Put on a High-Class Act! Young Master Shen's Wisdom Reached the Heavens

Mother-in-Law released Jin MuCong and said, "For Lang'er's sake, I'll spare you today. If you dare show even the slightest disrespect toward your brother-in-law, I'll skin you alive."

As she left, she could not help sighing to herself. If this son of hers had even half of Shen Lang's quick wit and intelligence, that would have been wonderful.

"Brother-in-law, great kindness needs no words of thanks. I, Jin MuCong, will remember the mercy you showed by not killing me today." Jin MuCong patted his fat chest and said, "If you ever need help with anything, just say the word. I'm the most loyal guy there is."

Shen Lang said, "Then tell me, who encouraged you to come beat me up?"

Jin MuCong shrank back, shaking his head. "No, no. I absolutely won't be a traitor. Beat me to death and I still won't say it. The most important thing in life is loyalty."

Looking at this unlucky child, Shen Lang finally understood why Father-in-law and Mother-in-Law always had the urge to beat their own son.

If he had produced such a foolish son himself, he would not have been able to resist beating him two or three times a day to vent his anger either.

Still, Shen Lang did not ask again.

Though the Young Lord's loyalty was foolish, it was still a fine virtue.

He was loyal to that person now, and one day, he would be loyal to Shen Lang too.

When the time came, if there was any blame to shoulder, it would be perfect to let him carry it.

So Shen Lang absolutely could not break this traditional virtue of his.

At once, Shen Lang raised a thumb and said, "The Young Lord is indeed loyal enough to blot out the heavens. Shen Lang admires you."

The Young Lord slapped his chest. "You'll know once you spend time with me. I'm absolutely a true friend."

After this fat fellow lingered in Shen Lang's study for a while longer, he began yawning one after another and went back to sleep.

Shen Lang, meanwhile, shut every door.

Then he took out a bag of black rye, some of it already moldy, and carefully scraped off the ergot fungus bit by bit.

Anyone who understood what it was would have shuddered, wondering who Shen Lang intended to harm with this thing now.

Shen Lang was preparing for a rainy day. At a crucial moment, it could turn the tide of heaven and earth.

Early the next morning, Shen Lang got up, but MuLan still had not returned.

His wife's military duties were truly too demanding.

Xiao Bing was still the one attending to Shen Lang as he washed and dressed.

Shen Lang recalled something. Yesterday, when Young Lord Jin MuCong had come to beat him, he had shouted that Shen Lang had bullied Xiao Bing, which was why he had come to beat him up.

So Shen Lang pretended to ask casually, "Xiao Bing, did you cry yesterday?"

Xiao Bing froze. "No. Why would I cry?"

After breakfast, Jin Zhong, Earl's trusted confidant, appeared before Shen Lang.

This man seemed as if he would never smile. Still, his gaze toward Shen Lang had softened considerably, no longer like Shen Lang owed him a thousand gold coins.

"The master ordered that Young Master Shen attend lessons with the Young Lord, so that he does not neglect his studies."

With that, Jin Zhong left.

Study?

Give me a break, all right? I, Shen Lang, am already loaded with learning enough for five carts. Do I still need to study? But Father-in-Law was still in the middle of his anger, so it was best not to provoke him. Shen Lang would just go for two or three days and put on an act.

Besides, it would be a good chance to sound out Young Lord Jin MuCong.

Just who was so hostile toward him that they had urged the Young Lord to beat him up?...

Earl's Manor had its own Academy, with more than a hundred students in total.

The class that accompanied Young Lord Jin MuCong had more than a dozen students, the youngest fifteen and the oldest twenty. They were all considered peers of Shen Lang and Jin MuCong.

The moment Shen Lang entered, the entire classroom became lively.

More than a dozen pairs of eyes fixed on Shen Lang, with hostility and jealousy completely undisguised.

The reason was simple: Shen Lang had married Jin MuLan. Of course, one could also say he had married into her family.

MuLan was the dream lover of every boy, from the age of eight to twenty-eight.

After exchanging glances, the dozen or so youths were about to surround him.

Young people's thoughts were simple and brutal. Beat him up! "What are you doing?" Young Lord Jin MuCong came to Shen Lang's side, threw an arm around his shoulders, and said, "This is my brother-in-law. Show him some respect from now on, or I'll beat him up."

Then he waved his thick, sturdy fist.

It seemed Jin MuCong held some tyrannical sway within the Academy. After all, he was the Young Lord of Earl's Manor. The dozen youths all retreated, though their gazes at Shen Lang remained full of provocation.

This was probably the otherworld version of "Don't leave after school."

"Shen Lang, I'm loyal, aren't I?" The Young Lord of Earl's Manor patted his thick chest again and said, "Sit beside me. I guarantee no one will dare touch you."

A moment later, the teacher arrived. He was an Old Master with half his beard and hair turned white, terribly thin, likely weighing no more than eighty pounds.

Everyone called him Old Master Lin.

He was not only the Young Lord's teacher, but also one of Earl's trusted advisers. His learning was extraordinarily profound.

Today's lesson was on the "I Ching."

This was a great ancient philosophical work of China, encompassing heaven, earth, and all human affairs.

The more one studied the "I Ching," the more one realized how shallow one's own knowledge was.

