Top Scholar

Chapter 118 No Classes Today
When Su Lu left Daonan Hall, it was already dusk. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, it was noticeably getting dark earlier and earlier.

"Qiu-ge'er!" Uncle's voice rang out from outside Qingxin Gate.

"Uncle, Commander-in-Chief." Su Lu was in a very good mood and went over with a smile to bow.

“You’re the face of the academy now, so don’t be so unprofessional.” His uncle straightened his collar, then waved him away, telling him to get lost. “You need to be mindful of your image now, so your classmates don’t see us together.”

"What do you mean?" Su Lu asked, puzzled. "I've always been proud of my uncle."

“It’s usually fine, but here I am being bossed around,” the uncle said in a low voice. “It’s not respectable.”

"So what? Without my uncle's hard work and sacrifices, how could I enjoy such a peaceful life?" Su Lu laughed dismissively. "Besides, do you think I'm living a dignified life eating cornbread every day? I've only had a few days of comfort, why am I acting all high and mighty?"

"Haha, good boy." His uncle put his arm around his shoulder and stuffed two pieces of silver into his pocket as a reward: "Go buy something good to eat!"

"Thank you very much, Uncle Commander." Su Lu smiled and cupped his hands in thanks. Today was truly a good day.

Firstly, everyone gave him money to spend; secondly, he never expected to get on the good side of Magistrate Lu!

Although the gentlemen seemed to look down on Magistrate Lu, Su Lu found them laughable. It would be one thing if the successful candidates in the provincial and metropolitan examinations looked down on him, but what right did these poor scholars have to look down on a county magistrate who had been executed along with his entire family?
It's good that they all look down on him; Su Lu can give him enough respect and warm Magistrate Lu's wounded little heart without costing him any money.

That's the county magistrate who holds his fate in his hands! He doesn't want anything, he just wants him to study hard, he'll give him money to spend and protect him. Is there anything more worthwhile in the world?
Su Lu truly respects him from the bottom of her heart!

~~
Today was another day for a lesson on prosody, so Su Lu didn't eat in the dining hall. Instead, he left the academy and went to Sweet Water Restaurant.

It was completely dark by then. The shop was boarded up, and the staff had finished cleaning up and gone home.

Only Su Youcai and his godmother and daughter were waiting for him to come back for dinner.

They used the restaurant's tables and chairs for entertaining guests, and most of the food was bought from the street. But the warm orange light and familiar smiling faces still gave Su Lu's family a sense of warmth.

"Son, you've worked hard. Go wash your hands and eat." The godmother greeted him kindly.

"It's not hard work at all, it's your parents who have worked hard," Su Lu said with a grin.

Tian Tian obediently brought him a basin of water. Su Lu thanked her, washed his hands, and quickly started eating.

During the meal, Su Youcai asked with concern, "Son, did that old dog Lu Zhaoye give you any trouble?"

Su Lu shook his head, shoveling rice into his mouth while pulling out the envelope of silver and slapping it on the table. Of course, he kept the two qian of loose silver his uncle had given him.

It was my uncle's private savings to begin with, how can it be handed over to the government?
"Wow, where did you get so much money?" Su Youcai was startled, and after weighing it in his hand, he said, "Ten taels of silver!"

"What new way has my son come up with to make money?" his godmother asked with great interest.

“This was given to me by Magistrate Lu.” Su Lu swallowed the food in his mouth, took out a handkerchief to wipe the corner of his mouth, and said, “Let’s just forget about the past and not bring it up again. He also said that Father can take the county exam again, and this time it will definitely be different.”

"Huh? You can't expect a dog to spew out ivory?" Su Youcai's mouth gaped open, feeling like his son was talking nonsense. But the genuine ten taels of silver were undeniably right in front of him.

"Why...did he say that?"

“He’s the county magistrate, so we wouldn’t dare ask if he didn’t say anything,” Su Lu said with a grin. “Maybe he felt he had gone too far with my father in the past and his conscience had finally bothered him.”

