Great Song Dynasty Writer

Chapter 93 A young man full of vigor, his time to fight will come.

As dawn broke, the streets and alleys of Hejiang County were still shrouded in a thin mist.

Lu Beigu stood at the door of his house, a satchel slung over his shoulder containing a few changes of clothes and his books.

He glanced back at the small courtyard where he had just settled in—the private restaurant in the front shop was not yet open, but smoke was already rising from the kitchen in the back, as his sister-in-law was preparing dry food for him to eat on the road.

"Uncle!"

A clear child's voice came from behind him. Lu Beigu turned around and saw Lu Yuchi running out of the house barefoot, the red string in her hair swaying with her movements.

She held a bamboo plaque in her hand, on which the two characters "Peace" were crookedly carved.

"Here you go!" She stood on tiptoe and stuffed the bamboo plaque into Lu Beigu's hand. "The old monk said this can protect people! Uncle, please stay safe and sound!"

"Okay, Uncle promises you."

Lu Beigu patted her head and smiled, "Then Yu Chi must promise her uncle that she will listen attentively in class every day and grow up well before he comes back, okay?"

The little girl nodded vigorously, her eyes sparkling.

At this moment, Lu Yanxi also came out of the house rubbing her eyes, holding a handkerchief bag in her hands, and muttered, "Uncle, this is for you."

Lu Beigu took the candy and opened it. It turned out to be several pieces of sesame candy sprinkled on the surface and smelled sweet.

"Where did you come from?"

"I went to town with Aunt Feng yesterday, and she bought these for me." Lu Yanxi sniffled. "I... I can't bear to eat them, so I'm giving them all to you!"

Lu Beigu felt a surge of warmth in his heart and reached out to pinch his cheek: "Okay, your uncle will take you, eat slowly on the way."

"Looking north."

Pei Yan came out of the kitchen, holding an oil paper package in her hands, with clean linen still wrapped around the outside seams.

She wasn't wearing a veil today, and the morning light shone on her eyebrows and eyes, making her look exceptionally gentle.

"There are several pancakes inside, and I added meat filling. If it's enough for myself, I can share it with my classmates."

Lu Beigu took them; they were still a little hot to the touch even through the oil paper and burlap, clearly freshly baked pancakes.

He said in a low voice, "Sister-in-law, don't overwork yourself at the restaurant. If you can't handle it all, it's okay if the restaurant serves fewer customers."

Pei Yan shook her head and smiled: "Don't worry, Feng Jinhua is helping out now and we're paying her. She's quick and efficient, and she can handle those customers better than I can."

"She probably wants to learn how to make these dishes."

Pei Yan didn't reply, paused, and then said, "The state school is not like home, so be careful in everything."

Lu Beigu nodded: "I will have someone send a letter back every month."

"Okay." Pei Yan responded softly, "Go ahead, don't keep your classmates waiting."

The donkey cart had already stopped at the alley entrance, and Lu Guangyu was standing beside it, waving at him from afar: "Brother Lu! Hurry up, or we'll have to wait in line at the city gate!"

Lu Beigu turned around and glanced at the three people standing at the door of his house—Pei Yan was holding the two children's hands, Lu Yuchi was still waving vigorously, and Lu Yanxi was pouting with her eyes a little red.

He took a deep breath, turned around, and strode towards the donkey cart they had rented together.

"Have you brought everything?"

"All done." Lu Beigu patted the bundle, then climbed into the car.

The donkey cart started slowly, its wheels rolling over the bluestone slabs, making a "creaking" sound.

The figure at the doorstep had become very small, until it disappeared from sight after turning the street corner.

"What, reluctant to part with it?" Lu Guangyu nudged his shoulder and laughed. Lu Beigu looked away and smiled, "A little."

The distance from Hejiang County to Luchuan County, the seat of Luzhou Prefecture, is not far; a donkey cart can take most of the day to get there. Their route is to first travel along the south bank of the Yangtze River, and then transfer to a boat at the ferry crossing to go to the prefectural school.

The donkey cart swayed and rattled along the official road, its wheels rolling over gravel with a dull thud.

