Volume 4: Gathering of Sages Chapter 556: The Test That Changed
It was clearly a big test for Hong, but Zhang Shou suddenly gave a long speech. However, he was just in high spirits, and talked about everything from technical experience to rise and . After he finished talking to his heart's content, he realized that he had stolen Hong's spotlight, and immediately apologized with a self-congratulatory smile.
He apologized so casually that Princess Yongping was neither annoyed nor angry.
As for being glad that Zhang Shou was causing trouble... that was probably a little bit of the truth, because there would always be comparisons between talented women. She was proud of her noble status, her father was the supreme ruler of the world, and her mother was tough and strong, so she thought it was too outrageous that her father would actually consider letting Hong take charge of part of the enlightenment courses for the third prince just because he was drugged by Chu Kuan.
Why did she know that it was Chu Kuan who recommended Hong? It was Liu Feng, the manager of the Palace of Heavenly Purity, who heard the emperor say it in the Palace of Heavenly Purity and then reported it to her. In her opinion, if her father really needed a woman to teach the third prince some simple things, then she would definitely be able to do it, so why would she need Hong?
However, Hong was very calm in accepting Zhang Shou's apology. She bowed and said sincerely, "Dr. Zhang's words are like a revelation to me. I am like those literati you mentioned. Whenever we talk about the change of dynasties, apart from the rise and fall, we only pay attention to the official system, territory, and how the local areas are governed... In the final analysis, they are all matters of the upper class, but we never think about the most basic farmers and workers."
When the Third Prince heard Madam Hong's answer, he also nodded and said, "It's not just Madam Hong. In the past, my father found a few people to give me lectures, and they all talked about the old-fashioned things like wise rulers, virtuous ministers, and clear politics. They never talked about it from a perspective like yours! That's why my fourth brother and I told my father that the history lectures you give at Banshan Hall are much more interesting than those people's!"
"I can't stand being praised. Besides, only when the ruler is wise and the ministers are virtuous, and the country is peaceful, the people have the leisure time to think about these trivial things. In troubled times, the people are busy avoiding war, so how can they have the time to think about farming and working?"
Zhang Shou smiled and shook his head. "Besides, compared to those historians, my tricks are just small tricks that are not worthy of being in a high-class place. If I had said what I just said to you when I was giving a lecture at the Imperial College, maybe a small number of people would have found it useful like you, but I'm afraid more people would have pointed at me and called me ridiculous."
"Scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans are the four classes of people in the world. In the eyes of most people, only scholars can guide the world, and farmers and artisans just need to do their jobs. As for unscrupulous merchants, they must be suppressed to prevent them from corrupting the atmosphere. And the fact is indeed so, because those who know how to improve the tools of farmers and artisans are mostly scholars who are concerned about the people, and occasionally some well-educated and knowledgeable craftsmen."
"But in a sense, it is the continuously improved farming level and the continuously increased per-acre yield that are constantly pushing society forward. The popularity of cotton crops has enabled the people to have enough food and clothing. Therefore, only when they have enough food and clothing can they know honor and disgrace. Otherwise, if the per-acre yield is always low, if there is no cotton, how much more effort will farmers have to put in to get enough food and clothing?"
"If the people cannot get enough food and clothing, no matter how many literati and poets leave poems and songs, no matter how many people sing praises of peace, how can it be considered a truly peaceful and prosperous era?"
At this point, Zhang Shou couldn't help but sigh in his heart. It was during his era that the true peace and prosperity that countless wise rulers and loyal ministers had failed to achieve fundamentally over the past thousands of years was finally achieved.
Princess Yongping finally couldn't listen any longer. Although she disdained poetry and songs, and even the Yuehua Tower Literary Gathering was the stepping stone for the imperial examination for scholars - the eight-part essay, but it was impossible for a talented woman like her to admit that the development of agriculture and industry was the foundation of the world's progress, just like Hong, who fawned on the Third Prince and Zhang Shou.
Looking at Zhu Ying, whose complexion was pretty and whose eyes only had Zhang Shou in them, she couldn't help but feel that this mortal enemy was so bewildered by Zhang Shou that he completely ignored his unorthodoxy.
But her father obviously liked Zhang Shou's unorthodoxy, and now he had made up his mind to let Zhang Shou continue to teach the third prince. She was not capable of dissuading him from doing so, so she immediately changed the subject and said, "By the way, Madam Hong, what books have you read since you were a child? Who have you taught? Do you have any experience?"
