Top Scholar

Chapter 349 The Prince's Literary Gathering
As Su Lu and his companions passed through the neighborhood, they saw sparse bamboo fences on both sides of the road, with orchids exuding fragrance, which greatly diluted the solemnity and grandeur of the royal palace.

As you walk deeper into the water, a breathtaking view suddenly opens up before you. A bay of water is as smooth as a mirror, with weeping willows gently brushing the surface, lotus flowers standing tall and elegant, and Taihu stones forming exquisite peaks along the bank. A winding stone bridge lies across the water.

Several torchbearers stood on the bridge, and after reading the invitations, they guided the guests across the bridge.

At the east end of the bridge, the spacious Mingli Hall stands by the water, its yellow and green glazed tiles reflecting the shimmering waves. Today's literary gathering will be held here.

There was still some time before the event started, and the scholars present were enjoying the beautiful scenery and chatting in the lakeside corridor outside the Mingli Hall.

Su Lu and the others stood under the corridor for a while, and were about to go in and sit down when they heard Xia Bangmo call out, "Senior Brother!"

"Oh, Brother Shunyu, you've come too?" Su Lu turned around with delight and asked, "Where are Weixin and the others?"

"Everyone's here." Xia Bangmo said excitedly, "Come, let me introduce you to another Little Three Scholars!"

Su Lu's brow twitched. What was bound to happen would happen eventually, so he smiled and said, "Okay."

As he approached, Xia Bangmo pointed to a well-dressed, tall, handsome young man with fair skin, red lips, and bright eyes beside him and said with a smile, "Senior Brother, this is the famous Yang Yongxiu, the leader of our Lizhe Society."

"I've heard so much about you," Su Lu said, clasping his hands in greeting.

Then, Xia Bangmo introduced the young master, "Brother Yongxiu, this is Su Hongzhi, whom you often mention..."

"..." Yang Shenfei glared at Xia Bangmo, thinking to himself, "You're the one who keeps talking about him. Your whole family keeps talking about him."

But he smiled broadly and said, "Likewise."

This was the first time the two had met, but the difference was that Su Lu had never seen him before, while he had seen Su Lu before...

Although Su Lu had never met him, he lived in his shadow. The name "Little Yang Shen of Luzhou" was still mentioned from time to time.

Needless to say, Yang Shen felt even more for him, so the atmosphere suddenly became awkward...

Yang Dun secretly broke out in a cold sweat, truly afraid that his elder brother would start a fight with Su Hongzhi after just a few words.

Fortunately, Su Lu's emotional intelligence was higher than his IQ, and he skillfully played the game of tai chi with Yang Shen, preventing him from getting angry.

"When did my virtuous brother Hongzhi arrive in the provincial capital?" Yang Shen emphasized the words "virtuous brother."

"It's been some time," Su Lu said with a smile. "I've been traveling with Brother Shunyu and Brother Weixin. Didn't they tell Brother Yongxiu?"

“I told you…” Yang Shen’s lips twitched and he laughed, “But I didn’t see you at all that day, and I thought you were hiding from me.”

"How could that be?" Su Lu thought to himself, "You guessed right, I was just avoiding you," but smiled and said, "Brother Xiu's name is renowned, and I have always looked up to you as a role model."

'They're more like they're trying to poach my men...' Yang Shen muttered to himself, then smiled and asked, 'That's great. My dear brother, are you interested in joining our Lizhe Society?'

Yang Dun and six or seven other scholars around Yang Shen all looked at Su Lu, waiting for his answer.

"I am truly honored by Brother Yongxiu's high regard." Su Lu smiled and said, "It's just unfortunate that my fellow townsmen have already organized a Yangjiang Society, and as its leader, I cannot join them."

"Joining the Lizhe Society and becoming the head of the Yangjiang Society don't conflict," Yang Shen advised with a smile. "In fact, this way, the Yangjiang Society will be considered an external organization of the Lizhe Society, which will greatly benefit your fellow villagers."

