In Xiajiufu outside Xiguan, Guangzhou, there is a settlement called Xiuyifang. There is a small alley in the neighborhood called Wenlan Lane. The famous Wenlan Academy is located here.
During the Tianqi period, Wei Zhongxian persecuted the Donglin Party members and issued the "Donglin Point General Record", and then abandoned Tianxia Academy, and Wenlan Academy was not spared.
The academy occupies a very large area, with not only several courtyards, but also a Wenchang Temple specially built in the backyard, and there are dozens of houses for rent in the surrounding area. Coupled with the fields scattered in various counties and many paved properties in the city, the wealth is abundant, ranking first in Guangzhou.
More than half a year ago, the Senate resorted to thunderous tactics, and the city of Guangzhou changed its flag overnight. The officials in Guangzhou fled to death, the whole city was in commotion, and the academy was closed for a time. With the efforts of the Guangzhou Municipal Government, the situation quickly returned to stability, and Wenlan Academy reopened its doors.
Outside the city, Liu Xiang's new city government was demolishing the old and building new ones, and various renovation works were in full swing. However, the situation in Wenlan Academy remained calm. To the scholars in this academy, these seemed to have nothing to do with them.
Although the Australians have announced that they will not hold imperial examinations, all the boy's examinations, county examinations, government examinations, hospital examinations and rural examinations held in Guangzhou in the past have been cancelled. The Australians hold their own "Civil Service Examination" and do not test contemporary essays. However, in this college, students are still studying various contemporary essay collections, discussing topic breaking, undertaking topics, starting lectures, mentioning, and comparing. Examination questions in recent years and the methods of articles that examiners like.
But this illusion far away from reality is not because they really love eight-part essay, but because of a strong inertia. Most academies in the Ming Dynasty did not pay attention to the original purpose of establishing academies: giving lectures, and instead focused on exam-oriented learning. The rise of the "Dongxue Examination" in the late Ming Dynasty made this trend intensify.
The so-called "Dong Academic Examination" started in the Tianqi period, that is, during each provincial examination, the famous major academies in the province each had a sponsorship quota. Wenlan Academy also has four places.
Therefore, in this No. 1 academy in Guangzhou, where only students can enroll, and where the tutors and instructors of the government are also responsible for teaching, taking the exam is a top priority, and everything among the teachers and students of the academy revolves around taking the exam. Although they know that Australians do not hold imperial examinations, they do not understand other knowledge except the Four Books and Five Classics, Shi Wen Ying and poetry. Since the academy is still distributing food rice and tuition money, the students in the academy will continue to do so. of "study".
However, the earth-shaking outside also affected the academy to some extent. For the students of Wenlan Academy, the biggest change is that the meals provided by the academy have become significantly better. In the past, the academy provided three meals a day, but the quality of the food was poor. Except for some poor scholars, children from well-off families with a little wealth were unwilling to eat in the academy. The rice is cooked with old rice mixed with a lot of grain and grain sand, and even the dishes served with the rice are difficult to eat. It's either stinky fish or rotten shrimp, or it's radish in vegetable skin. Boiling a meatless duck rack is a tooth-smashing sacrifice.
Nowadays, the three meals a day delivered by the academy are two thin and one dry, all of which are high-quality white rice. There is meat and fish in the dishes every day, and whole fish and chicken are also served on the first and fifteenth day of the lunar month. The "tuition money" and "food rice" that were originally given at a 20% discount under various names have also been distributed on time and in quantity; the various arrogant servants in the academy have become much more respectful recently.
Australians also have no fault for academies. Except for the police and "cadres" who came to investigate when applying for household registration and registration certificate, official officials never came to the academy. It is said that the academy directors and administrators invited Liu Fuyin of the Song Dynasty to the academy several times to "lecture", but Liu Fuyin refused.
The attitude of the Australians was polite and cold, and the students in the academy were somewhat disappointed. You must know that Wenlan Academy is the number one academy in Guangzhou. Not only rich, but also famous. Those who want to be admitted to the hospital must have the honor of being a student. When they go to the provincial examination, they have the most candidates in Guangzhou Prefecture.
I thought that when the Australians entered Guangzhou and wanted to change the dynasty, they would have to recruit some scholars to help them. For this reason, there was a very lively and almost hands-on discussion in the academy: Should we accept the "fake job" of the Australians?
Some students believe that the Ming Dynasty is exhausted. The Song Dynasty—it doesn’t matter how good the Australians are in the Song Dynasty—has landed on the mainland and is already competing in the Central Plains. With the strength of the Australian army, money and food, With great prosperity, a change of dynasty is just around the corner. Now if you can follow the dragon, you will be rich and powerful, and you can get a wife and a wife at your fingertips.
Another group of people believed that the other party was "crazy" and had "betrayed the divine grace" and insisted that the Ming Dynasty would fight back in less than a year and a half. By then, Liu Fuyin, Wen Desi, Ma Qianzhu and other "giant canals" would They will all be "executed to death as a warning to others".
The third group of people believed that Ming Dynasty was unable to fight back, but they were unwilling to surrender to the Australians. Among them, there are those who are cautious and unwilling to take risks, and some who think that the Australians "don't look like human masters". Others think that the Australians are "barbarians". No matter how good they are in culture, governance and martial arts, they are still "the kings of barbarians and Di". , not as good as the death of all the Xia."
