Chapter 6, Did You Agree?
Zhishan Hall.
As dusk fell and the room grew dimly lit, Yuan Yi quietly lit a candle and placed it on the inside of the table. Xie Shichang gave his younger brother a wink, and Xie Ansheng pulled the drowsy Zhang Jun out to wait.
Xie Shichang's indignant expression instantly cracked, replaced by a warm smile. He stepped forward and said to Yang Congen, "Uncle, this He Zheng is eccentric and presumptuous. He acts recklessly because he has an aunt who is the Empress. He even dares to fight and cause trouble at Chongwen Academy, let alone at Chang'an Academy."
Yang Congen could easily detect the provocative undertone in his words, but he remained unmoved and said, "I've already taken the person in, what's the point of saying so much?"
Xie Shichang's smile froze. There weren't many people in Chang'an who would make him lower himself to smile obsequiously. He had already been quite polite and respectful to Yang Congen, but he hadn't expected that the other party would show him no respect at all.
When he spoke again, his voice was no longer as natural as before: "You are also An Sheng's uncle. How can you, as the dean, have any face when your own junior is bullied by outsiders?"
Yang Congen ignored him, got up and walked around him, taking an ancient book from the bookshelf.
Xie Shichang was left standing there, feeling frustrated. Even the wind blowing in from the window felt like an invisible slap in his face.
When Xie Cheng, the former head of the Xie family, served as prime minister, his protégés and old friends were all over the court and the country. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the Xie family had connections and influence in the capital.
Although Xie Cheng resigned from his post as prime minister and retired to his hometown fifteen years ago, the younger generation of the Xie family still hold important positions in the court. As the eldest son of the clan, Xie Shichang has never been treated coldly by anyone.
He subtly turned his head and glanced sideways at Zhang Jinghua, who stood silently to the side, his eyes exuding an air of authority.
Say something!
Upon receiving the instructions, Zhang Jinghua immediately adopted the demeanor of an elder, stepped forward, and gently patted Yuan Yi's shoulder: "Minister Xie is absolutely right. Little Yi, you are now also teaching at the academy, so please take good care of your brothers."
Yuan Yi glanced down at the knuckles on his shoulder, which were clenching tightly, and remained silent.
Zhang Jinghua, not receiving a response, said in a somber tone: "Yuan Yi, you may have grievances against your uncle, but you shouldn't take them out on Sanlang."
Upon hearing this, Yang Congen slammed the thick book in his hand onto the table: "In the final analysis, it was An Sheng and Zhang Jun who provoked us first."
Xie Shichang said, "So He Zheng is justified in hitting someone?"
Yang Congen: "He Ting has already apologized on his behalf."
Xie Shichang scoffed: "You think you can just brush this matter aside with a few bland, sour words?"
Yang Congen stared intently into his eyes: "Minister Xie, Vice Minister Zhang, if you can obtain an imperial edict, I, Yang, will certainly expel He Zheng from Chang'an Academy."
Zhang Jinghua and Xie Shichang exchanged a glance, both reading a deep sense of powerlessness in each other's eyes. After a long silence, they finally turned and left.
With the troublemakers gone, Yang Congen rubbed his temples wearily.
"Xie Ansheng and Zhang Jun have learned to bully others at such a young age. Who knows how many troubles they will cause in the future?"
“Xie and Zhang are arrogant, but at least they never neglect their studies,” Yuan Yi said. “He Er seems friendly and respectful to his teachers, but in reality he sleeps in class, doesn’t do his homework, and hands in a blank sheet of paper for exams. That’s what you call being completely unyielding.”
Yang Congen said, "You seem to know about his deeds."
“He Zheng and Yu Dan, when their colleagues in the academy mention them, who doesn’t curse them?” Yuan Yi tidied up the scattered books on the table and casually poured the remaining tea from the teapot out the window.
Yang Congen's gaze fell on the table, and he picked up a few pages of paper that had been pressed under the pile of books. Yuan Yi was startled and instinctively reached out to snatch them, but he was too late. Yang Congen turned his back to block him, leaned closer to the lampstand, and carefully examined the text on the paper.
Yuan Yi also understood how Yu Mingshu felt when he finished writing his answer sheet and was waiting for criticism.
Strangely enough, he only wrote eight characters on this stack of papers. His handwriting was taught to him stroke by stroke by Master Yang. His strokes were vigorous and powerful, and no one could find any fault with them. Whatever Master Yang thought after reading the article or what decision he made was none of his business.
What does he have to be nervous about?
After reading the last page, Yang Congen turned back to the first page to reread it. His brow gradually relaxed from a deep frown, and a subtle smile appeared in his eyes. It took him a long time to put the article down.
Who wrote this?
"Yu Mingshu".
Yang Congen had already guessed this, so he wasn't surprised to hear it. After pondering for a moment, he commented, "The writing style is not well-structured, but the content reveals her depth. She is more suitable to stay in the academy than Yu Dan."
“This article uses numerous allusions and its arguments are well-organized, and it does have its merits.” Yuan Yi paused, then abruptly changed the subject, “But she went off-topic.”
"Giving such a question to a naive young lady, can you blame her for taking an unconventional approach?"
Yang Congen didn't take it to heart and said with a smile, "Besides, the ancients used this poem to satirize the emperor's lack of virtue. When they recited 'Seeking beauty and gentleness, they got this Qi Shi,' they were thinking 'Seeking wisdom and sagacity, they got this foolish ruler.' Now people are extending this further, saying 'Seeking talent and virtue, they got this parasite.' What's wrong with that?"
