Words Strategize for the World

The day after the magistrate of Shaogang County left, people continued to come to visit, and the same was true on the third day. Fortunately, fewer and fewer people came, otherwise Fang Wei wouldn't have had time to prepare to go to the prefectural school.

When Fang Wei left the county school, the prefectural magistrate told him that he needed to go to the prefectural school to study rhythmic movements in three days. Today is the third day, and he must leave Jushui Village for the prefectural school tomorrow.

As evening approached, Fang Wei began packing up his things, sorting through the gains of the past two days. After becoming a scholar, everyone who came to visit, regardless of the amount, would give Fang Wei some monetary gifts.

That's good, it directly relieves Fang Wei of his financial woes.

Fang Wei and his mother only discovered after sorting through all the money that there was over 1000 taels of silver. Fang's mother was overjoyed to see so much silver. However, thinking about how her son had now become a refined scholar and how much better their future life would be, she didn't care too much about the amount of silver.

"Mother, I'd like to keep a portion of this silver for the prefectural school, and distribute the rest to the villagers. What do you think?"

Hearing her son say this, Fang's mother was very pleased and said happily, "Xiao Wei, you've grown up. From now on, you'll be in charge of making decisions at home."

Fang Wei then divided the silver into three parts: one part was kept for the use of the prefectural school, one part was left for his mother's living expenses, and the remaining largest part was intended to be distributed to the villagers.

永平大陆用的钱币也是金银铜，兑换比例为：1两金子=100两银子=10000铜子。当然对于拥有大量金银的富裕阶层，可以到钱庄去兑换金票银票，金票银票分为100两500两1000两三种。

For poor families, the purchasing power of silver is still quite good. If a family of three saves money, two taels of silver can last them a month.

After the money was divided, Fang Wei's mother took him from house to house to deliver it. The villagers in this world were very simple and honest. When they tried to deliver the money, each household repeatedly declined, but they accepted it with great gratitude when they saw how determined Fang Wei and his mother were.

The villagers never expected that Fang Wei would share the money he received with them. When they pooled their money to reward the person who brought the good news, it was out of compassion that the villagers couldn't bear to see Fang Wei's family in such dire straits and give others cause for gossip.

After delivering the money, the whole village was overjoyed, which was exactly what Fang Wei wanted to see. He was about to leave for the prefectural school, and with the villagers taking care of his mother at home, he felt much more at ease.

After dinner, Fang Yue and Zhao Tong came to find Fang Wei.

"Xiao Wei, you're going to the academy tomorrow. I'm all alone anyway, so why don't I go with you?" Fang Yue said.

Fang Wei thought that he would need help from others when he went to the prefectural school, so he nodded in agreement.

Afterwards, Fang Wei looked at Zhao Tong and asked, "Tongzi, what about you?"

Unlike Fang Wei and Fang Yue, Zhao Tong's family is considered relatively wealthy in Jushui Village, so it's normal for him to be a little worried.

Zhao Tong thought for a moment before saying, "Xiao Wei, I'll stay home and help you take care of your mother."

Fang Wei didn't mince words, but said frankly, "In that case, Tongzi, please take care of it. I'll feel more at ease at the academy."

After Fang Yue and Zhao Tong left, Fang Wei thought for a while and felt that everything was almost settled. The house that Wang Erba burned down was already being rebuilt on the original site. For now, his mother would need to stay with relatives in the village temporarily, and she could move in once the house was completed.

The next morning, Fang Wei and Fang Yue set off for Zhongyuan Prefecture.

Zhongyuan Prefecture is located northeast of Jushui Village, more than 100 li away. One must take a carriage from Shaogang County to Ningping County, and then take another carriage from Ningping County to reach Zhongyuan Prefecture.

When the two packed their luggage and set off, the villagers spontaneously came to see them off, a treatment they had never received before.

After giving them various instructions, the two embarked on their journey to Zhongyuan Prefecture.

