When he saw Qian Fu, the Minister of the Central Secretariat, Lord Li, knew that his premonition had come true.
It turns out that some bastard has his eyes on me.
He walked towards Qian Fu and said, "Please tell the eldest prince, Eunuch Qian, that I have no relationship with him anymore. Don't appear in front of me again."
Qian Fu said expressionlessly: "Yang Yuanqing!"
"What?" Lord Li frowned, suspecting that there was something wrong with his ears.
Qian Fu said again: "Sanyuan Gong Yang Yuanqing is still alive in the northwest. Please ask Lord Li to overturn his case."
The Minister of the Central Secretariat, Lord Li, sneered, "You're crazy! I won't overturn Yang Yuanqing's case unless I die."
Qian Fu deadpanned, repeating Liu Zhao's words. "You've forgotten that Lord Li and Yang Yuanqing took the imperial examination in the same year. Lord Li was crushed by Yang Yuanqing and had to take his place beneath him. If he returns to the court, there's no place for you."
"fart!"
The Minister of the Central Secretariat, Lord Li, was furious.
Everything else is fine, except Yang Yuanqing.
The three words "Yang Yuanqing" are Lord Li's curse.
"Go back and tell Liu Zhao that you're dreaming of me overturning Yang Yuanqing's case! I wish he'd die in the northwest and never be able to turn over a new leaf."
"Even if he died in the northwest, Master Li would not have become the top scholar."
Lord Li almost vomited a mouthful of old blood.
It hurts!
Thinking back to those days, he and Yang Yuanqing were equally talented and youthful.
One in the south and one in the north, each has its own merits.
However, if we have Yu, why do we need Liang?
He and Yang Yuanqing met during the imperial examination in the eleventh year of Kaiyao.
The two brightest new stars had a head-to-head battle.
In the end, Yang Yuanqing became the Three Yuan Lords, and all the glory went to his opponent.
Compared with his opponents, he was overshadowed and lost in the crowd.
People only remember that year, the first Sanyuan Gong was born in this dynasty.
But I don’t remember that the third place winner that year was just as young, just as talented, and just as brilliant.
People are too good at forgetting and too good at remembering.
Lord Li had been holding this grudge for decades, hoping that Yang Yuanqing would die quietly and the world would completely forget about this Sanyuan Gong.
Now that Liu Zhao wants him to overturn the verdict, it is equivalent to evoking people's memories of Sanyuan Gong.
How could Lord Li swallow this?
No!
no way!
He would never overturn Yang Yuanqing's verdict, even if he had the ability to do so now.
Qian Fu remained unmoved and continued, following Liu Zhao's instructions, "Wenqing Bookstore is preparing to publish a collection of essays from the imperial examinations, and is currently collecting the exam papers from that year. The essays by Lord Li and Mr. Sanyuan will appear in the second volume of the collection."
The world will judge for itself which of you two is better. My prince asked me to tell you a message: the living can never compete with the dead. The dead carry their teachings through literature, leaving their names in history and a legacy that will endure for generations. Isn't that infuriating?
Lord Li had a mouthful of thirty-year-old blood stuck in his throat, and he wanted to spit it out but couldn't.
He was so angry that his face turned blue, "I'm going to close down Wenqing Bookstore."
Qian Fu said expressionlessly, "Your Excellency can't do that."
Lord Li's chest heaved violently. "This is too much. Where is Liu Zhaoren? I want to talk to him face to face. Bullying like this is truly shameful."
Qian Fu bowed slightly, "Sir, please calm down. Wenqing Bookstore is interested in publishing a book for a senior literary figure. Someone will come to us someday to request a manuscript. Sir Li, please be kind enough to give us some advice."
Minister Li, the Minister of the Central Secretariat, felt a lump in his chest, neither rising nor falling.
"Publish a book for me?"
Qian Fu nodded. "Over the years, you must have accumulated a lot of manuscripts. There is nothing more cruel than letting manuscripts gather dust. Countless students are eager to witness your talent. I hope you will not let them down. If you are willing to give me the manuscripts, Wenqing Bookstore will print an initial print of 10,000 copies, which will be sold in major bookstores across the country."
Every scholar dreams of publishing a book.
However, there are so few people who publish books, especially the bigwigs in the officialdom. Why is this?
First of all, publishing a book costs money.
Secondly, if I spend my own money to publish a book, it would be suspected of being a publicity stunt, which would give me a bad reputation and could easily be used as leverage to attack others.
Finally, of course, it is the inherent arrogance of intellectuals.
How can I publish a book with my own money? It's so embarrassing.
Unless someone begs you to publish a book and visits you three times to ask for the manuscript, then you have the nerve to do it and it is something worthy of praise.
Lord Li's expression kept changing.
Qian Fu continued, "Sanyuan Gong Yang Yuanqing was exiled to the northwest for decades. I heard that his edges and corners have been smoothed out, and his talent has turned into cheap wine. I'm afraid he can no longer hold a pen and write an article."
Lord Li's eyes moved, "Has anyone seen him?"
