Chapter 6

As the sun rose in the east, the orange light gradually illuminated the sky. The roosters crowed one after another in the village, filling the air with the sounds of daily life.

At the village entrance, the wharf was filled with fishing boats, and the fishermen were busy with their nets. Outside the embankment, children took advantage of the ebbing tide to rush to the riverbank, digging for crabs on the riverbed. The turbid Min River lashed against the riverbank, spewing white, greasy foam.

The villagers of Hongshan Village, after eating a large bowl of porridge at home, left their houses, shouldering their hoes, and went out to the fields. The diligent housewives began to feed the ducks, and the quacking sounds echoed throughout the village.

"Life's length is predestined, and a person's wealth and honor are determined by heaven. Only a gentleman can be content with poverty, and a wise man knows his fate."

At this moment, the clear and resonant reading voice slowly drifted out from the Lin family's house.

The busy villagers couldn't help but stop and look towards the Lin family.

"Isn't that Lin Yanshou?"

"No, I saw Yanshou go to the village school early this morning. This is their second son."

"Oh, I really envy the Lin family for having two students. Unlike us, who can only toil in the fields all our lives."

"With such dedication, it's possible that our village will produce another scholar."

At this, the villagers murmured with envy. If it weren't for Lin Gaozhu's success as a scholar, the village head's daughter wouldn't have married Lin Gaozhu's son, and the clan wouldn't have allocated ten acres of clan land. This was a major event at the time, and the village still often talks about how Lin Ding became a scholar.

As the villagers chatted, the topic veered off course.

"I don't know if the young man from the Lin family will become a scholar, but he is a formidable character."

"How so? Tell me more."

"You missed a good show the other day. The matriarch of the Lin family was so upset with the second son that she was kicked out of the house and sent back to her parents' home."

"That's not right. The eldest daughter-in-law was expelled by the entire Lin family, and Yanshou was crying for his mother, but the matriarch refused to let her return."

Hearing this, the villagers looked at Lin Yanchao with newfound respect. Who didn't know that the matriarch, relying on her father being the chief of the village, was a notorious troublemaker, feared by all. And yet, she was dealt with by a twelve-year-old boy.

"This Lin family's old scholar, if not for the Japanese pirates, would have had a smoother path."

"Don't think he has no parents; such a child grows up early and is sensible."

Lin Yanchao's reading voice grew lower, but he heard every word of the neighbors' discussions.

At this moment, Lin Qianqian opened the door and, hearing the outside chatter, quickly said, "Don't listen to these idle words."

"They can talk all they want; their mouths are on their heads. After the matriarch returned to her parents' home, did Chief Xie come to cause trouble for us?"

Lin Qianqian shook her head and said, "No, Grandfather said that Chief Xie is known to be extremely protective of his family. If he comes to question us, we won't be afraid, but if he doesn't, things will be worse."

Lin Yanchao nodded, thinking that Grandfather was indeed a wise man, seeing things clearly. When the Xie family truly comes to confront us, they will be well-prepared, and then it will be truly troublesome.

In the Ming Dynasty, the chief of the village was known as the chief of the village, who could assign corvée labor and had certain judicial powers.

Lin Qianqian said, "Grandfather said that we don't fear the Xie family. Our family has roots in the village. If necessary, we can fight openly, but we are worried that he will bribe the clerks and assign us difficult corvée labor."

In the Ming Dynasty, there were only two types of corvée labor: regular and miscellaneous. Regular corvée labor included tax grain, household labor, and other duties. Miscellaneous corvée labor, also known as miscellaneous duties, involved providing labor to the government. Miscellaneous duties were divided into labor and silver duties. Silver duties involved paying money to hire laborers, while labor duties required personal service.

The villagers feared labor duties the most. Lin Gaozhu knew the severity of this, for example, a postman who offended him was often dispatched to carry unimportant official letters, running back and forth over twenty miles daily!

