Chapter 21 Part 3

Naturally, the first row, from left to right, held Su Mingya, Guan Yunji, Ge Dongchen, and the like. Gu Xiaodeng, however, was seated at the very last row, furthest to the right.

Entirely oblivious to class rank, Gu Xiaodeng plopped tiger-like into his seat and gleefully opened his assigned book. He could find joy three times over in a single line.

There wasn’t a single person in the whole Academy who wasn’t fine-featured.

Everyone was good-looking!

He chortled inwardly. Here he could study and advance, feast his eyes on beauties, and keep loneliness at bay. He was simply blooming with delight.

When An Zhenwen ascended the lecture podium, his joy peaked.

Even the teacher was supremely handsome!

Gu Xiaodeng was so happy he had to cover his mouth, just to hide the corners of his lips that were threatening to fly up to his temples.

An Zhenwen was exceedingly genial on the first day. He gently outlined the Jin Kingdom’s civil examination system, listed the general curriculum, elaborated on the test formats, and supplemented everything with his own experiences. The morning passed in extreme ease and pleasantness.

The white-robed students were hearing real insider details they couldn’t get elsewhere. Even when the class was dismissed, they lingered, wanting more, many crowding up to An Zhenwen with questions.

Gu Xiaodeng listened, took notes, and scribbled in his little notebook, utterly content. He even penned a small summary of the morning lesson:

“A peaceful world, a prosperous age among men. Changluo is a village of gold; Vast Marsh is a home of peach blossoms.”

The afternoon class took place outside the lecture hall. The young men headed to the martial field to the north, while the young women went to the arts field to the east. On his way, Gu Xiaodeng glimpsed the white-robed girls moving eastward. They were like a band of white clouds drifting toward a horizon that could summon rainbows. A distant glance that alone made one feel the beauty of the human world.

Gu Xiaodeng was so moved he didn’t know how to express it. Just then, someone brushed past him, ramming directly into his shoulder. With a yelp, he clasped his shoulder and wrinkled his nose, wanting to smile and speak. The young man who’d hit him let out a soft sneer. “Baseborn trash.”

Gu Xiaodeng blinked. “Huh?”

The young master strode ahead without a backward glance. Gu Xiaodeng, wondering if he’d misheard, hurried forward to demand an explanation. Halfway there, someone else walked up and rammed into him. This time the force wasn’t trivial. Shorter than his opponent, he stumbled and sprawled to the ground.

Laughs rose around him, mixed with barely hushed remarks: “I thought he was a close relative of the Gu family. Turns out he’s just the farthest possible distant kin, a dead-end branch.”

“No wonder. He reeks of mud. Must’ve come straight from the farm. A vulgar disposition scrubbed into his very bones.”

“Exactly. All gaudy and cheap. Brought from the womb he was born low in.”

Gu Xiaodeng scrambled up from the ground, refusing help from his page. He whirled around, his spirit firing up. “Hey! Who’s talking behind my back!”

The ones gossiping had already turned and dispersed, having only toyed with him just enough to taste.

The page came over to dust his clothes. Gu Xiaodeng rubbed the back of his head and asked, perplexed, “Did you hear what they said about me just now? Did I do something bad? They were all just fine yesterday. Did they take the wrong medicine today?”

The page had no answer, only deferentially replying, “Young Master, I’m merely here to guide you and carry your things.”

Gu Xiaodeng figured that was fair and didn’t press the issue. Utterly baffled, he continued toward the martial field. When he arrived, everyone’s white robes were pristine—only he was half-covered in dust. An Zhenwen, walking by, frowned slightly at the sight. “Shanqing, why are your clothes unkempt?”

Gu Xiaodeng’s cheeks were puffed with anger. He lifted a hand and pointed out by name the two who had crashed into him. The pair merely looked at each other with innocent faces. “A total injustice! The road is broad and public. Why would we go out of our way to shove you? We don’t even remember your name clearly. Rather, it’s you, loudly calling our names first thing. Who’s to say you didn’t stage this little drama just to get Sir An’s attention?”

