More and more outsiders poured into Xiangyang district. The already bustling city became livelier.
After the New Year, the weather became brighter and warmer.
At the ends of the streets, one could see travel-worn scholars everywhere.
Similar discussions could be heard everywhere in the taverns, teahouses, and eateries.
"I heard that the Jinlin Pavilion will open tomorrow?"
"That's what the notice outside the district headquarters said."
"I wonder what the interior of the Jinlin Pavilion looks like? Is it the same inside and out, or is it just a facade? "
"The magistrate of Liuzhou built Wanzhou so well. She wouldn't simply boast, would she? Let's go take a look when the pavilion opens tomorrow. "
Some people talked about the Jinlin Pavilion, some talked about the current situation in the world, and some talked about Jiang Pengji.
She governed Wanzhou until it was prosperous and no one could blame her. However, the things she had done all these years were both praised and criticized by the outside world.
There were only two points that were mentioned most often — supporting the poor and harboring disloyalty!
Needless to say, among the civil and military officials under her, apart from Feng Jin, who else was from a respectable and noble family?
As for harboring disloyalty, it was enough to explain everything just by looking at the recruitment notice and the construction of the Jinlin Pavilion.
Under everyone's anticipation, the Jinlin Pavilion officially opened on the 3rd of March, the Flower Festival.
From its appearance, the Jinlin Pavilion was no different from ordinary mansions. It inherited the consistent architectural style of Xiangyang district — simple and elegant.
There were soldiers standing guard everywhere outside. Each of them had a cold glint in their eyes and a resolute look on their faces. They stood there motionlessly.
Yuan Jing, Feng Ren, and Cheng Cheng presided over the opening ceremony. After offering sacrifices to the gods, they personally pulled down the red silk covering the signboard.
On the signboard, there were three big characters, 'Golden Scale Pavilion'. The three characters were vigorous and powerful, with a hint of nobility.
The scholars waiting outside were blocked by the soldiers with their bodies. The whole place was silent. Countless pairs of eyes stared at the hands of Yuan Jing and the others.
"After the ceremony, the pavilion opens!"
Cheng Cheng and the others wore high hats and wide belts. Their sleeves fluttered and their expressions were solemn.
With a squeak, the door of the Jinlin Pavilion opened.
At that moment, several rows of soldiers passed through the crowd and arranged for the scholars to enter in an orderly manner.
"Why can he enter but I can't?"
The soldier in charge of inspection said, "You can't enter today without a token."
"Token? What token? "
The scholar who was stopped frowned fiercely. It seemed that he would not give up until he made it clear.
The soldier said, "A few days ago, the district headquarters put up a notice. Anyone who wants to enter the Golden Scale Pavilion has to register and take an examination first. Only after passing can they get a token."
Nowadays, paper was still very expensive, and books were even more difficult to find. It was hard to guarantee that he wouldn't run into a book thief with bad character.
Xu Ke and the others slightly adjusted the threshold to enter the Golden Scale Pavilion.
The assessment of literary talent was secondary. The most important thing was to take the opportunity to register the other party's information and put invisible shackles on them.
You dare to cause trouble?
Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt has its debtor. I can always find you by following the vines to the melon!
When the scholar heard this, he became angry. An ordinary citizen dared to point fingers at him. Just as he was about to explode, the youth waiting behind him said, "You'd better go and register. It's the same if you come back tomorrow. Don't stand here and waste other people's time."
After saying that, the young man walked in front of him and handed over his token.
After verifying the authenticity of the name and token, the soldier readily let him in.
"This —"
The scholar from before hurriedly flung his sleeves and angrily went to the side to register.
On the other side, the scholars who had already entered let out exclamations of surprise. When they realized that they had lost their composure, they looked at the other people around them who were also stunned. They instantly felt better. They couldn't be blamed for being inexperienced. The scene inside the Golden Scale Pavilion was really beyond their expectations.
