Volume 3: Dragon and Snake Movement Chapter 275 Investigation and Class Division
The return of Zhao Guogong Zhu Jing to the capital was a big event for all the people in the capital. The common people talked about how Zhao Guogong quickly arranged the marriage of his daughter Zhu Ying and the doctor of the Imperial College Zhang Shou as soon as he returned. As for the bigwigs, they didn't care much about such small details as their children's marriage.
After all, no matter how many rumors there were before, as long as Zhang Shou and Zhu Ying continued to go out together as a couple every day as if nothing had happened, no one thought that there would be any changes in this marriage between a talented man and a beautiful woman.
What they care about is that Zhu Jing went on a killing spree in Datong, and then killed again when he encountered an assassin on his way back. Now that he has arrived in the capital, will he take crazy revenge on those who attacked him before, and will he take action against some of the officials behind the scenes?
Of course, this use of a knife is just a metaphor. Everyone knows that there are few honest officials like Wang Datou in the world who can’t be found to have any evidence against him, or gentlemen. When political enemies really want to tear each other apart, they don’t have to worry about not having any evidence against them, because after decades of ups and downs in the political world, few people are spotless.
But if Zhu Jing really retaliated, it would be a huge melee with huge implications. After all, although the emperor had just accepted the resignation of the four censors on the 15th day of the first lunar month and sent a certain censor Chen to the three judicial departments for punishment, compared with the many slanders that the Zhaoguo Mansion had suffered, there were still many people who had made things worse and added insult to injury and remained intact.
Therefore, when Zhang Shou showed up at Banshan Hall on time early the next morning, he found that many people were quietly looking at him. During the class, no one dared to speak, especially when Zhang Shou casually started to talk about the previous day's linear equation to solve the word problem, many typical math scumbags didn't care about anything else and started to grab their hair, including Zhu Er.
After waiting for a long time for him to finish his lecture, before those students who were influenced by their elders, relatives or even others and wanted to get information could make a move, they found that they were a step too late. Because the third and fourth princes sitting in the first row moved quickly and occupied the seats on the left and right of Zhang Shou.
"Teacher, the emperor has agreed. My third brother and I will come to see you on the next day off!"
Zhang Shou saw that the Third Prince was hesitant to speak, and finally just nodded at him. He knew that the trip out of the capital that the two brothers had always dreamed of would finally become a reality. Although they could only travel to the outskirts of the capital, it was still a great breakthrough.
At that moment, he nodded with a smile and said, "Okay, you can just come directly to Zhang Garden later."
Seeing that the two brothers were a little confused, he said lightly: "I will probably move in the next few days. From now on, the Luwang Villa will be renamed Zhang Garden."
As soon as these words came out, several students who were trying to pry some information out of Zhu Er turned around in a hurry. Seeing that Zhang Shou looked normal, as if he was talking about something insignificant, they could not help but feel secretly awed.
You know, many people coveted that villa at the beginning, but they didn't dare to buy it because they were afraid of the emperor. Now the house belongs to Zhang Shou. Not only does Zhang Shou dare to live in it, he even dares to change its name! You must know that even the villas of the Duke of Zhao, the Duke of Chu, and the Duke of Qin, which are located in the suburbs of Beijing, dare not be named after their surnames, but only by their titles. Zhang Shou is simply arrogant and bold to the extreme!
Zhang Shou originally wanted to change the name of his new residence to Zhang Mansion. However, the layout of the former Luwang Courtyard was very different from that of an ordinary house. Instead, it was very similar to Zhao Garden, where he had stayed for a night outside the city. Therefore, after considering it, he told Wu that he should just change it to Zhang Garden because he was too lazy to come up with a name.
But when he caught a glimpse of the inexplicably surprised expressions of the other students, he felt that his actions seemed a little out of line... perhaps more than a little. However, the words had already been said, and he didn't want to take them back, so he simply pretended not to notice and continued to say to the Third and Fourth Princes: "When you come back to my house, remember to be fully prepared."
After all, we have to stay outside the city for two days! As for where to stay... we will decide after Zhu Ying asks the emperor.
Seeing that the Third and Fourth Princes seemed to have no idea that Zhang Yuan was wrong, they were overjoyed and chattered around Zhang Shou. Seeing that they could not get in, the others could only continue to surround Zhu Er. However, Zhu Er turned a deaf ear and wrote on the paper until someone impatiently snatched the pen away. He then sat up straight and slammed the table in displeasure.
