Ping Zhao Lu

In the afternoon, the sun shone through the clouds, illuminating the courtyard of the East Palace with brightness and warmth.

Chu Heyuan sat at the stone table in the courtyard, enjoying a delicious meal. Beside him, Wang Ruo was absorbed in a book, studying hard.

Today he had driven his tutor away in anger. He had spent the entire morning comfortably lying in bed, soundly asleep, and only slowly got up to eat long after lunch.

Looking at the scene in front of him, Shi'an finally couldn't suppress the worry and dissatisfaction in his heart, and whispered to Chu Heyuan: "Your Highness, what's wrong with you recently? Not only did you not listen to the class carefully, but you also angered the Grand Tutor and left. If you continue like this, how... how shameful it will be!" As he spoke, he secretly glanced at Wang Ruo who was concentrating on reading and learning.

Seeing Wang Ruo's serious look, Shi'an seemed to suddenly understand why the prince had such abnormal behavior.

I guess it’s because I don’t like this reading companion.

Hearing Shi'an's words, Chu Heyuan put down the jade chopsticks in his hand without any concern and replied nonchalantly: "I have already learned all the things that the Grand Tutor taught me. There is no point in doing so. It would be better for me to have a good sleep."

Shi An was speechless upon hearing this. Just as he was about to open his mouth to offer some more advice, a voice as cold as the wind suddenly came over without warning: "Have you learned everything?"

This sudden voice was like a thunderclap, instantly making the two people present tremble violently. When they came to their senses, they saw the emperor with a stern face walking into the courtyard.

Shi'an, who reacted quickly, immediately bowed respectfully to the emperor along with the other palace servants.

Chu Heyuan was shocked when he saw this. He quickly stood up with a slightly flustered movement and said hurriedly: "Your son... pays his respects to the Emperor!" There was a hint of nervousness and awe in his voice.

At this moment, Wang Ruo, who was originally immersed in the ocean of knowledge, was disturbed by the sudden huge movement, and his thoughts were instantly pulled back to reality.

When he heard that it was the emperor who came here, his face changed suddenly. He did not dare to be negligent in the slightest. He hurriedly threw down the book in his hand, knelt on his knees, and respectfully saluted the emperor.

However, Chu Yunxiao did not immediately signal them to stand up. Instead, his face was gloomy and he glanced at the prince who was standing there a little uncomfortably, and then shifted his gaze to Wang Ruo who was kneeling.

After a brief pause, he quickly averted his gaze and turned to look at the Crown Prince. His tone was as cold as ice and he said, "You just said that you have learned everything that the Grand Tutor taught you?"

Hearing the emperor's question, Chu Heyuan paused slightly, hesitating for a moment, but finally gritted his teeth and answered with a lack of confidence: "Yes..."

Chu Yunxiao snorted coldly, seemingly dissatisfied with the answer.

He just flicked his sleeves, strode forward, and sat down steadily on the exquisitely carved stone chair.

After sitting firmly, he raised his eyes and glanced casually at the people who were still kneeling on the ground, then slowly said, "You all should get up first."

With the emperor's permission, everyone present shouted in unison: "Thank you, Your Majesty!" and stood up.

However, only the prince remained bowed and maintained the posture of bowing, not daring to move.

Seeing this scene, Shi'an, who was standing aside, couldn't help but break into a cold sweat for the prince, and secretly prayed in his heart that the prince could successfully pass the emperor's next test.

At this moment, the whole atmosphere was extremely solemn, as if even the air had solidified. Chu Heyuan felt that all the nerves in his body were tense.

Chu Yunxiao seemed oblivious to his nervousness. Instead, he asked gravely, "If a ruler of a country is cruel and unkind, causing the people to suffer unbearably, and everyone criticizes his tyranny, the ruler will be furious and block all channels for communication. If anyone makes further suggestions, they will be killed without mercy. What are your thoughts on this?"

Chu Heyuan was secretly delighted upon hearing this; the question was familiar to him, so he calmly replied, "I do not agree with this monarch's approach. Blocking the people's mouths is more dangerous than blocking a river. A blocked river bursting its banks will inevitably cause numerous casualties, and the same is true for the people. Therefore, those who govern rivers should dredge the river and guide the flow, while those who govern the people should open up channels for the people to express their opinions freely. This is what Duke Zhao said to King Li, and it applies precisely to my father's question."

Chu Yunxiao's expression was calm as he continued, "The Way of Heaven is to reduce the surplus and leave the deficiency. The Way of Man is different. If one reduces the deficiency to serve the surplus, how can one have surplus to serve the world?"

Chu Heyuan replied: "Only the Tao. Therefore, the sage does not rely on his achievements, and does not dwell on his accomplishments. He does not want to be seen as a virtuous person."

"Since you can answer this question, why are you still so naughty? Saints have done things but never take credit for themselves, and they will not be proud of themselves after achieving their achievements. So what about you, the prince? What is your attitude towards your studies? How do you treat your teacher? Just because you have studied before, you no longer study hard, and become proud and self-satisfied. This is not necessarily a good thing!" Chu Yunxiao scolded with a cold face.

Chu Heyuan had never expected that his father would use the issue of knowledge to reprimand him. In an instant, he felt his cheeks burning as if they were burned by fire, and he could not even utter a word of rebuttal or explanation.

Chu Yunxiao paid no attention to the Crown Prince's embarrassment and continued, "If you are neglecting your studies due to other distractions, then from today on, I will order that the Grand Tutor will no longer teach you. As for the Crown Prince's study companion, I will send him directly to Fushan Academy. Is this acceptable to you?"

When Chu Heyuan heard this, his heart sank and he instantly realized that the situation had become very bad.

This was definitely not the result he expected to see.

Although he really hoped that Wang Ruo could leave, he absolutely could not lose the teachings of the Grand Tutor.

Just as my father said, the road to learning is endless.

In reality, his reluctance to continue studying wasn't because he was truly tired of knowledge itself, but rather because the Grand Tutor had taken Wang Ruo's level and progress into consideration when teaching him, so most of the material he taught was material he had already thoroughly mastered. Furthermore, he didn't like Wang Ruo, so he didn't want to attend the Grand Tutor's class.

Thinking of this, Chu Heyuan took a deep breath, slowly took a step forward, then bowed respectfully, clasped his hands together in a bow, bowed his head and admitted his mistake, saying: "Your Majesty, I know I am wrong. Please punish me, father."

Seeing the young prince's sincere attitude in admitting his fault, Chu Yunxiao remained silent for a moment before speaking, "Since you have admitted your mistake, I will punish you by making you copy the Thousand Character Classic six hundred times. In half a month, I will come to inspect it personally. If you fail to complete it, you will be severely punished."

When Chu Heyuan heard this, his heart tightened and a bitter look appeared on his face.

Although the Thousand Character Classic is not long, copying it six hundred times is not an easy task!

However, facing his father's majesty, he dared not even think of resisting. He could only nod dejectedly and replied, "Yes, I accept the punishment. I will definitely not cause trouble for the Grand Tutor again in the future. I will study hard and live up to your expectations!"