The Prosperous Era of Longwan

"May I ask you your surname?"

It is true that Zhang Haochu is aggressive, ruthless and lawless, but he is not a fool either.

In fact, there are no stupid people who study. Those who are stupid have long been unable to eat.

I didn't see that the domineering guy Zeng Yuanshu had stopped now. This shows that the person in front of me probably has the right to speak in their Zeng family. He is still so young. Naturally, he immediately asked in the tone of a scholar with clothes on his hands. Don't forget to salute.

"I was in Xia Huguang, and I was related to Yuanshu by clan.

I am already aware of the fight between my clan brother and you. In my opinion, it is better for both sides to stop, so as to avoid the physical pain of the subordinates."

Wei Guangde was stunned when he saw Zeng Shengwu standing in front of him starting to negotiate with Zhang Haochu. Is this okay?

"He is a scholar."

Perhaps seeing Wei Guangde's surprise, Wu Dong, who came back to his senses, whispered in his ear.

One word awakens the dreamer.

Wu Dong's words made Wei Guangde realize that Zhang Haochu was worried about his true identity as a scholar.

Scholars had privileges in the Ming Dynasty. Who among ordinary people would dare to beat a scholar?

Let alone beating or scolding.

As soon as he stood there, Zhang Haochu really didn't dare to challenge him, because the consequences seemed serious.

Most of the literary works of later generations portray the scholar as a poor scholar, and it is hard to explain why a scholar encounters a soldier.

Influenced by these works, future generations felt that scholars seemed poor and weak.

Poor is really poor, but it is for the rich, not ordinary people in the middle and lower classes.

Weak, that is, really weak, unable to restrain a chicken, but they have political privileges, but most scholars are a little industrious because they study hard.

In fact, no matter it was the Ming Dynasty or the Qing Dynasty, scholars still had a strong say in local affairs and no one dared to bully them.

The smaller the place, the greater the power of such a voice.

Just kidding, if this hole is opened, what should other scholars think?

Naturally, the scholars would attack him in groups and kill him as a warning to others.

Even if a scholar is really bullied, it can only be done by someone of equal or higher status.

Is Zeng Shengwu's scholar status enough?

It's really enough. After all, the people upstairs are all juniors in their teens and twenties. His reputation as a scholar is enough.

Although the Zhang Hao Chu family also has a great business, the Zeng family does not get it for nothing.

Zhang Haochu's father was also a scholar, but the Zeng family also had one, and Zeng Yuanshu's grandfather was still a scholar, but he was too old to walk.

According to previous practice, such a fight would actually not be a big deal.

But what if this scholar from other provinces went to see the official regardless of the situation?

Zhang Haochu felt something was wrong. There were some things he could do but couldn't say, let alone expose him to the officials. Even if it was an unspoken rule, as long as he didn't report it to the county government, everything was possible.

It's easy for ordinary people to say, but for famous scholars, it's a bit difficult to deal with.

Wei Guangde used to know that scholars are very good, and civil servants are even more awesome. This time, he really saw it.

With just one scholar standing there, the fight that was supposed to start seemed to disappear.

. . . . . .

"Brother Zeng, I wonder if you have any sample papers for the scientific examination. I want to study more."

After the banquet resumed, everyone's interest in talking was also greatly reduced. Wei Guangde also took this opportunity to mention the purpose of his visit to Zeng Yuanshu.

"You have to look at those papers. There are many. There are many scientific examination papers from the past several years, from college examinations to provincial examinations, and even examination papers. As long as Jiujiang Prefecture has them, our family has collected them."

Zeng Yuanshu heard that Wei Guangde wanted to read the imperial examination papers, and he also knew that it was a common practice for scholars in this era to read the imperial examination papers in the past, and everyone was trying to figure out some of the techniques.

"Actually, it's a little early for Guangde to start reading Shiwen. More should be read the annotations of the Four Books and some other sutras. Once you have a thorough understanding, you can practice more and write more a year before the exam."

At this time, Zeng Shengwu suddenly intervened and said.

Zeng Shengwu didn't feel much about this teenage boy, and he didn't say much at the wine table.

However, hearing that he now had to read a lot of historical texts, Zeng Shengwu felt that he should remind him based on his own examination experience that the Four Books and Five Classics were the foundation, and writing skills were just the icing on the cake.

Completely reading and understanding the words of sages is the foundation of one's life.

"Teachable."

Wei Guangde immediately raised his hands and said.

Wei Guangde has a plan for his reading. He plans to finish reading the Five Classics this year, and at the same time study the Four Books. When he gets tired of reading, he will write an eight-legged essay. It is perfect to practice calligraphy and become familiar with writing skills.

Although I don’t know when Master Sun will ask him to take the county examination, as long as he can write better essays, Mr. Lai will arrange for him to take the examination soon.

After that, Wei Guangde and Zeng Yuanshu agreed on a time for a visit. Of course, they mainly wanted to find some time to take him back. Anyway, his cousin Wu Dong had already found two poor scholars for him to help copy books.

Yes, most of these period texts are collected in manuscripts, and there are also collections of period texts engraved by bookstores. However, the only ones who can get this treatment are the papers of the provincial examination and the general examination.

Regarding the current collection of literature by Wei Guangde, to be honest, he himself knows that the provincial examination papers are too high-level, and the college examination papers are actually the most affordable.

However, having his own plan does not mean that Wei Guangde will not humbly ask for advice.

Since Zeng Shengwu was willing to give advice on his knowledge, Wei Guangde naturally took the opportunity to continue asking questions and learning.

Through some conversations, Wei Guangde also vaguely noticed that the young scholar Zeng Jingwu seemed to be more knowledgeable than his teacher Sun Fuzi.

In this regard, Wei Guangde naturally communicated with him more enthusiastically.

The other people here were talking to Zeng Shengwu, and it could be said that they were exchanging knowledge. When they came to him, they were asking for advice.

In fact, most of the issues in the Four Books and Five Classics have been so-called perfect solutions in the previous annotations of the sages. However, there may be deviations in the understanding of some sages. It depends on who you believe.

However, the questions Wei Guangde asked gradually changed a little. At first, his questions were quite regular. However, after discovering that Zeng Xingwu seemed to be very good at thinking and had his own thoughts, Wei Guangde's questions began to be biased towards his original views on some matters in later generations. views, and the differences between these and current views are gradually increasing.

Wei Guangde raises these questions here mainly because Zeng Shengwu is young. Being young means that he accepts new ideas quickly and is not as easy to explain as old scholars.

Of course, he did not expect to promote the views of later generations, but it was just a test, which he needed to consider in his future answers to the rural examinations.

He had to pay attention to this matter. He was not sure whether some things could be written or not. He just took this opportunity to bring it up to see what other people thought, not to mention he was a scholar.