The Clan School was built on a mountain beside a lake, with its soaring eaves perched on the edge of a cliff, making it appear perilously precarious. The southern slope was covered in tall bamboo groves, from which eight identical stone steps extended—it was impossible to tell which one led to the Teaching House.
Yao Ye and Dan Yue knew the way, sparing Mei Jiu and Mei Ru Yan the trouble of finding their path. Yet even so, by the time the two arrived at the Teaching House, they were already exhausted, collapsing like limp rags.
Mei Jiu grimaced and said, "Do we have to climb this mountain every day from now on?"
"Miss, I don’t wish to dampen your spirits," Yao Ye replied, slightly out of breath, "but the truth is, not only must we climb this mountain, but we also have to go to the back mountain for lunch!"
"The back mountain?" Mei Ru Yan leaned against a bamboo stalk, her face full of astonishment. "You mean those buildings on the cliff we just saw?"
"Indeed," Dan Yue said. "I’ve heard the path is just two iron chains with some wooden planks laid across them."
Mei Jiu paled at the words. This was a mountain nearly seventy zhang high—one misstep, and she’d be smashed to pieces!
Mei Ru Yan frowned in confusion. "Isn’t our family a royal merchant? Why is everything so bizarre?"
Over the past two days, Mei Ru Yan had inquired extensively about Mei Shi. The Mei family was indeed a royal merchant, but due to a curse, many of their descendants died young. Thus, the family decreed that all children must practice martial arts to strengthen their bodies.
A century ago, Mei Shi had risen from nothing, becoming one of the few great merchants of the Song Dynasty in just over a decade. Surely, they must have committed countless unscrupulous deeds in secret—divine retribution was only natural. But logically speaking, shouldn’t they value their clansmen’s lives even more? Why would they deliberately put them in danger within their own estate?
"Are you two Fourteen Lady and Shishi Niang?" A pale-faced page boy peeked out from the path and asked.
Yao Ye exhaled almost imperceptibly in relief and quickly answered, "Indeed, we are."
The page boy clasped his hands in greeting. "The teacher has been waiting for some time. Please follow me, ladies."
Yao Ye said, "We servants are not permitted to stay on the mountain. We’ll return to fetch you both when classes end in the evening."
Mei Jiu and Mei Ru Yan replied, "Understood."
"Please, this way." The page boy was about the same age as the two girls, but his demeanor was that of a stuffy old scholar.
The vast courtyard was completely barren, devoid of any trees or flowers. Only a few sparse plum trees sat beneath the veranda, one of which had already sprouted tiny buds.
The dozen or so Teaching Houses all had latticed elm doors and windows, left unpainted. The straight, rugged grain of the elm wood and its natural hue lent an understated elegance to the otherwise stark courtyard. Suddenly, the sound of clear recitations filled the air, instantly transforming the space into one of scholarly refinement.
The page boy stopped in front of one of the Teaching Houses and had them wait at the foot of the steps. Only after announcing their arrival did he invite them inside.
The teacher sat cross-legged on a mat. Seeing the two standing at the door, he tapped his desk with a ruler and turned to them. "Please come in, ladies."
Mei Jiu followed Mei Ru Yan inside, keeping her eyes fixed on her toes, too timid to look up.
"Are your feet that beautiful?" An Jiu’s icy voice cut in.
Mei Jiu didn’t know how to respond, so she whispered timidly, "No."
An Jiu laughed, then suddenly roared, "If they’re not beautiful, why are you staring at them like they’re blooming flowers?! Lift your head!"
Mei Jiu flinched violently. Immediately, she heard muffled laughter from the front. When she finally looked up, she saw nearly two dozen young men and women in the room, all snickering at her—each with a different shade of amusement in their eyes.Mei Jiu was astonished to find that men and women were mixed together here—how utterly improper!
An Jiu, however, was surprised for an entirely different reason. The Mei Shi family had fewer than seventy masters, yet this room alone held twenty-seven young men and women of varying ages, nearly half of the Mei household's master-level members. Subtract the family head, five elders, two old madams, the son-in-law who married into the family, and the concubines, and the Mei Shi's able-bodied adults were practically nonexistent! In other words, most of these children's parents were likely no longer alive.
The teacher tapped his ruler again, speaking with a slight Shaanxi accent, "The two young ladies will study with everyone from now on. You are all brothers and sisters of the same family, so help each other."
Without much introduction, the teacher gave a few simple admonitions before pointing to some empty seats at the back and saying, "Take any seat you like."
