Ten days after Shen Yuan left, observant people would have noticed that many changes had recently occurred in the capital.
The first thing affected was the change in the court. Previously, the court had been debating the issue of cooperating with Chen Qing, but now almost everyone agreed. In particular, some sorcerer families have recently completely changed their tune and no longer pressured the court to send troops to Jiangnan.
The second change was in the market. Previously, as soon as goods from Jiangnan arrived in the capital, they were basically monopolized by major aristocratic families. Wine was monopolized by bloodline families, while tea and various Rune Stone were monopolized by sorcerer families and completely prohibited from entering the common people's market.
So most ordinary people have only heard of it, and almost no one has actually tasted the fine wines of Jiangnan, let alone been able to buy the legendary rune-inscribed jade that can cool off in the summer and keep you warm. Even the richest people can only watch longingly. But things are different these past two days.
Many astute wealthy businessmen noticed that goods from Jiangnan were flowing out of the market.
Although the best tea and wine were still monopolized, many exquisite items, such as precision clocks and magical Rune Stone, began to slowly emerge.
Especially Rune Stone, whether they are the most popular ice jade, warm jade, or Wind Jade that can make people fly, as long as anyone dares to secretly sell them to ordinary people, at most within three days, both the buyer and the seller will be purged by the aristocratic families, and there is basically no way they can escape.
The reason is clear to some insiders: once Rune Stone is activated, it will cause elemental fluctuations, which are easily detected by powerful families. Unless you buy it and don't use it, but if you spend such a high price to buy it and don't use it, isn't that just throwing money away?
This is why even some of the bolder smugglers didn't dare to sell their wares selfishly.
But recently, they have been sold, and in legitimate stores, all from major family businesses.
Of course, the prices were outrageously high. A piece of warm jade cost tens of thousands of taels of silver, while ice jade was even more expensive. Because it was summer, the price of ice jade had almost doubled that of warm jade.
However, the outrageous prices did not dampen the enthusiasm of the wealthy; almost every shipment was snapped up as soon as it was released!
Many people are wondering why, after being prohibited from selling them before, they are now being sold voluntarily.
What exactly are these powerful families up to?
The last strange phenomenon is hard to notice unless you pay close attention: all the major sorcerer families have recently been quietly hiring tutors at high prices. This is not unusual, since sorcerer families have always valued education and have hired many tutors in their households. But this time, the families seem to be more inclined to hire experts in miscellaneous subjects.
Those skilled in divination, astronomy, and even miscellaneous subjects like medicine, divination, and feng shui were being poached at high prices. Such people were already scarce, leading many aristocratic families to travel out of the capital to recruit them. This puzzled many scholars, who speculated that it was related to Jiangnan, but the specifics were unclear and didn't attract much attention.
But no one knew that this change would plunge the entire elite class into the same turmoil and upheaval as Jiangnan in the near future!
--
"Grandpa, have we found him yet?"
Inside the main hall, Shen Yan appeared rather anxious.
Shen Qingfeng shook his head slightly, a worried look on his face. "I've already sent people to inquire outside the capital, but I've heard that other aristocratic families have also sent many people there. I guess it will be very difficult to snatch them."
They were all too slow to react!
The array techniques left behind by Shen Yuan have extremely high requirements for divination and the study of things. This has caused the direct descendants of the clan to almost be unable to understand them, as if they were reading a book written in heaven. It was only because Shen Yan discovered this quickly that he realized it a few days ago. Like Shen Yu, many of the more talented descendants, because they had focused more on inheriting the techniques since childhood, were almost completely ignorant of divination!
Even the illegitimate sons who had studied miscellaneous subjects seriously due to their poor aptitude, because they spent most of their time managing household affairs, did not study divination in depth. They only learned it superficially, which meant that they could only understand the basic content of the first few chapters at most. As they progressed, they found it quite difficult to learn the later chapters.
Currently, the only ones in the entire Shen Family who can barely learn to walk are Shen Yan's youngest illegitimate daughter Shen Xue, and Shen Liang, the nine-year-old illegitimate son of the Laowu's family.
This situation wasn't unique to the Shen Family; almost all the aristocratic families in the capital had this problem. Once they realized it, all the families frantically began to snatch up those miscellaneous experts who were originally looked down upon.
The problem is that the capital city, though a place of great academic atmosphere, is also very traditional. Almost 99% of the students who study literature only focus on the classics, very few specialize in divination, and even fewer specialize in the study of natural phenomena. Since there are already so few of them, it is naturally not enough when a group of aristocratic families are vying for them.
"The first round of assessments starts next month." Shen Yan sounded anxious. "I'm afraid only Shen Xue and Shen Liang from our Shen Family have a chance next month. If the other children don't quickly catch up on their basic knowledge of miscellaneous subjects, it will become increasingly difficult later on."
Shen Qingfeng also sighed. Mathematics and divination are miscellaneous subjects that are not valued, but they are very troublesome to learn. They are difficult to learn and master. Without several years of study, one may not even be able to get a foothold. The fact that everyone is cramming now is a last resort. If you don't start preparing now, you will only fall further and further behind the competition in the future.
