Inside Tide Listening Pavilion.
Zhu Yourong’s gaze fixed on the direction Zhao Rong left, murmuring under her breath, "Dragon Energy."
Without turning back, she spoke with a hint of dissatisfaction, "ng Shu is helping , so why did he still ask him for a calligraphy piece?"
The old Sacrificial Officer smiled and said, "Of course, it’s for you. The new favorite young Zhu teacher at our academy greatly admires a certain student’s handwriting, which even this old man has heard about in Tide Listening Pavilion."
Zhu Yourong didn’t respond directly, but turned to ask the old Sacrificial Officer, "ng Shu, regarding the matter of Zhao Ziyu being attacked down the mountain, there is also so negligence from your family mber. In terms of both emotion and reason... next ti, please help again."
The old Sacrificial Officer nodded, "That reasoning stands. Even if you hadn’t co to see today, I would have helped him. Xiao ng also feels guilty towards him. However, there’s still one thing I don’t quite understand."
Zhu Yourong interrupted before he could ask, speaking lightly, "I like his handwriting, find joy in discovery, and wish to nurture him. Maybe it will ensure I’m not alone on my path. The reason I didn’t give it personally is to avoid rumors, so ng Shu, surely you’re not like those commoners with misunderstandings?"
Seeing she had said everything, the old Sacrificial Officer glanced at Zhu Yourong and shifted his tone, "What misunderstanding could there be? You are a teacher and he is a student, what other relationship is there? You rely want to accept him as a disciple at next year’s master-disciple ceremony. I heard he’s currently serving as your calligraphy class teaching assistant."
The old man sighed, "The path of calligraphy is indeed difficult. It’s rare to find a good talent, and worrying about him slipping away hasn’t been easy for you. It’s been a long ti since I’ve seen you so devoted to sothing."
The old Sacrificial Officer added, "How about this, I have so influence, and when the ti cos, I’ll speak with the other teachers to let this promising talent go to you, though I’ve heard that Xiao Yan, who teaches classics, has a good relationship with this young man. It was Xiao Yan who brought him in using a special talent quota, unintentionally resulting in you taking notice. So this matter must be clarified with Xiao Yan, to see if he’ll let him go. Because if it’s a mutual choice between master and student, it will be hard to secure him..."
Zhu Yourong seed a bit lost in thought, suddenly turned and asked, "Why can’t it be you, ng Shu, accepting him as a disciple?"
"I accept a disciple?"
The old Sacrificial Officer paused, then laughed.
He shook his head, "What a joke..."
Zhu Yourong retorted, "Why not?"
The old Sacrificial Officer leaned back:
"Not to ntion, this old man has closed the door to accepting disciples for many years. If I were to break this tradition, Xiao ng would probably be the first to oppose. She’s the academy’s scholar and etiquette teacher, and to let an ordinary student suddenly beco her junior, her nature couldn’t accept it, thinking it doesn’t conform to etiquette. Besides, I’ve retired to enjoy my old age..."
Zhu Yourong squinted, "How doesn’t it conform to etiquette? The Saint said there’s a precedence in learning the way. A teacher is neither noble nor humble, neither old nor young, and accepting disciples is the sa. Even the Saint once bowed to a child by the roadside as a teacher, much less ng Zhengjun. What’s wrong with allowing an exceptionally gifted student to rank lower, becoming her junior? Her personally set ’etiquette,’ is it greater than the ’etiquette’ set by the Saint?"
Her words grew more certain, her eyes fervently fixed on the old Sacrificial Officer, "Besides, didn’t ng Shu just say ng Zhengjun feels guilty towards Zhao Ziyu? Perhaps she’d even acquiesce to it, so in the end, it depends on whether ng Shu truly desires it or not. The obstacle isn’t elsewhere. So, ng Shu, can you help with this?"
The old Sacrificial Officer gazed briefly at the eloquent young lady before him, realizing you’re asking this old man to be restless even in retirent.
The elder adjusted his Confucian cap, speaking earnestly, "Little Zhu."
"What is it?"
"Why don’t you accept the disciple you favored?"
Zhu Yourong unhesitatingly gave her reason:
"This fellow doesn’t seem inclined towards the path of calligraphy, and greatly listens to that Yan teacher, while I’m not very familiar with the one teaching Classics. So, I wanted ng Shu, of higher rank, to step in and first accept him as my disciple. No one will dare dispute... and eventually, it won’t trouble ng Shu, as I’ll teach him instead, ensuring he doesn’t run away."
