Top Scholar

Chapter 176 How could this be?
"Deng Dengying, you think you can compete with your skinny frame?" The person who spoke rudely was none other than Li Zongsheng, the fourth young master of the Li family, who had provoked Su Lu yesterday.

"And us too!" The students from Zhengyizhai also rushed out and surrounded Li Zongsheng and his group, glaring angrily!

"We'll beat you up together then, I don't believe the school will expel us all!"

Of course, Li Si Shao couldn't afford to lose face, so he glared at him and said, "Come on, if you've got the guts, make your move now!"

His classmate quickly pulled him back: "Don't miscalculate. They have nothing to lose, and we'll be the ones who suffer after the fight."

"Hmph! Don't let me run into you outside!" Li Zongsheng immediately seized the opportunity, then glanced at Su Lu and Zhu Zihe, who had come out to watch the commotion.

He pointed at Su Lu, wanting to utter another harsh word, but remembering the scene from last night, he knew he couldn't mess with this kid. He could only sneer, then, surrounded by his followers, he stormed off in a huff.

Following the direction Li Zongsheng pointed, the Zhengyizhai members discovered that Su Lu was standing there, and they couldn't help but say in unison, "This guy is really tasteless! He was the one who started the fight yesterday, and he didn't admit defeat in the end, just letting it slide! And today he's putting on airs again!"

"Su, be careful of him." A classmate kindly reminded Su Lu, "This guy relies on his family background and won't suffer any loss."

"Thank you, I will be careful," Su Lu said gratefully with a smile.

"He'll get used to it after he suffers a few more losses!" Zhu Zihe said coldly, "Who dares to lay a finger on my sworn brother? Have they asked the Zhu family for permission?"

“Student Zhu is right. Yesterday, the second and third masters of the Zhu family made a public statement. No matter how arrogant Li Zongsheng is, he won’t dare to touch Student Su!” Deng Dengying nodded in agreement.

"That's good..." Just as the classmates were about to leave for their meal, they heard Zhu Zihe say coldly:
"You guys are really useless. How come you can't even learn from this kind of scum?"

"You!" Zheng Yizhai and the others were furious, but Zhu Zihe was telling the truth, leaving them with no way to refute him...

"Please don't take it to heart, everyone. Zihe has never been good at speaking, but he has a good heart." Su Lu quickly pulled Zhu Zihe, who had started the mockery, behind him and said to everyone with a smile, "He just wanted to express his sense of shared hatred against the enemy, not that he looked down on you all."

"Sigh, it's normal to look down on them. We really tried our best, but we just can't catch up with them, which means we're just not good enough..." The students' expressions softened slightly, but their morale plummeted. Like teacher, like student.

"..." Su Lu was speechless for a moment. This was the first time he had encountered a group that combined unity with defeatism.

"Alright, that's enough, let's go eat." Deng Dengying called to Su Lu and the other two, "Come on, I'll take you to the dining hall."

"Thank you, Headmaster." Su Lu shook his head and smiled, "However, we have to go out to class this afternoon, so we won't eat at school."

"Okay, then we'll be going now..." Deng Dengying then left with his classmates.

Su Lu and Zhu Zihe walked out with their schoolbags on their backs. They only attended classes at the academy in the mornings; the afternoons were for the students in the middle study to study the classics, but the problem was that there was no teacher in the academy to teach the *Book of Rites*…

There are few students studying the Book of Rites, and naturally even fewer teachers. Those qualified to teach at Heshan Academy are even fewer. Heshan Academy has always adhered to the principle of "few but excellent," never aiming for quantity or comprehensiveness, and has not offered a course on the Book of Rites for several years.

Therefore, the academy allowed them to leave the school every afternoon to study with Zhu Zhang. This was not a privilege; as long as students could find their own tutors, they could apply to attend classes for only half a day.

~~
That afternoon, Su and Lu went to Zhujiashan to teach, while the students went to the scripture halls they had chosen to continue their lessons.

