Li Mingyue actually had a good impression of this student, not because he was embarrassed because he gave him food, but because of his original intention of giving him food.
A person travels thousands of miles away and is not very wealthy, but he can still lend a helping hand to others when they are in need and do his best. This is a rare thing in itself.
It's nothing if the rich help the poor, but it's different if the poor help the poor.
Huang Qinghan said that the young monk was not considered a gentleman, and she herself was not considered a gentleman. So, could this poor scholar be considered a gentleman?
Therefore, Li Mingyue had no intention of hiding anything from the student's question, and replied: "It is true that I am going to Haojing, but not for the exam."
He added, "I'm actually not a scholar."
The student was stunned, but he quickly smiled and said: "Looking at your demeanor, you really look like a scholar."
He also added: "More like a scholar than a scholar."
Li Mingyue was stunned for a moment, then said with a smile: "I actually also read, I can be considered half a scholar."
At this time, Huang Qinghan on horseback asked: "You went all the way to take the exam just to become an official?"
The student was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said, "Although wealth is not what I want, it is not easy for my family to support me in studying for so many years. They all hope that I can get ahead."
Huang Qinghan said: "There are many ways to get ahead, and you don't necessarily have to be an official."
The student nodded and said, "Indeed, but our parents all think so. As a younger generation, we should naturally comply with our parents' wishes."
He said bitterly: "And so far, Xiaosheng has not found anything else that can help him get ahead."
Huang Qinghan nodded, took out a ruler from her arms, threw it to the student, and said, "This is for you."
He added: "Even if it is the reward for treating us to something to eat before."
Huang Qinghan's move immediately stopped the man in front of him, with a look of disbelief on his face.
After all, it’s a Confucian treasure, so why don’t you give it away like this? Even if you don’t give it to a young monk, there’s no need to waste it like this.
Wang Quan also stopped, and together with Li Mingyue, the three of them looked at the lucky man who was holding a square ruler with a confused look on his face.
Huang Qinghan on horseback said: "Originally there are two parties, but I still have use for one party. I will give it to you after I use it up."
The student quickly said: "Girl, this thing is too expensive. I can't afford it, and I feel guilty about it."
Huang Qinghan said: "You can bear it."
The student said again: "Thank you very much, girl."
After saying that, he reached for the square ruler, which was engraved with "Heaven moves vigorously, and a gentleman strives for self-improvement." Li Mingyue watched him holding the ruler easily, and frowned slightly. He also tried to pick up the square ruler at first.
But at that time, he felt that he couldn't bear the square ruler at all, so he chose to give up. But now that it was being held easily by such an ordinary person, he felt a little surprised.
The little monk over there seemed to be a little unable to bear it, and said, "Do you know the weight of this ruler?"
The student glanced at the ruler in his hand with some confusion, and said: "The sky is strong, and a gentleman strives to strive for self-improvement; the terrain is weak, and a gentleman carries his virtue with great virtue."
After saying this, he fell into thinking, then nodded, without speaking, but his expression looked very cautious.
Wang Quan said at this time: "Whatever portion is measured and you can afford it, it is yours."
The little monk sighed, feeling a little depressed for a moment, and then looked at Huang Qinghan on the horse with a resentful look.
Wang Quan ridiculed: "You are like you, you still want to save all sentient beings, and you are not afraid of making people laugh."
The young monk snorted coldly: "I want you to take care of it."
Wang Quan smiled and shook his head, led the horse and continued to move forward, but the young monk did not leave.
Li Mingyue followed, and so did the student, so the young monk walked at the end, sighing from time to time.
The main reason why he went down the mountain this time was for the Zhenzhi. Longhu Mountain sent the old Heavenly Master to ascend, but now the Zhenzhi was given away by that little girl, although only half of it was given away.
, but he wants the remaining half, but it’s probably impossible.
No one knows this square ruler better than him, because this square ruler has a name, "Zhentian Ruler". It was used by Literary Saint, one of the seventy-two sages of Confucianism, and was refined from the Rudraksha tree in Buddhism.
made.
Originally, the Fangzhen Ruler didn't really have much to do with him, but because he was born in the forest and in Buddhism after his reincarnation, this thing naturally became involved with him, and it was deeply involved. It's not even a natal thing.
