Section 3: What are my virtues?

Li Tai and Li Ke did not have the same bad habits as Li Er. When they saw Chang Sun Chong and Li Huai Ren, they rushed into the vegetable garden like wild boars, plucked the cucumbers, washed them in the water tank, and then ate them with a crunch. The two brothers did not show any weakness. They ran in, picked them up, and learned from them. They ate them without wiping them off, and then ate them together. Are these still the top nobles of the Tang Dynasty? They eat worse than beggars.

“Eat less, eating too much raw food will upset your stomach.” Yun Ye couldn’t persuade them, these four were eating like crazy.

Li Huiren suddenly screamed, his voice was miserable.

No, it’s the food that’s made him sick. Yun Ye hurried over to help him up and asked him where he was feeling unwell.

He just opened his mouth and breathed heavily, his tongue sticking out, not speaking. When he looked again, the guy was holding half a chili pepper in his hand, with tears and snot flowing down his face. It was disgusting, so he poured half a ladle of cold water on the guy and left him alone. The chili peppers that I grew were not the kind used for cooking, but the kind used for drying red peppers. They were extremely spicy and not something that ordinary people could handle. Grandma was afraid that they wouldn’t be taken care of properly in the capital, so she personally took care of them by pulling them back in a warm carriage. The grandson valued these peppers the most, and Grandma treated them like treasures. If the servants dared to move them, they would be beheaded.

“Ye Zi, why are you still planting poison?” The eldest grandson asked Yun Ye with a lingering fear in his heart. The two princes were also uneasy.

“Poison? You ate a lot of this stuff in Longyou, and it didn’t kill you. Now it’s wreaking havoc in my greenhouse.”

“Longyou? Have I eaten it? Why don’t I remember?” Li Huiren finally recovered. Since Changsun Chong had eaten it, he must have eaten it too.

“Get out! You two were so busy eating that you didn’t remember what spices you used.”

“Chili? I remember now. You said there was only a little left, and it was that red stuff? It felt like fire in my mouth?” Chang Sun Chong still had some memory.

“No wonder my mouth still feels like it’s on fire.”

Yun Ye snatched the half chili pepper from his hand, wiped it off, and ate it little by little. It was so good!

“Brother Ye, I want to give my father and mother a little bit. Do you think it’s okay?” Li Tai was a little embarrassed. This is the kind of royal grace that should be expected. Li Chengqian is definitely dominated by the genes of the Hu people.

Patting Li Tai on the shoulder, Yun Ye said, “Your bandit brother would let me go to the flower house in the capital? I’m afraid it has long since become the royal vegetable garden, and your father has long been eyeing it. The Yun family has many good things, but I’m afraid of being eyeing them, so I ran to the countryside to hide.”

Li Ke looked at Yun Ye with squinted eyes, as if he didn’t believe it. Yun Ye had no way to tell him the true nature of Li Er’s greed. If a child doesn’t listen to his father, it won’t kill him to mention it respectfully.

“What do those classmates eat? Is it also this kind of food?” Li Tai slurped his mouth, as if relishing the deliciousness of breakfast.

Changsun Chong, Li Huiren smiled wryly, it sounded very sad, one person, one prince, walking and talking, “General Niu’s management method is one, and his old man only knows one, that is, military law. What about punishment? He only knew one way of punishment, the military rod, and now there is a new one called confinement. The three of us, plus Cheng Chumo, your brother was the first victim. The taste is indescribable, and the punishment is unforgettable. In short, I will tell you two the secret to surviving under the Bull Demon King. It is better to receive corporal punishment than the military rod, and it is better to receive the military rod than confinement. Remember, remember, this is what my cousin summed up with tears. I don’t tell ordinary people.

The five men, having eaten and drunk to their hearts’ content, rode recklessly towards the academy. It was only about 10 o’clock in the morning, and from a distance, there seemed to be a hint of green on the flat land. When they got closer, however, it was still a bare patch. When they looked further afield and saw green again, the horses thought that the grass was right in front of them and couldn’t help but quicken their pace.

They walked quickly and slowly, and before they knew it, they had arrived at the academy.

Li Gang and three old men with gray hair were drinking tea under the sun, occasionally humming, seemingly leisurely, but the screams of a pig being slaughtered in the academy from time to time were somewhat unsightly.

I went up to greet the old gentlemen. One of them looked at Yun Ye and smiled. “I don’t know what you teach in the Department of Material Science, but if it’s mathematics, you can be called a famous scholar of your generation. Liu Lao’s praise in front of others is not bad. If the food is like this every morning, I don’t care if I teach a bunch of eighth-rate students here in Yushan for the rest of my life.”

Li Gang and the others laughed heartily. Pointing at the old man who was talking, they kept saying that he was a disgrace to the Chinese culture.

