White-robed Minister

The day before classes officially started, boarding students arrived at school one after another, and Xu Lai was finally able to eat in the cafeteria.

Then comes the meal service.

Hu Yuan's method of teaching in separate classrooms had been promoted by the imperial court for twenty years. However, due to insufficient educational resources, most state schools only adopted it superficially, and the practical subjects in the administrative classrooms were difficult to teach!

Take military strategy as an example. Who would you appoint as your teacher? Where would you get the teaching materials?

At most, they might teach you something like "The Art of War," but "The Complete Essentials of Military Strategy" isn't something you can just buy anytime.

Or take water conservancy projects, which even the teachers themselves only have a vague understanding of.

The true teaching method of Hu Yuan involves regularly taking students on study tours. These tours include exploring mountains and rivers, investigating various industries, and even deeply participating in certain projects.

Xu Lai received another bamboo plaque with the character "文" (wen) engraved on it.

Next, he will study in the "Wen Zhai" (Study Room).

"Do you usually attend classes here?" Xu Lai asked, gazing at the row of tiled houses in front of him.

Wen Zhonghe said, "The state school is different from the village school. This is a dormitory, used for self-study, practice, and discussion. I heard a teacher say that in truly wealthy state schools or academies, the dormitory and study room were combined."

"Integrated with the dormitory?" Xu Lai found it hard to imagine.

Wen Zhonghe explained: "Students in the same dormitory sleep, eat, study, discuss, and play together. Apart from attending classes, they don't need to leave the dormitory."

"Where are the classes held?" Xu Lai asked again.

Wen Zhonghe said, "At Minglun Hall, the teachers rarely talked about very detailed things in class. They only explained the essentials and guided students on how to learn on their own. Students could ask questions and even refute them."

Well, Xu Lai finally figured it out.

This is totally like a graduate student class. The professor doesn't talk much in class, but he will guide the learning direction; the rest is all up to your own efforts. As for the dormitory, it's like a large seminar group.

That's great! I don't have to let the teacher's pace of lecturing affect my learning progress!

Wen Zhonghe led Xu Lai forward: "The outer dormitory has four dormitories: Wen, Xing, Zhong, and Xin. The Wen dormitory is mostly for new students who have been studying for less than a year. But there are also a very small number of senior students who are not ambitious and indulge in pleasure, and they will be expelled from the state school sooner or later."

The two arrived at a small courtyard house with a wooden sign that read "Wenzhai" hanging at the entrance.

In the center of the courtyard was a flower bed, surrounded by a circle of stone benches. Many students were already sitting there, chatting quietly; everyone was excited about starting school.

"Haha, Xu Sanlang is here!" a student laughed.

This student, Guo Shen, is also from Qingyuan County. This year, only three students from Qingyuan—Xu Lai, Guo Shen, and Chen Yanhong—passed the exam.

Upon hearing this, everyone came over to greet each other and exchanged names and courtesy names.

With his top score in the entrance exam and his impressive essay on classical texts, no one objected to Xu Lai wearing short, coarse clothes anymore.

It's still early spring, and there's a severe cold snap.

Xu Lai plans to wait until the temperature warms up before buying a scholar's robe.

"I'm late, I'm late." Liang Wensu rushed over, bowing as he walked.

Shortly after, Chen Yanhong also appeared.

This guy stood under the eaves, head held high, hands behind his back, looking detached and otherworldly.

Liang Wensu and Chen Yanhong both brought their page boys today.

A moment later, an inner monk entered.

The man introduced himself: "My name is Sun Ligeng, courtesy name Ziqin. I am a student of the Imperial Academy and also serve as the instructor of the prefectural school. From now on, I will be in charge of your monthly and quarterly exams. I will also be responsible for evaluating your academic performance!"

Goodness, this is putting top students from higher grades in charge of exams and evaluations for lower grades.

Sun Ligeng continued, "Now we will elect the head of the fast and the chief of the fast."

"The head of the dormitory is in charge of all dormitory affairs, records student attendance and grades, and punishes students who violate the rules according to the dormitory regulations."

"The head of the dormitory is the deputy, who assists in managing the daily discipline of the dormitory and urges the students to abide by the school rules."

"Both of these positions are open to self-recommendation or recommendation from others."

"Who would like to be the head of the congregation?"

As soon as he finished speaking, half of the students in the room started shouting, "Xu Sanlang, he got first place!"

There were a total of 41 students in this school, 29 of whom were admitted along with Xu Lai.

"I am a naive and ignorant child from the mountains, I am absolutely not fit to be the head of the academy," Xu Lai quickly declined.

His goal was to pass the imperial examination quickly, so he had no time to be a class monitor or join the student council.

If you spend too much time on mundane tasks, how can you have the energy to study wholeheartedly?

"Sanlang, please don't refuse."

"That's right, who doesn't know your Three Cardinal Guides and Eight Principles? They've been spread throughout the state academy for a long time."

"If you don't become the head of the dormitory, who does?"

"..."

A group of freshmen started laughing and joking.

A few were also jealous and wanted to volunteer but were afraid of losing face.

Xu Lai said, "My essay was merely a flash of inspiration. In terms of true talent and learning, Liang Gongshu answered all three questions, and each essay was rated as excellent. I propose that Brother Gongshu be the head of the study!"

Liang Wensu was initially watching the spectacle with a smile, but unexpectedly, he ended up getting caught up in the drama himself.

He never intended to come to school every day; he only occasionally listened to lectures from teachers and studied on his own at home, only showing up for monthly and quarterly exams.

Like Xu Lai, Liang Wensu was also afraid of wasting time.

"If I can't be the head of the vegetarian community, how can I be the second? Let's not bring this up again." Liang Wensu waved his hands repeatedly.

