IDWBE -Chapter 113 He Who Sows the Wind Reaps the Whirlwind

Ye Qiu sat in silence, staring blankly ahead as if he had gained some sudden insight—yet the branch in his hand kept swishing through the air without pause.

A-Dai waved his fan-sized palm a few times in front of Ye Qiu’s face. Seeing no reaction, he sighed. “He’s gone stupid again. What are we going to do?”

Receiving no response, he found it dull and plopped down beside Sun Yi.

Fang Pi arrived on a tall horse.

Sun Yi stood up, stretched lazily, and said, “Be sharp during the night watch. There’ve been a lot of refugees coming lately. Some so-called martial artists think they’re something special. Can’t even judge their own weight. Always making fools of themselves.”

Ever since Fang Pi had taken over shifts, Sun Yi had felt much more relaxed.

“Don’t worry. If anyone’s looking for trouble, we’ll show them what’s what!”

Fang Pi wasn’t confident in himself—but he had absolute confidence in the Prince’s guards and Chief Steward Hong.

Since the Prince He Residence had been built, not a single person had managed to scale its walls.

“Better safe than sorry. If anything goes wrong, forget the Steward—Sister Mingyue alone could skin you alive.”

After saying that, Sun Yi yawned and walked off with his hands behind his back.

He’d been cooped up in the residence all day. Though he hadn’t done any hard labor, he still felt restless. Now that he finally had time off, he didn’t even feel like riding a horse.

He strolled along the road, enjoying the scenery as he slowly made his way home.

A-Dai and Yu Xiaoshi followed behind, each carrying two hammers, swaying as they walked.

When Sun Yi sped up, they sped up. When he slowed down, they slowed down.

Before he knew it, they had reached his house.

Just as he was about to close the gate, Yu Xiaoshi and A-Dai each braced a door panel. No matter how hard Sun Yi pushed, he couldn’t shut it.

“What are you doing? Got used to freeloading meals?”

The two of them showed up at mealtime without fail.

They were impossible to shake off.

Sun Yi truly had no way to deal with them.

Neither Yu Xiaoshi nor A-Dai spoke. They craned their necks to peer into the courtyard.

Sun Yi sighed. “The residence is serving dinner now. Go back! The food’s way better than mine. Why come here to join the fun?”

Yu Xiaoshi puffed up angrily. “The Prince said we’re too fat. Told us to lose weight.”

“We never get full anymore,” A-Dai added pitifully.

“A-Dai, your brother can cook. Don’t think I don’t know. Tell him to cook for you. My house is small—it’s really inconvenient.”

He didn’t dare say anything harsher.

After all, he couldn’t beat them.

Yu Xiaoshi replied, “His brother’s at the garrison. Can’t come back.”

Sun Yi’s mother came out holding a winnowing basket. When she saw the two fools, she waved warmly. “Come in, come in! I was wondering if you two weren’t coming today. I made extra food.”

The two fools dashed straight to the table.

Sun Yi sighed again.

His mother’s habit of taking small advantages would never change.

These two idiots could hunt a wild boar or deer almost every day. At worst, they’d bring a rabbit or a pheasant.

No matter how much they hunted, it all got delivered here.

In his mother’s calculations, what was one extra meal?

Rice and steamed buns weren’t as expensive as meat, after all.

But Sun Yi found it annoying!

With these two around, it wasn’t even convenient for the family to talk freely.

“Stop playing and eat!” Sun Yi kicked lightly at the little gray dog his sister Sun Xia was teasing.

Many local households kept this kind of dog for guarding homes and courtyards. They would even dare to fight beasts coming down from the mountains.

He had personally seen two of them chase a tiger into a corner.

The Prince had once said this dog was called a “Bone-Mouthed Shar-Pei.” Since it had caught the Prince’s eye, Sun Yi figured raising one couldn’t hurt.

Unfortunately, once he actually raised it, it became a nuisance. At the slightest movement, it would bark half the night, ruining everyone’s sleep.

If not for his sister liking it, he would have thrown it out long ago.

What kind of dog had triangular eyes?

It made him uncomfortable just looking at it.

So ugly.

“Brother, you hurt it!” Sun Xia cried, chasing after the dog to comfort it.

Sun Yi ignored her and sat down beside Yu Xiaoshi, asking his father, “Where’s Sun Cheng? Not out for dinner yet?”

Sun Du replied, “School isn’t over.”

“Oh,” Sun Yi suddenly remembered. “Military training at school today. Don’t save him any food. The school provides meals.”

Thinking of his younger brother Sun Cheng gave him a headache.

Originally, he’d thought finding him a job wouldn’t be difficult.

But when he went to see his acquaintance Shi Quan at the Commander’s Office, Shi Quan told him that Prince He had issued a regulation a month ago:

Anyone wanting to serve as a clerk in the Provincial Administration Office, the Commander’s Office, the Maritime Trade Office, or the garrison had to graduate from the local school in Baiyun City.

In the Prince’s words: “Academic credentials from outside Sanhe are not recognized.”

Even top imperial exam graduates, if they came to Sanhe, had to attend school again—studying physics, chemistry, arithmetic, and even those so-called “element symbols” no one understood the use of.

The students suffered.

Teachers like Mingyue and Zixia suffered alongside them.

But Lin Yi didn’t have it easy either.

“He who sows the wind reaps the whirlwind.”

Before the sun had even risen, the sky barely light, Lin Yi was already awake.

He had never gotten up this early before.

In just over a year, the school had expanded to ten campuses.

Even with Mingyue, Zixia, and Hong Ying all teaching, there still weren’t enough instructors.

With no other choice, Lin Yi selected the brightest students to serve as first- or second-year teachers.

And every few days, he had to teach the teachers himself.

Since he’d established the school, could he shirk responsibility?

Teachers had classes during the day, so Lin Yi had to teach them early in the morning before school, after classes in the afternoon, or on weekends.

“As long as you’re not dead, study like your life depends on it! Same goes for the students!”

For half a month, Lin Yi spoke himself hoarse.

He only hoped these teachers would mature quickly. He stuffed everything he knew into them—including the lecture notes he had personally written.

Whether they understood or not.

He placed his hopes on the dozens of teachers before him and the thousand or so students—that among them, one or two geniuses would emerge.

After three hours of teaching, he ate something and went back inside for a nap.

Upon waking, he gulped down two cups of tea.

The weather was unbearably hot.

“Your Highness,” Hong Ying said softly, “Lord Xie is waiting outside.”

“Let him in.”

Xie Zan entered, drenched in sweat, and bowed. “Your Highness.”

“It’s too hot for formalities. Sit, have some tea.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

After draining a cup, Xie Zan sighed in relief and smiled. “Your Highness, according to your instructions, we held the ‘Plow Design Competition,’ the ‘Waterwheel Competition,’ and the ‘Ironworks Competition.’ The first and second prizes have been decided.”