Chapter 84: Forming a clique for personal gain
"I'm not afraid of being laughed at when I say this, I just opened an academy and I don't have any special abilities. It's all thanks to Mr. Su who taught the students. The credit goes to him."

Song Yanjin responded to her modestly.

Every teacher has his own way of teaching, which is kept secret. Who would be willing to share it with someone they don't know?

Gongshu Yuanyuan handed Wei Li a piece of peach cake and said, "Master Wei also has two female students who passed the imperial examination. They should share their experience with us."

Speaking of this, Wei Li smiled from ear to ear and said modestly, "It's also the students who are doing well. Xia Yanxi is the cousin of Xia Yange from Song Shanchang's palace examination class. She comes from a prominent family, so it's not difficult for her to pass the imperial examination."

"Zhang Xue'er, she is the concubine daughter of the Minister of Justice, so naturally the family has done their best to train her. How dare I take credit for it?"

It all depends on the student's good family background, and has nothing to do with her as a teacher...

Song Yanjin didn't believe it. Master Wei Li was a talented woman, but she was a little unpopular because of her smooth talk.

Murong Haitang only focused his eyes on Cui Yuanshang and sat quietly without saying a word.

Master Zhang Yan did not join in the conversation. When she was mentioned, he made a few perfunctory remarks. He passed the time absentmindedly peeling grapes, with his eyes fixed on Lord Ye across from him.

Gongshu Yuanyuan felt unhappy when she saw her looking at Brother Ye all the time, so she sat over and put her arm around her good sister Song Shanchang's shoulders to block her view.

After leaving Lishan Academy, Song Yanjin occasionally went out to relax with Gongshu Yuanyuan. He almost never sat and chatted with other women. Now he just felt tired!
Uncle Liu came in from outside the living room and reported to Principal Song, "The food has been prepared in the canteen."

Well, it’s finally over. Song Yanjin nodded, “Thank you for your hard work, Uncle Liu.”

Manager Liu smiled warmly, then turned around and went out to get busy.

Song Yanjin stood up and said, "My Lords and Masters, let's go to the cafeteria to have our meal."

Lord Di stood up, took his good friend Mr. Su and rushed out of the door and turned right.

Chen Shen swallowed his words halfway through. Is the food in Qingyun Academy really delicious?

Ye Shian also stood up and said, "Let's go, my three adults. I won't let you down."

That’s right, what they were talking about just now was the food in the academy.

Zhu Xiulin believed him because he was the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple and had tried countless cases, so he would naturally not tell lies.

Sanhuo and Liushui followed, and when they passed by Song Shanzhang, they bowed to show their respect.

Song Yanjin knelt down to return the greeting, then led the female teachers around her over.

Men and women sat at different tables, with a screen between them. There were constant exclamations of admiration coming from the next room, but the female teachers couldn't bear to watch. Perhaps this was the meaning of the screen.

You don’t see men being ungraceful, eating voraciously and wolfing down their food.

The saying of not talking while eating and not talking while sleeping is vividly reflected in the several female teachers. At the same time, it also prevented Song Yanjin from forcing socializing and made him just a quiet eater.

After lunch, Cui Yuanchang distributed the souvenirs that the dean mentioned at the entrance of the cafeteria. The last round of interviews in the academy was over, and he thanked all the adults and teachers for coming to serve as judges.

There is an exquisite small square box woven from bamboo, with a flower tied on it with a blue ribbon. Inside the box are two bottles of beauty water, a magnolia hairpin, a delicate small round fan with silk surface, a bamboo bookmark with the words "Qingyun Academy" printed on it, and a piece of pine soot ink.

For adults, it is the four treasures of the study.

Murong Haitang took the gift box and looked at Cui Yuanchang for a long time with complicated eyes. Cui Yuanchang smiled and let go, "Master Murong, take it."

Murong Haitang came to her senses, picked up the gift box and walked out without looking back.

