Chapter 011

Author: Feast of Masks

Raws: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=3185016

Translated by Gumihou

Edited by Gumihou: Just some very minor sentence restructuring for better understanding

 

The expression on Xue Qingshan’s face was a little unpleasant. At the same time, he was also a little surprised.

His nephew had always been the rather reserved type and barely made a fart even when smacked with three sticks. He had acted this way because he had been counting on the second branch’s reticent temper.

Still, he was someone who had lived longer than Xue Tingxiang and naturally would know how to put in some superficial effort to make himself look less bad.

He sighed gustily and said, “The little fellow had been spoilt by his mother. It is also my fault for not disciplining him well. Well, well, eldest uncle shall now apologise to you.”

Xue Tingxiang hurriedly dodged away from Xue Qingshan’s exaggerated bow, saying, “Uncle, please don’t say that. Ting’er is a junior and cannot accept this apology.”

“Ting’er? You have unexpectedly given yourself a name,” Xue Qingshan laughed. This was also his way of pointing out that Xue Tingxiang giving himself a name was incorrect and lacked etiquette.

After all, names should be bestowed by their elders, and juniors should not randomly pick their own names. Regular villagers may give themselves airs by picking out fancy names, but as a scholar, Xue Tingxiang should understand this much. If he could not even observe this bit of etiquette, he had certainly wasted his time studying.

Naturally, Xue Tingxiang also knew where his uncle was leading with this comment. He sneered and said, “When Father was alive, he asked Uncle and Grandfather to pick out a name for me. Back then, Eldest Uncle said that ‘children with baser names are easier to provide for’. However, Ting’er is already fourteen, how could I continue to use a child’s name? Thus, I had no choice but to randomly pick a name for myself.”

Xue Qingshan’s expression immediately turned ugly at this. Clearly, Xue Tingxiang was accusing this uncle of his for deliberately belittling him and was unwilling to pick out a name for him. After all, as a scholar, Xue Tingxiang should have a good name.

He forced a smile and said, “Eldest Uncle saw that you were poor in health and wished to delay the naming process until you have grown up a bit more. You must not have understood your uncle’s effort. Still, why don’t you let your eldest uncle pick out a name for you now?”

Without waiting for Xue Tingxiang’s answer, he sighed again and stared into the distance for a little while before saying, “You have been weak since you were young, back when he was alive, your father had always hoped that you would live a long and prosperous life. Uncle shall name you [1] Fushou, how about it?”

It was clear that this name was very casually picked out and did not reflect Xue Qingshan’s title as Yuqing Village’s only Tong Sheng.

Xue Tingxiang hesitated for a moment before declining it with, “I believe it is better not to use Uncle’s suggestion. Ting’er had already been decided. Ting’er had also informed Father and Mother of this name, it is not good to change it.”

With this, he also managed to explain why he suddenly went to the graveyard on a random day. Seeing how Xue Qingshan had brought so many people over and kicked up such a fuss, this ‘elder’ must have some kind of a plan in mind.

Regardless of what kind of plan his uncle has, all he has to do is block all the possible reasons Xue Qingshan might use to make a fuss and observe how the others react.

As expected, Patriarch Xue’s expression softened a little.

Before, he had always thought that the second branch’s child was deliberately making trouble to compete with Juncai for an opportunity to enter Qinghe Academy. It was only now that he finally saw that this child was a gentle and polite young man, neither humble nor overbearing. Although Patriarch Xue has no scholarly honour to his name, he had some schooling. He had also been the patriarch of a clan for many years and had a good eye for people.

He was very surprised by this child because this was a Gouzi he had never seen before. In the past, Gouzi had not left a deep impression on him, being just another unremarkable child. However, it looked like this young man had matured quite unexpectedly.

Still, no matter how impressed he was, Patriarch Xue did not forget his purpose for coming here. A single good impression alone could not shake his decision. After all, he had more knowledgeable people test Juncai’s potential and Patriarch Xue knew that of the two cousins, Juncai had the potential to become the next Tong Sheng.

Perhaps even to become a Xiucai!

Of the two potential seedlings before him, he knew the potential of one, while the other was an unknown. Naturally, Patriarch Xue knows which he would choose.

However, that was before he witnessed the exchange between uncle and nephew. If Xue Qingshan could not even handle himself in an argument with a child, he really could not take this person’s opinion into consideration.

How could Xue Qingshan not see Patriarch Xue’s thoughts? In his eyes, this old undying bastard was someone who didn’t release the hawk until he had seen the rabbits. This old thing only knows how to take in the benefits that Xue Qingshan brought into the clan, but refuses to give out any benefits.

What clan would build a school without subsidising their teachers? Instead, he had to work all day long for nothing. What did he get for it? Now and then, whenever someone would offer the clan some food or grain, the Patriarch would call him over to take in yet another child into his school.

Not only did he lose out in terms of benefits, but he was exploited by others! The rewards never reached him and yet, he had to work harder while others got to throw his name around and receive even more face! What is the use of this meaningless honour?!

