Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Soul Swap?

How interesting!

This fresh theme really sparked Shen Qinglan’s interest. Unlike the storybooks he’d just skimmed, now he read every word carefully.

—

In this story, the poor scholar was Zhang Qi, and the wealthy young master was Tang Le, the prefect’s son.

Like most tales of rich young ladies and poor scholars, it began with the poor scholar Zhang Qi heading to the capital for the imperial exams. Low on travel money, he stayed at a temple, where he happened to meet Tang Le, the prefect’s son, who had also come to the temple to offer incense.

But this time, their first encounter was not pleasant.

Tang Le was spoiled because he was the favorite at home. When Zhang Qi accidentally got his clothes dirty, Tang Le flew into a rage and threw a fit without holding back.

Zhang Qi, though poor, didn’t act inferior or cowardly. The two argued and parted on bad terms.

Zhang Qi couldn’t stand Tang Le’s spoiled nature!

Tang Le, on the other hand, hated Zhang Qi’s lack of manners and his sharp tongue.

But then, that very night…

Because of a fight among the gods in heaven, the two accidentally swapped souls, ending up in each other’s bodies.

Zhang Qi became the “young master” Tang Le;

Tang Le became the “poor scholar” Zhang Qi.

What were they to do?

Zhang Qi panicked: ‘I’m about to take the imperial exams—can you take them for me?!’

Tang Le was also panicking: ‘I’m about to be set up for marriage—can you go and see the match for me?!’

They fumed;

They argued;

They glared at each other…

In the end, they had no choice but to set aside their grudge for now and work together to find a way to swap back.

Naturally, things got chaotic.

But as they spent more time together, they slowly began to see each other’s strengths.

For example:

Tang Le seemed spoiled, but that was because of his tough home life—his father played favorites, his stepmother schemed—so he had to act tough to protect himself.

He deliberately acted like a fierce tiger and ruined his own reputation so his father wouldn’t marry him off as a political pawn.

The spoiled Tang Le actually had merits: he was optimistic, cheerful, kind-hearted, and brave…

Another example:

Although Zhang Qi had a sharp tongue, he was brilliant, intelligent, upright, and meticulous… Also, Zhang Qi treated young ladies and young gentlemen very differently from most other men of his time.

When they saw a young lady crying by the river about to drown herself, others told her: ‘If you drown, think of your parents!’ But Zhang Qi said: ‘Miss, you must have suffered a terrible injustice, right?’

When they encountered bandits and rescued an abducted young lady or gentleman, bringing them home;

others celebrated the rescue.

But Zhang Qi worried: ‘Returning like this, the villagers will surely misunderstand the reputation of these young ladies and young gentlemen. We need to think of a more considerate plan.’

When they encountered a local bully and were wrongfully imprisoned;

Tang Le cried in grievance and sorrow.

But Zhang Qi still had the spirit to compose a humorous poem:

“Iron bars as companions, the moon as neighbor, crickets chant the Book of Songs at midnight. The jailer asks, ‘Are you hungry?’ I reply: ‘The breeze fills my belly, lice add a touch of meat!’”

Tang Le burst out laughing, cheered by the moment.

Fortunately… in the end, they managed to escape.

Their souls also successfully swapped back.

And after going through all that chaos and laughter, discovering each other’s hidden sides, feelings of a different kind grew between them.

They confessed their hearts under the moonlight and made lifelong vows.

Tang Le said: “Tonight, I bow to the moon with you, my lord. Le makes three wishes: one, may you live a thousand years; two, may I enjoy constant health; three, may we be like swallows on a beam, meeting year after year.”

Zhang Qi said: “Qi wishes to know Le forever, with no end to this love. Mountains may crumble, rivers may dry, winter thunder roll, summer snow fall, heaven and earth unite—only then shall I part from Le!”

Such beautiful vows, such happy moments.

But alas, happiness was fleeting.

Their love was discovered by Tang Le’s father, who looked down on Zhang Qi as a poor scholar and firmly opposed their union, forbidding them from being together.

The two were forced apart.

Zhang Qi was beaten half to death, yet he struggled to rise from the mud, not in defeat, but with unwavering determination.

“Master Tang, even if you beat me to death today, I, Qi, and Le Geer are truly in love. I will never regret it!”

“As the saying goes, ‘Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west—don’t bully the youth in poverty!’”

“Master Tang, give me time. In this imperial exam, Zhang Qi will surely top the list and come with a grand sedan chair, proper and honorable, to propose to Le Geer!”

—

And then…

Then it ends.

To be continued.

"Ahhhh, it's over? Why is it over? Why?!"

"Did Zhang Qi really pass the imperial exams with flying colors? Could he and Le Ge'er finally be together? Zhang Qi and Le Ge'er absolutely must end up together—if they don't, I'll cry myself to death."

