“Mr. Yu Cun is being too courteous. I am no hero, merely someone who saw injustice and did what they could to help,”
Li Xuan bowed to him, dismissing the matter.
Everyone knew this guy was like Shen Gong Bao.
Shen Gong Bao betrayed his friends, you, Jia Yu Cun, betrayed your benefactor.
Those who have been kind to you have all met with bad ends!
Seeing Jia Zheng was also curious, he cooperated with a casual question, “Oh, Shi Fei brother, what is this you are talking about?”
“Haha, well, this all goes back to when I was on my way to the capital…”
Jia Yu Cun chuckled and recounted the events.
Then, rising to his feet, he bowed to Li Xuan, again thanking him earnestly, “My gratitude knows no bounds for your assistance, Brother Xuan. This favor, vast as mountains and rivers, will be forever etched in my memory. I must…”
Li Xuan jumped up in fright.
At this moment, he couldn't even sense the overwhelming disparity in their strength. It felt like a devastating disaster was about to strike.
Whether he was sincere or insincere.
Or perhaps this was just him putting on a show of gratitude in front of Jia Zheng.
Avoiding his bow, he simultaneously gestured with his hand to decline, saying,
“Mr. Yu Cun, you are exaggerating.”
“I simply did what needed to be done at the right time. You shouldn’t thank me so much for it.”
“And we are all gathered at Lord Cun Zhou’s place, distant relatives connected through twists and turns, Mr. Yu Cun, please don’t be so formal.”
“Xuan is right,” Jia Zheng interrupted Jia Yu Cun’s continued polite remarks, “He is kin by marriage, you and my Jia family are connected by lineage, all our own people.”
“No need for excessive politeness, it would only sour our family ties.”
“I am more curious about Xuan’s archery skills.”
A perfectly good scholar, why was he doing the work of a warrior?
Completely forgetting that one of the six arts of a gentleman is archery.
“This time, Xuan is going to the capital to inherit the position of my late father, a hundred-household captain of the North Town Garrison of the Imperial Guard.”
After a moment's hesitation, Li Xuan switched to a different appellation.
At this point, calling himself a student would be deliberately inviting trouble, a reminder to Jia Zheng that he was about to abandon literature for martial arts.
As for why he was joining the Imperial Guard, it was of course to climb the ranks within the emperor’s inner circle, making it easier to collect various secret manuals.
There were no easier paths than this.
But even without calling himself a student, Jia Zheng’s expression visibly darkened.
He reprimanded him, “You have already obtained your scholar’s degree. Why do you stoop to becoming a lowly member of the Imperial Guard?”
“The court’s hounds, how can they compare to the Way of the Sage, the noble lineage of literature?”
Li Xuan went along with him, saying,
“Lord Cun Zhou is right, but this position was earned through my father’s hard work. He died in battle saving the Emperor ten years ago. The Emperor also granted permission for his 12-year-old son to inherit the position without demotion.”
“This way, I can take up my post after my birthday next April.”
“Following the traditional path, Jinling is the center of literature, I fear it would be difficult to quickly establish myself there.”
Just like inheriting a title, the Imperial Guard position here was inherited with a demotion.
Or rather, the Ming Dynasty actually had a demotion system too, but they used a lack of vacant positions as an excuse to extort money in the late stages. Here they have streamlined it into a formal system, avoiding bloated numbers of officers.
Thinking back to the servant’s earlier mention that Li Xuan was the only one left in his lineage.
Jia Zheng's expression softened somewhat.
But still with a stern face, he said,
“Military officers are indeed better off than literary ones in terms of career advancement.”
“Since that’s the case, stay at the manor for now and prepare well. Don’t let anyone underestimate the Jia family.”
Conversation ended, Jia Zheng waved his hand, signaling for Li Xuan and Li Wan to leave.
As he left the Meng Po Zhai, Li Xuan found himself amused.
Jia Zheng, who couldn’t even pass the Tongsheng exams and relied on the Emperor’s grace for his position,
Looking down on someone who had passed the scholar’s exam and was going to be a military officer.
He had no idea what he was thinking.
Did he think himself noble?
After seeing the Master, Li Wan then took Li Xuan to see Madam Wang.
Though men shouldn’t enter the inner chambers, it was fine because, firstly, Li Wan was with him, and secondly, although Li Xuan was tall, he was actually quite young.
So, it was no problem.
They arrived at Madam Wang's courtyard, and the process was the same as when they saw Jia Zheng.
Except this time, it was the maidservants who announced their arrival and led them in.
Unexpectedly, Lin Daiyu was also there.
Madam Wang was giving Lin Daiyu instructions.
“I have a 孽根祸胎 (nie gen huo tai), a ‘demon child’ in the family. He went to the temple to offer thanks today, and hasn’t come back yet. You’ll know who he is tonight.”
“Just stay away from him, even your sisters are afraid of him.”
The way she spoke, did she even know what kind of person her son was?
The more Lin Daiyu ignored him, the more the Big Face Treasure, a phoenix egg, would try to be near her.
Lin Daiyu had sent people to investigate the family situation and naturally knew what kind of monster this demon child was.
She smiled faintly, “Aunt is referring to the elder brother who was born with a jade in his mouth, the most noble and prestigious? ”
“Now that I’m here, I naturally only interact with my sisters. My brothers will naturally be in separate courtyards, how could I possibly go and get involved with them?”
As she spoke, her eyes turned to Li Wan and Li Xuan as they walked in.
Especially when her gaze fell on Li Xuan, her eyes subtly lit up.
I’ve seen this brother before…
That’s right, he’s the archer who helped us!
His archery is excellent, his martial arts must be equally impressive.
I need to find a time to have a secret sparring session with him, just for fun ~
“Your daughter-in-law greets Madam.” Li Wan bowed slightly to Madam Wang.
“Li Xuan greets Madam.” Li Xuan bowed his fist in greeting.
This time, he didn’t get to use those terms to ingratiate himself.
For Madam Wang, who was both stupid and evil, even if Li Xuan poured his heart and soul out to her and Big Face Treasure, she would still scheming against Li Xuan for the sake of her precious son.
So, it wasn’t worth it to try to build a relationship with her.
Just maintaining a superficial harmony would be enough.