Chapter 61: Each with Their Own Thoughts

  The second update is here, thank you for the interesting and generous reward!

  Wei Zheng did not directly take Xiao Rui to Li Gang's home to request to be his apprentice like Xiao Yu did, but he had also privately asked Master Li Gang if he could accept his son Shu Yu as a disciple, and was similarly declined. However, only heaven knows, earth knows, Li Gang knows, Wei Zheng knows, so they don't feel embarrassed about it.

  "I'm envious, but not jealous!" Wei Zheng smiled and teased, looking at Xiao Yu with a mixture of amusement and annoyance.

  "What's wrong with being jealous? That old thing Li Gang, he's got a belly full of good stuff, hiding and concealing it all day. Learning is something that you can't bring with you when you're born, nor take away when you die. Who knows how many disciples he could have taught, letting the things passed down by our ancestors be on the verge of being lost? It's a crime! Today, I'll go and petition His Majesty, saying that my child doesn't have a good teacher, asking His Majesty to arrange for a good one. If not, this old bones of mine won't rest easy even when going to court! Xiangyu couldn't take the contempt from everyone, today he's gone all out, determined to get Li Gang to teach his son Xuanru."

  Everyone listened, their eyes rolling around, yes, the son of their family was not a good teacher, unlearned and unskilled, as a minister to share worries and difficulties for the emperor; as the emperor, it is natural to give some favor to the ministers.

  Now that there is Xiao Yu this hard stone in front of them, they add a bit more effort and it's possible to succeed. Even if they can't become Li Gang's indoor disciple, but can be like Zhangzi in the Longsun family, becoming Li Gang's student, that would also be very good.

  They all feel that the sons are making rapid progress in Zhangsun's villa, and Zhangsun Chong's changes are visible to everyone. Even if they can't surpass Zhangsun Chong, they can't fall far behind the young masters of the Zhangsun family!

  Cheng Yaojin stepped forward and patted Xiao Yu's shoulder, saying: "Xiao sir, I bet you're just shouting in front of us. I don't believe you dare say that to the Emperor. After all, Li Gang, Kong sir are the prince's teachers, and now there's also Zhangsun Chong, this inner disciple, where did they have time to teach your son?"

  Xiao Yu was capped by Cheng Yaojin like this, saying: "Too much talk is useless, wait and see later."

  Fang Xuanling is no good either. He turned his eyes and came up with a wicked idea, saying: "Sir Xiao, everyone will be watching you later."

  Xiao Yu was indeed arrogant, but he wasn't a fool. After careful consideration, he grasped the key point and snorted, saying: "Do you think I don't know what's on your minds? Your family has many unfilial sons, if His Majesty gives his consent, you'll all climb up the ranks together and bring your family's children along; but if His Majesty doesn't allow it, then it's just me, Xiao Yu, taking the blame, and it has nothing to do with any of you!"

  Fang Xuanling, Wei Zheng and Du Ruhui's faces turned red with rage, they smiled wryly and said nothing.

  Li Jing and Li Ji were still watching the play with others, without saying a word, continuing to watch the play.

  Exposed, Cheng Yaojin didn't beat around the bush and said straightforwardly: "Hehe, since Sir Xiao has seen through it, we won't hide anymore. As long as you bring it up, we'll definitely support you from behind! One sheep is let go, a group of sheep are also let go, but we can't let Li Gang off!"

  Xiao Yu listened and thought that Cheng Yaoguang's mouth was foul, but the person wasn't bad, so he said: "Let's just believe you for now!"

  Before long, Li Er walked in with big strides and sat down on the dragon chair.

  After the routine morning meeting was about to be adjourned, Xiao Yu stepped forward and said with his hands clasped: "Your Majesty, I have something to report!"

  Li was surprised for twenty minutes, thinking carefully, and it seemed that nothing had provoked Old Man Xiao recently. He smiled and said: "Xiao Ai Qing, just say it."

