Chapter 366 Brand

Chang'an.

No. 1 Imperial Examination Hall.

Today is the last day of classes for the first batch of students.

During these five days, Li Nuo provided special tutoring for each of them in their weak subjects, while also expanding their strong subjects.

He evenly distributed calligraphy, painting, music, charioteering and archery over five days, but the one thing that remained unchanged was the lesson on the meaning of the classics in the last hour of each day.

The students did not find this strange.

Among the six arts, the literature subject occupies the most weight and is tested on the first day. If you fail the literature subject, you will be eliminated directly, and no matter how good you are at the other subjects, they will be of no use.

After Li Nuo finished his last lecture, he stood in front of the blackboard, looked at the hundreds of students below, and said, "Today's class ends here."

The students looked up at him, their eyes full of admiration.

During these five days, they were deeply impressed by the knowledge and personal charm of this gentleman who was younger than most of them.

Li Nuo scanned their faces one by one and said, "Before the get out of class ends, I want to ask you a question."

He paused before speaking again: "What is the purpose of you studying for the imperial examinations?"

There was silence in the classroom for a moment, and then voices began to answer one after another.

"To be an official."

"For self-cultivation."

"To get ahead."

"To achieve great things and serve the country!"

"for……"

…

The students gave different answers. Li Nuo looked at them and asked, "And then?"

After the words were spoken, the classroom fell into silence for a long time.

Some people hesitated and were unable to speak, while others thought for a long time and could not come up with a reason.

Looking back, they were arranged by their families to learn the Six Arts since childhood in order to pass the imperial examinations and become the best people in the future. They have always believed this subconsciously.

But today, sitting in this classroom, the teacher's words "and then what" left almost everyone confused.

No matter how high-sounding the reasons are, in the final analysis, isn't the purpose of studying for the imperial examination to become an official?

Then what?

These three simple words touch the soul.

“To promote Confucianism.”

"To make the people live a good life."

"In order to govern the country and bring peace to the world."

…

The first to answer were a few students with righteous looks on their faces. The rest of the students either lowered their heads in silence or turned around with wandering eyes.

It’s not that they have nothing to say, but some of their answers are hard to express in this atmosphere.

Others do it to govern the country and bring peace to the world, to promote Confucianism, and to benefit the people. They can't say that they do it to make money, to be tax-free, to be the best, to have the power to control the fate of others...

Some things, even if they are facts, cannot be said openly.

Moreover, after five days of study, some of their original ideas began to waver.

Everyone spoke at once, and when the atmosphere eased a little, a young student stood up, looked at the figure in front of the blackboard, and asked, "Sir, may I ask, what is the purpose of our studies?"

All the students looked at him.

The person asking the question was named Chen Qi, a student at Qingfeng Academy. Although he came from a humble family, he was proficient in the six arts and was very balanced in each subject. He enjoyed considerable fame among the students in Chang'an.

Li Nuo smiled and said, "Being an official, cultivating oneself, or building a career, governing the country and bringing peace to the world, everyone has their own answer in their hearts, and no one can tell you why..."

He glanced at everyone again and said, "We are teacher and student. As we are parting, I have nothing to give you, so I will just say a few words to you."

After saying that, he turned around and wrote a few lines on the blackboard with chalk.

Then, he threw the chalk on the podium, clapped his hands, and said, "All the lessons are over here. I hope to see you all in the court in the near future. Class dismissed."

"Congratulations, sir!"

All the students stood up and bowed to him.

Li Nuo walked out of the classroom, but no one followed him out. Their eyes all turned to the blackboard, where the teacher gave them the last words of advice.

His handwriting is vigorous and powerful, and even though he used that strange white slate pencil, it is still extremely pleasing to the eye.

Looking at those lines of words, the classroom was silent except for the sound of gradually rapid breathing.

They often talk about cultivating oneself, regulating the family, governing the country and bringing peace to the world, establishing virtue, establishing merit, and establishing words... These are the requirements of Confucian disciples by sages. They have been saying this since the first day of school, and have been saying it for more than ten years. Now, they no longer feel anything in their hearts.

But just a glance at these words on the blackboard made their scalps tingle and blood rush to their skulls.

Establish your mind for heaven and earth.

Live for the people.

To carry on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages.

Bring peace to the world forever!

No educated person can suppress the impulse in his heart when reading these words.

Everyone stared at these words in a daze, their thoughts in turmoil, unable to calm down for a long time.

Outside the classroom, Li Nuo hid where no one could see him. He used all his magical powers, sweat pouring down his forehead, trying to engrave this mark deeply into their consciousness at the last moment.

I don’t know how much time passed.

