Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 710 Academy Chancellor

Taiping Domain, Eastern District, Jiamu City.

Today, the people living on this land have come to call their home the Peaceful Domain, shedding its former names of the Northern Domain and the Demon Domain...

It was the dead of winter, and the weather was bitterly cold.

There were people in the city responsible for clearing the snow, so there wasn't much snow left.

However, looking outside the city, all that could be seen was a vast expanse of white.

Fortunately, the weather was sunny and there was no cold wind. Everyone was wearing thick clothes, so they didn't feel too cold.

However, due to the cold weather and frozen ground, some construction projects have been temporarily suspended.

Everyone had more free time and scheduled more study time than before.

Throughout the city, you can see men, women, and children reading books.

This is a habit that has been cultivated by the nationwide enlightenment education during this period.

Reading and learning to read can help you understand principles and learn skills.

Some people may not know what principles they should understand or what skills they should learn, but they do know one thing: in the past, only wealthy families could afford to study.

Even the most foolish monster understands that being able to read and write is a skill.

Moreover, I've heard that if you read a lot and have talent, you can even go on to cultivate and learn higher skills.

Now that they have this opportunity, they will naturally cherish it.

A dozen miles east of the city, in the vast farmland, two figures walked slowly forward.

One was a burly middle-aged man, and the other was a half-demon with a large bull's head.

The two walked along the wide ridges of the fields, observing the nearby farmland, occasionally taking out some objects and notebooks to make notes.

The farmland was covered with a thick layer of snow, but scattered patches of green could be seen, indicating that the crops planted in early winter were still growing vigorously.

The man murmured, "Tsk, these crop seeds are really something else. They can grow so well even with so much snow. They're not some kind of magical herbs or medicines... I've farmed for most of my life and I've never seen anything like it!"

The half-demon beside him said naively, "These are all seeds sent down from above, how could they be bad? Maybe Mr. Lu had them blessed by a deity..."

The man glared and said, "Mr. Lu is so powerful, why would he need to consult the gods? Don't talk nonsense."

The half-demon scratched his head and said, "That makes sense, Mr. Lu is a god after all!"

The man said irritably, "Stop talking about gods and immortals. It's been said above that it's better to rely on yourself than on gods. No matter how powerful the gods in heaven are, do they care about our lives? We need to learn our own skills, become strong ourselves, and help each other as a group... By talking to Mr. Lu like that, aren't you insulting him?"

"Ah this..."

The half-demon quickly said, "That's not what I meant. Even if you gave me a hundred lives, I wouldn't dare to say anything bad about you, sir."

The man said, "Alright, alright, I know what you mean. Stop talking about those nonsensical gods and immortals. Even if you're begging them, they won't hear you..."

The two inspected the field for a while before returning to their temporary lodgings.

The place we stayed was next to a field, and not far from the road that led directly to the city.

As soon as the two arrived near their lodgings, they saw two people not far away.

An old man and a young man were observing the crops.

Judging from his attire and demeanor, he doesn't seem to be a local at all.

At this moment, light snow began to fall from the sky.

The man stepped forward and asked, "Are you newly sent by the city to inspect?"

The old man smiled kindly upon hearing this, "No, we are from out of town."

"Oh……"

The man narrowed his eyes and said, "Then you should be careful to follow the rules here and not damage the crops or anything."

The man said no more and turned to call the half-demon back to the house.

Seeing this, the old man couldn't help but say, "It's freezing cold. Would you mind if the two of us took shelter from the wind and snow here?"

The man replied, "If you two don't mind, then of course we don't mind."

The half-demon walked beside the man and muttered to himself, "They don't seem to be ordinary people."

The man thought to himself, "This is obvious. These two people are just sitting in the snow in the dead of winter, wearing even less clothing than us. Can they be ordinary people?"

However, the man was not afraid of the other party's ill intentions. This was the Taiping East District, with so many outsiders coming and going, and very few people dared to act recklessly.

Those who didn't believe in the superstition hung their ice sculptures on the city walls and they dried up in the wind; you can still see those ice sculptures now.

The man opened the door and invited the two inside.

The room was very spacious, with a stove burning charcoal inside and a pot of meat soup bubbling away, filling the room with the aroma of meat.

After entering the house, both the man and the half-demon felt a bit hot and took off their slightly damp coats.

The half-demon ran over and scooped up two bowls of hot meat soup, handing them to the two outsiders.

The old man's eyes lit up when he saw that each bowl contained a large chicken leg. "Thank you, please eat. We're not hungry."

The half-demon said in a muffled voice, "You're disgusted?"

The old man quickly replied, "No, that's not it... then thank you very much." Seeing that the half-demon seemed unhappy that his kindness was not accepted, the old man took the soup bowl.

The young man standing next to him also thanked him and took the bowl.

Seeing the old man sitting while the young man stood to the side, the half-demon said, "Why don't you sit down? It's so spacious here... Oh, I see, you outsiders have so many rules."

