Chapter 35: A Broken Leg

Wang Xuezhou’s spirits soared. "Then many thanks, Manager!"

"While this is not difficult, it is, after all, an apprenticeship. It would be best for the young master to let the two meet. A mutual agreement makes for a happy outcome, don't you think?"

Manager Qiu, seeing that despite his young age, the boy spoke and acted with such clarity, did not patronize him but spoke to him as one would an adult.

Wang Xuezhou naturally understood this principle; the teaching process differs greatly between a willing apprentice and one who is coerced.

"Manager Qiu is absolutely right! I shall inform my parents when I return home and will come to visit properly in ten days."

Having secured Manager Qiu’s promise, Wang Xuezhou wisely refrained from inquiring further about the identity of the young master mentioned earlier.

Although the Great Qian Dynasty ranked the "scholar, farmer, artisan, and merchant" in that specific order, with merchants at the bottom, there was no written law prohibiting them from participating in the imperial examinations. In fact, except for the Sui, Tang, and early Song dynasties, most other eras allowed and even encouraged it.

What made Wang Xuezhou sigh was that while that boy was already preparing for the *xiucai* examination at the age of nine, he himself had struggled hard just to earn a chance to study at age five.

The womb truly is life’s greatest divide.

Back at the school, perhaps spurred by this realization, he spent the following days focusing solely on his studies, working with great diligence.

Zhou Mingli watched him with immense satisfaction, thinking to himself, "This child truly has good aptitude; he must have taken my last words to heart."

Since the boy was eager to learn, he decided he might as well teach him more. Master Zhou’s eyes glowed with a faint hint of excitement.

During the break, as soon as Master Zhou left, Lu Dasheng slumped over his desk. "Ugly Egg Wang! I hate you!"

Glancing at the chubby boy, Wang Xuezhou calmly dipped his finger in water and began writing and drawing on the tabletop.

"I'm talking to you! How can you still have the heart to practice calligraphy?" Lu Dasheng watched his composed demeanor and gnashed his teeth in frustration. "It’s one thing for you to offend the Master, but why drag us into it? It’s obvious the Master is teaching much more these days. Do you know I’ve been burning the midnight oil every night?"

Zheng Guangyuan and Xia Qianli, also finding the workload unbearable, chimed in, "Us too!"

Zhao Xing and Qi Xian, feeling guilty, dared not speak.

Wang Xuezhou flashed a bright smile.

*Compete! If you can’t be competed to death, then keep competing until you are!*

He looked at them with a mix of shock and pity. "You… you can’t even handle this much?"

"You guys… sigh! I didn’t realize you were so incapable. Truly disappointing."

Lu Dasheng was furious. "Who are you calling incapable? I’ll show you right now whether I'm capable or not!" He grabbed his book and began to read aloud at the top of his lungs.

***

On the day he was meant to return home for the break, Wang Xuezhou was full of joy, ready to tell his family about the situation at the Crane Pavilion.

Upon arriving home, however, he was struck by a bolt from the blue. Both Wang Chengzhi and Wang Chengyao had left for corvée labor.

Wang Chengyao had gone to save the five taels of silver required for the exemption tax. Wang Chengzhi had gone to earn that same five taels.

The twenty taels Wang Xuezhou had earned had not improved the family's situation; instead, it had shown Wang Chengzhi his potential, driving him to work even harder—to the point of taking on corvée labor for others.

They had already left; there was nothing he could change. Wang Xuezhou stood stunned for a long moment before simply saying he understood.

To say he wasn't upset would be a lie, but what he felt more was a sense of powerlessness. Without academic rank, he was just a child with no real say in family matters. Without academic rank, he could not truly liberate his family from the burden of corvée labor.

That evening, he listlessly told Mrs. Zhang about the Crane Pavilion. Mao Dan looked at him in disbelief. "Is this for real this time?"

He nodded. "Don't you trust me to get things done?"

Wang Xuexin and Wang Yaoyue pulled at him in astonishment, each pinching one of his cheeks in endearment. "Amazing, truly amazing! Our Ugly Egg has become so capable after going to school."

Mrs. Zhang was so overjoyed she nearly fainted. It took pinching her thighs hard for her to accept the reality, and she immediately went off to consult with Old Man Wang and Old Mrs. Liu.

