Even before he recovered his memories, Xu Qiu had intended to leave this place by taking the imperial examinations.
Now, having regained the memories of his past life, he was naturally even more determined to do so.
The teacher he studied under was the middle-aged man associated with Gu Chengxiao.
Xu Qiu had known the identities of these two men both before and after recovering his memories. The arrangement to become their student had begun before his memory retrieval, right after Gu Chengxiao was exiled to this remote region. Penniless and relying on his meager martial arts skills, Gu Chengxiao had gone hunting in the deep mountains, only to discover that the mountains here were unlike any others and had ended up poisoned. He eventually sought out the old village doctor, and it was Xu Qiu who had saved his life.
After a few interactions, the two sides established a connection.
Later, upon recovering his memories and recalling the plot of the novel, Xu Qiu understood much more.
The two men before him included Gu Chengxiao, the eldest imperial prince of the current dynasty. His birth mother had died young, and he had been exiled to Beiyue on suspicion of treason. At the same time, he held another identity: the protagonist gong of the story. In the future, he would ascend the throne, while Xu Qiu’s original body was destined to share a close relationship with him, where one would become emperor and the other prime minister, forming an exemplary pairing of ruler and subject.
However, that was all part of the original plot and served merely as background information. In the story, after Xu Qiu married Lin Qu, he completely became a foil to the protagonist couple, and his life deteriorated day by day.
He could no longer remain friends with the protagonist gong, a person he supposedly had a decent relationship with in the original timeline.
Xu Qiu was not overly bothered by this. Currently, his relationship with Gu Chengxiao was primarily based on mutual utilization. Exiled to this place, Gu Chengxiao was under close surveillance and forced to labor daily at the quarry or dig irrigation ditches.
In short, he was given the most grueling tasks imaginable.
It was likely that his brothers were behind the scenes, making things difficult for him.
Since his birth mother had passed away early and he had been exiled for treason, the emperor cared little about his fate.
Aside from himself, Gu Chengxiao had a man in his forties named Mr. Wen, who taught Xu Qiu to read and write. Mr. Wen was Gu Chengxiao’s strategist, having accompanied him into exile.
Their lives had been harsh ever since their arrival. The meager allowance issued monthly by their overseers was hardly enough to get by. When winter arrived with its biting cold, dying from a lack of proper heating materials would not have been unusual at all.
Therefore, Xu Qiu and the two of them quickly struck a bargain: they would teach him the knowledge required for the imperial examinations, while Xu Qiu would provide daily necessities. Furthermore, given the influence of Xu Qiu’s family in the village, the overseers would show some leniency toward Gu Chengxiao out of respect for the Xu family.
Both parties took what they needed.
Although they had weighed many factors before making this decision, Xu Qiu and the two men had actually gotten along quite well over the past two months. As a prince destined to take the throne, and someone who could be considered an enlightened ruler in the future, Gu Chengxiao generally possessed a normal temperament and treated talented individuals with warmth and courtesy. On one hand, Xu Qiu’s unique family background made him useful; on the other hand, Xu Qiu grasped academic concepts instantly, making it clear that he was destined for the imperial court in the future.
What Gu Chengxiao lacked most were people who could speak on his behalf in the court.
For a prince raised in the imperial palace, winning people over was an easy task.
Similarly, since Gu Chengxiao presented an open and forthright demeanor, and Xu Qiu needed them to teach him how to study, the two sides accommodated each other and managed to get along reasonably well.
Moreover, as men destined to become emperor and prime minister respectively, they possessed a certain degree of personal charisma. Even if the time they had spent together was too short to forge a deep emotional bond, a mutual sense of appreciation was inevitable.
Xu Qiu was not entirely certain how his future relationship with Gu Chengxiao would unfold if he chose to stay out of the struggle between Lin Qu and Lin Qiong. After all, despite the character’s lofty and imposing persona in the novel, he also tended to be somewhat overly romantic. Carrying the label of Lin Qiong’s former fiancé would make it difficult for Gu Chengxiao not to mind.
Besides, Xu Qiu was not the type to bow his head and flatter others with an ingratiating smile.
After a brief thought, Xu Qiu stopped dwelling on the matter. In any case, his relationship with Gu Chengxiao was what it was, and he did not rely on the prince to achieve anything. It would be many years before Gu Chengxiao could ever hope to claim the throne. By that time, Xu Qiu might already be serving as an official in some distant province.
If things reached that point and Gu Chengxiao still insisted on holding a grudge against him, he wouldn’t be a pushover either.
Still, viewed in this light, his studies needed to be accelerated; otherwise, if the tutor ever stopped teaching him, finding a qualified instructor wouldn’t be easy.
Having finished studying the new material for the day, Xu Qiu stood up. “It’s getting late, and both you and Mr. Wen need some time to rest, so I’ll head back first. The padded quilt will take a few more days to finish, but it should be ready well before the cold weather sets in. I’ll bring it over then.”
“If you two need anything else, feel free to let me know.”
Gu Chengxiao walked him out to the door and replied, “You’ve already provided more than enough; this is more than sufficient.” Having been exiled for so long, Gu Chengxiao was no longer the sheltered prince ignorant of the common people’s hardships. He knew very well that providing all these items required a considerable amount of silver.
Yet, within the span of just two months, Xu Qiu had already given them an immense amount of supplies.
Asking the young man directly for minor items was something Gu Chengxiao could not bring himself to do. Fortunately, Xu Qiu never needed to be asked; he was keenly observant of everyday needs, noticing what they lacked and purchasing it for them directly.
In his words and actions, Xu Qiu never adopted a condescending attitude despite supplying them with goods, which made Gu Chengxiao genuinely grateful for how carefully the young man preserved their dignity.
Escorting him all the way to the entrance and watching Xu Qiu’s figure recede into the distance, Gu Chengxiao finally turned back around.
Since Gu Chengxiao, the master of the house, had gone out to see Xu Qiu off, Mr. Wen naturally could not remain sitting alone inside and had followed him out. Watching this scene, the strategist couldn’t help a spark of lingering indignation. “He is merely a country boy from a barren land. Why does Your Highness need to be so polite to him?”
As the eldest son of the imperial family, reduced to such a plight, he found it humiliating that the grand imperial prince had to act so deferentially simply because a village youth had brought some clothes, cooking pots, and other miscellaneous items.
It was simply difficult to watch.
Gu Chengxiao shook his head. “Look at the lives we are living right now. We aren’t even as comfortable as commoners, and we still rely on his care. Being polite is only natural.” Although he was the eldest prince, his birth mother had died early, and her family background was ordinary. Furthermore, his mother had not been the empress.
Not being born of the primary wife while holding the title of the eldest son meant his days back in the capital had never been easy.
Therefore, Gu Chengxiao accepted his current circumstances quite well.