Chapter 281 The Diligent Emperor Used as Cannon Fodder (Part 6) Pei Chengzhi Sinks...
Pei Chengzhi fell silent. Could he say that after the three of them teamed up, his teacher still wanted to return half a tael of silver to him? Of course, he firmly refused.
Chu Huaijin became even more curious about this, and after school he insisted on going with the three of them to see it, with a perfectly good excuse:
“My father also works at the Hanlin Academy, and he may be acquainted with your teacher. As a junior visiting you, even if I don’t come with you, he won’t turn me away, will he?”
Chu Huaijin's father was the second son of the Prince of Nan'an and a fourth-rank lecturer in the Hanlin Academy. Although he was not Li Tianle's direct superior, he was still someone who had to be respectful to Li Tianle when they met.
Li Tianle's position was a seventh-rank compiler in the Hanlin Academy. It didn't sound like a high-ranking official position, but it was usually held by the second or third-ranked scholar. His job was to draft imperial edicts and compile classics.
This job would normally make it easy to meet the emperor, which is why the system chose this identity to travel through time.
According to the unspoken rules of the workplace, new employees often face difficulties, but those with powerful families can easily resolve issues by simply making a few connections.
Those with money at home can treat others to meals from time to time to maintain relationships with colleagues. At the very least, they need to be diligent, sweet-talking, and good at handling things. To long-term employees, this is considered being sensible.
Subsystem 2 had originally planned for Li Tianle to build good relationships with his colleagues as a prerequisite, but despite having thought everything through, he ended up with a host who lacked ambition.
Li Tianle wasn't really unambitious, but seeing all the punishments in the system's tasks, he felt that it had ulterior motives, so he simply gave up on the tasks.
She even went against the grain, slightly offending her colleagues, but she managed to isolate herself and still live a carefree life.
My current job is to compile the most useless part of the classics, and to organize the messy books that have been sent up from below over the years.
Li Tianle happily packed up his things, put his hands in his pockets, and left work with the lesson plans he had prepared for three students while slacking off at work.
As I passed by my colleagues who were working overtime, I glanced at them with some sympathy, which made my colleague, who had been busy for several days, almost slam his fist on the table.
You're someone who's been sidelined and does nothing, what right do you have to sympathize with us? But seeing how happy he is every day after work, I just feel a lump in my throat, what am I supposed to do?!
Li Tianle subtly provoked a group of colleagues again, drawing a small wave of hatred. The system still didn't issue any warnings today, and it's unclear whether it has truly given up or has other plans.
When he passed by a shop selling sugar-coated sesame cakes, he spent eight coins to buy four crispy and fragrant ones, one for himself and one for each of his three children.
The three students were all fourteen or fifteen years old, a time when they were growing rapidly, and they were most likely to get hungry in the late afternoon.
He's collected so much tuition fee, so spending an extra hundred or two coins to buy some food for the students to fill their stomachs is just his duty.
Pei Chengzhi and his two companions refused all the way, but they couldn't get rid of the shameless Chu Huaijin. In the end, they had no choice but to lead the people to the small courtyard where Li Tianle lived.
“Our master’s family is poor, and the place is simple. Young Master Chu grew up in luxury. If you are not used to it, it is best not to go in.” Pei Chengzhi looked at the half-closed wooden door and tried to persuade him one last time.
The two Shen brothers echoed their agreement, and the three of them looked at Chu Huaijin. Only when he showed a hint of disdain did they realize that they would absolutely not let him into the house today.
Chu Huaijin never expected that a tutor would receive such protection from the three of them, who even seemed to be ready to confront him.
This made Chu Huaijin, who had only intended to join in the fun, even more interested in Li Tianle.
"How could I look down on your gentleman? He is a top scholar, and I have long admired him. That's why I wanted to come with you to pay my respects." Seeing how nervous the three of them were, Chu Huaijin gave them plenty of face.
After confirming that there was no sign of disgust on his face, Chen Yan reached out and pushed open the wooden door. The small courtyard was not decorated, but it was clean and tidy.
The servant boy named Shunzi greeted them with a smile and then went back to tidying up the house, letting the boys walk into the house.
Chu Huaijin was already somewhat shocked before even seeing the person; even at home, he had never been so relaxed and at ease.
Why didn't they inform the host family beforehand before bringing in a stranger like themselves? And yet, these three people acted so naturally, as if they were in charge.
He glanced back at the gate, which had been silently closed and bolted shut. The gate that had been left open before was apparently left there for them.
Li Tianle was in his study looking at the new book he had been copying while slacking off today. Hearing the noise, he smiled and called them in: "Chengzhi said this sugar-coated sesame cake place was pretty good. I just happened to be passing by today, so let's all try it."
After the door opened and the four boys entered the room, Li Tianle noticed that there was an extra person, so he casually handed over his portion of sugar-coated sesame cakes as well.
"You've made some new friends, huh? Come on, eat while it's hot. Let me look at your homework from yesterday. Not bad, Silent's writing is even better than last time..."
Chu Huaijin held the still-warm sugar-coated sesame seed cake, smiling at Li Tianle without any sign of reluctance. In fact, the three people next to him were already eating while crowding over to watch him check his homework.
