Chapter 5

After coughing hard, Zhang Anshi said, "Hmm... let's not talk about this... I have something on my mind right now."

"What's on your mind, what is it?" Zhang Ye saw that Zhang Anshi was not interested in the gunpowder and couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed. After all, he had gone to great lengths to steal it from his brother's military camp.

Zhang Anshi sighed, "You all know I'm very poor. So I was thinking, if I had some silver, I could do some small business."

"What kind of business can a man do?" Zhu Yong looked down on it with disdain.

People of their background naturally had no interest in commerce.

But Zhang Anshi was different.

He knew very well that it would be many years before his brother-in-law ascended the throne.

Although the Zhang family was supported by his brother-in-law, they were ultimately using his brother-in-law's money.

Zhang Anshi had been terrified of poverty in his previous life. The thought of not having any silver in this world made him feel uneasy.

"The main thing is, I've thought of a good business opportunity. This kind of good thing, I would only tell my own brothers. How about... we pool some silver together..."

"Silver..." At the mention of this, Zhu Yong's face changed.

His father, Zhu Neng, was very stingy and would never give silver to a child like him.

So he shook his head like a rattle drum, "My father won't give it to me. If I ask, he'll beat me."

Zhang Anshi said, "Ask your mother."

Zhu Yong thought for a moment and shook his head again, "Sooner or later, my father will find out. Then... I'll get scolded and be called a wastrel..."

This was...

It seemed the key issue was to help everyone let go of their psychological burdens. After all, they were young and their minds hadn't yet declined.

So Zhang Anshi said earnestly, "Second Brother... let me ask you, who will the Zhu family be passed down to in the future..."

Zhu Yong didn't even think about it and said decisively, "Of course it's me. I'm the only son in the family. If the family business isn't passed down to me, who else could it be?"

Zhang Anshi patiently guided him, "That's right, the family business will eventually be yours, right? So let me ask you, since the family business is yours, why can't you spend your own silver? I'm not trying to cause trouble, but there are some things I feel I should say."

Zhu Yong said seriously, "Go on."

Zhang Anshi sighed, "The Zhu family is your family, and the Zhu family's silver is all yours. Who is spending the Zhu family's silver every day?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yong suddenly felt enlightened, his body trembling, "Oh, if it weren't for Big Brother's reminder, I wouldn't have realized it. That's right, the family is all mine, but my father... he's the one who spends the silver recklessly. The other day, he even spent over a hundred taels of silver to buy a good horse. What a wastrel, he's spending my money and ruining my family."

Zhang Anshi comforted him, "Forget it, who doesn't have a wastrel in their family? Just let it go and consider your father as being ignorant."

Zhu Yong said, "Now that I think about it... I can't swallow this. I'll find a time to give him a good scolding. Big Brother Zhang is right. If I don't spend my own silver, won't it all go to my father? I'll go ask my mother to give me some silver."

Zhang Ye listened with wide eyes, feeling something was off, but when he thought about it, it seemed to make sense.

As they were talking, a young boy suddenly rushed into the classroom, exclaiming, "The teacher is here, the teacher is here..."

Everyone wasn't afraid of Hu Yan, but the boy's terrified expression made them curious. Why was he so scared?

At that moment, someone walked into the classroom.

But... it wasn't Hu Yan.

It was an old monk in a black robe.

The moment the old monk appeared, Zhu Yong and Zhang Ye, who had been so confident, immediately lowered their heads, looking like children who had done something wrong, not daring to breathe loudly.

The other boys also looked like mice seeing a cat.

The old monk was Yao Guangxiao.

Yao Guangxiao entered with a smile, seemingly very confident in his image, the kind of benevolent elder.

However, the boys' expressions made Yao Guangxiao slightly embarrassed.

Of course, this monk had long forgotten what embarrassment felt like.

So, he sat down calmly, still maintaining a kind and benevolent appearance, saying, "I hear you all study diligently here every day, which makes me very pleased."

Hu Yan's face twitched.

The boys, however, felt a sense of impending doom.

It seemed they had heard some not-so-good rumors about this monk from their fathers, like... smiling while killing... or daily urging everyone to rebel.

Yao Guangxiao looked around at the boys, still kind and benevolent, nodding in approval, "Good, good, all of you are fine young men. The future of our Great Ming is in good hands."

