Fang Yun was lecturing and the Little Apricot Altar was erected.
The news spread like wildfire on the grassland. The major forces, including the Kong Family, and the Ten Nations immediately sent envoys to Xiang Zhou.
The enlightenment of the sacred land was enough to determine the rise and fall of an aristocratic family or a nation.
Many Confucian scholars had been looking at the interior of the Institute of Literature in Baling City, but they couldn't hear anything. They could only watch as the two apricot trees continued to grow taller and thicker.
Outside the Institute of Literature, there were many scholars and some officials in the city.
The people outside the wall could see the two towering apricot trees.
Many officials couldn't hide the remorse on their faces, and some of them even gritted their teeth to prevent themselves from losing their composure.
The remorseful officials were either late or chased out of the Institute of Literature by Fang Yun.
The identities of the officials were different. Some were in cahoots with Gyeongo, some were spies of the Qi Nation, some belonged to other factions, and some were even members of the Left Minister's faction.
When they walked out of the Institute of Literature previously, they didn't care and even thought that Fang Yun was about to leave and that it would be their time to shine.
However, after the two huge apricot trees rose, their expressions changed and became increasingly sullen.
Apart from a few people, most of them didn't have the determination to join Fang Yun because they thought that Fang Yun couldn't give them what they needed and that the benefits they could obtain from other forces were greater.
However, compared to the benefits of entering the Little Apricot Altar for themselves and their descendants, what others could give them was nothing at all.
It was a sacred land of enlightenment that ordinary scholars could forget about entering for the rest of their lives.
There had never been a nine-rank system in Saint Origin World. Hence, there were families, but they didn't form a true aristocratic family and couldn't monopolize the power of the Notre-Dame and the nation.
The aristocratic families, wealthy families, and prominent families were the four levels of the aristocratic families. As for those below them, they were all Humble Families.
The Humble Families thought that they were a kind of family. After all, they had the power of a family. However, in the eyes of the aristocratic families, they were just commoners who didn't deserve to be aristocratic families.
The shishu clans were often ruined, and the commoners were often promoted to shishu clans. Now, almost all the ancestors of the major clans were from shishu clans. Over time, the poor clans and the commoners were mixed together, and there was no difference between them. They even often joined forces to fight against the landowning clans.
In the human race, there were many invisible standards. They were like invisible walls that kept others outside.
There was also an invisible standard for entering the Holy Land of Enlightenment, and that was that only the children of aristocratic families and wealthy families could enter.
As for those below, regardless of whether they were Prestigious Clans, Distinguished Clans, or Humble Clans, they could either use their Notre-Dame's military exploits to exchange for a spot, or use some underhanded means to obtain a spot from the Aristocratic Clans, or become a disciple of the Holy Land's Lord.
Generally speaking, only Grand Secretaries could accumulate enough battle credits to enter the Holy Land of Enlightenment, and they had to be good at fighting or had made great contributions. Ordinary Grand Secretaries could only accumulate so many battle credits after being promoted for a long time.
As for exchanging a quota from an aristocratic family, it was equally difficult. One had to marry into an aristocratic family at a young age and bring enough benefits to the aristocratic family, or one had done the aristocratic family a great favor. It was probably slightly easier than being promoted to a Grand Scholar.
For all the officials in Xiang Province, the third option was the only one.
Those who had been chased out by Fang Yun had missed their only chance to enter the Holy Land of Enlightenment.
The officials outside the Academy of Arts were all slightly talented. They would remain at the level of Jinshi or Hanlin for the rest of their lives, and their chances of becoming Grand Secretaries were next to none. However, if they could personally listen to Fang Yun's lectures and personally experience the process of forming the Little Apricot Altar, their chances of becoming Grand Secretaries would increase by at least fifty percent!
Grand Secretaries were important figures who could influence an entire province. They were members of the upper echelon of the human race who could speak directly to the monarch. Even in Kong City, where scholars walked everywhere, they were a cut above the rest.
These people had chosen an even worse path to becoming Grand Secretaries instead of taking the path to becoming Grand Secretaries.
When these officials had first left, they hadn't taken it to heart. Some had even said that Fang Yun had made a mistake, and some Jinshi had sarcastically said that they didn't deserve to enter the Academy of Arts to listen to lectures. But now, their sarcasm had become reality.
The other scholars looked at the officials at the entrance of the Academy of Arts with pity. These people could have listened to lectures in the Little Apricot Altar, eaten the Little Sacred Apricot, and been promoted to Grand Secretaries. But now, they could only stand at the entrance and regret.
They could only be laughed at in their hearts.
"Crack …"
A cracking sound came from the head of a sixth-rank Jinshi official. It was crisp and melodious, and it spread throughout the city.
"I can't accept this …"
The Jinshi in his fifties suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood and fell to the ground. He fell heavily on his back and was unconscious.
The nearby officials all knew this old Jinshi. When Gyeongo occupied Xiangzhou, he had done his best. When Xiangzhou was returned to Jingguo, he had never rebelled. He wasn't considered a Jinshi official, and he had never disobeyed Fang Yun's orders. However, he had always kept a distance from Fang Yun and Jingguo. His attitude was more negative than before. He was someone that Jingguo wanted to rope in, and also someone that Gyeongo wanted to bribe.
However, this Jinshi and his ancestors had always been from Jingguo.
Some people thought that his actions were wise, but others thought that since he was from Jingguo, and yet he still did this, it was obvious that he was loyal to Gyeongo. He was just learning from the ancestor of the School of Miscellany, Lu Buwei, who was hoarding and waiting for the best price.
Now that everyone saw his fate, they understood that this Jinshi from the School of Miscellany had finally realized that he had made the wrong choice. It was difficult for him to maintain his state of mind, and it was difficult for him to stabilize his heart of the Divine Path. That was why his Jinshi cracked.
Gyeongo couldn't give him the right to enter the Holy Land of Enlightenment, but Fang Yun could.
Originally, he didn't need to bow to Fang Yun. A few hours ago, he only needed to maintain basic respect in front of Fang Yun. As long as he wanted to be a Jingguo, and didn't think that he could benefit from Gyeongo, then he would already be in the Holy Land of Enlightenment.
Tens of thousands of scholars in front of the Academy of Arts silently looked at the person who had fallen to the ground. They were witnessing this bloody lesson.
At this moment, almost everyone had the same thought.
They had to follow Fang Yun closely, no matter when or where.
In the Holy Land of Enlightenment, almost all the officials listened attentively like students. Some of the lower-ranking officials, even though they heard Fang Yun's heavenly words and would never forget them, still took out their pens, ink, and paper to record the main points of Fang Yun's lecture. They were afraid that they would forget.
It also showed their inner humility and piety.
The more these officials listened, the happier their hearts of the Divine Path became.
Officials like Dong Wencong, who had a higher position, could not only remember it immediately, but also organize and summarize it in between listening to the lecture. They suddenly realized that Fang Yun's lecture today involved all aspects of politics, from the major matters of governing the country to the trivial matters of writing documents. It was as if he was teaching people how to be better officials step by step.
For these scholars who chose to study in the officialdom, the better they were at being an official, the faster they would grow. This was because whether it was the School of Miscellany, Confucianism, Legalism, the School of Military Strategy, or the School of Mohism, politics and officials took up a lot of space.
Even if some people only used the officialdom as an experience and wanted to surpass the officialdom in the future to pursue the Divine Path, Fang Yun's lecture would still be very useful.
Every scholar should have the ability to see the big picture from a small clue and comprehend by analogy.
.
For the latest novel updates, please visit the website.
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
