Refuse to trample on the pride of heaven

Chapter 197 Meeting a Scholar

"It's okay. I still have some."

Wu Feipeng still gave those old men a piece of dry biscuit and went back to tell everyone what happened.

Lu Wensheng: "This is Su Shui? Isn't that perfect? ​​There are scholars in this team who left their hometown to join the Zhitong Society." What luck!

Among these scholars, the leader was called Zheng Qiao, also with the courtesy name Yuyong, from Tongqu. He was wearing a blue shirt that was washed so much that it looked bleached. It could be said that all of them were wearing thin, faded clothes, and most of them were so thin that they looked like they could be blown away by a gust of wind.

However, even though their hair was tangled because they couldn't wash it, it was made as neat as possible, and their eyes were extremely bright.

This is a group of young people who are enduring hunger but are extremely rich in spirit.

Lu Wensheng noticed them because he sensed a conflict within the refugee group, so he went over to take a look. Liu Jiqian didn't want to ride a horse, and Yang Ming was afraid that he would not ride with him, so what was the point of him riding alone?

But Lu Wensheng praised Liu Jiqian's appearance and asked him to support the event - after all, how could someone who looked so noble be walking down there?

Seeing Lu Wensheng leave, Liu Jiqian, who had been unable to sit still, dismounted and followed behind.

There were few elderly people, women and children in this refugee group. In the eyes of those starving people, they were no different from lambs to be slaughtered.

Those women who had no male descendants to protect them brought their children and huddled together with these kind-hearted scholars. However, these powerless scholars still had nothing to worry about in the eyes of those who were ready to make a move.

In the early days, scholars were not only familiar with the classics, but also had good physical fitness. Not to mention the wealthy ones who could learn the six arts of a gentleman, even those from poor families who often did farm work had good physical fitness. Moreover, considering the form of the exam, it would not be good if you were not in good health, as you would not be able to endure for several days, so those weak scholars were a minority.

However, with several reforms of the imperial examination system and social stability, the emperors at that time no longer attached importance to the six arts examinations and began to focus on literary skills. Most of the scholars who came later gave up training in other aspects, so that most of the scholars today are weak, especially those from wealthy families. This situation is most obvious.

These people were not in the same power unit as the hard-working farmers, so when faced with the eager eyes, most of these guys were still very young, they were actually a little frightened, but the women and children were still tightly protected in the circle.

They were able to stay among the refugees for such a long time. They were not the kind of people whose brains were ruined by reading so much that they could not argue with a group of starving ghosts with a lot of big principles. They moved closer without making a sound. The leading few had practiced and were equipped with swords. This was the confidence of these people.

They were in a stalemate and were being stared at with covetous eyes. Those people also pooled together their dry food and shared it with everyone, which made them feel like they were sitting on the throne.

The stalemate between the two sides was broken by the intrusion of Lu Wensheng and his men. The refugees, who had just had greedy and calculating looks on their faces, immediately withdrew their gazes and shrank in place, not daring to offend in the slightest. These scholars looked at the people coming over, became a little wary, and subconsciously straightened their bodies.

"You all have extraordinary bearings, but are you a scholar?"

Looking at Lu Wensheng, they felt that he had no ill intentions, so these people responded one after another. Finally, their eyes were fixed on the man holding the sword in the front. It seemed that that man had more say among them.

"My name is Zheng Qiao, with the courtesy name Yuyong, and I'm from Tongqu." The man stepped forward and saluted.

Lu Wensheng responded: "Lu Wensheng, my name is Yangming."

Zheng Qiao paused, looked at Lu Wensheng strangely, but said nothing.

"Are you guys going to Sushui to find the Zhitonghui?"

In the current court situation, it is a big deal for scholars to have anything to do with the Zhitong Society. Even those suspected of being involved will be sent to jail. It is said that countless people have been arrested in the capital, both real and fake. The Zhitong Society has become a taboo word, but it is okay in other places. They are just not allowed to be mentioned openly.

Zheng Qiao subconsciously kept silent, and the other scholars behind him were also quiet for a moment. Lu Wensheng wondered if he had done something wrong, but he saw that their faces had softened a lot.

"It's to Soshui."

They were going to Su Shui but they didn't dare to mention Zhitonghui. It seemed that it was taboo. Lu Wensheng understood and made a gesture of invitation, but they looked at each other and didn't move.

"It's a bit inconvenient here." Zheng Qiao looked at the women and children who were like frightened birds, and his meaning was very clear.

"No problem, let's go together, we still have some food there."

Zheng Qiao couldn't believe it, and when he came to his senses, he quickly thanked him - now was not the time to be polite, the most important thing was to stay alive.

"You can ask them to sit somewhere closer." Liu Jiqian said as he looked at the people who were approaching restrainedly.

Zheng Qiao and the others then noticed that there was someone not far behind Lu Wensheng. Their eyes moved to the other person's face, their breathing stagnated, and they quickly lowered their heads, not daring to look again. They felt as if they were afraid of disturbing the people in heaven, and they bowed and thanked him one after another.

The disciples performed their roles conscientiously and served them hot tea made with the water-gathering technique and spiritual fire. They remained calm in the face of their astonished looks.

The women and children simply built a fire. Yan Qingshu and the others talked to them and gave them some food, but it was just enough to fill their stomachs. The women then led their children to kneel down, but fortunately they were all helped up.

It gets dark early in winter, so the team lit a bonfire in advance. No one tried to drive away the refugees who cautiously surrounded them. Lu Wensheng asked the scholars to come to the front of the carriage and chat and ask some questions.

"It's not easy for you to run so far."

"Fortunately, everyone huddled together for warmth and helped each other, which was considered to be finding joy in the midst of hardship."

Lu Wensheng and his colleagues' gentle attitude made these young people relax a lot. They felt comfortable and started talking more.

"Thanks to you guys for helping me, Yangming. Otherwise, those people would not be able to sit still and argue for a long time. I'm afraid we would suffer a lot of losses."

"It's just a little effort."

Tang He leaned beside them, a little curious: "What do they like about you?" They had clearly finished their dry food in front of them, so why were they still staring at them?

"We look easy to control because we have meat on our bodies." The voice replied in a muffled voice.

"They're mainly targeting women and children, thinking it tastes better...those guys have crossed the bottom line."

Tang He thought of the guess and stopped talking immediately, feeling goosebumps all over.

Zheng Qiao sighed: "Those people are ridiculous. They want to eat people, but they are afraid of being eaten by others. So they look at everyone with deep suspicion and covet others."

Someone responded, "Yes, he did this but he couldn't let anyone know. Everyone knows it."

(Brief introduction to the six arts of a gentleman: the six arts are etiquette (moral and etiquette norms), music (music and dance during various ceremonies), archery (archery), charioteering (driving), calligraphy (writing), and mathematics (calculation).)

(You can save the rest and watch them together, it will be smoother)