Ye Shian held the gift box in his hand as he brushed over the blue ribbon flower, the corners of his mouth rising. He had come to the academy to help with exams so many times, but this was the first time he received a gift from Principal Song. Although everyone had one, the one in his hand was particularly precious.

After leaving the academy, Zhang Yan, sitting in the carriage, couldn't wait to open the box and picked up the exquisite round fan. The flying crane and blue and white auspicious clouds on it were Suzhou embroidery. He exclaimed loudly, "This is too beautiful..."

"Miss, what is this fragrant smell?"

The maid opened the bottle of Flower Beauty Water and put it close to her nose and smelled a floral fragrance.

There was a porcelain bottle in the box with a small note underneath. Zhang Yan took it out and took a closer look. It turned out to be a facial mask. Look at Mr. Song's face, which was glowing white. He wouldn't use this to wipe his face, right?

He snatched it from the maid's hand curiously, "Remember to use it for me every night."

On the other side, Gongshu Yuanyuan was also opening the boxes. Her favorite was the bookmark, which was the only thing that represented Qingyun Academy. She had a premonition that Qingyun Academy would be extraordinary in the future and this thing would be priceless and everyone would fight for it!

Song Yanjin called Cui Yuanchang back to the headmaster's rest house and asked out of curiosity, "Does Yuanchang know Murong Haitang?"

Cui Yuanchang knew that the headmaster would ask, but there was nothing she couldn't say. The headmaster treated her well. They had a master-subordinate relationship, but when she was with the headmaster, she felt more like friends.

Sit down and have a long talk about your tragic life story.

Cui Yuanchang came out of the grassland at the age of ten, was caught by human traffickers, and finally sold by Murong Haitang. She did hard labor in Murong's family. The housekeeper treated her well and was willing to teach her everything he knew. In just five years, she was able to manage three shops.

Murong Haitang noticed her ability and transferred her to manage her private storehouse. The two had similar interests and got along well. Later, a jade artifact was stolen from the storehouse by Murong Haitang's wet nurse. She was severely punished by the head of the family for her poor management and had to sell it. She almost starved to death during the drought last year.

Forced by the situation, Cui Yuanchang took the initiative to go to the brokerage shop to register himself. He was bought by a noble buyer so that he could at least have something to eat. Then he met Master Song.

Song Yanjin was curious, didn't Murong Haitang plead for Yuan Chang?
Forget it. Mentioning the shameful past would just be exposing someone’s scars.

Song Yanjin yawned and stood up. "The academy will be your home from now on. Go back and have a rest. You have worked hard these past few days."

Cui Yuanchang nodded gratefully, "Yes."

The court the next day was extremely lively. Censor Lai reported that the head of Qingyun Academy, Song Shanzhang, had formed a clique for personal gain and was plotting evil. He brought dozens of charges against him and compiled a list of officials who had been in and out of the academy within a month.

The adults on the list were so angry that they stood up and united to fight back.

Gongyang Pavilion Elder: "Your Majesty, the academy's headmaster Song is a woman, and she has no achievements. How can she be said to be forming a clique for personal gain? To plot something illegal... What does she want from an old man like me? Because I'm old, or because I don't like to take a bath?"

"Pfft~"

All the civil and military officials were grinning from ear to ear.

Ye Shi'an, the Junior Official of the Dali Temple, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, Principal Song has a long-term vision. More than 50 people from Qingyun Academy have passed the imperial examination. This time, he sent a letter to invite you all because he sees that you have rich experience as officials. In your spare time, you can come to the academy to serve as examiners and guide students in their studies. It is not as Censor Lai said."

Three former top scholars of the Hanlin Academy echoed this.

Lord Di was so angry that he blew his beard and glared, and said stubbornly, "Old Lai, I think you are just jealous and can't stand others doing well. If you dare to touch that girl, we will never let you go easily, and the princess will not let you go either..."

The output shocked His Majesty, who was sitting on a high seat, so much that his eyes almost popped out. Lord Di had always been calm and taciturn, but today he actually got so angry over a little girl...