Top Scholar

Chapter 285 The New Generation of Mountain-Opening Monsters

After paying their respects to Confucius, the new scholars took out flowers from their sleeves again, pinned them to their square-shaped handkerchiefs, and attended a flower-pinning banquet specially held for them.

Although this banquet was not among the four official banquets held for the imperial examinations, it represented the pinnacle of glory for the vast majority of scholars in their lives.

During the Wenxi Banquet in the Song Dynasty, newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) would wear flowers in their hair and drink wine. From then on, wearing flowers in one's hair became associated with the imperial examinations.

Although the title of Xiucai (秀才) is far inferior to that of Jinshi (进士), it is still a legitimate academic achievement. Moreover, the difficulty of passing the Xiucai exam is the highest among all the imperial examinations.

Taking Luzhou as an example, nearly 10,000 people from the prefecture and its three counties apply every year, but only 50 people actually make it across the river. It's a true case of thousands of troops vying for a single-plank bridge!

Now, after ten years of hard study and countless battles, the fifty victors have finally managed to don the traditional robes. How can we not celebrate with a banquet and adornment for them?

The banquet was held in the academy's flower garden, surrounded by blooming flowers. Pomegranate blossoms and daylilies lined the path, and wisteria vines hung down like curtains from the flower trellis, brushing against the scholar's robe.

A banquet was set up in the corridor, covered with a pale white tablecloth, and freshly picked peonies and hydrangeas were placed in celadon vases. Whether the taste of each dish was up to debate, they were all exquisitely presented and carried auspicious meanings.

In this situation, the newly appointed scholars were already tipsy and oblivious to the passage of time, without even needing to drink.

The Grandmaster sat at the head of the table, raised his wine cup, and said loudly to the officials and newly appointed scholars: "This year's provincial examination has come to a successful conclusion. You have all worked hard these past few days. I would like to toast you all!"

Sitting to his left was Prefect Jia, and to his right was Su Lu. They quickly led the officials and students in raising their cups and saying, "Thank you, Grand Master!"

The grandmaster drank the wine in his cup in one gulp, but it felt like lava had entered his throat, and he almost died from the spiciness.

Fortunately, the Grandmaster was very proper in his etiquette, covering his face with his sleeve while drinking; otherwise, he would have definitely given everyone a dramatic performance.

It took him a while to recover. He wiped the snot from his nose, rolled down his sleeves, and angrily demanded, "Why didn't you use vegetarian wine?!"

“Grandmaster, you may not know this, but in our Luzhou, only children and women drink vegetarian wine. Since you’ve come all this way, you should at least try our local wine.” Prefect Jia said with a smile, “If Grandmaster doesn’t like it, we can change the wine.”

“No need…” How could Xiao Tixue not know that this was a small act of revenge by Prefect Jia?

He gave someone a hard time, so he can't complain that they'd retaliate with a toast to intimidate him.

And this wine is indeed a fine wine...

Xiao Tixue then raised his glass again to congratulate the fifty new talents on their selection of Qian Wanxuan, bringing glory to their families!

The saying "bringing glory to one's family" is no exaggeration—the door of a scholar's house is a head higher than that of an ordinary person's. This is because scholars wear tall, square-shaped caps, and for ease of entry and exit, the door naturally needs to be higher.

But this was only the surface reason. More importantly, allowing scholars to raise their gates symbolized that passing the imperial examinations brought honor to their families. Once they passed the provincial examinations and became successful, they could raise their gates even further, thus becoming part of the legendary wealthy and powerful clans!
The third cup was to encourage the students to avoid arrogance and impetuosity, continue to work hard, strive to complete their studies as soon as possible, and show their talents in the autumn examination!

After three cups of wine, the flower-adorned banquet officially began. Amidst the melodious music, the newly appointed scholars politely raised their cups to thank the Grand Master and bid farewell to their ancestral master.