So Zhao surnad student with clear arrangents by the Zhu surnad lady teacher.
The old Sacrificial Officer, in all these years, experiencing such a case for the first ti.
He said surprisingly, "Won’t this be akin to tricking the disciple?"
Zhu Yourong replied confidently, "What’s tricking? I am the first-class scholar of Confucianism. Teaching him is more than enough. Even if he can’t abandon the Classics path, I can instruct him, letting him dual study calligraphy and classics. By then, he’ll be secretly happy." Her eyes flickered, gaze shifting elsewhere.
On this matter of dual study, the old Sacrificial Officer had no disagreent. The niece before him had always held great promise, and if not for that incident of ’deviating from the path,’ she might have already beco the youngest female sage in the history of the Confucian Temple.
So, his gaze grew stranger, unable to resist saying, "Then you must consider carefully, if he truly becos part of my lineage, under your tutelage, the better you teach, the more it benefits my lineage, because in others’ eyes, he inherits my literary heritage, and your title is, at most, a secondary... senior sister."
The female teacher who truthfully desired the senior sister role heard this, feigning concern, "Fine, a secondary role it shall be, after all, I’m still marked at the Confucian Temple. If he further becos linked with , it wouldn’t be ideal for future advancent within Confucian ranks."
Seeming to ponder briefly, she sighed, "I’ll... I’ll just endure it, becoming a secondary senior sister, solely seeking companionship on my path."
"..."
The old Sacrificial Officer glanced a few tis at this niece from an allied family, remaining speechless for a mont.
Zhu Yourong raised her head, earnestly asking, "So, ng Shu, will you help?"
The old Sacrificial Officer poured another cup of orchid tea, leisurely sipping it, leaning back, "Reopening for discipleship, it’s not impossible, but..."
He shifted his tone, "At the very least, he’d have to achieve first place at the academy?"
Though the words seed cryptic, Zhu Yourong understood to whom he referred.
Zhu Yourong nodded slightly.
The old Sacrificial Officer awkwardly smiled, "Then, minimally, he must attain Vast Realm before eighteen, correct?"
Zhu Yourong lowered her eyes slightly, nodding.
The old Sacrificial Officer smiled again, estimating, "Then surely, he must beco a Reading Seed, right?"
Zhu Yourong remained silent.
According to past tradition at the master-disciple ceremony, to be the disciple of one of the academy’s Six Gentleman, inheriting the rare and precious literary heritage, one truly needed to be the top scholar of the term, naly acquiring the status of Reading Seed.
Zhu Yourong gently nodded.
The old Sacrificial Officer smiled, now speaking with certainty, "Then there’s one more hurdle."
Zhu Yourong frowned, "Why are there more requirents? ng Shu’s discipleship seems more complex than other uncles’."
The old Sacrificial Officer laughed and nodded, "It’s the final hurdle. Since this is an exceptional discipleship, ultimately it’s slightly against academy guidelines, so your family mber must approve."
Before the old man’s words were finished, a certain big-breasted lady teacher turned pale, storming off, taking the orchid tea pot with her, not leaving even the cups.
"Oh dear, niece, niece, don’t leave... you... leaving, but at least leave the tea..."
The old Sacrificial Officer called out in vain, watching Zhu Yourong’s silhouette disappear outside, shaking his head.
"These requirents weren’t sothing set by the old man. These young ladies, once grown up, no longer remain as obedient and endearing as when young, haven’t changed, right, old fellow?"
A stern-faced, tall slender elder walked in from the door, holding a small chessboard, focusing on a chess manual all the way, ignoring the old friend’s jest.
As per the usual afternoon routine, the tall slender elder tossed the chessboard before the old Sacrificial Officer, closed the chess manual, sat upright, starting to arrange the chess pieces, preparing for a ga.
The old Sacrificial Officer wasn’t surprised, accustod, leisurely opened the box lid, accompanying him in the ga.
The two played move by move for a while, the old Sacrificial Officer glanced at the tall slender elder, saying, "About letting that youngster rise to the sixth floor..."
"Approve."
The old Sacrificial Officer nodded, with the approval of the old friend before him, this matter was settled.
He further inquired, "Then about the matter of that Yourong girl..."
The tall slender elder suddenly raised his head, gazing at the elder sharing a daughter just like him, saying, "Your girl is excellent."
The old Sacrificial Officer laughed and shook his head.
"Not returning ho is strictly business; she wouldn’t have idle ti to brew tea for ."
The tall slender elder said nothing in response.
...
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