Top Scholar

Chapter 105 You go out and wait first.
"The county magistrate is so dedicated, even selecting talents for the country?" Su Luxiao was surprised. Could it be that the 'son of a bitch Lu Zhaoye' that his father mentioned was actually a good official?
“Selecting talent for the country? You could say that, of course.” Zhu Liu laughed. “But this Magistrate Lu has been in office for eleven years, and he’s been desperate for a promotion… It’s said that to bring good luck, he even made his pillows one end big and the other small. He also hired a Cantonese chef to make him bamboo-pressed noodles every day. His concubine gave birth to a son, and they both named him Lu Dingsheng!”

"Huh?" Su Lu thought to himself, is it really that abstract? But there have always been officials like this throughout history. It seems that being an official is a mysterious art...

"Therefore, we should first consider whether his actions can help him get promoted," Zhu Liu said.

"Would that help him get promoted?" Su Lu asked.

"Yes. The current emperor values ​​literature. As long as the county's civil service examination results are good, the annual assessment will naturally include 'effective education and talent cultivation,' which is a top-notch achievement. With Hejiang's level, they don't even need to pass the imperial examination. Just producing two more successful candidates in one examination is enough to earn them an outstanding reputation. With a little maneuvering, they can achieve their goal." Zhu Liu was very familiar with the ways of officialdom, which showed that he was indeed determined to pursue a career in government.

“But producing a successful candidate in the provincial examination cannot rely on luck. We must discover talent early and nurture it carefully.” Zhu Liu continued, “It will be too late to start after the candidate has passed the county-level examination, because anyone who has passed the county-level examination has already made connections with the prefecture and doesn’t need to be at the mercy of the government. So we must start by recommending and supporting candidates from the time they pass the county-level examination. Only then will it count.”

"Isn't this the recommendation system of the Han Dynasty?" Su Lu couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

“Anything that has existed for a long time never truly disappears; it simply manifests itself in a different form.” Zhu Liu sighed and then earnestly reminded Su Lu, “To pass the imperial examination, one naturally needs personal talent and hard work, but also the support and promotion of family elders and local officials. Every successful candidate in the imperial examination did not simply rely on studying, so one must learn to manage one’s career in the examinations.”

"Yes, I will keep the headmaster's teachings in mind." Su Lu hurriedly replied respectfully. Having learned from his elder brother's lesson, he listened to these words with particular reverence.

"The reason my uncle always fails the imperial examinations is largely because the capital is too far away, and our family can't help him." Zhu Zi and this child dared to say anything, treating Su Lu as family at all. "Fortunately, the literary tradition in Sichuan has been flourishing in recent years. Not only has the great scholar Yang emerged, but scholar Liu has also opened his own school. Now we can finally see some hope."

Zhu Liu coughed several times before the simpleton finally shut up.

However, Su Lu followed Zhu Liu for almost half a year and heard him tell many anecdotes about the court. He learned that Grand Secretary Yang was Yang Tinghe, and that Scholar Liu was no ordinary person. He was the top scholar in the provincial examination in the nineteenth year of Chenghua, and the second-highest scorer in the following year. He was appointed as a Hanlin scholar and served as a lecturer in the Eastern Palace like Yang Tinghe. He was known as Liu Chun, one of the two gems of Shu!

Judging from the headmaster's previous veiled criticisms, he must have tried to get through these two families quite a bit before entering the capital, but he probably ran into a wall with the Yang family, and may even have had a falling out with that child prodigy, Yang. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so sarcastic every time he mentions Young Master Yang…

Combining this with Zhu Zihe's words, it's estimated that the headmaster has paved the way for Liu Chun, and in the past two years, things have finally gotten interesting and he can start working on it...

If Zhu Zihe knew that Su Lu had deduced so much from just a few words, he would probably roll his eyes in anger.

"Alright, class is starting. Enough with the chit-chat. Just prepare well and don't embarrass me." Headmaster Zhu ended the conversation, deciding that he would definitely avoid discussing these matters with his nephew in the future...

"Yes," the two quickly replied.

