The cold wind swept through the forest, and the withered branches emitted a mournful cry.

On the small path paved with blue stones, Xu Qi'an turned his head to look at Xu Xinnian, his cousin with a handsome appearance that seemed like a fairy descending to the mortal world. Their clothes and black hair danced in the wind.

He pointed to a distant waterfall and introduced, "This is where a senior of the academy had his enlightenment. There's a stone tablet by the waterfall that records his life story."

In the winter, the waterfall was thin and weak, listlessly pouring into the pool, which was clear and transparent. There was a stone tablet and a bronze figure sitting cross-legged beside the pool. The inscription recorded the life story of a scholar named Qian Zhong, who was born six hundred years ago and was active during the founding of the Great Feng Dynasty.

At that time, the former dynasty's monarch was foolish, the officials were corrupt, the aristocrats oppressed the common people, and there were rebellions and chaos throughout the Central Plains. The Great Zhou Dynasty and the various rebel forces engaged in a protracted war for more than ten years, and the common people suffered greatly.

Qian Zhong, who was at the second rank of the scholar class, traveled for three years and witnessed the miserable situation of the people. He brought the people's grievances to the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty and sacrificed himself to break the country's fortune. After that, the Great Feng Dynasty was established, and peace was restored throughout the land.

"Is the second rank of the scholar class really that powerful?" Xu Qi'an looked skeptical. "Why didn't I see the words 'awesome' on the three second-ranked scholars?"

Xu Xinnian didn't know what "awesome" meant, but it was undoubtedly coarse language. He read the poem that his elder brother had just written and the merit he had just achieved, held back his sarcasm, and answered, "Who told you that our teachers are at the second rank of the scholar class? They are only at the fourth rank of the gentleman class."

Xu Qi'an couldn't believe it. "Then how can they call themselves scholars?"

Xu Xinnian squatted by the pool, washed his hands, and explained, "Scholars have two meanings. One refers to a learned and prestigious scholar, and the other specifically refers to the second rank of the scholar class in Confucianism and Taoism. The scholars in our academy belong to the former."

Breaking a country's fortune with the grievances of the people is still beyond human ability, even in the declining years of the dynasty. How powerful is the second rank of the scholar class? What about the first rank?

Xu Qi'an fell into deep thought for a long time and spoke with a slightly respectful tone, "Does the Yunlu Academy have second-ranked scholars?"

Xu Xinnian shook his head regretfully, "In the past two hundred years, there have been at most three scholars at the third rank. The third rank is the rank of the standing life stage. I heard it from the teacher when I was sending Master Ziyang. Our academy's dean is at the third rank of the standing life stage."

Xu Qi'an's tone suddenly became relaxed, and he casually commented, "That's not bad."

The personalities of those three old gentlemen seemed somewhat exaggerated and not serious enough, lacking in steadiness and seriousness. Xu Qi'an told his evaluation to Xu Xinnian.

Xu Xinnian pondered for a moment and said, "They weren't like this before. After the gentleman class, it's the standing life stage... This may have something to do with the standing life stage.""Well, Master Ziyang used to be like that too. Recently, he suddenly changed his personality, as if he had become a different person. I heard from my teacher that Master Ziyang was only one step away from enlightenment."

The two brothers wandered aimlessly around the academy. Xu Xinnian showed him some famous historical sites. As an academy with a history of 1,200 years, if it weren't for the fact that outsiders were usually forbidden from entering and disturbing the students, Qingyun Mountain would have become a popular tourist destination.

"Big brother..." As they walked, Xu Xinnian suddenly called out in a low voice.

Xu Qi'an stopped and looked at him.

Xu Xinnian glanced at him, then turned his head and pretended to look at the scenery around them. "I thought about it for a long time yesterday. If it weren't for you, Father would have been executed and our women would have been sent to the official brothel sector."

"If it weren't for you, Lingyue would have been in danger yesterday. She might have been bullied by someone surnamed Zhou."

"If it weren't for you, the Xu family might still be living in the false hope of surviving the catastrophe, only to be wiped out one day."

