"Isn't that His Highness the Fifth Prince? The newly-promoted Imperial Prince Jianjiu..."
"You are so young, how can you teach us? It's strange that all the noble lords have such subtle remarks..."
"What are they dressed up like? They also have swords on their waists. Are they here just to cause trouble?"
The Confucian scholars sitting underneath couldn't help but discuss and whisper among themselves.
Zhu Su ignored them, and he, Zhu Di, Zhu Chong, Li Jinglong and others sat down carelessly in front of everyone's gaze. Seeing that the Confucian scholar who was preaching at the front was looking at him blankly, Zhu Su waved his hand and said, "What are you doing here in a daze? Continue. Don't worry about the wine, and continue talking about your lofty views."
He didn't seem to have any sense of being a guest, and his expression was relaxed, as if he were listening to music on the hook.
The Confucian scholar in front seemed to be from the Imperial College. When Zhu Su kept saying "I offer wine," he broke into a cold sweat, but he couldn't utter a single word.
"Humph." An old man who was also sitting aside snorted coldly. He did not look at Zhu Su, but just said to himself: "The world is declining, and people's hearts are not the same as before. People in such strange clothes and ignorant of etiquette can actually be arrogant. In a high position?"
"The world is declining? Is this old man nostalgic for the era of hunger and death in the late Yuan Dynasty? Besides, I am here with the intention of learning. Confucius taught without distinction, so what kind of knowledge are you preaching? Could it be that this king is not worthy enough to listen to it?”
This sentence of holding a gun and a stick, and then turning to calling me the king, is just short of telling me who you are, and you are not qualified to talk about the yin and yang of me, the king. The old man's face froze, and Lu Ben quickly tried to smooth things over: "Your Highness, this is Mr. Zhou Rugui, a great scholar from Pingyang. Mr. Zhou, this is our King Wu of the Ming Dynasty. His talent has been taught by heaven, and he is really the talent of our Ming Dynasty tomorrow!"
"The mountain man has no eyes and no clue, and he rushes into His Highness." Zhou Rugui pretended to apologize to Zhu Su as if he didn't recognize him just now. "Since Your Highness is interested in learning from us, we are naturally happy."
Zhu Su took out the folding fan from his belt and patted it a few times in his hand: "Whether you want to learn or not depends on whether you have anything to learn. Don't worry about this ritual, just continue according to your procedures."
They were quarrelsome and never gave in.
This cultural gathering is unprecedented in scale and was originally scheduled to last for more than ten days. Therefore, in the past few days, these officials and scholars would not easily take the stage to give lectures.
At the beginning, young scholars took the stage, either talking about their opinions or debating with each other. Then the older officials and the Three Elders of Pingyang and other great scholars would give guidance and critique one by one. In the last few days, Fang was the highlight where the great Confucians held lectures in person.
Although they knew that this literary meeting was for Zhu Su, the Imperial College's imperial concubine, if Zhu Su was not present, those young scholars might still dare to debate the scriptures and even criticize him. But at this time, Zhu Su himself was already present, and he looked very competitive. Many young scholars who were originally eager to try, did not dare to come forward easily at this time.
Needless to say, the scholar on the field was speechless for a long time, then walked away in despair. What followed was a long silence, and no one dared to come up to the high platform. One of the main initiators of this literary meeting, Zhan Tong, the Minister of Civil Affairs, said loudly: "You can speak freely, why should you be afraid? Na Na, you dare not speak. Do you think that His Highness is King Li of Zhou?"
This statement may seem fair, but it is a hidden jab that pushes Zhu Su to the level of "tyranny". In ancient times, King Li of Zhou Dynasty had the words to defend the people, which has been reviled through the ages. By saying this, he secretly pointed out that the students did not dare to speak because they were afraid of the power of the Fifth Highness, which directly pushed Zhu Su to the opposition of these young students.
Fang Xiaoru's expression changed and he stood up to refute, but Zhu Su pushed him down with a folding fan.
Humph, you are an old and rotten scholar, and your words are just cheap, so why not let you do it.
