Top Scholar

Chapter 498 Assistant Instructor Su (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
When the appointed day arrived, Zhu Shou arrived with his crab-like gait.

As soon as he entered, he saw Su Lu with dark circles under his eyes and looking rather listless. He immediately whistled like a street thug: "Hey, what's wrong with Scholar Su? You look like your grandpa's panda."

"How dare you say that?" Su Lu threw a thick stack of proposals at him irritably. "If you hadn't set such a tight deadline, would I even have time to sleep?!"

"Oh dear, why are you so inflexible?" Zhu Shou said with a grin. "Why didn't you tell me you were short on time? I could have asked the Emperor for an extension. Did you really have to work yourself to this?"

"Huh? We can still bargain?" Su Lu said helplessly, "Why didn't you say so earlier? I thought that once the imperial decree was issued, there would be no room for bargaining."

"Hey, that's a good idea, keep it up!" Zhu Shou laughed even harder, put his arm around Su Lu's shoulder, and said in a flirtatious tone, "Don't worry, since you've been so dedicated, I'll definitely put in a good word for you with the Emperor, and you'll be sure to get your share of the benefits."

"Thanks." Su Lu rolled her eyes at him. People tend to be more irritable when they are sleep-deprived.

Zhu Shou didn't mind at all, and sat cross-legged on the table with a smile, flipping through the proposal drafted by Su Lu.

At first, he was nonchalant and nonchalant. But the more he looked, the wider his mouth opened, the more his eyes widened, staring at Su Lu in disbelief:

"Are you even human?"

"How can you talk like that?" Su Lu rubbed his temples and yawned widely.

“I mean you’re not human, you’re a god.” Zhu Shou was filled with admiration.

Such a complex preparation plan, from the daily class schedule and the selection of specific cases, to the selection of lecturers and topics for each class, and even the assessment rules and follow-up arrangements... thousands of items in total, were arranged so thoroughly and meticulously in just three days!
Simply incredible!

"How does your brain work? So many things, and you've sorted them out in just a few days? And arranged them so neatly, it's simply amazing!" he exclaimed, praising as he looked at the document.

"Is this the true skill of a six-time top scholar? You're worth an entire government office by yourself!"

"You want me to die from overwork? Then keep ordering me around like this." Su Lu leaned back in his chair and said with a wry smile:

"Do you think it's easy to start a class? Every aspect has to be carefully considered, repeatedly refined, and a complete contingency plan has to be prepared—this is the first Dragon and Tiger Class organized by the Emperor. If something goes wrong or becomes a laughing stock, do you know how many people are waiting to see the Emperor make a fool of himself?!"

"That's true!" Zhu Shou nodded and patted Su Lu on the shoulder, saying, "Thank you, brother, for thinking of the Emperor."

“You’re absolutely right!” he said in a deep voice. “Those old fogies think the Emperor is just fooling around and they’re just waiting to see him fail! But I’m determined to help the Emperor make this happen and give those people a good slap in the face! Let those who look down on us and are waiting to see us make a fool of ourselves go away and cool off!”

He finished speaking through gritted teeth, looking fierce.

"In that case, let's do this well and make sure it's handled properly," Su Lu said with satisfaction. The child has grown up; he knows how to save face now…

"Alright!" Zhu Shou tucked the plan into his pocket and said readily, "You can rest now, leave the rest to me!"

~~
After leaving the Su family courtyard, Zhu Shou lost his previous leisurely demeanor and carefully reviewed the plan drafted by Su Lu the whole way.

The more I looked, the more I realized there were so many intricacies involved—even the selection of lecturers alone revealed profound and subtle considerations. Su Lu had specifically arranged for two types of lecturers: ministers from the two capitals and local officials from Beizhili, Shandong, and Shanxi.

It was also specifically noted that officials in the capital would talk about court regulations and national policy formulation, while local officials would talk about grassroots affairs and the hardships of the people. The purpose of this approach, which combined the two perspectives, was to allow the newly appointed scholars to understand the advantages and disadvantages of government affairs from different angles and avoid being limited by a single viewpoint.

The officials who gave the lectures were also required to provide practical problems for the newly appointed scholars to practice. Afterward, the scholars had to write reports, and talent was selected based on these reports...

Zhu Shou was completely bewildered and kept scratching his head, saying, "How can I possibly do such a complicated job?"

"Of course I can do it. What in this world can stump me?" Zhang Yong said softly from the side, "But Master has more important things to attend to. How can he do everything personally?"

“Yes, yes, that’s exactly right.” Zhu Shou nodded hurriedly and said with a smile, “The one who tied the knot must untie it. Let Scholar Su do such a meticulous job himself.”

"Isn't Su Zhuangyuan also a student in the Dragon Tiger Class?" Zhang Yong reminded him.

"He's already been granted an official position, so he doesn't need to attend classes anymore." Zhu Shou waved his hand, smoothly contradicting himself, "Have you forgotten? Once the top three scholars are granted official positions, they no longer need to sit in the library to study?"

"Oh dear, this old servant was confused," Zhang Yong quickly admitted. "Scholar Su really shouldn't be attending the Dragon Tiger Class anymore. Wouldn't it be more appropriate to leave these matters to him?"

"However, we still need to find a mature and prudent minister to oversee things." Zhu Shou stroked his bald chin and said, "Those in the cabinet are definitely not suitable. The Emperor established the Dragon and Tiger Class to cultivate his own team. How can we let them interfere?"

"Young master is brilliant," Zhang Yong quickly praised.

