Chapter 430 - 406: Six Harmonies Academy

Liu Siye stared blankly at Song Ciwan, his mouth agape.

Song Ciwan said, "To hold a position is to bear its duties. The responsibility of being an official is too great. How can it compare to the carefree freedom of a wandering life?"

’That was what she said, but what she really meant was that while the Great Zhou Court appeared prosperous and powerful, the Emperor on the throne was shrouded in mystery, and the Crown Prince, who had been the Crown Prince for ninety-seven years, was an inevitable cause for concern.’

’Behind the prosperity of the Great Zhou was what seemed like a labyrinthine volcano!’

’At a time like this, countless people wanted to escape that volcano. Song Ciwan was already free and unfettered; if she had a sudden lapse in judgment and dove headfirst into the fray, she would truly be asking for trouble.’

However, crisis was always accompanied by opportunity. Liu Siye’s intentions were not malicious, and Song Ciwan was quite willing to chat with him a little more.

Liu Siye stammered, "Fairy Song, the Liuhe Academy is very different from other departments of the Court. The Liuhe Academy is governed autonomously by the Confucius Temple. Within the Confucius Temple, a Saint now presides, and even His Majesty... His Majesty must show the utmost respect."

As he said this, he clasped his hands and bowed from afar in the direction of Zhongjing, his expression solemn and respectful.

"The Confucius Temple oversees the education of the world. The scholars and professors at the Liuhe Academy are all devoted to their studies, so they are quite free as well. Fairy Song, the Liuhe Academy is worth visiting. If you aren’t interested in an Official Position, you can also be externally hired to give lectures.

"Experts often give public lectures within the Academy Palace. Once there, you can listen, you can lecture, and you can contemplate the path of the Dao with the finest talents in the world. A single trip to the Liuhe Academy is worth more than journeying over a thousand mountains and rivers!"

The more he spoke, the more excited Liu Siye became. His stutter vanished, his back straightened, and his entire being seemed to radiate a unique power.

Seeing this, Song Ciwan was moved and asked, "Liu Siye, did you once study at the Liuhe Academy as well?"

A hint of a blush appeared on Liu Siye’s face. "I was never formally enrolled in the Academy Palace," he said. "I was merely fortunate enough to receive a qualification from the State Mansion Academy to audit courses there. I audited for a little over two months."

At this, he once again cupped his fist in a salute.

The Heaven and Earth Scale registered his human desire: [Human Desire: The excitement, nostalgia, and longing of a Vast Qi Realm Scholar. One jin and six taels. Exchangeable.]

Song Ciwan then asked Liu Siye for more details about the organizational structure of the Liuhe Academy.

Originally, Song Ciwan had assumed the Liuhe Academy was directly under the Court’s control, since its professors and scholars all held Official Positions, but as Liu Siye had explained, that was not the case.

The Liuhe Academy was a comprehensive academy under the purview of the Confucius Temple, the number one institution of its kind in the entire Great Zhou.

Regardless of whether it was civil, martial, Confucian, or Daoist studies, even the Buddhist Family, one could trace their origins to the Academy Palace.

The officials of the Liuhe Academy did not attend court and were not promoted or demoted by Court order. They only answered to the Confucius Temple and could resign from their posts at any time, possessing a great deal of freedom.

And the Confucius Temple itself only governed education and moral instruction, so it rarely had need to dispatch the Academy Palace’s officials.

In contrast, institutions such as the Imperial College, the Grand Academy, and the academies of the various states and prefectures—those were the true government-owned educational institutions under the Court’s control.

After listening, Song Ciwan nodded.

She didn’t say where she was going, only remarking, "In that case, the Liuhe Academy does indeed sound worth a visit."

Liu Siye immediately said, "Exactly, exactly!"

Saying this, he surprisingly took a Jade Talisman from the Storage Pouch at his waist. "Fairy Song, this is a Traveling Study Order Token for the Academy Palace. My rank is low, so this Command Token only permits seven days of study in the outer circle. If you would do me the honor, please take it for now.

