Chapter 83

Daxia Academy.

All the students followed Gu Jinnian, each one of them extremely excited.

Today, they almost made a fool of themselves.

Fortunately, Gu Jinnian's appearance not only resolved the trouble but also vented their anger.

However, while most were happy, a small part was not particularly pleased.

With a worried expression, he came to Gu Jinnian's side and said,

"Your Highness."

"The favor you did for us today, we will never forget, but offending the Kong family is not good."

"Actually, Your Highness, there was no need for this. The Kong family has too much influence. With the Daxia Poetry Gathering approaching, we should visit the Kong residence tomorrow to resolve the conflict and avoid making things too tense."

Someone spoke up, coming to Gu Jinnian's side.

Naturally, they were delighted about today's events. Gu Jinnian had fiercely stood up for them, and they felt very satisfied.

However, the problem was that offending the Kong family was not good, especially for Gu Jinnian.

"No problem."

"We are all classmates, and the incident was my fault. I, the current heir, would never stand idly by."

"But if you are worried, I won't stop you."

Gu Jinnian's voice was calm.

Since they had offended the Kong family, there was no need to think about reconciliation.

Of course, if they were afraid, there was nothing to say, and Gu Jinnian wouldn't stop them from apologizing.

"Your Highness, you misunderstand."

The person quickly spoke, fearing Gu Jinnian's misunderstanding.

"No problem."

"Everyone, what I did today was entirely my own doing. If you don't want to offend the Kong family, you can handle it yourselves."

"But rest assured, if the Kong family dares to cause trouble for you, I will stand by you."

Gu Jinnian spoke, with a certain air of authority.

Upon hearing this, everyone spoke up.

"Your Highness, you misunderstand."

"We absolutely did not mean that. Today, you stood up for us, and we will never forget this favor."

"Yes, Your Highness. Since we chose to return with you today, it proves everything. We hope you don't misunderstand."

Everyone spoke.

Today, they came to the Kong residence with reverence, to pay homage to the Sage's grandson, but unexpectedly, this Sage's grandson could not distinguish right from wrong and helped outsiders bully his own people.

Honestly, how could they not be angry?

Looking at Gu Jinnian, who was willing to offend the Kong family to help them.

As for the claim that the Gu family and the Kong family had a feud, regardless of whether they did or not, they would generally maintain a friendly facade.

But Gu Jinnian still stood up for them without hesitation.

Directly confronting the Kong family.

This favor was deeply appreciated.

In contrast, Gu Jinnian was a man of his word, taking responsibility for his actions, showing the demeanor of a gentleman.

On the other hand, this Kong family's Sage's grandson was clearly a traitor.

No matter how good his background, he had lost the people's hearts.

It should be noted that the parents of these people were not small figures. Those who could enter the Daxia Academy were all outstanding individuals.

Kong Yu thought he was just suppressing a group of scholars, but in reality, he was suppressing far more than that.

Gu Jinnian won the hearts of the people. In the future Daxia Dynasty, these people would hold significant positions, either governing regions or serving in the court.

Such a favor would be a great blessing for Gu Jinnian's future.

"Alright, everyone has worked hard today. Rest well, and I will also rest."

Hearing everyone speak, Gu Jinnian didn't say much more.

He went back to rest.

Thus,

Everyone didn't fuss and returned to their respective places, writing down the events of the day in letters to inform their parents.

At the same time,

The news gradually spread among the people of the capital.

However, someone was misleading public opinion, downplaying the incident, and framing it as a conflict between Gu Jinnian and Kong Yu.

Kong Yu was clearly siding with outsiders, but when the news reached the people, it became a conflict between Gu Jinnian, the only literate general, who was both a noble and a Confucian scholar, and Kong Yu, the Sage's grandson.

Both were about the same age, and it was reasonable for them to be at odds.

So, the conflict was not a big deal.

This was the benefit of controlling the literati. Even though Kong Yu was in the wrong, the news now portrayed it as a mere conflict between two young people.

Completely downplaying the issue.

If Gu Jinnian had been in the wrong, there would have been widespread condemnation.

The people of the capital learned about the incident.

Inside the Daxia Imperial Palace,

Emperor Yongsheng naturally knew about it.

In the Yangxin Hall,

Emperor Yongsheng listened to Wei Xian's report.

His expression was extremely calm.

After about a quarter of an hour, Wei Xian continued,

"Your Highness, the people now view the conflict between the heir and the Sage's grandson as a mere conflict, with little impact, which is a good thing."

"I believe that with the Daxia Poetry Gathering approaching and envoys from various countries arriving, there is no need to escalate the situation."

He spoke, giving his opinion.

Inside the Yangxin Hall,

Emperor Yongsheng was calm, seemingly deep in thought.

