Chapter 52: Sheathing the Sword and Concealing the Blade

  Merchants and candidates for the imperial examinations, along with a large influx of outsiders, made Chengdu exceptionally lively. Liu Zhang led his attendants on horseback to the western city, where the examination grounds were located.

  Doing so was Liu Zhang's intention, first to let those who tried see the assembly line workshop, and secondly to promote the prosperity of Xicheng.

  Three days later is the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the common people have already started buying goods for the festival. The streets are crowded with people, and there are vendors everywhere. The city guards are not doing their job well, so it's very congested. Liu Zhang and his group spent a lot of effort to get out of the east city, and by the time they arrived at the west city, the crowd had thinned out relatively.

  Fa Zheng rode on horseback, laughing and saying: "In the past, Xu Shao once said that Cao Cao was a capable minister in peacetime and a treacherous hero in troubled times. I think he is a frog at the bottom of a well, who has not seen the great talent and broad vision of our lord. In just a few months, Chengdu has already been transformed beyond recognition. If it were peacetime, our lord would be a prime ministerial talent."

  "What about that chaotic world?" Liu Zhang asked with a smile.

  "This lord should ask himself."

  "A hundred million taels of silver are being transported across the mountain pass, and a thousand horses are waiting to welcome the Hu wind." Liu Zhang burst out laughing, whipped his horse with a long whip, and led dozens of people away in a cloud of dust.

  On the street, there was an old man and a young one, who were Zhou Bu Yi and Zhang Zhong Jing. Zhou Bu Yi thought to himself: "With a hundred million troops crossing the Tong Pass, we will ride our horses to Taihang Mountain to welcome the Hu wind... Indeed, with such ambition, I fear that halfway through, our backbone will be broken."

  "What does it mean?" Zhang Zhongjing asked.

  "Arrogant and self-willed, just like Sun Ce of Jiangdong, he will not last long. Moreover, Liu Zhang tries to reform the world with his own strength, unless a miracle from heaven occurs, he will surely end in defeat."

  "But I just saw in the eastern city, the people of Chengdu are living and working happily, the streets are prosperous, and there are many strange things, which shows that the governor of Yi state is still understanding the feelings of the people, caring about the livelihood of the people, it's a rare good official."

  "Good official, good official, discussing state affairs with you is like playing a zither to a cow." Zhou Bu Yi looked down on Zhang Zhong Jing.

  "Ouch." Suddenly clutched his stomach and shouted: "Old man, I'm so hungry, let's hurry up and see if we can get some food at the examination hall."

  Zhang Zhongjing took a glance at Zhou Buyi, who was half his height, and thought to himself: "You're in trouble, with the world hidden in your chest and soldiers in your belly, you still need to eat?"

  Liu Zhang arrived at the examination hall, and there were already many examinees wandering around. Some people wore fine clothes and silk belts, while others had tattered clothes that barely covered their bodies, naturally forming two groups of people. Some citizens from the western city came to watch the excitement, and when they saw Liu Zhang arrive, many of them shouted loudly.

  These are the heartfelt cheers of the people. All the official workshops were opened in the west city, and the people of the west city worked hard to earn money. Many people ate meat that they could only eat once a year, and the houses with leaking roofs finally had enough money to buy tiles to cover them. The merchants who came to purchase goods were endless, and many people in the west city opened restaurants and set up stalls, gradually having hope for their lives.

  The common people thank whoever treats them well, and now seeing Liu Zhang arrive, they are naturally overjoyed.

  Wang Fu and others who were in charge of organizing the examination saw Liu Zhang and immediately went up to greet him. Liu Zhang asked, "How are the preparations for the examination going?"

  "Wang Fu replied: 'It's going smoothly, just some minor issues. Some scholars are unwilling to stay in the rooms we arranged for them and have banded together to petition. They've also had conflicts with those artisans and soldiers.'"

  Liu Zhang said while inspecting the examination room, "Conflicts should be resolved properly and impartially. Especially for those artisans, it's not easy for them to have the courage to take the exam. Pay attention to protecting them. As for those scholars who are unwilling to stay in simple rooms, you can tell them to get out. People like that will become corrupt officials when they take office."

  "Yes."

  "Huh?" Liu Zhang arrived at the craftsman's examination venue, looked around the examination room, and said coldly: "Didn't I say that every examination venue should hang a banner? Why isn't there one here?"

