Literary Star Stirring: Six-Top Talent

On the road, Yang Yuhuan asked expectantly, "Xiao Yun, once we have time in the future, shall we often come out for walks like this?"

"Ying ying! Ying ying!" Nunu looked at Fang Yun too, her eyes glittering brightly.

"All right." Fang Yun agreed readily.

Yang Yuhuan smiled happily, and all the flower lanterns lining the streets turned dim and colorless.

As they wandered along, Yang Yuhuan was accustomed to frugality and spent very little. Fang Yun had to practically force her to buy some rouge and cosmetics.

Nunu was different. Whenever she saw anything edible, she would tug at Fang Yun's clothes with one little paw, then point at the food with the other and cry ying ying. She ate all along the way, and even after she was full, she still did not rest. Whenever she spotted some new food, she would let out a soft sigh.

The three of them made their way home beneath the night sky. Since it was the end of the month, the moon was very dim, while stars carpeted the heavens.

Whenever Fang Yun saw this world's starry sky, he felt curious, because so much of it differed from what he knew.

There was also a North Star here, but it was not the brightest star. The brightest was the Literary Star.

Even on nights of the full moon, the Literary Star remained clearly visible.

The Literary Star of this world possessed inconceivable power.

Seeing Fang Yun looking at the Literary Star, Yang Yuhuan said, "Xiao Yun, you're so talented. If you become a Grand Academician, you'll surely make the Literary Star Stir."

"How could Literary Star Stirring be so easy? Only becoming a Half-Sage would inevitably trigger it. Those who could make the Literary Star Stir while still Great Scholars were, according to the records, no more than Tao Yuanming, Sima Qian, Dong Zhongshu, the leaders of the Hundred Schools, and some of Sage Kong's disciples. As for those who caused Literary Star Stirring as Grand Academicians, there were only those few Second Saints," Fang Yun said.

"I heard that Yi Zhishi, the foremost Great Scholar today and one of the previous generation's Four Great Talents, triggered Literary Star Stirring when he became a Grand Academician?"

"Oh, he has not yet received Saint Enfeoffment—I forgot about him. He is a madman. He said that when he receives Saint Enfeoffment, the Literary Star Light would surely shine upon his body. Yet among all the Saints, only King Wen of Zhou and Confucius received the Literary Star Light upon their bodies. None of the other Second Saints had that phenomenon. Still, this Yi Zhishi truly is legendary. He walked a hundred thousand li on foot and slew nine thousand demons. He is the Great Scholar in the Ten Kingdoms most likely to receive Saint Enfeoffment in recent years. It is said that the Yi Family and the Wu Kingdom are already preparing for it."

"In a few more decades, Xiao Yun will surely receive Saint Enfeoffment too!" Yang Yuhuan encouraged Fang Yun.

"If I can pass as an Academy Student this year, perhaps I may have hope of Saint Enfeoffment," Fang Yun said.

"Ah? Didn't you say you merely wanted to see the Prefectural Examination for yourself? Why must you pass as an Academy Student now?" Yang Yuhuan asked.

"I changed my mind."

After meeting Registrar Zhou and learning that Liu Zizhi was using the Left Prime Minister's power in the capital to suppress him, Fang Yun had made up his mind. In two months, he absolutely had to pass as an Academy Student and master War on Paper. Only by becoming an Academy Student could he shed the state of being powerless enough that he could not bind a chicken, and gain the strength to protect himself.

However, Fang Yun could not tell Yang Yuhuan the truth. He did not want her to worry.

Yang Yuhuan beamed. "You have such great talent that you will surely pass as an Academy Student. Perhaps you might even take first place and become a Maocai."

"One Case First will be enough. Maocai is much harder." Fang Yun smiled and shook his head.

Emperor Guangwu of Han was named Liu Xiu. To avoid his personal name, "Academy Student" had been changed to "Maocai" at the time, before later being changed back.