Chen Tieniu was the first to walk out of the Imperial Examination Hall. Standing at the gate of the hall, he looked at the bustling crowds on the street and breathed a sigh of relief.

He spent two hundred taels of silver in two days just to attend a two-hour class.

He had never had such complicated feelings in his heart.

If you are poor, you should take care of yourself; if you are rich, you should help the world.

Worry about the world before you worry about yourself, and be happy about the world after you are happy about yourself.

Everyone has to die, some people’s death is heavier than Mount Tai, some people’s death is lighter than a feather.

Establish a mind for heaven and earth, establish a mission for the people, carry on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages, and bring peace to the world for all generations.

Even though he was not a scholar, he couldn't help but feel a little moved when he heard these words.

In the past, he only thought about making money and enjoying life. After his son became a high-ranking official, he would make more money, buy more land, hire more servants, and move into a bigger house. But in the past two days, he has been thinking about a problem.

How should one spend one's life?

If he lives his whole life like this, when he gets old, will his death be heavier than Mount Tai or lighter than a feather?

I'm afraid it's lighter than a feather.

To establish a mind for heaven and earth, to establish a mission for the people, to carry on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages, to bring peace to the world for all eternity... He could not do any of these, but he had to do something, otherwise how could he prove that he, Chen Tieniu, had survived this?

Looking back, when he first left his hometown, even though his fellow villagers could not even afford to eat enough, they still gave him three taels of silver for his travel expenses.

At that time, Chen Tieniu promised them that when he became rich, he would take them with him.

But he broke his promise.

After he became rich, he forgot about his fellow villagers and never returned to Chenjia Village.

Back then, he often cursed the black-hearted landlord in private with other tenants.

More than 20 years have passed, and he has become the person he hated the most back then.

I'm afraid there are many people cursing him behind his back.

At this time, other students came out of the Imperial Examination Hall one after another.

Their expressions were a little dazed. Like Chen Tieniu, they stood in front of the Imperial Examination Hall, looking at the busy street for a long time.

The streets were crowded with people. Skinny beggars, half-naked, huddled in the corners. A nobleman with a gold hairpin on his head and a jade pendant on his waist sat in a sedan chair carried by four people, teasing a cat slave in a gold-embroidered robe in his arms.

Two noble ladies in beautiful dresses, accompanied by their maids, walked out of a gold shop, chatting and laughing, showing each other their expensive jewelry. A woman in coarse cloth, holding some rotten vegetable leaves in her arms, passed by them and couldn't help but look back with an envious expression on her face...

The restaurants were bustling with people, and the aroma of wine and meat filled the streets. Ten steps away, a few skinny children swallowed their saliva secretly, then reached out to adjust the straw that was stuck in their hair, which represented their bodies...

The young students looked at the people in front of them with thoughtful expressions in their eyes.

This world shouldn't be like this.

Scholars should establish their mission for the people. Of course, they also know that they do not have the ability to do so now.

They will not be like those officials who used their lives to promote reforms in the past. The master said that if you are successful, you should help the world. They have not yet achieved success. What they need to do is to improve themselves and accumulate strength in secret...

When I have enough strength to accomplish those four sentences, if anyone dares to stop me, I will kill them all...

Although the gentleman did not say this directly, they understood what he meant.

There were also some people standing at the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall, their faces turning red and white.

They were born into aristocratic families and knew why they studied from the moment they were born.

The family supports them in their studies and teaches them the six arts, naturally so that after they become officials, they can serve the family and gain sufficient benefits for the family through the power in their hands.

But at this moment, there seemed to be two little men in their minds.

A villain said that studying is to repay the family's kindness in cultivating him.

Another villain said that the purpose of studying is to establish one's mind for the world, to establish one's destiny for the people, to inherit the lost knowledge of the ancient sages, and to bring peace to the world for all eternity...

The two villains quarreled in their minds, neither of them able to defeat the other.

Finally, under this torment, a young man from a noble family covered his head, fell to his knees, and said in pain: "Ah, my head hurts!"

Ningxin Garden.

Li Nuo got off the carriage and rubbed his temple.

Although Zonghengjia has successfully broken through to the fifth level, his headache has not been relieved much. This kind of pain cannot be relieved even with the medical qi. It seems that the next class will have to be postponed for another day.

In Ningxin Garden, Jiaren and An Ning were basking in the sun by the lake with their children.

All the maids and servants in the Li Mansion and Ningxin Garden have received their indentures for free. Those who are willing to stay can continue to stay. The monthly wages they can get are generally several times higher than those outside.

Those who do not want to stay can also receive additional resettlement funds.

The little girl from the Dongfang family came here again today.

