Chapter 56: Rumors about Japanese Pirates
Seeing that the situation had gradually moved away from the realm of "talent and learning" competition, Lin Zhen stepped out at the right time to interrupt and said: "Well, the sea of learning is endless and we should make progress together. Feng Zichu, if you have any questions, come to me after the class."
Lin Zhen's words were meant to give both sides a way out. If they had continued their verbal sparring, it would have been disrespectful.
"Yes, sir."
Since Lin Zhen had spoken, no matter how angry or dissatisfied they were, they could not continue in the classroom. Otherwise, it would not be a dispute between students, but a challenge to the dignity of teachers.
After the three of them bowed and said yes, they sat down and continued the class. However, Xu Donghai and Feng Zichu felt extremely aggrieved.
He was clearly planning to show his power to the other party, to let him see the strength of the students of Zhaowen College. But now it seems that he was controlled by Shen Yichen, and he was at a disadvantage!
Shen Yichen was calm at the moment and didn't take it to heart at all, because he had been in ancient times for a long time and deeply understood what "literati look down on each other" meant.
The more talented a person is, the more arrogant he is, and the more he refuses to accept people who are similar to him.
Especially the students of Zhaowen Academy, who were all gifted by heaven in the eyes of others. But he was just a student, but he could worship Lin Zhen as his master and was invited to attend the lectures. How could he not be jealous of such treatment?
So it's not surprising that they want to compete head-on and compare their knowledge.
During Lin Zhen's lecture, everyone in the classroom was very quiet and listened attentively, unlike in the private school where people would whisper from time to time. After all, with his status as the top scholar, no student dared to mess around.
There is also a real gap in the source of students. The students in the outer courtyard of Chengguogong’s mansion can basically be collectively referred to as “poor students” in later generations.
In addition, compared with the elementary education in private schools, the meaning of the Book of Documents can only be described with the idiom "诘曲聱牙". Even though Shen Yichen has been studying the book for several months, he dare not say that he can fully understand it.
Fortunately, Lin Zhen was knowledgeable and could quote from classics to help students understand the meaning of even the most profound and difficult ancient expressions.
Before they knew it, the lecture on the meaning of the scriptures had ended. After the class was adjourned, Shen Yichen also walked out of the lecture hall with Lin Zhen.
Walking along the corridor, Lin Zhen looked at Shen Yichen and said with a half-smile: "Yichen, your performance today is quite different."
After hearing what Lin Zhen said, Shen Yichen thought that the teacher was going to blame him for the verbal battle with two students from Zhaowen Academy in the classroom.
So he quickly apologized, "Sir, I was careless and shouldn't have caused any disputes in the lecture hall."
"No, you didn't act rashly, you did a great job."
What?
Shen Yichen was stunned. In the past, he had only heard of friction between teachers and students when they punished each other, but Lin Zhen did the opposite. Was he encouraging disputes?
"Don't get me wrong , I just hope you can show off your talents sometimes."
"One should not be aggressive, nor should one be submissive. A gentleman should take the middle way."
"Yes, sir. I am grateful for your instruction."
Shen Yichen felt a little amused at this moment. Other teachers advised their students to keep a low profile and not to be reckless and cause trouble. However, his own teacher advised them to jump a little and not be too low-key.
Now it seems that I am not high-profile enough?
They walked all the way to the end of the corridor. Shen Yichen saw that it was getting late, so he bowed and said, "Sir, if there is nothing else, then I will take my leave."
"Go ahead, the mountain road is slippery, watch your step ."
"Thank you for your concern, sir. I'll take my leave."
After saying that, Shen Yichen stepped back a few words, then turned and left.
But when he walked to the door, he heard Lin Zhen's admonition: "Remember what the master said, a young man is one who wears fine clothes and rides a vigorous horse!"
After hearing Lin Zhen's repeated instructions, Shen Yichen finally understood why the teacher did not stop him and showed that half-smile expression in the lecture hall before.
It seems that it was not his misunderstanding, but some of his past behaviors that caused Lin Zhen to misunderstand.
But it's okay this way. In the ancient people's value system, it's better to think that you are unusually low-key than high-profile and arrogant. Even though Lin Zhen has repeatedly emphasized that if you really stir up trouble like a dandy boy, you probably won't even be qualified to be his disciple.
When he returned home, it was already dark. After dinner, Shen Yichen went to his room and read by candlelight as usual. He did not show any sign of slacking off .
Because Shen Yichen knew very well that there were still countless difficulties waiting for him on the road to the imperial examination in the future, especially in the classics and poetry, which were his weak points, and the requirements would become higher and higher as time went on.
By that time, when the level of the questions on the Four Books is similar, the level of the classics and poetry will most likely become the criterion for determining admission.
Time is running out and Shen Yichen doesn't want to waste too much time.
Three days later, the private school in the outer courtyard of Duke Chengguo's Mansion resumed normal teaching. However, when Li Da was seen again, the boy was limping when he walked.
His legs weren't really broken by his father, but judging by his behavior, he must have been beaten pretty badly.
As for Zhao Hongjie, he was a tough guy and he was also a bastard's son, so his father probably didn't have much hope for him. After coming to the private school, he was still full of energy.
And without Li Da's bullying, Zhao Hongjie is living a more carefree life and his future is bright!
As for Shen Yichen himself, there had been some slight changes. After his daily homework, Li Tingxiu would tutor him on some knowledge about classics and poetry.
Li Tingxiu's so-called poor knowledge of classics was relative to the top scholar like Lin Zhen, and it did not mean that his knowledge was really poor.
