TTLJDFL Chapter 31

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With Qin Muwen’s upbringing, he had never done anything like secretly eating food before.

But this time, he really couldn’t resist.

Thinking about how Li Jin had commented on the bun’s appearance after making it, he just couldn’t help himself.

Li Jin said, "This definitely isn’t a good bun."

Qin Muwen, however, found it sweet and delicious.

It was better than any bun he had ever eaten before, even better than the meat buns sold at the street corner in town.

===

Li Jin arrived early at the study room, and after a while, the teacher also arrived.

There was an expression of admiration in his eyes that he had never shown before. "Li Jin, I heard that you saved someone a few days ago."

Li Jin replied, "It was just a coincidence."

Mr. Song’s impression of him improved even more. Such a great deed, yet he remained humble and unassuming—truly an outstanding character.

"That Song Dali is a member of my family, and the child you saved is of my grandson’s generation. I should thank you."

Li Jin dared not take credit. "This was something a student should do. No matter who it was, it was two lives, and I had to do my best to save them."

Mr. Song naturally knew this, but when Song Dali learned Li Jin’s name and address, he had also heard from Dr. Wu that Li Jin studied in town.

Song Dali immediately thought of his own family’s scholar, Song Yuan.

After all, the town was only so big, and seemingly unrelated strangers might actually be connected in some way.

When he came to ask, sure enough, Li Jin was Mr. Song’s student.

So Song Dali recounted how Li Jin had saved the lives, quietly left without seeking recognition, and how he had searched for Li Jin multiple times.

"Only you, Teacher, could have taught such a student with a heart untainted by fame or profit!"

Mr. Song was shocked, and after confirming the story with Song Dali again, he could finally believe that it was indeed Li Jin.

Mr. Song said, "With such character, I will do my best to teach you all that I know, hoping that one day, you will rise to prominence and benefit the people."

Li Jin thought to himself that Mr. Song’s expectations were a bit too high.

He didn’t have such lofty ambitions—he just wanted to raise his two children well. One could say that he was quite unaspiring.

Mr. Song continued, "From now on, you may borrow books from me to copy at home. I trust your character. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask me directly."

Li Jin hurriedly expressed his gratitude.

After Mr. Song left, Li Jin took out his paper and brush but hesitated for a long time before starting to write.

It turned out that in ancient times, a person’s reputation was of utmost importance.

With a bad reputation, even the villagers would shun you; but once you built a good name, even a scholar like Mr. Song would go out of his way to give you extra guidance in your studies.

Li Jin suddenly realized that when taking the scholar exam (Tongsheng Exam), if the examiners found multiple candidates with similar scores, they would often choose the one with the best reputation as the top scorer.

Of course, there were exceptions.

For example, Li Jin had once read about an eleven- or twelve-year-old prodigy who took the exam. He could have ranked first, but the examiner, wanting him to remain humble and not seek quick success, deliberately placed him second.

However, it also depended on the examiner. Some preferred candidates with deep knowledge and might push them toward achieving consecutive top rankings in small-scale exams.

The Tongsheng Exam consisted of three stages: the county exam, the academy exam, and the provincial exam. The top scorer in each stage was called the "Anshou."

If one person ranked first in all three, it was called "Zhung Yuan."

As Li Jin pondered, he suddenly heard Chen Xiran talking to the children of the Song family outside.

Li Jin remained expressionless, knowing that as soon as Chen Xiran came in, he would surely start telling him the "legend of the miraculous doctor and farmer’s son" again. If he listened any longer, his ears might go deaf.

So he decided to start transcribing texts, hoping that Chen Xiran wouldn’t interrupt him.

But Li Jin was completely wrong—when Chen Xiran got excited, he recognized no kinship and wouldn’t stop until he finished his story.

Still, having a friend like Chen Xiran made life a little less dull.

After finishing the lecture for the larger class, Mr. Song came over to check on the two of them.

He let Chen Xiran leave first and then laid out a study plan for Li Jin.

"I originally thought you would need until September to finish memorizing the material for the Tongsheng Exam, but at this pace, you can finish copying the books by late July."

After a pause, Mr. Song continued, "In August, I will teach you how to analyze the essays written by previous examiners."

Li Jin’s expression immediately became serious. The exam papers were graded by the chief examiner, so candidates had to study the preferences of different examiners to stand out.

Since the chief examiner changed with each exam, Mr. Song was referring to essays written by previous examiners.

Still, this was much better than going into the exam blindly.

Li Jin bowed deeply, knowing that Mr. Song was sharing his most valuable insights.

Mr. Song said, "You’ve been performing well lately. Keep it up in July. Next year, I hope to see you and Chen Xiran’s names on the honor roll."

—

When Li Jin left Mr. Song’s house, he saw Chen Xiran waiting for him in a nearby alley.

Chen Xiran wasn’t concerned about what Mr. Song had told Li Jin in private—he wasn’t the petty type.

He simply admired Li Jin for saving lives and wanted to chat with him a bit more.

"Brother Li, are you heading straight home again?"

Li Jin looked at the sun and said, "Today, I plan to buy some tiles and order some fired bricks."

Chen Xiran’s eyes lit up. "I’ll go with you!"

