Chapter VII Collection of Books by the Academy of Literature
After Zhang Yu left the pier, he walked along the waiting hall corridor to the outside of the port.
People were coming and going in the hall and corridor, and he noticed that the space above seemed to be an infinitely high arched glazed ceiling, from which light could shine directly in.
This wood-and-stone building built during the early days of the Duhu Mansion is still intact despite a hundred years of wind and rain, fully demonstrating the superb skills of Tianxia craftsmen.
But at this time, he suddenly heard a strange tone. When he turned around, he saw a barbarian man with oil paint on his face kneeling on the ground, standing under the light with his arms spread wide, and chanting repeatedly in his mouth.
Say one sentence.
A sharp copper whistle suddenly sounded, and a group of port guards with red-headed paint sticks and copper whistles hanging around their necks rushed up, pushed the man to the ground, tied him up, and gagged him
, and was taken away quickly.
Zhang Yu changed his mind. He was very familiar with the language of the indigenous tribes near Anshan. The sentence that the barbarian man said just now translates to "The heir of Yin Maca was born in the darkness and rotten trees, and it was born in the light."
behind!"
"Yinmacha" has different metaphorical meanings in different contexts. Here, it means the god of plague.
He remembered clearly that the pagan with whom he made the deal believed in the so-called god of plague. Now it seemed that there should be many such pagans, so it was no wonder that the Protectorate ordered a strict investigation.
But he was also thinking, since the "God of Plague" statue has "source energy", does it also exist on similar statues?
He felt that after he found his place to stay, it was necessary to try to understand this alien sect.
After walking out of the tall arched corridor door, there is a wider avenue outside.
He paused and looked over from where he was standing. Many buildings on the inner city platform were surrounded by wisteria trees and dozens of waterfalls, shrouded in a misty rainbow. They looked like a city in the sky.
Anyone who sees this beautiful scenery for the first time will probably have endless yearning for it.
Not far away, there were several barbarians waiting here to make a living. Seeing Zhang Yu standing still, they winked at each other, then walked over with smiles on their faces, and at the same time stretched out their hands to help.
As he was moving his luggage, some people were muttering to him asking if he needed to hire a carriage, and several women in bright clothes and heavy makeup tried to get closer.
Zhang Yu ignored them, glanced at them, and waved to the guard standing not far away. The latter immediately strode over. When the barbarians who came up saw this, they immediately dispersed.
Zhang Yu took out a Xia Jinyuan and handed it to the guard. After the latter took it, he blew a whistle. A moment later, a four-wheeled carriage with a carriage drove over amidst the brisk sound of horse hooves and stopped smoothly in front of him.
before.
Zhang Yu took a look and saw that they were two brown horses with smooth fur, strong limbs and high tails. They should be the Qianlu horses on the open plains downstream of the Dan River. They were indeed official carriage horses at the port.
He nodded and asked the groom to carry the luggage up, then grabbed the support and sat in the carriage.
The coachman asked: "Where are you going, young master?"
Zhang Yudao: "Go to the redemption office first."
When walking in the Dongting Protectorate, every time you go to a place, you have to exchange road stickers and pay road tax locally.
In addition to stating the poster's identity, age, place of origin, and whether he has a criminal record, the post must also include a red clay fingerprint and a brief description of his appearance.
This is what Shi Dongliang mentioned earlier about getting road stickers.
If he insists on recording Zhang Yu's experience of trading prohibited items and reports it after arriving in the capital, then this record will always exist on his road sticker and may become a stain in the future.
Of course, it is not mandatory to redeem road stickers. You don’t have to redeem them. But without this thing, you will have to pay more taxes for accommodation and travel, which will be inconvenient no matter where you go, and it will also attract attention. Protector
When the Sikou under the government usually investigates and investigates cases, the first thing they look for is this kind of person.
The driver was obviously very familiar with this kind of thing, and he said naturally: "It's right in front, Young Master, sit tight."
The redemption office is located at the end of Harbor Avenue, right next to the Customs and Excise Department. The entire building is made of white ashlar, with a dome-shaped roof above it and the cicada-winged flag of the Governor's Office hanging high, making it easy to spot.
When the carriage arrived, the square in front of the door was already filled with all kinds of carriages and horses, and there was an endless stream of people coming and going.
There are thirty-six corridors here that are responsible for redemption, and they are surrounded by a circle with the dome as the center. The Anren officials inside, wearing blue cloth tight-sleeved shirts, are very efficient in searching for files, comparing, asking, and signing.
, stamping, collecting money, and exchanging stickers all in one go. Although there were many people coming and going, Zhang Yu got the road sticker quickly.
When he returned to the carriage, he thought thoughtfully. From the time he got off the boat to now, most of the officials and officials he had seen were Anren with yellow eyes and thin eyebrows.