When asked about her specialty, Hong laughed. She said calmly, "In my father's eyes, I was a talented woman who had read books on women's virtues such as Women's Commandments since I was a child, and could also write poems and essays. My mother taught me Mengxi Bitan and Xinyixiang Fayao since I was a child. Of course, Mengxi Bitan was better, but Xinyixiang Fayao was fragmented and incomplete..."
Zhang Shou saw that Hong had finally started to show off her talent in front of the Third Prince. Having already stolen the spotlight once before, he naturally would not try to steal the limelight again. Even so, when he smiled and stepped aside, Zhu Ying still followed him and joked, "It turns out that Ah Shou can also steal the limelight in such an unkind way!"
Zhang Shou could only laugh dryly at what Zhu Ying said: "It was just a momentary emotion, I couldn't help it. I just can't stand the fact that people nowadays value literature over logic and ignore the main point for the sake of trivial matters."
"If you tell this to anyone else, those corrupt scholars will chase you for three hundred miles with swords in hand!" Zhu Ying deliberately exaggerated her words. Seeing Zhang Shou looking at her with a smile, she snorted and said, "I am the only one who believes your nonsense. Didn't you see that girl Yongping? She was fine at first, but later she was almost black-faced because of what you said!"
"Are you the only one who believes in what I say?" Zhang Shou calmly held Zhu Ying's hand and said calmly, "Why do I feel that the emperor also believes in what I say?"
"Who made the emperor a student of Grandpa Ge? Besides, the Empress Dowager said that he has been a maverick and a heretic since he was a child. I don't know how much she has been worried!" Zhu Ying sold the emperor without thinking, but then said solemnly, "A Shou, you must teach the third prince well. Raising two rebellious sons will make the emperor very sad. He can't stand more blows."
Zhang Shou was not surprised by such a request, because he had long felt that the emperor treated Zhu Ying as if she were his own daughter, and Zhu Ying also admired the emperor. As for him, it seemed that the emperor also treated him as his own son-in-law.
Therefore, he said very straightforwardly: "A teacher is someone who imparts knowledge and resolves doubts. Not to mention that the Third Prince is a good student, even if he is a bad student, I will do everything I can to turn him around if he falls into my hands. Don't worry, both the Third Prince and the Fourth Prince are very lovable children, and I will naturally be a good teacher with all my heart."
When he thought about teaching a future emperor, he naturally felt a sense of mission. Of course, it was a foolish delusion to pin all hopes on the monarchy, but since there was a chance, it wouldn't be bad to try.
At the very least, the current emperor was a person with great character flaws in the eyes of his ministers, but in his eyes, he was a person with advanced vision and magnanimity. Moreover, the emperor was still in his prime, and his muscles and bones, which were tempered by riding horses and practicing martial arts all day, would last at least another 10 to 20 years, and by that time, the third prince should have matured.
Zhu Ying was naturally delighted when she heard Zhang Shou's promise. She ignored the verbal battle between Princess Yongping and Hong and quietly pointed at the Third Prince and said, "Today, the Emperor intends to have the Ministry of Rites draft a ceremony to confer titles on the Third Prince's mother and concubine as Imperial Concubines. Concubine Yu will also be promoted together. The Third Prince doesn't know about this, but Yongping is sure to know."
The news that the emperor had made it clear that he would not appoint a queen had become a known secret due to the emperor's own promotion. Therefore, Zhang Shou did not find it strange at first when he heard that the emperor would not appoint a queen and would only appoint a concubine. But then he suddenly realized something.
"Weren't there any imperial concubines in the palace before?"
"No. The Queen was not happy." Zhu Ying shrugged and said calmly, "The Emperor originally had only one Queen and three concubines. After the Prince of Lu's Incident, the Emperor was the only one left in this generation. The Queen Mother saw that there would only be the First and Second Princes in the next generation, so she repeatedly persuaded the Emperor to take in three more concubines. Two of them were the mothers of the Third and Fourth Princes, and the other gave birth to the Fourth Princess, Qingyang."
"So, in the past, half of the six palaces in the east and west were empty."
Judging from the number of concubines in the harem, the emperor is indeed not lustful... Zhang Shou had just thought of this, but then he heard Zhu Ying lower her voice again: "But Concubine Yu seems to be pregnant again."
Zhang Shou was stunned. Concubine Yu and Jiu Niang were close friends. They got pregnant at the same time and encountered danger together. In the end, they escaped together with his mother, Widow Zhang. And at this age...if he calculated correctly, she should be at least thirty-five or thirty-six, right? In later generations, this is considered late childbearing. In today's age, this childbearing age is even older.
