Huang Zong woke up early in the morning, and a few Confucian scholars came up to greet him. Their faces were full of joy. "Teacher, congratulations!"
"Oh? Where does the joy come from? "
Huang Zong took a towel and slowly wiped his face with hot water. His every move was calm and unruffled. The other Confucian scholars immediately felt ashamed of their inferiority.
"Prince Ding's manor has summoned you. The Crown Prince has reached the age of enlightenment. With your literary talent and reputation, who else but you can be the Grand Tutor?"
Although Wu Zhi was using the Confucian scholars for their talents, the other Confucian scholars also had the desire to succeed and become famous. Seeing that Prince Ding's path was blocked, it was reasonable to walk the Crown Prince's path and bet on the future.
"Be careful with your words!"
Huang Zong's expression changed when he heard this. "The Crown Prince is not the Crown Prince yet. Where does the title of Grand Tutor come from?"
The Confucian scholars looked at each other and could only reply with a hollow laugh, "The Crown Prince is the Prince and the teacher of the Prince. It is barely acceptable to call him Grand Tutor …"
In reality, they obviously knew the difference. However, the Crown Prince's current status was even more important than the Emperor in the palace. It was inevitable for them to say it casually.
Seeing this, Huang Zong sighed faintly in his heart. He knew that Wu Zhi's position as the legitimate heir was already deeply rooted in the hearts of the people in Dingzhou. The idea of not being a subject was almost known by everyone.
However, everyone knew it, but it was calm. There were even many who rejoiced. Even the Confucian scholars had unknowingly accepted it and treated the other party's son as the legitimate heir. The impact of this was terrifying and terrifying. Just thinking about it made one shudder.
"It's getting late. Someone from the palace is already waiting. Teacher, please get on the carriage!"
A few Confucian scholars bowed again and said.
"Yes!"
Huang Zong nodded and came to the outside of the academy. Sure enough, he saw a carriage with two horses parked outside. Although the outside was not very gorgeous, the inside was very comfortable. When walking, there was almost no bumps.
"Greetings, Great Grandmaster Huang. I am Wang He, a subordinate of Prince Ding's manor. This is your identity token, please keep it well!"
In the carriage, a calm young man wearing a black robe smiled and bowed. He also handed over a lunch box. "Mister, you woke up early. You haven't eaten yet, right? Please eat some! "
"Thank you!"
Huang Zong opened it and saw that there were mostly steamed buns and pastries inside. There was absolutely no soup, so he didn't worry about spilling it. He picked up a piece of white rabbit cake and ate it, feeling that it was very sweet. The other side dishes were also mainly light, obviously taking care of his taste.
"This is made by a few northern chefs in the Prince's Mansion. I hope it's to your liking!"
Wang He explained with a smile.
"You read books?"
Huang Zong chatted with him for a while and felt that this Wang He was knowledgeable and did not seem like a vulgar person.
"After studying hard for three years, I was lucky enough to pass the imperial examinations. However, compared to my peers, I am but the light of a firefly. How can I compete with the sun and the moon? I am already very satisfied to be able to handle chores in the Prince's Mansion! "
The current officials, when they reached the end of their term or made great contributions, could be promoted and become officials.
Especially after the system was gradually perfected, all the officials, unless there were special cases, had to go to the grassroots level, so no one felt ashamed.
This was especially so for the minor officials of the Prince's Mansion. They could get close to the center of power. If they were lucky enough to be appreciated by the nobles, it would be easy for them to have a meteoric rise in the future.
Wang He said that he was the light of a firefly but in fact, he was being very modest.
"Heard that the scale of the Wu Town imperial examinations has been expanding year after year. Now it seems that even the minor officials have such a standard. It is really terrifying …"
When Huang Zong saw that a leaf could tell autumn, a deep sense of awe rose in his heart.
The most important thing for a regime was the ability to execute and the element of the ability to execute was an elite bureaucratic group.
In the early days of the country's founding, the politics were clear and if the orders from the top were to be implemented, naturally there would be peace. But in troubled times, all kinds of corruption would occur. During natural disasters, even if the Imperial Court had the intention to provide relief, after the corrupt bureaucrats changed hands and after layers of embezzlement, there would not be one in ten thousand that would be able to reach the hands of the victims. This was the sign of the end of the dynasty.
But now, with such a batch of high quality officials in charge of the grassroots administration, not to mention other things, at least the orders from the top would be passed down smoothly and it was something that could be done.
During wartime, it would be able to mobilize the power of the entire system. With the top and bottom being of one mind, one would naturally be invincible.
Wang He naturally did not know that Huang Zong had seen so many things from a small official like him. After travelling for a while, the horse carriage slowly stopped and arrived at the front of Prince Ding's residence.
This palace was only remodeled from the original prefecture governor's residence and strived to be thrifty. From the outside, it did not look very luxurious but it had a dignified and solemn atmosphere.
Especially around the Prince's residence, there were elite soldiers patrolling at all times. They were fully armoured and had bright swords and arrows. It was obvious that they were the top elites and were the heroes of the army who could kill wolves and fight tigers.
After Huang Zong alighted from the carriage, he felt several gazes secretly scrutinizing him, causing his entire body to tremble.
"Waist token!"
A team of guards came forward and carefully checked the two's entry token before letting them in.
The token in Huang Zong's hand was also taken back. It was obviously a one-time use item which made him feel a little pity but his heart was even more awestruck.
