Gao Qingyun was slightly taken aback.
"What? There are other children in your village who aren't in school?"
"Why didn't you tell me sooner!"
Zhu Youjian quickly explained:
“Master Gao, that’s not what I meant.”
"What I meant to say was... well, in our village, there are some girls who have already received some education."
"I'd like to have them come over so they can learn from you again."
Gao Qingyun was relieved after hearing this.
He shook his head and said:
"If my eyesight were still good, what you're saying wouldn't bother me."
"But I have eye problems now, and I don't have that much energy to teach too many students."
That's considered a polite refusal.
Zhu Youjian hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said:
"Then why don't we stop teaching the male students for now, and you can just teach the female students?"
Zhu Youjian didn't say this on a whim.
Rather, he felt that Gao Qingyun had poor eyesight, and in order to conceal the news, Zhu Youjian did not send anyone to serve him.
That's why they planned to send someone to be Gao Qingyun's maid under the guise of a female student.
"Even if this delays the education of those who were originally treacherous, I will not hesitate."
"We can't just stand by and watch Master Gao suffer, can we?"
However, Gao Qingyun not only didn't appreciate Zhu Youjian's kindness, but was also somewhat angry.
"Xiao Zhu, what you're saying is outrageous."
"The first few years of a child's education are the most crucial."
"If you don't develop a study habit from the beginning, it will be difficult to educate them later."
"How can I ignore the boys just because I need to educate the other female students?"
"I did educate you, telling your Dahe Village not to be so sexist, but you can't turn around and favor girls over boys!"
Upon hearing these words, Zhu Youjian was immediately filled with respect.
"I already knew that Master Gao was remarkable, but after hearing these words, I admire him even more."
"To be impartial and unbiased in one's conduct—that is the mark of a sage!"
Zhu Youjian bowed deeply to the ground.
"Master Gao, Xiao Zhu was wrong, please punish him."
Upon hearing Zhu Youjian admit his mistake, Gao Qingyun did not make a big deal out of it.
"Alright, it's good that you know you were wrong. Be careful next time."
Zhu Youjian nodded earnestly.
"Please rest assured, Master Gao, I will not do it again."
The three little girls standing nearby were completely dumbfounded.
"This... I'm not seeing things, am I? Even the emperor has to bow to Gao Qingyun?"
"Just who exactly is Gao Qingyun?!"
"Oh no, a few days ago I secretly wrote on Gao Qingyun's face while he was sleeping."
"If he finds out, won't he punish me?"
The three girls began to whisper among themselves.
After bidding farewell to Gao Qingyun, Zhu Youjian was almost impatient to greet the civil officials in the court.
The leader was naturally Lai Zongdao, but those following him were almost all members of the Donglin Party.
These members of the Donglin Party launched a coordinated attack upon meeting Zhu Youjian.
"We were just thinking of requesting an audience with His Majesty, but we didn't expect you to summon us on your own initiative."
"Your Majesty, please issue an order immediately to have Wei Zhongxian imprisoned again!"
"That's right, these are the joint edicts we've collected. Please take a look, Your Majesty!"
As they spoke, they handed over a memorial to the emperor.
Zhu Youjian's face instantly darkened.
He thought to himself, "Master Gao was right after all. These Donglin Party members are all about infighting."
"Although Wei Zhongxian was not a good person, in a short period of time, they managed to collude with so many ministers to put forward a joint memorial."
"Are they clean?"
Zhu Youjian waved his hand in displeasure.
"I still have a great use for Wei Zhongxian, so you don't need to say anything more."
After saying this, he completely ignored the joint memorial.
Now we got down to business.
"I summoned you all here today to discuss the opening of the seas..."
This time, however, the Donglin Party's reaction was even more intense.
Almost before Zhu Youjian could finish speaking, they all rose up in opposition.
It seems that they hate the idea of opening up the sea even more than bringing down Wei Zhongxian.
"Your Majesty, the sea ban is an ancestral law that cannot be easily violated."
“That makes sense. During the Jiajing era, there was a Japanese pirate raid in the southeast. It was only through the ban on the sea that the Japanese pirates were finally eliminated.”
"What if reopening the seas now leads to a resurgence of Japanese pirates?"
Those members of the Donglin Party echoed each other's opposition to opening up the sea.
However, most of their reasons are blatant lies.
It was precisely because the imperial court banned the seas that the Japanese pirates emerged.
But they reversed cause and effect.
Zhu Youjian frowned deeply.
"So, you're against opening the seas?"
The Donglin Party members immediately knelt on the ground.
"Your Majesty, please consider this carefully; the sea must not be opened now under any circumstances!"
Zhu Youjian snorted coldly a few times.
"The more you say that, the more I want to open the seas!"
"Fine, if your Donglin Party refuses to help me, then I will send someone else!"
Before today, Zhu Youjian still thought that although the Donglin Party was incompetent, there must still be some capable people among them.
But after seeing what he just witnessed, he lost all hope.
"These Donglin Party members deserve to be killed without any injustice!"
"Once Wei Zhongxian has investigated your family's assets, that will be the end for you!"
Zhu Youjian quickly said in his mind.
After the court session, the Donglin Party members walked out of the palace dejectedly.
They gathered together involuntarily.
"This young emperor released Wei Zhongxian. Although we don't support him, we can at least somewhat understand his intentions."
"I heard that as soon as Wei Zhongxian was released from prison, he searched all over the country for beautiful women to send to the emperor."
"The young emperor simply thinks that Wei Zhongxian, that old dog, is very useful."
"But why did he lift the sea ban?"
"Could it be that Mr. Gao again, giving him this terrible idea?"
The Donglin Party members had naturally heard about Gao Qingyun's situation.
There's just no concrete evidence.
After some discussion among the Donglin Party members, no conclusion was reached.
However, someone whispered:
"Hehe, if the little emperor wants to open up the sea, then let him open it."
"I'm just worried that he'll go into the sea before the fishing season even starts."
Some people's expressions changed instantly.
"What...what do you mean by that?"
They also looked around, trying to see who had said it.
The so-called "going to sea" does not refer to the later meaning, but rather to making Zhu Youjian fall into the water.
After all, the story of our Ming emperors being easily soluble in water is almost universally known.
This was almost an explicit statement that someone wanted to kill Zhu Youjian.
But no matter how those people analyzed it, it's unclear who said it.
Or rather... all the Donglin Party members thought the same way.
If the emperor is obedient and willing to be a "wise and virtuous ruler," the Donglin Party will assist him.
If the emperor is disobedient, then replace him with someone who is obedient.
The deaths of the Zhengde Emperor and the Tianqi Emperor illustrate this point.
Some members of the Donglin Party couldn't help but feel a chill.
But then, a strange excitement followed.
"Very well, that little emperor certainly deserves to die."
"Let's go prepare..."
"By the way, with the young emperor's death, Emperor Guangzong's line will end, and the one who should succeed to the throne should be the Prince of Fu's heir."
"But what if Prince Fu himself wants to become emperor...?"
Although Zhu Youjian is still alive and well, these people are already making preparations for his death.
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