At noon.
Water Caltrop Lake Wetland Park.
Because a blizzard had raged all night, the pine forest was covered in a blanket of silver-white snow as far as the eye could see. Under the midday sun, the endless whiteness was dazzling.
With a hemp rope slung over his left shoulder and a hunting bow on his right, the young man gently exhaled a puff of white mist and looked up at the park's south entrance.
The twisted rebar was covered in icicles. At the highest point hung a wooden sign as wide as a tabletop, carved with a string of numbers.
"404."
Staring at the wooden sign for a while, Yu Hu quietly read the numbers aloud.
This was the method Old Charlie had taught them, and a habit Yu Hu had only recently picked up.
Whenever he saw words on the road, he was supposed to softly read aloud any he recognized and silently count the strokes in his mind.
Once he recognized enough of them, he would naturally become familiar with them.
The method was quite useful. Recently, he had learned to write his own name, Little Fish's, his parents', his older brother's, and his sister-in-law's. He had also learned basic numbers, addition, and subtraction.
A few months ago, that skill alone would have made him an educated man on Bette Street.
But now, it was only average.
The enthusiasm for learning in town had recently become absurdly high, especially among the young men. Ever since everyone had heard about the benefits at the new industrial district from Li Niu and the others, they had all become regulars at the literacy classes, practically wishing they could live there.
Of course, part of the reason might have been that the castle was rather warm, and once people went there,