Chapter 426 - Moli Xuan Academy (Part 1)
The courtyard of Moli Xuan had originally been filled with jasmine plants, but over the years, many had withered and died. During the restoration, new jasmine was planted in abundance. Li XiaolĂĽ also undertook the landscape design for the garden, constructing Suzhou-style garden walls with lattice windows, rockeries, and ponds. In the end, this newly restored Moli Xuan assumed the style of the many faux-antique buildings found in the original space-time.
Wang Ci was dumbfounded as he watched. Lingao had never possessed the concept of private gardens. Apart from the small water and rock decorations in the back courtyard of the county yamen, Moli Xuan was now considered the finest man-made landscape in the county, destined to serve as a venue for local officials and literati to hold elegant social gatherings.
The brevity of the construction period was equally hard for Wang Ci to fathom. He hadn't seen the Kun use any special mechanical aids, nor was the number of workers particularly large. By Wang Ci's estimate, if he had organized the repairs himself, even a simple renovation wouldn't have been possible in less than half a month—let alone expanding and adding significant new structures as the Australians had done.
Besides the original buildings, the construction team had added several new structures, including a two-story waterside pavilion for banquets, classrooms and dormitories built in modern style, and proper toilets and bathhouses.
When Wang Ci saw the many new buildings, he couldn't help but seek out Xiong Buyou, who was coordinating at the site, to ask their purpose.
"Of course they have uses," Xiong Buyou smiled. "Moli Xuan was an academy in the past, wasn't it?"
Moli Xuan had been an academy since the Song dynasty, cycling through periods of prosperity and decline. It had served as an academy for a long period in the Ming dynasty as well, but by the time Wang Ci arrived in Lingao, the institution existed in name only. The reason was simple: no money.
The county school was already chronically short of funds, let alone a charitable school like Moli Xuan that relied on private funding. Originally, it had possessed about a hundred mu of land as an endowment, but over the years, some had been fraudulently sold while powerful landlords occupied others. The accounts had long since become a muddled mess. Without funds, they couldn't hire capable teachers or provide stipend silver, so naturally, there were no students.
"Chief Xiong means to restore Moli Xuan Academy?" Wang Ci asked, his voice trembling slightly.
"Of course. Otherwise, what's the point of repairing it? Just for drinking?"
"This is truly an immense kindness!" Wang Ci bowed deeply, overcome with emotion. "This student bows on behalf of Lingao's scholars..."
"Alright, alright, no need for formalities." Xiong Buyou thought to himself: Don't rush to represent anyone yet. You don't know this is actually a sugar-coated bullet. It tastes sweet now, but you'll find out what's inside later.
After the Moli Xuan renovation project was completed, Lingao County held an "enthusiastic," "simple," and "harmonious" ribbon-cutting ceremony. Wu Mingjin originally didn't want to appear at a Kun event, but the renovation of Moli Xuan was a major occasion for the county, falling under the category of "beneficial influences on education." Not appearing might seem "out of touch with the people." He had no choice but to attend.
Wang Ci was once again exploited by the Crossing Group. He spared no effort running everywhere, delivering invitations to all the gentry and scholars in the county. The Executive Committee estimated that, given Moli Xuan's fame and local significance, these people were unlikely to refuse.
Sure enough, not only did all the provincial graduates and xiucai in the county agree that this was a momentous occasion they absolutely had to attend, but even Liu Dalin—whom the Executive Committee hadn't been confident about—indicated he would come. Furthermore, Wang Ci secured calligraphy for the commemorative stele from Jinshi Liu himself.
Liu Dalin, though still harbouring misgivings about the Crossing Group, had nevertheless observed their actions over the past year: bandit suppression, road construction, disaster relief, resettling the poor. Though he stayed behind closed doors, his family members constantly gathered news from outside.
He was a jinshi residing at home, possessing great fame in the county and throughout Qiongzhou Prefecture. He figured he must be a target for these Kun. So these past days, he stayed home reading, barely receiving guests. Only a few close relatives and friends were admitted. He kept arsenic and a knife by his side, ready to take his own life at any moment—first, to avoid the humiliation of capture, as he had participated in planning the campaign against the Kun and feared revenge; second, to die proving his integrity if they tried to force him into a puppet position. When the Kun first entered the city, the atmosphere at the Liu household had been extremely tense—everyone prepared for the end.
