Chapter 95 - Entering School (1/2)
In the past, the young men of the village often went into the mountains to trap some hares and kill some pheasants because they had seen Hunter Zhao and Yu Hai make money from hunting. However, ever since Yu Hai had his accident, other than the highly skilled Hunter Zhao, most of the other villagers didn’t dare to go into the mountains anymore.
Old Zhang had lived in Xishan Village for many decades and this was the first time he had heard that a vicious animal like a wild bear was in the mountains! Even though the wild bear had been killed, who knew what other ferocious animals and creatures lived in the mountain?
Yu Hai grinned, “It’s not a big deal. As long as you don’t go deep into the mountains, you won’t have any issues. People in nearby villages go through the forests by the mountains every day. After all these years, have you heard of an accident occurring? At that time, it was because we had not been careful and alarmed a bear who had just woken up from his winter nap. Without precautions…in the future, as long as we’re more careful we’ll be fine.”
Old Zhang simply sighed and shook his head. He took out two of the three copper coins given to him and said, “Your children don’t take up much space, so you only need to pay for one person. Your family doesn’t have an easy life…”
Xiaocao thanked Grandpa Zhang. Although her family currently didn’t lack the one or two copper coins, all of them still felt grateful for Old Zhang’s kindness and good intentions.The two siblings chose a middle spot on the ox cart and leaned their backs against Little Shitou’s bag as they squatted down. Yu Hai sat next to Old Zhang in the front and spent the time chatting with him about nonessential things. Qian Wen sat next to the two siblings as he quietly read aloud from a book. His head bobbed gently with the cart’s movements.
The ox cart started and stopped several times. When it passed by the third village, the cart was finally full of people going into town. Xiaocao and her younger brother had been squeezed solidly into the middle of the vehicle and couldn’t even extend their legs out. Although it was uncomfortable, Xiaocao felt that it wasn’t the right time to complain. Qian Wen apparently seemed to sense her discomfort and decided to switch places with her. This allowed her to sit at the side of the cart and dangle her legs down. It was certainly more comfortable than curling up her legs.
Xiaocao smiled gratefully at Qian Wen. Meanwhile, Little Shitou had managed to squeeze himself in between his father and Grandpa Zhang. He had taken Old Zhang’s bullwhip and was using it to draw pictures in the air...
It hadn’t reached breakfast time when the cart arrived in Tanggu Town. Xiaocao had carefully cradled a delicate woven basket the entire road there. Inside the basket were some gifts that she planned on giving to the academy’s headmaster. With Qian Wen to guide them, the three of them managed to go straight to Rongxuan Academy.
The main gate to the school was large and spectacular, and on the top of the gate was an inscription board with ‘Rongxuan Academy’ written on it. In fact, those words had been personally written by the emperor emeritus himself. The schoolyard had been designed along symmetrical lines and had a deep courtyard. The main building was built on the central axis, and the classroom that the headmaster personally taught in was located at the exact middle of the complex. The other lecture halls were divided into two rows at the sides. The dining hall, worship hall, and ancestral hall were ordered around the left and right of the main wing.
The layers of sights within the courtyard gave off a wondrous and marvelous atmosphere. There was a pond with a stream, a stone bridge, and pavilions...a person walking around could hear the faint cadence of students repeating the words they read in their books. This was a place that dripped of culture and learning, and people visiting couldn’t help but feel a sense of deep reverence and fascination...
With Qian Wen’s guidance, the three of them managed to smoothly enter through the academy’s main gate. As they walked through the secluded and quiet avenue, they couldn’t help but walk more lightly than they usually would.
It was currently the meal time at the academy, so Qian Wen directly brought them into the ‘canteen courtyard’. The area was split into two courtyards. One of them was naturally the place where the students were able to eat food. The other smaller area was a bit more elegant and it was for the teachers.
Xiaocao tightly squeezed on the handle of her basket and joyfully followed Qian Wen from behind. When they arrived at a round gate shaped like the moon, they were stopped by a student who was dressed in a black robe, “Student, this is the courtyard where the teachers eat. If you want to partake in a meal, please go over there.”
Qian Wen respectfully gave a greeting and quietly replied, “Brother, if you don’t mind, could you report to the headmaster and tell him that the little boy from the docks that he had accepted into the school is here to report for duty…”
The headmaster had personally accepted a new student? The youth wearing the black robe peeped inquisitively at the little boy who was wearing an entire set of brand-new cotton padded clothes and the man and little girl who were clothed shabbily. He paused for a second and then nodded, “Please wait a moment here…”
Inside the canteen, Headmaster Yuan was having a snack with the academy supervisor and the official of rites and history. When he heard what the student prefect reported, his eyes immediately lit up and sillily asked, “Is the girl that’s with him about seven to eight years of age? Did she come empty-handed? Did she really not bring anything?”
The academy supervisor was considered an old friend of his and knew that he never received other people’s gifts. Flabbergasted, he silently asked himself why his old friend would ask something like that. Isn’t this...isn’t this making it obvious that you want something from her? What sort of person could make his old friend do something so out of character? The official of rites and history also gave the headmaster a bewildered glance.
The student prefect secretly peeked at the headmaster and quietly replied, “The little girl had a basket in her hands. There was a piece of rough cloth covering the top, so I don’t know what’s in the basket.”
Inside his heart he felt that this was not right and proper. The three of them looked like they came from an impoverished family, what kind of poor gift could they give? Could be a few chicken eggs, or a bunch of dried vegetables, at most it’d be an old hen. What was there to look forward to?
Yet, when the headmaster heard his reply, his expression became even more excited. The old man stood up abruptly with a ‘whoosh’ and paced around a few steps as he guffawed, “Looks like this little girl has some sense in her head! Quickly, quickly, let those people come in!”
Qian Wen felt even more surprised when he found out that the headmaster would personally receive the Yu Family. Just what kind of talent did Little Shitou have that made the esteemed headmaster favor him so much?