"Have you finished writing the essay 'On the Faults of the Song Dynasty' that I assigned last time?" Zhu Liu asked.

"It's done." The two then presented their assignments.

Zhu Liu nodded, then opened his nephew's piece and began to read it aloud with his usual intonation—

"The fall of the Song Dynasty was not due to weak military and scarce food supplies, but rather to the Xining Reforms, which were marked by fierce factional strife and rampant self-interest! The Jingkang Incident saw the Jin cavalry cross the river, the two emperors flee north, and the century-old foundation collapsed in an instant..."

"...Some say that 'the new laws were intended to save the times,' but this is a fallacy! Ancestral systems are like nourishing life, but Anshi recklessly used drastic measures, leading to a great loss of vitality! Factional strife eliminated loyal officials, corrupting the morale of the scholars; even without the Jin army, the dynasty would have collapsed! Alas! The Song Dynasty prospered because it preserved the status quo and prioritized the people's livelihood; it declined because it reformed the laws while neglecting morality. Future generations should learn from this: governance values ​​stability over abrupt changes, and talent values ​​loyalty over personal gain. Disregarding ancestral systems and appointing private factions will inevitably lead to ruin, even if the dynasty is wealthy!"

Zhu Liu read the long article in one go and couldn't help but nod, finding his 'brainless nephew' much more agreeable now.

The article is well-reasoned and concise, with a consistent style and frequent memorable quotes, making it a truly magnificent piece.

Although the article's viewpoints were not new, consisting of the definitive conclusions of the Southern Song emperors and ministers, it was still quite good for a fourteen-year-old boy. He had also read Yang Shen's imitation of "On the Faults of Qin," which, while brimming with talent, was similarly clichéd and lacked any originality.

Of course, expecting children to have groundbreaking insights or unprecedented perspectives is truly asking the impossible. What they are being asked to do now, like this imitation of classical Chinese texts, is simply learning from the ancients and improving themselves.

To put it bluntly, it's just parroting what others have said...

Zhu Liu glanced at his eldest nephew, thinking to himself, "So, he's made quite a bit of progress in the past six months. Why don't I feel anything?"

Then he saw another horse standing to the side... Well, it's not that you don't know the value of something, it's that you don't compare it to others.

Zhu Liu then picked up another work. His throat was dry after reading just one, so he picked up his teacup while reading, intending to moisten his throat before continuing.

To everyone's surprise, he froze as he looked at the workbook, staring intently at it, holding his teacup up for quite a while without putting it down.

Seeing his uncle looking like he'd seen a ghost, Zhu Zihe couldn't help but feel curious. He went around behind the desk to see what Su Lu had written that could frighten his uncle like that.

To everyone's surprise, when Zhu Liu saw him coming, he actually closed the workbook, not letting his nephew see it.

“Take a look,” Zhu Zihe said.

“No, take it back.” Zhu Liu shook his head decisively. “Isn’t the point of writing an article to be read by others?” Zhu Zihe muttered, but still obediently returned it.

Not satisfied, Zhu Liu added, "Go back first, I'll explain your article to you tomorrow."

"Uncle..." Zhu Zihe was dumbfounded. What? I'm not even worthy to share a trough with you anymore?

"Tsk..." Zhu Liu frowned and waved his hand, telling him to stop dawdling.

Zhu Zihe reluctantly withdrew, his eyes filled with resentment as he looked at Su Lu.

Su Lu still looked helpless. He had never acted opposite him before, but the kid had become addicted to performing solo acts.

After Zhu Zihe left, Zhu Liu slammed Su Lu's article on the table, stared at him intently, and asked, "Who taught you these words?"

"What did you say?" Su Lu asked.

"That's exactly what I said!" Zhu Liu pointed to Su Lu's article and recited it with great recollection without even having to read it again:
Mencius said, "The people are the most important, the state is next, and the ruler is the least important." The Song Dynasty went against this principle and established a system of governance. It prioritized the stability of the government in every aspect. In the military, it strengthened the central government and weakened local officials, so that soldiers did not know their generals and generals had no power. In the government, there were too many officials and too many positions, and internal strife intensified.

