Chapter 169 – Beaded Curtain, Iron Armor (Middle)

The three riders took a slight detour to the Green Deer Cave Academy, the master and disciples stopped their horses at the foot of the mountain, handed the horses over to the Academy’s handyman to feed the horse grass, and then picked up the steps on foot. Although Xu Fengyen was in a hurry, he climbed the mountain very slowly. It was on this mountain path that he once had a thrilling life and death encounter with Gao Shulu, after that he got the celestial body, huh girl also wore that anachronistic sable hat to intercept Wang Xianzhi, hitting a stone with an egg in general. Xu Fengyen rested his feet in a pavilion halfway up the mountainside, looking out over the mountains and rivers of Youzhou, and for no apparent reason remembered the scholar on the Daxue Ping who had said, “Please ask the old ancestor to go to his death”, Xu Fengyen leaned against one of the bright red pavilion pillars that the academy had repainted at the beginning of the year, and mumbled to himself, “Xuan Yuan Jingcheng, I gave a book to Huishan last year, and perhaps your daughter will be suspicious of it. Perhaps your daughter will be suspicious and think that I was thinking of doing some kind of deal with her again, but in fact, it was just a wish to have some more jianghu seeds. Xuanyuan Qingfeng thought that I did not know Zhao Huang Chao dying out of body after the tampering, I just do not want to pursue the counting, she wants to be a woman as a martial arts alliance, to be Hui Mountain Daxue Ping Wang Xianzhi, all let her go well. After another hundred years, the future of the grass and the dragons and snakes, I’m afraid that the heavenly image realm are rarer than today’s land gods and goddesses, not to mention that there will be no readers to read to read a Confucian saint realm. Back then you said a sentence, ‘overrate yourself, honorable not self-importance.’ There was no feeling at that moment, but nowadays when I think back to my Northern Liang’s situation, it’s indeed hard to avoid having a heart of gold.”

Lu Yun Chang, whose face bruises had not completely disappeared, muttered softly, “Master, going to Bishan County is just fine, after all, there is Aunt Pei who is so magnificent, it’s not good to be left out in the cold. But this Green Deer Cave Mountain, halfway up the mountain here I can hear those reading voices, my brain hurts. Master you say you come to do what, I can say in advance, if there is no second Pei aunt, but just come to the academy to listen to people memorize, I can really want to turn my face. At that time I hand up knife down hand up knife down hand up knife down again hand up knife down, cut those readers to death.”

Yu Di Long said angrily, “Lu Yun Chang, haven’t you fought enough? Believe it or not, I’ll whack you to death with one punch!”

Lu Yun Chang also jumped to his feet, looked at Xu Feng Nian with a grudge on his face, incomparably aggrieved, “Master, you are biased towards Elder Brother, the secret manual of the old monster Wang was given to him for safekeeping, and even the blade manual that was the life’s work of your grandpa, was also given to Elder Brother, I was picked up by the side of the road and handed over to the mother’s child, wasn’t I?”

Xu Fengyen bent his fingers and gently knocked on Lu Yunchang’s head, smiled and said, “It’s not that I’m stingy or biased towards Yu Di Long, but those two things are not to your liking, when I have some martial arts insights in the future, as long as I have the opportunity to compile them into a score, I will only give it to you at that time, instead of Yu Di Long and Wang Sheng.”

Lu Yun Chang surprised: “Really?”

Xu Fengnian softly said, “Continue up the mountain.”

Lu Yunchang, who was following Xu Fengnian’s ass, glanced triumphantly at Yu Dilong, who rolled his eyes.

Xu Fengnian asked with a smile, “Have you guys ever thought about a question, why Buddhist temples are mostly built at the foot of the mountain, while large Taoist palaces and temples are mostly at the top of the mountain, and Confucian academies, often prefer to be halfway up the foothills of the mountain.”

