Tuition Fee

"Xuan..."

"Little Aunt?" Duan Xuan hurriedly pulled Duan Xin into the house.

Heavy snow sealed off the sky, and it was falling ever harder. A thick layer had piled atop Duan Xin's head, showing that she had been standing outside for quite some time.

Duan Xin shook her head, brushing off the snow. With a chuckle, she walked inside.

Yet though it was only afternoon, the room was pitch-dark.

Only a sliver of light shone through the hole-riddled wall.

There was no strange smell in the room, but neither was there any familiar scent.

The pots, bowls, and ladles set about, the single little cabinet they owned, the drafty doors and windows.

The muddy floor mixed with rain and snow.

Duan Xin hurried to the rice jar.

"Little Aunt..."

Duan Xuan called out. By the time Duan Xin turned around, his eyes had already reddened.

"Little Sister-in-law Duan Xin, come sit inside." Zhou Fang also called out as she sat up.

Of everyone in the old man's household, this girl alone truly had a conscience.

Back then, Duan Jian would often share a portion of the game he caught with Duan Xin.

It was not that Duan Xin had been excluded by the old man. Quite the opposite—she had been a daughter born in his old age.

He had cradled her in his palms like a precious treasure.

But Second Uncle's family was far too overbearing, especially that little fatty, Duan Xu, who could eat and drink like there was no tomorrow.

And since he was of the grandson generation, the old man's affection naturally leaned more toward him.

Yet whenever Zhou Fang saw Duan Xin, she felt that her husband had not cherished this little sister-in-law for nothing.

Duan Xin blinked hard. Her tears did not fall, but a deep smile spread across her face. Then she took a cloth pouch from inside her clothes.

"Don't think it's too little. This is all Little Aunt can help you with. There's also money your grandmother secretly saved over the years inside.

"Do whatever you want. Little Aunt has always believed you're no worse than Duan Xu. The old man was wrong.

"Don't get all mushy, all right? Save the thanks and all that.

"Your grandmother feels guilty toward your family. Big Brother hasn't returned in three years. I miss him a lot. I'm leaving!"

Her crisp voice and lovely face made her seem nothing like a daughter raised in Snakehead Ravine.

Duan Xuan brought the little pouch to his mother, then hurriedly chased after her.

Wind and snow lashed his face like sand, burning with pain.

The trip from the old district to the new district took over thirty minutes, yet Duan Xin wore only a thin cotton coat.

Duan Xuan naturally felt his little aunt's sincerity.

He escorted her all the way to the border between the new and old districts. Only after ensuring that none of Wolf Stronghold's vicious, baleful lechers were lying in ambush nearby did Duan Xuan leave in peace.

"Keep it up, Xuan!"

Duan Xuan had already gone quite far when he looked back. That snow-white figure had cupped her hands around her mouth like a horn.

She called out again and again, then jumped up and waved before vanishing into the snowy expanse.

Soon, Snakehead Ravine was buried beneath the heavy snow. In the murky gray mist, visibility was far worse than usual.

If not for the countless potholes, one could easily lose their way in such heavy snow.

After waiting ten minutes at the eastern end of the village, he finally saw his two childhood friends.

"Brother Duan, I can't go up the mountain to hunt wild rabbits with you today.

"My father and sister caught a chill yesterday, and they need someone to look after them now!"

Zhao Rui took out a square wrapped in oil paper from the leather pouch where he kept his knife. "Butter pastry candy—one each for you and Chunmei.

"Take it and eat it. An official's relative from the county town brought it over last night. I'm heading back first!"

Liu Chunmei coughed a few times. Already timid by nature, she sounded even weaker now. "Brother Duan.

"I'm afraid I can't go either today.

"The cold wind seeped into my bones yesterday, and I caught a chill too.

"In a few days, Father will send me to the Wang family to be a rough servant girl. I need to get well, or they'll deduct the money they give Father."

Duan Xuan nodded to his two childhood friends, and the three exchanged a few pleasantries.

The two returned to their homes, leaving only Duan Xuan to head up the mountain through goose-feather snow that had already risen past his ankles.

Snakehead Ravine was a village nestled in a valley amid countless mountains.

To enter the deep mountains, one had to climb a particularly steep stretch of road.

One also had to carefully avoid the territory marked out by Wolf Stronghold. Otherwise, one would surely be extorted—or meet a deadly end.

After walking for two hours and surveying the terrain, Duan Xuan pulled off the rope on his body.

He took down the traps he had prepared in advance from his back.

He set them one by one in open areas, then scattered some stale grain.

