Fang Yizhi received his teacher's summons, collected some medicine, and delivered it to He An to treat his injuries. After returning to the Knowledge and Practice Institute, he learned that Lu Zhengqing was looking for him. Lu Zhengqing had been among the institute's first teachers. Upright in character and rigorous in his teaching, he never bent his principles and treated the children of officials and commoners alike, earning the students' deep respect.
Fang Yizhi also held this teacher in great esteem, but the moment Lu Zhengqing saw him, his beard bristled and his eyes widened in anger. His tone was far from pleasant as he scolded Fang Yizhi. The Knowledge and Practice Institute was renowned throughout the land, he said, and instructors like him were sent across the country for two reasons: to gain experience for their future work educating students, and to select outstanding talent for the institute. Yet Fang Yizhi had brought all manner of unruly youths and frivolous young men to their institute. It was outrageous.
Despite the teacher's hostile expression, Fang Yizhi remained calm and asked what exactly had happened. Lu Zhengqing rolled his eyes and recounted Fan Dazhi's behavior in the examination hall. He had checked afterward, and this unruly fellow had been recommended by none other than Fang Yizhi.
Fang Yizhi did not know whether to laugh or cry. He explained that although Fan Dazhi had grown up in a remote mountain village, the student was kindhearted, simple and sincere, and exceptionally gifted.
Lu Zhengqing was so angry that he laughed. Exceptionally gifted? Go fetch his examination paper. He would like to see just how exceptional the boy was!
Fang Yizhi did not argue. He went to the examination archives to collect Fan Dazhi's paper and took He An's as well. He thought to himself that if Fan Dazhi really had done badly, He An had always been steady and would surely not have slipped up. With one poor result and one good one, he would at least have something to show for his efforts.
Seeing that he had brought two papers, Lu Zhengqing asked no questions. He took Fan Dazhi's first and glanced over it. The pages were densely covered in tiny regular script, neat and orderly. The calligraphy showed no particular accomplishment and was only just passable, yet something about it felt awkward. A strapping young man writing the delicate, flower-adorned script of a woman-he immediately felt a little disdain.
Lu Zhengqing reined in his impatience, frowned, and stroked his sparse beard as he began examining the answers. The more he read, the tighter his brows drew together. Judging by the answers, the candidate knew the material inside out. Many responses drew effortlessly on a wealth of sources, offering brilliant insights that gave him much to ponder.
Tugging at his sparse beard, Lu Zhengqing grew increasingly astonished. Some questions were so difficult that they went beyond the scope of an entrance examination and were included only for extra credit. Yet the ingenuity of the boy's approach and the breadth of knowledge in his arguments left Lu Zhengqing marveling.
"Excellent! Excellent! It has been years since I last saw such an outstanding paper!" Lu Zhengqing's brows and beard quivered with excitement. "Where is this boy now? Bring him to see me at once!"
Fang Yizhi answered unhurriedly, "Fan Dazhi is not yet a disciple of our Knowledge and Practice Institute, so the rules do not permit him to enter. Once he passes the entrance examinations and becomes an official disciple, I will certainly bring him to meet you. I brought two candidates this time, and the other is also very good. Elder Lu, please have a look!" As he spoke, he handed over He An's paper.
Lu Zhengqing took it and unfolded it. The characters were substantial and powerful, their strokes like iron hooks and silver slashes, with a distinct air of inscriptions carved in bronze and stone.
He An loved practicing calligraphy, and He Kui often guided him in copying model scripts. Though still young, he had already attained considerable skill.
Lu Zhengqing nodded repeatedly as he read. Very good indeed. The boy's brushwork was vigorous, his characters dignified in structure yet strikingly elegant. He had also blended the strengths of several celebrated calligraphers from the previous dynasty, already forming a style of his own. With diligent practice, he would surely become a great master of his generation.
He then read the answers. Their language was incisive and their arguments upright and principled-also excellent. His old heart filled with gratification. Picking up the vermilion brush on the desk, he said, "Both these boys are very good. You have taken great care, Yizhi. I will grade these on behalf of the examiners!" He then wrote on both papers: "A-plus. Reviewed by Lu Zhengqing."
After taking the pill Fang Yizhi had given him, He An's chest pain eased considerably, and the chill in his body disappeared. Circulating his energy felt even smoother than before. Another day passed, and he had all but recovered. He and Fan Dazhi occasionally sparred at the inn, quietly waiting for the martial examination the day after next.
The martial examination was held in the Knowledge and Practice Institute's ten training halls, each staffed by an instructor from the martial division. Candidates could enter whichever hall they chose. The procedure was simple: candidates could attack however they wished, using their full strength, and the instructor would assess their overall performance and assign a grade.
