The booming scolding brought the previously raucous bookshop to an abrupt silence. Quite a few of the students and scholars in attendance looked toward the speaker with furious expressions. Who had the nerve to speak with such arrogance, daring to openly denounce the top scholar personally appointed by the late emperor — and in language so coarse at that? Did they eat stinky tofu for breakfast before coming out?

Possessed by a ghost?

Was there a single person present who was not a scholar, one who followed the precept of Confucius that one should not speak of the strange, the supernatural, or the uncanny? How could this old man, dressed in such plain and unadorned robes, dare to utter such superstitious nonsense inside a bookshop?

Lang Jiuchuan walked forward through the tense and silent atmosphere, calm and composed, and looked toward the audacious elder who had dared to denounce the widely revered figure.

Xue Shi, as expected — that explosive temper of his had not changed one bit.

He stood there with eyes wide open, gripping a brand-new book collection, and with a loud harrumph, tossed it at a student standing nearby — a student who had his hands empty and was glaring at Xue Shi with undisguised resentment. “I can see you’re one of those poisoned by Master Liufeng’s book collection as well. Take it then. Poison yourself a little every day — your brain can’t get any worse than it already is.”

The student scrambled to catch it, then looked at the creased pages with fury. “Who do you think you are? Books are meant to be treasured. Look what you’ve done to it.”

“Exactly. Master Liufeng won the triple crown of examinations — he is a top scholar. Who are you to stand there and criticize him so shamelessly? What is wrong with ‘the one who excels in study should take office’? All people should know that among ten thousand pursuits, study alone stands supreme. What is wrong with reading?” another student in a fine brocade robe joined in. “As the saying goes, ‘Learn your letters and your martial arts, then sell them to the emperor’s house.’ When we study, is it not all for the purpose of entering civil service and serving the nation and its people? Given that, what exactly is so absurd and nonsensical about Master Liufeng’s principle of the worthy scholar taking office?”

“That’s right.”

“Who reads books without hoping to rise above their station?”

“Exactly — ten years of hardship at a cold window, and one leap to the golden gate. Is that not the story of us all?”

“Stop talking — do you all even know who he is…”

Xue Shi looked at the students who had spoken against him and said, “From what you’re all saying, your understanding of ‘the one who excels in study should take office’ is exactly what this collection of Sheng Huai’an’s expresses — that the purpose of studying is to become an official and climb your way up in the world. If that is so, then come out and say it plainly: advance your station, bring glory to your ancestors, transform your circumstances entirely. Why cloak it in the language of serving the nation and its people?”

“This — this is sophistry. That is not what we meant,” the students said, looking flustered and aggrieved.

“Then what did you mean? Sheng Huai’an’s collection, stripped down in its annotations — what does it amount to, if not that study exists solely for the purpose of rising in status and climbing to the top?” Xue Shi slapped the nearby book table with a loud crack and said, “The principle of ‘the one who excels in study should take office’ means selecting genuinely talented individuals through the imperial examinations to fill official positions — only those with true ability and vision can bring real benefit to the people. But all this collection’s annotations show, from beginning to end, is that the ultimate purpose of study is to become an official. It distorts and perverts the very principle it claims to uphold.”

“Studying hard through hardship to advance one’s station is itself no wrongdoing, Xue Shi. As the head of the Luning Academy, you educate and cultivate talents — are you not yourself raising worthy individuals for the great nation of Da Dan? And for students of humble birth, unlike those from aristocratic clans, transforming the fortunes of their families is hardly something to condemn.” An elderly man pushed through the crowd and stepped forward, offering a mild smile. “As a person eats their daily grains, so a person who studies climbs higher and higher until they stand in the golden halls — we are mortal men with mortal desires. Do not demand of them that they be without want or ambition, Xue Shi. Having a purpose is having a direction and a goal, and a goal is what drives one to strive.”

Ah — Xue — Xue Shi?

One student who had shrunk into the crowd was wordlessly rolling his eyes. He had said it quietly just a moment ago — that was Xue Shi of the Luning Academy.

Xue Shi looked at the elderly man in plain cloth robes and stepped forward two paces, cupping his hands in a bow of respect. “Why has Grand Tutor Fang come as well? You are flattering me — do not call me Xue Shi. Just call me Little Xue.”

Grand — Grand Tutor?

