The Happy Life of Small Officials in Northern Song Dynasty

"It's you again." Cao Min saw Su Jin standing there with the steaming hot soup at a glance, so he didn't make a fuss and came to school for two days. After losing face in front of the main courtyard, the roommate was frightened at night and even shouted that there was a ghost, so he couldn't bear peace See if he doesn't know the sky is high and the earth is thick.

"Hello, Mr. Cao." Su Jin put down the wooden spoon and saluted.

"What are you making a fuss about? Has the nocturnal wandering syndrome in broad daylight also occurred?" Cao Min said lightly.

"Reporting to Mr. Cao's students is not a nocturnal excursion, but to seek justice for themselves."

"Oh? Why is it unfair? Let's hear it." Cao Min stared at Su Jin with his black eyebrows twitching.

"Sir Cao's students would like to ask if there is any family background limit for scholars in Yingtianfu Academy."

"Hmm... Do I still have to answer this question for you? You are not a relative of the emperor or a descendant of an official. Doesn't it mean something to be in this academy?"

Su Jin smiled slightly and said: "Master Cao means that all the students in my academy are treated equally. The students are surprised why the meals are different. This is not a self-slap in the face. How can we treat everyone equally?"

Cao Min laughed out loud, and when the laughter stopped, his tone became gloomy and he said: "Su Jin, I think you are not old enough to manage a lot of affairs. This academy is an official school, and you will be promoted to the Imperial Academy within three years. By then, you will be a child of officials Scholars who have the priority to enter the book civilian status can't even touch you by the door, so it's time to catch up, otherwise you won't even have the chance to stand here and talk to the official. I'm grateful to Dade for trying to fight for your ridiculous non-discriminatory advice. What do you eat for a sentence, the food that comes here is not so delicious."

When Su Jin heard that his words were wrong, he actually had a kind of air of suppressing the small, and instead of giving a positive solution, he did his best to sarcasm and insult him, and immediately slammed into him: "Master Cao's words really have their own merits. It doesn't matter if Yingtian Academy is an official school. What does the government school have to do with us? Even if it becomes a government school tomorrow, it will be a matter of tomorrow. If it has not been changed for a day, we must uphold the principle of equal treatment and do what the adults say, so why allow ordinary people like me to enroll?"

Cao Min said: "Is it possible for me to explain the whole story to you in detail? I heard that you hurt people this time and came to settle accounts with you, not to listen to your long-winded words."

Su Jindao: "Your Excellency can guess the whole story without telling me, it's nothing more than those shady things."

Cao Min's complexion changed drastically, pointing at Su Jin, he said: "Young people should be more careful when they speak, and their words will be inappropriate, but I will not blame you for talking too much, after all, you are young, and there is still a difference in experience. This time you use hot soup. The scalds of the splashed people will still be with the two classmates, I think you should apologize and ask Doctor to help them treat them."

Su Jin smiled and said: "The students didn't say anything about Mr. Cao, it's not worth it to teach the students. As for the matter of apologizing to those two people, it is absolutely impossible for them to act fiercely before me. I am a powerless scholar who has no choice but to defend himself. There is no point in apologizing to them."

Cao Min's good temper and patience finally ran out and he sneered: "Then don't blame the half-officials for not giving you favors. Today you blatantly caused trouble in my academy and scalded two people. How can the academy keep you? The lecturer hereby gives an order Expelling you from Yingtian Academy, if you want to make trouble, go outside to make trouble outside. How can you be so rebellious and unruly in the Holy Land of the Academy?"

Su Jin said without showing any sign of weakness: "I know it's the result, I don't mind staying in this bird academy where black and white are so indistinguishable, I don't want to stay for a moment; this time I will definitely leave the academy I will disclose everything in Yingtian Academy to the public. I have a teacher-student relationship with Master Bao in Duanzhou. He is the first to tell; Is there anyone in charge of this academy?"

Cao Min was stunned and said suspiciously: "You mean Master Yan Shuyan and Master Bao Zheng and Bao Bao? What are you talking about, how do you know them?"

Su Jin laughed secretly in his belly that this method of pulling tiger skins to make a big banner really worked. In the officialdom, it really is that the official rank crushes people to death. When he heard that the official rank was higher than himself, he immediately softened his tone.

