Chapter 53 My Dad Works Too Hard
This is the final sprint!
Deng Qianqiu simply took two days off to accompany his father to study.

But after arriving at the inn, Deng Qianqiu was surprised that it was not as lively as he had imagined.

Didn't they say that many scholars went to Beijing? This place is not far from the examination hall, so business should be booming.

Why is it so deserted? Is it a shady shop?
"Shopkeeper, shopkeeper..." Deng Qianqiu came to the tall counter and patted the shopkeeper who was sleeping soundly on the counter.

The shopkeeper shuddered, raised his eyes and glanced at Deng Qianqiu dazedly. He looked like a person who had indulged in excessive sexual activities, with dark bags under his eyes, just like a panda.

"Oh, it's Captain Deng." The shopkeeper suddenly came to his senses. When he saw Deng Qianqiu, he was shocked as if he had seen a ghost. He wanted to say something, but seemed a little afraid of Deng Qianqiu. So he swallowed and put the words back into his stomach.

Deng Qianqiu asked with concern: "How is my father these days?"

The shopkeeper said, "He is fine and in good spirits."

Deng Qianqiu said with emotion: "That's good. I was worried that he would not be able to adapt to the climate in Nanjing. I was worried every day."

The shopkeeper said: "Captain Deng is truly a filial son."

Deng Qianqiu scratched his head and said a little embarrassedly: "It's mainly because our Deng family has a good family tradition. Filial piety comes first among all virtues. This is passed down from our ancestors."

At this moment, a rooster crowed suddenly in the backyard.

From the kitchen, someone shouted in shock: "This damn chicken crows day and night. I can't live unless it dies."

The shopkeeper's expression changed slightly.

Deng Qianqiu was obviously not interested in this, but he went upstairs slowly, tiptoed to the outside of Deng Jian's guest room, crouched down, and looked inside through the crack in the door.

But I saw the lights on inside, and in front of the desk, a familiar figure was writing something furiously.

Upon seeing this scene, Deng Qianqiu couldn't help but feel relieved and moved to tears.

My dad works so hard!

He put on his clothes and knocked on the door. The door seemed to be unlocked, so he pushed it open and walked in.

"father……"

Deng Jian heard the noise and turned around in surprise.

As soon as he saw Deng Qianqiu, his pair of red eyes suddenly seemed to light up.

"Qianqiu..." Deng Jian's voice was hoarse with fatigue.

Deng Qianqiu put down the lunch box he brought with him and said, "Dad, let me come to see you. How are you? Have you read all the books? Have you written the articles I told you to write every day? Let me take a look."

As he spoke, he walked to the desk and looked at the pile of manuscripts. He was even more pleased. "The exam will start in three days. Dad, we have to work harder. By then, we can be proud of ourselves and become famous all over the world."

Deng Qianqiu’s idea was actually very simple. No matter how talented other scholars were or how profound their family background was, the Deng family only did one thing, which was to crush them to death.

What talent do I have? I'm working hard, are you afraid?
What family tradition? I study all night long, day and night. Are you convinced?

As for the so-called combination of work and rest, and relaxing before exams, it's all nonsense.

Learning itself is a painful process. People are like an old machine. Once they stop working, they need a lot of time to recover.

Only by staying tense at all times, always immersed in the atmosphere of preparing for the exam, and studying hard, can you pull down all your competitors and come out on top. Deng Jian looked at his son with a kind look, and said, "Your eight-part essay method is really useful. In the past, writing an article always required deep thinking. Even if you had a lot of ideas in your mind, you couldn't write a word. These days, you have been copying others, but you found that this article is as if it was written with divine help."

Deng Qianqiu said with a smile: "Dad, you have worked hard, your son loves you."

Deng Jian couldn't help but sigh, holding his son's hand, and said with deep emotion: "You are the one running around outside, and it's hard work."

Deng Qianqiu really felt sorry for his father's hard work, so he patted the back of Deng Jian's hand soothingly and then went to get the lunch box.

When the food box was opened, a rich aroma of chicken soup wafted out.

"Dad, this is the soup I asked someone to make. You've worked hard studying, so you need some nourishing soup."

When Deng Jian heard the word "chicken", he subconsciously shuddered.

Deng Qianqiu didn't notice his father's subtle reaction, but continued: "I know you don't like eating chicken, but the big exam is coming soon, and without a good body, you can't bear it..."