Modern people find it hard to imagine the power of the village chief. Just the assignment of corvée labor alone could bankrupt a family.

Lin Yanchao knew the power of the village chief but still comforted Lin Qianqian, saying, "What's there to fear? We'll deal with it as it comes."

"Don't talk big," Lin Qianqian scolded, but then added, "But after you recovered from your illness, you seem like a different person."

Lin Yanchao smiled and said, "That's right, Qianqian. I'm not the same person anymore."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that a thousand-year-old ghost has possessed me. It will harm our whole family, starting with the matriarch, then one by one, until it's your turn. Are you afraid?"

"Not at all!" Lin Qianqian laughed.

Lin Yanchao smiled and said, "Qianqian, I'm feeling better. I'll prepare to go to the village school tomorrow."

"Of course. When you're at the village school, you must study hard and not fall behind."

Lin Yanchao saw a hint of worry in her eyes and said, "Qianqian, don't worry about the tuition. I'll ask the teacher to give us some time."

Lin Qianqian shook her head and said, "Brother, just focus on your studies. Don't worry about the money."

The next day, Lin Yanchao packed his things, including the four treasures of the study. Lin Qianqian brought in a bowl of thread noodles with two large duck eggs on top.

"Come, come, eat the peace noodles and peace eggs."

The noodles were thread noodles, long and thin. Even if a family was poor, they would always have thread noodles. When a family member went out or a guest visited, they would cook a bowl of peace noodles for them.

The duck eggs on top were called peace eggs, and only duck eggs could be used, not chicken eggs. In the Min language, which preserves ancient Chinese, eggs are called "yuan." Duck eggs are called "duck yuan," which sounds like "pressing chaos," meaning peace. Duck eggs also sound like "pressing waves," so fishermen also eat peace eggs before going out to sea.

These noodles and eggs were filled with Lin Qianqian's affection.

Lin Yanchao's heart was touched, but his face remained calm. He blew away the scallions on the soup, picked up the noodles with his chopsticks, and slurped them into his mouth.

Lin Qianqian watched Lin Yanchao eat and took out a package of money, saying, "Here are 200 coins. 100 are for the Dragon Boat Festival. Tell the teacher about the tuition, and we'll pay him back after the Mid-Autumn Festival. The other 100 are for you to use for food and necessities, but don't spend it recklessly."

Lin Qianqian earnestly instructed, holding the money tightly, as if afraid Lin Yanchao would spend it carelessly. Lin Yanchao knew that the money was earned by Lin Qianqian from weaving grass mats from dawn to dusk, one coin at a time.

"Qianqian, I don't need that much. Keep some for yourself, don't overwork yourself."

Lin Yanchao said this, and Lin Qianqian frowned. She pouted and said, "Brother, if you say that again, I won't talk to you. I work hard to save money so you can succeed. I don't want my future husband to be a failure."

"If you don't become a scholar, don't even think about entering my house, hmpf!"

"Okay, okay. I promise."

"No, you can't just say it to get me to stop."

"Okay, I won't just say it."

Seeing Lin Yanchao's repeated assurances, Lin Qianqian's face lit up with a smile.

At this moment, Lin Yanchao raised his head and said seriously, "But I have a condition. You must also agree to something."

"What?" Lin Qianqian asked, blinking her eyes.

Lin Yanchao lifted his bowl and poured the remaining half of the noodles and a duck egg into Lin Qianqian's bowl. "Promise to eat it all."

Lin Qianqian looked at the noodles and egg in her bowl, stunned.

"Eat it, what are you waiting for?"

Lin Qianqian smiled gently and, embarrassed, picked up the duck egg with her chopsticks, opened her cherry-like mouth, and took a small bite. Seeing Lin Yanchao staring at her, she blushed and angrily put down her chopsticks, hitting Lin Yanchao.

"Go, go, don't be late." Lin Qianqian pushed Lin Yanchao out the door.

