Mr. Bai's leg?" Looking at Zhao Yushu walking normally, Fang Zheng was quite moved. Young people are in good health. He seemed to be limping a few days ago.
"Lao Fang was worried about me. I just feel better these two days."
In fact, with Minghong working overtime, the serious injuries Zhao Yushu suffered by Wan Qiming had long since recovered, but now he has used Madam Xu to completely disguise himself as an ordinary person, and he still has to act out the play.
"I wonder if Fang Zheng came to see me for something?"
Zhao Yushu made a cup of tea and brought it to Fang Zheng.
Fang Zheng was already quite old, his son was a street patrol officer, and he himself had read some books and understood the law, and was a warm-hearted person, so he was assigned this position.
"You haven't been out much these days, so I haven't given you any special advice. Yesterday, I saw that you walked more steadily. I thought that Mr. Bai, you might not want to be lonely and want to go out for a walk, so I came here specially to tell you some of the rules of our Yong'anfang."
Zhao Yushu hurriedly bowed and pretended to be listening attentively.
"In the early years, we still had a curfew. When the drums were struck, we had to go back to the neighborhood. Some young people liked to hang out in places with fireworks, but they had to stay in the building and were not allowed to go out on the street. Do you know this?"
Zhao Yushu nodded: "It's the same in Dongdu, but the curfew has been relaxed a lot in recent years."
"Yes, but we are under the Emperor's feet after all, so we still have to be more polite. The drums are still played. You can walk on the street, but you can't stay. That is, if you want to have a drink in the evening, you can, but you can't gather on the street. Do you understand?"
Zhao Yushu couldn't help but curl his lips. The market system and curfew complement each other. In the late Tang Dynasty in previous life, the market system was in name only. The walls of each market were basically destroyed. The market economy completely swept the Tang Dynasty and provided a foundation for the economic prosperity of the later Song Dynasty.
Now, the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty still wanted to maintain the last bit of dignity and majesty, but he had to relax the system a bit. Most of the ten-foot-high walls had collapsed and fallen into disrepair, and the shortest part was only four or five feet high, so an adult could easily climb out.
"I know how powerful I am and will not make things difficult for Master Fangzheng."
"Okay, okay, scholars are more sensible. That's fine. I won't disturb Mr. Bai from studying. If you have any questions, come find me."
As Lao Fang was standing up, Zhao Yushu hurriedly took out a bag of tea from the cabinet: "The tea I brought from my hometown is not good stuff. Please try it for fun. Don't refuse. I just happen to have something to ask you."
Fang Zheng smiled as he looked at the very knowledgeable young man in front of him: "Mr. Bai, feel free to ask. I grew up here since I was a child. As long as you don't ask what the exam questions for next year will be, I can tell you. Hahaha."
Zhao Yushu also laughed. It seemed that he had not communicated with ordinary people for a long time.
"I came here to study, and I think I shouldn't just study blindly. I want to communicate more with the scholars in Chang'an. Does Fang Zheng know where to go?"
Fang Zheng gave him a deep look and said, "Well, the first choice is definitely a brothel..."
Zhao Yushu was startled and shook his head hastily: "Junior, I'm not good at this."
Brothels are indeed good places to go, but Zhao Yushu does not want to become famous quickly by doing so at this time. His plan is very simple. He will blend into the scholar circle as an ordinary person and use some means to slowly gain a little fame so that he will not attract too much attention.
The prince is ambitious and faces internal and external troubles after ascending the throne. Under the suppression of the older generation of aristocrats, he will most likely have to show a humble attitude to win over the younger generation and stabilize the imperial power. As long as he can seize any opportunity to get close to the prince, it will not be difficult to take him down in an instant with the help of Minghong and Madam Xu.
The eldest brother could break into the palace and rob it, but that would mean the prince would be at risk of being killed, and no one wants to take that risk.
Zhao Yushu wrote a letter and sent it back with his simple plan, following the path of Huibao Dashang.
Wei You replied in a letter approving his plan and mentioned that he would send a powerful helper to Chang'an to ensure that his life was not in danger.
Zhao Yushu was puzzled. As soon as the inner scene appeared, he would be watched. Who could ensure his own safety without being discovered?
Fang Zheng saw that he refused so firmly that it didn't seem fake. He couldn't help but sigh that there are really good kids who are devoted to studying these days. So he was very relieved and patted Zhao Yushu on the shoulder and said, "Okay, okay, there is an Anrenfang near the main street. There is a Mr. Chen there. On the first and fifteenth day of every month, he likes to gather some young people to drink and enjoy the moon. Mr. Bai can go and visit him. Who knows, you can enter the gate of Chen's house and meet some young talents."
As Zhao Yushu thanked him profusely, Fang Zheng walked out of the courtyard gate, holding the tea and smiling, and once again scolded the neighbors who were gossiping, saying, "Don't let you scare away such a good guy."
Zhao Yushu took out the Chang'an map sent through secret channels from a secret place. It is a serious crime for private individuals to keep this thing.
The map was unfolded and the location of Anrenfang was quickly found. This place belongs to Wannian County and is close to Zhuque Street. The residents there are either rich or noble.
If nothing unexpected happens, Mr. Chen should be a retired official. Otherwise, if he is just an ordinary wealthy man, even if this world discriminates against businessmen, it is not appropriate for a wealthy man like you to gather young people to chat about poetry every day. Who knows if you want to build relationships in advance to take care of your family's business in the future?
Most of these retired people like to teach others, so if you want to enter his mansion, you can't escape a stepping stone.
Zhao Yushu sighed. For the sake of his teacher, he was going to break the bottom line this time and plagiarize the masterpiece of his predecessors.