Thus, Shen Lang listened with great interest, while everyone else had long since had their souls fly beyond the clouds.

Clearly, the knowledge contained in the I Ching was far too dry and dull for them.

After lecturing for more than half an hour, the Old Master suddenly said, "There is actually a new student today?"

Shen Lang was speechless. You only noticed now?

"So pretty. What a pity you are a man," the Old Master said.

Shen Lang was even more speechless. You're so old, yet you're not at all proper.

"You are Shen Lang, the one who studied at Hanshui Town Academy for ten years without even finishing his elementary education, only to be sent home?" the Old Master asked. "A few of us teachers privately said that you are probably the shame of Xuanwu City's scholars."

Shen Lang narrowed his eyes. Was this old gentleman trying to provoke him? "Have you studied the I Ching before?" the Old Master asked.

Shen Lang said, "I know a little."

With an appraising look, the Old Master asked, "'Heaven moves with vigor; thus the gentleman strives ceaselessly for self-improvement.' What does it mean?"

Shen Lang said, "The Way of Heaven moves in endless cycles and never ceases; no one can stop it. A gentleman should emulate the Way of Heaven, stand on his own, strengthen himself, and strive without end."

The Old Master asked again, "'The arrogant dragon will have regrets; fullness cannot endure.' What does it mean?"

Shen Lang said, "A dragon that flies too high will surely regret it, because when things reach an extreme, they reverse. One should not pursue perfection too obsessively in all things, but leave behind a trace of imperfection."

His interpretation was entirely correct, without the slightest error.

The Old Master was somewhat astonished. Was this the legendary idiot who had neither learned nor skill? The rumors were truly absurd.

But merely knowing how to interpret it was nothing. The key was to comprehend it, then apply it to reality.

That was true wisdom. Simply memorizing dead texts was useless.

Then he would pose a difficult question and test this pretty young man properly.

The Old Master asked, "The New Policy is currently blazing like a prairie fire. Old and new powers are changing hands, and many old noble houses have lost their fiefs and military authority. If you were to choose one line from the I Ching to explain the essence of this great event and advise Earl, which line would you choose?"

This question was difficult, yet not difficult.

The I Ching was truly a magical book. One could find within it a line for nearly any current event or state of affairs.

Whether from two thousand years ago or two thousand years later.

But to be truly precise, and to strike at the essence of this New Policy, was difficult.

The line commonly used was, "The arrogant dragon will have regrets; fullness cannot endure."

Even Old Master Lin often used that line to describe the New Policy.

But that line had already been discussed.

Shen Lang thought for a moment and quickly came up with a line.

Only this philosophical saying could explain the current state of Yue Kingdom's New Policy more deeply, peeling back layer after layer to reveal its most central truth and essence.

The Old Master said, "It is all right if you cannot think of one. This question was inherently too difficult and profound."

Shen Lang said, "What goes forth returns; such is the boundary of Heaven and Earth."

The Old Master was stunned at first, his eyes revealing disbelief.

"Good, good!"

Then the Old Master slammed his palm against the desk.

He was exceptionally excited. Walking up to Shen Lang, he said, "The rumors are utter nonsense. This is an idiot? It is all the mediocre who envy the worthy and able. Young Master Shen is incomparably intelligent and wise."

"Your words cut deep to the bone. I can scarcely believe they came from the mouth of a young man. I could not even think of this line to advise Earl," the Old Master continued. "Yet after hearing you say it, I know there is no second line more fitting to describe Earl's Manor's present situation, or the present state of Yue Kingdom's New Policy."

"Good, good..." The Old Master clapped his hands. "A child this intelligent truly should not be in this classroom."

The Old Master continued praising him for several full minutes.

The other dozen or so people in the classroom were utterly bewildered and began whispering among themselves.

"What are they even talking about? Why can't I understand a single word?"

"Who knows!"

"What did Shen Lang's line mean?"

"What line did Shen Lang even say?"

"Old Master has never praised anyone like this before. Has he gone mad?"

"He must have gone mad, and he's a madman who likes pretty boys too."

Yet the Old Master was not exaggerating.

With this line from the I Ching, Shen Lang had struck directly at the core essence of Yue Kingdom's New Policy.

What goes forth returns; such is the boundary of Heaven and Earth.

What did this line mean? Among all phenomena between Heaven and Earth, whatever goes out must return. People bend and stretch, expand and contract; the positive and negative sides of things often transform into one another.

Judging from the annotation alone, Shen Lang saying this line did not seem particularly remarkable.

Yet this line was not directed at Earl, but at Yue Kingdom's Monarch.

Your Majesty the Monarch, you are carrying out the New Policy like a raging fire, constantly stripping old noble houses of their fiefs and military authority, gathering all power into your own hands.

But every matter has two sides.

Do not forget that though Yue Kingdom is powerful, it is still only a vassal state of the Great Yan Dynasty.

Today, you strip the old noble houses within your kingdom of their fiefs and authority, but how do you know that one day the Emperor of Great Yan will not strip you Monarchs of your authority? The hunter of today may become the prey of tomorrow. By doing this, are you not spinning a cocoon around yourself?

Therefore, Your Majesty the Monarch, do not take things to the absolute extreme! Shen Lang's words truly struck at the essence of the New Policy, utterly brilliant! That was why the Old Master admired them so intensely.