Chapter 98 Three Campaigns and Three Victories
Chapter 98
Hongsheng Tower, the ring match, being blocked from taking up an official position, Fan Quan was in a daze when he left Chang'an City.
After Fan Quan returned to his hometown, Longquan Town, he fell seriously ill.
The Fan family is quite famous in the local area, and the head of the family is his grandfather Fan Xun.
When Fan Xun heard that his most promising grandson was blocked from taking up an official position, he was very angry. So he took advantage of a banquet for relatives and friends to make public everything that happened in the Hongsheng Restaurant that day.
The gentry families who were on good terms with the Fan family were all shocked by the tyranny of Lü Desheng, the Censor Lü.
It was rare for something new to happen in a small town, and before long, even the educated people knew about it, and later, even the common people knew about it.
Fan Quan's excellence was well-known in Longquan Town, and he was often praised by everyone. He was also a role model for all his peers. However, the fact that he was treated so humiliatingly and humiliated really made his fellow townsmen indignant.
After this incident spread, the scholars in Longquan Town had new worries. Fan Quan was so outstanding, but he couldn't become an official, let alone them?
As the Fan family said, with someone like Lü Desheng by the emperor's side, scholars like us would have a hard time making a name for ourselves. Scholars, when faced with worries, would either seek out friends to confide in, or lack like-minded individuals? Then write a letter, a close friend or two, to share your concerns.
Such discussions continued to spread outward like ripples.
This view had just begun to generate a little momentum and had not yet developed when it was caught off guard by these four earth-shattering and tear-jerking sentences and was destroyed without a trace.
Since Zhang Zai, the real person, never showed up, Lu Desheng, who was facing criticism, became the person who benefited the most, even though he was just a narrator.
"Is this Censor Lu really that bad?" This was a question in a skeptical tone.
"His reputation in the court is indeed not very good."
"Let's not talk about Lu Yushi's style in the court for now, but the fact that he brought out the four sentences shows that he should be a person with the same character as great scholars such as Zhang Yong, Chen Dinghuai, and Jiang Jiuqing."
"The great scholar Zhang Yong said that these four lines were written by Zhang Zai, and Lü Desheng was just paraphrasing them."
"Even if Censor Lu is just relaying what he said, can he still be considered a man of integrity?"
"Yes, I only saw four sentences of Lu Yushi's transformation technique, and the whole world benefited from it. From this, it can be seen that Lu Yushi is definitely not the kind of person who cannot tolerate talented people."
"What about the Fan Quan incident?"
"How can it be said that no one from the Hongsheng Restaurant, Zhang Daru, hosted such a wonderful competition?"
"Fan Quan must have done something wrong, offended Censor Lu's taboo, which is why he was suppressed like this. Besides, is Fan Quan really so talented? Is he worthy of the emperor's approval and promotion?"
"As for the others, they must have been burdened by Fan Quan."
For a time, there was a lot of booing towards Fan Quan among the scholars.
A turmoil, before it could escalate into a major storm, was extinguished without a trace. Almost all scholars doubted that Censor Lü Desheng, who could paraphrase the four lines, was so narrow-minded as to intolerant of newcomers. This then sparked doubts about the Zhe family's relationship with Fan Quan.
Fan Quan found it absurd. How could someone like Lü Desheng have such a good reputation? People actually compared him to the great scholars Zhang Yong, Chen Dinghuai, and Jiang Jiuqing? Was it just because of these four sentences? But he didn't create these four sentences; he merely paraphrased them!
Fan Xun was also furious. After this incident, the reputation of their Fan family went from being sympathized by the world to being questioned in just a few days.
The public opinion they created was like a boomeranging knife, which did not hurt Lu Desheng but left themselves covered in wounds.
This Lü Desheng was indeed as treacherous as the rumors said, bringing misfortune to anyone who crossed him. Back when he was about to take action, his friends who had returned from Chang'an City had tried to dissuade him, but he didn't believe them and couldn't swallow his anger. This time, he had truly learned his lesson.
At this time, the presidents of other famous academies in the Dali Dynasty were beating their chests and stamping their feet. They regretted that they should not have refused the invitation because of the long journey and did not participate in the debate competition hosted by Zhang Yong. Otherwise, their academies would have benefited from these four sentences and become known to the world.
Also, the emperor was too partial, and only gave stele to the three major academies. As a result, the three academies are now unique and known to the world. They are like the ones raised by their biological mothers, while the academy he belongs to looks like it was raised by a stepmother.
No, pack your bags. I can't think about this anymore. It makes me sad.
They decided that as soon as the academy was on spring break, they would set off together for Chang'an City to seek an audience with the emperor. Don't ask them what they wanted to do, the question was to ask the emperor for his decision.
