Chapter 73

"Is it Lei Pàngzi and Yue Heng?" Xiao Molli also saw the two people, his tone quite helpless.

"Exactly, it's them! How can their relationship be so good?" Bai Huanzhi was frustrated. In the past few days, Yue Heng had always liked to visit the Craftsmanship Academy, often wandering around the market with Lei Pàngzi, and almost always asking questions while Lei Pàngzi introduced things. The two rarely bought anything, but after a few days, they had become familiar with all the vendors.

Xiao Molli chuckled softly, "A literati who doesn't focus on his main profession and likes to mix with craftsmen—could it be that he doesn't intend to follow the orthodox path of literati cultivation but instead wants to take a side path of literary craftsmanship? If so, we have many ways to deal with him. The upcoming spring hunt, distant relic explorations, the biannual assessment, and the literary and martial skills competition—unless he is flawless, otherwise..."

Bai Huanzhi snorted, "The sooner we get rid of him, the better!"

...

In the past few days, Yue Heng had indeed wandered through the courtyard and the market with Lei Pàngzi, and had also dined with Lei Pàngzi's few friends. He gained a general understanding of the technological level of the Zhongyuan world.

Most importantly, he cited various sources and keenly discovered another auxiliary path for literati cultivation to enhance their strength.

It's not just literary symbols that can enhance strength. In fact, various powerful magical artifacts, magical arrays, and even the spirit fruits grown and the pills refined by spirit masters are all powerful aids for literati cultivation, greatly enhancing their combat and survival abilities.

"No wonder during the Star Induction, the Dean of Literature said that there is no distinction between strong and weak, good and bad literary symbols, and no useless or useful ones, only whether the literati can use them. But how many literati truly understand this?"

In the past few days, besides wandering around, Yue Heng also met many senior students from the Literati Academy. He noticed that many were silent and reclusive, preferring to read for long periods rather than interact with the outside world.

"Reading blindly is the most foolish approach. I don't believe that Shi Ji became a literary master by reading blindly, so I must be flexible. Since I have a second life, I will show my talents here!"

Unfortunately, most other literati focus on their own cultivation and can't afford to study craftsmanship, martial arts, or spirit medicines and pills. Only the wealthy families and sects have the resources to cultivate such skills.

But Yue Heng is different!

The poems and songs in his mind can not only resonate with various literary symbols but also stimulate martial souls. They might even have a significant impact on alchemy and forging, which is his greatest advantage!

The next day, Yue Heng got up early, bathed, and dressed neatly, looking refined and scholarly. He brought the books and tools issued by the courtyard and headed to the teaching hall to start his first class as a child student.

This year, there were 540 new child students, plus some returning students who wanted to retake the child student classes, as well as child students from the military, other regions, or outside the courtyard's regular enrollment, totaling over 600, the largest number of child students in history.

Over 600 people crowded into the teaching hall, a sea of black heads. Yue Heng, just a top student from Hong County, was not particularly noticeable. He occasionally saw a few familiar faces and smiled and bowed from a distance.

He didn't recognize others, but many recognized him.

Among the four most famous students of this year's courtyard, Yue Heng ranked first, the most rebellious one, mockingly called the "Fierce Child Student" among the "Four Fierce New Students."

"Look, look, that 'Fierce Child Student' is here too!"

"Hey, he doesn't look fierce at all?"

"Heh, you can't judge a person by their appearance! On his first day, he injured a senior student's sword hand, took over a dormitory and array position, sent several second-level students and soldiers to the punishment hall, and constantly defied senior students. He also colluded with some unscrupulous merchants from other academies. And it's said that before coming to the courtyard, he forced the death of Bai Huanzhi's cousin in Hong County!"

"Wow, he's really a new student? That's indeed fierce! Bai Huanzhi is a well-known figure among the wealthy families, and he can't do anything about this Yue Heng?"

"Being in the same year as this guy is not easy! We can't provoke him, but we can avoid him!"

Most of the new child students who saw Yue Heng looked awkward and dared not get too close, even discussing him cautiously.

Yue Heng had no idea about this. Who knew that he would be rated as one of the "Four Fierce New Students" right after entering the courtyard? He wanted to be low-key!

In the teaching hall, there were already subtle factions. The students from wealthy families and powerful clans were in the best central positions, dressed elaborately, with luxurious accessories and even a few with spatial bags on their waists, exuding a sense of wealth.

On both sides, there were two factions: one with poor clothing and malnourished appearances, the children of humble families, who mostly looked fearful and curious, with wary eyes.

Finally, there were the neutral factions, including those who disliked competition and just wanted to study, those from wealthy families who couldn't join the powerful clans and looked down on the poor, and those who were naive and ignorant of human relations. Many of the neutral factions and ordinary wealthy families either formed their own groups, fawned on the powerful, or befriended the poor, making this group the most chaotic and numerous.

