frightfiction Chapter 618 A Special Physique Worthy of Analyzing
Chapter 618 A Special Physique Worthy of Analyzing
The righteous are often butchers, while the ungrateful are often scholars.
Scholars and officials have always been full of talk about benevolence and morality, but their hearts are full of wickedness and debauchery. They talk about justice but their hearts are full of business. Naturally, they flock to the Marquis of Shence when they can benefit from him.
Not only that, through this incident they were surprised to discover that Marquis Shence had a certain degree of self-discipline and dedication to public service, and an idealistic spirit of sacrificing his own interests for the benefit of the court. What more could they say? They had to cherish Marquis Shence and squeeze every last drop of value out of him.
In light of this, this group of self-interested scholar-officials decisively broke their previous agreement with Yuan Hui, abandoned the debate among various schools of thought, and agreed with the views of Guan Xing, a pragmatist Confucianist.
Marquis Shence, you should hurry up and start a school. Don't waste your time on endless arguments and debates between different schools of thought.
Although Yuan Hui was wicked, he wasn't stupid. Seeing that he had been abandoned by everyone and was isolated, he had no choice but to give up and silently retreat back to the ranks.
Seeing that the matter was settled, Liu Bei decisively ended the argument, stroking his beard and smiling, "Since that's the case, there's no need to argue anymore. Marquis Shence, continue running the school and build school buildings as soon as possible to cultivate the talents needed by the court."
"Alright, everyone disperse. It's the fifteenth of the twelfth lunar month. My beloved ministers, go back and have a good New Year. Next year, let's work together as the emperor and his ministers to strive to accumulate enough funds for the Northern Expedition and march north to unify the world."
Today is the last grand court assembly of the 26th year of Jian'an. After the assembly, we will have a holiday. After arranging our work, we can go home to celebrate the New Year.
The officials bowed and took their leave. In the instant he turned around, Guan Xing cast a provocative glance at Yuan Hui, thinking, "You little punk, you're still a bit short of the skill to fight me."
Yuan Hui looked up at the sky and pretended not to see it, but secretly he was determined to go back and immediately send men to Wushang to dig up Guan Xing's corner.
I'll dig you to death!
Other officials also had the same idea of undermining Guan Xing's work. They had no choice but to work on it because they were short of skilled craftsmen. Without undermining Guan Xing, they couldn't even begin their projects.
Not only Guan Xing, but recently even Sun Luban's textile factory has lost many employees, which has made Sun Luban so angry that he wants to fight to the death.
Guan Xing, after leaving the palace, did not go home. Instead, he took Zhang Bao and Jiang Wei to the county government office to see Zhang Jing's miserable state.
Zhang Gongcao drank so much last night, he's probably dehydrated by now, right?
Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Jiang Ziya walked briskly towards the county government office, arm in arm, humming a tune. They were ready to witness Zhang Jing's utter exhaustion. However, upon entering, they were astonished to find Zhang Jing with a rosy complexion and no signs of illness. He was even enjoying his millet porridge with pickled vegetables. The three of them were so shocked that their jaws dropped to the ground.
After a long moment of astonishment, Guan Xing asked in surprise, "You don't have diarrhea?"
Zhang Jing grinned and said, "No, I don't have a headache either. I feel the same as yesterday. By the way, Marquis Shence, your wine isn't very good either. How come you almost drank yourself to death?"
"Holy crap..." Guan Xing was stunned and asked Dong Feng, who was sitting next to him reading a book, "Dr. Dong, what's going on?"
Cheng Li went to court in the morning, while Dong Feng, who held no official position, did not go but stayed to continue observing Zhang Jing's situation.
Guan Xing nearly killed himself by drinking only beer for the first time, while Zhang Jing mixed beer and sorghum liquor, which theoretically could be life-threatening. That's why Dong Feng didn't dare leave, but who would have thought...
