Scourge Messenger

Chapter 114 A Rare Skill Exchanged for a Brushstroke
"Wes, come out! Come out now!"

In the law school dormitory of Chang'an City, Wes was awakened from his sleep by a knocking sound at the door. He got up in the dark, almost kicking over the chamber pot, and stumbled to open the door, only to find a group of students led by Big Wild Bear standing outside.

It was clear from their names that the other party had Northern blood, though not particularly noble, otherwise they wouldn't have entered the schoolhouse with these Central Plains people to wait for the conscription officials. But Wes, a scholar from out of town, naturally dared not provoke these Northerners. Even though he was woken up, he didn't dare to lose his temper and asked in a low voice, "What is it?"

I want to buy your pen!

"Huh? I only have one..."

"I won't buy you for nothing, here's a spirit jade for you!" The big bear impatiently pushed him and stuffed a spirit jade into his hand: "That's enough for you to buy ten pens tomorrow, hurry up and give me your pen!"

Wes was stunned. He put the spirit jade in his mouth and bit it. It was soft and had a cool surface, which made the still sleepy Wes feel refreshed. It was indeed a complete spirit jade!

One spirit jade can be exchanged for twenty spirit fragments in the market, while his family could only earn forty or fifty spirit fragments a year from farming. This spirit jade was almost equivalent to half a year's harvest for his family. As for the writing brush that Wes used, it was just a gift from the young master of a landlord when he was a page. The young master had given it to him after it broke, but it wasn't actually broken. The bristles on the brush head were just a little frayed. Wes felt that the young master had given it to him on purpose, so he was always grateful.

However, it was ultimately just an old pen that had been used for over a decade, its nib in a terrible state. If taken to a pawnshop, it would probably only be worth a couple of spirit fragments. The fact that the Wild Bear was offering a spirit jade, and even paying in advance, naturally tempted Wes. But poor young men like him were the least likely to believe in free lunches, especially since this free lunch was a gift from the Wild Bear—it sounded as absurd as the rumors that the Liang Dynasty would pay laborers for their services.

"Okay, but I'll sell it to you tomorrow morning, in front of everyone."

Wes suspected that Big Wild Bear was trying to frame him by taking his spirit jade in the middle of the night. What if Big Wild Bear said that he stole the spirit jade? How would he refute that? Who would believe that Big Wild Bear would spend a whole spirit jade to buy a tattered old pen that he had used? This transaction had to be completed in broad daylight to avoid any risk.

"Damn it, are you crazy?!" The Great Wild Bear impatiently snatched the spirit jade back from his hand: "I need it urgently, that's why I'm buying it. Why don't I just go to the store to buy it tomorrow? If you won't sell it to me, I'll go find someone else. It's not like you're the only one in the academy with a pen!"

With that, Big Wild Bear turned and left. His underlings spat at Wes, their faces full of disdain, as if to say, "You don't know what's good for you." It seemed they really weren't going to buy it. Wes immediately felt a pang of regret. Big Wild Bear seemed genuinely eager to buy the pen. If he could get his hands on that spirit jade, he could go to Desongzhai and buy a fine Huzhou brush, and also the "Annotations on the Seven Chapters of the Mysterious Ruler" that he had been longing for for so long…

However, even as the bear was about to leave the enclosure, Wes still did not say anything to stop him.

If he heard tomorrow that Da Ye Xiong had bought someone else's pen, he would definitely regret it for countless sleepless nights to come. But even so, he still dared not take the risk. He was not qualified to take the risk. He had never had to work in the fields and could study with the village teacher since he was a child, all thanks to the support of his parents and siblings. His whole family placed their hopes on him. How could he dare to gamble? It wasn't that he wasn't greedy, but that he couldn't afford to pay any price.

Big Wild Bear was almost out when he suddenly turned back and shouted, "You're lucky, kid. I need it urgently, so take out the pen."

"It'll have to wait until tomorrow."

"You stubborn brat, are you?" Big Wild Bear and his henchmen blocked the doorway of Wes's house, glaring at him menacingly. "Here are two spirit jades, okay? You've struck gold this time. Two spirit jades are enough for you to go to the county town for a good time. If you dare to raise the price again, you'll be offending the Big Wild Bear family!"

Wes swallowed hard. A weak scholar like himself, he'd never seen anything like this before, and his legs were practically trembling. He was almost ready to agree. But then he remembered he was in Chang'an and wouldn't be afraid of being beaten, so he mustered his courage: "The deal can only be done tomorrow!"

