My Three Students

The next day, just as he had yesterday, He An went to the private school with Fan Dazhi and Miao Feifei.

The shepherd's purse in the fenced courtyard had grown taller. The lettuce spread its thick, glossy green leaves like women rising late to dress for the morning, stretching languidly.

Bitter melon vines had climbed the south window, where two pale yellow buds hung unopened like bells beneath the sill. In the morning light, the students' recitations drifted on the breeze...

The old schoolmaster had been scheduled to teach that day, but a bout of headaches that morning had forced him to take sick leave. Fang Yizhi taught in his place, covering “Northern Mountain” from the Lesser Odes as usual.

Fang Yizhi had just reached "To the farthest shores of the land, all are the king's subjects" when three men abruptly strode in. Their leader wore a black veiled hat with stiff, jutting edges. Beneath its brim, his eyes were sharp, and his beard joined his sideburns. A saber hung at his waist, giving him the look of a fiendish brute.

Two men followed him. One wore black boots and had a tough, capable look, with a gleaming iron chain and iron ruler tucked into his belt. The other wore the same sort of black veiled hat, with a Pheasant Feather tucked into its edge, and leaned on a Water-and-Fire Staff.

The leader swept his wide, round eyes over the students, then jabbed a finger at them and barked, "You... you... and you. Come out!" The three he pointed to were He An, Fan Dazhi, and Miao Feifei.

Seeing the three men's menacing bearing and constables' uniforms, some students were so frightened that they knocked over their writing implements, staining their desks and clothes with ink. Others gasped softly or turned ashen. Most lowered their heads in silence, while the bolder ones stole glances at the three who had been singled out.

Amid the commotion, He An was about to stand when he saw Fang Yizhi wave for him to remain seated. Then Fang Yizhi pressed both hands downward, signaling for quiet, and the room instantly fell silent.

Fang Yizhi addressed the leading constable unhurriedly. "Those three... are all my students. Whatever the matter is..." He extended a hand toward the doorway in an inviting gesture, then strolled outside without waiting.

The leader was Zhang Bailing, head constable of the county office. A murder had occurred within the county's jurisdiction the day before, and the victim was none other than Tan Song, one of the Capital’s Four Great Constables. The county magistrate had been shocked. Though the facts seemed straightforward, the case involved the capital region and the Six Fan Gate, so he dared not take it lightly. After some investigation, he had sent men to question the witnesses, He An and the others.

Under orders, Zhang Bailing had brought his subordinates to fetch them, only to be stopped by this teacher. The man looked barely into his twenties, with refined features and the bearing of a frail scholar in every gesture. Zhang Bailing felt both annoyed and amused. He waved his hand and followed him outside with his two men.

The frail-looking teacher stood at ease in the morning breeze, hands clasped behind his back, and said calmly, "This has nothing to do with them!"

To Zhang Bailing, the remark meant nothing. He might as well have said that the weather was pleasant or asked whether they had eaten-feeble, pointless chatter. A top constable of the county office valued efficiency in an investigation, not a scholar's empty grandstanding.

Keeping his patience, Zhang Bailing walked up to the scholar and suppressed his rising anger. His face darkened as he said, "We're only following orders and taking them back to the county office for questioning. We won't make things difficult for them. Please cooperate, teacher."

The scholar shook his head. "Those three are all my students... besides..."

More of this bullshit. Zhang Bailing could no longer contain himself. His large hand shot out and seized the scholar's lapels as he shouted, "We're carrying out official duties! This is a serious murder case. If you hold us up, can you shoulder the consequences?"

With that, Zhang Bailing shoved hard, intending to push the obstructive pedant aside. The scholar did not budge. A smile touched his face like a gentle spring breeze as he asked mildly, "Why did you interrupt me?"

Zhang Bailing felt as though he had pushed against an iron plate. The tremendous recoil left the bones in his arm aching. A bad premonition rose in his heart.