The teachers who had no classes gathered at Heshan Hall to begin grading papers.

Because students are grouped according to their past grades, the answer sheets are anonymous to avoid bias from the examiners.

The gentlemen wouldn't know whose papers they received, which would certainly make the results more objective.

But this reduces a lot of the fun. You can't pick out the papers of the top students to see for yourself; you can't compare a student's progress over time; and you don't even know who to criticize.

However, it also adds a bit of fun, as you can guess the identities of the top few.

They usually like to guess the top three, and sometimes they even add a little prize...

After an afternoon of grading papers, the scholars ranked the papers, guessed the top three, placed their bets, and presented them to Headmaster Zhou for review.

Zhou Shanzhang's real name was Zhou Qin, courtesy name Xingzhi, and sobriquet Qingheng. He passed the provincial examination at the age of thirty, but failed the imperial examination repeatedly. He did not have the perseverance of Zhu Liu. After failing the examination for the fourth time, he completely gave up the idea of ​​entering the examination hall again and devoted himself to teaching. He was known for his rigorous scholarship.

Headmaster Pang is quite old, and he manages everything at the academy, inside and out. The old headmaster is happy to be a hands-off manager and delegates full authority to him; the division of students into fast and slow classes within the same grade is one of his ideas.

Therefore, although both were deputy deans, his prestige among the teachers far surpassed that of Deputy Dean Qian of Taiping Academy... oh, now it's Acting Dean Qian.

"How is it? Has your progress declined significantly after the New Year?" Headmaster Zhou asked in a deep voice.

"Reporting to Headmaster," Mr. Ji, who presented the exam papers, said, "the overall level has remained quite good, and some students have even made remarkable progress, showing they didn't slack off during the New Year." "Make remarkable progress?" Headmaster Zhou found it hard to believe. In his experience, fourteen or fifteen-year-olds are usually very playful, and assigning a lot of homework is useless. It's good enough if their studies don't decline, how could they possibly make remarkable progress?
“Indeed.” Mr. Ji pointed to the top paper and said, “This should be Baiyunshan’s paper. He has finally put his intelligence to good use, changing his previous arrogance and impetuosity, and writing an article that is insightful and penetrating, making readers feel as if Mencius is alive!”

"Is the evaluation really that high?" Headmaster Zhou became interested, glanced at it, and said, "The characters don't look quite right."

"Perhaps he changed his font during the holiday; exceptionally intelligent people do everything quickly," Mr. Ji guessed.

"It doesn't seem like it." Headmaster Zhou shook his head and said, "You can tell from this handwriting that this person is down-to-earth and meticulous. Does this have anything to do with that Third Young Master Bai?"

"That's Lei Jun? His academic attitude is the most solid." Mr. Ji said with an embarrassed smile, "I thought it was the one who came in second."

"Old Ji, stop arguing. Why don't you ask the headmaster to unveil it and see?" the teachers urged.

"Alright, alright, I won't say anymore," Mr. Ji surrendered. "Please, Headmaster, reveal the answer."

"..." Headmaster Zhou did not respond. He was deeply engrossed in the article in his hands and unconsciously read it aloud with intonation:
"When a ruler bestows something that is not ordained by Heaven, it is called disrupting the natural order; when a subject receives something that is not his due, it is called violating the established order!"

"This insightful and powerful statement truly reflects the spirit of a sage!" the scholars exclaimed. "Indeed, only Baiyun Mountain possesses such a grand vision..."

Then Headmaster Zhou continued reading:

"The distinction between ruler and subject must be clearly defined above, and the authority of the ruler and his ministers must be carefully guarded below! Kuai, a mere feudal lord, disrupted the royal order, while a lowly official coveted the imperial power. The downfall of Yan was not due to Qi, but to the transgression of the proper roles between ruler and subject!"

"Heaven establishes the ruler to govern, and Earth establishes ministers to assist in governance; the ruler, receiving the mandate of Heaven, should not bestow it arbitrarily, and the minister, upholding his duty, should not accept it arbitrarily. If the bestowal and acceptance are contrary to the mandate, the order of things will collapse, and this will be the beginning of disaster!"

