Great Zhou Wensheng

Chapter 79 The Old Scholar's Banquet, A Joint Petition! (Third Update)
Zhao Zilu worked through the night, arranging for his associates, scions of prominent families, to hire scholars at great expense to praise his county examination essays. He also sent people to pleasure boats to spread Jiang Xingzhou's erotic poem "Bodhisattva's Charm: Ode to Feet" among the brothels.

Once everything is arranged properly.

He then hurriedly returned to his residence, planning to host a "scholars' banquet" to invite some pedantic old scholars and stubborn moralists from his own residence, and to incite them to join in condemning Jiang Xingzhou in order to ruin his reputation.

Such pedantic old scholars can be found in every prefecture and county.
They had failed the imperial examinations for years, harboring deep resentment. They considered themselves superior but looked down on others, and loved to write articles criticizing other scholars.

but,

How could someone with the mere title of top scorer in the county-level examination possibly entertain those self-righteous old scholars?
If it weren't for the prestige of the Zhao family, the transport commissioner of Jiangzhou, these arrogant and pedantic scholars probably wouldn't have even given the invitation a second glance.

Zhao Zilu strode to the waterside pavilion of the Zhao residence.

Upon finding Zhao Bingzhu, the head of the Zhao family, who was enjoying tea and playing with bookworms, Zhao Bingzhu bowed respectfully and said, "Father!"
"I plan to host a banquet in the name of the Zhao family, inviting five or ten highly respected scholars to celebrate my outstanding essay and make a name for myself!"

Of course, a more prestigious "Banquet for Juren" would be even more effective.

Unfortunately, even if the Zhao family puts in all their efforts, they may not be able to accomplish it.

These scholars, all of noble birth, were heads of various families and households in Jiangzhou. If it weren't for the literary giants of Jiangzhou personally extending an invitation, who would be willing to attend the banquet and promote someone else's literary reputation?
"Yeah! Go ahead!"

Zhao Bingzhu glanced at Zhao Zilu and nodded slightly, "Don't be stingy with the money that needs to be spent!"

recently,

He was secretly vying for power with Li Mo, the magistrate of Jiangyin County, trying to overthrow him and take his place, so he had no time to look after Zhao Zilu.

Fortunately,

This illegitimate son of the Zhao family is quite promising. Not only is he intelligent, but he also won first place in the prefectural examination for the title of "Children of the Imperial Academy," which saved his father a lot of trouble.

"In that case, you will be in charge of hosting a banquet for some scholars on behalf of the Zhao family." Zhao Bingzhu pondered for a moment. "Remember, the Zhao family's reputation is of utmost importance!"

"Thank you for your kindness, Father!"

Zhao Zilu was overjoyed and immediately bowed.

A hint of smugness flashed beneath his lowered eyes—with his father's words, he could legitimately use the Zhao family's wealth to host a banquet for the old scholars without having to use his own private funds.

Moonlit night.

Taking advantage of the momentum, Zhao Zilu spent several hundred taels of silver to book a large private room at Zuixianlou that very night, and specially invited the old scholars of his household who were over sixty or even eighty years old to a banquet.

These pedantic scholars and Confucian masters usually live in quiet solitude, rarely receiving any invitations to banquets.

I am delighted to receive such hospitality today and gladly accept the invitation.

The private room was brightly lit with candles, and more than ten elderly scholars were attending the banquet.

Zhao Zilu was extremely polite, toasting the old scholars while praising their past writings, which made them very happy.

"As a junior, I have come across a very popular erotic poem today, and I dare not keep it to myself. I humbly request that you seniors take a look!"

After three rounds of drinking,

Seeing that the time was ripe, Zhao Zilu pretended to be heartbroken and presented the poem "Bodhisattva's Charm: Ode to Feet" to everyone.

"This is an insult to scholarship! An insult to scholarship!"

An old scholar with white hair and beard, after reading "Bodhisattva's Charm: Ode to Feet" for the first time, without even looking at the contents carefully, slammed his fist on the table and stood up, his beard trembling with anger.

"Immoral!"

Another old scholar, furious, slammed his wine glass down, oblivious to the wine splashing onto his sleeves.

"A poem about feet? In my life I have read countless articles, but I have never seen anyone so bold!"

The most respected scholar, Old Master Li, pointed to the poem with trembling hands: "A woman's jade feet are a private matter between women; how can they be displayed so openly and brazenly?"

