Chapter 18: CH 18

The Cui Residence received the commendation, and just like that, the entire street’s residences received the same glory and honor.

After the Imperial procession left, the respectful and solemn people on the street suddenly seemed to roar back to life, rushing towards the Cui Residence’s main gate. Zhao Yinglin blocked up the place closest to the main gates, twisting to say, “Congratulations Cui shixiong for receiving the Imperial court’s commendation. This morning, I impulsively misjudged such a good person, shixiong,  please forgive me.” 

Shixiong: means fellow brothers and is a name used for peers in the same generations who are acquaintances because of close familial/friend relations

Zhao Yinglin was not much older than Cui Xie’s current body. In the eyes of adults who had graduated from college, he was still just a second-year middle schooler who believed in the rain on hearing the wind.

‘believed in the rain on hearing the wind’: idiom; to believe rumors/be credulous

Cui Xie had not even taken that impulsive criticism into his ears and heart. At this time, seeing such a young boy obediently apologizing to him, he bowed back and gently said, “This is but a trivial matter, shixiong will not take it to heart.”

He had not even taken those words to heart at all.

Zhao Yinglin was supposed to be happy that Cui Xie disregarded his words earlier, but after giving it some thought, he still felt a bit worried. 

Zhao Yinglin wanted to say that he had always believed Cui Xie to be an upright gentleman and had never listened to the slander spoken by his classmates behind Cui Xie’s back. But, before he could utter this declaration, his grandfather dragged him away from behind and enthusiastically shook Cui Xie’s hand, “Congratulations! Congratulations! Little Xie-ge, you have now become a loyal and righteous figure recognized by the Imperial court, see who dares to wag their tongues outside and say that you have a rift with your family!”

Reminder: Usually, -ge is used to call someone who is their older brother. However, in this time period, official and noble households called the sons of the household with their name and then a -ge at the end. It is just a custom and term to do so, anyone in the household can do so. It is considered quite colloquial and very intimate (more used for closer servants and relatives).

Cui Xie thanked him for his concern. Seeing the crowd of people constantly swarming towards the Cui Residence, he was truly unable to entertain each individual one by one, so he loudly declared to the street, “Thanks to the help of my distinguished neighbors, today, the evil servants were sent to the officials for correction. This gave the chance for the courtyard to be cleaned up so that the Imperial envoy could smoothly deliver the decree. There is no time like the present, I will prepare a banquet to thank all the neighbors. I hope that all the neighbors will come to the residence to have a cup of wine if they do not mind our coarse food and refreshments.”

Everyone replied: “How can there be any reason for the Young Master to spend any money! Today is the day of great joy, let us treat you.”

A few older neighbors pooled together some silver taels and ordered a restaurant to deliver a few jars of clear, cold white wine. They also invited someone to slaughter a stout and strong hog as well as two imported Mongolian sheep, guaranteed to be fresh with no fishy taste. There was also the fresh perch fished from the Qinlong River transported in freshwater, Asian yellow eel from the hot springs, tender water chestnuts from Xiangu Temple, and whole navel crabs from Sanlihe street…there were also local specialties such as ginkgo nuts, golden birch-leaved pears, figs, sweet pomegranates, crisp plums, peaches, grapes, white berries, and other fresh fruits. There were also dried foods such as walnuts, pine nuts, hazelnuts, chestnuts, etc. All together, the cost was not worth more than ten taels of silver.

The inn owner who the Cui family ordered dishes from when they first moved in took the initiative to send a cook to the residence. This cook patted his heart proudly and recommended himself, “Not to boast, but my cooking is no worse than a chef in the capital. I have clean hands and feet. If Young Master Cui is planning on preparing a banquet, would it not be more appropriate to use outsiders than to use your neighbors?”

Cui Xie could not refuse, so he thanked each one and told Pengyan to retrieve the account books and record them down. In the future, if his neighbors celebrated a happy event, he would be sure to return the favor accordingly.

Everyone was elated, announcing that this was such a rare-seen event after decades, and did not care about how much money was spent. 

Those scholars who usually sang of their own praises were afraid that if they associated with the son of a fifth-rank official, others would accuse them of trying to climb to a higher branch. But these scholars still dropped by to congratulate Cui Xie. The more wealthy ones gifted him some brushes, inks, paper and inkstones. The ones who were good at writing sent over handwritten poems and for those who did not have anything, they could still write a few lines about the Imperial plaque hung on his gates: ‘The name of righteousness travels for thousands of miles,  a monarch graces down nine layers of favor’ and ‘The young phoenix flew out of the jinshi, and the divine grace enters the home of the righteous people.’ No one came to the house empty-handed.

Jinshi: highest rank a scholar can get and is attained after passing the triennial Imperial court exam. When scholars attain this rank they usually become court officials. It should be noted that the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) had a very large number of jinshi graduates reaching up to around 24, 536 in total.

When it was time to start the banquet, the moneybags Landlord Yang who ran a clothing store hired two beautiful prostitutes to sing a song and dance. The women were dressed up in a voluptuous manner, and when they stepped out of the carriage, they forced the group of scholars to scamper away from them, to ‘see no evil’.