Seeing that no one reacted, Yao Guangxiao cleared his throat and continued, "However, I heard from Mr. Hu that you occasionally play around. Don't be afraid, it's not a big deal. Young people making mistakes is nothing to worry about..."

Hu Yan interrupted, "Mr. Yao, it's not just occasional mistakes, it's..."

Yao Guangxiao gave him a look, and Hu Yan fell silent.

Yao Guangxiao said, "Today, I'm here to test your studies. You are all descendants of meritorious officials, and in the future, you will be the pillars of our Great Ming. So... let's do this. Take your pens, ink, and paper, and write a memorial to the court, expressing your views and suggestions. I won't give you a specific topic, you can write whatever you want, as if you were offering advice to the court."

Offer advice to the court?

This really confused everyone.

Zhang Anshi was also skeptical, unsure of what Yao Guangxiao was up to.

But after Yao Guangxiao spoke, everyone obediently took out their pens, ink, and paper, scratching their heads and ears.

The Minglun Hall was very quiet, you could hear a pin drop.

Hu Yan, however, frowned frequently. He knew Yao Guangxiao well and knew that he didn't look favorably on those who only studied the classics. So, testing their knowledge wouldn't involve making them recite the Four Books and Five Classics. But letting a bunch of young boys offer advice to the court, wasn't that just a joke?

He took the opportunity to step forward and whispered to Yao Guangxiao, "Mr. Yao... are you not going to punish Zhu Yong, Zhang Ye, and the others?"

"What's the rush?" Yao Guangxiao replied calmly.

Hu Yan said, "Young people don't know their place. If you let them off lightly... it might..."

Yao Guangxiao smiled and whispered back, "Isn't it about being justified and reasonable?"

"What do you mean?"

"If we punish them just for being naughty, the punishment would be too light, and they might not remember it."

"But... what does this have to do with the test?"

"The test is different. When they write their memorials, there will be something to work with in their writing."

Hu Yan was still confused, "What do you mean by 'something to work with'?"

Yao Guangxiao said casually, "When His Majesty was in Beiping and wanted to clear the court, he gathered a large army and swore to march south. But on that day, a heavy storm broke out, and the wind blew the tiles off the palace. The falling tiles were a bad omen, and even His Majesty changed his expression. But at that moment, I stepped forward and said to His Majesty, 'This is a good omen! Since ancient times, when a dragon flies in the sky, it must be accompanied by wind and rain. The blue tiles falling from the palace foretell that Your Highness will soon use the yellow tiles of the emperor.' This boosted the morale, and His Majesty was greatly encouraged!"

Yao Guangxiao paused and looked at Hu Yan meaningfully, "You see... the key to right and wrong is not what it originally is, but how you interpret it. Punishing without teaching is cruel. When the young men write their memorials, there will be something to work with in their writing. We can always find some 'bold and reckless' evidence in their writing. Once we have solid evidence, it will be justified and reasonable. Then, we can deal with them harshly, and we will have a reason. In short... right and wrong are in my hands. When I present it to His Majesty, he will decide the outcome."

Upon hearing this, Hu Yan didn't feel any joy, but shivered involuntarily. He knew that Yao Guangxiao was just warning those young men who didn't know their place.

But... why did he feel a chill all over his body?

Yao Guangxiao ignored Hu Yan and continued to be at ease.

The boys, however, racked their brains, writing their memorials and offering advice.

For most of the boys, this was quite a challenge.

Zhang Anshi, however, thought for a long time and had a draft in his mind before he carefully started writing.

After about half an hour, Yao Guangxiao stood up and collected the papers.

He didn't look at them but said kindly, "Well done, you've all worked hard. I will present these memorials to His Majesty."

With that, he walked away calmly, and Hu Yan followed him, personally escorting him out.

Once they left, the boys finally breathed a sigh of relief, and the Minglun Hall was filled with chatter.

Zhu Yong approached Zhang Anshi and whispered, "Big Brother, what did you write in your memorial?"

Zhang Anshi said, "I wrote randomly."

Hearing this, Zhu Yong and Zhang Ye both looked delighted. Zhu Yong laughed, "Me too, me too, I wrote randomly too."

Zhang Ye also danced with joy, "I turned in a blank paper. I couldn't think of anything to write. I was worried, but now that we all wrote randomly, I feel much better. When the time comes, we'll face it together!"

Zhang Anshi: "Ah... this..."

Zhang Anshi looked at Zhang Ye with a strange expression.