"National History" and "Treatise on the Warring States"

Li Chungang nodded at Lin Ke's answer.

"Yes. Finish reading these history books first."

He could not help smiling at the burning eagerness in Lin Ke's eyes as he gazed at the books.

"Teacher, can I start now?" Lin Ke looked at the books, unable to tear himself away.

"Of course," Li Chungang replied, then headed outside. At the doorway, he turned and suddenly added, "Don't just stay inside. Bring a book with you. No one's turning the millstone yet."

"All right." With that, Lin Ke could only take a book at random from the history shelf and leave the room.

So I still have to read while working...

Still, he has no obligation to let me read for free. I'll just treat this as working to earn my "books"!

When he stepped outside, he saw Li Chungang standing shirtless beside the millstone, holding a basin of soybeans and a small broom.

Lin Ke walked over, stepped straight up to the wooden handle fitted into the upper millstone, and set his hands on it, ready to push.

"What do you think you're doing, brat?"

Li Chungang's voice rang out.

"Huh?" Lin Ke looked at him in confusion. "Aren't I supposed to turn the millstone?"

"You are, but who told you to turn it to the right? A millstone turns to the left!" Li Chungang said. "Don't be like those hidebound scholars, whose limbs never labor and who can't tell the five grains apart!"

Lin Ke scratched his head sheepishly.

Only then did he recall something he had read in his previous life. A millstone consisted of upper and lower sections, and the grooves on their contact surfaces were carved for counterclockwise rotation.

Turning it to the right meant moving clockwise, which prevented the mill from working and sent the grain toward the center.

Turning it to the left meant moving counterclockwise. Since the grooves on the contact surfaces ran counterclockwise, only then could the mill work properly.

Lin Ke hurriedly changed positions, standing on the left side of the handle. Resting his hands on it, he asked, "Old sir, can I start now?"

Li Chungang nodded, but said sternly, "Remember, I'm only responsible for teaching you. How much you learn depends on you, and has nothing to do with me."

Lin Ke nodded at that, braced both hands against the wooden handle, and pushed hard. The millstone slowly began to move.

Fortunately, this body of Lin Ke's had practiced some martial arts and was fitter than an ordinary person's.

The millstone began turning. Lin Ke did not find it terribly heavy and could still manage.

"Start reading, then. Remember to focus your mind." Li Chungang stood beside him.

At that, Lin Ke took the book he had just picked up from inside his robe with one hand.

Its title was Treatise on the Warring States.

Lin Ke was a little surprised-surprised to see the words "Warring States." Then he held the book in one hand and used his thumb to turn the pages.

As soon as he began reading, he naturally became immersed in it.

The first sentence he saw was: "Qin raised an army, advanced upon Zhou, and demanded the Nine Cauldrons."

When Lin Ke opened the book, he discovered that it actually chronicled the early Spring and Autumn and Warring States period.

He read on.

"Qin raised an army, advanced upon Zhou, and demanded the Nine Cauldrons. The ruler of Zhou was troubled and informed Yan Shuai..."

Seeing Lin Ke begin to read, Li Chungang sat directly on the millstone.

The wooden handle grew heavier in Lin Ke's hand. He glanced at the millstone, saw Li Chungang sitting on it, then returned his attention to the book.

"The King of Qi was greatly pleased. He dispatched fifty thousand troops under Chen Chensi's command to rescue Zhou, and the Qin army withdrew..."

In the courtyard, one of them sat quietly up high, while the other stood below, pushing the mill with one hand and holding a book with the other.

Li Chungang said nothing, and neither did Lin Ke.

All that remained in the courtyard was the grinding of the turning millstones, the sound of footsteps, and the soft rustle of pages...

Noon.

Li Chungang sat on the millstone, dozing with his eyes lowered.

"Master. Master Li."

Lin Ke's voice sounded beside Li Chungang's ear, and he slowly opened his eyes.

Seeing Li Chungang awake, Lin Ke smiled and said, "Master, it's noon. I've finished the second book, and all the beans have been ground."

It turned out that there was a small hole in the bottom of Li Chungang's basin. As the beans below were ground, more fell through, so even while Li Chungang slept, the beans continued feeding themselves into the mill.

It was like filling a bottle with water, drilling a small hole in the bottom, and opening the cap to let the water leak out on its own for watering.

Li Chungang nodded, got off the millstone, and headed toward the house. Halfway there, he stopped and looked at Lin Ke, asking:

"You said you've finished two books? Which two?"

"Huh?" Lin Ke was cleaning soybean residue off the millstone. He stopped what he was doing and answered directly, "Treatise on the Warring States and National History."

Li Chungang froze for a moment, then cast a doubtful look at Lin Ke. "You finished them that quickly? Do you remember what you read?"

"Pretty much all of it." Lin Ke smiled and nodded.

"That fast..." Li Chungang gave him a strange look. "Then I'll test you! If you can't answer, you'll keep grinding today!"

Then Li Chungang asked Lin Ke two questions about Treatise on the Warring States.

They were: what happened after the Qin army attacked Yiyang, and why did Chang Ta die in Xizhou?

Hearing Li Chungang's questions, Lin Ke smiled confidently and began answering at an unhurried pace. "After Qin took Yiyang, because Jing advanced his troops... Chang Ta died because Feng Ju offered a plan. Feng Ju first..."