After all, he passed the imperial examination at a young age and was chosen by Chengguo Zhu Yong to be a tutor. It is impossible that his level is too bad, and he is more than capable of helping Shen Yichen, a schoolboy.
Time passed day by day, and soon it was April, with less than half a month left until the provincial examination.
Relatively speaking, the prefectural examination was not very difficult for Shen Yichen, because there was an unspoken rule in the imperial examination, that is, if one ranked first in the county examination, he would be considered to have passed the prefectural examination.
Unless the cheater himself has very poor knowledge, or you have a grudge against the prefect and he just doesn't want to choose you, it is unlikely that any accidents will occur.
But just when Shen Yichen was fully preparing for the prefectural examination, the people of Yingtian Prefecture were in a panic, and the streets were full of rumors that the Japanese pirates were about to invade. Even some timid people began to pack up their gold and silver jewelry at home, ready to run away at any time!
Not to mention ordinary people, even in high-ranking mansions like the Chengguo Mansion, rumors have begun to spread, and schoolchildren have begun discussing the situation of Japanese pirates in the outside world.
"Yichen, have you heard that the Japanese pirates are harassing eastern Zhejiang? They have already breached the Qianhu Guards in Taizhou and Ningbo, and are heading north along the coastline, preparing to attack Songjiang Prefecture."
Zhao Hongjie spoke to Shen Yichen with a worried look on his face about the current situation. Children of military commanders like them, even if their fathers are still serving in the capital, the amount of information they obtain far exceeds that of ordinary people.
"I'm not sure, but Songjiang Prefecture is not that easy to capture, and even if it is captured, it is still some distance away from Yingtian Prefecture. Could it be that this little Japanese pirate can go upstream along the river and capture Yingtian Prefecture?"
Shen Yichen was not worried, let alone panicking. It was still the Zhengtong period, and although the border defense had begun to decay, it had not yet completely collapsed. It was not like the Jiajing period, when dozens of Japanese pirates attacked the city of Nanjing and left in a swagger.
"That's hard to say. Five years ago, the Japanese pirates successively destroyed the Taizhou, Taozhu, Ningbo, Dasong and other thousand-household garrisons, and also captured Changguowei. At that time, the emperor executed 36 officers who failed in the incident and also added Japanese officers for coastal defense. Only a few years later, the Japanese pirates have come back again."
What Zhao Hongjie was talking about was the Japanese invasion in the fourth year of Zhengtong. In that year, the Japanese pirates brought more than 40 ships and headed north from the coast of Fujian, burning, killing and looting all the way until they broke through the important military base of Changguowei. It was a shocking event for the whole government and the public.
In a sense, this Japanese invasion also exposed the weakness of the Ming Dynasty's coastal defense. Most of the garrisons along the southeastern coast were in a state of disrepair, which laid the hidden danger for the more serious Japanese invasion in the southeast in the future.
However, even in the late Ming Dynasty when the Japanese invasion was the most serious, there was no possibility of capturing a big city like Nanjing, not to mention that the northern Beijing garrison still had strong combat effectiveness during the Zhengtong period.
The current panic in public opinion is similar to the mentality of the various salt and rice scrambles in later generations. Rumors have spread and become more and more exaggerated.
Shen Yichen looked indifferent. Li Da, who was sitting in the back row, couldn't help but feel a little helpless when he saw Zhao Hongjie's cowardly look.
"Zhao Hongjie, you are the son of Zhao Tongzhi, the governor of the imperial guards. Are you afraid of a few short Japanese pirates? If they really attack, the worst that can happen is that you can just join the army and put on armor to fight the enemy. Why are you so scared?"
Compared to the panic of others, there was even a hint of excitement in Li Da's tone. He had long hoped to have a chance to go to the battlefield and kill the enemy instead of memorizing the Four Books and Five Classics in this private school.
If the Japanese pirates really attacked, Li Da would immediately go to the Nanjing Governor's Office to report. With his father's status as the Deputy Governor of the Left Army Governor's Office in the Capital, there would be no problem for him to join the army and serve the country.
"Li Da, do you want to join the army so much?"
Shen Yichen turned around and asked.
"Of course, a real man should wield a three-foot-long sword, not this broken pen."
As Li Da spoke, he looked at the brush in his hand with disgust. From his expression and actions, it can be seen that this boy really hates studying.
"If you really like to join the army, then go to the capital and join the Beijing Camp. I will write a letter to the Duke to recommend you."
"Really?"
When Li Da heard that Shen Yichen was willing to write a letter to the Duke to recommend him, his eyes lit up.
"really."
"But... the Duke and you..."
After a brief moment of excitement, Li Da thought of a more realistic problem, that is, Shen Yichen was born to a maid, so what was the point of him editing the book?
To put it more bluntly, it is even questionable whether the Duke would even read his letters home.
"Don't worry, the Duke will definitely watch it, but the prerequisite is that you can convince your father, Li Chenshi."
"Okay, I won't give in this time!"
Li Da replied viciously that with the Duke's endorsement, he would definitely succeed this time.
If Shen Yichen had accepted Li Da and his group as his subordinates before, it was just a whim of his. Then, now that he was willing to write a letter to let him join the army, it could be considered a well-planned move.
Although Shen Yichen was well aware that this Japanese invasion posed no threat, it served as a reminder to him that in the future Zhengtong Dynasty, there would be a drastic war, and he had to be prepared for both scenarios.
If history really changes, I, who rely on a pen, will be like the civilians who believe in rumors today, with no ability to protect myself or resist.
