Idiot, Cheng Zi’an cursed inwardly.
Fool, Teacher Xu cursed inwardly.
“Xin Jinian, cease your loud clamoring!” Teacher Xu sternly halted Xin Jinian’s noisy outburst, his face cold and solemn as he declared, “A student cheating is a matter of moral misconduct. This concerns a person’s reputation, and we absolutely cannot let such behavior go unchecked, nor can we make baseless accusations.”
Once Teacher Xu spoke, the commotion in the class gradually subsided. Xin Jinian glanced around, feeling humiliated and unwilling to back down, shouting defiantly, “Cheng Zi’an clearly cheated! Teacher Xu is shielding him!”
Just a teacher—the Xin family had several teachers at the Fuxue, all renowned Great Confucian Scholars. The New Year gifts the Xin family gave to these teachers were worth more than a poor person could earn in a lifetime.
Teacher Xu felt annoyed. He was a reserved person who didn’t pay much attention to the Mengtong Class students, but he simply disliked fools.
Xin Jinian was foolish yet unaware of it, which made Teacher Xu dislike him even more. He spoke bluntly, “Xin Jinian, you accuse Cheng Zi’an of cheating. How could he possibly have cheated? Did you pass him the answers, or did Zhang Qi pass them to him?”
Cheng Zi’an sat in the last row, with a wall behind him, Zhang Qi to his right, and Xin Jinian in front of him.
All the classmates turned their heads to look at them.
Seeing all eyes on him and realizing he might also be suspected of cheating, Zhang Qi panicked. Blinking his eyes, he defended himself, “Teacher Xu, please be fair. I didn’t pass any answers to Cheng Zi’an. Besides, where would I even get the answers? I didn’t get a single question right!”
Someone couldn’t hold back and snorted with laughter.
Indeed, Cheng Zi’an had no way to cheat.
Even if he flipped through books during the Arithmetic exam, it would be useless—each test question was different, and the answers weren’t in the books.
Copying from classmates would only work if they excelled. The classmates around Cheng Zi’an, Zhang Qi and Xin Jinian, had performed terribly.
Another possibility was that Teacher Xu had leaked the questions to Cheng Zi’an in advance.
But this wasn’t the Imperial Examination—what purpose would Teacher Xu have in leaking test questions to Cheng Zi’an?
Xin Jinian’s face flushed red, then turned pale, burning with shame. Unlike Zhang Qi, who shamelessly admitted his poor performance to absolve himself, Xin Jinian couldn’t bring himself to do the same.
None of his classmates came from families as prestigious as his, and he had always looked down on them. For Xin Jinian, being outperformed by other Xin family members was one thing, but how could he tolerate someone as poor and shabby as Fang Yin studying better than him?
Now, even Cheng Zi’an, who had been a fellow underachiever, was about to leave him behind, making Xin Jinian even more furious.
“Teacher Xu, Cheng Zi’an cheated, he must have cheated!” Xin Jinian opened his mouth and couldn’t control himself, bursting into loud sobs, his neck stiff as he accused hoarsely.
Seeing him so adamant, the other classmates began to waver.
Someone suggested, “Whether Cheng Zi’an cheated or not, Teacher Xu can just give him a question to answer on the spot, and we’ll know.”
“Yes, yes! Cheng Zi’an can prove his innocence right here and now.”
Xin Jinian cried loudly, and Teacher Xu, his head aching from the noise, picked up the Teaching Ruler and slapped it against the desk, shouting, “Quiet! Quiet!”
The discussions stopped, and Xin Jinian’s sobs gradually softened into quiet sniffles.
Teacher Xu looked at Cheng Zi’an, who sat there obediently, not uttering a word from beginning to end.
“Cheng Zi’an,” Teacher Xu called out, wanting to resolve the matter quickly, though he hesitated slightly.
Teacher Xu didn’t believe Cheng Zi’an had cheated. Aside from the impossibility of cheating, he also thought that failing such simple Arithmetic questions would be truly unforgivable foolishness.
As Cheng Zhen’s son, Cheng Zi’an had been taught by his father’s words and example, so he couldn’t be too far off the mark. Some people bloom late; his poor academic performance in the past was simply because Cheng Zi’an hadn’t yet awakened to his potential.
Cheng Zi’an stood up, gazing at Teacher Xu with clear, innocent eyes, and asked with particular naivety, “Teacher Xu, I have a question I don’t understand. Why do I need to prove myself?”
Someone giggled and said, “Because you’re suspected of cheating!”
Cheng Zi’an nodded blankly, let out an “oh,” and pointed at the speaker, saying, “Li Wenxu, I also suspect you cheated, in every subject.”
Li Wenxu, singled out by Cheng Zi’an, was stunned. If everyone had to prove themselves whenever suspected, then anyone could raise suspicions, and everyone would be trapped in a cycle of self-justification.
It would never end.
Ignoring Li Wenxu, Cheng Zi’an glanced at Teacher Xu, who seemed lost in thought, then sat back down and continued playing the obedient student.
Proving himself was all too easy—not just addition and subtraction, but even multiplication and division were no challenge at all.
