Top Scholar

Chapter 354 The Twin Jewels of Shu

Seeing that the two were about to start arguing as soon as they met, Xiao Tixue had a headache and quickly coughed and said, "I plan to bid farewell to the Grand Chancellor and the Provincial Governor today. You can come with me, and I can introduce you to them."

"Yes, sir," the two replied in unison.

Actually, Yang Shen hadn't planned to come. He knew the Censor and the Provincial Governor very well, but as soon as he heard that Su Lu was going, he came without hesitation.

The main reason is that I don't want Su Hongzhi to have all the credit, and I want to see if there's a chance to kick him while he's down...

Xiao Tixue changed into a scarlet official robe, sat in a sedan chair carried by four men, and led the two men to the governor's office on the same street.

The governor is the highest-ranking official in Sichuan Province, so Xiao, the provincial education commissioner, naturally had to send a formal invitation beforehand to pay his respects.

He had already made the appointment yesterday, and the Grand Chancellor specially set aside time to meet with Xiao, the Provincial Education Commissioner, and his entourage.

Liu Ying, the governor of Sichuan, was already 66 years old. In the thirteenth year of the Hongzhi reign, he was promoted to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, governor of Sichuan, supervisor of grain storage, and concurrently in charge of military affairs in Songpan.

He had served as the governor of Sichuan for eight years, using both kindness and severity to deal with the local chieftains, employing a combination of suppression and appeasement, which kept the Han and Yi peoples in Sichuan at peace.

Therefore, Su Lu still held this old Grand Censor in high esteem. After bowing respectfully, Grand Censor Liu smiled and said, "I have long heard of Su Hongzhi of Luzhou, who is considered a worthy rival to Yang Yongxiu of Xindu. Today, you two, the twin gems of Sichuan, have finally come together. Excellent! Seeing you two gives me hope!"

Both men felt that the title of "Twin Jewels of Shu" was too shameful, but they could only obediently accept it in front of the old Grand Councilor.

"From now on, you two must get closer and work together to achieve great things and bring glory to Sichuan!" Liu Zhongcheng said, pulling their hands together tightly.

"Yes, sir." The two responded, and Su Lu suddenly felt a strong force on his hand. It turned out that Yang Shen had taken the opportunity to squeeze him tightly.

Before Su Lu could even retaliate, Yang Shen abruptly stopped, wiping his hands behind his back...

'Who is this?' Su Lu was about to get angry, but then remembered that she had taken something from him, so she calmed down again.

Liu Zhongcheng seemed to be old and blind, and did not see Yang Shen's little tricks. He laughed to himself, "Yongxiu, you don't need to worry too much. Your father Jian is on the Emperor's mind. The Emperor will recall him whenever he remembers him."

"Oh." Yang Shen, having gotten a taste of Su Lu's talent, laughed heartily, "Actually, my dad is doing quite well in Nanjing, which saves my grandpa from worrying about him all the time."

He sighed and said, "Now, whenever he hears the sound of horses' hooves outside the door, he trembles, fearing that someone is coming to tell him that my father has been imprisoned..."

"Alas..." Liu Zhongcheng sighed, "These days, officials are truly living in misery, their lives hanging by a thread."

As he spoke, he instructed Xiao Tixue, "Brother Ling Han, you must take good care of yourself when you return to the capital to take up your post."

"Yes, I will be careful." Although Xiao Tixue had already made up his mind to confront Liu Jin, there was no need for the whole world to know, so he nodded and said, "Old Grand Censor, please take good care of yourself as well. In this world, it is a blessing for the people of Shu to have the Grand Censor in charge."

“Brother, you flatter me. I’m just taking advantage of my seniority. The chieftain and the eunuchs are giving me some face.” Liu Zhongcheng waved his hand and sighed softly. “However, to be honest, I’m about to follow in your footsteps.”

"No way?!" Xiao Tixue exclaimed in surprise, "The Vice Minister still has a year and a half left in his term."

