Previously, Fangzheng had always been the center of attention. After all, he was the most handsome person here. Now that Ba Chou said his name, everyone was shocked. Even Ji Yanran widened her eyes and looked at him in surprise.
"Could this be the famous' Zither Saint 'Fangzheng, Master Fang?"
What the hell, what kind of title was that?
Hearing this title, Fangzheng's face darkened. What was a Zither Saint? What if you become a Casanova?
Although he was complaining in his heart, Fangzheng still stood up and bowed to the crowd.
"I am Fangzheng."
At this moment, a man on the other side sneered and stared at him.
"I have long heard of Master Fang's great name. I heard that Master Fang single-handedly killed eight hundred horse bandits. It is truly unimaginable. "
"Oh, thank you for the compliment."
Fangzheng laughed and sat down. This shamelessness stunned everyone present. They could all hear the mockery and disbelief in the other party's words. They were wondering how Fangzheng would respond, but they didn't expect him to accept it just like that …
But these people obviously had a common enemy. Soon, another man dressed like a scholar took over.
"However, Young Master Fang's bloodthirsty nature is a little too much against heaven's will. I heard that Young Master Fang has killed more than ten thousand horse bandits since his travels around the six states. Aren't you afraid of being punished by the heavens? Moreover, those horse bandits were forced to do so by the people who had lost their homes due to the chaos of war. Although they are at fault, they are not born evil. Young Master Fang's killing spree is really despicable. "
"That's right. Moreover, killing people with a zither... Such an absurd thing is simply unimaginable. Only those country bumpkins would believe it..."
For a moment, everyone was either mocking or ridiculing him. This made Ba Chou's expression turn ugly. Fangzheng sat calmly at the side eating snacks and fruits, as if he did not care at all.
Only when everyone's criticisms of Fangzheng came to an end did Ji Yanran look at Fangzheng curiously.
"Why didn't Master Fang refute?"
"There is nothing to say."
Fangzheng grabbed a grape and stuffed it into his mouth.
"Because what these people said is not what they think."
"What does Master Fang mean?"
"Very simple."
Fangzheng chuckled when faced with Ji Yanran's question.
"They say that I am bloodthirsty. If they really think so, they should not say it in front of me. Are they not afraid that I will send them to heaven?"
"Master Fang, will you do that?"
"Of course."
Fangzheng nodded again. Then, he narrowed his eyes and scanned his surroundings.
"I'm not the kind of idiot who won't talk back after being scolded. Since you have a problem with me, I might as well say it directly. From now on, whoever dares to talk nonsense in front of me will not live to see tomorrow morning... Well, of course, out of courtesy, I will not make a move in Elegant Lake Villa. After all, Grandmaster Ji is not suitable for the job of collecting corpses. I mean what I say."
As Fangzheng's voice trailed off, a cold murderous intent suddenly emerged. It swept past everyone like the cold air of winter, causing them to shiver involuntarily. They opened their mouths to say something, but instinctively, they could not speak. A fear from the bottom of their hearts, as if they had met a natural enemy, arose spontaneously. Some people could not help but feel their teeth chattering.
"Look, Grandmaster Ji, the problem is solved."
After looking around again, Fangzheng looked at Ji Yanran with a smile, but the latter shook her head helplessly.
"Master Fang's way of doing things is a bit overbearing."
"I don't think it's overbearing. I gave them a choice, and they made their choice... and since they made their choice, they have to bear the consequences."
At this point, Fangzheng lowered his voice.
"It's the same for anyone."
Ji Yanran frowned slightly when she heard Fangzheng's answer.
"What if it's the same for Yanran?"
"I believe Grandmaster Ji will make a smart and sensible choice."
Fangzheng chuckled and leaned back in his chair.
"Everyone has to be responsible for what they do. For example, you can speak ill of me behind my back. It doesn't matter, it's your freedom. But if I hear you speak ill of me, you deserve to be beaten or killed by me... I think this is very fair and reasonable. "
"Master Fang has a very unique way of speaking."
Ji Yanran did not get angry. Instead, she looked at Fangzheng curiously.
"Young Master Fang's words are quite straightforward, but they are unexpectedly reasonable … What a surprise."
"If you want to reason with others, you have to reason with them. It's the same for educating the people. We don't expect everyone in the world to be well-versed in poetry and books, so there's no need to talk about those who are ignorant. If we want people to understand reason, understand reason, and abide by reason, we have to go deep into the masses and tell them directly in a way that the people like to hear and see. "
Hearing this, not only did Ji Yanran start thinking, even Lord Xinling and Lord Longyang had a thoughtful expression on their faces. Soon, Lord Xinling looked at Fangzheng.
"Master Fang's words are really original. Since you have such a strange idea, why don't you join the Wang family and build a career?"
"Because I'm not interested."
