Chapter 53

Fang Yun knew that the grain transport commissioner was wealthy, but he did not expect a sixth-rank official with real power to send an invitation so quickly, showing no concern for the Left Chancellor.

Fang Yun asked, "Is this Zhao Tongpan closely related to the Left Chancellor?"

He Yutang smiled and said, "You don't know this. Grain transport is the lifeline of the country, and it has always been handled by members of the royal family. Now it is managed by that wine-loving royal uncle. When he gets drunk, he curses the Left Chancellor, acting like a ruffian. The Left Chancellor can only avoid him when they meet. However, apart from his love for food and drink, he has almost no blemishes, and the censors in the Inspection Office don't want to deal with him. They can't impeach him for drinking and causing trouble every day."

Fang Yun couldn't help but laugh. There were many stories about that wine-loving royal uncle in Jingguo, most of which were absurd but not annoying. Moreover, he had done many things that seemed foolish but were actually fair.

"Since Zhao Tongpan has connections with the royal family, it's fine to meet him."

As soon as Fang Yun finished speaking, there was another knock on the door.

"Is this the Fang residence?"

The two looked at each other, and Fang Yun went to open the door again. It was another servant-like person.

"This is my master's invitation. I hope you will honor us with your presence."

Fang Yun took the letter and saw that it was an invitation from Gong Sizheng, the head of the legal department in Jiangzhou, a fourth-rank official. The legal department was responsible for trials, and Gong Sizheng was also a powerful official in Jiangzhou.

Fang Yun opened the invitation and saw that it was for a thank-you banquet for his youngest son, who had just hired a scholar as a tutor, and he was inviting Fang Yun to attend.

Fang Yun asked He Yutang, "What is his relationship with the Left Chancellor?"

"He is from the same county as the Left Chancellor." He Yutang's expression was somewhat off.

Fang Yun said, "He invited me to his son's thank-you banquet, seemingly wanting me to teach his son. But why isn't he afraid of the Left Chancellor?"

He Yutang said, "He is from the same county as the Left Chancellor, so he can't possibly betray him. The Left Chancellor trusts him. However, everyone has their own selfish interests. With your current fame and your talent for teaching, he naturally wants his son to receive the best education. After all, he is not young and needs to think about his descendants. As long as the Left Chancellor doesn't personally speak against you, he can pretend to be ignorant. The Left Chancellor is in a period of needing people, and even if he knows his little schemes, he can't do anything about him, especially since he has helped the Left Chancellor a lot in Jiangzhou. Replacing him would be like causing chaos."

"You seem to know a lot about court affairs," Fang Yun said.

He Yutang smiled and said, "We scholars are all 'tongue elders' and 'street chancellors.' We all want to achieve fame in the future, so we pay attention to political affairs. After hearing so much, we naturally understand what's going on."

Fang Yun said, "He is old and can mainly consider his descendants, but I still need to advance. I don't want to be involved with the Left Chancellor, so I can't attend this banquet."

He Yutang said, "That's a good decision. Once you move to your new residence, remember to hire a doorman. At that time, your invitations and letters will come like snowflakes. More than half of the provincial government offices are here, plus the officials and noble families of Dayuan Prefecture. Even if more than half of the officials are intimidated by the Left Chancellor and won't invite you, the others will keep you busy."

"Really? So many people will invite me?"

"Of course. First, you achieved the double first in the imperial examination, then the three poems in 'The Sacred Way,' followed by 'The Inscription of a Humble Abode,' and you have the protection of Sword Brow. Naturally, many people will invite you. To put it bluntly, within the next ten years, Jingguo might be the Left Chancellor's world, but after ten years, you can at least match the Left Chancellor, or even surpass him. Your potential is the best in Jingguo!" He Yutang looked deeply at Fang Yun.

"Ten years is too long," Fang Yun sighed.

"Yes, ten years is too long. Otherwise, the people of the Left Chancellor's faction wouldn't target you, and the Liu family would actively seek peace. So I advise you, after passing the scholar examination, have your uncle, General Fang Shouye, send you an invitation to the 'Poetry Meeting to Subdue Demons,' and then stay in Yuhai City until you are sure you will pass the provincial examination, and then return to Dayuan Prefecture to take the provincial examination."

"Is the Left Chancellor's influence weak in Yuhai City?"

"Not just weak. Yuhai City has been controlled by the military for over a hundred years, and no one from the literary faction can enter. Anyone from the Left Chancellor's faction who goes there will be in trouble, and the Left Chancellor has to give up on it. As long as you go to Yuhai City, even if the Liu family had a hundred reasons, they wouldn't dare to provoke you. There is a saying in Jiangzhou: 'The governor is strict, and the general is fierce.' The governor is always thinking, and that general is the commander of the provincial army, Zhang Poyue. He is fierce but has a chivalrous heart and is highly respected by the soldiers of Jiangzhou. As a military scholar, he loves talent very much. If Liu Zicheng dares to cause trouble in Yuhai City, it won't just be burning down the Liu family's pawnshop."

"Thank you for the advice, Brother He. I heard that after becoming a scholar, the best way to enhance one's talent is to kill demons and barbarians. Not everyone can create great works, but every scholar can kill demons and barbarians."

"That's right. Therefore, the military is also a place where talents emerge, no less than the literary faction. Once the literary faction feels that their talent is hard to improve, they will try to break through by subduing demons. After all, we scholars cultivate literary courage, and if we can't kill demons and barbarians, what kind of scholar are we?"

