Miracle? Am I going to have a baby sister? Fang Zhengzhi pressed his ear against the window and listened.
Then he understood. The miracle was actually linked to the Hall of Dao - The Divine Constabulary has been generous, having added another slot apart from the initial eight slots with one condition: The entrant must be between six to eight years of age.
"Mrs Li must have bribed the village chief in the previous preliminary examination!"
"How can this be? Our village chief is an honourable man." Zhengzhi’s dad persuaded.
"I don’t care, no matter what, this time the slot belongs to our Zhengzhi. Tonight you are coming with me to visit Village Chief Meng Bai. Make sure you bring in the incident about your arm during our conversation, is that clear?"
"This... Alright…"
Without doing anything wrong, once again Fang Zhengzhi was left alone at night in his home, staring up at the silvery moonlight and counting the infinite stars in the sky…
...
He was sound asleep when he was suddenly awakened by a low crying sound.
Gently opening the door, he saw the tear stricken face of his own mother, Qin Xuelian, and his own father anxiously providing words of reassurance by her side.
"Why? Why give it to the Li family!"
"There must be some reason behind village chief’s actions…" Fang Houde softly tried to persuade her.
"Reason? Isn’t it just based off the fact that Li Zhaungshi passed the test and was able to lift the two hundred and fifty kilograms of black cauldron? In the future if Li Zhuangshi managed to achieve first-class results in the Law of Dao examination, he would be able receive personal training from the Divine Constabulary! Village chief is evidently trying to curry flavour with the Li family!"
"But, Li Zhuangshi is indeed the biggest hope of the entire village…"
"I don’t care! Li Zhuangshi is Li Zhuangshi, Li Huer is Lihuer. My Zhengzhi isn’t inferior to Li Huer in any way. Moreover, Li Huer even failed the previous examinations!"
"Ah…"
Qin Xuelian let out a desolate sigh, berating Fang Houde for his uselessness. Becoming increasingly dismal, she began to cry harder and harder.
Recounting Qin Xuelian’s delighted mood a few hours before, then having witnessed this, Fang Zhengzhi put together the pieces of the puzzle and figured out what has happened.
Looks like our village chief gave the slot to Li Huer.
Alright…
Knowing that there was no opportunity for him to enter this Hall of Dao, Fang Zhengzhi looked towards the sky, deep in thought. If I can’t enter this Hall of Dao, I’d better think of another method.
In reality, Fang Zhengzhi wasn’t too concerned about whether or not he could enter the Hall of Dao,
What he needed was an opportunity to deceive the villagers that he had already started to learn and read, so that in the future if any situation arises that revealed his ability to read, the villagers would not laugh it off.
Show the entire village he could read? An idea suddenly came to Fang Zhengzhi.
"Mum, even if I don’t enter the Hall of Dao, I still can learn!"
"Not entering the Hall of Dao? Self-learning?!" The instant Qin Xuelian, who was still sobbing hysterically in the living room, heard Fang Zhengzhi’s voice, her body jerked, rapidly wiping off her tears with her sleeves.
"Since when did Zhengzhi wake up…" Fang Houde gawked awkwardly at Fang Zhengzhi, who was standing by the door.
"Ah, Zhengzhi you must be hungry, let mummy cook something for you!" Qin Xuelian expression quickly turned into a smile, walking towards Fang Zhengzhi, squatting down and embracing Fang Zhengzhi in her arms.
Feeling warm and fuzzy inside, Zhengzhi thought, "It seems that his parents were unwilling to show him their fragile side."
"Good boy Zhengzhi…" Qin Xuelian whispered softly over and over again, her body beginning to shake uncontrollably.
…...
The next few days were peaceful and uneventful once again, but what Fang Zhengzhi found peculiar was that his dad had suddenly disappeared, his mum giving him the explanation that his dad embarked on a long journey.
At the same time, something was happening in a huge house within a city in the Northern Lands...
Wearing a pink dress, Lolita, her eyes bright as the stars, sat in front of her desk, looking down at a slip of paper in her hands.
