RPAGF Chapter 209: Looking Up to See the Sun
Chapter 209: Looking Up to See the Sun
The boy was slightly taller than Prince Ming and Zhuang Xiaomeng, and his eyes were slightly upturned, making his expression look more arrogant.
Compared to the Ming prince, this boy's eyes were more confident. Speaking of confidence, it seemed that he was a little too confident, and turned into looking down on the world. Compared to Zhuang Xiaomeng, this boy was fairer and his skin was as tender as a peeled boiled egg.
If Zhuang Xiaomeng's first impression is cleverness as a compliment and mischievousness as a derogatory impression, then this boy's first impression is intelligence as a compliment and cunningness as a derogatory impression.
If Zhuang Xiaomeng is a little monkey and Prince Ming is a little rabbit, then this boy should be a little fox.
Without any introduction, from the moment he appeared outside the door, Ji Anni guessed that he was the eldest grandson Mingri.
No wonder Kang Fangting said he was an arrogant little brat. When I saw him today, it was true.
The two white-robed guides who called themselves "scholars" were at least ten years older than him, right? But his words just now were sharp and merciless, like a superior scolding a subordinate, and the two guides dared not say a word.
When Princess Tianning saw him appear, she hurriedly asked, "Little grandson, where is your father?"
Hua Rong went to invite Chang Sun Nan just now, but unexpectedly Chang Sun Nan did not come, but this little Chang Sun came uninvited.
Just as Chang Sun Mingri was about to answer, he heard two "coughs" behind him.
He looked back and stammered, "Dad... Dad..."
The person who came was Chang Sun Nan, followed by Hua Rong.
Zhang Sunnan was a little younger than Ji Anni had imagined, probably in his early forties. He had no beard, and his chin was very clean, which made him look a bit like a eunuch with his fair skin. He was wearing a white robe, similar in style to the guide, but with a layer of glittering gold edges on the collar and sleeves. The gold edges were quite similar in color to the dragon robe, and I wondered if it was a symbol of noble status.
After Chang Sunnan arrived, Princess Tianning, Kang Xiaorong, Concubine Kang, and Concubine An all stood up and saluted him. But Ji Anni was a stranger and didn't know the etiquette. After seeing everyone else stand up, she stood up half a beat later.
If it were any other time, Concubine An would have rolled her eyes at her again, but now everyone's attention was not on Ji Anni, because there were people who reacted even slower than Ji Anni - they were the two little brats, Prince Ming and Zhuang Xiaomeng.
Presumably, it was their first time meeting Chang Sun Nan, and they were so overwhelmed by his powerful aura that they just stared blankly.
"Everyone, sit down." Chang Sunnan said. His voice was deep and powerful. Although his voice was not loud, every word he uttered seemed to have a heavy weight. I wonder if this is what martial artists often call "deep internal strength."
In modern times, if he gave a lecture in a lecture hall that could hold 500 people, even without a microphone, he could produce the surround sound effect of a movie theater. It would be a waste for such a person not to be a teacher.
Ji Anni suddenly remembered that Tian Ning had just said that Wenhua Academy would hold public lectures, and even the emperor and the empress dowager would attend. It must be an unprecedented grand occasion with many people gathered. In this era without amplification equipment, Chang Sun Nan, who could hold such a large-scale lecture, must have long ago developed the extraordinary ability of a "human loudspeaker".
Since Chang Sun Nan asked everyone to sit down, of course everyone sat down.
Zhuang Xiaomeng and Prince Ming exchanged seats. Zhuang Xiaomeng sat on the left and Prince Ming sat in the middle.
At this time, the two guides in white had completed their mission. They seemed to be afraid of being held responsible for identifying the wrong prince, so they looked at Chang Sun Nan and questioned him. When they saw Chang Sun Nan nod, they lowered their heads and walked out, not daring to stay for a moment.
Seeing them leave like this, Chang Sun Mingri was not happy. He looked up and asked his father, "Dad, why did you let them go? Wasn't what I said just now wrong? They even admitted that Prince Ming was wrong, shouldn't they be punished?"
"If I'm going to punish you, I'll punish you first for speaking without restraint." Chang Sun Nan glared at Chang Sun Mingri fiercely.
"Why?" Chang Sun Mingri still didn't know where he was wrong.
Chang Sun Nan lowered his voice and rebuked, "What you said just now is reasonable, but that is the principle of the monarch and his subjects. Now the position of crown prince is on the line, and you, a yellow-toothed boy, keep calling the emperor and the monarch and his subjects, and you are making random comments on state affairs. It is really disrespectful!"
