Chapter 445 - 171: Prefectural School (Part 2)
Chapter 445: Chapter 171: Prefectural School (Part 2)
Min Zhengchun was a small, thin old man with a white beard and hair, his face etched with deep wrinkles.
He wore a long robe, faded from countless washings, and carried himself with the lean frame and unyielding integrity of a true man of letters. Despite his small, frail stature, he possessed an indomitable presence.
Upon seeing Zhao Jing and Chen De’an, Min Zhengchun scrutinized them both carefully. He said nothing, however, and simply had an instructor named Mr. Sun lead them away to get them settled.
Getting settled could wait. The first duty upon entering the prefectural academy was to pay homage to the great sage Confucius, so they went first to Dacheng Hall.
One of the prefectural academy’s key duties was managing the Confucius Temple and honoring the ancient sages.
The current court even decreed that officials had to visit the local Confucius Temple and pay their respects to Confucius before officially assuming their posts.
It was also where officials would come to proclaim court decrees and government edicts.
Thus, the status and function of the prefectural academy, and the Confucius Temple within it, were self-evident.
After leaving Dacheng Hall, they visited Chongsheng Temple, and then the Village Hero Temple.
In Chongsheng Temple, shrines were dedicated to Confucius’s ancestors going back five generations, as well as to several great masters of Neo-Confucianism.
As its name suggested, the Village Hero Temple honored the most virtuous and benevolent figures from Xinghuai Prefecture’s history.
By the time they had finished visiting these places, they had already seen a good portion of the academy.
But their tour was only half over; they had yet to set foot in the area where they would be living and studying.
Just as they were about to head east, classes let out.
It was time for the midday meal, so students poured out of their classrooms, heading for the dining hall with their friends.
The students were a mix of young and old. The youngest looked to be only twelve or thirteen, not even a hint of stubble on their chins, while the eldest looked old enough to be their grandfathers.
This was a common sight. After all, if even the most basic imperial examinations saw candidates on the verge of senility, why wouldn’t a prefectural academy have its share of elderly Scholars?
They could understand the wide range of ages, but different genders? That was another matter.
De’an pointed at a few female students in the distance, dressed in academy uniforms, and rubbed his eyes. "Are... are those girls?"
Zhao Jing saw them too, but he wasn’t nearly as curious. He spared them a single glance before looking away.
Mr. Sun, however, was a jovial man. Seeing the shock in De’an’s eyes, he chuckled. "What’s wrong with girls? Are they not allowed to study? As long as your family background is powerful enough, forget the prefectural academy—you could enter the Imperial College itself, and no one would dare say a word."
De’an immediately read between the lines and understood Mr. Sun’s implication.
"You mean to say... those three have powerful connections?"
Mr. Sun nodded and gave a thumbs-up. "Extremely powerful ones."
"Do tell! Give us the details."
Mr. Sun didn’t keep him in suspense. "Those are the daughters of the Magistrate, the Vice-Magistrate, and the Assistant Magistrate. All three of them are in Yueli Hall, just like you. When you interact with them in the future, you must conduct yourselves with the utmost propriety. Do not be presumptuous."
Mr. Sun continued speaking, but De’an wasn’t in the mood to listen.
He nudged Zhao Jing’s arm and whispered, "What are those bigwigs thinking, sending their daughters to a place like this? It’s not that I think women shouldn’t be educated, but if they’re going to attend, they should at least get their own hall. To put three delicate young ladies in the same class as all of us... aren’t their fathers afraid someone will try to take a shortcut in life by seducing one of their precious daughters?"
Zhao Jing paid him no mind and kept walking.
He appeared to be focused on the path ahead, but a closer look would reveal a vacantness in his eyes. His mind had already drifted far, far away.
No doubt about it, his thoughts had drifted to his wife again.
’What’s so great about getting married, anyway?’
’You just get someone else to worry about all the time, and you can’t even focus on your studies!’
De’an was still grumbling to himself when one of the three girls, who were now rounding a corner, suddenly turned around as if she’d felt their eyes on her.
Startled, De’an reflexively jerked his head away. But a moment later, his eyes widened in surprise.
"That girl looks awfully familiar."
Zhao Jing scoffed. "Is there any girl you don’t find familiar?"
"Hey, Jing, that’s uncalled for. Are you trying to slander my good name? I admit I talk a big game, but it’s all just talk. I’d never do anything truly improper."
"Then why were you staring at her back?"
"I was just taking a peek! I didn’t mean any harm. And it’s a good thing I did, because I spotted someone I know. Remember last time, when we were heading back to Qingshui County? As we were leaving the city, we ran into Wang Jun and Wang Xiao’s sister. There was another girl in the carriage with her, and that’s her! She’s a student here."