sbdcsierra Chapter 494 Establishing the Academy
Chapter 494 Establishing the Academy
"Your Majesty, I have another request." His arrogant expression suddenly turned into a fawning smile.
Lin Ping excels at improvisation and mastering facial expressions; his acting skills would easily make him a movie star even centuries later.
"No!" the king replied firmly.
As a ruler, he should listen to the opinions of his ministers; this is clearly childish behavior.
"Since it won't work, then forget it. It would be a waste of my efforts to cultivate a large number of talents for the Wu Kingdom." Lin Ping smacked his lips and shook his head.
"To cultivate talent for the Wu Kingdom?" The king's heart skipped a beat.
He had witnessed Lin Ping's abilities firsthand; he was an all-around talent. Whoever received his guidance would surely become a pillar of the nation.
Rather than having Lin Ping serve as an official in the court, it would be better to have him become a teacher and cultivate more talent.
Previously preoccupied with dealing with He Wei and others, the king neglected this point.
With the court now stable, the monarch urgently needs a large number of talented individuals.
But he has already rejected Lin Ping, so he can't just bow down and apologize to him, can he?
"Tell me your painstaking efforts. If they're not painful enough, I'll make things a little harder for you," the king replied coldly.
What a master of manipulation! Seemingly deviating from the topic, yet actually asking the question, and managing to avoid the awkwardness of an apology. Lin Ping couldn't help but think, "The longest road I've ever walked is the road of kings' manipulations."
"I wish to establish an academy, recruit talented individuals from all over the land, and teach them practical knowledge," Lin Ping immediately got to the point, knowing that this was also what the king wanted to hear.
"In this world today, the most practical knowledge is nothing more than poetry, songs, and the ability to govern the world," the king replied.
"No, my students not only don't write poetry, but they also can't serve as officials in the court. They just do their jobs diligently and conscientiously," Lin Ping explained.
"If you don't serve in the court, what kind of talent are you?" The king was somewhat annoyed, mistakenly thinking that Lin Ping was making fun of him.
Lin Ping smiled faintly, pointed to the 20,000 private troops outside the door, and asked, "Does Your Majesty know why these 20,000 private troops were able to defeat the 50,000 Lu family troops, and why their losses were so small?"
"Don't say it's because you commanded well and planned strategically."
The Kingdom of Wu is a land of etiquette, valuing humility and composure. Lin Ping's ostentatious display is not the behavior of a gentleman.
"No!" Lin Ping shook his head and said, "The reason why the private army is so powerful is because it has excellent equipment such as stirrups and kukri knives, and these equipment are made by blacksmiths, not court officials."
"My lords, if your 20,000 private troops didn't have these equipment, would you be confident in leading them to victory against the 50,000-strong Lu family army?"
"General, you jest. We don't have that ability."
The high-ranking official used a smile to cover up his embarrassment. How could a high-ranking official of the imperial court be less skilled than a blacksmith? If word got out, wouldn't he be laughed at?
If these words had come from anyone else, they would have been attacked by the masses. But since they were spoken by the newly promoted General Lin Ping, they had no courage to refute them.
The king lowered his head and remained silent, clearly having heard of the power of these pieces of equipment.
"Your Majesty, I dare to ask again, do you know the main cause of death for soldiers in a major battle?" Lin Ping continued.
The king aspired to be a general since childhood and had led troops into battle, so he had considerable authority to speak on this issue.
"Half of them died directly from swords and blades, while the other half died from the festering of their wounds."
"Your Majesty is indeed wise!" Lin Ping continued, offering a resounding compliment, "What if the doctors I trained could cure these ulcers?"
"Our army will be invincible!" the king exclaimed excitedly.
First, they acquired superior equipment such as stirrups and kukri knives, which made them invincible in the great battle.
Then a divine healer treated the soldiers' wounds, greatly reducing the number of deaths.
With both factors combined, the monarch was confident that he could sweep across the entire continent with an army of 100,000.
"Hahaha! Heaven bless my Wu Kingdom!" The king laughed loudly and immediately ordered, "I hereby command you to establish the Huiwen Academy, which will be superior to the Imperial Academy."
It would be strange if the king wasn't excited about the future development of the Wu Kingdom.
The reason for elevating the level of Huiwen Academy was to provide Lin Ping with various conveniences.
Lin Ping said that these talented people could not enter the government to serve as officials, which would likely lead to difficulties in recruiting students. Therefore, he raised the students' level to enhance their sense of superiority.
From this, it can be seen that the ruler's thinking was relatively enlightened.
"Minister of Rites, listen to my command! Immediately issue a document to recruit talented individuals from across the land." The monarch did not want to delay such a beneficial matter for the country and its people.
"Your subject obeys the decree." The Minister of Rites quickly left the court.
"Minister Lin, please stay and have a meal with me today." All his previous dissatisfaction with Lin Ping was put to the back of his mind, and he found Lin Ping more and more pleasing to the eye.
The king's meals were a private and sacred affair; even favored ministers would only receive a small amount of food as a gift.
Lin Ping was the first person to dine with the king.
If it were anyone else, they would be extremely grateful and bow down three times and nine times.
"I'm used to doing things my own way, I'd better go home and be with my wife." Lin Ping turned and ran away, not daring to see the king's furious expression.
"Has I been rejected?" The king looked somewhat dazed as he watched Lin Ping's figure gradually disappear into the distance.
Being rejected is a truly unpleasant experience.
If it weren't for quelling the rebellion, Lin Ping would have returned to the Lin family mansion long ago; that's where a home feels like.
"My dear son-in-law, come back to Jiangcheng with your father," Jiang Xiuwu said softly, his words filled with remorse.
"Perhaps I will go back, but only on the day my wife returns," Lin Ping refused without hesitation.
What's done is done, and one must bear the consequences of their mistakes. Besides, Lin Ping really didn't know what identity to assume in the City Lord's Mansion.
The city lord of Jiangcheng looked somewhat dejected, as if he had personally discarded a pearl covered in dust.
"Late spring has passed and summer is approaching. After the rice harvest, a crop called corn can be planted on those barren lands. I have already sent the little monkey from Nanyue to Yancheng Port."
Lin Ping said casually, not wanting to forcefully change the mind of the Jiangcheng City Lord.
He never imagined that his words would have such an effect on the two city lords. After returning to their fiefdoms, the two men frantically cultivated the barren land and planted corn on a large scale. By the time of the autumn harvest, the grain yield was three times higher than in previous years, thus preparing ample supplies for the upcoming war.
After seeing off the two city lords, Lin Ping came to the Lin residence alone.
That day, the Imperial Guards arrested everyone in the Lin family, and the entire mansion became desolate, with a thick layer of dust piled up on the ground.
"Hurry up, my great general son-in-law is about to return home!" Zhou Yecheng pointed and gestured, a barely suppressed smile spreading across his face.
He knew Lin Ping was no ordinary man, but he never imagined he could become the Grand General of the court, second only to the emperor!
When one person attains enlightenment, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven, let alone his own father-in-law.
From now on, Zhou Yecheng will probably have to hold his head high and shrug his shoulders when he goes out, and all the merchants in Yingtian Prefecture will have to fawn over him.
"I never thought I, Zhou Yecheng, would have a day like this!" Thinking about it, he couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"Father-in-law, what are you laughing at?" Lin Ping asked curiously.