Chapter 289 Zhao Yingluo goes deep into the tiger’s den He was wearing a green shirt, had a handsome face, and looked quite elegant. Seeing this, Zhao Yingluo quickly stepped forward to stop him, and said with a smile: "Mr. Sir, please stay." The young scholar was stunned for a moment, looked at Zhao Yingluo doubtfully, and asked in confusion: "Who are you? ?” Zhao Yingluo smiled slightly, cupped her hands and said, "I'm just passing by here. Seeing how talented your husband is, I can't help but want to ask for advice." As she said that, she pointed to Chunfang Garden, "Why did you choose to come here instead of taking the scientific examination?" After hearing Zhao Yingluo's words, the young scholar was stunned for a moment, and then smiled mysteriously: "This brother doesn't know something. It is much easier to get an official position by coming to Chunfang Garden than taking the scientific examination." Zhao Yingluo's heart moved when she heard this. She knew there must be something fishy behind this brothel, but she still said calmly on the surface: "Oh? How do you say this?" The young scholar looked around to make sure that no one was paying attention to them, and then whispered: "The boss behind Chunfangyuan has great hands and eyes. It is said that he has a close relationship with a certain official in the court. As long as you can get it out At the starting price, he can help you buy an official position.” As he spoke, a trace of greed and desire flashed in his eyes. After hearing these words, Zhao Yingluo couldn't help but feel a surge of anger in her heart. She didn't expect such a dirty deal to exist in this prosperous capital city.
This is not only an insult to the imperial examination system, but also an injustice to those students who studied hard and aspired to change their destiny through the imperial examination. After Zhao Yingluo learned about the young scholar's purpose, although she was furious in her heart, there was no trace of it on her face. She decided to go deep into the tiger's den herself to find out. So, she told Xia He to stay outside and wait, while she and Wen Boyuan swaggered into Chunfang Garden. As soon as he entered the door, the old madam greeted him. She was dressed in gorgeous clothes and her face was heavily smeared with makeup, but she still couldn't hide the traces of time. She looked at Zhao Yingluo and Wen Boyuan with a smile, and asked: "You two gentlemen, are you here to have fun and find girls, or are you here to seek fame and fame?" Zhao Yingluo was stunned for a moment, and then understood the meaning of "Dai Wusha". She sneered in her heart, but pretended to be curious on her face, and asked: "Oh? What does Dai Wusha mean?" Seeing her interest, the old bustard suddenly became energetic and explained: "Dai Wusha naturally means seeking fame. Our Chunfang Garden is a treasure land. It not only allows you to enjoy the gentle land, but also helps you to embark on a successful journey." Official career. If you are interested, you might as well go to the second floor and take a look." Zhao Yingluo smiled slightly and nodded: "In that case, let's go to the second floor and have a look." After that, she motioned to Wen Boyuan to pay. Wen Boyuan immediately took out twenty taels of silver from his pocket and handed it to the madam. The old bustard took the silver and his eyes suddenly lit up. She quickly called to her servants: "Quickly, take the two gentlemen to the second floor!" After saying that, she turned and left, continuing to greet other guests. Under the leadership of a boy, Zhao Yingluo and Wen Boyuan came to the second floor. This place is completely different from the first floor, less noisy and flashy, more peaceful and mysterious. Elegant rooms are located on both sides of the corridor, with exquisite bead curtains hanging on the doors. People can't help but wonder what kind of secrets are hidden inside. The servant brought them to the door of a room and said respectfully: "You two gentlemen, please." After saying that, he withdrew. Zhao Yingluo took a deep breath and opened the door. Only I saw that the room was very elegantly decorated, with famous calligraphy and paintings hanging on the walls and exquisite tea sets on the table. A middle-aged man is sitting at the table drinking tea. He is dressed in rich clothes and has an extraordinary bearing. Seeing Zhao Yingluo and Wen Boyuan come in, he put down his tea cup and stood up with a smile. "It's really wonderful that you two gentlemen came to visit me." The middle-aged man said with cupped hands. Zhao Yingluo returned the favor and said, "Don't take it seriously. We just heard that Chunfangyuan has a shortcut to gain fame, so we came here to give it a try." She deliberately emphasized the word "shortcut" in order to test the other party. The middle-aged man laughed loudly when he heard this: "Young Master is indeed a sensible person. Yes, our Chunfang Garden does have a shortcut to fame. As long as Young Master is willing to provide money, I guarantee that you will wear a black gauze hat." As he spoke, he walked to the wall, pointed to a calligraphy and painting on it and said, "Have you seen this painting? This is the 'Golden List Title' personally inscribed by Her Royal Highness the Princess, which means that as long as you come to our Chunfang Garden, You can be named on the gold medal list and achieve great success.” Zhao Yingluo looked at the splendid four characters "Title on the Gold List" and couldn't help but feel a sense of ridicule in her heart.
This is clearly her handwriting. Once upon a time, she wrote these four words with her own hands to encourage students to study hard and strive for fame. However, nowadays, these four words are used by these greedy people as capital to show off and sell their official positions, which is really heartbreaking. She suppressed the anger in her heart, took a deep breath, and turned to the middle-aged man and asked: "I wonder how the price of this Daiwu gauze is determined? If you want to become famous in one fell swoop, how much money will it cost?" When the middle-aged man heard this, a proud smile appeared on his face, as if he had seen through Zhao Yingluo's eagerness and desire. He slowly stretched out five fingers and said: "If you want to pass the liberal arts, you need five thousand taels of silver. If you want to win the Jinshi, it will be ten thousand taels of silver. Of course, if you have great ambitions, If you want to directly get an official position, the price will naturally be different. For example, a fifth-grade official will need 50,000 taels of silver." Zhao Yingluo couldn't help but sneer after hearing this. She really admired the appetite and greed of these people for being able to clearly mark the price of imperial examinations and official positions and openly sell them. This is not only an insult to the imperial examination system, but also a blasphemy to the entire imperial court and officialdom. However, Zhao Yingluo did not get angry immediately. She pretended to be surprised and said: "Oh? There is such a good thing? Then as long as I spend enough money, I can easily obtain fame and official position?" When the middle-aged man saw this, he thought that Zhao Yingluo had taken the bait, and he suddenly became even more proud. He nodded and said with a smile: "Young master is indeed a smart man. Yes, as long as you have enough money, everything is not a problem. We at Chunfangyuan have nothing but connections and connections. As long as you are willing to provide money. , I promise to make your official career easy." Zhao Yingluo sneered in her heart, but she pretended to be moved and hesitated: "Is this serious? I don't want to spend money but not get anything done." As she said that, she took out a banknote from her arms and waved it in front of the middle-aged man's eyes, "Look, this is not a small amount. You can't lie to me." The middle-aged man's eyes lit up and he stared at the bank note greedily. He hurriedly said: "Don't worry, young master, we at Chunfang Garden have always been honest. Just feel free to pay the money boldly, and I guarantee that you will come home satisfied." As he spoke, he couldn't wait to reach out and grab the banknote.