"...Internal strife is beyond prevention, power struggles prevail over good governance, and when trapped, there is no salvation, ultimately leading to the demise of autocracy. The Jurchen uprising led to the collapse of the Jin dynasty, and the capture of the two emperors in the north became an eternal regret. Why? Because the selfishness of one family overshadowed the world!"

After reciting Su Lu's "On the Faults of the Song Dynasty" in one go, Zhu Liu said with a wry smile, "Your article is comparable to Chen Kongzhang's. I had a toothache today, but it actually got better after reading it."

"The headmaster is exaggerating; this is just a haphazard attempt by a mere lad," Su Lu said with self-awareness. "How can it be compared to 'A Proclamation to the Governor of Yu Province on Behalf of Yuan Shao'?"

"His literary talent is certainly inferior to Chen Lin's, but the 'Tao' in this article is something Chen Kongzhang cannot understand." Zhu Liu shook his head and stared intently at Su Lu, saying, "Who taught you these words? Or what book did you read them from?"

"..." Su Lu could only smile bitterly and say, "I can only say that it was taught by Mencius and that I learned it from the 'Continuation of the Comprehensive Mirror'."

"Really?" Zhu Liu was still unwilling to give up.

“Since I began my formal education, I have never lied to my teachers,” Su Lu said solemnly.

“That’s true…” Zhu Liu finally gave up, scratching his forehead and saying, “Where would a great sage live in seclusion in this remote mountain valley? How miserable it would be to spend all day playing the lute to a cow.”

“Headmaster, we are human beings, not cows…” Su Lu corrected.

"That's not what I meant, don't misunderstand." Zhu Liu waved his hand and said seriously to Su Lu, "It means you are more insightful than I imagined—in just three days of reading history, you have grasped the key points that others have never grasped, which has puzzled me for many years and suddenly made sense!"

Su Lu then realized what had happened. He couldn't help but feel secretly ashamed, thinking to himself that this was indeed his first time reading Song Dynasty history, but he had listened to Professor Wang's lectures on Song Dynasty history on the "Lecture Room" program…

Therefore, one's own historical perspective is actually formed after hundreds of years of reflection by later generations, so it is normal for them to be intimidated by Zhu Shanzhang.

"Moreover, although you spoke of the Song Dynasty, every word you uttered pointed to our own dynasty." Headmaster Zhu sighed deeply, "I now feel that if our dynasty does not make changes, it will be difficult to escape the same fate as the Song Dynasty!"

"No, I didn't, don't say that." Su Lu hurriedly issued a disclaimer: "This disciple is really just stating the facts, only talking about the Song Dynasty, and has absolutely no intention of implying anything about the current dynasty."

“The past is a guide for the future. Isn’t writing about learning from history and using the past to satirize the present?” But Zhu Shanzhang didn’t believe him at all. He thought that he had concerns, so he smiled and reassured him, “You don’t need to worry. The current emperor is extremely enlightened. No one will be punished for their words.”

Su Lu smiled wryly and said, "But I really didn't mean to use the past to satirize the present. Moreover, the current dynasty has undergone a qualitative change compared to the early days of the dynasty, and it has nothing to do with the Song dynasty. It doesn't match this article at all."

"How so?" Headmaster Zhu asked humbly.

In order to shed the accusation of "using the past to satirize the present," Su Lu had no choice but to explain: "I've heard that the core interest of a country is taxation, and the underlying purpose of the country's design is to collect taxes."

"That statement is biased. Our Great Ming Dynasty was founded to defend against the Tartars and protect China!" Headmaster Zhu immediately retorted.

"It's just that the monarch wants to protect his tax revenue."

"Uh..." Zhu Shanzhang was speechless after being refuted, and finally understood the helplessness that Zhang Yanqiu had felt back then.

P.S. The two books I mentioned in the previous chapter, *Song Shi Zhi* and *Song Shi Xin Bian*, are both from the Jiajing era. I made a mistake. My memory is failing me, and I was blindly confident, thinking that writing about the Ming Dynasty would be a piece of cake without needing to verify anything. As a result, I made a blunder. I apologize.

(End of this chapter)