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In Lingnan, schools were mostly built under the supervision of the prefect or county magistrate, and were also funded and managed by the government. However, Chaozhou was poor and its people were impoverished, so the officials sent by the imperial court only cared about whether taxes were paid, and you couldn't expect them to spend a single penny.
Unexpectedly, another benefactor has arrived today, willing to contribute two thousand taels of silver to build a school in the city.
This distinguished guest was a merchant from out of town, surnamed Pei, and known as Master Pei. He made only three requests to Fang Huai: first, that the official schools only accept children from poor families; second, that girls also be allowed to attend school; and third, that students not only study literature but also martial arts, with both martial arts and literature being taught together.
None of the three rules were problematic, so Fang Huai naturally agreed. Pei Gong also said that if the government could really run the school seriously, it would provide additional funding every year.
That night, Fang Huai did not sleep all day, staying in the government office to draft relevant documents. Although some wealthy people were willing to invest, the matter of establishing a school still had to be reported to higher levels, and could only be approved and stamped by the governor.
Furthermore, the selection of the site for the newly established school, its construction, and the enrollment of students all need to be carefully considered. No detail can be overlooked, lest Pei Gong feel that he is deliberately being perfunctory and thus disappoint his benefactor.
He was busy for a month. Not only were two new schools set up in Jinning City, but eight more schools were to be set up in the other counties of Chaozhou. He did everything personally, running back and forth between the prefecture and other counties. When Lu Chang saw him again a month later, he had lost a lot of weight.
During August and September, he was out and about every day, and his skin was even darker than that of the farmers in the lychee orchard. But he was full of energy and spoke with a strong voice. It was as if a pot of flowers that had always stayed indoors had finally been moved to the vast world and was nourished by the sun and rain every day, and finally came to life.
He brought documents for Lu Chang to review; several large volumes of documents, too many for him to carry, so Lu Chang's assistant helped him, and they filled an entire table.
Lu Chang read through the scrolls one by one. They contained details of the arrangements for the ten schools. Lord Pei had already delivered the silver for the construction of the schools, and construction had begun in various places. The progress in Jinning City was faster, and two schools had already been completed.
Fang Huai drank two cups of tea, casually wiped the tea from his lips with his sleeve, and said with satisfaction, "It's been ten years, and this is the first time someone has been willing to spend so much money on education! This will create ten schools, which can accommodate another hundred students."
He was exhausted after working for more than a month, but as soon as he thought that all the hard work was worthwhile, he felt that it wouldn't matter if he was even more tired.
Lu Chang carefully examined the documents. If he were to read them all, it would take several days. But looking at the official seals affixed to each document, he guessed that when Fang Huai reported the documents up the chain of command, the officials below were lazy and just stamped them casually.
Lu Chang guessed most of it correctly; the official seals were only able to be affixed because Fang Huai had been urging them every day.
Given the fact that Chaozhou had only produced two Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) in the past decade, his colleagues in the government office often complained that he was always wasting time and energy on useless and ridiculous things. Therefore, he did not take the matter of promoting education to heart. He would not even look at the piles of books in front of him. Fang Huai would urge him personally every day, and when he saw his colleagues on the street, he would ask them if his official documents had been approved.
His colleagues were so annoyed by him that they finally stamped the document before it could be delivered to Lu Chang.
He was about to speak again, but after seeing the young and handsome man carefully review the official documents he had written, he said no more and respectfully withdrew.
He went out, stood in the courtyard, looked up at the four directions, and sighed deeply. After ten years as an official, he finally had a superior who was willing to spend some time on these "funny things". Looking back on the events of the past month, he suddenly felt a sense of relief and that all his perseverance had finally paid off.
There was no time to finish reading all the official documents. Sitting alone in the government office, with only the oil lamp for company, he felt extremely lonely.
Lu Chang returned home with several scrolls of documents. The steward took the scrolls and said that the young lady was still waiting for the young master to have dinner together.
He strode to the hall, where Jingwan was sitting obediently at the table. When she saw him return, she happily walked towards him and watched Lu Chang wash and dry his hands.
"You're saying you'll eat first, don't always wait for me."
Jingwan lowered Lu Chang's rolled-up sleeves, took his hand, and led him to the table: "It's no fun eating alone."
She felt that waiting for her family to eat was a very ritualistic thing. It wasn't about whether she was hungry or not, but knowing that there was one light left on for her among all the lights in the house gave her hope and motivation for tomorrow.
After dinner, Lu Chang took Jingwan to his study, saying he wanted to check if she had neglected her studies these days. His method of checking was very simple: he would sit at the table with his eyes closed and rest, while Jingwan read to him the official documents she had brought home.
The words on the official documents were all commonly used and not obscure. She read through a volume and didn't encounter any she didn't know, which boosted her confidence. She continued reading, and sometimes Lu Chang would ask her to read them a couple more times, as if he were really checking her studies.
After reading through the three volumes of official documents, Jingwan held the books and suddenly realized, "So Chaozhou is going to build a school! That's really great news!"
Lu Chang slowly opened his eyes and asked her with a smile what was wrong.
Jingwan said in a serious tone, "When I was little, I wanted to study, but unfortunately, the Rong people attacked after I only stayed for one day, and the only school in the village was burned down. Thinking about it now, it's such a pity!"
Despite his young age, he acted as if he were a wise old man who had seen the world, with a look of wistful longing in his eyes. This prompted Lu Chang to say, "That's perfect. I'll send you to school in a couple of days to make up for the regrets you had when you were a child."
Jingwan was startled and stared at him in horror, waving her hands repeatedly in refusal: "Then forget it. Actually, catching fish and shrimp when I was little was quite fun." At least it was more comfortable than sitting in the classroom.