Unexpectedly, after the Kun entered the city, they withdrew again, merely sending a few dozen pirate heads to the county yamen. In the months that followed, except for swarming into the city during the New Year, they never entered in large numbers. As for the Liu household, absolutely no one came calling. It was as if the Kun didn't know Liu Dalin existed.
Jinshi Liu had imagined countless scenarios of martyrdom—knives to the throat, dying curses, taking poison... But none occurred. No revenge, no coercion. While relieved, he also felt somewhat slighted—these Kun really had no discernment.
Where family members saw relief, Liu Dalin felt growing curiosity. What exactly were these overseas Australians, who claimed to be descendants of the Song, scheming in Lingao?
They suppressed bandits, built roads, established workshops and water conservancy projects—every action beneficial to the country and people. Coming from ten thousand li away to this remote southern frontier to do all this... In this era, there was no concept of "Lei Feng spirit." Liu Dalin couldn't see what practical benefit they gained.
With his political wisdom, he understood this was a move to win hearts. But winning hearts in Lingao seemed of little value—the place was poor and remote. Even if they turned the entire county into bandits, what of it? Even occupying all of Hainan Island would mean holding just a corner of the South Sea.
When Wang Ci delivered the invitation, family members advised Liu Dalin to stay low-key to avoid future repercussions if government troops recovered Lingao. But Liu Dalin saw it differently.
In his view, regardless of the Australians' schemes, repairing the Confucian temple, renovating Moli Xuan, and subsidizing the academy were unequivocally good deeds. As the only jinshi in Lingao's history, not attending such an occasion might hurt the scholars' feelings. Furthermore, hiding at home prevented him from grasping the Australians' intentions. Better to go out and see for himself. Seeing is believing. Finally, since the Australians hadn't sought revenge or forced him into a position for over a year, they likely wouldn't start now. Lingao County was still, nominally, the Great Ming's Lingao County.
Liu Dalin's acceptance caused a great stir among the scholars and gentry. For a time, the news of the Australians' benevolent works became the talk of the county. Even scholars who had previously gossiped about them had to admit the Australians were "inclined toward cultural education."
To reduce resistance, Xiong Buyou deliberately minimized the display of the Transmigrators' strength. Only he and a few others attended, carrying no obvious weapons. The atmosphere was happy and harmonious.
The ceremony blended ancient and modern elements. After speeches, Wu Ya unveiled the stone stele inscribed by Liu Dalin: Record of the Chongzhen Renovation of Moli Xuan. As the red silk slid down, the Transmigrators applauded, and surprisingly, the natives followed suit.
Wu Mingjin elegantly cut the ribbon with silver scissors—the only part of the ceremony that drew criticism for extravagance. The scissors, made of over two liang of silver, became a thank-you gift for the ribbon cutter.
After the ribbon cutting, everyone toured the renovated Moli Xuan, curious about the new facilities. Those familiar with the Crossing Group recognized that the newly built study halls followed the format of Australian schools.
What made the scholars most envious was the new library—already stocked with over a hundred finely printed books from the Light Industry Department's new printing factory. Representative classics from the Hundred Schools of Thought and the Classics, Histories, Philosophers, and Literary Collections filled the shelves. The originals used were mostly Zhonghua Book Company's punctuated editions and Taiwan Academia Sinica's electronic versions. The quality was first-rate for the Ming dynasty.
Flipping through books with exceptionally clear characters, snow-white paper, and refined binding, everyone marveled. A debate broke out between pro-punctuation and anti-punctuation factions: the former believed punctuation aided reading, while the latter argued it damaged understanding of the original works.
But regardless of punctuation, Lingao had never possessed such a complete library, public or private. The shock to the scholars was immense. Weren't the Australians from a "barbaric land"? Why could their books be printed so finely? Moreover, the textual collation clearly represented enormous effort—definitely not something a barbaric land could achieve. Could they truly be descendants of the Song, the orthodox inheritors of Chinese civilization? Many scholars felt their sense of the distinction between Chinese and barbarian beginning to waver.
(End of Chapter)