"Isn't that inappropriate?" Su Lu shook his head with a smile. "My fellow villagers are all just as good as anyone else, how can I be made to look inferior to them for no reason?"

Then, turning the tables on Yang Shen, she said, "However, I think no one would object to us joining the Lizhe Society. I just don't know if Chairman Yang can accept all of us members?"

"How many of you are there?" Yang Shen asked.

“There are thirty-five people at the moment,” Su Lu said with a smile.

"There are only seven of us!" Yang Shen said speechlessly.

“That makes forty-two people in total,” Su Lu said seriously.

"Pfft..." Yang Dun and the others almost couldn't hold back.

Fortunately, at that moment, a servant at the entrance of the hall announced in a drawn-out voice, "The literary gathering is about to begin. Please come in and take your seats, gentlemen."

"We can discuss the matter of joining the association after the provincial examination," Yang Shen said, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon. He quickly parted ways with this nemesis in his life.

"That's what I think too. Focus on the exam first." Su Lu nodded and followed him into the Mingli Hall.

~~
The morning sunlight filtered through the thick paper windows, casting a soft and rich glow into the Mingli Hall. The wisps of sandalwood incense rose gently from the bronze incense burner, further calming the mind.

Beneath the nanmu plaque inscribed with "Dunxing Zhiyuan" (meaning "Practice Makes Perfection and Achieve Far-Reaching Goals"), three tiers of high seats were set up, covered with plain-colored thick silk mats with yellow edges, clearly the main seat of the King of Shu. Below that, a row of light green rush mats was arranged, presumably the seats for the gentlemen.

The students below the hall were all dressed in brocade robes and square scarves, sitting upright on blue mats. In front of each mat was a low table with writing implements on it.

Everyone sat upright, even their breathing slowed, awaiting His Highness and his teachers' arrival. The proper sitting posture involved kneeling with both knees on the ground, buttocks resting on the heels, and the back ramrod straight. Su Lu could sit perfectly upright, but after a while, his legs ached and his feet went numb; he could barely maintain the posture.

Seeing him put on the mask of pain, Yang Shen, who happened to be sitting next to him, was delighted and said in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz, "Not used to it?"

"Yes." Su Lu nodded slightly. "We usually sit cross-legged."

"Just hang in there for a little while," Yang Shen comforted him.

"You've gotten used to it?" Su Lu asked.

"No, you just lose all feeling when you sit for too long." Yang Shen almost burst out laughing.

"..." Su Lu was speechless. This person's sense of humor was so strange.

“You need to practice…you’ll be sitting like this during the palace examination.” Yang Shen finally stopped laughing and reminded him in a ‘friendly’ manner.

The two were whispering to each other when they heard the eunuch announce loudly, "His Highness the Prince of Shu has arrived..."

The students quickly bowed and said in unison, "We respectfully welcome Your Highness!"

"Ahem." After taking his seat in the main seat, the King of Shu coughed twice and said gently, "Everyone, please rise."

The students straightened up and looked straight ahead. They saw that Prince Zhu Binhan of Shu was dressed in a dark blue prince's robe, with a jade belt around his waist and a four-clawed dragon, looking majestic. However, he had a gentle and refined demeanor and was not arrogant in the slightest.

Moreover, he was so thin that his cheekbones were prominent, and he coughed frequently, making him look even more frail.

Before the steps, the gentlemen were already seated, and His Highness the Prince of Shu delivered his opening remarks:
"You talented scholars of Sichuan should know that our past kings of Shu have always valued education and encouraged reading. With the provincial examinations just around the corner, I, Your Majesty, am not very talented, cough cough... I will also hold a literary gathering in accordance with tradition. Firstly, to encourage the students, and secondly, to invite the great scholars of Sichuan to enlighten the students on the classics, guide their essays, and cough cough... answer their questions and lend them a helping hand."

"We thank Your Highness for your great kindness." The students hurriedly bowed in gratitude.

Then the King of Shu introduced the four gentlemen present, all of whom were well-known Confucian scholars in Shu, former Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) and two of whom were Hanlin scholars.

