Volume 5: Fellow Traveler Chapter 786: The Drunkard's Intentions Are Not About Drinking
If it were me, I would dare to state clearly in front of Grand Tutor Ge and a group of royal relatives who, although not in high positions of power, at least have a certain opportunity to talk to the emperor, that if the court does not value me and only intends to treat me as an insignificant clerk, then, my work for the court is also limited, and this limit is only five years?
Everyone, including Yan Yuxi, was quietly asking themselves the same question, and in the end, it was clear that everyone had different opinions. Yan Yuxi shook his head and said in a deep voice: "Mr. Baisha was able to work diligently for five years, but if it were me, I would probably say that even though I have eaten the rice of a student in the imperial academy and enjoyed the tax-free land of a juren, I would rather return to my hometown to teach than be a petty official."
"Because, as a minor official, I may make some small contribution to the court, but compared to my teaching and educating people, it is really far from it. Who says teaching students is not contributing to the country? Moreover, if the superior is virtuous and talented, then I will naturally be convinced. But if the superior is fat, idling in office, and still finds fault with him, I cannot tolerate it."
"In the past, Tao Wuliu once said that he would not bend his back for a few pieces of silver. Although I am far less noble than Mr. Wuliu, I am also unwilling to be a mere clerk, because if I were to be a clerk, I would certainly not be as skilled as those clerks who have been clerks for generations. And burying myself in paperwork every day and neglecting my studies would undoubtedly be a loss."
The emperor narrowed his eyes slightly at Yan Yuxi's equally sharp statement, but also did not make any judgment, but looked at the other three people. As a result, the statements of the three people were slightly different from those of Chen Xianzhang and Yan Yuxi.
One person said that the imperial court's rice stipend and exemption of some taxes and labor service were all for the purpose of supporting scholars. Since it was for supporting scholars, rather than forcing students to compete with clerks for jobs, then since the emperor and the ministers were unwilling to value talents and only let him be a mere clerk after being recommended by important officials, he could only walk away.
Another person said that even if a famous scholar is well-versed in the classics, it is unrealistic to rashly ask for a high official position and the trust of his superiors since he has no experience in practical affairs. Although Zhuge Wuhou's Longzhong Plan is famous throughout the ages, the facts have proved that there are more people in the world who claim to be Zhuge Wuhou but do not have his talent.
One should be down-to-earth and become familiar with practical affairs before looking forward to higher official positions and policy space.
The attitude of the last person was equally tough. He said that the assistant officials such as the county lieutenant, county magistrate, Tongpan, and prefectural magistrate in local places, and the Zhaomo and Jianxiu in the six central departments of the imperial court were all reserved for those low-ranking clerks to enter the officialdom after accumulating qualifications. If a real scholar was recommended by others but still wanted to settle for such a position, then saying this would not only make him compete with the clerks for positions, but also lower himself to the level of a clerk.
After the emperor listened to the five people's statements one by one, he finally glanced at his teacher Ge Yong who had been calm and composed, and then smiled and said, "The teacher's vision of people is indeed extraordinary. Although these five gentlemen who once taught in the public school have different personalities and different knowledge, they are all people who dare to speak out, and they dare to speak the truth."
The middle-aged man who asked the sharp question suddenly called Ge Yong teacher, and everyone was really shocked. However, before these celebrities who finally realized the emperor's true identity could react, the emperor smiled and said, "My visit today is really worthwhile, and I have also gained something from your words. I apologize for disturbing the teacher's guests."
The emperor clasped his fists and bowed, then turned around and left calmly. The royal family members who had initially served as his vanguards hurriedly followed him - otherwise would they stay and be questioned?
As they left, the stunned scholars finally regained their normal thinking ability and naturally turned their heads to look at Ge Yong. At this time, Ge Yong, who had been silent all along, started to curse: "You come when you say you will, and leave when you say you will, leaving a mess for me to clean up. Is there any student as unworthy as you in the world?"
Although the emperor had already left the house, Yan Yuxi was very sure that the emperor could hear everything clearly with Ge Lao Tai Shi's loud voice.
Even though he didn't think the emperor would blame Ge Yong for this, he was still worried. As a result, he didn't wait for the emperor to return, but instead heard the terrified voice of a servant outside.
