The Three Spirit Stones

Chapter 132 Yenching College

In the north of Yanjing City, a huge college rose from the ground. This was Cheng's Yenching College.

Of the more than 800 students who graduated from Bian Jing before, half of them are now working and teaching in this college.

In addition to the children of staff at the wool factory and Xiongzhou Supermarket business district, the students they teach also include children of Liao people.

It has always been the practice of the college to recruit children of Cheng's employees. The parents of the current teaching staff are all old workers of Cheng's Industry.

But they also recruited children of Liao people, which made people doubt Lord Cheng's decision.

Because in the Song Dynasty, Cheng's Industrial College did not recruit children other than those of the workers, so many people in the Song Dynasty wanted to send their children to the Industrial College but were unable to do so.

Why did the Liao people have this privilege?

Because of Cheng Yu's decision, many doubts arose in the Song Dynasty, and some people even published articles questioning it in the court newspaper.

As soon as the article was published, many scholars and officials expressed their opinions, and even the governors of various places followed suit and expressed their opinions in the official newspaper.

These people's opinions were more negative than positive, and some even explicitly accused Cheng Yu of being a traitor.

The incident became more and more serious. Many scholars and officials with a good reputation for integrity united to write a letter to Emperor Zhenzong of Song, asking him to order a thorough investigation of the issues behind Marquis Zhongyong's actions and to ask Cheng Yu to give a reasonable explanation.

……

In the Purple Palace, all the officials stood in solemn silence.

The eunuch on duty shouted loudly,

"Summon the loyal and brave Marquis to the palace~"

Cheng Yu, dressed in purple official uniform, slowly walked into the hall.

Today, he is here to give an explanation.

Everything that happens today will be immediately published in the court gazette and made public.

"I pay my respects to Your Majesty,"

Cheng Yu knelt down before Zhao Heng to perform the ritual of monarch and subject.

"My dear, please stand up."

"Today, I summoned you to see me because the ministers in the palace hope that you can give an explanation for the admission of Liao people's children to school. I hope you can understand."

Zhao Heng quickly distanced himself from the matter. He didn't want Cheng Yu to misunderstand that he was the one who was in charge of this matter.

"I understand. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I will answer them all."

"it is good,"

Zhao Heng smiled and nodded.

The first to come out was the Imperial Censor Zhang Xian.

Zhang Xian was a stern and upright man. Although he knew that Cheng Yu had a reputation as an evil star and was wealthy and powerful, he was never afraid of power and was not afraid of possible persecution.

"Your Majesty, I would like to ask the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery, has your Cheng family obtained the right to run an industrial college in the Imperial Academy?"

Cheng Yu was stunned for a moment.

He originally thought that Zhang Xian would ask him why he allowed the children of Liao people to go to school, but he still answered truthfully, "No."

"The original intention of setting up the school was simply because there were too many children of workers in the factory area, and it didn't seem appropriate to ask them to send their children away,"

"So we built a place to gather these children for education."

"It just so happens that my wife has nothing to do, so I just asked her to teach these children to read."

After listening to this, Zhang Xian nodded and praised.

"I have to say that the loyal and brave Marquis has good intentions."

"Thank you, Imperial Censor Zhang,"

"So how many students are there in your college now?"

"Each grade has 800 students, a total of 12 grades,"

"That means more than 9,000 people?"

"right,"

When everyone in the hall heard this, they couldn't help but take a deep breath.

Chengshi Industrial College currently has more than 9,000 students, and will continue to recruit new students in the future.

These students have been educated by Cheng for nearly ten years, and they must be loyal to Cheng Yu.

That’s nearly 10,000 people!

Moreover, they are not ordinary people, but educated and organized young people.

If they put on armor and took up weapons, they could become an army. If they took part in the imperial examinations, they could form a faction within the court.

Cheng Yu seemed to see through their thoughts, and sighed helplessly, "Zhang Yushi, please understand."

"In addition to learning to read and write, the most important thing for the students in the academy is to learn knowledge in mathematics and physics. In the future, they will be selected to work in our Cheng family. They will not take the imperial examinations, nor will they become officials."

"Because our Cheng's industry needs educated people, the older generation of workers can't read a single word and are not qualified for many jobs,"

"The purpose of establishing this college is to provide a career path for the children of workers and also for the future development of Cheng's industry. There is no other purpose,"

The court officials were dissatisfied after hearing this.

