Invasion Myth: Starting with the Schoolteacher

Chapter 663 Secretly Advancing
The May sun was scorching, making the bluestone slabs of Chongqi Academy gleam with a blinding white light, and the air itself seemed to distort slightly as the heat rose.

Xu Xuan leaned against a vermilion pillar, gently waving a folding fan in his hand, watching the bustling scene in the courtyard—students from poor families were packing their books with sweat pouring down their faces. Some were stuffing pens, ink, paper, and inkstones into their bundles, while others were carefully wrapping the borrowed books in oiled paper, afraid that they would get wet on the way.

In the fifth month of the lunar calendar, the field holiday is approaching.

This holiday was originally intended to continue the tradition of "passing down the family tradition of farming and reading." Ordinary academies would give students a full month to return to their hometowns and help with farm work.

Chongqi Academy originally did not follow this practice—after all, most of the students who could study here were from aristocratic families, and which family would need its young master to work in the fields himself?
Besides, with thousands of acres of fertile land, even if you went down there, you wouldn't be able to tell which way was which, and you might even get carried away by wild animals coming down from the mountains.

According to the man-eating monsters, the flesh and blood of these young masters are mostly nutritious and taste excellent.

Of course, if you eat something poisonous, you're out of luck. The worst case was when Deng You's centipede descendants were infected by humans in Suzhou and mutated on the spot.

Getting back to the main point, this newly added holiday is due to the twenty students from underprivileged backgrounds recruited in the past two years.

Some of these students don't even come from "poor families," their families relying on just a few acres of meager land to make a living.

If they didn't go back to help, the whole family would go hungry during the autumn harvest. Thus, this almost forgotten tradition of "farming and studying" was revived.

Xu Xuan's gaze swept across the crowd, and suddenly his eyebrows twitched—several students were sneaking towards the library, carrying the book "Fan Shengzhi" that they had just borrowed.

"stop."

He closed his folding fan and stopped these "diligent and studious" young people.

"Sir!" The students were startled and quickly bowed. "We just wanted to..."

"You want to farm according to the methods in the book?" Xu Xuan agreed with this initial intention. "The Book of Fan Shengzhi is indeed exquisite. The farming techniques and seed selection methods recorded in it have indeed laid the foundation for ancient agronomy."

The students' eyes lit up.

"But that's the farming method used in the Yellow River basin." Xu Xuan poured cold water on the idea. "The Jiangnan water towns have different terrain, climate, and soil. If you were to copy the methods in the book," he paused meaningfully, "people would die."

The students looked at each other, one of them protesting, "Well, we can't rely entirely on the old farmer's experience."

"Experience may not necessarily make things better, but it's unlikely to make them worse."

Xu Xuan told the students to go back and listen carefully to the old farmers' experience; the technological advancements in agriculture were still in the experimental stage.

Outside Suzhou city, Song Youde enclosed an area that was filled with experimental fields.

In this world of gods and monsters, farming is far more complicated than in his previous life—spiritual energy, demonic energy, malevolent energy, and the energy of the earth's veins. These unseen and intangible things can all affect the harvest.

It's even possible that one day a filial woman from the East Sea will appear and cause a three-year drought.

There were huge differences between the two eras. Therefore, no one dared to immediately copy the agricultural techniques of the later era.

If new technologies are implemented hastily and something goes wrong, a year's harvest could be ruined, which would be a devastating blow to farmers.

Therefore, Xu Xuan would rather go slower.

Since I'm not a professional myself, I can only provide a general direction and then ask others to conduct continuous control experiments, cultivate the plants, eliminate various influencing factors, and then summarize new experiences.

The traditional methods and improved techniques were tested in parallel, compared season by season, and then a book was published.

The same applies to medicine, and to many other basic research fields. Reaching the point of publication will likely present another major challenge. Zhuge Yu, for example, hasn't published a decent book in decades; the issues involved are a hundred times more complex than farming.

Since establishing himself in Suzhou, Xu Xuan has been pushing forward with these matters.

But changes in people's livelihoods at the grassroots level can never be rushed. There are many obstacles, and it takes time, and even more so, patience.

“Go back now.” He patted the student on the shoulder. “Learn from your fathers first, and after the autumn harvest, bring back some questions about the fields, and we’ll figure them out together.”

The students nodded as if they understood, then left with their books.

"They're alright. They haven't been influenced by Chongqi's style. They're all good kids."

At this moment, Liang Shanbo also came to say goodbye, carrying his book box.

Dressed in a simple blue robe, he was returning to his hometown to farm, yet his expression was calm and composed, even carrying a hint of anticipation.

"The Liang family is considered well-off among the twenty students from impoverished backgrounds. Are they going back to help as well?" Xu Xuan asked casually.

Liang Shanbo smiled slightly: "Although we have tenants at home, my mother is old and needs someone to help manage the accounts and arrange farm work." As he spoke, his tone suddenly became a little lighter, "Besides, Yingtai will also be going back with me."

"."

The folding fan in Xu Xuan's hand fell to the ground with a "thud".

Meeting the parents?! Really?
Countless images flashed through his mind in an instant—Zhu Yingtai's disguise as a man being exposed, Liang's mother's shock and anger, the Zhu family's fury, the forced separation of the lovers, classic lines, and the transformation into butterflies.
Even more terrifying than this was that Zhu Yingtai's true identity as a woman disguised as a man was not exposed, and Liang's mother died in shock and anger.
I... I said 'let nature take its course,' right? Xu Xuan was a little confused. What exactly did you interpret it as?

Liang Shanbo, puzzled by Xu Shi's apparent loss of composure, explained that Yingtai simply wanted to observe agricultural activities. He lowered his voice, "As you know, he comes from a wealthy family and knows nothing about farming; he's caused quite a stir at the academy."

oh~~~
Xu Xuan finally breathed a sigh of relief, bent down to pick up the folding fan, and cursed himself for making a fuss over nothing.

Indeed, Zhu Yingtai was in the wrong circle.

That's just how the world is. If you mingled with those rich kids, being ignorant of basic knowledge would be considered elegant; but Zhu Yingtai chose the most difficult path—to conceal her identity while standing shoulder to shoulder with truly talented people.

The Three Wonders, having evolved several times, are no ordinary creatures; even someone like Ji Rui can speak eloquently about people's livelihoods.

"Fine, go ahead and do as you please." Xu Xuan waved his hand.

When Zhu Yingtai enrolled in school, Madam Yin had warned her that this young girl was there to study and that she should absolutely not get involved in any romantic relationships.

But we've already done so much, and there's nothing we can do if they insist on getting entangled with us.

Xu Xuan looked at the young couple and sighed inwardly:

What a tragic fate.
"Be careful on the road." That was all he could say in the end.

Liang Shanbo bowed solemnly and turned to greet Zhu Yingtai. The two figures walking side by side appeared exceptionally clear, yet also exceptionally fragile, under the scorching May sun.

Watching them walk away, I suddenly realized that this summer's farm break might be longer than I had imagined.
Xu Xuan dusted off non-existent dust from his sleeves, a meaningful smile playing on his lips: "Time to get back to your own business."

(End of this chapter)