Before the Grand Master, who held the fate of all scholars in his hands, everyone behaved with propriety, and no one dared to drink excessively…

The Grand Master had Su Lu sit next to him, showing his special regard for him. During the banquet, someone wanted to ask Su Lu to compose a poem as a memento, but the Grand Master stopped him, saying, "Poetry is a supplement to literature, not a scholar's primary task. Hongzhi is a model for students in Luzhou and even Sichuan. He should always set an example and not abandon the classics for empty words."

"Yes." Su Lu hurriedly replied respectfully, "This student will keep in mind the Grandmaster's teachings."

Okay, now I can legitimately stop writing poetry...

"Good, you must remember that 'the lofty are easily broken, and the pure are easily stained,' you must be prudent and self-respecting, and not be dissolute." The Grandmaster said many more words of care for him, which made Su Lu a little confused. Could it be that the saying 'the frugal do not take from others' was really not an insult to him?

Could it be that the Grandmaster simply can't tolerate any imperfections? But what Prefect Jia said yesterday clearly implied that the Grandmaster was intentionally making things difficult for him...

"Never mind," Su Lu thought to himself. "One should always be broad-minded, especially when dealing with superiors, otherwise life will be unbearable... This is what they mean by 'birds of a feather flock together,' which is exactly what my aunt thought."

Prefect Jia watched coldly, secretly cursing the shamelessness of the man surnamed Xiao for saying such shameless things in front of him.

But he couldn't say anything more; Su Lu didn't understand what he said yesterday, and there was nothing he could do about it. However, the two prodigies, Su and Yang, would eventually compete against each other. He refused to believe that Su Lu, with his pride, would actually submit to the Yang family…

In fact, Xiao Tixue didn't want to do this in front of him, but his schedule was full and he couldn't summon Su Lu, so he could only try to improve his favorability.

As for Jia Yidan, damn it, look at him however you want. I haven't done anything wrong anyway...

After expressing his concern, the Grand Master asked Su Lu, "Your essays on the Four Books in the provincial examination were certainly excellent, but I am more interested in your essays on the Five Classics. You actually reconstructed the meaning of the classics within the framework of the eight-legged essay, which was refreshing. How did you write them?"

"It was all thanks to the guidance of the old abbot and my mentors," Su Lu said modestly. "Who was your teacher?" Xiao Tixue asked.

“My master’s surname is Zhu, he is the third son, and his sobriquet is Gangshan.” Su Lu said, “Zhu Zihe is also his disciple.”

“Mr. Gangshan.” Xiao, the supervisor, was also a scholar of the Book of Rites and had naturally heard of Zhu Zhang’s great name. He couldn’t help but say with regret, “It’s a pity that I can’t find the time, otherwise I would definitely pay a visit to learn from him.”

Then he asked Su Lu, "Why don't you explain to Mr. Gangshan how your grammar was innovated?"

Upon hearing what the Master said, the five advisors immediately stood up and surrounded him, saying in unison, "We humbly request Master Sanyuan's guidance!"

Seeing this, the others also put down their wine glasses and looked at Su Lu, wanting to hear what insightful opinions he had.

"I dare not presume to offer my guidance; these are merely my personal opinions, offered for your reference only," Su Lu said modestly before speaking loudly:

"In short, my teacher combined traditional methods of annotating the classics with his own 'hypothetical-deductive method.' By establishing arguments, providing detailed explanations, and introducing academic debates, he made the eight-legged essay not only explain the meaning of the classics but also apply the writing to practical use, thus resolving real-world questions."

"What a wonderful phrase, 'literature for practical use'!" The Grand Master exclaimed, raising his cup in a toast. "Just for these four words, I deserve a hearty drink. People these days only see literature as a 'stepping stone to fame and fortune,' considering it utterly useless. Mr. Gangshan's words have given those ignorant people a resounding slap in the face!"

“Yes,” the white-bearded old man agreed wholeheartedly. “After reading the article by the Three Scholars, I realized that the problem with the eight-legged essay lies in the fact that we scholars have created our own prisons, learning without thinking about how to improve ourselves!”

