Making you a son-in-law is not about making you conquer the world.

Chapter 683 Unfinished Homework

This ruler had been with Zhang Hongxian for many years and was a notorious tool for committing crimes. Its appearance would surely terrify the students, who would all lower their heads.

The students at Baiyue Academy are all from noble families and are used to a life of luxury. How many of them are truly studious?

Asking them to write poetry is absolutely asking the impossible.

Zhang Hongxian had ulterior motives for assigning such lessons.

Prestigious families would often hire renowned scholars to help their students with their studies.

In this way, Zhang Hongxian could easily find a famous work.

Even if some families did not hire a great Confucian scholar, they could bribe him privately with silver to reduce their punishment.

In either case, Zhang Hongxian would definitely make a profit.

Of course, such assignments should be given in moderation, so as not to exhaust the talents of those great scholars, nor to anger the powerful families due to frequent bribes.

Generally, this kind of assignment is only given once every six months, but it just so happened that Lin Ping encountered it.

"Hold out your hand!" Zhang Hongxian had already reached the student in the front row, raising the ruler as a threat.

The student was so frightened that he trembled all over and could barely speak. He cautiously offered his palm to the other person, but inside was a silver note worth one hundred taels.

Upon seeing the silver note, Zhang Hongxian's weak expression eased. He gently tapped the man's palm with the ruler and left satisfied.

This was practically a fixed price; if even a tael of silver was missing, he would harshly reprimand the student.

"That greedy old man," Lin Ping muttered under his breath.

Although he loved money, he acquired it ethically, unlike Zhang Hongxian who abused his power and acted shamelessly and despicably.

The second student was clearly more confident, and loudly recited: "At dusk on the eastern hill, I gaze and lean against the railing, wondering where to turn. Every tree is tinged with autumn colors, and every mountain is bathed in the setting sun."

The poem depicts mountains, trees, and a setting sun, truly capturing an autumn scene with a rather pleasant atmosphere. Zhang Hongxian nodded in satisfaction.

Most of the remaining students handed over silver, while a few recited poems, which, even if not famous ones, were passable, and all escaped punishment.

Before long, Zhang Hongxian approached the student who looked down on Lin Ping and asked with a smile, "I wonder what other famous works Young Master Zhang has to offer?"

This man is named Zhang Minghao, the second son of the Zhang family. Although he is uneducated and incompetent, there is a great scholar in his family who can often produce poems that satisfy Zhang Hongxian.

Moreover, the Zhang family is a long-established second-tier family, and even has one foot in the door of a first-tier family. They are very powerful, so Zhang Hongxian would naturally think highly of him.

As expected, Zhang Minghao stood with his hands behind his back, looking confident, and loudly recited: "It can make the leaves fall in autumn and the flowers bloom in spring. It can make the waves rise a thousand feet across the river and make the bamboo stalks bend ten thousand times."

This poem, by capturing the variability of four natural objects—leaves, flowers, waves, and bamboo—under the influence of wind, indirectly expresses the various forms, charm, and power of the wind, making it a truly masterpiece.

"Well done! As expected of Young Master Zhang!" The crowd immediately applauded and cheered, both as an expression of their appreciation for Zhang Minghao and as a form of flattery.

The reason why scions of prominent families scramble to enter Baiyue Academy is not simply to pursue academic studies, but also to make friends and contribute to the development of their families.

The Zhang family owns many businesses, and the families of half the students will have some dealings with them.

As a result, Zhang Minghao received a lot of flattery and had many underlings.

"Yes, not bad. Young Master Zhang is so talented at such a young age. He will surely become an outstanding person one day." Even Zhang Hongxian did not hesitate to praise him.

Zhang Minghao nodded arrogantly, accepting the praise from everyone. However, he did not sit down immediately. Instead, he pointed at Meng Qingfan and said, "It seems that there is still one person who has not presented a poem."

Zhang Hongxian walked up to Meng Qingfan as expected, his face immediately darkening. He said angrily, "Meng Qingfan, where are your assignments? Show them to your teacher. If they don't satisfy me, don't come back tomorrow."

Meng Qingfan was nothing but an ignorant and incompetent playboy; he had no idea how to compose poetry.

Furthermore, the Meng family did not hire any great scholars, so he naturally could not complete his studies.

I was prepared to be beaten, since it's a common occurrence anyway. If I don't feel like being scolded one day, my palms will itch.

But Zhang Hongxian actually threatened to expel him from school, which immediately terrified Meng Qingfan.

Adhering to the principle of "if I can take a beating, I won't spend money," Meng Qingfan never bribed Zhang Hongxian and had no money prepared at all.

Even if he emptied all his money pouches, he would only have two taels of silver, which was his hidden stash of money.

In order to become a second-tier aristocratic family, the Meng family had to expand aggressively, spending all their money on business and having little working capital.

Moreover, Meng Yuanping was not favored by the emperor. Although his family had enough to eat and drink, they really didn't have much spare money.

If the father is poor, then the son is even poorer.

Meng Qingfan was a sensible child and never caused trouble for his parents by bribing Zhang Hongxian.

"Meng Qingfan, you didn't finish the assignments given by the teacher, did you? You clearly don't respect the teacher." Zhang Minghao said sarcastically, certain that Meng Qingfan was helpless.

"You, Meng Qingfan, are a teacher who imparts knowledge, teaches skills, and resolves doubts. Yet you treat his words as mere whispers in the wind."

"Baiyue Academy is no ordinary private school. The teachers are all scholars of the Five Classics, and they cultivate pillars of the nation. How can a useless person like you, who occupies a position without doing anything, stay here for long? Get out of here!"

The crowd spoke sharply, all pointing the finger at Meng Qingfan.

"Meng Qingfan, I'm giving you one last chance. If you can't produce a poem that satisfies me, get out of here immediately!" Zhang Hongxian disregarded his status as a great Confucian scholar and started cursing.

Meng Qingfan turned pale with fright. He knew how many people Meng Yuanping had begged and how much money he had spent to secure this spot for him.

Even if you don't like reading, you can't be expelled from the academy.

"Please forgive me for a few more days, sir. I will definitely prepare one hundred taels of silver," Meng Qingfan said humbly.

Compared to the hundred taels of silver, not being expelled from the register is the most important thing.

"One hundred taels? Do you take me, Zhang Hongxian, for a beggar? If you don't have a thousand taels of silver, get out of here immediately." Zhang Hongxian directly tore off the mask of politeness and said sarcastically, "I'm afraid even your Meng family can't come up with a thousand taels of silver."

Not only were prices clearly marked, but they also raised prices arbitrarily, clearly making exorbitant demands.

"A thousand taels?" Meng Qingfan stumbled and fell to the ground. He had originally wanted to ask his elder sister for a hundred taels of silver, since Mu Qingge managed some businesses and had some spare money. However, a thousand taels of silver was a considerable sum.

Just when he was at his wit's end, a pair of large hands pulled him up; it was Lin Ping who smiled faintly.

"As a Doctor of the Five Classics, you openly accept bribes; you are unworthy to be a teacher." Lin Ping's words were sharp, and his cold gaze sent chills down one's spine.

Zhang Hongxian involuntarily took two steps back, and after calming down slightly, he retorted, "Why should I explain my life's work to a mere brat like you?"

In his eyes, Lin Ping was nothing more than a pageboy, a lowly servant, who was not even qualified to speak to him.

Lin Ping didn't continue arguing with him, but instead pulled out a silver note that dazzled everyone.