“Ouch!” Gu Xiaodeng’s eyes went round. “You two sure can talk!”

He rolled up his sleeves, ready to launch into a full-blown argument. An Zhenwen reached out and placed a hand on his head. “Shanqing.”

Having his head touched by this blood-relation uncle, Gu Xiaodeng’s heart, which had been like a bucket plunging down a well, suddenly filled right to the brim. He instantly looked up and smiled. “Sir.”

An Zhenwen hadn’t expected to pat him on the head in front of everyone. He seldom showed such intimacy to juniors. His palm felt warm and he couldn’t quite pull it away, leaving him at a helpless loss for words. “From now on… walk more carefully.”

Gu Xiaodeng stood on tiptoe to press up against An Zhenwen’s palm, as happy as a puppy. “All right, I’ll be more careful not to get run into.”

An Zhenwen could only rub his hair a couple of times as a kind of comfort, then turned to address the two students.

When he turned back around, Gu Xiaodeng still had both hands on top of his head, radiating a sunny brilliance that cared nothing for how others viewed him. It didn’t look as though everyone was ostracizing him; more that his own brightness excluded everyone else.

An Zhenwen coughed softly a couple of times, then returned to teaching the afternoon swordsmanship class. All the students present had some foundation, so teaching was easy. The one he’d originally needed to instruct most, Su Mingya, had been coughing for a quarter-hour at noon, and An Zhenwen had refused to let him come, firmly ordering him back to Bamboo Courtyard.

Out on the field, the students paired off for light sparring, since they were all new here. An Zhenwen strolled among them, inspecting. He glanced at Gu Xiaodeng a couple of times but saw nothing unusual and walked on.

Gu Xiaodeng, holding his wooden sword, was going through the motions with a young man of similar stature. They were proceeding properly. But the moment An Zhenwen’s back was turned, the opponent’s wooden sword darted up with lightning speed, its tip striking Gu Xiaodeng’s shoulder.

Gu Xiaodeng clutched his shoulder with a hiss. The young man’s face went pale as he apologized profusely. “Sorry, sorry, I didn’t control my force. I should go practice with someone else.”

And with that he fled.

Gu Xiaodeng rubbed his shoulder, his head full of question marks. He picked up his sword and looked for another sparring partner. This time, it was no mistake: during their match, his opponent whipped his sword into Gu Xiaodeng’s flank, causing enough pain to almost make him crouch down on the spot.

The young man muttered an apology, then leaned in to whisper, “With that body of yours, what are you studying and practicing martial arts for? Best thing for you, I figure, is to lie down.”

Without a second word, Gu Xiaodeng jabbed his wooden sword into the toe of the young man’s shoe. The boy yelped and hopped away on one foot.

“Golden Rooster Standing on One Leg. From now on you’re just Rooster to me. Best thing for you, I figure, is laying eggs.” Gu Xiaodeng fumed, whispering it back.

After that, he picked up his sword, intending to find An Zhenwen—not to tattle, but to get another head pat. But when he turned around, Ge Dongchen popped up right in front of him. “Worthy Brother Shanqing, may I have a practice bout with you?”

Remembering his rule to keep his distance, Gu Xiaodeng turned away without even looking. He spotted Guan Yunji nearby, aimlessly staring off into space, and dashed over like a gust of wind. “Worthy Brother Guan, how about a bout with me?”

Guan Yunji hadn’t expected him to genuinely prefer coming here for cold stares. He stared at him, stunned, before recovering. “I’m tired. Go find someone else.”

Gu Xiaodeng was shocked. “You’re tired already? That out of shape?”

Guan Yunji had been thinking of a way to help him out of his predicament. On hearing this, his temper blazed. He spun around and strode off.

Several steps away, he still heard Gu Xiaodeng muttering, “A temper out of shape, and a body out of shape too.”

Guan Yunji: “…”

Let them bully him to death, then!

