Although he had met the emperor twice in succession at the Imperial College and the Xinglong Tea House, when the formal summons were conveyed to the house near the Imperial College specially set aside for the four summoned scholars, Yue Bufan, as the principal of Zhaoming Academy, still had to think carefully about how to respond. He went to bed early that night, fearing that he would not be in good spirits the next day.
The next morning, he got up early, washed up, and practiced Tai Chi in the yard, which was said to be the legacy of Emperor Taizu. When he was sure that he was refreshed, he went to have breakfast. The time for summoning him was after the morning court session, and a carriage would be sent to pick him up, so he was not worried about being late.
What made him most proud and relieved was that he arrived early, while the other three had not yet arrived in the capital, so he was the winner. Moreover, this huge place was only occupied by him and two students and two followers. It was spacious and quiet. When he walked out of the house in a new outfit, wearing a well-cut sky-blue Confucian shirt, he was immediately greeted by the two students who praised him.
Although he was no longer at the age to care about his appearance, Yue Shanchang knew that clothes make the man, and the first impression was particularly important. Even though it was not his first time to meet the emperor, he could not be careless. However, this mood, which was generally relaxed despite the importance, only lasted until he got on the carriage.
Because the carriage was not empty, but there was another strange middle-aged man sitting steadily in it!
Yue Shanzhang originally thought that it was a minor official who came to pick him up, or even a eunuch, but when he saw the other party sitting on the Diaoyutai, he felt that it was not the case. After sitting down with some doubt, he saw the guard of the Ruiqi Battalion who had just greeted him outside the carriage smiling and bowing to him.
"Originally, this car was specially sent to take you to the palace, but because the headmaster of Yuzhang Academy, Mr. Hong, had just arrived in the capital, the emperor learned about it and ordered to pick up Mr. Hong and bring him to the palace to meet you."
When he suddenly heard that the thin middle-aged man with a long beard and a stern face opposite him was actually the Principal Hong of Yuzhang Academy who wrote a letter to the emperor requesting that his eldest and second princes find concubines as soon as possible and also recommended his own virtuous daughter as a match for the eldest prince, Principal Yue's heart skipped a beat. His high spirits and composure at the beginning almost disappeared in an instant.
Fortunately, he was also a man who had seen many storms and waves. He tried his best to keep his expression and just nodded. When the curtain fell, he squinted his eyes and looked at the other person for a moment, then said with a smile: "I have heard of the great name of Hong Shanchang, but I didn't expect to meet him in this car by chance today. The time you arrived in Beijing is really just right."
Dean Hong seemed not to have heard the sarcasm in Dean Yue's words. His face remained unchanged as he said in an unusually cold tone, "I came here by boat. The canal transportation was very busy, so I had to stop and go. Naturally, I couldn't travel as fast as Dean Yue who took his students around the world. It's a pity that I couldn't arrive a few days earlier, so I didn't see Jiuzhang Hall recruiting new students, nor did I see the emperor personally visit Xinglong Tea House."
"Some systems in the world can be changed, while others cannot. Especially the two words of propriety and law, which have always been the pillars of a country. I think that Master Yue is also a great scholar with many students all over the world. He wouldn't not even understand this, right?"