He leaned over and took a look. The homework wasn't completely useless, but it was just average. Yet Li Tianle didn't utter a single word of criticism.
First, he praised everyone, then carefully wrote down the areas that needed improvement. When he was explaining the lessons, he not only didn't blame the three students for eating, but also poured them a cup of tea when he saw that Shen Yan was eating too fast.
Chu Huaijin was extremely envious, even more so than when he learned that the three of them had spent five taels of silver to hire a scholar who had achieved the rank of Tan Hua Lang (a high-ranking scholar in the imperial examinations).
All the praise his father had given him from childhood to adulthood combined couldn't compare to the amount Li Tianle had praised the three of them in this short moment.
Especially the way he was eating and being praised by his elders, Pei Chengzhi, with his gloomy nature, actually tugged at his teacher's sleeve. Was that acting cute? It must be acting cute!
Whether it was anticipation or something else, Chu Huaijin tried to take a bite of the sugar-coated sesame seed cake in his hand, just like the other three. The crispy, caramelized crust was coated with reddish-brown sugar syrup, and the rich sweetness filled his mouth, leaving a lingering fragrance on his lips and teeth.
What was clearly just ordinary food, something that one might not even bother to look at if it were lying next to them, now tasted exceptionally delicious. Watching the three of them wolfing down their food, Chu Huaijin even felt that they were wasting it.
After the group finished eating and the homework was graded, Li Tianle began teaching today's lesson.
The small courtyard where he lives isn't very big. The place where he teaches is where he usually keeps his study. Besides the bookshelves and tables, there's only room for four desks.
Li Tianle had already planned to find another student, and he had prepared four tables. Seeing that he did not object, Chu Huaijin joined as an auditor.
He originally came just to join in the fun, but who knew that this top scholar's lectures were so witty and humorous, and so profound yet simple, that he found himself listening intently without even realizing it.
Especially when Li Tianle asked a question, Chu Huaijin was captivated by Li Tianle's "Great job!" after answering correctly. He had never felt so engrossed in a class before.
After the class lasted for more than half an hour, it was already getting dark. When Chu Huaijin saw that Li Tianle had arranged for a servant to send them all home, he finally couldn't help but grab the arm of the silent man.
"I'll pay five taels of silver every month, and I'll attend your classes with you from now on, okay?" Chu Huaijin asked sincerely, pulling on the easiest one of the three to talk to.
"Mr. Li is living in poverty and must be short of money. Those four tables are clearly intended to accommodate another student."
We may not be very close, but we've never had any unpleasant encounters, right? It's better for me to attend their classes than for the teacher to just randomly accept someone I don't know.
Chu Huaijin could, of course, directly approach Li Tianle, but that's not how things are done. The third-ranked scholar taking the initiative to find students to tutor would be seen as Li Tianle enjoying teaching and nurturing students.
But if word got out that a student from the Imperial Academy was taking five taels of silver as tuition to ask the third-ranked scholar for tutoring, he would surely be branded as arrogant and conceited.
It would have been different if these three classmates had acted as matchmakers; with their mediation, things wouldn't have been so abrupt.
The three of them already knew what the teacher meant by preparing four tables, and that was also why they wanted Chu Huaijin to come along. The four of them hit it off immediately, and Li Tianle soon gained another generous student.
The second host here is running a tutoring class and has completely abandoned the mission, while the first host in the palace, Nangong Rou, has been hiding for a while. After confirming that the emperor really did not intend to pursue her because of what happened before, she finally took advantage of the emperor's usual political discussions to tentatively go out.
She had also found out in the past few days that the harem was not as complicated as she had thought. The emperor had a first wife, the empress, who had given birth to a nine-year-old prince and a five-year-old princess.
There were also two other concubines: Consort Shu had a six-year-old second prince, and Consort Xian had a two-year-old second princess. There was also Consort Yue, who had never given birth, as well as two newcomers who had just entered the palace through the imperial concubine selection process, including herself.
Including herself, she had a total of six women and four children, which was less than the number of women in the inner quarters of some households seen in TV dramas.
Hearing her mutterings, the subsystem immediately urged her to continue the task:
[It's easier to gain favor when there are fewer people around. Now that the Empress and the two concubines are getting old, and the newcomer with you is a quiet type, it's the perfect time for you to work hard and make your mark.]
The subsystem struck while the iron was hot and refreshed several more tasks. The simplest of these didn't require Nangong Rou to do anything; she just needed to get the emperor to take a look.
The task is simple, but the reward is very generous. You can choose any two skill books from the system store, and there is no time limit. It's practically free.
The other tasks were also very simple, and the punishment was changed from electric shock to a more humane condition of deducting points, which was obviously a compromise with Nangong Rou.
Nangong Rou has now passed the initial period of confusion after transmigrating. Now that she is familiar with her current environment, her biases towards the emperor and the system have weakened considerably.
After casually browsing the system's task page, Nangong Rou only accepted the simplest task. As for the others, such as seducing the emperor, she didn't even consider them.
Given that she can ensure she has enough to eat and wear and a worry-free life, what young girl would go after a man who is ten years older than her, has a bunch of wives and concubines, and four children?
Nangong Rou has no interest in the emperor now; she only wants to exploit the system.
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