Chapter 32 The Ancient Scholar Used as Cannon Fodder (Part 32) On the other side…

The monk on the other side was also forced into this situation. Li Daru himself was a terrible chess player, yet he desperately wanted his disciple to defeat the monk Mingxin.

Unfortunately, all his students were personally taught by him, and their chess skills were no less than his own.

Watching Chu Nanfeng and the monk exchange blows, evenly matched, until lunchtime, no clear winner had emerged.

Although there was no result yet, Li Daru was quite satisfied. Mingxin's chess skills were among the best in the entire capital. To be able to match him was a testament to the young apprentice's impressive level.

“My apprentice is so young, how old are you, old monk? It’s been so long and we still haven’t decided who won. We must have won.”

In the end, Chu Nanfeng was taken away to dinner by his master, leaving only Monk Mingxin alone, who frowned as he looked at the chessboard, deep in thought.

After dinner, they chatted about academic matters for a while until the sun began to set. Then Chu Nanfeng bid farewell to his master, went to pick up his mother and younger sister, and headed home.

Before leaving, Li Daru revealed his identity. Seeing Chu Nanfeng's calm and composed demeanor, he patted him on the shoulder with great satisfaction.

"If you need any help, just send a message to your master. Even if I'm not home, your senior brothers can help."

Chu Nanfeng smiled and agreed, adding that he would definitely visit Chu Nanfeng to become his disciple in ten days.

The date for the apprenticeship was chosen by the monk Mingxin, which happened to be during his next day off, showing his thoughtfulness.

Taking advantage of the remaining free time, Chu Nanfeng took his mother and sister to visit several shops that Lin You frequented.

When Li Daru returned home with a beaming smile, he was caught by his fourth apprentice, who, upon hearing that he had taken on a last disciple, asked him a question out of curiosity.

His master recounted his junior brother's many achievements throughout the day before saying, "By the way, his name is Chu Nanfeng."

"Junior Brother's name is Chu Nanfeng?" The fourth disciple was dumbfounded; the name was indeed very familiar.

Looking at his master's beaming face, he was momentarily at a loss as to whether or not to reveal the truth.

The person in the capital with the same name and exceptional literary talent is very likely the newly appointed third-ranked scholar.

The fourth apprentice, Ye Yizhou, also worked at the Hanlin Academy and knew a little about his new colleagues.

Ye Yizhou still tentatively asked, "May I ask how old my junior brother is, and what he looks like?"

"Seventeen or eighteen years old, he's certainly not bad-looking, even more handsome than Xiao Wu." Li Daru stroked his beard, even more satisfied.

Seeing that his master had already excitedly written invitations to a group of friends to attend the apprenticeship banquet, Ye Yizhou hesitated for a long time before finally stopping Li Daru from sending someone to deliver the invitations.

"Teacher, weren't you planning to take on a junior disciple who would become the top scholar? Chu Nanfeng doesn't quite fit that requirement, does he?"

He knew his master was oblivious to worldly affairs and never cared about the trivial matters of the court, but this information was just too... outdated.

Upon hearing this, Li Daru immediately glared at him, "Why is it inappropriate? I have already examined him. His talent is quite good. Just look at his poems, tell me if they are good or not."

Ye Yizhou looked numb. "Yes, his literary talent is certainly excellent. There are few people in the capital who don't know him. More than two months ago, he was already personally selected by the Emperor as the third-ranked scholar."

Li Daru, who was stroking his beard, pulled out several hairs with a sudden force. Ignoring the pain of losing his precious beard, he looked up in disbelief: "The third-ranked scholar?!"

"Yes, he's my colleague now, working in the room diagonally opposite mine. He's about an inch taller than me, a bit thin, speaks very politely, and has beautiful handwriting..."

The more Ye Yizhou spoke, the colder Li Daru felt inside. How could his top-ranking student have become a mere third-ranking scholar?!

That old monk Mingxin must have known the truth before he made the bet with him! He was deliberately trying to make a fool of him!

Seeing his master looking completely dejected, Ye Yizhou asked with amusement, "Are you still going to send out this invitation?"

"Send it! Why not? It's a good thing that I've taken a third-ranked scholar as my apprentice!" Li Daru shouted loudly, but there was a sense of bravado masking weakness.

Although he had practically dragged this disciple into his fold, Chu Nanfeng had already called him "Master" and said he would come to formally become his disciple in ten days, so why shouldn't he accept him?

Where can you find a disciple who is so handsome, makes such delicious tea, and is also so good at chess? He finally found one, so how could he possibly give up?

