One coin a day, thirty coins a month.
All of a sudden, Li Guanyi felt that the young girl before him, who couldn't be older than him by more than a year or two, seemed to radiate a golden glow.
But… just for being a study companion? That's quite a generous offer.
The young girl, who looked around fourteen or fifteen, gave a gentle smile and said,
"I'm inviting you to be my younger brother's arithmetic teacher. I hope you won't find it beneath you."
Such a good position—of course, Li Guanyi wouldn't refuse. Those sixty coins he had obtained earlier were valuable, true, especially in gold and silver, but they couldn't be spent openly, at least not for now. Besides, when it came time to leave the Chen Kingdom, the more money he had, the better. Even for his daily life, this was a much better prospect.
There was no reason for him to say no.
When they left a little while later, several teachers came out to personally see Miss Xue off. That Teacher Liu from before, the one who had been lecturing on arithmetic, was among them. His expression was much warmer now. Unlike before, when he'd left Li Guanyi waiting outside the courtyard, he escorted them out, smiling all the way and making polite conversation.
Seeing Li Guanyi leaving alongside Miss Xue, he stroked his beard and smiled naturally.
"What good fortune you have! You didn't want to work here, but you've found yourself an even better opportunity."
"Little brother Li, don't you think you owe me some thanks?"
He chuckled. "Though really, there's no need to thank me, no need at all."
Li Guanyi responded calmly, "Many thanks for the recommendation, Teacher."
He looked at this seemingly kind Confucian scholar, borrowed pen and paper, wrote something down, and handed it to him before leaving with Miss Xue.
Teacher Liu's smile slowly faded. He didn't even bother to glance at the note, casually tossing it aside.
"Tsk, seems the boy's holding a bit of a grudge. Just as I thought—'women and petty men are hard to raise.'"
Normally, he wouldn't have minded helping out Huichun Hall with a favor, but this time was different. The capital of the Chen Kingdom, Jiangzhou, was about to host a major event. An esteemed arithmetic master, long absent from the capital, was rushing back to intercede on behalf of the Grand Marshal.
On the way, that master would pass through here and meet with the local elite. They would stop here, at his very academy.
At such a time, every seat in his arithmetic hall was precious—it couldn't just be given away for nothing.
Teacher Liu had even managed to secretly obtain one of the questions posed in that master's book, passing it early to his favored students to showcase their talents.
Soon after, one of his students came over with a beaming smile, having successfully solved the problem. Teacher Liu's face lit up with delight.
"Ah! The future is bright indeed!"
Teacher Liu praised them over and over again.
"As expected of my students! I've always known—you all have remarkable talent!"
But the students looked uncomfortable. In these troubled times with nations vying for supremacy, there were still gentlemen who walked the righteous path. These students, in the pride and impetuousness of their youth, wouldn't stoop to taking credit for someone else's work.
"It wasn't us who solved it," one of them admitted.
Teacher Liu frowned. "Then who did?"
The student looked confused. "Didn't you just call him into the study earlier?"
Teacher Liu froze, his eyes widening. "You mean… that, that… that…"
The student nodded. "Exactly—the dressed fellow from before."
Such an ordinary statement. Yet for some reason, Teacher Liu's face paled, then flushed red. Suddenly recalling something, he scrambled to pick up that casually discarded piece of paper and unfolded it. Realization struck him like lightning—he had just let a golden opportunity slip through his fingers!
He staggered backward and fell heavily to the ground. The sheet of paper floated gently down beside him.
With a clenched fist, he pounded the ground in frustration, his voice filled with regret:
"You, you, you useless bunch of students!"
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?!"
"You've ruined me!"
The students exchanged glances, baffled by their teacher's anger, until they caught sight of the characters written on that piece of paper:
Bold, flowing strokes. The message is clear:
"Why so arrogant before, and so humble after?"
…
Sitting beside the driver at the front of the carriage, Li Guanyi gazed at the scenery on either side of the road for the first time. Thinking of Teacher Liu's reaction upon realizing the truth and reading that note, his mood lifted considerably.
He was not a petty man, but—treat him kindly, and he'd repay that kindness doubly. Mistreat him, and he'd never let it slide.
If you're going to hit someone, hit their face. If you're going to kill someone, strike at their heart.
The coachman was skilled with the reins, expertly urging the horses forward. Meanwhile, Li Guanyi answered Miss Xue's occasional questions while silently calculating something else in his mind.
One coin a day, thirty coins a month—that was more than twenty taels of silver.
