Tang Yao still had no reaction. He looked at the dejected Liu Xi, like a defeated rooster. He had lost all his vigor.
Cheng Cheng's gaze shifted between the two of them, as if he was curious about what the teacher and student were up to.
After a few breaths, Tang Yao said dejectedly, "I meant well."
Although the boy's words were harsh, Tang Yao didn't mean any harm.
Jiang Pengji had either been fighting or preparing for war all these years. She didn't attend gatherings between the gentry, so she didn't know what others thought of her. Tang Yao was different. He kept in close contact with the gentry, so he was well-informed about all kinds of gossip.
Liu Xi was the legitimate son of the Liu family in Hejian … No, the legitimate daughter. She had a rather noble background, but she didn't want to improve herself. She spent all her time with a group of lowly and immoral people. Tang Yao often heard people talking about her behind her back. Everyone said they were ashamed to be associated with her.
Based on Tang Yao's worldview and standpoint, there was nothing wrong with those words.
The noble families and the commoners were originally people of two different worlds.
Yuanjing said, "That person's honey is my frost."
Tang Yao said, "But …"
His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but he swallowed the words that were hovering on the tip of his tongue.
Tang Yao was confused. Had Liu Xi not discovered the crux of the problem?
What crux?
Why were there so few people seeking refuge with her?
In terms of fame, fortune, birth, and prestige, her overall conditions weren't worse than others. Even though she was a woman, Dongqing wasn't Zhongzhao. She hadn't suffered too much from the Four Self-Accomplishment Classics for Women. Not to mention that she was the official governor of a province. She was in the limelight during the alliance meeting.
With such good conditions, why were there so few gentry families willing to seek refuge with her?
On the surface, it seemed that Liu She was in his prime. Seeking refuge with Liu She was more promising than seeking refuge with her.
In fact, there was another, deeper reason hidden within.
How many of the people around Jiang Pengji were from proper aristocratic families?
The civil officials were divided equally. Feng Jin, Wei Ci, and Feng Zhen were from gentry families. But other than Feng Jin, the other two's families had fallen.
As for the generals, the situation was even worse. Except for Luoyue, who was somewhat promising, the others were all wiped out.
Therefore, in terms of power structure, 80% of Wanzhou was made up of people from poor backgrounds.
In the eyes of those proud and arrogant landowning households, this was just a group that couldn't be shown in public.
Those aristocratic families who valued bloodlines and insisted on family status were not even willing to share the same room with people of humble origins. To put it bluntly, they would feel disgusted even if they breathed the same air, not to mention working under a lord and being suppressed by someone of humble origins. How could they tolerate this?
This was absolutely intolerable!
Not every landowning household was as noble as the Feng family and had a clear understanding of themselves and the general trend of the world.
This was also the reason why the Feng Clan had been able to survive for a thousand years. In contrast, the other aristocratic families had been beaten to death on the beach one after another.
Tang Yao said that Xu Ke was a sinner who had been branded, Qiguan Rang was the son of a prostitute, and Yang Si was a mixed-blood bastard. This just happened to reflect the position of power in Wanzhou in the eyes of the aristocrats. A lowly birth was an original sin. How could a lowly and immoral person be associated with them?
As for those reckless martial artists who lacked literary virtue and could not be educated, they were even more despised.
Dongqing had always valued literature and restrained martial arts. Coupled with their poor birth, the group of martial artists in Wanzhou was naturally looked down upon and despised.
Of course, there was no lack of clear-headed and noble people among the aristocrats, but they were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.
Tang Yao was scolded by Jiang Pengji, and he felt very wronged.
In his opinion, he was persuading her out of goodwill to get closer to the aristocrats and not to lower her status by mingling with a group of humble people.
Master Yuanjing sighed. Tang Yao was a very filial and good student who respected his teachers, but he also had the bad habits of the aristocrats.
As a smart person, how could he not see through Jiang Pengji's plan?
To him, whether it was the aristocrats or the poor, those who were useful were people, and those who were useless were just trash.
In times of prosperity, the aristocrats could cover the sky with one hand.
In times of chaos, etiquette collapsed. Whoever had the bigger fist was the boss, who cared if you were an aristocrat or a poor family?
Seeing that Tang Yao's head was still hanging, Yuanjing said, "Lanting is a smart person. How could she not know her own situation?"
Tang Yao was even more confused when he said that.
If Jiang Pengji was really clear about her situation, she should have made better use of her advantages and contacted the aristocrats.
But now?
The aristocrats had developed a prejudice against her, and none of them were willing to join her.
Master Yuanjing said, "Zude, you don't have to worry too much. The situation will improve in at most five years."
It was not completely chaotic yet, and the aristocrats were still immersed in the dream of controlling everything. When the North borderline was destroyed, hehe …
You don't care about me now, and you won't be able to reach me in the future.
Cheng Cheng heard that and glanced at Master Yuanjing from the corner of his eyes.
Cheng Cheng and Jiang Pengji were like teachers and friends. He vaguely knew about the latter's plan.
He did not expect the teacher in Langya County to be able to see through everything so keenly.
Master Yuanjing said to Tang Yao, "Zude, come here and help me organize."
Instead of letting the student go out and offend people, it was better to keep him by his side and help him compile the teaching materials to avoid getting into trouble.
Putting aside Tang Yao's other qualities, at least his talent was worthy of recognition.
Little did he know that Master Yuanjing's decision allowed Tang Yao to avoid a fatal crisis.
Tang Yao and Jiang Pengji's conversation did not go unnoticed. The content of the conversation spread out and soon reached the ears of a few people involved. Xu Ke's expression was cold. Qiguan Rang sneered when he heard that. Yang Si snorted and went straight to the door.
As mentioned earlier, Yang Si's teacher was Master Yuanjing.
If one were to get to the bottom of it, he and Tang Yao could be considered brothers of the same master.
In his early years, Master Yuanjing traveled abroad to train himself and pick up good seedlings from his family.
Yang Si, who was still a baby, was abandoned by his mother behind the door of a cheap hostel near the brothel. The place was remote and cold.
When he was about to cry his last breath, Master Yuanjing happened to be practicing his sword in the backyard of the hostel. He heard the noise and picked up the baby.
Master Yuanjing knew the child's background, so he did not deliberately look for the child's mother. Instead, he found a farmer nearby to raise the child.
Otherwise, with Yang Si's status, how could he learn to read and write?
Yang Si did not come to beat him up, and he did not introduce himself as soon as they met. Instead, he called himself Master Yuanjing's student.
Tang Yao did not know his background, so he was foolishly tricked by Yang Si to "learn from each other." After a round of competition, Tang Yao lost more than he won.
"May I know where you are from, senior?"
Tang Yao asked in hindsight. His attitude was sincere and humble.
Yang Si smiled insincerely and said, "I'm from Dingjun in Chenzhou."
Tang Yao's heart skipped a beat when he heard the address. He had a vague bad feeling.
As expected, Yang Si stood up and flicked his sleeves. He looked humble, but he was actually mocking the other party.
"He's just the son of a prostitute. He's just a lowly and immoral person. How is he qualified to be called by you?"
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