  "Xiao Rui, my son, has been following me since he was a child to learn, but now he has reached a bottleneck and cannot make progress or breakthroughs. I am worried every day that I will delay his future, but it is difficult to find a good teacher. I humbly request that my son Xiao Rui can follow Li Gang to study!" Xiao Xu said, his eyes reddening as he thought about the ups and downs of his life, his noble status and power tempting people, but only learning could keep one from losing direction in the midst of prosperity. He hoped his son Xiao Rui could make progress in his studies because he was already a national duke, and his son would inherit the title, so there was no need to be overly ambitious or greedy for power; moreover, as Sui Yangdi's younger brother-in-law, he had become an official and national duke of the Tang Dynasty after betraying his country once, so his son did not need to, nor could he, be too infatuated with power.

  Li Er yi listened, stroking his eight-character mustache, and thought for a moment before saying: "Well, Rui is a clever and diligent person. I agree. Tomorrow, go to the Chongwen Hall with the Crown Prince to study together. It's just as well that Li Ai will be teaching you both at the same time, saving some time."

  Xiao Yu usually spoke with a hard tone in the imperial court, it's rare for him to be so soft-spoken today towards Li Er, and his face even showed a deep sorrow that only appeared once in a hundred years. Even if Li Er had a heart of stone, he would have softened up by now.

  The main thing is that Li Er has eaten a lot of bitter melon from Xiao Yu in his daily life. Whatever Xiao Yu participates in, he always gets Li Er angry and furious.

  The officials below saw Xiao Yu's success and their minds became active.

  Especially Cheng Yaojin and others didn't wait for him to finish, stood up and said: "Your Majesty, I also have something to report!"

  As soon as he saw Cheng Yaojin's rolling cow eyes, he knew that he must be thinking of something mischievous. Li Er didn't want to bother with Cheng Yaojin, but since the old ministers had all come out, he couldn't let someone shut his mouth either.

  "Are you also thinking of asking me to find a teacher for your son?" Li Er asked with ill intentions.

  Cheng Yaojin hastily said: "Your Majesty is wise! The five princes at home, under the guidance of Li Gang in Changsun's village, have made great progress in their studies. However, after returning from the village, they have stagnated again, and I am worried. As ministers, we work hard to establish the great cause of the Tang Dynasty, and besides that, there is only one thing left - our sons having a good future. I also beg Your Majesty to let my son study with Li Gang."

  Du Ruhui, Fang Xuanling, and Wei Zheng were only slightly less clever than Sun Wukong. They wanted their sons to study with Li Gang's husband, but in reality, they just wanted their sons to be close to the crown prince or the eldest grandson so that they could gain some prestige by association.

  Li Jing and Li Ji both had sons who were not up to par, so they pinned their hopes on their grandsons being able to bring honor to the family. They must have been eager for them to learn literary and military skills, and one after another, they came forward to request that the emperor find a good teacher for their useless children.

  Li Er was in a difficult situation. The several masters in the Chongwen Temple were not young, and they had come down so many times that it was unclear whether they could still be taught. However, the children of the ministers' families were also not well-behaved, and this was not just a recent development. Why would they bring it up today?

  After a hundred twists and turns, Li Er finally understood that when he saw Zhangsun rushing in to read books, his eyes turned red.

  These ministers hoped that the son would have a good teacher to guide him, and he understood this sentiment very well. However, as an emperor but also a father, he certainly wanted his son to have a good learning environment. If he were to refuse directly, the ministers would definitely feel uncomfortable, so he passed the buck to Li Gang instead.

  Li Gang and Kong Yingda were truly scholarly, impartial on the court, with high moral integrity, their children were well-behaved, never to be found in front of those ministers, so these two men did not fear the ministers.

  "Since you are so, I also cannot directly give the order. After all, Li and Kong have limited energy, why not let each of your families bring their children tomorrow, and let the two adults examine them after that, leave those who are more clever, how about that?" This was what Li thought of in a short time.

  Everyone heard that, but it's hard to know the deeper meaning. However, since His Majesty has given the children an opportunity, whether they can succeed depends on their own destiny.