"Old Master, the Emperor said that you should scold him for disrupting your grand gathering today. As compensation, he ordered people to select five sets of new editions from the Ancient and Modern Collections to be given to all of you who were invited here today, just as an apology."
At this point, the servant paused, then whispered, "The Emperor said that he heard that you were scolding with full energy, so he will send a box of Luo Han Guo for you to make tea to moisten your throat. He also said that the Guangdong Provincial Government has just presented a batch of mathematics books from overseas, so why not send them to you first? If you think they are good, let the interpreter translate them for you?"
Hearing that the emperor sent Luo Han Guo to "detoxify the heat", Ge Yong was naturally furious. However, when he heard about the mathematics book, his face finally turned better, but he snorted and did not continue the previous topic. Instead, he said unhappily, "Let's go", and then looked at the five people he invited today with a pleasant face.
"The Emperor is a man who thinks things through. So even though what happened today must have been specially arranged by him, you don't have to think too much about it. In my opinion, you all performed very well, and it's worth it that I invited you to be the first batch to give lectures at the public school. You know, the Emperor is not afraid of you making shocking remarks, but he is afraid of you agreeing with others and trying to please them."
It turns out that I just decided to tell the truth, and it turned out that I was right?
Yan Yuxi and Chen Xianzhang both smiled bitterly and regained their composure. The other three had completely different expressions. Some were overjoyed, some suppressed their fear, and some regretted missing the opportunity to speak freely in front of the emperor.
However, unlike these celebrities, after leaving the Ge Mansion, the emperor turned around and nodded slightly to the large group of royal family members he brought with him: "Thank you all for your hard work today. I think you will not remember what they said just now. Let's spread it out. I hope that all the candidates and other celebrities outside can know this."
This task was not difficult. However, the seven or eight members of the royal family looked at each other, but none of them could figure out the emperor's intention. He had just praised the five celebrities in front of Ge Yong for being frank and honest, but now he wanted them to spread these words outside. Was he pretending not to care, but actually not caring?
"The question I asked today is not just for them, I also want to ask the scholars in the world, so of course I hope to hear what others have to say about it."
The emperor was well aware of the concerns of the royal family, so he simply explained it clearly: "So, you might as well spread what I just said, so as not to make people think that I am dissatisfied with them."
With the emperor's words, the smartest members of the royal family, young and old, naturally understood. So after bidding farewell to the emperor, they hurriedly went about their own business, quickly spreading the news of what had happened in the Ge Mansion today.
As the emperor wished, the five celebrities' different attitudes towards the emperor's sharp questions were spread at the fastest speed. So much so that Chen Xianzhang downplayed it after returning, and Liang Chu did not learn much substantive news, but when he went outside to have lunch, he heard a lot of different versions of the news.
But even if there were many different opinions, there was one thing that was the same, that is, they were all talking about Chen Xianzhang's incredible attitude in front of the emperor. Scholars with merits received the privileges of food and grain from the court and exemption from some taxes and labor service. Isn't this what they should have? Why do they need to serve as officials? Since the Song Dynasty, hasn't the country always provided such generous support to scholars?
To be honest, the number of Jinshi admitted in this dynasty is much less than that in the Song Dynasty!
Liang Chu, who came back in a hurry, originally planned to ask his teacher about this matter, but when he poked his head out at the door, he found that Chen Xianzhang was still able to concentrate on reading. He thought about it and finally felt that even if he went in, he would be easily sent away by his teacher with a few words.
Therefore, this young prodigy, who was now somewhat famous in the capital because of his teacher Chen Xianzhang, quietly withdrew, slipped out of the inn, and went straight to Zhang Garden to submit a letter to ask for an audience. However, Zhang Shou, a busy man, was of course not at home during the day, and Zhu Ying was also busy with the enrollment of the first batch of students in the girls' school, so he came to nothing.
Undaunted, the young Liang asked the gatekeeper and learned that Zhang Shou had gone to Ciqing Palace to give lectures in the morning and should be at the public school in the afternoon. He then left the city without stopping, but when he arrived at the public school, he found nothing. Ciqing Palace would usually keep lunch for him at noon, and Zhang Shou would often chat with the prince for a while before leaving. He would arrive at the public school at least before dawn or even before noon.
This time, young Liang was determined to wait patiently. Since Zhang Shou had to go to class, he would definitely come back. However, this child prodigy who had long been famous in the countryside was unwilling to wait here in boredom. Anyway, the public school was not the Imperial College and did not prohibit visitors, so he simply registered his name and place of origin at the gate and then walked in with a swagger.
