Li Mubai watched as more and more students gathered near the announcement wall. Even the academy’s teachers came upon hearing the news, excitedly slapping their thighs and praising the poem as ingeniously simple yet profound.
The Erudite Li’s ears twitched, catching snippets of conversation carried by the mountain wind:
“First, we had ‘Who in the world doesn’t know you,’ and now this study-encouraging poem. Could it be that the poetic tradition of our Great Feng’s Confucian scholars is rising again?”
“In the past two hundred years, there have been few poetic masterpieces. Now that we have these two, we scholars of this generation can finally face our descendants with pride.”
“Compared to ‘Who in the world doesn’t know you,’ this study-encouraging poem will surely spread more widely and be frequently used to admonish scholars.”
“Why isn’t there a signature? Which Erudite wrote this?”
Li Mubai’s heart stirred at the thought that without a signature, this poem would undoubtedly spread far and wide. He glanced at his two friends talking in low voices, then retreated inconspicuously.
Zhang Shen suddenly noticed Li Mubai’s absence. “Where’s Brother Chunjing?”
“He was just here,” Chen Tai looked around, pointing towards the low wall. “There he is.”
Zhang Shen followed his gaze and saw Li Mubai dismissing the students and writing something on a large sheet of paper.
Zhang Shen and Chen Tai focused their attention, their pupils suddenly becoming profound, able to see every detail from a hundred meters away.
They saw clearly that Li Mubai was writing a small line next to the words “Study-Encouraging Poem”:
“At the end of the Gengzi year and the beginning of the Xinchou year, my teacher Mubai encouraged me to study diligently. Moved, I wrote this poem.”
This meant that at the end of the Gengzi year and the beginning of the Xinchou year, Teacher Li Mubai encouraged him to strive for success, and he deeply agreed, thus writing this poem.
He could even claim credit for this? The two Erudites instantly felt their composure shatter.
“Shameless old thief put down that brush!”
The elegant pavilion behind the academy was built against the mountain, with Six Cascades Waterfall to the east and an evergreen bamboo grove to the west.
Bamboo was a rarity in the north, and difficult to cultivate and propagate. The sight of bamboo shoots sprouting after a thunderstorm could only be seen in the south.
The academy’s teachers had transplanted bamboo from the south, nurturing it diligently for fifty years before cultivating this lush bamboo grove.
Scholars had a special fondness for bamboo, admiring its unyielding spirit and often using it as a metaphor for people or themselves (note the emphasis on admiration).
One day, the principal of Cloud Deer Academy came to look and exclaimed, “Oh, the bamboo grove has grown so dense! Bamboo doesn’t fear the cold and maintains its integrity through all four seasons – doesn’t that describe me perfectly?”
Everyone agreed, so from then on, he lived there.
The elegant pavilion became the principal’s place of seclusion.
In the simple and elegant tea room, an elderly man in hemp clothing sat drinking tea with a woman in luxurious attire. A row of heavily armed guards stood watch outside the pavilion.
The old man’s graying hair hung loosely, giving him an unkempt yet carefree appearance. The lines around his mouth and the furrows between his brows were deep, but when he smiled, the crow’s feet at his eyes overshadowed the other wrinkles.
Judging by appearance alone, it was hard to imagine that this old man, dressed like a down-and-out scholar, was the principal of Cloud Deer Academy.
The current leader of the Confucian school.
The woman sitting across from him, drinking tea, was well past her twenties, yet she wore a simple bun adorned with a single, brilliantly shining golden hairpin – the style of an unmarried woman.
She wore an exquisite, floor-length white dress.
Her features were delicate and refined, resembling a water lily – pure but not ostentatious. Her clear eyes were like icy mirrors, their transparency barely concealing her cold nobility.
Her figure, fully developed, was curvaceous and alluring.
“It’s been half a year since we last met, Principal. The silver in your hair has increased considerably,” said the Crown Princess, her voice cool and clear.
“All worry lines,” the Principal chuckled as he drank his tea.
“When I came up the mountain today, I heard the academy’s disciples reciting a poem: ‘Fear not that the road ahead lacks知己, who in the world doesn’t know you!'” The Crown Princess’s eyes flickered slightly, like ice cracking. “Such a wonderful piece, I was delighted to hear it. May I ask which Erudite recently composed it?”
