Standing at the courtyard entrance, looking at the young man named Xu Zhixing, the boy felt the nervousness and unease in his heart gradually subsiding.
Xu Zhixing beckoned:
"Come in, let's talk inside."
The boy nodded, pushed open the low bamboo gate, and walked up to Xu Zhixing.
Xu Zhixing stepped aside and pointed to the bamboo chair under the sturdy osmanthus tree in the courtyard:
"If you're not in a hurry, please sit there while I finish my meal, alright?"
The boy nodded and quickly went to sit in the bamboo chair.
Xu Zhixing smiled and returned to the thatched cottage to continue eating.
Little Zhenzhen tilted her head to look at the boy, shaking her head with a sigh.
Xu Zhixing couldn't help but laugh:
"What are you doing? Sighing at such a young age."
Little Zhenzhen pointed at the boy outside and said to Xu Zhixing in a lowered voice:
"Brother Zhixing, I know him. He came to Dragon Spring Town only a year ago, with just his sickly father. They're so poor they can barely afford food, probably can't pay you the tuition fee."
Xu Zhixing glanced at the boy in the direction Zhenzhen pointed, but said nothing, just silently continued eating.
Zhenzhen suddenly felt somewhat oppressed. Although Xu Zhixing's expression hadn't changed, remaining as calm as ever, seeing him like this made her feel uneasy.
"Brother Zhixing, did... did I say something wrong?"
Xu Zhixing smiled but still didn't speak.
Little Zhenzhen didn't dare say more, just sat anxiously at the side, fidgeting with her fingers.
Finally, Xu Zhixing finished the last grain of millet and the last slice of bamboo shoot in his bowl.
After tidying everything up, Xu Zhixing stood, gently patted Little Zhenzhen's head, and said with rare seriousness:
"I know you spoke without meaning harm, but remember, careless words can hurt the deepest."
Though Little Zhenzhen was young, she immediately understood that Xu Zhixing was criticizing her earlier comments about the boy outside.
Though she didn't quite understand the meaning, she still nodded.
Xu Zhixing smiled, his stern demeanor vanishing as he returned to his gentle self.
"Alright, you should head back now. When I return in the evening, I'll tell you another story."
At the mention of stories, the little girl's eyes immediately lit up.
The earlier unease completely disappeared.
"Mm-hmm, I'll wait at home for Brother Zhixing to return."
With that, the little girl picked up the food box and skipped out of the cottage.
Seeing someone come out, the boy outside immediately stood up.
Little Zhenzhen looked at him, suddenly giving him an apologetic smile.
The boy's heart jumped, his cheeks immediately turning red as he quickly lowered his head, not daring to look at her.
Xu Zhixing walked out from the cottage and saw that even though Little Zhenzhen had gone far, the boy was still standing with his head down, which he found somewhat amusing.
"Come inside."
The boy suddenly looked up, meeting Xu Zhixing's eyes, feeling somewhat flustered.
So much so that he almost tripped over the chair as he stepped forward.
Xu Zhixing just watched him quietly, not rushing him.
Inside the cottage, they sat facing each other.
Xu Zhixing got straight to the point:
"You came to enroll as a student?"
The boy nodded and immediately stood up, replying:
"Father heard that teacher had opened a school, so he sent me to enroll."
Xu Zhixing smiled and said:
"Aren't you afraid that learning to read will get you beheaded by the officials?"
The boy also smiled and replied:
"As you said, teacher, the Great Zhou doesn't kill scholars. In fact, for common people in today's Great Zhou, studying is now a path to advancement."
Xu Zhixing was somewhat surprised, looking the boy over, and asked:
"From your manner of speaking, you don't seem to be from an ordinary family. How did you end up here?"
The boy fell silent, his face showing signs of struggle.
Xu Zhixing immediately said:
"I was too forward, I shouldn't have asked. You don't need to tell me about your and your father's background. As long as you are sincere about learning, I will naturally teach you wholeheartedly. However, the knowledge I teach might be quite different from what you know. Are you still willing to continue learning?"
The boy immediately cupped his hands and bowed, about to kneel.
Xu Zhixing quickly stepped forward to support him, saying:
"Let this be your first lesson: A man's knees are worth their weight in gold. First kneel to parents for the grace of life and nurture, second kneel to ancestors for ritual worship, third kneel to heaven and earth for their encompassing virtue. Besides these, there is no need to kneel to anyone else."
The boy was startled. Looking at Xu Zhixing's handsome face and hearing his gentle voice, for the first time in his life, he felt an irrepressible admiration for someone.
His back gradually straightened, and his eyes gained a measure of determination.
Then he bowed again with cupped hands and said:
"Thank you for the teaching, master. However..."
At this point, the boy's face became somewhat awkward again, his eyes showing indescribable embarrassment.
Xu Zhixing waved his hand and said:
"It's fine, just do your best regarding the tuition fee."
The boy was stunned, his eyes unconsciously reddening.
He bowed again and said:
"This disciple Yu Wenqing thanks master for his great kindness."
Xu Zhixing reached out to help the boy up, smiling and nodding:
"Your name is Yu Wenqing? Very good. From today on, you are the first student of my Zhixing Academy. Go home and prepare now, classes will officially begin in seven days."
The boy nodded solemnly and bid farewell to Xu Zhixing.
After seeing the boy off, Xu Zhixing closed the cottage door and sat quietly in the classroom furnished with about ten low bamboo tables, taking deep breaths repeatedly.
After several breaths, Xu Zhixing finally calmed his mind completely.
The reason for his emotional turbulence was related to a secret that belonged to him alone.
Xu Zhixing wasn't from this world.
He had been a grassroots teacher who had served in a remote village on Earth for twenty years, sacrificing his life to save two students during a flash flood.
Perhaps heaven took pity on him, and his soul crossed over to this world that was extremely similar to Earth.
He had possessed the body of a young man who had just died of starvation.
However, unfortunately, Xu Zhixing had arrived during chaotic times.
Or perhaps he was fortunate, as after enduring a year of chaos, the Great Zhou Dynasty unified the nine provinces of the central plains with their world-shaking might.
Ending this chaos that had lasted for hundreds of years.
Heaven not only gave Xu Zhixing a chance to live another life but also gave him a precious treasure.
In terms from that world, it would be called a cheat system.
However, the conditions for activating the cheat system gave Xu Zhixing a headache.
The condition was to establish a school and recruit a disciple with a potential value above 80 points to activate the cheat system.
But in those chaotic times, even survival was a luxury, how could he possibly establish a school and recruit disciples?
Fortunately, after enduring for several years, Xu Zhixing arrived at Dragon Spring Town.
After saving some money, he applied to the higher authorities governing Dragon Spring Town and successfully established this school.
And just now, after Yu Wenqing formally became a student, this cheat system finally showed a response.
In Xu Zhixing's mind, there was a screen displaying his personal information.
Xu Zhixing calmed his emotions and opened the system with his thoughts.
[Name: Xu Zhixing]
[Age: 22]
[Skills: Nine-year Compulsory Education Knowledge Mastery]
[Teaching Return: 1x]
[Number of Disciples: 1]
[Disciple Information: 1. Yu Wenqing (Potential Value 92)]
[Congratulations to the host for activating the system, there is a reward waiting to be claimed, would you like to claim it?]