Academy Students in the Han Dynasty were far fewer than in later generations, and their status was higher as well. Later, Wang Xizhi took first place among Academy Students, and a Great Scholar called him "the Maocai of Great Han." Once the matter spread, Saint Origin Continent began calling the top Academy Student a Maocai.

"Xiao Yun, don't lose heart! Not only must you strive for Maocai, you must strive for Jieyuan, Huiyuan, and Zhuangyuan too, becoming the legendary Five-Top Talent. If you can even take National Chief, then you'll be the one and only Six-Top Talent since ancient times, your strength surpassing the Four Great Talents of every generation!" Yang Yuhuan grew more and more excited as she spoke.

Nunu in Fang Yun's arms became excited as well, crying ying ying without pause as though cheering him on.

Fang Yun smiled helplessly. "Forget Six-Top Talent, and even Five-Top Talent. Just winning the Triple Laureate alone is incomparably difficult. Over two hundred years in the Ten Kingdoms, there have been only five people who achieved the Triple Laureate, and even they did not necessarily receive Saint Enfeoffment in the end."

"I believe Xiao Yun can definitely do it!" Yang Yuhuan's gaze was incomparably firm.

Fang Yun could not help laughing. Yang Yuhuan now had utterly blind faith in him.

"All right. I'll do my utmost." Fang Yun did not wish to dampen Yang Yuhuan's enthusiasm.

Nunu immediately clapped her little paws and laughed, as though Fang Yun were about to become a Six-Top Talent at once.

After returning home, Fang Yun did not immediately go to sleep. He continued studying diligently and practicing calligraphy.

He was now closely studying the classics of Confucius and all the Second Saints. They were required examination material, and they contained the ultimate principles of the Sacred Way, unlike anything else.

He then broadly read the works of other Half-Sages and materials on the Sacred Way, not seeking full understanding for now, only familiarity.

Finally, he practiced calligraphy. His calligraphy practice proceeded in two steps: first copying Liu Gongquan's copybooks, then transcribing and revising novels or elementary learning texts.

The Three Character Classic was only fifteen hundred characters long and would soon be finished. Thus, Fang Yun decided to copy out the most famous elementary learning works one by one, including The Jade Forest of Young Learners, Expanded Worthies, and Yan Family Instructions, which had blazed the trail for family precepts.

Yan Family Instructions was praised as "the ancestor of all family precepts, ancient and modern." It recorded Yan Zhitui's learning, experiences, and thoughts, intending to admonish his descendants, hence its name.

Yan Zhitui, the author of Yan Family Instructions, held neither high office nor prominent rank. He was not a man of statecraft, and at first was not even famous. Yet because of Yan Family Instructions, his name endured through history and his fragrance lingered for generations.

However, Yan Family Instructions had to be written last, since writing it required far too much life experience.

After pondering for a moment, Fang Yun decided to compile Expanded Worthies and The Jade Forest of Young Learners first. As the saying went, read Expanded Worthies and learn to speak; read The Jade Forest of Young Learners and travel the world. They possessed extremely high practical value for Child Scholars, and later generations had continually supplemented them, making them the essence of elementary learning.

The next day, Fang Yun did everything as usual. After eating, he read an essay aloud in the morning, then took a carriage to the Fang Clan School.

It was the first lesson at the Fang Clan School. Accompanied by the students' clear, ringing voices of recitation, Fang Yun entered the instructors' room.

A harsh scraping of tables and chairs against the floor rang out. Every teacher in the instructors' room stood up, reacting even faster than when the headmaster, Fang Jingtang, entered.

"Case First Fang is here?"

"Good morning, Case First Fang."

"You look well today."

The licentiate teachers were unusually polite and enthusiastic, yet Fang Yun could see that they both envied and feared him.

Fang Yun knew yesterday's events had spread. Smiling, he cupped his hands and said, "Good morning, colleagues." As he spoke, his gaze swept over Lu Yingnian's former spot. It was completely empty now, without even a table or chair.

The teachers stood there awkwardly, and no one dared sit down.