These An people were the first batch of indigenous people to integrate after Tianxia established the Protectorate here. But who would have thought that just a hundred years ago, the An people were still active in the wilderness, only gathering and hunting barbarians.
At that time, the An people were full of parasites and were deformed and ugly. Due to the custom of inbreeding, most people suffered from serious genetic diseases. Nowadays, most of them are tall, red-faced, knowledgeable about etiquette and literature, and are different from ordinary Tianxia people.
There seems to be no difference.
In fact, they are now Tianxia people with Anren blood.
But he also knew that the An people were in their current position only because of their great efforts in that battle sixty years ago.
At this time, he heard the coachman asking where to go next, and he said: "Go to the Literary and Arts Academy under the Xuezheng Yamen."
The new method can only be taught in Taiyang Academy, and entering the Academy is the first step, but not everyone is qualified to enter this place.
First of all, you must be from Tianxia. Secondly, you must pass the local selection examination of the Protectorate before the age of sixteen. Finally, you must have a famous person as a guarantor. Then there will be a place to draw up a document with your specific information on it.
After the record is confirmed and printed by the Protectorate, it will be divided into two copies. One will be kept by you and the other will be stored in the Cultural Academy.
As for the Taiyang Academy, they did not interfere in this matter. Because in the past, the Duhufu would first remove the talents they needed, and then hand over the rest to the Academy. It is said that this was to prevent all officials from being corrupted.
are the same.
Because Zhang Yu came into this world with a mature memory, he had his own way of learning. He first passed the traditional gentleman examination when he was twelve years old, and then passed the selection examination in the same year.
Originally, he was preparing to go to Taiyang Academy, but at this time, his adoptive father felt that he was still young and incapable of protecting himself, so he invited the old cultivation teacher for him.
In the next five years, he followed this man to learn the art of breathing and breathing for the first two years. In the next three years, he has been traveling and practicing, so he has never been able to truly make the journey.
Fortunately, as long as the student has passed the selection examination and is under eighteen years old, the book will be sealed and kept for you. Now he only needs to take it out and he can go to Taiyang Academy to study.
The carriage got back on the road with the urging of the horsewhip, and he opened the newspapers one by one and started reading.
After all, it is a newspaper from the capital city, and its content is much richer than that of local newspapers. After reading it for a while, he gained a lot of useful things.
Through these newspapers, he also noticed that the personnel changes in the capital seemed to have become somewhat frequent recently, and these happened before the scholar's meeting. Anyone who has a little knowledge of the situation in the capital will know that this is not a good thing.
But then he flipped through a tabloid, which actually said that the recent changes in positions in the Protectorate were because many officials were assassinated in Ruiguang City. His heart moved, and he flipped through it again, and found that there was only one article in the newspaper.
It seems that he was squeezed in easily.
He thought for a while, folded the newspaper a few times, put it in the pocket of his cloak and hid it, then picked up the remaining newspapers and read through them.
"Huh?"
It didn't take long for him to see a message in a remote corner, and he thought to himself: "It seems that this tribe has really come to the Protectorate..."
Just as he was about to take a closer look, the coachman's voice suddenly came from outside, saying: "Young Master, we're here."
So fast?
Zhang Yu was a little surprised. According to his understanding, the Wenxiu Academy should be within the city walls, not far from the inner city, but at this moment it seemed to be near the port.
But that was five years ago, and there should have been changes in the past five years.
He got off the carriage and looked around, and found that the environment here was relatively remote, or quiet. Under the shade of a few cypress trees was a courtyard with an obvious Tianxia style, and the houses had hard-mounted roofs.
, red lacquered pillars and beams, with volcanic walls on both sides, but it looks a bit worn out.
He took off his hat, walked through the door, and entered the vestibule. He found that the place was unusually deserted, and no one came to greet him. He walked up the moss-covered stone steps into the main hall.
After the long case, there was a middle-aged civil servant with a long beard sitting on a rosewood armchair, holding a book and reading. When he heard someone coming in, he didn't look up and asked casually: "What's the matter?"
Zhang Yu clasped his hands together and said: "Writing an article, students will come and get the album sealed here."
"oh?"
The clerk raised his head, and when he saw Zhang Yu, he felt slightly absent-minded for a moment. He coughed, stood up, and spoke a little more politely, "Please also give me the name post and the copy of the book, young master."
.”
Zhang Yu took these two things out of his cloak pocket and handed them over. After the clerk took them, he said "Wait a moment" and walked leisurely to the back hall.
After a long time, the clerk came out with a strange expression. He placed the supplementary album and the name card on the plain case and said: "Zhang Shaolang, please take these back. Your album is not here."
Zhang Yu looked at him and said, "Not here?"
The clerk sighed and said, "He's gone, do you understand?"
At this time, Zhang Yu saw the clerk looking at him with a trace of pity in his eyes. His thoughts changed and he immediately realized that his manuscript... had been misappropriated!
