A powerful minister of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 70 This study tour was worth it

Song Xuan didn't think Xia Song's poems were very famous.

He couldn't even rank among the Song Dynasty's recitation group.

At least Song Xuan had never heard of any of Xia Song's famous poems.

Have you ever heard of Xia Song who mocked him?
Song Xuan had never heard of the story of Xia Song recommending himself that Zhang Fangping had just mentioned.

It is estimated that when Song Shou was educating him, he gave him some popular science knowledge and encouraged him to work more on poetry and prose.

Zhang Fangping also agreed with Song Xuan.

Xia Song's poems are just average.

If one is truly amazed by her beauty, her poems would have been circulated throughout the country, just like Liu Yong's poems.

At present, Liu Sanbian is the leader of poetry in the early Song Dynasty.

Bao Zheng had no chance to get a word in on the conversation between the two.

He was a genius student from Hefei, but he was not ranked high in the palace examination of the imperial examination.

According to today's terms, Bao Zheng was just an average student.

Even if you are an excellent student, there are still gifted classes far ahead of you.

Therefore, when faced with the ideas of Song Xuan and Zhang Fangping, Bao Zheng was somewhat unable to keep up.

Unlike Zhang Fangping, he had already been corrupted by Song Xuan, the demon from outside the domain.

He had long been accustomed to Song Xuan's words and actions.

"Meow meow meow."

The little tabby cat started to flutter on the table, very lively.

When Zhang Fangping saw Song Xuan start to play with the cat, he handed the manuscript to Bao Zheng:

"I saw you glance at it several times just now, probably because you didn't see it clearly. Brother Bao, please take your time to read it. This is the test paper given to me by Song Tongpan of Yingtian Prefecture. Brother Twelve calls it the "Student Special Treatment"."

"If you can understand a little bit from this, it would be a win. I hope it can be helpful to Brother Bao."

Bao Zheng quickly took it and thanked him carefully.

He had also heard of Song Shou's reputation. He was truly a talented person.

But Bao Zheng didn't know how Zhang Fangping got in touch with Song Shou.

After all, according to Song Xuan, they had only been here for less than a month.

But with so many students coming to Yingtian Prefecture, why did Song Tongpan look at Zhang Fangping differently?

Otherwise, Zhang Fangping would have become like Wang Yaochen, and would have been regarded by the people as the first candidate to be admitted to Yingtianfu Academy.

Who else but him?

Moreover, neither of them seems to come from a family of officials.

Even someone as simple as Bao Zheng came from a family of officials.

This is what Bao Zheng was puzzled about regarding Song Shou, the Tongpan of Yingtian Prefecture, who promoted Zhang Fangping's reputation.

When he was in his hometown, it was Liu Yun, the prefect of Luzhou, who gave Bao Zheng guidance and questions.

This person also thought that the central government was not a good place for good people to stay because Emperor Zhenzong of Song was ill and Ding Wei was in power.

He requested to be sent away to avoid disaster.

Bao Zheng, a genius in studying, was discovered in Luzhou.

The reason why Bao Zheng was able to take the entrance examination for Yingtianfu Academy was because Liu Yun suggested that he go out and see the world.

Just treat it as a study tour.

Since the Tang Dynasty, or even earlier, scholars have realized that reading thousands of books can indeed lead to great talent and knowledge.

Traveling thousands of miles broadens a person's mind and knowledge.

Many poets, such as Li Bai and Du Fu, were on the road.

After all, the knowledge learned on the road is no less than that in books.

At least when you get cheated on the street, you can't empathize with it just by reading a book.

Instead, they would laugh and scold the person who was cheated, calling him an idiot.

Some people say they won't be fooled until they encounter something, but that's simply not the case. Learning and mastering knowledge systematically requires a teacher to sit down and explain it in detail.

But learning is not limited to what is in books.

Song.

Traveling for study was once popular among scholars.

The Imperial College and the Imperial University were both popular places for teachers and students to study.

Private schools in the Song Dynasty.

If a teacher is well-known, he or she is like a famous teacher with a golden signboard that can attract many students to study abroad.

Local official schools had fields as their source of income and had special dormitories for traveling scholars. Going to a good official school allowed one to learn knowledge, make friends, and not have to worry about accommodation.

So even though Fan Zhongyan lived in poverty in his early years, he still traveled to Luoyang and Huzhou to study, "taking Hu Yuan's teaching methods and writing them down as orders" to increase his knowledge.

In the learning career of scholars before passing the imperial examination, "traveling to study" is an important process.

Fan Zhongyan's way of studying on his own was more common, especially for students whose fathers and grandfathers did not hold official positions.

As for those who came from official families, most of them were sent out to study under famous people.

It is true that my family paved the way for me early on.

The most important places for studying in the entire Song Dynasty were the other three capitals excluding Beijing (Yuancheng County, Daming Prefecture).

Xijing (Luoyang) of Henan Prefecture, Nanjing (Shangqiu) of Yingtian Prefecture, and Dongjing of Kaifeng Prefecture.

Among them, studying in Tokyo is the most popular among scholars.

Because the journey from various states to Beijing for the provincial examination was not only long but also difficult for poor scholars to afford the travel expenses, there were more opportunities to study under teachers or work part-time to earn money in the capital.

Therefore, it has been quite common for candidates to rent a house and live in the capital to wait for the exam since the Tang Dynasty.

Not only can one broaden one's knowledge and increase one's chances of passing the imperial examination, but one can also solve one's own food and clothing problems.

If an official in the court wanted to discover a potential stock in advance, he might recruit him as a son-in-law before the exam.

Bao Zheng was feeling grateful for his good fortune in studying abroad, while Song Xuan was meowing and calling him "kitten".

I have to say that this cat is pretty good. It didn't show any stress and didn't hide under the bed.

It is really bold and lively, especially when it has enough battery. It keeps meowing to try to establish effective communication with Song Xuan and refuses to sleep.

Song Xuan was in a good mood. He put it on the ground and opened the window to let more sunlight in. Unfortunately, he didn't have a laser pen.

"Shi Er Lang, are you at home?"

Hearing the shouts from downstairs, Song Xuan leaned out of the window and saw Zhang Kang coming:
"I'm here. Magistrate Zhang, come up and have a chat."

"Okay, I'm feeling hot, so I'd like some tea."

Zhang Kang then walked into the shop and went around to the second floor.

He saw a student with a face as black as charcoal sitting next to Zhang Fangping.

A little strange.

When did Shi Erlang make such a friend?
But he didn't say much, according to Song Xuan's nickname of "Timely Rain" in his hometown.

Perhaps this student was looked down upon by others because of his appearance, so Shi Erlang came to his aid.

Thinking of this, Zhang Kang didn't take it to heart.

But Bao Zheng was even more surprised when he saw a magistrate from Yingtian Prefecture come to find Song Xuan on his own initiative.

You have to know that Song Xuan has not yet been tested. He is just an unknown kid in the countryside, and his father is a gambler.

How could he gain the appreciation of the judge?
"Why drink tea? Just drink the cold paste."

Song Xuan called Jiao Ming in and brought over the specially made porcelain bottle.

Pour a cup for each person.

Zhang Kang looked at the square table filled with books and the writing brushes, inkstones, and writing brushes of the three students, with a little cat servant rushing towards him at his feet. He smiled.

"Shi Er Lang, are you preparing for the exam?"

"Of course. I see there are at least a thousand students who have registered, and some have not yet arrived."

Song Xuan took a sip of the cold drink:
"I don't want to miss this exam and wait another year, wasting time."

(End of this chapter)