Watching the errand boy take the letter away, Ye Yizhou couldn't help but ask, "Why did Chu Nanfeng agree to become my junior brother?"

This person is already a third-place scholar in the imperial examinations, and doesn't need to take any more exams, so why does he need to find himself a teacher?

It's important to understand that the teacher-student relationship in ancient times was not something to be taken lightly. "A teacher for a day is a father for life," meaning they could even interfere in family matters.

Ye Yizhou, a veteran of the Hanlin Academy for many years, was well-informed even though he didn't manage much affairs.

Chu Nanfeng was clearly registered with His Majesty and was on good terms with Prince Xie.

Although the five brothers were quite talented, none of them were cut out to be officials. The second brother, who held the highest official position, was only a third-rank official.

Judging from how His Majesty asks Chu Nanfeng to submit a memorial every two or three days, this man is sure to have a bright future in his official career.

"Anyway, he agreed and said he'd become an apprentice in ten days, so why are you asking so many questions?" Li Daru snorted.

He felt a little smug, thinking that it must have been his literary talent and temperament that impressed this young scholar, which was why the scholar was willing to become his student.

"It's just that this kid is a bit silly. He's so handsome, he should have put on some makeup to cover it up during the imperial examination. Maybe he would have been the top scholar."

Listening to his master's words, Ye Yizhou quietly pursed his lips and muttered, "Back then, you insisted on doing Xiao Wu's makeup, and you only got second place, and you were almost arrested for being an imposter."

Although he was quite old, Li Daru was still very well-preserved and had sharp hearing and eyesight. He chased after his four disciples and gave them a good beating before snorting and leaving with a flick of his sleeve.

The next day, as expected, an uninvited guest arrived at Chu Nanfeng's office.

Ye Yizhou, the fourth disciple of his cheap master, was also a literary genius in the Hanlin Academy, but he didn't like his boss who was in charge of things.

"This humble official greets Scholar Ye." Chu Nanfeng rose and bowed respectfully.

Ye Yizhou replied in a nonchalant tone, "Have you only met Scholar Ye?"

Chu Nanfeng smiled gently at him and bowed again, saying, "Your younger brother Chu Nanfeng greets your fourth senior brother."

When he looked up again, his fourth senior brother had already taken out a booklet and handed it to him, his voice softening, "Here, a gift from your senior brother."

Looking at his well-behaved junior brother, Ye Yizhou couldn't help but reach out and pat him on the head before returning to his room with his hands behind his back.

His temper is too good. No wonder he became the third-ranked scholar in the imperial examination and was forcibly taken in as a disciple by his master.

After Lin You and the others left, he breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought your senior brother was here to give you a hard time!"

This person looks very serious when they have a stern face.

“He meant me no harm.” Since acquiring his cheat ability, Chu Nanfeng had specifically trained his ability to judge people, and it was already showing initial results.

Without relying on any special abilities, he can guess a person's level of favorability quite well.

Chu Nanfeng opened the booklet, which contained detailed records of the affairs of his colleagues in the Hanlin Academy.

It's one thing to know who holds what official position, how long they've been in office, which year they took the imperial examination, and what rank they got, but it's another to know who has a close relationship with whom, and who doesn't associate with whom.

The ink on the booklet was still fresh, clearly written not long ago. His fourth senior brother was quite meticulous.

With Ye Yizhou's help, Chu Nanfeng, who was already good at interpersonal relationships, thrived even more in the Hanlin Academy.

After Chu Nanfeng ran away early during his leave to avoid being called back to work, the Emperor also noticed that this third-ranked scholar was not keen on working overtime.

Looking at the comprehensive plan for dealing with the empty treasury, and considering Chu Nanfeng's age, what could the emperor do but appease him?

Chu Nanfeng had his work on compiling books for the Hanlin Academy handed over to others, so he only needed to focus on working for the Emperor.

Fearing that Chu Nanfeng might overthink things, the Emperor specially promoted him and gave him a raise, elevating him from a sixth-rank Hanlin Compiler to a fifth-rank Hanlin Lecturer—a three-level jump, clearly intended to appease Chu Nanfeng.

After being promoted and having a different office, they were required to take turns serving by the emperor's side, and had many more opportunities to meet him.

Regardless of what his colleagues at the Hanlin Academy thought in their hearts, their attitude towards Chu Nanfeng became even more amiable on the surface.