"He really went too far!" Su Youcai exhaled a long breath, as if he had swallowed a betel nut to ease his breathing. "However, it's better to resolve conflicts than to let them fester. For the sake of my son's future, I, as his father, choose to forgive him!"

"Second brother is truly magnanimous." The godmother, as an observer, saw everything clearly. She had only ever heard of "citizens bribing officials," never "officials bribing citizens."

Why would the magistrate reward Su Youcai with money and even take the initiative to reconcile? Considering that the magistrate's purpose for this trip was to inspect the academy, the godmother guessed that the money was almost certainly a reward for Su Lu.

Su Lu said this probably to save face for his father. The proprietress, wanting to give Su Youcai even more confidence, picked up her wine cup and said with a beaming smile, "Congratulations, Second Brother, on your turn for the better! I bet you'll get what you want the year after next! Otherwise, I'll do anything you ask!"

"Haha, thank you for your kind words, sister!" Su Youcai immediately beamed with joy, picked up his wine cup and lightly clinked it with the proprietress's.

Under the lamplight and moonlight, a beautiful woman offered him wine, her words as enchanting as a flower, which stirred his long-dormant poetic inspiration. He picked up his wine cup, rose, briefly composed himself, and then recited aloud:

"The lamp flickers, the moon casts its shadow, and the wine cup is full."

Warm words and a gentle spring breeze fill the cup.

Don't say the blue robe is still dusty.
Next year, the roads will be lined with blooming flowers!

"What a beautiful line, 'Don't say the blue robe is still dusty, for next year the red blossoms will fill the road!' What a wonderful poem, what a wonderful poem..." The proprietress was captivated, resting her chin on her slender hand, her eyes sparkling with admiration, she said, "Second Brother is truly talented and full of wisdom! I admire him greatly~~~"

"Hahaha!" Upon hearing this, Su Youcai felt a lightness in his bones and laughed loudly, "A good poem is born of nature and a masterpiece is achieved by chance. It's just that the atmosphere was right. This poem also owes some credit to you, sister."

"What makes me happiest is that my second brother has finally started writing poetry again," the proprietress said with a sigh of relief. "You haven't written any poems since you came to the shop. It seems that writing poetry is more suited to reading."

"Oh, really?" Su Youcai laughed and said, "Since you say so, then I'll pick up the books again!"

"Great! This toast is to congratulate Second Brother on his return to his studies." The proprietress poured another cup, raised it, and drank with Su Youcai, her cheeks unconsciously flushing with a peach-like blush...

"Tiantian, are you full?" Su Lu couldn't stand it anymore. "Mmm." Tiantian was also embarrassed and quickly nodded.

"Come on, I'll take you for a walk." Su Lu then led Tian Tian outside.

"Son, are we not having a music and rhythm class today?" Su Youcai hadn't forgotten the reason for staying overnight.

"I'm not going to serve any more. Let's just serve something else." Su Lu's voice disappeared into the darkness.

~~
Silent all night.

The next morning, Magistrate Lu woke up to the sound of students reading aloud.

After a peaceful and desireless sleep, he felt much more relaxed in his lower body when he woke up, which made him very happy.

The servant helped him pace a few steps in front of the bed. Seeing that Magistrate Lu was no longer walking with a waddling gait, he quickly congratulated him, "Master, you've recovered so quickly this time!"

"Yes!" Magistrate Lu nodded, looking relaxed. "Firstly, I must thank the heavens for bestowing the title of Su Lu, which has made me so happy and in high spirits!"

“Yes. When a person is happy, their illness will naturally heal faster…” the attendant chimed in.

"Secondly, I also want to thank Commander Ma for the ointment he sent," Magistrate Lu said frankly, clearing his throat.

Commander Ma was a veteran soldier who had fought against the Duzhang barbarians during the Chenghua era. Whether he was injured or bruised, he could not escape his notice.