"If you won't listen to reason, you'll have to suffer the consequences." Da Ye Xiong gave his underlings a look and said menacingly, "Stop him! I'm going inside to find his pen!"

Upon seeing this, Wes immediately ran back into the house, hid his pen in his clothes, and then squatted in a corner of the house. Big Wild Bear and his gang were trembling with anger, punching, kicking, spitting, and cursing at Wes, but protected by the laws of Chang'an City, Wes didn't feel any pain at all, only that someone was constantly pushing him.

"They'll leave when they're tired," Wes thought. He didn't know why Big Wild Bear and his gang were so fixated on a writing brush, but it wasn't the first time he'd been bullied. Any reason someone gave for bullying you was just an excuse; ultimately, it was because they didn't like you. That's why Wes loved Chang'an so much. Even if someone bullied him, he didn't feel bitter. He was determined to become a clerk in Chang'an, not only for his family but also for himself.

The outside world is too barbaric; only Chang'an City offers him a place to survive.

"The main road to Chang'an winds its way through narrow lanes, adorned with carriages drawn by blue oxen and white horses, each carrying fragrant herbs." Wei Si silently recalled the ancient praises of Chang'an: "Fine wine from Xin Feng costs ten thousand coins a jug; how many years have the chivalrous knights of Chang'an roamed..."

However, the bear didn't leave; instead, he grew increasingly agitated. Seeing the chamber pot under the bed, he yelled that he wanted to soak Wes in it. Wes couldn't remain indifferent now. Tomorrow was Master Chen's lecture, and Master Chen's annual evaluation of the law students determined whether they could stay on the program. He couldn't miss it, nor could he attend covered in the stench of urine.

So he seized an opportunity and ran between Big Wild Bear and his henchmen. Big Wild Bear and the others shouted and cursed after him, but perhaps because they had used up too much energy in the fight, they couldn't catch up with the thin scholar Wess for a while and could only watch helplessly as Wess ran out of the courtyard.

"Wes? Perfect timing! Come quick! Oh, and bring your pen!"

As soon as Wes stepped out of the dormitory, he saw Han Xian, a fellow student he knew well. Without much hesitation, he followed him out of the dormitory. Han Xian seemed to be in a hurry as well, urging Wes to run and catch up, his face full of excitement: "Hurry, hurry, hurry, it'll be too late if we're late!"

"Where are you rushing off to?" Wes asked, puzzled. He noticed that not only Han Xian, but also many other people were on the streets. Although there was no curfew in Chang'an—and there was no way to enforce it—most places in Chang'an were closed late at night. The real entertainment venues and brothels were in the county towns outside the city, so there shouldn't have been many people on the streets at this hour.

"Don't ask, just follow me. This is an opportunity you absolutely must seize!"

Soon, Wes followed Han Xian to Zhuque Avenue, the main thoroughfare of Chang'an City. The burned-down Anguo Temple was not far away, and the avenue was lined with shops and restaurants. During the day, it was bustling with people, and even now, in the early hours of the morning, it was still bustling with activity. A crowd had gathered in front of the notice board at the entrance of Zhuque Avenue, completely blocking the four-lane stone-paved road. "Sold out! The list for the dancer's shoes has been bought!"

"No! My cousin is already on her way. She's a dancer in the Huaiqing Marquis's troupe, her shoes will definitely meet the requirements! Immortal, one more order, one more order!"

"The tailor's needle is gone too! All that's left are the scholar's pen and the gambler's dice!"

"The people who went to Jucai Fang haven't returned yet? Is it really necessary to take so long to find a few gamblers' dice?! A bunch of useless trash!"

The surrounding area was filled with shouts and complaints, making Wess's head spin. Everyone was unusually excited, their eyes bloodshot and their expressions agitated, as if they were witnessing a miracle.

"Hurry up and squeeze in, or it will be too late!" Han Xian pushed Wes into the crowd. The two finally made it to the front of the crowd. Only then did Wes realize what everyone was watching—a new immortal transaction list had appeared on the blackboard on the bulletin board.

Although Wes didn't have the money to buy it and hadn't participated in the festivities, he naturally learned quite a bit from the discussions among the students in the law room. Everyone said that the transaction lists appearing on the blackboard were all issued by immortals. After all, so many people were on the blackboard, and even the Foundation Establishment messengers couldn't influence it in the slightest. Obviously, only immortals could control the blackboard in a place like Chang'an, which was protected by immortals and gods, and only immortals could complete transactions remotely.

