Chapter 0022: The Frail Scholar Bian Yangchun, The Surprisingly Muscular Bian Yangchun
Xie Chengze hadn’t expected the scholars of the Jian’an Dynasty to be so driven, actually traversing mountains and rivers to brave dangerous famine-stricken lands just for a chance at becoming officials.
Bian Yangchun smiled wryly and shook his head, explaining, “It’s already difficult for those from humble backgrounds to attain scholarly honors. We can only seize every possible opportunity and take unconventional paths to gamble on success.”
This Xie Chengze could understand. In the original book, the Spring Examination was merely one of the tools used by high-ranking officials and nobles for favoritism and fraud. Outstanding exam papers from impoverished scholars would most likely be swapped to those under the patronage of officials, leaving the original candidates to fail. The slightly more unfortunate might even become perpetual scapegoats over several subsequent Spring Examinations, serving as “substitute examinees” in a sense.
Oh right, in the original book, who was the chief examiner again?
He remembered that person had been thoroughly dealt with by Shen Yuan, confined and stripped of their salary…
Xie Chengze grinned at the thought, then belatedly realized—that person was himself.
Xie Chengze: 🙁
After just this brief conversation, a light drizzle began to patter from the sky. The air grew increasingly damp, and as the rain intensified, the group hurriedly quickened their pace, finding a low roadside cave to take shelter from the rain.
The attendants and guards skillfully lit a fire. Xie Chengze had his drenched beautiful concubines warm themselves first. Jing Ze, perceptive as ever, came to assist and laid out soft cushions on the ground for seating.
“No need, give those to them. The ground is cold in the rain, and women are more susceptible to chills. If any fall ill with fever, it will delay our journey,” Xie Chengze waved his hand, found a rock, lifted the hem of his robe, and sat directly on the ground.
Shen Yuan stood at the cave entrance, casting a faint glance in their direction.
“Brother Cheng is truly chivalrous toward the fairer sex,” Bian Yangchun laughed heartily. “Not only does he bring his wives and concubines on his travels, but he also takes such meticulous care of them. Tough on the outside, soft on the inside.”
Xie Chengze couldn’t help but cough lightly. The beautiful concubines nearby overheard and covered their mouths with light giggles, shaking their heads slightly at Bian Yangchun.
Bian Yangchun didn’t catch the underlying meaning. Seeing so many beautiful women shaking their heads and smiling at him, the young man who had never had much interaction with the opposite sex grew somewhat flustered. After a slight nod of acknowledgment, he quickly averted his gaze.
Ji Songhua sighed with emotion, “Brother Cheng, you’re living more comfortably than any official. If my father had gone into business and built an estate, I too would be touring scenic spots with a crowd of wives and concubines, instead of studying desperately to become an official.”
Ouyang Jiu disagreed, “Becoming an official is about benefiting the people, not making silver. If you want a wealthy life, you should find your own path.”
“Is business really that simple? You need sufficient family wealth to support you in commerce,” Ji Songhua found Ouyang Jiu’s naivety exasperating and turned to Xie Chengze, “Brother Cheng, don’t you agree?”
Xie Chengze smiled without responding. Ouyang Jiu rolled his eyes slightly, “As if the earliest merchants didn’t start from nothing.”
Noticing the tense atmosphere, Bian Yangchun quickly interjected jokingly, “Brother Cheng said he gave up on scholarly honors because he wasn’t cut out for studying. If you had the same family background as Brother Cheng, perhaps you wouldn’t be struggling to become an official through education, but happily and leisurely studying for the exams.”
The status of merchants ultimately cannot compare to that of officials. Once people have one thing, they will inevitably desire another. How could those engaged in commerce not hope for their descendants to produce an official in the family?
Ji Songhua shrugged. “Brother Bian speaks the truth.”
By this time, the guards had already built a bonfire nearby. Xie Chengze invited several scholars to sit together and warm themselves, sharing hot ginger soup to dispel the cold dampness from their bodies.
Perhaps due to lingering notions from his previous world, Xie Chengze always viewed scholars as somewhat delicate and fragile—they ought to be cared for diligently to prevent catching colds that might hinder their studies.
The imperial examinations were challenging enough as it was. Now, for even a sliver of opportunity, these scholars traversed mountains and rivers with their frail frames. Such determination in pursuit of knowledge truly commanded his admiration, and they deserved extra consideration.