Fangzheng waved his hand. A person of Lord Xinling's status must have investigated him long ago. He also knew that he had rejected the offers from the upper echelons of other countries. Wei was clearly not the special one.
"Compared to this boring matter, I have more important things to do."
"Boring?"
This time, not only was Lord Xinling surprised, even Ji Yanran spoke up.
"Is there anything more important than assisting the royal family and ruling the world? Please enlighten me, Master Fang. "
"Of course."
Fangzheng's lips curled up.
"That is the inheritance of knowledge."
"Of knowledge …"
"... Inheritance?"
"That's right."
Fangzheng nodded when he saw the puzzled crowd in front of him.
"The world will be united after being divided for a long time. There is no eternal dynasty, and there is no eternal kingship. So what if you unify the world? A hundred years later, it will still be a pile of dust. Humans are improving, and society is developing. The collapse of kingship is not rare, and the destruction of a country is not important. But the inheritance of knowledge is precious. Knowledge will affect us in all aspects. It's not the talk in the court, nor the deception between the nobles. "
At this point, Fangzheng patted Ba Chou who was beside him.
"Just like this Young Master Ba Chou. What he is researching may seem useless to all of you. He cannot win the favor of the King, nor the favor of beautiful ladies. But what he is researching is the most important thing in this world. To put it bluntly, this Young Master Ba Chou has more influence in my heart than all of you. Who knows, his name might even go down in history. "
"Young Master Fang's words are a little too much."
At this point, another scholar could not help but speak up.
"How can Ba Chou be mentioned in the same breath as someone like Lord Xinling? Master Ji is well-versed in both literature and martial arts, and has an extraordinary beauty. Doesn't that give her the right to go down in history? "
"That's right."
Fangzheng shrugged his shoulders.
"But it's a pity that history is not decided by you, nor by me. It's not even decided by the King."
"Then, according to Young Master Fang, who has the final say in history?"
Lord Longyang, who had been silent all this while, finally spoke. His voice was melodious and sounded just like a woman's. Fangzheng glanced at him again and continued.
"Of course it's the common people."
"The common people?"
"That's right."
Fangzheng nodded.
"Indeed. As the saying goes, it's better to guard against the mouth of the people than to guard against a river. Indeed, the court scribes might praise the originally muddle-headed king because of the king's coercion, or they might write the originally wise king as muddle-headed. This is normal. After all, the court historian depends on the Wang family, so he does not dare to disobey. But why would the common people care about what the King, who is thousands of miles away, thinks? They'll only say that the world was much better during my grandmother's generation, or that it was much worse than it is now …. And these are the truest records. They'll pass it down from generation to generation. Maybe even after a thousand years, they'll still tell their descendants about how our ancestors were like this and that during that period of time when the flames of war were incessant here …. "
With that said, Fangzheng shrugged.
"What can you do to them? This kind of inheritance will not be cut off. The memories of the ancestors and the records of the past will continue. You can change the history books and set up a monument, but how can you change what the common people say? Don't tell me you want them to shut their mouths and kill them all? "
"This... this is a glib tongue!"
At this moment, the scholar's face was also pale.
"What does this have to do with what I said before?"
"Alright, we've gone a little too far. Let's go back to the previous topic. Indeed, Prince Xinling has great power and influence. But what about a few hundred years later? Will Prince Xinling still have such glory then? Or how many people will remember him? But what about Young Master Ba? "
Fangzheng smiled and patted Ba Chou's shoulder.
"He solved the problem of the Art of Hooking the Thigh. That is to say, as long as Young Master Ba compiles the solution into a book and publishes it, everyone who studies in this field in the future will learn Young Master Ba's solution, and naturally know his name... unless the Art of Hooking the Thigh no longer exists in this world. But do you think that's possible?"
"..."
This time, no one said a word. Even Lord Xinling and Lord Longyang started to ponder and ponder. They had always seen the world from a few years to a few decades in the future, unlike Fangzheng, who looked at the world from hundreds or even thousands of years in the future.
Now that Fangzheng said this, they also began to think about this problem. Indeed, Fangzheng's words were harsh to the ear, but they were not without reason. Noble families were indeed glorious, but they could be destroyed with a flip of a hand. But to say that the world would not use triangles in the future... that was almost impossible.
Thinking of this, everyone could not help but sigh. They had worked so hard, but they were not sure if they could leave their names in history. And this Ba Chou had reserved a spot without saying a word?
What kind of world was this!
Thinking of this, the wine in their cups no longer tasted good, and the beauty in front of them was no longer in the mood to look at. They all bid farewell and left, doubting their lives.
Fangzheng did not feel any guilt for ruining the banquet. He chuckled and planned on bidding farewell with cupped hands. However, he never expected Maestro Ji to run down and block his path.
"Young Master Fang's words are really enlightening. If you don't mind, why don't you stay in this Elegant Lake Hut and chat with me through the night?"
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