  Wang Fu asked the attendants behind him and replied, "Reporting to Your Excellency, the official in charge of drafting the horizontal inscriptions is unwilling to hold a brush for the craftsmen, saying that the craftsmen have no couplets to write."

  "How can this be?" Liu Zhang was furious: "Bring over the official in charge of drafting the banner."

  Before long, a dignified official stepped forward and saluted Liu Zhang with respect. Liu Zhang asked in a deep voice, "Why are there no streamers here?"

  "Reporting to Your Excellency, I am a scholar and have paid respects to Confucius. I have written about the heavens and the earth, as well as the officials and artisans. However, I have never held a brush for the three teachings and nine schools. Nevertheless, in order to follow Your Excellency's orders, I dare not refuse. Warriors of old had bloody battles to write about, doctors had their prescriptions to save lives, all of which can be written about. Only the laborers who work with mud and tiles have no writings to record, therefore there is no horizontal scroll here."

  Liu Zhang glanced at the official, sneered: "Speaking of words is a set of sets, it's a talented person, but... **Didn't you hear this official's order clearly? Each examination room has a banner, was the banner in this examination room eaten by you?"

  Liu Zhang's last two sentences were shouted, and he even cursed loudly. The officials behind him were shocked, and they secretly felt ashamed. Wang Lei frowned, while Fa Zheng smiled slightly. The craftsmen who had gathered to watch the scene also came over, and when they heard Liu Zhang's curses, they felt especially close to him.

  The officials were frightened and silent. Liu Zhang impatiently said to Wang Fu, "I don't want to see this man, retire."

  "It is." Wang Fu replied, and the official's face suddenly turned pale.

  The surrounding artisans whispered to each other, all of them astonished. In their hearts, they thought it was only natural that they were inferior to these officials and scholars, and that it was also to be expected that they would receive unfair treatment. But they never expected the prefect himself to take their side, and they were all wildly excited.

  A young man in the crowd watched Liu Zhang and the officials talking, nodded and said: "It seems that Ma Chao's thousand-mile journey was not in vain."

  Liu Zhang looked at the examination venue of the craftsmen and said to Wang Fu, "There must be a banner here. Except for the content of the exam, the four venues cannot have any differences."

  Fa Zheng smiled and said, "Then let me make a fool of myself this time."

  Wang Fu immediately let his attendants take up their brushes, and Fa Zheng dictated: "Establishing wells and ditches to enter the clouds and mist, exerting strength below a thousand cities, building house beams to avoid wind and rain, protecting our China, meritorious deeds covering heaven and earth."

  "What a magnificent momentum! If it weren't for the cloud ladder, who could have taken down walls several zhang high?" an official praised.

  "One war, one civil administration, accurately summarizes the outstanding contributions of craftsmen to society."

  "Great, great."

  The surrounding officials all nodded in praise, and Wang Fu asked Liu Zhang: "Is it just like this?"

  Liu Zhang nodded and said: "Okay, but I also want to make a fool of myself once. Since my learning is shallow, I'll just imitate Xiaozhi's."

  The king and the surrounding officials looked at each other, they were really surprised that Liu Zhang would still write a couplet, staring at Liu Zhang in surprise. Liu Zhang coughed and recited: "Cast nine tripod cauldrons to stabilize the capital city, hide all under heaven; sharpen the sword to exit Qin River and behead all bandits, who dares to contend with me."

  Fa Zheng and Wang Lei were shocked, a group of officials stared in amazement. At first, Liu Zhang was mediocre and had never seen him show his talent. Could such great talent be awakened? And could this literary talent also be cultivated in a short time?

  After a while, Wang Fu exclaimed: "Your Excellency has great talent, this couplet is full of vigor and vitality, secretly hiding your lofty ambitions, I am in awe."

  Fa Zheng smiled and said: "This couplet, although imitating mine, is a step higher in level."

  Other officials also praised and whispered to each other in amazement, only the craftsmen who listened were confused.

  Just then, a childish voice came from the crowd: "A three-foot saw knows to bend and cut wood, but a sword for killing people does not know to return to its scabbard to hide its blade. Sitting in Xichuan, it cannot reach Zhongyuan, yet it claims to have beheaded all the bandits, how ridiculous!"

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