Wei Ang sucked in a breath of cold air. It's said that the more one studied, the more one knew how to read. He paused for some time before saying, "Brother Pei, you want to write a book, do you need my help? I don't ask for much. I just want you to give me a copy after you finish writing and let me read it first. "
Pei Zi Yun thought for some time, "I have to thank brother Wei. I do need brother Wei's help with something. This is a collection of notes on the Great Learning Academy. It's not complete yet, and I need someone who specializes in Great Learning."
"There are many copies in the Tribute Academy. It's not rare, but I need the handwriting of a famous master. I want to learn from it and gain enlightenment, so that I can forge it into a masterpiece."
When Wei Ang heard Pei Zi Yun's words, he nodded his head profusely and sighed, "With brother Pei's talent, your name will spread far and wide. I can only look forward to it."
"I'll help you with your request. Don't worry!"
After some time, the rain outside the hall finally stopped. Wei Ang bade farewell to Pei Zi Yun and hurried back to Hou Mansion. When he reached the mansion, the guard at the entrance greeted him, "Young Master!"
Wei Ang nodded his head in return. When he entered the courtyard, the maidservant coincidentally came out with an umbrella. The moment she came out, she said, "Eh, Young Master, you're back. I was worried that the rain would continue and was about to go to the examination hall to look for you. I didn't expect you to come back."
"I'm already a grown man, do you still need to worry about me? I'm fine. Ask Mr. Shen to come to my courtyard later. I have something to talk to him about. "Wei Ang returned to his seat, took out a cup of cold tea and drank it.
"Yes, Young Master. I'll go and invite Mister Shen." The maidservant walked away. Mister Shen was usually in the study, so it was easy to find him.
Seeing that she had gone to call for someone, Wei Ang took out a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, and began to grind the ink. Not long after, footsteps could be heard, and a maid's voice could be heard in front of the door, "Young Master, Teacher has arrived."
"Please come in!" Wei Ang said while grinding the ink.
The door was pushed open, and a maid led Shen Zhi into the room. Wei Ang looked at Shen Zhi and said, "You can leave first, I have something to say to Mister."
"Yes, Young Master," the maidservant replied obediently. She turned around and closed the door behind her.
Wei Ang casually asked, "Sir, what have you been doing recently?"
Shen Zhi didn't reply. Instead, he smiled and asked, "Has Young Master thought it through and decided to participate in the affairs of the residence?"
Wei Ang rejected, "I prefer to read my own books and comprehend my Dao. Mister, please do not be agitated. I have something important to discuss with you. Today, I went to the Academic Hall with Pei Zi Yun and saw that he had written a book. Although it was only a rough draft, I flipped through a few pages and realized that it was very convincing. His words were clear and incisive, and the meaning of his words were clear and incisive.
"Young Master, if you're talking about poetry, I would believe you. But you're saying that he wants to write a book now? I don't believe you. Writing a book is the three most important things. Pei Zi Yun is only fifteen years old. Even if he became a High Scholar and wrote the book, it's hard to imagine him writing a book now." Shen Zhi replied.
Wei Ang laughed, "Mister, don't be anxious. You know that I've been intelligent since I was young. Although I don't have a photographic memory, I only need to read it once and I can remember it."
"This book is very profound, and I can't remember everything. But I can remember a few of them in a short period of time. Let me write it down for you and you'll understand." Wei Ang picked up a brush and started writing.
He used a small brush on the rice paper and wrote very quickly. In less than a quarter of an hour, he had finished writing. He blew the ink off the paper and started reading it. He then sighed, "Every word in this book is very profound. Mister Shen, take a look and you'll understand."
Shen Zhi picked up the paper and looked at it before sighing, "Young Master's words have improved. I don't even need to read the book. Just by looking at the words, it's good for my eyes."
As he finished speaking, he continued reading. He didn't think much of it at first, but then his expression changed as he became serious.
"Hu!" Shen Zhi read it once and exhaled deeply. He didn't speak and continued reading it once more. After reading it for the third time, he placed it down, his face was extremely serious.
"Third Young Master, you still don't know how powerful this book is!"
"Although this book isn't complete yet, it's already very impressive. If it's completed, all the scholars in the future will definitely learn from him. It looks like I've underestimated the heroes of this world. Pei Zi Yun is truly a genius."
"I hope that Young Master can get closer to this person." Shen Zhi clasped his hands and said.
"Haha, Mister Shen, I think so too. It's just that brother Pei has asked me to help him find a famous scholar to study the original book. I don't usually do much and thus can't do much. Hence, I hope that Mister can help me." Wei Ang then stated his request.
"I was wondering why Young Master would come looking for me. So this is the reason. I will not disappoint Young Master." Shen Zhi retracted his smile as he spoke with a serious look in his eyes.
Shen Zhi walked out of the door and lost his smile. He then called someone over and gave some instructions before rushing to a room. This room only had three rooms, and was situated on the west side of Hou Mansion. There were huge cabinets everywhere, and each cabinets were filled with scrolls, each labeled with different labels.
Shen Zhi opened one of the cabinets and took out a scroll labeled with Pei Zi Yun's name.
After some time, a guard knocked on the door. It was Shen Zhi who had sent someone to invite the biggest bookseller in the entire prefecture. When the bookseller entered, his face was pale. He then knelt down and bowed, "Your excellency, I wonder why you've invited me here?"
Shen Zhi stretched out his hand and fanned himself, "Don't be afraid. My Young Master is looking for the original copy of a famous scholar's book. I've thought about it for a long time, and realized that only you would be able to find it. Hence, I've sent someone to invite you here. If you do this well, you will be rewarded handsomely."
