Meishan Su family, Su Yun is the most virtuous

Chapter 352: Know a little bit about fighting!

In the second year of Yuanyou.

The twelfth lunar month.

Bianjing City.

There was heavy snow falling in the sky.

Zhou Xingji walked through the Zhouqiao Night Market on the half-foot-deep snow and saw the stone lions in front of the Su residence wrapped in silver, and the iron horses on the eaves jingling in the north wind.

He wrapped his blue cotton robe tightly, put his frozen fingers to his mouth and blew on them, when he suddenly heard the sound of footsteps behind him.

"But Mr. Zhou from Yongjia?" The old servant at the gate lifted the felt curtain with a lantern in his hand. "My husband has been waiting for you for a long time."

The charcoal fire was burning brightly in the main hall, and Su Yun was reviewing the account books at his desk.

The twenty-one-year-old young man has a calmness between his features that is inconsistent with his age.

Seeing Zhou Xingji coming in, Su Yun put down his red brush and said with a smile: "I calculated that we should arrive at Chenliu Posthouse by now, but I didn't expect that we could still travel in such a heavy snow."

Zhou Xingji looked at the tall young man sitting in front of him with burning eyes, his eyes full of admiration. He knelt down on both knees after entering the door and said happily: "My disciple arrived at Chenliu Posthouse. The posthouse clerk advised me to stay for a few more days to avoid the wind and snow, but my disciple really missed my teacher, so I braved the wind and snow to come here."

Su Yun stood up, walked around the table, helped Zhou Xingji up, patted his shoulder and said with a smile: "It's not like you don't have money, you don't know how to hire a donkey cart, it's better than being caught in the cold.

When you go back, I will prepare a large carriage for you, so you don’t have to work so hard.”

Zhou Xingji chuckled and said, "That's great. Actually, the academy is not without money. At first, it was the Mei family who donated the Meilin house, and later they helped to build part of it.

After that, wealthy merchants in Luoyang donated money. Although they were short of money, they could buy a donkey cart if they lived frugally. But the student thought that every penny saved was a penny earned. ”

Su Yun smiled helplessly and said, "You should save money where you can. There's no need to save so little. Don't do this in the future. It's so snowy and windy. If you catch a cold, it will be a big problem."

Zhou Xingji quickly nodded to accept the instruction.

Su Yun smiled, turned around and shouted outside: "Prepare a banquet for Uncle Gong. I will have a drink with Uncle Gong tonight to welcome him back to the afterlife."

Someone outside responded and the footsteps faded away.

Zhou Xingji said happily, "How can I feel so embarrassed about that, sir."

Su Yun sneered, "You monkey, are you still embarrassed? Weren't you the most active in getting free food and drinks before?"

Zhou Xingji chuckled and said, "Sir, you are a wealthy man, so what's wrong with a poor student like me eating a little?"

Su Yun smiled and said, "I have received your previous letter. Well done!"

"This is the roster of the Luoyang Su Society." Zhou Xingji took out a parchment scroll from his bag and tapped the "probationary member" column with his red fingertips. "Originally, it was said that we could only recruit three to five people, but who knew that the number would increase to seventeen this winter.

Qi Shuheng, a doctor from the Imperial College of Xijing, Sun Danian, the owner of Baifan Tower, and even the Zen Master Zhiyuan from the White Horse Temple all sent in their invitations.

Su Yun took the list and looked at it carefully. The candlelight cast a mixed light on the page. Suddenly, he pointed to a certain place and said with a smile, "Even Qi Shuheng is on the reserve list? This guy is a well-known idler."

"Last month, Dr. Qi came to listen to my lecture, and we happened to be debating your idea of ​​the unity of knowledge and action."

Zhou Xingji's eyes lit up. "The old man stood up on the spot with his cane and said, 'This fresh knowledge is much more interesting than the scriptures issued by the Ministry of Rites!' The next day he sent a visiting card and donated 20 strings of cash for the cost of engraving the book."

The wind and snow were howling outside the window, and a few sparks were popping out of the charcoal basin.

Su Yun added a piece of rosin charcoal, and the tea in the copper pot gurgled.

Zhou Xingji sipped Jianzhou Tuan tea and talked about the lecture that had caused a sensation in Xijing this autumn. They set up a hundred cushions in Meilin Academy and invited the headmaster of Songyang Academy to give a lecture on "Collected Commentaries on the Mencius", which attracted three hundred students from both sides of the Luo River to listen to the lecture in the rain.

"The most pleasing thing is the children from poor families."

He took out a list from his sleeve. "Among the 120 students, 40% are from the market. There is a son of an oil seller named Chen He. He helps his father walk the streets during the day and comes to the academy to copy books at night.

Last month, I wrote "Reading the Biography of Boyi", and the style of my writing actually has some of the style of Mr. Laoquan.

