Taiping Inn

The Wanxiang Academy has always had a close relationship with the court. Many court officials were born here, and even Li Daoxu studied here.

Since the reign of Emperor Shizong, the court's finances have become increasingly difficult, and there is also the foreign enemy Jinzhang. Under such circumstances, Emperor Muzong appointed Zhang Suqing as prime minister after he ascended the throne to clarify the administration of officials, improve the tax system, increase financial resources, and rectify the military. To a certain extent, there was a revival of the atmosphere. After Emperor Muzong and Zhang Suqing died one after another, many of the new policies of the four ministers were abolished. The royal family nobles who were strongly suppressed by Zhang Suqing made a comeback and controlled the court. Although Empress Dowager Xie Zhi was able to hold power with the help of royal family nobles, she was unable to reverse the fact that the court was financially tight. Faced with the uprising of refugees headed by Qingyang Sect, she had to delegate the financial power and the power of personnel appointment to the governors and governors in various places, so that they could recruit soldiers to suppress them on their own. As a result, the local governors and governors became powerful, and the local tyrants who supported the governors and governors also began to covet the imperial capital.

Under such circumstances, the trend of satirizing the government by giving lectures emerged in the Vientiane Academy. The Grand Master of Works once said, "At this time, the people are living in misery, and chaos is coming." Another Grand Master also sighed, "The situation in the world is now full of crises, just like holding a piece of firewood in a raging fire." Therefore, many students in the Vientiane Academy believed that it was not worthwhile to be an official in the court without considering the government, to be an official in the local area without paying attention to people's livelihood, and to be retired to the countryside without caring about the world. They closely linked reading and giving lectures with caring about state affairs.

It was precisely because the Vientiane Academy not only gave lectures but also discussed politics that it attracted many ambitious people, including some officials who were demoted or resigned for criticizing the government. They came in droves regardless of the distance of the road, making the Vientiane Academy more and more powerful. Some civil servants serving in the court also responded to the Vientiane Academy from a distance. Today, the Wanxiang Academy can actually influence the government to a certain extent and begin to make its own voice heard. It advocates that political affairs should be returned to the six ministries, public opinions should be handed over to the censors, the eunuchs' monopoly should be ended, and the world should be happy and hopeful about governance. It strongly opposes the collection of commercial taxes and competing with the people for profits, and demands to benefit merchants and the people, reduce taxes, reclaim wasteland and build water conservancy projects, oppose the frequent cheating in the imperial examinations, and advocate that the selection of scholars should be made regardless of their rank and status, and that they should be recruited according to their personal talents, strengthen the Liaodong border defense, and strictly guard against the invasion of the Golden Horde.

As the Wanxiang Academy became larger and larger, many factions gradually emerged within it, divided by region and place of origin, namely the Qi Party in Qizhou, the Chu Party in Chuzhou, the Jing Party in Jingzhou, the Lu Party in Luzhou, the Jiang Party in Jiangzhou, and so on. These parties are not only in the Wanxiang Academy, but also spread to the court. Therefore, the Wanxiang Academy today is very complicated and cannot be explained in a few words. Li Rushi asked Li Xuandu to go there in person, after all, seeing is believing.

Li Xuandu had heard of the name of Wanxiang Academy a long time ago, and he knew a little about it. But whether it was Li Daoxu or Zhang Suqing, who also came from Wanxiang Academy, they were quite disapproving of Wanxiang Academy. Zhang Suqing believed that the people of Wanxiang Academy had no vision and lacked the ability to govern the country. Although their ideas sounded good and their spirits were commendable, they could not come up with a good prescription and could only talk nonsense. Li Daoxu's words were even more intense, saying that the people of Wanxiang Academy were good at internal fighting, not good at governing the country, and were especially good at forming a party to attack dissidents. Judging from the heart instead of the deeds is still a stretch, and judging from the deeds instead of the heart will mislead others and yourself.

The two people who had the greatest influence on Li Xuandu were Li Daoxu and Zhang Suqing. One was like a father and the other was like a teacher. The attitudes of these two people inevitably affected Li Xuandu, so in the past many years, Li Xuandu always kept a distance from Wanxiang Academy.

However, in addition to the atmosphere of political discussion in the Wanxiang Academy, there are also many people who concentrate on learning. Among the many chief priests in the Wanxiang Academy, there are several chief priests who are particularly proficient in music. Among them, a female chief priest named Su has the greatest reputation. Because of her beautiful appearance and good talent, she is regarded as a celestial being by many students in the academy and is often compared with Qian Jiner, the master of the Qian family.

