Hearing Zhu Youxiao's question, Chen Hong quickly bowed and said, "Things are going very smoothly. Both parties have already started negotiations. I believe there will be results soon."

Zhu Youxiao nodded and said, "That's the best.

The reform of the Royal Academy has always been something Zhu Youxiao attaches great importance to. Although it may be very difficult to implement, Zhu Youxiao believes that results will come soon.

Once all academies were reformed, they would be brought under the national control system. At that time, the emperor would have the final say on what scholars studied.

However, there is one thing that seems to be put on the agenda, and that is the Ming Dynasty’s Military Academy.

Zhu Youxiao knew very well what a specialized military academy meant to the Ming Dynasty.

Although the Royal Academy also recruited students of martial arts, military officers, and nobles, it was not enough. Zhu Youxiao needed to separate them out.

In addition, the establishment of a Royal Academy for Children was also on the agenda. Princes and royal families from all over the country were also required to hand over their children to be included in the royal training system.

These things will take time, but now is the time to start laying the foundation.

When Zhu Youxiao asked this question, the reform of the capital's Shoushan Academy had reached the most critical stage, and the two sides were already in the final negotiations.

Although it was a negotiation between two parties, there were actually only three people participating.

The one representing the imperial court was Cui Chengxiu, the host of this reform; the one representing Shoushan Academy was naturally Ruan Dacheng and Zhong Yuzheng.

The three people sat together, and the atmosphere of the negotiation was not very good.

Zhong Yuzheng looked at Cui Chengxiu and said, "Master Cui, don't you think this condition is a bit too harsh?"

Cui Chengxiu looked at Zhong Yuzheng calmly and said indifferently, "You have to realize one thing: I'm not negotiating with you. Things have come to this point. You don't have many options. Either change or close. There is no third way."

Zhong Yuzheng's face looked very ugly, and he turned to look at Ruan Dacheng.

His meaning was clear: Aren't you going to say something?

Ruan Dacheng's face also looked a little ugly. He didn't expect that after dealing with Wei Dazhong, Zhong Yuzheng became stubborn instead.

After pondering for a moment, Ruan Dacheng looked up at Cui Chengxiu and said, "Master Cui, I think we can agree on the matter of the property."

Zhu Youxiao actually gave a lot of freedom regarding the academy's assets. That is, after the academy reform was completed, the assets of the imperial academy would not be nationalized but would continue to belong to the academy. The funds would naturally be used to support the academy's operations, such as textbook expenses and teacher subsidies.

Zhong Yuzheng and Ruan Dacheng had no objection to this. After all, this was good news for them.

But what Zhong Yuzheng has always insisted on is the issue of teaching materials. To put it bluntly, it is about what to teach.

For Zhong Yuzheng, if he were to teach Xunzi, it would be better to close the academy completely. He never gave in on this point.

Cui Chengxiu actually didn't care about this matter. For Cui Chengxiu, completing the academy reform and making contributions were what he wanted most.

As for what the academy will teach in the future, Cui Chengxiu doesn't care at all, because it is not his business to manage.

Ruan Dacheng looked at Cui Chengxiu and said, "Master Cui, we have agreed to the reforms and the policies you have formulated. We have agreed to send in new teachers and to incorporate all teachers into the official system. However, regarding the issue of textbooks, I think we should still make a suggestion to Your Majesty."

Cui Chengxiu looked at Ruan Dacheng and frowned.

In Cui Chengxiu's view, Ruan Dacheng was just making things worse.

What the Royal Academy would teach in the future was not something Cui Chengxiu could control. If he brought this matter to the emperor, it would likely make him think he was incapable of getting things done, so Cui Chengxiu gritted his teeth and refused.

But looking at the expressions of Ruan Dacheng and the other man now, if this matter is not made clear, it will probably not work.

After a moment's silence, Cui Chengxiu said, "I will report this matter to His Majesty, but I have no idea what the final outcome will be. However, you can rest assured that His Majesty will not abandon the teachings of Confucius."

Zhong Yuzheng didn't believe Cui Chengxiu's assurance at all.

His Majesty was not so polite to the Kong family. Since ascending the throne, he had been promoting Xunzi's ideas and had even promoted Li Zhi's theories before. This made it impossible for Zhong Yuzheng and the others to feel at ease, especially after the incident with the Kong family in Shandong.

If he couldn't get a satisfactory result in this matter, I'm afraid Zhong Yuzheng wouldn't agree.

Cui Chengxiu's guarantee was useless. What Zhong Yuzheng and the others wanted was His Majesty's guarantee.

Zhong Yuzheng said, "Let's wait until Lord Cui reports to His Majesty before discussing this matter."

Cui Chengxiu frowned when he heard Zhong Yuzheng's words.

This clearly shows that they don't trust him.

However, Cui Chengxiu had no way to deal with this old stubborn man. He couldn't just get rid of him, right?

If Zhong Yuzheng were to be removed, there would be no one in charge of Shoushan Academy, and the impact would be too bad. It would not serve as a good example for future reforms, but would instead increase the difficulty.

Cui Chengxiu nodded and said, "That's very good."

After saying this, Cui Chengxiu stood up and said, "I will go to the palace right away."

After leaving Shoushan Academy, Cui Chengxiu did not stay any longer and went straight to the palace.

The reform of the Royal Academy has reached this point, and it is indeed necessary for Your Majesty to make the decision.

This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!