Dong Feng, equally puzzled, said, "This kid hasn't had a bowel movement since he woke up. Your wine doesn't seem to be working on him at all."
Even Zhang Bao and Jiang Wei were taken aback. Thinking about the scene of them living in the outhouse after drinking, and then looking at Zhang Jing's calm expression while eating, they couldn't help but feel jealous.
Guan Xing gritted his teeth and said, "I didn't realize that Zhang Gongcao had a special physique. Doctor Dong, this is excellent research material. I suggest we cut open his abdomen to see how his internal organs differ from those of ordinary people."
Zhang Jing was so startled that he choked on his millet porridge. After coughing several times, he said, "Marquis Shence, you can't do this. You can't torture me like this just because you're jealous. We have to be reasonable."
He wouldn't have paid any attention to these words under normal circumstances, but it was different with the legendary physician Dong Feng present.
The great doctors of the Han Dynasty were a bunch of crazy lunatics. Take Hua Tuo for example, he actually dared to perform brain surgery on the late emperor (Cao Cao). If Hua Tuo was so crazy, Dong Feng must have been the same. If he had such an idea, he would really dare to dissect him. Didn't you see how Dong Feng's eyes were shining?
The thought of being disassembled into parts and examined closely sent a chill down Zhang Jing's spine.
If I were to be dismembered, I'd rather slit my own throat; at least I'd leave with a complete corpse.
Seeing Zhang Jing's fearful expression, Guan Xing finally felt a bit relieved and laughed, "Don't worry, His Majesty has already issued an edict to exile you and your subordinates to Linyi. You can get out of here after the New Year."
The journey to Linyi requires a sea route. Although Fu Shiren has not returned, he presented a detailed nautical chart of the route to Linyi when he returned last time. This means that coastal fleets can now travel to Linyi on their own without needing Fu Shiren to lead the way.
Moreover, as shipyards are built one after another, more and more ships will be launched into the sea in the future. It is impossible for all of these ships to remain in the military. Some of them will definitely flow into the civilian population. The civilian population will not let the ships rot in the port. They will definitely take to the seas to conquer the ocean. The Han Dynasty has never lacked adventurers who like to seek thrills.
In other words, the future ocean will see Fu Shih-jen paving the way, with others following behind to conduct business, navigate, and experience different cultures, thereby gradually discovering overseas islands and encroaching on the South China Sea and even further afield.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Jing remained silent for a moment, then rose and bowed towards the palace, saying, "I admire Liu Huangshu's benevolence and righteousness."
Given his status and past actions, he would have certainly been killed if he had fallen into the hands of Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, or others, but Liu Bei only exiled him—a huge difference indeed.
Although being exiled to Linyi is a bit remote, it's better than dying, right? Who would want to die if they could live?
Guan Xing glanced at Zhang Jing's statement on the bedside table and asked, "Your attitude is quite mild. Did you not intend to beat me up after seeing that statement?"
Zhang Jing was thoroughly tricked by Guan Xing last night, so he should have been furious. But in reality, Zhang Jing was calm as if he didn't care at all. Is he really that good-natured?
Zhang Jing glanced at the confession and said, "Given Marquis Shence's methods, it's not surprising that he got the information I wanted from me. I have nothing to complain about losing to you; I accepted my fate the moment I fell into your hands."
Guan Xing: "..."
Isn't it because you have such a big heart and such stable emotions?
Zhang Jing continued, "If Marquis Shence feels guilty towards me, then teach me cooking. If I want to eat hot pot again when we get to Linyi, I'll have to cook it myself."
Guan Xing gave a thumbs up and said speechlessly, "I'm impressed. Don't worry, I will definitely teach you everything I know before you leave, as long as you are willing to learn."
Guan Xing was quite taken aback by Zhang Jing's unusual physique and open-minded attitude, so he did not stay long and quickly took his leave.
Once outside the county government office, Zhang Bao finally couldn't help but complain, "Why is it that he's fine after drinking beer? This is unfair!"