"Dad..." Chang Sun Mingri felt very aggrieved.
"Shut up and sit down." Chang Sun Nan pointed to the desk on the right side of Prince Ming with his eyes.
Seeing that his father was really angry, Chang Sun Mingri didn't dare to say anything more and sat in his seat sullenly.
Ji Anni stroked her chin like watching a play, and the more she watched, the more interesting it became. Recalling the poem written by the prodigy when the eldest grandson Mingri was five years old, it is not difficult to find that this little eldest grandson really has political ambitions. In his heart, it seems that he has already regarded the prince Ming as the crown prince.
However, his father, Zhang Sunnan, had ulterior motives in his words, emphasizing that the candidate for the crown prince has not yet been determined, and seemed to not quite acknowledge the identity of the Prince of Ming.
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After taking your seat, the entrance ceremony begins.
The so-called entrance ceremony was much simpler than the opening ceremony that Ji Anni had imagined. First, Chang Sun Nan briefly introduced the status and role of Wenhua Academy, as well as the courses that the three of them would study in the future. Then, Chang Sun Mingri, a junior who entered school a year earlier than Prince Ming and Zhuang Xiaomeng, distributed several textbooks to them.
Finally, Chang Sun Nan actually said that he wanted to test the three of them in writing poetry.
This is the eldest grandson's strong point, he immediately asked: "Dad, what is the topic?"
Chang Sunnan replied, "Everything you see can be a topic."
So the eldest grandson spread out a piece of white paper, without thinking, picked up the pen and dipped it in ink to write. After a while, a poem was written.
But Zhuang Xiaomeng and Prince Ming were worried and could not put pen to paper. They did not expect that Chang Sun Nan would pose such a difficult problem.
When Chang Sun Nan saw that Chang Sun Mingri had finished, he deliberately gave him a chance to show off and said, "Mingri, read what you wrote."
So the eldest grandson Mingri recited aloud: "Spring comes and flowers bloom early, and the rich fragrance fills the imperial city. All other flowers are inferior, but you alone are the most beautiful in the Hundred Flowers Garden."
In the poem, the poet compares himself to a flower, saying that his own flowers bloom early and are fragrant, while other flowers are defective and only he stands out.
This tone is really a bit overbearing, as if "when my flower blooms, all other flowers will die."
Chang Sun Mingri is probably the type of person who would be beaten up if he didn't have his father's support.
At this moment, Zhuang Xiaomeng seemed to be suddenly inspired by something and shouted loudly, "I know, I can do it too."
After that, he did not write down anything, but recited, "The little yellow flower in the corner is as pale as the soil. Whether it is a flower or soil, you will know it by smelling it."
Even if you are a queen of flowers with a strong fragrance, even if you are an inconspicuous little yellow flower, there will always be people who can smell its fragrance and know that it is a flower and not soil - this is obviously a challenge, deliberately destroying Chang Sun Mingri's prestige.
Ji Annie smiled secretly and thought: I didn't expect that Zhuang Xiaomeng was a little thoughtful. The four lines of poetry she said casually are actually similar to the ancient poem "I know it is not snow from afar, only the faint fragrance comes."
Chang Sunnan was not interested in the wine. He ignored Zhuang Xiaomeng and slowly walked to the side of Prince Ming and asked, "Prince Ming, have you finished writing?"
The tone sounded a little strange, as if he was certain that Prince Ming could not write a single word, with a hint of implicit sarcasm.
Unexpectedly, Prince Ming had already finished writing. He looked at Chang Sun Nan timidly, put down his pen and said, "Okay, it's done..."
Zhang Sunnan was a little surprised, and took a look at Prince Ming's work. With just one glance, his contemptuous look turned into surprise.
What did Prince Ming write? Everyone present looked at each other in bewilderment.
Princess Tianning raised her hand curiously and said, "Master Changsun, I want to see..."
Zhang Sunnan sneered and walked towards Ji Anni, saying as he walked, "I think this poem should be reviewed by Concubine Zhao."
After that, he handed the poem written by Prince Ming to Ji Anni.
Ji Anni took it doubtfully, looked down, and saw four sentences neatly written on it:
"The sun is three thousand miles away, but the court is just a stone's throw away. I look up to see tomorrow, but not my parents' faces."
The sun is three thousand miles away, but the imperial court is right beside me. I can clearly see the sun in the sky, but why can't I see my parents even if I look to the horizon? How come my parents, who are so close to me, are more out of reach than the sun three thousand miles away...