There was a problem with Bailu Academy's library tower.
Its entrances and exits were rather narrow.
Coupled with the almost nonexistent light inside, stepping outside naturally left him a little disoriented, and he had not gotten a clear look at his surroundings.
Only after uttering that famous saying of a Sage did Xu Qingxiao realize that Bailu Academy was packed with people.
At that moment.
The eyes of several thousand Confucian scholars all converged on Xu Qingxiao.
They had waited here for days, craning their necks in anticipation, just to catch a glimpse of him.
When Xu Qingxiao first appeared, his handsome face and white scholar's robe had immediately heightened their favorable impression of him.
Yet none of them had expected him to utter something so domineering the instant he appeared.
They were stunned.
Had Heaven not given birth to me, Xu Qingxiao, the Confucian Dao would have endured an eternal night.
Wasn't that statement a little too domineering?
What sort of person dared say something like that?
An eternal night.
Shock was written across every face, and every pair of eyes widened.
Even the three Masters were momentarily at a loss for words.
Xu Qingxiao's statement had clearly been a declaration of ambition.
Without the birth of Xu Qingxiao, the Confucian Dao would have been shrouded in an eternal night.
Those words were far too domineering.
Feeling everyone's gazes on him, Xu Qingxiao grew inexplicably embarrassed.
The ancients had been right after all.
Overwhelming joy loosened the tongue.
He had let happiness go to his head and actually said something like that-and in front of so many people, too?
There was no washing this stain away.
Literati held one another in contempt. Unless they were on good terms, they generally looked down on each other.
And here he was, announcing, "Had Heaven not given birth to me, Xu Qingxiao, the Confucian Dao would have endured an eternal night."
What did that amount to?
Put mildly: I, Xu Qingxiao, am number one in the Confucian Dao.
Put aggressively: everyone here is trash except me.
I'm done for.
Done for.
Done for.
My reputation is going to be ruined.
Xu Qingxiao felt increasingly miserable. He had never wanted the limelight. At Li Xin's banquet, he had resolved to keep a low profile, praise everyone he met, and contend for neither fame nor power.
Now he had gone and dug his own grave.
Just as Xu Qingxiao was brooding, someone finally recovered.
"Excellent, excellent! What a line-'the Confucian Dao would have endured an eternal night'!"
"My young friend Qingxiao, you truly possess extraordinary talent. With ambitions like these, your future knows no bounds."
The voice that rang out belonged to an elderly man.
Dressed in plain robes, he stood in a nearby pavilion, looking at Xu Qingxiao with a kindly expression as he spoke.
It was Master Liu's voice.
He, too, had been thoroughly stunned by Xu Qingxiao's declaration.
He had seen arrogant talents before, but never one so arrogant. Yet on closer reflection, Xu Qingxiao was not being arrogant.
His aspirations were simply lofty.
That statement was just too domineering.
No ordinary person could utter it.
Nor would an ordinary person dare.
At that moment, Master Liu's affection for talent stirred.
With Master Liu's words, everyone finally came to their senses. Master Qi and Master Chen also recovered at once.
"Excellent, excellent! What an outstanding talent of our age! What a line-'the Confucian Dao would have endured an eternal night'! My young friend Qingxiao, you have the makings of a Grand Confucian."
"Though your words are bold, what matters is the ambition behind them. In my seventy-odd years, I have never met anyone with such lofty aspirations as yours. Would you care to join us and chat with a few old men?"
Master Chen stroked his beard, his eyes full of warmth as he invited Xu Qingxiao over to take a seat.
Hearing the three men speak.
Xu Qingxiao immediately looked over. Righteous Haoran Qi surrounded all three; they were ranked Confucian Cultivators.
Xu Qingxiao promptly bowed and spoke with a bitter smile.
"Gentlemen, those were merely thoughtless words. Please don't take them seriously. Truly."
Xu Qingxiao bowed to the three Masters, then turned toward the crowd and slowly bowed to them as well.
