Chapter 49

Chapter 49

“We’re finally here… ugh… Another minute and I swear I’d have breathed my last. Ugh… This place is so remote, even the barbarians probably couldn’t find it back in the day, yet your father did.”

“My apologies, Teacher, for putting you through such hardship.” Chen Qinghuai’s small face was pale and drawn as he offered a rueful apology.

The long, arduous journey had thoroughly exhausted the two, who rarely ventured out, especially Liang Boqing, who suffered from car sickness and nearly vomited himself to death halfway.

The attendant brought the carriage to a halt and hurried to knock on the door. Soon, Lin Zai, the gatekeeper, emerged, looking at the group with a puzzled expression. “May I ask who you are looking for?”

The attendant quickly produced Chen Jing’s letter from his pocket and handed it over. “I am a subordinate of Lord Chen, specifically escorting the young master and Mr. Liang back to their hometown.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Zai quickly went inside to report. Shortly after, Li Shi and Chen Rong came out together to welcome them.

“Qinghuai?”

“Aunt, Third Aunt!” Chen Qinghuai bowed respectfully to the two elders.

“You still remember us? What a good child, you’ve grown so much! Come in quickly, you must have had a hard journey!”

“Not too bad.”

Noticing the thin middle-aged man behind Chen Qinghuai, Li Shi quickly said, “This must be Mr. Liang, whom your father mentioned in his letter.”

Liang Boqing bowed with clasped hands. “Greetings to both madams.”

“No need for such formalities, sir. Please come in.”

Once inside, Li Shi pulled Chen Qinghuai aside to inquire about his family.

“Father and Mother took Second Sister and Third Brother to Shanzhou. They’ll send a letter once they’re settled.”

“It’s been over ten years since I last saw your mother. Last time you returned, she happened to be pregnant with the third child and couldn’t travel. Who knows when we’ll meet again.”

Chen Rong added, “Indeed. Since Fourth Brother took up his post, I haven’t seen her either. I’ve almost forgotten what your sister-in-law looks like.”

The two women sighed wistfully. Liang Boqing, sitting to the side, had long since reached his limit. Uncertain when their endless chatter would cease, he simply rolled his eyes and pretended to faint.

“Ah?! What’s wrong with Mr. Liang? Quick, fetch a doctor!”

After a while, the doctor arrived, examined him, and declared him to be suffering from extreme fatigue and physical weakness, requiring proper rest.

Upon hearing this, Li Shi immediately ordered the kitchen to prepare chicken soup and dared not disturb him again.

After everyone had left, Liang Boqing opened one eye. “Are they all gone?”

“Teacher, why are you feigning illness again?”

“I couldn’t stand their incessant chattering. Where’s that cousin of yours?”

“Aunt just said cousin went to the estate and won’t be back until tomorrow.”

Liang Boqing sat up. “If it weren’t for meeting this boy, I wouldn’t have bothered traveling all this way. Your father praised him to the heavens. I’ll have to see for myself tomorrow whether he’s truly exceptional or just all talk.”

Chen Qinghuai said earnestly, “Eldest cousin is very impressive. He passed the Student Scholar exam at fourteen. If he hadn’t been framed, he’d already be a Xiucai by now.”

Liang Boqing scoffed, “Passing the Xiucai exam is no great feat. Even a Juren who doesn’t make the second rank is worthless.”

Chen Qinghuai hesitated to speak further. *Good thing his father ranked thirty-seventh in the second rank—not worthless, huh…* he thought to himself.

*

On the other side, Chen Qingyan and Wang Ying were laying the courtyard ground for their new house. The courtyard wall had just been repaired a few days prior, and once the ground was finished today, the construction would be essentially complete.

Since the residence was close to the mountains, for safety reasons, Wang Ying had arranged for a large area of the back hill to be enclosed, with trees cut down and built into a fence to prevent wild animals from wandering in accidentally.

The furniture inside the house was also finished. Instead of a bed, the master bedroom had a *kang*—a type of heated brick bed common in rural areas in later generations. It had a firebox on the outside and a chimney on top; just a handful of firewood could keep it warm for half a day.