The banquet lasted from late afternoon all the way into the night, the banquet tables and chairs lined up outside the Cui Residence. Cui Xie sat at the chief banquet table and every now and then, someone came to toast him. He initially drank the fruit wine that tasted like sweet water, but after several rounds of toasting and socializing, his ears and face were flushed. He was so drunk that he could not even sit upright even when sitting in his chair. Later on, the beverage in his jar was replaced with apricot milk, the color was also a pale translucent white like rice wine. But, it tasted full of sweet almond dew, and then he was finally able to sit upright again.

At this festive banquet, he finally met all his neighbors and even met Scholar Lin, who was the teacher of the school. He was about thirty or forty years old a zengsheng shengyuan, learned of the Book of Songs, and his knowledge was pretty deep. In the combined successive examinations, he was able to obtain the first or second rankings.

Shengyuan (生員, lit. “student member”): is a entry level candidate who passed the college exam, further divided into three classes according to exam performance:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial_examination

Book of Songs is one of the Five Classics of Confucianism

This kind of teacher was considered decent. When he came over to congratulate Cui Xie, Cui Xie offered him a few cups of wine and brought up his intentions to become a disciple.

Cui Xie’s bearing still emitted the newly conferred halo of a righteous hero and some of his shortcomings were hidden. Teacher Lin only felt that although Cui Xie’s foundations were weak, his attitude towards learning was still very correct. He responded: “My school has no special rules for accepting disciples. If you want, you can drop by at any time.”

Cui Xie replied, “I only just received the Imperial decree and want to attend to the ancestral tombs to inform the ancestors of the glory. If there are no mishaps, I will go study with the Teacher once I return from worshipping the ancestral tombs.”

Teacher Lin stroked his long beard and said, “Loyalty and filial piety are the foundation of this world. You must go, I will only support your decision.”

Cui Xie smiled and lowered his head.

He was planning on worshipping the ancestors. However, it was not specifically to let the ancestors of the Cui family bask in the Emperor’s holy grace, but rather to look at the names on the tombstones. Before the start of the Imperial examination, the first thing a candidate must do is to write the names of the three generations of one’s ancestors on the top of the paper. But, he still did not know the names of his grandfather and great-grandfather, and he could not ask Cui Yuan and his son. But, if one were to observe worship, and make the proper sacrificial rites to sweep the Cui family’s ancestral tombs, he could naturally learn the names from the tombstones. 

The banquet lasted until curfew and the crowd helped to clean up the tables, chairs, chopsticks and immediately dispersed at the sound of the watchman’s clapper. Early in the next morning, they got up early and headed outside the city to escort the Imperial envoy back to the capital.

The sky only glistened with the first glimmer of light and the Imperial procession appeared on the official road to the west of the city. The Cui family’s carriage was squeezed to the very back of the city officials and the carriages of the wealthy. Cui Xie was short, so he simply stood on the driver’s seat, watching from the distance as the Imperial envoy left the city gate and rolled past them.

Cao gonggong lifted the curtain of his palanquin and whispered his farewells to the local county government officials and military commanders who came to see him off. The jinyiwei on horseback roamed the palanquin and guarded the four directions, and actually saw Cui Xie in the back.

Gonggong is how to refer to a taijian. Eunuchs, who were men that were castrated, are not the same as taijian as taijian refers to specific positions in the Imperial palace and government which were occupied by men that were castrated

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With his small stature, he was still able to find a way to show his face.

Unfortunately, his status was not enough and the righteous commendation he had been conferred was not worth much, and he was not even able to get in front of the Imperial procession’s farewell crowd. However, there were mountains and seas of people outside the city, most of them facing the Imperial envoy to show their faces, lined up along the road leading to the middle of the capital. There was only one youngster in the crowd who had come to see him off in a serious manner. His eyes were clear and upright, without the slightest intention of climbing up the taijian’s social ladder.

Xie Ying’s gaze fell on this face for a while, and when the pair of bright eyes turned toward him, he nodded slightly. This could be counted as saying his farewells. They were merely strangers who had come together by chance. After the water under the bridge flowed past, this kind of flat, ordinary parting was appropriate.

If Cui Xie was truly promising, he would meet him again in the future.

The procession set off slowly and then traveled straight to the capital without stopping. All kinds of horses and carriages followed the procession as an escort. One would not know how many long pavilions and short pavilions would be set up. After Cui Xie escorted the procession till the Maolin Tobacco district, he get into the carriage without any nostalgic sentiment and ordered, “Return to the city.”

‘long pavilions and short pavilions’: idiom; meaning pavilions set on the side of the road in ancient times often used as a place to rest and refers to a long journey

Most of the escorts had left and it was convenient for them to turn around. Just as they were about to a yamen runner came up and halted them. The runner raised the curtain of the carriage and said, “Young Master Cui, please wait. Our old Master invites you to sit in the yamen for a rest.”

yamen: administrative government office of a local bureaucrat/official

Cui Xie inquired in astonishment, “The old Master is looking for me, has there been any new developments in the case?”