"Everyone, I misspoke just now. Please don't take those words as earnest. If I have caused any offense, I hope you will forgive me."
At that moment, Xu Qingxiao's only thought was how to salvage his image.
He had clearly resolved to become a modest, courteous scholar. He absolutely could not become an arrogant man.
No.
Absolutely not.
"Rest assured, Brother Qingxiao. Naturally, we won't hold it against you."
"Brother Qingxiao truly is a great talent."
"Had Heaven not given birth to me, Xu Qingxiao, the Confucian Dao would have endured an eternal night. Brother Xu-no, Xu Wangu! Brother Wangu, you truly are a great talent!"
"Brother Wangu is a great talent!"
"Xu Wangu! Excellent! What a Xu Wangu!"
After hearing Xu Qingxiao's explanation, everyone began speaking. How could they possibly dare blame him?
It was true that literati held one another in contempt, but that contempt also depended on the standing of both parties.
If Xu Qingxiao had not composed a Timeless Verse and had instead announced at Li Xin's banquet, "Had Heaven not given birth to me, Xu Qingxiao, the Confucian Dao would have endured an eternal night."
Then Xu Qingxiao would have been finished.
Every literatus in Southern Yu Prefecture would have taken up a brush to lambast him.
But Xu Qingxiao had composed a Timeless Verse, drawn literary qi into his body, and advanced to the ninth rank of the Confucian Dao, all at barely twenty years old.
What was wrong with a little arrogance?
What was wrong with a little swagger?
Besides, those words felt more like a declaration of ambition, which made the scholars admire him all the more.
Thus, everyone misunderstood his meaning and began calling him Xu Wangu.
Now Xu Qingxiao was even more bewildered.
What do you mean, Xu Wangu?
Don't stir up trouble!
Xu Qingxiao wanted to explain, but Wang Ru hurried over and pulled him toward the pavilion.
"Brother Qingxiao, these are the three Masters of Southern Yu Prefecture. You mustn't neglect them."
Seeing that Xu Qingxiao still had not approached, Wang Ru had grown anxious and could only pull him over, lest he be accused of discourtesy.
As he followed Wang Ru, Xu Qingxiao had grievances he could not voice, because the crowd was becoming increasingly outrageous.
"A Grand Confucian once a decade, a Second Sage once a century, a Half-Saint once a millennium, a Literary Sage once in ten thousand years. Only after an eternity has Great Wei produced a Xu Qingxiao!"
"To witness the emergence of such a great talent with my own eyes, I have no regrets left in this life."
"'The Confucian Dao would have endured an eternal night.' With such ambition, Brother Qingxiao certainly has the makings of a Grand Confucian. Perhaps he even has the potential to become a Half-Saint."
"A Half-Saint? How long has it been since Great Wei produced a Sage? In Sage Zhu's words, after five hundred years, a Sage will emerge. Perhaps Xu Qingxiao will attain sagehood one day."
"A Sage of our own age? If I could witness a Sage with my own eyes, even my descendants would take pride in me!"
All of Bailu Academy buzzed with noise. Everyone was discussing him, their claims growing more outlandish and exaggerated by the moment. At first, it had been tolerable-they merely praised his potential to become a Grand Confucian.
Now they had gone straight to Second Sage and Half-Saint, and finally even Sage.
That was how literati were. When they disliked you, they would curse eighteen generations of your ancestors.
But when they liked you, they would praise you into a star in the heavens and liken you to the pinnacle of the world.
Xu Qingxiao's head was beginning to ache.
By then, however, he had reached the pavilion.
The three Masters stood.
Xu Qingxiao did not overstep his bounds, bowing deeply to them.
"I am Xu Qingxiao, courtesy name Shouren, a student of Zhou Ling. My respects to the three Masters."
Xu Qingxiao was modest and courteous.
His teacher?
Hearing that, the three men felt an inexplicable pang. All of them had developed an affection for his talent, but they had not expected him to have already taken a teacher.