~

So passed a ten-day period. Gu Xiaodeng never imagined his private school life would turn out so baffling. Hardly any of the young men around his age were agreeable. Most smiled to his face while sniping and backstabbing behind it.

He couldn’t figure it out. Day by day, his steps grew more arduous. Malice came from all directions. When he sensed it, he would hit back, but most of his energy was focused on his double workload—academy lessons during the day, body forging at night—leaving him too exhausted to play their games.

Sometimes when his mood was troubled, he’d glance up at Su Mingya in class. His heart would bloom, and suddenly he’d feel motivated all over again. Su Mingya attended more literary classes and fewer martial ones; one extra glance meant one extra moment of happiness.

Three months passed in this hectic way. Gu Xiaodeng counted the days on his fingers, and at last it was the fifteenth of May, his and Gu Jinyu’s birthday.

Gu Xiaodeng had asked Zhu Mi in advance and learned that Gu Jinyu would return to Changluo on the thirteenth. Overjoyed, he’d slept deeply for two nights.

He asked Zhu Mi to pass a message to Gu Jinyu, saying he wanted to see him on the fifteenth. On the night of the fourteenth, a faint tapping sounded at his window. When he opened it, Blossom Ashes the Gyrfalcon burst inside, bringing the heat of high summer into his arms.

The next day, the moment afternoon class ended, Gu Xiaodeng rushed out of Vast Marsh Academy without even changing clothes, grinning the whole way back to the small courtyard where he used to live. Before he even reached it, he saw Blossom Ashes circling overhead.

Once inside the courtyard, he pattered into the room and immediately spotted a young man in dark vermillion sitting by the window.

Gu Jinyu had actually fallen asleep leaning against the window frame.

Mid-May, in the full grip of summer, the sun set slowly and the sky was exceptionally blue, cloudless for ten-thousand miles. Sunlight poured down in sheets so intense the Gyrfalcon had taken shelter in the window eave’s shade. Yet Gu Jinyu sat exposed in the light, fast asleep.

His hair had somehow gotten shorter, now bound into a high ponytail. The ends just lightly stirred at his nape. When a breeze blew, his temples spread like feelers in the sunshine, every strand distinct.

Gu Xiaodeng stood in place gazing at him for a long while. For some reason, a powerful urge to cry washed over him. Maybe it was because the sight made him think of Zhang Dengqing, wondering if his sworn brother who’d gone off to join the army had changed like Gu Jinyu too—a little more grown, features a touch more handsome, and visibly more weary.

When Blossom Ashes spotted Gu Xiaodeng, the bird came swooshing in, its great wings practically delivering a slap to Gu Jinyu’s face by the window. As Gu Xiaodeng was hastily hugging the bird to him, Gu Jinyu woke. Against the backlight of high summer, his gaze flickered between warm and cold.

In the end, Gu Jinyu dismissed the servants. Once only the two of them remained, he said, “Happy birthday.”

Gu Xiaodeng hugged Blossom Ashes and trotted over, sniffling a little. Pretending to complain, he said, “Is that it, Fourth Young Master? Just empty words? No present? So where’s the present? Hand it over.”

Gu Jinyu leaned lazily against the window, looking up at him from his seat. “Young Master Cousin, we were born the same year, same month, same day. Aren’t you going to wish me?”

“Wishing, wishing.” Gu Xiaodeng, still holding Blossom Ashes, nodded repeatedly. “Here’s wishing us tree branches all the time in the world for good long naps.”

Gu Jinyu reached out and stroked Blossom Ashes’ contented head. “Then I wish Gu Xiaodeng never-ending lessons every single day.”

Gu Xiaodeng shook his head furiously. “No, no.”

Gu Jinyu laughed, then after a pause added, “And I wish you never grow up.”

Gu Xiaodeng went and sat beside him, affirming the beauty of that wish.

“Wish I never grow up.” He looked at Gu Jinyu. “But you’ve grown.”

Gu Jinyu leaned back, seeming to fall asleep under the summer sun once more.

Gu Xiaodeng quietly stayed, sharing the last rays of the summer day.