When the *kang* was being built, many villagers came to watch out of curiosity, as they had never seen a bed that could be heated!

After the *kang* was completed, it was dried and then covered with a mat. Once firewood was burned, it would stay warm throughout the night.

Many families with elderly members planned to try building one themselves. Older people, with their frail bodies, preferred warmth over cold, and such a *kang* would make winter nights much more comfortable.

The hexagonal pavilion Chen Qingyan wanted had also been built, complete with a stone table and stools, allowing the couple to relax and enjoy the flowers and scenery in their leisure time.

After working for half a day, the courtyard was nearly finished. Just after lunch, Er Shun came with news: Qinghuai and his master had arrived.

The two hurriedly prepared the bedroom, asking Uncle Chen to take out the bedding they had prepared in advance and air it out. These were all newly purchased. Although they weren’t sure if the two would stay long at the residence, they had to be ready to avoid any discourtesy.

Especially since Fourth Uncle had mentioned in his letter that his dear friend had a rather difficult temperament. They didn’t want to offend him after he had traveled such a long way.

Early the next morning, the two returned to town by carriage.

Entering the courtyard, they didn’t see Chen Qinghuai or his master. Chen Qingyan asked in confusion, “Didn’t they say Cousin and the others arrived yesterday? Why are they nowhere in sight?”

Li Shi said, “Early this morning, that Mr. Liang took Qinghuai out, saying he wanted to see the local customs and sights.”

He had seemed so weak yesterday, yet after a night’s sleep, he was full of energy. What a strange man.

Actually, Liang Boqing was craving something tasty. Having endured plain food on the road, he felt his mouth was practically tasteless. At the Chen family’s home, because of his “illness” the previous night, the meals were mostly light, which he couldn’t stomach. So, he dragged Chen Qinghuai out to find some good food.

“Ugh, why is there grit in these wontons?” Liang Boqing spat out the sand in his mouth, nearly cracking a tooth.

The wonton seller smiled apologetically and said, “Perhaps there was a stone when mixing the dough. Please don’t be upset, sir, I’ll scoop two more for you.”

Well, you can’t be mad at someone who’s smiling, but he couldn’t eat the wontons anymore. He pushed the bowl to Chen Qinghuai and said, “Eat this for me. I’ll go buy some sugar cakes.”

“Yes…” Chen Qinghuai, accustomed to this, picked up his master’s bowl, finished it in a few bites, quickly paid the bill, and followed him to continue exploring.

By the time the two returned, full and satisfied, it was almost noon. Liang Boqing finally met the nephew Chen Jing had spoken highly of.

Chen Qingyan and Wang Ying also met the distinguished guest. He walked in with a stern expression, hands behind his back, scrutinizing them sharply. If not for the cilantro leaf stuck to his beard, he would have been quite intimidating…

“Your nephew Chen Qingyan, along with my wife Wang Ying, pay our respects to Mr. Liang.”

Chen Qinghuai, standing behind him, burped and said, “Greetings, Cousin, Cousin-in-law.”

After the formalities, Liang Boqing got straight to the point and asked, “Are you still studying?”

Chen Qingyan was taken aback, unsure what he meant by the question. “In response, Sir, I study for three hours every day and dare not slack off.”

Liang Boqing nodded slightly. “Those who destroy themselves cannot be reasoned with; those who abandon themselves cannot be accomplished.” This quote comes from Mencius, criticizing those who give up on themselves. ①

He had assumed that after such an incident, Chen Qingyan would have lost all motivation to study. It seemed, however, that the young man’s determination was still intact.

Once inside, Liang Boqing tested his knowledge, mostly on the Four Books and Five Classics. Chen Qingyan answered fluently, though he struggled with deeper questions. After all, he had never formally studied under a teacher, so reaching this level was already quite an achievement.