Qian Fu said seriously, "That's right! To be honest, sir, Yang Yuanqing is now working at a courier station in the northwest. If you can overturn his case, it will definitely cause a sensation in the literary world, and everyone will praise Lord Li for his benevolence and righteousness. As for Sanyuan Gong, who has been worn down by time for decades, his talent is gone. He can't return to the court, and at most he can only be an ordinary person.
My prince also told me to tell you: Only when living people compete with each other can we tell who is better. With Yang Yuanqing's current talent, you can easily crush him. The Three Yuan Dukes of the past were just that, empty titles."
Lord Li's cheeks twitched slightly and his eyes flickered, obviously he was moved.
For him, the biggest knot in his life is losing to Yang Yuanqing.
He considered himself to be the most talented and knowledgeable person, no less talented than Yang Yuanqing. Why was Yang Yuanqing the Three Yuan Master, while he could only be inferior to him?
I don’t accept it!
I was extremely dissatisfied.
Now there is an opportunity to correct this mistake and let the world know that his talent is better than Yang Yuanqing. Lord Li cannot help but be tempted.
However, he had to be extremely careful when cooperating with Liu Zhao.
"You're asking me for help for nothing. How could such a good thing happen in this world? What benefit can Liu Zhao give me? Why should I help Yang overturn the verdict?"
Qian Fu secretly breathed a sigh of relief, as long as they were willing to negotiate terms.
What I’m afraid of is that the other party won’t talk about anything and just turns around and leaves.
Qian Fu said seriously, "The only thing his Highness can give me is to publish three collections of essays and one collection of poetry for you. You have the final say on when to publish the books and what style to use."
Lord Li raised an eyebrow. "You want me to take the risk of overturning the Yang case just by publishing a few books for me. When has asking me to do something so cheap?"
Qian Fu smiled and said, "Your Excellency is joking. Your Excellency wants fame, and my Highness will create it for you. There is no such thing as one owing the other."
"Then tell me why Liu Zhao wants to overturn the Yang case? What does he want to do? If you don't explain this clearly, I will never let Yang return to the capital."
Lord Li became ruthless and let Qian Fu know his determination.
Qian Fu bowed slightly, "Even if you don't ask, I will tell you. The reason why my prince overturned the case for Sanyuan Gong is because Shanhe Academy needs a famous teacher.
Shanhe Academy's reputation is not well-known, and no literary masters are willing to teach there, which is extremely detrimental to the academy's development. Sanyuan Gong's reputation is loud enough, and his situation is dire enough. Hiring him will bring more benefits than disadvantages to Shanhe Academy.
"Just that?" Lord Li was doubtful.
Qian Fu said solemnly, "I dare not deceive you, sir, for this very reason. I beg your grace to grant me this."
Lord Li chuckled. "Shanhe Academy has been quite lively lately, hasn't it? I specially asked my servants to buy a copy of the exercise book published by Wenqing Bookstore. The content inside is absolutely ridiculous. There has never been an exam like this since ancient times."
"So we call it innovation, an attempt at a new model. It would be fair to see how it works first and then judge its merits."
"When the day comes to judge your merits and demerits, I will give you justice."
Qian Fu laughed and said, "It is an honor for everyone at Shanhe Academy to have you, Master Li."
"Humph! It depends on whether I am free."
Qian Fu bowed and said, "I'm sorry to trouble you, Lord Li, to help me overturn the case for Sanyuan Gong. If you need anything, please feel free to ask."
"When necessary, I will not hesitate. Go back and tell Liu Zhao that this is just one time, and it won't happen again. If you dare to cause trouble for me again, I won't mind causing him a lot of trouble."
Lord Li was furious and left with a flick of his sleeves.
Qian Fu watched Lord Li leave, then laughed.
Scholars, even if they have become high-ranking officials in the court, cannot escape the problems of scholars.
Reputation is invisible and intangible, but it makes people fight for it.
Qian Fu fulfilled his mission and returned to Xiaozhu to report.
When Liu Zhao heard that the task was accomplished, he laughed heartily.
"Your Highness knows that Old Man Li wants to compete with Lord Sanyuan."
Gu Jiu said, "Back in the northwest, we need to quickly confirm Yang Yuanqing's identity. We don't want to end up in a situation where Lord Li overturns his case but the person is gone. Lord Li will probably hold a grudge against you for the rest of his life."
Liu Zhao smiled and said, "If he wants to hold a grudge against me for the rest of his life, let him do so. I will not stop him. I am now worried that Yang Yuanqing will not be willing to teach at Shanhe Academy."
Gu Jiu smiled lightly, "He has to be willing even if he doesn't want to. This is his only chance to turn things around. If he's not a fool, he will definitely not let this opportunity go."
The literary newcomer who was once brilliant and proud like a peacock with its tail spread out has been worn down by the years for decades. Is he really willing to be buried in the northwest?
As long as there is still a spark of fire in his heart, he will not be willing to be trapped in the northwest for the rest of his life.
He must have wanted to return to the capital, pick up his pen, and rewrite his glorious story.
Liu Zhao laughed, "Your academy is going to be famous!"
"It's our academy, everyone's academy."
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