Cheng Zi’an refused to indulge their bad habits, falling into the vicious cycle of self-justification, like cutting open one’s stomach to show the world how many bowls of noodles one had eaten.
Judgment required evidence, and Cheng Zi’an had a clear conscience. Arithmetic would continue to be studied, and there would be more exams in the future. He had plenty of opportunities to showcase his genius.
Teacher Xu rapped the Teaching Ruler again and said sternly, “Let this serve as a rule: from now on, anyone who accuses another must provide concrete evidence. Otherwise, it will be considered slander. That’s enough—no more discussion on this matter.”
Everyone immediately sat up straight. Though Xin Jinian was filled with resentment, he could only glare fiercely at Cheng Zi’an, grind his stool until it creaked, and slump over his desk in frustration.
Mr. Zhou, who had been standing outside the window listening, left silently.
The sun was dazzling, and the weather grew hotter each day. Wealthy families began switching to cool silk garments. Servants and attendants did the same, shedding their spring clothes for lighter summer attire, just like Xin Da.
Xin Da had been sent by Xin Zhong to resolve the matter of Xin Jinian bullying Fang Yin. He greeted Mr. Zhou politely, but his every gesture exuded the arrogance of a prominent family.
“Mr. Zhou, you’ve worked hard. The Third Master heard about the young master’s incident at school and was deeply concerned. The young master is the Third Master’s youngest legitimate son, and the Third Mistress has always doted on him as if he were the apple of her eye. Fortunately, though the young master was raised with indulgence, he is kind and sensible at heart. Even when he sees a small cat or dog injured, he grieves for a long time. The young master is still young and mischievous; it’s common for him to lose control when roughhousing with classmates. The Third Master feels very apologetic and sent me to apologize to the classmate.”
From start to finish, Xin Da never looked directly at Fang Yin. He casually shoved a cloth bundle into Fang Yin’s arms and said, “The Xin family often builds bridges, paves roads, and provides porridge to aid the poor—they’ve done countless good deeds. The Third Master is compassionate and cannot bear to see suffering in the world. Classmate Fang’s clothes are torn, and regardless of whether this incident is related to the young master, the Third Master has gifted this bolt of cloth to Classmate Fang. Use it to make two new sets of clothes. Since you’ve come to study at Fuxue, you mustn’t disgrace its reputation.”
Fang Yin held the cloth bundle, unsure of what to do. Though Mr. Zhou urged him to express gratitude, he couldn’t bring himself to say the words. Forcing a faint smile, he said, “Please set the bundle aside for now. I’ll take it after class.” Then, turning to Xin Da, he added, “Class is about to start. I’m sorry I cannot stay longer. Please sit and have a cup of tea, Master Xin. I’ll speak with you after class.”
Xin Dadao still had matters to attend to, so he cupped his hands in farewell and said, “I must return now. There’s a heap of things at the manor that cannot be left unattended.”
The cloth inside the cloth bundle had been opened and inspected by Mr. Zhou earlier.
It was a thick, high-quality brocade. When the wrapping cloth was undone, a faint musty smell wafted out, likely from having been stored in the warehouse for a long time.
Despite being old fabric, its value far exceeded that of Fang Yin’s worn coarse-cloth garments.
A cotton-padded jacket in summer, a cooling fan in winter, and the fine garments that wealthy families took for granted were merely rags for the poor to cover their bodies and hide their shame.
Mr. Zhou shook his head. When had he become as pedantic as those sour scholars? The ways of the world were as they were, and he had long seen them clearly.
It was just that Cheng Zi’an, that lad, had handled the situation this time in a way that truly impressed him.
Mr. Zhou chuckled to himself. It seemed that after returning home last night, Cheng Zi’an must have been thoroughly disciplined by Cheng Zhen.
As the holiday approached, the students were all eager to return home and had no heart for studying. The teachers, having been students themselves, could easily discern their restless fidgeting and knew exactly what was on their minds.
After assigning homework, they dismissed the class early. As soon as the teacher left, the classroom erupted into lively chaos, with everyone shouting and clamoring as they grabbed their book boxes and rushed out.
The joy of the holiday had dissipated most of Xin Jinian’s anger. He couldn’t wait to shoulder his book box, wriggling his plump body to push left and right, shouting loudly, “Make way, make way! Don’t block the path!”
Like little beasts released from their cages, the others, seeing Xin Jinian shoving, joined in the jostling with enthusiasm, laughing and frolicking together.
The Mengtong Academy had beautiful scenery, with bamboo and flowers planted in the courtyard and covered walkways connecting to the main gate.
The Mengtong were always mischievous, never content to walk properly along the covered walkways. Instead, they would leap down the three steps from the classroom and cut straight across the courtyard to the gate.
As everyone jumped down the steps together, Xin Jinian had just lifted his legs when suddenly, with his arms flailing, he plunged headfirst like an uprooted onion, landing solidly in the courtyard.
The commotion paused, and an eerie silence fell over the surroundings.
Soon, the silence was broken. “Ouch!” Xin Jinian screamed in pain, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He cried out indistinctly, “Mother! I want my mother!”