Chapter 44 Waiting for the Rabbit

The existence of rest days is indeed meaningful. Yesterday, I went to the Song family to attend a family dinner and played with Song Muer for most of the day. Most of the fatigue that Li Nuo had accumulated over the days disappeared, and he felt much more relaxed.

If he had learned how to "relax and work hard" earlier, he would never have worked so hard in his previous life and would not have ended up here.

For the entire day, Li Nuo tried cases in the Chang'an County Court as usual.

Until today when he left the government office, his life span had only increased by three days.

The number of cases he handled every day was gradually decreasing. After all, he was in the emperor's court, and there were not so many cases. The grand occasion of the past few days was just the accumulation of the previous ones. Li Nuo estimated that in the days to come, it would be good if he could add two days to his life for every case he solved.

So he has to find a way to create more performance for himself.

For him, performance is life.

After leaving the court, Li Nuo walked out of the courtroom and waved to a figure in the yard.

County Magistrate Wang ran over and asked with a smile on his face, "Master, what can I do for you?"

Li Nuo said: "Bring some people with you and go somewhere with me."

"Yes, sir!"

County Lieutenant Wang did not ask any questions and immediately went down to gather people.

Butler Wu was still thinking about the meal at home, and asked Li Nuo in confusion: "Master, are you not going home?"

Li Nuo said: "Let's go to Yunmeng Academy first."

Butler Wu did not ask Li Nuo why he was going to Yunmeng Academy. He was already accustomed to the young master's unfathomable and inexplicable style of doing things.

When he went out this morning, the young master asked him to arrange for someone to prepare some rolling pins, but he still doesn't know what they are used for.

If the young master goes somewhere else, he may have to make some arrangements in advance to ensure his safety. Yunmeng Academy is located in Chang'an City, not far from the downtown area. If there is any danger, he only needs to send a signal and the guards patrolling the city will arrive quickly.

…

In today's Daxia, the imperial examination is the only way to enter the officialdom.

This rule was set when Taizu founded the country and has not changed for hundreds of years.

No matter they were princes or nobles or sons of officials, if they wanted to seek an official position, they had to pass the imperial examination. This also led to the establishment of numerous academies of all sizes in Daxia, and Chang'an, as the capital, had academies everywhere.

The content of the imperial examination was based on Confucianism, involving six skills: rites, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy, and mathematics. It was impossible to master these six skills through self-study, and the major academies hired teachers who were proficient in various fields at a high salary, so that students could receive the most comprehensive instruction in the academies.

It is precisely because of this monopoly of resources that the cost of studying even in a small academy is extremely high. The students in the academy are either rich or noble. The academy is the source of court officials, and naturally the officials in the court also come from powerful and aristocratic families.

Yunmeng Academy is one of the four major academies in Chang'an. Although its reputation is not as prominent as the other three academies, it should not be underestimated. Few civil servants in Daxia come from Yunmeng Academy, but more than half of the military generals in the army come from here.

This is not a cradle for civil servants, but a cradle for military generals.

If the powerful people in Daxia hope that their children can make achievements in the army in the future, they will send them to Yunmeng Academy for further study.

The main gate of Yunmeng Academy faces the bustling Chang'an Street. Behind the academy is a quiet forest with crisscrossing paths, and occasional teahouses, bookstores, and music halls hidden among them.

Although this place is not as lively as Chang'an Avenue, due to its quiet environment, students from academies often visit here, so business is pretty good.

At this moment, there is a teahouse in the forest, with an elegant pavilion on the second floor.

Li Nuo sat by the window, took a sip of tea and looked out the window. He could see the back door of the academy from here.

The academy's closing time is half an hour later than the government office's closing time, and there are only a few people there.

Li Nuo prayed that Song Yu and the others would not let him down.

County Lieutenant Wang brought a dozen constables and runners to drink tea in another private room. They had to pay for the tea themselves, and since they were now working overtime, he had to pay them extra overtime pay. He didn't want to waste the money.

"Boom, boom, boom..."

As several dull bells rang, figures began to walk out from the back door of the academy.

Most of them were young people, walking in groups of two or three, going into teahouses and restaurants, bookshops and music halls. At one moment, more than ten figures came out of the academy in a mighty procession, and the others retreated when they saw them.

"Aren't these the Zhou brothers? What do they want to do by gathering so many people?"

"They look unhappy..."

"I don't know who's going to be unlucky again."

Amid the murmurs of the crowd, a group of people, led by two young men, walked towards an open space in the woods.

Just then, a few loud shouts suddenly came from under a tree somewhere in front.

"Selling rolling pins, the best rolling pins."

"The best Huanghuali wood rolling pin, if it's not sturdy, I won't charge you for it!"

"Rolling pins are on sale for cheap, only ten cents each!"

A middle-aged man wearing coarse cloth and with a simple face placed a straw mat under a tree, on which dozens of rolling pins were neatly placed.

Many people secretly shook their heads when seeing this scene. It was obvious that this guy didn't know how to do business. How could he sell rolling pins in front of the academy?