“Mr. Yushan is a scholar that younger generations admire. The title of historian is not undeserved. The academy is still in its infancy, and we will rely on you for support. As for the food, I am a famous eater in Chang’an, and I will not disappoint you.”

Xin Xuanyu, a famous historian, was a descendant of a scholarly family. He was known as Yushan and was open-minded and cheerful. He was the main editor of the Book of Jin. In recent years, he has been cultivating his character at home. I don’t know how Li Gang got him.

“There are five kinds of steamed buns in the food delivered today, all made with fresh vegetables, and they taste delicious. I’ve never eaten these kinds of food before, so I’m a bit bloated and have to drink tea under the sun to digest. I know that the melons and vegetables in the hot-water department aren’t ready for you yet, so do you mean you can grow vegetables in winter?” Another old man was curious and put down the “Historical Records” in his hand and asked Yun Ye.

“When I was young, I wandered with my master outside the borders of the country. The food there was really unbearable. There were only a few kinds of vegetables all year round, and in winter there was only meat. My master was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to survive, so he came up with a way to grow vegetables by planting flowers. I didn’t expect it to be successful, so I learned to grow vegetables in winter. It’s all because I’m greedy and I make fun of my predecessors. In fact, this is just a small branch of natural science, called botany. Unfortunately, I only know how it is, but not why it is, and I have let my teacher down.

“You have a good teacher! In the future, you must be diligent every day and not let your teacher down.”

Yun Ye nodded and promised that he would no longer live a life of confusion.

“Mr. Yuan Zhang is very interested in your family’s vegetable garden. Can we take a look?”

There is nothing to be ashamed of. Even if you see it, you can’t copy the Yun family’s vegetable garden. It’s not just in the flower pots. This is my sister’s dowry. Yun Ye has no intention of filling the world with greenhouse vegetables.

The old man didn’t need Yun Ye to accompany him, so he called a child and a servant drove a cart with a cow to Yun’s house.

Changsun Chong, Li Huiren, and Li Xiaosan and Li Xiaosi looked through the crack in the door, shaking from time to time. Needless to say, the punishment of the old ox made them tremble with fear.

Yun Ye’s cough made the four of them almost fall to the ground.

“Brother Ye, I saw General Niu beat them with a thick stick on their buttocks, and blood came out.” Li Ke’s mouth was trembling and he couldn’t speak clearly.

“Wooden stick? This is still good, not using a whip is for the sake of their father.” Li Huiren had finally survived the whip of the Bull Demon King.

“This won’t work. Using force will only make things worse. I’ll go in and talk to them.” As soon as Yun Ye finished speaking, the four bastards ran away without a trace.

He gasped as he pushed open the door and saw a dozen people on the ground, all with their white asses exposed, covered in bruises of all colors. The ten soldiers of his old man were holding thick sticks in their hands and occasionally hitting one of the moving asses. Laoniu sat under the eaves, sipping his wine slowly. In his hand was a small copper flask that Yun Ye had made for him, filled with strong liquor. It could be carried in his bosom at any time, which was very convenient.

“Kid, you’re back? How’s everything at home? Is the old lady still in good health?” Old Niu casually greeted the old lady.

“Uncle Niu, these students are new here and don’t know your strength. It’s understandable that they are a bit sloppy. Now that they know they were wrong, how about you give them a break this time?”

Meng was lying at Yun’s feet, his tears almost flowing into a river as he clung to Yun’s leg.

“Listen up, you little rascals! His Majesty entrusted you to me because he doesn’t want you to become useless eaters. I’ve traveled all over the country and killed thousands of people. If you don’t want to die, you’d better study hard. There will be a small test every ten days and a big test every month. If you slack off or disrespect your teachers, I’ll make you regret being born. From tomorrow onwards, you’ll wake up when you hear the gong and go to sleep when you hear the drum. I will eat and live with you. Hey, even if you are a lump of mud, I will turn you into steel.

Although this statement does not conform to the law of conservation of matter, it can be heard from it that Lao Niu will not give up until he achieves his goal. He hopes that there will be more people like Yun Ye among these people. First, they can make more contributions to the Tang Dynasty. Second, they can share the pressure with Yun Ye. As long as there are people who can reach Yun Ye’s level, it proves that Yun Ye is not that strange. His magical skills are the result of his knowledge, not some fairy or monster.

Yun Ye had heard Lao Niu say this in Chang’an, and he pretended not to know that the emperor was sending all the troubles in Chang’an to him. He pretended to understand only on the way here, which would create an opportunity for him to mingle with these young and pampered people. In the future, in the academy, he would play the red-faced role, and Yun Ye would play the white-faced role to see if he could win the hearts of these people.

Looking at the old ox standing under the eaves, spitting and spitting, Yun Ye’s eyes were red, and he shouted in his heart: What kind of virtue do I have to make such an old man run around for me?