Although it was called the Golden Scale Pavilion, there were more than one building and one pavilion inside.
Currently, only the main building of the Golden Scale Pavilion was open to the public, which was also the largest building in the Golden Scale Pavilion.
Looking at the name on the signboard, the crowd felt strange. But when they read the meaning carefully, they could feel the heroic spirit that hit them in the face.
It couldn't be more appropriate to give the main building of the Golden Scale Pavilion such a name.
The main building was in the shape of a huge ring, and the area it occupied was actually larger than that of an ordinary two-sectioned house. There were four large doors, eight small doors, and thirty-six wooden windows with hollow patterns. When the door was opened, the interior was brightly lit. Rows of bookshelves surrounded the building in a ring. Many of the bookshelves were already filled with paper books. There was a sign on each bookshelf, which briefly described the type of books on the bookshelf.
The interior of the building was ingenious. The bookshelves themselves were divided into private rooms of various sizes. In the private rooms, there were mats for people to rest on. Apart from that, there was also a writing table and a set of brush and ink. What was even more amazing was the design of the dome on the second floor. It made full use of natural light. Even if there was no oil lamp in the room, as long as there was sufficient light outside, the room wouldn't feel dark when the windows on the second floor were opened.
"This, this — this is —"
The scholars who were qualified to enter the Golden Scale Pavilion approached one after another. Some of them were even so excited that they forgot to speak.
The Golden Scale Pavilion!
The well-deserved Golden Scale Pavilion!
The crowd calmed down. Someone was about to step forward to take a book from the bookshelf, but was unexpectedly stopped by someone.
Before that person could speak, the person explained, "Although the books in the Golden Scale Pavilion are free to read, you can't touch them casually. If you want to read any book, just ask someone to bring it to you. If you want to borrow books and copy them, bring your token over there to register. We will provide brush and ink at a low price. "
The Golden Scale Pavilion had just opened. They didn't want anyone to maliciously destroy books or hide them.
Therefore, they had to set up a strict system at the beginning.
When the public got used to it, the Golden Scale Pavilion could appropriately relax the borrowing system.
When the crowd heard this, they were a little unhappy at first. But considering the price of paper books, it was reasonable for the Golden Scale Pavilion to be stricter.
"There are so many books here —"
The manager said with a smile, "There are still ninety percent of books that are still in the bookstore and haven't been put on the shelves."
"There, there are still ninety percent?" The others were so shocked that they couldn't speak.
"Of course. There are still sixty percent of the bookshelves on the first floor that are empty. The second floor is completely empty."
The crowd was so shocked that they were numb. One after another, they borrowed the books that they liked and found a well-lit place to read quietly.
Rather than reading, it was more like they were stroking the pages with their fingers, as if they were caressing the skin of their loved ones.
The touch was too good!
They were even more shocked than when Xu Ke saw the bamboo paper for the first time.
The first batch of people who entered the Golden Scale Pavilion consisted of about a hundred people. Almost all of them were book lovers. They treated the thread-bound books in their hands as if they were their ancestors. Not to mention destroying them, they didn't even dare to use a little bit of force. Seeing this, the manager of the Golden Scale Pavilion heaved a sigh of relief.
Not long after, someone made a request to make a copy.
That person looked nervous. He was afraid that his request would be rejected.
It was good enough to let people read the books for free. Why would they let others make a copy?
For most people, books weren't books. They were priceless treasures. They wouldn't lend them out easily.
The receptionist smiled. She turned around and fetched a set of brush and ink as well as blank bamboo slips that had never been used before.
These bamboo slips weren't provided for free, but the price was only ten percent of the market price.
"Thank, thank you!"
After the person thanked the receptionist, he took the things back to his seat. He read silently while making a copy.
Unknowingly, the sun was setting. It was time for the bookstore to close.
They returned the books reluctantly and stepped out of the Golden Scale Pavilion.
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