Before she could finish speaking, her face was already flushed red with shame and indignation.

He had five wives and concubines.

Normally, she would always cover herself up completely with her skirt, never letting a single bit of it show.

"The century-old reputation of Jiangzhou's literary circles is about to be ruined by such scoundrels!"

Who wrote this?

"The article is signed Jiang Xingzhou. I have never heard of this person before!"

These old scholars rarely went out; they usually buried themselves in their studies and read behind closed doors.

"Who is this Jiang Xingzhou?"

An old scholar asked in a trembling voice, "Could it be a member of some prominent family or noble clan in Jiangzhou? How dare they write such lewd and obscene songs?"

He worried that if it were the legitimate son of a powerful family in Jiangzhou, they, a group of old scholars, would be like throwing an egg against a rock.

The elderly scholars in the room all had ashen faces, and some were so angry that they pounded their chests, as if they had witnessed the collapse of social order in Jiangzhou Prefecture.

Inside the private room, shouts and curses rose and fell, and the thin sheet of poetry was passed around among the old scholars as if it were a hot potato.

"well--!"

Zhao Zilu sighed deeply, his face showing worry, and shook his head as if helpless, adding fuel to the fire, saying, "Speaking of Jiang Xingzhou, he is just a poor boy from Jiangyin. He lost his father at a young age and has no family background."

When I was young, I was left unsupervised.

I wonder where he is; he's been reading countless erotic plays from the brothels and learned this skill of writing erotic poems.

Upon hearing this, the old scholars secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Since he was a poor student, he wasn't afraid of offending anyone.

Zhao Zilu paused for a moment,

Suddenly, he changed the subject, his tone tinged with envy: "But this person is exceptionally gifted in literature, his poems and essays are the best in Jiangzhou Prefecture!"
Gentlemen, please look at this poem, "Bodhisattva's Charm: Ode to Feet." Its ornate language and refined imagery will prove my words true!

In my humble opinion...

Zhao Zilu hesitated and was somewhat fearful. He lowered his voice and said, "In this year's prefectural examination, the position of the top scholar is probably rightfully his."

He gave a wry smile, cupped his hands in a respectful bow, and said, "To be honest, although I was fortunate enough to be ranked first among the candidates in this prefecture's civil service examination, I am ashamed of my own shortcomings."

Now, all the students in the five counties of Jiangzhou Prefecture follow his lead, fawning over him; his influence is already immense.

"Forget it, I can't win this argument!"

Zhao Zilu, with a magnanimous expression, said, "A gentleman should help others achieve their goals. I will give him the top spot in this year's prefectural examination!"

The old scholars changed color upon hearing this.

"absurd!"

An elderly scholar with white hair slammed his hand on the table, causing the cups and saucers to clatter. "If such a poor but arrogant fool were to pass the prefectural examination and become the top scholar, wouldn't our Jiangzhou Prefecture's century-old literary tradition become a laughingstock?"

How would the literati and scholars of the ten prefectures of Jiangnan view the students of my Jiangzhou Prefecture? Would they all think of such eccentric and flamboyant individuals as him?

"No, absolutely not!"

The poor but eccentric scholar who wrote such erotic poems could become the top scholar in the imperial examinations!
Will all the students of Jiangzhou Prefecture follow this decadent path in the future?

How can we, scholars of this generation, possibly face our ancestors in Jiangzhou Prefecture?

Another old scholar, dressed in a faded blue shirt, stood up shakily, his beard trembling with anger.

The assembled elderly scholars were filled with indignation; some beat their chests and stamped their feet, while others pounded the ground with their canes.

"The world is going to the dogs, and people's hearts are no longer what they used to be!"

Li Xiucai said in a trembling voice, "When the Prefectural Governor comes out of the pass, I will risk my life to submit a joint petition!"
We scholars must not allow such a reckless person to ruin the reputation of Jiangzhou!

"Yes! A joint petition!"

More than ten elderly scholars echoed in unison.

"Strip him of his eligibility for the prefectural examination for three years, ban him from taking the prefectural examination this year, and make an example of him to deter others!"

These white-haired old scholars were all red-faced, their cloudy old eyes burning with anger.

"Alas! It's a bit too late for the students!"

Zhao Zilu fell silent.