Too much.
But the Confucian literary sage wanted to carve these twenty words on this square ruler, making this square ruler an object that no gentleman could carry. How could he, a Buddhist, become a Confucian gentleman? Not that
A Confucian saint did it intentionally, but he didn't believe it.
The most troublesome thing is that because of his status as a Buddhist disciple, he cannot force it and can only follow fate. The reason why he followed Li Mingyue and others on this trip is to take over this fate. But now that fate has been forged, Zhenchi is gone.
With his methods, of course he could snatch it directly from Huang Qinghan's hands, let alone that poor student who had gotten through shit. And he certainly didn't care if he could bear those twenty words, as long as he used some
It is not impossible to suppress or even erase those twenty words, but he cannot, because he is a Buddhist, and because what is more important than those twenty words is cause and effect.
However, Buddhist practice is all about "taking it up, letting it go, and seeing it openly." He didn't take it seriously at the time. The reason for his current behavior was just because of the child's mind. In the final analysis, he was, after all,
He is just a young man. If you really want to say it, he is not as old as Li Mingyue.
So this is just a dispute between him and Huang Qinghan, a dispute between a boy and a little girl, and has nothing to do with Buddhist Arhats or Confucian literary saints.
After walking for half a day, everyone entered a city. When entering the city, the students in front were delayed for unknown reasons, while the others were waiting, so Li Mingyue and others happened to pass by these students.
A student looked at the poor student who was talking to Li Mingyue and said angrily: "Oh, Wu Ziqi, you have found a new friend so quickly."
The poor student was a little embarrassed and his face turned red.
The student didn't mean to give up, and continued: "Isn't it true that I told you to find someone with a better family? You found a poor guy like you, just to stay together?"
On horseback, Huang Qinghan snorted coldly: "It's such an insult to scholars. I've read Confucian classics in vain."
Her tone was meant to be a lesson, because riding on horseback gave her a condescending feeling, which naturally made people feel very uncomfortable, so the student said in a cold voice: "What did you say? Do you have the guts to say it again?
"
Huang Qinghan said in shock: "Hey, you still want to fight? Come on, come on, I want to see how you, a scholar, can bully a little girl like me."
At this moment, someone immediately stepped forward and grabbed the student.
Because the horse had already moved forward, Huang Qinghan turned around and made a face at the student. The student was so angry that his face turned red and a mouthful of blood almost spurted out on the spot.
Li Mingyue had no choice but to face Huang Qinghan's actions.
The poor student named Wu Ziqi didn't seem to expect that this little girl's words were so sharp, and he was somewhat impressed. The man from before was a classmate of his, and they also went to Beijing together this time. However, because of their family background, this classmate from the same hometown
In fact, I looked down on him, a student from a poor family, so I had no choice but to go together with him this time. Later, I met a student from another place. The classmate was more or less ashamed of him and often ridiculed him.
Wu Ziqi didn't get much knowledge from his studies, but he still showed some pride, so he chose to leave these people and choose to go with Li Mingyue.
So he actually knew this classmate fairly well. Very few people could make him feel as frustrated as he was now, so he couldn't help but admire that little girl.
Huang Qinghan said: "I'm not doing it for you. He dares to scold Li Mingyue. If I hadn't been on horseback, I would have beaten him until his teeth were all over the floor."
He looked at Wu Ziqi and asked, "Do you believe it or not?"
Wu Ziqi said quickly: "Trust."
Huang Qinghan frowned and said, "You clearly don't believe it, but you say you do. Hey, I almost regret giving that ruler to you."
As soon as he heard this, the young monk suddenly felt like he saw hope. He came to Huang Qinghan and said with a smile: "Give it to me. If anyone dares to speak ill of Donor Li in the future, the young monk will definitely beat him with teeth all over the floor."
, no, I’m looking for teeth all over the world.”
Huang Qinghan said "hehe".
The little monk suddenly looked bitter.
Wu Ziqi had already taken out the square ruler, but he did not return it to Huang Qinghan, but seemed a little hesitant.
The sage said: "I will do my duty without giving in." What's more, he likes this square ruler very much.
Everyone stayed in the city for one night, and when they set off on the road the next day, they did not see the group of students. However, Wu Ziqi discovered that Li Mingyue was not as poor as he seemed. On the contrary, this young man who was much younger than him,
Very rich, extremely rich.
