Mishan County had plenty of trees—nothing else was abundant. These trees on the mountains were useless if not burned for charcoal, even after hundreds of years. Now these unwanted trees could earn money—how could that not make them happy?
"Oh, I see." Xu Huaiqian always felt Chen Liejiu hadn't finished telling him everything—there was something he hadn't grasped. But he trusted Chen Liejiu deeply and privately felt Chen Liejiu had no need to deceive him. Even if there was a little discomfort, he temporarily ignored it.
"My husband is truly amazing," Xu Huaiqian's eyes turned into star eyes. "Doesn't that mean everyone in the surrounding villages will know you, Chen Liejiu, as the charcoal maker?"
" That's right." Chen Liejiu lifted his chin, a proud expression on his face.
In the middle of the night, he also felt he was amazing—he could even smooth over his bluffing talk.
Originally, he planned to buy some trees from outsiders every few years after the road was built. After all, they only made charcoal in winter now; the Chen clan's trees were plenty.
But now they were making imitation silver charcoal for external sales, needing to fire the kiln year-round. The trees wouldn't be enough at all, forcing them to buy from outsiders.
Speaking of which, his little husband was the amazing one— without showing off, always helping him in unexpected ways.
His little husband was his lucky star!
"A-Qian?" Thinking this, Chen Liejiu called tenderly to Xu Huaiqian.
Xu Huaiqian looked up: "Hmm?"
"No matter how arduous, I will find the peppercorn trees you want." Chen Liejiu still remembered the tone when Xu Huaiqian whispered intimately by his ear, "A-Jiu, help me."
His little husband had married into his life as a bully for no reason, never asking for anything. If he couldn't fulfill this small request, what kind of good husband was he?
Moreover, Xu Huaiqian had already paid the reward in advance. Chen Liejiu thought of his little husband's tricks, and his face felt hot. He didn't know where he learned those moves— both lovable and hateable.
" Aiyah, it's fine." Xu Huaiqian waved his hand. It was already March; if they couldn't find peppercorn trees soon, the best time for cuttings would pass. He couldn't really have his wife travel over mountains and rivers to find trees for him.
"If there really aren't any, then forget it. In life, one should know when to give up. Don't think about this all day. If it really doesn't work, we'll plant radishes instead. Just right—winter radishes and summer ginger."
Coincidentally, land planted with ginger couldn't be continuously replanted with the same crop; it needed rotation. Xu Huaiqian had been worrying about what to plant after ginger. Without peppercorns, why not rotate the ten plots?
"Okay, I know." Chen Liejiu had an idea in mind, but he couldn't be sure yet. He couldn't tell Xu Huaiqian first and get his hopes up for nothing.
Arriving at the academy, Xu Huaiqian took his luggage and got off. Chen Liejiu wanted to carry it up the mountain for him.
" No need. You have so much to do at home; don't waste time on me. I can carry it up myself."
Home was extremely busy every day. Chen Liejiu had to make charcoal, fire bricks, farm—all sorts of things bogging him down. Squeezing out time to take him to school was already not easy. Xu Huaiqian wasn't that unreasonable to trouble Chen Liejiu with such a small matter.
Chen Liejiu thought since Xu Huaiqian's luggage wasn't very heavy, and he really had a lot to do, he didn't refuse. He turned the ox cart around: " Then I'll head back now!"
", Ah, okay." Watching Chen Liejiu drive the ox cart down the mountain, Xu Huaiqian then picked up his luggage and painfully climbed up to the academy.
, So hard, so hard.
Which genius decided to build ninety-nine steps at the academy's main entrance? Wasn't this purposely fatal for sickly people like him?
When Xu Huaiqian finally managed to climb up to the academy, he couldn't hold back and spat a mouthful of blood on the steps. Looking up, he saw the two gate attendants staring at him with looks of utter terror. Xu Huaiqian was also speechless.
No choice. He hadn't exercised so vigorously in too long and couldn't control his excitement.
"Ahem, have all the other students arrived?" Xu Huaiqian wiped the blood from his lips with a handkerchief and struck up a conversation with the two somewhat familiar attendants.
"They're all here, Xu Xiucai—no, should be Xu Xiucai now." The two attendants hadn't expected Xu Huaiqian to pass the Xiucai exam after only two months of study at the academy. Though he was just a last-place Xiucai, it still meant a class leap. "Xiucai Duan, Xiucai Zhang, Xiucai Meng are all here. They found a new dormitory and moved your things. Should I take you there?"
" Okay." Xu Huaiqian nodded. Perfect, he hadn't been to Qingyun Court yet; having a guide was even better.
Qinglian Academy was a proper academy for studying. It accepted students seeking mutual guarantees for exams but strictly forbade students from forming cliques for gain.
