Chapter 20 Sent to the Training Ground
Just like when they were brought here, they boarded a carriage and headed for another unknown destination. There were two carriages in total, with six or seven teenagers crammed into each.
When they were working on the farm, they were divided into several groups, and whoever came together seemed to be more familiar with each other.
The young men in the carriage did not know each other, so it was extremely quiet inside the carriage. The only sounds could be heard, such as the sound of horse hooves and the friction of the wooden frame as the carriage bumped along the road.
The life at Zhuangzi during this period made them less restrained and timid.
"My name is Xu San, what are your names?"
Er Gouzi leaned in the corner of the carriage and listened to the young men in the carriage slowly starting to talk.
He silently memorized the names of these young men. The one who spoke first, Xu San, was the more outgoing one among them; the shorter one was Zhang Zhu; the one with half an ear missing was Liu He...
These young men seemed to be refugees who had come here because they couldn't make a living in other places. Because they all had such a low status, being on an equal footing allowed them to quickly become familiar with each other.
"My family originally lived in Nanwu City. Mr. Wang from Nanwu City occupied my family's land. When my father went to fight for it, they chopped off one of my father's arms and wanted to kill us to silence us..." Xu San said.
Xu San said that Wang Yuanwai was protected by the officials in Nanwu City. They cried out to heaven and earth for help, but no one responded. Anyone who went to report to the authorities was silenced. Most of the land in their village had been taken by Wang Yuanwai. The people depended on the land for their livelihood. Without it, they would lose their livelihood. Some people in Xu San's village were so hungry that their bodies were swollen. Every time they pressed their hands, a pit appeared...
Xu San's experience made the eyes of the teenagers except Er Gouzi widen in an instant. They all gathered around Xu San and listened, and the distance between them was shortened for a moment.
"My house suffered a flood a few years ago, and the land was washed away..." After Xu San finished speaking, Zhang Zhu, who was sitting next to him, said slowly.
At that time, Zhang Zhu was only a child of six or seven years old. He should not have had too many memories, but the scene at that time was engraved so deeply in his mind: the house was flooded, some people were washed away because they had no time to run, and some people floated on the yellow water after being drowned. Zhang Zhu and his friends leaned on a piece of wood and soaked in the water for a whole day and night. Zhang Zhu's parents held him and his sister on the wood, but in the end Zhang Zhu's sister was still drowned.
Not only did the government not send anyone to provide disaster relief, it also shot and killed many hungry refugees who tried to get closer to the city. The grass outside the city was pulled out, the trees were bare, and everything edible was gone.
After the flood came the epidemic. While there was singing and dancing in the state capital, the countryside outside the state capital was littered with corpses.
The carriage carried this group of young people and continued to move forward. Information was not communicated between different places, and no one else knew what each person said. They were all refugees who had walked for hundreds of days or even years before arriving in the north of the Great Zhou.
Who lives better than who?
But this is the norm at that time. In the past few years, they have not had time to grieve and suffer for the past, because human life is as cheap as theirs. Many people like them don’t even know whether they will still be alive tomorrow.
They didn't cry when they were caught by the soldiers, they didn't cry when they were taken into the car, but they cried when they had their first full meal on the farm.
No matter where Lord Su takes them or what he asks them to do, they will not have any complaints.
...
The carriages slowly stopped, and the people in the two carriages got off quietly one by one as the coachman said.
Ergouzi and his friends were taken into a very strange place.
Lord Su appeared again and led the dozen or so teenagers towards this strange place.
"This is the dormitory. This is where you usually sleep. The supervisor will assign you a bed shortly."
"This is the cafeteria. Three meals a day are served on time."
"This is the training ground. Apart from eating, sleeping, and attending classes, you will train under the supervision of your supervisor every day."
"This is the classroom, where you will take classes. Someone will teach you some basic things. Reading is a must, as is arithmetic..."
Lord Su led them inside while speaking.
The dozen or so teenagers following behind him were so shocked that they forgot to blink. Their eyes were fixed on Master Su who was still speaking. What...what did they hear?!
Is Lord Su talking to them?
In class...learning to read. They are just lowly people, how can they learn to read? Why? Why does Lord Su treat them like this?
Seeing their reaction, Su An suddenly recalled the scene when His Majesty was discussing with him that day.
When His Majesty said that the selection of candidates for the Supervisory Office must require literacy, Su An blurted out, "Can refugees, whose status is lower than that of civilians, also be able to read?"
He will always remember the look His Majesty gave him. For some reason, that look made Su An have the urge to lower his head.
