Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 182: Worrying about the World First

Xiao Shan suddenly remembered something and said, "Oh, right? Didn't you say last night that you were friends with a group of birds? A good friend of mine likes to raise birds. I've written a letter and had someone deliver it. Maybe he has some bird-related cultivation techniques."

"Really? Thank you very much, Dean." Lu Zheng said.

Xiao Shan waved his hand and said, "I wanted to contribute more, but I don't know whether it will succeed or not."

Last night they discussed how to deal with the demons in the county.

Lu Zheng felt that there were endless demons and ghosts in the world, and some good demons and ghosts could be used to fight demons, or to build villages and counties.

Especially that group of monkey monsters, Lu Zheng felt that they could be a great help in the construction of Kaiyang County.

However, he didn't know whether the monkeys had moved, and their relationship was not close enough, so he couldn't work with them for the time being.

In fact, the imperial courts of various countries have tried to manage demons and ghosts.

However, trust between the two sides is difficult to establish. There are people in the world who are difficult to control, let alone monsters from a foreign race.

Most demons and ghosts don't care about human laws at all, they act recklessly and get away with it.

On the other hand, if one gets too close to demons and ghosts, fails to control them properly, and causes trouble, one may easily be accused of colluding with demons and ghosts and bringing disaster to the people.

For various reasons, it is not easy to maintain a good relationship with demons and ghosts and use them for your benefit.

Fortunately, a large number of evil demons and ghosts have died in Kaiyang County, and the remaining evildoers have fled or hidden. The remaining demons and ghosts are honest and easy to manage.

Lu Zheng felt that he could act as a middleman to build a certain level of trust between those demons and ghosts and the government officials and the people, and try his best to prevent the people in the county from being harmed by the demons and ghosts in the future.

Li Yuan was naturally happy to learn about Lu Zheng's ideas and suggestions last night.

Lu Zheng now has a very high prestige in Kaiyang County. If he can use this to control those monsters and ghosts, it will save a lot of trouble in the future.

Thinking of many things at once, Lu Zheng couldn't help but ask, "Dean, do you think that my extravagant wishes can be fulfilled?"

"Exorbitant hopes?" Xiao Shan was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Your policies are very good, but why are you feeling unconfident today?"

Yesterday, Lu Zheng was still chatting with them in high spirits, but today he had changed his expression, which made Xiao Shan a little puzzled.

Lu Zheng sighed, "It's a good idea, but when it comes to actually implementing it, there will be all sorts of resistance... And there are countless examples in history of governments collapsing when leaders die, and when leaders die, so it's hard not to worry."

Xiao Shan sighed, "My friend, you are thinking long-term, but there is no need to worry so much. Although County Magistrate Li is not a great talent, he is more than capable of being the magistrate of any county and can do all these things. The County Magistrate couldn't sleep this morning and hurried back before dawn..."

Xiaoshan has had contact with Li Yuan for many years and knows that Li Yuan is a person with certain abilities and can make political achievements if he works hard.

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "It's not that I don't trust Magistrate Li, but as an elder once said, 'Before you worry about the world's worries, you will be happy after the world is happy.' The decree hasn't been implemented to benefit the people yet, so I can't help but feel a little worried."

"Worry about the world before..."

Xiao Shan was shocked, and as he chewed over these words, he was deeply touched, feeling complicated and inexplicable.

He felt that he could always learn a lot from Lu Zheng.

Xiao Shan looked at Lu Zheng and thought that since Lu Zheng could cultivate a righteous spirit, it should be like this!

Just then, Xiao Qingqing came with her servants.

"grandfather!"

Xiao Qingqing smiled at Xiao Shan.

Then, Xiao Qingqing asked someone to serve Lu Zheng white porridge and exquisite pickles.

"Sir, the breakfast you requested."

Xiao Qingqing personally scooped a bowl of white porridge for Lu Zheng.

"Thank you."

Lu Zheng quickly stood up, took the bowl, and thanked him.

Xiao Shan couldn't help but say, "My friend, you are still so polite to me."

Lu Zhengdao: "In the past, breakfast was just dry food or porridge. I'm used to it."

Xiao Shan said with a smile, "Alright, let's not be polite to each other and just treat this like our own home! Qingqing, give me a bowl too!"

Xiao Qingqing smiled and scooped porridge for Xiao Shan, then she and the servants served on the side.

Seeing this, Lu Zheng couldn't help but say, "I'm not used to being served. You standing here makes me feel uncomfortable... If you don't mind, can you sit down and have dinner with us?"

In this world, there aren't that many barriers between men and women, and there are elders around.

Xiao Shan nodded and said, "Friend Lu is not an outsider, Qingqing, don't be so polite, just sit down!"

Too much formality between the two sides would make it seem awkward.

"Okay, Grandpa!"

Xiao Qingqing smiled when she heard this, then asked the other servants to leave and found a place to sit down and have her meal.

Seeing that everyone was having breakfast, Qing Wan took out the green bamboo scroll, spread it out on the ground, and absorbed the vitality and spirit from it.

Xiao Shan noticed Qing Wan's movements beside him, glanced at her, and then glared.

"Cough cough..."

Xiao Shan looked at the scroll and suddenly coughed because of choking.

"This painting..."

Xiao Shan immediately put down his bowl and chopsticks, stood up and walked closer to check.

He had previously learned from Li Zhao that Lu Zheng had extorted an ancient painting from a Wu person, but he did not expect that the painting was so extraordinary.