"You don't need to report to Mr. Cao how you know it. If you don't believe me, you can go to the admission office to see if the person who guarantors you is Mr. Bao; if you don't speculate, it's too much to say. Since you are expelled from the academy, there is nothing to say. This is my farewell." Su Jingong cupped his hands and squeezed out of the crowd.

Cao Min hurriedly said: "Wait a minute!"

Su Jin stopped and turned around, "What's your order?"

Cao Min twitched his beard and kept turning his mind, thinking about the truth and falsehood of what Su Jin said. The two people mentioned by Su Jin were really vague. Bao Zheng was notoriously stupid. The reputation of being nosy is spread all over the Song Dynasty. The fact that Bao Zheng was among Su Jin's guarantors should not be false, because it can be found out that Su Jin is no matter how stupid he is, he would not lie about it.

But just because Bao Zheng knew it was not enough to scare Cao Min back. Although Bao Zheng is the magistrate, Cao Min, the lecturer, is directly under the Ministry of Rites. Although he is only an official of the fifth rank, he is also a Beijing official and a non-local official. Even if he is a few ranks older, he is polite when we meet. The reason is very simple. You can't beat it because this mouse is very likely to attract a man-eating worm.

What Cao Min is worried about is that the other person is the third envoy that Su Jin said in his mouth. Master Yan is a little suspicious that Su Jin is bragging, but this kind of thing is still credible; ri said that the book has already been revised, and Master Yan will come to the academy to give lectures for a day. Based on the relationship between Chief Qi Shan and Master Yan, this matter will definitely come true. In case what Su Jin said is true, the day Master Yan comes is the day when Cao Min lost his black yarn. child.

What Cao Min was more worried about was that Su Jin threatened to revise the book and tell Yan Shu about the affairs of the academy. I knew that Cao Min made a lot of money in the academy. It is the money allocated to the academy by the imperial court every year. This amount is originally used for the daily expenses of the academy, and Cao Min racked his brains to withhold and withhold it. In order not to let people see, he thought of a lot of ideas and tried his best to cover it up.

For example, the student’s food is regulated by the imperial court, which is [-] yuan per person per day for food. Hundreds of people’s food expenses are gathered together, and nearly [-] yuan per day is enough for the students to eat fish, shrimp and broth; In order to keep the money, Cao Min directly cut off half of the money, so the food money is naturally scarce, so Cao Min came up with such a bad idea to let the children of officials and eunuchs enjoy ten meals, and nearly [-]% of the other scholars were from poor or ordinary backgrounds. So I can only eat pickles that are rotten and maggots from meat slices as thin as paper.

Cao Min has an insight into people's hearts, and he knows that the meals of the officials' children must not be deducted. In case some official master who can't be offended starts to be cruel, he will suffer; but the common people's children don't come together to eat free meals, so naturally they dare not complain even if there are people Complaining about Cao Min is not afraid, so it caused this situation of eating separately.

Officials' children naturally don't bother to think about these unfair things, because in their view, this is the embodiment of superiority, which satisfies their vanity in their bones, while poor family scholars are just as Cao Min expected, dare to be angry and dare not speak out. The poor, on the contrary, are grateful for the free food, and they are so peaceful, but there has been no trouble for more than a year; if Su Jin doesn't make trouble today, I'm afraid no one will ever come forward in this matter.

After thinking about it, Cao Min thinks that he can't take any risks. It's better to stabilize Su Jin first. When Master Yan Shu is giving a lecture, he inquires about the relationship between the two.

After making up his mind, Cao Min immediately changed his face and said with a smile: "Why don't you go and borrow a word?"

Su Jin said: "Is there anything that can't be made public? I'm still hungry. The fish is not allowed to eat, but I don't like to eat those maggots and flies, so I have to quickly respond to Tianfu and find a restaurant to spend some money to fill my stomach."

Cao Min's face was embarrassing, and he secretly scolded Su Jin for being ignorant of flattery, but he had no choice but to walk into Su Jin's side and whisper a few words in Su Jin's ear in an inaudible voice.

Su Jin frowned after listening to Cao Min's words, turned his head to look at Cao Min, and suddenly burst into laughter. All the students were shocked when they saw Su Jin's presumptuous appearance, especially those old students who had studied in the academy for a long time. In my impression, I have never seen a student who dared to be so unrestrained and ignored Cao Min.