Chapter Sixty: Magistrate's Inspection (Part Two)

Not long after, a group of people walked into the courtyard of the school. Walking right at the front was Jiang Dadao, the Magistrate of Tangyin County, whose nickname was Jiang the Great Saber. He had a square, boxy face, eyebrows as coarse as scrubbing brushes, and dark skin.

Although Magistrate Jiang was of medium height, he had broad shoulders and a thick back, making him look exceptionally robust. If he were wearing armor, he might have cut a somewhat imposing figure, but dressed as he was in civil official robes, he looked thoroughly incongruous. Compounding this was his habit of gesticulating wildly as he walked, which was worlds away from the refined and scholarly demeanor of his predecessor.

Following closely behind Magistrate Jiang were a dozen or so attendants, including the County Sub-prefect, the Director of Studies, and the Chief Bao-inspector. They crowded around him like stars orbiting the moon. Li Daguang, acting as the guide for the school, walked right beside the magistrate. Being quite tall, he had to stoop and bend his knees to lower his stature. His face was wreathed in a fawning smile as he flattered the magistrate with sweet-sounding praises. This caused Magistrate Jiang to chuckle heartily from time to time and offer Li Daguang a few words of commendation, which only made Li Daguang beam with ecstasy, his eyes shining with delight.

"Why does this magistrate look like a giant macaque?" whispered one of the students, setting off a wave of suppressed giggles among the others.

Yao Ding glared sternly at the students, frightening them all into lowering their heads.

With a dark expression, Yao Ding stood motionless beside the formation. Instead of stepping forward to welcome Magistrate Jiang, he simply watched coldly as the magistrate walked into the school grounds.

Although Li Daguang was quite pleased that Yao Ding had surrendered the opportunity to ingratiate himself with the magistrate, Yao Ding was, after all, the true master of Lushan School. Without Yao Ding, the school would likely not be able to sustain itself.

Hurriedly, Li Daguang beckoned to Yao Ding and called out, "Master Yao, the Great Official has words of inquiry for you!"

Only then did Yao Ding slowly step forward, bow respectfully, and say, "Yao Ding pays his respects to Magistrate Jiang!"

This Magistrate Jiang looked like a rough-hewn man, but judging from the complete wipeout of Tangyin County's provincial examinees last year, Yao Ding knew all too well how petty-minded the magistrate truly was.

Therefore, when Li Daguang had proposed the absurd plan of having all the students wear weapons to welcome the magistrate, Yao Ding had not raised any objections.

"I have long heard of Master Yao's great reputation, and I have eagerly looked forward to meeting you. Master Yao is indeed doing a fine job; Lushan School is flourishing quite nicely!"

With a large number of students, neatly arranged formations, and every single one of them wearing sabers and swords, the scene looked prosperous indeed in Magistrate Jiang's eyes. Yao Ding sighed inwardly and forced himself to reply, "Magistrate Jiang flatters me too much!"

"Splendid! Splendid! The school buildings are well constructed too, except..."

Magistrate Jiang cast a glance around the drill ground and furrowed his brows slightly. "The parade ground seems a bit too small. How do you usually conduct martial training?"

Li Daguang hastened to explain, "We lead the boys out to the village temple for training. That space is much wider and can accommodate tactical formations."

Hearing him actually speak of accommodating tactical formations, Magistrate Jiang burst into a wide grin. He gave Li Daguang a heavy pat on the shoulder and said, "You certainly know how to talk! But I like it."

Li Daguang quickly curried favor with a flattering smile. "Shall we have the boys put on a drill right now for your Excellency?"

In the ranks, Wang Gui made a retching gesture of disgust, while Tang Hai fanned his nose as if something smelled utterly foul. Indeed, Li Daguang's obsequiousness was far too blatant; he had actually addressed the magistrate as "Your Honor/Lord Chancellor" (Xianggong)—a title exclusively reserved for high officials of grand councilor rank. Even addressing him as "Great Official" was already excessive, let alone "Lord Chancellor."

Li Yanqing also frowned. He had never imagined his fourth uncle to be such a person. Ordinarily, it was unnoticeable, but in the presence of the magistrate, his true nature was laid completely bare.

Magistrate Jiang, however, was extremely receptive to the flattery. He waved a hand and said, "Let's leave the drills for another day! I still have to inspect several other townships today. Where are the students preparing for this year's county examination? Bring them out so I can have a look."

Suddenly, it dawned on Yao Ding. The magistrate's tour of the townships today was likely aimed squarely at the schools, and the other towns would be no exception. It seemed this man intended to forcibly implement his own methods starting this very year.

Yao Ding waved his hand, and over twenty students stepped out of the formation, lining up in a row. Magistrate Jiang walked up to them with a beaming smile and said, "You are all the pillars of our Great Song! Grand Commandant Tong often says that a scholar must be able to enter the imperial court and yet be capable of stepping onto the battlefield. When I was in the capital, I saw those examinees rushing to the examinations—every last one of them too lazy to lift a finger and unable to distinguish the five grains, knowing only how to drink and eat. How are they any different from bags of wine and sacks of rice?