More importantly, only Chang'an has blackboards, while other places do not, which means that the immortals recognize the people of Chang'an. The people of Chang'an are the most outstanding people in the world and the most qualified to approach the immortals!
Of course, the richer you are, the more qualified you are to bask in the immortal aura. Each item sold by the immortals costs thousands or even tens of thousands of spirit jades. Wei Si didn't even feel envious when he heard this. Even if he became an official, he would never earn thousands of spirit jades in his entire life. To him, the immortal transaction list was like a myth, even though it happened right before his eyes.

He never imagined he would have any connection with the immortal's trading agreement, let alone that he would receive a windfall from the immortal.

"Look!" Han Xian pointed to the words on the blackboard, shaking Wes's shoulder excitedly, "The immortal used a third-tier rare item, the Heart-Protecting Mirror, to exchange for a scholar's pen. The scholar's pen! Your pen! You can exchange your pen for a third-tier rare item!"

Wes stared wide-eyed at the words on the blackboard. There were two trade slips, both exchanging a breastplate for items: a scholar's pen and a gambler's dice. He couldn't believe it: "Is it really the scholar's pen? But there are plenty of scholars in Chang'an, how could it be my turn?"

"You're right, kid, it's not your turn!"

Wes was suddenly pushed aside, and a burly man rushed to the trading board, clutching an old pen and tapping on the trading orders on the blackboard. However, no matter how he tapped, the orders showed no sign of completion, and the old pen remained in his hand. He cursed, "Damn it! Damn it! This is a scholar's pen! Why don't you change it! Change it now! Damn it, that brat even said he loves reading!?"

"It's changed! It's changed!" someone shouted. "Another transaction is complete, it's the gambler's dice!"

Wes looked up and found that there was indeed only one sheet left on the blackboard.

"Hurry up and exchange it! Even if you fail, you won't lose anything. If you're any slower, it'll be too late!" Han Xian said anxiously. "In the entire academy, you're the only one who studies the most diligently and assiduously. You must be a scholar recognized by the immortals, and your pen must be a scholar's pen! If you get the rare third-tier token, you might even become a messenger!"

Approved by the immortals? Become a messenger?
Wes held his breath, feeling dizzy from the unexpected surprise.

He never had any grand ambitions in his life. Although he was the most successful child in his family, he was still just a scholar who could come to Chang'an to take the civil service exam. But civil servants were not qualified to be officials. In the Zhou Kingdom, the only people who could become officials were messengers and their families. Ordinary people without background or power could only try their best to become their subordinates. If they made a mistake, they would be used as scapegoats, and if they did something right, it would be their achievement. But this was the only way for ordinary people to get ahead.

As for joining the military government, that path is reserved for martial artists with exceptional physique, physical attributes, and talent. Wei Si, a farmer's son, can't even get enough to eat all year round, so where would he find the resources to train his strength and practice martial arts? Fortunately, the Zhou Kingdom is very willing to cultivate talented scholars. As long as they pass the exams, they can even enroll in school for free. This is because governing the country requires many bureaucrats. Most messengers are only willing to hold power and have no interest in doing the work. Therefore, they need excellent ordinary people to manage ordinary people, just like a steward in a grand mansion needs to manage his servants.

But if one could become a messenger, who would want to be a steward?

With a burst of strength from who knows where, Wes forcefully pushed aside the burly man blocking the trading board, gripped the pen in his pocket tightly with his left hand, and touched the trading order on the blackboard with his right.

The instant his fingertips touched, Wes heard a cold, indifferent voice in his ear:

"Transaction complete."

The next second, Wes discovered that the pen in his pocket was gone, replaced by a mirror gleaming with a faint blue light. The crowd on Suzaku Street instantly fell silent, everyone staring at Wes. Even Han Xian was dumbfounded. Although he thought Wes was the most outstanding student in the academy, he never expected that he would actually succeed... While happy for him, he couldn't help but feel a little bittersweet.

Wes hugged the breastplate tightly to his chest.

A rare and precious item that has been passed down through three generations.

With his limited knowledge, he couldn't possibly judge the value of this mirror, nor did he know where to exchange it for resources needed to change his job to a messenger. But this was Chang'an City, and he had obtained the Heart-Protecting Mirror in full view of everyone—that was his greatest advantage.

His life truly began from this moment.

(End of this chapter)