"If you go to the Academy Palace in the future and reveal your identity, they are desperate for talent and will surely receive you with the highest possible honors."

Song Ciwan did not refuse and accepted the Command Token.

Liu Siye’s face immediately lit up with obvious delight, and even the Heaven and Earth Scale twitched once more.

[Human Desire: The joy, elation, and apprehension of a Vast Qi Realm Scholar. Nine taels and seven maces. Exchangeable.]

’Joy and elation are easy enough to understand, but... apprehension? Where did that come from?’

Song Ciwan glanced at Liu Siye. She didn’t sense any malice from him, only felt that the human heart was indeed a complex thing.

Although the Heaven and Earth Scale could collect all sorts of human desires and provide explanations, it was clear that even with its commentary, some people’s emotions were still difficult to comprehend.

’The Heaven and Earth Scale isn’t omnipotent, after all.’

Song Ciwan accepted Liu Siye’s Command Token and gave him a gourd of Spirit Wine in return.

This was wine brewed later by the Wine God Gourd, not from the original batch left behind by the Great Cyan God.

During her secluded cultivation, Song Ciwan occasionally needed to relax her mind, so in her leisure time, she would toss various Spiritual Materials into the gourd.

The Wine God Gourd could brew a pot of Spirit Wine in three days. Since the brewing had been done inside the Celestial Level Cave Mansion, the six gourds of Spirit Wine produced during that time were all of very high quality.

The pot that Song Ciwan gave to Liu Siye she had named Fengxi. It had an exceptionally crisp and clear quality, and drinking it could make one forget their worries and troubles, soothing the mind and spirit.

If consumed during Cultivation, it could also reduce the chances of a Heart Demon appearing and greatly increase the efficiency of one’s training.

This gourd of Spirit Wine was not cheap; its value definitely exceeded that of the Traveling Study Order Token Liu Siye had given her.

Holding the Spirit Wine, Liu Siye was overwhelmed by the favor and stood there in a bit of a daze.

"Fairy Song, you... you’re giving me wine?" He was so delighted he started to stutter again, and it wasn’t until some time later that he realized Song Ciwan had left the Steward Hall.

Then, a voice drifted from the distance, "Lord Liu, we shall meet again."

The voice was ethereal. By the time Liu Siye came back to his senses, Song Ciwan’s figure had long since vanished.

Liu Siye clutched the wine, gazing into the distance with a mixture of joy and melancholy.

At some unknown moment, a figure emerged before him.

Liu Siye shuddered, instantly tucking the jade wine bottle into his Storage Pouch and calling out loudly, "Lord! This subordinate greets the Lord!"

It turned out to be the Yangzhou Governor who had appeared before Liu Siye.

Of course, this was not the Yangzhou Governor himself, but one of his paper effigy incarnations.

Paper-cutting incarnation—this was an ability that Scholars only acquired after reaching the Vast Realm.

From the Vast Qi Realm, to the Righteous Qi Realm, and then to the Vast Realm, there was a gap of two Great Realms.

Before the Vast Realm Yangzhou Governor, Liu Siye was as nervous as a little quail.

The Yangzhou Governor was a short old man, slightly bald and quite short, standing half a head shorter than even the medium-statured Liu Siye.

Yet this short old man, standing before Liu Siye with his hands clasped behind his back, surprisingly possessed the air of a refined and dashing scholar.

His feet hovered slightly off the ground, bringing him to eye level with Liu Siye, and he asked with considerable authority, "Liu Yan, this official ordered you to monitor Song Zhao’s movements and invite her to join the State Mansion’s Lantern Hanging Department. And what do you do? You go and direct her towards the Central State. What is the meaning of this?"

Liu Siye trembled and bowed. "My Lord, this subordinate invited Fairy Song to join the Lantern Hanging Department, but I was unable to persuade her."

The Yangzhou Governor said, "If you couldn’t persuade her, couldn’t you have asked a second, third, or fourth time?"