Time passed swiftly, and soon the martial examination arrived. He An and Fan Dazhi once again stood in a long queue, following the crowd into the Knowledge and Practice Institute.
They looked at the row of training halls ahead, their entrances prominently marked A, B, C, D, E, F, and so on. Fan Dazhi scratched his head. "Little An, there are so many examination halls. Which one should we go to?"
He An glanced at the sea of heads around them and smiled. "With this many people, it doesn't really matter. Any of them will do." He pointed to Training Hall A. "How about this one? Its queue is shorter, so we won't have to wait as long."
Many candidates believed the instructors in the first few halls must be particularly formidable, so they queued for the last five halls, F through J. With everyone privately thinking the same thing, the queues at the earlier halls were considerably shorter.
The two joined the queue at Hall A. A candidate emerged looking thoroughly bedraggled, spat resentfully on the ground, and said, "This teacher is really something. I fought him for ages without even touching the corner of his robe, but he kicked me straight out. I'm going to see who can last longer than I did today."
He stood off to one side, fuming, and watched the candidates enter one after another, only to slink back out. He could not help clapping and laughing at their misfortune.
Some candidates rejoiced while others fretted, and complaints and cheers rose from time to time. Before long, it was He An's turn. Fan Dazhi grinned at him and gave him a thumbs-up in front of his chest. He An took a deep breath and went inside.
The training hall used for the examination was spacious. The Knowledge and Practice Institute ordinarily used it for lessons, and students also practiced and sparred there.
He An approached the examiner, bowed respectfully, and greeted him.
The examiner, Qiu Qingxi, had been a Dao Integration Realm expert. More than a decade earlier, he had served as a cavalry commandant in the Anti-Tyrant Liang Rebel Army. While fighting the Great Liang Kingdom's elite cavalry, he had fallen into an ambush. To cover his subordinates' retreat, he had fought the kingdom's Eighteen Flying Cavalry alone. Although he had broken through successfully, he had suffered grievous internal injuries. After six months of treatment, his life had been saved, but his cultivation had fallen from the Dao Integration Realm to the Void Return Realm. Because his injuries frequently flared up, he had left the army, where he had spent half his life in the saddle, and become an instructor at the Knowledge and Practice Institute.
Qiu Qingxi glanced indifferently at the youth before him, picked up a stick of sandalwood incense from the hall's desk, and snapped it in half. He placed the remaining half in the incense burner on the desk and lit it as he spoke. "You should already know the examination rules. I have no interest in fighting a junior. If you can catch the corner of my robe before this half-stick of incense burns out, you pass. Begin. Use your full strength and hold nothing back."
He An wasted no words. He moved, unleashing Cloud-Riding Hand. His movements flowed like drifting clouds and running water, his footwork light and changeable, swift as lightning and cunning as a wildcat.
Qiu Qingxi seemed to become a wisp of smoke. His movements were swift and soundless, his speed terrifying. No matter how He An pursued him, he could not catch so much as a corner of his robe.
He An was both astonished and exhilarated. At last, he had a chance to test himself against a true expert. He switched through several movement techniques in succession, nearly catching the man each time. Yet that hair's breadth became a thousand miles as his opponent slipped away, seemingly without touching the ground.
They chased through the training hall, stirring wind through the empty room as their robes rustled. The two figures flashed past the desk and around the pillars like racing wind and lightning. At first, He An could keep pace with the teacher, but after two circuits, he gradually fell half a body length behind.
As He An pursued at full speed, he thought that his opponent's breathing was long and steady, his movements elusive and without warning. Without visibly lowering his shoulders or bending his knees, the man could leap several yards, like a ghost. If this continued, He An would undoubtedly lose. He secretly circulated the inner cultivation method He Kui had taught him and took a great bounding step, abruptly closing in. His speed exceeded even his own expectations, bringing him within mere feet of Qiu Qingxi in an instant.
"Time's up!" Qiu Qingxi said at precisely that moment. He An turned toward the desk and saw wisps of smoke curling upward. The half-stick of incense had just burned out.
"Not bad. To possess such cultivation at your age is quite rare... Who is your master? What is his name?" A faint smile appeared on Qiu Qingxi's face as he questioned He An.
"My... my uncle taught me. His name is He Kui!" He An answered respectfully.
"He Kui? He Kui..." Qiu Qingxi frowned. The name was utterly unfamiliar, and he could find nothing related to it in his memory.
Qiu Qingxi then asked He An's name and wrote in the student register on the desk: "He An, A-plus."