Everyone in Zhu Chong knew that Zhu Su was not here just to use his power to suppress others, so they only looked slightly radiant and did not show their faces. Zhu Su himself was even more calm, which surprised Zhan Tong. He originally thought that His Highness the Fifth Prince would be so angry that he would rush forward and scold him angrily.
There was silence for a while, and finally, a Confucian scholar bravely stood up. He took the initiative to come to the stage, saluted Zhu Su and others who were sitting upright, and said: "Three gentlemen, your lords, your highness, the crown prince, and all my classmates. Since no one is on stage, I would like to ask my disciple Huang Zicheng to show his embarrassment boldly. It’s time to use some advice to attract others.”
"What a high-spirited young student. There is no need to be a heretic, it's okay if you say so." The great scholar named Zheng Rugui praised him with a twist of his beard.
When Zhu Su heard him announcing his home status, he couldn't help but look at this person a few more times. Is this guy Huang Zicheng? This was an unexpected gain.
The skin is pretty good, no wonder he was able to fool Emperor Jianwen. Jianwen is a fool, and he has seen two of them.
After saying that, he glanced at Fang Xiaoru who looked like he was facing a formidable enemy.
"Yes, the student wants to talk about how the Ming Dynasty should enrich the country and strengthen the people, and revitalize the country. If there is something wrong, I hope you will correct it." Huang Zicheng talked eloquently, but he did not show any stage fright.
"The Mongolian Yuan Dynasty has been brutal and has ravaged China for hundreds of years, and China has long been exhausted. Students believe that the most important thing now is to clarify the principles and orthodox teachings. Follow the laws of nature and reshape the universe. Don't be overjoyed and waste people's energy..."
Huang Zicheng wrote eloquently and eloquently, and he spoke thousands of words. The content was nothing more than focusing on Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, and believed that the correctness of the Neo-Confucianism should be reorganized and the status of literati should be improved. He emphasized the laws of nature and human desires, and believed that the new Ming Dynasty should follow the laws of nature and eliminate human desires. Only in this way can the world be in order, everyone should be content with the status quo, understand their respective positions, and restore the prosperity of the three generations of the Western Zhou Dynasty.
He is a man who is full of citations and quotations from the classics. He is indeed a well-read man. A group of Confucian scholars below listened in awe and marveled. Many people showed admiration and were surprised that such a young student could speak so well in such a short time.
Even many of the court officials and the three elders of Pingyang shook their heads as if they were drinking wine. The admiration in his eyes was not concealed at all. Some people also peeked to see Zhu Su, only to see that His Highness the Prince and Master of Ceremonial Wine was holding his hands on his chin, supporting himself on the table in front of him, looking drowsy.
"Without knowledge and skills, there is no cure!" the great Confucians thought in their hearts.
As Huang Zicheng said this, he felt the admiring glances of others and couldn't help but feel proud. But seeing that His Highness the Prince looked uninterested and even dismissive, Huang Zicheng felt stagnant again.
According to what he thought, he had already performed beyond his level this time, and was unanimously recognized by his fellow classmates. Such an eloquent article should shock these royal family members to heaven and earth, and then lower their dignity to the highest level and submit to them at all costs.
In this way, it is in line with the way of courtesy and virtue.
But this Fifth Highness didn't even look at him, and he almost cried out. The Second and Fourth Highnesses on his left were also pointing at him with disdain in their eyes...
What, are you looking down on me, Huang Zicheng?
Huang Zicheng was still an immature boy at this time, and he no longer looked like the powerful Jianwen Sansi in the future. Seeing that he was so slighted, a surge of anger suddenly surged into his chest. At this moment, he saw the Fifth Highness simply lying on the table, with a sparkling reflection at the corner of his mouth...
I actually fell asleep listening to it!
Huang Zicheng suddenly became furious and felt that he had been greatly insulted. He changed the topic and pointed directly at Zhu Su: "Student, please be brave, please obey the laws of nature and the people and resign from the position of offering wine in the Imperial College!"
"Your Highness has not studied famous teachings and has made no achievements. How can you talk about teaching and educating people? This is misleading the children!"
(End of chapter)
