Chapter Five: The Hundred-Day Pact

“What? You want to slaughter pigs?” The old lady was startled by his words.

“Grandma, I said I want to study and take the exam for scholar...” Su Lu replied helplessly.

“That’s right, pork offal stew is delicious,” the old lady said, swallowing her saliva with delight. “If Qiu-er becomes a butcher, Grandma will have good meals. I love pig intestines the most.”

“I like the pig’s tail,” Jinbao chimed in, practically drooling.

“Qiu-er, you really might as well learn butchery,” his uncle said, half amused. “How many days have you actually spent in school since you were little?”

“Exactly,” his aunt echoed. “Do you even remember which way the schoolhouse door faces?”

“Well, wasn’t it sister-in-law who always told Xia-ge and Qiu-ge since they were young that studying was useless?” the younger aunt spoke up, indignant. “If it’s useless, why let Chun-ge keep studying?”

“Chun-ge has what it takes. Those two don’t!” The aunt arched her brows, confronting the younger aunt. “We scrape together every bit of silver from between our teeth—shouldn’t we spend it where it counts?”

The younger aunt was speechless for a moment. Even if she was on Su Lu’s side, she had to admit that, as far as studying was concerned, Qiu-er couldn’t compare to Chun-ge.

“I think I’m cut out for it,” Su Lu said without a hint of self-doubt.

“You think I don’t know what you’re up to? You just don’t want to work! You can’t even recite the ‘Three Character Classic’,” his uncle snorted, thinking he’d seen through Su Lu. “‘Every child, when taught, must be properly instructed’—do you know what comes next?”

“Of course I do,” Su Lu replied in a muffled voice.

“Well, recite it then,” his aunt challenged with a cold laugh.

“If he’s going to recite, let him start from the beginning,” Su Youcai, somewhat dissatisfied with his brother and sister-in-law, stepped in to shield his son. “Even I can’t pick it up from halfway through...”

But then Su Lu began fluently, “To teach the young, careful explanation is required. Those who wish to learn must start at the beginning. Complete elementary studies, then move on to the Four Books. The Analects has twenty chapters. The disciples recorded the wise sayings. The Mencius has seven chapters...”

He continued without pause until, “Having mastered the classics, one reads the histories.” Then he stopped and turned to his gaping uncle and aunt. “Do you need me to continue?”

In truth, he dared not go further; from there, the version he knew diverged into “examining the lineage and understanding the beginnings and ends,” and even included “sixteen generations, up to Chongzhen...” which would be out of place here.

“No need. Even if you recite it, I wouldn’t understand,” his aunt admitted, now subdued, massaging her temples. She turned to her husband, “Is what he recited correct?”

In fact, the uncle had long since forgotten that part. He’d assumed that since he couldn’t remember, Su Lu couldn’t either. Embarrassed, he nodded, “More or less.”

“Not a word out of place!” Su Youcai said happily.

“Qiu-er, you’re amazing!” Su Tai clapped excitedly. “I can only get as far as ‘At nine, Xiang Ji warmed the mat.’ Beyond that, I can’t recall anything...”

“I can’t recite a single line,” Jinbao added, clapping enthusiastically, looking quite proud.

“You do have something in you, boy,” the uncle beamed, ruffling Su Lu’s hair. “That head of yours is pretty clear.”

“Big brother, Qiu-er has done the family proud. He deserves a reward,” Su Youcai quickly seized the opportunity. “Let the boy have his wish.”

The uncle nodded, turning to his wife. “Let’s not rush to find him a master just yet. Let him study for a few days more?”

“Fine, we won’t,” the aunt said, shooting her husband a glare, at last backing down a little.

But before Su Lu could celebrate, she changed her tone. “But whether you’re cut out for it isn’t for me to say—and it’s not up to them either—”

“How will it be decided then?” Su Lu asked solemnly.

“If you have the ability to pass the entrance exam for Taiping Academy, I’ll admit you’re scholar material,” his aunt declared.

“Sister-in-law, aren’t you making it too hard? He’s only been to school for a few days and you want him to pass the Taiping Academy entrance? That’s asking for the impossible!” Su Youcai protested.

“If he can’t pass Taiping Academy, how can he hope to become a scholar?” his aunt retorted proudly. “He not only has to pass, but has to rank near the top like Chun-ge, to have any chance!”

“They only accept boys under fourteen, and after the New Year, he’ll be too old!” Su Youcai objected.

“They recruit at the end of the year, don’t they? Chun-ge got in during the twelfth month,” his aunt recalled.

“It’s too little time, barely three months at most. Even if Qiu-er studied day and night, it wouldn’t be enough... Not three months, even three years wouldn’t do,” Su Youcai sighed.

“Three months is all he gets. If he can, he can. If not, then he’d best start an apprenticeship early,” his aunt said, her mind made up.

“Sister-in-law...” Su Youcai’s tone was full of bitterness. Rationally, he knew she wasn’t wrong. Only one in ten thousand achieved rank and title; it was better for ordinary folk to accept it early and not burden the family.

But it was the first time his son had set his heart on something...

“Father, say no more,” Su Lu cut in, his voice firm. “Three months it is!”

He fixed his gaze on his aunt, resolute. “I’ll pass and prove it to you!”

“And if you don’t?” She faltered for a moment, shaken by his intensity, but rallied and glared back fiercely.

“Whatever you decide!” Su Lu stared her down like a fighting cock.

“What does that mean?” she asked, bewildered.

“It means you’ll have the final say,” the uncle explained.

