Traveling through the emperor, overthrowing the empress dowager at the beginning

Willing to teach children from poor families.

But he himself did not come from a poor family.

Ye Chen has to look up to Zhang Xu.

When he walked into the attic, he found that many children in cloth clothes were kneeling in the classroom on the ground floor.

There were plates in front of these children, filled with sand with words written on the sand.

The children are writing with bamboo sticks.

A middle-aged man wearing a tall crown was walking among the children. From time to time, when he met a child who did not write well, he would correct him.

Ye Chen looked at the middle-aged man and found that he had no expression on his face and his words were quite harsh.

This made Ye Chen think of some not-so-good memories in the future.

Once upon a time, he was just like these children, studying hard in the classroom, except that his classroom was bright and clean.

He also didn't have to use a bamboo stick to write on the sand.

"Sir, do you want me to call the Master?"

Shen Qiu turned to look at Ye Chen and asked.

"No, I want to take another look."

Ye Chen shook his head and watched quietly for a while.

The middle-aged man was very serious about teaching, but he wrote each word stroke by stroke and then taught it to the children, using this clumsy method to enlighten the children.

Even though the middle-aged people worked very hard, most of the children were daydreaming. Even those who did not daydream could not learn a few words in the whole morning.

Finally, when the middle-aged people were tired of teaching, they let the children study on their own and walked out of the classroom.

Ye Chen strode forward.

"You are Master Zhang Xu, right?"

Ye Chen greeted first.

Zhang Xu was slightly stunned and looked at Ye Chen in surprise.

"Who is your Excellency?"

"I am just an insignificant person, but I have heard that Master Zhang is talented, so I came to visit him today."

Ye Chen did not reveal his identity immediately, mainly because he wanted to see if Zhang Xu was really talented.

"Oh, your compliment is too much. Zhang Xu is just a teacher and has no real talent."

Zhang Xu shook his head, acting very modestly.

Seeing this, a gleam of light immediately flashed in Ye Chen's eyes.

The more humble Zhang Xu acted, the more talented Ye Chen felt he was.

The reason why people are humble is that they understand the world, and the reason why people are arrogant is often because of ignorance.

"Mr. Zhang, you've taught these children very well."

"Ha, young children are ignorant, so I can only try my best to preach."

Zhang Xu laughed.

When he talked about teaching those children, his eyes lit up.

"Master Zhang, may I ask, how many students have you taught so far?"

Ye Chen asked again.

"This, Zhang doesn't remember."

"Then, Han Yu, Master Zhang must remember it, right?"

"Oh! Han Yu is a good boy and writes well."

Zhang Xu nodded vigorously.

Ye Chen saw it instantly.

Zhang Xu's talent is definitely superior to Han Yu's.

After all, the articles written by Han Yu would be snapped up by students from wealthy families, which was enough to prove their value.

In Zhang Xu's words, such articles are just good.

It can be seen that Zhang Xu must be able to write or have seen better articles.

"Master Zhang, with your talent, if the current emperor were to ask you to be the minister, you would be able to do the job, right?"

Ye Chen suddenly said again.

"Sir, don't say such things."

Zhang Xu shook his head and said firmly, "I am indifferent to fame and fortune. I only want to teach and educate people, and enlighten these children from humble backgrounds. I have absolutely no intention of serving as an official in the court."

Ye Chen looked at Zhang Xu's expression and knew that he was not lying.

He couldn't help but feel a little respect for him.

Someone who is willing to give up being a high-ranking official and spend his whole life educating children.

That means not only talent, but also virtue.

Ye Chen narrowed his eyes and suddenly said, "Master Zhang, it's not that easy to enlighten these children. How many words can you write on the sand every day?"

Hearing this, Zhang Xu couldn't help but sigh.

"Your Excellency doesn't know that educating children is not a simple matter."

Zhang Xu was also helpless. After years of teaching and educating people, he could deeply understand the hardships involved.

Most children are ignorant and do not understand the importance of learning. Even with a ruler, there is no way to force them to study seriously.

Often, among a class of children, there are only a few who can actually learn and recognize words.

But upon hearing this, Ye Chen suddenly smiled.

"Master Zhang, if I tell you that I have a method that can quickly enlighten these children, would you be interested?"

"What! Really?"

Zhang Xu was suddenly shocked.

"Absolutely true! However, someone will deliver this method to Master Zhang later. If Master Zhang is interested, he will have to exchange it for something."

Ye Chen spoke in a steady tone, his eyes bright as he stared into Zhang Xu's eyes.

"What?"

Zhang Xu frowned slightly and looked Ye Chen up and down with a scrutinizing gaze.

"Master Zhang, among the poor students you have taught over the years, please make a list of those who have real talent but are being overlooked. Also, please write down any cases you know of where the powerful and wealthy have oppressed the poor students."

Hearing this, Zhang Xu's whole body trembled, and a look of horror suddenly appeared on his old face.

"Who is your Excellency?"

"I am Ye Chen, the commander of the Emperor's Imperial Guards. I have come here today to investigate the injustices within Yingchuan Academy!"

Ye Chen revealed his false identity.

Zhang Xu quickly looked around and whispered, "Please do not say any more of this in Yingchuan Academy."

"I have long been indifferent to fame and fortune. I am sorry that I am powerless to do anything about the injustice done by the academy."

Hearing this, Ye Chen was extremely confident.

"Master Zhang, it's not too late to make a decision after you've seen the enlightenment method. Besides, those poor students are all your students. I'm sure you're heartbroken by their unfair treatment. If we don't eradicate the cancer in Yingchuan Academy, those poor students will never have a chance to succeed."

"Master Zhang, that's all I have to say. Please consider it carefully."

"If you agree, Master can enter the palace directly."

After Ye Chen finished speaking, he turned and left.

Zhang Xu stood there in a daze for a long time, but he just felt that Ye Chen had an extraordinary demeanor and was not like an ordinary person.

No reason.

Zhang Xu's originally calm mood was slightly disturbed, but he quickly suppressed it.

"Since you've decided to be indifferent to fame and fortune, how could Zhang lose his original intention?"

"Besides, the water is already very deep. If Zhang falls in, I'm afraid not even a bone will be left."

Zhang Xu shook his head. He had been teaching and educating people for decades. What kind of enlightenment methods had he not seen?

The current emperor is really underestimating him by using the method of enlightenment for children to tempt him.

Therefore, he didn’t take the conversation with Ye Chen too seriously.