The half-demon slapped his forehead, remembering some of the old rules.

In the past, there was a clear distinction between superiors and inferiors here. When he met certain powerful demons, he had to prostrate himself in deep respect.

But that was in the past. Now he can speak to the city lord with his chest puffed out.

"What's this called again...?"

The half-demon thought for a moment, but couldn't remember the word, and scratched his head in frustration.

The man handed the half-demon a large bowl, saying, "Stop talking, have a sip of this hot drink to warm yourself up. You talk too much."

The half-demon shook his head and took the bowl to the side.

The man looked at the old man and the young man and said with a smile, "He's not very bright and speaks his mind directly, so don't take it to heart."

The old man looked at the half-demon's silly and simple-minded appearance, smiled, and said, "You two get along well, are you old acquaintances?"

The man said, "No, I was only assigned here two months ago. I live with him and manage the fields. Apart from being a little slow, he's better at working than me!"

The old man asked, "Whom are you working for?"

The man chuckled and said, "You outsiders always like to ask these kinds of questions. We're working for ourselves and for the collective... The grain we grow belongs to everyone, and everyone gets a share..."

The young man couldn't help but ask, "You cultivate so much land, yet you only get a small portion for yourselves?"

The man said, “This is Taiping Domain, not like outside where farming is subject to heavy taxes. The land we cultivate belongs to the collective. The fields were reclaimed by many people together, and the seeds and fertilizer were provided by the higher authorities. We help look after the fields, so it's not actually that tiring. Our daily necessities are produced by others, and we receive them for free.”

"The surplus grain we have here, the grain that we can't finish eating, is being used to help people in other places!"

“Our lives are much better than before. Do you think we are slaves, working for others? We are not…”

"We are in charge of our own affairs!"

The man drank the meat soup, his eyes shining brightly, full of love for life.

"Snapped!"

The minotaur next to him slapped his thigh and exclaimed excitedly, "Slave! I remember now, it's feudalism! Feudal thinking is unacceptable!"

The half-demon looked at the old man and the young man, and couldn't help but shake his head and sigh, as if the two of them had suffered greatly.

The term "feudalism" has existed since ancient times, but hearing it uttered by this half-demon made the old man feel that the word had a very bad connotation.

The old man looked at the half-demon and asked, "What is feudalism?"

The half-demon paused for a moment, then said blankly, "Feudalism? What do you mean? It means conservative and stubborn thinking... a fondness for exploitation and oppression... in short, it's bad!"

The half-demon looked at the man and said, "Is that what it means? I attended a class before, and a teacher mentioned it, but I'm not very bright and can't remember much of it."

The man thought for a moment and said, "That's roughly the idea, but the teacher explained it in more detail, and I don't remember it very clearly. Let's ask the teacher when we go to school tomorrow, and it would be best to make a copy."

Upon hearing this, the half-demon put down the large bowl and went to look through his notebook.

The thick notebook was covered with crookedly written text, but unfortunately, I couldn't find the corresponding content.

The old man couldn't help but chuckle, "You guys have to attend classes regularly?"

The half-demon said, "Of course! Here, from three-year-old children to eight-hundred-year-old monsters, everyone has to go to school to learn to read and write! Nobody is illiterate!"

The standing youth listened with suspicion; these words sounded too exaggerated.

The young man asked, "Have you studied the Four Books and Five Classics?"

"The Four Books and Five Classics? What kind of scriptures are these? Buddhist scriptures? We don't study that stuff!"

The bull-headed demon shook its head like a rattle drum.

The young man's expression changed slightly, and he said somewhat speechlessly, "It's a Confucian classic, and none of you know it?"

Upon hearing this, the half-demon said, "Ah, Confucianism, I think I've heard of it... There's a saying, 'The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao...'"

"This is a Taoist saying..."

The young man rubbed his forehead, looking somewhat helpless.

The man couldn't help but say, "The Four Books and Five Classics seem to be available in the library; we can borrow them to read. But they don't teach that much in class. The teacher said that learning simple and useful things is the key to understanding the great principles."

The young man couldn't help but look at the old man beside him, his eyes full of doubt.

Everyone says that Lu Zheng is building a peaceful world here, but he only teaches people to read and write, not the Four Books and Five Classics? What's going on here?

He even began to doubt whether Lu Zheng was truly a legitimate Confucian disciple.

This incident has caused some trouble at the Jixia Academy, and now even the headmaster has come here in person, which seems truly absurd...

The old man's expression remained unchanged, then he smiled and said, "Oh? So what do you usually study?"

The man chuckled and said, "You've learned quite a lot, including principles of conduct, farming methods, and self-healing techniques... I wonder what the old man would like to hear?"

Upon hearing this, the old man said softly, "Then tell me about the principles of being a good person. I'd like to hear them." (End of Chapter)