Yesterday, Lu Zhaoye was so carried away in Daonan Hall, gesturing wildly, that people could tell he didn't have a back injury or any muscle injury at all; it was most likely hemorrhoids...

Ma Qianhu didn't make a fuss at the time. After returning home, he retrieved the Ma family's secret hemorrhoid medicine and had Su Youjin secretly deliver it to him.

Su Youjin, with his silver tongue, described the medicine as something extraordinary, and since Magistrate Lu was so tormented that he couldn't sleep at night, he had his servant apply the medicine to him.

Surprisingly, it really worked! While it didn't cure the disease instantly, it was very effective and greatly relieved the pain!

This greatly changed Magistrate Lu's attitude towards Commander Ma, so he invited him to have breakfast together.

When Commander Ma arrived with great joy, he found Magistrate Lu standing under the eaves to greet him.

He was flattered and overwhelmed: "Oh dear, no, that won't do. The county magistrate is still ill."

“I neglected my health yesterday and felt very guilty.” Magistrate Lu seemed like a different person, smiling broadly as he said, “Fortunately, Commander Qianhu is very magnanimous. Not only did he not blame me, but he also gave me medicine. I am truly grateful.”

"No problem, no problem. As the saying goes, nine out of ten men have hemorrhoids. I have the same problem, so I totally understand!" Commander Ma smiled generously and asked in a low voice, "How are you feeling now?"

"Ah, much better!" Magistrate Lu said with a sigh of relief. "Brother Ma's medicine is truly miraculous!"

"Of course, this is an ancestral recipe! It's priceless!" Commander Ma said proudly. "I'll have Youjin send over more later, so the county magistrate can take it back and use it at his leisure."

"Thank you very much." Magistrate Lu thanked him repeatedly and invited Commander Ma to take a seat, saying, "The autumn harvest is imminent and we cannot delay. I will be returning this morning. So I can only offer you breakfast."

"What kind of meal it is doesn't matter; being able to sit with the county magistrate for a while is already wonderful," Commander Ma said with a smile as he sat down, though a hint of complaint lingered in his words.

Magistrate Lu knew that he was upset because he hadn't gotten his revenge yesterday. Taking a sip of millet porridge, he smiled and said, "Brother, didn't you ask for a deputy title?"

"Yes, yes," Commander Ma said happily, "Don't worry, the writing fee will definitely be befitting a county magistrate!"

"I'll waive the writing fee; consider it an apology to you, sir." Magistrate Lu waved his hand and laughed, "Then how about we completely put an end to this?"

Although civil and military officials are not subordinate to each other, many matters of the Thousand Household Office are managed by the county. If there is a disagreement between the two sides and problems arise in their cooperation, it can be quite troublesome.

"No, no, it's nothing, I didn't take it to heart at all," Commander Ma waved his hand and laughed.

Magistrate Lu naturally knew that this should be interpreted in reverse, so he said, "It's settled then. What kind of words do you want to write?"

~~
After breakfast, the two moved to the study.

The attendant had already laid out the Xuan paper and ground the ink. Commander Ma stood by the desk, admiring Magistrate Lu's brushstrokes. He read aloud each character as the other wrote it.

"Second Brother! Fine Wine! What great characters! Each one is thick and strong! They look so impressive!"

"..." Magistrate Lu's hand, gripping the wolf-hair brush, was so clenched that the veins bulged, and a drop of ink almost spilled onto the paper.

To my utter surprise, after practicing calligraphy for ten years, I received the comment that my characters were "thick and strong"...

And what is this "Erlang Fine Wine" nonsense? Couldn't they at least write "Tranquility Leads to Far-Reaching Vision"? They actually expect us to write their signboard!
Who asks for a character like that?!

You should know that asking for calligraphy is one thing, and writing a signboard is another; the price difference is more than tenfold!

This is a scam!
P.S. I haven't finished checking the rest yet, don't worry.

(End of this chapter)