The scholars did not stand on ceremony and sat down with unassuming ease. Bian Yangchun lifted his rain-soaked robe slightly, somewhat embarrassed as he said, “Brother Cheng, pardon our forwardness, but might we change into dry clothes?”
“By all means,” Xie Chengze gestured.
Bian Yangchun and the others promptly removed their wet garments and changed into dry clothes from their book satchels. With a casual glance, Xie Chengze was taken aback: Good heavens…
Though these scholars appeared slender on the surface, who would have guessed they were lean beneath their clothes but well-built without them? The lines of their firm muscles were remarkably defined. With practiced skill, they snapped scattered branches—when exerting force, faint blue veins subtly surfaced on their pale arms, striking a balance between robustness and leanness that starkly contrasted with Xie Chengze’s expectation of feeble scholars.
He couldn’t help but feel his own arm, and upon touching soft flesh, was suddenly struck by a pang of melancholy.
Noticing Xie Chengze’s action, Bian Yangchun laughed heartily. “Brother Cheng has enjoyed luxury since childhood, surely never needing to engage in manual labor. It’s natural for your build to be slimmer. People come in all forms—as long as one’s character is upright and conduct is proper, there’s no need to envy others.”
“I assumed you spent years confined at home studying, and sitting for long periods would inevitably…” Xie Chengze trailed off.
“Hahaha, not to that extent! We still help out during harvest season on the family farms. Moreover, if one lacks the funds for a carriage when traveling to the capital, they must carry their book satchel and walk thousands of miles on foot. Being too frail would make such hardship unbearable!”
“And if you live beyond the mountains, it goes without saying—with bad luck, you might even have to fend off wild beasts…” Bian Yangchun raised his arm and patted his solid muscle. “After painstakingly studying the classics to prepare for the exams, it would be a great pity to die halfway there, wouldn’t it?”
Xie Chengze had an epiphany. “So that’s how it is. My perspective was too narrow.”
“Ah~ Everyone has their own perspective. Just as Brother Cheng travels far and wide, gaining insight into local customs and cultures—how could that not be valuable? Brother Cheng, you must not undervalue yourself!” Bian Yangchun consoled.
Shen Yuan, who had been listening to their conversation all along, let out a soft, derisive “tsk.”
Xie Chengze was probably the most self-assured person in the entire world, the least likely to undervalue himself.
Pretending not to hear, Xie Chengze waited until the ginger soup was nearly ready before deliberately calling out loudly, “Da Qiang! Come have some ginger soup!”
At first, a certain “Da Qiang” didn’t react. When it finally dawned on him, an utterly speechless gaze met Xie Chengze’s mischievously sparkling eyes. Seeing the other persistently urging him and the other scholars turning to look, he clenched the Azure Sword at his waist and walked over, his entire body stiff with reluctance.
“Our Daqiang has worked hard and deserves merit—drink up first~” Xie Chengze beamed, personally handing him the ginger tea.
For a pampered young master from a wealthy family to personally serve ginger tea to a mere guard, it was hard not to speculate about their unusual relationship. After all, the stunningly beautiful Jing Ze by his side and his exceptionally attractive concubines were all remarkable—so why was Shen Daqiang the only one privileged enough to receive such special treatment?
Under the ambiguous, scrutinizing gazes directed his way, Shen Yuan steeled himself and drank a bowl of hot ginger tea. Whether from drinking too hastily or some other reason, he covered his sleeve and coughed lightly, his fair cheeks inadvertently flushing pink, adding a contrast of a tiger fallen from grace turning into a kitten.
Xie Chengze, with mischievous intent, handed him another bowl.
A vein twitched faintly at Shen Yuan’s temple. Suppressing his irritation, he finally gritted out, “This humble one is strong and healthy—one bowl is quite enough! Young Master, being delicate, should drink more!”
“How caring our Daqiang is of me~” Xie Chengze shook his head cheerfully and withdrew the ginger tea, starting to drink it himself.
Shen Yuan couldn’t stand seeing him so smug and full of himself. So he sat down beside Xie Chengze, and with a sharp “swish,” drew the Azure Sword from his waist, leisurely polishing it.
“Cough, cough, cough.” Xie Chengze choked.
Shen Yuan sneered inwardly, then abruptly thrust the Azure Sword into a dry branch on the ground, chopping it into sections like radishes and tossing them into the fire, which crackled and hissed loudly.
Xie Chengze: …
This was a threat! A blatant threat!
How could he be even pettier than himself!