"Although it's the break, the Imperial College has rules. You are not allowed to play around during breaks. Do you want to go to the Rope Penalty Hall to learn the rules?"
As soon as he said this, the students around him looked at each other in bewilderment. But in a flash, someone who was dissatisfied with Zhu Er, a second-generation rich man, sneered: "Zhu Tingjie, do you really think you are the head of the hall? Don't think that you can get carried away just because you are the son of a duke like Zhang Chen... You should know that he can inherit the title of Duke of Qin in the future, but you can't!"
"What's a mere title? Did my father inherit his title? He earned it himself! Just enjoying the legacy of his ancestors, what kind of ability is that!" Zhu Er said passionately, pointing his finger at everyone in front of him, with an attitude of being disappointed with him. "I know what you want to do. Don't you just want to find out whether my father plans to take revenge after he comes back?"
Zhang Shou was originally talking to the Third Prince and the Fourth Prince. He couldn't help but sneer when he saw that the people around Zhu Er had uglier faces than each other, as if they wanted to escape but were afraid that the others would explode further.
He could tell at a glance that he was the kind of person who was rather cunning in the past, and who only went to the Imperial College for formality, and whose rankings in the monthly and annual examinations were mostly relatively low, not even as good as the Third Prince and the Fourth Prince. He had informed the Emperor before the New Year that he planned to re-divide the classes in Banshan Hall, but it was delayed for various reasons.
The emperor had made up his mind, but he still lacked the necessary opportunity. Now it seemed that among so many dandies, some were indeed gradually changing their attitudes, while others felt comfortable in the quagmire. If two people with completely different attitudes continued to mix together, they would only be disgusted with each other. And he did not have so much free time to waste on those who were self-degrading and doing petty things.
Zhu Er saw that everyone was embarrassed by his scolding, and finally found the feeling of the acting head monk. He snorted with full dignity: "If you want to know my father's attitude, why bother to ask me? When those big shots instructed people to attack my father, weren't they very proud? Since they have done it, what are you afraid of?"
It was a rare opportunity for him to take advantage of the situation. He smiled and was about to continue to make use of the topic, but he heard a heavy cough. He looked up and saw Zhang Shou looking at him. Although the marriage certificate had been signed, he could not act like the second brother-in-law, so he could only shut up.
As expected, Zhang Shou's cough immediately attracted the people around Zhu Er. The student who had just compared Zhang Chen to an example shamelessly said, "Teacher, in fact, it's not that someone asked me to find out, but there is a foolish relative in my family who, in order to gain fame and integrity, actually followed those foolish censors to make trouble..."
"A friend of mine did this stupid thing and is regretting it now!"
"My cousin's husband..."
Hearing this messed up explanation, Zhang Shou was really angry and amused. He immediately tapped the podium lightly. After several people hurriedly shut up, he said slowly: "Duke Zhao is a tolerant and generous person who can tolerate everything in the world. Naturally, he has never been a person who would take revenge for a slight."
What a joke, my father is so narrow-minded, if you believe this, those guys who asked you will be fooled! Zhu Er sat down unconvinced, and then suddenly thought that Zhang Shou and his father had just met yesterday, how could he know any news, it was obviously nonsense. However, the next moment, he was shocked.
"However, even a prime minister with a broad mind can have things he cannot tolerate. So, if someone hopes that the Duke of Zhao can keep things quiet, then he should not be sneaky and insinuate things. He should at least try to gain the Duke of Zhao's forgiveness."
At this point, Zhang Shou paused, then said nonchalantly: "It is said that Minister Lu of the Ministry of War visited the Duke of Zhao's mansion last night." As for where he heard it from... hehe, the traitor was Lu Sanlang who betrayed his father. Obviously, Minister Lu Wan of the Ministry of War set a good example for others by being the first to come forward to seek reconciliation.
Even today, there may still be people who look down on Lu Sanlang, the head monk, but no one would look down on a top leader like Lu Wan, the Minister of War. Therefore, when they heard that Lu Wan was visiting the Zhu family in person, several people who were asking for information immediately took a deep breath.
Even though the break was almost over, several people hurriedly found all kinds of unreliable excuses to slip out, clearly to tip off the enemy. Zhu Er, who had just criticized Zhang Shou for guessing his father Zhu Jing's intentions, was immediately furious at this behavior.