When they arrived at Shaogangyi and boarded the carriage, the driver insisted on letting Fang Wei and his companion ride for free. Unable to refuse, they had no choice but to accept.

After a bumpy ride, we finally arrived at Zhongyuanfu in the afternoon.

The Kingdom of Chi has been established for nearly a hundred years, and Zhongyuan Prefecture has become very prosperous after a long period of recuperation.

The entire Zhongyuanfu area was bustling with activity, the streets were teeming with pedestrians, and the shops were packed with customers—a truly thriving scene.

As the two walked down the street, looking at the bustling and lively scene, they couldn't help but feel a surge of joy.

Fang Wei was a time traveler. Although the bustling streets at this time could not compare with the street scenes of the past, it was already quite good for the ancient world.

The two inquired along the way and finally found the location of the prefectural school.

Fang Wei did not take out the jade pendant to go directly to Qu Yashi, but wanted to enter the academy as a scholar.

The Imperial Academy is a prestigious institution of learning on the Yongping Continent, equivalent to a university in the past.

In the Yongping Continent, a normal person goes through four learning stages from birth to adulthood: initial learning (village), enlightenment (town), wisdom development (county), and passing the imperial examination (prefecture, state). Each stage involves learning different things until adulthood.

Therefore, the prefectural school was a sacred place in everyone's eyes, and should not be desecrated.

Looking at the courtyard of the academy, Fang Wei could clearly feel the grandeur of the institution. The courtyard of the academy was much taller and wider than the other buildings. In addition to its height and width, the area in front of the academy was also very clean and tidy, without a single speck of clutter.

After observing for a while, Fang and Wei walked towards the gate, preparing to enter the academy.

"Hey, hey, hey, where did you come from, you little brat? Who let you in?"

Fang Wei had just stepped into the gate of the academy when he heard a voice, so he stopped in his tracks.

A short, middle-aged man ran out from beside the gate. He approached Fang Wei and began scrutinizing both Fang Wei and Fang Yue.

After sizing up Fang Wei and Fang Yue, the man sensed they were clearly not from a wealthy family, and said in a sarcastic tone, "Do you even know where this is? This is the Prefectural School, the Prefectural School! Do you think just anyone can walk in?"

The man's behavior clearly indicated he was a petty opportunist, but Fang Wei had no choice but to attend the prefectural school. So he said, "I am Fang Wei, a newly arrived scholar from Jushui Village. What's wrong with me entering this prefectural school?"

The man was somewhat surprised upon hearing this. He looked Fang Wei and Fang Yue up and down more closely and noticed that their clothes were ordinary and their shoes were covered in mud. He thought to himself, "These days, what scholar isn't from a wealthy family? These two must be imposters."

So the man said sourly, "Oh, you two call yourselves refined scholars? I think you're more like liars."

Fang Yue got angry as soon as she heard this and was about to scold the man when Fang Wei stopped her.

Fang Wei naturally knew the man was looking down on him, so he didn't say much. He simply took out the jade pendant that Qu Yashi had given him as a token of his respect and said, "Whether I am a scholar or not is not for you to comment on. Let me ask you, do you recognize this item?"

The man took the jade pendant and saw that there was a "qu" character in the middle. He immediately changed from looking down on people with disdain to being humble and said, "I was blind and ignorant. Please forgive me, sir."

Fang Wei was too lazy to argue with a gatekeeper, so he took the jade pendant and went inside, but unexpectedly he was stopped by the man again.

The man said, "I see that this is your first time visiting the academy, and you must be unfamiliar with the place. How about I lead the way and introduce it to you?"

Fang Wei thought that he was indeed not familiar with the prefectural school, and it would be good to have an acquaintance to guide him, so he nodded in agreement.

The man strode forward, introducing the school as he went: "The prefectural school was established 80 years ago, and hundreds of scholars have studied here..."

Although the man was mean and condescending, he had a deep understanding of the prefectural school. This allowed Fang and Wei to have a very clear understanding of the entire prefectural school.