After speaking, he walked forward quickly and went a dozen meters away before saying silently, "Thank you!"

...

Yasheng Academy.

Xu Qi'an followed his cousin up the steps, passed the incense burner, and entered the hall. The founder of Yunlu Academy, Yasheng, was enshrined in the academy under the high red lacquered pillars that supported the dome.

In the slender candlelight, Yasheng wore a blue Confucian robe with a high Confucian cap on his head. One hand was behind his back, and the other hand was on his waist, gazing into the distance.

Beside Yasheng stood a beautiful and agile white deer, with white fur faintly showing cloud patterns.

Xu Xinnian pointed at the white deer and said, "It's the namesake of Yunlu Academy."

Xu Qi'an said, "Scholars have taste, and white deer are their mounts."

Xu Xinnian looked at his cousin and corrected him, "It's not a mount, it's a wife."

"!!!" Xu Qi'an looked at Yasheng again and murmured, "It doesn't matter."

After all, they were both ridden...he didn't dare to say that out loud.

Xu Xinnian seemed to know what his cousin was thinking and said, "According to the 'Yunlu Annals' of the academy, this white deer was a demon. It listened to the classics under the sage's seat and later transformed into a human form to accompany Yasheng. They grew up together and had a deep relationship, and eventually became husband and wife."

"Human-demon romance was not accepted in society at that time...and it's still the same now. But when the sage found out, he didn't punish them, but instead approved of their marriage. The sage said: Love knows no bounds. It shows that as long as there is love, humans and demons can live together."

Throughout history, human-demon romances have had nicknames, such as the Undead Knight, the Hero of the Grasslands, and the Unity of Heaven and Man. So, what was Yasheng's nickname?

Pointing at the deer and calling it a horse...Xu Qi'an bowed to the statue of Yasheng.

As Xu Xinnian respectfully paid his respects to Yasheng, Xu Qi'an's gaze swept around the hall and saw two stone tablets, each as tall as a person, standing on the left and right sides of the hall.One side of the tablet was blank, while the other side was inscribed with words.

He walked up to the tablet and read aloud, "With righteousness and loyalty, I repay my lord's kindness, leaving behind an eternal legacy - Cheng Hui."

The handwriting was neat, without any pretentiousness or flamboyance, giving people a sense of the upright and just character of a gentleman.

"This was left here by the Saint of the Imperial Academy," Xu Xinnian walked over and stood shoulder to shoulder with his cousin in front of the stone tablet.

"The Saint of the Imperial Academy... Oh right, I've always been unclear about the details of the grudges and grievances between the Imperial Academy and the Yunlu Academy," Xu Qi'an was very interested, his eyes showing the words "watching the show".

Xu Xinnian looked around and saw that there was no one else around before speaking in a low voice, "This matter goes back two hundred years, to the dispute over the country's foundation."

"The dispute over the country's foundation?" Although Xu Qi'an was ignorant of history, he still knew what that meant.

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The crown prince was the foundation of the country!

The dispute over the country's foundation was a struggle for the position of the crown prince.

"At that time, Renzong was in power, and the position of crown prince had been vacant for more than ten years. Two princes were the most powerful competitors at that time. One was the legitimate eldest son, and the other was a prince born to a noblewoman. That noblewoman was extremely charming and beautiful, and deeply loved by Renzong.

"Renzong intended to make the prince born to the noblewoman the crown prince, but at that time, he faced opposition from the civil and military officials. Renzong issued several edicts, but they were all vetoed by the cabinet. The leader of the civil and military officials at that time was the scholars of the Yunlu Academy.

"According to the rule of law, the eldest should inherit the throne, and the legitimate son should be chosen over the illegitimate one. Even the emperor cannot violate this rule. Big brother, you're right, the ceremony is the magic weapon that scholars use to slay dragons.

"In this dispute over the country's foundation, neither side was willing to admit defeat, and they tugged at each other for a full six years. During that time, the first assistant of the cabinet changed four times, and officials in the court and local areas were involved, totaling more than two hundred people."

PS: Updates may be delayed, but I won't be absent.