The disgraced official I took care of was actually Zhu Houcong's childhood friend.

Chapter 356

Yang Shengzhai was the grandson of Yang Yiqing. Yang Yiqing's eldest son, Yang Zhian, had three sons, of whom Yang Shengzhai was the youngest.

Unlike his two older brothers, who were both steady and reliable, Yang Shengzhai was somewhat unconventional from a young age, which caused Yang Zhian a lot of headaches.

Yang Yiqing was naturally aware of the academy in Yuyao. As the current head of the Yang family, although Yang Yiqing and Zhou Chu were political enemies, Yang Yiqing personally admired Zhou Chu. In his opinion, no one in the entire Ming Dynasty could surpass Zhou Chu's ability as a minister, and Zhou Chu's achievements in the future would certainly be even greater.

Yang Yiqing himself was nearing the end of his life. Approaching seventy, Yang Yiqing knew very well that he probably wouldn't be able to hold on to his position as Grand Secretary for much longer.

Yang Yiqing shared a similar view with Han Jie regarding the academy established by Zhou Chu. Although he didn't understand why Zhou Chu did this, he knew that Zhou Chu must have a reason for doing so, but he just couldn't see it yet.

It doesn't matter if he can't see clearly; as long as his grandson goes to school, that's fine. This can be considered Yang Yiqing's investment in the future of the Yang family.

His career had reached its end, and it was basically impossible for him to go any further and seize absolute power. Therefore, Yang Yiqing had been extremely indifferent these days, only doing what he was supposed to do in his position. If someone came to him for help, he would lend a hand and pave the way for the future of the Yang family.

Yang Yiqing's other two grandsons, Yang Shengzhai's two elder brothers, were seventeen and fifteen years old respectively. Not only were their ages inappropriate, but in Yang Yiqing's view, although their personalities were conventional, their futures were basically set and they would not achieve much.

On the contrary, the grandson Yang Shengzhai, although he was a bit unreliable, was quick-witted and insightful. Yang Yiqing was always impressed by Yang Shengzhai's views on some things.

So Yang Yiqing decided to send Yang Shengzhai to the academy to study. As for what he could learn and what he could acquire, that was up to fate.

Yang Yiqing could only think of so much for his descendants. He knew his grandson very well. If he were to dictate what he should learn, it would probably have the opposite effect. So, it was better to let him grow up freely. As long as his temperament didn't go astray, a little rebellion wouldn't be a big problem.

Although Yang Yiqing was old, he was very tolerant of his grandson. Even Yang Yiqing's son, Yang Zhian, felt a headache when he saw his youngest son.

Yang Shengzhai was already tired of staying in the capital. In his opinion, the capital was extremely boring. People there talked about nothing but how to study, get promoted, and make money, or about clichéd poems and songs.

Yang Shengzhai felt that using Confucian principles to govern the country was extremely absurd. Apart from advising people, which of those sages' words pointed out how to govern the country in detail?

Yang Shengzhai also enjoyed reading, but he didn't read the Four Books and Five Classics. Instead, he read a lot of miscellaneous books. It was because of these books that he felt more and more that it was a mistake to let those scholars who read the Four Books and Five Classics control the entire Ming Dynasty.

Did the Four Books and Five Classics teach people how to govern a county? Did they teach people how to develop water conservancy projects to benefit the country and its people?

However, his ideas were indeed unconventional for this era, which gave his father a headache, and only Yang Yiqing was very tolerant of him.

Yang Yiqing knew very well that if all the young people in a family were the same, then the family had no future. Throughout history, those who led a family to prosperity were often the outliers.

Yang Shengzhai originally did not have high expectations for the academy. He just wanted to leave the capital, go out and see the world, and even travel around the Ming Dynasty to see the scenery recorded in the books.