Chapter 24 Going to School Since it was Hyakufuku Rin Shizuya...
Since it was Bai Fu, Lin Jing didn't refuse and snapped her fingers at Bai Fu.
"Let's go, Baifu."
She left as soon as Baifu was gone.
After a quick wash, the group waited for Baifu to return before turning off the lights and resting.
The events of today were so impactful that Lin Qing'an tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep.
"Can't you sleep?" Chen Gengnian asked.
Lin Qing'an nodded in the darkness and sighed, "Sigh! I never imagined that we would all be living together in this way."
Chen Gengnian gently patted Lin Qingan's arm and comforted him, "Everything in this world has its own laws, just like your coming into this world and my meeting you. It is uncontrollable and unpredictable."
Although Lin Qing'an knew this made sense, he still felt a little sad. He murmured, "After all, that was Lin Qing'an's original home. Losing his home means that everything has been erased. If he knew, he would definitely feel very sad."
"Don't be sad." Chen Gengnian turned to the side, tracing Lin Qing'an's outline in the moonlight. "Perhaps, this is another kind of forgetting? Let's just say it is! You should all start new lives and live well."
After a long while, Lin Qing'an sighed deeply and said, "Perhaps!"
That's all I can think about now. I haven't been here long, but so much has happened. I couldn't hide my identity anymore. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.
"Brother Nian," Lin Qing'an suddenly called out.
"Mm," Chen Gengnian replied.
Lin Qingan said, "Aren't you curious about the treasure bag?"
“I’m curious,” Chen Gengnian said, “but you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. As long as you’re still by my side, I won’t ask anything else.”
Lin Qing'an chuckled and said, "You trust me that much? Aren't you afraid I've been lying to you all along? What if I'm a thousand-year-old demon, staying here just to absorb all your yang energy?"
Chen Gengnian also said in a serious tone, "Then go ahead and suck it! Once you've sucked it dry, I'll become a ghost, you'll be a demon and I'll be a ghost, that way we can be together forever."
Lin Qingan was amused by his peculiar thought process and laughed even louder.
"Haha, no, do you know that if you become a ghost, you'll be taken away by the King of Hell, and ghosts and demons can't touch each other."
Chen Gengnian suddenly became anxious. He pulled Lin Qingan into his arms and held her tightly, saying domineeringly, "Then I'm going to become a demon too. You figure out a way!"
The two suddenly fell silent, and after a few seconds they laughed one after the other.
Lin Qingan hugged Chen Gengnian back and whispered in his ear, "Don't worry! I won't lie to you, never."
Chen Gengnian couldn't resist stealing a kiss on his forehead and said, "I don't know either."
After saying that, he began to gently pat and coax Lin Qing'an.
"Go to sleep, we need to get up early tomorrow to find someone to build the house."
Having not slept well the previous night, and with so much happening, the two embraced and quickly drifted off to sleep.
Chen Gengnian got up early in the morning to find people to build the house, while Chen Yuetao got up to make breakfast. Lin Yanfeng and Abao also got up early to help.
Everyone moved very quietly, afraid of waking Lin Qing'an.
When Lin Qing'an woke up, he felt a little embarrassed to see everyone busy.
Chen Gengnian hired an outsourcing team to expand two rooms and provide a lunch. Since there were not many materials at home, and the main structure was earthen walls, plus Chen Gengnian's help, the entire project was contracted out for three and a half taels of silver.
The price is reasonable and acceptable.
In the afternoon, the village head brought a letter saying that he had found a good academy, the best one in town, and asked Chen Gengnian to bring people there the next day.
Everyone was happy to receive the notice. Lin Yanfeng repeatedly told Abao to be obedient and well-behaved, acting just like a big brother.
Abao nodded frantically, agreeing with whatever Lin Yanfeng said.
Chen Yuetao looked at Lin Yanfeng and realized that there was nothing left to clean up; everything that could be burned had been burned in the fire.
She pulled Chen Gengnian aside, handed him some silver, and instructed him, "Tomorrow, take Ayan to town to buy him a couple of outfits, then get him some supplies, and buy him some more..."
"Mother," Lin Qing'an suddenly spoke up from behind the two of them, "Don't worry, I'll take care of it for him."
He returned the money from Chen Gengnian to Chen Yuetao, saying, "I have my own money, don't worry, I'll take care of everything properly."
Chen Yuetao tried to decline, but Lin Qing'an held her hand firmly and she couldn't move. In the end, she had no choice but to listen to his opinion.
That evening, Chen Yuetao packed a lot of mountain produce and asked them to take it to the village head. This time, Lin Qing'an did not refuse. These things were his mother's token of her affection, and he would also give her some other things to express his gratitude.
Although kindness cannot be repaid with gifts, social etiquette must still be observed.
Ah Bao was arranged to stay at home with Chen Yuetao, and the group prepared to set off early.
Before leaving, Lin Yanfeng didn't check anything again, but he was worried about Abao.
Abao kept smiling and nodding at Lin Yanfeng until Lin Yanfeng's figure disappeared into the distance, at which point she quietly wiped away her tears.
He whispered to Lin Yanfeng's retreating figure, "Brother Yan, I'll wait for you to come back."
Looking at the two brothers, Chen Yuetao was also deeply moved.
Such a young child is so sentimental; I hope there won't be any estrangement between us in the future.
This time, they went to town again in the oxcart driven by the village chief, and Lin Qing'an, Lin Yanfeng, and Chen Gengnian were still the three of them.
Chen Gengnian originally planned to come by himself, but the village chief said that he had nothing to do at home and would go along to take a look.
Chen Gengnian and Lin Qingan were very grateful to the village chief, who had helped them with many things these past few days. They were thankful for whatever his purpose was.
