Chapter 1 Heavenly Jade Capital
After that, no one else argued with the students, and these students felt proud of themselves, waiting to speak again. Zhang Bing said in a serious tone: "Everyone, Mr. Zhou Shan begged for the people and petitioned the emperor to abolish the two evil laws of land search and frame law, but was demoted and exiled to Hainan by the treacherous minister Cai Jing. Tomorrow is the day when Mr. Zhou leaves Beijing. The officials are intimidated by the power of the treacherous minister, but our students in the Imperial Academy want to send off Mr. Zhou Shan with great fanfare. Shao Yang, Shou Yi, Yuan Zhidao, you dare not go?"
"It's almost unnecessary to ask," Chen Dong sneered, "The master often said that the rise and fall of the world is the responsibility of every individual. I regret not being able to follow the master to Qingzhou." He glanced at Deng Su beside him, who also said: "Exactly, what is there to fear from these insignificant clowns?"
The ancestral law of the Song Dynasty was not to punish people with words. Once there were major events in the country, even students could speak out what attendants dared not to say, and criticize what critics dared not to criticize. Even the powerful Prime Minister Cai Jing had to put aside his dignity, on the one hand greatly improving the treatment of students' clothing and food, on the other hand personally overseeing the examination of students in the Imperial Academy, both winning over and controlling them. However, most of the students in the Imperial Academy were more inclined towards the old party and the clear stream.
Tai Changsha Huang Jian was quite popular among the students of Tai Xue, and Chen Dong and others were also senior figures in Tai Xue. With this commotion, the students couldn't hold back their excitement, shouting "Let's go together! Let's go together!" with voices saying "What are we afraid of?!" Zhao Hangde and Li Ruo exchanged glances, nodded slightly, and said in a low voice: "We're fortunate to encounter such a great event, how can we miss it?"
The crowd of students had discussed and agreed to go to Bianhe Wharf the next day to see off Huang Zhoushan. They then dispersed and ran around, contacting everyone, and Zhao Xingde also rushed to several temples. When they finished contacting everyone and were preparing to return to their temples, it was already dusk. The setting sun hung on the iron tower of Kai Bao Temple, casting a brilliant light on the glazed tiles. The sky was painted with a crimson glow, and sparrows and swallows chirped as they flew back to their nests. The kitchen smoke from the Imperial Academy rose straight up into the air.
Tai Academy provides free meals to students, and the upper, middle and lower three sheds of students all eat in the official kitchen. The dining hall of Huazhangzhai is quite spacious and bright, with a thick and heavy rectangular table in the middle, and the beautiful people's lamps made by the official kiln emit soft and dim yellow light. More than 30 Tai Academy students sit on both sides of the table, with four dishes and one soup in front of each six people: leek-braised carp, fragrant coriander bean curd, boiled shepherd's purse, cold-mixed willow buds, lotus seed soup, and the staple food is still called steamed buns at this time.
This old-fashioned bun has another story. In the past, the staple food of the official kitchen was not only buns, but also soup cakes, rice, wheat rice and steamed buns. It is unknown which dynasty's official personally inspected the Imperial Academy, coincidentally when the students were eating mantou (steamed buns), after tasting them, the official felt that they were quite delicious, and said with relief: "With this to nurture scholars, there is no shame!" From then on, the Imperial Academy's official kitchen only made steamed buns as their staple food.
It is said that they do not speak while eating and do not talk while sleeping. All the students in the Imperial Academy bury their heads and work hard, after finishing their meals, they just wipe their mouths and leave, and there are official servants to clean up the bowls and chopsticks. The academic work of the Imperial Academy is very strict, and the exams are both rigorous and frequent. The classics such as "I Ching", "Shang Shu", "Poetry", "Zuo Zhuan", "Analects", "Mencius", "Zhongyong", "Daxue", "Xueji", "Ruxing", "Jingjie" are all required to be tested, especially emphasizing the new academic classics written by Wang Anshi, the former prime minister, such as "Sanjing Xinyi", "Zishuo", and "Daodejing Zhu".
When the morning master advocated that poetry and rhapsody were minor studies, historical studies often borrowed from the past to criticize the present. Therefore, whether it was participating in the imperial examination or attending classes at the Imperial Academy, there were no such subjects, only focusing on Confucian classics, especially the writings of Wang Anshi, the former prime minister. Mastery of the classics was the most basic condition for students at the Imperial Academy to become officials. In the Imperial Academy, although there were some who muddled through their days in a daze, seeking only comfort and pleasure, the majority of students, like Zhao Xingde, would rest briefly after dinner before burning the midnight oil, reading until late into the night before extinguishing the lamp and going to bed.