Watching He An leave, Qiu Qingxi sighed inwardly. There truly are crouching tigers and hidden dragons in this world. What sort of man is this He Kui, to have taught such a terrifying youth? Had I been even a fraction later, he might have caught more than just the corner of my robe...
After finishing his test and stepping outside, He An sensed everyone looking at him with complicated expressions. Their eyes held jealousy, envy, admiration, resentment, and more.
Seeing his success, Fan Dazhi chuckled and gave him another thumbs-up, then entered the training hall with his head held high and his chest out.
Qiu Qingxi was still reflecting when another candidate, a chubby boy, walked in. Collecting his thoughts, he repeated what he had told He An and lit another half-stick of incense. The smoke had barely begun to curl upward when wind stirred behind him-Fan Dazhi had already lunged forward. Qiu Qingxi drifted away like a wisp of smoke, privately dismayed. Why was his movement technique the same as the previous student's?
Qiu Qingxi soon established that this chubby boy was far slower than the previous student, but more agile and unpredictable. He breathed a sigh of relief without slowing his feet. Soon, however, he discovered to his astonishment that this unremarkable-looking boy's speed was steadily rising. As they moved and chased through the hall, the boy kept feinting and probing. Within ten breaths, his speed had tripled, and it was still increasing.
Qiu Qingxi shook his head and chuckled inwardly. The little fellow still doesn't understand that a great surge cannot remain full, and such exertion cannot last. So impatient-young and hot-blooded, after all.
Before long, however, his opponent was keeping pace with him. The boy's figure flitted unpredictably left and right, often reaching for him from entirely unexpected angles.
Qiu Qingxi's speed surged. Bracing one hand against a pillar, he swung around it and abruptly flew off at an angle. Fan Dazhi swept past almost simultaneously. Like two swifts skimming the water, they danced through the air, one behind the other.
This one seems even harder to deal with than the last. The thought had only just occurred to Qiu Qingxi when Fan Dazhi suddenly stopped. Looking at the incense, which was mostly burned away, he scratched his cheek and said, "Ah... what a pity!"
"Hmm? What's a pity?" Qiu Qingxi stopped as well and asked curiously.
"It's a pity I only have half a stick of incense. Otherwise..." Fan Dazhi licked his lips and spoke a little timidly.
"Oh? Otherwise, what would you do?" Qiu Qingxi suddenly found this chubby boy quite interesting, and a teasing expression appeared on his face.
"If I had a full stick of incense, I guarantee I could catch the corner of your robe, Teacher," Fan Dazhi said confidently, his eyes shining.
"Oh... why are you so certain? Don't go blowing hot air in front of me!" Qiu Qingxi chuckled, his smile warm.
"When I was little, I... used to sneak food at home, and my father would always chase me to beat me. After I turned seven, he couldn't catch me anymore. Sometimes I was afraid he'd get angry, so I had to let him catch me on purpose." Fan Dazhi spoke of his childhood with great sincerity.
"Oh! An adult couldn't catch a seven-year-old child? You had better not be lying!" Qiu Qingxi said with a half-smile.
"I wouldn't dare. I just knew how to anticipate him. Whenever I ran ahead and my father chased after me, I could predict where he would reach and dodge beforehand. Later, my father realized it too and tried different ways to catch me, but he still couldn't, because I could anticipate his anticipation."
"Oh! Then you really are unusually gifted?" The chubby boy had successfully made Qiu Qingxi laugh. This little fellow was rather interesting.
"If you don't believe me, Teacher, you can try catching me. How about we switch places?" Fan Dazhi seemed a little embarrassed and laughed along with him.
"Very well! If I can't catch you within three breaths, you pass. Begin!" The moment the words left Qiu Qingxi's mouth, he moved.
From several yards away, Qiu Qingxi abruptly swept closer, faster than a galloping horse. His hand caught Fan Dazhi's shoulder in a flash, while at the same moment, Fan Dazhi caught the hem of Qiu Qingxi's robe below his waist. Both exclaimed in unison, "I caught you!"
Qiu Qingxi froze, then immediately understood and burst out laughing. "Very good, very good! It was a clever trick, but you succeeded all the same!"
Fan Dazhi bowed respectfully and prepared to leave.
Qiu Qingxi suddenly asked, "How did you think of this method?"
Fan Dazhi scratched his head and chuckled. "When I was little, my father took my mother and carried me on his back as we fled disaster. We had to walk a very, very long way. I often heard him say something!"
"What was it?" Qiu Qingxi asked with keen interest.
"He said, 'If the mountain will not come to me, I will go to it!'"
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