Official title: Refused to stay at the university, started his career in a rural town.

Gao Yuliang stepped into the gate of courtyard number three with one foot and glanced around the courtyard.

A few osmanthus trees were scattered in the corner of the wall, and in the middle was a neat lawn with the turf trimmed flat, but there was nothing else.

He stood at the door, not in a hurry to go inside.

Gao Yuliang thought about the lawn in the middle of the yard. "It shouldn't all be grass. Clear a patch of land, plant some vegetables—chives, bok choy—it's easy, and it looks more lively."

"Turning over the soil during breaks helps clear my mind. Sitting in the office all the time makes it easy to get stuck on things. Digging in the soil with a hoe and working up a sweat can actually make some things that were hard to understand clear up."

He glanced again at the empty porch.

"There's too much space on either side of this door. Put a few potted plants there, like cycads and monstera. They're easy to care for and don't need daily attention. Jingzhou gets plenty of sunlight here, so you can bring them indoors in winter and leave them outside in summer. They'll stay green all year round."

Before stepping inside, he took one last look at the courtyard—the osmanthus tree, the lawn, the empty porch—everything was still the same. None of what he had just said had come true.

Pity!

The three people went into the house.

In the living room, Liang Qunfeng was sitting on the sofa flipping through a newspaper. Seeing Gao Yuliang come in, he closed the newspaper and stood up.

Gao Yuliang took two quick steps, and Liang Qunfeng reached out his hand, which he grasped with both hands.

The pressure was moderate, the palm was dry, and the knuckles were distinct. This was not the first time Gao Yuliang had shaken hands with a vice-ministerial level official, but he felt that Secretary Liang Qunfeng's hand was particularly warm today.

His mind went blank for a moment, but his hands didn't make any mistakes. He gripped it tightly, shook it twice, and then released it.

"Secretary Liang."

"Director Gao, it's an honor to meet you." Liang Qunfeng smiled and gestured to the sofa. "Please sit down, have a cup of tea, and rest."

Liang Lu pulled Wu Huifen to sit on the other sofa. The two huddled together, their voices low. Wu Huifen nodded occasionally, and Liang Lu chuckled from time to time. Wu Huifen's gaze swept over Gao Yuliang before returning to his own.

The aunt brought out tea from the kitchen, and Liang Qunfeng personally poured a small cup for Gao Yuliang. Then he sat down, picked up his own teacup, and took a sip.

"Director Yuliang, I've heard Lulu say you're very knowledgeable. Meeting you today—" He looked Gao Yuliang up and down and smiled, "Just this aura alone is something many people can't imitate."

Gao Yuliang quickly bowed and said, "Secretary Liang, you flatter me. I just studied at school for a few more years and am not worthy of the title 'erudite'."

Liang Qunfeng put down his teacup. "I heard Director Yuliang is fond of Ming Dynasty history?"

"I have a slight preference."

"I heard you particularly love '1587'?"

Gao Yuliang's eyes flickered. "Secretary Liang also reads Huang Renyu?"

"I've flipped through it several times," Liang Qunfeng said, leaning back on the sofa, his tone unhurried.

"That book is interesting! It's about 1587, the fifteenth year of the Wanli reign, a time of peace and prosperity for the world, with nothing major happening. But Huang Renyu specifically chose to write about this year. Why? Because every little thing that happened in that year was foreshadowing the collapse of the Ming Dynasty."

Gao Yuliang picked up his teacup but didn't drink it.

Liang Qunfeng continued, "Emperor Wanli hid in the deep palace and did not hold court. The civil officials were busy forming cliques and engaging in self-serving activities. After Zhang Juzheng died, no one could control the situation. Shen Shixing tried to act as a peacemaker but ended up pleasing neither side. On the surface, it was a peaceful and prosperous era, but in reality, the entire bureaucratic system was rotten to the core."

He put down his teacup. "Huang Renyu said that the problem with the Ming Dynasty was not whether any individual was morally upright or capable, but that the entire system was flawed. If the system wasn't reformed, it wouldn't matter who was put in charge."

"Zhang Juzheng was such a capable man, yet all his policies were overturned after his death. Hai Rui was an honest official who lived a life of integrity, but what could he do? He couldn't change anything."