In the dead of night, the creek water that thousands of concubines and palace maids in the White Jade Palace had used to wash their faces before bed flowed slowly around the Taixue Academy's dormitories, filling the air with a faint scent of cosmetics. This was enough to make some young scholars' thoughts wander. Although life as a student was tough at times, once they became officials, they would receive generous salaries and allowances, and it was not uncommon for them to have multiple wives and concubines.
Lying on the hard wooden bed, the spring chill made Zhao Xingde subconsciously wrap his quilt tightly around him, a habit he had formed since arriving in this world. It had been over ten years, and yet it still felt both familiar and strange, from the initial inexplicable fear to gradually accepting and even integrating into it. Underneath his taciturn exterior, Zhao Xingde's spirit had undergone tremendous changes, but in the eyes of his parents and teachers, he was just a child growing up. The sound of Chen Dong and other students' heated discussion drifted over from the nearby dormitory courtyard, reminiscent of his university days before crossing over. As the voices outside the window gradually faded away, Zhao Xingde took a deep breath and slowly closed his eyes.
In the courtyard, Chen Dong's face was solemn and he lowered his voice: "The treacherous party has infiltrated everywhere in the imperial court, relying solely on demoting Mr. Zhou to leave the capital, taking the opportunity to attack the treacherous minister, it is feared that it will be difficult to achieve."
Zhang Biang nodded and said, "Brother Chen's words are extremely correct. Our benevolent teacher has also considered this point. However, the treacherous minister has deeply gained the emperor's trust, so in order to overthrow him, we must seize every opportunity to weaken his power. Fortunately, Mr. Zhou Shan is deeply respected by the people, and as long as we raise our arms and call out, there will certainly be those who respond. Even if the treacherous minister uses government officials or even the imperial guards to suppress us, he will inevitably lose popular support. As his position in the emperor's mind weakens bit by bit, it will be easier to seize the opportunity and overthrow him in one fell swoop."
The next day, before dawn, the five watches of the night had passed, and the students in the Hua Zhang Academy were already up. As Tang Yan's poem "Exhortation to Study" says: "Three more lamps, five more chickens, this is the time for men to study. Black hair doesn't know early diligence, white head only regrets late study." This is a true portrayal of life in the Imperial Academy. Some students here can become famous and hold important positions within ten years, while others sink into obscurity and waste their lives, all depending on individual fate.
Breakfast was after the sixth watch, Zhao Xingde finished washing up and came to the school grounds of Taixue. Yesterday's accumulated snow had been swept away by the servants of Taixue, leaving only a faint mist between the pine trees and bamboo groves. Apart from the birds chirping and warbling, there was only the occasional grunt and shout from the students practicing their morning exercises, which made the dew drops on the orchids and flowers quiver slightly.
In the bamboo forest next to the school grounds, there were already many figures practicing Daoyin exercises. Since Emperor Taizu Zhao Kuangyin gave Mount Hua to Chen Tuan, Daoism had flourished, and students spent their days studying hard, but after a long time, they couldn't help but feel weak in their limbs and stiff in their joints. To unblock the meridians and regulate the flow of blood, many people practiced Daoyin exercises. Under the willow trees at the other end of the school grounds, on the other hand, was where students practiced sword dancing and archery. These were all part of the students' morning exercise routine.
Li Ruo was fully focused on practicing Wuqinxi. At this time, people believed that the older it was, the better it was. As the ancestor of various schools of Daoyin, this authentic Wuqinxi, together with its breathing method, was something Li Ruo had spent a lot of money and effort to learn from a Daoist priest. Next to him, other students were practicing "Baduanjin" and other newly emerged popular exercises. Some of them would sneak glances at Li Ruo while practicing, but since Daoyin required coordination with breathing, Li Ruo was not afraid of them stealing his techniques.
Zhao Xingde took a deep breath, he had insomnia in his previous life, and heard that practicing Tai Chi has the effect of calming the mind and spirit, so he specially found a famous teacher to practice small frame Tai Chi. Although it didn't seem to make him brave or fierce, since practicing Tai Chi, he indeed slept soundly at night, but for some reason, one day when he woke up, he suddenly crossed over into the body of an ancient child.