Since her last visit, she would come here to eat almost every two days and had become very familiar with Yiren Fenghuang and the others.

The house is quite lively today, Song Yu and Yuan Yang are also here.

The two of them came to deliver wedding invitations to Li Nuo's family. Second uncle finally agreed to their marriage, and they planned to get married next month.

Song Yu's cultivation level was improved a few days ago, and he entered the second level of military strategy.

Daxia is facing external threats, and the military family that has been silent for many years is showing signs of gradual recovery. If nothing unexpected happens, he will definitely be valued in the army in the future.

After dinner, Li Nuo went back to his room to rest.

Only adequate sleep can eliminate mental fatigue.

In order to recover better, Li Nuo fell into a deep sleep soon after going to bed.

at the same time.

Secretariat.

A government office somewhere.

The Left Prime Minister did not review the memorial. He held a piece of paper in his hands, his hands trembling slightly, and the internal energy in his body was surging.

Establish a mind for heaven and earth, establish a mission for the people, carry on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages, and bring peace to the world for all generations.

If I can do just one of the four sentences on the paper, I will die without regrets.

This is the true meaning of establishing a theory. From today on, these four sentences will become the lifelong pursuit of students all over the world.

This boy has the qualities of a Confucian sage!

The Secretariat.

There were also a few pieces of paper on the right prime minister's desk.

He picked up the papers and read them over and over again. A rare smile appeared on his usually solemn face.

The same paper appeared on the desks of many officials in Chang'an.

Jingzhao government office.

Pei Zhe stared at the four sentences in a daze. His eyes gradually became hot and his breathing became rapid. A force spread out of his body uncontrollably.

But before the breath could be spread out, he took it back.

After carefully concealing all his breath, he breathed a sigh of relief.

It is not a good thing to cultivate a sense of righteousness when serving as an official in the court.

When most people do not have the great moral energy, those who possess it become outliers.

Ministry of Justice.

Ministry of Revenue.

Ministry of Rites.

Taichang Temple.

Guanglu Temple...

An official put away a piece of paper and tucked it deep into the pages of the book.

An official threw a piece of paper with four lines of words written on it into the fire, and watched it turn into ashes in the flames, with an inexplicable smile on his face.

An official was sitting at his seat, writing something lightly on the table with his fingers, a strange look flashing in his eyes.

Dali Temple.

All the officials in the temple were discussing something.

Inside the government office, Li Xuanjing put down the paper in his hand and looked out the window. There was relief in his eyes, but also a hint of regret...

…

Chang'an.

Establish a mind for heaven and earth, establish a mission for the people, carry on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages, and bring peace to the world for all generations.

These past few days, everyone from officials to ordinary people have been discussing these words of advice given by Li Nuo, the number one scholar in six subjects, to students all over the world.

The common people did not think there was anything special about these few ordinary words.

But for those officials who have studied Confucian classics since childhood and are familiar with the thoughts of various sages, these four sentences can stir up the deepest throbbing in their hearts.

This is what a scholar should do!

Even corrupt officials couldn't help but feel their heart beating faster and a sense of pride arise in their hearts when they saw it for the first time.

Of course, they are no longer simple students. They will not think of changing anything just because of this little excitement and passion. Ideals are always ideals, and no matter how noble the ideals are, they must bow to reality.

A restaurant somewhere.

Inside the private room, several figures took their seats one after another.

One of them looked around and asked in confusion, "Why didn't Manager Chen come?"

The other man waved his hand and said, "Don't wait for him. I went to Chen's house to invite him, but he said he had something to do and couldn't come. Let's drink!"

After three rounds of drinking, someone asked, "I heard that Manager Chen exempted the tenants from three years of rent and reduced their future rents?"

Speaking of this person, everyone started to speak.

"Not only did he reduce the rent, I heard that he raised the wages of the servants at home and the shop assistants. The wages of the Chen family's servants and shop assistants are three times what they earn outside. Many people are vying to work for them!"

"I also heard that the servants of the Chen family can take six days off every month without any reason, and their wages will be paid as usual. Their lives are more comfortable than those of the officials in the court. Officials can't even take six days off a month..."

"Is Chen Tieniu crazy or stupid? Does the Chen family have too much money to spend?"

"Yes, for those tenants and servants, as long as they are not starving to death, why should we be so nice to them?"

"That's right. The Chen family must be very lucky to have such a good son. This little money is nothing to him. When his son passes the imperial examination, he will be able to earn it back a thousand times..."

"So what if my son is great? My father is stupid. He doesn't make money but gives it away for free..."

"Hahaha!"

Everyone laughed and the room was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

(End of this chapter)