"I just received a decree from the court that, as part of Eunuch Liu's reforms, the governors of the empire will be abolished, and the system of three separate administrations in each province will be restored." Liu Zhongcheng then said with a wry smile, "Later, after the Grand Secretary's earnest persuasion, only eleven governors were abolished, including this province."

"Huh?!" Su Lu and Yang Shen, forgetting their rivalry, were both so shocked they couldn't close their mouths.

"Isn't this ridiculous?!" Xiao Tixue exclaimed in astonishment, slamming his hand on the table. "Why does the imperial court have permanent governors? Isn't it because the three departments are not subordinate to each other, hinder each other, shirk responsibility, and fail to cooperate when problems arise?"

“Yes, but now Eunuch Liu is using the banner of restoring ancestral systems to abolish all the official positions established by civil officials and the reforms implemented over the years.” Liu Zhongcheng sighed, “The abolition of the governorship is just one part of it.”

"If Liu Jin really wants to restore the ancestral system, he must first abolish the Directorate of Ceremonial!" Yang Shen said indignantly. "Do they think they can act with impunity just by hiding the big iron sign that says 'Eunuchs must not interfere in politics'?"

"It seems they can act with impunity right now," Liu Zhongcheng said with a wry smile. "I have received an imperial decree ordering me to return to the capital within two months to await further instructions."

“Your Excellency, if you leave, Sichuan will be in complete chaos!” Su Lu said with deep concern. “The garrison officials and the local chieftains are all restless. Without the governor in charge of the three departments, they could turn Sichuan upside down!”

“Yes,” Xiao Chong agreed wholeheartedly. “The reason the garrison eunuchs are still relatively well-behaved is entirely due to the Grand Censor’s deterrence. Once you leave, they’ll become the mountain kings of Sichuan. Won’t they wreak havoc on the land?”

“I’m worried too, but what can we do?” Liu Zhongcheng said dejectedly, “Because of the opposition to the abolition of the governorship, more than a dozen court officials have been imprisoned.”

He smiled at Su Lu and Yang Shen and said, "But this is not bad news for you, because the court has been so troubled that it is short of officials. The number of successful candidates in next year's imperial examination will definitely increase."

Unlike the fixed number for the provincial examination, the number of candidates for the metropolitan examination depended on the number of officials the court had. If there was a shortage of candidates, more would be selected; if the court was full, fewer would be selected. Sometimes the number could reach over four hundred, and sometimes only over two hundred—a difference of more than double. "For us, the number of candidates makes no difference," Yang Shen said arrogantly. "Even my virtuous brother Hongzhi, no matter how poorly he performs, wouldn't fall into the top three."

Su Lu couldn't help but twitch his lips: "Thank you for your kind words."

"Hahaha, I underestimated the two gems of Shu." Liu Zhongcheng laughed loudly. "Although I am about to leave my post, I can still lend you two a hand. This time when I go to the capital, I will definitely do my best to promote you and make your names known in the capital!"

"Thank you very much, Your Excellency!" Su Lu was overjoyed upon hearing this and hurriedly expressed his gratitude.

Actually, Liu Zhongcheng wanted to create a reputation for him; Yang Shen was already a red-hot crab in the capital!

However, Yang Shen wouldn't refuse. Otherwise, if Liu Zhongcheng only promoted Su Lu in the capital, wouldn't that imply that Yang Yongxiu's performance in Sichuan was inferior to Su Hongzhi's?
~~
After bidding farewell at the governor's office, Xiao Tixue led the two men to the Fanshu Street in the north of the city.

As for the provincial judicial office, since Yang Bin fled and the new provincial judicial commissioner has not yet taken office, there is no need to go there.

Inside the Provincial Administration Office, Governor Du happily greeted the three officials, including Supervisor Xiao, at the second gate.

