Chapter Five: Reading Is Not Difficult

Carefully, Su Yuan, his face mottled with bruises, approached the plump woman whose anger had mostly dissipated. Seeing his injured face, she asked coldly, "What happened to your face this time?" Su Yuan forced a smile and replied, "I tripped and fell while walking." The woman seemed accustomed to such absurdities happening to her son, so she didn't probe further as other parents might.

She picked up Su Yuan’s schoolbag, which he had just seen placed on the table upon entering. "Tomorrow, you’ll start attending the private academy. Study hard, do you hear me? My future prosperity depends on you. If you become a top scholar, I’ll bask in your glory!" Su Yuan slapped his forehead with a sigh. What a headache!

The next morning, just after breakfast, Su Yuan was dragged off to the academy by a boy named Li Yu, who shared the name with an emperor of the Tang dynasty. Li Yu was a little older, around ten, with handsome, refined features and the gentle air of a scholar. He was also very courteous.

The two walked together toward the academy. Every time they met someone on the road, Li Yu would naturally greet them. Truly a child from a good family.

Su Yuan, however, was in no mood for pleasantries; his grades had always been mediocre, and he had struggled to finally graduate, relieved to be free from those incomprehensible texts—yet now...

Trouble seemed to follow him. Yesterday’s big boy now trailed behind with a group of little "henchmen," and the girl who played the bride was among them. The large boy was ready to fulfill his promise from the day before, rolling up his sleeves and clenching his fists as he marched toward Su Yuan. Su Yuan quickly hid behind Li Yu, who extended an arm to block the big boy. "Zhang Meng, if you dare bully Su Hang, I’ll tell your teacher."

Zhang Meng, evidently afraid of his own teacher, led his group onward toward the academy. The little bride kept glancing back at Li Yu and Su Yuan. Su Yuan, safely behind Li Yu, wore a look of schadenfreude and kept tossing flirtatious glances at the “bride.”

Su Yuan met his own teacher for the first time—a skinny old man with a wispy beard and a lingering scent of alcohol. He glanced at the other teachers: dressed in white robes, adorned with jade hairpins, tall and imposing, elegant and charismatic.

The old man's students were few; counting Li Yu and Su Yuan, there were only a handful.

The first impression was hardly favorable, but there was no choice in teachers—one's selection depended on the tuition paid each term. Su Yuan was used to this; it was much like the modern school district system, where some schools were simply unattainable. Li Yu, noticing Su Yuan’s disappointment, tried to comfort him. "Don’t worry, our teacher is a man of great learning."

The sound of reciting texts in the academy made Su Yuan feel as though he had returned to more than a decade ago.

The old man at the lectern nodded off, paying little attention to the scattered students below. Each student was busy with their own amusements: some folding paper swords, others playing guessing games. Aside from Li Yu, who was diligently reading, most were simply passing the time.

A large pile of books was stacked beside the old man’s desk.

If Su Yuan had any regrets from his school days, it wouldn’t be failing to study hard enough to attend a prestigious university; rather, he lamented not spending his ample free time reading a wide variety of books.

Searching through the pile, Su Yuan found a book titled "Midnight Rendezvous of Young Master Liu." Delighted, he eagerly flipped through the pages—astonished to find it illustrated. In one scene, a handsome scholar lay atop a young woman. The teacher glanced at the book in Su Yuan’s hands and remarked with admiration, "From the simple to the complex—a promising student. Though the content is somewhat bold!"

"Not too bold, not too bold, Teacher. May I borrow this book to read at home?" Su Yuan shamelessly asked. The old man nodded, "Of course! There are several others here—why not read them as well?" Following his teacher’s suggestion, Su Yuan searched out similar titles from the pile, all seemingly tales of young scholars and beautiful maidens.

These books gave Su Yuan a new perspective on the old man—he was, after all, a kindred spirit.

With no phones or other entertainment, Su Yuan could only rely on these books to pass the time. At first, he read purely for amusement, but later, under his teacher’s guidance, he began to read more serious, philosophical works.

"Teacher, why do we read?" As time went on, Su Yuan came to deeply respect the teacher, agreeing with Li Yu that he was indeed a man of great learning. The old man shook his head and replied, "To attain nobility, to bring honor to one’s ancestors!"

Su Yuan was disappointed. Reading was such a noble pursuit, yet in the end, it was reduced to a mere means of altering one’s fate. Those with high degrees but lacking virtue often forgot the lessons of their books upon entering high society, beginning to scorn, exploit, and oppress those who once shared their own circumstances. Was a society where all are born equal truly unattainable?

The old man observed Su Yuan’s thoughtful expression and smiled meaningfully.