聂云竹's acquaintance with Old Qin by the river wasn't entirely accidental. Although Ning Yi had suggested she recognize Old Qin as her adoptive father, an arrangement she didn't oppose, in terms of personality, Nie Yunzhu was an independent woman with her own ideas. During the days Ning Yi was away, she visited Old Qin, partly because she wanted to proactively get to know the old man who might become her adoptive father.

After meeting him, she spent the past two days by the Qinhuai River listening to him talk about Ning Yi's talent and unconventional nature, as if re-acquainting herself with this man from a different perspective. Seeing Ning Yi again this morning felt quite nice, familiar yet novel.

Although that girl Jin'er came to stir things up...

Knowing that Nie Yunzhu had already met Qin Siyuan, Ning Yi didn't need to push the adoptive father matter. Things would fall into place naturally, and there was no rush. After the heavy rain last night, the weather was clear today. When they went to the river in the afternoon, Old Qin was playing chess with Nie Yunzhu. Nie Yunzhu glanced at him, her eyes lively, but didn't speak to him. Ning Yi greeted Old Qin and sat down to watch.

Nie Yunzhu was skilled in all arts, including琴 (qin), chess, calligraphy, and painting. However, she excelled in music and dance. While her calligraphy, painting, and chess were also good, they naturally couldn't reach Old Qin's level. Ning Yi could tell at a glance that Old Qin was holding back, guiding Nie Yunzhu a little. While playing, he talked to Ning Yi about the disaster relief and epidemic prevention manual.

Old Qin had already sent the booklet to his eldest son, Qin Shaohe, who was far away in Jiangzhou. Kang Xian was also said to have used connections to pass the booklet up, and it would be distributed later. Of course, it would take some time to see results. While Old Qin was talking to Ning Yi about these things, Nie Yunzhu silently looked at him from the side.

For Nie Yunzhu, this side of Ning Yi was something she was seeing for the first time. Since meeting Ning Yi, her perceptions had been one-sided. She knew he was talented, but that was all from what she had heard from others. They met every day, talking about trivial matters, listening to his strange songs, and watching him paint strange lacquer paintings. It just felt real. Although she had seen his composure when discussing business with her before, business was just a merchant's path.

But the feeling was different now. They were discussing national affairs, and it wasn't the empty talk of an ignorant scholar—she had seen plenty of that in the Jinfeng Brothel. Listening to Old Qin mention it these past two days, he also said that Li Heng wasn't an ignorant scholar, and he sought practicality and stability in his actions, which was the attitude of someone who truly accomplished great things. When the wind rose by the Qinhuai River, the woman listened to the two men talking about those things, and remembering the old man's evaluation of Ning Yi, she vaguely felt a sense of pride and joy.

In the following days, life went on as usual, but some changes were also taking place, although they didn't have a big impact on Ning Yi.

The number of refugees inside and outside the city continued to increase with the passage of time. On the streets near Yushan Academy and under the walls, beggars could often be seen wandering and gathering, which looked pitiful. But if you really wanted to care, you couldn't care for them all. Even Xiao Chan had become accustomed to these scenes. There was never a shortage of beggars in Jiangning City, only now there were more. There were also many refugees from all over who came to seek refuge with relatives, and some of the Su family's relatives had also suffered disasters and came to seek refuge.

Therefore, the main reason for the city's slight crowding and chaos was the sudden increase in population. The government and the army also increased their control, so the situation in the city was not too bad. People with road permits and identification could enter the city. Those without permits and without relatives to turn to could only gather outside the city and wait for relief.

They could still maintain order these days, and the city gates were not yet closed. However, one time when Ning Yi passed by the city gate and looked, the refugees outside the city had probably increased a lot since the day he returned to the city. They had built some simple sheds to live in, a chaotic and panicked scene, with all kinds of noisy sounds and cries. The Wulie Army also sent a large number of people to guard the city gate, ready to respond at any time and close the city gate.

Due to the refugees, Ning Yi temporarily shelved the plan for manufacturing high-proof alcohol equipment and workshops after thinking about it. Anyway, the equipment drawings had already been made, and he could consider it again after this period. Now, every morning when he ran past the small building, he often saw Yuan Jin'er and Nie Yunzhu drinking tea there. As soon as he came, Yuan Jin'er would run away with her teacup.

Yuan Jin'er leaving the Jinfeng Brothel caused a stir in Jiangning for a while. Even Ning Yi heard Li Pin talk about it. It was said that this one of the Four Great Courtesans was currently missing. When he saw her drinking tea there every morning, he felt complicated, thinking of Li Pin's words. It was said that several infatuated people were still searching for her whereabouts.

This woman planned to come and learn how to be a boss from her Yunzhu-jie (elder sister). She spent a sum of money to redeem herself from the Jinfeng Brothel, but still had a lot of savings left. Now she was preparing to invest it all in Zhuji, which was not a small amount of money. According to her, from now on, "I am Yunzhu-jie's person." She was currently taking a few days off, preparing to go to Zhuji as a small shopkeeper in a couple of days.

The day he returned, Li Pin told Ning Yi something.

"By the way, a couple of days ago, there was a pair of siblings who came to the academy to look for you."

"Siblings?"

"Yes, they seemed to be children from wealthy families, not very old, but with extraordinary bearing. The older sister was about twelve or thirteen years old, quite difficult, like she deliberately came to challenge us. You weren't there at the time, so she tested me thoroughly. Haha, the younger brother's temperament was alright."