Since neither the first nor the second-ranked student wanted to be the head of the dormitory, Sun Ligeng had no choice but to look to the third-ranked student.

Chen Yanhong immediately turned his face away and looked up at the swallow's nest under the eaves. It was an empty nest from last year, and he didn't know when the swallows would return.

The scene froze.

A student stepped forward and bowed to Sun Ligeng: "My name is Huang Yu. I was fortunate enough to get fourth place this time. I am willing to volunteer to help you, Professor Sun."

Sun Ligeng was very pleased: "Great, you will be the head of the vegetarian community."

With one example set, a second soon followed: "I am Zheng Jijing, who by chance ranked seventh in the examination, and I humbly request to serve as the instructor of the vegetarian feast."

Sun Ligeng immediately agreed.

Both of them plan to study at the state school for an extended period, estimated to be five or six years. Once they become the headmaster and instructor of the school, they can cultivate good relationships with the teachers and might even get in touch with Yu Jing.

Sun Ligeng said, "The rules of the fast are posted on the wall; you must remember them. Huang, the head of the fast, and Zheng, the head of the fast, come with me to see the headmaster."

"yes!"

Huang Yu and Zheng Jijing were overjoyed; they had just taken office and were already meeting their superiors.

In fact, the position of academic advisor was held concurrently by top students from the inner dormitory, so it was hardly a leadership role...

After the three student leaders left, everyone rushed to see the rules of the vegetarian meal, and some even recited them aloud on the spot.

Xu Lai stood aside and listened for a while, and found that the rules of the fast were not strict.

The main rule is that students must not make noise or fight in the dormitory, as this would disturb the studies of other students. Of course, fighting is absolutely forbidden.

If you can keep quiet, you can just take a long nap.

They could even choose not to come and sleep in their dorm all day.

There's another rule, specifically for the sons of wealthy families: pageboys and servants are not allowed to enter the dining hall. One violation results in a warning, two violations result in expulsion!

Chen Yanhong didn't care about this; he was just here to report and register his student status at a specific dormitory.

For the next year, he rarely went to school, only appearing during monthly, quarterly, and annual exams. He spent the rest of his time living in a monastery meditation room, immersing himself in his studies and aiming for the imperial examinations.

The meditation rooms in temples were the places of study for many Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) during the Song Dynasty.

If a family donates enough money to a temple for incense offerings, they can send their children to meditation rooms for rigorous spiritual practice. Not only will they abstain from women, but they'll also have no contact with society; their learning speed will be phenomenal!

"Have you heard? Mr. Chen, the eldest disciple of Mr. Xujiang and the former headmaster of Xujiang Academy, has been invited by Master Yu to be a professor at the state school. He will personally give a lecture every day."

Just as Chen Yanhong was about to leave the dormitory, he suddenly overheard people talking about the new principal.

Chen Yanhong immediately stopped in his tracks.

He did not know Chen Cigong, but he had long admired Li Gou.

At Songyang Academy, where Chen Yanhong used to study, some teachers would frequently criticize Li Gou. They claimed that Li Gou was an ignorant and arrogant scholar, completely unfit to teach at the Imperial Academy, and that his misinterpretations of the classics were simply misleading students!

However, many influential figures hold Li Gou in high esteem.

First, Fan Zhongyan recommended him, then Yu Jing recommended him. When Li Gou arrived in the capital, he also became close friends with several prime ministers, and a large group of students from the Imperial Academy believed in his doctrines.

Influenced by the teachers, Chen Yanhong had a poor impression of Li Gou.

But at this moment, things are different.

If one can become Chen Cigong's disciple and gain his appreciation and favor, one will surely be recommended by the state school and easily enter the Imperial Academy.

Chen Yanhong began to justify his change of allegiance: Since the officials in the court all praise it, Li's teachings must have their merits, and perhaps they are not so terrible after all. One should listen to all sides to gain clarity; I shouldn't be bound by differences in schools of thought. I won't go to the temple for solitary meditation for now; I'll come tomorrow to listen to Mr. Chen's lecture.

Chen Yanhong left the dormitory with his page and went to inquire when Chen Cigong would be giving a lecture.

He's not aloof anymore.

Liang Wensu then pulled Xu Lai aside and said, "Xu Sanlang, I probably won't come here often, as I'll be studying diligently at home. If you need any books, you can come to my house anytime. Whether you want to copy or read, it's entirely up to you. On our days off, we can go for a spring outing together."

"I will always remember Brother Gong's kindness," Xu Lai said, somewhat moved.

As the two were talking, Yang Shu rushed in: "Sanlang, have you finished dividing the vegetarian meals? Come on, come on, let's go to a good place."

Xu Lai bid farewell to Liang Wensu and followed him without really understanding what was going on.

Yang Shu led Xu Lai to a side hall near Minglun Hall, pointed inside and said, "You may read the imperial gazette here, but you may not take it away or copy it. If you are found copying or smuggling it in, you may be expelled immediately."

Xu Lai's eyes lit up when he heard this.

The imperial gazette carries information from the court and the capital!

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(Note: Starting from the Northern Song Dynasty, separate study rooms were established for teaching, implementing a teaching method of "lectures in the main hall and learning in the study rooms".)

(After attending lectures in the classroom, students return to their respective dormitories to study, discuss, and answer each other's questions. Occasionally, a teacher will come to the dormitory to test students' knowledge and provide one-on-one guidance.)

(A truly comprehensive system of separate study rooms was implemented, with students grouped according to their major study of the classics or practical skills. For example, if I majored in the *Zuo Zhuan*, I would study with students studying the *Zuo Zhuan*. If I majored in water conservancy, I would study with students studying water conservancy. This facilitated daily communication and discussion. Even the dormitories were connected to the study rooms, with the front courtyard for studying and the back courtyard for living.)