In ancient times, there was a saying that there was Heaven, Earth, Ruler, Parents, and Teacher. The teacher was second only to the parents. Once you became a disciple, you gained another elder.

Therefore, many people do not quite understand why Chu Nanfeng became a disciple. Even if he is a famous Confucian scholar of the time, he does not need to take the imperial examination. Why bother?

When Xie Zian heard the news, he was also very puzzled and rushed to the Chu family after get off work to confirm it.

This person doesn't think there's anything wrong with Chu Nanfeng finding an elder for himself.

He simply felt that his brother Chu was exceptionally talented, knowledgeable in astronomy and geography, and proficient in poetry, calligraphy, painting, music, chess, and other arts. Why would he need to become a teacher?

"You only got third place, and that's only because the top two scholars weren't good-looking!" Xie Zian snorted and slammed his hand on the table.

"He's definitely your number one fanboy." Lin You couldn't help but chuckle as he listened to Chu Nanfeng boast about him for half an hour.

Chu Nanfeng sighed helplessly, "Zian, there are many people more learned than me. If your words get out, you'll become a laughing stock."

Seeing that his mouth was dry from talking, Chu Nanfeng picked up a teapot and poured tea for him. Xie Zian drank three cups in a row before putting down his cup.

Because it was getting late, Young Master Xie used the excuse of a curfew to ask to stay overnight at the Chu family's house. Even the servant who was going home to report this couldn't help but secretly roll his eyes at his excuse.

After hearing about the apprenticeship, the emperor had a special talk with Chu Nanfeng, basically saying that his master was a good person with good learning and was a good teacher.

It's fine to learn from him, but don't emulate his nonchalant attitude. Just be a good official and do your job well. If anyone bullies you, just come and tell me, and I will not mistreat you.

Chu Nanfeng didn't care what others said, but he took the matter of becoming an apprentice very seriously.

Ten days passed in the blink of an eye. Watching him earnestly prepare the six rituals for becoming an apprentice, Lin You learned another obscure piece of ancient knowledge.

It turns out that the so-called apprenticeship gift wasn't anything precious at all. She thought that the gifts Qian Duoduo gave when he became an apprentice were just because he was in a hurry on the way and didn't have time to prepare them.

So this is what it means to send these things when you become a disciple of a great Confucian scholar.

Red beans symbolizing good fortune, red dates symbolizing early success in examinations, longan symbolizing the fulfillment of one's merits, lotus seeds symbolizing diligent education, celery symbolizing diligence in learning, and a bundle of dried cured meat.

This dried cured meat probably represents tuition fees?

The Qian family gave us silver back then.

However, great Confucian scholars are usually aloof and proud, so they probably wouldn't like receiving money as gifts.

Lin You looked around as if she were seeing something unusual, then suddenly asked, "What if it's not celery season?"

Chu Nanfeng paused in his actions. Why were the things his elder sister paid attention to always so strange?

"Sister, we have cave goods, you can buy vegetables that are not in season."

Chu Nanfeng then personally made a box of pastries, wrote a letter of apprenticeship, and then took the gifts to the Li residence.

Xie Zian naturally had to accompany them to the ceremony. It was also by chance that the Li residence was not far from the Chu family's residence. The two of them walked for half an hour and arrived at the place.

However, Li Daru was not often at home. He spent most of his time living in a manor outside the city, which was located at the foot of Wuyin Temple Mountain, making it very convenient for him to visit the monk Mingxin.

He only returned from the estate now to take on apprentices, as a sign of his importance to the matter.

Li Daru had previously taken in five disciples. His teaching skills were indeed remarkable, and all of his disciples passed the imperial examinations and became Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), but none of them ended up in official positions.

The eldest disciple, Yun Yao, disliked being constrained. He only stayed at the Hanlin Academy for two years before resigning to travel the world. The last time he sent a message back, he was eating mutton stew in the northern desert.

Fang Yiqing, the second apprentice, was sent to a remote area and served as a minor county magistrate in the southwest for seven or eight years. Everyone said that the poor mountains and bad waters there produced unruly people, but he did quite well. He said that the scenery was beautiful all year round and he didn't want to go back to the capital.

The third apprentice, Shi Zhiwen, did not wait to be appointed after passing the examination. Instead, he went directly to Wenhua Academy in Jiangnan to become a teacher, living a carefree and leisurely life.

Ye Yizhou was also carefree. Because of his excellent literary talent, he was always the one who wrote eulogies whenever the court needed them. He was coaxed by a group of people in the Hanlin Academy and treated like a mascot.