"I too find Lu Yingnian's matter deeply regrettable. But since the Academy Lord has given the order, I cannot say much more. I hope none of you will be affected by this matter, much less allow it to delay your teaching." After speaking, Fang Yun sat down.

"Yes, yes."

"Of course."

"Lu Yingnian got what he deserved."

"Case First Fang, you truly are broad-minded and magnanimous. If it were me, I would have been cursing at the top of my lungs long ago."

Fang Yun smiled faintly but said nothing. A mere Academy Student was not worth his curses.

Before long, the second lesson was about to begin. Fang Yun took the original manuscript of his Three Character Classic and headed toward Class A.

The teachers secretly breathed sighs of relief and discussed the matter in low voices.

"As expected of a Double-A Honor Case First. Such bearing, such breadth of heart—truly rare."

"This is genuinely strange. How could Academy Student Lu have been foolish to such a degree? Fang Yun can even speak with Lord Swordbrow."

"Before this matter, which of us knew Fang Yun could reach the sky with his hands? I heard people discussing it yesterday. Academy Student Lu was not the fool; the problem was that Second Madam. Apparently, she knew the Liu Household was going to suppress Fang Yun, so she wanted to take advantage of the opportunity. Who knew she would stretch her hand onto Lord Li's desk? Wasn't that courting death?"

"With Uncle Fang protecting him, I refuse to believe the Liu Household can do anything to Fang Yun! We of the Fang Clan School cannot let the household of a treacherous prime minister bully us!"

"Right! If the Liu Household ever dares harm Fang Yun, we'll join with people from the other clan schools and academies to petition before the provincial yamen. This realm belongs to the Saints, not the Liu Household!"

"Just so!"

When Fang Yun entered Class A, it was not yet a quarter past seven, but every student was already sitting obediently on a stool.

The moment Fang Yun reached the lectern, a student asked, "Teacher, will there be rewards today too?"

"There will." Fang Yun answered casually, then discovered that every student's expression had changed. They were like little tigers stalking prey, full of fighting spirit.

"Wonderful! My father said that if I don't receive a poem from Teacher within a month, he'll paddle me! Classmates, could you show a little courtesy today?" one child said.

"Courtesy? You might avoid a paddling, but my father will beat my backside to pieces! Hmph, blame someone's parents if you must. They only received Teacher's Spring Dawn, yet they made a great fanfare of holding a banquet. My father came home drunk, dragged me out from under my covers, and berated me. He said if I don't receive a poem from Teacher, he won't acknowledge me as his son."

"Stop blaming my parents! We'll see the real thing in class!"

"Fine, let's see it! You think I'm afraid of you? You only got lucky once. Can you get everything right every time?"

Thus, children who knew one another helped each other, while those with poor relations naturally traded barbs. Still, it was only bickering. No one dared lay hands on another or start cursing.

Any other teacher would have become angry, but Fang Yun merely smiled and said, "Today, I will give only one poem. From now on, there will be a small test every five days. The first-place student and the student who improves the most may receive a poem from me. To prevent anyone from pretending to be weak, the bottom three students on each test will not receive a poem on the next test no matter how well they do. And if I catch anyone doing this, don't expect to get a single character from me ever again. Also, I will soon take the Prefectural Examination. Once I pass as an Academy Student, I will come to the clan school less often. Opportunities are rare, so you must seize them."

The classroom fell silent as a graveyard, while flames burned in every child's eyes.

"Good. Now, everyone silently write out the Three Character Classic that I explained yesterday."

Aside from a few children who looked miserable, most students wrote with confidence already in their chests.

Afterward, Fang Yun checked their dictation. He praised a few, but did not criticize those who had made mistakes.

Fang Yun continued teaching the Three Character Classic. After class, he rewarded the student with the best writing, then returned to the instructors' room, only to find seven or eight people standing outside the door. Every one of them wore Academy Student robes, and Fang Yun had met two of them at the Ji County Licentiate Literary Assembly.