Since ancient times, people have been worried not about scarcity but about inequality.
In order to attract high-quality students, they fought hard.
Then there were the shrewd ones who decided to find time to quietly visit Censor Lü, hoping he might have met the great sages Wang Zai, Li Zai, and Liu Zai before and just kept it to himself. Then, if Censor Lü could just pass on a few of their inspiring sayings, wouldn't that be enough to turn things around?
******
Anyuan Gate is a gate on the northwest side of the outer city of Chang'an. This gate is far less lively than Mingde Gate in winter.
In the winter of Chang'an, heavy snow fell like goose feathers. Looking out from the top of the city wall, the whole place was white and almost deserted.
Early in the morning of that day, a group of people knocked on Anyuan Gate from outside, which was rare. The gate guards checked their credentials and after they showed them, they were allowed to enter the city smoothly.
Under the respectful gaze of the city gate guards, Qin Silang entered Chang'an City with five or six of his men and a dozen horses.
They all rode two horses, and on the horses were either people or goods.
The group returned to the Qin family's gate. When the Qin family's doorman saw Qin Silang, he immediately opened the gate. Led by Qin Silang, the group of people and horses entered one after another.
"Fourth brother!"
Hearing the shout, Qin Silang quickly turned around and saw his subordinate running towards him. A huge smile instantly appeared on his face, his teeth were so white that they could dazzle people. He handed the rope in his hand to his subordinate and rushed forward.
"Master Xiao Liu——"
"Master Xiao Liu——"
The people Qin Silang brought back also greeted Qin Sheng one by one.
"Fourth brother, mother, eldest brother, third brother and his wife all know you are back and are waiting for you in the main courtyard."
"Don't be in a hurry." Qin Silang slapped his little brother's shoulder with his big hand.
Qin Sheng's lower body was very stable and did not move at all.
"You've grown taller and stronger! It seems that you haven't lost any of your skills while staying in Chang'an." Qin Silang could feel the muscles under his palms, which were thin but powerful. It was true that after the new year, A Sheng would be sixteen years old.
Qin Sheng rolled his eyes secretly. His fourth brother always had to weigh him up every time he saw him. He didn't know what was wrong with him.
Qin Silang smiled brightly, not minding Qin Sheng's eye roll at all.
The brothers all resembled their father in terms of features and build, with sharp, angular features and a masculine physique, and their martial prowess was evident. The eldest brother was elegant and refined, a scholarly general. The youngest, however, combined the best qualities of both his father and mother, and was exceptionally handsome. He wasn't short, but he wasn't strong. He was tall and thin, and people would always mistake him for a pale-faced young man with no martial arts skills. No one could tell that he was the most formidable martial artist among the brothers.
His sixth brother was a natural born general, now commanding a certain amount of prestige among the northern troops. This was already quite remarkable, considering he had only been part of his brothers' three campaigns. His older brothers had deliberately nurtured him, assigning him a small detachment as a surprise force, to assist in raiding the enemy lines, rather than as the main force. Yet, he fought with methodical skill, his performance being truly remarkable. The battle he led with him was particularly impressive, where he completely overshadowed the main force, completely carrying them under his wing.
He was the kind of general that soldiers loved most, able to win battles with minimal casualties.
Three campaigns and three victories, even his father once said privately that his sixth brother was a good candidate for marching and fighting.
Therefore, although he had only been on three expeditions, many soldiers in the army were already looking forward to the day when he would get married and join the Yubei Army to officially take charge of a battalion and a guard, leading troops independently.
When he came back this time, he was well-informed and learned that A Sheng was getting married. They actually pooled some money together, bought gifts, and asked him to send them back.
These people had followed his Ah Sheng to war before, and now they were hoping to become a member of his army when his younger brother joined the Yubei Army. This really made him feel a little amused and helpless.
"Fourth brother, are you injured?" Qin Sheng asked with a frown.
Qin Silang glanced at his left shoulder and said nonchalantly, "It's just a minor injury, nothing serious." Ah Sheng's nose was too sensitive, he thought the wound was just bleeding a little, but he could smell it.
Qin Sheng didn't listen to him and directly ordered, "Butler Liu, have someone call a doctor."
Qin Silang said, "Don't worry, Steward Liu, take Commandant Xu Zuo and the other soldiers down there to settle them down first."
Butler Liu called someone over and asked him to call a doctor, and then he prepared to settle the soldiers brought back by the fourth young master. He had to arrange hot food, hot water, and clean rooms for them to rest. Someone would take the horses down and feed them fodder.
"Let's go. Don't keep mother and the others waiting for too long."
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