Women Wearing Men: The Growth Path of the Bastards of the Aristocratic Family

Chapter 24 Entrance Ceremony
In the early morning of the next day, Gu Yunji and Cheng Yan changed into hospital uniforms, and arrived at the square in front of the academy mountain gate early in the morning, waiting for the entrance ceremony to begin.There are already 30 to [-] people standing here. Teenagers, all in blue uniforms, stand together in twos and threes talking and laughing with each other, overflowing with youthful vitality.

"What is this entrance ceremony going to be about? Is there any special ritual tradition?"

"That's not true. I heard from a senior brother that the head of the mountain came to give us a lecture, just encourage us as usual, nothing special."

After a while, a tall middle-aged man in blue-gray clothes walked over from a distance.

Xu Chengyu walked to the stage and stood still, looked around the students with piercing eyes, stroked his beard without saying a word, just observed them silently.

Gu Yunji had previously heard that Xu Chengyu had retired from the position of chief assistant in the cabinet, and thought that he must be an old man with white beard and hair, but he did not expect that he was not only under 50 years old, but also had a tall and straight body that did not look like a literati body.

Sensing his gaze, the crowd gradually quieted down. Seeing this, Xu Chengyu cleared his throat and said, "Most of you gentlemen are from rich and noble families, and there are also talented scholars from humble families. Said, you are all outstanding. Now you have stepped into the gate of my Luxi Academy, and your future is limitless."

"Then I ask you gentlemen, why do you study?"

The students thought that he would say some words of encouragement that were not very nutritious, but they threw such a question without thinking about it, and everyone couldn't react in time.

After a long time, a student boldly said: "The sage said that if you are good at learning, you will be an official. Naturally, you are an official!"

Xu Chengyu nodded and smiled slightly: "Well, it makes sense, is there any more?"

"Everything is inferior, but reading is high. I study to be promising and to honor my ancestors!"

"Be sensible! Today's books are all the valuable experiences and lessons left by the sages. By reading, you can know how to behave in the world, and you can travel with the sages and Confucians in the books."

"An ancient text says: Meat eaters are contemptible. The students dare not agree. Although the students grew up rich and well-clothed, they also know that the world is difficult and the people's livelihood is suffering. Students study to be good officials, honest officials, and make decisions for the people!"

Seeing everyone chattering, Gu Yunji tried hard to suppress the urge to "study for the rise of China" that blurted out in his heart, looked at Cheng Yan beside him, and asked, "Why do you study? Is it also to be an official?"

Cheng Yan stared at a certain place with far-reaching eyes, not knowing what he was thinking.After a long while, he opened his mouth slowly, his eyes smoldering: "For, don't be despised by others. Those who bully me will make them respectful; those who humiliate me will make them humble; those who despise me will make them regret. My people are all underfoot."

His tone was casual, but his words were sharp.Gu Yunji has always seen Cheng Yan as elegant and modest, but it was the first time he faced his ambitions so directly, and he was immediately stunned.Suddenly, he felt a little lucky that he hadn't had an antagonism with Cheng Yan.

Cheng Yan seemed to know that he had lost his composure, his eyes flashed, and in an instant he returned to his gentle look, and asked with a smile, "What about you, why are you studying?"

Why do you study?Gu Yunji hadn't really thought about this issue.In pursuit of wealth?In pursuit of power?To get rid of the fate of the bastard, or to protect the family?He was momentarily uncertain.

He knew that he had to take the imperial examination and be an official, so that he could have greater ability.But why read?Gu Yunji, who lived two lifetimes, was indoctrinated with the concept of learning since he was a child, and later he himself took reading for granted, but never thought about the motivation and reason behind it.

He hesitated and said, "Perhaps, it's also for the purpose of becoming an official. But I haven't thought it through, and I'm not sure."

Cheng Yan said: "That's also very good, you can think about it slowly in the future."

The students said something to me, and the square suddenly became noisy.Xu Chengyu made a gesture to calm everyone down, and then said: "When I was young, my teacher told me that reading is to establish a heart for the world, to establish a life for the people, to inherit the knowledge of the past, and to create peace for all generations. I will remember this forever.”

