Chapter 131: Always Picking Fights with the Wrong People

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Yun Qin glanced at the students of Heavenly Hall, then at Li Xu. The students of Heavenly Hall were working very hard. His worthy elder brother had good reason to feel that everyone was studying behind his back.

Yun Qin inexplicably began to feel nervous as well.

“Student Qin, what time do you usually study until at night?” Li Xu asked.

Student Qin’s heart tightened slightly. “Sometimes until the hour of the Ox, sometimes until the hour of the Tiger. Why do you ask?”

Li Xu drew in a sharp breath and shook his head. “It’s nothing, nothing.”

Compared with them, he really did go to bed far too early. The students of Heavenly Hall rested no earlier than the hour of the Ox, while he usually retired by the hour of the Rat.

Yun Qin and Song Sheng also rested somewhat later than he did.

By the time he added everything up, he was probably the one who went to bed earliest.

For now, he would leave things as they were and wait for the academy’s next examination. If he failed to take first place, he would have no choice but to grit his teeth and cut down his sleeping hours a little.

After all, less than a year remained before the provincial examination. Enduring for such a short while should not cause too much trouble.

Besides, he practiced martial arts and had a strong, healthy body.

Unless absolutely necessary, he truly did not want to reduce his time spent resting.

Since Li Xu and Yun Qin were newcomers, the students of Heavenly Hall were eager to exchange ideas with them. The other students had known one another for a long time and understood each other’s abilities perfectly.

Li Xu and Yun Qin were more than happy to converse with them.

Li Xu was busy from morning to night, with every moment arranged to the last detail.

Yet he did not feel tired. He only felt fulfilled.

Moreover, he now had a master who accompanied him in his studies and often offered guidance from the side. Compared with the other students, his circumstances were exceptionally favorable.

Student Qin hesitated before looking at Li Xu. “Student Li, do you think Dean Wei will come to Heavenly Hall to teach?”

Student Li had already come to Heavenly Hall, so why had Dean Wei still not appeared to teach there?

“I don’t know, but he probably won’t be coming anytime soon.” His adoptive father had gone to the kiln where the glass was being fired and had not yet returned.

As for whether he would come to Heavenly Hall to teach after returning, that was difficult to say.

His adoptive father was far too capricious.

Hearing this, the students of Heavenly Hall could not help feeling somewhat disappointed.

They had always believed that as long as Li Xu came to Heavenly Hall, Dean Wei would come there to teach as well.

They did not know whether they would ever have the honor.

…

Li Xu and Yun Qin were preparing to go to the dining hall for lunch when Xiao Hua suddenly darted out and called after them.

Li Xu found Xiao Hua unfamiliar. He had never seen him before.

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“Student, may I ask what you want?” Li Xu asked.

Xiao Hua smiled warmly at Li Xu and Yun Qin. “Student Li and Student Yun took first and second place in this examination. Now that I have met you both, I see that you truly possess extraordinary bearing.”

Li Xu patiently replied, “You flatter us.”

Xiao Hua lowered his voice slightly. “Student Li, do you know who used to hold first place?”

“I do.” Li Xu answered indifferently, “If there is nothing else, we’ll be going to the dining hall.”

Xiao Hua quickly said, “I was just about to go there myself. Why don’t we go together?”

Li Xu’s brows drew together slightly. He had formed a poor impression of this man at their very first meeting. When someone displeased him at first sight, there was no need to waste time speaking with him.

It would only delay his meals and his studies.

Yun Qin politely refused. “That would be inconvenient. Brother Xian and I have some private matters to discuss.”

The smile at the corners of Xiao Hua’s mouth stiffened, and he forced a laugh. “What unfortunate timing.”

“Actually, I sought out Student Li today because there is something I wanted to tell you.”

“The person who always held first place before was Tan Zishan. Tan Zishan is arrogant and conceited. Since you took first place from him, he will certainly hold a grudge against you.”

“Immediately after the results were posted, he said that he would surpass you next time. He even suspected that Dean Wei had given you the examination questions in advance.”

“I tried to persuade him, telling him that Student Li must possess remarkable ability to have taken first place and that he should not make groundless guesses. He ended up cursing me as well.”

“I only wanted to warn you. Since you still have matters to attend to, I’ll be leaving first.”

