The Sage of Confucianism and Taoism

Liu Yu finally couldn't help it and scolded: "I heard you complaining when I came back. Do you not want me to enter this house?"

Mrs. Liu was stunned and suddenly raised her voice and shouted: "Did I make a mistake? You are a grown man..."

Liu Yu took a deep breath, suppressed the thought of arguing, turned around and left.

It would have been better not to leave. Now that she left, Mrs. Liu felt even more justified. She made a splash in the room and scolded Liu Yu so loudly that it was useless, even the next door could hear her.

Liu Yu walked out of the house with his head lowered, squatted at the door of the house, took out his pipe and pot and smoked dry tobacco silently.

Mrs. Liu's voice came intermittently from inside the house.

A carriage passed by the door, but after a few steps it suddenly stopped.

When Liu Yu heard the sound, he turned around and saw a familiar person getting off the carriage.

"Uncle Liu, I haven't seen you for a long time. I heard that you are famous again?" A man in his thirties wearing a dark blue scholar uniform came over with a smile.

Liu Yu snorted and said, "What kind of tornado is this? It actually blew Rong Xiucai here."

Rong Xiucai was not angry and said with a smile: "Uncle Liu, you have also seen those officials, and they don't take you seriously at all. If I were the county magistrate, I would definitely give you a village master. But what about now? You see. Look how many years you have lived in this house and it hasn’t been rebuilt yet.”

"Say something quickly and fart quickly!" Liu Yu said impatiently.

Rong Xiucai was still not angry and said with a smile: "I guess your second grandson will soon be studying, right? We can't let him go to an ordinary private school like Shi Yuan and delay his future. Alas, if Shi Yuan went to a large academy back then, , this year I may I'm afraid it's already a Tongsheng. Uh... don't worry, I'm getting down to business. The dean of Zhengzhi Academy has a good relationship with me and gave me the recommendation of two Mengtong students. I thought about it and gave it to you. Two grandsons, what do you think?"

Liu Yu held the cigarette pot and sat on the threshold looking at Rong Xiucai.

The evening sun had just set. In Liu Yu's eyes, Rong Xiucai's face was a little gloomy, but Rong Xiucai's eyes were particularly bright.

Zhengzhi Academy is a well-known large academy in Ning'an County. Ning'an County admits about 120 students every year, and the number of new students in Zhengzhi Academy every year has never been less than 20. The highest number in one year was even three. Fourteen children established the status of one of the three major academies in Ning'an County.

If his two grandsons enter Zhengzhi Academy, they will most likely pass the Tongsheng Examination within five years, and may even have the chance to become scholars.

After a while, Rong Xiucai smiled and said: "I hope you will join my workshop. I don't know how much your monthly salary is now, but I can give you thirty taels a month! In the future, every time our firm adds a workshop "Fang, I will give you at least ten taels of silver every month! This is the twelfth and last time I ask you."

Liu Yu lowered his head and remained silent for a long time. Then he suddenly raised his head and showed a bright smile.

"I thought about it, your place is too dirty and I can't go there."

The smile on Rong Xiucai's face disappeared and he sneered: "Mr. Liu, have you never done anything wrong in your life?"

Liu Yu chuckled and said, "I have done it. Who has never done something wrong when they grow up? But I didn't lose all my heart. I still have heart, but you don't. This is the difference between us."

"Liu Yu, don't toast me and you'll be fined if you don't eat."

The stubborn old man laughed and said: "I have been punished with alcohol for the rest of my life, and I am not afraid of having to drink for a few more years."

"You...disappoint me so much! To waste all your skills in a wasteland like a county-owned workshop is simply a blasphemy to the skills of a craftsman!"

Liu Yu stopped smiling, looked at Rong Xiucai seriously, and said, "Yes, you are right. The county's workshops were originally wasteland, but now that someone has reclaimed that wasteland, crops will soon grow. And the longer the better, the better it’s ever been.”

Rong Xiucai laughed loudly and said: "Stubborn old man, it seems that you have also been deceived by Fang Xusheng. He is an official and you are a citizen. He may risk offending countless officials to help you civilians change the workshop? Let me tell you, everything he did is the same as what Zuo Xiang did years ago, in order to make it easier for us to take over the workshop. If he doesn't do this, the whole officialdom will suffer backlash!"

"I don't know anything about officialdom. I only know that Fang Xusheng is better than all of you and better than every official!" Liu Yu stood up slowly.

Rong Xiucai blinked in surprise. Liu Yu was obviously shorter and older than him, but when he stood up, why did he feel like a mountain rising?

"In that case, then I will watch your children and grandchildren eat chaff and go to those miscellaneous private schools to study!" Rong Xiucai turned and left.

"We have different ways, so we don't want to work together." Liu Yu said slowly.

"Tsk..." Rong Xiucai sneered. He was about to get on the carriage when he suddenly heard the sound of suonas and gongs and drums in the distance. He glanced casually, stopped and looked there curiously.

A band of more than sixty people is walking here. Those people are wearing bright red robes, playing suonas, drums, flutes, and all kinds of musical instruments.

The song is the famous "Phoenix Stage", which is usually only played when people are promoted, and these people are obviously the ceremonial band invited by the county government. It seems that someone has been promoted.

"Get out of the way quickly! Rush to the alley." Rong Xiucai hurriedly ordered the coachman to drive away the carriage and stood aside, preparing to follow the band to see which nobleman was going to be promoted.

Liu Yu also looked forward curiously and said: "Tsk, tsk, whose ancestral grave is smoking? This battle is really big, even if a master is elected, it will be nothing more than that."

The band was getting closer and closer. When they were close, Liu Yu found that Fang Yun's Longma luxury car was actually behind the band, and there were a large number of private soldiers guarding it. Behind him were cavalrymen wearing black demon iron armor, and there were also extremely tall and strong barbarian private soldiers.

"My goodness, let the dignified Xu Sheng come. This is not smoke coming out of the ancestral tomb, this is simply the ancestral tomb exploding!" Liu Yu said.

Rong Xiucai was extremely surprised and said, "No, there is neither a wealthy residence nor a famous family ahead of this road. It is impossible for ordinary people to mobilize such a large battle for promotion. It's strange. Could it be that they invited a famous hermit?"

"It's hard to say." Liu Yu muttered in a low voice.

The people on both sides of the road walked to the door to watch. The people of the Liu family also ran out, stretched their necks to look, and talked while watching, envying the unknown official.

The band continued to move forward and soon passed in front of the Liu family. Not long after, the Longma luxury car appeared in front of the Liu family.

When the eighteen tall pure-blooded dragon horses appeared, even Rong Xiucai couldn't help but hold his breath and carefully observed the handsome and heroic dragon horses. He was attracted by the dazzling dragon scales and his eyes were full of envy. This was a real pure-blooded dragon horse that even the great scholars couldn't afford.

The carriage stopped in front of the Liu family's door, and the music suddenly stopped.

Rong Xiucai's face changed drastically, and the hair on his body stood up in fear.

As a person who has been in the officialdom for many years, Rong Xiucai knew very well that the band must not be interrupted during the march, and it would only stop playing when it reached the door of the promoted person's house.

When Fang Yun got off the carriage with a smile on his face, Rong Xiucai's legs were weak and he almost knelt down.

Liu Yu and Fang Yun were very familiar with each other. When Fang Yun came down, he smiled and said, "Master Fang, you are too polite. Why stop when you see me? Go quickly and don't delay the important things."

"Puff..." Ao Huang smiled and flew out of the car door.