Chapter 73: The seeds of reading in the world are gone!

Nan Yan stood in the middle of the lobby, feeling so embarrassed that she felt like she was about to break apart. Jian Tongguang woke up slowly, opened his eyes, and when he saw her, he was so angry that his face flushed: "You, you——"

Nan Yan took a step forward and said softly, "Mr. Jian, please don't be angry."

As soon as she finished speaking, the young man standing next to Jian Tongguang, his eldest son Jian Ruojun, became so angry that his face turned red and he said, "Shut up!"

He shouted angrily and swallowed back the rest of Nan Yan's words.

At this time, Jian Ruocheng said softly: "Brother, this Miss Nan Yan is also following orders, please don't make things difficult for her."

"If I really wanted to embarrass her, would she still come in and say these things?"

“…”

"The Prince of Yan has gone too far. If he wants to kill me, he can just kill me. But he actually sent a palace maid to insult my father like this!"

Nan Yan listened to their words, looked at Mrs. Jiahe's disappointed expression, and Xiao Zhui's shocked and somewhat hurt look, and her heart ached.

But she gritted her teeth and said solemnly: "Mr. Jian, those words just now were told to you by His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan, but - now that I'm here, there are a few more words I want to say to you myself. Are you willing to listen?"

Jian Tongguang was already furious. When he heard her say this, he laughed out loud: "You still have something to say? Fine, go ahead!"

Nan Yan asked, "Which is more important, sacrificing one's life for justice or stabilizing the country?"

When these words were spoken, everyone in the hall was stunned.

Jian Tongguang also frowned: "What did you say?"

Seeing that he was listening, Nan Yan hurriedly said, "As the leader of scholars in the world, Mr. Jian is naturally not afraid of power. For you, sacrificing your life for justice is a matter of success and fame."

“…”

"But, is this really okay?"

“…”

"Excuse my bluntness, but to sacrifice one's life for justice is to benefit oneself; to secure the country is to benefit the people."

“…”

"Mr. Jian is revered as a leader by scholars throughout the world. He is a man of profound knowledge. He should have used this knowledge to benefit the country and the people, rather than wasting the lives of his entire family for 'his own fame.'"

“…”

"And those scholars outside, they want to live and die with Master Jian. This is naturally the integrity of scholars. But if they die, if Master Jian dies, there will be no more scholars in the world, and the seeds of learning in the world will be gone!"

“…”

"In this way, you will achieve fame and fortune, but the scholars of the world will hate the court because of your death, and the court will suppress scholars more. By then, the court will have no one to use, and scholars will have no chance to make a name for themselves. Is this the situation that Master Jian wants to see?"

Jian Tongguang widened his eyes and looked at this inconspicuous little woman with a little disbelief.

Isn’t she just a palace maid following Prince Yan?

How could you say such a thing?

He hesitated for a moment and said, "What's your name?"

Nan Yan hurriedly said, "My surname is Si, and my given name is Nan Yan."

"Si?" Jian Tongguang's gray brows knitted together slightly. "Who is Si Zhongwen to you?"

Nan Yan's voice trembled slightly, and she said softly, "Yes—my father."

Jian Tongguang took a deep breath.

"So, you are his daughter."

“…”

"Haha, I've always wanted to meet them, but never had the chance. I didn't expect that today, I would actually meet Si Zhongwen's daughter and listen to her—'high-level talk'."

Nan Yan hurriedly said, "I dare not."

Jian Tongguang looked at her for a while and said, "I have one more question to ask you."

"Excuse me, Mr. Jian."

"You just said that if the Prince of Yan ascended the throne, he would become a sage monarch. Can he really become a wise and enlightened monarch?"