Xiao Hua did not say too much. He truly appeared to have come out of simple goodwill to offer a warning.

Li Xu and Yun Qin had already been at Heavenly Hall for several days. Li Xu had a good memory. Though he had not deliberately memorized them, he could match every face to its name.

“Brother Xian, how much of what he said do you think was true, and how much was false?”

“Nine parts false, one part true.”

“I thought so too. What a clumsy attempt to drive a wedge between us.”

Li Xu shrugged slightly. “Let’s eat first. Listening to him was like listening to nothing at all—a waste of time.” Did he realize that the time he had wasted was already enough for Li Xu to read several pages?

Xiao Hua, meanwhile, thought he had performed brilliantly.

Anyone who could take first place was surely a prodigy blessed with extraordinary talent for study. Such a person was accustomed to hearing nothing but praise. To have someone question whether he had cheated on the examination would make him feel humiliated.

People like that were proud by nature and would never seek out Tan Zishan to verify the matter.

He had heard that Student Li and Student Yun both came from powerful backgrounds. Once they were offended, Tan Zishan’s days would surely become difficult.

Xiao Hua revealed a satisfied smile.

He would not act against Tan Zishan himself. Naturally, someone else would do it for him.

If he acted personally and the matter came to light, he might be expelled from the academy. It had not been easy for him to enter the academy; there was no need to ruin his own future because of Tan Zishan.

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Besides, if he returned home, his family would scold him as well.

But Student Li and Student Yun were different. They had no such scruples.

Xiao Hua waited several days, yet heard nothing about Li Xu and Yun Qin taking action against Tan Zishan. He began to grow anxious.

Things were not unfolding as he had imagined.

To this day, Li Xu and Yun Qin had not even spoken a single word to Tan Zishan.

Tan Zishan saw that his fellow students were all seeking out Li Xu and Yun Qin to exchange ideas and that every one of them seemed to gain something from it. In truth, he very much wanted to go as well.

But then he remembered hearing that someone had seen Li Xu, Yun Qin, and Xiao Hua standing together, chatting and laughing. He hesitated.

He guessed that the two of them must dislike him. If he went over, he would only be making a fool of himself, showing no tact, and inviting their contempt.

Tan Zishan had been the previous holder of first place, and Li Xu and Yun Qin also wanted to seek him out to exchange knowledge.

But the students of Heavenly Hall were simply too enthusiastic. Whenever the teacher was absent, there were always students gathered around them, so Li Xu and Yun Qin could never find the time to approach Tan Zishan.

When they were not in the lecture hall, they had to visit Xi Sheng, leaving them no time then either.

Although Wei Shian was not at the academy, Li Xu continued to practice martial arts as usual every day. He trained first thing in the morning and remained full of energy throughout the entire day.

Even with Wei Shian away, the academy’s hidden guards were still present, and the hidden guard Wang Tao had sent to spar with Li Xu behaved himself obediently.

He now understood how the Wang family had been destroyed.

Others chose to bully the weak. Wang Tao had chosen to kick an iron plate.

That single kick had sent the Wang family straight to ruin.

Yet no one would have imagined that Young Master Li was the disciple of Grand Secretary Xi and the adoptive son of Dean Wei.

Grand Secretary Xi could turn the tide of the imperial court with a lift of his hand. All his disciples were extraordinary figures among men: one was the current emperor, another was the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review, and another was the Minister of Rites.

Behind Dean Wei stood the General’s Residence and the Wei Army—forces that struck terror into the empire’s enemies and were deeply beloved by the people. Even the civil and military officials of the court had to show them considerable deference.

The hidden guard could only secretly rejoice that he had not yet had the chance to lay hands on Young Master Li.

Otherwise, he would not now be accompanying Young Master Li in practice. The grass on his grave would already have grown several yards high.

No, he would not even have a grave.

After exchanging a few moves with the hidden guard, Li Xu went to the lecture hall. Yun Qin had just arrived as well.

“Brother Xian, you’re here. This is my policy essay from yesterday.” Yun Qin had also assigned himself daily tasks, though not as many as Li Xu. Every other day, they looked over each other’s policy essays, poems, and rhapsodies.

Tan Zishan’s gaze fell upon the two of them. He made several attempts to rise, but before he could do so, another student had already seized the opportunity to approach them.