Li Pin said with a smile, gesturing the height of the siblings, and then talked about the process of testing him that day. Li Pin was a magnanimous person, so he wouldn't take a child's play to heart. With his talent, he certainly couldn't lose. Now, when he talked about it, he said that the siblings were quite knowledgeable, and you could tell that he quite appreciated them.

Ning Yi looked at the height he was gesturing and smiled suddenly. He remembered the siblings Zhou Pei and Zhou Junwu. They had only met once during the Dragon Boat Festival, and they had actually made a special trip to challenge him. It was never good to offend women...

Then, he put the matter out of his mind.

Ning Yi's fixed activity was still teaching classes every day. He had now finished teaching the *Analects* and started teaching *Mencius*. Confucius said to become仁 (ren, benevolence), and Mencius said to take义 (yi, righteousness). If Confucius's thought was people-oriented, mostly talking about people's behavior, Mencius's thought had many things directly involving the state and the collective. When he talked about it every day, Ning Yi generally added some stories about the state to talk about. On this day, he probably talked about the Battle of護步達岡 (Hubudagang) a few years ago.

Ning Yi had roughly inquired about the movements of the Jurchen Jin Dynasty. Old Qin and Old Kang often talked about it too. This battle took place four years ago. Emperor Tianzuo personally led an army of 700,000 to attack. Wanyan Aguda met them with an army of 20,000, almost ready to die in battle. But in the end, the 20,000 troops won a great victory—not a pyrrhic victory, but a nearly complete annihilation of Emperor Tianzuo's 700,000 troops. No matter how complicated the reasons behind this, this battle was a miracle in the history of war for thousands of years.

Ning Yi was just using this extreme example to talk about the bravery of the Jurchens, the relationship between the country and the people, and so on. He couldn't say too much to a bunch of children. But after class, he could say a few more words to Li Pin, talk about his views on the Jurchens. The two went to the room next door that was used as an office. After going in and putting down the books, Li Pin sighed, "Before, I often heard people say that the Jurchens were not even ten thousand, and if they were ten thousand, they could not be defeated. In fact, it seems to be true these years. But it is hard to say if this kind of record can be repeated. The Liao are still powerful, and the Jurchens are too few. It is still difficult to say what the outcome of this war will be."

Ning Yi smiled, "Isn't that better? Everyone on the street is talking about both sides being hurt, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. Only then can my Wu Dynasty profit from it."

His words were a bit teasing. Li Pin looked at him a few times and laughed, "Li Heng is perfunctory again... The streets and alleys are just wishful thinking. My Wu Dynasty is weak, and it is not a good thing to be neighbors with anyone in the future. On the contrary, forming a three-kingdoms situation may give us a temporary respite. Of course... this is also too idealistic. What is formed at this time is not an easy balance. Although we are weak and powerless, we must still take some action and not sit still and wait for death. The Sixteen Prefectures of幽云 (Youyun) have been ceded for more than two hundred years. If we can really seize the opportunity to take them back this time, with the natural barrier of the Great Wall, my dynasty may really get a temporary respite, and then slowly plan for it..."

"Yeah." Ning Yi nodded empathetically, waiting for Li Pin to continue. But Li Pin was slightly stunned by his reaction, and then smiled bitterly, "Li Heng still doesn't agree..." After he said this, he became serious, clasped his fists and bowed slightly, "Now, there is no need to hide it. Regarding this situation, I have always wanted to hear Li Heng's opinion. In the current situation, which has been weak to this point, what does Li Heng think is the hope for this world?"

"Tsk..." Ning Yi looked at him, frowned slightly, and then smiled, "How long have you been holding this sentence back... Ha, what use is it to ask me..."

"It has indeed been some time." Li Pin smiled, "Before, I listened to a few of Li Heng's classes and found them thought-provoking. At that time, I wanted to talk to Li Heng about my views on this matter, but I thought it would be no different from the boastful behavior in restaurants and teahouses. Later, after repeatedly considering many of Ning Yi's statements, it was really unique, and some practical words were even deafening. Li Heng has unique views on the history of previous dynasties and is also familiar with the current situation. This time, I sincerely want to hear Li Heng's views on the current situation, to encourage each other... Let's just pretend that we are boasting in restaurants and teahouses, how about that?"

A little earlier in time, in the corridor on one side of the academy, two children's figures were coming this way, one after the other. This was a pair of siblings. The older sister was Zhou Pei, and the younger brother was Zhou Junwu. Each was holding a small bag, eating soft, waxy cakes as they walked. Their attendants and guards had been left at the entrance of the academy. When they approached the classrooms here, the older sister Zhou Pei hung the bag on her waist, wiped her mouth, and then turned to look at her younger brother, who was still walking and eating. So she glared at him several times...

It wasn't until he heard the voices coming from that side that Zhou Junwu raised his head. Then he blinked and stood there, not understanding why his older sister was glaring at him. His older sister looked at him with an expression that said "rotten wood cannot be carved," and turned to walk forward. He quickly went up to follow, "Wh-what's wrong..."

Originally, they had come out to eat something. When she heard that the barbarian had returned, she had dragged him here to challenge him. He was still a little hungry. After saying this, he put the remaining half of the cake in his mouth and chewed it suspiciously... (To be continued, if you want to know what happens next, please log in, there are more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!)

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