Young Master Gao? Call me Little Grand Secretary!

Today, Gao Zhao went to the lecture hall where the Biyong Doctor was lecturing on the Book of Rites.

Gao Zhao thought the doctor's lecture was excellent, the only drawback being that he couldn't understand it...

Anyway, seeing that everyone else was either listening intently or taking notes furiously, he guessed that the lecture was quite good...

He was the only one in the lecture hall with hundreds of people, looking around blankly, not knowing what to say!

The scholar's previous statement, "The prime minister controls the nation's finances, which must be done by the end of the year..." was followed by, "There is a great way to generate wealth, and many people are involved in it..."

He also quoted a lot of classics, all of which were classical Chinese, which left him completely confused and bewildered!

To appear sociable, he could only nod frequently, sometimes seeming thoughtful, sometimes suddenly realizing something...

The class was quite agonizing; while others were taking a class on the Book of Rites, he was taking a performance class. At least he didn't waste his time...

During the break, he slipped out; rather than just going through the motions, he figured he might as well skip class altogether.

However, when the bell rang for class, he found that he had nowhere to go.

If you want to go out and play, there are guards at the four gates, and people patrol along the walls. There are also students patrolling around. If any student is found to be undisciplined, he will be sent to the Self-Punishment Hall for punishment. This is much stricter than the universities of later generations!

Gao Zhao wandered around for a while, found a shady spot to sit down, and stared blankly at the sky, inwardly cursing Zhao Ji dozens of times over: "My 80,000 strings of cash..."

"Hey, skipping class?"

A voice suddenly rang out beside him, startling Gao Zhao. He didn't care about punishment or anything like that; even expulsion wouldn't matter. The main thing was that now that he was a man from the capital, he had to have some self-respect!

Turning his head, he saw an elderly man with white hair who sat down beside him with a smile, waving his hand and saying, "Don't be nervous, I won't arrest you!"

Gao Zhao felt relieved, but also disdainful. "You old bastard, you still want to catch me? Have you ever seen a fist the size of a sandbag?"

"Want a sip?" The old man handed over the wine bag in his hand.

Gao Zhao glanced at him and thought to himself that this old guy was probably a retired doctor or instructor from the Imperial Academy. He was old but not in his heart and still wanted to contribute his remaining energy. He came over to preach and persuade him to study when he saw that Gao Zhao had skipped class.

He took the wine bag, took a big gulp, and his eyes lit up immediately. To his surprise, the wine was quite delicious.

"The wine is quite good!" Gao Zhao took another sip and handed the wine bag back.

"Hehe, the fragrant wine from Sun Yang's shop is naturally excellent!" The old man didn't take the wine bag from him, but took out another one, frankly saying, "I'm a bit of a germaphobe; I don't drink wine that men have drunk from, I find it dirty!"

Gao Zhao choked. This was being rejected? Wait a minute, what do you mean by not drinking what a man has drunk? If it's a woman, then it's fine?

Then what kind of germaphobia is this?!

Gao Zhao stared at him. Although the old man was old now, his features were still regular, and one could vaguely see his handsome appearance when he was young. He must be a veteran of the pleasures of the world!

Pah! You old scumbag!

Judging by this way of speaking, he probably got beaten up quite a bit when he was young!

The old man took a sip of his drink, turned his head, and asked, "Why did you skip class?"

Ah, here they come, here they come!

Gao Zhao sneered inwardly. The old-fashioned dialect was finally getting to the part about persuading people to study. But this tactic was so cliché! So he put on a lazy expression and said, "There's no reason why, I just find studying boring!"

The old man shook his head and said, "So you find it interesting to sit here wasting your time?"

"If that's your opinion, then we have to have a word with you!" Gao Zhao sat up straight and said, "There are over two thousand students in the Imperial Academy, but only a little over a hundred can advance to the inner dormitory, and even fewer can enter the upper dormitory. And even then, they have to be divided into upper, middle, and lower levels. Even if they participate in the imperial examinations, how many of them will actually pass with flying colors? So I think it's better for them to go home and wait for imperial favor!"