He couldn't help but glance at Princess Yongping, whose face had regained its composure, and then glared at Zhu Ying and said, "Yingying, you should be more careful in the future. Don't bring up palace matters like this in a place like this."
"The news must have been announced today, so I told you. I've known about it for days." Zhu Ying looked like she was keeping it a secret. Seeing Zhang Shou not knowing whether to laugh or cry, she smiled and said, "I knew about this with Yongping. When the imperial physician came to check on Ping's pulse, I also went to feel Concubine Yu's belly. Speaking of which..."
"I also hope that mother can give me a younger brother! That way, after I get married, grandma and mother will have someone to accompany them!"
Zhang Shou was choked and coughed repeatedly. What do you think of having a child? It's not like raising a cat or a dog for company! In this era where giving birth is like passing through the gates of hell, giving birth is risky, and giving birth at an older age is even more risky!
Fortunately, Zhu Ying did not continue this very explosive topic. She then gossiped about Princess Yongping's marriage with great interest, and even revealed to Zhang Shou the small list compiled by Concubine Yu.
Zhang Shou, who had met Concubine Yu only twice, found it hard to believe that the emperor's favorite concubine, whose face was often filled with sorrow, would be so worried about her daughter's marriage. When Zhu Ying turned the topic to Zhang Chen, he scratched his chin in distress.
Come to think of it, the only thing he owes now is the promise to Qin Duke Zhang Chuan, of which there has been no news yet... Zhang Chen is really in trouble!
"Young Master, Young Miss!"
Zhang Shou, who was worried, heard the shouts from downstairs and came back to his senses. He quickly came to the window on the third floor and looked down. He saw Xiao Huasheng, who was being stopped by the soldiers of the Ruiqi Battalion who were guarding downstairs. Before he could say anything, Zhu Ying rushed forward and shouted, "This is the follower of Ah Shou's family. Why are you stopping him? Let him up!"
Seeing that the two soldiers let them go without hesitation after hearing what Zhu Ying said, Zhang Shou made a gesture to Zhu Ying to stay first and hurried downstairs. When he reached the second floor, he bumped into Xiao Huasheng who rushed up in two steps.
"Master, Sixth Brother came back suddenly and took Master Song away. Master Fang was shocked and chased after him alone. No one in the family knew what was going on, so I asked Madam Wu to take charge at home and tell everyone not to panic and come to find you first." Xiao Huasheng saw that Zhang Shou was also confused, and he panicked because he thought that finding Zhang Shou was his backbone.
"You don't know what's going on with Sixth Brother?"
Of course I know… Of course I know, that’s weird! He was asked to invite Yang Zhan, the Yang Qilang mentioned by Hong, but why did he go back home and take away Song Qiba? They are totally unrelated, okay?
The more Zhang Shou thought about it, the more he felt that this was simply ridiculous. However, seeing that Peanut looked so pitiful, he could only cough and say, "Although Ah Liu is a bit straightforward, he always knows how to act in moderation. He always has his reasons."
Although he himself did not understand what Ah Liu was thinking, his calm attitude at this time naturally calmed the uneasy Peanut. However, since he put this matter aside for the time being, he looked upstairs and then whispered: "Sir, the last time the emperor came to our house , I didn't recognize him. I was really too short-sighted."
Seeing Zhang Shou smiling and clearly not caring at all, he suddenly became anxious: "I spoke too quickly and said something like the emperor looked kind. Later, the emperor told me not to worry about the eldest prince harming people again. I'm not afraid of anything else, I'm just afraid..."
As Xiao Huasheng spoke, his face was already sad. This was the biggest worry that had weighed on his mind for the past two days, causing him to toss and turn. What he was most worried about was that the emperor already knew that he was the one who disguised himself as a man and tricked the eldest prince! It didn't matter to him, but if Xian Yunhe and Zhang Shou were implicated, he would really want to die.
"Don't be afraid. The Emperor said earlier that he wanted to see your uncle..."
Before Zhang Shou finished speaking, he saw Xiao Huasheng's face suddenly change. He knew that Xiao Huasheng was like a frightened bird, so he simply pressed his shoulder. But before he could continue to comfort Xiao Huasheng, there was another commotion downstairs. When he quickly walked to the second floor window and looked out, he saw a carriage stopped in front of the building, and the driver was Ah Liu.
Then, Mr. Song jumped out of the car door, and Ah Liu, who was slowly leaving the car door, reached into the car and carried someone down. The man had something familiar but unfamiliar on his nose, and he was as thin as a bamboo pole, as if a gust of wind could blow him away.