The entire hall of students erupted with excitement. What a fortuitous day it was to have ventured out — they had actually encountered two such celebrated figures right here! Xue Shi and Grand Tutor Fang, both in the same place — today was truly their lucky day.

The student holding the book collection let his eyes dart about. He thought his chance had come.

Grand Tutor Fang also came from humble origins and had risen to his high position — he ought to be standing on the side of those of common birth. The student stepped forward two paces and pressed his hands together in a deep bow. “This student, He Guangli, pays his respects to the Grand Tutor and to Xue Shi. This student’s eyes failed to recognize such distinguished faces and my words have been presumptuous — I beg your pardon.”

Xue Shi let out a harrumph. “I cannot presume to be anyone’s teacher — I am nowhere near as capable as the great Sheng Liufeng to be teaching anyone. Grand Tutor’s words are also not wrong — all of you have endured ten years of hardship at the cold window, all aiming for the golden halls of the palace. I, already having passed the provincial examinations, am hardly in a position to demand you be without ambition. That was my error.”

Grand Tutor Fang shook his head with a smile — that temper of his, unchanged after all these years. He said, “You are also the head of an academy, and with the grace examination drawing near, offering these young people a lesson is surely a blessing of fortune for them.”

“You flatter me far too much — what merit do I have to show off in front of you? I simply could not stand the sight of Master Liufeng’s new collection — the whole thing is dripping with arrogance, doing nothing but fawning over those of high rank and position while looking down on everyone else. By his logic, any scholar who does not ultimately become an official — has that person’s reading been wasted?” Xue Shi gave a cold snort. “If that is truly the case, then study is only elevated when it leads to officialdom — so who transmits learning? Who teaches the basics to children, who passes down the classical texts? Who grows the five grains, who weaves the cloth? Three hundred and sixty-five trades — every trade produces its own master. How is it that in his estimation, only reading and becoming an official stands as the noblest pursuit? Does he not eat, drink, wear clothes, or relieve himself?”

“What is most hateful of all is that after this entire display of arrogance, he still finishes with a line about ‘the one who excels in study should take office’ to dress it all up and paper over his own condescension. Reading it is enough to make a person bring up their overnight meal.” Xue Shi said, his face darkening. “Sheng Huai’an also came from humble beginnings. I have read his top-scholar examination essay myself — at the time it truly was a work of extraordinary brilliance. And after all these decades in officialdom, this is what he produces? Is it not that he has been marinating in all the stench of the official world for so long that he’s been thoroughly tainted by it?”

Everyone: “……”

Flip, flip, flip.

Lang Jiuchuan had picked up the copy of Master Liufeng’s book collection that someone had set down, and was now rapidly leafing through it. She looked first at the top-scholar examination essay — the writing flowed with exceptional ease, and the policy discussion was entirely centered on the welfare of the people, expressing deep concern for the nation. From the examination essay alone, one could perceive the author’s humility and breadth of mind.

The new annotations and debates, however, carried considerably more arrogance and self-regard.

Could the great crucible of the official world truly change a person’s original heart so thoroughly?

Or was it that, having occupied a position of superiority for so long, when one looked at others, the natural posture was always from above — and that was what had bred such self-importance?

Lang Jiuchuan set the book down and looked back at Xue Shi. Perhaps because Grand Tutor Fang was present, his temper was somewhat more restrained than usual. He said nothing further outside of commenting on Master Liufeng’s original top-scholar examination essay, citing the classics throughout. The entire hall fell into a hush — some even seized brush and paper and began transcribing everything he said.

She was not sitting for the examinations, so there was nothing here for her to listen to. Taking advantage of the crowd pressing toward that side of the room, she moved with ease to find the shelf holding historical records and regional atlases of Da Dan, selected a map, and took several history books and regional gazetteers. Seeing that more and more people were streaming in, she felt no urgency to leave — she simply found an open spot on the floor and began reading through the gazetteer right then and there.

She had considered releasing Fuyi so he could look through materials alongside her, but given that this was a bookshop packed full of students preparing for the grace examination, she was wary that his yin aura might harm them — so she decided against creating that trouble.

But if Fuyi could not come out, Xiao Jiu Pagoda could certainly be summoned, and he could view the scene within it from inside the tower.

However, before long, Fuyi spoke up from inside the pagoda: “Xiao Jiu — there’s a ghost on that book!”