When the tea was poured for the third time, Zhou Xingji finally told the problem: "Teacher, what we need most right now is a master of classics. The other day, Mr. Lu from Fanyang sent a visiting card, saying that if we can invite Mr. Chao Buzhi to take charge, he is willing to donate 500 acres of land for the school."

Su Yun paused while holding the pot, thought for a moment and said, "Chao Buzhi, he seems to be the magistrate in Yangzhou?

I will check it later. If so, I will write to him and ask for his opinion. If he is willing, I will find a way to transfer him to Luoyang."

Zhou Xingji said happily: "Sir, I have asked him, he is in Yangzhou, and I have also written to him to ask him, he is willing to go, but he just can't go to Luoyang."

"Knock, knock, knock!" Someone knocked on the door. "My dear, the banquet is ready. Do you want to eat now or wait a while?"

Su Yun smiled and said, "I'll be right there."

Su Yun turned around and said to Zhou Xingji with a smile: "Let's go, maybe you are hungry too."

The two changed places and chatted while eating.

When the fifth watch clapper rang, the snow stopped.

Su Yun pointed to the nodes circled in red ink on the map and said with a smile: "You have made a good start in Luoyang. Now the Su Studies Associations in Kaifeng, Yingtian and Zhending are preparing.

In particular, the Han family of Zhending, after hearing about the achievements of the Meilin Academy in Luoyang, wanted to vacate the east wing of their ancestral temple to use as a lecture hall.

Zhou Xingji heard Su Yun's praise and said with a chuckle, "Actually, it's all because of you, sir. The people of Luoyang are watching you."

Su Yun smiled slightly, then suddenly asked, "Has there been any unusual movement from Cheng Yi recently?"

Zhou Xingji shook his head and said, "There was no unusual movement before, but recently, Cheng Yi's disciples began to spread the word, accusing our Su school of 'using profit to destroy etiquette'.

They said that our actions of recruiting prospective members everywhere, accepting donations from wealthy businessmen, and using school land to recruit Confucian scholars were all seeking personal gain in the name of learning, which violated the pure way of learning and undermined the foundation of propriety, righteousness, integrity and shame.

Su Yun sneered and said, "It's still Mr. Daode's talk! We run schools and develop the Su Society in order to spread knowledge and cultivate talents. How can we say that 'profit destroys etiquette'?"
Haha, how did Cheng Yi's Yigao Academy come from? Did he build it with his own money? Wasn't it donated by Master Wen? "

Zhou Xingji chuckled and said, "Sir, don't be angry, I gave them a good beating before I came here.

I didn't want to do anything about them spreading these rumors, but if they wanted to spread them, I would fight back. I asked someone to spread the rumor that Cheng Yi, who advocated abstinence, tacitly allowed widows in his family to remarry, and when his niece-in-law remarried, she praised "marrying off orphans and doing her best."

This kind of hypocrisy of "being strict with others and lenient with oneself" is "Aozao Poli Shusun Tong"!

"Puff!" Su Yun spit out the wine he had just sipped, and said with a smile, "Your scolding is too mean, isn't it?"

"Aozaobei" was a dirty swamp outside the city of Bianjing, and Shusun Tong was a great Confucian scholar in the Western Han Dynasty who developed a complete set of court etiquette for Liu Bang.

This sentence together describes Cheng Yi as a fake Shusun Tong who came from a dirty and chaotic place, satirizing him for pretending to know everything and being too rigid and pedantic.

This sentence was so vivid that Su Yun couldn't help but spit out his food.

Zhou Xingji smiled proudly and said, "Hehe, when it comes to cursing, we disciples of the Su Sect are not afraid of anything even if we travel all over the world. This is a skill that has been passed down from generation to generation!"

Su Yun's face suddenly turned black, and he said, "I didn't teach you to curse."

Zhou Xingji smiled and said, "Of course you didn't teach me, but your doctrine emphasizes logic and your words are particularly sharp. If you use it to explain the great truth, the truth will be very profound. If you use it to ridicule corrupt scholars, the corrupt scholars will vomit three liters of blood!"

Zhou Xing was a little drunk, so he stood up and waved his arms, saying, "Sir, you don't know, Cheng Yi must have been angry and instigated a lot of people who didn't know the truth to attack our Meilin Academy and smashed some of the teaching buildings!
Dexian and Chengdian said they would go to the government office to sue them. Haha, Cheng Yi had a very high reputation in Luoyang. What would happen if they sued him? Either the matter would be dealt with perfunctorily or they would pay some money to settle the matter. If this was the way it was handled, they would have to continue in the future.

So the disciples organized some passionate students to attack Yigao Academy. Hey, sir, guess what happened, Cheng Yi was so scared that he ran two miles in the snow! "

Su Yun slammed the table and stood up: "How can this be disgraceful! Scholars should convince others with reason, how can they resort to violence? If this gets out, people all over the world will laugh at us!

Uncle Gong, what is the situation in Luoyang now? Have the injured students been properly accommodated? "

Zhou Xingji said hurriedly: "Don't worry, sir, the injured students have been sent to the hospital for treatment.