He also remembered His Majesty saying that one day, not only the upper class of the Great Zhou would have teachers to teach them how to read and write, but everyone in the world would have to learn how to read and write.
"Of course, if any of you want to go back to the farm to continue working, you can tell me and I will have the groom take him back." Su An pulled himself out of his memories, his gaze fixed on the young men who lowered their heads. "But if you want to stay here, you must obey the instructions of the supervisor. You will be assessed every season, and those who fail will leave here."
Their heads were lowered and their backs seemed to be slightly bent subconsciously.
But no one spoke.
After Su An said that, he just waited quietly, not knowing what he was waiting for.
After an unknown amount of time, a young man at the back of the crowd raised his head.
Su An looked over and was deeply impressed by the pair of dark eyes. He remembered that this person had no real name and only said that his name was Ergouzi.
Su An continued to wait.
Gradually, more people raised their heads, and their slightly bent backs straightened slightly with this movement.
It wasn't until a quarter of an hour later that everyone looked up.
Su An stood at the front, his expression unremarkable. His voice was calm, "This is the first lesson I want to teach you after coming here, and that is - hold your head up."
...
The next day.
"Your Majesty, the young men selected from the seventeen refugees have entered the training ground you set up for training." Su An saluted the person sitting in the main seat.
Yan Xuanyu took a sip of tea and said, "Thank you for your hard work."
"I don't feel tired." Su An stood up.
The training ground that Su An mentioned is the "school" set up by Yan Xuanyu for these dozen refugee teenagers. There they will undergo physical training, practice martial arts, and take classes to learn some basic knowledge. If they want to enter the Supervisory Office, not to mention having superb martial arts skills, it is necessary to have good kung fu.
Yan Xuanyu had hesitated when setting up programs similar to the physical training in later military academies. The programs he set up in the training ground included climbing, obstacle running, sit-ups, push-ups, etc., as well as various endurance training; the basic knowledge to be learned included arithmetic, literacy, and even military tactics. Isn't this too impossible for the young people to achieve?
However, after Su An read it and understood what some of the names Yan Xuanyu mentioned meant, he actually "lost his composure in front of the emperor" and said "OK" repeatedly, and wanted to put it into practice quickly, so Yan Xuanyu no longer hesitated.
The training ground that is currently being built is only in the initial testing stage, so the venue is relatively small. Yan Xuanyu will need to consider the situation when the training ground is actually used to train talents.
In order to continuously improve the problems, Yan Xuanyu will open a large school in the capital in a few years. By then, the school will be used to reform those good-for-nothing second-generation officials in the capital.
Now Yan Xuanyu still can't control the second generation of the aristocratic families in the capital. He must first wait until he can grasp all the power of the court.
Su An was in charge of matters at the training ground and the farm. After Su An reported that the young men had entered the training ground, Yan Xuanyu told him that he would be fully responsible for matters thereafter.
After Su An was taken away by Li Zhongxian, Yan Xuanyu pinched his brows and thought that this matter had finally come to an end.
"Your Majesty." After Li Zhongxian came back, he saw Yan Xuanyu leaning in the chair with a frown on his face. He hurriedly opened a small jade box and handed it to him.
Yan Xuanyu reached out and pinched a mint candy and put it in his mouth. The cool feeling immediately relieved the discomfort in his head.
"Your Majesty, you should take a rest." Li Zhongxian put away the box and said as he stood aside.
In recent days, Yan Xuanyu has not only been doing the work in the training ground, he has also not relaxed in the affairs of the court. After returning from the villa, he has been handling government affairs in Chengtian Hall every day except attending court and playing word games with those officials. Now there are several decent officials in the court who are recruited by him.
Although he was tired, Yan Xuanyu still felt a sense of accomplishment. He seemed to hear the prompt sound of "Loyalty plus one" and "Loyalty plus one".
Li Zhongxian's words came at the perfect time. Yan Xuanyu nodded and said, "Well said. It's time for me to take a break."
Everything requires a balance between relaxation and tension. If you make too much movement, others will probably notice it immediately. Yan Xuanyu now wants to "develop quietly" in the court first.
So he had to do something else to make those people who were watching the palace think that his diligence in the past few days was just an illusion.
Yan Xuanyu's tongue touched the mint candy. The slightly spicy taste allowed him to think better and reminded him of what happened many days ago.
"I remember there are three concubines in the harem?"
It's time to go and see what these three people look like, and think about how he should treat them in the future.
Yan Xuanyu tapped the table lightly, "Li Zhongxian, prepare a banquet tomorrow..."
"Yes." Li Zhongxian replied with a smile, "I will instruct the imperial kitchen to prepare a family feast tomorrow and invite the three ladies."
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