Lu Yun Chang said without thinking, “The vultures like the incense money and are afraid that the joss stickers are too tired to climb the mountain. Taoism those stinking cow nose are seeking what longevity ah certified ascension ah, naturally want to pick a place closest to the gods, every day chanting and patting the ass, the gods can hear it. As for what the readers think, probably the foot of the mountain tops have been occupied by people, so they have to build a house on the mountainside. Master, isn’t this argument of mine very reasonable?”

Xu Fengyen was noncommittal and continued to ask, “Di Long, what do you think?”

Yu Di Long is just a shepherd boy origin, this life has never seen what Taoist temple temple school, for Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism also never understand, naturally confused, but since the master sent word to ask, this child also had to harden his skin to think about this problem, he finally a little bit to understand the so-called Lv Yun Chang’s brain ache. Fortunately, the master is understanding, quickly turned his head and smiled: “temporarily do not understand, do not think, but when you grow up, and then encountered something, can be thought or not when, think a little more. Can do or can not do when, may as well do it. People live a life, self-preservation, only to seek their own thoughts, regardless of other people’s satisfaction, that kind of land immortal, do not do it.”

Yu Di Long nodded vigorously and said, “Marked.”

The three of them came to the entrance of Qinglu Cave academy, there is a rule for martial artists to remove their armor and swords, of course, it is Xu Fengyen himself who made this rule, but Yu Di Long was not willing to remove the big man’s sword, Lu Yun Chang was not happy to part with the big frosty sword which he nicknamed as “Big Foot Daughter-in-Law”, so the two of them had to wait outside the academy on the open plaza, and Xu Feng Nian put his Beilang Beilang sword on his waist. Xu Fengyen took off his Beiliang sword and put it into a large bamboo basket on both sides of the doorway, in which there are already six or seven expensive longswords with gorgeous spikes, nowadays no private individuals are allowed to carry swords in Beiliang, otherwise they will be thrown into prison for the brocade-clothed rangers, without any mercy to speak of. Otherwise Xu Fengyen estimated basket is six or seven hilts inlaid with jade Beiliang knife. Liyang court does not prohibit all over the academy, Shangyin Palace is the most famous under the sky “private school”, but the Zhao room does not support this, the founder of the academy is mostly a local teacher of Confucianism, very few local local officials to serve as this kind of “mountain chiefs” and “cave masters”, “cave masters”. “Cave master”, Beiliang is an anomaly, in Xu Fengyen personally concerned about the current Beiliang Youliang Ling three states of more than a dozen academies, not only by the Qingliang Mountain and the local government to contribute money and effort, and not allow the officials to hinder the pressure on the academy of all kinds of needling the current affairs, such as this Qinglu Cave academy of the cave master is the once renowned Liyang dynasty and field of the local speech leader Huang Shang. Although these academies are Xu Fengyen, the northwestern feudal king tried his best to open up the net land, but the group of scholars to the cool does not pay attention to what “milk is mother”, when the battle of Youzhou emergency moment, especially the lying bow Xiaguang two cities were destroyed one after another, to the academy of the curses and criticism of the largest, and then more or less spread to the people of the city, the people’s hearts fluctuating. Not only Yan Wenluan these meritorious military generals this abhorrence, even the assassin of Youzhou Hu Kui and orthodox literati origin of Liangzhou assassin Tian Peifang, are coincidentally with the deputy Secretary Song Dongming expressed concern, but such as the Secretary Li Gongde these official “insights”, are well aware of the direction of the academy, in fact, we must also look at the king of northern Liang how to Of course, the vast majority of local officials in Beiliang feel that this group of embroidered pillows even dare to embarrass the King of Beiliang openly, the end is not likely to be good, especially when the Yu Luan knife 10,000 cavalry outside the Hulukou build success to make the war situation in Youzhou to get relief, all feel that it’s time to make an example of the monkeys, and properly kill a good kill this wind and rain.