He thought to himself that he wasn't anything special, the only difference being that he practiced Tai Chi every morning and evening to treat his insomnia, perhaps it was because of this practice that he had triggered some kind of aura problem and crossed over into this different world. When he first arrived in this new place, he missed his family and found the environment unbearable, wanting to cross back over. Without any other way, he thought to himself that maybe the only one who could solve the puzzle was the one who tied it up. For this glimmer of hope, Zhao Xingde started practicing Tai Chi from the age of seven, at first secretly hiding it from his father Zhao Wenxin and mother, later coming up with an excuse about meeting a master in the mountains and openly practicing every day without stopping.
After years of accumulation, although the heart of going back has faded, and there is no longer insomnia, but every morning practicing Tai Chi for a few rounds has become Zhao Xingde's unshakeable habit, which has been maintained for nearly 20 years in both his past and present lives.
At that time, various forms of archery were popular everywhere, and Zhao Xingde's method was not unique. Many students practiced their own techniques, and after finishing, while the sun was still early, many people went to the other side of the school field. Those who didn't understand swordsmanship, like Zhao Xingde, could only pull a hard bow to build strength. A few people took out the swords they wore on their bodies and made gestures as if dancing with joy. It is said that scholars in Xia Guo practiced archery every day to become officials, just like soldiers who were branded on their faces, practicing tirelessly, but with too much murderous energy. In contrast, students of the Song Dynasty only pulled bows during morning exercises, using the upright and righteous energy in their chests as arrows, symbolizing the intention of stabilizing the country and bringing peace to the world. The tradition of martial arts was very strong among the people of Song Guo. Before Zhao Xingde went to Bianjing to study, he practiced archery every day for self-defense. Without a teacher, he developed his own technique of shooting arrows that could pierce through 100 paces. However, after entering Taixue, in order to avoid showing off, he changed to only pulling the bow every morning without shooting arrows.
The Three-Stone Bow was the extreme limit of hard bows, and even among the Imperial Guards, there were not many who could draw it. The Three-Stone Bow in the Taixue had originally been impossible for anyone to draw, and it had simply been left there gathering dust. That was until Zhao Xun arrived at the academy and, unaware of its reputation, saw that all the other bows had been taken by others, so he went up and picked it up, drawing it with ease. Although the other students in the Taixue did not think that drawing the Three-Stone Bow was any great feat, they were amazed by his strength, and even the Director of the National University knew that there was a young warrior among the students who possessed such strength. However, at this time, the prevailing attitude valued refinement and elegance, considering rough bravery to be unrefined, so no one openly praised his great strength.
Zhao Xingde was initially quite strained when drawing the three-stone strong bow, but since other good bows were often snatched up by others before he could get to them, this particular bow was left unappreciated. He used it every day to build his strength, gradually incorporating the insights he gained from practicing fist techniques into his archery. Each time he drew the bow, he would calm his breath and mind, stand upright with his chest in and waist straight, gaze forward, hold the bow with his left hand as steady as a rock, and draw the string back slowly with his right hand, just like when practicing qigong exercises. He would hold the bow at full draw for a moment, feeling the energy build up to its limit, before slowly releasing it, sinking his breath into his dantian. As he repeated this process, the time between each breath grew longer, and in the eyes of onlookers, he seemed more and more like the bow itself - full of tension and elasticity. The hard bow seemed to open with a soft, gentle feeling, as if it were made of silk. Zhao Xingde drew the strong bow over thirty times, his breathing growing coarser, sweat breaking out on his body. Just then, he put down the bow, ready to bathe and change before going out for breakfast.
The eastern sky has a red sun rising, sunlight sprinkling on the overlapping temples and palaces, the white smooth stone surface reflecting soft and sacred light. The morning bell of Dashengguo Temple is ringing, and soon after, the Shangqing Zhengyi Palace also strikes the bell board. The voices of tens of thousands of monks and Taoist priests reciting Buddhist and Taoist scriptures are carried by the clear wind, far away, in a piece of clear sound, the White Jade Palace is like a fairyland as described in legends. Nowadays, the emperor often eats dew and wears elixir, fearing that he really has the hope of becoming an immortal.
Li Huo, walking the same path as Zhao Xingde, gazed at the White Jade Palace in the distance and furrowed his brow. As he walked, he whispered to himself: "In heaven's white jade capital, twelve towers and five cities." Zhao Xingde saw that Li Huo was distracted and shook his head helplessly, sighing: "He's really fallen under a spell."
Li Yu was once a student of Shao Yong's disciple Zhang Ziwang, studying the River Chart, Luo Book, and Plum Blossom I Ching numerology, with some unique attainments. He had mysteriously told Zhao Xingde that he studied Li Bai's poem "A Letter to Jiang Xiaowei, Prefect of Langzhou, after Escaping from the Turmoil", which he believed was written in esoteric language as a prophecy to be fulfilled three hundred years later in this dynasty.