“I was being naive,” Yuan Yi nodded. “Ordinary examiners may not have the same keen insight as a teacher.”
"Would an ordinary examiner ask such a controversial question?" Yang Congen's eyes shone with a deeper meaning.
Given Yuan Yi's erudition, could he truly not understand the logic in Yu Mingshu's article? His criticism that the article was off-topic simply stemmed from having a preconceived standard answer in mind and being unwilling to accept anything else.
Yang Congen folded the article in half and placed it under the paperweight.
Yuan Yi stared silently at the dark paperweight for a long time before letting out a long sigh, his emotions quite complex.
"Besides, she's not going to the exam hall."
"So you agree?" Yuan Yi frowned.
"Let's see." Yang Congen looked up at the faint crescent moon on the horizon.
…
The next morning, Yu Mingshu was waiting at the entrance of Zhishan Hall right on time.
The door wasn't locked, but Yang Congen and Yuan Yi hadn't arrived yet, so she didn't want to go in alone. She sat on the steps by the door for about fifteen minutes when a figure in dark clothing appeared in her line of sight.
Upon seeing the figure sitting in front of the door, Yuan Yi frowned, looked around, and seeing that there was no one else, said, "Get up. What kind of young lady sits like you with such poor posture?"
Yu Mingshu was so anxious he was about to lose his mind when he suddenly heard the accusation. He jumped up and stood at attention: "I was just dressed as a man."
Yuan Yi walked past her up the steps, pushed open the two doors, and asked, "What brings you here today?"
"I just want to ask, about yesterday's matter... did Lord Yang agree?" Yu Mingshu leaned forward subtly, afraid of being blocked from entering the door if he wasn't careful.
"Then you wait." Yuan Yi didn't stop her. He went into the house, grabbed a book, and was about to leave. "When Master Yang arrives, you can ask him yourself."
Yu Mingshu watched him leave, her mind still reeling. When she came to her senses, Yuan Yi was nowhere to be seen in Zhishan Hall.
No, Yuan Yi just left her alone in the dean's office?
Do you trust her that much?
Yu Mingshu stood in front of an entire wall of books, glancing nervously towards the door several times.
A quarter of an hour passed, then another quarter of an hour, and the scene outside the door frame was like a still courtyard painting; not a single person was in sight, not even the weeds in the ground swayed.
She grew a little bolder and silently moved two steps toward the desk.
She noticed it as soon as she entered: an open book was lying flat in front of Yang Congen's seat.
Calling it a book isn't quite accurate; it's actually a collection of sheets of paper bound together in a dragon-scale binding style. Each page has black writing on the right and red annotations on the left, resembling a folded collection of incorrect answers.
Error correction notebooks are common in modern times, and no one except the student would give them a second glance. But their appearance in ancient times piqued Yu Mingshu's curiosity.
This thing was laid out openly on the table, and since she doesn't need glasses, it wouldn't be considered an invasion of privacy if she accidentally saw what was on it, right? Yu Mingshu looked towards the door again, and then her gaze gradually became unrestrained.
This old-fashioned collection of incorrect answers has yellowed pages, whether from age and dampness or from paper being soaked in insect repellent. The handwriting is delicate and refined, suggesting it was written by a woman.
Having overcome the hurdle in her heart, Yu Mingshu finally couldn't help but reach out and turn the page, where she saw the signature in the lower left corner of a certain page—Huai Ling.
…
Wu Zi Tang.
The lecturer surnamed Lin was explaining the concept of prosody at the front, while Yu Dan was calculating how many sheep's wool a sheep's hair brush had at the back.
The drowsy voice abruptly stopped. Yu Dan looked up and saw that He Zheng had arrived late and was silently confronting Mr. Lin at the door.
A moment later, Mr. Lin waved his hand without changing his expression: "Come in."
He Zheng swaggered across most of the school and sat down next to Yu Dan.
Yu Dan lowered his head and leaned closer to He Zheng. "Brother He, thank you for standing up for me yesterday."
He Zheng pointed to himself, "You're thanking me?"
Yu Dan nodded: "Yes."
He Zheng gave him a strange look: "Why are you being so polite with me?"
"It was all my sister's advice. I always said that He Erlang is broad-minded and would never hold a grudge." Yu Dan tightened his grip, plucking two strands of wool from the tip of his brush. His tone abruptly shifted, "By the way, Xie Wu and Zhang San didn't come today. Could they have been poisoned by the ink from yesterday?"
He Zheng smiled faintly and said, "Yesterday, the Xie family and the Zhang family's carriage suddenly broke down halfway. The wheels rolled several feet away, and the horses went berserk and ran wildly through the streets. They were knocked around in the carriage and were completely disoriented. I'm afraid their heads are still swollen."
"Is this really true?" Yu Dan exclaimed in surprise.
Under the desk, He Zheng kicked him hard: "Keep your voice down!"
Mr. Lin, who was lecturing, was forced to stop once again. He cast an unfriendly glance at the last row and shouted sternly, "He Zheng, Yu Dan, if you don't want to learn, get out."
The two exchanged a glance and stood up at the same time.
Outside the door, Yang Congen had just entered the academy when he bumped into two frequent visitors to the corridor. His brow furrowed, and his head throbbed with pain. He suddenly regretted coming in through that door.
Yang Congen's gaze lingered between the two men for a long while before he asked in a deep voice, "Are you fighting again?"
He Zheng raised three fingers and pointed to the sky, saying, "This time there really isn't one."
Yu Dan chimed in: "It was He Erlang and I who were whispering in court, and Mr. Lin kicked us out."
Yang Congen took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and said, "Come with me."
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