APSIL -Chapter 11 One Loves, the Other Doesn’t

Gathering together the village children who were still too young to work, teaching them to recite poetry, memorize the multiplication table, and learn basic reading and writing had originally been nothing more than a spur-of-the-moment idea for Zhang Shou.

After arriving in this unfamiliar world, he had realized he first needed to understand it quietly.

He knew the effort might amount to nothing. It might not even do much to enlighten the common people. Still, with nothing better to do, he figured doing something was better than doing nothing, so he devoted himself to it.

What he had never expected was to discover two exceptionally talented boys among the farmers’ sons who gathered to watch him teach poetry and arithmetic.

Deng Xiaodai had the connections needed to take the clerks’ examination, while Qi Liang, thanks to his family’s scholarly background, passed the county examination on his very first attempt.

That was a pleasant surprise.

Since Miss Zhu hadn’t interrupted his lesson, he paid no attention to the fact that she was standing outside listening—or rather, eavesdropping.

After finishing his instructions to Deng Xiaodai, he began teaching the two boys plane geometry.

Even if they might never use geometry in their entire lives, he firmly believed that developing mathematical reasoning would benefit a person forever.

As for how completely bewildered Miss Zhu might become while listening outside—that wasn’t something he could help.

Sure enough, Zhu Ying gradually poked her head inside.

She saw Zhang Shou standing with his back to her before a white wall, drawing and writing with a cotton string dipped in water.

Before long, she was utterly lost.

That wasn’t even the worst of it.

As he drew figures, Zhang Shou simultaneously dictated the problems aloud. She heard every word, yet understood absolutely nothing.

Especially when he stretched the wet string to draw perfectly straight lines, then tied a writing brush to the end to sketch circles and construct increasingly complicated geometric figures…

The water marks gradually evaporated and disappeared from the wall.

Her head began to spin.

She couldn’t help admiring the two country boys sitting below.

After all, Zhang Shou explained everything only once.

How remarkable their memories must be to remember it all!

Soon, she noticed something else she hadn’t paid attention to before.

Zhang Shou was drawing entirely with his left hand.

Thinking of the ugly handwriting she’d seen in those copybooks on his bookshelf, everything suddenly made sense.

So that’s why…

A handsome, refined gentleman like him writes such poor characters.

Practicing swordsmanship or knife work with the left hand is one thing… but writing with it must be incredibly difficult!

Lost in thought, she stood there for quite some time.

When she finally came back to herself, she saw that both boys had wooden sand trays resting on their laps, using sticks to copy down the problems by writing in the sand.

Only then did she realize how they recorded the questions.

Watching them lower their heads and ponder the solutions with complete concentration, she finally couldn’t resist giving a soft cough.

Zhang Shou naturally turned toward the doorway.

But his response instantly irritated her.

Not only did he fail to come over and explain anything to her, he simply placed a finger against his lips and gestured for silence.

That was the last straw.

She glared fiercely at him before turning on her heel and storming away.

Last night’s dinner was like this.

This morning was the same.

Just now, when he asked Deng Xiaodai to investigate the marriage contract, he even used “I’m so frightened by this marriage that I can’t sleep” as an excuse.

And now he’s saying I’m too noisy!

“They’re only a few math problems. Why not simply write them clearly on paper and hand them out? Why make such a mysterious show of it…”

“Ah!”

The more Zhu Ying thought about it, the angrier she became.

She had just muttered her complaint aloud when someone suddenly stepped in front of her.

She jumped in fright.

Only after recognizing A-Liu did she realize, with embarrassment, that she’d not only come back after leaving but had also been caught eavesdropping on Zhang Shou’s lesson.

Her cheeks immediately turned red.

A-Liu silently stepped aside to let her pass.

She finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Earlier she had found his taciturn nature rather annoying.

Now, however, she found it wonderful.

At least he wasn’t making this any more embarrassing.

But after she’d taken only a couple of steps, A-Liu quietly spoke behind her.

“Paper and brushes are expensive.”

The words seemed to come out of nowhere.

Although Zhu Ying didn’t know A-Liu nearly as well as Zhang Shou did, she immediately understood.

He had overheard her complaint.

Growing up in an aristocratic household, she’d never had the slightest idea how much paper and brushes actually cost.

But recalling everything she’d seen while walking through the village, she could easily imagine that such things were luxuries ordinary farming families simply couldn’t afford.

Still simmering with frustration, she couldn’t help blurting out, “Couldn’t A-Shou just buy paper and brushes for them?”

The moment the words left her mouth, she regretted them.

But it was already too late.