Liang Qunfeng looked at Gao Yuliang.

"Director Yuliang, do you think Hai Rui was an honest official or a pedantic bookworm?"

Gao Yuliang put down his teacup.

This is not a casual question.

Liang Qunfeng was testing his judgment!

The character of Hai Rui is a subject of much debate among historians—some say he is a model of incorruptibility, others say he is good for nothing except being honest, and still others say he is a moral extremist who uses his own moral standards to hold everyone hostage.

The answer he chooses determines what kind of person he is in Liang Qunfeng's eyes.

Gao Yuliang pondered for a moment.

"Hai Rui cannot be simply categorized as an 'upright official' or a 'bookworm'."

He spoke slowly, and each word seemed carefully chosen.

"His problem is not that he is honest or pedantic, but that he does not know—or rather, is unwilling—to find a way to solve problems within the framework of the system."

Liang Qunfeng raised his eyebrows slightly.

"During the Wanli era, a complete set of unspoken rules had already formed in the Ming Dynasty's officialdom."

"Officials in the capital relied on the 'ice and charcoal tributes' from local officials to make a living, while local officials relied on increasing taxes to make up for their deficits. This cycle was interconnected and mutually reinforcing."

"Hai Rui submitted his memorial on maintaining order, criticizing the Jiajing Emperor, saying, 'The people of the world have long been dissatisfied with Your Majesty'—a good and satisfying rebuke, but what happened afterward?"

Gao Yuliang paused for a moment.

"After the criticism, Jiajing was still Jiajing, and the officialdom was still the same. Hai Rui was imprisoned and almost beheaded. If Jiajing hadn't passed away, he would have died in prison."

He looked at Liang Qunfeng. "Hai Rui's biggest problem was that he believed that as long as he was honest and upright enough, he could change the entire system."

"He didn't consider that in a rigid system, an individual's moral strength is limited."

"If you want to change the system, you must first enter into the system, understand the system, and then find the fulcrum to drive change within the framework of the system. Hai Rui did not find this fulcrum; he simply used his own moral standards to confront the system head-on, and the result was that he was bounced away by the force of the system's backlash."

Gao Yuliang gently set the teacup down.

"Therefore, Hai Rui was not a pedantic bookworm; he was a man with ideals. But his tragedy was that he had ideals, but no way to realize them."

Liang Qunfeng looked at him and remained silent for a few seconds.

Then he laughed.

"Comrade Yuliang," he changed his address from "Director" to "Comrade," "you truly deserve to be called the department head in your thirties, your analysis is very insightful!"

He picked up his teacup and raised it towards Gao Yuliang.

"I'm just a layman reading history, doing this for fun. Compared to your analysis, my arguments are bland and weak, like a parrot repeating itself."

Gao Yuliang quickly picked up the teacup with both hands, the rim of the cup slightly below Liang Qunfeng's by half a finger joint. "Secretary Liang is too modest! A person who can understand the Ming Dynasty's official system so thoroughly would not be an outsider in any era."

"Oh?" Liang Qunfeng paused, his hand holding the teacup still. He looked at Gao Yuliang, his eyes filled with a smile, but also with a hint of ambiguity in his gaze. "Since Comrade Yuliang can understand the complex officialdom of the Ming Dynasty so well, he should be able to navigate the current officialdom with ease as well."

Gao Yuliang's fingers paused for a moment on the rim of the teacup. Here it comes!

He put down his teacup, his expression still composed, his voice slightly softer than before. "Secretary Liang, I'm just a teacher. It's easy to talk the talk, but it's a different story when it comes to actually doing it. I haven't even scratched the surface of officialdom, so how could I dare say I'm an expert?"

Liang Qunfeng picked up his teacup and blew on the tea foam. "I'm about to retire, and I don't even have anyone to confide in, or even argue with. It's been so pleasant chatting with you today. Apart from my two sons and this daughter who give me so much trouble, I haven't been this happy in a long time."

Gao Yuliang's eyes flickered slightly.

There are no mortal enemies, so there's no need to worry about being purged!

The condition is that he takes good care of his children.

It seems feasible?

Secretary Liang is such a kind and honest man!