Chopping firewood for four hours had long since become routine for Lin Ke.
Even if Lin Ke was not particularly familiar with it, "Lin Ke" was, so this body was familiar with it too.
His body had practiced the Martial Path since childhood. Combined with years of splitting firewood, it had long since mastered the force and technique required. He could split wood without even looking.
Practice made perfect, that was all.
Lin Ke felt that since "Lin Ke" had left him such a solid foundation, he could hardly let it go to waste, could he?
Unfortunately, although his body was in good shape, Lin Ke had inherited very little knowledge from "Lin Ke."
For although "Lin Ke" had been born into the Lineage of a high-ranking official, he had never received a complete, proper education.
When he was ten, the Lineage had revoked his right to study on the grounds that his elementary education was over.
The Lineage's elementary education covered rites, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy, and mathematics. Lord Lin observed the ritual code and placed great importance on every aspect.
However, anyone who failed the assessment at ten was no longer qualified to continue receiving a Confucian education. Instead, they received instruction in other disciplines.
Buddhism, for instance, or Daoism, the Martial Path, the Military Path, and so on.
Naturally, Lin Ke had not passed the assessment. In fact, his predecessor had never even been assessed; he had simply been informed that his eligibility for education had been revoked.
As for the reason?
Sorry, but within the walls of the Lin Residence, Lord Lin was the reason for everything.
His mother's health had also collapsed completely because of that incident. After several years of suffering and hardship, she had finally passed away.
And "Lin Ke"?
Before Lin Ke arrived, "Lin Ke" had only wanted to diligently study the Wei Rites, thoroughly master his sole book, Royal Regulations-a comprehensive work on those rites-and one day earn Lord Lin's attention.
Unfortunately...
Looking at Royal Regulations in his hands, Lin Ke sighed with emotion.
He had finished splitting the firewood, and dusk was approaching. He could no longer read.
Lin Ke turned his gaze toward the plum tree in the corner of the Firewood Courtyard, picked up his cleaver again, and continued splitting firewood.
If he was bored, he might as well split wood.
Meanwhile, he carefully considered his future.
What should he do from now on?
In a world that appeared peaceful but was actually dangerous, what should he do? What could he do?
The answer was actually quite simple.
Study!
The Book of Centrality and Rectitude: Awakening Sayings stated, "For all who live as people and subjects in the universe today, every pursuit is lowly; only study stands exalted."
Study could enlighten people in knowledge, reason, and virtue. It could reveal the vastness of heaven and earth, the grandeur of the universe across time and space.
Within books waited beauties fair as jade; within books stood houses built of gold!
With enough study, he could become an official, fulfill his ambitions and ideals, and put his beliefs and ideas into practice.
Moreover, this world had a deeply entrenched class hierarchy that divided society into three, six, and nine ranks.
Take studying, for example.
What books did people study?
The books of sages!
Who wrote the books of sages?
Confucians!
Confucians spoke with Heaven's Mandate on the Tongue, slaying enemies with words and sentences.
Daoists wielded wondrous, mysterious spells, moving mountains and overturning seas.
Buddhists possessed boundless teachings, delivering all living beings from suffering.
The upper three ranks all sounded wonderful!
However, among them, Confucianism was the first-ranked great path. Daoism ranked second, while Buddhism came only third.
He did not know exactly how those rankings had been determined, but these three schools towered over the world, and the Confucian path stood a notch above the other two.
Of course, above them there might also be the imperial house, which could also be called the ruling house, the heavenly house, or the house of power.
Thus, unless one was born directly into the imperial house, the best way to reach the summit was to study and become a Confucian.
If one did not study the books of sages, one could also read Daoist scriptures or Buddhist sutras, but that would place one a rank below others all the same.
Of course, there were paths forward besides studying.
If one did not study, what could one do?
There were plenty of things to do.
What came beneath the upper three ranks?
The middle six ranks!
First came physiognomists, second artisans, third martial artists, fourth merchants, fifth physicians, sixth soldiers; all other schools were miscellaneous.
Physiognomists, artisans, martial artists, merchants, physicians, and soldiers-everything else was called a miscellaneous school.