I thought, these are all in your hands, and it is up to you to decide whether to have it or not.

Zhang Xian smiled and said, "My Lord, we judge by deeds rather than intentions."

"No matter what you think in your heart, outsiders don't know, but you should be aware that it is a crime to possess a treasure. To exaggerate a little, you now control nearly half of the economic lifeline of the Song Dynasty."

"In addition, your academy has so many young talents. They are not ordinary people. They have been favored by your Cheng family for nearly ten years. It can be said that they only follow your lead."

"To put it bluntly, even if you let them rebel against you, maybe... hey, you said you have no other intentions? Do you think anyone would believe you?"

In fact, everyone knew this, but only the old censor Zhang Xian dared to tell Cheng Yu.

Zhao Heng, who was sitting at the top, immediately said in a conciliatory tone, "Mr. Zhang, you are too kind. I believe Mr. Cheng is a loyal and courageous person."

"Yes,"

"Thank you, Your Majesty,"

Zhang Xian and Cheng Yu bowed to Zhao Heng at the same time.

"Then I wonder what Censor Zhang has to say?"

Cheng Yu bowed to Zhang Xian sincerely and asked for advice.

The court officials were a little surprised when they saw this.

Aren't you angry when being falsely accused of rebellion?

This is the most taboo thing for a minister.

Especially Huang Qinruo and others, they don’t believe that Cheng Yu is so easy to talk to, they are waiting for him to use his big move.

Zhang Xian went on to say, "All dynasties have attached great importance to the selection of talents, and this dynasty will be no exception."

"Your Cheng Academy is full of talented people. I know that the Marquis did not allow them to participate in the imperial examination in order to avoid suspicion, but has the Marquis ever thought about it?"

"Among these people, perhaps some are suitable to be craftsmen, some are suitable to do research, and some are suitable to become officials?"

"If those who are suitable for officialdom are not allowed to enter the government, it will undoubtedly be a loss to the court and the people."

After hearing this, Cheng Yu nodded and said, "What Censor Zhang said makes a lot of sense. As the saying goes, people should be put to good use and things should be put to good use. It seems that I need to think about whether to let the academy offer courses for imperial examinations."

Upon hearing this, the court officials looked at each other in bewilderment, not knowing what Zhang Xian was up to.

Zhang Xian smiled and nodded, saying, "In fact, private schools are not unique in the Song Dynasty, but the scale is relatively small. The court has always been encouraging private schools."

"Private schools must obtain a certificate of qualification from the Imperial College. Teachers can be sent by the Imperial College or hired privately. As for teaching materials and other materials, they must be provided by the Imperial College."

"Because if you want to take the imperial examination, you must pass the examination according to the process of the provincial examination, the provincial examination, and the metropolitan examination,"

"As far as I know, your Cheng Academy does not have these conditions."

When the court officials heard this, some of the smart ones had already guessed Zhang Xian's intention.

Cheng Yu has always had Cheng's industry firmly in his hands, like an iron barrel, and it is impossible for outsiders to infiltrate.

Zhang Xian proposed that the Industrial College should offer courses for the imperial examinations, but the teaching materials or teachers should be provided by the court.

In addition to learning the original knowledge system, these students will also learn Confucian culture, concepts such as heaven, earth, emperor, parents and teachers.

Once these concepts are implanted in the students' minds, they will no longer regard Cheng Yu as the only one who matters.

This has to be said to be a breakthrough!

But will Cheng Yu agree?

He was not like other aristocratic families in the Song Dynasty, who no matter how prominent they were, had to be more or less dependent on the imperial court.

Cheng's Industry was a completely independent industrial empire. Its tentacles had penetrated into most industries in the Song Dynasty, and countless people depended on it for survival.

It is not a family.

It is a huge capital system!

In fact, the people in the court had realized this before but could do nothing about it.

Throughout the dynasties, the end of a dominant family is often tragic, because the emperor will try every means to suppress these people.

Listing charges, executing the entire family, and killing nine generations of the clan are all common methods.

But these methods could not be used against Cheng Yu.

First of all, he had an "immortal" background, which Zhao Heng was very wary of.

Secondly, Cheng's industry touches too many industries in the Song Dynasty, and if it goes wrong, it may even undermine the foundation of the Song Dynasty.

In the end, his martial arts skills were so profound that hundreds of warriors could die in his hands.

Let me ask you, who can touch such a person?

Therefore, the court headed by the emperor has always been trying to win over Cheng Yu.