Chapter 16

One guan per day, thirty guan per month.

Li Guanyi suddenly felt that the girl, no more than a year or two older than himself, emitted a golden glow.

But even a companion tutor and book boy receives such treatment?

The girl across from him, seemingly fourteen or fifteen, smiled faintly:

"Please, Mr. Xiao, become my younger brother's teacher of arithmetic. Do not refuse."

Such a good position, Li Guanyi naturally would not refuse; though sixty guan was more, and consisted of gold and silver of extremely high value, it could not be shown openly in the short term, and moreover, not only would having more silver on hand be better when he eventually left Chen State, but even daily life would improve.

He had no reason to refuse.

When he departed shortly after:

Several tutors saw off Miss Xue; the same Liu Zhuang tutor who had taught arithmetic was among them, his face now filled with sincere smiles—unlike before, when he had made Li Guanyi wait in the courtyard, he personally escorted them out, his smile never fading, asking after their well-being.

Watching Li Guanyi depart with Miss Xue, he stroked his beard and smiled naturally: "What good fortune—he refused to work for me, yet found an even better place."

"Mr. Li, shouldn't you thank me?"

"In my opinion, no thanks are necessary. No thanks at all."

Li Guanyi said: "Thank you, Master, for one sentence."

He looked at the gentle Confucian scholar, asked for paper and brush, wrote a single line, folded it, and handed it to him, then departed together with Miss Xue.

Liu Zhuang's smile slowly faded; he didn't even look, casually tossed the paper aside.

"Clearly he's annoyed with me. Indeed, as the saying goes, only petty men and women are hard to manage."

Normally, he didn't mind repaying the favor to Huichun Hall, but this time was different: in Jiangzhou, the capital of Chen State, a major event was coming—a senior master of arithmetic, long absent from the capital, was rushing back urgently to plead for Marshal Yue.

On his way, he would stop here to meet with powerful clans and lodge at this private academy.

At this moment, every position in the arithmetic hall carried great weight—none could be given away for free.

He had even inquired ahead of time about a problem from the book written by the great arithmetic master, and given it in advance to his favorite student, hoping to showcase his talent; soon after, seeing his student approach with a beaming face and examining the solution, he could not help but smile with delight.

Ah! Bright future ahead!

Liu Zhuang praised repeatedly:

"No wonder you're my student—I knew you had great talent."

Yet all the students wore troubled expressions; in these times of warring states, gentlemen still walked the world—they were young, in the most spirited and proud years of their lives, and refused to steal another's work: "We didn't solve it."

Liu Zhuang asked: "Who solved it?"

The boy frowned: "Huh? Didn't Master just call him in?"

Liu Zhuang froze, eyes widening: "You mean… that, that, that…"

The young student replied: "The gentleman in plain clothes."

This sentence was ordinary.

Yet for some reason, Liu Zhuang's face turned alternately pale and flushed; suddenly remembering something, he snatched up the white paper he had carelessly discarded, unfolded it, realized he had let slip a heavenly opportunity, staggered backward, sat heavily on the ground, the paper fluttering down—he slammed a fist hard onto the floor, bitterly exclaiming: "You—you—you all… worthless disciples!"

"Why didn't you tell me this sooner?!"

"How you've misled me!"

The students exchanged glances, confused why their master was angry; they looked at the white paper, where several large characters were written:

Written with bold, swirling strokes.

"Why the sudden change from arrogance to flattery?"

………………

Li Guanyi sat with the coachman up front, for the first time watching the scenery on either side of the main road, imagining Liu Zhuang's expression upon learning he had solved the problem and seen the letter—his mood grew pleasant.

Li Guanyi's heart is small: if you treat me well, I treat you better.

If you insult me, I will not tolerate it.

Hit a man on the face; kill a man by breaking his spirit. The coachman wielded his whip expertly, driving the horse forward with uncanny agility; as Li Guanyi answered Miss Xue Shuangtao's questions, his mind turned to another matter.

One guan per day, thirty guan per month—equivalent to over twenty taels of silver.

