Reunion of Disciple and Student

The most talked about topic on the streets of Kyoto these days is the Duke of Anguo, who was newly appointed by the Emperor. It is rumored that this Duke of Anguo is a wealthy man who came to Kyoto at some unknown time. He was granted the title for donating a huge amount of money to help Xiangping defeat Hanyun.

The title of Duke is second only to King. Since he received this reward, the amount of money he donated must be an amount that ordinary civilians cannot imagine.

The Duke of Anguo's mansion is located next to the mansion of the newly-appointed Marquis of Jingxi by the Emperor. The two families are old acquaintances and now live next door to each other.

On this day, upon hearing that the wife of Duke Anguo had returned home, the wife of Marquis Jingxi took her two-year-old son Xun Molin to visit the Duke Anguo's mansion. The wife of Duke Anguo brought her eight-year-old eldest son, two-year-old second son, and a pair of twin boys and a phoenix who were less than two months old to greet them in the garden.

The wife of the Marquis of Jingxi saw the twins in the cradle and could not help but admire them.

"You two are so lucky! This is the first time I've seen such a lovely baby. Have you named it yet?"

"Their eldest brother chose the name Mu Song, so his younger brothers and sisters were named after him: Mu Bai, Mu Feng, and Mu Liu."

"This way, the four brothers and sisters appear to be one and the same, and they sound like they are from the same family."

The wife of Marquis Jingxi knew the origins of Su Musong and Su Mubai, so she naturally understood the intentions of the Duke of Anguo and his wife towards these two children.

"Mu Song is eight years old this year, right? Should we hire a teacher to teach him at home or send him to a junior high school?"

"His father thought most of the teachers at the academy were stubborn and pedantic, so he was unwilling to send him to school."

"That's not true. Almost all the children of high-ranking officials in Kyoto are enrolled in the Zixue, and there are many outstanding students among them. The most famous among the students is undoubtedly Xiao Luochen, the seventh son of Prime Minister Xiao's family."

Hearing the three words "Xiao Luochen", Su Musong, who had been feeding the koi fish in a sullen manner, suddenly became energetic. Two years had passed since they parted ways that day, and this was the first time Su Musong had heard Xiao Luochen's name.

"Aunt knows Xiao Luochen?"

"Although I've never met him, I'm afraid there are few in Kyoto who haven't heard of him. It's rumored that he could read at the age of two and chant at the age of three. He's incredibly intelligent and a rare child prodigy."

"So he's also in that school?"

"Yes, he should be a student now."

Su Musong once thought that there was such a vast sea of ​​people that he might never have the chance to see the little kid in the snow again in his life, but he didn't expect that the person was now so close to him.

"Mom, Mu Song also wants to go there to study."

Su Musong rubbed against Changsun Qinan's arms and acted coquettishly. In the past, he would not have been able to behave like a little kid, but now, in order to go to school, he didn't care about anything else.

"Okay, if you really want to go, I'll talk to your father."

After receiving this reply, Su Musong knew that his wish would definitely come true. After all, at home, his father would never disobey his mother's orders.

Three days later, a young man from the Duke of Anguo's mansion appeared among the students of Zixue.

The room was filled with children of similar age. Su Musong recognized Xiao Luochen, who was sitting alone in a corner, at a glance.

Although he was only eight years old, compared to when Su Musong first met him in the snow two years ago, Xiao Luochen seemed to have lost some of his innocence and liveliness, and gained some of the dignity and steadiness of a young master from a noble family.

The morning light shone through the window onto Xiao Luochen, casting the shadow of his eyelashes on the pages. As the breeze blew gently, he concentrated on copying the poems. When Su Musong saw this scene, he felt inexplicably at peace.

He had entered Zixue as a student just to see Xiao Luochen, but now that he was so close, Su Musong didn't know why he had lost the courage to go forward and recognize him.

"He must have forgotten me."

Su Musong muttered to himself, but ultimately did not take that step.

Children's schools are divided into Tongxue, Shaoxue, and Shixue. Tongxue is easy to enter, with no specific requirements. One can enroll by paying the tuition. If one is academically outstanding, one can participate in the annual entrance examination and be admitted to Shaoxue. After entering Shaoxue, one can also pass the entrance examination to Shixue.

All scholars of the Shixue School can directly participate in the final imperial examination held every three years without having to go through the layers of examinations with ordinary scholars.

Almost all the famous teachers in Xiangping were hired into the Zixue, and there were also tutors from the Palace School who came to teach. Therefore, all the dignitaries in Yongjing City sent their sons to the Zixue without exception.