Even if it is to be sold, it should be in a downtown area or residential area.

The people who pass by here the most are students from Yunmeng Academy. Selling some banned erotic books can be profitable, but why would students need such things?

Even if he shouts his throat out today, he won't be able to sell a single one.

As they were thinking this in their minds, suddenly a figure walked up to the man, bent down, picked up a rolling pin, and waved it in the air a few times, making a "whoosh" sound. From the sound, they could tell that the rolling pin was definitely made of real material.

Then he threw down a silver ingot and said, "Give me ten. The rest will be yours as a reward."

This ingot of silver was worth one ounce, enough to buy a hundred rolling pins. The man was overjoyed. He picked up the silver and said repeatedly, "Thank you, sir, thank you, sir!"

The figure waved his hand, and the group of people came over one after another. Each of them took a rolling pin from the man and walked towards the open space in the woods.

When the other students saw this, they couldn't help but sigh, it's true that fools have good luck, this man was selling rolling pins here, and he happened to meet the Zhou brothers who were looking for trouble with others. This Huanghuali wood rolling pin can not only be used to roll noodles, but is also suitable for fighting. It must be very painful when it hits someone.

Not long after, another group of people walked out from the back door of the academy.

"Selling rolling pins, the best rolling pins."

"The best Huanghuali wood rolling pin, if it's not sturdy, I won't charge you for it!"

…

When Song Yu heard the sturdy man's hawking, he paused, walked up to him, picked up a rolling pin and weighed it, finding it very sturdy. An idea suddenly came to his mind, and he turned to one of them and said, "Brother-in-law, do you have any silver on you? This thing is very convenient to use, and it may be useful to you later."

The thin and elegant young man shook his head and said, "It's best not to use it."

Song Yu was puzzled and asked, "Why?"

The elegant young man explained: "According to Daxia law, fighting with bare hands is punishable by forty strokes of the cane; fighting with weapons is punishable by sixty strokes of the cane. Once this thing is used, it is a fight with weapons, which is completely different from fighting with bare hands..."

Song Yu asked, "Can someone surnamed Zhou report this to the authorities?"

The conflicts among the children of generals have always been resolved by themselves. Anyone who reports it to the authorities will be ridiculed by everyone. Besides, the Chang'an County Government does not dare to interfere in the affairs of generals.

Chen Ling shook his head and said, "It's better to consider everything carefully."

Song Yu waved his hand and said, "Forget it, let's just listen to my brother-in-law, so that the Zhou family won't accuse us of bullying them."

Then, he said to Chen Ling, "Brother-in-law, you are weak, so just watch here to avoid accidentally hurting you. With Wang Hua here today, nothing will go wrong."

"That's fine. There are imperial guards patrolling not far away. If you suffer any loss, I will lure the imperial guards here." Chen Ling nodded. He knew his situation. Even if he went up, he would not be able to help much. Instead, he would become a burden to them. It would be better for him to watch here. Once the situation was out of control, he could ask for help in the first time.

Song Yu led a group of people and walked towards the open space deep in the woods in a menacing manner.

At this moment, no one knew that in the teahouse behind them, a figure was standing at the window of the second-floor pavilion, looking at them quietly.

Butler Wu stood behind Li Nuo with a stunned expression.

He finally understood why the young master had asked him to prepare a rolling pin in the morning.

So that's how it's used.

The speed of the Legalists' cultivation is related to the severity of the punishment. For each level of severity of the punishment, such as flogging, caning, imprisonment, exile, or death, the speed of cultivation increases. Therefore, within the scope permitted by the law, the Legalists have always imposed heavier sentences.

These people fought with their bare hands, which was just a flogging.

But if you hold a stick in your hand and go from being bare-handed to being armed, the nature of the situation is completely different.

Butler Wu looked at Li Nuo with satisfaction. What does it mean to be a real father and son? This is a real father and son. The young master's move was at least three points of the master's true teachings.

Li Nuo turned around and saw the strange look in Butler Wu's eyes. He asked, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Butler Wu looked at Li Nuo in admiration and said, "Master, this move is really brilliant!"

Li Nuo glanced at him and said unhappily, "What's so great about that? I'm just a rolling pin seller. It's not illegal to sell rolling pins..."

After that, he said, "Go and keep an eye on them. Don't let them cause any trouble."

Watching Butler Wu jump out of the window, Li Nuo picked up the teacup again.

Although the rolling pin is made of ordinary wood and has no cutting edge, it can still be life-threatening if it hits a vital part.

If these playboys get too far, something might really happen.

Then his sin is serious.

Although the law couldn't do anything to him, his conscience was still bothered.

With Steward Wu, who is at the fourth level of martial arts, there is no need to worry about this matter.

Strictly speaking, this kind of behavior of adding fuel to the fire is still a bit immoral, but he has to stay alive. Only by staying alive can he have output, promote legalism, and uphold justice. I don't know if the "Code" can understand it, so I just take this opportunity to try it out...

(End of this chapter)