The registered statuses of these six professions were slightly inferior to the upper three ranks, but they still enjoyed very high social standing.
The miscellaneous schools, in turn, stood slightly below the middle six ranks and slightly above the lower nine.
But then again...
I'm registered as a lowborn member of the lower nine ranks, with Servile Status. How can I qualify to take the imperial examinations?
Lin Ke carefully pondered a solution.
The lower nine ranks were forbidden from taking the imperial examinations!
His lowborn registration placed him in the lower nine ranks. He could not simply take the examinations; first, he had to shed his Servile Status.
In Great Wei, the descendants of prostitutes occupied a lower social position than thieves, bandits, and swindlers.
They were spat upon by everyone, yet everyone loved to toy with them.
Who did not like beautiful women?
Even Lord Lin, an eminent Great Confucian of the current court and the Minister of Rites, had taken a prostitute as his concubine, had he not?
But what did that affection matter? Confucians, Daoists, and even Buddhists were all the same.
They still played with women, but refused to acknowledge women's standing.
Sometimes Lin Ke wondered whether he should establish a couple more "schools" outside the three, six, and nine ranks.
A school of women's rights, for instance, or a school of common harmony, or a school of science?
And use them to overturn this world's system!
However, this world's physics, chemistry, biology, culture, history, geography, and politics all seemed different from those of his previous life.
If Lin Ke came up with something that subverted imperial authority...
He might raise the banner of rebellion in the morning, proclaiming, "Reject feudal superstition!" only for Lord Lin to shatter his skull with a palm strike that afternoon and send him straight to his funeral, then invite the Three Provinces and Twelve Ministries over for the funeral feast that evening.
At that thought, Lin Ke shook his head slightly and smiled. He wiped the faint sweat from his forehead and resumed splitting wood with total concentration.
There was no use thinking too much now. The most important thing was to shed his lowborn registration.
He had no idea what grudge Lord Lin held against "Lin Ke" and his mother. As Lord Lin's offspring, no matter how disliked he was, he should at least have had a registered status among the middle six ranks.
Even at his death, "Lin Ke" had never known why Lord Lin disliked him. In fact, it had gone beyond a matter of liking or disliking him-it was outright hatred and hostility.
But now, Lin Ke glanced at the nearby plum tree and could not help smiling again.
A treasured sword gained its edge through grinding; plum blossoms gained their fragrance from bitter cold.
At least the body "Lin Ke" had left him was quite good. After all that tempering, perhaps he could go out and earn a living performing someday.
Crack!
Crack!
Crack!
Lin Ke split wood, smiling one moment and sighing the next, while the pieces of firewood beside him piled higher and higher.
Then, as he split one particular piece, a crisp sound suddenly rang out in his mind.
Ding!
"Firewood split 108,000 times. Way of the Junzi unlocked!" "The Way of the Junzi lies in choosing what to take and relinquish. Countless choices shape destiny; the destiny of a junzi gathers the spirit of righteousness!" "The junzi currently suffers hardship, weathered by wind and frost. An unknown being has cast its gaze upon the Lin Residence. Please choose!" [Choice one] Put down the cleaver and idle by the rustic gate. Watch the clouds unfurl and gather, following the Dao's natural course. Then throw back your head in laughter and recite a line of poetry. Gain: the attention of an unknown being. Enter the Daoist fold and become a child of the Dao. Relinquish: abandon the other two exalted paths, the six paths, and the Nine Schools. [Choice two] Split firewood ten times with absolute precision. Focus on a single point and reach the pinnacle of mastery. Gain: the attention of an unknown being. Be inducted into the Trapping Formation Camp and become a prodigy of military and martial arts. Relinquish: abandon all literary pursuits among the three exalted paths, six paths, and Nine Schools. [Choice three] After finishing your wood-splitting duties, stand quietly before the plum tree, smile, clap your hands, recite fourteen characters, then sigh. (Note: the fourteen characters do not include punctuation.) Gain: the attention of an unknown being. Become the disciple of a Great Confucian and a junzi, with all three exalted paths, six paths, and Nine Schools open to you. Relinquish: Servile Status.
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