"That's right, the eldest grandson has been diligent and loves to read since he was a child, and he was fortunate to be admitted to Xixi Academy to study. But how can our Liu family sit on a mountain of gold and silver, but the identity of this businessman is repeatedly looked down upon, my grandson has been studying in Xixi Academy for seven or eight years, but there has never been a gentleman willing to accept him as an apprentice, and even when he took the Xiucai examination, he couldn't find five sponsors. Hey...... "Daming's requirements for businessmen are very demanding. Not only are the three generations of merchants eligible to take the meritorious examination, but also more than five sponsors must write a letter of sponsorship before they can participate in the college examination, and the sponsor must be a person of merit and fame, and at least one person must be a lifter.

"Hasn't Mr. Liu taken the hospital exam yet?" Lin Ruhai asked Liu Guanjie.

"It's good for Master Hou to call the student Guanjie! Back to Hou Ye's words, the student passed the Tongsheng exam five years ago, but he is still not eligible to participate in the college examination, so he is still a white ding! Liu Guanjie stood up and replied respectfully.

"Hmmm! You sit down and talk, you don't have to be so formal! ”

"Thank you, Master Hou!" Liu Guanjie saluted respectfully again before turning around and sitting under Liu Jinbao.

"Does Mrs. Liu want me to write a letter of sponsorship for Guanjie?" Lin Ruhai asked again.

Liu Jinbao glanced back at Liu Guanjie again, with full expectation in his eyes, Liu Guanjie suddenly stood up and walked to Lin Ruhai and knelt down and said: "Although the student is only shallow, but the heart of learning is not weaker than others, the student has admired Hou Ye's literary talent for a long time, and looks forward to getting Hou Ye's guidance." The student knew that he was stupid, but he still cheekily begged Hou Ye to accept the student as an apprentice! Students should take Hou Ye as an example, and dare not say that they are like Hou Ye, but as long as they can learn one or two points of Hou Ye's ability, students are already satisfied! ”

After Liu Guanjie's words were finished, Lin Ruhai did not speak immediately, but seriously looked at this somewhat thin and delicate young man. Liu Guanjie looks like he is twenty-four or five years old, perhaps because of his nervousness, his face is slightly pale, his appearance has the unique warmth of a Jiangnan man, his eyes are clear, and although he has his own small calculations, he is also very frank in front of others. He was dressed in a beautifully cut sky-blue cloud brocade robe, and an ordinary mahogany hairpin was inserted in his bun. It can be seen that although this young man grew up in the family of an upstart salt merchant, he is not very concerned about foreign things. The clothes should be made by the embroidery lady at home, and the mahogany hairpin is obviously his own preference, because the hairpin is carved with a big peng, and I think this young man also has ambitions in his heart.

When Lin Ruhai said those words, Lin Ruhai already understood the reason why their ancestors and grandchildren came to him. If Liu Guanjie had always been answered by Liu Jinbao, then Lin Ruhai would simply refuse them. However, Liu Guanjie finally mustered up the courage to put forward his idea.

"Guanjie, since you want to worship me as a teacher, then I have to ask you a few more words, and you answer truthfully!"

"Yes! Students must know everything, and they must have said everything! ”

"The first question is, you have a lot of assets in your family, why don't you spend money to hire someone to be a sponsor like other students?"

"Students grew up reading Confucius and Mencius, and although they were limited by their backgrounds and could not compete as fairly as other classmates, they did not bother to do these small actions. The parents at home also thought about spending money to hire a sponsor, but they were rejected by the students. Fortunately, my grandfather has always been very supportive of the students, and the students have been able to persist for so many years! ”

"Hmmm! The second question, if you have passed the Xiucai examination, have you ever thought about whether to continue to take the examination for the Juren Jinshi, or to stop and go home to inherit the family business? ”

"The students are not talented, but they have always had a dream in their hearts, that is, to be able to make the people of the world no longer have to worry about rice and grain. The students know that if they can help more people if they can be appointed as officials, but if they fail to be admitted to the Juren Jinshi, the students will not give up, and after the students inherit the family business in the future, they will also help the people, teach them the skills to survive, so that they can live a good life with their own hands. ”

"Last question, you have studied in Xixi Academy for so many years, and you must know a lot of great Confucians, even my senior brother, and your Dean Qin's knowledge is not below me, why do you have to worship me as a teacher?"

"Because Hou Ye's identity, status, and connections are all undesirable for students, students have the ambition of Dapeng in their chests, and they also want to find a famous teacher for themselves, a guide who can help students realize their dreams!"

Lin Ruhai picked up the tea bowl and drank a few sips of tea, pondered for a moment and said, "You are an aspiring young man, but you are too pedantic!" Let's take the sponsor as an example, if you don't have the ability to be admitted to Xiucai, it's okay, you have the ability, but you are imprisoned by the so-called gentleman's way. You must know that not everyone in this world is like you to uphold the way of a gentleman to behave and do things, if you can't get along with them, then even if you become an official in the future, you will soon become the target of others to crush, and you may end up without even bones and slag! You can't be too rigid in life and work, and you must be flexible in order to stand in the world. ”

"Does it mean that you have to see the wind and rudder to gain a foothold in officialdom?" Liu Guanjie frowned and asked.

"Not only to see the wind and steer the rudder, but also to learn to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, two sides and three swords! Because there are all kinds of people in officialdom, if you face those wicked people, how do you behave? Facing each other head-on is the stupidest way to do it, and it's likely to be a lose-lose situation. Fight evil with evil and save yourself to have a chance to realize those dreams of yours! ”

Liu Guanjie probably heard such a remark for the first time, and he was a little stunned, frowning and kneeling there after thinking for a long time without understanding.

"Guanjie! I will not admit what I have said to you today when you get off the boat. You go back and think about it, if you think about it, write a strategy, and when I go back to Yangzhou in the next year, you will come to me again! If you don't understand, I advise you to stop thinking about taking the imperial examination to gain fame as soon as possible, at your current level, you are at most a showman. Since you can't make any more progress, it's better to give up early and go back to help your grandfather do business. ”

"This ...... Master Hou! Is Guanjie really just a showman at most? His article has been praised even by Dean Qin in the academy! Liu Jinbao asked with some uneasiness.

"Yes! I'm pretty sure that if he goes to test for fame like this, he's just a showman at best. And he can't gain a foothold in officialdom at all with such a temperament! Officialdom is not just about whose articles are good and whose character is high! ”

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