After a moment, Emperor Yongsheng slowly spoke,

"The Kong family has indeed shown some favoritism."

"There needs to be someone to curb their arrogance."

Emperor Yongsheng spoke.

Clearly, he was also dissatisfied with the Kong family's behavior, bullying their own people and helping outsiders?

"Understood."

"Your Majesty, there is news that Kong Yu seems to be participating in this Daxia Poetry Gathering."

Wei Xian spoke, relaying the news.

Upon hearing this, Emperor Yongsheng spoke,

"Good."

"Spread the news before the Daxia Poetry Gathering, so that the entire Daxia knows about it, and the people will pay attention."

"Also, if Jinnian really loses, control the public opinion to minimize the pressure on him."

"During this period, have the Xuan Deng Si closely monitor the situation, and let Gu Lao Liu handle it."

Emperor Yongsheng spoke.

Kong Yu's behavior was purely asking for trouble.

The Daxia Poetry Gathering, a national event, knew that Kong Yu was不服气 (unwilling to accept defeat) and wanted to compete with Gu Jinnian in literary talent.

If he won, it wouldn't be a big deal, as he was the descendant of a sage, and it was reasonable for his level to be higher than Gu Jinnian's.

But if he lost, it would be a complete embarrassment.

This kind of bet was completely unnecessary. Winning wouldn't be a good thing, and losing would be very bad, self-inflicted trouble.

However, Emperor Yongsheng understood that Kong Yu was now extremely agitated, which was quite good.

He hoped the Gu family and the Kong family would continue to feud, and the Kong family indeed had some unsavory actions. In recent years, many memorials have been submitted, all related to the Kong family in some way.

He was very dissatisfied, extremely dissatisfied.

But there was nothing he could do. After all, the Kong family had a sage behind them, and he dared not act, or rather, he could not act unless it was absolutely necessary.

Acting would not completely eliminate the problem and would only bring more trouble.

Now that Gu Jinnian was at odds with the Kong family, it was a good thing, at least for him.

"Jinnian, don't disappoint your uncle. I have paved the way for you, but how you walk it is up to you."

Finally, Emperor Yongsheng muttered to himself.

At the same time,

The Gu family.

Unlike Emperor Yongsheng, when the old master of the Gu family learned about the incident, he was very pleased.

He even praised Gu Jinnian for doing well, showing the bloodline of the Gu family.

He did not think Gu Jinnian had done anything wrong.

However, upon learning that Kong Yu would also participate in the Daxia Poetry Gathering, the old master was silent in his study for a long time.

The family was unusually quiet.

"Father, Kong Yu suddenly participating in the Daxia Poetry Gathering is clearly targeting Jinnian. What should we do?"

Gu Ningya spoke, somewhat anxious.

Although he looked down on Kong Yu, the man's abilities were undeniable, and it was hard to criticize his literary talent.

"There's a way."

At this moment, Gu Qianzhou suddenly spoke, drawing everyone's attention.

"What way?"

Everyone was curious.

"The Daxia Poetry Gathering is in about three days. I will go to Jinnian and tutor him. If everything goes well, there shouldn't be a big problem."

"Making it into the top three should be a sure thing."

Gu Qianzhou spoke confidently.

Upon hearing this, everyone's gaze fell on him, filled with disdain.

You?

Tutoring Gu Jinnian?

Stop embarrassing yourself, okay?

"What? You don't believe me?"

Gu Qianzhou frowned, looking at everyone.

"Get lost."

The old master directly spoke, scolding Gu Qianzhou.

At this point, there was no time for bickering.

"Alright, if the Kong family wants to participate, let them. Losing is not a big deal, as Jinnian has only recently started studying literature."

"Losing is not shameful, but if he wins, it will be a big deal."

"During these few days, don't disturb Jinnian. Let him study in peace. The Daxia Poetry Gathering is approaching, and we don't want any trouble."

The old master thought the same.

Everyone nodded without saying much more.

But to be honest, they were still a bit worried.

After all, they knew Kong Yu's talent, and while Gu Jinnian had written timeless poetry and essays, he was facing Kong Yu.

Moreover, the Daxia Poetry Gathering required spontaneous creativity, and they couldn't be sure if Gu Jinnian could produce something great.

We'll see.

Thus,

By evening,

The news of Kong Yu's participation in the Daxia Poetry Gathering had spread widely.

For a moment, the capital was in a frenzy.

Even a fool could see that Kong Yu was thoroughly at odds with Gu Jinnian. For the people, this was not a good thing, but at least it was a spectacle.

Controversy means topics, and topics mean no boredom.

At the moment, the entire capital was divided into two camps: one supporting Gu Jinnian and the other supporting Kong Yu.

Surprisingly, many supported Gu Jinnian. The timeless poetry and essays he had written were still fresh in people's minds.

