Chapter 3240 Bai Erlang's Viewpoint
Minister Li finally agreed.
The Crown Princess and Mingda immediately sent people to select a site. They even walked around the streets and alleys of the capital city themselves, determined to choose an excellent place to open a girls' school.
The Crown Princess crossed out quite a few of the courses required of the Royal Princess, shaking her head and saying, "Since the girls' school includes not only daughters of the royal family and noble families, but also young ladies from ordinary families, then these are inappropriate."
Mingda nodded in agreement, "But riding and archery don't have to be abandoned."
After taking a look, she said, "These things are required to be learned by daughters of royal family members and daughters of noble families."
The Crown Princess frowned slightly, "Keep it. I'm afraid students from ordinary backgrounds can't afford such expenses."
Mingda smiled and said, "You can refer to the Imperial College and the various prefectural academies. I heard Manbao mention that when Bai Shan was studying at the prefectural academy, the bows and arrows used were all pre-owned by the prefectural academy, so students didn't have to buy any. As for horses, except for the very wealthy, most students rented them for practice."
"Yizhou Prefecture School used to work with the stables of the Yizhou Palace. We can also find a stable to work with," Mingda said. "We can use the horses we have for class, and we can rent horses from the stables for practice. It shouldn't be too expensive."
The Crown Princess raised an eyebrow, "Master Bai's family background still needs to rent a horse?"
Mingda laughed and said, "They only bought their own ponies after they came to the capital. Before that, the horses used by the school were mainly rented."
The Crown Princess nodded and said, "Alright, let's do as you say."
"However," she paused, "I still think that students of different identities and aspirations should be taught separately."
"Isn't the Imperial Medical Bureau recruiting a bunch of students right now? They're all studying there for a year, and then they're divided into classes. Those who want to study physical therapy will study physical therapy, and those who want to study acupuncture will study acupuncture?" The Crown Princess asked, "We'll teach them separately then. What do you think?"
Mingda frowned. "Isn't that the academy trying to make them form cliques? By then, there will definitely be one group of royal daughters, one group of aristocratic families, one group of nobles, and another group of ordinary people."
This was different from what she thought.
"But putting them all together to study isn't a good idea," the Crown Princess said. "Each family has different circumstances, different foundations, and different learning styles after school. If we put them together, students from ordinary families will be crushed. I'm afraid that will only be worse for them."
Mingda frowned, feeling embarrassed for a moment.
Bai Er heard this and said to her, "Don't worry, put them together to study. For a year, they might have some influence on their family background, but after two or three years, the influence will be small."
He said confidently, "What really affects your grades is your intelligence and effort. Just look at me and Zhou Man and you'll know."
Mingda was confused for a moment and asked, "What does this have to do with you and Zhou Man?"
"Why not? It matters a lot." Bai Erlang put down his pen, set aside his half-written manuscript, and said seriously to Mingda, "No matter how poor those ladies from small families are, can they be as poor as Zhou Man was when she first entered school?"
"When Zhou Man first started school, all the books she used were hand-copied by her teacher. She didn't have any books of her own, but I was different," Bai Erlang said. "At that time, I had a lot of books at home, piled up all over the room. So I was the one who bullied her when she first started school."
Mingda: "...But I heard that as soon as she and Bai Shan entered school, you were beaten by your father-in-law because you bullied them."
Bai Erlang choked and waved his hand after a while, saying, "That's not important. It's because the adults got involved that things happened. Among my classmates, I was the one who bullied them."
Mingda nodded, "And then?"
"Then, as time went on, I learned more and more, and the knowledge became more and more advanced. Zhou Man started to bully me. I mean in terms of learning," Bai Erlang said. "Could it be that her family background is better than mine, and her background is deeper than mine?"
"Of course not. The reason she was able to bully me was because she was smarter than me and worked a little harder than me. So family background won't be that important after two or three years of school."
"For a girl from a small family to be admitted to a girls' school, her intelligence and perseverance are naturally extraordinary. She is not necessarily inferior to the daughters of the royal family or the daughters of noble families."
Bai Erlang felt that there was no need for them to overthink things. "No one in this world can expect everything to be perfect, so it's better to let them go on their own. Look at the Imperial Medical Bureau. When they first recruited students, they were divided into classes upon application. But now, they first study together for a year, and then they are divided according to their qualifications and choices."
"It's clear that nothing in this world is static. Anyway, you and the Crown Princess are the principals, and the academy is yours. If the rules become inappropriate, you can change them."
Mingda thought about it seriously, nodded after a while, and then looked at Bai Erlang in surprise: "Did you come up with this idea yourself?"
Bai Erlang shook his head and said, "You underestimated me, didn't you?"
He shook the manuscript paper and said, "After all, I have written five books. How can I be bad if I can write a book?"
Mingda couldn't help but burst out laughing, looking at him with a smile in his eyes, "Of course it's not bad, but if you want to write a book, just tell me about it, but don't mention it in front of the emperor."
Bai Erlang muttered, "I'm not stupid, so I won't mention it in front of His Majesty."
"But it would be better to ask Zhou Man's opinion on this matter," Mingda pondered. "She helped to establish the Imperial Medical Bureau, so she has experience in running schools."
Bai Erlang then handed her the letter paper and pen, "Come, my husband, let me add fragrance to your blue sleeves."
Mingda was amused by his words and couldn't help but smile.
"That's what I want to do. It's just a girls' school. I see you've been smiling less lately, always looking worried. This is a good thing. You should smile more often, otherwise His Majesty will regret agreeing to let you open a girls' school."
Mingda wrote a letter to Zhou Man. By the time the letter arrived in Beihai County, the autumn tax had almost been collected. It was the time when the county government was the busiest and the medical office was the quietest.
Because she had two students and two apprentices under her, she had a lot of free time, so after receiving the letter, she leisurely opened it and read it.
While delivering the letter, Zheng Gu asked something, "Master, is there any news on the memorial I submitted last time? Director Shi has written again asking for information."
Zhou Man opened the letter and said, "The memorial is still in the Ministry of Personnel. Xiao Yuanzheng wrote to say that even the Imperial Medical Bureau can't reach a consensus, and it will be even more difficult to reach a consensus in the Ministry of Personnel. Therefore, this matter has been shelved for the time being, but Xiao Yuanzheng is trying hard to convince everyone.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