The knowledge and character of these noble children varied greatly. In addition, they came from families of officials and had been influenced by their environment since childhood. Many of them also learned the bad habits of forming cliques and bullying others by taking advantage of their power.

Duke Anguo had been conferred the title not long ago and rarely appeared in Kyoto, and he made a living by doing business. The old powerful people did not say it openly, but they despised him behind his back. Even Su Musong, who had just entered the Zixue School, could not avoid being ridiculed.

Since Su Musong entered school, he has always followed Xiao Luochen closely. Xiao Luochen himself did not notice it, but others discovered the abnormality.

After school that day, Su Musong was blocked in the corridor by a group of half-grown children. The leader was about twelve or thirteen years old, a head taller than Su Musong, and asked in a bad tone:

"Are you from the Anguo Mansion?"

Although Su Musong had only been in school for a few days, he knew that this man was Qiu Zhao, the son of the General of Cavalry. He had studied in the children's school for six or seven years but still could not pass the entrance examination. Although he could not be said to be illiterate, he could be said to be unlearned. Relying on his strong physique, being older than the average student, and having a father with great military achievements, he usually gathered a group of playboys and enjoyed bullying his classmates.

Su Musong didn't want to have anything to do with this group of people. Based on the principle of "if you can't afford to provoke them, hide away", he turned around and wanted to leave.

Qiu Zhao jumped up and blocked Su Musong's way

"Why? Didn't your father teach you to be polite when you see someone older than you?"

Qiu Zhao looked Su Musong up and down, and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Oh, how could I forget, your father is a lowly businessman, how could you have such a thing as a tutor?"

The playboys with Qiu Zhao also laughed along.

Su Musong clenched his fists, his eyes widened, like an angry little beast, and said with gritted teeth

"What did you say!"

"What? You want to fight? My father fought bravely on the battlefield, risking his life to ensure the stability of our country. You're just a mere merchant, and you think you can get into our family just by having a few bucks? You must feel that you're lowly, so you're like a fly that can't be driven away, following Xiao Luochen around all day. What? Are you trying to curry favor with this Seventh Young Master Xiao so that others will look up to you? What a pity! Your father is lowly, you are lowly too, and your whole family is lowly! Do you think you're worthy enough to be our classmate?!"

Su Musong was immediately deflated when he realized that his secret of following Xiao Luochen had been discovered.

Qiu Zhao thought that Su Musong had hit the nail on the head. He was about to mock him again when he heard someone behind him say

"Master Qiu, you are wrong. Soldiers defend the country and protect the people, while merchants trade and distribute goods. Although they each have their own responsibilities, they all contribute to the prosperity of Xiangping and the prosperity of the people."

"Furthermore, Xiangping abolished its old laws since the reign of Emperor Zhao. Scholars, farmers, merchants, and artisans are all citizens of Xiangping, with no distinction between high and low. The Emperor, in gratitude for the Duke of Anguo's contributions, bestowed this title upon him. From what you just said, it seems you're quite dissatisfied with this. Do you think the Emperor was wrong?"

Qiu Zhao felt like he had something stuck in his throat, but he couldn't vent his anger. Xiao Luochen was right. Even though the Duke of Anguo was from a merchant family, he was no longer an ordinary businessman after being granted a title. If he continued to insult him, he would probably be charged with disrespect if the matter was investigated.

Xiao Luochen looked at the speechless Qiu Zhao calmly, walked calmly through the group of playboys, took Su Musong's hand, and left slowly.

Su Musong was nervous all the way, and Xiao Luochen did not say anything. The two of them came to the gate of the school. The Xiao family's carriage was already waiting on the side. Xiao Luochen let go of Su Musong.

"The person who is picking you up should be here by now. I'll be leaving first then."

Prime Minister Xiao holds a high position of power. In order to avoid giving others an excuse to form cliques for personal gain, he specifically teaches the children of the Xiao family to make fewer friends in school. Therefore, Xiao Luochen has always been a loner. This time he helped Su Musong just by chance, and he had no intention of continuing to make friends with him.

But Su Musong was unwilling to give up this opportunity. If he missed it, he didn't know if he would have the courage to recognize Xiao Luochen next time.

"Wait a minute!" Su Musong said his name tentatively. "In the coldest days of winter, only the green pines remain tall and straight. I am Su Musong."

Xiao Luochen turned around and looked in disbelief at the nobleman in front of him who was dressed in a brocade robe and a jade belt. He didn't look like the little beggar at all. Only his eyes, like the stars in midsummer, were still the same as before.

"It's you?!"

"Yes! It's me!"