The sparrows hiding about, or the rabbits in mountain burrows.

Once hunger drove them desperate, they would risk everything.

The sky gradually darkened, but the heavy snow still had not stopped.

Duan Xuan knew he could not remain in the deep mountains. Otherwise, once night fully fell and he could no longer see anything, getting home would become difficult.

Today's haul was poor—just two little sparrows.

Though sparrows were small, they had all five organs and six viscera. He could make his mother a soup with them, enough to eat for three to five days.

"With the mountains sealed by snow, it'll be hard to come in again for at least five days. Maybe I should catch some more..."

Suddenly, hurried footsteps sounded from below the slope, followed by a string of equally hurried footsteps.

Duan Xuan did not dare delay. He grabbed his traps and shoved them into the thick snow, then lay flat on the ground like a miserable stray.

By the time those footsteps drew near, the snow had already covered his entire body.

The first man clutched his arm, blood dripping from his sleeve onto the ground.

He glanced behind him in terror and could only run forward with all his strength.

Whoosh!

An arrow tore through the snow and plunged viciously into his shoulder.

The man could no longer keep his footing. With his body losing strength,

he rolled down the slope toward the north.

"Alive, we see the man; dead, we see the corpse. Do those Snake Stockade bastards really think Wolf Stronghold is a soft persimmon?

"Hmph! Today, we'll wipe them out to the last, leaving not a single one alive!"

Duan Xuan did not dare make the slightest sound. Only long after the remnants of Snake Stockade and Wolf Stronghold's men had vanished from sight

did he dare move his limbs. When he lifted his head, he saw a small bandage soaked in blood lying on snow sliced open by a trail of blood.

It bulged heavily. Without even thinking, he knew it was full of broken silver.

Duan Xuan's throat bobbed as he crawled toward the cloth pouch. Just as he was about to pick it up,

his hands suddenly plunged into the snow hollow, seizing two crude traps and two sparrows frozen stiff.

Then he took off running without looking back.

Duan Xuan had his own principles. He knew perfectly well that this was not something he could pick up.

A few taels of silver were enough for him to pay tuition at the martial arts hall he favored, but it was not secure.

A poor boy who could not even afford incense money for the Mountain Lord's rites

suddenly having money to take a master, while Snake Stockade's remnants happened to lose precisely that much money.

Did that make sense?

Clearly, it did not.

Whether it was Snake Stockade, perhaps not completely eradicated, or the Wolf Stronghold currently riding high,

they would follow the vine to the melon and trace it back to Duan Xuan. When that happened, the trouble would be enormous.

Resisting temptation and refusing greed was often the best course of all!

He sprinted for who knew how long, until his straw sandals had been trampled through with a huge hole.

Only then did Duan Xuan stop, gasping great mouthfuls of air.

He looked back. Only after seeing no gang members following him did he finally relax completely.

He wound through Snakehead Ravine four or five times, then burst into his home with a sudden dash.

[Humanity rewards diligence; Heaven rewards those who make up what they lack]

[Trap: minor mastery (7+2／100)]

[Hunting: beginner (12／50)]

"Xuan, you're back. Why are you so flustered?" Hearing her son enter while panting heavily, Zhou Fang guessed something must have happened and quickly asked in concern.

"Mother, I'm fine. I just ran into gangs fighting on my way down the mountain. They didn't see me."

Mm... They never had the chance to see me.

"That's good, that's good."

These days were far from safe. Even the gangs formed by local bandits changed hands often.

Snake Stockade had once been Snakehead Ravine's greatest force, but Wolf Stronghold later rose swiftly.

It did not take long for them to wipe out Snake Stockade's people. Now that they had cleared away the last remnants,

the entirety of Snakehead Ravine had been swallowed by Wolf Stronghold.

After dinner, Duan Xuan and his mother sat on the kang bed and carefully took out the pouch Little Aunt Duan Xin had given him.

Inside were a full three taels of broken silver. It truly could not have been easy for Little Aunt and Grandmother to gather so much silver.

Duan Xuan engraved this kindness deep within his heart.

Even if he caught sika deer every day and had his mother weave their hides,

it would still take at least two months to save three taels of silver. Yet ten days from now would be the day the major martial arts halls recruited new disciples.

There was only one chance each year. If he missed it, he would have to wait another year.

Little Aunt Duan Xin had truly helped him immensely.

"Xuan, is there enough money to enter a martial arts hall?"

Duan Xuan shook his head. "Still a little short. Mother, don't worry about it. I can handle it."

