Within Ten Days

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhuzi paused, then waited a while longer. When the other party didn't mention money or provisions again, he felt uneasy, but dared not ask, fearing that if he asked, the other party might actually want things instead of money...

Sun Yigao was unaware of Yang Zhuzi's thoughts, but he had always intended not to cause the villagers too much trouble in these matters.

After all, opening a traditional academy was their decision, not the villagers of Greenwood Township's.

"In that case, would you please take us to see the house in a little while, Mayor Yang?" Sun Yigao said politely when Mayor Yang did not speak.

"Alright, alright, shall we go now? What kind of seats would you gentlemen like? There are plenty of empty houses in our village." Yang Zhuzi suppressed his inner turmoil and led them outside.

"Zhuzi, bring the gentlemen back to my place for dinner later!" Third Uncle called out to Yang Zhuzi as he left.

"Okay, I'll have Cuihua kill a chicken later!" Yang Zhuzi replied, turning around.

However, Sun Yigao smiled and stopped them, saying, "Mayor Yang and Old Master Yang don't need to kill a chicken; we'll eat vegetarian."

"Huh? Vegetarian?" Yang Zhuzi was stunned.

These gentlemen don't look like they're short of money, so why don't they eat meat?

"Yes, we're vegetarians. The sight of meat gives us a headache," Wen Yuejun immediately chimed in.

In the end, there was no meat in the lunch; it consisted entirely of vegetables and melons grown in the field.

The villagers, who usually liked to wander around when they had nothing to do, spread the news in the area like wildfire that several scholars from Greenwood Township were coming to teach there.

Many people from neighboring villages were extremely envious upon hearing the news, only regretting that the teacher wouldn't come to teach in their area.

The villagers didn't dream of their children passing the imperial examinations; they just hoped that their children could learn to read and write and find a way out in the town or county, so that they wouldn't end up like them, toiling in the fields their whole lives.

Some of the more resourceful ones have already started thinking about coming to Greenwood Township to inquire whether people from other places can also send their children here to study.

As Township Head Yang Zhuzi said, there are many empty houses in the village, but only a few of them still resemble houses. The rest have not only lost their roofs, but also half of their walls. Scattered piles of rotten wood and mud among the weeds can barely show any traces of human intervention.

Sun Yigao selected two adjacent vacant houses from among the better ones. These two vacant houses had no other advantages than that they were large. After confirming the locations with Yang Zhuzi, they prepared to start construction.

"Since we've come out here for cultivation, we should start everything from scratch. While it's certainly easier to act after gaining cultivation and Law Power, over time it's easy to become unrealistic and forget to keep your feet on the ground."

In one of the empty, dilapidated fenced courtyards, several members of the Lingxian Sect sat on straw mats, and Sun Yigao was explaining things to them.

"As the ancients said, there is a sequence to learning the Way. Although my cultivation is currently higher than yours, and thus I am your teacher, I have not truly walked this path myself. Therefore, much of what I have imparted to you is merely the teachings of my predecessors. I myself still lack much. Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. Therefore, this trip to cultivate and build an academy is to hope that we can gain our own insights from this real experience."

Upon hearing this, the other five nodded in agreement.

Sun Yigao continued, "Therefore, from today onwards, apart from the daily morning lessons, we need to use all our remaining time to build the academy, striving to complete it within ten days. We cannot use Law Power."

The five of them didn't react much to the first part, but they all showed some surprise at the last sentence.

"Master, does that mean we can't use any Law Power? Can we still use the Lock Ring?" The youngest, Tong Wan, asked, raising her small, chubby hand.

Sun Yigao looked at her gently and replied, "I will not force or constrain you. Whether you choose to take shortcuts or not, and how you arrange your actions, is entirely up to you. But I hope that you can all gain something from every step you take, and that this journey will not be in vain."

Upon hearing this, the five disciples all lowered their heads in deep thought.

The next day, as dawn broke and the village roosters had just crowed once, many villagers walked along the village road toward the site chosen for the academy.

They heard that the academy was starting construction today, but they waited and waited at home without receiving any notice to go and work.

In the villagers' minds, it was a great favor that they didn't have to pay for this kind of work that benefited the village. Putting in some physical labor was no big deal, and gathering able-bodied men to do the work was common sense.

But the teachers who said they wanted to build an academy didn't make any move, so the villagers couldn't wait any longer and got up early in the morning to go and choose a site for the academy.

When the villagers arrived, they were dumbfounded.

What did they see?

Regardless of age, all the school teachers had changed into short-sleeved shirts and were now ramming earth, making bricks, moving wood, pulling weeds, and digging stones!

Is this something a scholar should be doing?

They've never seen anything like it before!

Shouldn't scholars be like shopkeepers in towns or accountants in counties?

For a time, the villagers felt that their understanding had been shocked like never before.

A few villagers huddled around Yang Zhuzi, who had come with them, and whispered, "Zhuzi, are these men reliable?"

Some villagers murmured, "Why does this feel so mysterious? I was so happy before that I didn't pay attention. Look at them, they don't look very old, and they have two girls with them..."

The villagers meant no harm; they were just ordinary people with limited experience. People generally value respect for appearances before respect for the person, and this top-down perspective subtly influences countless ordinary people. It's normal for villagers to feel confused and hesitant when faced with things beyond their comprehension.

Yang Zhuzi didn't listen to the villagers. He judged people not by their behavior or clothing, but by his intuition.

Although these six scholars who came to the village weren't dressed particularly well, he just felt that they all looked like people who were very good at studying.

When capable people do things that seem illogical, there must be a reason behind it.

So Yang Zhuzi led the way to the courtyard gate and called out, "Gentlemen, is there any work for you? We are grateful for your kindness in building this academy. We may not have much else, but we have plenty of strength. Please feel free to use us if there's anything we can do to help!"

Sun Yigao six companions had been working for an hour by this time. They were quite familiar with this task, after all, who hadn't gone through the process of building their own dormitory upon entering the Lingxian Sect?

Doing something familiar again after some time has a unique charm.

The group of people who were engrossed in their work had noticed the villagers heading their way long ago, but they were too busy working to pay attention. They only looked up at the villagers at the gate of the courtyard when they heard Yang Zhuzi's voice.