In the end, ReZhui and his seniors agreed to walk each other towards DongBu village. Meanwhile, on their leisurely stroll, they excitedly exchanged words.
“Say, ReZhui, how long has it been since we last talked? I reckon it’s a long time ago.”
“I’ll say a year back, but even then, it was only a quick passing, wasn’t it, Older Brother Wei?”
“Ah, I believe whatever you say, ReZhui. I truly cannot recall.”
“Our apologies, ReZhui. The both of us were busy with a load of stuff.”
“Well, I didn’t mean to pry, Older Sister Tian. But just now, I was under the impression that Older brother Wei failed the civil examinations, is that true?”
“Yes, he failed miserably.” She curtly stated.
“Rahhh, come on WeiQi, please give me some face in front of my junior!”
“I’m simply telling the facts.” She looked away temporarily.
“Listen to me, ReZhui! I’ve tried retaking the damn thing three times in a row, and every single time, I was rejected from employment.”
“...”
“I would gladly accept even the lowest official position, but there’s none left for me!”
He shook ReZhui by the shoulders.
“...I see, b-but, there should be other plans ready for you, right, senior?”
“Certainly there are plenty, but that’s my dream ever since I was little and I will continue to take the civil exam until I succeed!”
“This walnut brain now aids his father’s workshop, managing all the inventory and cash flow. Rather economical than political, I frankly say.”
WeiQi interrupted her companion’s motivational speech.
“W-well, it’s not like you are faring any better, WeiQi.”
“Actually, I just received a letter from a major textile wholesale trader, offering me a contract for a trial run as their newly appointed branch supervisor.”
She then smirked teasingly at HuaYan.
“...! W-wha…why wasn’t I told of this sooner?”
“I was planning to bring it up at the right time…and it appears the wait was worthwhile. Hehe.”
“Just when I was hopeful…”
Poor HuaYan slumped his shoulders in defeat. ReZhui and WeiQi watched as he slowly regained his joyful spirit, like a deflated balloon rising high. In the meantime, there came a weird silence once their conversation reached this awkward end.
“...”
“...”
“...”
That’s when ReZhui got a starter.
“By the way, seniors, what brings you here to Teacher Woo’s place today? I thought he dismissed your positions.” ReZhui has also never crossed paths with them before from that day on. Suddenly, tossing all the disappointment out the window, HuaYan lit up with beady eyes. He rejoiced at the change of topic.
“Teacher already did, ReZhui… But.” He eyed WeiQi and back to him, “It’s been a while since we last saw him.” She also nodded at his reason.
“We actually arrived yesterday and stayed the night at his bungalow over some expensive alcohol we bought.” WeiQi added.
“Originally, we planned to leave early in the morning as we already booked a carriage and we figured that our presence would disturb his classes. However, expect the unexpected, we ultimately decided to cancel the charter and volunteer otherwise.”
“Have you seen Teacher Woo, ReZhui? We can immediately tell him and his school won’t make it for much longer.” WeiQi anxiously wailed.
Hearing this, ReZhui replied firmly.
“You’re right…Sadly, Teacher Woo is still pushing himself past his later years.”
“The old man needs to retire. ReZhui, has the village done anything to convince him?”
“We tried but Teacher Woo’s too persistent.”
“...”
“...”
“Seniors, you do realize his syllabus not only improved but also maintained similar timetables from your stay there. His quality of teaching has never changed since I left.”
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
“…That’s true.” WeiQi lowered her head.
“That’s the feeling we also got as we had dinner last night.”
“Did you two manage to talk about retirement?”
“It was such a good time that we were honestly scared!”
WeiQi nodded at his thoughts.
“...”
“However, ReZhui, the old man did say something peculiar that one time right?” HuaYan turned to WeiQi.
“Oh right! He did rant about how the development of this road helped him to expand his garden.”
“Exactly! That’s the point, ReZhui. You also saw the miserable state of the school. Don’t tell me Teacher is also against renovation too if he was happy to lend the land around it for construction?”
“That kept bugging us the entire night sleeping there!”
“...”
ReZhui at that point was starting to believe his seniors were here for an unintentional quick getaway from work or they were still very respectful to Teacher Woo. Either way, ReZhui meant no ill will towards them and entertained their questions anyway.
“Well…Teacher Woo is against that too. I was told that the DongBu village council raised considerable funds to refurbish the school and included that in the DongBu-Bai package deal. Upon hearing the details, Teacher Woo apparently lashed out at them for being simply too foolish, and instead allocated the money to building several more roads linking Bai village to the main villages on the other side of the Bai Mountains.”
“...!”
