Whoever can strike me hard will be rewarded handsomely.

For the sake of the vest's safety, the fan, which emphasizes friendship, cannot be displayed in front of others, so it can only be used to flaunt in front of those who are willing to show off.

As expected, the two disciples, one for writing an article that was too offensive and the other for being ruthlessly defeated by General Qian in a sand table simulation and then "inadvertently" "reporting" something, were punished side by side with a board in the Qianzheng Hall.

Bian Yushu's article was written carelessly, earning him thirty strokes of the cane. Shang Jingming not only lost the deduction, but also tried to get close to General Qian in order to get the other party to show mercy, earning him sixty strokes of the cane.

Bian Yushu originally wanted to use the exemption dice, but when he saw that his nemesis had been penalized twice as many times as him but showed no intention of taking the exemption arrow, he gritted his teeth and pressed his restless hand back.

Shang Jingming lay slumped on the bench, enduring the silence without uttering a sound.

He glanced up and saw the folding fan in His Majesty's hand. He thought to himself that His Majesty treasured this fan so much that it must have been a gift from Jiang Daru. He also secretly wondered if he should give His Majesty something easy to carry as a gift for His Majesty's birthday next time.

Bian Yushu was locked in a fierce battle with her nemesis. She gritted her teeth and endured it for a moment, but in the end, she was overcome by sobs and cried softly.

He was in so much pain that he was dizzy and disoriented. Through his blurry, tearful eyes, he subconsciously looked at the person on the throne. Through the shimmering water, he could only see a folding fan swaying back and forth on the throne.

Bian Yushu thought to herself, feeling dizzy: Is the weather really that hot?

He quickly stopped thinking about other things and focused intently on the folding fan, counting how many times it was fanned to distract himself, while sobbing softly.

After counting a few times, he realized that each strike of the board followed by a folding fan echoed each other, not only failing to distract him but also rhythmically pulling his thoughts back to where he was being punished, achieving the opposite effect.

Bian Yushu cried even more pitifully.

Once the two men stopped hitting the boards, the two disciples knelt down in a row to express their gratitude.

The two, one in front and one behind, were led by Fu Lu into the inner room of the Qianzheng Hall, where they lay down in a row.

Qin Ji followed in unhurriedly, sat down on the couch with an air of authority, fanning himself while glancing at his two apprentices out of the corner of his eye.

The eldest disciple's eyes were wet and pitiful, like some kind of small animal that had been caught in the rain. The second disciple remained silent, his eyes vacant, seemingly lost in thought.

With a snap of his folding fan, Qin Ji rewarded each of them handsomely.

Both disciples turned to look at them.

"I reminded you last time, why not have Shen Hanlin revise it properly for you? The article is so bad that it hurts my eyes to look at it, and it's a disgrace to me if word gets out."

As Qin Ji scolded, he grew increasingly angry and slammed his folding fan against Bian Yushu's rice ball without hesitation.

Bian Yushu didn't dare to hide. She hugged her pillow and gasped for breath, tears streaming down her face. "I'm...I'm sorry."

After knocking three or four times, Qin Ji asked coolly, "Are you ignoring my words?"

Bian Yushu shook her head vigorously: "I've already gone to see Shen Hanlin."

Qin Ji narrowed his eyes: "Is this the result of Shen Hanlin's guidance to you?"

Bian Yushu noticed His Majesty's displeasure and explained in a low voice, "Shen Hanlin taught me how to revise it, and the revision was so good that I... can't write it out."

Qin Ji raised an eyebrow: "So you're just going to give me the original version?"

Bian Yushu's voice was barely audible: "No, I revised the original version myself based on Shen Hanlin's guidance."

"You've put in a lot of effort, and your understanding of Shen Hanlin's guidance is quite thorough?"

Even if Bian Yushu was stupid, he could tell that this wasn't something nice, so he didn't dare to say a word.

The exam questions were still too difficult for this kid.

Although he has worked hard enough in the past six months, his foundation is too weak, and he really has no talent for studying.

Qin Ji didn't have a good solution for this kind of student who was severely unbalanced in his studies. Fortunately, this kid had made contributions to improving the sleeve arrow and the curved plow, and the improvement of the heavy crossbow and catapult was also underway. Even if he didn't take the imperial examination, giving him a position in the Ministry of Works in the future would probably be enough to convince the public and avoid attracting too much gossip or being looked down upon.

Of course, Shen Hanlin should continue to teach him the Four Books and Five Classics, but continuing in this way is too inefficient and a waste of time. It is better to adjust the curriculum appropriately, reduce the relevant content, and let Shen Hanlin change his focus to teach him more practical things, such as how to write memorials and petitions, so that in the future this kid will not be able to write a simple memorial, which will give him a headache.

Qin Ji had made up his mind and instructed Fu Lu: "After lunch, summon Shen Yun to see me."

Fu Lu bowed and said, "Yes."

After dealing with Bian Yushu, Qin Ji turned his attention to his second disciple.

Before he could react, Shang Jingming immediately said, "Jingming knows he was wrong."

Qin Ji didn't waste any more words with him, and quickly and fiercely slapped him about ten times.

When Bian Yushu heard the sound of the folding fan cutting through the air, the hairs on his body stood on end. He shuddered and didn't dare to breathe.

Fortunately, he wasn't punished, but the muffled thuds that landed beside him still terrified him.

Shang Jingming only let out a muffled groan at the beginning, and then just bit his lip and endured it until His Majesty withdrew his hand, at which point his tense muscles relaxed slightly.

The folding fan tapped lightly against the edge of the bed, making a "tap-tap" sound, and the inner room of the Qianzheng Hall was silent.

"General Qian is a brilliant strategist and has recently been your mentor. If you had only lost the simulation today, I might not have punished you. But you took my words to heart, knowing that I wanted to have General Qian compete with you, and you came to him in advance to curry favor."

Although no names were mentioned, everyone knew who His Majesty was referring to.

Shang Jingming once again took the blame: "Jingming knows he was wrong."

Qin Ji's expression wasn't too serious: "You tried to get close to me, but you ended up having General Qian complain to me."

Qin Ji said leisurely, "Commander Shang, it seems you haven't even managed to get a proper rapport?"

Shang Jingming moved his lips, but remained silent.

"You think you know General Qian well after spending these days with him?" Qin Ji tapped Shang Jingming's wound with his folding fan with a mocking tone. "Have you investigated General Qian's past? Do you know what he despises most?"

General Qian was an unconventional man who lived for the moment and was sometimes even a bit eccentric. He was unorthodox in his military tactics, employing unconventional methods and often resorting to surprise attacks.

Shang Jingming judged that he was not a stubborn or rigid person, so he brought wine to his door and, relying on his familiar relationship with him over the past few days, put his arm around him and tried to "save" his inevitable defeat.

Unexpectedly, things went awry, and the old man betrayed him right in front of His Majesty.

This lesson was undeniably painful.

Shang Jingming took a deep breath: "The human heart is like a battlefield. I was too presumptuous and failed to know myself and my enemy, or to understand the hidden truth behind things. I was negligent and failed His Majesty's expectations."

"Such a misjudgment is fatal on the battlefield. Today you have only lost a little flesh and blood..." Qin Ji tapped Shang Jingming behind his back with his folding fan, "If you make such a hasty judgment about the enemy's commander in the future, it will be the soldiers of my Great Yin who will suffer losses."

...

Second update delivered! Happy Lantern Festival!

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