But fate toyed with him. Over the next nine days, although the snow stopped, the mountain paths remained difficult to travel.

The wild animals had all hidden away somewhere. In scattered outings, Duan Xuan caught only one wild rabbit and three sparrows.

Never mind selling hides—this barely filled his and Zhou Fang's stomachs.

With only one day left before taking a master, Duan Xuan decided to go up the mountain once more that night. This time, he made a full thirty traps.

With the help of his golden finger, the traps he made grew better and better.

At first, they could only trap a small house dog. Now, they could easily clamp and injure a sika deer.

Unfortunately, he lacked raw materials, so they could only wound a sika deer and could not directly rob it of mobility.

But if he had enough traps, the sika deer would eventually be worn to death.

He waited a long while. The cold wind howled, like a python swallowing heaven and tearing earth apart. Its hissing rasp made Duan Xuan's scalp tingle.

It was so dark now that he could not see anything at all.

Duan Xuan drew a deep breath. Good fortune still had not descended upon him.

With no other choice, he could only let out a long sigh and leave.

This time, however, he did not take the traps with him. After marking their exact locations, he planned to return and check them in the morning.

Perhaps there would still be some gains.

At worst, he could send these mountain goods directly to the martial arts hall to offset some tuition.

"Brother Duan!"

"Brother Duan!"

Just as he reached home, two familiar voices made the dejected Duan Xuan's eyes light up.

"You brat, you really want money more than your life. With your brothers gone these past few days, did you fail to catch even a bird?" Zhao Rui patted Duan Xuan's shoulder, putting on a look of contempt.

"Chunmei's chill is better? Uncle Zhao and Aunt Zhao are all right too?" Duan Xuan asked.

The two nodded. Liu Chunmei's eyes held a trace of reluctance, a trace of grievance, but even more unease and fear.

Zhao Rui was still the same—straightforward and direct, without the slightest fear in his eyes, only yearning for the unknown.

"We originally wanted to hunt with you this afternoon, Brother Duan, but Chunmei and I both had to pack our things.

"We're leaving tomorrow.

"It just so happens that my official relative is here. When he sends Chunmei into the Wang family, he can put in a few words for her so she won't be mistreated.

"But we were worried about you, brat. What would you do without us? So the two of us discussed it and came over!"

"But you weren't here either, Brother Duan, so we could only wait for a while. Luckily, you came back in time."

Liu Chunmei's gaze darted about. "Once I become a rough servant girl, I don't know when we'll meet again.

"I'm so scared. I'm afraid I'll never see you two again.

"I really can't bear to leave either of you!"

"What's there to be reluctant about? Maybe one day you'll become a steward in the Wang family, and your status will rise straight from the ground.

"When we see you, we'll both have to respectfully call you Steward Liu!"

Zhao Rui teased, "Since you're taking a master, have you picked a martial arts hall? Don't tell me you'll bow to anyone you catch!"

Duan Xuan nodded. "I've chosen. Broken Mountain Martial Arts Hall in Yellow Snake County's outer city. The hall has few disciples, and its tuition is cheap.

"They say the old master came from the greenwood, and Yellow Snake County's outer city isn't far from the village, so traveling back and forth will be convenient."

"Don't work yourself to death. I can't be bothered getting all sentimental with you, brat. Here!"

Beside him, Liu Chunmei also took out a bundle from her sleeve.

The handkerchief was wrapped layer upon layer, three inside and three outside. Her movements were slow and careful.

"You two are..."

"Does learning martial arts not cost money? You didn't think that going to offer that old martial arts hall master a bowl of wine, kowtowing twice, saying three nice things, and giving him a few wild rabbits..."

Would that let you stay at the martial arts school?

"Of course it was tuition money!"

"Brother Duan, there's not much we can do to help you.

But we've played together since we were little. Back then, we swore to share blessings and shoulder hardships together.

Learning martial arts is hard, but whatever you do, Brother Zhao and I will support you.

If you have time in the future, remember to come visit Chunmei at the Wang family. Chunmei misses you both very much."

"Once you get to the martial arts school, be tougher, be sharper. Don't let anyone bully you.

Nothing is more torturous than practicing martial arts.

All right, it's time to go!"

Zhao Rui walked on with his hands clasped behind his back.

Liu Chunmei looked back every three steps, tears brimming at the corners of her eyes.

Before long, the merciless beast of night swallowed the figures of the two of them.

Duan Xuan tightly gripped a cloth pouch and a handful of broken silver. "Brother Zhao, Chunmei, thank you!"