He had been here once before with Chen Xianzhang, who was giving a lecture, but he was too nervous at that time. In addition, the teacher's lecture was too difficult. Even with him explaining, the Third Prince still had a confused look on his face when he left. So he didn't pay any attention to other scenes in the public school. But today he decided to take a good look.
Therefore, Liang Chu, who could recite the Four Books and Five Classics by heart, did not dislike the things taught in the junior, middle and senior classes of the public school because they were too simple and straightforward for him to listen to. Instead, he lingered in every classroom for a while.
He even went to see the locker room where the school uniforms were kept. He learned that it was Lu Wan and Liu Zhiyuan who went out to obtain funding, and that Zhang Shou came up with the name of the school uniforms and locker room. He couldn't help but feel mixed emotions.
Obviously, they were just a group of students who were only slightly better than those who were illiterate. Even the content taught in the advanced classes was only the most superficial knowledge in the examination for students of the Tongsheng School. However, now those students, like the students of the Imperial Academy, wore the uniform clothes of the public school, and their spirit and demeanor immediately looked different when they walked out.
Of course, Liang Chu wanted to see not only how these too ordinary students attended classes, but also how Zhang Shou's Jiuzhang Hall and Banshan Hall were taught. Especially since Zhang Shou was not here today, would these two places continue to teach, or would they be acting in a false way, saying one thing in front of others and another behind their backs?
So, he quietly , he found that the middle-aged man who was giving a lecture on the stage had noticed him very sharply, and even shouted directly: "Who is sneaking outside the door?"
Seeing a large group of people turning their heads to look at him, Liang Chu couldn't help but feel a pang in his heart. He even felt that people would rush out and swear at him like the bad boys in the market, or even throw punches at him. However, he realized the next moment that his superficial understanding was wrong.
Because among those who turned around to take a look, someone recognized him very well. It was a big boy who was slightly older than him. He shouted directly, "Sir, that is Mr. Liang, the senior student of Mr. Baisha who came to the public school to give lectures before and the winner of the Guangdong provincial examination this year. He is not some bad friend who came here to have fun with us!"
"Mr. Lin, he is probably here to visit the public school."
The middle-aged man who was giving the lecture on the stage noticed that the person who was speaking was Zhang Dakui, the head of the hall, and he could not help but glare at him in annoyance, but he did not curse. After all, he was a well-known scholar in the Song Dynasty history in the capital, and he was not very willing to come to the public school to teach a group of famous playboys. However, the public school was now famous, and the fame of these guys was also increasing day by day.
If he refused casually, he would be remembered by the elders of these people and that would be really embarrassing.
What made him feel gratified at this time was that Mr. Baisha's senior disciple, to whom even the crown prince was said to have attended his lectures in person, was actually interested in his lectures. This also made him concentrate on his studies and he tried his best to describe Song Huizong's frivolous attitude towards state affairs and his outstanding talents in calligraphy, painting and other arts. This was very different from the attitude of most historians criticizing him for wasting his time on trivial matters.
However, after Liang Chu discovered that his identity was exposed, the teachers and students inside ignored him. Those who were giving lectures were giving lectures, and those who were listening were listening to the lectures. He felt at ease instead, standing at the door and listening with great interest.
However, when he heard people claiming that if Song Huizong had not become emperor, he would have surely been a wise king whose name would go down in history, and that if Song Zhezong had continued to reign, there might not have been a Sea Alliance, he finally couldn't help but interrupt outside the door.
"Although Song Zhezong may not be considered a great ruler, after the Jurchens became powerful, the rulers and ministers of the Song Dynasty may not be able to resist the temptation to take back Yanyun, and the Song-Jin Sea Alliance may not be repeated. I agree with your judgment. However, if Song Huizong was just a member of the royal family, he could be considered a master of Cuju, calligraphy and painting just by virtue of his good skills..."
"But with just these, he is at most a stubborn member of the royal family, not a wise king, right?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a voice came from behind him: "For the royal family of the Song Dynasty, as long as they can abide by the law and do not mind their own business, no matter if they are good with women, calligraphy, painting, Cuju, bronze and stone, etc., they are all wise kings. In this sense, Mr. Lin's explanation just now is extremely precise."