As the morning mist gradually dissipated, the sky began to lighten, and the outlines of the distant mountains gradually became clear.

Having gotten up too early, Zhu Zhen, who was the last to board the bus, dozed off as soon as he leaned against the bus wall, his head nodding off.

"Wake up! We've only just left the city, and you're already asleep?"

"Sigh." The gaunt Zhu Zhen rubbed his eyes and yawned. "I couldn't sleep last night, and I'm really sleepy now."

He regained some clarity and heard the soft recitation beside him. Turning his head, he saw Lu Beigu had already laid the Analects open on his lap, his expression focused, his lips slightly moving as he recited, word by word: "'The elderly are brought peace, friends are trusted, and the young are cherished.'"

Zhu Zhen blinked, somewhat stunned: "Brother Lu, you've only just left home and you're already studying?"

Lu Beigu didn't even look up, only hummed in response, and gently turned the page with his finger, continuing to read silently.

The difficulty of the classical texts in the state school was completely different from that in the county school. So even for books like the Analects, which he had already memorized, he still had to work harder to the point where he could answer questions just by looking at two words.

Lu Beigu had also considered his current strength.

As for copying scriptures, you shouldn't need to put in any special effort. Just stick to reading them every morning and you'll be able to get to the maximum level of proficiency.

For poetry and prose, continue to study Zhao Bian's notes on poetry and prose repeatedly, practice in conjunction with the questions in the state school, and prepare templates for various themes.

Only in the realm of Mohism, especially the Spring and Autumn Annals, could he sense that he had reached a severe bottleneck. The more he read the "Collected Commentaries on the Spring and Autumn Annals" and the "Elucidation of the Respect for the King in the Spring and Autumn Annals," the more problems he encountered, yet he could find no answers.
"Brother Lu, with your hard work, it's no wonder you were able to rise to the top of the list in just two months."

Huang Jingji, who was originally looking down and eating a steamed bun, looked up when he saw this and couldn't help but sigh, "I pride myself on being diligent, but compared to you, I seem lazy."

Lu Beigu shook his head: "Brother Huang has solid knowledge; I'm just cramming at the last minute."

The chubby Zhu Nanxing, who had been sitting on the front of the car with his eyes closed, opened them and laughed, "If you're just cramming at the last minute, what are we? We didn't even get close to Buddha!"

Upon hearing this, everyone couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Lu Guangyu scratched his head and sighed, "It seems I need to work harder too. I only passed the county exam by luck this time. When I get to the prefectural school, I'm afraid I'll be left even further behind by Brother Lu."

"Yes, we still need to learn from Brother Lu. We can't slack off, we must study hard! The state school is full of top students from all the counties over the years. If we don't work hard, with our level, we'll be at the bottom of the lower class even if we get into the state school."

On the donkey cart, the sound of reading aloud gradually rose, intertwining with the creaking of the wheels.

The rising sun shone on Lu Beigu. This was his second time walking this road, and his feelings were completely different from the first time.

At this point, he had already passed the county examination with the highest score. There were still many challenges waiting for him at the state school, but for Lu Beigu, this success had undoubtedly strengthened his confidence.

Young people are full of vigor, and their time to fight bravely will come!
He had every reason to believe that if he could leave Hejiang County, he could also leave Luzhou and head to the true heart of the Song Dynasty—Kaifeng!
He is also confident that he can leave his name on the Millennium Dragon and Tiger List and leave his own legacy in this era!

Time flew by as they read along the way. After most of the day, they arrived at the ferry crossing on the south bank of Luzhou. The five of them pooled their money to pay the donkey cart driver and then took a boat across the Yangtze River.

The same boatmen's chants on the Sichuan River, the same river-water tofu pudding.

Upon arriving at the wharf in Luchuan County, where the Tuojiang River and the Yangtze River meet, Lu Beigu, who had assumed he would be heading to the prefectural school on his own, instead saw two acquaintances.

Han Ziyu and his sister Han Sanniang were leading people to welcome him at the dock.

"Young Master Lu, it's been a long time."

Han San Niang gave a slight curtsy and said.

(End of this chapter)