Then Xu Fengyen walked into Qinglu Cave Academy at such a time with the sound of books. Since he only met Huang Shang and the others at the entrance of the academy, and there were many foreign scholars in the academy, no one recognized him in this paradise, and he was only treated as a member of the Northern Liang family who came to the academy to study. Xu Fengyen entered a book building, the academy lectures on Confucianism and scriptures, history, poetry and literature, occasionally discussing current politics. Today is a collection of lectures hosted by a great scholar, the book building is spacious, the ground placed more than a hundred futons for the audience to sit on the ground, futons are still not enough, like from the back door to enter the Xu Fengyen can only be in the back of the randomly sit down. The imperial examination merit but the scholar is explaining the art of making, a bit of ninth grade masters commenting on the suspicion of martial arts masters, but Xu Fengyen listened carefully for a moment, but still feel benefited, especially the scholar in the matter of guessing the question, quite insightful, the Liangdi scholars in the next year to the capital to participate in the spring exams, may be able to more than a few people win the prize list. Northern Liang on the scholar fat water outflow, since Xu Snapdragon, turned a blind eye, from Yan Jiexi to Yao Baifeng into the Beijing post, Xu Snapdragon did not deliberately difficult, and Xu Fengyen on the Sun Yin is also happy to see, the reason is very simple, Li Yishan once played an analogy, the young bird grows into a feeder still have to feed his mother, not to mention the people? At that time, the young son of His Highness was still puzzled, Li Yishan smiled and said that maybe only a few of the ten people are grateful to Northern Liang, but it is already enough. If the ten people are confined to the northern Liang local, cut off their career path, that is nine out of ten to the northern Liang hate.

The next big Confucian also chose a few less boring topics, let more than a hundred young scholars express their views, there is the emperor’s establishment of six museums, as well as the order to let the twelve painting world of the national artists for the Spring and Autumn Ministers of merit, and how to think of today’s son of heaven to allow his portrait into the temple of the Ministers of merit, accompanied by the Imperial ancestral temple, the most important thing is that the big Confucian smiling let the scholars guess that accompanied by the sacrificial portrait, will there be an old king of Liang, and if so, which one will be! Which painting master to depict, is that “He family wild and elegant, Liu family rich and noble” reputation of one of the He Liu, or that specializing in the painting of Buddha, ghosts and gods, especially the thousand hands and eyes of the demonic Bijie famous in the world “small Yuchi”, or else that the recent poems and paintings for the Prince of Heaven’s own pen! Or is it the Zheng Si-xun who has recently presented his poems and paintings to the Emperor in person with the title “The Three Greatest Masters of the Zheng Family”?

Inside the bookstore, there was a lot of talk and bustle.

Xu Fengnian some feelings, Zhao Zhanzhuan in Jibei to 10,000 Yu cavalry under a set, but also in the Ministry of War to observe the border of the “demonstration of the Northwest”, soon came to a hand of just and soft, there are small rumors outside the palace, said that His Majesty the emperor wants to Xu Snapdragon posthumously on the matter of the “imperial court has a loss! “There were rumors that His Majesty the Emperor wanted to posthumously honor General Xu Snap, and that this “deficit” was of course caused by the then Chief Minister Zhang Julu, while his new ruler Zhao Zhuan and his new dynasty were doing their best to remedy the situation. If this was the handiwork of the Minister Qi Yanglong, Xu Fengyen would not be surprised, but if it was Zhao Zhuan’s own intention, then it was worth worrying about. Xu Fengyen was not worried about a small-minded Liyang Emperor, on the contrary, the more unconventional Zhao Zhuan was, the more difficult the situation in Northern Liang would only become. Zhao Zhanzhuan has serious hostility towards Northern Liang or towards him, Xu Fengyen, the two matters of Jibei and CaoLin have already shown clearly, the more Zhao Zhanzhuan gives to Xu Snapdragon, the more he is bound to ask from Xu Fengyen’s hands, what he gives, is false, and what he wants, is all real. But this kind of trade-off, in the eyes of the Liyang court, but also very “reasonable”.

