My father is Jiajing

Chapter 204 Zhang Juzheng is quite sensible
The streets of the capital were cold and snowy, with few pedestrians, but Zhang Juzheng's heart was burning.

Xu Jie's decree recommending him as Prince Yu's tutor finally came down, and Zhang Juzheng put aside his previous bad attitude about not being taken seriously in his "Essay on Current Affairs".

The whole person seemed to be revived, with a hopeful smile on his face. He came to Prince Yu's Mansion with excitement and nervousness, unafraid of the wind, snow and cold.

When he just arrived at the gate of the palace, the guards in front of the palace had already received orders from Zhu Zaigui that they could lead him directly into the palace as long as he came.

Therefore, before Zhang Juzheng had the time to hand his business card to the gateman of the palace and wait for an audience with Zhu Zaigui, he was led to the courtyard in the front yard of the palace.

At this moment, Zhu Zaigui was also standing in the front courtyard, watching Zhang Juzheng's arrival with a smile, curiosity and anticipation.

When Zhang Juzheng entered the front hall, he saw Zhu Zaigui waiting for him. He hurriedly stepped forward and bowed to Zhu Zaigui anxiously: "I, Zhang Juzheng, the editor of the Hanlin Academy, pay my respects to His Royal Highness Prince Yu."

Zhu Zaigui also walked forward a few steps, supported Zhang Juzheng's arm and lifted him up, "Mr. Zhang, there is no need to be polite. Your Majesty sent you to teach me, so I should be the one to greet you."

When Zhang Juzheng heard Zhu Zaigui's words, he was flattered and quickly replied, "I am terrified."

Zhu Zaigui smiled and said, "Mr. Zhang, you are being too polite. Come inside and have a cup of hot tea."

Zhu Zaigui warmly invited Zhang Juzheng into the warm room, and Zhang Juzheng was also humble and polite, appearing very respectful.

When they arrived at the warm room, Zhu Zaigui naturally sat in the first seat, and Zhang Juzheng also sat on the nanmu chair beside him.

Meng Chong and the eunuch who served him also gave Zhu Zaigui and Zhang Juzheng a cup of tea respectively and placed them on the small table next to them.

Zhu Zaigui said: "The weather is very cold, Mr. Zhang has worked hard."

Zhang Juzheng replied: "It is my duty to serve the prince."

Zhu Zaigui smiled and looked at Zhang Juzheng carefully again. He was indeed handsome, a rare handsome man.

Although he hasn't grown that majestic and beautiful beard yet, the beard he has grown now has a sense of majesty and integrity.

It really deserves to be praised as the "Prime Minister who saves the time". Just looking at the appearance, it looks like that.

After Zhu Zaigui finished admiring Zhang Juzheng, he withdrew his gaze.

Zhu Zaigui said, "I wonder what knowledge you are going to teach me, sir?"

At this time, Zhang Juzheng could not figure out Zhu Zaigui's attitude and thoughts, and he did not dare to be as direct as Gao Gong.

So after hearing Zhu Zaigui's question, Zhang Juzheng also replied cautiously: "I am going to teach you the imperial edicts of the wise emperors since the Han and Tang dynasties, as well as the classics and examples cited in the edicts, etc."

Zhu Zaigui was a little surprised to hear Zhang Juzheng's question. Originally, Zhu Zaigui thought that Zhang Juzheng would teach him some Confucian knowledge from the Four Books and Five Classics and the Hundred Schools of Thought.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Juzheng was just like Gao Gong, and did not play by the rules.

When Gao Gong first came to Prince Yu's Mansion, he was determined to shock people with his words and directly wanted to teach Zhu Zaigui "The Book of Lord Shang".

But I don’t know what he was thinking later, he stopped teaching "The Book of Lord Shang" and started teaching some geography and current affairs courses.

Zhu Zaigui also liked these courses and found them interesting.

Now Zhang Juzheng came, although he did not mention the shocking course "The Book of Lord Shang", but he wanted to teach Zhu Zaigui the edicts of wise emperors since the Han and Tang dynasties and the allusions and examples cited in the edicts, which really shocked Zhu Zaigui.

If I'm not mistaken, this kind of course should be an educational course exclusively for the Crown Prince!

From this we can see that Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng, these two teachers, are really worrying. They are so open about their cards right from the start, it's really fucking exciting!

They were afraid that others didn't know what they were thinking.

Zhu Zaigui smiled stiffly: "To be honest, sir, I still don't understand the Four Books and Five Classics, nor do I understand the principles of the ancient philosophers. If you don't mind my stupidity, you can teach me some of the Four Books and Five Classics first, so that I can understand some of the teachings of the saints first."

Unexpectedly, as soon as Zhu Zaigui finished speaking, Zhang Juzheng directly said something similar to what Gao Gong said at the beginning.

Zhang Juzheng said, "Your Highness is wrong. Your Highness is a descendant of a noble family, and you are different from ordinary people. Ordinary people study the Four Books and Five Classics to pass the imperial examinations and bring honor to their family, but Your Highness was born to serve the country and the people."

"The teachings of the saints are certainly important, but they are absolutely not suitable for the prince. The prince's learning is the kingly way. He should start from a high vantage point and learn from the wise kings of the past."

"Throughout the dynasties, wise rulers have always used imperial edicts as a record of their governance. Although times have changed, the desire to govern and control the people remains the same from ancient times to today."

“Therefore, the learning of the prince should not be confined to the usual learning, but should focus on the learning of the kingly way.”

Listening to Zhang Juzheng's great principles, Zhu Zaigui couldn't help but sigh inwardly: This is harming me!

I could win just by lying down, why do you guys like to make things so difficult for me?
What if the Taoist priest is petty and thinks that I am covetous? What should I do then?

Zhu Zaigui said, "No, no, no, the kingly way is not for me to learn. I am simple-minded and like Confucianism. I believe that the right way starts with a right heart, so please teach me the sages' principles in the Four Books and Five Classics first, so that I can understand the principles first and then learn other things."

Zhang Juzheng couldn't help but frown when he heard Zhu Zaigui's answer. He was also a little surprised at Prince Yu's attitude.

However, as a politician, although Zhang Juzheng has not yet reached the highest level, he still understands the compromises and middle ground inherent in politics.

Zhang Juzheng replied: "Since Your Majesty is interested in the teachings of the sages, I will naturally teach you and answer your questions. When I give you a lecture, I will prepare the lesson carefully and give you the sages' teachings that I will quote in the lesson, so that you can understand the sages' teachings from these examples."

Zhu Zaiqi hummed and said to Zhang Juzheng, "In that case, I would like to thank Mr. Zhang first."

After saying this, Zhu Zaigui raised his teacup and toasted Zhang Juzheng. Zhang Juzheng also hurriedly and cautiously returned the greeting and drank the tea in his own cup in one gulp.

Finally, Zhu Zaigui asked Meng Chong to prepare a lunch for Zhang Juzheng. Unfortunately, Zhang Juzheng did not accept it. Instead, he thanked him repeatedly and left.

Watching Zhang Juzheng's back as he left, Zhu Zaiqi looked back at the plump Meng Chong behind him and asked, "Are all these civil servants so courageous?"

Meng Chong was confused and didn't know what Zhu Zaigui meant by this question. He hesitated for a moment and replied, "Your Majesty, I think Zhang Juzheng is quite sensible and well-mannered. He didn't act arrogantly and dine with Your Majesty."

Zhu Zaiqi: “Haha!”

----

Asking for monthly ticket

(End of this chapter)