Lu Chang chuckled, picked up a scroll and gently tapped her head: "Keep reading, no slacking off."
Jingwan stuck her tongue out at him. She read the book aloud without missing a single word, not slacking off at all. Despite her thoughts, she read the book even more attentively.
Lu Chang kept his eyes closed, seemingly resting, but his brain was actually more active than during the day.
Actually, there's no need to read any further. For the past ten years, Fang Huai has been in charge of the reconstruction of Confucianism in Chaozhou. He has extensive experience in this area. However, schools in various places have been unable to maintain themselves due to insufficient funds, and most have declined rather than been revived. Now that he has the opportunity, Fang Huai is very dedicated, making sure that everything, from the location to the people, is properly arranged.
That Mr. Pei invested two thousand taels, and most of it has already been spent. Every expenditure of the money was recorded in a separate ledger, which was very clear. The prices and labor costs recorded in the ledger were all reasonable, and there was no evidence of embezzlement or corruption.
Lu Chang actually admired Fang Huai for this. The officials in Chaozhou, from top to bottom, were all people who couldn't be mobilized without money. How did he manage to not spend a single penny on these parasites?
If he doesn't get paid more, who will work for him?
A few days later, Lu Chang personally went south to Ding County, Fang Huai's hometown. Two days after Lu Chang stamped the prefectural seal, Fang Huai knew that he had accomplished another important task. He packed his bags and returned to Ding County to supervise the school affairs.
When he left, Lu Chang took Jingwan with him. Before dawn, she was still yawning. As soon as she got into the carriage, she leaned on Lu Chang's shoulder and asked him in a daze, "Cousin, where is Ding County?"
Lu Chang covered her with a blanket and said softly, "This is my first time going there too, I don't know anything about it!"
The person under the blanket didn't speak again—they had already fallen asleep.
They thought the road to Jinning was difficult enough, but they didn't expect the road to Dingxian to be even more rugged. It was September when they went there, and the summer heat had not yet dissipated. The mountains and forests of Lingnan were so dense that not a breath of wind could get in. Later on, even the horse-drawn carriage could not proceed on the mountain roads, so they had to ask the locals to lead the group over the mountains.
Some sections of the mountain path were so steep that they walked for hours without seeing the end. Jingwan walked slower and slower, and if Lu Chang hadn't been holding her hand the whole time, she probably wouldn't have wanted to move at all.
Lu Chang thought she was just tired from walking. When he rested in the woods that evening, he saw her take a few bites of a biscuit and look listless, which made him realize something was wrong.
He squatted down in front of Jingwan, took off the tiny shoes that were no bigger than his palm, and discovered that her feet were covered with large blisters, especially on her heels, which were bleeding.
He was both heartbroken and annoyed: "Why didn't you tell me?" Lu Chang then realized that she had been walking slowly because her feet hurt. He didn't dare to get them wet and gently wiped away the marks.
A mountain dweller handed over some herbs, and Lu Chang followed his instructions, crushing the leaves until the juice came out before applying it to the wound.
Her pair of fair and delicate little feet now looked as if they had been pulled out of seaweed; Lu Chang said she was now a green-haired monster.
It was some kind of herb, but the wound felt cool. Lu Chang applied it to her wound little by little, and wouldn't let her wear shoes, leaving it to dry on the side.
The pain subsided, and she even regained her appetite. She stared longingly at the food cooking in the pot next to her, wondering what kind of meat could be so delicious.
The mountain man stirred the meat in the pot. When he saw her looking over, he laughed and said, "Little girl, you wouldn't dare eat what's in here."
The mountain dweller was over fifty years old. His granddaughter was about the same age as Jingwan. When speaking to Jingwan, he even showed the kindness and affection he would show to his own granddaughter.
Jingwan became even more curious and craned her neck to look. Lu Chang scooped a bowl over for her, and she stirred it, exclaiming as she looked at the strips of white meat, "It's snake meat!"
The mountain people were surprised that this young lady from a wealthy family knew about snake meat, and they saw her take a bite without any hesitation, revealing a satisfied expression.
"It smells so good! I haven't had this taste in so many years!"
There are snakes in the mountains of Northwest China, and it's possible to eat a few when you're extremely hungry, but they're usually roasted. It's very rare to eat them boiled like this.
Lu Chang knew she dared to eat this, so he scooped it up. When they first met as children, she had spent the night in the mountains with the army and ate a small piece of roasted snake meat.
The mountain dweller laughed and said, "You haven't tasted anything better yet! The baby mice are born completely naked, without a single hair, and they're soaking in honey before their eyes are even open. They're so delicious!"
Jingwan thought she must have misheard. She had indeed seen people eat roasted bamboo rats, but this was the first time she had ever seen such a small rat. No matter how she thought about it, none of the images that came to mind were pleasant. With snake meat still in her mouth, she looked at Lu Chang in confusion, only to see him looking at her with a wicked smile and drinking the snake soup in one gulp.
Jingwan instantly understood Lu Chang's meaning. The delicious snake meat instantly lost its flavor and fell from her mouth into the bowl.
The next day, as they set off, Lu Chang carried Jing Wan on his back and continued walking. The girl clung to her cousin's back, looking utterly dejected: "Are we really going on a vacation? I don't think so!"
Lu Chang cleared his throat, trying to shake off his embarrassment: "You've only seen the scenery of the mountains and forests in the Northwest, and you've never experienced the scenery of Lingnan. This time, I'm bringing you out to broaden your horizons."
The person on the back gave a puzzled "oh," but didn't question his cousin's words any further, and kept quiet as the cousin carried him.
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