The only difference this time was that Chen Gengnian brought three chairs, so the three of them didn't have to sit on the platform, and Lin Qingan wouldn't feel the bumpy ride anymore.
They left early, and since it wasn't market day, they hardly encountered anyone along the way.
Upon arriving in town, the village chief went to the village head's house first. Lin Qing'an, Lin Yanfeng, and Chen Gengnian, on the other hand, started exploring.
They first took Lin Yanfeng to buy clothes, but this time they went to a ready-made clothing store instead of a fabric store.
After looking around, Lin Yanfeng insisted on choosing the two cheapest items. No matter how much Lin Qing'an tried to persuade him, he insisted on only those two items. There was no other way but to listen to him.
Afterwards, he bought some pastries and went into a jewelry shop as he passed by.
Lin Qing'an picked out two hairpins that were a little more expensive. Chen Gengnian thought he bought them himself, but unexpectedly, after going to the village head's house, he gave one to his aunt and the other to Wang Tingting.
Wang Tingting was overjoyed with the hairpin, completely forgetting that she had cried for several days because of Chen Gengnian's wedding a few days ago.
She happily pulled Lin Qing'an close, asking him all sorts of questions, which made Chen Gengnian a little jealous.
After the meal, the village head led Lin Qing'an and the others to Qingyun Academy.
Qingyun Academy is the most famous and largest academy in town, with more than a hundred students. Due to the high tuition fees, only those from well-off families can get in.
As soon as Lin Qing'an and his companions reached the entrance of Qingyun Academy, an old man with a white beard came out to greet them.
According to the village head, this man was Lu Wenkang, the academy's dean, and a close friend of the village head.
But what exactly this bond of life and death meant? The village head abruptly stopped, and that was the end of what Lin Qing'an and the others heard.
Lin Yanfeng was taken to take a test as soon as he entered, while Lin Qing'an and the others were taken by the dean to the tea pavilion behind the academy to enjoy tea.
The dean and the village head were having a pleasant conversation, while Lin Qingan and Chen Gengnian listened from the side, refilling tea whenever it ran out, just like waiters in a teahouse.
He doesn't even qualify as a tea master.
Lin Qingan glanced at Chen Gengnian and inexplicably felt like laughing.
Just then, someone came to inform the dean that the servant had whispered something in the dean's ear, and the dean suddenly laughed.
"Brother Wang, it seems your nephew has a good aptitude for studying."
Upon hearing this, Lin Qingan and Chen Gengnian's initial unease vanished completely.
Lin Qingan asked excitedly, "Does the dean mean my brother has been tested?"
The dean smiled and said, "Your younger brother is indeed a rare and promising talent."
His words were ambiguous, leaving Lin Qing'an somewhat confused, but seeing that he kept looking at the village head, it was clear that he only wanted to talk to the village head.
Lin Qing'an knew that some scholars were always arrogant, so he remained silent.
The village head put down his teacup and calmly asked, "Oh? How do you know?"
The dean said, "Today's test questions were far beyond the scope of his age, yet he answered them all correctly."
The village head also smiled and said, "That's wonderful."
"Don't worry, if it's really good material, I will definitely make it shine."
After hearing the dean's words, Lin Qingan and Chen Gengnian finally felt relieved.
Only then did the village head take the initiative to pour a cup of tea for the dean.
He gently pushed the teacup towards the dean and said, word by word, "Then, I'll trouble Brother Lu to take good care of this child in the future."
The dean did not immediately serve tea, but instead turned his gaze to Lin Qing'an and Chen Gengnian who were standing to the side.
Both of them stood tall and allowed him to look them over; this was the first time he had given them a proper look since they arrived.
After observing for a moment, the dean finally picked up the cup of tea and drank it all in one gulp.
He said, "Is the child boarding at the academy or...?"
"No need," the village head said. "The child is staying with me, and I'll send someone to pick him up and drop him off every day."
The dean didn't say anything more, and the village head then let Lin Qingan and Chen Gengnian go and pay their tuition.
The tuition fee is ten taels of silver, which includes the cost of books and two sets of school uniforms. Lin Yanfeng does not stay at the dormitory; if he does, he will have to pay an additional five hundred coins.
Of course, it wouldn't be a problem for most people to pay several hundred coins, but the village head was worried that he wouldn't be used to living here and insisted that he stay at his home. Lin Qing'an and the others couldn't refuse such a kind offer, so they didn't insist any further.
To be honest, in those days, ten taels of silver was enough for an ordinary family to eat and drink for almost a year, so it was considered an astronomical price.
Lin Qing'an didn't feel reluctant at all; on the contrary, she was very happy.
Chen Gengnian chimed in, "Don't worry. Judging from Uncle Lizheng's attitude toward the dean, the dean must be a very capable teacher. Our Ayan will definitely learn a lot from him."
Lin Qingan nodded, agreeing with Chen Gengnian. He could tell that the dean was no ordinary person, and there must be something between the dean and the village head that they couldn't comprehend.
It feels strange, yet I inexplicably believe it.
After leaving the academy, the group returned to the village head's house. Lin Qing'an and Chen Gengnian were preparing to go back, since there were workers coming to do the work today, and there were some things that Chen Yuetao didn't understand, so Chen Gengnian had to be home to help.
Before leaving, Lin Qing'an sat with Lin Yanfeng in his room for a while.
Lin Qing'an forced some loose silver into Lin Yanfeng's hand, saying, "Take this. Buy whatever you want whenever you want. If you run out, just let me know and I'll send it to you."
Lin Yanfeng nodded, his eyes brimming with tears, a sight that made one's heart ache.
Lin Qing'an turned his head away and reminded him again, "If anyone in the academy bullies you, you must tell Uncle Lizheng. If it's not easy to talk to him, then talk to your brother."
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