Xue Qingshan sneered privately in his heart, but maintained a respectful pleading face as he invited Patriarch Xue, Zheng Lizheng and others into the house.

Patriarch Xue and Zheng Lizheng sat cross-legged on the kang, one on the left and one on the right, while others sat below them on stools. Yang’shi and Zhou’shi busily poured tea in the other room while Tao’er was sent to call Old Man Xue home.

Both Patriarch Xue and Zheng Lizheng were in the habit of smoking tobacco. Once they settled down, they took out their little tobacco pouches containing their pipes and shredded tobacco leaves.

Xue Qingshan hurriedly grabbed the bag of tobacco leaves from his mother, Old Zhao’s, hand and presented it to both elders, saying, “These are personally grown by my father. He treasures it a lot, Uncle, Uncle Lizheng should try it.”

“Your father’s tobacco is very good, too bad there is so little of it,” Zheng Lizheng said with a smile after a couple of puffs. 

Xue Qingshan replied, “If Uncle Lizheng likes it, I shall pack some for you later. You must not decline it.”

These were all courteous words. Everyone knew each other after all. Zheng Lizheng nodded with a smile, and went straight to the point, “Shan’zhi, what have you called us old fellows here for, eh?”

Looking at Zheng Lizheng’s smiling fox face, Xue Qingshan privately scolded: There was no way that this whole thing turned into such a big mess without this surname Zheng’s influence. However, I still invite you here, because you are the Lizheng of this Yuqing Village and a prominent member of the Zheng clan. So, don’t say that I am trying to cover up anything.

Aside from these two elders, Xue Qingshan had also invited some of the villagers. A few were surnamed Zheng, a few from the Xue clan and two other villagers with different surnames, but still rather prominent.

“We have a matter that requires the decision of the elders. It is still better to wait for my father’s return. He is in the field and will be back soon.”

The moment he spoke of Old Man Xue, the man himself entered. Another round of greetings later, Old Man Xue sat down and immediately went straight to the point, “This is a most shameful matter indeed. Recently, my family must have been the source of ridicule for everyone in the village.” 

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the room, with the exception of Patriarch Xue and Zheng Lizheng, felt embarrassed. After all, it was one thing to privately gossip about other people’s business and quite another to have their habits called out so openly.

“To put it plainly. It is all because of poverty. It is because of our family’s poor situation that we ended up sending one child and holding back the other. What an embarrassment.”

One of the old men in the room, also a surname Xue fellow from the same generation of Old Man Xue said, “Lianxing, don’t say that. Your family is also troubled.”

Old Man Xue forced a bitter smile and sighed again, “Trouble, ah? Who is not troubled at this time? Still, no matter how troubled, we must support the talented child. However, when we have two talented children, whether we support one or both is also a problem.”

With trembling hands, he reached for the shredded tobacco from the bag on his waist, lit up his pipe and breathed in the smoke. After another puff, he said, “The palm and the back of the hand are both flesh, whichever side is pinched will hurt me. In fact, the matter had already been decided last year, yet, I kept putting off the final decision. Everyone in the village must know that it is not easy for the family to support even a single scholar. It is with much difficulty that we supported Shan’zi to this point. Though he had failed a few times, he is still someone who had worked hard for the village.

For many years, our family’s actions had been under the eye of the villagers. Leaving aside things that had happened too long ago, let’s just speak of Shan’zi’s private school. So long as it is a member of the village, even if the family is not well-off and the school fees are a little late or less, our family never say anything about it. Why? That is because it is not easy for farmers like us to make a living. We make a living with our backs to the skies and our faces towards the earth, if a famine happens, the entire family would starve. Some families could not even scrape enough to pay the yearly taxes after toiling for a year. In fact, I do not fear the laughter of a few old brothers and seniors. I have strived to the best of my ability for many years to support Shan’zi’s education, in the hopes that once he passes the exams, our family would receive some tax exemption.”

The words were simple and straightforward. Though they appeared to be lightly spoken, the impact gave everyone mixed feelings.

Old Man Xue spoke the truth. A truth that was in line with the truth within everyone’s hearts, which made their feelings even more complicated.

Finally, someone stood up and said, “Old Brother Lianxing, don’t talk about that any more. How could we not trust in your character? When the rumours abound in the village, we tell our children that Old Brother Lianxing is not that kind of person. After all, as a grandfather, how can you not dote upon your grandchildren?”

“That’s right, ah! That’s right, ah! It all makes sense, who wouldn’t be troubled, ah?”

When the people started echoing Old Man Xue’s words, there was one person whose surname was Zheng who remained silent. Zheng Lizheng’s eyes flashed once before he smiled and said, “What Shan’zi has contributed to our village, we all know. The villagers all have eyes to see and know just how righteous and benevolent Shan’zi is. However, there is something in my mind that I am not sure if I should speak out as an elder.”

