Chapter 43: The Appearance of a False Body

After Xu Jia finished speaking with his mother, he left the Buddha hall.

Because the Sparrow Spirit had been listening along, Xu Jia knew he must have learned some news, so he asked, "Xiao Zhanying, have you obtained any intelligence?"

Hui Zhuo the little fatty had included her in the Immortal Roster, so Xu Jia could already communicate his thoughts with her and understand the bird language she spoke.

"Old Immortal~, things have gone wrong! Your trouble has arrived." The war eagle woke up from listening to the Dharma, and as if just remembering, she chirped and squawked in annoyance.

Why does she have an accent?

"What trouble?" Xu Jia soothed, "Speak slowly. It can't be that the sky has collapsed or the earth has caved in."

The war eagle shrieked, "Still talking slowly! There is already a monster exactly like you coming to find trouble with you!"

Xu Jia narrowed his eyes: "Exactly like me? Is it a Tushi ghost?"

The war eagle chirped: "What? What ghost are you talking about? It's a person!"

Xu Jia frowned: "What person? Where did you see him?"

"In the mountains," the war eagle said.

"Which mountain? Yushan?"

"I don't know either. I just saw a person who looked exactly like you suddenly appear. I thought it was you, Old Immortal. If his scent wasn't wrong, I would have been fooled."

Xu Jia frowned and stood up immediately: "When? Is he still there? Take me there yourself."

The war eagle said: "It's very far. I flew for a long time, and besides, I was listening to you give your lecture just now, so I'm afraid he has long since left."

Xu Jia said: "No fear. I will use the Armored Horse Talisman. Even Yushan is less than fifty miles away; I will just search for him."

Just as Xu Jia was saying this, a voice came from the doorway: "The master is back!" The noise interrupted his plan, so he had to give up on chasing him personally and instructed the war eagle: "Go and continue to monitor him! See what his background is, that he can actually transform into my likeness?"

The war eagle was somewhat unwilling: "I haven't rested yet, and you haven't given me anything to eat."

Xu Jia waved his hand, pretending to strike, and threatened: "You can't tell who is the master and who is the servant? Could I possibly short you?"

This Sparrow Spirit just happened to fall for this routine; previously, Hu Jinhua had threatened her to make her run errands. She flew off again, aggrieved and muttering.

Xu Jia went out to look and saw his father with a glowing face, looking very pleased with himself.

Several servants and old women were unloading things from a donkey cart.

"Hahaha! Those few stinky pen-pushers were shocked when they saw my essays. Their expressions were sour and foul, and they kept asking me on the side what exam cheat sheets I had seen on the market. I went to consult Master Lu, and Master Lu also said my exam performance has greatly improved!"

Seeing his proud appearance, Xu Jia could tell his confidence had grown significantly, and he couldn't help but nod.

It is good that his confidence has returned.

It is just that this seems to have returned a bit too easily.

Xu Mu had already come out of the Buddha hall to welcome him, and hearing this, she said with pleasant surprise: "Has my husband really made great progress?"

"That goes without saying. Would I lie to a woman like you?" As he spoke, Xu Father saw Xu Jia come out. The smile at the corner of his mouth seemed playful, and feeling somewhat guilty, he still straightened his head: "Naturally, there is progress. Master Lu even kept me overnight, and we talked very happily."

This Lu Laoye is a Recommended Man of the county. On weekdays, he discusses essays with officials of the yamen like the County Magistrate and the Assistant Magistrate, and he also accepts money to review and lecture on essays for the local Cultivated Talents.

Of course, it's not that he reviews them just because you give him money; it also depends on his mood.

Moreover, this Lu Recommended Man charges very high fees; two taels of silver as a threshold for a single time is enough to turn away a large group of scholars intending to get a free ride, saving him the annoyance.

However, if there is a true "genius" who could pass the Recommended Man exam, he would not charge money instead. For example, when Xu Father asked him to review his essays this time, he collected the money first but returned it later.

Although the Yushan County Xian Xue is the center of local literary atmosphere and an official educational institution, it has gradually become a place for the children of wealthy families and the incompetent to gild their reputations.

Some of the Xian Xue instructors only strive to accumulate the money they collect, seeking to change to another place to serve as an official. Some who are slightly more responsible will set up a separate small kitchen to gather the local Shengryuan who are truly seeking knowledge.

"But often, those with good family backgrounds and generations of scholars will not go to the Xian Xue; their family learning is deep. For poor scholars, it is already difficult enough; how can they live in the county long-term and study without working?"

Only a few Linshan Shengryuan will occasionally report once or twice for the sake of some actual rice and meat subsidies.

Those who have money and are very good at studying will go to "academies" to apprentice under great Confucian scholars.

There is only one "Jinghu Shuyuan," also called "Honghu Shuyuan," which was built thirty years ago by a certain County Magistrate in conjunction with local gentry, who invited local literary masters and retired officials to serve as headmasters and professors.

Xu Father once wanted to study there, but his exam results were not good enough, so he could not enter, and even throwing money at it was useless.

Xu Father was still bragging about how good his essays were, but Xu Jia asked: "Father, is there anything else you forgot?"

Hearing this, Xu Father stopped his self-aggrandizement and said: "Jiedi, come to the study later. I happen to teach you how to write essays."

Xu Jia:...

Waiting for Xu Father to wash up and change his clothes, he came to the study and opened a box.

"The goldsmith at Baoqing House originally couldn't have been this fast. I added twenty taels of silver in Work Wages. To win these twenty taels, the goldsmith took on private work and worked through the night to finish it. An eight-point-eight tael golden toad, a six-point-six tael golden pagoda. Take a look, how is it?"

The golden toad was not large, about the size of a hand-held piece, and could be gripped in one hand. It had three legs, and the details were quite average; one couldn't say it was lifelike, but the basic form was correct—three legs, looking like a toad, and golden-bright.

A square slot was also left at the mouth, which could just perfectly hold a copper coin.

The other item, the golden pagoda, was also correct in shape and quality. The top of the pagoda was pen-tip shaped, with eight-sided eaves and a base, totaling nine levels.

Xu Jia put the two items away, then changed his expression and tone, sounding like an old Master, and said in a rough voice: "Yesterday, I corrected all the essays you practiced writing before, Father. You can take a look."

After saying this, he left the place.

Xu Father:? You've turned the world upside down! But looking at the essays Xu Jia had carefully corrected, and thinking that he did indeed seem to have improved, he endured it and told himself: "He is not an Immortal now, he is also a Wenqu Star from heaven. I cannot treat myself as his father; I must treat him as an ancestor..."

Super-generation jump!

After comforting himself in this way, he sat down and looked at the corrections on the essays. Following this line of thought, the logical flow in Xu Father's mind became much clearer. After reading through it once, he sighed: "The essays I wrote before were really dog shit..." Immediately, he took out paper and pen and wrote another one properly before stopping.

(End of chapter)