章節 17: Chapter 17 Mountain Drivers
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At the moment Shen Qing decided to break through, he immediately felt a clarity in the top of his head, as if something had suddenly clicked.
In the dark and damp room, the characters that had seemed so awkward became amicable and familiar.
With just two earnest studies, the shapes and meanings of the characters vividly appeared in his mind.
When Shen Qing lowered his head to look again, his fingers lightly glided over the pages, and he felt an unprecedented smoothness.
[Skill: Recognizing characters and reading (skillfully)]
[Progress: 1/200 points]
[Status: Cannot be increased]
Zhang Shuyuan did not notice Shen Qing's unusual behavior and, looking at the wild quail's sake, patiently taught Shen Qing again.
"Now you've learned sixteen characters, and with yesterday's sixteen characters, that's a total of thirty-two characters. Close the book first, recite them, and then write them from memory for me to see." Zhang Shuyuan, stroking his already shiny goatee, spoke proudly like a true private tutor.
Shen Qing nodded and said, "Okay, teacher."
Upon hearing that, he closed the book, shut his eyes, and recited aloud, "The sky is dark and the earth yellow, the universe vast and barren. The sun and moon alternate, the stars are aligned. Cold turns to heat, autumn harvests, winter stores. The extra days complete the year, the tones harmonize with the yang."
Seeing Shen Qing recite without a single pause, Zhang Shuyuan asked, "Do you know what it means?"
Shen Qing thought for a moment and then said, "What the teacher taught yesterday, it means the sky is dark blue, the earth is..."
Seeing Shen Qing speak eloquently, Zhang Shuyuan suddenly felt that this poor family's son seemed somewhat different.
When he first learned this Thousand Character Classic, he had memorized the characters and meanings by rote, slowly digesting and understanding them later, far less smoothly than Shen Qing.
Zhang Shuyuan took out a dried stick and placed it in front of Shen Qing, saying, "Write these thirty-two characters."
Shen Qing nodded, picked up the stick, and began writing on the ground.
In just a short time, he had written all thirty-two characters clearly without missing a single one.
If yesterday's writing was like a turtle crawling, today it was a proper turtle.
Ugly, but standard.
Zhang Shuyuan instinctively gave Shen Qing another look.
In just one day, this ordinary young man had already come one foot into the realm of literacy.
Such talent, Zhang Shuyuan had never seen in all his life.
However, Zhang Shuyuan did not regard Shen Qing differently because of this.
There were many talented people in the world, but how many could stand out without connections or background?
This little talent only caused a flicker of surprise in his eyes, nothing more.
After Shen Qing finished writing, Zhang Shuyuan said indifferently, "Not bad. You should practice more when you're free."
Shen Qing nodded and said, "Thank you, teacher, for your guidance."
After Zhang Shuyuan's examination, Shen Qing practiced for a while before ending today's lesson on recognizing characters and reading.
Coming out of the room, Shen Qing did not linger but hurried home early, pulling out that martial arts book and taking another look.
There were still many characters he couldn't recognize, but he understood more than before.
There were indeed general principles of martial arts recorded inside.
He needed to work hard to increase his progress.
Shen Qing became filled with enthusiasm.
...
Outside Hongshan Village, a cart being drawn by a plodding nag slowly entered the village.
As the mountain drivers of Hongshan Village, Chen Youguang sat on the cart, smiling and full of vitality.
"Uncle, you're back!" Chen Dajiang's face creased into a sad smile as he greeted from beside the road.
"I'm back." The village chief responded, nodding to Aunt Zhang up ahead, "Aunt Zhang, how is your health?"
"Still okay, still okay!" Aunt Zhang looked at Chen Youguang with a somewhat unnatural expression, evidently wanting to speak but hesitating.
Chen Youguang felt something strange.
In just a few days away, the village's atmosphere seemed to have turned gloomy.
He found it odd, as if someone had lost a child.
Children gathered around, curiously looking at the cart. Chen Youguang waved them away.
Wiping the smile from his face, Chen Youguang hurried the cart home.
Upon pushing open the door, he immediately sensed an unusually cold quiet: "First, second, third, all come out. Your father is back."
After calling for a long time, only Chen Yuan came out.
His unshaven face appeared somewhat desolate as he said, "Dad!"
"Where are your two brothers?" Chen Youguang took a wine pouch from the cart, tipping it back to drink.
"They... they were killed by a Tian Family member..."
"Poof..." The sip of wine Chen Youguang just took sprayed out, "What did you say, the second and third are dead? What happened, tell me quickly."
"It's like this..." Chen Yuan explained everything that had happened over the past two days in detail.
After listening, Chen Youguang's face turned grim, and his heart sank to the bottom.
"Dad, what should we do? Should we take revenge on the Tian Family..." Chen Yuan made a throat-slitting gesture.
Chen Youguang interrupted, "No, killing them wouldn't accomplish anything except venting anger."
He paced and looked up, "How is your martial arts training going?"
"Just started sensing Qi; in a few more months, I can reach the Great Perfection of Qi and Blood."
"Good, then there's an opportunity." Chen Youguang said, "Besides seeing Song and Dong Family in the county, I also visited the Shen Shou Sect. We've made arrangements; come spring, if you reach the Great Perfection of Qi and Blood, I can gather sixty taels of silver to send you directly into their inner sect."
Shen Shou Sect!
Chen Yuan's eyes lit up immediately.
This martial arts sect was quite renowned in the county, no less than the martial arts halls.
More importantly, this sect had ties to the government office, so besides martial arts training, it also provided other income opportunities.
However, joining this martial arts sect required considerable funds, deterring many.
To his surprise, his father had managed to secure such a connection.
"The dead are worthless, but the living can fetch a high price at a broker. You need this silver, so let the Tian Family provide it. If they refuse, force them to agree!"
"What about avenging my two brothers..."
Chen Youguang raised an eyelid and said, "I am still young; I can earn more money and marry more beautiful concubines, give birth to two more for you."
Chen Yuan: "..."
"Enough, let's not talk about this anymore. In the coming days when the snow stops, we need to start collecting game to sell in the county."
Chen Yuan said, "Dad, why are we doing the collecting? Wasn't it always someone from the Song and Dong Family that came over?"
"The heavy snow on the road caused their merchant to fall off the mountain and die; from now on, it's our family collecting. We also set the purchase price. In this Hongshan Village, anyone not selling their game to us can walk to the county on their own if they want to sell, but don't expect to hitch a ride to the county market."
From here to the county is not close; if one were to walk, it would take more than a day for a round trip.
If they couldn't sell their goods, they'd need to stay another night.
Chen Yuan understood that his father intended to make Hongshan Village his personal fiefdom, a private hunting ground.
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