In Yicheng, that was wealth; thirty guan could replace the hovel where one looked up at the stars, stepped on ants, and occasionally had to crush a few rats—with a proper house of brick-and-stone flooring, a warm stove, and a comfortable bed, furnished with wooden furniture.

He could buy new clothes for himself and his aunt, eat better dishes and fresh fruit.

And retrieve his aunt's jade pendant.

Li Guanyi spotted the pawnshop ahead, hesitated, then spoke: "Miss Xue, I have a humble request…"

Xue Shuangtao smiled: "Mr. Xiao, please speak."

Li Guanyi said: "May I borrow ten guan in advance?"

Miss Xue's eyes widened slightly, then she noticed Li Guanyi's faded, washed-out clothes, neatly kept but frayed at the edges; she paused thoughtfully, then spoke softly: "I was remiss—you are a hired tutor; by custom, your full monthly salary should have been paid upfront."

The maid Qing'er froze, eyes wide, staring at her mistress.

Huh? Huh huh huh?! When did our family ever do this? Xue Shuangtao raised a finger to Qing'er's lips, blinked once, made a shushing gesture, then spoke gently: "Seeing your mastery of arithmetic, I was so delighted I forgot this matter—please forgive me, Mr. Xiao."

"Qing'er, give Mr. Li thirty taels of silver."

Thirty taels of silver was actually worth thirty-six guan.

Li Guanyi took it, murmured thanks, then said: "Could we stop at the pawnshop ahead? I wish to redeem something my elder once pawned."

The coachman chuckled: "To honor one's elders is right. Hold tight, Mr. Xiao."

He cracked the whip; the carriage halted before the pawnshop. Li Guanyi stepped down, entered, and explained his purpose. When he first came to this place, he had pawned the item as a living pledge—recoverable if not sold. He feared the long time might mean it was gone, so he carried thirty taels inside, declaring his intent.

But the pawnshop shopkeeper's face changed slightly upon seeing Li Guanyi.

When he heard Li Guanyi wished to redeem the item, his eyes flickered sideways.

Li Guanyi's heart sank slightly.

Sure enough, the shopkeeper forced a look of regret, apologetic: "I remember your jade pendant—but unfortunately, a customer has already taken an interest in it…"

The shop curtain was pulled aside; a young man stepped out holding a jade pendant, smiling: "Master Wang, this pendant is truly fine—I'll take it. Charge it to my account; send the payment to my home next month."

Li Guanyi recognized the young man as the young master of Huichun Hall.

He did not care about that; he immediately saw it was his aunt's jade pendant, stepped forward half a pace, blocked the young man, and said calmly:

"Unfortunate, today I intend to redeem this jade pendant."

The young master of Huichun Hall glanced at Li Guanyi, saw his plain clothes, frowned, and disdainfully flicked his sleeve, saying: "Yours?"

"Hahaha, unfortunate, this jade pendant is mine now."

Li Guanyi said gravely: "According to the pawnshop's rules, you haven't paid yet, so you haven't bought it; I pawned it as a redeemable pledge—the jade pendant never left the shop, so I can redeem it."

The young man was momentarily speechless, but then recognized Li Guanyi as the servant his family had dismissed; confidence surged, and he looked him up and down, sneering: "Redeem it? Little servant, keep that money and spend it yourself—I want this thing."

He snapped: "Move aside. Don't block the way."

He raised his hand to shove Li Guanyi aside; Li Guanyi lowered his gaze as internal Qi flowed within him.

A soft footstep sounded.

Robes fluttered, carrying a faint orchid scent; a gentle voice spoke beside them: "Mr. Li, why are you so late? Did something happen at the pawnshop? Were you unable to retrieve it?"

Xue Shuangtao stood beside Li Guanyi.

The Shopkeeper and the young master of Huichun Hall froze in place.

This is…

The Xue family?!

The beautiful young lady gently folded her hands before her, standing beside the plain-clad youth, her eyes slightly lifted, fixed on the young master of Huichun Hall's right hand, smiling faintly:

"Young Master, what are you reaching out to do to my Mr. Li?"

(End of Chapter)