The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 543 - 532: Guidance

Chapter 543: Chapter 532: Guidance

Erlang’s body stiffened, while Mr. Zhuang introduced him with a beaming smile, "This is my third disciple, Bai Cheng."

It was then that Lan Cheng realized something was amiss. He looked back and forth at the three children and hesitated, "Their ages..."

Although all three seemed young and about the same age, Manbao was the shortest, Bai Shanbao was a bit taller, and the tallest, Bai Erlang, was unexpectedly the third disciple...

Mr. Zhuang laughed heartily upon hearing this and joyfully explained, "It’s based on the order they joined; they’ve also discussed this among themselves."

Lan Cheng could not help but admire Manbao even more. Being able to hold her own among two boys older than herself, at their current age, meant she won either by fighting or by using her wits.

Lan Cheng turned to his attendant and instructed him to fetch the gifts.

He knew Mr. Zhuang would bring three disciples when he received Mr. Zhuang’s visiting card, so he had prepared three gifts for their meeting.

He just didn’t know that one of them would be a girl.

But they were all students, so what did it matter who they were? The "Four Treasures of the Study" he was giving them could all be used.

The three happily accepted their gifts, and it was then that Lan Cheng began to speak of the academy’s examination.

"These years, times have been peaceful, save for the occasional conflict at the borders, and people everywhere live a contented life. Thus, the literati culture has flourished," Lan Cheng said. "In the past few years, quite a few talented scholars have emerged, so the academy exams have been tougher than in previous years."

After all, there were only so many spots available in the academy. With more people reading, and more skilled individuals among them, the competition was bound to increase.

Mr. Zhuang nodded understandingly.

"With the abilities of your second disciple, perhaps he might stand a chance. It’s no concern if he doesn’t pass this year; he can always try again next year."

Mr. Zhuang understood his meaning. He too believed Bai Shan had a chance, but success still depended on luck, considering this year’s competitors seemed numerous and formidable.

Of course, Lan Cheng’s advice didn’t end there. He also provided Bai Shan with a list of books, saying, "In the following days, you should take a closer look at these books."

All in all, there were fifteen books.

Bai Erlang was astounded.

When the masters spoke of reading, it wasn’t just a matter of reading through them once, but remembering them, and perhaps even memorizing them.

Bai Shan respectfully accepted the book list and gave his agreement.

Manbao leaned over to take a glance and got the idea, "You’ve read three of them already, haven’t you? Do you remember them?"

"I haven’t memorized them; I’ve only read them once," Bai Shanbao replied.

Those were books he read for leisure; who would have thought to memorize them?

Bai Erlang also leaned over to look. He hadn’t read a single one, and some of the titles he had never even heard of before. He asked, "Do you have these books with you?"

"No," Bai Shanbao replied. "We don’t have a single one, so we must go to the bookstore to buy them."

Manbao said, "I wonder if the bookstores in Yizhou City are big and have a wide selection."

Bai Shanbao replied, "They surely must be larger than those in Luojiang County, and more plentiful too."

Seeing the three children whispering together, Lan Cheng smiled slightly and promptly invited Mr. Zhuang to step outside for a walk and a talk.

By the time the three had finished their whispering, they discovered the two masters had walked some distance away, catching only a glimpse of their retreating figures.

The three instinctively took a few steps forward to pursue the masters, but remembering it was impolite to disturb the elders talking, they stopped in their tracks.

Manbao scratched her head and asked, "Why is there such a big age difference between our master and Mr. Lan, even though they studied together?"

"I don’t know," Bai Erlang speculated, eyes rolling, "Could it be that our master wasn’t as bright?"

Bai Shanbao shook his head, "Perhaps our master started his studies late?"

While the three speculated, Mr. Zhuang and Lan Cheng, who had walked off together, were reminiscing about the past, "It’s been more than ten years since we parted in Mianzhou, hasn’t it?"

"Yes, twelve or thirteen years."

"Mr. Huang also passed away two years ago. Before he left us, he still mentioned you," Lan Cheng said.

Mr. Zhuang paused, a sorrow cast upon his face, "Mr. Huang has passed away?"

"Yes," Lan Cheng hesitated before saying, "He mentioned he owed you a great deal."

Mr. Zhuang fell silent for a moment, then shook his head, "I have never blamed him."

Lan Cheng sighed, "Tomb-Sweeping Day is coming up, would you join me to pay homage?"

"Of course, just let me know when," replied Mr. Zhuang.

"Good," Lan Cheng didn’t wish to dwell on the somber topic and changed the subject, "What about your other two disciples if Bai Shan goes to study at the academy?"

"They will study with me," Mr. Zhuang chuckled. "The academy is naturally a good place, but there are some things that academy masters do not teach well. So, if Bai Shan is admitted, I will stay here, and I will teach him after his classes. The rest of the time, I will instruct the other two disciples."

Earlier, Mr. Lan had also appraised Bai Cheng’s knowledge. Although Bai Cheng’s learning was not as advanced as Bai Shan’s or Zhou Man’s, his foundations were quite solid. With such knowledge and a few more years of study, he might attempt the academy exams.

Lan Cheng was also an academy graduate. During his studies, his family still maintained a master at home who instructed the other children in the house and taught him things not covered by the academy.

He served a role akin to a staff member in their household.

He was aware that his classmate now performed such a role. However, "What about that young Miss, is she fine just following you around?" he asked.

Mr. Zhuang laughed, "Her elder brother came with us."

Only then did Lan Cheng relax with a smile, musing, "I’ve never heard of a Zhou Family in Luojiang County."

"The Zhou Family is not wealthy; they’re merely ordinary farmers," replied Mr. Zhuang.

Lan Cheng was incredulous, "A farmer’s family is able to send a young Miss to study?"

Mr. Zhuang did not elaborate further, simply stating, "Her mother is wise, and her family is harmonious."

Lan Cheng smiled dismissively, "I have a granddaughter, just a few years younger than them. If your female disciple has some free time, why not send her to play with my granddaughter?"

Mr. Zhuang shook his head with a chuckle, "You might have to wait for that; she’s quite busy."

Lan Cheng didn’t believe it until after visiting their small courtyard a few times, and he realized that the young girl truly was busy.

They had lunch at the Lan Family’s home that day and afterward went together in search of bookstores.

Mr. Zhuang was also interested in visiting the bookstores. Having lived in Yizhou for many years, he was most familiar with the city’s old bookstores. As for the new ones opened in recent years, those were unknown to him.

But they weren’t in a rush, with plenty of time to spend in the city.

Mr. Zhuang led them to a large bookstore from his memory and then left the three of them to find books on his own.

This was a two-story bookstore with rows of shelves neatly lined up. The shelves against the wall were even filled with bamboo scrolls.

Manbao, utterly amazed, rushed towards the bamboo scrolls. She took one down to have a look and asked, "Is this an ancient text?"

Mr. Zhuang happened to walk by and glanced at it, "It’s a replica, made to deceive kids like you. You don’t need to read bamboo scrolls right now; focus on paper books first."

Then he drifted away.

Despite his words, the three remained fascinated by the bamboo scrolls, especially when Bai Shanbao discovered that the content was indeed unlike anything they had seen in other books.

Meanwhile, Bai Erlang thought that a bamboo scroll had less text than a book, so reading a scroll would be much faster than reading a book. Mainly, they each constituted a single volume, which sounded impressive.

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