"How can these guys be called imperial students! They are so young but instead of working hard to improve themselves, they are playing with these crooked ways!"
Seeing the confused looks of the Third and Fourth Princes, and seeing that some people in this huge Banshan Hall were indifferent, some were whispering, and some were full of contempt, Zhu Er said angrily: "If you ask me, these guys who are not focused on their studies should just go home and stop wasting time in Banshan Hall and try to curry favor with the big guys behind them!"
If it were Zhang Chen, he would at least have younger brothers like Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu following suit and cheering for him. However, Zhu Er's reputation was not very good, and his status in the family was not very good. He had been acting as the head of the temple for more than a month, but under the stimulation of his annoyed look, no one spoke out in response. Even the few people who had a good relationship with him before avoided his gaze.
Driving someone out of Banshan Hall would offend them... Didn't you see that Zhang Shou hasn't even said a word?
Zhu Er suddenly felt like he was stuck on the mountainside, unable to move up or down. However, just when he was feeling angry and anxious, he heard the bell ringing outside, and the second class had begun. At this time, Zhang Shou suddenly said, "Before the next class starts, there is one thing I want to tell you in advance. Around this month, the classes in Banshan Hall will be reorganized."
As soon as these words were spoken, the noisy Banshan Hall suddenly returned to silence, and countless eyes were focused on Zhang Shou.
Of course, some people couldn't help but steal a glance at Zhu Er, obviously wondering whether Zhang Shou's statement was directly related to what Zhu Er had just said in a rage.
However, Zhu Er tried his best to pretend that he was not surprised at all, but he was shocked. What? Class division? How come I have never heard of it? Why didn't you tell me, your second uncle, about your future brother-in-law in advance?
In this utter silence, Zhang Shou said slowly, "When Emperor Taizu established this Banshan Hall, it was because you were not suitable for the other six halls of the Imperial College, so he did not set up another hall. He never meant to let the students of Banshan Hall fend for themselves, but before I took over, to be honest, Banshan Hall was in name only, and was left to fend for itself."
"But now, almost half a year has passed in the blink of an eye. Some of you are unwilling to be looked down upon, so you are working hard to make . Not only do I see this ambition, but the emperor, who often reviews the test papers, also sees it. Therefore, I have long suggested to the emperor that you should re-select and divide the classes according to the progress, so that no talented people with lofty ambitions will be buried."
"The initial plan is to divide Banshan Hall into three more classes, with more than 30 students in each class, which is about right. As for the problem of insufficient teachers, the mathematics class will be taught by the outstanding Jiuzhang Hall students selected by me personally, and the history class will be taught by a suitable teacher appointed by the emperor, but I will also teach from time to time. As for physics, of course I will still teach it. Among them, the first class will use the third and fourth princes as benchmarks."
Seeing that most of the people below had darkened faces, Zhang Shou chuckled and said, "It's just the New Year. The Third Prince is eight years old, and the Fourth Prince is seven years old, but their performance in the previous monthly and annual exams is obvious to all. I don't think anyone would have the audacity to say that I gave them special lessons, because even if I wanted to, I wouldn't be able to do it. Therefore, to be in the first class, your performance must be higher than theirs."
If possible, some people would want to find a crack in the ground to crawl into. It's okay to be inferior to others, but it's really too embarrassing to be inferior to two seven or eight-year-old children!
Even Zhu Er was in a state of ups and downs. You know, he had worked very hard in the past few months, but he could not always surpass the Third and Fourth Princes - those two guys were very smart and had strong talents in mathematics and physics!
If he, as the acting head monk, is not among the first class, will he still have face?
However, before everyone could react, Zhang Shou continued, "The second class selects people with special talents. Just like Lu Sanlang, if he didn't have the Jiuzhang Hall, his special talent would have been wasted. Therefore, those who feel they have other talents and abilities can write a letter to describe themselves, and they will naturally be assessed one by one. When they enter the second class, they will also be taught according to their aptitude ."
Seeing that some people were happy, such as Zhu Er who considered himself a "good farmer", while some people were dejected, Zhang Shou said word by word: "As for the third class, the progress is a little slow, but I know that those who are making progress have never been absent and have never missed any lessons. They will continue to lay a solid foundation in this class and strive to enter the first class in the future. As for the rest... the emperor said that they should all go to the army for training!"