However, Wu Ziqi did not feel that he was inferior to Li Mingyue because of this, nor did he mean to draw a clear line with Li Mingyue because of this.
Along the way, everyone met more and more students. There were students from poor families like Wu Ziqi who were hungry and had to go to the capital. Some were the same as those students before, and there were also many students who were richly dressed and brought with them.
There are some with servants, some with bookboys, and some with maids.
They are both scholars, but the gap is huge.
For some people, going to Beijing to take the exam seems to be just a formality. For some people, it is more like a kind of enjoyment. For many people, it is all hope, without sleep or rest, without food.
Drink, but also compete for the honor that came over.
For many people, being named on the Gold List is a lifelong hope, but for some people, it is dispensable.
Life is full of things, but this is the case.
The closer to Haojing, the colder and drier the air becomes, and the closer to Haojing, the more ups and downs Li Mingyue's heart becomes.
He grew up in Qingyuan Mountain and had never been to Haojing, but now he felt a sense of shyness in his hometown. He didn't know if it was because this was supposed to be his hometown, the place where he was born and raised.
.
This feeling is very strange. It has nothing to do with the purpose of his coming to Haojing this time. It has nothing to do with the choice he will make after entering Haojing.
In this wonderful state of mind, Hao Jing appeared in his eyes.
It was the end of autumn and the beginning of winter, the day when all students took the big exam. As long as it was past autumn and the beginning of the next spring, they could enter the imperial city, accept the imperial exam from His Majesty the Emperor, and then flourish.
Li Mingyue stopped at this moment and looked at the glorious city. He had fantasized about what this city looked like countless times, and how he felt when he saw this city.
He originally thought he would be very excited, but in fact, he was very calm at the moment, extremely calm, so calm that even he himself found it a bit unbelievable.
The city is very big and prosperous. From a distance, it looks like a jeweled lady, rich and elegant, quiet and beautiful.
"Thousands of troops are crossing the single-plank bridge. I don't know how many people will be squeezed off the bridge this year and drowned in the torrent of this big exam." At this time, a voice sounded, and then a carriage slowly came from behind.
, at the front end of the carriage, there was a young man in rich clothes standing on the carriage, with a knife hanging on his waist.
Li Mingyue recognized this person, or to be precise, he had seen him before when he was at Longhu Mountain.
Of course, Li Mingyue didn't know what this young man was called, but he knew that he should be a descendant of a certain vassal king and a royal relative of the Li family of the Tang Dynasty. Only the son of a vassal prince would call himself the prince.
Compared with last time, this time he had two more maids with him, as well as an elite cavalry team that looked to be quite capable.
The young man soon discovered Li Mingyue, so he couldn't help but frown, and then fell into thinking.
Of course he knew that this group of people was not easy to mess with, otherwise he would not have been treated like that by Longhu Mountain. Moreover, after this group of people went to Longhu Mountain, the Taoist master quickly ascended to the immortal world. He went back to tell the news
After his father, his father just sighed and said nothing.
He still remembers his father's expression at that time. It was an expression he had never seen before. It seemed like expectation, but also like fear, and more complicated and difficult to understand.
He quickly cupped his fists and said, "What a coincidence, you are here too."
Li Mingyue just glanced at him and said nothing.
Jingkong looked at the knife on his waist and said, "Hey, the knife has been changed? Do you want to try it again?"
The young man suddenly looked embarrassed and said with a smile: "Last time, I was ignorant of Taishan. I offended you. I hope you seniors will be more generous and don't follow me."
He did not call himself the Crown Prince, so when he said "I'm here", he seemed a little unfamiliar.
Jingkong smiled and said: "Then you think too highly of yourself."
The young man became more and more embarrassed and said: "Then I won't disturb the seniors. Once you enter Haojing, you will have to pay for food and accommodation. I should just apologize for my rudeness last time."
The young monk imitated Wang Quan's tone and said: "Go to the Tao. If there is a chance, the young monk will not be polite."
After this group of people left, another group of acquaintances came over, it was Wu Ziqi's fellow countryman and his companions. At the same time, the imperial city opened wide, and an elite force galloped out of the city in a mighty manner.