Deng Jian seemed relieved at this moment, and laughed, "Okay, okay, I have a filial son."

He laughed, took a spoon, and drank a few mouthfuls of chicken soup in front of Deng Qianqiu. Then he frowned as if he suddenly remembered something and said, "Qianqiu, have you heard the rumors outside?"

Deng Qianqiu asked: "Rumors, what rumors?"

Deng Jian said: "Now people are saying that although there is dragon energy in Huaixi, there is no cultural heritage. The cultural heritage of the world is in Jiangdong and Jiangnan."

Deng Qianqiu shook his head and said, "That's not wrong."

Deng Jian thought for a moment and said hesitantly, "It's true that it's wrong, but now people are talking about it all of a sudden. It's also said that many scholars went to visit the Right Prime Minister Wang Guangyang and the Chief Censor Liu Ji after they came to Beijing. It's said that there were endless carriages and horses in front of their gates. The scholars admired these two powerful Confucian scholars. When they came to Beijing to take the exam, they all paid their respects to them as if they were students. This matter... became a good story for a while."

Deng Qianqiu scratched his head and said, "Oh, what's the problem?"

Deng Jian drank a mouthful of chicken soup and sighed, "Now that you have come to the capital and are on duty in the palace, there are some things that your father should warn you about. In your opinion, the water here is very deep, you must be careful and don't interact with people casually."

Deng Qianqiu was always smart and understood immediately, so he said, "You mean, the reason why these news were spread was because someone did it on purpose?"

Deng Jian's face was filled with caution. He said, "You have to know that if anything in the world suddenly causes a lot of discussion on the streets, there must be someone behind it fanning the flames. It can't be groundless."

Deng Qianqiu frowned and said, "This matter has become so serious that the Right Prime Minister Wang Guangyang and the Chief Censor Liu Ji have been put in the spotlight. There are also rumors that belittle our Huaixi scholars. Could it be... could it be... intentionally creating conflicts between the Huaixi people and other prefectures and counties in Southern Zhili? I'm afraid that if the news reaches the palace, His Majesty will also be scratching his head."

Deng Jian's eyes, which were very similar to Deng Qianqiu's, showed admiration, and he said with emotion: "Qianqiu, your father underestimated you. I didn't expect you to be so wise. If I think about it carefully, could it be that... someone wants to take this opportunity to attack dissidents?"

Deng Qianqiu interjected: "Who attacks whom?"

Deng Jian hesitated for a moment and said, "It is well known that Li Shanchang, the left prime minister of the Secretariat, is about to be appointed as a scholar. He is old and in poor health. He has submitted several petitions to request retirement and return home. The right prime minister Wang Guangyang and the chief censor Liu Ji are both the most important candidates for the position of left prime minister. But now these things have happened. Doesn't it just show that these two are in their prime and are respected by scholars all over the world? If one of them can go one step further and become the left prime minister, wouldn't that be even more powerful? Think about it, if you were His Majesty, would you consider checks and balances? Then... who would be allowed to check and balance these two? And to check and balance these two, then this person must be an important candidate for the left prime minister.

Deng Qianqiu suddenly realized after hearing this: "I understand. Below the left and right prime ministers and the chief censor are the left and right chancellors of the Secretariat. This is to strike down the ministers who are great scholars in Jiangnan! Then... this person must be from Huaixi, and he must be qualified to replace Li Shanchang... Dad, are you talking about Hu Weiyong?"

Deng Jian pursed his lips and suddenly sighed: "Your Majesty is wise, I think he can see through all this. But... even if he sees through it, can he remain indifferent? Even if he sees through it, he must rely on people like Hu Weiyong to check and balance the celebrities and great scholars in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Therefore, even if Your Majesty sees through it, facing this overwhelming discussion, I am afraid he will have to make arrangements..."

Deng Qianqiu squinted his eyes and said, "Dad, why don't you study hard and care about the emperor?"

Deng Jian was stunned and quickly lowered his head to drink the chicken soup.

Deng Qianqiu didn't notice the complex look in Deng Jian's eyes, but gnashed his teeth and said, "The exam is coming up, and you still have the time to mind your own business! Dad, are you worthy of our ancestors and me? They say that one should turn a deaf ear to the world outside and focus on reading the books of sages. How come you don't understand this truth?"

(End of this chapter)