Meeting his gaze, Xie Xiaonan radiated an unmistakable air of hostility from head to toe. Wen Lisheng was startled, glancing at him only once before quickly looking away.
She had completely forgotten about this. In her previous life, for reasons unknown, Xie Xiaonan had enrolled at Thousand Peaks Academy.
It was precisely because of this that Wen Lisheng had few interactions with him in her past life, with most information coming secondhand from others.
The students of Qianshan were always diligent, but today it was unclear why they had risen so early. More and more people gathered at the entrance, gradually encircling the scene.
Wen Lisheng feared the situation would escalate. After all, this was Thousand Peaks Academy’s territory, and if a fight truly broke out, these bookworms wouldn’t stand a chance.
Moreover, with Xie Xiaonan present, and considering how their lack of interaction in her past life had still led to animosity, the fewer times she and Shen Jiaqing appeared before him, the better.
So she stepped forward, grabbing Shen Jiaqing’s arm. “Let’s go, let’s go. Don’t cause trouble here.”
Yu Gui chimed in, “That’s right, Young Master Shen. If you start a fight here and get arrested by the authorities, my master will scold both you and the young lady.”
This struck a chord. Shen Jiaqing held great respect for Wen Puchang and dreaded being reprimanded by him. He immediately withdrew his hand. “You’re right. It’s not worth picking a fight with these bookworms.”
Worried someone might deliberately provoke further conflict, Wen Lisheng quickly pulled him away.
The carriage was still waiting by the roadside, but with the delay, taking it would surely make them late. Shen Jiaqing offered his horse to Wen Lisheng and rode one belonging to a servant instead. Although galloping through the bustling streets was illegal, the roads were nearly empty at this hour. They raced unimpeded to the academy, arriving just before the morning bell rang.
Wen Lisheng and Shen Jiaqing were in the same class, and their morning sessions were personally supervised by her uncle, Cui Shen. This was precisely why she dared not skip.
However, upon arriving today, she didn’t see her uncle. Instead, Martial Instructor Qi Gong stood at the entrance. Spotting Wen Lisheng and Shen Jiaqing rushing over, he smiled. “We were just waiting for you two. Get ready to depart.”
Eternal Peace Academy covered a vast area, and the two were panting heavily from their sprint. Before they could even sit down to rest, everyone in the hall stood up and began filing out. Catching his breath, Shen Jiaqing asked, “Instructor Qi, where are we going? Aren’t we having morning class?”
Qi Gong replied, “There won’t be any morning classes for the next half-month. Classes A and B are heading to Linggu Waterfall in the southern suburbs for training.”
This training session was primarily in preparation for the Martial Appreciation Assembly. Eternal Peace Academy had always focused on cultivating students’ martial skills, and many of its martial instructors were renowned figures in the martial world. For this assembly, the instructors had registered students from Classes A and B, hence the half-month training. However, in her previous life, female students from these classes had been excluded from the training. Wen Lisheng remembered sleeping in for half a month back then, relieved to skip the morning sessions.
This time, the situation was different—everyone had to attend.
Wen Lisheng had no objections. As long as she didn’t have to attend morning classes, anything was fine.
Classes A and B combined had eighteen students, all of whom, regardless of gender, could ride horses. They led their horses out of the central city before mounting up and riding together toward the southern suburbs.Eternal Peace Academy did not require students to wear the academy uniform daily. These vibrant young men and women chatted and laughed side by side, some shouting while riding their horses, forming a long procession that stretched out behind them. Under the dawn light, they laughed freely, much like the vigorous rising sun, full of life and vitality.
While chatting idly with Shen Jiaqing along the way, it took less than half an hour to reach Lenggu Waterfall.
As they were heading into the valley, the people ahead gradually came to a stop, gathering in one place. Wen Lisheng urged her horse forward a few steps and grabbed someone to ask, “What’s happening up ahead?”
The person looked displeased and said, “I heard them say that Thousand Peaks Academy’s carriages are parked ahead.”
Wen Lisheng let out a soft “ah,” remembering that when Shen Jiaqing had caused trouble earlier, the students from Qianshan had gathered at the entrance, clearly heading somewhere. Now she understood—they were also coming to Lenggu Waterfall.
Thousand Peaks Academy visited Lenggu Waterfall every month for half a day of martial arts training, a rule set by Wen Puchang. It was likely that during his student days, he had been bullied relentlessly by the students of Eternal Peace Academy for not knowing martial arts, so he refused to let the younger generation focus solely on academics. Besides, martial training also strengthened the body.
Students of Eternal Peace Academy rarely came to the southern suburbs, as the academy grounds were spacious enough for their martial arts practice. However, this training session had been relocated, and unexpectedly, they had run into the students from Qianshan.
An image of Xie Xiaonan in his Qianshan academy uniform, lazily standing among the crowd, suddenly flashed through Wen Lisheng’s mind. She frowned.
Oh no, they were about to cross paths.
Qi Gong, the leader of this training session, was also troubled when he saw the carriages bearing the Qianshan academy emblem parked ahead.
