In the eyes of the carefree young girl, this bustling prefecture city north of the Yellow Court Kingdom was simply lively, far surpassing the combined hustle and bustle of many hometown towns.

However, in the eyes of the seasoned old scholar, who had seen countless mountains and seas, he saw much further and deeper, perhaps already envisioning the bleak scene of iron cavalry sweeping south and the chaos of war. The joyous laughter and cheers of the masses would become the root of future heart-wrenching sorrow, while the tattered beggars by the roadside would likely suffer less during the turmoil. As for the local thugs and ruffians, they might even rise to prominence in the chaotic times, possibly becoming new officials and military generals of the Yellow Court Kingdom.

But the old scholar, having experienced much, naturally wouldn’t reveal such emotions on his face, lest he spoil the young boy and girl’s good time strolling through the city.

The old man led them through winding streets and alleys, finally finding an old, well-established bookstore. He paid out of his own pocket to buy several books for the two children. The shopkeeper was a failed scholar who hadn’t succeeded in the imperial examinations and usually didn’t take anyone seriously. But when he met the eloquent and impoverished old scholar, it was a case of heroes recognizing each other. Moreover, he was impressed by the old scholar’s learning and morality, so he only charged ten taels of silver for books worth nearly twenty. After leaving the store, the old scholar, seeing the admiring faces of Chen Ping’an and Li Bao Ping, smiled and said, “How about it? Reading is still useful, right? Today, it’s already earned us more than eight taels of silver. So, it’s true that books contain houses of gold…”

At this point, the old scholar lowered his voice mysteriously and said, “Actually, there’s a place in the south, not the south of your Treasure Bottle Continent, of course. The Chunru Chen clan has an old fogey who I can’t stand. When he was young, he read books day and night. After about a few decades, perhaps through sheer perseverance, he actually read a house of gold and a ‘Yan Ruyu’ (jade-like beauty) out of the books one day.”

Chen Ping’an’an widened his eyes and swallowed, “How big is that house of gold?”

Li Bao Ping asked curiously, “How beautiful is that Yan Ruyu?”

The old scholar laughed heartily and pointed at the two children, “You’ll have a chance to see for yourselves in the future. I won’t tell you; seeing is believing. Beautiful mountains, beautiful waters, beautiful scenery, they’re described in books, but they can’t compare to seeing them with your own eyes.”

Li Bao Ping suddenly asked, “Venerable Literary Saint, why did you buy those books for my Little Martial Uncle? They’re really shallow. Even Lin Shouyi and I could teach them. Isn’t that a waste of money?”

The old scholar restrained his smile and said seriously, “It’s different, very different. The most learned books in the world are definitely the most simple, profound, and suitable for educating the common people. Do you know why these books are the cheapest? For example, Daozu (Taoist Ancestor)’s *Five Thousand Words* is sold so cheaply that anyone can buy it if they want to read it, and anyone can learn something from it if they’re willing to read it.”

Li Bao Ping said in a daze, “Because they print a lot of them, and a lot of people buy them, so they’re cheap.”

The old scholar nodded and smiled, “You’re half right. If the principles in the books are too expensive, who would want to pay for them? Why not buy food to fill their stomachs? The other half is that if those high and mighty moral saints want to spread their knowledge more widely and become the orthodox learning of a state, a country, or even a continent or the entire world, how many disciples can they personally teach? It’s better to cast a wide net and imprint their knowledge and principles in books. When the threshold is low, more people will enter. If the threshold is too high and they can’t even climb over it, how many accomplished disciples and students will there be in the end?”

Chen Ping’an sighed softly.

The old scholar asked worriedly, “What’s wrong? Do you think it’s boring? That won’t do; you still need to read books.”

Chen Ping’an shook his head, “I just think it’s like ordinary people opening shops to compete for business. Back in Carp Dragon Lane in my hometown, I have two shops that friends are helping me take care of. I don’t know if they’re losing money or making money now.”

The old scholar seemed to recall some past event and sighed slightly. He waved his hand and said, “Let’s go, I’ll take you to drink. Chen Ping’an can have a little if he really wants to, but Bao Ping is too young and can’t drink yet.”

It was still early, and many restaurants hadn’t opened for business yet. Fortunately, the old scholar found a tavern at the corner of a street. It was greasy and dirty, but the three of them weren’t fussy about that. If Cui Chan, Yu Lu, and Xie Xie were here, they would probably frown. One had high standards, one had a phobia of germs, and one had been pampered since childhood. It’s unlikely they would ever drink in such a place.

