Do you know: I am Qi Heng

"Ze Cheng!"

Upon arriving at the school, Sheng Changbai arrived early as always.

Qi Heng greeted him, sat down in his seat, and began reading.

Sheng Changfeng yawned as he walked into the school. Seeing the two of them reading, he said somewhat speechlessly, "The provincial examination has just ended, and you two are studying so hard instead of taking a proper rest."

Seeing his listless expression, Sheng Changbai frowned and said, "You've rested for a long time since the provincial examination ended, and next year is the metropolitan examination, so you should study even harder."

Sheng Changfeng muttered something, but I couldn't hear what he said, and went back to his seat.

Not long after he arrived, Mo Lan also arrived. Seeing Qi Heng and the others reading, she greeted them but did not disturb them.

As the weather warmed up, all the windows on both sides of the school were opened.

Hearing the laughter, Qi Heng turned his head and looked through the window, seeing Ru Lan and Ming Lan walking side by side. Ru Lan leaned closer and said something, while Ming Lan gave a knowing smile.

Although they had been classmates for several years, it was rare to see Minglan show such a genuine smile.

Rulan and Minglan entered the school, stopped chatting and laughing, greeted each other, and sat down.

They arrived almost at the appointed time tomorrow. Just as they sat down, the sound of a wooden clapper rang out, and soon after, Scholar Zhuang walked into the school.

"Greetings, scholar! I hope you are well!" The group rose and bowed.

"Please sit down!"

Zhuang Xuejiu waved his hand, and after Qi Heng and the others thanked him and took their seats, he looked at the three of them and said, "You have all passed the provincial examination, but you cannot be arrogant or complacent because of this. Every time, no less than 100,000 students take the provincial examination, and nearly 10,000 of them can pass. Basically, one in ten people can pass the examination."

But the imperial examination was different. Tens of thousands of people took the exam, but only two or three hundred people could make it onto the list. Only one out of thirty people passed the exam!

Therefore, passing the provincial examination is nothing special; it merely grants one the qualification to participate in the metropolitan examination.

There are many people younger than you who have passed the provincial examination, but very few people pass it on their first try.

Even among the high-ranking officials who served in the imperial court, many were nearly thirty years old and had taken the imperial examinations several times before finally passing with flying colors.

"We will remember your teachings!" the three said sincerely.

Sheng Changbai and Qi Heng looked serious. Only those who truly understood the imperial examination knew how difficult each examination was.

If we start counting from the county-level examinations, the number of scholars who took the exams each time during the entire Zhou Dynasty was in the hundreds of thousands.

Ultimately, only two or three hundred people were admitted to the provincial examination. Saying it was one in ten thousand is an exaggeration, but on average, only one in several thousand people could pass.

Sheng Changfeng, however, was somewhat dismissive. In fact, he was two months younger than Qi Heng since last year.

Passing the provincial examination at that age is not extremely rare, but it's not uncommon either.

The compliments and praise from those around him after he passed the exam made him somewhat arrogant.

Seeing this, Zhuang Xuejiu didn't say anything and began his lecture.

Since last year, Zhuang Xuejiu's lectures have deviated from the textbook.

Instead of teaching according to Confucian classics, we extract some core ideas and discuss them.

Moreover, he didn't just teach Qi Heng and the others to listen; he also had them engage in dialectical thinking.

Confucius and Dong Zhongshu advocated rule by rites, while Xunzi advocated rule by law. Today, let's discuss whether morality should come first to cultivate people's hearts, or whether rule of law should come first to restrain behavior?

"pedant!"

Sheng Changfeng was the first to stand up and said, "I believe that morality should come first. At birth, human nature is good. Children are ignorant and naive, but their nature is pure. As long as we strengthen their moral cultivation, they will naturally abide by etiquette and law."

These people, while adhering to etiquette and law, are able to influence even more people.

The stories of Mencius' mother moving three times and Kong Rong sharing pears are both exemplary.

Mencius' mother was well aware of the influence others had on people, so she eventually moved her family to a place near a school. It was precisely because Mencius was influenced by scholars from a young age that he was able to achieve his future success.

Kong Rong's act of giving away benefits became widely known, and people all over the world praised and followed his example; similar stories are countless.

If the rule of rites is about setting an example and telling people how they should behave, then the rule of law is about forcibly binding people to do the same.

The latter only knows what it is, while the former knows why it is, thus distinguishing between superior and inferior.

Students should prioritize governance through propriety, educating the people and enabling them to distinguish right from wrong, rather than forcing them to act through harsh laws and punishments!

"The student has finished speaking!"

"Um!"

Zhuang Xuejiu nodded slightly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, and told him to sit down.

"pedant!"

Rulan stood up and said, "I don't think Second Brother is entirely right!"

"Then, Fifth Sister, what's your opinion?"

"My second brother just said that morality should come first, and he cited Mencius' mother moving three times and Kong Rong sharing pears as examples."

However, Mencius' mother was the mother of a sage, and Kong Rong was an even greater Confucian scholar, not an ordinary person.

Does reading the classics and learning morality and etiquette guarantee that one can actually do it?

As my second brother just said, Kong Rong giving away pears is a model example, known to everyone, but isn't it also very common for older people to be unwilling to give up to younger ones?

As Rulan spoke, she glanced at Molan in front of her.

Although Mo Lan didn't know Ru Lan was looking at her, she recognized that Ru Lan was referring to her. She smiled and stood up, saying, "Fifth Sister, I don't agree with what you said. It's not necessarily that I'm not as good-looking as you; it could be that I'm disrespectful to my elders."

"Look, scholar, the student hasn't even finished speaking before Fourth Sister interrupts. And this is just talking, let alone sharing pears."

"My second brother just said that those role models have already taken root in people's hearts, but I don't think that's necessarily true!" Rulan said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Rulan in surprise.

Is this still Rulan?

However, it must be said that Rulan seized the opportunity very well. Even though it was a debate, the opposing side should only speak after the other side has finished speaking.

If you interrupt someone directly, that's not a debate, it's an argument.

Mo Lan's face stiffened; she hadn't expected Ru Lan to say such a thing.

Based on Rulan's past personality, after what she just said, Rulan would probably bring up the issue of legitimate and illegitimate children.

She is said to be a concubine's daughter, but should be treated with the respect due to a legitimate daughter.

Then she can use that as a point to make a fuss.

Although there is a distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children, there is still an order of seniority.

In mainstream opinion, the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children refers to inheritance and ancestral rites, but the order of seniority is a matter of morality.

Unexpectedly, Rulan seized on the issue of her interrupting and started making a fuss about it.

"Fourth Miss, please sit down first, and wait for Fifth Miss to finish speaking before you speak!" Zhuang Xuejiu said.

Although Zhuang Xuejiu did not explicitly agree with Rulan's words, his gesture of asking Molan to sit down undoubtedly indicated his approval of Rulan's statement.

"yes!"

Although Mo Lan was unwilling, she could only sit down.

"Scholar, I've finished speaking!"

Rulan glanced smugly at Molan and sat down.

Mo Lan's face darkened even more upon hearing this.

Zhuang Xuejiu gestured for Rulan to sit down, then looked at Molan: "Fourth Miss, it's your turn to speak!"

"Scholar, I haven't decided yet. I'd like to think about it some more," Mo Lan said, taking a deep breath.

She's so angry she's about to lose her temper; she's in no mood to talk.

Zhuang Xuejiu didn't pay any attention and looked at Qi Heng and Sheng Changfeng, saying, "What do you two think?"