After leaving the wealthy Jiang residence, the three members of the Su family remained as poor as ever.
Upon entering the Academy, Su Yan immediately went to study, while Su Yang brought Youen along to meet the Dean of the Academy.
The so-called Dean was essentially equivalent to a school principal.
Youen understood that he was taking her directly to complete the enrollment procedures.
She was naturally unwilling to go. The Su family was already impoverished—where would they find extra money to support another person’s education?
Moreover, she remembered this Academy.
The original text mentioned that both the female lead and male lead would study at this Academy in the future.
She knew all too well that staying in the same place as these two was far too dangerous.
A single misstep could leave her blinded by their protagonist halo.
In this world where she lacked the protagonist’s halo and could only hide carefully, it was safer for her to stay quietly at home.
In just a short while, Su Youen had already devised dozens of methods in her mind to intimidate the Dean and make him dare not accept her into the Academy.
Just a Dean—she believed that with her 21st-century intellect, she could still outsmart him.
She stepped into the Academy cheerfully, ready to execute her plan to intimidate the Dean, but was stunned by the Dean’s appearance.
Heavens, was this for real?
Was this really the Dean of an Academy?
Shouldn’t Deans be elderly men with flowing white hair and long beards?
How could the person before her not only be full of vigor but also young and handsome?
He was far too good-looking.
Faced with such a handsome person, how could she carry out her grand plan?
Su Youen let out a long sigh. Defeated—she was defeated without even fighting.
Defeated by his celestial-like beauty.
Fortunately, this thought lasted only a second. Harsh reality quickly brought her back to her senses.
Youen understood that, whether for her own sake or for the Su family’s, she could not enter this Academy.
Therefore, she still had to stubbornly confront this Dean.
“Huaishu, this is my third brother, named Su Youen.”
This Academy was named Huai Shu Academy, and its Dean, Zhu Huaishu, was originally a close friend of Su Yang’s. Hence, Su Yang did not address him as Dean but directly called him by his name.
Zhu Huaishu smiled at Su Youen. “Your Su family truly consists of remarkable people. First, there was Su Yan, who already impressed me greatly. Now, here comes a third brother, whose appearance is no less impressive than your second brother’s. A Yang, I am already looking forward to witnessing your third brother’s talents.”
He spoke with a constant smile, his demeanor making one feel as if bathed in a spring breeze.
The thought of disappointing such a person made Su Youen somewhat reluctant.
But to be honest, even if she studied for five more years, she still wouldn’t match the talents of her eldest and second brothers.
Disappointing Zhu Huaishu would only require her normal performance.
Su Youen blinked her large eyes, feigning confusion as she asked, “Dean, your name is quite strange. Why would anyone in the world name themselves after a locust tree?”
Making a pun about a name given by one’s parents upon first meeting—even the most good-tempered person would feel displeased.
She felt her move was steady. Her words weren’t too offensive, thus neither angering Zhu Huaishu nor putting Su Yang in an awkward position, while still accurately leaving a bad impression on the Dean.
Simply brilliant.
Who would have thought that this Zhu Huaishu would turn out to be an eccentric?Upon hearing this, he instinctively remarked, “Your third brother is quite amusing. This is the first time someone has mistaken my name for ‘Huai Tree’.”
After all, the pronunciations of ‘book’ and ‘tree’ are entirely different.
Only someone either foolish or deliberate could mishear these two characters.
Clearly, Su Youen couldn’t possibly be a fool, so she must have been intentional.
Deliberately reading ‘book’ as ‘tree’—she must have had some special intention!
Zhu Huaishu finally grasped her meaning.
The most abundant thing in the Academy is books, and the paper for books is made from tree bark.
Books and trees share the same roots.
Just like his name: though called Huaishu, it’s no different from Huai Tree.
Whether it’s him or the Huai Tree, their entire existence is for the sake of those books and those students.
Zhu Huaishu thought Youen must have used the name Huai Tree to remind him to stay true to his original intentions.
As the Dean of the Academy, he ought to treasure those hard-won books even more and teach the students with greater care.
For a moment, Zhu Huaishu felt nothing but admiration for the Su family’s third brother.
Knowing only his name, she could utter such meaningful words.
Such a talented scholar—he must keep him at the Academy!
“Your brother’s talent is truly admirable. When might he be able to enroll and study?”
When Su Youen heard Zhu Huaishu’s words, her face turned pale.
Which eye of his saw the word “talent” written on her?
She had used a pun to tease him, and he actually seemed pleased.
Su Youen sighed softly. She had underestimated the tolerance of ancient scholars after all.
But it didn’t matter—she still had another trick up her sleeve.
“I don’t enjoy studying; I only like having fun.”
By so bluntly expressing her desire to play rather than study, surely the Dean would give up on her now.
Back in her school days, teachers had always despised students who didn’t care for learning.
She refused to believe the gap between past and present could be so vast that a Ming Dynasty Dean would forcibly retain an unwilling student like her.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Huaishu exclaimed in awe, “Marvelous, simply marvelous! To treat studying as play—I never imagined your brother harbored such profound interest in scholarly pursuits.”
Su Youen was stunned.
Zhu Huaishu was truly a divine being.
This man was beyond the reach of ordinary mortals like her to provoke.
If this Dean were in modern times, his over-interpretation skills alone could infuriate literature teachers and resurrect long-deceased poets and scholars.
Quite impressive.
High school Chinese reading comprehension needed someone like him to elevate it.
Su Youen had reached the peak of speechlessness.
She had never encountered such an eccentric in her entire life.
Battling wits with this kind of person made her feel hopeless for this lifetime.
And so, in despair, she blurted out, “Brother, I’m illiterate.”
Hearing this, Su Yang was taken aback.
His uncle Su Ting had been erudite since youth, and Su Yang had assumed Su Ting would have taught Youen to read from childhood.
Even if she lacked the talent of Confucius or Mencius, she should at least have mastered basic literacy.
He never expected her to be illiterate.
Youen was already twenty years old and still couldn’t read—this boded ill for her future.
As he worried for her, Zhu Huaishu beside him clapped and cheered, “Excellent! This is wonderful news!
Ayang, don’t frown. Think about it—who is born knowing how to read? Everyone gradually learns through study and practice to achieve their current knowledge.
Precisely because Youen is illiterate, she needs a place like our Academy to teach her literacy, isn’t that right?”
“If everyone in the world were born with the talents of Confucius and Mencius, what need would there be for all the Teachers?”
Su Yang found his words reasonable.
Moreover, Youen had always been clever, and he believed that as long as she studied diligently, she would eventually achieve success.
Thus, Su Youen was forcibly enrolled in the Academy.
She thought they had all gone mad.
Zhu Huaishu prepared many brushes and inksticks for her, instructing her to take them home and practice first, with formal classes beginning the day after tomorrow.
On the way home, Youen remained sullen.
But she did not want to affect Su Yang’s mood, so she did not show it too obviously.