Lin Yanchao shouldered his school bag and luggage and walked out the door.

The sky was just brightening, and the roosters crowed again, flapping their wings and returning to their nests.

Lin Qianqian chased after him and said, "Brother, there are two cakes in your luggage. Eat them if you get hungry!"

"I'll be waiting for you at home!"

Lin Yanchao walked to the village entrance and looked back. Lin Qianqian was still standing there, watching him. When she saw him turn around, she smiled sweetly and waved.

Lin Yanchao waved back and said, "Qianqian, don't worry. I will succeed and come back to marry you!"

With that, Lin Yanchao turned and walked away, and Hongshan Village gradually disappeared behind him. The village school was in Zhang Cuo, at the foot of Dongqi Ridge, while Lin Yanchao's village, Hongshan Village, was at the foot of Xifeng Mountain.

Dongqi Ridge and Xifeng Mountain both belonged to Hongshan. Hongshan Village and Zhang Cuo were part of Houguan County's Hongtang Township, but Hongshan Village belonged to Yong'an Township, and Zhang Cuo belonged to Qinghua Township. In Hongtang Township, there were seven villages and two village schools, which was a relatively high density.

The village school in Hongshan Village was a joint effort of the government and the people, with the teacher being an old scholar, ensuring the best quality of education. Many villagers preferred to send their children there. Lin Yanchao's cousin, Lin Yanshou, had to pay a lot of tuition and rely on his grandfather and maternal grandfather's influence to enter the village school.

As for the village school in Zhang Cuo, it was naturally inferior, with the county government largely leaving it to its own devices. The teacher was a child scholar, not a scholar.

Lin Yanchao walked on the mountain path, and the river was still a turbid yellow. In the past, Hongshan was just an island in the Min River, but over time, the silt from the Min River accumulated, gradually expanding and connecting with Gaigai Mountain, Xiamaw Mountain, and Yantai Mountain, forming today's large island in the river.

The waters of the Min River from the four prefectures upstream converge at Hongshan, then split around the island, with the left branch entering the Wulong River and the right branch entering the Hong River. This stretch of water was very dangerous, with strong currents and frequent storms, often causing ships to capsize.

The Min River roared beside him, and the path under his feet was a mountain trail. From Xifeng to Dongqi Ridge, he still had several miles of mountain road to walk.

Taking advantage of the early morning, Lin Yanchao climbed Dongqi Ridge, using a bamboo cane to support himself. Looking up, he saw the ancient temple, surrounded by purple and green mountains. Hongshan had a famous scenic spot called Miaofeng Temple, built during the Tian Sheng period of the Song Dynasty and rebuilt during the Chenghua period. It was the most secluded and vast among the nine temples and eleven monasteries in the area.

Miaofeng Temple was even more famous for the Yan Mountain Ancestral Hall beside it, also built during the Song Dynasty. Since the Song Dynasty, many scholars from Hongtang Township had studied there during the summer to avoid the heat, and over a hundred scholars and officials had emerged from there. Lin Yanchao's father had also studied there and later became a scholar.

After climbing the mountain, the Hong River was no longer visible. Looking down at the valley, he saw a cluster of houses, which was Zhang Cuo. In Min language, "cuo" means "home," and many place names in Min include "cuo," often prefixed with a surname. This is because many residents of Min were originally from Central China and settled in one place, forming villages with a single surname.

In Hongtang Township, there were seven villages, and Zhang Cuo was predominantly inhabited by the Zhang family. Although Zhang Cuo was a small village, it had walls, drawbridges, and watchtowers, built during the severe Japanese pirate invasions.

As he approached the village entrance, he saw a large archway standing there.

This was not a filial piety archway but an archway for scholars. Everyone entering the village would see the two-story archway with the word "Scholar" inscribed on the top. On the right, in small regular script, it read, "Passed the imperial examination in the 12th year of the Zhengde era (1517)," and on the left, "Zhang Jing, 64th rank, third class."