"Hmm, what you say makes sense!" the old man nodded. "But studying isn't necessarily for becoming an official!"

"Tch!" Gao Zhao scoffed. To even utter such words showed he was at his wit's end. He curled his lip and said, "If we don't become officials, who will study?"

"Haha... That's too narrow-minded!" The old man shook his head and laughed, "When I was young, I knew a remarkable person who, after passing the imperial examination and becoming an official, simply drifted away and wandered the world, living a carefree life!"

"You're not trying to tell me that studying is just about learning those outdated philosophies, are you?" Gao Zhao said impatiently, and decided to be blunt.

"When will principles ever be outdated! Even though Master Zhang Zai pursued novelty throughout his life, it was still a matter of cyclical change and innovation! Novelty doesn't come from nothing!"

The old man smiled slightly and asked, "What lesson did you learn today?"

Gao Zhao casually replied, "The Book of Rites!"

"What do you think the Book of Rites is about?"

"Just etiquette!" Gao Zhao blurted out. "A bunch of outdated and pedantic rules of etiquette!"

The old man shook his head and said, "During the Xining era, when Wang Anshi implemented his reforms, the old faction attacked him with the argument of righteousness versus profit, saying that he valued profit over righteousness and was harming the country and its people! Wang Anshi refuted this by saying that half of the Book of Rites was about profit, and that the benefit of the world was the greatest righteousness! Therefore, in Wang Anshi's eyes, the Book of Rites was the way to manage finances!"

Gao Zhao looked at the old man suspiciously. "I'm not well-educated, don't try to fool me!"

Then the old man drank wine while explaining the contents of the Book of Rites to him, quoting various allusions and references with ease and eloquence.

From the opening of "The Royal System" to the discussion of "The Great Learning," Gao Zhao listened in a daze, only to find that this stuff was so interesting from a different perspective, like listening to a story!

"Knock knock..."

As the bell rang, Gao Zhao was astonished to find that it was already noon without him realizing it.

"Alright, that's enough for today!" The old man stood up with a smile and said, "If you still don't understand the doctor's lecture, then come back here and wait for me!"

Gao Zhao stood up and watched the old man slowly walk away. He was stunned for a moment before he came to his senses. "I have met a hermit master!"

It's a pity it wasn't the kind that taught me unparalleled martial arts skills!

No, in this era, interpreting these classics is like mastering unparalleled skills!

Gao Zhao snapped out of his daze and saw that all the students were running towards the public kitchen, so he followed them!

The conditions here are quite good. In addition to basic meals, they also offer extra dishes, but of course, it costs extra!

Yes, this is very much like the Song Dynasty!

Gao Zhao decisively added three more dishes. Although he was very poor at the moment, he would never skimp on food!

Just as Gao Zhao took a couple of bites, he saw Su Mian and Qin Hui walk over. The two of them were sharing a meal, which looked quite pitiful, so Gao Zhao ate even more heartily!

After quickly finishing his meal in a couple of bites, Gao Zhao approached the two of them and exclaimed in surprise, "You two have such a good relationship, you even share your food!"

Su Mian looked up and smiled bitterly: "Brother, please don't joke. Not only has Brother Huizhi lost his money, but now he can't even stay in the dormitory!"

"Ah! How could this be!" Gao Zhao exclaimed in shock.

With a bitter face, Qin Hui told Gao Zhao that he had to move out within three days, and then looked at him with hopeful eyes, hoping that he could lend a helping hand.

Gao Zhao immediately understood, rolled up his sleeves, and said angrily, "That guy must be taking revenge on me. I'll go and give him a few punches!"

"Wait!" Seeing that he was about to make a move, the two hurriedly grabbed him and tried to dissuade him.

Gao Zhao, who was always willing to listen to advice, immediately calmed down and sat down to ask Qin Hui what his plans were next.

Qin Hui sighed and said, "Now we can only go to the city to write letters and legal documents for others and try our luck!"

Gao Zhao sighed sympathetically, thinking of finding someone to overturn his stall.