The carriages being here meant the Qianshan bookworms were definitely not far ahead. If he led this group of spirited youngsters forward, their youthful vigor would undoubtedly lead to a big fight.
But even if he ordered them to turn back now, these youngsters would surely refuse.
While he hesitated, Wen Lisheng rode up to him and said, “Teacher, since the Qianshan students arrived first, let’s just leave. If a fight breaks out and someone ends up with broken arms or legs, it’ll cause a lot of trouble.”
Qi Gong looked surprised, as Wen Lisheng had never been one to show such understanding before.
But her words made sense, and he had been thinking the same. Just as he was about to nod in agreement, someone protested loudly, “We got up early, led our horses out of the central city, and traveled all this way in high spirits. Are we really going to turn back disappointed just because we ran into those Qianshan people?”
The voice was loud enough to reach the others, and soon everyone knew the teacher was considering backing down. Immediately, they grew discontented, shouting and clamoring.
“Why should we give this place to them?” “This place is huge. We could easily set aside a small area for them to practice their flashy but useless moves.” “Why is it always Eternal Peace Academy that backs down when we run into Qianshan?”
With youthful pride, they were unwilling to accept this disadvantage. They chattered and argued, but the consensus was clear—they didn’t want to leave. Many even dismounted from their horses.
Wen Lisheng felt a headache coming on. In the past, she would have been the first to advocate driving the Qianshan students away. But times had changed, and even with all her courage, she dared not cause trouble in front of Xie Xiaonan.Qi Gong was also caught in a dilemma, unsure of what to do. However, seeing the high spirits of the young people around him, he couldn’t bear to dampen their enthusiasm. So he said, “The Rengu Waterfall area is quite large. We’ll just avoid the Qianshan group. If we happen to run into them later, we’ll steer clear.”
Upon hearing this, the young people immediately cheered and eagerly agreed. They dismounted one after another, leading their horses for about a hundred paces before tying them in small groups under the trees. Then, they followed Qi Gong into the Rengu Waterfall area.
Wen Lisheng dawdled for a long time, unwilling to go. Shen Jiaqing, growing impatient beside her, snatched the reins and tied her horse for her. “Your horse won’t run off. Why are you so meticulous with the knot? Can’t you move a little faster?”
She sensed something off in his tone. “Are you insulting me?”
Shen Jiaqing pulled her into the gathering group. Qi Gong counted the members three times back and forth to ensure everyone was present before setting off.
The Rengu Waterfall featured a modest valley waterfall, its surface covered with ridges, hence the name Rengu.
Below the waterfall lay a vast area where the water cascaded down, crashing onto the rocks and flowing along the mountain’s contours. The stream was crystal clear, and the vegetation was lush.
The students of Thousand Peaks Academy had gathered at the base of the valley. The sound of the waterfall echoed nearby, creating a semi-enclosed, concave terrain. Once the sun rose, it would cast a large patch of shade on the ground, sparing these delicate young masters and ladies from the heat.
These students held the belief that all pursuits were inferior to scholarly learning, looking down upon martial arts. Some of the young ladies were particularly delicate and unwilling to endure hardship. As a result, most martial arts instructors at Thousand Peaks Academy only lectured and rarely taught actual combat skills. At the moment, two such instructors were lounging on rocks, chatting idly while allowing the others to play freely.
Xie Xiaonan, who had always preferred quiet, found the sound of the waterfall somewhat noisy. He sought out a secluded spot under a tree and stood there.
“Young Master, the young ladies of Yiguan County truly lack the restraint of those in the capital. Many of them are staring openly at you. Back in the capital, even the daughters of high-ranking officials and nobles only dared to steal glances,” Xi Lu whispered beside him.
Xie Xiaonan showed no reaction to this, his gaze lifting to rest on the azure sky.
As he tilted his chin upward, a faint black thread peeked out from his collar. Seeing this, Xi Lu thought for a moment and added, “But then again, the county magistrate’s daughter is quite different from the others, let alone the rest.”
Mentioning Wen Lisheng, Xie Xiaonan frowned slightly. “Quiet.”
After the earlier incident, Xie Xiaonan now wore his protective jade, which he always carried, on a black thread around his neck, ensuring no one could snatch it away. However, every time he recalled being headbutted by Wen Lisheng, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of anger.
Xi Lu fell silent and stood obediently. Just then, the surrounding noise and playful chatter gradually faded until it disappeared entirely. Everyone looked up toward the high rocky peak above.
There, behind Qi Gong, a line of young men and women appeared, dressed in various colors, as if emerging from behind the mountain. They walked in a scattered formation.
Shen Jiaqing was undoubtedly the representative figure of Eternal Peace Academy. He held a slender green stalk between his teeth, walking with a somewhat carefree swagger. His eyes swept over the people below, and his handsome brows arched slightly. “Well, what a coincidence.”Then they spotted Wen Lisheng standing beside him, casually twirling a branch in her hand and swinging it aimlessly. The two of them stood there, exuding an unmistakable aura of trouble, making them the most conspicuous figures in the crowd.
Soon, someone recognized him and whispered among themselves, “They’re from Eternal Peace Academy…”