Kindred Spirits

The old man driving the cart said one sentence, and Huang Yu, who had boarded later, fell silent.

Zheng Fa said nothing either. Only the old man's long whip cracked through the wind.

They hurried on in silence, and an hour later, the ox cart arrived inside Jingzhou City.

Inside and outside the city seemed like two different worlds.

Outside the city stretched vast fields, open and serene, yet desolate.

The only living people one occasionally saw were one or two farmers bent over at work in the fields.

Though Jingzhou City was large, the dense crowds on its streets made it feel cramped and crowded.

The three of them were likely traveling along Jingzhou City's main thoroughfare.

Shops lined both sides of the road, and there were plenty of people out for a stroll.

The Red Pearl Ox, capable of traveling a thousand li a day and mighty in stature, could only squeeze pitifully through the crowd here, like a little cat inching forward timidly.

Huang Yu seemed to come alive again. Sitting on the cart, he clung to the railing and stretched his neck to look at the shops on both sides.

The cloying sweet fragrance from the pastry shops made him swallow.

The little trinkets sold in the general stores kept him from looking away.

The young ladies from great families lingering in the silk shops made him, despite already knowing better, sneak glances at them. Only after they had gone far away did he dare turn back for another look.

Once he recovered from the excitement of entering the city, he noticed that Zheng Fa beside him sat steadily. Though Zheng Fa was also smiling as he looked over the bustling streets on both sides, he was nowhere near as excited.

As if sensing his gaze, Zheng Fa turned around and looked at him curiously.

Huang Yu gave a light cough and sat up straight.

Zheng Fa smiled at him. A trace of something between embarrassment and anger flashed across Huang Yu's face.

The ox cart passed through the main streets and headed toward the western district.

"Jingzhou City has always had a saying: the east is rich, the west is noble, the south is mercantile, and the north is lowly. Our Zhao Family is in the most honored western district," the old cart driver said with no small measure of pride.

Sure enough, the farther west they went, the fewer pedestrians there were.

Yet this place was far from desolate.

Instead, there were rows upon rows of deep courtyards and grand residences, their gates tightly guarded. Ordinary people did not dare wander around here at all.

Huang Yu, who had been somewhat excited moments ago, now wore a cautious, uneasy expression.

After another half an incense stick's worth of travel, they arrived before a courtyard.

Calling it a courtyard was not quite right. It was more like an endless, magnificent, sprawling complex of buildings.

Looking from the street, they could not even see where the white walls before them ended.

The many wealthy households they had passed earlier had already left Huang Yu utterly amazed, but at the sight of this residence, his mouth still fell open, his face filled with deep admiration.

Two lions over twice a man's height stood at the main gate, their disdainful gazes cast downward at passersby.

The plaque above the gate bore the words: Zhao Residence.

The ox cart did not stop at the main gate. Instead, it went around it, then around a side gate, before finally stopping at an inconspicuous back entrance.

"You're here?"

A middle-aged man dressed like a household servant was already waiting at the entrance. The moment the old cart driver arrived, he hurried them along. "Quickly! The steward is waiting! He's just waiting on these two!"

"Aren't these two the ones who live the farthest away?"

The man waved for Zheng Fa and Huang Yu to follow. "If you ask me, these two are only here to make up the numbers."

The old man did not argue, merely snorting. "Madam said everyone in the household of this age had to come. Do you dare leave even one out?"

"Exactly!"

Neither of the two men made any effort to avoid Huang Yu and Zheng Fa while speaking.

Huang Yu seemed to find their words grating. He opened his mouth, as though he wanted to retort.

But when he looked up at the towering walls, a trace of embarrassment crossed his face, and he shut his mouth again.

Yet his expression grew even more miserable. He hunched in on himself, every movement constrained, as if he barely dared lift his feet while walking.

He turned to look at Zheng Fa beside him, only to find that Zheng Fa seemed not to have heard any of it. He was even leisurely looking around, seemingly quite curious.

"Who are you trying to fool?" Zheng Fa heard Huang Yu mutter softly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the boy quietly straighten his back.

Seeing the little expressions constantly shifting across Huang Yu's face, Zheng Fa roughly guessed what the boy was thinking.

Whether Jingzhou City or the Zhao Family estate, both were things he had never seen before. Deep down, he was excited too.

But compared to when he had first arrived in the modern world, this was far less stimulating.

Besides, he had seen skyscrapers with his own eyes.

He had seen this sort of grand residential compound on television as well.

Now that he had entered this vast estate, rather than inferiority, what he felt was curiosity.

It felt like arriving at a tourist attraction.

Compared to Huang Yu, he naturally appeared calmer.

The servant led the two of them to an elegant lotus pond. At the far end of the pond stood a waterside pavilion built beside the water.

"This is the residence's Second Study. You two can go over there!" He pointed at the main entrance of the pavilion, but did not proceed any farther, merely speaking to them from where he stood.

Huang Yu followed Zheng Fa along the walkway over the pond to the entrance of the pavilion.

They found several dozen youths about their age already standing outside.

When they saw the two of them, the youths first looked them over from head to toe.

Then, as one, they ignored them. Most stood together in groups of two or three, showing almost no reaction.

Huang Yu secretly gritted his teeth.

Zheng Fa could tell that this group was made up of competitors for the position of study attendant.

At this moment, if they had greeted the two with wariness or even hostility,

it would have pleased Huang Yu far more than this indifference.

But when he carefully looked over the youths, a trace of dejection appeared on Huang Yu's face. As though ashamed of his own inferiority, he lowered his head.

Just take their clothes.

Zheng Fa wore old, coarse cloth garments.

Huang Yu was naturally a little better off, wearing clothes his mother had made from new fabric, but the material was still rough and stiff.

Many of the youths here wore silk, and even those who did not were dressed in neat scholar's robes.

That was beyond what Huang Yu's family could afford.

This alone was not enough to make him abandon all hope. After all, a study attendant's position was not determined by one's family circumstances.

But the gauze headscarves on the heads of three boys at the entrance left him utterly unable to summon even the thought of competing.

After several years of elementary schooling, he already knew that only scholars who had earned the xiucai qualification could openly wear gauze headscarves.

The attire of those three made it perfectly clear that they already possessed scholarly qualifications...

Understanding this was what truly drove Huang Yu to despair, and what finally made him understand the old man's words:

What did a few years of elementary schooling amount to?

His elementary teacher had only been an old xiucai himself...

By now, the breath of determination he had mustered when he climbed onto the ox cart seemed to have sprung a leak, draining away bit by bit until nothing remained.

He looked toward Zheng Fa. Zheng Fa still had that unruffled expression, but Huang Yu no longer found it disagreeable.

He even faintly felt that they were kindred spirits, suffering from the same affliction.

He himself was already suffering so much.

Zheng Fa dressed even worse than he did and had attended school even less.

He must be... suffering even more, right?

Feeling the goodwill in the boy's eyes, Zheng Fa was somewhat baffled. He had not said a single word, so why was Huang Yu looking at him so warmly?

As for suffering...

Honestly, Zheng Fa had no idea what was so special about gauze headscarves.

It seemed they had been specifically waiting for Zheng Fa and Huang Yu. The moment they arrived, the tightly shut doors before the youths opened, and a male servant stepped out. He said to the crowd, "Line up. Go in one at a time!"

Inside the room, several dozen desks were arranged in rows, with writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones placed atop them.

Zheng Fa took a deep breath. It felt like he had returned to monthly exams. Far from feeling frightened, he actually felt a familiar sense of reassurance.

(End of Chapter)