"Until the mountains crumble and the heavens and earth unite, I dare not part from Le... Wuwu, what a beautiful poem. Zhang Qi is so talented."

Shen Qinglan, who had been reading with great enthusiasm, was devastated by the sudden break. He wailed and rolled around in pain.

He absolutely adored this book, *Tale of Two Souls*.

The Zhang Qi in it was a true gentleman.

He was so talented, so clever and brave, so witty and humorous, and he had so much respect for young ladies and young men...

Everything about him resonated with Shen Qinglan.

"Shopkeeper Wang? Where is Shopkeeper Wang?"

"Qiao Dong, Qiao Xi, Qiao Nan, Qiao Bei—hurry up and fetch Shopkeeper Wang for me. I want to read the rest of *Tale of Two Souls*!"

Shen Qinglan was hooked. After rolling around and howling, he immediately sent for Shopkeeper Wang.

Then he ordered, "Go find the author of *Tale of Two Souls* and ask him when the rest of the story will be written. Now, immediately, right this instant, go."

Shopkeeper Wang hesitated. "But, Young Master, it's almost dark."

He was afraid he wouldn't make it in time and would run into the night patrol during curfew. What would he do then?

Shen Qinglan waved a hand. "If you run fast enough, you'll make it. If you can't get back in time, just stay at an inn. I'll pay for the inn and double your salary this month."

Shopkeeper Wang thought: Fine, for double the pay, I'll risk it!

With that, he dashed off like a whirlwind to Xiangnan Academy to urge the author to update.

Han Zhang, woken late at night by the academy's gatekeeper: ...

"No need for that, seriously."

...

There was no way he was going to write an extra update.

Han Zhang was still waiting for Shen Qinglan to come to him. If he gave away the rest of *Tale of Two Souls* now, how would his handsome husband have an excuse or motivation to come find him?

So, naturally, Shopkeeper Wang failed in his mission and returned dejectedly.

"Young Master, Master Han said he still has to complete his studies assigned by the teacher and prepare for next year's imperial exams. The rest of *Tale of Two Souls* won't be out until the end of the month at the earliest."

Shen Qinglan was crushed upon hearing this. "The end of the month? It's the start of the month now! A whole month? That's too long. He just couldn't."

Shen Qinglan grew anxious. "Didn't you tell him our bookshop can offer double the silver? If not, triple, or even quadruple. I have the money."

"Young Master, Master Han is a student at Xiangnan Academy. As a poor scholar, getting into such an academy is no small feat. How could he risk his grand imperial exam career for a storybook?"

Shopkeeper Wang said helplessly, "Master Han probably sells his stories because his family is truly poor and he had no other choice."

Xiangnan Academy might not be the top academy in the capital, but it was still a well-known and reputable place.

As a student there, one naturally had to prioritize the imperial exams.

So Shen Qinglan had to let it go.

But knowing the story stopped at the best part drove him crazy.

"That Master Han is really something. He could have stopped at any point in the story, but he had to stop right when Zhang Qi was making those bold, impressive declarations. It's driving me nuts..."

Shen Qinglan wailed in agony. He was utterly tormented.

After agonizing over it for a long time,

He finally decided to pass on his suffering to someone else. He would share this story with his best friend and fellow sufferer: the young man of the Left Censor-in-Chief, An Yongyan.

And so,

An Yongyan, also hooked and furious at the cliffhanger, freaked out.

"Lan Ge'er, what about the rest? Did you forget to grab the rest?"

"No, the author (pen name 'Dao Ci Yi You') hasn't finished it yet. The rest won't be out until the end of the month."

An Yongyan: ...

"Ahhhh! Shen Qinglan, you've tricked me again!"

Shen Qinglan blinked innocently and said with righteous boldness, "Not at all, I just couldn't wait to share my favorite story with you and make you happy."

"And do you think I look happy right now?"

An Yongyan shot an exasperated glare at his unreliable close friend.

Seeing this, Shen Qinglan grinned, then hugged his friend's arm and whined.

"Yan Ge'er, good brothers should share both joys and hardships, right?"

"This story has me so hooked I can't think straight. If I don't find someone to share this agony with, and together curse this damned 'Dao Ci Yi You,' I won't be able to sleep at night."

"Dear Yan Ge'er, my best Yan Ge'er, you have to bear this with me, or else I'll break ties with you."

An Yongyan nodded. "Then let's call it quits, you big menace."

Yan Ge'er actually wanted to end their friendship? And called him a big menace?

Shen Qinglan's eyes bugged out!

Shen Qinglan was in disbelief!

Shen Qinglan was deeply hurt!

The young man couldn't take it. He threw a tantrum and cried, "Wah wuwu, An Yongyan, are we still best friends in the world or not?"

He hadn't cried this hard even when his last three engagements fell through.

An Yongyan: ...

He wondered which unlucky soul would end up marrying this friend of his.