But with two subordinates watching, he gritted his teeth and growled, "Move!" His hand tightened on the scholar's lapels and jerked upward. Years as head constable had given him exceptional strength; his arms could draw a two-stone bow. He put every ounce of that strength into the lift.

The scholar's body remained motionless, his feet seemingly rooted to the ground. Only a faint creaking came from his lapels-the sound of woven threads snapping under the strain. The scholar's brows drew together slightly.

The two bailiffs beside Zhang Bailing had long since lost patience. Seeing their superior locked in a stalemate with this bookworm, who still blocked the doorway without the slightest regard for his own safety, they finally struck.

One pulled the iron ruler from his belt and swung it mercilessly at the scholar's shoulder. The other gripped his Water-and-Fire Staff in both hands and swept it at the backs of the scholar's knees.

Years of practical experience as minor officers had taught them that, when dealing with common folk and street ruffians, simple brutality could sometimes be the quickest, most effective method. And this man was only a scholar. As the saying went, "When a scholar meets a soldier, reason has nowhere to be heard!" Of course, reasoning with this particular scholar was even more hopeless.

The iron ruler came down savagely on the scholar's shoulder, while the Water-and-Fire Staff whistled toward the backs of his knees. A single blow would bring even the most unruly scoundrel to his knees, begging for mercy. Once a method of testing truth became an established rule, it rarely failed.

The scholar remained still, but his eyes brightened, radiant as morning stars. Suddenly, his robes billowed and trembled from the hem upward, as though wind were rushing beneath them.

Something invisible seemed to gather, converge, and ripple through the air, gentle as a spring breeze and spreading like waves on water-formless, colorless, and seeping into every crevice.

Inside the fence, the thick, glossy lettuce leaves suddenly folded together, then spread apart again.

The bitter melon vines at the south window twitched like snakes. Their two pale yellow buds contracted and swelled, then slowly unfurled petal by petal at a speed visible to the eye, blossoming in silence.

The iron ruler seemed to strike a mound of cotton, making not the slightest sound.

The Water-and-Fire Staff was like a wasp buzzing about in search of nectar, blundering headfirst into the lattice of the south window.

Yet the iron ruler bent instantly, and the web of the bailiff's hand split open, streaming blood.

The Water-and-Fire Staff snapped in two, and the bailiff holding it suffered a dislocated arm.

Zhang Bailing and the other two men stood dumbfounded.

A cultivator?

This scholar, who looked too frail to withstand a gust of wind, was actually one of the cultivators of legend-and apparently a very formidable one.

The scholar sighed softly and said with airy calm, "Why bother? Force cannot always solve a problem."

Zhang Bailing released him as though he had touched a snake or scorpion. Suddenly, he recalled the list of private-school teachers he had skimmed the night before while checking the household registrations, occupations, birthplaces, and other records relating to He An and the other witnesses... His throat went dry, and he asked in disbelief, "Sir... are you Fang... Fang... from the Luoyang Knowing-and-Doing Institute?"

"Fang Yizhi," the scholar supplied.

"No wonder! With someone as accomplished as you, the Knowledge and Practice Institute certainly deserves its reputation!" Zhang Bailing flattered him with a strained expression.

When a powerful man met someone more powerful, he would usually show weakness. There were two reasons for doing so. One was to win the other party's goodwill, thereby protecting himself. The other was also to protect himself, then wait for an opportunity to strike back with greater force.

But Zhang Bailing knew he could never surpass the man before him. Besides, behind that man stood the Knowledge and Practice Institute, revered throughout the kingdom.

"I'm merely an ordinary teacher. You flatter me!" Fang Yizhi replied modestly.

"You must know about yesterday's case, sir. What do you make of it?" Zhang Bailing had become equally humble and sincerely sought his advice.

"I was just about to tell you, but you interrupted me!" Fang Yizhi said earnestly.

Zhang Bailing assumed a respectful expression and cupped his fist. "I would be grateful to hear the details!"