"Li Huer? Six years old? This bastard’s name is indeed horrible!"
With a wave of her hands, the slip of paper landed in a furnace some distance away, then lifted up the brush on her desk and began to write.
"Come!" When she finished writing, Lolita sighed softly.
"Missus what is your order!" A soldier walked in and knelt on one knee.
Bring this question to the Hall of Dao within the Southern Mountain Village, I want you to personally test a six year old kid by the name of Li Huer!" Lolita pointed towards the slip of paper she wrote.
Standing up straight, the soldier gingerly received the paper with both hands.
Then, looking down at the paper, the expression turned to one of confusion…
"Six year old?" The soldier didn’t dare to press further, but had to confirm what he just heard.
"Yes, if this Li Huer can solve this problem, throw him into the drain beside the village and make sure you step down hard. But don’t harm his life. If he can’t solve it… give him ten strokes of the cane on the spot!"
"Yes Missus!" The soldier immediately exited the room.
Exiting the room, the soldier eyed the slip of paper again, feeling a sense of pity for the kid named "Li Huer". This question was tough even for him, much less a six year old kid in the Southern Mountain Village.
And most importantly, no matter how this Li Huer answered the question, the consequences are equally bleak.
After the soldier left, Lolita was left to herself. Casually flipping through a book on military tactics, she slowly stood up and walked out of the door.
"If the Illustration of All Creation was really solved by this little bastard, then this question should be no problem for him! But… what if he really managed to answer it? Am I supposed to invite him to the Divine Constabulary? Watch over him daily? Hmm… more like torture him daily! Ha ha…"
...
This day, The Southern Mountain Village was bustling with excitement. Toiling together, the construction of the Hall of Dao finally finished! Facing towards the south and built with layers of stone, it was indeed majestic.
The redwood-constructed memorial arch at the door was carved skillfully with the words "Hall of Dao". This was a gift by the Divine Constabulary, delivered to the village on horse, and a stamped bright-red rectangular on the top by the Divine Constabulary.
Within the hall, there were four small courtyards, two learning halls, one training ground and one leisure hall.
Fang Zhengzhi wasn’t qualified to enter, but he managed to steal a few glimpses during the construction of the Hall of Dao, and overheard the conversations between the two robed men as they drew with their small black brushes.
Other than these, the Hall of Dao’s exterior was adorned with a few large words painted in black ink.
Today’s lesson: Fundamentals of the Law of Dao and the Trimetric Classic
Taken aback, a scene appeared in Fang Zhengzhi’s mind - Students attempting to memorise the scriptures of the Trimetric Classic, "Men at birth, are naturally good. Their natures similar; their habits differ…"
Well...
Fang Zhengzhi realised that not entering the Hall of Dao wasn’t a bad thing. It is indeed tiring to have to recite the Trimetric Classic with these people.
The first batch of entrants into the Hall of Dao naturally attracted much attention.
The villagers of the Southern Mountain Village surrounded the entrance of the Hall of Dao, shouting words of congratulations to those who entered.
Village Chief Meng Bai personally accompanied his own grandson, Meng Jiangshan, past the entrance of the Hall of Dao. As for Li Zhuangshi, holding on to Li Huer’s hand, he individually returned the compliments to the villagers.
As Fang Zhengzhi noticed Li Huer, Li Huer’s gaze fell on Fang Zhengzhi as well.
Their expressions were wholly different.
Fang Zhengzhi’s expression was cool and composed, showing a hint of dissatisfaction.
Li Huer on the other hand was grinning from ear to ear, waving his thick, muscular arms at Fang Zhengzhi, he raised his head proudly, as if saying: "Look at me! Little Lord me is the one entering the Hall of Dao!"
As they held each other’s gaze, Zheng Zhengzhi felt a tap on his shoulder.
Turning behind, a familiar figure appeared within his field of vision. It was his dad Fang Houde, who had previously gone missing for the past few days! He was wearing a torn, tattered and dusty leather hide, fatigue evident from his bloodshot eyes. Yet, the smile on his face was unmistakable.
"Zhengzhi, guess what this is!"