Only the King of Shu could persuade four elders to come and teach these scholars who were taking the imperial examinations.

The elders each spoke for half an hour.

The first was Mr. Mu Shan, a Hanlin scholar who was once ranked fifth in the second class. His knowledge of the classics was hailed as "the best in Sichuan". Six of his disciples have become Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations).

He taught his students that the most important thing in taking the exams was to "understand the essence and apply it," to integrate theory with practice, and to avoid simply piling up sentences and talking about meaning.

The second person is Mr. Fan Weng, a former Hanlin Academy reader. He has a profound understanding of policy essays and has served as the chief examiner of the provincial examinations and the examiner of the metropolitan examinations several times. He is most aware of the examiners' preferences in grading papers.

He taught his students that the key to policy essays was to address the current problems, not to talk about ancient systems indiscriminately, and that each point should be based on a plan and evidence.

The other two gentlemen were younger and spoke more directly. One explained the current trends in writing style. He told the scholars that the downfall of the literary leader had not changed the trend of reviving classical styles; on the contrary, it would make the examiners more accepting of this style.

"But we must be careful to avoid the writing style advocated by Kang Youwei, which emphasizes that 'literature must follow the style of Sima Qian,'" he added quietly.

These words left the scholars looking at each other in bewilderment, wondering what taboo Kang Zhuangyuan, who was ranked alongside Li Mengyang as one of the "Seven Talents," had violated in his writing style this time.

Yang Shen, however, was well aware of the situation and said softly to Su Lu, "I heard that Kang, the top scholar, has sided with Liu Jin, which is naturally despised by the literati."

He couldn't help but sigh, "A top scholar should be a model of integrity and self-discipline for all scholars. How could he serve a thief?"

Su Lu asked in a low voice, "Why did Scholar Kang choose to side with Liu Jin?"

"I heard..." Yang Shen was incredibly gossipy, and upon hearing this, he said with feigned seriousness, "It was to save Alliance Leader Li."

The leader of the alliance was Li Mengyang, the seventh-ranked "greatest traitor" on the list of treacherous officials, and the chief writer of that impeachment memorial. Liu Jin certainly couldn't let him off the hook. After demoting and dismissing him from his post, he fabricated charges against him and had him imprisoned in the imperial prison in preparation for execution.

However, not long after, news of Li Mengyang's release was published in the official gazette...

Su Lu assumed that Li Dongyang had saved Li Mengyang again, but he didn't expect there to be another hidden story.
"I heard... that Alliance Leader Li passed a note to Scholar Kang from prison, which read 'Save me, Duishan.' 'Duishan' is Scholar Kang's pen name, and Alliance Leader Li is his fellow townsman and senior, as well as one of the Seven Masters. Scholar Kang naturally felt obligated to help." Yang Shen sighed softly.

"In fact, both Kang, the top scholar, and Liu Jin were from Xi'an. Eunuch Liu had always wanted to recruit this fellow townsman, the top scholar. Although he had always refused to submit to the powerful and treacherous officials, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and visit Liu Jin for the sake of his friend."

"Liu Jin was overjoyed to hear that Scholar Kang had come to request an audience and treated Kang Hai as an honored guest. Scholar Kang defended Leader Li before Liu Jin on many occasions. Liu Jin, eager to win over Scholar Kang, released Leader Li soon after, out of consideration for him." Yang Shen finished speaking and sighed again.
"Between reputation and loyalty, Kang Zhuangyuan chose the latter, and the result is that he is now despised by the literati."

"Sigh." Su Lu couldn't help but sigh. What a pitiful and respectable top scholar.

“But now that you know all this, why can’t Shih-lin understand him?” he asked.

"Because it's just a rumor, and the people involved are keeping silent, no one can prove it," Yang Shen said.

"Moreover, even if it can be proven true, it won't work—the top scholar is the spiritual sustenance of all scholars, and the requirements for their moral character are extremely stringent. No matter the reason, associating with Liu Jin is unforgivable!"

(End of this chapter)