Fighting and Killing Is Far More Fun

Sleeping rough and braving the elements was part of their daily routine, so traveling by night held no terrors for them. Of course, of the sixty-odd bandits, six or seven had managed to flee, nearly thirty lay dead, and the rest had surrendered. He Lingchuan led dozens of Gale Army soldiers, escorting the crowd of captives all the way to Yuheng City. "Whoa, it's changed so much here!" Upon entering Yuheng City, the soldiers marveled in astonishment. Seven or eight out of ten Gale Army soldiers in the escort had followed General Red eastward last year, sweating and bleeding during the battle for Yuheng City, so the place had left a deep impression on them. It was only renamed after General Red took it. Originally a frontier fortress of the Xiji Kingdom, it had served as a garrison town where defending the border mattered far more than economic growth. Aside from the garrison troops, the population had been small. Yet revisiting the place only a few months later, He Lingchuan found that Yuheng City had expanded by at least three times its former size! The city walls were in the middle of an expansion. Once night fell, the craftsmen ceased working on the ramparts, but scaffolding still spanned every corner. Inside, the city was bustling, with foot traffic flowing like a vibrant weave. Half of the streets He Lingchuan had once walked were being widened and renovated, while the other half had simply been torn down and rebuilt. The new thoroughfares were laid out on a grid like those in Panlong City—broad, flat, and straight, ideally suited for marching troops. The buildings on either side had likewise been either refurbished or rebuilt to uniform dimensions and style, appearing remarkably orderly… and unmistakably stamped with Panlong City's distinctive character. They had better put up street signs soon, or the identical houses and identical streets would cause anyone to get lost in an instant. The city had taken on an entirely new look, thriving and full of vitality. After entering Yuheng City and handing over the prisoners, He Lingchuan gave the order to dismiss the squad on the spot and went to carry Master Sun's luggage. As for the soldiers' food and lodging, Willow and Hu Min would take men to see to the arrangements; there was no need for him, as their commander, to fret over it. Master Sun had brought an enormous number of books. In addition to two storage rings packed to capacity, they filled two whole carts. All of these were meant for the newly established Yuheng Academy. While helping her carry the books, He Lingchuan accidentally dropped a chest, and over a dozen sets of test papers spilled across the ground. He picked up a set at random and scanned it. Whoa, this was brutal. What on earth were these questions? He truly felt sorry for the students of Yuheng Academy. "Do you want to try them too?" Sun Fuling leaned over to look. "Should I save a set for you?" "No, no, no!" He Lingchuan said solemnly. "How could I dare deprive the children of their intellectual nourishment?" Sun Fuling blinked. "These are recruitment exams for hiring instructors, not for the students." "Huh?" "Yuheng Academy is hiring teachers, so these are the test questions." Sun Fuling helped him gather the papers. "If you pass, you can become an instructor here too." No wonder he had found it difficult—insanely difficult! It wasn't meant for children at all! "Who wrote the questions?" "Dean Xu." She glanced sideways at him. "Care to give it a shot?" "No thanks, no thanks. I still think fighting and killing is far more fun." Spend his days deciphering the ancient immortal language? His head ached just thinking about it. While carrying the books into the archives, He Lingchuan heard a racket outside, followed by the shrill voices of children. Master Sun turned a deaf ear, not even looking back, but He Lingchuan drifted to the second-floor window to watch the commotion. It turned out to be a brawl between several boys, surrounded by a ring of students cheering them on. Ooh, black eyes and swollen faces—they were really landing heavy blows. The academy dorm proctors soon hurried over, berated both sides, and hauled them off to detention. By the time He Lingchuan turned back, Sun Fuling had almost finished shelving the books. He quickly stepped in to help. "At such a young age, they're already bullying each other?" Sun Fuling smiled faintly. "Who was bullying whom?" "The one hitting hardest—wasn't he a Changhou student from Xiji?" Xiji was a kingdom founded by the Changhou people, whereas the citizens of Panlong City were people of the Xiluo Kingdom. "You've got it backward. The boy hitting hardest is one of our Xiluo people." Sun Fuling slid a book onto the shelf. "In the past, Xiluo people were bullied in Xiji—either barred from attending school or tormented by Changhou students. Now the tables have turned." He Lingchuan had an epiphany. "No wonder Yuheng Academy is short-handed. Tensions run high here." She hadn't even looked, yet she knew who was fighting down below. Over at Shumin Academy in Panlong Academy, the academic atmosphere was peaceful, since almost every student was from Xiluo. "Wrong again." Sun Fuling shook her head with a faint smile. "There used to be far more conflict, but it has dropped sharply over the past few months. Right now, Yuheng Academy looks quite harmonious on the surface; you were just lucky enough to witness a scuffle today." "Oh?" He Lingchuan was surprised. "Why is that?" These children were still young, after all; he had assumed the Changhou youths would harbor resentment and defiance. "Because they have become people of a fallen state." Sun Fuling's placid words sent a chill down He Lingchuan's spine upon reflection. With their country gone, even children so young had lost their spirit, not daring to resist. "From now on, they will all be people of Yuheng and Panlong City, distinguished only by good or bad character, high or low ability." He Lingchuan looked down at the boys below, whose eyes seemed ready to spit fire, and felt less than optimistic. "I doubt it'll be that easy." "Of course it won't be easy. But having them study together and work together offers hope of integration over time." Sun Fuling gave a rare sigh. "'Education without distinction'—that is Dean Xu's hope. I'm not nearly as optimistic as he is. Integration has never been as pleasant as the word sounds." Just then, a dispatch officer jogged in and reported, "Lord Wen requests your presence." Sun Fuling pointed toward the door. "Go on, Master Wen is looking for you." He Lingchuan quickly asked, "By the way, where are you staying?" "In the academy's faculty quarters, of course." So she was living in the dorms? "Uh, after coming all the way to Yuheng City, wouldn't it be better to stay in a larger house?" Yuheng City was expanding rapidly, so housing here was not nearly as tight as in Panlong City. Sun Fuling paused in her movements and turned to look at him. "You mean...?" Her limpid eyes were startlingly bright. Feeling awkward, He Lingchuan cleared his throat before saying, "I just thought... being neighbors again wouldn't be—wouldn't be bad either." Their gazes met. The corner of Sun Fuling's lips twitched slightly, though He Lingchuan could not tell whether she was amused or annoyed. She tilted her head in thought. "All right. Once you're back, we can look for a place to stay." "Great, great!" Sensing the atmosphere had turned peculiar, He Lingchuan hurried off after the dispatch officer. *** Throughout Yuheng City, the government office was one of the few buildings that had not been renovated. It remained just as He Lingchuan remembered it—drab and grey, small and run-down. "Officials don't renovate their yamens"—that was common knowledge. The iron kettle atop the charcoal stove was steaming briskly. As soon as He Lingchuan arrived, Wen Daolun personally brewed a cup of hot tea and handed it over. "Master Wen, you're too polite!" He Lingchuan accepted it with both hands. "Oh, I should call you Lord Wen now." Under Zhong Shengguang's appointment, Wen Daolun had been promoted to Vice Commander, concurrently overseeing the affairs of Yuheng City. Compared to a few months ago, Wen Daolun had grown somewhat thinner, but he had regained his energetic spirit. "After Commander Xiao returned, I kept wondering whom Commander Zhong would send over," Wen Daolun said with a smile. "I never expected it to be you. Good, good! Commander Zhong truly hasn't lost his eye for talent."