Chapter Thirty-Eight: Warming the Cold Stove

When Zhu Cilang witnessed this, the heavy weight in his heart was finally lifted, and he laughed with delight, "Good! As long as the calculations are completed within four days, that will suffice. However, I urge everyone to take care of your health. Your talents far exceed what has already been shown; only by cherishing your bodies can you continue to excel in the future!"

At once, a resounding chorus of agreement echoed from the crowd.

At some point, Luo Daren had come over. Looking at Zhu Cilang, he sighed, "Qin Xia is truly a remarkable man! Yet it is a pity that all you have learned in your life cannot be put to use in the imperial examinations."

Zhu Cilang shook his head, "Dean, do you mean to say that the Imperial Academy is not also a place for scholars? Being a student here does not necessarily lead to the imperial examinations, but I value this place. If students of the Academy can still serve, be promoted, and attain official posts, why can they not become pillars of the state? Compared to those who read poetry yet are useless in practice, the Academy offers mathematics, law, and calligraphy—these are the true disciplines for cultivating talented officials. Since this is so, even if one follows the path of a clerk, as long as one’s heart and mind are devoted, what matter if it is not through the examinations? Not to mention elsewhere, but now as I seek to cleanse the Ministry of Personnel, a mere twenty-odd people is far too few!"

His eyes shone with fervor, and Luo Daren, hearing this, fell into deep thought.

After Luo Daren left, Zhu Cilang walked out of the Hall of Rites and stood in the courtyard. With a wave of his hand, he called, "Brother Xie. Earlier you spoke out boldly in the Hall of Rites—I will not forget it. But why did you not remain afterward?"

Xie Yi slowly emerged from behind a large tree, and, looking at Zhu Cilang, said with shame, "Little brother Qin Xia, I truly admire your deeds. Punishing the wicked and resisting the corruption of the court—who would not praise such acts? Yet... I am weighed down with guilt and shame; I truly had no words to stay."

"Then why have you not left now, and instead remain at the Academy?" Zhu Cilang pressed.

Xie Yi looked at him and replied slowly, "It is because... my conscience is uneasy. I could not bear to see little brother Qin Xia’s efforts come to naught."

Zhu Cilang was momentarily taken aback. "It seems Director Chen still has a trump card to play."

Though Xie Yi did not understand the newfangled phrase, he grasped its meaning.

Suddenly—

Outside the Imperial Academy, from the street across at Jiaozhong Lane by Dongzhimen, a piercing whistle rang out.

Nanshun Lane.

Luo Daren arrived to see Fu Shuxun, who had shut his doors to visitors at his residence.

The events of the morning court had already reached the ears of officials throughout the capital. In no time, the names of Fu Shuxun from the Ministry of Revenue, Wang Zhengzhi, and Wei Zhaocheng from the Grand Secretariat circulated on the tongues of every official, becoming the second most talked-about affair at court, surpassed only by the defeat in Liaodong.

However, as more people learned the details, they could only sigh for Fu Shuxun. This time, he had truly kicked a steel plate.

With the support of ministers and the grassroots alike, with men and money at his disposal, Fu Shuxun’s choice of opponent in reforming the Ministry of Revenue made everyone feel he was confronted by an impenetrable wall of steel. With such actions, Fu Shuxun had virtually set the entire ministry against himself.

As Luo Daren made his way through Nanshun Lane, he saw that Fu Shuxun’s residence was deserted. He could not help but feel the chill of human indifference and the vicissitudes of the world.

He had heard rumors from within the Ministry of Revenue: many mid-level officials formerly under Fu Shuxun’s wing were quietly turning to Wang Zhengzhi. For example, Nan Yunjie, whom Fu had personally promoted to director of the Yunnan Division, and Chief Clerk Yu Qing had secretly signed their names to Wang Zhengzhi’s proposals for military provisions—effectively declaring their allegiance.

Had he not seen Zhu Cilang’s actions at the Academy with his own eyes, Luo Daren himself would have thought that Fu Shuxun would fall this time, never to rise again.

But now, Luo Daren felt a surge of excitement, a secret joy at rekindling an old fire.

Though Fu Shuxun had declared he would see no guests, when Luo Daren appeared at the side door, Fu Shuxun still stood in the courtyard to greet him from afar.

The position of Dean of the Imperial Academy was of the fourth rank, far below the high officials of the second rank. That Fu Shuxun would do this was a great honor—a gesture of utmost respect.

"My dear Xun, your visit truly warms my heart," Fu Shuxun joked, leading Luo Daren through the hall and into his study.

Such courtesy moved Luo Daren, whose delight showed on his face, "Grand Minister, you flatter one such as me. There are many outside who are blind and incompetent, who turn a blind eye to wickedness and flock to mediocrity. Let them leave—why should we care?"

"My dear Xun, Qin Xia has entered the Academy; I fear he may have caused you some trouble," Fu Shuxun said lightly, making small talk as he brought up Zhu Cilang.

Though Zhu Cilang was but a lowly clerk, to Fu Shuxun—who grasped the true pulse of affairs—his role was even more critical than his own.

That thought had first arisen the night Zhu Cilang’s letter arrived at Fu’s residence in the dead of night.

In that letter, Zhu Cilang mentioned the hand-cranked calculating machine and his plans for the Academy. The calculating machine was marvelous, to be sure, but what truly won Fu Shuxun’s complete trust was Zhu Cilang’s move regarding the Imperial Academy.

Such vision, such patience, convinced Fu Shuxun that Zhu Cilang was one who could accomplish great things. It was this that led Fu Shuxun to erupt in court, winning a ten-day reprieve for their contest.

Now, success or failure would depend entirely on Zhu Cilang’s performance at the Academy!

"Judging by Luo Daren’s expression, it must not be bad news..." Fu Shuxun’s thoughts wandered, far less composed than he appeared on the surface.

Luo Daren did not notice this, but spoke at length, roughly recounting Zhu Cilang’s speech at the Academy.

Those probing questions, those forceful, ringing words—Luo Daren, even as he repeated them now, felt his heart tighten as though gripped by an unseen hand.

"If the youth of our nation are truly youthful, then our great Ming will be a nation of the future, its progress beyond measure. But if all our youth are as old men, then our great Ming is a nation of the past, and its demise can be awaited with feet up. Therefore, the responsibility of today lies not with others, but wholly with our youth. If the youth are wise, the nation is wise; if the youth are rich, the nation is rich; if the youth are strong, the nation is strong; if the youth have ambition, the nation has a future; if the youth uphold justice, the nation preserves righteousness; if the youth bravely shoulder the affairs of state, the nation and the world will be at peace; if the youth surpass the Jian slaves, then the nation will surpass them."

...

"Qin Xia is a fine young man," Fu Shuxun exclaimed. "Afterward, how many were willing to stay?"

"In the end, there were about three hundred. After Qin Xia finished his speech, there were over a hundred who lingered. But Qin Xia placed a basket of silver there, saying that anyone who left could take an ingot of silver. So, in the end, only twenty-two remained," Luo Daren reported, refraining from judging Zhu Cilang’s method.

Laws should not be lightly divulged, nor positions lightly granted. The more important the matter, the less it should be handled in haste.

Though Zhu Cilang’s blunt use of money to filter the candidates was effective, it was rather too forthright for Luo Daren, a true scholar of the classics, to fully endorse.

"It was not only to select those who could be used, but to ensure that those who could not would spread word of events at the Academy as fast as possible. Just watch—after what Qin Xia did today, you and I will become the center of attention in the capital once more!" Fu Shuxun, seeing through Zhu Cilang’s true strategy at a glance, laughed with delight. "With this, ten days will be more than enough."