Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 290: Didao Fight
"Sorry..."

At the beginning of the twelfth lunar month, as more and more officials flocked to Didao, even ordinary people realized that something was wrong.

Amid this lively scene, many people are feeling uneasy and anxious.

Because of this, the residences of Zhang Chang, Cao Mao, Gao Jinda, Cui Shu and others were often visited.

With the arrival of Li Ji, Geng Ming, Chen Jingchong, Zheng Chu, Ma Cheng and others, such visits became more frequent.

Geng Ming, as usual, kept the door closed to visitors. Although Ma Cheng received visitors, he always turned a blind eye.

Although Zheng Chu, Hu Siguang, Shang Duoluo, Cuoben and others were senior enough, they were not core members, and the people they visited were mainly their former subordinates.

However, the doors of Chen Jingchong, Zhang Chang and Li Ji were almost trampled down by people, and there were hundreds of people they needed to meet every day.

As the tenth day of the twelfth lunar month arrived, the Protectorate was crowded with officials who came to discuss matters.

More than 300 officials of the seventh rank and above filled the main hall and courtyard of the Protectorate. Many of them were whispering to each other, discussing why the commander-in-chief did this.

"I heard that it was Envoy Zhang who talked to Marshal Jie about the Sanfang Academy."

"Which three quarters?"

"Which other three quarters could it be? Of course, it must be the three quarters in Didao City."

"Oh, luckily I didn't send my bastards to these three districts, so I shouldn't be implicated."

"That's not necessarily true..."

People sitting in the courtyard were whispering to each other, but few officials sitting in the main hall were chatting.

The chairs on the left and right sides of the hall were moved away and placed side by side, with ten chairs in a row, ten seats, ten rows front and back, for a total of one hundred people.

These 120 people were all officials of the sixth rank or above, ranging from the governor's secretary to the commander-in-chief to the chief secretary of the Protectorate.

Sitting in the first row were Gao Jinda, Cui Shu, Li Shangyin, Cao Mao, Li Ji, Zhang Chang, Chen Jingchong, Geng Ming, Ma Cheng, and Shang Duoluo.

Zheng Chu, Hu Siguang, Cuo Ben, Dou Bin, Wang Sifeng, Liu Yingyan, Dou Jingchong, Chen Ying and others all sat in the second row.

"It's all your fault, you bastard, for talking nonsense."

Zhang Chang was sitting there when he suddenly heard someone scolding him. He turned around and saw that it was indeed Li Ji who was scolding him.

Zhang Chang pretended to take a sip of the liquor, and Li Ji tried to dodge.

Fortunately, Zhang Chang didn't really take a sip, otherwise Li Ji's face would really be covered with saliva.

"You guy!"

Li Ji's eyes widened, and Zhang Chang said, "We all came from the same group, why are you pretending?"

"If it weren't for Marshal Jie, would we be where we are today?"

"Since Marshal Jie asked, I must tell Marshal Jie. Am I hiding something from Marshal Jie?"

Li Ji couldn't refute his words, and he couldn't help but say: "We didn't do anything wrong..."

"That's right, what are you afraid of?" Zhang Chang hurriedly chased after him.

Seeing this, Li Ji couldn't help but say, "You bastard, your tongue is getting stronger and stronger."

"I have something even more powerful, do you want to take a look?"

Zhang Chang continued to talk nonsense, and Li Ji could only roll his eyes at him, pretending that he was not around.

Without Li Ji to bicker with, Zhang Chang also lost interest.

He wanted to talk to Chen Jingchong next to him, but Chen Jingchong was practicing Tai Chi and didn't show any intention, so the conversation was extremely uncomfortable.

Feeling the changes in the people around him, Zhang Chang couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

"Marshal Jie is right. People change over time..."

Zhang Chang began to miss the days in Shandan. At least they spoke freely back then, unlike now...

"Come on!"

Suddenly, people around stood up one after another. Zhang Chang stood up subconsciously and then saw Liu Jilong walking into the main hall from the side door.

"All sit down."

Liu Jilong greeted him and then walked up to the main seat and sat down.

