At Li San's home by the Lotus Pond, Village Chief Zhao Biao sat on a bamboo chair with a helpless expression. Opposite him sat Li San, both men looking very grim.
Zhao Biao recounted Li Jun's mischievous behavior during class. His voice was calm, but his tone revealed a hint of helplessness.
Li San, who cared deeply about saving face, felt a burning shame as he listened to Zhao Biao's account, and his anger toward Li Jun intensified.
"Village Chief, I truly don't know why this child is like this," Li San said, his voice slightly hoarse.
Zhao Biao sighed, his gaze falling upon a small boy not far away. That boy was inside the house doing handicrafts with his older sister. Zhao Biao knew that was Li San's son, Li Jun.
"Li San, you know I wouldn't visit over a trivial matter. Ding Queqian has made it clear: if these few children remain in the School, he will stop teaching," Zhao Biao's tone was calm, but his eyes held a serious intensity.
Li San shook his head.
Zhao Biao looked at Li San and said slowly, "Perhaps you can take your son to apologize to Ding Queqian. He is the only Tutor we have here. We villagers are people who do Farm Work; being a step lower, bowing our heads, is nothing."
Li San listened to Zhao Biao with a heavy expression, nodded, and said in a low voice, "Village Chief Zhao, rest assured, I, Li San, will not cause trouble for the villagers. I will immediately take this brat and some gifts to apologize to Tutor Ding."
Zhao Biao looked at Li San, a hint of satisfaction in his eyes. He nodded, then turned and left Li San's house.
Li San watched Zhao Biao's retreating figure, feeling a surge of anger. He knew he had to teach Li Jun a serious lesson.
After Zhao Biao left, Li San called Li Jun to the entrance hall. Xu Hua and Li Yanyan also peeked out curiously to listen.
"Jun, look at you! You can't stand properly or sit properly. Can't you behave better at the School?" Li San stood in the hall, pointing at Li Jun, speaking angrily.
Li Jun looked up at Li San, a flicker of fear crossing his eyes, but it quickly vanished.
He lowered his head and remained silent.
"Shy and timid, how can you be a man? Tomorrow you will go apologize to Ding Queqian!" Li San continued, his tone growing stricter.
"I..." Li Jun quietly retorted, his voice almost drowned out by Li San's roar.
"What 'I'? Zhao Village Chief said you were catching Flies in the School instead of studying. If you don't study, how will you amount to anything!"
"Does studying guarantee success..."
"You dare talk back?" Li San picked up the nearby broom, about to strike Li Jun.
Xu Hua quickly snatched the broom and started sweeping the floor nearby.
Li San shot Xu Hua a glare, then turned back to Li Jun. "Your schoolwork is a mess, do you still want to study? Do you think it's your right for our family to support your schooling?" Li San pointed at Li Jun and said loudly.
"I didn't..." Li Jun refuted again, but his voice was even softer.
"You dare talk back again? Kneel down for me!" Li San pointed at Li Jun furiously and shouted.
Li Jun looked at Li San, a hint of hesitation in his eyes, but ultimately, he did not kneel.
"You won't even kneel when told? I am your father, are you even human anymore? Tell me, do you want me to hit you?" Li San pointed at Li Jun, speaking angrily.
Li San had been bottling up frustration for a long time. Whenever neighbors discussed their children's grades and studies, Li San felt embarrassed and couldn't join in, and he had suffered enough cold sarcasm from Tutor Ding. Now, he vented all that anger onto Li Jun.
"Daddy, don't hit him..." Li Yanyan stood to the side, looking at Li Jun, and spoke softly.
"Shut up! This is none of your business," Li San said angrily, pointing at Li Yanyan.
"I didn't do anything wrong..." Li Jun muttered.
As soon as he finished speaking, a slap landed on Li Jun's shoulder. Li San's strength was too much for Li Jun's small frame; he staggered several times before steadying himself.
"Third Brother, that's enough, stop hitting him..." Xu Hua handed the broom to Li Yanyan and stepped forward to hug Li Jun.
"Don't you dare protect him! The eldest was spoiled by you, and now you're spoiling Li Jun too!" Li San pointed at Xu Hua angrily and shouted.
"None of the children you bore have amounted to anything! Is our Li family indebted to you people!" Li San continued to curse furiously.
Xu Hua looked at Li San, a flash of resentment in her eyes, but ultimately she kept quiet.
After a round of scolding, having asserted his authority as the man of the house, Li San finally sat down, calmed his mood, and said, "Tomorrow, you will come with me to apologize to Tutor Ding. Prepare a few gifts; send him the bear paw we just butchered."