"Has Brother He killed demons before?"

He Yutang said proudly, "I once cooperated with soldiers to kill hundreds of demon civilians and over ten demon soldiers, and even assisted in killing a demon general. You might not know, but demons are very strong. An ordinary demon civilian is stronger than a child scholar, and a demon soldier can fight a scholar on equal terms. As for the demon general, I actually secretly used 'The Song of Yi Water' to stab it."

"Brother He is a role model for us." Fang Yun knew that 'The Song of Yi Water' was 'The Song of Jing Ke's Assassination of Qin.'

However, He Yutang said with a guilty conscience, "Actually, I gritted my teeth and fought the sea demon, and after completing the minimum military merit, I had the qualifications to be a ninth-rank official, so I hurried back to Dayuan Prefecture."

Fang Yun nodded. He knew that those with the rank of a provincial candidate or higher could directly become officials, but scholars had to kill demons and barbarians to gain basic military merit before they could take office.

He Yutang sighed, "Actually, there are too few famous battle poems and lyrics that can be used by scholars. I am not very talented, and it took me three years to master 'The Song of Yi Water,' 'The Song of Comrades,' and 'The Song of the Gentleman on Duty.' Only 'The Song of Yi Water' can kill, but it has a limited range, only able to kill enemies within five zhang. The other two poems are from 'The Book of Songs,' one to boost morale and strengthen armor, and the other to comfort soldiers and prevent them from becoming disheartened or depressed. It's not like the provincial candidates who can use 'The Song of the Blue Wave' and 'The Song of the Great Wind,' which are truly demon-slaying. However, I hope you can create more powerful battle poems and lyrics as a scholar, so that our human race can save tens of thousands of lives each year."

"I will do my best." Fang Yun had long thought about enriching battle poems and lyrics, but he was not yet a scholar, and writing them would not be verified.

While they were chatting, the door was left open, and someone else came, but this time it was not an invitation, but a visiting card.

Fang Yun opened it and saw that it was from the head of a noble family in Dayuan Prefecture, inviting Fang Yun to notify him when he had time, and he could come at any time.

Fang Yun quickly closed the door and said, "I have a bad feeling."

He Yutang joked, "Me too. Today, you will be overwhelmed by invitations and visiting cards. You wrote 'The Inscription of a Humble Abode' two days ago, and it spread yesterday. Today, you already have so many invitations and visiting cards. You are famous now. If only someone hadn't posted your portrait everywhere, you would be recognized wherever you go."

Fang Yun said, "Brother He, don't joke around. You know I am preparing for the scholar examination in June. I need to master the art of paper warfare to deal with Liu Zicheng. I only sleep two hours a day. How can I have time to meet these people?"

"You are so hardworking? Oh, as long as you have a continuous supply of Dragon Palace Blood Ginseng, sleeping two hours a day is nothing. That thing is for dragons to eat." He Yutang said enviously.

"Brother He, you are well-informed. What should I do to avoid meeting these people?"

He Yutang immediately said, "Usually, being sick would work, but you have Dragon Palace Blood Ginseng, and there is no major event, so you can't suddenly fall ill."

Fang Yun smiled and said, "Isn't there a major event? I was sick from the anger of the Yan family and Liu Zicheng!"

He Yutang looked at Fang Yun for a long time, speechless, and finally said, "It's indeed not easy to offend you. Now those who can't invite you will all resent Yan Chongnian, and the Yan family will have a hard time. I will write a sentence in my study when I get home: 'Absolutely do not offend Fang Yun.'"

"Do you need me to write it for you?"

He Yutang laughed.

The knocking on the door sounded again, and the footsteps indicated that there were three or four people.

Fang Yun lowered his voice and said, "Brother He, it's up to you. Go to the Fang family and find Yu Huan. Tell her not to look for a house and to take over the house the Yan family sent me."

"But the deed needs your personal signature. Are you willing to give her a house worth nearly ten thousand taels? If she signs it, the house will be hers."

"Yu Huan has raised me for so many years without a single complaint. Giving her a house is nothing. I will go back to my room and instruct Da Niu. You tell the people outside that I am sick, and then tell Yu Huan, remember."

Fang Yun quickly returned to his room.

He Yutang admired Fang Yun in his heart, thinking he was a true gentleman. Not only was he good to his servant Da Niu, but he was also good to his child bride. In the future, if he became his subordinate, he would not be treated as a disposable pawn.

"If he goes to Yuhai City, fighting sea demons is dangerous. I might as well take a gamble and follow him! If he becomes a saint in the future, our family can become a saint family, and becoming a noble family will be no problem, even a prestigious or powerful family!"

He Yutang clenched his fist, made up his mind, and then went outside to help Fang Yun receive the invitations and visiting cards, telling the visitors that Fang Yun was sick from the anger of the Yan family and might need a few days to recover.

Fang Yun instructed Da Niu in his room and then continued to study, ignoring the commotion outside.

After studying for an hour, Fang Yun took a break, but his mind was full of thoughts about battle poems and lyrics or famous works.

"In this world, famous works have great power. It is said that the 'Spring and Autumn Annals' personally written by Confucius is the most magical. My previous poems mostly had literary talent, but 'The Inscription of a Humble Abode' is different, being a short piece. What would happen if I wrote a long piece?"

Fang Yun thought for a moment, picked up his pen, and started writing on the paper.

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