An autumn rain came without an appointment. The rain was not heavy, but it added a bit of coldness, which made people feel depressed. Today, Master Su did not teach. She walked on the bluestone path of the academy with a painted paper umbrella. The rain and fog made her look more ethereal like a fairy.

At this time, a young man from a noble family came towards him, stopped, and waited for Master Su to come.

When Mr. Su walked not far from the young master of the aristocratic family, he stopped moving forward and asked softly, "What can I do for you, Mr. Wen?"

Mr. Wen's name is "Li". He has a good family background. His grandfather is Wen Ren, the chief priest of the academy. His father is also the chief priest of the academy. He has many disciples and is highly respected. What's more rare is his family's profound learning. Wen Li is by no means a useless dandy. Instead, he is well-read and has a lot of strategies. When he lectures and discusses politics in the academy, he often makes amazing remarks, which draws applause from the whole room. He has a high reputation in the academy.

Wen Li smiled and said, "On my way here, I met two people who said they were coming to visit Master Su, so I came to report to Master Su."

"Thank you, Second Young Master Wen." Master Su smiled politely, "I don't have many friends. Did you tell me your name?"

"It's okay. After all, I'm just passing by." Wen Li smiled a little, "The visitors are a man and a woman. The man didn't speak. The woman said her surname was Bai and her given name was 'Juan'."

"Bai Juan." Master Su was startled, and then smiled, "It turned out to be this girl."

This sudden smile made Wen Li absent-minded for a moment, as if a ray of spring light suddenly shot into this dark and cold autumn day, making the whole world bright.

Before he came to his senses, he heard Master Su ask, "Where are those two people now?"

Wen Li hurriedly said, "I'll ask these two to wait in the gatehouse for a while. Since they are friends of Master Su, I'll go and bring them over."

Master Su shook his head and said, "No need, I'll go and greet her myself."

Wen Li said, "I'll go with Master Su."

Master Su declined politely, "No need, Master Wen is just passing by, so don't bother Master Wen to make another trip. Master Wen should just take care of his own business first."

Wen Li wanted to say that he was not busy, but after seeing Master Su's firm eyes, he swallowed the words that were on his lips. If he was the kind of person who pestered women, he would not have such a great reputation in the Wanxiang Academy, so he smiled politely, maintained the gentle and elegant demeanor of a noble family, and turned around and left with an umbrella.

After Wen Li left, Su Dajia quickened his pace a little. The Wanxiang Academy covers a large area, and it is impossible for it to have only one main gate. There are many side doors and side doors. Su Dajia came to the nearest side door and saw the two people waiting in the gatehouse.

Bai Juan was still the same, but the man sitting next to her was not quite consistent with the rumors.

Although she was a person who didn't hear anything outside the window, the noise outside the window was too loud, and Wen Li would come to make a noise whenever he had something to do. It was difficult for her not to know, so she knew a little about Bai Juan and the young master. Most women can't escape the stereotype of judging people by appearance. In her opinion, a man who can make Miss Zhang and Miss Qin look favorably on him must have a handsome face and cold eyes. Even if his appearance is slightly flawed, he should be unrestrained and heroic, not a stupid boy.

But she soon figured out the key. This sister Qin always liked to disguise herself. It seemed that Mr. Li could not escape her "poisonous hand" and was "dressed up" by her.

After the two sisters exchanged a few pleasantries, Bai Juan said: "I haven't introduced you yet, this is Mr. Li from Taiping Sect."

The two were Li Xuandu and Qin Su. Li Xuandu bowed and said: "Li Xuandu meets Mr. Su."

Mr. Su returned the greeting with reserve: "I have heard of Mr. Li's reputation for a long time, and today I finally meet him. Please follow me to my residence for a chat."

After that, Mr. Su explained to the gatekeeper and led the two to his residence.

After walking for about half an hour, they saw a two-story building by the small lake. This was Mr. Su's residence. The second floor was a bedroom, and the first floor could be used to entertain guests. When they entered the building, they did not see how rich it was, but it was simple and clean, which was similar to Li Rushi's residence.

After sitting down, Li Xuandu took off the mask on his face, revealing his true face, and said: "Seeing Master Su today reminds me of an ancient poem, which goes: 'It is the beautiful scenery of Jiangnan, and I meet you again in the season of falling flowers.'"