Shen Yibai grew anxious upon hearing this: "Wait, how come all of you have secret savings, while my pockets are emptier than my face?!"
Wei Xinglu burst into laughter: "Because you're the dumbest—you never learned to stash money on the side."
Shen Yibai flared up in anger and started wrestling with Wei Xinglu again.
He Zheng was so moved he nearly cried: "Brothers, you’re too good to me. Once I save up enough in the future, I’ll pay you all back."
The little devil (Zong Jincheng) teased, "Yeah, right. Once we become officials, with the meager salaries we’ll get, we’ll all be poorer than each other."
Zong Wenxiu couldn’t help but snort with laughter.
Even the two brawling idiots collapsed in laughter.
He Zheng’s touched expression instantly froze in his throat.
The eldest brother’s words… made too much sense.
The brothers scraped together over a thousand taels of silver and brought it to Xu Wan, intending to give it to her.
Xu Wan looked at the silver, along with the jade pendants mixed in, and realized they had pooled their resources to cover He Zheng’s tuition. It faintly reminded her of how she used to gather funds for the younger kids at the orphanage to pay their school fees.
Time had flown by, and the faces had changed, but the fiery passion of youth and the warmth of friendship remained just as touching.
The little devil said breezily, "Mother, take it. He Zheng will keep studying with us. We can’t let him go to Hanlin North Academy—otherwise, Shen Yibai and Wei Xinglu would get beaten to a pulp by him."
Xu Wan was indeed considering whether to accept it.
Her own private savings amounted to several thousand taels—more than enough to cover He Zheng’s tuition. Moreover, her mother-in-law had repeatedly made it clear that she shouldn’t treat herself as an outsider; even if the money came from the family’s shared accounts, her mother-in-law wouldn’t object.
But if she did that, the emotional significance of the brothers pooling their money wouldn’t be as strong… The bonds of youth were precious and moving, and they deserved to be cherished.
Xu Wan took the silver and jade pendants and said, "Alright, I’ll take it." She’d hold onto it for now and find a way to return it to them later.
"Great! I’m off to study then. Bye, Mother!" Zong Jincheng waved at her and skipped away cheerfully.
Xu Wan gazed at the tuition money in her hands and smiled fondly. "Kids."
In the advanced class, five young boys sat at their desks writing, except for Shen Yibai, who chewed on his brush, pondering why he had no secret savings.
Wei Xinglu kicked him under the table. "Hurry up and write, slowpoke. Dead last."
Shen Yibai clicked his tongue. "You’re not much faster—second to last."
"Still better than you, idiot." Wei Xinglu stuck out his tongue at him.
Shen Yibai raised his brush as if to throw it but then hesitated, genuinely curious. "How did you hide that jade pendant?"
"Huh?" Wei Xinglu thought for a moment. "When my mother confiscated my stuff, I told her I lost the pendant at some point, and she dropped it."
Shen Yibai’s eyes lit up with realization. "When it comes to lying, you’re the master!"
Wei Xinglu: "…" That didn’t sound like a compliment.
Shen Yibai leaned in closer. "Look, Jincheng and Wenxiu-ge get a monthly allowance—a full sixty taels each. Meanwhile, we get nothing. Doesn’t that make us the odd ones out?"
Wei Xinglu considered it. "You’ve got a point. Once the child scholar exam results are out, I’ll send word home and demand an allowance—and rewards."
Shen Yibai smacked him. "Are you stupid? What if you fail the exam? Ask now, or it’ll be too late!"
"Tch, you’re the one who might fail. I’m different." Wei Xinglu smirked.
"Looks like you’re itching for another fight." Shen Yibai rolled up his sleeves again.
Zong Jincheng suddenly leaned over, poked Shen Yibai’s arm, and gasped. "Brother, look! He’s got muscles too!"
Zong Wenxiu: "…"
Truly befitting of the four little troublemakers—even their brawling built muscles.
Outside the window, in the small pavilion—
Xu Wan, Cheng Zhidong, and Jiang Yan were discussing teaching progress.
With five months left until the provincial exams, poetry and rhapsody—though not tested in the metropolitan and palace exams—were unavoidable in the provincial exams. Now that the three younger boys had finished their child scholar exams, all five could focus on improving their poetry skills together.
Cheng Zhidong said, "All five young masters learn and memorize texts incredibly fast—especially Jincheng’s photographic memory, which is downright terrifying. But their main issue is composition. Jincheng in particular writes poetry and rhapsodies as if he’s never studied—spouting whatever comes to mind, each line worse than the last."
Jiang Yan stifled a laugh. Good thing Pan Hongzhi wasn’t here—he’d be mortified. Among the five tutors, Pan Hongzhi was actually the most skilled in poetry, yet Zong Jincheng performed the worst in it.
Xu Wan nodded in understanding, then outlined a strategy: "Since they lack an innate sense of elegance, we should categorize poetry by type, identify patterns, and teach them to approach it systematically."
"Sy… systematically?" Jiang Yan blinked, almost wanting to scratch his head in bewilderment.
Xu Wan continued, "Yes. Poetry has strict rhythmic requirements—rhyme, tonal patterns. Beyond that, there are rhetorical devices like metaphor and personification. The language is concise yet infused with imagery or emotion. The style can be realistic or exaggerated… Break it all down, classify it, and spoon-feed it to them."
Cheng Zhidong gulped, feeling like he’d just witnessed something revolutionary.
Poetry… could really be learned this way?
Jiang Yan gaped, speechless. This method might kill any sense of artistry, but for exam purposes, it was brutally efficient… Truly fitting for the Marquis’ elite class.
After collecting himself, Cheng Zhidong quickly responded, "Understood, Madam. We’ll start categorizing the material immediately and guide the young masters accordingly."
Xu Wan added, "And assign at least one composition for homework daily."
"Yes."
At the end of the month, the child scholar exam results were posted.
The five boys rushed to check their scores at dawn, but this time, the anxious ones were the other three. Zong Wenxiu was never good at pushing through crowds, and the little devil (Zong Jincheng) was just there for the show, standing beside his mother to watch his friends struggle.
Zong Jincheng jeered, "Hahaha… Look at that idiot Shen Yibai! With all his shoving, he hasn’t moved three feet. He’s gonna be the last one in again!"
Xu Wan covered her face, laughing. It really was tragic.
Back then, she’d even bet three coins with Cui Zhi that Shen Yibai would be the fastest—only to lose miserably.
He truly embodied the saying: "All bark and no bite."
Xu Wan chuckled. "I bet He Zheng will be back first. He’s shorter, so he can weave through the crowd faster."
Zong Wenxiu remarked, "He Zheng’s got experience—this is his second time taking the child scholar exam."
The little devil crossed his arms confidently. "He’s definitely first. I don’t even need to check."
Xu Wan suddenly remembered something and teased, "Did you book the lion dance troupe yet?"
Zong Jincheng grinned. "Two troupes. They’re already waiting outside."
"Wait, what?" Xu Wan and Zong Wenxiu were stunned.
The lion dancers were already here? Just waiting outside?
He really had zero fear that He Zheng might fail!