"Indeed. Mr. Gangshan's innovation will surely bring great prosperity to literature throughout the world, and his merits are immeasurable!" the bespectacled man exclaimed.

At the corner table, Zhu Zigong asked Zhu Zihe in a low voice, "You guys are too tight-lipped. When did Third Uncle create this 'hypothesis-deduction method'?"

"I have no idea." Zhu Zihe was also confused: "I've attended every class, and I've never heard of these five words before."

"I'm not one to stir up trouble," Zhu Zigong said with a mischievous grin. "It's one thing for Third Uncle not to teach me, but you're his personal disciple, and he still won't teach you either, sigh..."

"What do you mean 'hey'? I'm still my brother's adopted son." Zhu Zihe said without the slightest jealousy, "My third uncle and brother must have their reasons for not teaching me."

"You're really filial," Zhu Zigong said with a smile.

~~
At this point, Su Lu emphasized again: "Actually, this is not my teacher's original creation. Rather, it is the result of his many years of meticulous study of ancient masterpieces, such as Jia Yi's 'On the Security of the State' and Dong Zhongshu's 'Three Strategies on Heaven and Man,' and his ten years of facing the wall in meditation. Only then did he realize the principle of 'using literature to convey the Way and using reason to benefit the world' based on the work of his predecessors!"

"What a wonderful phrase, 'using literature to convey the Way and using reason to save the world'!" The Grandmaster raised his cup again and exclaimed, "Let's drink another big cup!"

After downing seven or eight cups in a row, his eyes became a little glazed over, and his tongue became a little thick. He then instructed his attendants, "Take this academy's visiting card and invite Mr. Gangshan to the academy for a meeting!"

“How can such a noble hermit be humiliated by official rank?” He then waved his hand, changing his mind, “I will use my private letter to arrange a time with Mr. Gangshan, and I will pay him a visit…”

"It's definitely not going to happen today," the Grandmaster said with a憨态可掬 (憨态可掬 is a Chinese idiom meaning a simple, honest, and somewhat uncouth manner) smile. "I think I've had too much to drink, and it would be impolite to come again..."

"Quickly help the Grandmaster down to rest." Governor Jia originally only wanted to play a little prank on Xiao Tixue, but he didn't expect the guy to have such a low alcohol tolerance.

He didn't dare let Xiao Tixue make a fool of himself, otherwise the feud between the two sides would become much bigger.

Not long after the Grand Master left, Prefect Jia also led his entourage to leave.

Su Lu and the others escorted their grandfather to the entrance of the academy, and after turning back, they did not return to the hairpin banquet, but instead went back to the Minglun Hall.

Drinking in the academy is risky; everyone should finish their business first and go outside for the second round of drinks.

~~
Next up is the branch school, which is not just a serious matter, but a major one...

The three county school instructors, including the Water Academy Instructor and the Sea Instructor, were already waiting in the Minglun Hall.

Seeing that all the students had arrived, the head of the Water Academy said in a deep voice, "Enough of the small talk, let's begin the division of schools. According to the quota stipulated by the imperial court, this time the state school will admit twenty students, including two subsidized students, six additional students, and the rest are all supplementary students."

He paused for a moment, then continued, “Ten students were admitted to the county schools of Yangjiang, Hejiang, and Naxi, including one student receiving a stipend, three additional students, and the rest were supplementary students.”

As they spoke, Haihan and another instructor pasted four large sheets of paper on the wall, each listing the name of one of the four schools and the number of students they were expected to enroll.

"As you probably already know, students receiving stipends receive six dou of rice per month, plus four liang of silver annually. Students receiving additional stipends receive half that, and students not receiving any at all," the Water Studies Director continued.
"In addition, only those who are subsidized students are qualified to be selected as tribute students and study at the Imperial Academy... So the opportunity is still very precious. Those of you who have the opportunity to be subsidized students should not waste it."

After saying this, he instructed the scholars, "As is customary, let's choose in order of our ranking in the provincial examination. Su Hongzhi, you start."

(End of this chapter)