Thrown Out the Door

Zhao Ruxi turned to Zhang Changshen and asked, "Lord Zhang, is this sentence written in any of the documents issued by your Court of Judicial Review?"

Zhang Changshen's expression was extremely unpleasant.

He stared intently at the young man and said, "How could that be? The unique painting techniques of Layperson Zhiwei are not something that can be learned by just anyone who pays a little money. If it weren't for the imperial decree, and your selfless dedication to the peace of the Great Jin, how could these people have the opportunity to learn painting from you for a mere 1,500 taels of silver? Dream on."

He cupped his hands in a respectful gesture to Zhao Ruxi: "Your place is similar in nature to the Imperial Academy. The Imperial Academy also requires tuition fees, but does that mean that paying tuition fees means you don't need to show respect to the teachers there, or that you can disrespect them or question them to their faces?"

"Moreover, you are teaching painting techniques for the Great Jin and have voluntarily lowered your fees. You deserve everyone's respect. Those who come to learn painting should not only treat you with the respect due to a teacher, but should also show you even more respect than they would to other teachers."

If Zhao Ruxi couldn't control these students, or if he was humiliated by them and simply quit, then he wouldn't be able to explain himself to Kang Shilin and Wu Zong, nor to the Emperor.

Therefore, he tried his best to speak to Zhao Ruxi Zhao Ruxi.

"That's good." Zhao Ruxi pointed at the young man and said, "Then I can refuse to teach this one. If there are similar people in other provinces in the future, Lord Zhang, please tell the governors and prefects below not to send them to me again."

"It's our fault, we didn't do a good job of checking." Zhang Changshen apologetically to Zhao Ruxi, then turned and his face darkened as he said to the constables he had brought, "Why haven't you dragged him out yet?"

The young man in brocade robes' expression changed drastically.

He never imagined that just one sentence would lead to him being kicked out of the house.

He dared to provoke Zhao Ruxi in front of Zhang Changshen because he thought Zhao Ruxi was young and a girl, and wanted to embarrass her in public.

If she loses face in front of all the officials and fifteen students, things will get interesting when she teaches painting. You see, many of the lower-ranking officials who came to learn painting with her are bullies who prey on the weak. Once they find out that their painting teacher is an easy girl to bully, who knows what kind of trouble they'll cause.

In his view, even a fourteen-year-old girl who grew up in the impoverished noble family of the Earl of Suiping's Residence would not have seen much of the world, let alone this Miss Zhao who grew up in the marketplace.

In a situation like today, it would be a miracle if she didn't blush, tremble, and stammer. Even if he made a few sarcastic remarks, this woman would only shed a few tears; she wouldn't actually argue with him.

Unexpectedly, this woman was so assertive. Not only did she bring Zhang Changshen to back her up, but she also threatened to throw him out at the slightest disagreement.

"I didn't do anything. I just heard it and asked. Does that mean students can't ask questions when they don't understand something?" He shouted when the bailiffs actually came to pull him away.

Zhang Changshen remained silent and looked at Zhao Ruxi.

Ultimately, Zhao Ruxi will still have to teach this class, as she will be spending every day with these people. If she isn't assertive enough and can't effectively manage them, there will inevitably be plenty of trouble, big and small, in the future.

Twenty-two thousand five hundred taels of silver might seem easy to others, but Zhang Changshen thought it wasn't so easy to earn. In the past few months, Zhao Ruxi had often been wronged and bullied; she probably shed many tears.

Now he wanted to see if the girl would soften her heart or argue with this man.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Ruxi remained expressionless, as if she hadn't heard the man's question.

The yamen runners of the Court of Judicial Review had met Zhao Ruxi when Zhao Ruxi went to paint and had a very good impression of her. Later, Wu Zong asked them to help find middlemen. After these middlemen did business with Zhao Ruxi, they kept praising Zhao Ruxi in front of them and thanked them for introducing a generous customer, which made them very proud.

Because of this, Zhao Ruxi even gave Wu Zong money to treat them to a meal. Therefore, they had a very good impression of Lord Wu's junior sister.

Seeing that their master remained silent and Miss Zhao gave no further instructions, their men did not hesitate and dragged the man out.

Only after the man's groans and curses subsided did Zhao Ruxi continue to address the trembling students, "This is my classroom. Here, there can be no disrespectful words or actions. Whether you express doubt, interrogate, or joke, if I feel insulted, I can have you removed from the classroom and refuse to accept you."

She glanced around at the crowd. "Because this is a painting technique I created myself. Even if you offered three thousand or five thousand taels, I wouldn't be willing to teach it to you. Now, my willingness to make a contribution to the Great Jin is merely a matter between me and the Great Jin. The government is giving me a fee of 1,500 taels, and I can teach people to paint, but it doesn't necessarily have to be you. If you don't respect me, I can simply ask your government to find someone else to learn from."

She pointed towards the door. "Now, anyone who doesn't want to learn painting from a young girl like me, who looks down on me, who despises me from the bottom of their heart, and who can't stand what I just said, can leave right now."

The courtyard was completely silent.

The remaining fourteen students, in particular, dared not even breathe too loudly, lest they be misunderstood by those present as having a grudge against Teacher Zhao and thus be thrown out.

Being thrown out like that was not only humiliating, but they also wouldn't be able to explain it to their superiors. Just the thought of losing such an opportunity would make them regret it immensely. Learning the new painting technique would change their status in the government office. This was a matter of their future.

Don't let the fact that Teacher Zhao is a little girl even younger than their daughters fool you; she's ruthless and will kick you out at the slightest disagreement—she's terrifying!

We can't afford to mess with them.

Seeing that everyone was stunned and behaved like quails, Zhao Ruxi nodded in satisfaction.

She turned to Zhang Changshen and said, "Lord Zhang, please continue."

Zhang Changshen: "..."

What did he say? Where was he? Oh, it seems he wanted to warn these people to show more respect to Layperson Zhiwei. But is it still necessary to say that now? It seems unnecessary.

He thought for a moment and said, "What Teacher Zhao meant just now is my meaning, and also the meaning of the Court of Court of Judicial Review. The various government offices are not short of talented people, and there are plenty of people who want to learn painting. If you don't want to learn, there are plenty of people vying to learn. So as long as Teacher Zhao mentions to us that someone is disrespectful to the Master, or is lazy and shirking their duties, we will immediately send you packing and send you back, and replace you with someone else."

The fourteen people lowered their heads even further, wishing they could bury them in their chests.