Chapter 50 Mr. Chizuka
On the other side, Shao Yanzhe did not go back. Instead, he bid farewell to Zhou Jiming and left in the opposite direction from Han Yuzhang. He planned to bring back some dried fish for Xuan Yao first.
After selecting the freshest and most delicious dried fish, he walked back with the fish he had bought. On the way, he saw a bookstore and went in to ask if there was any book copying work available. Unfortunately, there were many bookstores in Jiangcheng, but there were also many scholars, especially now that the provincial examinations were in full swing, which was the time when the number of scholars was at its highest. Therefore, these bookstores were not short of people who wanted to copy books.
He wasn't in a hurry and leisurely carried the food back to his residence.
For the next period of time, he truly enjoyed a leisurely time, sleeping until he naturally woke up every day, and then spending four hours reading, writing articles and composing poems. The rest of the time he either lay on a recliner reading leisure books or went out to buy some dried fish for Xuan Yao.
This kind of life made him very happy. Apart from needing to spend time reading, it was the kind of life he envisioned for his retirement.
However, the only frustrating thing is that his writing has hit a bottleneck. The style of his recent articles has remained at a similar level, without any improvement.
However, he wasn't in a hurry; he figured he would eventually break through the bottleneck by taking his time.
After nearly half a month, Zhou Jiming and his companions finally couldn't stand it any longer. They found someone leisurely reading and feeding fish on a deck chair.
"Brother Shao, you're really taking it easy!" Liu Mingyuan snatched the fish food from his hand and sprinkled some into the fish tank next to him, watching the three or five fish inside scramble for the food.
"It's rare to see you all so together. What are your plans?" Shao Yanzhe was lying very comfortably, and since they were quite familiar with each other, he didn't get up.
Zhou Jiming glanced at him. Over the past few days, he had gotten to know Shao Yanzhe quite well. He was intelligent and studious, but he was also unconventional and acted impulsively, which made them gradually become more casual as well.
Upon hearing this, Liu Mingyuan put down the fish food, opened his folding fan, and said, "Brother Shao, didn't we agree before that we would go and see that willow tree after the provincial examination? The weather is nice today, so why don't we go now?"
Shao Yanzhe then remembered the huge willow tree he had seen before entering Jiangzhou City, and immediately became interested.
Since he was really bored here anyway, he readily agreed.
So, Shao Yanzhe, carrying Xuan Yao, whom he had raised to be shiny and healthy, and Zhou Jiming, Liu Mingyuan, and the other three, rode in a carriage towards the outskirts of Jiangzhou City.
As the carriage drew near, he couldn't help but lift the curtain and look up at the towering canopy of trees, marveling at its grandeur.
Thousands of supple green branches, covered with willow leaves, hang down from the top of the willow tree, seemingly just a hair's breadth from touching the ground. These branches sway in the wind, making a rustling sound, and from a distance, they look like a cloud of green smoke that changes shape at will.
Held in Shao Yanzhe's arms, Xuan Yao glanced up at the willow tree with a puzzled look before closing his eyes again and pretending to sleep.
Shao Yanzhe was thinking that if such willow trees grew in modern times, they would probably have become a famous tourist attraction long ago.
However, the same was true in this ancient world, except that there weren't many people.
From afar, he saw a group of scholars standing in twos and threes under the willow trees, chatting and enjoying a leisurely outing.
The carriage soon arrived at its destination, and the group disembarked. It was still some time before they reached the willow tree, so they had to walk there.
They didn't mind and walked along the path in that direction.
Upon entering, they discovered a wooden house built on the other side of the willow tree. In front of the house were neatly arranged desks and cushions, where a few scholars sat sparsely, their heads bowed and brows furrowed as they looked at the books before them.
The group couldn't help but be curious. They walked over in a few steps and saw a scholar with a copy of the Spring and Autumn Annals in front of him.
"Brother, is this the academy?" Shao Yanzhe asked hesitantly after glancing at the somewhat shabby surroundings.
Upon hearing his question, the scholar looked up at him and nodded: "That's right, this is Mr. Liu's residence. He usually teaches us, and I've heard that many of his students have passed the imperial examinations!"
As he said this, his clear black and white eyes suddenly opened, his excitement evident in his expression.
After that, he ignored them and continued reading.
Seeing his somewhat excited expression, Shao Yanzhe didn't ask any further questions.
He glanced at the open door, then looked at the others and said, "Shall we go in and take a look?"
Zhou Jiming and the others nodded in agreement. They also wanted to see what kind of person this Mr. Liu was, that he could teach so many students to pass the imperial examinations in such a simple environment.
The group walked towards the wooden house. Shao Yanzhe did not rush in, but stopped at the door and knocked on it.
"Is anyone inside?" he asked.
A moment later, a figure slowly walked out of the house, holding a wooden staff in his hand, and stopped a few steps away from the group.
Shao Yanzhe looked at the newcomer. The Mr. Liu mentioned by the scholar looked to be about fifty or sixty years old. He was tall and straight like a pine tree, with long white hair hanging down his back. He was dressed in a blue robe and looked elegant and composed.
He stroked his long beard, his gaze indifferent as he looked at them.
"What brings you gentlemen to this old man?" he asked.
Shao Yanzhe and the others quickly bowed and clasped their hands in greeting: "Greetings, sir."