Still, that was no great problem. It was not as though he could not take a second teacher.
"Please sit, young friend Qingxiao. Don't stand on ceremony."
Master Qi spoke first, smiling as he invited Xu Qingxiao to sit.
"Please, Masters, be seated first."
Xu Qingxiao invited the three to sit first. His etiquette was watertight.
The three smiled and sat down. Only then did Xu Qingxiao slowly take his seat.
Once they were seated, Master Liu spoke.
"My young friend Qingxiao, to compose an unmatched Timeless Verse like Man Jiang Hong at merely twenty years of age-you truly are a young hero."
Master Liu offered a word of praise.
"You flatter me, sir. Calling it an unmatched Timeless Verse is far too generous. I merely composed a verse after being moved by something I read. It does not deserve to be called timeless."
Xu Qingxiao did not quite mean those words. Describing Man Jiang Hong as an unmatched Timeless Verse was no exaggeration at all.
But he had not written it himself. And even if he had, he could hardly beat his own drum.
"You are far too modest, young friend Qingxiao. You must understand that excessive rigidity invites breaking, and wisdom taken to its utmost brings harm."
Master Chen spoke. He believed Xu Qingxiao was being overly modest. A scholar could be humble, but not excessively so.
Humility was good; it was part of conducting oneself in the world. But being too concerned with such conduct could have the opposite effect.
"I shall take your guidance to heart."
Xu Qingxiao nodded.
Understood.
"My young friend Qingxiao, I heard that you have only been studying for a month. Is that true?"
Master Qi spoke. This was the question he most wanted to ask.
At those words, Master Liu and Master Chen also looked toward Xu Qingxiao.
"No."
Xu Qingxiao shook his head.
Hearing that, the three Masters immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
They had previously heard that Xu Qingxiao had advanced to the ninth rank after only a month of study. Their first reaction had been disbelief, but after reading Man Jiang Hong, their certainty had wavered.
Now they had asked him in person and received their answer.
Advancing to the ninth rank after a month of study was far too outrageous.
"Twenty-seven days, counting everything."
But after a little thought, Xu Qingxiao gave that answer.
Xu Qingxiao understood the principle that a gentleman did not deceive.
Master Liu: "..."
Master Chen: "..."
Master Qi: "..."
Twenty-seven days?
Less than a month?
The three froze, momentarily at a loss for words.
Twenty-seven days.
Advancement to the ninth rank.
What sort of person was this?
Thinking it over, even those Grand Confucians had not seemed to advance through the ranks this quickly, had they?
Did he have to be this outrageous?
Seeing their silence, Xu Qingxiao understood what they were thinking. Yet understanding was one thing; knowing how to respond was another.
He certainly could not be modest at a time like this.
If he tried, it would just be humblebragging.
The atmosphere grew inexplicably awkward. Nobody spoke.
Xu Qingxiao fell silent as well.
At the same time, he was a little curious. Why did he always encounter situations like this? Had he activated an aura of silence?
"Ahem."
"My young friend Qingxiao, you truly are a great talent of our Southern Yu Prefecture. To advance to the ninth rank in twenty-seven days... we are ashamed."
Master Qi spoke, his voice steeped in shame as he uttered the latter half of his words.
It was true.
To have lived seventy or eighty years and still be stuck at the Eighth Rank was simply enough to make him burn with shame.
But before any of them could speak again-
Suddenly, a group of officers came rushing over.
Their abrupt arrival left everyone curious.
Inside the pavilion, Xu Qingxiao inexplicably grew a little nervous.
Fortunately, however, these officers had not come for him.
"Masters, something terrible has happened! A demon has emerged outside Southern Yu Prefecture and is slaughtering innocent people. The Prefectural Lord requests that you three lend your aid and join forces to subdue the demon!"
The constable leading the group spoke urgently.
As his voice rang out,
the three masters in the pavilion rose at once.
The scholars in the academy were also shocked.
A demon had emerged?
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