The old man ordered half a kilogram of bulk wine and a plate of salted peanuts. Chen Ping’an still insisted that martial artists shouldn’t drink alcohol. Li Bao Ping actually wanted to drink a little, but with Little Martial Uncle by her side, she didn’t dare to make the request, so she just stared at the old scholar drinking with a bit of envy.

Having been with Chen Ping’an for so long, from Li Bao Ping to Lin Shouyi and Li Huai, they had been influenced along the way and generally knew what they could and couldn’t do. Li Bao Ping sometimes felt that Little Martial Uncle was too serious, but when she saw the beautiful small book box and the thick, soft grass shoes, she didn’t say anything more.

Lin Shouyi, having become a mountain immortal, had lofty ambitions and wasn’t without thoughts about Chen Ping’an, but standing high and seeing far, he felt that the trivial matters under his nose weren’t worth his attention, so he never said anything.

As for Li Huai, he was the most willing to say whatever was on his mind, but most of it was just unreasonable demands. Before Chen Ping’an could say anything, he had already been severely suppressed by Li Bao Ping. So, on this journey of study, there had never been any irreconcilable differences, maintaining a delicate balance. Later, the Zhu River and Zhu Deer father and daughter left. Outside of the Wild Man Pass, Cui Chan brought two people into the team, making the previous four even more united against a common enemy, which actually strengthened their relationship.

The old scholar drank his wine, and after only half a kilogram, he felt a little tipsy, probably because he was moved by the scenery and hadn’t deliberately used his magical powers. He was rarely so relaxed, so he let himself drink to relieve his sorrows. The old man looked around and said softly, “I have a friend I’ve known since I was a child. His family was poor, so he dropped out of school and later opened a tavern, about the size of this little shop. He married and had children at eighteen and died at sixty-five, running his tavern and selling wine for almost forty years.”

The old scholar gently shook his wine bowl, “Whenever I have some spare money in my pocket, whenever I want to drink, I like to go to his place to buy wine, no matter how far away I am, I will definitely go.”
The old Xiucai smiled, a hint of sadness in his voice, “But eventually, one day, the shop closed down. After asking the neighbors, I learned that my friend had passed away. Since the original shop was gone, I had to buy wine elsewhere. That’s when I realized the kind of wine he sold me was more expensive than everyone else’s.”

Li Baoping angrily said, “Venerable Wen Sheng, you treated him as a friend, but it seems he didn’t see you the same way.”

Chen Pingan remained silent.

The old man took a sip of wine, “But after many years, I learned that the wine he sold me was made by him personally, going up the mountain to gather herbs and brew it. He didn’t care about the cost, using only the best ingredients, so he actually sold it at a loss.”

Li Baoping’s mouth fell open. The little girl’s heart was filled with guilt.

The old man picked up a peanut, chewing it thoughtfully, “Over forty years, I went from being a poor scholar to finally passing the imperial exam and gaining the Xiucai title. Later… I also acquired some skills and fame. Every time that friend saw me, he would only urge me to drink. He never mentioned his children’s education, never mentioned the chaos in his wife’s family. He just urged me to drink. He’d sit right there, in your, Baoping’s, spot, across from me, the furthest distance, but he could look up and see me. He’d always smile foolishly.”

Li Baoping thought for a moment, then silently left her seat and sat across from Chen Pingan, grinning.

Chen Pingan made a funny face at her.

The old Xiucai slowly said, “Later, I learned that his children either became powerful officials in the local court, arrogant and tyrannical, harming the country and the people, or became high-ranking ladies at a young age, readily beating and killing concubines. His wife’s family suddenly became wealthy, becoming a prominent clan in the prefecture. The whole family was rotten to the core, doing all sorts of evil, harming countless innocent people.”

The old Xiucai stared blankly at the empty seat across from him, “But you stubbornly stayed in that small wine shop, guarding that dilapidated store, brewing wine year after year, until you died of old age.”

Li Baoping’s mouth fell open again, her face filled with disbelief.

The old Xiucai retracted his gaze, eating salted peanuts with the cheap wine. He said to Chen Pingan, “In the future, study martial arts and swordplay diligently. Don’t apply logic to everything, especially not according to the principles in books. You must learn to be flexible, otherwise, you’ll be very tired. In the end, you might be left all alone, without a single friend. Since ancient times, the higher the position of the sages, the more they set an example, didn’t they do things that were unreasonable?”

The old Xiucai drew a line on the table with his finger, then extended his arm straight, as if wanting to draw a path beyond the table, “Think about it. Some paths, you can walk alone for a year, maybe ten years, a hundred years, a thousand years? But the problem is, some people are just stubborn, determined to walk that path. So what to do? Then you must do the right things at the right time, don’t be too old-fashioned. Once you’ve experienced everything, when you walk the Great Dao alone in the future, you won’t feel regret. Instead, you’ll feel…”

The old Xiucai was truly drunk, sticking out his thumb and pointing at himself, “I’m so damn awesome!”