Seeing this, everyone returned to their seats one after another, and Liu Jilong also spoke:

"I called you here this time mainly because I have something to discuss with you."

"I know that everyone has experienced hard times, so when they have power, they naturally want their children to live a good life. This is not wrong."

"But you sent all the children to Didao City and specially made them study in a school in the neighborhood. Is this for learning or for some other reason? I think you know better than me."

"I've been to those schools these days. Do you know what your kids asked me when they saw me?"

Liu Jilong paused for a moment, and everyone's heart sank. He continued:
"They asked me what my official position was and what class my child was in."

"Tell me, by pampering them like this, aren't you training a group of young masters from aristocratic families from a young age?"

"You are not strict with your own children, but you are very strict with the people below you."

"I think the problem is not about the dolls, but about you."

"If you act one way to the outside world and another way to yourself, your children will follow suit."

"I haven't had much contact with these dolls of yours, but I know why they become like this."

"I warned Ma Cheng when he was raising the child, and later I found that Ma Yi had many problems."

"Fortunately, he was corrected in time. In the past few years at Linzhou University, he has gradually become one with other students."

"If he had not been corrected in time, what would have become of Ma Yi?"

"Are we going to become like the Tibetan nobles who used to oppress us and learn to oppress the common people in Longyou?"

"Ma Yi is an example. If you can't teach your child well, send him to Linzhou and I will teach him well for you."

After Liu Jilong finished speaking, everyone lowered their heads without refutation.

It’s not that they don’t want to refute, but that they dare not refute.

Deep down, they naturally disagreed with what Liu Jilong said.

Seeing this, Liu Jilong took a deep breath and said, "Those kids of yours have never suffered, and you often spoil them, so they have long developed a sense of superiority over ordinary people and officials."

"I have seen your children disobeying their teachers in school these days. They always bring you up to make the teachers afraid to punish them."

"If you think this is the right thing to do, then I have nothing to say, but they will definitely not be as successful as you in the future, and they will not have as bright a future as you."

"They have suffered less than you. Only those who can endure hardship can achieve success."

"I believe you all know about Linzhou University."

"The group of students graduating this year includes Ma Cheng's eldest son Ma Yi, Gao Jinda's eldest son Gao Shu, and his second son Gao Huai..."

“Besides them, most of the others are children of farmers and workers.”

"My arrangement for them is to open up wasteland and farm for two years, serve in the army for two years, and work as an official for two years."

"If you spoil your children, you won't have to send them to Linzhou University in the future. Those who have already enrolled should drop out early."

Hearing this, Li Ji could not help but stand up and bowed respectfully:

"Marshal Jie, what you said does make sense, but they are children after all. How can they endure hardship?"

Liu Jilong was not angry that Li Ji refuted him, he just shook his head and said: "You are wrong."

"When you talk about suffering, you have the wrong idea."

"You think they have no hardship and are not willing to endure it because you treat them as ordinary children."

"But I ask you, when they come of age, will you treat them like ordinary children?"

"Transfer them to your side as personal soldiers for two years, then give them some merits and let them start as brigade commanders, colonels, or even captains. Isn't this what the Tibetan nobles once experienced?"

"Going to the grassroots to be a farmer, a soldier, or an official...what's so hard about that?"

"What's so hard about studying in your own county school?"

"The food in the school cafeteria is better than what most people eat at home, isn't it?"

"But even so, many of you still raised your opinions and wrote to the Imperial College, hoping to improve the treatment of the three schools in Linzhou."

"The original standard was one meat dish and one vegetable dish, which I think is not low."

"But I saw in your letters that some of you asked for two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes, and some even asked for three meat dishes, two vegetable dishes and one soup. You eat better than I do."

After Liu Jilong's words came out, several officials buried their heads in their chests like quails.

"General Jie, the brothers did it, but it's mainly because you are too particular about fairness!"

Faced with Liu Jilong's words, only Li Ji dared to refute him in this way.

"If nothing else, the school environments in Didao City and other cities in Linzhou are better than those in other counties and prefectures."

"We sent our children here so that they can study well in Linzhou."