Li Jin asked, "Aren’t you going home for lunch?"

Chen Xiran replied, "No big deal, I’ll just buy some buns or flatbreads on the street."

Li Jin didn’t stop him. This person had been trying to have a meal with him for a while but never had the chance.

Li Jin thought, in ancient times, classmates became very close because they studied tirelessly together.

Everyone was each other’s mental support.

But for him and Chen Xiran, they barely interacted outside of class.

They hadn’t even shared a meal together.

Li Jin said, "Then let’s go together. There’s also a big brother from my village coming along."

Chen Xiran rubbed his hands together excitedly, looking forward to it.

This made Li Jin feel like his intelligence had just been lowered a notch.

Li Jin and Chen Xiran each bought two sesame pancakes and ate them as they walked.

As they were about to arrive, they noticed that Li Zhuzi was talking to someone.

Li Jin found one of them somewhat familiar—it seemed to be a young man who had visited his house on the day of the boy's birth.

That young man was speaking with Li Zhuzi and a woman dressed as a servant. Li Jin had no intention of eavesdropping, so he decided to stand where he was and finish his sesame pancake before going over. Li Zhuzi should be done by then.

However, the servant woman noticed Chen Xiran standing beside Li Jin.

She immediately bowed to Chen Xiran and said, "Young Master, if you need to purchase anything, just give me the order."

Since they had already been noticed, Li Jin and Chen Xiran simply walked over.

Chen Xiran said, "This is my classmate and good friend, surnamed Li. I'm here with him to take care of some business."

The servant woman then bowed to Li Jin as well. "Greetings, Young Master Li."

Li Jin noted her form of self-address, realizing she did not use the typical ancient terms like "this servant" or "this old servant," which suggested that social hierarchy was not as rigid here.

Even if townspeople bought servants, they did not emphasize strict divisions of status. At most, they addressed their masters as "Young Master" or "Master."

Li Jin nodded in acknowledgment.

The three people in front of them appeared to be calculating something. With Chen Xiran and Li Jin present, the transaction was quickly completed. The young man hurried away, not even daring to look at Li Jin, his retreating figure resembling someone fleeing in panic.

Li Jin thought to himself that this person had helped during the boy's birth and had not been present during the bullying incident later.

Naturally, Li Jin had no intention of doing anything to him.

Besides, even if the young man had bullied the boy before, Li Jin would not confront him in public.

After concluding their business, Li Zhuzi drove his swaying ox cart toward the tile kiln.

A while later, he noticed that the young master was still following them.

Li Zhuzi even felt a little nervous.

As a farmer, he was a small figure in society. Suddenly encountering a well-known individual from town was naturally intimidating.

Fortunately, Chen Xiran was easygoing. He introduced himself, chatted casually, and soon became quite familiar with Li Zhuzi.

They discussed topics such as the year’s harvest and how many trips an ox cart could make in a day.

These were all topics Li Zhuzi was well-versed in.

Li Jin was beginning to admire Chen Xiran. He wondered if, had he been born into a wealthier family—even without his modern knowledge and self-discipline gained from years of academic research—he would have been able to do the same.

Being a time traveler, with 29 years of modern memories and years of academic discipline, was Li Jin’s greatest advantage.

The tile kiln was on the other side of town, not far away. When the three of them arrived, the shop assistant was dozing off.

Li Jin asked about the types and prices of tiles.

The assistant, seeing business coming his way, perked up. "Apologies, the summer heat makes it hard to stay awake.

"As for tiles, we have mud tiles and clay tiles. Mud tiles aren't as sturdy as clay tiles, but they're cheaper."

After considering his limited funds, Li Jin chose the more expensive option.

Since he was only buying one basket, the cost wouldn’t be too high.

He also placed an order for two cartloads of bricks to be picked up at the beginning of next month.

On the way back, Li Jin placed his basket on the ox cart and carefully held onto it. After all, this was his money at stake.

Chen Xiran asked, "Li Xian-di (virtuous younger brother), are you planning to build a house?"

Li Jin didn't hide it. "My house only has two rooms—one for resting and one as a kitchen.

"A few days ago, I made a small desk for writing, but once I put it inside, there was barely any space left to move around. So, I decided to build a study room."

Li Zhuzi remained silent, surprised that Li Jin was so candid about his family's financial situation.

Especially in front of a classmate who clearly came from a wealthy family.

That servant woman earlier had such an imposing presence that even the villagers had to bow when speaking to her. Yet, she had addressed Li Jin as "Young Master Li."

Li Zhuzi thought that if it were him, he would have exaggerated his family's wealth instead.

After all, what if the young master looked down on him?

To his surprise, Chen Xiran didn’t seem to mind at all. Instead, he excitedly said, "Li Xian-di is building a study room? I don’t even have one because I hate writing!

"When my family moved, my only condition was—no study room!"

He sounded completely justified in his reasoning.

On the way back to the village, they had to pass through town again. Li Zhuzi dropped off Chen Xiran, who lingered at the roadside, reluctant to part. "Li Xian-di, don’t forget to invite me to warm the study room once it's built!"

Li Jin smiled. "Of course."

Chen Xiran added, "I also want to see your little ones!"

Li Jin's first thought was: Which one of the two little ones at home do you want to see?

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