Then, Shao Yanzhe spoke up: "We are new to this place and were surprised to find an academy here, so we came to investigate. We apologize for bothering you, sir!"
Mr. Liu shook his head slightly: "It's alright. Since that's the case, I see that you gentlemen are also reading. It's also time for me to give a lecture. Why don't you sit down and listen?"
Shao Yanzhe and the others exchanged glances and then agreed: "Thank you for your guidance, sir!"
The group chose an empty spot in the courtyard and listened attentively to Mr. Liu's lecture.
Xuan Yao, however, was not interested in any of these things. It wandered around, running and jumping, and finally ran to the big willow tree, where it was brushed by a willow branch that was hanging down to the ground.
It immediately stretched out its claws, grabbed the willow branch, and started biting it while howling.
Shao Yanzhe glanced at Xuan Yao, who was playing, and then turned his attention back to listening attentively.
Mr. Liu, who was sitting at the front desk, paused in his book-turning motion, glanced at the person, his eyes kind and gentle, and then looked away to continue his lecture.
Shao Yanzhe happened to look up and saw his gaze. Only then did he belatedly realize that his cat seemed to have been a little naughty.
However, Mr. Liu's lecture quickly drew his attention back.
It must be said that Mr. Liu is indeed quite capable. Shao Yanzhe has a thorough understanding of the Spring and Autumn Annals, and today, after hearing his explanation, some parts that seemed unclear suddenly became clear.
And so, the group of people who had come for a spring outing became so engrossed in Mr. Liu’s lecture that they did not come to their senses until the sun began to set.
Mr. Liu closed the book, looked at everyone, and said, "Today's lesson ends here. We will continue tomorrow."
Just then, a child came out carrying a large teapot.
He looked at everyone, and a childish voice rang out: "Are you all thirsty? The master specifically instructed me to prepare some herbal tea for you. Why don't you have a cup before you leave?"
"Thank you, sir!"
The scholar closest to the child quickly stood up to thank him, then took the teacup and drank it all in one gulp.
Shao Yanzhe, Zhou Jiming, Liu Mingyuan, and Chen Yunhe exchanged glances. Chen Yunhe, in particular, couldn't help but recall how he had been poisoned by the Floating World Ephemeral Essence while drinking at Madam Yin's place, and they all looked hesitant.
They no longer dared to drink anything given to them by strangers.
Wen Yanqing and Su Yuheng, however, had no such concerns. Before Shao Yanzhe and the others could stop them, they went straight over and asked for a cup of tea.
Shao Yanzhe glanced around and saw that the scholars were not surprised. Some scholars drank the tea, while others did not. It seemed to be just ordinary tea.
He beckoned to Xuan Yao, brought the teacup in his hand to its nose, and whispered, "Is there something wrong with this tea?"
Xuan Yao took a light sniff and smelled only a faint scent of willow leaves, refreshing and invigorating, with nothing wrong with it.
It tilted its head slightly, then shook it.
Shao Yanzhe was relieved and took a sip of tea, but he still had some reservations and did not finish it.
When Zhou Jiming and the other two saw that he had drunk it, they followed suit and only took one sip before putting it down.
Then everyone returned to the carriage and headed back to Jiangzhou City.
Since the imperial examination is in February of next year, they do not plan to go back. Instead, they will stay in Jiangzhou City for a while and then head to the capital when the time is right.
They originally planned to take a break and then find an academy to study at temporarily, but after listening to Mr. Liu's lectures, they decided to continue taking classes with him.
They sat in the carriage discussing what they had learned that day, creating an unprecedentedly strong learning atmosphere. Even Zhou Jiming, who had no intention of taking the imperial examinations, began to think about continuing his studies.
After returning to Jiangzhou City, at Zhou Jiming's suggestion, since it was still early, they decided to have a meal and drinks at his home that evening so they could continue to attend Mr. Liu's lectures the next day.
The residence of Liu Mingyuan and his three companions was not close to the place rented by Zhou Jiming and Shao Yanzhe. They were somewhat tempted by Zhou Jiming's suggestion.
Since the provincial examination, they had hardly had a proper conversation. The discussion they had just had stirred up their desire to share their thoughts, so they agreed to the suggestion.
After a long and enjoyable conversation, everyone was full and went back to rest.
Shao Yanzhe held Xuan Yao, yawned sleepily, washed up, lay down on the bed, and fell into a deep sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
Seeing this, Xuan Yao found a comfortable position to sit cross-legged and then closed his eyes.
For a moment, the entire courtyard fell silent, with only the occasional chirping of insects.
"Brother Shao? Wake up! We should go!"
Shao Yanzhe opened his eyes groggily and, upon seeing Liu Mingyuan, got out of bed.
"Brother Liu, is it time already?"
Liu Mingyuan nodded: "Yes, we need to get there early, or we'll miss it."
Shao Yanzhe barely opened his eyes and said, "Okay!"
He stood up and followed Liu Mingyuan out of the room.
Behind him, in the dimly lit room, a figure still lay quietly on the bed.
If he turned around and glanced at the person lying on the bed with their eyes closed, they would probably see that it was himself lying there.
Xuan Yao, lying on the pillow, seemed to sense something. It twitched its ears, opened its eyes, raised its head and looked around. After finding nothing amiss, it closed its eyes again.
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