The Luoyang government also intervened in the matter and detained some students who participated in the fight.

But Cheng Yi refused to give in. They claimed that they would bring the matter to the court and let the Ministry of Rites judge the case, saying that they would punish this behavior that corrupted the academic atmosphere.

I was afraid that I was too slow in writing, so I hurried over to tell you, sir, so that you wouldn't be caught off guard."

Su Yun paced back and forth in the hall, and after thinking for a moment, he said, “We can’t just sit there and wait for this to happen.

They said that we were "using profit to destroy etiquette". We must sort out the original intention and actual actions of running the school and developing the Su Society and put them into a document.

On the one hand, it can be presented to the Luoyang government to let them know the truth;

On the other hand, I have to report this to Empress Dowager Gao and the other officials to avoid any misunderstandings."

Zhou Xingji nodded and said, "Sir, what you said is absolutely right.

In addition, in Luoyang, I will also appease our students, ask them to remain restrained and not to conflict with the students of Chengmen.

After all, violence cannot solve problems, it only makes things worse.”

As soon as he said this, he saw Su Yun's expression was a little surprised, and he quickly asked: "What's wrong, sir, what did I say wrong?"

Su Yun chuckled and said, "Doesn't that make you a coward? Others are coming to your door, but you want to reason with them. What does that mean?"

Zhou Xingji was speechless and said, "Sir, how can you criticize me just now?"

Su Yun smiled and said, "If they want to talk about reason, we will talk about reason. If they want to make groundless accusations, don't blame us for exposing their dirty laundry. If they dare to use violence, then we should let them know. If they don't want to talk about reason, then we also know a little bit of martial arts."

Zhou Xingji suddenly felt that every 36,000 pores on his body were smooth and comfortable, but then he said, "Sir, now that old thief Cheng wants to sue the court, this matter..."

Su Yun waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "Don't worry about him. He still thinks he has a good reputation in the court. Empress Dowager Gao frowns when she hears his name. Now he is back in Luoyang and still not behaving himself.

Haha, what's the big deal about students fighting? There are fights every day in the Imperial College. Is it worth discussing a fight in the court?"

Zhou Xingji chuckled, remembering that his master was a fierce man who could fight dozens of people alone in Fanlou, Bian Jing, so he naturally thought that this was just a trivial matter.

Since this matter was not very important, Zhou Xingji began to worry about the affairs of the academy and said, "Sir, Meilin Academy is still lacking great scholars. Although the Su Academy is doing well now, it needs great scholars to debate the classics in order to really make its name known and completely suppress Yigao Academy. Only you can do this."

Su Yun thought for a moment and said, "It's okay. I'll ask my uncle for help. My uncle has a wide network of contacts, so it will be easy for him to invite some learned scholars."

Zhou Xingji was overjoyed, but still looked at Su Yun with some anticipation and said, "Then sir, can you go there?"

Su Yun smiled and said, "How can I leave? There are so many things to do in the Privy Council. Also, the Meilin Academy in Bianjing is about to open. You have already opened up the situation there, but the academy here has not yet. I have to go to the Meilin Academy in Bianjing more often to make it famous.

By then, the two Meilin Academies in Bianjing and Luoyang will complement each other, and the foundation of our Su Academy will be firmly established!"

Zhou Xingji was a little disappointed, but still quite happy to see this situation, and quickly said, "Congratulations, sir."

Su Yun smiled and said, "This is a big event for our Su Academy, not just for me. Go ahead and have a good night's rest. Go meet up with Sheng Zhang and the others tomorrow to exchange experiences in running a school. They have been looking forward to it for a long time."

Zhou Xingji was immediately excited, and laughed, saying: "Before I went to Luoyang, they were not very optimistic. Now that I have built the Meilin Academy in Luoyang, and the Meilin Academy in Bianjing is just about to open, I wonder how they will react!"

Su Yun covered his forehead helplessly.

Zhou Xingji is very capable and has a high level of comprehension, but he is still a child after all. This temperament is indeed... his true temperament.

Zhou Xingji asked Su Yun to go to the guest room to rest, and he returned to the study.

Only seven or eight months have passed since the Spring Examination, but the news coming back from all over the country is quite encouraging.

Zhou Xingji's work in Luoyang was the most gratifying. After all, he was able to build the Meilin Academy under the pressure of Cheng Men, and the Su Society was developing in full swing.

But in terms of progress, there are many places that are much faster than Luoyang.

For example, Meizhou, Huangzhou, Ezhou and Hangzhou.

Meizhou is the Su family's base camp, so it is not surprising that it can develop rapidly.

Huangzhou and Ezhou are the places where Su Yun is most famous, so they are also developing very rapidly.

The rapid development of Hangzhou caught Su Yun off guard. Upon inquiring, he found out that it was due to Su Shi's official reputation in Hangzhou, which was an extra surprise.

(End of this chapter)