@Clairvoyent The LN at least explains that he was studying to be a civil servant. Which would involve local city, province, and even national management. Sub degrees in Economic theory and political theory would normally be included. Most anything else is explained by him being a history-phile, so reading about living conditions in medieval --> Renaissance --> Industrial Revolution is not that hard to remember.
Some of the stuff is basic knowledge too. I mean, it doesn't take a doctor to figure out that dried horse dung is nasty and gets into the air. A sewer system vs people dumping shit water into the street. How water filtration system works was basic stuff when I was in middle school.
Think about all the shit you had to take in highschool; Biology I, Chemistry I, Physics I and II, Algebra I and II, Stats, Geometry, Trigonometry, Calculus I and II, World History,
US *insert your nation* history,
US *insert your nation* Civics, Econ, Literature etc. Now just imagine someone retained that, included some classics such as Plato's Republic and Machiavelli's The Prince and you have your average Asian highschoool student that goes onto college and gets more specialized learning.