"I don't want to..." Li Jun quietly objected, his voice trembling.
"You dare object again? It's because you are stubborn and playful that Tutor Ding disciplines you; he cares about you!" Li San pointed at Li Jun, looking utterly disappointed.
Li Jun looked at Li San, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes, and bit his lip before saying,
"...Back then, you didn't consider right from wrong when you resisted Tutor Ding and insisted on bringing Master Ji back. Is it any wonder Tutor Ding targets me?"
"Everyone else received praise for their schoolwork, but I didn't. I became a laughingstock to others. Why?"
"Tutor Ding has mocked our family for being Hunters more than once, saying I am the child of a butcher. I endured all that..."
"Many parents gave money to Tutor Ding, and our family gave more than others, but Tutor Ding still looks down on us. Today, he even slapped me."
"If I couldn't memorize an essay, Tutor Ding would call me names—single-track mind, pig brain, idiot..."
"And before, the snacks Big Brother gave me, the small toys I bought to share with everyone at the School, Tutor Ding took them away under the pretense of 'wasting time on frivolous things.' He ate the snacks himself afterward, and I heard he took the toy for his own child to play with!"
"Furthermore, Tutor Ding mocked me in front of everyone, refusing to let me go to the river to fish. Even the students who don't know how to swim and are weaker were allowed to go; he was deliberately suppressing me..."
"Enough!" Li San said impatiently. "If you don't study, what future will you have?"
"I... I want to Drop out of school," Li Jun said quietly.
"What did you say? Say that clearly!" Li San pointed at Li Jun, somewhat incredulous, and shouted.
"I... I want to Drop out of school," Li Jun repeated, his voice slightly louder.
"You... what did you say?" Li San was shocked, unable to believe his ears.
"I... I want to Drop out of school," Li Jun said firmly, looking at Li San.
Li San was momentarily at a loss. He picked up his earthen pipe and went to sit on the threshold to smoke.
This was the same thing Li Zehua had said before leaving home and running away.
Li Jun didn't want to study anymore, and Li San knew that perhaps his child truly wasn't cut out for academics. Previously, Master Ji was highly respected and even gave his children extra tutoring; though he scolded them, he never hit them.
As for this Tutor Ding, Li San had offended him previously, especially by not greeting him on the day he arrived, as he was out hunting and couldn't make it.
Moreover, Tutor Ding had an arrogant personality, and Li San always had to swallow his pride to pay his respects. Naturally, much of the resulting resentment was taken out on Li Jun.
If Li Jun performed better at the School, Li San would have fewer troubles himself.
Although if Li Jun dropped out and became an Apprentice, the family would have one less mouth to feed, Li San still didn't want to give up the hope of having a scholar in the family.
Li San glanced at Xu Hua's belly, thought for a moment, and decided that if Jun wanted to make a living outside, let him. The eldest could support himself in the city now; at worst, he could have another child later.
"If the son is useless, he relies on the father. Can I be threatened by you brats?" Li San grumbled to himself.
Li Jun returned to the room and wiped the tears from his cheeks; his eyes were red all around. He looked down at his schoolbag still on the desk—it was limp and devoid of warmth.
"Hmph..." He sobbed softly, looking up at the wooden beams of the dilapidated roof, where specks of pre-rain dust hung, ready to fall.
He had thought that after deciding to Drop out of school, he would feel relieved, no longer having to face Tutor Ding's gloomy face, nor being punished to copy "Behave Yourself" three hundred times in the lecture hall... But now, his heart felt empty, and he didn't even have the strength to curse.
Must his difficult life be limited to being a farmer or a craftsman? Could he never be a scholar? Was studying truly the only path to success?
He tugged at the Pinecone pendant hanging around his neck, wiped his tears, and went to bed.
As night deepened, the Pinecone emitted a faint, almost imperceptible Silver Light under the dim lamplight.
The Silver Light floated slowly, quietly merging into Li Jun's nose. He didn't even notice, only feeling a warmth in his nose and finding his breathing much easier.
In his dream, there was that silver Squirrel again, darting agilely through the woods.
It leaped between branches, its form flickering in and out of sight. Li Jun chased desperately, but no matter how he shouted or ran, the Squirrel maintained a distance that was sometimes close, sometimes far, as if playing hide-and-seek with him.
"Don't run—wait for me! Where are you taking me?" he shouted in the dream.
But the Squirrel only glanced back at him, its eyes clear, yet it remained silent.
The next moment, a gust of wind blew, and it scattered like smoke, vanishing instantly. Li Jun reached out to grab it, catching only a few pine needles gently spiraling down.
...