He simply pushed open the carved window of the private room silently and sighed.

The moment the night breeze rushed in, the sounds of music and revelry filled the building.

Inside the Drunken Immortal Pavilion, dozens of courtesans on the stage gracefully unfurled their sleeves and slightly parted their lips, singing the song "Bodhisattva's Charm: Ode to Feet".

Under the bright red candlelight, the singing girls lightly touched their embroidered shoes, their silk stockings stirring up dust, creating a scene of enchanting beauty.

The spectators below the pavilion watched intently, their faces flushed, cheering enthusiastically.

"What kind of behavior is this?! What kind of behavior is this?!"

"Shameless! The morals have deteriorated to this extent!"

The old scholars were speechless with astonishment, and were so angry they almost fainted.

Some people clutched their chests, some covered their faces with their sleeves, and some even slumped into their chairs, muttering "the collapse of rites and music."

"Zilu is definitely not jealous of talent!"
If the author of this erotic poem were to become the top scholar in the imperial examinations, the literary tradition of Jiangzhou would be in grave danger!

The student's writing skills are lacking, but if you ask yourself honestly, the character of the writing is upright!

All of you senior scholars are highly respected elders from renowned families.

Zilu, I'm entrusting this to you!

Zhao Zilu suddenly turned around, took a deep breath, his eyes slightly red, and solemnly took out ten volumes of articles from his sleeve.

Inside each volume of text was a hundred-tael silver ingot.

At this point, he choked up and could not speak, only offering the article with both hands, saying, "The hope of Jiangzhou's literary world rests entirely on you seniors!"

The eighty-year-old scholar, Li, tremblingly accepted the paper. With his dim old eyes, he could only make out the words "human relations" and "morality" on the paper, and immediately tears streamed down his face.

They silently accepted the one hundred taels of silver hidden inside the article.

"What a sensible and good child!"

We old folks will certainly speak up for you!

This is true scholarship, the hope for the future of Jiangzhou's literary world! This is how a top scholar in Jiangzhou Prefecture should be!

He had no interest in reading the article at all; he was completely enraged by the erotic poem "Bodhisattva's Charm: Ode to Feet".

Before the words were finished, another aria, "It's so delicate it's hard to describe," drifted from downstairs at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion.

The old scholar Li was so angry that he slammed the article on the table, splashing wine all over his sleeves.

"Walk!

No more waiting!
Dawn is approaching, let us go to the government office now and beat the drum!

We present this joint petition to Prefect Xue!
Jiang Xingzhou is hereby stripped of his eligibility for the prefectural examination and banned from taking the exam for three years, as a warning to others!

Old Scholar Li slammed his hand on the table, causing the teacups to clatter and fall to the ground.

The veins on the back of his thin, bony hand bulged as he grabbed a scroll of joint-signature books from the table and wrote his name on it.

"Who would like to join me in signing this?!"

"We are willing to join in!"

"Even if it costs me my old bones, I will knock on the door of the government office today!"

Upon hearing this, the old scholars suddenly stood up and left Zuixianlou.

"How dare a mere poor scholar ruin the literary world of Jiangzhou!"

Eighty-year-old scholar Li, leaning shakily on his cane, walked at the front and spoke in a hoarse voice.

As dawn broke in the east, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed on the bluestone path, and the old scholar's plain robe and wide sleeves fluttered in the morning breeze.

Zhao Zilu followed at the back of the group of old scholars, gazing at the hunched yet incredibly stubborn backs of those old scholars ahead, a barely perceptible smile flickering across his lips.

These pedantic and stubborn old scholars, having failed the imperial examinations for years, were indeed filled with resentment!
They were completely unscrupulous, asking for only a hundred taels of silver as payment, and would explode at the slightest provocation!
In particular, this old scholar Li Qing often led the way in causing a ruckus at the government office and criticizing other scholars.

If it were young scholars with bright futures, they would certainly not be willing to step forward and jointly submit a petition.

"Boom--!"

The first drumbeat shattered the tranquility of dawn, startling the night watchmen who were on duty.

Between the alternation of drumsticks,
The hoarse shouts of more than a dozen elderly scholars in their seventies and eighties echoed in front of the government office gate.

"This old man from Jiangzhou!"

They jointly petitioned to see the prefect!

The cultural heritage of Jiangzhou is in grave danger!

(End of this chapter)