"Just now I heard someone say that those who honor the ancestors, those who are sensible, and those who are the masters of the people, I think they are all very good. Even if you don't think clearly why you study for a while, it doesn't matter. But you must remember that, Don't go against your heart. Whether you are an official or a human being, you must be worthy of your own conscience."

After speaking, the crowd fell silent, and the square was silent.

At this time, a black figure suddenly rushed in from outside the mountain gate. The man stood on tiptoes, stooped, and tried to shrink behind the crowd, trying to sneak past when people were not paying attention.

Xu Chengyu's eyes were sharp, and he shouted: "Stop!" The figure paused, turned around and bowed to him embarrassingly, "Su Qi, why are you here now?"

Su Qi put on a faceless face, came over and held the table to please Xu Chengyu, and said with a playful smile: "Shan Zhang, what, the road is wet and slippery, and the carriage broke down halfway, so it was delayed."

Xu Chengyu snorted, and said: "What excuse are you looking for? Isn't it because you don't want to come? I heard that the Duke of Guo broke several sticks and you refused to accept it. Why are you willing now?"

Su Qi leaned his head over, and said mysteriously: "Shan Zhang, I heard that Luxi Academy is located in Hangzhou Prefecture. It is a land of outstanding people, and there are many rare and rare animals in the mountain. Even the crickets in the academy look like a Big and fat and very good at fighting, is it true?"

Xu Chengyu raised his eyebrows and raised his voice, "You came to the academy to catch crickets?"

"Of course, otherwise I wouldn't come to this poor place, wouldn't it be good to stay in the capital to eat, drink and have fun?"

As soon as this remark came out, the jaws of the students around were almost dropped. I had heard that Su Qi was ignorant, but I never thought that he would be so bold as to act recklessly in front of the head of the mountain. Now he It's too bad, just wait to be sent down by the head of the mountain.

Unexpectedly, there was no trace of anger on Xu Chengyu's face, and his words were startling: "Yes, you know the goods, the crickets in the academy are indeed the strongest I have ever seen. They have a loud cry and good teeth, and the crickets in other places are not Can't fight."

Su Qi's eyes lit up: "Really! It seems that the head of the mountain has studied this Tao quite a lot, and it's really hidden!"

Xu Chengyu stroked his beard, and his tone was quite proud: "What is this? When the old man was young, he played more tricks than you. He even went hunting in the mountains with a firecracker. He is not like you. Know how to walk birds and fight crickets."

Su Qi was overwhelmed with admiration: "The head of the mountain is really a god! Although I often fight crickets, I am not very good at picking them. Can you teach me?"

Xu Chengyu glanced at him, and said in a calm tone: "Teach you? Why? The old man played well and read books better. Whether it is playing or reading, if others can get a few words of guidance from me, they will benefit a lot. Except you Play, the book is a mess, you still want me to teach you?"

Su Qi got anxious, scratched his ears and said, "Then what should I do before you are willing to teach me?"

"How about this, the academy has a monthly exam, if you can take the second-to-last exam, I will teach you. Every time you improve by one, I will teach you a cricket-fighting skill."

As soon as the exam was mentioned, Su Qi frowned. Now that he only needs to take the second-to-last exam, he became excited again: "It's a deal! I can't study, but I'm so smart, I can't take the second-to-last exam." It's not easy!"

Xu Chengyu nodded: "Well, you just arrived, so let's go to the dormitory and settle down first." Then, he turned to the others with his usual expression, "The entrance ceremony is over here, and you can go away on your own." , Regardless of the others, he left first.

Everyone was shocked by the conversation between the two of them just now, and they just froze in place, unable to react for a long time.

Gu Yunji shook his head, smiled helplessly, and said to Cheng Yan: "Although what the head of the mountain said just now was unexpected, what is unexpected is that he used this method to subdue Su Qi, the devil king of the world. I Only now do I understand what Senior Brother Gao said yesterday, Master Xu Shan is really not an ordinary person."

Cheng Yan was also eye-opening, and echoed him a few words with emotion on his face, without further words.

(End of this chapter)