Liang Garden

I think it's a good idea!

"I don't think it will work?"

"Gentlemen, please remember that Liang Garden belongs to the King, and its sole purpose is to serve the King!"

"His Majesty is unwell; it would be very good if there were someone who could cheer him up!"

"Indeed, what if the king laughs at this, and we then expel him from the house? Wouldn't that mean we'd suffer even more?"

"That's a lot of talk..."

Zhang Xuezhou's displayed talents were quite controversial.

Several interviewers whispered amongst themselves, assessing Zhang Xuezhou's eligibility for admission.

The treatment at Liangyuan was so good that it was unique within the Han Dynasty. Consequently, the interview threshold was low, but the entry standards were high.

Whether they are famous throughout the world, highly respected, or renowned far and wide, anyone with these achievements can directly enter Liangyuan.

The remaining selections require solid skills.

Zhang Xuezhou has some solid skills, but not many.

This is also the most controversial point. If someone with Zhang Xuezhou's abilities can be admitted to Liangyuan, then they had previously rejected at least hundreds of people.

But Zhang Xuezhou is different from those who refused to return hundreds of times; the latter had a very low bottom line when it came to their appearance.

If Prince Liang saw the words on the marble, the interviewers felt that, while he might not be particularly pleased, he would at least smile knowingly.

For the King of Liang, who was depressed due to illness, this smile was enough.

In the Liang Garden at present, even the most skilled Sima Xiangru, could not bring a smile to the face of the King of Liang when he played the zither.

If Zhang Xuezhou could make King Liang smile, then this group of people, even if they couldn't repay the king's great kindness, would at least have done something decent. If Zhang Xuezhou failed to win King Liang's favor, then Liang Garden would just have one more person to freeload.

That's how it happened. After much debate among the officials, Zhang Xuezhou ultimately became a guest at Liangyuan Garden.

As long as the King of Liang remains in power, he can live a life of ease and comfort, holding onto that Liangyuan token.

"Wonderful!"

Zhang Xuezhou was overjoyed, never expecting such a gain from his trip to Suiyang City.

This dispelled the bad luck he had previously committed in Shanggu County.

A change of fortune allowed Zhang Xuezhou to stand tall.

"To demonstrate my calligraphy skills to the King? No problem, I'll perform whenever the King summons me!"

Zhang Xuezhou complied with the requests of the interviewing officials, and then happily left the Prince's Mansion with the Liangyuan Token in hand.

Unlike the awe and respect emanating from the guest advisors of the King of Huainan's Household, Zhang Xuezhou, holding the Liangyuan Token, was met with more envy, respect, curiosity, and astonishment from others.

When Zhang Xuezhou returned to Liang Garden, the guard Lai Xiaoer looked at him with surprise.

However, he quickly composed himself, promptly ordering someone to take away Zhang Xuezhou's yellow horse for care, and then personally led Zhang Xuezhou through Liang Garden.

"Your Liangyuan Order has a number marked 273 on the back. Your room is located a bit further back. You need to walk straight in that direction until you reach the end to see your room," Lai Xiaoer explained.

"Which room Sima Xiangru in?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"He's at number eight. You can see him if you look over there!"

Lai Xiaoer introduced the location of Sima Xiangru's residence, and several people who were watching the Liangyuan guests' interviews from the wall whistled at Zhang Xuezhou.

"That's Lord Zhuang Ji. He loves watching a good show and has a very good temper. The one next to him is Lord Mei Cheng!"

Those who enter Liangyuan have no worries about food, clothing, or lodging. There is little infighting here; instead, everyone is harmonious and peaceful.

They might explore the mysteries of Technique Method, quote scriptures, practice magic, or, like Zhuang Ji and others, watch the spectacle from the wall.

Zhang Xuezhou bowed respectfully as he walked, and everyone responded with utmost politeness.

"Didn't you come to see Young Master Xiangru?"

Seeing that Zhang Xuezhou did not stay in room number eight but went to room number two seven three, Lai Xiaoer whispered a reminder.

"We'll talk about it later!"

Zhang Xuezhou and Sima Xiangru a shallow relationship and lacked common topics.

He would not have bothered Sima Xiangru.

Now that he'd secured a free meal, he wasn't in such a rush to see Sima Xiangru.