Hearing this, Principal Zhao Shou shook his head and laughed.
“Why does the Principal laugh at me?”
“I’m not laughing at you, Your Highness. I’m laughing at how the Cloud Deer Academy, despite being full of talent, cannot match the spontaneity of others. No, the entire Confucian world of Great Feng has become rigid in thinking, lacking spiritual essence. And poetry, above all, requires spiritual essence.”
“The Principal’s words confuse me,” the Crown Princess said, her expression serene as her beautiful orchid-like fingers held the teacup, drinking tea with noble grace.
Zhao Shou sighed, “The author of this poem is not a scholar, but a minor official from Changle County.”
The Crown Princess showed a slight reaction.
This Crown Princess of the Great Feng Dynasty was unlike ordinary women. For ladies from scholarly families, being proficient in the four arts – zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting – was considered talented.
But this Crown Princess learned chess from Wei Yuan, military strategy from Zhang Shen, and statecraft from Chen Tai. She could recite the classics backward, and her essays and policy discussions were on par with students from the Imperial Academy.
She was widely read and knowledgeable, a true scholar.
At eighteen, the Emperor specially permitted her to participate in the compilation work of the Hanlin Academy. Two years ago, the Crown Princess attempted to recompile the history books of the previous dynasty, which provoked protests from the court officials and eventually came to nothing.
“Principal, have you truly not considered taking office?” The Crown Princess’s gaze was sincere, her tone serious. “Confucianism is people-oriented, and life is short. Principal, don’t waste your years anymore.”
Few people knew that the official position in the Qingzhou Tongzhi Si was originally intended for Zhao Shou.
However, Zhao Shou declined to take office and instead recommended Cultivator Ziyang to the court.
“If wasting my years could open a path of learning for future generations, I would gladly do so,” Zhao Shou sighed. “But alas, despite meditating in the bamboo grove for over a decade and pouring out my heart and soul, I still cannot cross the insurmountable barrier set by Lesser Sage Cheng.”
“Principal, your obsession runs too deep,” the Crown Princess said calmly as she refilled her tea. “Father invited you to take office intending to reinstate the Cloud Deer Academy. If you truly consider the students of Cloud Deer Academy, you shouldn’t have refused.”
Zhao Shou smiled sardonically, “Is it that Wei Yuan is becoming increasingly unmanageable, or that the dragon-slaying techniques of those noble officials are becoming more incisive?”
“It’s for the common people of Great Feng, for all under heaven,” the Crown Princess said, each word heartfelt.
Zhao Shou’s smile became increasingly mocking.
The Crown Princess’s cool tone changed as she sighed, “After the Mountain and Sea Battle, Great Feng’s national power has been gradually weakening, with natural disasters occurring year after year. Bandits are countless, and the harm caused by petty officials is becoming increasingly apparent.
“The court officials only know how to engage in factional struggles. Those who sit idly by and talk emptily are countless, while those who work for the prosperity of the nation are few. Principal, the empire needs a mender.”
Without waiting for Zhao Shou to respond, she continued, “Three years ago, the northern barbarians broke the treaty, repeatedly invading our borders and plundering our people.
“The southern barbarians destroyed the post roads and ambushed military garrisons, attempting to reclaim lost territory.
“The Western Regions countries are watching coldly from the sidelines, while the Buddhist sect is using this to threaten us, wishing to spread their teachings in the Central Plains.”
Her tone gradually intensified, her voice no longer cool, “Principal, as a scholar, shouldn’t you seize this opportunity to showcase your abilities and restore our national prestige?”
Zhao Shou stared at the Crown Princess for a moment, then shifted his gaze from her face – delicate and refined with an air of nobility – to the lush bamboo grove outside the window. He shook his head and sighed:
“It’s not that I’m unwilling, but the time is not right. Crown Princess, please return.”
The Crown Princess’s eyes betrayed her disappointment. Just as she was about to take her leave, hurried footsteps were heard outside the pavilion. An academy teacher rushed in, exclaiming:
“Principal, terrible news! Li Mubai, Zhang Shen, and Chen Tai have started fighting!”