"Thank you, sir."
After expressing their gratitude, the two walked along the wall to the last row and chose two adjacent seats.
Mei Jiu's seat was by the window, where she could turn her head and see the lush greenery of the backyard, its dense foliage hardly resembling autumn scenery. Mei Ru Yan sat right beside her.
No sooner had they taken their seats than a page brought them books.
There were five books in total: The Great Learning , Mencius , The Book of Rites , The Book of Changes , and The Book of Documents .
An Jiu remembered she couldn’t understand the convoluted ancient language or write traditional characters and thought about learning alongside Mei Jiu. Before she could speak, she realized she could already comprehend them!
Just as Mei Jiu had gained many of her abilities, when Mei Jiu began reading these books, this skill was also acquired by An Jiu.
Mei Jiu had studied these texts before. Apart from The Book of Changes , which she didn’t understand at all, the others weren’t too difficult for her. Regardless of depth, she could at least recite them all by heart.
An Jiu felt no excitement about this "windfall." The increasing forced sharing between her and Mei Jiu was hardly cause for celebration.
Deep down, An Jiu resisted receiving things from others without effort, because her entire past life had proven one truth—what goes around comes around!
If given the choice, she would rather invest time and effort to learn these things herself. With enough dedication, there was no reason she couldn’t master them. After much thought, she concluded this was more a worry than a joy.
The students swayed their heads back and forth, reciting a passage from Mencius six or seven times before the teacher gave them a break.
Mei Jiu, drawn by the scenery outside, was about to lean against the window when the teacher spoke behind her, "What books have you two studied before?"
Mei Jiu hurriedly stood and bowed. "Sir."
The teacher waved his hand. "Sit, sit, no need for formalities. I don’t stand on ceremony."
His Shaanxi accent sounded rustic yet warm, making Mei Jiu look up to study him more closely. The teacher appeared to be around twenty-eight or twenty-nine, tall and broad-shouldered, wearing a faded gray-blue robe. His face was dark, his mustache neatly trimmed, and his already narrow eyes were squinted so tightly he resembled a fox—a black fox.
His comical appearance eased some of Mei Jiu’s nervousness. "Sir, apart from The Book of Changes , I’ve studied the other volumes."
Mei Ru Yan said sheepishly, "I’ve only read Mencius ."At present, the custom of patronizing courtesans was in vogue, with literati considering it a romantic affair. The highest-class courtesans were called "top-ranking courtesans." They not only needed beauty but also cultivation and talent. When Mei Ru Yan was raised in the brothel, there were specialized tutors to teach her, though mostly poetry and prose, to please future clients.
The tutor wasn't surprised by the disparity between the two sisters. "If there's anything you don't understand, you may ask me anytime. I only teach one class every five days. If you wish to excel, you must rely on your own efforts in private study."
"Only one class every five days?" In Mei Jiu's impression, tutors were supposed to come daily!
"You will have other lessons," the tutor said, bringing his face close to the table. He reached out and felt a stack of papers, holding them up to his face to examine them carefully.
Seeing him nearly press his face against the paper, Mei Jiu realized his eyesight was poor and gently reminded him, "Sir, those are blank sheets."
He smiled, setting the papers down. "Each of you, write a few characters for me to see. Hmm, let’s have you transcribe a favorite lyric poem."
"Yes."
Mei Jiu and Mei Ru Yan each took paper and brush, carefully writing out a verse.
When both had set down their brushes, the tutor brought his face close to Mei Jiu's writing, squinting as he examined it for a long while before reciting, "A single oar in spring breeze, a lone leaf-like boat; a silken fishing line, a light hook. Flowers fill the isle, wine fills the cup—in boundless waves, freedom is found."
After reading, he offered no comment, turning instead to Mei Ru Yan's work. "Seeking spring must come before spring's dawn; admire flowers ere their branches age. Pale jade hands lift the cup, clear brew floats in the bowl. Why not laugh often and bright? The palace gardens hold spring late. Drunk together in idle peace, verses follow the drumbeat's close."
"Interesting." He folded both papers and tucked them into his sleeve, standing up. "‘A single oar in spring breeze’—you may go study under Mr. Qingming. ‘Seeking spring must come before spring's dawn’—you may go study under Mister Mo. Someone will take you there shortly."
Unfamiliar with the rules, Mei Jiu was about to ask a question when she saw the tutor already rising and stumbling his way toward the front of the room.
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