"The Crown Prince has been led astray by that demonic Daoist! This will ruin the foundations laid by our ancestors!"
Bang! The scholar seated opposite him slapped the table and snapped, "Who are you calling a demonic Daoist? The Imperial Preceptor offers counsel and remonstrance, never currying favor or seeking profit, with her whole heart devoted to the country. I'd say you're spreading rumors and attacking the Imperial Preceptor because your family's lands can no longer evade taxes, and you've lost the profits from fraudulent affiliation. So greedy for private gain that you forget the public good—your scholarly honors were not deserved either."
"Y-you're talking nonsense!" The other man instantly went red to the neck. "The realm is governed jointly by the scholar-gentry and His Majesty. Favoring the scholar-gentry was a national policy established by the Grand Ancestor High Emperor. Do you really think her actions benefit the common people? She is merely using this as an excuse to amass wealth. I fear that before this money even reaches the treasury, it will vanish without a trace."
He cried out urgently, "You and I are both learned men. By looking to history to judge the present, can't you see it? The common people are short-sighted—surely you aren't blind to this as well?"
"I can see it. I can only see that people like you are unwilling to surrender the benefits you have already gained, and are competing with the common people and the nation for profit!"
"You!"
The restaurant erupted into clamor. Each side had its supporters, yet the group loudly cheering for the Imperial Preceptor was unexpectedly larger.
Only then did Pan Yun lift her head from her bowl. After glancing downstairs, she said, "If the reforms in Henan succeed and the new policies spread, victory is certain."
Xue