The next day, Mrs. Zhang took them to the Crane Pavilion. Upon entering, Manager Qiu arranged for them to meet the head chef in a private room. Initially, the chef was somewhat reluctant, but after asking a few questions, he readily accepted the apprentice. Mrs. Zhang quickly presented the gifts she had brought, which pleased the chef further, and he kept the person on to start helping that very day.

With that burden lifted, Wang Xuezhou cast aside all distractions and focused on his studies.

However, when he returned home ten days later, his mood became complicated.

His eldest uncle, Wang Chengzuo—had broken his leg.

It was a genuine break; someone had beaten him, and even if it healed, he would walk with a limp. The root cause was the romantic debt he had incurred earlier.

After the woman, Li Niang, was sent away empty-handed, she was naturally unwilling to let it go. Once she had recovered, she sought out Wang Chengzuo for compensation. But Wang Chengzuo, who was already struggling as Old Man Wang and Old Mrs. Liu had cut off his funds, had no money to pay. He had a sudden inspiration and turned the tables, claiming Li Niang had seduced him with ulterior motives, tried to force her way into his home, and even faked a pregnancy, causing him harm. He demanded that she pay him instead.

He humiliated her with his words before walking off.

This maneuver completely severed any remaining ties between them. Li Niang returned home and told her brother. Upon hearing this, her brother was furious—how dare someone ruin his sister without his permission!

He spent several days lurking, eventually finding Wang Chengzuo’s former classmate—the same "Brother Zhang" who had once lured him to gamble—and orchestrated a trap, intending to bleed Wang Chengzuo dry.

However, Wang Xuezhou had inadvertently ruined their plans, and the man never made it into the gambling den. Later, with Wang Chengzhi keeping a close eye on Wang Chengzuo, the man waited until Wang Chengzhi left for corvée labor.

What was there to wait for then?

Without hesitation, he moved against Wang Chengzuo. He dragged him into a dead-end alley, broke his leg, and after a brutal beating, left him with enough breath to send a message demanding fifty taels of silver from the Wang family to ransom him. The man had calculated that the Wang family, having two scholars, would never dare to report it to the authorities.

That was indeed the case. No matter how disappointed Old Man Wang and Old Mrs. Liu were in their son, they could not watch him die. They dared not expose the matter and ruin their reputation, especially with Wang Xuewen and Wang Xuezhou preparing for the imperial examinations—any scandal would become a weapon against them.

Thus, Old Man Wang went with two cousins from the eldest grandfather’s family to pay the ransom. To prevent further threats, they drew up a formal document detailing the events and stating that the matter was settled and neither side could use it for future leverage.

Looking at Wang Chengzuo, who lay pale and dejected on the bed, Wang Xuezhou didn't know whether to be relieved that his father had been away doing corvée labor or pained by his uncle’s broken leg. But he knew one thing: he had to study hard and earn an official rank as soon as possible, for only then would he have the capital to protect his family.

After this, his eldest uncle became completely docile. Gao was in tears all day, and Old Man Wang and Old Mrs. Liu were perpetually worried. With the family losing fifty taels, no one was in good spirits, and the entire household remained shrouded in a heavy, oppressive gloom.

Time passed through August and into late September. Wang Chengyao and Wang Chengzhi returned from their labor service. Though they had both lost a significant amount of weight, they were at least safe. Upon hearing what had happened, the brothers were immediately enraged and wanted to go seek revenge on Li Niang’s brother, but Old Man Wang stopped them with a stern shout.

He gave a bitter laugh. "Let this end here! Why do you think that Wu the Tiger dared to be so arrogant? He has backing! We are a family with no power or influence—how can we afford to provoke them? It was all because your eldest brother was spineless! He invited this trouble, and now that his leg is broken, it is at least a lesson that will keep him from getting into even greater disaster."

"If not for yourselves, think of Ugly Egg. If you were thrown into prison, how would he be able to take the examinations?"

The two brothers froze.

To register for the imperial examinations, a candidate must have no male family members within three generations who have committed crimes, and no female relatives who have remarried. Given Wang Chengzuo’s experience, the Wang family was naturally well aware of this.