“...!”
“He actually took the time to manage part of the road’s construction, cutting costs by nearly a fifth!”
“Yes! As expected of the old man!” HuaYan cheered. On the other hand, WeiQi inquired more.
“ReZhui, did you confirm this with Teacher Woo?”
And that’s when ReZhui halted himself, slowly muttering his answer; barely audible unless one paid full attention.
“...I too am afraid to ask…”
What he thought of them somehow coincidentally came biting him back squarely in the ass. There perhaps was something new to learn from there, he thought to himself. ReZhui then had a burly hand pat him hard on the shoulder. Looking up, he saw HuaYan smiling empathetically at him.
“No worries, Junior, even we young adults fear him. I can easily understand for a teen like yourself.”
“...Thank you…”
WeiQi soon intervened with something new.
“Ah yes, speaking of which, HuaYan, have you ever seen a fourteen year old this tall before?”
“...Wait up.”
Still with his hand on ReZhui’s shoulder, HuaYan began to press it hard, feeling his toned trapezius and deltoids.
“...!”
He then gave her a bewildered look.
“No, not only that, WeiQi, our junior’s also packing some muscle for his age.” Currently, ReZhui saw HuaYan’s eyes filled with curiosity and amazement. Quickly before they somehow come to the discovery of MianJu, ReZhui tried shifting the conversation elsewhere.
“I’m a farmer’s boy, Seniors. Maybe I’m just lucky to attain this body from working off the land?”
“Hmm…that does make sense, but darn, aren’t you proud of yourself? Nice work, ReZhui.”
“Even so, I saw other farm kids and they were never this robust. I hope ReZhui isn’t consuming drugs or anything alike.” WeiQi was adamant about her observation which was truthfully correct.
“Argh, WeiQi, has that maternal side of you started to bloom? Just accept that our junior’s earned great karma in his past life. Haha!”
Luckily, HuaYan was buying into that theory and WeiQi could only consider herself to be paranoid afterwards.
“Hah…Fine, HuaYan, I dropped my case.”
“Excellent!”
With that concluded, the trio walked around the upcoming bend and continued downwards. A man-drawn cart later passed them, before something popped up in HuaYan’s mind.
“Say, ReZhui, I completely forgot to ask this earlier but I think it's fair play for you to answer if you already asked us.”
“Tell ahead, Older Brother Wei.”
“Why are you visiting DongBu village?”
“To run some errands…also, I got an apprenticeship job at the village doctor’s pharmacy. Tomorrow marks the start of my next training session.”
“I see! So, agriculture by dawn and medicine at noon. What a busy teen you are, ReZhui!”
“Well, senior, I specifically only handle management and finance so rather, I’m aiming at mastering merchantry.”
“Merchantry? What a word you say. I call that entrepreneurship.”
“It’s similar enough, you dimwit.”
“Still, WeiQi, there’s a noticeable difference!”
“ReZhui, isn’t that ShiYan’s place where you’re working?”
“Why yes it is. For now, she’s still striving to be a doctor, just like her father and my master!”
“Aww, ain’t that the greatest news ever? I wonder what she looks like now. The last time I saw her was in your last year of school, the same as you, am I right?”
“HEY! Don’t keep ignoring me, the two of you!”
HuaYan wailed behind her, but she paid no mind, while ReZhui gave them a simple sigh at their antics.
“If that’s when you left Teacher Woo’s mentorship, then yes. Huh…!”
That’s when something clicked instantly. A switched on light bulb.
ReZhui subconsciously gave them a cheeky grin on his face.
“...ReZhui?” WeiQi questioned.
“Seniors, for one of my errands, it’s something that happens today, and I was thinking of inviting you both to join me.”
ReZhui welcomed them charmingly.
“Join what exactly?” HuaYan questioned.
“ShiYan is hosting a dinner for me at a local restaurant later this evening, and I figured the more the merrier. So, what do you say?”
Eyeing back at one another, the duo considered their choices.
“HuaYan, I’m going.” WeiQi blurted.
Scratching the back of his neck, HuaYan reasoned.
“Argh...Well, we do intend on staying the night here at a nearby hotel before setting out to our villages by carriage. This dinner goes very well with our schedule so…Firstly, are you really sure ShiYan wouldn’t mind our intervention, ReZhui?”
Broadly grinning from ear to ear, ReZhui reassured them.
“Oh, I’m certain she would love the extra company. It’s quite the grand feast that she promised, and it’s not like I can finish all of them on my own.”
“Alright then, ReZhui. I’m tagging along too!”
“Well said, indeed!”
ReZhui saluted them in gratitude.