Chapter 634: The Beginning of Primary School

Chapter 634: The Beginning of Primary School

Chapter 634: The Beginning of Primary School
Wenxing Academy officially opened its doors, with the protagonist of course being the Crown Prince Yang Chu. In addition, ten children of similar age were selected from among the children of high-ranking officials to study together.

A total of eleven children aged five or six formed a small class and began their elementary education career.

Xiao Xia specially invited two teachers and two assistants. The teachers were Xu Wenyuan and Yu Shinan. Xu Wenyuan taught the children to read in the morning, and Yu Shinan taught calligraphy in the afternoon.

This was also the suggestion of Xu Wenyuan's elder brother Xu Wenlin, who founded the largest private school in Jiangnan, Chongwenguan, and had 20 years of experience in running elementary schools.

He suggested opening a kindergarten class so that children can study together. Having companions to study and play with is beneficial to the children's physical and mental health.

Xiao Xia readily accepted Xu Wenlin's suggestion and established Wenxing Academy, appointing a manager to be responsible for the children's daily life. The children studied together during the day and went home after school in the afternoon.

At the same time, Yu Shinan also expressed his willingness to teach the children calligraphy, so Xiao Xia hired Yu Shinan as a calligraphy professor at Wenxing Academy.

That morning, Xiao Xia came to Jiwenguan, which was the largest library in the whole of Jiangnan. It covered an area of ​​one hundred acres and consisted of more than a dozen buildings. It was only one mile away from Xiao Xia's Jin Palace. It housed hundreds of thousands of books, calligraphy and paintings, etc. Dozens of doctors of literature lived and worked in Jiwenguan.

Wenxingyuan is located in Jiwenguan, covering an area of ​​about three acres, with a lawn, a pond and a library. As soon as Xiao Xia walked into the yard, he heard the sound of reading.

"If the king knows this, he will not expect his people to be more numerous than those of neighboring states. If the farming season is not violated, there will be an inexhaustible supply of grain. If the nets are not used in ponds, there will be an inexhaustible supply of fish and turtles. If the axes are used in the mountains and forests at the right time, there will be an inexhaustible supply of wood. If there is an inexhaustible supply of grain and fish and turtles, and an inexhaustible supply of wood, then the people will live and die without regrets. Living and dying without regrets is the beginning of the kingly way."

They are reading Mencius. Xiao Xia was a little surprised. It's only been more than a month since the class started, and they're already reading Mencius?
Xu Wenyuan, who was accompanying Xiao Xia, stroked his beard and smiled, "These children are all geniuses. Before they even started reading, they already knew several thousand words, and some knew more than a thousand. On the first day of the test, they could all recite the Thousand Character Classic word for word. The prince could even recite the Analects and the Book of Songs, and he said his mother taught him."

Xiao Xia was also a little ashamed and said, "I only knew that the princess taught the prince to read and write, but I didn't expect that he could actually recite the Analects and the Book of Songs. This is the first time I've heard of this. As a father, I'm ashamed!"

Xu Wenyuan laughed and said, "Your Highness has a photographic memory and is extremely intelligent. I am not concerned about his studies, but his physical and mental growth. When I taught the King of Han, he was already fifteen years old, and I found that he was also extremely talented, but his personality was extremely arrogant.

Later, I gradually learned that the King of Han basically grew up alone, had no friends, and no one listened to him. He had been very lonely and depressed since childhood. The previous emperor paid too much attention to his studies and neglected his physical and mental health.

I asked Dou Wei, Yang Xuangan and Li Mi to study with him, but it was too late. The King of Han had already formed his character and thoughts, and it was difficult to change them. I didn't want the Crown Prince to follow in his footsteps."

Xiao Xia nodded, "Sir, you are right. I also hope that my child can grow up healthily like other children, have friends, and have a happy childhood. If you need to live in the school, I can consider it."

Xu Wenyuan smiled and said, "They don't need to live in the school for now. After all, they are still young. They can start living in the school after they turn twelve."

Xiao Xia walked out of the window and saw eleven young children sitting in the room, shaking their heads and reciting. There was a book on the small table in front of each of them, which should be "Mencius". A young teaching assistant was pacing back and forth in the classroom.

Xiao Xia saw his son Yang Chu at a glance. He was sitting with Li Min's son Li An. Li An was also Li Min's son, but he was adopted by his brother Li Yuan when he was very young. After Li Min's other son Li Hua was assassinated three years ago, Li Min was deeply hurt. Li Yuan sent Li An back, which slightly eased the pain of Li Min and his wife.