Xu Fengyen was deep in thought before he was suddenly disturbed by a quarrel. It turned out to be the side of the camp opposite seven or eight foreigners and local scholars suddenly began to quarrel up, is arguing that Xiaguang City when the North Mang was attacked as well as the degree of solidity of the Hu Tou City, for the Xiaguang City in the Youzhou more than 200,000 soldiers and horses under the attack, both sides have no objection, but the local readers in Beiliang think that at least can be supported for a period of ten years and a half months, the foreigners are in the crouching luan luan crane under the previous experience, that Xiaguang City can be broken in a day. The city can be broken in a matter of days. As for the so-called Northwest first town of Hutou City, the dispute is even more intense, the former feel that adhere to a month even if the great success, the latter almost blindly believe that Hutou City can become the second “pillar of the Central Plains” Xiangfan City, to become the North Mang cavalry in the torrent of the pillar of the Northern Liang. During this period, there is a stark confrontation, both sides on Xu Fengyen personally appeared outside the gourd mouth to beat the North Mang supply line paralyzed, and again is the noise of the red face, the countryside readers believe that the son of a thousand gold sitting in the hall, said Xu Fengyen this kind of childish action to risk his life, is trying to do the history of heroes, is a childish mentality, but can not be praised, if it is that the emperor, but also impeachment, have to be under the edict of sin! Northern Liang scholar is ultimately clumsy some, many rebuttals are not words, to Liang scholar read poetry, always come up with a ring of sage reasoning to sneer. In the end, cursing the losing Northern Liang readers worthy of being born and raised in Northern Liang, almost to roll up the sleeves with the gang of standing and talking about the son of a bitch with fists to reason, the results were a Shangyin Palace scholar slanting his eyes and cursed the “brute” on the fire, this is now a complete mess, for a time Xu Fengyin around the fists and spit! This was a complete mess, and for a while, fists and saliva flew around Xu Fengyen, it was quite lively. Beiliang readers thought that scolding is not cheap, on the basis of people tall and big, fighting will not suffer, I did not think that there are two foreign scholar or practiced martial arts practiced the style of literature and martial arts.

Always sitting on the ground is still being affected by the fish Xu Fengnian raised his hand to block a sole plate, gently pushed away. Soon you have to turn your head to avoid a mouthful of spittle from someone, and then help a reader who staggered backward from being hit.

Those who climbed the mountain to study and put their swords in the bamboo basket of the Beiliang general seed family son a little inquiry, on the spot, angry, almost jumped over the head of many scholars, into the battlefield, a moment to bring back the disadvantageous situation.

That once in the Shangyin Academy Palace in charge of preaching but preferred the military science of the great Confucian, but does not feel degrading at all, not only did not sternly reprimand, but smiled and flicked his beard, seated on the ground, the two sides of those fists and feet to make a wonderful comment.

Dare to come to Beiliang foreign scholar, if there is no point of blood is not the courage of this, so this fight more and more intense, soon someone see blood, even so, no one retreat, first of all, those who come to the name of the general species of children as a reinforcement of the Beiliang side of the battlefield to join the battlefield, their shot, soon triggered all the bookstore within the resonance of the Beiliang scholar, have risen to the bookstore back! They all got up and ran towards the back of the bookstore to the “sand field”. Then soon there were also foreign scholars who embraced the identity of their fellow countrymen from various states in Liyang and went to help the battlefield. The scholar was still in no hurry and watched as the number of seated scholars dwindled, and many small-armed and thin-legged scholars got up and rushed over, even if they didn’t fight, they would still advocate and build up momentum in the periphery.

Xu Fengyen helped the locals a few times, but very measured, just to help them block some of the overly heavy strokes, one of the general’s children’s vicious yin yin leg also gave him a quiet tug on the collar to pull back a few steps.

At the end of the day, the battle at the back of the book building came to an end and called for a retreat, both sides confronted each other in a furious manner, wide-eyed and ready to start the next big battle at any time. Xu Fengyen was of course on the side of the local scholars, beside him there was a dude from the general’s clan in Youzhou with blood oozing out of the corners of his mouth, while grimacing in pain, he turned his head and said with a smile to Xu Fengyen, who had helped him to block a punch, ”Buddy, thank you for just now, turn around and go down to the mountain and invite you to drink some flowery wine. This gang of tortoise grandson, I have long been looking at the eyes …… By the way, my name is Yang Hui Zhi, of the Shooting Stream County, to the county, report my name, safekeeping you everything is peaceful, of course, don’t do the hook of killing people and crossing the border, this kind of thing even I don’t dare to do …… ”

Cave master Huang Shang heard the news and ran into the book building, angrily shouted, “The academy is a place for readers to cultivate qi and rule peace, what has become of you? If you have the strength to fight, go join the army at the Northern Liang border!”

