After hearing Luo Yangxing's words, the middle-aged men were even happier.
They've already reached this point; I'm afraid Zhu Youjian won't need them anymore and will just kill them off casually.
They didn't care what difficult tasks the emperor would give them.
The men quickly nodded and said, "Don't worry, Lord Luo. We all come from the imperial examination system. Since we can write the eight-legged essay well, poetry and prose are naturally no problem for us."
"This is what they mean by 'a lash leaves a mark, a slap draws blood'..."
At this point, these people couldn't help but feel a little smug.
However, Luo Yangxing was somewhat displeased.
"These intellectuals, having fallen to such a state, are still so smug about these trivial matters!"
However, Luo Yangxing's true feelings were tinged with bitterness.
The Ming Dynasty's emphasis on civil affairs over military matters has been a long-standing practice.
Luo Yangxing, a military man, was valued by the emperor, but he was inherently weaker when facing civil officials.
Therefore, even at this point, he could not openly rebuke these corrupt officials.
"Hmph, it's just the eight-legged essay..."
After muttering a few words under his breath, Luo Yangxing didn't linger there any longer.
He stood outside for a moment, waiting for the others to finish writing their works, before taking them into the palace to see Zhu Youjian.
However, as soon as he saw Zhu Youjian, he noticed that the young emperor's expression seemed rather unpleasant.
When Zhu Youjian saw that it was Luo Yangxing coming over, he didn't try to avoid him.
"Hmph, this Shi Kefa is really going too far!"
It turned out that while Luo Yangxing was meeting with several criminals, Shi Kefa's "latest masterpiece" had already been delivered to the emperor's desk.
"He actually said that Master Gao was not only a sorcerer, but a monster."
"If I don't get rid of him, my Ming Dynasty will be doomed sooner or later!"
At this point, Zhu Youjian simply stood up and started spinning around angrily.
"This is utter nonsense!"
"He doesn't know! If it weren't for Master Gao, our Great Ming Dynasty would really be doomed!"
"Luo Yangxing, come with me to find Master Gao. I want to get to the bottom of this and see what Shi Kefa actually did in history!"
"If he ends up surrendering to the Jurchens like you, then I will no longer care that his master is Zuo Guangdou, and I will have him executed!"
Upon hearing this, Luo Yangxing had no idea how to respond.
If we join the emperor in criticizing Shi Kefa, we'll inevitably be drawn into his future dark history.
But if he didn't respond, the young emperor would definitely become suspicious, and he was also dissatisfied with Gao Qingyun.
So he quickly changed the subject and handed over what he was holding.
"Your Majesty, this was written by those remnants of the Donglin Party."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Youjian's anger subsided considerably.
He glanced at the manuscript after receiving it and nodded in satisfaction.
"Although the people of Donglin are parasites on the country, their literary talent is indeed extraordinary."
"Very well, I just happened to have these things with me. I'll take them to Master Gao for his appraisal."
With that, he grabbed the manuscript and dashed off towards Taiye Pond.
Luo Yangxing couldn't dissuade him, so he could only run after him.
Before long, the two arrived at their destination.
In just a few days, the area next to Taiye Pond had become a large construction site.
The foundation has been laid, and it seems that it won't be long before many pavilions and towers can be built.
Luo Yangxing didn't dare to look around. He obediently followed behind Zhu Youjian and went up to the island in the middle of the lake together.
"Xiao Zhu, and Lao Luo, you've come to see me again?"
Gao Qingyun greeted the two with a smile as she sat down in a chair.
Upon hearing this, Zhu Youjian temporarily suppressed his anger.
He honestly replied, "Hello, Master Gao."
Then he continued:
"Master Gao, the reason I came to see you this time is because I have something I want to ask you."
Do you know if there was a man named Shi Kefa in the late Ming Dynasty?
Gao Qingyun paused for a moment, then smiled and asked:
"Of course I know this person, why did you suddenly ask about this?"
Zhu Youjian gritted his teeth:
"Oh? There really was such a person in history?"
"Then tell me, did this person defect to the Jurchens?"
Gao Qingyun's expression was strange. Even though his eyes were covered with a black cloth, his expression could still be seen on the rest of his face.
"Little Zhu, where did you learn all this from?"
"Didn't I tell you to read less of those marketing accounts?"
"Although Shi Kefa was not good at fighting and seemed to have problems with his interpersonal skills, he did die for his country. You can't make up stories about him like that."
A moment later.
"Hmm... Ah?" Zhu Youjian was stunned. "He died for his country?"
Gao Qingyun nodded as a matter of course, and then recounted Shi Kefa's historical deeds.
However, he didn't explain it too clearly.
Although Gao Qingyun has been in Dahe Village for a long time and is blind, he is not stupid.
"Little Zhu cares so much about the Ming Dynasty, and he also shares the surname Zhu."
"Then he is most likely a descendant of the Ming Dynasty royal family."
Gao Qingyun knew that by the end of the Ming Dynasty, the number of members of the Ming imperial family was nearly one million.
Although many members of the royal family died in the years of war, a considerable number survived.
“Since Xiao Zhu has this identity, he can still keep his composure when I tell him about the end of the Ming Dynasty.”
“But if I tell him about the Southern Ming, he’ll be furious.”
The peculiarity of the Southern Ming history cannot be described simply as being adept at internal strife but inept at external conflicts.
Anyone with a normal mind would be furious after reading this.
Moreover, what about "Little Zhu," a "descendant of the Ming imperial family"?
So Gao Qingyun only gave a brief explanation.
"After the Jurchens captured the capital, they continued to wage war for years to conquer the remaining parts of the Ming Dynasty."
"When they reached the south, Shi Kefa was stationed in an isolated city. Although he held out for only a few days, the Jurchens breached the city."
"But when the city fell, he claimed that he would follow Emperor Chongzhen and did not surrender to the Jurchens. In the end, he was killed by the Jurchens and died a gruesome death."
Zhu Youjian was deeply moved upon hearing this, but also felt somewhat embarrassed.
He had originally intended to rebuke Shi Kefa, but he held back, feeling too embarrassed to say it again.
When Gao Qingyun saw that he didn't speak for a long time, she thought he was angry.
So he changed the subject and asked:
"By the way, Xiao Zhu, you came to see me because you wanted to ask me about Shi Kefa?"
Zhu Youjian coughed a few times, then decided it was time to stop scolding Shi Kefa.
He changed the subject, saying to Gao Qingyun:
"Master Gao, I recently came across a few articles and would like to ask you to take a look at them."
As he spoke, he gestured to Luo Yangxing to read the articles aloud.
To everyone's surprise, Gao Qingyun curled her lip after hearing this.
"Where did these old scholars come from?"
"What era are we living in? They're still writing this kind of nonsense!"
Gao Qingyun became increasingly angry as she spoke, and finally simply shook her head.
Zhu Youjian, however, was somewhat puzzled.
"Master Gao, these articles are all quite good, why do you look down on them so much?"
Gao Qingyun snorted coldly.
"Little Zhu, you're so ignorant. What kind of good stuff is this?"
In truth, he wanted to say that Zhu Youjian was like a wild boar that couldn't eat fine chaff.
However, out of consideration for Zhu Youjian's feelings, he changed to a more elegant way of saying it.
"This kind of thing is not presentable at all."
“I can easily name dozens of articles that are better than these.”
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