Xiao Shan glanced at the scroll and found that the painter was an ancient person he knew, but the poem on it was written by another person.

And it is precisely because of the poetry that this painting seems almost real.

Xiao Qingqing also walked closer out of curiosity to take a look, and her beautiful eyes showed a strange color.

She was already good at calligraphy and painting, and immediately noticed the uniqueness of this scroll. "This poem was added later by the young master, right?"

Xiao Qingqing couldn't help but say that she had seen Lu Zheng's calligraphy before, so she recognized it quickly.

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "You have good eyesight, young lady."

Xiao Shan looked at Qing Wan who was sitting cross-legged on the painting. "Can I see this painting?"

"Ah? Oh..."

Qing Wan quickly stood up and walked out of the painting.

Xiao Shan immediately picked up the painting with some heartache and examined it carefully.

Lu Zheng explained, "This painting had almost run out of life, so I included a poem by a previous artist on it."

"I see." Xiao Shan sighed, "A beautiful painting, a beautiful poem, and your calligraphy is also beautiful. It is your noble spirit and the addition of this poem that make this painting so extraordinary."

"Holding fast to the green mountains, never letting go, roots planted in the broken rock. Despite countless blows, it remains unyielding, regardless of the winds blowing from east, west, south, or north... What a beautiful poem, perfectly suited to this painting!"

Xiaoshan had never heard of this poem or the writer who wrote it, but Lu Zheng added this poem to the painting of green bamboo, which was very appropriate.

Xiao Shan gently stroked the scroll and could still feel a hint of Lu Zheng's noble spirit in it.

"This painting is worth a fortune!"

Xiaoshan couldn't help but comment that both the painting and the poem had excellent meanings, and if they were put up for auction, all those Confucian and Taoist scholars would go crazy for them.

Lu Zheng used this painting as food for Qing Wan's daily practice, which made him feel distressed.

However, no matter how regretful he was, the painting belonged to Lu Zheng and no one else had any control over how he used it.

Xiao Shan wanted to exchange the treasure, but he felt that as a grown-up, he didn't have the nerve to snatch things from a tiny person.

He admired it for a while and then returned the green bamboo scroll to Qingwan.

Qing Wan continued to practice with the painting spread out on the ground.

Xiao Shan hesitated to speak. In fact, this painting was extraordinary. It was resistant to water and fire, and it would not get dusty even if placed on the ground. However, he just couldn't bear to look at it.

Keep calm, keep calm... Xiao Shan muttered to himself and withdrew his gaze. Even Lu Zheng didn't care, so why should he care?

Xiao Shan drank a few mouthfuls of porridge and said, "Speaking of which, I don't have any calligraphy works by you yet, so I'd like to shamelessly ask for one!"

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "It's just a piece of cake. The dean is exaggerating. Whatever the dean wants, as long as I can write it down, it's fine."

"Okay, okay! I'll take you to my study later!"

Xiao Shan was delighted when he heard this. "I have quite a few books in my collection. If you want to read something, you can go get it!"

"it is good."

Lu Zheng nodded slightly. He really needed to read more books and learn more about the world.

The three of them finished their breakfast quickly. Qing Wan also had her fill and returned to Lu Zheng's arms.

Xiao Qingqing wanted to get closer to Qingwan. After all, who wouldn't like this cute little person? Unfortunately, Qingwan was still happy to stay with Lu Zheng.

Xiao Qingqing couldn't help but say, "Miss Qingwan is very attached to you, young master."

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "She probably likes my scent more."

Xiao Shan, who was standing beside him, said with a smile, "My friend, you cultivate a righteous spirit, which makes it easier for you to get close to everything. Qing Wan herself has a literary aura, so of course she can sense who she's better with."

Soon, Xiao Shan brought Lu Zheng to an elegant study.

The room is spacious, with many bookshelves filled with various books, and the air is filled with the fragrance of books.

Xiaoshan excitedly came to the desk and prepared the best pen, ink, paper and inkstone.

Seeing Xiao Shan grinding ink with his own hands, Lu Zheng said, "Actually, it's okay not to use ink."

"Oh?"

Xiao Shan couldn't help but stop and said expectantly, "Then please start writing."

Lu Zheng asked, "I don't know what kind of treasure the dean wants?"

Xiao Shan smiled and said, "Just write whatever you like, my friend. Anything is fine."

"That's it..."

Lu Zheng's expression changed slightly. Generally speaking, if you say that, then it would be difficult to make a choice.

He thought about it carefully and finally came up with a poem.

"I thought of an ancient poem, but I don't know if it can be turned into a literary treasure. If not, I can only choose another one."

Xiao Shan nodded and said, "Just do as you please, my friend. There's no need to make things difficult for me."

Upon hearing this, Lu Zheng took out the Donghu brush and came to the rice paper that was emitting a spiritual charm.

Xiao Shan and Xiao Qingqing looked at the ancient brush in Lu Zheng's hand, but couldn't figure out what it was.

But they all felt that Lu Zheng would not just pick up a pen to fool people.

After all, the better the four treasures of the study are, the easier it is to write a masterpiece.

Lu Zheng held a Donghu brush in his hand, the tip of the brush was shining, and a strong sense of righteousness was flowing.

He waved his hand with great momentum and large, glittering characters appeared on the paper, lively and elegant.

The wind knows the strong grass, and the sturdy knows the Chengchen.

A brave man will know righteousness, and a wise man will be benevolent.

With every stroke of the pen, a colorful light appears, emitting a unique aura that touches people's hearts.

(End of this chapter)