Chapter 964

After taking their seats, Kong Fang, with some excitement and a bit of nervousness, introduced to Chen Wuji: "Marshal, these two both come from the school of the classical studies master Zheng Kangcheng, having received his true transmission."

"Although Old Zheng's disciples have no seniority distinction, outsiders still ranked them. Jia Yujing is Old Zheng's second disciple, having followed Old Zheng in study for eleven years; Zhao Chen's time is relatively shorter, only four years, but he also deeply earned Old Zheng's affection, having been constantly by his side for those four years, making him Old Zheng's thirteenth disciple."

Chen Wuji still knew of Zheng Kangcheng; this person is a true master, the Great Yu Classical Studies Grandmaster, who established the Zheng School integrating modern-text and ancient-text classical studies, with writings totaling over a million words, and is honored as the Divine Classic, the Universal Scholar, and the First Person of All Ages.

Whenever he went to a place to give lectures, even just the carts pulling the books required dozens of vehicles.

Others' outward display when going out is a retinue of guards and attendants, but this Old Master's display is books, vast quantities of books.

There are rumors that this Old Master actually doesn't like such a display, but he has no choice, as the places he goes to are usually various lectures, often lasting months.

To meet the needs of lecturing and his own reading and writing, those books are not mere showpieces; they are genuine necessities, indispensable to bring along.

Now that paper has appeared, Old Zheng's future outings should become somewhat easier.

"If you two can give Wenjun this face, it seems my first impression of Chen Wuji is still good; I also don't like vague, illusory things, so let's be direct—if you have any demands, just bring them up!" Chen Wuji, as usual, got straight to the point.

He indeed finds those useless formalities tedious; straightforward and simple is best.

Anyway, at his position, there's no need to bother with those superficial things; if he wanted to be even more effortless, he could simply not appear himself and just give a glance to his subordinates to handle it.

Of course, this is also something he currently finds annoying.

He doesn't even have a talent who could handle these matters with just a thrown glance.

Anyway, Xu Zengyi and Chen Li certainly wouldn't handle such matters for him; one of them would surely pretend not to notice or change the subject. And Chen Li, if it were such a small matter, would definitely refuse outright, possibly even giving him a few admonishing words.

Jia Yujing, with a conspicuous general's belly, rose and again cupped his hands, saying, "Your subordinate has no demands; to be able to serve as an aide under the Marshal's command is already a great honor."

As soon as he said that, Zhao Chen's expression beside him instantly fell.

That damned old bastard!

Cursing silently, Zhao Chen had no choice but to rise quickly after him, indicating he also had no demands.

He actually wanted to strive for something, but Jia Yujing had already set the tone; if he said anything else or made any request, Chen Wuji's impression of him would certainly be different.

For the sake of those external things, giving Chen Wuji a bad impression at the first meeting would not be worthwhile.

Chen Wuji noticed every bit of Zhao Chen's reaction, he smiled and said, "You two need not be embarrassed; if you have any demands, just bring them up—I will certainly satisfy you as far as I can. In the future, when you work for me, you must at least feel at ease."

Jia Yujing again ignored his companion's life and death, speaking frankly: "Marshal, I truly have no demands; no merit, no reward. Since I have not yet achieved even a bit of merit, how dare I ask for any favors in your presence?"

Zhao Chen: ……

If glances could kill, he would want to hack this bastard to death with random blows.

They had spoken well on the way, but upon arriving, they turned around and changed their minds.

Damn it, I knew this guy was untrustworthy, so why did I end up believing him?

Chen Wuji smiled and nodded slightly.

These two must certainly have genuine talent and learning; Kong Fang would surely not deceive him on this point, and that kid wouldn't dare to fool him about such matters.

However, they also have plenty of ulterior motives.

Jia Yujing is the type of person who smiles like a tiger—appearing kind on the surface but treacherous within.

And Zhao Chen is probably a pragmatic sort.

"Since you both have no problems, let me tell you what I've prepared for you." Chen Wuji said, "You will undoubtedly be following the army; here I differ from others—I usually start them off in Council Army duties, not giving them actual authority right away."

"Later, I will arrange for people to prepare some money and valuables for you; first, settle your households. As for external possessions, some people are insatiably greedy, others discard them like worn-out sandals, but having none is absolutely impossible."

That Zhao Chen twice started to speak then stopped; the conditions he might want to raise are likely related to these things.

Both of their attire is very plain, and their family fortunes are evidently not wealthy.

Especially Zhao Chen, his clothes feel as if they might fall apart at any moment from washing; the frayed cuffs are a mess, and if cut off they could be used directly as a brush.

Upon hearing Chen Wuji's words, Jia Yujing hurriedly gave thanks, while Zhao Chen visibly relaxed, the tightly furrowed brows easing a little.

Although Jia Yujing is a damned bastard, fortunately this Marshal is benevolent and righteous, and he actually thought of providing them with housing right away.

This thoughtful consideration instantly won Zhao Chen's favor, even making him feel somewhat moved.

Zhao Chen has seen many important figures, but those people always say what you can do, then make empty promises. Usually they speak well beforehand, promising this and that, but after the task is done they reward a few dozen or hundred taels of silver, arrange a decent residence, and dismiss him with a few poor words of encouragement.

Because of his shabby clothing, he certainly hasn't done much unpaid work for those grandsons.

But there's no way around it; every tael of silver he earns has a designated use, and so far he hasn't had the chance to improve his own outfit to make those important figures view him differently.

"Since you have no problems, let's talk about something else." Chen Wuji gave a light smile, glanced at Jia Yujing and Zhao Chen, and threw out a question that everyone tacitly understood but rarely dared to ask outright.

"How do you view the current state of the world? Speak boldly—there are no outsiders here!"

Jia Yujing and Zhao Chen stared at each other, stunned.

They had long known from Kong Fang's mouth that Chen Wuji would surely test them, but none of them expected the topic he would throw out to be so explosive.

Asking about the state of the world.

Because there are some things they know full well, this answer is also not easy to give.

Because Chen Wuji is, on the surface, truly a loyal subject!

Expelling the Qiang bandits, launching a counterattack against the Qiang people without any support from the court's troops, he expanded territory for the court and even gained half of Lingnan.

Now he is even more the Marquis Zhenyuan, and it seems he also married a princess.

With such honor, since Da Yu established the dynasty, he is the sole one.

This is not only a loyal subject, but also a peerless loyal subject through the ages, destined to leave fragrant fame for all time.

But, this loyal subject's foundation…