"Yes, yes." Zhao Xingde nodded with a faint smile, but his eyes were not smiling. After seeing Zhao Xingde's attitude of respecting the gods and keeping them at arm's length, Li Ruo felt somewhat indignant and pointed to the white palace shining with golden light in the distance under the sunset, saying in a low voice: "Look, isn't this the 'White Jade Palace in Heaven'? The emperor is seeking immortality and asking about the Tao, eating dew and refining elixirs, which has fulfilled the phrase 'the immortal touches my head, and I receive eternal life by tying up my hair.' The phrase 'Han Jia's army is connected to the Hu soldiers' refers to the court allying with the barbarians. 'Two saints go out for a stroll in Yu, and the two capitals become hills and ruins.' This refers to the destruction of the capital, and even the two imperial families fleeing." Li Ruo lowered his voice further.
Zhao Xingde forced a smile and said, "Li Taibai was just describing the Anshi Rebellion of old, when Emperor Tang Xuanzong and Emperor Tang Suzong were forced to flee, and Chang'an and Luoyang were destroyed by the rebel army."
Li Hua said, "Yuan Zhi wants to pretend to be stupid, these two sentences secretly criticize both emperors for causing the destruction of the two capitals. Intentionally calling Li Xian and Li Longji 'two saints going out on a pleasure trip', isn't this mocking that Suzong and Xuanzong are equally unable to defend their ancestors' foundation? But at the time of the Anshi Rebellion, Suzong's Li Xian had not yet ascended to the throne, and the loss of Chang'an had nothing to do with him. The banished immortal attached himself to the rebellious Yong Wang, and then was exiled to Yelang, at that time, if there were no other hidden circumstances, it would have been enough to gloss over Li Longji's panicked escape, in order to avoid mentioning 'two saints' for Li Xian's sake."
He said, shaking his head, "Taibai Gong's words are so precise and detailed, involving the merits and demerits of history. How can they be unclear? This sentence must refer to the two emperors who fled at the same time when the 'two capitals were reduced to rubble'. The two capitals should refer to Luoyang in the west and Bianjing in the east. But there is only one sun in the sky, and a country cannot have two masters. Why are there two emperors? It's really puzzling."
Zhao Xingde's body slightly trembled, recalling the historical events of the Jingkang disaster in his memory. His body felt a chill, and his heart was startled, but he said: "You're making unfounded connections, Dong Yan, you've fallen into a devilish trap. Now I'll ask you, how do you interpret the phrase 'Twelve Towers Five Cities'?"
"This," Li Ruo's face showed a thoughtful expression, muttering to himself, "Among the five cities, there are five true men, namely the Five Emperors. Outside the five cities, there are eight officials, namely the Eight Trigrams gods. Including Taiyi as the ninth minister, outside the eight trigrams, there are twelve towers, namely the Twelve Princes and the Twelve Great Men. Including the Sanjiao god, they form the twenty-seven great men..."
Zhao Xingde smiled slightly and countered Li Xiao's obsession with a difficult problem, letting him think for himself.
"What's difficult about it?" Chen Dong suddenly appeared behind the two, patted Li Hu's shoulder, and startled them both. It was a good thing that Zhao Xingde, Li Hu, and Chen Dong were all close friends from the same dormitory, and they all knew each other's secrets that might be considered taboo. Seeing that it was Chen Dong, Zhao Xingde finally relaxed, just as he was about to speak up in rebuke, but Li Hu instead bowed his head to Chen Dong and said seriously: "Please instruct me, Brother Chen."
Chen Dong smiled and said, "What's difficult about this? The Lou is built by human power, towering above the plains. In our imperial system, there are twelve levels of nobility: King, Crown Prince, Duke, Marquis, Earl, Viscount, Baron, and five grades of nobles with fiefs, which can be likened to a twelve-story building, where the higher one's rank, the more generous their salary and benefits. The Cheng is where people gather, often in strategic locations, advantageous for defense and offense. Looking around the imperial court, there are five places that are most conducive to factionalism: the Imperial Academy, the Hanlin Academy, the Censorate, the Secretariat, and the Imperial Library. These can be called the Five Cities."
Zhao Xingde just thought Chen Dong was speaking casually, but Li Xiao furrowed his brow and said: "In that case, the 'Twelfth Floor' refers to a prominent official, and the 'Five Cities' refer to the factions within the imperial court. Or perhaps it's referring to a prominent official who has intervened in the imperial court's factional struggles?"