He then looked at Zhang Yong: "Why don't you come? Let Su Lu be your assistant, and you can represent the Emperor to preside over the meeting..." Before he could finish speaking, he changed his mind, "It's not appropriate for you to come forward. Civil officials and eunuchs don't get along, and you might not be able to control the situation."

"Yes, this old servant cannot cause trouble for His Majesty." Actually, Zhang Yongzhen wanted to say, 'I can handle it.' But he knew very well that the Emperor wanted to cultivate his faction among the civil officials, so he couldn't let the eunuchs interfere, otherwise, the cultivation would definitely fail...

"Forget it, let the Duke of England come instead." Zhu Shou had no choice but to send out the Ming Dynasty's top nobleman and the designated mascot of three emperors!
"Great idea!" Zhang Yong exclaimed. "That's a good arrangement!"

Once the idea was made, Zhu Shou immediately approved it—appointing the Duke of Yingguo as the head instructor of the Dragon and Tiger Class and Su Lu as the assistant instructor, with the two forming an educational affairs team to assist the Emperor in running the 'Dragon and Tiger Class' well.

"What about the second and third place winners?" Zhang Yong asked softly, "Should they also be appointed as teaching assistants?"

"What do they know? Teaching assistants? They should just listen to the lectures!" Zhu Shou waved his hand and said, "The reason we made the top scholar the teaching assistant is because his name is Su Lu! Even if the top scholar's name is no longer Su Lu, he should still listen to the lectures."

"Understood," Zhang Yong replied.

~~
Zhu Shou still had some pride, so he didn't have the nerve to go back and tell Su Lu directly. Instead, he told Zhang Yong to deliver the decree later.

That evening, Su Lu had just woken up from a long nap and was about to eat something and go back to sleep when he heard Zhang Yong shouting from outside the door, "Scholar Su, quickly open the middle gate, there is an imperial edict!"

Little Fish quickly opened the middle door, and the whole family deftly set up the incense table...

"The Emperor decrees that Su Lu, a compiler of the Hanlin Academy, shall serve as an assistant instructor in the Dragon and Tiger Class, and shall cooperate with Duke Zhang Mao of England in handling matters related to education. There shall be no mistakes. This is the imperial decree."

After Zhang Yong finished reading, he handed the yellow silk to Su Lu and said with a smile, "Congratulations, top scholar! You have been entrusted with an important task by the emperor so soon after passing the imperial examination."

Su Lu accepted the imperial decree with both hands, and asked in confusion, "Uncle, didn't His Majesty previously appoint me as a student? How come I've suddenly become a teaching assistant?"

"That's how it is," Zhang Yong explained with a smile. "Didn't Young Master Zhu promise to ask the Emperor for a reward for you? This is the Emperor's reward for you. From now on, you'll be half a teacher to all of you newly appointed scholars. This is an immense favor!"

He leaned closer to Su Lu and whispered, "Nephew, you may not know this, but the Duke of Yingguo is getting old and his energy is waning. So the Emperor's intention is very clear: he is just a figurehead. In the end, you will still have to handle all the big and small matters of the Dragon Tiger Troupe."

Su Lu quickly waved his hand and said, "This is a matter of great importance, and I, a newcomer to officialdom, am not capable of handling it!"

"Hey, the Emperor has already decided on you, the top scholar can't refuse." Zhang Yong said sternly, "Didn't you say that once the imperial decree is issued, there's no room for bargaining?"

"Sigh, well then," Su Lu sighed helplessly, "I've shot myself in the foot."

“You mustn’t smash anyone’s foot,” Zhang Yong laughed. “This is your first time on an imperial mission, so you must do it well!”

“Everything else is fine, but it’s definitely not appropriate for someone like me, a sixth-rank scholar, to handle something like hiring a lecturer.” Su Lu frowned and said, “Even if I use the Emperor’s name, it will still seem too frivolous.”

"If it's really difficult, just leave it to the Duke of England," Zhang Yong said with a smile.

"That's alright." Su Lu breathed a sigh of relief and said solemnly, "Now that we have received the imperial decree, we can only do our best to fulfill it."

After finishing their business, Zhang Yong chatted with him about family matters for a few moments, then asked softly, "Nephew, tell your uncle the truth, you're not planning to uproot the eunuchs by plotting against the Dragon Tiger Troupe, are you?"

After saying that, he laughed self-deprecatingly, "Look at my foolish words, we have no roots to begin with."

“Uncle, what you’re saying is true. Your roots are in the Emperor,” Su Lu said gently.

"Uncle likes to hear that." Zhang Yong smiled indulgently, then poked Su Lu with his finger and said, "But you little monkey, don't try to fool me."

Su Lu then solemnly replied, "Uncle, rest assured, if I had even the slightest such intention, His Majesty would be the first to not tolerate me. What His Majesty desires is a balance in the court, not any single party becoming too powerful!"

"I understand." Zhang Yong nodded and said softly, "Actually, that's what I was thinking too. Everyone should eat from their own pots, and no one should undermine anyone else's. If one family has too much power, the Emperor won't be able to sleep at night."

“Indeed.” Su Lu smiled and said, “I completely agree. In the past, it was the civil officials who were too arrogant, and now it’s the eunuchs’ turn. In short, neither is right. Everyone should check and balance each other and serve the emperor together. This is the way to last.”

"Hehe, you little rascal, you're really different from other civil officials. No wonder the Emperor likes you so much." Zhang Yong patted Su Lu's shoulder happily. "Alright, your uncle supports you! Let's go find the Duke of Yingguo to deliver the imperial decree!"

I've actually finished writing this again! I'm so dedicated! *blushing* Please vote for me!

Publish first, then revise.

(End of this chapter)