By the time Li Hao and Li Yuanzhao returned to the foot of the mountain, bright lamps had been raised over the square. Though night had fallen, it was still bustling, and the crowds had not thinned.
It reminded Li Hao of the night markets in his previous life. He sniffed lightly, catching the aroma of charcoal-grilled food drifting on the refreshing night breeze, and his appetite immediately stirred.
"Come on, let's find something to eat."
On the Entrance Stairway, talented youths from aristocratic clans across the prefectures were still racing one another toward merit and fame at the summit.
Yet from that summit, the young man leaped down, rushing toward the worldly bustle of the teeming crowds.
Before long, relying on his own culinary expertise, Li Hao picked out some delicious food from among the many stalls and had it all packed to go.
He and Li Yuanzhao each carried a full armload, eating as they walked toward the carriage and drawing plenty of looks along the way.
"What's that smell?"
Inside the carriage, Li Yun, who had grown visibly impatient with the wait, suddenly caught the scent of grilled meat. Startled, he lifted the curtain.
The aroma hit him full in the face, and then he saw Li Hao and Li Yuanzhao approaching, their mouths glistening with grease.
"Uncle Fu, sorry for the wait. Here."
"Uncle Ming, this is yours. Is it enough?"
Everyone present got a share. Li Hao had bought plenty and cheerfully handed out portion after portion along the way. Naturally, he had not forgotten his personal maid, Qingzhi.
Then he climbed into the carriage with the remaining bags, both large and small.
An oil lamp had already been lit inside. The siblings' faces were bathed in its warm yellow glow as they stole glances at Li Hao and Li Yuanzhao. The enticing aroma made their mouths water, and both looked somewhat awkward.
"I thought you'd already gone home."
After sitting down, Li Yuanzhao took a bite of grilled meat. Then, remembering something, he held out two more bags from his arms to Li Zhining.
"Little sister Zhi Ning, want some?"
Li Zhining had intended to refuse, but the tempting aroma from the bags made her hesitate.
At the same time, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed her Older Brother's Adam's apple bobbing as he secretly swallowed. She gently accepted the bags and said softly, "Thank you, Older Brother Yuanzhao."
"If you'd left first, you'd have missed out on this treat." Li Yuanzhao smiled.
Li Zhining said nothing. Instead, she glanced briefly at that figure, only to find that he had not looked their way even once. A faint trace of sadness and disappointment surfaced deep in her eyes.
But she did not dwell on it. Opening the bags, she offered one to Li Yun. "Brother."
"I'm not eating that."
Li Yun turned his head away, his face stiff as he frowned in disgust. "Who knows whether those street vendors washed anything properly? It's filthy. You should eat less of it too."
"Even if they didn't wash it properly, it's not going to kill you." Li Yuanzhao glared at him. Those words were ruining his appetite.
"You!"
Li Yun glared at him angrily, then realized he had little ground to stand on. With a cold snort, he turned away and stuck his head out through the carriage curtain, as though the night scenery had suddenly become exceptionally beautiful.
Li Zhining knew her Older Brother could not swallow his pride and felt rather helpless. But with the aroma wafting from the bags, she could no longer resist. She picked up a portion and took a small, delicate bite, and her eyes soon brightened.
It actually tasted even better than the delicacies she was used to eating at home.
"Uncle Ming, aren't we leaving yet?"
Li Yun shouted toward the front of the carriage through the curtain.
Uncle Ming had a piece of grilled meat between his teeth. At the shout, he immediately seized the reins with both hands, urged the Flood Dragon Lion onward, and turned back toward the estate.
Once they returned to the estate, Li Yun and the other two parted ways with Li Hao.
All three went to their own homes, each seeking their own mother.
In Snowdrift Courtyard, Fifth Madam Gao Qingqing was embroidering in the main hall. When she heard the report from a maid who hurried in from outside, the needle nearly pierced her finger. She quickly rose, put down the handkerchief she was embroidering, and hurried to the courtyard entrance.
There she saw her son and daughter approaching with Li Ming.
"How did it go? Everything went smoothly, didn't it?"
Gao Qingqing hurriedly asked.
Li Ming stood silently to one side with a smile. The more obedient Li Zhining nodded. "Yes. Older Brother and I both got into the Class A Institute."
"You grasped it in a single day?"
Delight spread across Gao Qingqing's face, and she cradled her son's head to kiss his forehead.
Somewhat embarrassed, Li Yun pushed his mother away and headed toward the main hall, looking a little sulky.
Gao Qingqing thought nothing of it. She cradled her daughter's head and kissed her forehead too, then took her by the hand and returned to the main hall. As they walked, she instructed the steward to hurry and reheat dinner before bringing it over.
Hearing this, Li Zhining shook her head. "Just heat up Older Brother's portion. I've already eaten."
"What did you eat?" Gao Qingqing asked in surprise.
"Food from the street vendors over there. It was delicious," Li Zhining said, still savoring the taste.
