The Little Fox's Immortal Cultivation Encyclopedia

Chapter 99 City God Candidate

Caiyu stood respectfully with her hands at her sides, but her eyes kept glancing behind her teacher.

The dark figure that appeared yesterday reappeared. Caiyu rubbed her eyes, but the figure not only did not disappear, but became even more obvious. It seemed to be an old man with white hair and beard.

Before he could examine it closely, the master's stern voice startled him awake: "Do you know your mistake?"

To Caiyu's left stood the dejected Monkey Wine, and further to his left stood the stern-faced Fox.

The teacher first looked at the monkey: "Yesterday evening, you first broke off flower branches, then mocked your classmates, and you were restless all night, staying up late and disturbing the peace."

"This morning you skipped class again and went out to play around in the street." The teacher's expression was serious. "Hold out your hand. After being punished, you will stand for half a day, without sitting down or eating lunch, to reflect on your actions."

The teacher looked at the fox again and sighed: "Since you sent it to study, you should set an example. How can it lead the way in skipping classes and indulge its misbehavior? I will give it a demerit for now. If it continues to disregard the rules, the academy will not dare to keep it any longer. Please find someone more capable."

The fox remained silent, only nodding with a stern face.

"And you."

Caiyu quickly looked up and glanced behind the man. She saw the dark figure both nodding and shaking his head.

"You weren't late, what are you standing here for?"

"Master, I am truly uneasy, so I wish to stay here and accompany you in the training, so that I may constantly remind myself to strictly abide by the academy's rules, study diligently, and not slack off in the slightest."

"When you see someone virtuous, think of emulating them; you should all take this man as your role model."

Suddenly, a fox's voice came from beside the monkey's ear: "The master is telling you to learn something."

The monkey was furious and secretly reached behind his back to poke the fox, but his hand passed right through the fox's body.

It paused for a moment, then suddenly realized: "Fox, you cheated again!"

The fox chuckled, maintaining the illusion, and looked at the white-haired old man beside him, slowly asking, "What are your thoughts?"

The old man said calmly, "Education should be provided to all without discrimination, with virtue as the priority, and punishment should not be directed at the heart. This is what I have taught throughout my life. He has done very well, but it is not good enough."

Why?

"There is too much rigidity and not enough compassion. As an outsider, the monkey is naturally ignorant. It is also a child, and playing is normal. We only need to patiently explain and gently guide it, protect its nature, and then slowly discipline its words and deeds. If we punish it severely, it will only wear down its goodness and increase its evil nature. It is far less useful than tolerance."

"Is this enough to warrant a severe punishment?"

The old man shook his head: "For this monkey, it's naturally a severe punishment. The way to educate a child lies in compassion, not harshness."

You have no idea what it looks like when the Monkey King beats it.

The fox remained noncommittal, looking down at the register in its hand.

Su An, a native of Tao County, passed the imperial examination at a young age but later abandoned the pursuit of higher education, dedicating himself to teaching at an academy for over forty years. Throughout his life, he never curried favor with the powerful or wealthy, taught without discrimination, and nurtured countless students.

He is of upright character and has brought blessings to his hometown, thus he has been nominated as a candidate for City God.

As expected, Su Yinchai didn't utter a single word of truth; fortunately, the fox was clever.

Do you know why I'm looking for you?

Su An cupped his hands in apology: "I am ashamed to say that I only know some basic principles of teaching and educating people, and I never thought that I would be worthy of being listed as a candidate for City God."

"What I seek is not the power of the underworld, but only to protect the living beings in this land, teach the people to understand reason, protect the innocent hearts of children, and safeguard the peace of Tao County."

He hesitated for a few moments, then smiled and said, "I never expected that the official in charge of this examination would be hiding in the academy, studying with young students, in such an ordinary manner."

The fox listened intently and realized that the old man's words came from the bottom of his heart, so he nodded slightly: "There is a reason for this, you don't need to think too much about it, just call me Young Master Qing."

"I will set a test in three days, so you should prepare calmly."

"I understand, and I will be on time for the exam."

The fox said no more, took out the Seven Fragrances Carriage, and drove away.

"The City God is the spirit of the city walls and moat. He is in charge of the underworld affairs of the city and is responsible for the stability of the region. Protecting the city and its people, supervising officials, adjudicating cases, managing rain and drought, dealing with pests and thieves, and handling underworld affairs are all duties of the City God."

According to the voice, the position of City God was of great importance, and this place was also the fox's home. Although the fox often acted on impulse, it did not dare to do anything reckless. So, it learned from human customs and devised a few test questions to examine the candidates.

But that's a story for later. What the fox needs to do right now is to meet with the other candidates.

It unfolded the roster and revealed a slight smile.

The second person, however, can be considered an old friend.

Tao County Government Office.

In the main hall, Magistrate Zhang, dressed in his official robes, sat behind his desk, watching the two arguing below. He showed no impatience, merely waving his hand to signal them to lower their voices.

The two men, both dressed as merchants, argued heatedly, their faces flushed.

"Sir, he's deliberately trying to deceive me!"

"Nonsense, my signboard was always there; he was just being nosy!"

After listening carefully to the two men's accounts, Magistrate Zhang understood the situation.

It was just a small matter. When the shopkeeper put out his new shop sign, it was moved forward two feet, which just happened to block the shopkeeper's front.

Manager Li, being hot-tempered, threw the old signboard aside in a fit of anger and replaced it with his own. Manager Zhang—

The shopkeeper was naturally dissatisfied, and the two argued endlessly, eventually taking the matter all the way to the county government.

Magistrate Zhang lightly tapped his gavel to stop the two men, and slowly said, "People in the marketplace are all trying to make a living. Your two families live next door to each other and should help each other out. The distance is only a few feet, what harm is there in giving up three feet?"

"This judge hereby decrees that Zhang's shop sign shall move back half a foot, and Li's shop shall not pursue this matter any further. From now on, each shall guard their own territory, make money peacefully, and refrain from further disputes."

The two shopkeepers exchanged a glance, both looking embarrassed: "It's entirely up to you, sir."

A dark figure stood silently to the side, taking in everything, then turned and walked towards the yamen's drill ground. He avoided the sunlight streaming in, standing under the eaves, gazing into the distance.

"Stand up straight! What's with your legs shaking? You've only run a few laps and they're already shaking like this. How are you going to catch thieves then!"

Duan Mianli's powerful roar echoed from the training ground.

A dozen or so yamen runners lined up in two rows, all of them drenched in sweat, their collars soaked through.

"Alright, you can rest now."

The constables relaxed, but Duan Mianli suddenly stepped forward, grabbed the knife from one of the constables' hands, and pulled it backward. The constable was caught off guard, and the knife slipped from his grasp.

"A knife is for protecting the people and defending the city, not for holding in your hands to show off! You are all so careless. If a thief were to strike with a knife, you would have nothing to defend yourselves!"

Duan Mianli cursed, drew his blade, and slashed at the air, the blade sending a gust of wind through the air.

"Look carefully, everyone! Throw away all your fancy moves! No one is getting any rest until we finish today's training!"

'

Duan Mianli wiped his sweat, threw the knife back, and joined the others in practicing.

The shadowy figure nodded almost imperceptibly, when suddenly a voice came from the side: "Is the county magistrate being moved by the scene before him?"

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