That was considered quite wealthy in Guan Yi City. Thirty coins would be enough to move out of that shabby place where he could gaze at the stars above, kill ants below, and occasionally hunt a few rats. He could replace it with a proper home: floors paved with bricks or stone, warmed by a brazier, furnished with decent beds and wooden furniture.
He could buy a couple of new sets of clothes for himself and his aunt, and eat better meals with fresh fruits and vegetables.
And most importantly—he could redeem his aunt's jade pendant.
Soon, the pawnshop appeared up ahead. After a moment's hesitation, Li Guanyi spoke up:
"Miss Xue, I have a small request…"
Xue Shuangtao smiled. "Please, sir, speak freely."
Li Guanyi said, "Would it be possible to receive an advance of ten coins?"
Miss Xue looked slightly surprised but then noticed the faded, threadbare clothes he wore, washed until they'd lost their color, though still kept clean. Her expression softened as she gently said,
"That's my oversight. Since you are now a hired teacher in our household, it's only proper to provide a month's salary in advance."
Inside the carriage, her maid Qing'er froze, staring wide-eyed at her mistress.
What?! Since when did we start doing that?!
Miss Xue pressed a finger lightly to Qing'er's lips, winked playfully, and gestured for silence. Then she spoke gently,
"It's just that I was so impressed by Sir's talents earlier that I momentarily forgot. I hope you won't take offense."
"Qing'er, bring thirty taels of silver for Sir Li."
Thirty taels of silver—that was equivalent to thirty-six coins.
Li Guanyi accepted the money with a soft word of thanks and then added,
"Could we stop by that pawnshop up ahead? There's something of my elder's that I pawned earlier—I'd like to redeem it."
The coachman chuckled,
"Being filial to one's elders is as it should be. Sit tight, little sir."
With a flick of the reins, the carriage stopped neatly outside the pawnshop. Li Guanyi stepped down and entered, clutching the thirty taels of silver.
Back when he first arrived here, he had pawned that item as a live pawn—meaning that as long as it hadn't been sold to someone else, he could redeem it. But Li Guanyi was worried too much time had passed. With that in mind, he approached the counter and stated his purpose.
The pawnshop manager's expression changed slightly upon recognizing him. And when he heard that Li Guanyi had come to redeem something, his eyes shifted sideways in a telling glance.
Li Guanyi's heart sank.
Sure enough, the shopkeeper squeezed out an apologetic smile.
"Ah, that jade pendant… I do remember it. But unfortunately, someone else has already taken a liking to it…"
At that moment, the curtain at the back of the shoplifted, and a young man stepped out, holding the jade pendant in his hand with a smile.
"Shopkeeper Wang, this jade pendant is quite nice. I'll take it. Just put it on my account—I'll send someone over to settle up next month."
Li Guanyi recognized him at once—it was the young master of Huichun Hall from earlier.
But Li Guanyi didn't care about that. What mattered was that this jade pendant belonged to his aunt.
Taking a step forward, he blocked the young man's path, speaking steadily but firmly:
"Unfortunately, I'm here today to redeem that pendant."
The young master of Huichun Hall glanced over at him, frowned at his plain, worn clothing, and flicked his sleeve disdainfully.
"Yours?"
He laughed derisively.
"Ha! Too bad for you—it's mine now."
Li Guanyi's tone remained calm.
"According to pawnshop rules, you haven't paid for it yet, so it doesn't count as sold. I used a live pawn, and as long as the item hasn't left the premises, I still have the right to redeem it."
The young master was momentarily speechless, but then recognition dawned on him.
"You-you're that former errand boy of ours!"
His confidence swelled. He looked Li Guanyi up and down, sneering:
"Redeem it? Boy, why don't you just take that silver and buy yourself something nice? This pendant belongs to me now."
He barked an order:
"Move aside! Don't block my way."
As he raised a hand to shove Li Guanyi aside, Li Guanyi's gaze lowered slightly, his inner energy beginning to stir.
Just then, the sound of soft footsteps approached.
A faint fragrance of orchids drifted in the air, accompanied by a gentle voice:
"Sir Li, why the delay? Did something happen at the pawnshop? Were you unable to retrieve it?"
Xue Shuangtao stood beside him.
The shopkeeper and the young master of Huichun Hall froze on the spot.
This is…
The Xue family?!
The beautiful young lady stood gracefully beside the plainly dressed young man, her hands neatly folded before her, her clear eyes lifting to meet the gaze of the Huichun Hall young master.
With a serene smile, she asked:
"Sir, may I ask why you were raising a hand toward my family's teacher?"
(End of Chapter)