Any knowledgeable sorcerer could see that the art of magic arrays would only demand more and more knowledge of miscellaneous subjects. In order to fully master the magic of Jiangnan, each family would have to cultivate a group of disciples who were proficient in miscellaneous subjects.
Nowadays, many students start from scratch. In such cases, a good teacher is very important. As long as the teacher is excellent and the student works hard, even if they are not particularly gifted, it is not difficult to get started, and they will at least have a chance to try.
If you can't even snag a good teacher, you'll likely find yourself at a disadvantage as the game progresses.
"Grandpa, the East Sea and Jiangnan regions have the most experts in this field. We don't have any connections in the East Sea, but you should know some people in the Jiangnan region, right?" Shen Yan couldn't help but ask.
The assessment that Shen Yuan brought was somewhat unexpected, but it was a good thing for a family like theirs with a shallow foundation. After all, everyone was competing in unfamiliar territory, and now that their children could finally start on a level playing field, they naturally didn't want to lose in terms of preparation.
"I've been away from Jiangnan for at least two hundred years," Old Master Shen said, amused. "Even if you knew some people back then, they're all dead, not even bones left. Do you expect me to contact the Shen Family in Jiangnan?"
Shen Yan fell silent. A monster had emerged from the Shen Family of Jiangnan, a matter that had almost implicated them. Now they were trying to avoid it as much as possible, so why would they take the initiative to contact them?
Besides, contacting him was useless. Fifth Master Shen had served as Minister of Ministry of War for many years, and I had visited him quite a few times, but he had always been very cold to me.
"What should we do then?" Shen Yan asked anxiously.
"What to do, don't you know?" Old Master Shen looked at the other man with amusement. "Why are you trying to play tricks on me? Isn't it just that you don't want to ask your son and want me, this old man, to ask?"
Shen Yan: "."
The old man really showed no mercy whatsoever.
That's true. Shen Yuan's return made him, the head of the family, lose face quite a bit, especially those two times he turned his back on him. It was clear that Shen Yuan had absolutely no respect for him, and he really couldn't bring himself to ask for help.
"I already wrote to them yesterday." Old Master Shen sighed, "Fortunately, that child isn't too extreme, otherwise the Shen Family would really be in trouble this time."
Shen Yan nodded, and was about to speak when the steward's voice came from outside the inner hall, "Master, a message has arrived from Jiangnan."
"Bring it in quickly!!" Old Master Shen disregarded etiquette and hurriedly ordered someone to bring the letter.
The butler strode in and handed over the letter.
The old man opened it and his furrowed brows immediately relaxed!
"What did he say?" Shen Yan was also anxious. Seeing that the old man hadn't spoken for a long time, he finally couldn't help but ask.
The old man rolled his eyes at him and sighed, "You two have neglected this child the most, but he has the best character. On the other hand, look at your precious little darling." He shook his head and didn't continue, but instead brought up the topic the other party was concerned about. " Shen Yuan said that Mr. and Mrs. Bai Hua from Liuzhou are returning to the capital to visit their son and daughter-in-law because of the birth of the Bai Family's first grandson. Shen Yuan had already visited them before coming here, asking them to come to our house to tutor our children."
" Bai Hua?" Shen Yan was taken aback, then his eyes lit up. "The current head of the Bai Family, the inventor of the Nine Palace Mathematics?"
"Hmm," the old man nodded, " The Bai Family is a scholarly family. Although they also value the imperial examinations, due to the rules of the emperor, mathematics and natural philosophy are also compulsory subjects for the family's children. The Bai Family family is also a family of good doctors. Not only have they produced Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), but they have also produced many famous doctors. It seems that Shen Yuan was well prepared. This child is indeed rare."
Shen Yan pursed his lips, wanting to add a few words of praise, but recalling the scene a few days ago when the other party coldly told him to get lost, he couldn't bring himself to say anything.
"Call the young men in, and give them your orders!"
"Yes"
--
"Is there no one from Jiangnan willing to come?"
Inside the Fang Family, Fourth Master Fang Fang's eyes widened. "Didn't the manager from Jiangnan write that he knew many gentlemen?"
Upon hearing this, the Fang Family's butler smiled wryly, "I heard they've all gone to visit them, but life in Jiangnan is too comfortable. None of those gentlemen are willing to leave Jiangnan, no matter how much they're offered. It's truly a problem!"
"Then double it!" Fourth Master Fang said sternly, "With such a generous incentive, someone will surely be tempted."
Upon hearing this, the steward was at a loss for words. The steward from Jiangnan had already written that incense and silver were popular in Jiangnan, and money from here was not very effective there.
"Oh, by the way," the butler suddenly said, "I've heard that the Bai Family is returning to the capital soon."
"Which Bai Family?" Fourth Master Fang frowned.
"A descendant of Bai Fangting, the founder of the Nine Palace Mathematics."
"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Fourth Master Fang jumped up immediately. "Where is he?"
"It's said they left Jiangnan seven days ago, and they should arrive in the capital in about two more days."
"Prepare gifts immediately; I will personally visit the Bai Family!"