He Changxing's family had been merchants for generations. Originally, children of merchants were not allowed to take the imperial examinations, but five years earlier, the imperial court had issued a new decree allowing children of merchants with at least one member to take the exam. He Changxing was lucky enough to be accepted. As the only son in the family, he had no one to compete with him for a spot, so it was natural for him to attend school.

Everyone in the school knew his family was a merchant, and no one wanted to associate with him. Even though the imperial court had enacted a law allowing the sons of merchants to take the imperial examinations, the millennia-old concept of valuing agriculture over commerce was still deeply rooted in people's minds, and everyone despised his status.

Speaking of which, the original owner and He Changxing were the two most unpopular people in the school. One was from a merchant family, and the other was a peasant from the countryside.

Both were ostracized by their classmates, which logically should have led to a closer relationship. However, in reality, their relationship wasn't very good. The original owner also looked down on his classmate from a merchant family. It wasn't because of a belief in emphasizing agriculture over commerce, but rather because he was jealous of He Changxing's family's wealth. He desperately wanted to fit in, so when he was invited to a poetry and prose gathering after passing the entrance exam, he was so eager to join, even at the slightest risk.

Perhaps thinking that with their shared friendship, the two of them should be closer than before, He Changxing asked, "Why don't you play with Sun Tingwen and the others?"

He Changxing still remembered clearly how the original owner had been following that group of people so happily. But when he came today, he seemed like a different person. Not only did he not come over, he didn't even say hello to them.

In fact, it shouldn't be today, but the day when the school was on holiday. An Jingzhi was sitting in the ox cart and greeted him in a generous and natural manner, which was completely different from usual.

"If it's boring, I won't go."

He Changxing looked at him in surprise, "Then you also..." Perhaps because he felt that he had said too much since they were new friends, He Changxing stopped talking.

An Jingzhi glanced at him and said calmly, "I just wanted to join in the fun before. I was curious why they were so arrogant every day and looked down on others. It turns out they were just pretending to be cultured."

"That's right. You think so too, right? Just looking at them makes me angry. They all look so arrogant all the time. I don't know what they are so arrogant about. They even organized this ridiculous poetry and prose meeting. Those who know clearly that they are students, but those who don't think they are some kind of literati. Even scholars can't necessarily write good poems. Who are these students pretending to be?"

He Changxing had a lot of grievances, but he finally found someone who agreed with him. He complained to An Jingzhi, and it was obvious that he had been suffering from these classmates for a long time.

An Jingzhi looked at He Changxing suspiciously, wondering if this man really couldn't stand the way those people acted, or if he was jealous of them because he himself didn't pass the exam to become a Tongsheng.

Perhaps seeing An Jingzhi's suspicious look, He Changxing became furious and put down the pancake in his hand. The fat on his face was shaking with anger, as if he had been wronged. "What are you looking at? Do you think I'm jealous of them?"

An Jingzhi nodded, "I wasn't sure just now, but now I am sure."

"You!" He Changxing didn't expect An Jingzhi to be so disrespectful to him. Weren't they just fine just now? How could he slander someone's innocence out of thin air?!

Okay... he admitted that he was a little jealous, but more than that, he couldn't stand them!

After staring at An Jingzhi for a minute, He Changxing couldn't help but lower his head, his eyes dim, "Do you look down on me too?"

An Jingzhi looked at him in surprise, "Why do you have such an idea?"

He Changxing murmured in a low voice, "Before, you were just a farmer's son with no official title. We were evenly matched. Now, you are a scholar with a bright future, and I am still a merchant's son who has studied for three years without any official title."

In fact, He Changxing did not pass the imperial examination after the original owner died.

"so what?"

He Changxing looked up at him and found that An Jingzhi's expression was still as calm as before. "So what? Isn't this enough?"

"You have both parents and a wealthy family. You've lived a life of luxury since childhood and haven't experienced any hardship at all. Is it just that you can't stand the looks of others?"

"Have you ever wondered why you failed the Tongsheng exam twice, even though you clearly mastered all the knowledge?"

He Changxing's eyes were red, thinking that An Jingzhi wanted to humiliate him, "What do you mean?"

"It's nothing, I just think you're being too pretentious. From what I understand, you're probably just bored."

He Changxing was about to speak when An Jingzhi said:

"You should change your mindset. Maybe they look down on you because they are jealous that your family is rich and you can take the imperial examination." In fact, it was not just the original owner. Many of the people he saw in his memory had the same idea as the original owner.

He Changxing had never thought about this. Except for An Jingzhi, everyone in the school looked the same.

"How is that possible?" He Changxing looked at An Jingzhi with eagerness, like a devout believer, hoping that the other party could answer his confusion.

An Jingzhi patted his shoulder and said with the tone of someone who had experienced it, "Why is it impossible? Look, everyone seems to be wearing the same clothes and eating the same food. In fact, most people are just pretending to be rich."

He Changxing looked at An Jingzhi and asked, "Is it like when you were riding in an ox cart and had to hide from your classmates?"

An Jingzhi was so angry that he wiped the oil on his hands onto his clothes. That was clearly what the original owner did!

"What nonsense are you talking about! I'm not afraid of being seen by my classmates, I'm just annoyed by them! They keep chattering in my ears all day long and it's really annoying."

"Then how did you greet me last time? Weren't you afraid of being seen?" He Changxing glanced at him suspiciously.

"You are different. You are a little fat, but you have a good heart. You won't gossip. In fact, among so many classmates of ours, I am most optimistic about you." You are stupid and easy to fool. I will depend on you for extra meals in the future.

He Changxing, who was originally a little skeptical, heard the last sentence, but all his doubts disappeared. He looked very happy, as if getting An Jingzhi's recognition was something worth celebrating.

So An Jingzhi didn't say hello to others and avoided them to ride the ox cart. It wasn't because he was afraid of being laughed at as others said, but because he didn't like those people at all and did it to avoid trouble. But when he saw him, he greeted him without hesitation, which showed that he was still a relatively trustworthy person in An Jingzhi's heart.

After all these years of studying, this was the first time that He Changxing met a classmate who trusted him so much. It was also the first time that he had a strong desire to make friends with another person.

He Changxing scratched his head a little embarrassedly, accidentally rubbing the oil on his hands on his head, "I was quite thin when I was a child."

An Jingzhi saw the oil on his head, smiled, and subconsciously moved a little further away from him.