After receiving the letter, Shen Lanxi immediately replied and sent someone to the Shen family to inform them.
"Her Majesty said that this is a suggestion, and if the Shen family's descendants want to continue studying at the Imperial Academy, she will not stop them. However, the current teachers at the Imperial Academy will be dismissed and reassigned to private academies."
Although they were called private academies, they were actually backed by the imperial court. After Shen Lanxi's reforms, the academies were practically nationalized. However, the imperial court did not officially send officials to manage them. In reality, all the deans were appointed, and Shen Lanxi personally appointed all the deans of the academies in the capital.
The women, including Liu, were dumbfounded.
"They are high-ranking officials appointed by the imperial court. They have not committed any serious offense. How can His Majesty demote them?"
The demotion of official schools to popular schools is nothing short of water flowing downhill.
Those people are willing too?
They certainly wouldn't agree. When the time comes, we'll unite with those teachers and elders to oppose it. I don't believe His Majesty will still insist on going his own way.
"How dare you speak ill of His Majesty!" The pale-faced eunuch glared coldly at Liu Shi.
Liu was so frightened that her heart trembled twice.
Shen Conglian wanted to slap her. The family had just had a bad day, and the 49th day memorial service hadn't even passed yet. Had she already forgotten her own surname?
"Father-in-law, please calm down. She just spoke too quickly; that's not what she really meant."
The pale-faced eunuch continued to stare at Liu Shi with a gloomy expression, his demeanor showing little improvement.
"I will not record these words today for the sake of the Second Master. If any more treasonous words are said, I will report them to His Majesty in detail."
Shen Conglian quickly took out a silver note and stuffed it into the pale-faced eunuch's hand.
"Please calm down, Father-in-law. We've been overthinking things. His Majesty is surely thinking of the best for the family."
After all, she also has the surname Shen, and so many sons in her family are guarding her kingdom.
If she hadn't made a mistake, she would never have dared to do anything to them.
"It's good that Second Master understands. In fact, His Majesty has long intended to abolish the Imperial Academy. Actually, it's not that he wants to abolish it, but rather to merge it with private academies."
Shen Conglian felt he had made the right decision by slipping the silver notes.
"His Majesty loves his people like his own children and has always opposed extravagance and waste. It is a waste that the teachers of the Imperial Academy only teach people like the Shen family. The teachers of the Imperial Academy are all great Confucian scholars. If they go out to take up positions, they can benefit more people."
"In other words, private academies are actually no worse than the Imperial Academy. For example, General Yuan Xu once served as the dean of Bailu Academy. Many newly promoted officials in the court came from private academies."
Shen Conglian hurriedly smiled and agreed, and while his back was turned, he slipped a few more silver notes into the pale-faced eunuch's hand.
The pale-faced eunuch looked much better.
"Her Majesty often laments that the Zhou family lost because none of them knew the hardships of the common people. She does not want the Shen family to follow in the footsteps of the previous dynasty."
So, was it a special favor that allowed the Shen family members to enter the private academy?
"Do you understand His Majesty's good intentions?"
Even if he didn't understand, Shen Conglian still had to nod and explain.
"I understand, I understand."
The pale-faced eunuch completed his task, rolled his eyes, and left.
No sooner had the person left than Liu began to cry.
"Why is it all my fault? You can't blame me. I was only trying to do what's best for the children..."
The matter of the Shen family members entering the private academy has been finalized, and Shen Lanxi has given further instructions.
The children of the Shen family were scattered and assigned to different academies, with no more than two children from the Shen family allowed in each academy.
The Shen family now has fifty descendants, ranging in age from teenagers to those less than twenty days old, including thirty-two men and eighteen women.
With all these offspring gathered together, Shen Lanxi's previous residence was no longer enough to accommodate them all. She had to buy and expand several surrounding houses to make room for them.
It's not that there's no room for all these people, but rather that each of them needs at least two old women, one maid, and two to four servants. It's only because of all these staff that there isn't enough room for them to live together.
Because of the emperor's word, and the events of today, most of the Shen family members have put aside Shen Congyi's previous rebellion and the death of the old lady, and have begun to busy themselves with making arrangements for the next generation.
Besides Shen Congwen, after the deaths of Madam Shen and Shen Congyi, he developed a drinking problem, spending his days drunk, constantly drinking, rarely sober.
Since the princess was someone who didn't manage affairs, the Shen family simply bypassed the eldest branch of the family. Whatever the matter was, the second and third branches would get together to discuss it.
After that, the Shen family began selecting academies for their children, keeping them extremely busy.
While the women of the second and third wives were busy running around, the eldest wife's family became more prominent.
"Big sister, which academy will we be assigned to?" A six-year-old girl with her hair in two buns asked her older sister, Chen Emei, with an innocent look.
Shen Emei had grown into a graceful young woman, and she felt somewhat annoyed when she heard her younger sister say that.
Yesterday, she lost to Shen Chengfeng in the exam again. He is several years younger than her, but he always pretends to know what he doesn't, and his teacher still indulges him. His teacher is obviously biased.
"Don't ask me, how would I know?"
The little girl was startled, lowered her head, clenched her hands in fear, and dared not utter another sound.
Shen Chengfeng thought that this matter could not be left unresolved, so she decided to write to her father and ask him to help her think of a solution.
~
Although Zhou Xinrou didn't interfere, it didn't mean she was unaware of it. She was happy to see the Shen family's children being sent to private academies.
The Shen family is incredibly prolific; every year, they send countless children from the border to the capital. Like rabbits, they have litters after litter. If these little brats weren't such a nuisance, she would never allow these noisy creatures to live.
Fortunately, they were sensible and stopped coming after a few visits. Otherwise, she definitely wouldn't have been able to resist taking action if she saw the children yelling and shouting.
...
Cheng Zheng prepared six cartloads of things for Sang Guo: one cartload of gold and silver jewelry, three cartloads of his usual personal belongings, and the remaining two cartloads of previous rewards and Sang Guo's savings over the years.
Looking at all these things, Sang Guo wrote anxiously, "Too much, too much."
Cheng Zheng replied, "Not many, not many. Only one cart was selected from His Majesty's private treasury. You know His Majesty is benevolent."
Sang looked like she was about to cry.
Cheng Zheng continued writing: "I contacted Xiao Fang a few days ago. Once you get there, someone will protect you."
Sang Guo was truly reluctant to part with it. A man doesn't easily shed tears, but he had no other way to express it. Even writing thousands of pages wouldn't be enough to express his feelings.
He could only shed tears.
Cheng Zheng smiled and patted him on the shoulder; no one understood Sang Guo better than him.
If his family were still alive, he would not be able to resist their pleas.
That's it. Your Majesty never forces matters of the heart.
You can only force others to do things.
Sang Guo is gone, that's for the best!
Cheng Zheng slowly curled his lips into a smile and raised his hand to give the order.
The wheels rolled slowly. He glanced at the palace gate and thought to himself, "I'll get Sang Guo settled in, then I'll rush back immediately." (End of Chapter)
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