NOVPUB
Chapter 1220: Chapter 1079: Hold a Grudge
When Li Zhirui entered the Da Feng Dynasty, it was just in time for the triennial provincial examination, also known as the autumn examination.
Upon encountering this event, he halted his journey and decided not to venture deeper into the heart of the dynasty. Instead, he settled in this remote rural province and altered his appearance and demeanor, transforming into a middle-aged Confucian scholar who appeared well-versed in the Five Classics.
Every time before these major exams, whether the provincial examination or the metropolitan examination, poetry meetings are held so scholars can exchange ideas, and it serves as an excellent opportunity for gaining fame.
For those scholars from impoverished backgrounds, it is also a chance to gain patronage, as the journey to the capital for the next stage of the examination incurs significant travel expenses that their families cannot afford.
The middle-aged Confucian scholar that Li Zhirui pretended to be took advantage of an opportunity to enter one of these poetry meetings and became famous with a single ode to spring.
For a time, many scholars came to visit in droves, and local gentry and wealthy families also showed interest in him, with several sending invitations to Li Zhirui to attend banquets.
As for the former, Li Zhirui naturally agreed with pleasure, welcoming all visitors, especially scholastic ones, whom he would warmly entertain and guide.
It must be noted that he had, indeed, genuinely been a teacher for three years and had thoroughly studied all the Confucian classics, and with his perspective, strategical essays were likewise no problem.
However, he declined all those banquet invitations.
This behavior naturally offended the local gentry and wealthy families, but Li Zhirui paid it no mind, as they only had some influence in this isolated rural province and would not be eyed by true great families once they stepped outside.
Moreover, Li Zhirui showed some bias in mentoring those scholars, placing more emphasis on the truly commoners among them, even going as far as sharing everything he could, and privately promising them that as long as they attained the title of Juren, he would help with the expenses and guidance needed for the subsequent metropolitan examination.
These words naturally earned him the affection and respect of these scholars.
Of course, there were also those who suspected that Li Zhirui had ulterior motives and doubted his purpose or identity.
Li Zhirui did not shy away from this either, expressing that he wished to avenge his family but could not appear in public himself and thus had to place his hopes on them.
His fabricated identity was not conjured from thin air but was rather tied to a major case in the Da Feng Dynasty over twenty years ago!
Back then, there was a commoner magistrate named Zhang Gangfeng. Shortly after he took office, multiple cases of assault and murder occurred in his jurisdiction. Being upright and incorruptible by nature, he did not back down even when faced with discouragement from his subordinates.
Even though he encountered many obstacles during this process and lacked tangible evidence to directly point to the main suspect, he had to publicly abandon the investigation. 𝔫𝔬𝖛𝖕𝔲𝖇.𝖈𝖔𝖒
Nevertheless, he never gave up and continued to investigate privately.
Finally, by chance, he obtained conclusive evidence!
He promptly arrested the suspect, a dissolute scion of the Liu clan. According to the law, the punishment should have been immediate execution, but due to the suspect’s background, he was only imprisoned for a few days before being released.
After his release, he began cunningly plotting his revenge against Zhang Gangfeng, determined to destroy his family completely in this cruel manner.
Ultimately, it was unclear what means he used, or perhaps someone behind the Liu clan provided guidance, but Zhang Gangfeng and his entire extended family were eventually executed!
And now, the identity Li Zhirui impersonated was that of Zhang Gangfeng’s cousin, who survived by hiding and studying abroad during that time.
Li Zhirui knew that not all these commoner scholars were genuinely kind-hearted and that some might betray him at any moment.
However, since his identity was merely a disguise, he was prepared to further change his appearance if necessary.
Furthermore, Li Zhirui was deliberately revealing his fabricated past to them, with the intent of planting a seed in their hearts!
It was known that the Da Feng Dynasty was established single-handedly by the Liu clan, a venerable family with a lineage spanning numerous generations and comprising tens of thousands of members.
Not to mention, the Liu clan had excellent training methods, enabling most of its descendants to become capable individuals, and even without such methods, their bloodline alone enabled them to occupy the majority of positions in the dynasty.
Over a century of development of this kind naturally bred countless tensions between Liu clan descendants and commoners, as well as with the juniors of other small families.
"Alright, I suppose you all have little interest in studying today, and with the provincial examination in three days, make sure to rest well and strive to achieve success and participate in next spring’s metropolitan examination."
"Yes! Student takes leave."
As Li Zhirui had said, after hearing about his background, they couldn’t calm their minds and left courteously.
After watching them leave, Li Zhirui closed his eyes and contemplated the Pill Recipe in his mind.
After all, being in the Da Feng Dynasty, he couldn’t cultivate as he usually would or even comprehend the Laws, so he could only sum up past experiences and deduce and contemplate the Pill Recipe, which didn’t require triggering Spiritual Energy or the Laws.
The sun rose and set, and three days flew by.
Thousands of scholars began entering the examination hall at dawn. After undergoing fairly strict inspections, they arrived at a narrow room where they would spend the majority of their time in the coming days.
Every major examination tested not only their knowledge but also their physical endurance.
When the examination bell rang and the heavy wooden door opened, almost none of the candidates were in good condition anymore.
Li Zhirui did not intervene to alter the exam results as he had previously done. After all, in the earlier Daqian Dynasty, the imperial examination system was not heavily emphasized, which is how he found the opportunity.