Unaware of Liang Boqing’s intentions, Chen Qingyan said, “Mr. Liang, you may not be aware, but I am no longer eligible to take the imperial examinations…”

“I know, Zheng He told me everything about your case.” Zheng He was Chen Jing's courtesy name, and the two of them referred to each other by their courtesy names in private.

Chen Qingyan pursed his lips uneasily, expecting a lecture, but instead, Liang Boqing said, “You and I are in the same boat. Seeing you now feels like looking at my past self.”

“You went through something like this too, sir?”

“I don’t know if you’ve heard of my name—the famous Liang Liufang of Yangzhou.”

Chen Qingyan’s eyes widened instantly, staring at him in disbelief. This man was actually the renowned Master Liang, once the top of Jiangnan's Ten Great Talents!

Seeing his reaction, Liang Boqing knew he had heard of his story. Had it not been for their shared experiences, he would not have traveled all this way.

Tears welled up in Chen Qingyan’s eyes, as if a thousand words caught in his throat.

“Enough, let’s not bring up the past. I heard you moved to a manor—is it far from here?”

Chen Qingyan quickly wiped his tears. “No, not far.”

Liang Boqing was reluctant to stay in this main residence, especially after hearing that one of the Chen family’s ladies was widowed and another separated. As an outside man, he felt it inappropriate to live under the same roof.

Seeing his hesitation, Wang Ying quickly interjected, “The manor is over forty *li* from town, surrounded by mountains and rivers with a pleasant climate. The farmers there are all our tenants, and they are very friendly. Our newly built house is spacious enough, and there’s a hot spring in the back mountain. In winter, bathing in it can help ward off cold and dampness.”

The more Liang Boqing listened, his expression brightened. When he heard that vegetables could still be grown around the hot spring in winter, he immediately decided, “Let’s go, let’s go! I’ll stay at your manor!”

Wang Ying was amused by the old gentleman’s impatience. “Is there anything else you need, Master Liang? We can buy it in town and bring it back.”

“Just bring enough food; nothing else is needed.” He himself was a walking bookshelf, with knowledge in his mind comparable to that of the capital’s imperial academy.

After lunch, the group headed back by mule and horse-drawn carts to the Chen Family Manor.

On the way back, Chen Qingyan was asked to ride in the carriage, where Liang Boqing began to share his story. “Young man, you only know that I was accused of cheating in the imperial exams, but you don’t know that the court once allowed me to retake them.”

Chen Qingyan stood up abruptly in excitement, hitting his head on the roof of the carriage and grimacing in pain.

“Then why didn’t you…”

“Why didn’t I pass the provincial-level exams?”

“Yes!”

“In my youth, I was impulsive and once wrote a poem vowing never to serve the royal court. I felt it would be shameful to take the exams again, so I refused.”

Chen Qingyan: …

“Looking back now, I truly regret it. We scholars, to put it bluntly, hone our skills to sell to the imperial household. Even if we want to spread our ideas, we must first have status and position. Otherwise, with just the title of a scholar, who would listen to our lectures?”

Chen Qingyan was stunned by his frankness, yet every word made sense.

“Over the years, I’ve traveled to many places and seen former classmates, once as foolish as pigs, become revered Confucian scholars. It made me realize more and more how wrong my choice was.”

“So I decided, while I still have energy, to take a few disciples. I can’t let people only know my name without recognizing the talent of Liang Liufang.”

Chen Qingyan: …

“You're not the sharpest, but your character is good. I’ll reluctantly take you in to study with Qinghuai. In the future, I’ll help you get your name out there, and there will be opportunities to retake the exams.”

Over the years, many had sought to become his disciples, including exceptionally talented children, but he had never been interested. Arrogant by nature, he would not have easily accepted anyone had it not been for his friendship with Chen Jing and his fondness for this young man.

Chen Qingyan knelt in the carriage with a thud and knocked his head three times. “Yan is willing to become your disciple!”

“Get up, get up. This doesn’t count. You must prepare proper teacher's gifts—can't skimp on the wine and meat.”

Chen Qingyan: …

Author’s Note: Liang, the unconventional and free-spirited old fellow.

Note ①: Selected from "Mencius".