Huang Shang didn’t even look at the two distinct groups of people, and sighed softly at the old and relaxed great Confucian lecturer, “Xue Ji, you don’t control yourself a bit either.”

The great Confucian named Xue Ji smiled, reached out and casually pointed to a painting hanging on the wall behind him, “We readers, we are not afraid of not being reasonable, we are afraid of not being reasonable. Peace of mind is to speak, a big fight is also to speak, than to hold in the stomach and wait for the future to settle scores in the fall to good, what a gentleman revenge ten years is not too late, many years later, in the officialdom of the high-powered lessons of the official small, the official small bullying not as an official, not as an official can only go to the old people to bully, is not it too horrible? It would be better to finish the fight today and get rid of the anger, so that we can sit down and continue to talk about it. Cave master, I’m not waiting for them to stop fighting and calm down, I will enlighten and persuade them. These half-barrels of water in the bookstore, usually each one of them wobbles a lot, and if they don’t suffer, they won’t remember.”

Huang Shang cried and laughed, helplessly saying, “Old Xue, you ah you ah.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Huang Shang suddenly glimpsed a figure, and was instantly shocked.

Now Beiliang officialdom can be waiting to see the major academies of the show, Huang Shang for the literati political matters, is absolutely supportive of the attitude, but for the “mountain” academy within the border military affairs to the “mountain” led to the first signs of civil unrest, the old man! The old man is not without worries. Although the king of Beiliang promised him and the government not to interfere in the affairs of the academy, and also said that the academy would not be penalized for their words, and even sheltered the readers from the plague of war and the humiliation of the military. However, Huang Shang still do not believe that the young and vigorous king of Beiliang can really be a free hand, not to mention that at this time is indeed the academy “trouble” in the first. Therefore, when the Qinglu Cave Master saw Xu Fengyen appearing in the battlefield, he suddenly felt a chill in his heart, is it possible that Xu Fengyen is going to go to the top? The seeds of reading in Northern Liang have not yet taken root, and should be abandoned halfway?

Huang Shang is a tough guy, the cooler his heart is, the more he refuses to step back, he walked a few steps forward and asked Xu Fengyen bluntly: ”The King of Northern Liang is here, is he here to ask for punishment? Is it to close down the academy? Is he forbidding the Northern Liang readers to study?”

Xu Fengyen shook his head, glanced at the calligraphy and calmly said, “I originally just wanted to come and take a look, and then leave. But now I’m much more relieved, that inscription on the wall, it’s ‘A thousand great things, the most costly to think about’.”

Xu Fengnian looked around and smiled, “I hope that all of you readers, think well, and after thinking, your voice is only heavy. You and I share the same encouragement.”

Xu Fengyen faced towards the lecturing scholar and gently bowed to him, “This truth was taught by Mr. Xu, Xu Fengyen has been taught.”

Xue Ji should have and would have wanted to hurriedly get up and return the bow, but for some reason, at that moment, this old Confucian scholar, who had been depressed in the Shangyin Palace of Learning, hardened his buttocks back to the bushel, straightened his back, and without saying a word, he endured the bow.

Long after the young Northern Liang King and Cave Master Huang Shang had left the book building, Xue Ji remained motionless, and the old man finally lowered his head and reached down to touch the ground outside the futon, “Who says that in the Northern Liang land, only general seeds that ride horses and wear armor are produced, and that no reading seeds can be produced?”

Xue Ji faced the group of young readers who had not yet slowed down, raised his hand and pressed it downward, his demeanor soaring with intent, “All of you sit down. I, Xue Ji, will finally talk about how to think today, which is the way my generation of readers should think!”