Liu Jilong was not angry. He knew that Li Ji represented the attitude of most of the senior officials in Longyou at the moment, so he nodded and said:
"You are right. The school environment and conditions in Didao and Linzhou are better than those in other states and counties."

"But is it for these conditions and circumstances that you sent them here?"

His question went straight to the point, and Li Ji himself began to hesitate. The environment and conditions were one thing, but what they really wanted was the connections that the officials' children had after they were concentrated in school.

All the talk before is bullshit, connections are what they want.

Only by having an extensive network of connections can they ensure their wealth from generation to generation.

"Back in Hexi, most of the positions above the rank of lieutenant were held by the sons of powerful people in Hexi. What did you say at the time?"

Liu Jilong looked at the hesitant crowd, his brows revealing melancholy:

"You said that Hexi is ruled by the sons of powerful people, and we, the sons of common people, have no chance to rise to prominence."

"Now that you have come to the fore, you have begun to think about becoming the new powerful, and you want to form a stronghold of your own to keep the children of the common people out."

"I often tell you to think about the hardships you've endured in the past, but that doesn't mean you should only think about the hardships. I want you to know how difficult it was for you in the past."

“Only by knowing how difficult it was for you in the past can you sympathize with the soldiers in the army now and understand the difficulties faced by the people.”

“I’m not asking your children to be the same as the people’s children, but at least your children should know what kind of life the people live and what kind of hardships they endure.”

"A few years ago, when you knew that the government had raised taxes three times, you still had the nerve to say a few words about the people's difficulties."

"But I think with the way you raise your children, I think in a few years, your children will become the people in the imperial court today."

What Liu Jilong said was a bit too much, but everyone knew what Liu Jilong was thinking.

They want their sons to be successful and inherit everything from them, but their approach is wrong.

Liu Jilian did not object to their descendants serving as officials, but he was against incompetent or even cruel people serving as officials.

"General Jie, whatever you want to say, we will do it!"

Zhang Chang stood up and took all the firepower again.

Liu Jilong nodded when he saw this, and glanced at everyone. He paused on Li Ji for a long time before speaking:
"From now on, anyone who dares to criticize the government school will be asked to take the child back and teach him himself."

"Officials' children shall not be treated specially. They shall go to schools close to home. All students in the three districts of Linzhou shall be transferred back to their hometowns."

"Officials at all levels, regardless of their rank, supervise each other."

"If any official discovers that other officials are abusing their power for personal gain, they can write a secret report and send it to the Protectorate, and I will personally review it."

"When writing secret reports, you must do it yourself, and not delegate it to others. Anything you hear can be reported."

"Officials can send their trusted confidants to Didao, but they must not disturb the post stations."

As soon as these words were spoken, all the officials' faces changed.

In the past, they only had to worry about the inspections of the Censorate, but now they have to worry about anyone because anyone can write a secret memorial.

Thinking of this, many people looked unhappy, thinking that Liu Jilong had said so much before just for the so-called secret reporting system.

As for the affairs of official schools, compared with this, they seem to be nothing.

I originally thought that official school matters were very important, but now it seems that they are just appetizers.

"General, is it an overstepping of authority to make a secret report?"

"Yes, Marshal Ji, apart from other things, especially in the military, it is a taboo to report to higher levels."

"General Jie, do we need to be cautious about this matter?"

"Jie Shuai..."

All of a sudden, the group of officials who were originally like quails stood up and made suggestions.

They were all worried about the secret petition system, and the issue of the reform of official schools had long been forgotten.

The most important thing about the reform of official schools is whether the children can become successful.

But the secret reporting system could lead to their entire family being sent to Hexi if they were not careful.

Seeing so many people opposing it, Gao Jinda, Li Ji and others also joined in.

Seeing this, Liu Jilong then spoke up: "The secret report system is necessary, but what you said also makes sense."

"Let's put it this way. Only those with good rank can make secret reports. Others cannot."

After hearing this, although everyone still looked embarrassed, they all sat back in their seats one after another.

They all knew their commander's character very well. It was already very difficult for him to take a step back. If they continued to press forward, it would easily backfire.

Seeing that they all sat down, Liu Jilong breathed a sigh of relief and then started talking about other government affairs.

