Chapter 003 Rebellious Psychology
After getting off the boat, walk out of the Jinling Old Courtyard and cross the Zhenhuai Bridge. There are more tall houses on both sides of the official street. This area belonged to the residential area of meritorious officials and nobles in Nanjing City during the Ming Dynasty.
"As expected of a noble family..."
Shen Yichen stood in front of Duke Chengguo's Mansion, looking at the three red doors with animal heads and the five golden characters "帝成国府" on the crossbeam, and couldn't help but sigh.
Not to mention the majesty of the wealthy and powerful, the area of the door panel alone is almost as large as that of their own small courtyard. No wonder the ancient literati regarded being granted a title of nobility and being honored as an official as their lifelong pursuit. Only by being there in person can you feel that the "level" of this kind of noble family is indeed different!
After looking at it in amazement for a while, Shen Yichen did not enter the Chengguo Mansion from here, but walked towards the corner door on the side.
The reason is simple, that is, they are not worthy!
In ancient times, the main gate of a mansion would only be opened when distinguished guests arrived. Apart from the royal family, the only people who could enter through the main gate at the level of Duke Chengguo were probably dukes and ministers of the same rank. What was a servant's son like me worth?
In addition to the guards, there were also a few doormen chatting at the corner gate. They just glanced at Shen Yichen casually without greeting or saluting or doing anything else, seeming a little contemptuous.
As the saying goes, there is a seventh-rank official in front of the prime minister's door. These doormen usually come into contact with high-ranking officials, and most of them flatter them and beg them to do things for them. They have long been arrogant.
As long as Shen Yichen, the illegitimate son, is not included in the family tree of Duke Cheng, he is not considered a "master" and there is naturally no need to please or respect him.
Moreover, judging from Shen Yichen's past performance, he probably has no hope of being included in the Duke's family tree in this lifetime. If he still fails to pass the examination to become a student in two years, he will probably be kicked out of the private school.
Shen Yichen naturally didn't feel anything about the contempt of these doormen. After all, you were looking down on Shen Yichen, what did it have to do with me, "Zhang Ning"?
After entering the Duke's Mansion, Shen Yichen relied on his memory and walked towards the west courtyard where the private school was located.
Most of the wealthy families in the Ming Dynasty would set up their own libraries at home for their children to study. However, some wealthy families or famous families would also accept the children of relatives, friends, or even the children of trusted subordinates to study together, which was called "attached school".
Shen Yichen was not included in the genealogy of Duke Chengguo, so he was not considered a member of the family and could only attend classes at home as an "attached student". Moreover, his classmates were not the children of Duke Chengguo's relatives and friends, but the children of his trusted subordinates in the outer courtyard.
This is why the doorman had not taken Shen Yichen seriously before, because this arrangement meant that even if Duke Chengguo allowed Shen Yichen to "study" in the mansion, he did not really regard him as his own son, but more like a gift and alms.
As soon as Shen Yichen approached the private school lecture hall, he heard the sound of reading aloud, and instantly he felt a chill in his heart.
"It's over. Morning class has already started and I'm late again!"
Then, various scenes of being beaten and punished with cheat sheets appeared in his mind. It seemed that this "Shen Yichen" was also a frequent latecomer and had been punished many times.
But since I'm here, I can't just go home, right? Besides, there is no such thing as nine-year compulsory education in this era. If I skip school and make the teacher angry, I might really go home and never come back.
So Shen Yichen could only push the door open and walk in, lowering his head and shouting in the method and tone he remembered to admit his cowardice.
"gentlemen."
The clear sound of reading came to an abrupt halt. A middle-aged scholar in a blue shirt on the podium discovered that it was Shen Yichen standing at the door, and a trace of anger immediately appeared on his face. He was Shen Yichen's tutor Li Tingxiu, a juren in the fifth year of Xuande (1430).
"As the ancients said, learning comes from hard work, and you can read thousands of books by the window, but you can't even study on time in the morning!"
Li Tingxiu is a typical traditional scholar. He strictly abides by the teacher-student relationship and has extremely strict requirements for academic research.
What he cannot tolerate most is students being lazy and late. After all, poor grades are also a matter of talent and understanding, and it is impossible for everyone to pass the exam. But being late and lazy is an attitude problem, and it must not be tolerated!
"The student knew he was wrong."
Shen Yichen did not make any excuses. He understood that one must admit one's mistakes and stand at attention when being beaten.
And there's really no way to explain it. It's impossible to just say that it was because he saved a prostitute who was about to jump into the river on the way to school, right?
Regardless of whether Li Tingxiu believed it or not, based on the memory of his traditional old-fashioned character, if he found out that he was involved with a prostitute in a brothel, or if he was further misunderstood as being late for visiting a brothel, the consequences would be more than just a beating or a punishment of cheating, so he could only grit his teeth and take the blame for being late!
Li Tingxiu was a little surprised when
So Shen Yichen's abnormal behavior caused Li Tingxiu to not punish him directly, but instead asked, "Why are you late?"
When Shen Yichen heard Li Tingxiu's question, he was stunned. He just didn't know how to explain it, so he admitted his mistake frankly.
Unexpectedly, this gentleman did not play by the rules. He used to make excuses for not listening, but now he asks again without asking. Is this the legendary rebellious psychology?
If that's the case, don't blame me for making it up...
"Sir, the students studied too late last night, so they were delayed this morning."
Shen Yichen came up with such a flowery sentence, but actually he wanted to express it in a more popular way, which is oversleep.
Hearing what Shen Yichen said, the expression on Li Tingxiu's face turned livid in an instant. It seemed that he had overestimated this kid's character. The excuses he made in the past were just fake, but the excuses he used now were simply outrageous!
Studying too late to review? I have been teaching him for several years, but I never realized that Shen Yichen is the kind of person who would review his lessons at night!
"Before you learn, you must first be moral. I'll give you one more chance to come clean."
After admitting it, he still asks questions, and after telling me, he doesn't believe it. Isn't this annoying?
Shen Yichen didn't expect that being late in the morning would be such a troublesome thing in ancient times, but since he had already said it, he could only stick to it.
"Sir, didn't you just say that you wanted to read thousands of books by the window? So I read by candlelight at night."
When Shen Yichen said this, the expressions of his classmates in the classroom became very interesting. This guy actually dared to lie with his eyes open. It was simply an insult to the teacher's IQ. Did he want to be kicked out of the private school?
