Shen Yuan looked in the direction of the sound and saw a magnificent carriage parked at the foot of the mountain. Chu Yuning helped the old gentleman Murong down from the carriage. He bowed slightly and was extremely humble.
When they saw Mr. Murong waiting at the foot of the mountain, the wealthy Mr. Wang and Prefect Jiang immediately went to greet him.
"I have not seen Grand Tutor Murong for many years and have missed him dearly. I will never forget your teachings!"
Lord Jiang took Mr. Murong's arm, told Chu Yuning to step back a few steps, and personally helped Mr. Murong up the mountain.
Old Master Murong waved his hand, "I have long since lost my official rank, so Lord Jiang, please do not use your former titles. Now, I should be the one to bow to you..."
"This student dares not accept such praise!" Lord Jiang hurriedly stopped the old gentleman Murong from bowing. "Without your teachings, how could I be holding such an important position and serving the country today? I owe everything I have today to you!"
Despite these flattering words, Mr. Murong's expression remained indifferent.
The students gathered at the foot of the mountain were overjoyed to hear these words, as they had heard that this Mr. Jiang was the least outstanding of all of Mr. Murong's students.
Even the least outstanding student can become a prefect, let alone the other students!
If they were fortunate enough to become students of Master Murong and receive his teachings, wouldn't it be easy for them to pass the imperial examinations and become officials of the fifth or sixth rank?
Chu Yuning naturally thought of the same things these students had thought of, and he even thought of them a step deeper than the others.
Because he had received instruction from Master Murong, Prefect Jiang held Master Murong in high esteem, and the other students must have felt the same way.
If he becomes the prized student of Master Murong, then in the future, all these fellow disciples will be connections that he can utilize in the officialdom!
These connections will be his reliance in his future career in officialdom!
This is worth more than anything!
Chu Yuning's gaze toward Elder Murong suddenly became exceptionally fervent; he was determined to become Elder Murong's student!
Although Murong Jin was over sixty years old, he was full of energy and climbed dozens of steps in one go without losing his breath.
On the contrary, Lord Jiang and Master Wang, who were following behind him, had flushed faces from climbing the mountain because they had been drinking and eating meat for many years and did not like to exercise.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Chu Yuning squeezed past Prefect Jiang and Master Wang, walked quickly a few steps, and went to the Wanfeng Pavilion halfway up the mountain. She used her sleeve to wipe the tables and chairs in the pavilion beforehand.
"Mr. Murong, the scenery here is quite nice. Please sit down and rest, and enjoy the view!"
Standing in Wanfeng Pavilion and looking out, you can see the mountains covered in red maple leaves, taking in the beautiful scenery of the southern foothills.
Seeing that the location of Wanfeng Pavilion was good, Mr. Murong lifted his leg and walked towards Chu Yuning.
Chu Yuning was overjoyed. As expected, the old gentleman Murong favored him greatly. He immediately came over when the old gentleman told him to stop and admire the scenery.
Because Murong Jin went up the mountain, the students at the foot of the mountain also followed.
The crowd crowded outside the pavilion, while only Murong Jin, Chu Yuning, Prefect Jiang, and Master Wang were inside.
Chu Yuning took the tea brought by the servant and quickly poured a cup of tea for Prefect Jiang and Old Master Murong. When it was Master Wang's turn, Chu Yuning put down the teapot.
Master Wang frowned, but didn't say much. He picked up the teapot, poured two cups of water, and drank them all in one gulp.
Chu Yuning turned around and saw this scene. She looked away with disdain. This rich man Wang was full of the stench of money, drinking water like a cow, and had no sense of refinement.
The many scholars standing outside the pavilion were filled with jealousy and resentment when they saw that only Chu Yuning was allowed to enter Wanfeng Pavilion.
They were incredibly excited when they heard that Elder Murong was coming to Jian'an City to select students. They had been preparing for this Dao-enlightening banquet for a long time, all hoping to make a name for themselves at the banquet.
But Chu Yuning had already established a good relationship with Old Master Murong. Isn't that taking advantage of connections?
This is so unfair!
Noticing the change in the scholars' mood, the old gentleman Murong, who was sitting in the pavilion, stood up and walked around the pavilion. "The scenery here is exceptionally beautiful. A visit here will not miss the autumn scenery. I'm sure that you all, like me, can't help but want to compose a few poems when you see such a beautiful view."
The old gentleman turned his head and looked at the scholars with a kind smile. "I am getting old, so please enjoy these beautiful views! I will stay in the pavilion and await your masterpieces!"
The scholar outside the pavilion, upon hearing this, was eager to try.
Mr. Murong is testing their basic literary skills in composing poems. If their poems meet Mr. Murong's standards, they will definitely earn extra points!
The scholars outside the pavilion scattered immediately, wandering through the mountains, holding maple leaves in their hands, and composing verses in their hearts.
Before long, scholars eagerly handed their poems to Master Murong for his critique.
Some were praised for their beaming smiles, while others were told they looked solemn. But without exception, all the scholars who received comments were happy inside, because they had benefited greatly from the opinions and suggestions put forward by the old gentleman Murong.
Soon, most of the scholars handed their poems to the old gentleman Murong.
Several of the poems were selected by Elder Murong and entrusted to Prefect Jiang for safekeeping. Clearly, the selected poems were appreciated by Elder Murong.
The scholar who was chosen was overjoyed.
Seeing that most people had submitted their poems, Chu Yuning was not in a hurry at all. Before coming to Nanlu Mountain, he had prepared many articles and poems, including a poem expressing his feelings about appreciating the autumn scenery.
But he didn't plan to show his poems right away.
He would wait until the very end, until Old Master Murong had finished reading through all those worthless pieces of paper with poor word choice and sentence structure, before he would bring his own work to the stage as the grand finale, to give Old Master Murong a good eye-opening experience.
"Elder Murong! I've come here today inspired by a sudden burst of poetic inspiration! Please take a look at my poem!"
Suddenly, Master Wang stood up, pushed aside Chu Yuning who was blocking his way, and handed his poem to Old Master Murong.
Mr. Murong did not mind Wang Yuanwai's status and took the poem and read it aloud as an equal: "One leaf, two leaves, three or four leaves, each leaf is as red as blood. May, June, August, September, every month I come here to sing mountain songs."
"Old sir, what do you think of my poem?" Master Wang looked at Old Master Murong with starry eyes.
Murong Jin smiled and said, "Easy to understand, not bad."
"Old sir, are you praising me?" Overjoyed, Master Wang took back his poem, looked at it again and again, then ran out of the pavilion and bowed with his hands clasped in front of his chest in the direction of his home.
"Father! Did you hear that? Even Master Murong praised my poem! Father! Wait for me, when I get back I'll burn this poem for you to see! I'll have someone make several copies for you and burn them all!"
Master Wang's words amused the scholar outside the pavilion, leaving him both laughing and crying.
Chu Yuning curled her lip in disdain.
What kind of rubbish is this? Does it even deserve to be called poetry?
He had to hurry up and present his poem to Mr. Murong to cleanse his eyes!
Chu Yuning was the last to step forward and handed his poem to Murong Jin. He bowed respectfully and said, "This humble student, Chu Yuning, has written a poem entitled 'Thoughts on Climbing the Southern Foothills of the Mountain.' I humbly request your guidance, sir!"
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