Naturally, both sides received considerable support.

It could be said that even before the Daxia Poetry Gathering began, there was already a fierce competition.

Especially with someone secretly fanning the flames, seemingly deliberately targeting the two.

One was the Sage's grandson from the Kong residence, a rising star in Confucianism, one step away from becoming the youngest great Confucian in thousands of years.

The other was a noble of the Daxia Dynasty, the grandson of the Marquis of Zhen Guo, who had written timeless poetry and essays, a literary giant.

In terms of status and ability, both were on par, naturally becoming the focus of attention.

Thus,

In the blink of an eye, two more days passed.

The Daxia Poetry Gathering was only one day away.

At this moment, in the capital of the Daxia Dynasty,

Not only were scholars from various countries gathered, but the people of Daxia also flocked to the capital.

A Daxia Poetry Gathering brought a large number of tourists, and it could be said that everything in the capital was rising in price.

A random inn was three to four times more expensive than usual.

However, to provide a good environment for all the participating scholars, the capital of Daxia began a curfew, which would be lifted when the Daxia Poetry Gathering started.

In the Daxia Academy,

It was unusually quiet.

Not only were everyone preparing for the competition, but they also didn't want to disturb Gu Jinnian.

For these few days, classes were suspended.

In the dormitory,

Gu Jinnian's eyes were a bit red.

He hadn't prepared for the competition or read any poetry these past two days.

He was purely helping his sixth uncle study this letter.

For two consecutive days, Gu Jinnian couldn't understand a single word, which was even more bizarre than Morse code.

This thing wasn't even words; it felt like doodles.

However, deep down, Gu Jinnian felt that this thing must represent something.

So, after much thought, Gu Jinnian came up with a plan.

Ancient tree.

Yes.

A gold-sucking ancient tree.

Inside the ancient tree, there was a branch that could predict and answer, but it required spending silver.

Therefore, Gu Jinnian handed all his silver bills to Wang Fugui, exchanging them for a large amount of gold, and started with one hundred taels at a time.

The information obtained, although not useless like "it will rain today" or "it will rain tomorrow," was not very significant.

So, Gu Jinnian decided to spend one thousand taels of gold at once.

In the end, he spent all his money.

Looking at the last fruit in the ancient tree, Gu Jinnian couldn't help but feel envious.

A bottomless pit for gold.

Gu Jinnian truly understood this phrase.

He had spent thousands of taels of gold, all earned from selling tokens and family subsidies.

These thousands of taels of gold were enough to buy a decent house in the western part of the capital.

"If it doesn't work, don't blame me, Uncle."

"If it does, you owe me ten thousand taels of gold, or I won't let it go."

Gu Jinnian took a deep breath.

He was betting all his capital on this.

As the last fruit fell, Gu Jinnian became extremely nervous.

Soon,

A brilliant golden light shone.

The fruit fell to the ground, turning into a line of small text.

Gu Jinnian read it carefully.

After a moment, the information appeared.

[In the twelfth year of Yongsheng, on the 25th of the eleventh month, the Sage's grandson of the Kong family was assassinated and went missing. The third prince of Shen Luo was assassinated and died, and the twelfth prince of the Jin Dynasty was assassinated and severely injured, falling into a coma.]

The information appeared.

It was still not the content of the letter.

But this news struck Gu Jinnian like a thunderbolt, leaving him stunned.

The twelfth year of Yongsheng, the 25th of the eleventh month?

Isn't that eleven days from now?

The Daxia Poetry Gathering is tomorrow and lasts for three days.

The first day is a grand banquet, where the host of the Daxia Dynasty poses the first question. After the answers, it ends, serving as an appetizer.

The second day is the main event, where scholars from various countries compete, and the winners are usually determined on this day.

The third day is the closing ceremony, where rankings are announced, rewards are given, and the event concludes.

After that, people can tour the capital of Daxia for a few days, and around the 20th or 22nd of the eleventh month, they will leave the Daxia Dynasty.

It would be unrealistic to return in three days.

If an assassination occurs, it's no small matter.

The Sage's grandson of the Kong family being assassinated.

The entire Daxia would be in an uproar. With his whereabouts unknown and his life uncertain, the impact would be terrifying, especially given the conflict with Kong Yu, which could lead to significant suspicion.

At that time, even with ten mouths, he couldn't explain himself.

But this was still manageable. If he didn't do it, the Gu family could still handle the situation. It would only be suspicion and doubt, which wouldn't be a big issue for Gu Jinnian.

The most terrifying part was the assassination of the third prince of Shen Luo and the twelfth prince of the Jin Dynasty.

This was the most troublesome issue.

These two were envoys from the Fu Luo Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty. They must be treated with the highest respect.

They must