The market was bustling with crowds, yet this did not hinder the people of Luo Shui from enjoying their shopping. Here, a vendor shouted at the top of his lungs selling his wares; there, a dignified lady, unable to endure her child’s crying, bought a string of candied hawthorns; somewhere else, a merchant’s daughter, dressed lightly for the cool weather, searched alongside her maid for the scent of cosmetics. Even a strongman was performing feats like breaking large stones on his chest, drawing circle after circle of spectators. Among them were scholarly-looking young men dressed in scholar’s robes and swords at their waists. However, when the performer finished and held out his tray collecting tips, these young men waved their hands repeatedly, claiming they disliked the stench of dirty coins.
Cheng Xuan had little talent for cultivation. Her father was stubborn and traditional, and her mother did not dote on her much, so she rarely had the opportunity to appear in public. She had only visited the market a few times, with her most recent visit being five years ago. Therefore, she was extremely curious about everything in the bustling market now. Sometimes she paused at the clay figurine stall of an old man, sometimes she stared at exquisite masks, and sometimes she was drawn by small whirligigs spinning around. Li Tan indeed had great foresight; if not for holding her hand, this girl would have long been lost. When he found her, she might even have ended up in some mysterious brothel.
Finally, after buying a complete set of masks, whirligigs, and clay figurines, Li Tan successfully led Cheng Xuan out of the market. This little girl had the heart of a dutiful daughter living under someone else’s roof, but she completely lacked awareness of how to behave accordingly. Li Tan asked himself why this was, and after thinking, he felt it might be because he had been a bit too kind to her. To prevent his cheap servant girl from becoming like a daughter to him, Li Tan pondered whether he should try to appear more serious. However, faced with the girl’s long-suppressed but now slightly revealed innocence, he just couldn’t bring himself to be stern.
Heading west, they passed through forty-eight alleys and fifty-six streets, arriving at Baihu Avenue. Then they went north, bypassing the majestic imperial palace, which was surrounded by a well-planned city within a city, heavily guarded by the imperial guards. Beyond this, the architecture gradually became sparser. One stretch after another of meadows covered the rolling hills, extending all the way to the horizon, with clusters of small flowers irregularly peeking out.
“How vast and beautiful!” Cheng Xuan exclaimed. “Luo Shui even has a place like this. Is the academy here?”
Li Tan lightly smiled as he gazed toward the horizon. “Yes, it’s over there.”
“Which way?”
“That way.”
Cheng Xuan seemed to understand as she stared in the direction Li Tan pointed. The horizon wasn’t actually the end; it was the distant academy, too far away to be clearly seen.
It was evident that the Great Xia Dynasty valued the academy highly, having allocated such a vast area within the valuable confines of Luo Shui City. Cheng Xuan had another question: setting aside the land was understandable, but why were there so many empty spaces around it?
Li Tan said the reason was extremely foolish, and Cheng Xuan was puzzled. How could the leaders of the Great Xia Dynasty possibly be foolish? They should be the wisest group of people in the entire Jiuzhou region. However, Li Tan scoffed, “What kind of nonsense is it to waste so much land just to let academy students study in peace? Isn’t that foolish? It’s obvious that a single training hall would suffice, yet they insisted on being so extravagant.”
Cheng Xuan didn’t understand cultivation, but she was smart enough to realize how foolish it would be to express her views in areas she didn’t understand. So even though she somewhat felt sorry for the mighty emperor and the wise crown prince, she still didn’t argue with Li Tan.
The two stepped onto the soft meadow and slowly walked toward the “horizon.” If nothing unexpected happened, Zhang Cong would be waiting there.
“Master, are we not there yet?” After walking for a while, Cheng Xuan’s legs were weak and she was sweating from exhaustion. It was indeed quite cruel for her, who usually traveled by carriage, to walk such a long distance.
“The academy occupies a quarter of Luo Shui. We probably still have a while to go.”
Li Tan casually replied, and Cheng Xuan nearly collapsed onto the ground.
Just as he was considering whether to carry her, a carriage approached from behind, stopped, and the window curtain was drawn back. A young man in a green robe, with a warm and enthusiastic smile, poked his head out and called, “Are the two of you also coming to visit the academy?”
“Indeed.”
“Haha, then I guess you two are also planning to participate in the academy entrance exam in half a month.”
“Sir, you have a sharp eye.”
“Haha, you two seem to be around my age and aren’t wearing student uniforms. What other purpose could you have for coming to the academy? So, I guessed it. Anyway, we’ll be classmates in the future. If you don’t mind, come up and ride together. I can see this young lady is quite exhausted.”
Making friends is never a bad thing, so naturally, Li Tan didn’t refuse the enthusiastic young man’s kindness and unhesitatingly got into the carriage. The carriage jolted as it moved, but since the terrain was flat, the angle wasn’t too steep, making the overall ride quite smooth.
The enthusiastic young man sat by the window, while Li Tan and Cheng Xuan sat on the other side. Cheng Xuan thanked him on behalf of Li Tan and then fell silent. The young man, seeing her proper sitting posture, immediately understood that she must be the daughter of a noble family in the court. He just couldn’t figure out why she was following a poorly dressed young man and seemed somewhat humble toward him.
However, despite this, he didn’t show any unusual glances and smiled as he introduced himself: “My surname is Wang, and my name is Boqiu.”
Naturally, Li Tan introduced himself as well, saying he was a young man from a remote small town who had traveled far to admire the academy’s reputation. As for Cheng Xuan, he briefly mentioned she was a servant girl, hoping to avoid too many questions, especially considering the embroidered ball incident from yesterday.
Wang Boqiu was a bit puzzled but simply laughed it off. After all, it would be very impolite to suspect someone just based on their sitting posture. Besides, he had no right to interfere in other people’s affairs. If he insisted that women from remote areas didn’t understand etiquette as well as those in Luo Shui, that would be like using a robber’s logic.
The carriage moved steadily forward when suddenly it came to a stop. Wang Boqiu said they had arrived and was the first to lift the curtain and step down from the carriage, followed by Li Tan and Cheng Xuan.
The carriage had stopped under a peach tree. Around them was a peach grove, though now it was late autumn, the branches were bare and lacked any beauty. A gravel path stretched straight ahead, leading to a grand, ancient wall. On both sides, a large circle surrounded it, and inside, various buildings of different styles peeked out, displaying parts of their charm.
“Brother Li, this is the academy. Hmph, at first glance, aside from its size, there’s nothing particularly distinctive about it,” Wang Boqiu stood in front of the horse’s head, expressing his opinion.
“Haha, being large is the most distinctive feature.”
Li Tan stood by the wheel, while Cheng Xuan stood beside him, curiously looking around.
“Why is being large considered distinctive?”
“Because this is an academy, a place for education. The larger it is, the more things it can contain.”
It sounded like a completely meaningless sentence, yet there was indeed truth to it. Wang Boqiu smiled and, together with Li Tan and Cheng Xuan, walked up the gravel path.
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