From the army to the Protectorate, Liu Jilian said a lot, but many people's minds were no longer on it.

When Liu Jilian announced the disbandment, everyone bowed and left quickly.

The only people left were Li Ji, Gao Jinda and others in the front two rows.

"I will set up a banquet in the main hall later, and we will eat together."

Liu Jilong asked a few people to stay, and they nodded when they saw this.

Soon, food was placed on the three tables in the central hall.

Liu Jilong and the other twenty-one people sat down and watched the food being served. It was Liu Jilong who picked up the chopsticks and said:

"Eat, don't be shy."

"Yes……"

Everyone picked up their chopsticks one after another, and Liu Jilong started talking to them:

"The secret report system must be implemented, and the reform of official schools must also be promoted."

"Although we are enjoying peace now, the world is becoming more and more chaotic."

"Many of you are getting older, and I am worried whether your children will be able to entrust you with important responsibilities when the time comes."

"They have never suffered, and do not have sufficient experience and talent, yet they act very arrogantly and have a great sense of superiority."

"Ask yourself, if your general was this kind of person, would you obey his orders and fight a war?"

"If your superior is this kind of person, can you work well under him?"

Liu Jilian made his attitude clear. It was not that he did not want to make important contributions to the children of officials, but there were indeed not many children of officials who could become talented.

"Jie Shuai..."

Seeing that Liu Jilong was not going to replace them, Li Ji quickly raised his glass and toasted Liu Jilong:

"I haven't read as many books as you have, but I know you are doing me good."

"Just now in the main hall, I was unable to react and had an argument with you. Please forgive me."

"You..." Liu Jilong sighed, but still raised his glass and drank it all.

After putting down his wine glass, he spoke to everyone from the bottom of his heart:
"In the past, the aristocratic families were able to produce many talented people mainly because they monopolized knowledge and had a sufficient population."

"But there are many people studying in Longyou now. Can your children really compete with those talented children of commoners?"

"They just like comfort and are afraid of hardship."

"This kind of character is unacceptable. You will suffer a great loss on the battlefield."

"You think I'm too involved, even taking care of your children's education, but in my opinion, your children's education is related to the survival of the entire Longyou."

Everyone echoed and continued to toast with Liu Jilong.

The banquet lasted for two hours until it got dark and everyone left one after another.

Liu Jilong washed his face with hot water. When he looked up, he saw that Li Shangyin had not left. He did not show any surprise, but nodded calmly and said:

"You haven't said a word today, Yishan. I guess you have something in your heart that you want to tell me now."

"General." Li Shangyin bowed and saluted, then sat down next to Liu Jilong and said:
"I said at the beginning that your method might work in Longyou, but when you go east, problems will arise."

"It seems that this method is difficult to maintain even in Longyou..."

Liu Jilong gave a bitter smile, then sighed, "I finally understand why the king would kill his running dogs after his birds and rabbits are dead."

"They are unwilling to admit their own problems, but still want to hold on to power. If this continues, problems will definitely arise."

"Yes, there will be problems..." Li Shangyin nodded in acknowledgment, but then shook his head and said:

"But you are young and strong. Many old officials will not be able to survive until that day."

Liu Jilong remained silent about this, and after a moment he said:

"Once these batches of students come out, I believe their views will gradually change."

"What if it doesn't change?" Li Shangyin asked Liu Jilong, and then, without waiting for Liu Jilong's answer, he stood up and bowed, saying:
"Having said this, I will take my leave..."

Without waiting for Liu Jilian to stay, he left the inner hall and met Cao Mao who was waiting outside.

He walked out side by side with Cao Mao. Cao Mao had obviously heard his conversation with Liu Jilong and could not help but said:
"Mr. Yishan, what did you mean by those words you said to Marshal Jie?"

"On the surface." Li Shangyin responded coldly, but after a moment he added:
"During my years in the court, I saw many commoners who entered the Shike class to become successful officials."

"Do you know what the first thing these commoners do after they get married?"

"What?" Cao Mao frowned slightly, while Li Shangyin paused and said bitterly:

"Unite with the noble families to block other commoners from becoming officials."

(End of this chapter)