“Uncle Lizheng, as the Lizheng of our village, there is nothing that cannot be said.”

Zheng Lizheng nodded, “According to reason, this is a family matter and not something that I, as an outsider should interfere with. However, as Lianxing had also said earlier, the palm and the back of the hand are both made of flesh.” He sighed and said earnestly, “Shan’zi, you best not forget why your family’s second son is no longer around. All of us seated here have been alive for decades and have experienced many kinds of hardships in our lives. Even if outsiders do not understand, we understood.”

The words caused Xue Qingshan’s expression to turn ugly on the spot. However, since he already had plans on how to turn the situation around, he did not make a fuss. Instead, he quickly refuted it with, “What Uncle Lizheng said makes sense. After discussing the matter with my father, we have decided to fund both children. However, with the situation still tight at home, we shall have the two children compete with each other. The child with the better potential shall enter the private school now, while the other shall study with me for two more years and wait for the next opportunity.”

At this, the people around did not have much to comment. After all that talk about lacking money and resources, what Xue Qingshan said made sense. There was really no better way.

When money is scarce, the poor have to make painful decisions. After all, it’s not like money is floating down the river towards their village.

The people all turned to look at Zheng Lizheng who smiled and said, “Why are you all looking at me? Lianxing’s family already has a plan, let us be the observers. Only, how do you plan to compare them? We old fellows are not literate. Will Shan’zi be the one to evaluate this competition?”

A short pause later, he shook his head and said, “No, no, as Juncai’s father, Shan’zi should not be the judge in order to avoid bias. It is better to have someone else to evaluate the children so that everyone would be satisfied with the decision.”

He looked up at Xue Qingshan and smiled, “Shan’zi, I hope you do not blame your Uncle Lizheng for being too troublesome, ba? I am doing this for your sake. After all, as men, we should be upright and honest in our conduct.”

Xue Qingshan really could not wait to throw out this person who kept sticking pegs into the spokes of his wheel. However, he had no choice but to pretend to ponder deeply upon this elder’s words even as he privately seethed inside. After a while, he said, “Uncle Lizheng is right. Even though I am the eldest uncle, I should still do my best to avoid suspicion. How about this, I shall personally invite one person, while Uncle Lizheng invites another. Have the two of them come up with questions on the spot for the two young ones.”

Zheng Lizheng narrowed his eyes at Xue Qingshan. He could tell that this oddly confident person must be harbouring bad intentions in his heart. However, it would not be good for him to be too critical at this moment. Thus, he could only nod and smile agreeably. He even praised Xue Qingshan for being an educated person with a superior mindset.

With the matter settled for the moment, the conversation turned to casual topics.

Since the elders were invited over, regardless of the reason, lunch ought to be provided as a courtesy. Therefore, Old Man Xue instructed his many daughters-in-law to prepare lunch.

While the elders were speaking with each other, Xue Tingxiang and Xue Juncai were standing just outside the room and naturally heard everything that went on inside.

Zhao’er’s expression was a little unpleasant to look at. It grew worse when Xue Juncai flashed an arrogant look at Xue Tingxiang before going over to his father to converse with the elders on that side of the room, receiving a round of praise for his eloquence and wit.

Unable to stand it any more, Zhao’er pulled Xue Tingxiang back to their room and anxiously said, “What should we do? If I had known, I would have stopped myself from beating up that Little Cai. Gouzi, this is all elder sis’ fault. Your elder sis got you in trouble.”

In her anxiety, she reverted back to calling him ‘Gouzi’ and addressing herself as ‘elder sis’.

“Don’t worry, it will be fine.”

“Will it really be fine?” Zhao’er was literally going around in circles on the spot as she hopped from one foot to another. “Wh-what if you lose?”

Xue Tingxiang narrowed his eyes, “Do you not believe in me? Am I not as good as him?”

Zhao’er immediately said, “How can this be!? My Gou’er is the smartest and will become a great Xiucai official in the future! Elder sis is still waiting to share in Gou’er’s blessings!”

This was something that Zhao’er had said to Xue Tingxiang countless times in the past.

As a child, whenever he grew depressed, she would encourage him like this. It was something that she truly believed from the bottom of her heart. Therefore, even though others criticised him and thought little of him, she would continue to chatter on and persevere in encouraging him. Her actions follow her every word.

It was a pity that she never did end up sharing in his blessing. Not even for a single day.

Obviously, he was not at fault. It was the fault of the ‘him’ in the dream. However, whenever he thought about how she had suffered, Xue Tingxiang would feel a great sense of sorrow.

He closed his eyes for a moment, the corners of his lips lifting as he said, “Since you have said so, do you still fear that I would lose?”

 

[Gumihou: Oooohhh, past Xue Tingxiang was an asshole]

 

[1] 福寿 Fushou – prosperity and longevity, words you will see in most couplets written on Chinese New Year banners or gifted to shops. Kind like being called ‘Lucky’, very uninspired.

 

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