Yue Heng found a corner to sit, surrounded by children of humble families, but no one dared to get close to him, making him stand out.

This scene caught the attention of the incoming instructor, who looked at Yue Heng and frowned.

"I am Du Xinming, a fourth-level Confucian scholar and a senior lecturer at the Qi Prefecture Courtyard, responsible for explaining the 'Child Student Canon'!"

Du Xinming had a dignified presence. He was in his forties, sharp-eyed, and scanned the hall, with few daring to meet his gaze.

"Every year, I teach the most students with the fewest retakes! You must listen to every word and follow every instruction I give. Only then can you truly enter the door of literati cultivation! Anyone who skips class, speaks rashly, misunderstands, or is arrogant will be off to a wrong start and will go further and further astray!"

His voice, slightly amplified by the Fuxi literary disk, echoed throughout the teaching hall, immediately silencing everyone.

The hall was silent, with many sitting upright, many having heard of Du Xinming's reputation as the instructor of the 'Child Student Canon' and one of the examiners for the spring exams in Qi Prefecture, as well as his position as a junior minister in the Qi Prefecture Literary Department, making him quite famous.

Yue Heng felt uncomfortable. These words sounded familiar, like his middle school teacher's, telling him what to do and what would happen if he didn't.

Listen to me, if you succeed, it's because of my teaching method; if you fail, it's because of your lack of talent.

If you don't listen to me, and you succeed, it's because I deliberately pushed you to succeed; if you fail, it's because you didn't listen to me.

This dogmatic brainwashing method made Yue Heng feel uneasy, and he couldn't help but mutter, "Alright, let's see how his teaching is first!"

The instructor on the stage was quite satisfied. With over 600 people silent and trembling, he achieved the effect he wanted.

"Today, I will explain the most important and first chapter of the 'Child Student Canon,' the 'Encouragement to Study' by the ancient sage Xunzi! Everyone, take out the 'Child Student Canon' and open it to the first page. Follow me in reciting it! The gentleman says, learning cannot be stopped. Blue is extracted from indigo but is bluer than indigo; ice is made from water but is colder than water. Wood is straight and conforms to the line, but when bent into a wheel, it conforms to the circle... I have often spent the whole day thinking, but it is not as effective as a moment of study... A fine horse can leap but not ten steps; an inferior horse can travel ten times the distance, and its success lies in persistence. If you give up, even rotten wood will not break; if you persist, even metal and stone can be carved..."

Du Xinming led the 600 child students in reciting the first chapter of the 'Child Student Canon,' the 'Encouragement to Study,' which took over two incense sticks to read, totaling over 2,000 characters.

For a moment, the hall was filled with the sound of reading, as if they were in a private school. The instructor walked around, leading the recitation, and the child students swayed their heads, reciting without seeking deep understanding, just to get through it.

After the recitation, Du Xinming began explaining the meaning of each sentence, breaking down every metaphor and principle, word by word, and requiring everyone to remember his interpretation without any misunderstanding or ambiguity.

Most of the child students found this normal, as they were taught similarly in their启蒙书社 (启蒙书社 means启蒙 school, which is a place for early education). No one thought anything was wrong.

Only Yue Heng, holding the book in one hand and pressing his forehead with the other, felt a stomachache coming on.

Yue Heng had read and memorized many famous lines from Xunzi's 'Encouragement to Study' many times. Whether from poetry appreciation or from years of study, he had a deep understanding of it.

For example, the first line, "Learning cannot be stopped," emphasizes that learning should never cease. Xunzi advocated the "Theory of Inherent Evil," believing that only through learning and education can human nature be corrected, hence the strong emphasis on learning.

Regardless of whether this idea is correct, the fact is that in Yue Heng's time, the rapid development of technology and the changing tides of the era required constant learning to keep up with the times. Otherwise, one might even be outperformed by a primary school student. He gradually understood this through years of life and deeply grasped its meaning.

But would reading 'Encouragement to Study' thoroughly really have a good effect on the new child students?

Yue Heng didn't think so. Many principles are only understood through experience. Without personal experience, these grand truths would never be truly felt. These new child students, mostly in their teens, needed more time.

Although he wasn't satisfied with the instructor's rigid and authoritative teaching style, he still recited along, but his mind wandered outside. In the past few days, he had discovered a large number of rare and uncommon books in the library, and he preferred to study them himself.

As a result of his distraction, a small and agile mechanical beast quietly approached him, and he didn't notice it, nor did he realize the faint smoke coming from its mouth.

Half an hour quickly passed. Yue Heng smelled the faint scent of ink and paper, his head getting heavier, and he felt drowsy. The surrounding reading voices, originally pleasant, now became a lullaby for him.

"Hmph! Sleeping under my nose? Stand up!"