"Hmph. Don't come crying when you get diarrhea," Li Yun said irritably from up ahead.
Gao Qingqing smiled and pulled her daughter down to sit beside her. Mother and daughter began chatting about the day's events.
"As expected of my children. You grasped it in just half a day."
"He got into the Class A Institute too?"
At her daughter's words, Gao Qingqing looked a little surprised, then nodded.
"That child is terribly bright. It's a shame he's following the body refining path. Its ceiling is so low. Otherwise, he would most likely have been the True Dragon of your generation."
Thinking of that calm, easygoing face, Li Zhining's eyes flickered slightly. She had heard her mother say this more than once.
Deep down, she too felt a faint sense of regret on his behalf.
"Hmph, what's so special about that little bit of talent? If Elder Sister were there, she'd probably have grasped it in the time it takes an incense stick to burn!"
Seated opposite them, Li Yun gave a cold snort.
At the mention of his eldest sister, envy and jealousy stirred in his heart, along with a little sourness. Yet he also felt proud of her. His feelings were tangled beyond measure...
Gao Qingqing smiled. "Your eldest sister may be clever, but you two are no worse. You're all the children I'm proudest of."
Li Yun's stiff expression softened slightly. When the steward brought in the reheated dinner, he began eating, and little by little, a smile appeared on his face...
In Mountains and Rivers Courtyard.
Li Hao returned to the courtyard accompanied by Li Fu and Qingzhi.
Under the cool, clear moonlight, the steward, Uncle Zhao, hurried over with an outer coat draped around him. "Young master, did everything go smoothly? I'll go heat up your dinner."
"Don't trouble yourself, Uncle Zhao. I ate outside," Li Hao said with a smile. "I was afraid the food would get cold on the way back and lose its flavor, so I didn't bring you any."
"It's kind of you to think of me, young master." Uncle Zhao smiled, knowing Li Hao was not lying. There were still traces of grease around his mouth.
Li Fu had been waiting outside the carriage earlier and had not had a chance to speak with Li Hao. Now he could not help asking:
"How was today?"
Li Hao thought for a moment, then said, "The food was pretty good."
Li Fu was speechless. That wasn't what I was asking.
After a few more questions, they learned that Li Hao had entered the Class A Institute. Both men, along with Qingzhi, broke into delighted smiles.
Tan Palace Academy's "Leaping Immortal Gate" trial had ended.
Many youths who had failed to arrive in time could only gaze at the Entrance Stairway and sigh.
Some sought out connections, hoping to squeeze a few more people in, but the answer they received was that enrollment was already full.
There were 825 students in total.
Some asked why they could not admit more.
They were even willing to pay astronomical tuition fees.
But the answer they received was-
Because there were only 825 vacant seats.
And so, the many scions of aristocratic clans could only sigh and turn away.
The grand gathering that had drawn people from across Qing Prefecture gradually settled into quiet.
At the summit, however, things grew lively as classes officially began.
There were four institutes: A, B, C, and D.
The Class A Institute had only fifty seats.
The Class B Institute had two hundred seats.
As for the Class C Institute and Class D Institute... moving on.
Besides the new students, each institute still had some older students who had been held back.
At that moment, Li Hao and Li Yuanzhao sat together in the second row of the Class A Institute. The other new students had also arrived to begin their studies.
Up front, Li Hao saw Shen Yunqing bringing over a pile of Tan Palace Academy uniforms with two older Class A Institute students. They distributed them one by one; from now on, everyone would dress alike.
It made Li Hao feel a little as though he had returned to his middle and high school days in his previous life.
Looking around at the young boys and girls, none of whom were very old, he could not help smiling with a touch of nostalgia.
Once the academy uniforms had been handed out, Shen Yunqing explained some of Tan Palace Academy's basic rules: no private fights, no disgracing the sages of the past, and so on.
Then, after Shen Yunqing withdrew, a slender woman approached, her waist like a delicate willow swaying in the breeze. She looked twenty-five or twenty-six, with ink-black hair and brows and eyes as lovely as a painting. She evoked the feeling of bright moonlight shining upon a snowy mountain.
She introduced herself as Su Yehua. To their surprise, she was the Class A Institute's Institute Head as well as its principal Instructor.
Shen Yunqing, who had just left, was the Movement Technique Class Instructor.
Su Yehua would teach their first lesson at the institute.
Li Hao clearly noticed that the somewhat noisy courtyard fell silent the instant Su Yehua arrived. The youths who had been chatting without a care all obediently straightened in their seats.
"The martial dao has eight realms."
Su Yehua stood at the front. Her willow-leaf brows and eyes lent her a naturally cool, clear air, but a faint, gentle smile rested on her lips.
"The first four realms are Strength Channeling, Heavenly Circuit, Soul Inheritance, and Spirit Roaming."
"The last four are Fifteen Li, Celestial Person, the three immortalities, and the four establishments!"
(End of chapter)
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