Li Chungang's expression did not change in the slightest as he continued:

"How did Su Tai persuade King Hui of Qin? What do you think of it?"

He was asking for Lin Ke's opinion!

The first question required recalling what he had read in National History, while the second was a true test.

But Lin Ke's confident smile never faded, and he answered assuredly, "He told King Hui of Qin, 'Your Majesty's fault...' I believe Su Tai's actions were simply those of a scholar trying to make a living!"

Even setting aside the overlapping similarities in the two worlds' histories, Lin Ke considered himself fairly capable when it came to listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

"Mm." Li Chungang offered no assessment of Lin Ke's explanation. He merely glanced at him, then turned and went inside.

Lin Ke remained where he was, his thoughts nowhere near as calm as he appeared.

He turned and continued sweeping soybean residue off the millstone, thinking over what he had just read.

Before the Great Wei Sacred Dynasty, history had actually been almost identical to that of his previous life.

Of course, there were still many differences.

As for those differences...

There were, for instance, these powers that transcended the ordinary world!

Qi Dayan, Minister Lin, and the others all possessed extraordinary powers that defied the fundamental laws of physics in the material world of his previous life!

Beyond those powers, certain historical developments were different as well.

For instance, Confucius had actually appeared in the final records of Treatise on the Warring States.

Confucius, Sage Kong, whose original name was Kong Zhongqiu.

What had Sage Kong done?

Besides composing the Spring and Autumn Annals, he had actually embraced all schools of thought, taking in a hundred rivers like the sea!

What did it mean to embrace all schools of thought, taking in a hundred rivers like the sea?

It meant that no matter which of the Hundred Schools you belonged to-the Mohist School, the Legalist School, the Agricultural School, the Medical School, and so on-he took the strengths of every doctrine and incorporated them into Confucianism!

Apart from the Daoist School, which held firm, all the other schools came under the Sage's banner!

Lin Ke suspected that if the Daoist School had not had an immortal, it probably would not have held out either.

And even though it had held out, it had become a tradition of withdrawing from the world to cultivate immortality.

Lin Ke had been dumbstruck by this part, but what he read afterward left him even more astonished.

For although their histories were nearly identical, Lin Ke also discovered all sorts of differences in this world.

For example, National History recorded that Immortal Physician Bian could raise the dead and put flesh on bare bones with a lift of his hand. There were also powerhouses on the level of Qin Shi Huang and the Great Wei Sage Emperor, who could leave a million corpses strewn across the ground single-handedly, without relying on soldiers or armor!

Qin Shi Huang existed in both worlds, for instance, but this world's Qin Shi Huang had been beset by the strongest warriors of the Six States, yet still taken them down with him.

Meanwhile, because of the Qin Sage Emperor's death, the Six States were left without rulers, and Great Han rose. Afterward, the realm entered an age of division into three...

The Buddhist School was introduced, and with Shakyamuni, it was recognized as the third doctrine, alongside Confucianism and Daoism, to possess a Sage-level powerhouse...

Finally, the Six Clans brought ceaseless turmoil. The Sage Emperor arose, founded Great Wei, and united the realm...

Incredible. Absolutely incredible!

Of course, this also gave Lin Ke an indirect understanding of how powerful the current Sage Emperor was!

Throughout history, since Qin Shi Huang, only one man had borne the title of Sage Emperor: the Great Wei Sage Emperor!

I wonder what grandeur he possesses... As Lin Ke cleaned the millstone, he continued thinking, and could not help feeling a yearning toward that Sage Emperor.

After cleaning the millstone, he went inside to help Li Chungang cook.

He had smelled the aroma even from outside. Although he did not yet know how to cook, he could at least help tend the fire!

Li Chungang did not refuse. Cooking went faster with two people.

Before long, a tableful of dishes was ready: one meat dish and two vegetable dishes. Once the rice came off the stove, the meal was complete.

The two sat down, and Li Chungang immediately began eating. Lin Ke, however, did not pick up his chopsticks, instead looking at Li Chungang in puzzlement.

Noticing Lin Ke's gaze, Li Chungang did not look up, but continued shoveling rice from his bowl.

Lin Ke spoke. "Master, Sister Li Feiyu..."

Before he could finish, footsteps sounded at the doorway, accompanied by a sharp, grating voice:

"What do you want me for? Can't even food stop your mouth? Are we that close? You, a mere man-whence comes such confidence?"

Wow.

Lin Ke translated that in his head. It probably meant...

Guys, can you believe this? This mediocre, overconfident man is utterly shameless!

So Lin Ke stood with a smile and bowed with his hands clasped. "You're back, Feiyu. I was worried you'd return late. The food won't taste good once it's cold."

Li Feiyu said bluntly, "I'm right out front minding the entrance. Just seeing you annoys me. What gives you the-"

"Ahem..." Li Chungang coughed, as though he had choked on his rice.

"Hmph." Li Feiyu said no more. Instead, she sat on a stool, snatched up her rice bowl with force, and began eating.

Seeing this, Lin Ke also picked up his bowl and began to eat, without the slightest anger.

One meal, three people. No one spoke; only the occasional clink of chopsticks against bowls broke the silence.

Lin Ke's heart was calm.