After navigating through numerous exquisite and beautiful garden structures, including artificial hills, gardens, pavilions, and fish ponds, Zhang Xuezhou finally found the 273rd house.

He washed himself, asked for some food, and waited until the fatigue from the long journey subsided before leaving the room Zhang Xuezhou refreshed.

"Our Liang Prince's Mansion isn't very large, but Liang Garden covers a full three hundred li. In the distance are Bailing Mountain, Luoyuan Rock, Qilong Peak, Yan Pond, Hezhou Island, and Fuzhu Island. There are bound and restrained Demon Beast, as well as cultivated rare fruits, fine trees, Rare Flowers and Exotic Herbs, and rare herbs. If our King were to allow entry, it would be quite a lot of fun for us inside!"

To allow Zhang Xuezhou to familiarize himself with the environment and rules of Liangyuan, Lai Xiaoer did not leave after showing him the way, but waited for Zhang Xuezhou for a long time.

It wasn't until Zhang Xuezhou went out again that he pointed in different directions.

Regardless of how much food and drink the Liang Prince's Mansion provided for free, the great cultivators were clearly not confined to a single room. Instead, there were various supporting facilities and even facilities to meet the cultivators' various needs.

Mountains, rivers, Rare Flowers and Exotic Herbs, medicinal plants, and Demon Beast can all be found in Liang Garden.

It's difficult for a person to be confined to a room, but not many people can move beyond a 300-mile radius, especially those who live and work in peace and contentment.

Liangyuan is a place that can hold the hearts of many people; at least Zhang Xuezhou has made Liangyuan his home.

If it weren't for his own numerous hidden dangers and the people like Rong Tianding who made him worry, Zhang Xuezhou felt that he could have lived his whole life in Liangyuan, eating and waiting to die without any problems.

"That's right!"

Zhang Xuezhou nodded repeatedly as he listened to Lai Xiaoer's introduction.

"Does it contain Bone-Cleansing Grass, Thick Earth Ganoderma, or Cloud Ganoderma?" Zhang Xuezhou asked casually.

"Your Majesty once jokingly said that all the rare and exotic herbs in the world are in Liang Garden," Lai Xiao'er said. "If you ask about those nameless rare treasures of heaven and earth that are hundreds or thousands of years old, those are rare. But there are plenty of medicinal herbs that have grown for several decades. As long as Your Majesty allows, you can pick them all if you wish!"

"What a treasure trove!"

Zhang Xuezhou had seen many great medicinal herbs in the natural treasure land of the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, but the King of Liang had artificially created a miniature Hundred Thousand Great Mountains in Liang Garden.

He looked at Bailing Mountain in the distance with envy, feeling that he must take advantage of any opportunity to harvest some free medicinal herbs.

"Look, Young Master Xiangru has come out!"

The smaller the number, the closer it is to leaving Liangyuan; other than that, there's nothing special about it.

When Zhang Xuezhou approached the area in front of where the guests of Liangyuan were staying, Lai Xiaoer pointed to the Sima Xiangru holding a zither in the distance, and then to the beautiful woman holding hands with Sima Xiangru.

"That is the renowned scholar Wenjun, whose musical skills are equally extraordinary!"

Very few couples resided together in Liangyuan, Sima Xiangru couple were the envy of many, attracting crowds whenever they appeared.

"Changqing, did someone who admires you become a guest at Liang Garden today just to see you?"

"That's true. It's not surprising that many people admire Sima Xiangru, but it would be remarkable if those admirers could also gain entry into Liang Garden. None of us have that ability!"

"This is truly a wonderful story!"

"Look, your admirer is coming!"

When Zhang Xuezhou approached, more than ten people greeted Sima Xiangru warmly, and Zhuang Ji and Mei Cheng, who were watching the commotion from the wall, even mentioned themselves.

"My admirer?"

Sima Xiangru looked in the direction he was pointing and nodded.

"This truly makes me ashamed; I don't even know this gentleman's name?"

Sima Xiangru's eyes were bright and piercing, but when he looked at Zhang Xuezhou, it was as if they had never met before.

Thinking of Dong Zhongshu's mention of Sima Xiangru being blinded by the emperor's retaliation, Zhang Xuezhou felt that no matter how beautiful Sima Xiangru's eyes were, he was still blind.