Fang Yizhi paced where he stood, pondering for a long while. Then he extended a hand from his long sleeve, formed a circle with his thumb and forefinger, and held the other three fingers upright.

Thinking some astonishing revelation was coming, Zhang Bailing hastily bent forward to listen.

Instead, Fang Yizhi said leisurely, "Those three... are all my students."

Zhang Bailing desperately wanted to shout, I fucking know that without you telling me!

Fang Yizhi continued, "Besides... after hearing about it, I went to examine the scene myself. The victim was killed with a single blade strike. It had nothing whatsoever to do with my three students."

The first part lifted Zhang Bailing's spirits. There was a new development in the case, and another witness had emerged. But the second part made him curse inwardly again. More fucking nonsense. Even a pig knows your students had nothing to do with it. Is he desperate to protect them, or just stupid? But how could someone stupid master such extraordinary abilities? Has studying turned his brain to mush?

He swallowed his displeasure and remained outwardly respectful. "You make a sound point, sir. Please continue!"

Fang Yizhi went on, "The victim was Tan Song, a patrol constable of the capital's Six Fan Gate. He was a long-established expert in the void return realm. Given his abilities, only someone in the dao integration realm or above could kill him in an instant and then withdraw at leisure! My three students... possess no such ability!"

"Whew..." Zhang Jiuling let out a long breath at that. The bookworm had finally reached the point.

"So... this case has nothing whatsoever to do with my three students!" Fang Yizhi declared, his words ringing out with unshakable conviction.

Here he fucking goes again! Zhang Jiuling felt the veins in his temples throb, and his head began to ache.

"Besides..." Fang Yizhi raised his voice.

At that moment, Zhang Jiuling blamed himself entirely for failing to consult the almanac before leaving home. Otherwise, how could he have encountered such an eccentric, a bookworm through and through who would not even let anyone catch their breath?

Beside him, the bailiff holding the iron ruler cradled his bleeding hand and suddenly asked in confusion, "What exactly is the peak of the dao integration realm?"

"There are gifted martial artists in this world. Once they establish a dan foundation within their bodies, they may be called cultivators. Cultivation is broadly divided into the qi transformation realm, spirit refinement realm, void return realm, dao integration realm, true self realm, and grandmaster realm," Fang Yizhi explained.

The bailiff looked Fang Yizhi up and down and ventured, "Then you must be in the dao integration realm, sir?"

Fang Yizhi looked embarrassed. "For a cultivator, advancing even one realm is exceedingly difficult. Those in the dao integration realm are already among the world's foremost experts. As for my humble self... I am only in the spirit refinement realm. Truly, I am ashamed... My three students are only..."

Zhang Bailing frowned and interrupted him. "You mentioned the victim earlier, sir. Could you elaborate?"

"The victim was killed with a single blade strike, and his dan foundation was shattered. The wound was deep enough to expose bone. The killer's weapon inflicted a broad wound, causing rapid blood loss and death. Such a weapon is unheard of in the Great Chen Kingdom, or even among the major sects of the world. It does, however, resemble what is said of the assassins from Unknown Island..." Fang Yizhi said with certainty. "Therefore, my three students..."

Zhang Bailing could bear it no longer and blurted out, cutting him off, "Therefore, your three students have absolutely nothing to do with this case. We will not trouble them again. Rest assured, sir!" He cupped his fist toward Fang Yizhi once more. "Thank you for your instruction!" Then he grabbed his two companions and turned to leave...

Once they were some distance from the school, the bailiff whose dislocated arm still hurt grimaced at Zhang Bailing. "Chief, are we really just leaving like this?"

Zhang Bailing replied in frustration, "What else can we do? We can't beat him in a fight or an argument. Listening to that bastard made my blood boil-so slow, so long-winded. Damn him!" The other man asked, "Then how are we supposed to report back?"

Zhang Bailing waved a hand. "That bookworm may ramble, but his analysis made good sense. We'll report everything as it happened and let the county magistrate decide."