Chapter 45: Asking the Way from Half-Blindness (Second Update)

  Then he walked away with his head down, muttering to himself as he went.

  "Traveling thousands of miles to be an official is all for wealth, but I don't know if it's worth it..."

  Jiang Feng looked at the old man's back with some inexplicable gaze, shook his head and stepped into the main gate in big strides. Anyway, he wasn't afraid of anything mysterious, but still touched the dagger in his chest.

  The sun had already risen, and the house was quite bright inside. The door of the main hall faced a hanging scroll in the center, which looked somewhat old. It depicted an immortal crane preening its feathers. On either side were couplets written in the style of "Dragon Flying Phoenix Dancing", but Jiang Feng, who only understood simplified characters, couldn't make head or tail of them.

  Under the hanging scroll, a square table was placed, and on its side sat a middle-aged man wearing a green robe with a scholar's hat. His face was clear and thin, with a slight beard under his chin, and his eyes were slightly narrowed. With his slender figure, he looked refined and elegant, truly like a learned scholar. However, in Jiang Feng's impression, scholars should have glasses, neatly combed hair, and wear Western-style suits and shirts. Since the man in front of him had none of these, he was naturally classified as "probably literate".

  However, this "literate" middle-aged man has been seen every day for the past few days. He is Liu Shunhe, the master of this mansion and a lecturer at the Hanlin Academy. Jiang Feng was shocked in his heart, no matter what, the other party would not have had the opportunity to meet himself in this main hall.

  Could it be that he himself had made some mistake, and for a moment did not know how to come forward and pay his respects. Liu Xueshi was standing there looking at Jiang Feng dazedly, and did not come over to pay his respects according to etiquette. A hint of anger flashed across his eyebrows, but it seemed as though he had thought of something, and instead stood up on his own initiative.

  He rushed to Jiang Feng, made a fist and bowed, Jiang Feng vaguely returned the courtesy, which was even more unknown whether it was shallow or deep. Although the brocade-clad guards were always arrogant, in front of the elegant Hanlin scholars, they still had to be respectful. Who knows that the several sixth-grade and seventh-grade attendants, compilers, and lecturers in front of you will become university scholars or prime ministers a few years later?

  According to the usual practice, for a small school like Jiangfeng that has no reputation and no ranking, seeing someone of Liu Shunhe's level would warrant kneeling on one knee as a half-bow, and even kowtowing wouldn't be excessive.

  However, looking at Jiang Feng's impolite behavior, Liu Xueshi did not get angry. After finishing his bow, he stretched out his hand towards the seat next to him and said:

  "Jiang Xiaoxiao, please sit down."

  His voice was a bit stiff and hoarse, it wasn't until then that Jiang Feng reacted, but what he thought in his heart wasn't why the other person was being so polite to him, rather he thought, it seemed that in Liu Xueshi's residence, everyone spoke with a slightly hoarse throat, and couldn't help but secretly laugh.

  Liu Xueshi didn't even let him have tea and directly asked Jiang Feng:

  "Jiang Xiaoxiao told the family members at home about the imperial court yesterday, and I heard it last night. I think what you said has some insightful views, but there are some unclear points, so I hope you can enlighten me."

  Jiang Feng wasn't someone who couldn't tell the difference between what was important and what wasn't, but the other person's words were indeed not very clear. Probably only a few people could understand them. After hearing the other person ask so politely, he became interested and leaned back in his chair, answering casually:

  "Lord Liu, don't be polite, ask whatever you want, and I'll tell you everything."

  Liu Xueshi's face turned pale upon hearing this rude response, but he quickly calmed down and asked:

  "Jiang Xiaoxiao said yesterday that everything in the world belongs to the current emperor, and among the mountains and rivers, society, and the common people, the emperor is the most important. Whatever the emperor wants to do, his ministers will follow."

  Jiang Feng nodded silently, thinking that this wasn't a repetition of his own words from yesterday. He nodded and opened his mouth to speak:

  "That's right."

  Liu Xueshi heard this and suddenly raised his voice, shouting loudly there:

  "After ten years of hard study, the sage's teachings have finally brought me to this position today. I must not betray the sage's teachings and go against the will of heaven and the people. The emperor's edict is unjust, I will certainly remonstrate with my life."

  Startled by this sudden increase in volume, Jiang Feng jumped and hastily said:

  "Director Liu, you've got me all confused..."

  Liu Shunhua suddenly felt a strange excitement and hurriedly sat up straight, coughing a few times before speaking.

  "The Emperor is young and vigorous, often having some inexplicable ideas. The other day, he suddenly decreed to the Grand Council that he wanted to reform the attire of all officials. First Assistant Fei and others told me that the attire of officials is an ancestral tradition, how can it be easily changed? If we follow the Emperor's wishes, I'm afraid next he'll want to change the sacred rituals and teachings. As officials who eat the Emperor's salary, we should remonstrate and stop him, but the Emperor won't listen to his ministers, only sending eunuchs to constantly urge us on."

  When Jiang Feng heard the words "death" and "dying", he was startled and thought it had something to do with national affairs or life-and-death matters, but later on, it turned out to be about changing court attire, which was a trivial matter (at least in Jiang Feng's mind), and his heart suddenly felt both sorrowful and amused.

  He was young after all and had no experience in official circles, didn't know the severity of it, and before the other person could finish speaking, he rushed to say:

  "I thought it was a big deal, but it turned out to be just a change of uniform. I'm an unrefined person, I don't understand grand principles, all I know is that the Emperor is the greatest, whatever he wants to do should be done. To think about it, is changing clothes worth making such a fuss? Those holding pens are still arguing with those holding swords, be careful not to irritate the Emperor, or he'll have your heads chopped off."

  According to Jiang Feng's limited historical knowledge, it is known that the ministers of the Ming Dynasty often debated with the emperor over trivial matters, especially those that seem insignificant to modern people. For example, the "Great Rites Controversy" in the third year of Jiajing's reign, where one side would eventually concede. If the emperor conceded, it would be recorded in history as "the emperor accepting wise words". However, if the officials were forced to concede, they might face severe consequences such as execution or exile.

  This time, the proposal to change the imperial attire, Prime Minister Fei Hong felt that the young emperor often did not understand national norms and could not easily reform them, and it was absolutely impossible to set a precedent for this kind of behavior. This kind of prevention is not unprecedented, and there are many examples from ancient times to the present.

  But in this matter, it seems too pedantic. Moreover, the Jiajing Emperor was originally suspicious of the officials due to the Great Rites Controversy, and now his confidants were in the minority among the six ministries and three courts. Fei Hong's refusal to accept the edict immediately touched the most sensitive nerve of the Jiajing Emperor, and both sides became deadlocked.

  Everyone recommends collecting, I will definitely code out the text that makes everyone satisfied, please rest assured. In the first six years of Jiajing's reign, the prime minister changed frequently, and the emperor and his ministers had a fierce open and secret struggle.