"Truly, one should look at a scholar with new eyes after three days' absence!" After reading the title, Zhou Shanzhang exclaimed, "I read their articles for a whole year last year, and I didn't see a single one of this quality!"

"Yes, this essay is a model of the eight-legged essay! It guides the whole piece, with its contrasting elements and interconnected structure! The opening lines are perfectly balanced, like metal striking stone, and the writing flows like a river! This is exactly the kind of 'excellent work' that the old master hopes to see his disciples write!" Mr. Ji praised, nodding his head.

"This article should finally meet the old abbot's approval, shouldn't it?" the gentlemen asked.

"It seems feasible at the moment, but it still needs to be written in the eight-legged essay style well." Headmaster Zhou nodded and said, "I hope it can maintain this level of quality in the future..."

As he spoke, he continued reciting in a strong and clear voice:
"The distinction between bestowal and acceptance is as strict as the distinction between cap and shoes: a ruler who bestows the throne not in accordance with the principles of the Tang and Yu dynasties, but as a commoner who disrupts the established order! A subject who receives the throne not in accordance with the principles of Ji and Qi, but as a treacherous official who oversteps his bounds! In the past, wise rulers passed the throne with the support of Heaven and the people, and thus the dynasty lasted endlessly! But the way Kuai bestows and receives the throne today is improper, leading to war in an instant..."

He recited the eight-legged essay in one breath until the very end, feeling as if thunder had struck his ears and the sound of metal and stone had never ceased!

"Excellent! Excellent! This truly speaks on behalf of the sages! We have finally succeeded in nurturing talent!" Headmaster Zhou exclaimed excitedly, slamming his hand on the table.
"The old headmaster is right. Teaching and nurturing students is indeed a slow process. As long as you water it diligently, the sapling will eventually grow into a towering tree!"

"It's just that this tree grows so fast that it shot up to the sky before we even noticed," Mr. Ji said with a smile.

"Quickly see who it is! We're all so worried!" the gentlemen urged.

"Good!" Headmaster Zhou happily removed the mask and said, "Whether it's Baiyun Mountain or Lei Jun, they're both outstanding talents we've trained!"

When the mask was removed, they were dumbfounded. The person was neither Bai Yunshan nor Lei Jun, but a completely unfamiliar name named Su Lu.

"Who is Su Lu?" The old gentlemen were clearly not as well-informed as the young people and did not know about the young man who had shone so brightly last night.

“Never heard of him. I don’t remember anyone with the surname Su in the entire academy…” the teachers shook their heads. They had spent a year with these students and generally remembered them.

"..." But then Headmaster Zhou seemed to remember something, silently put down the exam paper, and said in a deep voice, "Let's not talk about that for now, let's continue with the name analysis."

After saying that, he removed the second-place name from the list. Damn it, it was still Baiyunshan and Lei Jun, and yet it was still an unfamiliar name—Zhu Zihe!

"Zhu Zihe? This must be a younger member of the Zhu family. I remember there was a man named Zhu Zigong in the upper study."

“I also taught a student named Zhu Zixian before,” the teachers chimed in. “But I don’t remember a Zhu Zihe.”

Just then, a gentleman brought over the roster from the middle study, flipped through it, and said, "These two people are definitely not here!"

"Could this be a prank by Young Master Bai?" Mr. You asked, still unwilling to give up.

"No..." Mr. Ji had already torn off the anonymous names from the next few papers: Baiyunshan was third, Lei Jun was fourth...

"How could this be..." Everyone saw that Zhou Shanzhang's face had become quite unpleasant.

P.S. So, without a deadline, it just has to be this late. Firstly, I'll be too relaxed, and secondly, I'll unconsciously scrutinize every word, spending 40 minutes proofreading each chapter… I can't stay up that late. Sorry~~~
(End of this chapter)