Since the dynasty allowed merchants' sons to take the imperial exams, some ill-intentioned merchants would send their children to the academy to befriend those with official ranks.
The result was that their own scholarship was poor, and they dragged down those with rank into decadence.
So the academy directly divided students into two courts: those without rank were in Qinglian Court, those with rank in Qingyun Court.
A lock fell between the two gates; without special permission, people from the two courts did not interact.
As Xu Huaiqian was led by the attendant toward Qinglian Academy, a group of students looked at him with complicated expressions.
After Xu Huaiqian and his group passed the Xiucai exam, the academy head and teachers had the county's Xiucai list copied and posted in the Classes C and D study halls for these Tong Sheng to see—why could those others pass, but not them!
No one was surprised that Meng Fangxun and Zhang Bingwen passed; what shocked them was that latecomers like Xu Huaiqian and Duan Youyan could also overtake them! How could they not feel complex inside!
" I never thought this sickly person really passed the Xiucai exam!"
" Exactly! Who said he would die in the exam hall? Look, not only did he return alive, he passed and ascended to Qingyun Court."
Qingyun— Rising straight to the clouds. Just the name sounded different from those still in Qinglian Court.
"Who could have imagined it?!"
"If we hadn't disdained his sickly body back then and studied with them, do you think I could have also made the tail end?"
" Hard to say."
"Pei Wangshu studied with them and still didn't pass. Clearly it depends on the person."
"But it's normal for someone as unstudious as Pei Wangshu to fail. We're not like him."
This also made sense. Everyone in Classes C and D saw how Pei Wangshu usually was. If he passed, how would they face themselves?
So, it wasn't that they were incompetent; it was that Xu Huaiqian and Duan Youyan themselves had ability, and they worked so hard— coughing blood while studying! It would be abnormal if they didn't pass.
" Work hard, work hard! Xu Huaiqian and Duan Youyan's results were just average. If they can pass, why can't we?"
Students still in Classes C and D spoke enviously but had already decided to study hard like them, striving to catch the tail and ascend.
If only they hadn't ostracized Xu Huaiqian and the others back then, they could now go ask them how they studied and passed in just two months.
Unfortunately, they had offended them badly. You can imagine if they tried to cozy up now, they wouldn't be acknowledged. Although many were tempted, they tactfully didn't approach or disturb.
Naturally, Xu Huaiqian heard the envy and jealousy from Classes C and D as the attendant led him to Qingyun Court.
But there was no help for envy—he had passed. They disdained his poor health and collectively ostracized him; now they couldn't curry favor even if they wanted.
Only Pei Wangshu, still in Class D, hearing those mocking words, clenched his fists, reading while yawning and tearing up, constantly telling himself: "I can do it, I can do it, I can do it."
Although this method still couldn't stop him from feeling sleepy when reading, it at least let him keep up with the teacher's progress a little.
That was progress!
Passing through the corridors of Qinglian Court, at the end was a moon gate leading to Qingyun Court. The attendant unlocked the padlocked door and took Xu Huaiqian to his new dormitory.
Stepping in, Xu Huaiqian looked around left and right. The difference between Qingyun Court and Qinglian Court wasn't just a little.
The furnishings inside were several times more exquisite than Qinglian Court, not to mention the private dormitories for four people per courtyard.
Xu Huaiqian finally wouldn't have to squeeze into a shared dorm, afraid his nighttime coughing would disturb others—he had his own room.
" This is good." Reuniting with Meng Fangxun and the others, learning he had his own room, Xu Huaiqian kept nodding in agreement.
He knew his sickly body had caused much trouble for Duan Youyan and the others, often keeping them up at night. Now they could rest easy.
" We know you fear the cold," said Meng Fangxun, who hadn't lived with him and didn't know his suffering, pointing to a room facing the sun. "We saved the warmest room for you."
Just as Xu Huaiqian was about to thank him, Duan Youyan interrupted: "Don't thank us yet. Now that the sun is up, except for you, none of us can probably stand to stay in that room."
" I see." Hearing this, Xu Huaiqian didn't thank them. His current body couldn't feel heat at all.
Last year during the scorching summer, he didn't feel hot at all—
Wait, around May and June last year, he remembered Chen Liejiu holding him tightly every night. He thought his husband just wanted to cuddle.
Now it seemed, he was being used as a cooling tool by his husband?!
But being a cooling tool was fine too—it's his own husband; he should be generous.
"But don't relax just yet," Duan Youyan said with a bitter smile, looking at him. He pointed to the desk in Xu Huaiqian's room piled high with books and smiled wryly: "You should think about how to memorize all these books backwards and forwards in the next three years."