"Therefore, I have decided to start molding them from childhood: study poetry and books diligently, and practice martial arts bitterly, so that every student can possess the martial prowess to pacify the state and the literary talent to secure the nation. Thus, I am here to announce two matters. This year's county examination will increase the weighting of martial skills. As long as you pass the martial test, it won't matter much if your academic test scores are a bit lacking."

As soon as he finished speaking, several of the examination candidates turned deathly pale. Their physical stamina was subpar, and they had been pinning all their hopes on scoring higher on the academic exams. But now, the tables had been completely turned! With only nine days left until the county examinations, would practicing martial arts now even be in time?

Magistrate Jiang raised his voice even further and shouted, "The second matter concerns the Children's Club. The Children's Club can be literary or martial; in the past, it was literary, but from now on, it will be martial! Starting next year, the county will hold a Children's Martial Tournament every April, with twenty participants from each school. Let me make this clear beforehand: anyone who does not participate in the Children's Club will have no qualification to take the county examination, and will not be admitted to the county school! Regardless of whether you wish to take the imperial civil service examinations or study at the prefecture school, it will be utterly impossible!"

......

The magistrate still had to hurry off to the schools in other townships. After delivering his speech, he departed in a rush. The students returned to their classrooms amid a noisy and exceptionally lively uproar.

Even inside the White Tiger Hall, the students were in no mood to study. They gathered in groups to discuss the magistrate's menacing and aggressive speech.

"This is nothing less than a declaration of war against all the schools!"

Wang Gui waved his arms excitedly and shouted, "In the past, everyone resisted the Children's Martial Club until it was finally forced to be canceled, and then last year none of our county scholars passed the provincial examination. Now, the Children's Club is being tied to the county school examinations all over again! Jiang the Great Saber is dead set on turning Tangyin County into a militarized zone. If this goes on, there won't be a single scholar left in Tangyin County ten years from now."

The others echoed Wang Gui's sentiments, pounding their desks with loud thuds. Yue Fei frowned slightly. Turning to Li Yanqing, who was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, he said, "Actually, I think Magistrate Jiang's words make a certain amount of sense. Literary pursuits should be able to pacify the state, and martial pursuits should be able to secure the nation—that is the proper pursuit of a true man. His forced promotion of martial skills is actually beneficial to the students. Only then will we be able to resist and protect ourselves when the Jurchen barbarians come slaughtering their way here."

Yue Fei had never forgotten the words Li Yanqing had spoken years ago about the Jurchen barbarians, fierce as tigers and wolves, beginning to rise in the northeast.

Li Yanqing folded his arms across his chest, leaning lazily against the wall. He looked at Wang Gui and said calmly, "This matter must be viewed from two sides. While the magistrate's approach is conducive to encouraging students to practice both literature and martial arts so they become well-rounded, his true underlying motive is to advance his own career. Much like his predecessor, he wants to use martial training to set himself apart and make a name for himself. I am very worried that once a war breaks out, Tangyin County will inevitably be the place with the most ruthless conscription, and the scholars of the county school will hardly be able to escape it."

"Will it really come to that?"

"Without a doubt!"

Li Yanqing said with penetrating insight, "Didn't you hear? Look at how he cursed the scholars going to the capital for the examinations. Deep down, he holds scholars in absolute contempt. In his eyes, students like us are nothing more than a reserve pool of cannon fodder. That is the fundamental reason why he is forcing everyone to train in martial arts."

Yue Fei fell silent. He had to admit that Li Yanqing saw through things far more clearly than he did.

At that moment, Li Er walked over with a mournful expression on his face and said, "Brother Qing, what should I do? My martial skills are no good; I'm afraid I won't pass the county school exams."

Li Yanqing comforted him, saying, "Whether your martial skills are any good doesn't matter. As long as your father is formidable, that's enough."

"Why?" Li Er failed to catch his meaning immediately.

Li Yanqing patted Li Er's chest with the back of his hand and smiled. "How disgraceful would it be if the son of a dignified chief bao-inspector couldn't even get into the county school? Word got out, and where would your face be? So you don't need to worry at all—your father is even more anxious than you are!"

Finally understanding, Li Er skipped away happily. Yue Fei chuckled knowingly. Remembering something else, he turned to Li Yanqing and said, "Master wants us to review past examination questions. I'm thinking of making a trip to the bookstore in the county town these next couple of days. Let's go together!"

Li Yanqing nodded. "I was planning on going to the bookstore anyway. Let's make it tomorrow."

Yue Fei glanced at Wang Gui, who was still in the middle of a passionate speech, and asked with a smile, "Do you think they'll go?"

Li Yanqing looked at Wang Gui and Tang Huai, shook his head, and chuckled, "Even if we ran all the way to the county town, there's no way we'd ever shake them off."

.........