Jia Yujing of Red Mansion

Chapter 68 Secret Disputes
At the south gate of Yueyang City, two students from Yueyang Academy have been sitting at the tea stall at the gate since the city gate opened in the morning.

After waiting for a whole day and drinking a lot of tea, they saw that the sun was about to set. They thought that they had waited for another day in vain, and the two of them couldn't help but complain.

"The other academies have arrived long ago. Why haven't the people from Wansong Academy arrived yet? Could it be that something happened on the road?" Student A.

“It’s hard to say, with the floods this year being so severe, something might really happen.

Of course, it's also possible that they don't dare to come. "Student B.

"Probably not. Wansong Academy has admitted [-] Jinshi this year. Only six people from our academy have passed the examination." Student A.

"That's true, Wansong Academy has been really good in the last two subjects, and Bailudong Academy has only passed eight students this year.

I heard that they were very unconvinced. If people from Wansong Academy came, there would probably be a good show. "Student B.

The two of them were talking lively when they suddenly heard someone next to them ask: "Brothers, are you from Yueyang Academy?"

The two of them turned around to look, only to see a dozen young people dressed as charlatans.

Each of them was holding a horse and wearing a bamboo hat. They were all tired from the journey and looked tired.

The two of them never thought that they would be from Wansong Academy. Student A raised his hands and said, "We are from Yueyang Academy. What do you want?"

"Hello, two senior brothers. We are from Wansong Academy. We have been invited to attend a lecture at the academy. This is Professor Shen from our academy."

The two Yueyang Academy students were surprised when they heard this and quickly stood up and saluted.

"Greetings to Mr. Shen, we are waiting for you here specifically.

You have had a hard journey, please come with us to the inn to rest. "

The hard days of Jia Qiong and the others are finally over. Yueyang Academy, as the host, has already arranged the accommodation for each academy.

They rented the best inns in the city. Each academy has its own independent courtyard, and the accommodation conditions are very good.

Everyone in Wansong Academy washed away their travel dust and changed into students' green shirts.

Knowing that several other major academies had arrived, Shen Yan took them to visit them one by one.

They could clearly feel that among the other four academies in the inn, students from Yingtian Academy and Yuelu Academy were more friendly towards them.

Bailudong Academy and Wuyi Academy were relatively indifferent to them.

Especially Wuyi Academy, they simply lacked even the most basic courtesy.

Jia Qiong heard the conversation between two students from Yueyang Academy at the city gate and knew why the students from Bailudong Academy had a cold attitude.

This time, Wansong Academy's imperial examination results were so good that they were beaten by them, making the Bailudong students who were recognized as the best in the world feel shameless.

This is understandable, and although Bailudong Academy has a cold attitude, there is nothing offensive in terms of etiquette.

Wuyi Academy's attitude towards them was a bit puzzling, and no one could understand it for a while.

They were far away from the court, so naturally they didn't know the twists and turns inside.

In fact, this matter should start with Jia Qiong's article on controlling barbarians.

When Li Yun first submitted Jia Qiong's theory on controlling barbarians to the imperial court, he was suppressed by Zhang Chunyang's order, but the article left a deep impression on him.

Jia Qiong has already shown his ability to govern the world at a young age, which makes Zhang Chunyang even more wary of Jia Qiong.

After all, Jia Qiong's relationship with the Wang family was too close, and behind Wang Mu, there was a force that could threaten his position as chief assistant.

Zhang Chunyang also learned about Jia Qiong's studies at Wansong Academy.

But this time in spring, the outbreak at Wansong Academy made the chief minister feel a greater threat.

Wuyi Academy is located in Fujian, and Zhang Chunyang is from Fujian and studied here before.

Zhao Yongchang, the current headmaster of Wuyi Academy, is his junior brother.Now Wuyi Academy is the talent transfer base of the Fujian Party, so it is only natural that Wuyi Academy has such an attitude towards Wansong Academy.

It can be foreseen that at the upcoming lecture, Wuyi Academy will definitely try its best to undermine the reputation of Wansong Academy.

On the third day of September, the lecture officially began.

The lecture was divided into three sessions and was held over seven days.

In the first step, the six major academies will publicize their own teaching philosophy in Yueyang Academy for half a day in each academy, for a total of three days.

The next three days were devoted to academic exchanges.

Since the Southern Song Dynasty, Neo-Confucianism has gradually become the official philosophy, and various schools of Neo-Confucianism have become widely spread.

Zhou Dunyi’s Lian School, Shao Yong’s Xiang Mathematics, Zhang Zai’s Guan School, Er Cheng’s Luo School, Sima Guang’s Shuo School, the Huxiang School of Huan Guo, Hu Hong and Zhang Shi, Zhu Xi’s Min School, and the Lu Jiuyuan brothers’ There are many schools of thought such as Jiangxi School.

Nowadays, Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism is highly praised by the authorities, and "Collected Commentary on Zhu Xi's Four Books" has become a must-read book for exams. Therefore, Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism has become a prominent school nowadays.

However, each academy has a long history and has its own school of thought that it has long admired.

Therefore, although Zhu Xi is taught in major academies, some are only teaching it as a reference book for examinations.

Among them, Bailudong Academy and Wuyi Academy had a deep connection with Zhu Xi and were most influenced by him. They were also firm supporters of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism.

Yingtian Academy, on the other hand, prefers Lu Jiuyuan’s Jiangxi Studies, which is also known as the Study of the Heart.

Yueyang Academy admires Huxiang School more, while Yuelu Academy is a supporter of Zhang Zaiguan School.

Therefore, at every academic exchange meeting, each school will promote their own Neo-Confucian ideas and argue with each other.

Of course, most of the schools of Neo-Confucianism are of the same origin. Except for Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism and Lu Jiuyuan's Neo-Confucianism, which cannot be dealt with, the other schools are pretty good.

The last part is the cultural gathering held in Yueyang Tower, a famous building in the world, or it is more appropriately called literary competition.

At that time, students from major academies will compete to rank the academies, and the top-ranked academy can host the next gathering.

You must know that this qualification is very precious. It can not only greatly improve the reputation of the academy, but also make a lot of money.

The first two links are internal exchanges between colleges and are discussions conducted behind closed doors.

The discussion was about highly professional philosophical issues, and the protagonists were all professors from various colleges.

So although the first two links are important to the academy, people mostly don't care.

On the contrary, the last link is the one that is talked about by the world, and it is also the stage for the academy students to show their talents.

The final literary competition invited famous Confucian scholars from around Yueyang, as well as local officials to participate.

Can other people come to watch the ceremony? Of course it is possible, but they have to spend money to sponsor it. This is why holding cultural gatherings can make a lot of money.

The first six days of the cultural meeting were uneventful. The teaching philosophy of Wansong Academy was praised by most academies, even Bailudong Academy.

Only Zhao Yongchang, the president of Wuyi Academy, had some criticisms of Wansong Academy.

Because Jia Qiong and the others like to wear swords, he mocked the students taught by Wansong Academy as all martial artists.

Shen Yan didn't bother to argue with Zhao Yongchang. Jia Qiong and others were suffocating, but they couldn't speak due to the rules of the meeting, so they could only write down this account in their hearts.

At the academic exchange meeting, because Wansong Academy has a relatively short history, there is no particular respect for various schools of Neo-Confucianism. It can be said that it draws on the strengths of many schools of thought.

You can't be attacked without a clear stance. Shen Yan dealt with it calmly and passed the test easily.

Next comes the most eye-catching essay competition, where all the students are gearing up and ready to show off their skills.

In particular, Wansong Academy and Wuyi Academy were both trying to outdo each other in literary competitions.

(End of this chapter)