After uttering this heroic declaration, with a “thump,” the old Xiucai’s head fell forward, heavily hitting the table.

The young man settled the bill with the shopkeeper and carried the old Xiucai on his back, walking outside.

The little girl secretly rejoiced.

So even Venerable Wen Sheng gets drunk, and even talks nonsense when drunk!

“Chen Pingan! A man isn’t dashing if he doesn’t indulge in pleasure! You must drink wine! Drinking wine is good!”

“Little Baoping, remember this! You must cherish this foolish good person, Chen Pingan. Don’t think that because he does everything so well and correctly, that he’s cold and aloof, and drift further and further away from him. Otherwise, one day you’ll regret it. Chen Pingan will become another Xiao Qi. When something happens in the end, either no one will know at all, or if they know, they won’t dare to help. How tragic would that be…”

“Little Pingan, we talk about reasoning not to make ourselves suffer, but to slowly accumulate it. If one day, you suddenly feel that the whole world is unreasonable, you have the confidence and spirit to loudly tell the world, ‘You are all wrong!'”

The old man reeked of alcohol, and kept hitting the young man’s head.

Carrying the old Xiucai on his back, Chen Pingan grimaced, and could only nod frantically.

The old Xiucai hiccuped, straightening his neck, seemingly looking for the little girl with the green bamboo chest. Li Baoping quickly hopped up and down, “I’m here!”

The old Xiucai oh-ed a few times, and then gave Chen Pingan’s head another hard slap, “Little Pingan, I ask you, the more you read in the future, and the more reasonable the principles in books seem to you, but if one day, the entire… or half of the Vast Expanse, the scholars start to criticize Little Baoping, scolding her for being shameless, actually liking her Junior Uncle, what would you do?”

The little girl didn’t take it seriously at all, angrily saying, “What’s wrong with me liking Junior Uncle? What kind of books are these people reading!”

The young man had lived a difficult life at the bottom of society since childhood, struggling to survive. Therefore, Chen Pingan thought further and knew more dirty things. He didn’t hesitate to say, “If that day really comes, if they want to scold Baoping, they have to ask my, Chen Pingan’s, fists first.”

Chen Pingan turned to smile at the little girl, “Besides fists, Junior Uncle will also have a sword in the future. So if that day really comes, be sure to tell Junior Uncle. Even if Junior Uncle is far away, he’ll come to protect you!”

The old man drunkenly said, “Then if the little girl thinks that you can’t beat those people no matter what, afraid that you’ll get hurt, and deliberately doesn’t call you, and you, Chen Pingan, only find out about the pitiful outcome afterward, what should you do? Since things have come to this, are you going to just catch those scholars and kill them all?”

Chen Pingan stopped walking, and looked at the little girl, “Baoping, do you want Junior Uncle to go on a killing spree for you afterward, and be cursed and beaten to death, or would you rather stand up and confront those people with dignity beforehand? We face those villains together, even if we die, we’ll die justly, and leave no regrets at all?”

The little girl was a little flustered, “Junior Uncle, it sounds like the latter choice is slightly better?”

The old man laughed, “It’s not as tragic as you think. Scholars still have some face. It won’t come to a life-and-death struggle, it’ll just be a bit bumpy.”

The old Xiucai finally clicked his tongue, “Using the order-of-events argument so quickly, this kid is putting what he learns into practice. Impressive, impressive.”
Chen Ping’an smiled and said, “Old sir, scaring us is one thing, but pretending to be drunk to avoid paying for the wine? Isn’t that going a bit too far?”

The old scholar’s head instantly lolled to the side, and he began to snore like thunder.

Li Bao Ping was still a bit shaken and grabbed Chen Ping’an’s sleeve.

Chen Ping’an jokingly said, “What’s there to be afraid of? In the future, you just need to study hard and strive to win arguments through reasoning. If that still doesn’t work, your Junior Martial Uncle will, from today onwards, work even harder at practicing fist techniques and swordplay. When the time comes, your Junior Martial Uncle will soar on a sword, *xiu*! Arriving at your side from ten thousand *li* away! Just imagine, everyone will be looking up, their eyes wide open, watching your Junior Martial Uncle, just like when we saw Wei Jin at the Wind and Snow Temple. Then you can tell them, ‘This is my Junior Martial Uncle!’ Cool, right? Awesome, right?'”

The little girl nodded vigorously, laughing heartily, and jumped up and down, “Wow, cool, cool!”

Welcome to Dajia Academy!