The last group of people are purely "eating for life". In short, "the Ming Dynasty depends on the Ming Dynasty, and the Song Dynasty depends on the Song Dynasty." As long as the academy is open and there is food and rice, it doesn't matter who becomes the emperor.
The students in the academy, after eating and drinking at noon every day, each holding a cup of strong tea, would gather together in twos and threes and talk loudly.
Among these eloquent scholars, there was a young scholar, but he was alone.
Unlike some scholars and Confucian scholars, he did not participate in chats just to rest or study, but just stayed in his study alone in a daze.
This dazed young scholar is the fifth son of Gao Tianshi, the former head of the Guangzhou General League, and the brother of Gao Lingxiang, the current head of the Guangzhou General League. Gao Lingda is the daughter of Gao Tianshi's seventh concubine. He has been smart since he was a child. ―Although the seventh aunt was born in prostitution, she had also studied a lot since she was a child. Influenced by her mother, Gao Lingda liked reading and was very talented in her studies. Brother is different. Gao Tianshi believed that Gao Lingda was the hope of the Gao family to change their family. Although this hereditary leader is rich and powerful, he is despised by others." If he can produce a scholar, it will improve his family's status to some extent. Therefore, he will not be allowed to participate in family affairs from a young age and let him concentrate on read.
Gao Lingda took part in the county and government examinations and became a Tongsheng. Because of Gao Tianshi's relationship with Mo Rongxin, he entered this academy, which only allowed scholars, with the qualifications of a Tongsheng.
Although he entered Wenlan Academy and was supported by powerful people like Mo Rongxin, and Gao Tianshi was known as the "local prefect" in Guangzhou City, Gao Lingda has always been an outlier in the academy. No matter how hard he studied, From the professor at the mountain to the classmates in the courtyard, no matter whether they were rich or poor, they were unwilling to interact with him. Those who came from a wealthy family and a scholarly family regarded him as a savage beast and avoided him; those from poor families also felt that they were superior to him. Refuse to "turn the tables". Don't even say a word unless absolutely necessary.
Gao Lingda didn't know that this was called "cold violence". After studying in the academy for several years, although no one dared to bully him, no one wanted to be friends with him. He was like a non-existent person, alone in the academy, like a lonely ghost.
After his father Gao Tianshi died suddenly and suddenly, there was a dispute in the family over the heir. In fact, Gao Lingda had no interest in being the head of the Guangzhou General League. In his opinion, he was ignored in the academy all because of this "General League". The position of "head" is noisy.
It's just that the struggle for power has always been out of control. He soon became a pawn of his mother, the ambitious Seventh Concubine, who wanted to "hijack the group leader to make the group beggar", and joined the battle for succession. Many people in the Guandi Temple took him as their rallying cry, and there was a huge commotion. He is also manipulated like a marionette.
After failing in the fight for the throne, his biological mother Qi Tai "committed suicide". Gao Lingxiang did not make it difficult for his brother and allowed him to continue studying. But he sent several men to keep an eye on his every move.
No one paid attention to him in the academy, and he was even more neglected at home. In addition, both his parents died. Apart from grief, Gao Lingda felt that the way forward was bleak.
"Fifth Master, lunch is here!" followed by a greeting. The boy from the Gao family who brought him food came.
Gao Lingda's meals have always been provided by his family. Although his status in the Gao family has plummeted after the death of his wife, the food in the academy is still one day at a time.
The waiter opened the food box and placed the dishes on the table with ease: stir-fried bamboo shoots with Jinhua ham, stir-fried wolfberry sprouts with oil and salt, fish fillets with distiller's grains, cabbage with oyster sauce, and a large bowl of white rice.
"Fifth Master, this ham was given to me at the dock a few days ago. It is an authentic Dongyang product! I specially took care of cooking for you today." The boy introduced it enthusiastically.
Gao Lingda knew that this young man was also his eldest brother. He said this just to express his eldest brother's "goodwill" and to remind him that Gao Lingxiang had not forgotten him and was always thinking about him.
He knew that although the eldest brother was the head of the group, there were many people below him who were dissatisfied with him. He must be careful to prevent himself, the "loser", from being used as a "call to action" again.
"That's really troublesome for brother." Gao Lingda couldn't help but give up.
The Gao family enjoys the most on weekdays, and the few side dishes are all delicious, light and delicious. When one end came out, the scholars around saw it, and their already full stomachs seemed to react again. He quickly turned around to chat with his classmates.
This person said: "I found a geographical map of Australia in the past few days. It said that there are corrupt countries overseas. There was a Newtonian scholar in the country who said that all things are like magnets with the power to attract each other. It is strange and normal!" The person next to him replied! He said: "Sure enough, there is a strange story overseas. If all things attract each other, how can you and I not be attracted together?" Another person said: "What I said before may not be unreasonable. I once saw an object called a globe in a Thai church. This object is round and divided into two poles. It is said that the Spanish missionary Matteo Ricci spread it overseas. If it is as he said, everyone lives on the ball, and there is no gravity, wouldn't people fly?"