"May Old Sir please wait in the side hall for the time being!"
Wang He led Huang Zong to a side hall. Immediately, an amiable maid with a sweet smile served tea. The tea inside was like jade and had a strange fragrance. Just a whiff of it was enough to make one feel relaxed and happy.
Even Huang Zong could not help but feel refreshed after taking a sip, "Good tea!"
He was also a person who never got tired of eating delicacies, and was also a great scholar in the literary world. Everything he used had the demeanor of an aristocratic family, but this kind of fragrant tea was something he had never heard of or seen before.
"If guest likes it, please allow this servant to report to the manager and bring two catties of it when you leave!"
When the maid saw this, she pursed her lips and smiled. Her bell-like laughter resounded in the small hall.
"Oh? Thank you … "
Huang Zong raised his head slightly and saw that this maid was about fifteen or sixteen years old. Her hair was tied into two buns and there was a bright red beauty mark between her eyebrows. When she smiled, there were two small dimples on her face. Her seemingly childish face actually had a bit of charm. He knew that this girl had an inner charm. If she was placed outside, she might become the exclusive property of some aristocratic family head. However, in the Prince's Mansion, she was just a servant that welcomed guests.
Fortunately, his self-restraint was quite deep. Although he was slightly surprised in his heart, his expression did not change. He hurriedly took a sip of the green tea. He only felt a stream of ice flowing down his throat. After entering his stomach, he gradually felt a wave of warm air flowing through his limbs and bones. His whole body felt comfortable and happy beyond words. He could not help but be surprised.
"This tea seems to have spiritual energy … Even in the Celestial Sect, it is difficult to enjoy it often. Who would have thought that in the Prince's Mansion in the mortal world, there would be such a divine treasure …"
However, Huang Zong had waited for a full four hours while tasting the tea.
It was not until the fifth pot of tea that a clear voice came over, "You are Huang Zong?"
This voice was clear and melodious, like the striking of ice jade. Naturally it was not a female's voice but it came from a young man's mouth.
Huang Zong looked up and saw a young man in a brown robe casually walking in. He had a leisurely and indifferent expression, as if nothing in this world could affect him. He looked to be less than twenty years old, but his eyes were warm like jade, and they were filled with the wisdom of someone who had seen all kinds of things in the world and the world of mortals.
He had seen countless people in his life but there was never a person who could give him the same feeling.
"Yes, are you Young Master Wu?"
Huang Zong hurriedly bowed.
He was also a wise person and naturally knew that to be able to be so calm in the Prince's Mansion, as if it was his own backyard, other than Prince Ding, there was only that rumoured husband of Prince Ding.
It was only at this moment that he suddenly remembered that his student only said that the Prince's Mansion had summoned him and Wang He only said that an Excellency wanted to see him but did not explicitly say that it was Prince Ding himself.
Now it seemed that the person who had the idea to see him was this Young Master Wu.
"Greetings to Young Master Wu!"
After seeing Wu Ming nod in acknowledgment, Huang Zong hurriedly bowed again.
To be honest, ever since Wu Zhi became famous in the world, the feudal vassals and various forces had never relaxed their investigation on her. As her husband, Wu Ming was naturally not spared.
It was just that he was usually secretive and most of the spies could only find out about the series of foolish things that the playboy had done previously, which made many feudal vassals puzzled.
But Huang Zong was quite clear that the youth in front of him was not an ordinary person.
Otherwise, with the dignity of Prince Ding, why would he lower himself to marry and even take Princess Duan Rui as a concubine!?
"Huang Zong, you are a great Confucian scholar. I don't need to ask about the matters of learning!"
Wu Ming smiled slightly, "This time I have summoned you here for the matter of choosing a teacher for my son. I have a question, can you answer it?"
In his eyes, Huang Zong's cultivation was not bad. At least the Noble Body of the Confucian School had been completed and the title of a great Confucian scholar was not unfounded.
But if the philosophy was not compatible, then he still could not choose, otherwise he would lead his son astray and there would be no way to reason with him.
"Please ask your question, Young Master!"
Huang Zong tidied his clothes and said solemnly.
"My family has its own system, which is based on the impurities of the Tyrannical Way. Can I purely follow the Confucian Way?"
Wu Ming asked leisurely.
"This …"
Huang Zong fell into hesitation. This was actually not difficult to answer, it was just a choice of attitude and path.
Obviously, the other party would not accept the idea of respecting the Confucian Way alone. Now he was asking him if he still insisted on this.
At his cultivation level, every word and action of a great Confucian scholar pointed directly to his heart. Lying or whatever, first of all, he could not even get past himself.
"Old Mister, don't be anxious. If you can't think of it, you can go back and think about it slowly. When you think of the answer, come back and tell me!"
Wu Ming waved his hand and two maids immediately came forward and softly sent the guest off.
Seeing this, Huang Zong sighed leisurely, knowing that Prince Ding would definitely not let him become the teacher of the Prince. This was too easy to influence.
At this time, he could only get up and leave.
As for Wu Ming, he looked at his back in silence.
With his magical power of looking at qi, he had the ability to discern people. This time, he called Huang Zong over just to take a look.
Under this look, whether he was harboring evil intentions or was it purely for the sake of reason, what was the mastermind behind it, or whether he had dealings with those ministers, it was almost impossible to hide from his luck.
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