Li An and Yang Chu were the same age and had similar personalities, so they became good friends.

It makes sense to let children recite while shaking their heads. Children are naughty by nature and find it difficult for them to sit still for long periods of time. Letting them recite while shaking their heads can also release their excess energy.

"Your Highness, do you want to say a few words?" Xu Wenyuan asked in a low voice.

Xiao Xia shook his head, "Let them study hard!"

Xiao Xia then left Wenxing Court and returned to the General Manager's Mansion. As soon as Xiao Xia sat down, Lu Miao said at the door: "Your Highness, Judge Zhang wants to see you!"

Xiao Xia nodded, "Please let him in!"

After a moment, Zhang Liang, the judge of the Intelligence Department, walked in quickly. Starting this year, Xiao Xia had greatly strengthened the two departments of intelligence and security, upgrading the Intelligence Bureau to the Intelligence Department, which was managed by Zhang Liang. It collected intelligence from most counties in the world, and even intelligence from the border areas. There were more than a thousand intelligence personnel of various types, and nearly three hundred stores for cover, that is, three hundred intelligence points.

This is Zhang Liang's ability. In just two years, he established a complete intelligence network. Every day, a large amount of intelligence came from all over the place in various ways, and then it was summarized and organized.

"Your Highness, the results of the investigation of the six counties in Jianghuai have been released. From what we can see so far, except for Zhongli County, the counties are basically doing well. Very few have been bribed. Our salt shops have not been burned down, and the Jianghuai salt shops have not been sold openly, but they are still sold secretly, mainly pickled vegetables and fish. The most serious problem is in Zhongli County. Three of our salt shops in the counties were burned down. The Jianghuai salt shops are openly sold, and basically everyone from top to bottom has been bribed.

In particular, Zhang Tai, the governor of Zhongli County, was extremely bad. He dismissed officials who adhered to principles for various reasons, and promoted officials who were of the same kind as him. Therefore, Zhongli County became Du Fuwei's base camp for invading Jianghuai.

Xiao Xia nodded and said, "The emperor has issued an order to return the six Jianghuai counties to us. We will take drastic measures to crack down on officials who are colluding with the bandits, but I need to have solid evidence and notify the investigation team to collect as much evidence as possible that these officials are colluding with the bandits and the fake dynasty."

"I understand the humble position!"

Zhang Liang bowed and left in a hurry.

Xiao Xia pondered for a moment, then ordered, "Please ask Liu Lingtai to come see me."

Lingtai is the abbreviation of Shangshu Xingtai Ling. Except for the military, criminal law supervision, intelligence department, and security and internal guard department, all other affairs are under the jurisdiction of Shangshu Xingtai.

Not long after, Liu Wenjing hurried in, bowed and said, "Greetings, Your Highness!"

"When does the Xingtai plan to move to Jiangdu County?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, the government office is still being cleaned up and it will probably be finished by next month. The new government residence will also be almost finished. It will take another month to clean up and it will be finished by next month."

Xiao Xia nodded and asked, "Is the guesthouse ready?"

"It's ready. I will arrange for the officials from Chang'an to come. Your Highness, please don't worry."

"Well, I won't be responsible for the placement of these officials. I will meet with some officials, mainly Yuan Min. Bring him to see me immediately!"

"I humbly obey my orders!"

Xiao Xia thought for a moment and said, "There is one more thing. Yu Shiji's son Yu Rou will serve as the second-level staff member of the Secretariat. He will change his name to Yu Rou. He will report directly to the Ministry of Personnel. You should ask the Ministry of Personnel to recruit him normally, arrange accommodation for him, and appoint him as a servant of the Prince of Jin's Palace."

The Sheren in Prince Jin's Mansion were the previous record-keeping officers. There were six of them in total, divided into two groups. They were in charge of various documents for Prince Jin and could be considered trusted civil servants.

Yu Shiji gave up 60,000 taels of silver and the position of Yuyao County Magistrate, and would rather let his son be his second-level aide. It was obvious that he wanted to join him, so Yu Rou was accepted as his confidant, which was a way to win over Yu Shiji.

Liu Wenjing nodded, "I understand. If there is nothing else, I will take my leave first!"

Xiao Xia smiled and said, "Go ahead!"

Liu Wenjing bowed and left in a hurry.

(End of this chapter)