“Good! You said it yourself!” the aunt nodded emphatically.

~~~

Though he’d earned a little over a hundred days, Su Lu, even if eager to study, had to finish the autumn harvest first.

That afternoon, back in the fields, Su Tai continued cutting down the remaining sorghum. Su Youcai and Su Lu worked together to thresh the grain.

They first spread a coarse cloth on the ground, then set up a wooden trough. Su Lu held the trough steady while Su Youcai grasped a bundle of sorghum and forcefully thrashed the heads against the wood.

The bright red grains rattled down, mostly into the trough, though some scattered onto the cloth. Su Lu instantly grasped what it meant for the grain to “fall like sand”—it was the perfect description.

Amid the swirling dust, Su Youcai kept thrashing and asked, “Son, didn’t you used to only get as far as ‘If you raise but don’t teach, it’s the father’s fault’ in the Three Character Classic? Did you eat some magic elixir today, being so impressive?”

“Feels like after getting heatstroke, my head cleared up. My mind’s open too—I just think in this world, studying is the only way out,” Su Lu said, muffling his nose and mouth.

“Then recite more for me,” Su Youcai said eagerly.

“I don’t know the rest,” Su Lu shook his head.

“What about the Hundred Family Surnames?” Su Youcai probed.

“Zhao, Qian, Sun, Li, Zhou, Wu, Zheng, Wang, Feng, Chen, Chu, Wei, Jiang, Shen, Han, Yang... I don’t know the rest,” Su Lu admitted honestly.

“And the Thousand Character Classic?” Su Youcai pressed on.

“Heaven and earth mysterious and yellow, the universe vast and untamed. The sun and moon wax... the stars are arrayed in their lodges,” Su Lu faltered.

“It’s ‘The sun and moon wax and wane, the stars are arrayed in their lodges,’” Su Youcai corrected, exasperated. “And you think you can pass anything? These are just the basics!”

Su Lu could only smile wryly. In his previous life, his elementary school only required memorizing the Three Character Classic, not the other two...

“It’s not your fault, son—it’s mine,” Su Youcai said, then apologized, “I spent those years fixated on becoming a scholar myself and neglected to enlighten you and your brother. In the end, I failed at both...”

He stopped and wiped his eyes with his sleeve, his voice low. “Ah, got something in my eye.”

Su Lu quietly got up and handed him the bamboo flask.

Su Youcai took a sip, then said even more apologetically, “Qiu-er, our ancestor Su Laochuan only found his resolve at twenty-seven because his family had the means. For our family, starting fresh at thirteen is already too late.”

“Father, that’s only because I hadn’t studied before. Now that I’m determined, I’ll catch up!” Su Lu said earnestly.

Seeing his son’s thirst for knowledge, what father could resist?

“Ah, got something in my eye again,” Su Youcai said, looking up at the flock of geese overhead, flying south in a V, then a straight line. With a sigh, he said, “Even wild birds can recognize characters—my son can’t be outdone by a bird! All right, learning is better than not learning. As your father, I’ll teach you from scratch.”

He winked, trying to ease the pressure. “Don’t take your aunt’s words too much to heart. If you can’t enter the academy, as long as you want to learn, I can teach you. I may not be good at much, but I know how to teach.”

“That’s what I think too,” Su Lu replied, grinning widely. “I’ll give it my all and try for the academy. But even if I fail and have to become an apprentice, I’ll keep working hard at my studies!”

“That’s the spirit!” Su Youcai said cheerfully. “Just like it says in the Three Character Classic: ‘Like carrying firewood, like hanging a horn—though the body is weary, still strive with perseverance!’”

“So what exactly should I study?” Su Lu pressed.

“The Three-Hundred-Character Classic, the Small Learning, Classic of Filial Piety, then the Little Four Books, Historical and Ancient Pairs, Introduction to Prosody...” Su Youcai reeled off the list.

“That much?” Su Lu was taken aback.

“Much? Those are just the basics,” Su Youcai stressed. “The most important are the Four Books and the Collected Commentaries on the Four Books. Taiping Academy’s written test has only two types of questions: one is filling in the classics, the other is interpretation, and you must use the Collected Commentaries in your answers.”

“Filling in and interpretation—what does that mean?” Su Lu asked, picking up on the key points.

“Filling in means they cover part of a passage from the classics and you have to write it out word-for-word. Interpretation means writing out the meaning of the passage,” Su Youcai explained.

“Got it,” Su Lu nodded. Just fill-in-the-blank and explain the terms.

To him, these sounded like easy points.

“They don’t test the Eight-Legged Essay?” he inquired.

“No. Taiping Academy is rigorous—they teach the classics from the beginning to avoid mistakes. If they haven’t taught the classics, how could they ask students to write essays?” Su Youcai replied confidently. The only requirement from the clan was to send at least one child to Taiping Academy each year, so he knew the process well.

“That’s good,” Su Lu breathed a long sigh of relief. He might be confident, but he knew mastering the essay style in a short time was impossible.

“Then can I skip those... basics and go straight to the Four Books and Five Classics?” he asked.

If it’s not tested, why bother...

“No. In the past, the academy did test that way, but they found those students had weak foundations. If you don’t know parallelism and prosody, how could you write good essays?” Su Youcai said earnestly. “Learning is like building a house—the foundation may be hidden underground, but it’s vital. If you cut corners, the house will collapse. That’s why they now have an oral test before the written one, to check these basics.”

“Understood.” Su Lu nodded, giving up on taking shortcuts.

Still, he was happy—his father would be a good teacher, and the academy must be a good one as well.