Chapter 440: Who is coming at 440?
No wonder it’s so noisy, turns out soone has caused a disturbance right at the door.
He thought for a mont, quickly gathered his books and writing materials, grabbed his bag and left directly, not even wanting to delay by going back to his room to put things away.
As a student of the Imperial Academy, no matter who caused the trouble, it was his duty to stand up and protect the academy; he could not allow outsiders to insult the dignity of the academy, otherwise, he would be unworthy of the robe of the Imperial Academy student he was wearing.
As he hurried towards the gate, other students also rushed towards it, all drawn by the commotion.
By the ti he arrived at the gate, it was already teeming with students.
The Imperial Academy was the largest educational institution of the current dynasty. After His Majesty opened up admissions, it was expanded significantly.
In front of the gate was a square called Shanxue Square, quite spacious and fan-shaped. The academy often held debates here: argunts between different viewpoints, intra-level debates, inter-level debates, and debates with students from other academies. Students who excelled in debates could be rewarded by the academy.
According to Mr. Qin, among any group of three, there is sothing to learn, and everything is debatable. This was to train students to broaden their horizons and minds, to absorb the strengths of others, and to avoid becoming narrow-minded and pedantic the more they studied.
At the very back of Shanxue Square was the main gate of the Imperial Academy, adorned with a large plaque that bore the three characters for “Imperial Academy,” personally inscribed by His Majesty.
The outermost exit led to a wide road, which was no longer within the academy’s jurisdiction. Across the street were shops, including many bookshops.
Now, the space in front of the gate was packed with students, who whispered among themselves, occasionally looking in one direction, yet no one raised their voice to question loudly. The whole square was sowhat silent, different from what Liang Qi had imagined.
He felt anxious. Could it be that the visitors were so intimidating that the younger students didn’t dare to speak up?
He moved forward with his bag on his back. In the absence of Mr. Qin, Minister Jia, and other teachers, he, as a senior, should take the responsibility of a senior, and there was no reason to let the juniors face the situation.
The younger students who recognized him greeted him, and made way for him.
When he got to the front, he looked up and was stunned.
Indeed, two people had arrived at Shanxue Square and were standing in the center, but the scene was nothing like what he had envisioned.
One of them was tall and slender, dressed in a Confucian Robe, carrying a nearly man-high book basket on his back, embodying a scholarly grace. He was slightly turned to the side, speaking quietly to an Attendant Student beside him, his face not clearly visible.
The Attendant Student kept nodding.
Although he hadn’t seen the visitor’s face, Liang Qi felt a strange sensation that questioning the visitor’s identity at this ti would be highly offensive, and even feel like a desecration.
Finally, after giving instructions to the Attendant Student who then departed, the visitor turned his face towards him. Noticing his gaze, the man gave him a gentle smile. Like a spring breeze or gentle rain, the smile soothed everything it touched.
In his mind, there was only one phrase left, “The noble carries the breeze and the moon, alone encompassing autumn waters and the starry river.”
After snapping out of it, he felt extrely embarrassed, shad by his previous thoughts. The deanor and grace of the person before him were like the -clear breeze and bright moon, generous and open, in no way resembling soone who ca to cause trouble, as the younger students had misled him to believe.
No wonder the square was so quiet; no junior dared question the visitor, and neither could he find the words to question them.
His face flushed, he struggled to conceal his embarrassnt. He took a step forward and was just about to et with a formal salute and ask the reason for the visitor’s presence.
Suddenly, the crowd began to stir, and a student whispered, “Minister Jia has arrived!”
Liang Qi turned back to see students on both sides quickly making way, and Minister Jia strode forward.
Turning back, he stepped aside with a hint of apology. The visitor across from him smiled warmly, nodding his head, causing Liang Qi’s face to grow even hotter.
Minister Jia had not yet clearly made out the situation when he spoke loudly and demanded, “Where is the troublemaker?”
The students on both sides let out a hissing sound, and everyone’s heart suddenly tightened. It was one thing for Minister Jia to reprimand them on regular days, but now, it seed sowhat inappropriate. Moreover, he looked so fierce, it might scare soone—so students even felt like reminding Minister Jia to lower his voice…
Before they could ponder further, a voice from the opposite side answered loudly, “The student is here.”
Minister Jia made his way through the crowd and finally saw the person clearly, and he was taken aback.
Just now, a student had rushed over, looking anxious, saying that soone had co to cause a disturbance.
He found it intolerable, laid down his chopsticks in a huff, not even caring for the pickles his old mother had made, and hurried over. Could he have imagined that the person causing a disturbance would be like this?
How could the troublemakers nowadays look so proper and neat?
The newcor certainly looked much better than all the students of the Imperial Academy, with an air of elegance about him. If an uninford person saw them, they might have thought that the troublemakers were him and his Imperial Academy students, not the newcor!
Although he felt sothing was off, he quickly reacted, knowing that no matter who it was or what they looked like, if they dared to cause trouble, he would make sure they understood that the Imperial Academy wasn’t a place where just anyone could make a fuss. If they kept up the trouble, they might end up in the dungeons of Shuntian Prefecture.
With a stern face, he cut straight to the point, “Who is the visitor?”
“The student is an examinee from Taiyuan Prefecture, my surna is Lian, my given na, Mu.”
Lian Mu!
Minister Jia’s pupils shrank, and he was suddenly shocked—it was Lian Mu, wasn’t it just yesterday that…
Upon hearing this na, the crowd suddenly beca restless. The na Lian Mu was now well-known among the scholars in the Capital due to the fortune of the Taiyuan Prefecture examinees, making them all aware of this individual. He was this year’s Jieyuan from Taiyuan Prefecture, with a physical disability and rumored to have significant ties with the Grand Tutor.
The Imperial Capital was close to Taiyuan Prefecture, and just yesterday, a governnt proclamation was issued to find this person. With an order from above, to have him publicly reexamined at the Imperial Academy, thus the news had spread all over the Capital and would soon reach the entire world, causing discussion among the literati.
When they heard the ntion of the Taiyuan Prefecture examinee, they thought this person must be one desperately striving for success, but to their surprise, it was quite the contrary. Just by looking at his deanor and conduct, they felt this person was bright and clear as wind and moon.
Minister Jia did not expect an examinee with a limp to possess such elegance. Suppressing the astonishnt in his heart, he questioned sternly, “What exactly brings you here?”
“I have co in response to a notice.”
“What notice?”
“The notice of scholarly integrity.”
“Why not go to the governnt to respond to the notice, but co to the Imperial Academy instead!”
“Matters of the scholars should naturally be resolved in a place of learning. I have co only to sit the examination, not to admit to any cris.”
Lian Musu’s gaze was forthright, and his words were powerful and resolute. Having finished speaking, he bowed slowly to Minister Jia, performing the formal bow of a student to a teacher.
A rapid-fire sequence of questions and answers, too quick for anyone to follow, culminated in the final retort, after which a few students couldn’t help but shout, “Well said!” They imdiately retracted into the crowd as Minister Jia sharply turned his head and gave them a chilling glance.
Silence fell over the entire place.
Lian Bao, who had observed this scene from a distance by the corner of the wall, was relieved and quietly led Wu Sheng and the others back.
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