The bookseller raised his head and saw Shen Zhi's smile, which was filled with elegance.
Shen Zhi waved his hands, and a servant came forward with some silver. Shen Zhi then pointed to the ten silver ingots and said, "Hou Mansion is very fair in its rewards and punishments. This is a hundred silver ingots. Take it as a deposit. If you find the book, and Young Master is satisfied, you will not be left out."
The bookseller looked at the ten silver ingots, and his face lit up. Looks like Hou Mansion wasn't looking for him for anything bad, and wanted to do business with him.
He was checking accounts with someone in the shop when he was summoned by the guards. He thought that he had offended Hou Mansion, and was trembling in fear. He didn't know that Hou Mansion was here to find the book, and thus said, "Many thanks your excellency. I will definitely find it for you."
Shen Zhi nodded his head, and was extremely satisfied with the bookseller's reaction, "Send it to Hou Mansion as soon as you find it."
"Yes, your excellency." The bookseller acknowledged. Seeing Shen Zhi wave his hands, he then retreated.
Hou Mansion's main gate was filled with carriages and horses. The guards quickly stopped in front of the gate, and dispersed the crowd. Only then did Ji Bei Hou come down under the protection of the guards.
A man had just led the bookseller out when he heard the commotion outside. He knew that Master Hou had returned, and pulled the bookseller away. However, before he could do so, the guards came in and knelt down with the bookseller.
The guards said that Master Hou had arrived.
The bookseller raised his head, and saw a middle-aged man dressed in official robes, walking under the protection of the guards. As he walked past the bookseller, one of the guards glanced at him. The bookseller felt a chill down his spine, and lowered his head.
After some time, the guards left. The servant then stood up and fanned himself, "Get up. Master Hou has already gone over. Let me send you out!"
The bookseller wiped off the cold sweat on his forehead. Just as he was about to leave, he saw a group of deputy generals approaching. Their faces were solemn, and their armor clanged. The bookseller looked at them, and didn't dare to breathe. He then followed the servants out.
When Master Hou returned to his mansion, he ran straight to the meeting hall. When he entered the hall, Master Hou sat down on the main seat. His face was ashen as he spoke to the guards, "Invite Mister Shen in."
"Yes!" The guard bowed and left.
Before long, more than ten deputy generals entered the hall. When they saw Master Hou, they knelt down on one knee, "Greetings, Marshal!"
Their armor clanged loudly.
"Rise." Master Hou looked around with a trace of coldness. When he saw that the deputy generals were standing on his left and right side respectfully, his expression relaxed a little.
This was the Master Hou's mansion, not a military camp. After a while, a maid came in with tea and served it to Master Hou and the deputy generals.
The hall was silent, and no one spoke. One of the maids raised her head, and saw that Master Hou's face was ashen, and that the deputy generals had a murderous aura. The maid couldn't help but tremble, and didn't dare to look at them directly. She had heard that in the past, when serving Master Hou, a maid would break a teacup and be dragged out to be beaten to death. Thinking of this, her body trembled.
The tea was placed on the table. Master Hou waved his hand, and the maids retreated. Other than Master Hou's personal guards, the rest of the guards retreated to guard the surroundings.
A bearded deputy general took a step forward. "Marquis, today's incident is clearly the Martial Manor suppressing our faction and stripping us of our military power. Ever since the Imperial Court sent a Governor, these people have forgotten Marquis's kindness and turned against Marquis. I am truly uncomfortable!"
Another deputy general stepped forward and laughed coldly, "Master Hou, this cannot be tolerated. We have to think of a way to retaliate. If not, Master Hou's military power will be stripped away. When that happens, who knows what will happen?"
These people spoke with killing intent. Ji Bei Hou was originally in charge of An Prefecture, but now that he had handed over his power, Ji Bei Hou's faction was slowly being neglected.
A strategist who was highly regarded by Master Hou stepped forward, "Master Hou, the world has been pacified, and the situation has been set in stone. Now, it's not just us, there are other Marquises who are handing over their power. We cannot resist them. If we go with the flow and hand over our power, we can still maintain our wealth in the future."
A deputy general stepped forward and scolded him, "Bastard, what do you think you're doing to Master Hou?"
The hall was divided into two groups. One group couldn't tolerate this, and the other group wanted to hand over their power to ensure their safety. Master Hou's expression wasn't good. Hearing his subordinates arguing, he was enraged, "All of you, step down. No one is allowed to argue."
Everyone's expressions changed, and none of them dared to speak. After some time, someone stepped forward, "Master Hou, the pirates have been rampant recently, and the lands of Hou Mansion have been affected."
The hall was filled with discussion, and everyone frowned. After an hour, the meeting was over, and the generals left one by one.
A guard stepped forward to report to Master Hou. Master Hou smiled, "Let Mister Shen come over!"
The hall was empty, and the guard turned to the main hall. Mister Shen was drinking tea and reading a book. He then walked up, "Mister Shen, Master Hou has finished his meeting, and invites you over."
Shen Zhi placed his teacup down, "I shall go now."
As soon as he finished speaking, he entered the hall. When Master Hou saw Shen Zhi enter, he said, "Shen Zhi, what happened today, ai."
Shen Zhi then whispered, "Why is Master Hou so angry? The world has been set in stone. Although these people were personally groomed by Master Hou, it's normal for them to have some ulterior motives. "
Master Hou paused for some time before asking, "How did things go?"
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