Li Mubai looked at the notice board, where more and more students gathered, and even the teachers of the academy came, excitedly slapping their thighs and praising the poem for its ingenuity and simplicity.

Li Mubai's ears caught snippets of conversation carried by the mountain wind:

"First, there was a poem that everyone in the world knows, and now there's another one that encourages learning. Is the poetry of our Great Feng's scholars going to rise again?"

"For two hundred years, there have been few great works of poetry. With these two poems, our generation of scholars can finally face future generations with dignity."

"Compared to the one everyone in the world knows, this encouraging poem will surely spread even wider and be used to admonish students."

"Why isn't there a signature? Who wrote it?"

No signature...this poem will surely spread widely...Li Mubai's heart stirred, and he glanced at his two friends who were whispering, then quietly stepped back and left.

Zhang Shen suddenly noticed that Li Mubai was gone. "Where's Chunjing?"

"He was just here..." Chen Tai looked around and pointed to the direction of a low wall. "Over there."

Zhang Shen followed his gaze and saw Li Mubai retreat from the crowd of students, holding a pen and writing something on a large piece of paper.

Zhang Shen and Chen Tai focused their minds and their pupils suddenly became deep and clear, able to see every detail from a hundred meters away.

They saw that Li Mubai had written a small line of text next to the words "Encouraging Learning Poem":

"At the end of the year of Gengzi, at the beginning of the year of Xinchou, my teacher Mubai encouraged me to strive for excellence, and I agreed, so I wrote this poem."

How dare he take credit for it? The two scholars' minds exploded in anger.

"Shameless old thief, put down your pen!"

...

The elegant pavilion behind the academy was built into the mountain, with six cascading waterfalls to the east and a evergreen bamboo forest to the west.

Bamboo is rare in the north, difficult to cultivate and reproduce. The sight of bamboo shoots growing overnight after a thunderstorm can only be seen in the south.

This novel is available on bit.ly/3iBfjkV.

The teachers of the academy transplanted bamboo from the south, and after fifty years of hard work, they finally grew this lush bamboo forest.

Scholars have a special love for bamboo, admiring its character and often using it as a metaphor for themselves.

One day, the dean of the academy came to see the bamboo forest and thought to himself, "Bamboo is not afraid of the cold, has character all year round, isn't that just like me?"

Everyone agreed, and he decided to live there.

So the elegant pavilion became the dean's place of seclusion.

In the simple and elegant tea room, an old man in coarse clothes and a woman in fine clothes sat drinking tea. A column of armored soldiers guarded the pavilion.

The old man's white hair was casually scattered, highlighting his untidy and unrestrained demeanor. The wrinkles on his face and eyebrows were deep, but when he smiled, the crow's feet around his eyes were more prominent.Just from his appearance, it's hard to imagine that this impoverished Confucian scholar could be the dean of Yunlu Academy.

The current leader of the Confucianists.

The woman sitting across from him drinking tea was already past her twenties, but she wore a simple coiled bun and a shining gold hairpin, clearly dressed as an unmarried woman.

She wore a beautiful moon-white long skirt, the hem trailing on the ground.

Her appearance was elegant and refined, like a non-demonic water lily. And her clear eyes were like a mirror of ice, revealing a cold and noble air.

Her already opened figure was curvaceous and alluring.

"Haven't seen you in half a year, Dean, and you have more silver hairs." The princess said, her voice clear and cold.

"It's all strands of worry." The dean smiled and drank his tea.

"I heard a poem from the academy's disciples when I went up the mountain today... Don't worry about not having friends on the road ahead, who in the world doesn't know you!" The princess's eyes flickered like a broken ice mirror.

"Such a fine work, I am delighted to hear it. I wonder who the great scholar is?" The dean, Zhao Shou, shook his head and laughed.

"Why are you laughing at me, Dean?"

"I'm not laughing at you, Your Highness. I'm laughing that Yunlu Academy has many talented people, but they don't create freely. No, the entire Confucian circle of the Great Feng is numb and rigid in thought, lacking vitality. And poetry, which values vitality the most."

"...Dean, your words have confused me." The princess's expression was calm, her beautiful orchid fingers holding the tea cup in a noble and elegant manner.

Zhao Shou sighed, "The author of this poem is not a scholar, but a constable in Changle County."

The princess was slightly moved.

This princess of the Great Feng Dynasty was different from ordinary women. She was a talented lady from a scholarly family, proficient in qin, chess, calligraphy, and painting.

And this princess, she learned chess from Wei Yuan, military strategy from Zhang Shen, and governance from Chen Tai. She could recite the classics of the saints, and her essays were no worse than those of the students of the Imperial Academy.

She was knowledgeable and learned.

At the age of eighteen, she was allowed by the emperor to participate in the compilation work of the Hanlin Academy. Two years ago, the princess attempted to re-edit the history books of the previous dynasty, causing protests from the courtiers, and it was eventually abandoned.

"Dean, have you ever considered entering officialdom?" The princess's gaze was sincere, her tone serious. "Confucianism emphasizes people-oriented principles, and life is short. Dean, don't waste your youth."

Few people knew that the position of the Qingzhou Provincial Governor was originally offered to Zhao Shou.

But Zhao Shou refused to take office and recommended Ziyang Hermit to the court.

"If I can open up a path of learning for future generations by wasting my youth, why not?" Zhao Shou sighed. "It's a pity that after more than ten years of enlightenment in the bamboo forest, I still can't cross the gap set by Yasheng Cheng Shi."

"Your obsession is too deep, Dean. Why go so far?" The princess calmly added tea to her cup. "Father invited you to enter officialdom, intending to re-use Yunlu Academy. If you really care about the students of Yunlu Academy, you should not refuse."Zhao Shou sneered and said, "Is it because Wei Yuan is becoming more and more uncontrollable, or because the dragon-slaying technique of those Zhu Zi aristocrats is becoming sharper?"

"It's for the people of Great Feng, for the sake of all the people in the world." The Princess Chang spoke from the heart, one word at a time.

Zhao Shou's smile became even more sarcastic.

The Princess Chang's clear and cold tone changed, and she sighed, "After the Battle of Shanhai, Great Feng's national strength has gradually weakened, and natural disasters have been continuous. The number of ***** is countless, and the harm caused by corrupt officials is becoming more and more obvious.

"The court officials only know how to fight for power, and there are countless people who talk big without doing anything. The ones who actually work hard to develop the country are few and far between. Dean, the empire needs a skilled craftsman."

After speaking, she didn't wait for Zhao Shou to speak, and continued to talk confidently, "Three years ago, the barbarians in the north tore up the treaty and repeatedly violated the border, plundering the people.

"The barbarians in the south destroyed the post roads, attacked the military towns, and attempted to regain lost territory.

"The Western Regions countries watched coldly, and the Buddhist sects used this as leverage, wanting to spread their teachings in the Central Plains."

Her voice gradually increased, and her tone was no longer cold, "Dean, as a scholar, shouldn't you show your ambitions and revitalize the country?"

Zhao Shou stared at Princess Chang for a moment, then moved his gaze from her clear and elegant face with a noble air, and looked out the window at the lush bamboo forest, shaking his head and sighing:

"It's not that I don't want to, the time has not yet come. Please leave, Princess Chang."

The disappointment in Princess Chang's eyes was hard to conceal. She was about to say goodbye and leave when urgent footsteps came from outside the elegant pavilion. A teacher from the academy rushed in, shouting, "Dean, something big has happened. Li Mubai, Zhang Shen, and Chen Tai are fighting."