He was naturally delighted; with the governor gone, he would be the top official in Sichuan. Although the second and third in command might not necessarily listen to him…

After exchanging greetings, Xiao, the provincial education commissioner, introduced Su Lu to Du, the provincial governor.

"Haha, so you must be Su Hongzhi! I've heard so much about you, it's great to finally meet you in person!" Governor Du stepped forward warmly and patted Su Lu on the shoulder.
“Hongzhi, your phonetic symbols are truly amazing. It’s a pity that fate has played a trick on us and we haven’t been able to promote them nationwide. But fortunately, our province has already fully implemented them. Given time, once the results are in, other provinces will naturally follow suit… but we can’t rush that.”

After everyone was seated in the back hall, Governor Du said to Su Lu, "We were thinking of presenting the 'Letter on the Difficulty of Color' to the court to move the Emperor, but who knew that His Highness the Prince of Shu would borrow it and never return it? Who can we complain to?"

"Your Highness the Prince of Shu and the Queen Mother have bestowed upon us many gifts, for which I am deeply grateful..." "He who eats another's food is bound to do his bidding," Su Lu quickly added softly, trying to smooth things over for the Prince of Shu.

"I've heard that the Prince's mansion is sending you the best food and drinks every day. It seems they're planning to pocket it." Governor Du sighed and smiled at Su Lu, "It seems that Heaven has destined you to win real fame and fortune through your writing!"

"I will certainly do my best," Su Lu said, bowing slightly.

Governor Du gave the two men some more gentle encouragement, wishing them great success in the provincial examination. He then bid farewell to Xiao, the provincial examiner, and served them tea.

The three hurriedly got up to take their leave, and Governor Du personally saw them off. On the way, he pulled Su Lu aside and whispered:
"After you finish the provincial examination, go back and persuade your teacher to stop lecturing..."

"Yes," Su Lu replied, then asked softly, "How should a student tell their teacher?"

"Let's just tell you the truth," Governor Du said softly. "Originally, thanks to my teacher's mediation, Eunuch Liu had already let your teacher off the hook. But even after being exiled to Longchang Post Station, your teacher still wouldn't stay still. He's opening an academy and taking on disciples. I heard that even a Grandmaster has become his disciple, and he's even invited him to give lectures in Guizhou City. What is he trying to do?"

“Giving lectures,” Su Lu whispered.

"Of course I know it's a lecture," Du Fantai said helplessly. "But in Liu Jin's eyes, your teacher is definitely making irresponsible remarks about the court and slandering the government."

"How could he be so sure that my teacher was scolding him?" Su Lu was speechless.

"Given what Liu Jin did, could your teacher not scold him?" Du Fantai asked rhetorically.

"No." Su Lu shook his head.

“Liu Jin also knows it’s impossible.” Governor Du sighed. “After hearing the report from the Guizhou Imperial Guards, Liu Jin has already made things difficult for my teacher several times. You can imagine how deep his resentment towards Mr. Yangming is.”

He then said earnestly, "Liu Jin is now acting recklessly, punishing whomever he wants. Tell your teacher not to run into his trap again."

"Yes, on behalf of the teacher, I thank you, Your Excellency." Su Lu hurriedly thanked him.

“Of course, I can’t be of much help to him in Guizhou…” Du Fantai smiled, noticing the distance between himself and Yang Shen had already grown. He then whispered to Su Lu:
"You absolutely must pass the imperial examination and become a top scholar! It will be the best protection for you."

"The student...will do his best." Su Lu nodded emphatically. Du Fantai's words sent chills down his spine, and he clearly sensed an impending crisis!
"I'll also try my best to help you build momentum. Consider it repaying a favor on behalf of my junior brother Jia." Governor Du patted his shoulder heavily and said.
"But whether you can defeat Yang Yongxiu depends on yourself."

"Understood," Su Lu replied softly.

P.S.: I'll revise this later. The provincial examination is tomorrow, so please vote with my monthly tickets!

(End of this chapter)