From the little she’d overheard earlier, Deng Xiaodai—the newly appointed clerk—had been overflowing with gratitude toward Zhang Shou.

Not once had he complained that Zhang Shou hadn’t simply given them paper and brushes for free.

“Young Master’s monthly allowance is only five hundred copper coins.”

A-Liu spoke more than usual this time.

“He spends all of it buying grain, rice, and meat to help support their families. Otherwise, their parents would never allow them to eat without working. Qi Liang is buried in debt. His family almost had to sell all their land. Young Master taught him arithmetic while hiring people to help tend his cotton fields. Over the past three years, he’s only managed to repay a tiny portion of what he owes.”

Then A-Liu added, “And Young Master says…”

“‘Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach him to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.’

‘Help those in urgent need, but don’t simply support lifelong poverty.

‘The only person who can truly escape poverty is oneself.'”

Zhu Ying found herself speechless.

She remembered how, back at home, expensive wolf-hair brushes were casually discarded.

Wastepaper filled entire baskets every single day.

She had always taken it for granted.

Now, for the first time, it left an uncomfortable feeling in her heart.

For the first time in her life…

She had come face to face with the true distance between wealth and poverty.

She said nothing more.

Silently, she continued walking.

As she did, another question gradually surfaced in her mind.

Did A-Shou really memorize all the Four Books and Five Classics?

Who exactly was that mysterious old gentleman who secretly taught him the classics and mathematics?

How much learning does A-Shou really possess?

Besides producing that young clerk, he even managed to teach someone who passed the county examination…

Meanwhile, inside the temporary classroom that had been converted from Qi Liang’s late father’s house, Zhang Shou stood with folded arms, watching Deng Xiaodai and Qi Liang rack their brains over a geometry problem.

At the same time, he wondered why Zhu Ying had returned after leaving.

To be fair, this extraordinarily beautiful young lady had quite a pleasant personality.

She was reasonable and considerate—not at all the spoiled noble girl one would normally expect.

His first impression of Zhu Ying had been very favorable.

Likewise, he knew that he—or rather, his face—had undoubtedly left an equally favorable first impression on her.

But between them lay an insurmountable gulf.

Their families were completely mismatched.

They belonged to entirely different worlds.

That so-called marriage contract absolutely had something suspicious behind it.

Sooner or later, Zhu Ying’s curiosity about him would fade.

Perhaps someone from the Duke of Zhao’s household would even arrive today to take her back.

Lost in thought, Zhang Shou suddenly noticed Deng Xiaodai scratching his head in frustration, even chewing on his wooden stylus.

The geometry problem required drawing two auxiliary lines, and the boy clearly couldn’t solve it.

A smile tugged at Zhang Shou’s lips.

When Deng Xiaodai finally looked up pleadingly, Zhang Shou crooked a finger, signaling him to follow, and walked outside.

After waiting a short while, Deng Xiaodai quietly slipped out as well.

“Little Teacher… could you at least give me a hint?”

“Heh.”

Zhang Shou chuckled.

“You always have to compete with Qi Liang.”

Knowing exactly what the boy was thinking, he asked, “Solving problems isn’t like writing essays. Sometimes you need to change your mindset. Take a walk outside. You might suddenly figure it out.”

“If only it were that easy…”

Deng Xiaodai pulled a miserable face, completely unlike the triumphant expression he’d worn earlier while boasting about solving three mathematics problems on the Shuntian Prefecture examination.

Seeing Zhang Shou merely smiling without speaking, he suddenly remembered something his uncle had told him.

After hesitating for quite a while, he finally spoke in a low voice.

“Little Teacher… there’s something I’ve been debating whether to tell you.”

He took a deep breath.

“The first time my uncle brought me into the Revenue Office, I pretended to be curious about our village. I found the Fish-Scale Register.”

“Little Teacher…”

“All the farmland around here is registered under the name of someone surnamed Zhu.”

“Could your mother have been deceived years ago? Maybe she temporarily placed the land under someone else’s name? That won’t do! If you don’t have the land deeds, you’ll suffer a huge loss!”

Earlier, after Zhu Gongquan had revealed that the Zhang family had been supported entirely by the Duke of Zhao—and after seeing his mother Madam Wu’s reaction—Zhang Shou had already believed there was a ninety-percent chance it was true.

Now that Deng Xiaodai had independently confirmed it, any remaining hope disappeared completely.

He could only blame himself.

He had trusted what the tenant farmers around him had told him without considering that something as unbelievable as becoming a child groom could actually exist.

Ah…

Considering they’ve raised me all these years…

Even if I can’t become their son-in-law…

I should at least look after that young lady a little.