Chapter 2951 Educational Philosophy
"Of course not," Master Song said calmly, "There's no movement at the new salt works. There's no firewood being cut and dried, and no smoke from boiling salt. It's obvious that the new salt works are just a facade and haven't been opened. The county government still relies on the salt works in Longchi. Why would I bother doing something like this?"
Song Meng immediately asked, "Did County Magistrate Bai frame us?"
Master Song paused and shook his head. "No, he has no need to do such a thing. Dalang, the most important thing for you now is your studies. This year, try to get into the provincial school, or go to the capital to take the Imperial College exam. You don't need to worry about these things at home."
Uncle Song also said, "Go back and study."
Song Meng was no longer a child, and he clearly understood the distinction between family and country. He also knew where the conflict between his family and the county government came from. He pursed his lips and said, "Grandfather, Father, why have County Magistrates Lu and Bai always wanted to seize the salt fields from our family? County Magistrates Fang and Liu didn't say anything before. Why can't they live in peace with us like County Magistrates Fang and Liu did?"
Just as Mr. Song was about to speak, Mr. Song said, "So we are trying hard to communicate with County Magistrate Bai, hoping that he can do the same as County Magistrates Fang and Liu did before. Okay, forget about these things and just focus on your studies. If you can pass the imperial examinations and become an official, you will be able to be relied upon by the Song family in the future, and naturally no one will bully our family so easily anymore."
When Mr. Song saw his son bow and leave like that, his face looked very unhappy.
Before his son could even walk away, he said in dissatisfaction, "Father, why did you say such things to Dalang? He's a very competitive kid. If you talk to him like this, won't you just let him get involved?"
Mr. Song's face darkened. "Why, do you suspect I'm plotting against Dalang? Don't forget, he's my eldest grandson. How could I possibly harm him?"
Uncle Song didn't say anything. Dalang was his grandson, but he had more than one grandson, but he only had one son, Dalang.
Mr. Song didn't notice his son's expression. He was in a bad mood and said thoughtfully, "I didn't expect that the first to cause trouble would be the county school. It seems that Bai Shan's prestige in Beihai County is not low now."
He sighed, "Our Song family's foundation is still too shallow. It would be much better if we had two more county magistrates like Fang and Liu. But we have to deal with Lu and Bai..."
Bai Shan came out to comfort the students, and when he ran to the medical department to see Old Eight, who had hit his head, he also said to Zhou Man, "The Song family's foundation is not deep, it just looks huge, but as long as you pull hard, it can be easily pulled out."
He said, "The Song family has only become wealthy in the past 20 to 30 years. Before that, the Song family's foundation was not as good as the Zhao family outside the city.
After seeing the patient, Zhou Man took out two peaches from somewhere, gave one to Bai Shan, and took one for himself. He sat on the railing, chewing the peach while talking to him, "How did the Song family become rich?"
"Speaking of which, the fourth county magistrate before me was a man named Wu. He hired a member of the Song family as his legal advisor. Oh, he was the father of this Mr. Song."
"Within two years, County Magistrate Wu died of illness while in office. County Magistrate Fang came, and he brought his own legal advisor with him. Old Master Song couldn't continue to work as a legal advisor in the county government, so he found a manager position at the salt field and retired."
"County Magistrate Fang thought he was sensible and left him alone. Within two years, he felt he was getting old, so he retired from the salt works and let his son, now Mr. Song, take over the position of salt works manager." Bai Shan said, "At that time, County Magistrate Fang didn't take the salt works manager, a lowly official, seriously. The salt works were basically under the control of the county government, so his words still had weight."
"But this Mr. Song is even more capable than his father. He's been inserting his own people wherever he can, from small managers and small bosses to the newly selected salt-boiling workers every year. He's been slowly managing the salt field like this. By the time County Magistrate Fang left, half of the people at the salt field were already under Mr. Song's command."
"The new Magistrate, Liu, was completely bewildered and controlled," Bai Shan sighed. "According to County Magistrate Fang, the Song family used a show of force as soon as Liu took office. Without waiting for their relationship to deteriorate, they also presented him with a large sum of money. This combination of flattery and praise intimidated Liu, who then assumed the Song family were powerful local gentry, so he didn't dare act rashly."
"After two or three years, he figured out the Song family's background. Master Song already had control over the salt fields. Besides, County Magistrate Liu and the Song family had been getting along well in recent years. He didn't want to break things off, so he hesitated and didn't take action."
Zhou Man was stunned. "This Mr. Song is really powerful, but if he's so powerful, why would he be so desperate to try to undermine the imperial court? There are so many ways to make money in this world, why would he have to hang himself on the salt field?"
Bai Shan smiled and said, "There are many ways to make money in the world, but the most profitable ones, besides salt and iron, are tea, silk, and porcelain. The Song family is not a very powerful aristocratic family. In Beihai County, they can be considered gentry, but outside of Beihai County, they are nothing."
"To change their status, they need to study and have a good reputation. They obviously won't go into business. Controlling the salt works is probably the best way they can think of to make money and gain power."
Zhou Man thought of his own family and said complacently, "We don't force things in our family. Everyone has their own way of living. Sometimes we need to control, but sometimes we can't control too much. If you ask me, Master Song has been too controlling and for too long. When he was young and strong, he was already thinking about the official careers of his descendants for three or four generations. Isn't this just asking for trouble?"
Bai Shan nodded, then thought about it and felt something was wrong, so he couldn't help asking her, "Don't you think about the future of your children?"
Zhou Man said, "I don't want to. I just want them to have good character. I'll send them to study whatever they want to learn. Of course, whatever they want to do when they grow up is their own business. But if they ask me, I'll give them advice."
Seeing her so proud, Bai Shan couldn't help but raise his hand and touch her head and said, "You have grown up. You should be more reserved when you are proud. Don't raise your chin too high and be too proud."
Zhou Man slapped his hand away, glanced at him and asked, "Will you require them to become officials in the future?"
"That's not the case," Bai Shan bent one leg and leaned against the railing, gazing at the blue sky. "Being an official is sometimes fun, but more often than not, I feel constrained. If I hadn't set such a high ambition and worked so hard towards it, I don't think I would have persisted in officialdom."
He said, "So if they don't want to be officials in the future, it's fine for them to do other things. As long as their family has land and books, and they continue to farm and study, the family heritage will naturally continue."
See you at 9pm
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