The yamen runner smiled, “What new developments could there be in the case of a master accusing a servant? The case has already been sent up into the inner departments, the Ministry of Justice will adequately conclude this case. The old Master searching out for the Young Master is a happy matter. May the Young Master just wait at the yamen.”

Cui Xie promptly invited the runner into the carriage and traveled to the county office together.

He sat in the reception hall for a few moments, and County Magistrate Qi personally came to see him. There were two bookkeepers behind him, each holding a wooden plate in his hand. On the plate were piles of silver and sets of colored satin silks.

County Magistrate Qi solemnly said, “Righteous Hero Cui was willing to overlook his own wellbeing for his empire, and is a role model for my people in Qian’an. The Imperial court has sent down a gracious decree to commemorate your deeds and the county should also reward you for this righteous act. There are fifty taels of silver, two sets of Hangzhou silk, and two sets of Songjiang cotton-weaved cloths. This is the county’s kind intentions, you must accept it, no need to refuse.”

Cui Xie quickly arose from his chair and cupped his hands in salute, “This little one thanks the county for the honor.”

County Magistrate Qi held up Cui Xie’s arm and did not let him make a full bow. With a gentle smile tracing on his stern-looking face, he asked after his parents in the capital and asked Cui Xie why he had returned to the family’s ancestral home.

Cui Xue’s excuse for returning to the ancestral home to study had already become easy to say, and this time, not one drop of water leaked out. Even as Cui Xie listened to himself, he also started to believe that Official Cui and his wife were very fond of him and had sent him to the ancestral home so he could study at ease.

‘not one drop of water leaked out’: idiom; watertight and rigorous argument

Qi Sheng digested the information for a while and spoke in a deep voice, “If it is merely passing the shengyuan examinations, I may be able to provide some assistance—next year, the Ministry of Appointments is enacting a large scale program of paramount importance. I shall be transferred to another post after the program is finished. But, there will still be time to host that year’s county examinations. I do not know which classic Young Master has learned up to, but with such a good opportunity and season, you can call upon this county official.”

Cui Xie was pressed to say the truth, but he dropped his eyes slightly and replied, “This little one has not studied much and has not started writing essays. But, I have learned the 《Four Books, Chapters and Annotations》and can say that I know it by heart*.”

*meaning so well that you can recite it backward

Ming Dynasty Imperial examination curriculum included knowing the Four Books and Five Classics of Confucianism

Only learned the four books? What’s the use of knowing it by heart when the Imperial examination tests on more than just the Four Books! This Young Master Cui had just finished the Four Books after studying so many years before. Were the remaining two years really enough time for him to master the classics, write decent eight-legged essays and policy dissertations?

Eight-legged essay: ‘eight bone text’; style of essay in imperial examinations during the Ming and Qing dynasties in China. The eight-legged essay was needed for those test-takers in these civil service exams to show their merits for government service, the contents often focusing on Confucian thought and knowledge of the Four Books and Five Classics in relation to governmental ideals

This county examination did not give rankings and the upper-level checks were not strict, so it would not be difficult for him to put a student onto the list. But, if the essays were truly too poorly-written and he had allowed such a student to pass the county examination, what would he do if the student failed the imperial exams in the future, and made a ruckus? What was to be done then?

The County Magistrate mused back and forth, and then said with no emotion: “Since it is known by heart, please recite the 《Analects》once.”

Four Books contained the ‘Great Learning’, ‘The Doctrine of the Mean’, ‘The Analects’, and’ Mencius’. The Sage refers to Confucious himself.

Among the Four Books, the Analects of the Confucious recorded the Sage’s speech and noble behavior. The most important thing was that no decent scholar would memorize it wrong, so he let the child recite it and decided to take a look.

Cui Xie responded: “I have to close my eyes to concentrate my consciousness on reciting, please let the old Master excuse my rudeness.”

“Fine, you can just recite it.” County Magistrate Qi did not care whether he recited it poorly or not. He carelessly leaned back into his official chair and listened casually. But, listening to Cui Xie started from 《Book 1: First Learning》, the original text was mixed with Zhu Xi’s commentaries and the pronunciation was smooth and natural. It was as fluent as if he was reading from a book, even after a few chapters, there were no errors or omissions of the text.

Zhu Xi’s commentaries: Zhu Xi was a Chinese calligrapher, historian, philosopher, politician, and writer, his contributions to Chinese philosophy included his editing of and commentaries to the Four Books, which later formed the curriculum of the civil service exam in Imperial China from 1313 to 1905

Qi Sheng’s contempt gradually disappeared and he waved to stop Cui Xie, asking: “As long as the content is among the Four Books, can you fluently recite it at any point in the text?”

Cui Xie minimized the PDF, laying all the pages out in front of him with his mind. He could sweep all the text at a glance. Because it was in his consciousness, there was no problem that the handwriting would be too small to be legible. He confidently assured, “This student clearly remembers. Da-ren can feel free to test at will.”

Da-ren: honorific used to refer to a government official or someone of higher authority/rank

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