Chapter 1028: Zhuge Yuan Side Story 1 Begins

An old wooden boat sliced through the picturesque emerald green water like a pair of scissors.

Seeing that they were about to reach their destination, Zhuge Yuan, who had been sitting in the boat cabin, couldn't contain his curiosity and anticipation. Carrying a book basket on his back, he ran to the bow and gazed ahead.

"Young lad, be careful. If you fall in, I'll have to go into the river to pull you out," said the boatman, who was poling, with a chuckle.

"Old man, aren't we there yet?" Zhuge Yuan asked, a little impatiently.

"No hurry," the boatman replied. "We'll reach Baixia City from One-Line Sky in less than half an hour. You'll see it after we round that bend up ahead. Baixia City's scale-shrimp cakes are a delicacy, but those shrimp are only available during the Waking of Insects. You probably won't be able to enjoy them if you go now."

Hearing that it would still take half an hour, Zhuge Yuan, who was standing at the bow, sat down with a sigh of regret. His white shoelaces dangled on the water surface, creating a trail. He raised his hands above his shoulders and stretched. "Heh, no matter," he said. "I'm a humble student going to Baixia to study. I'll definitely be able to eat them next year during the Waking of Insects."

"To study? Going to Baixia City to study? Could it be Minglun Hall?" The old man's face instantly showed surprise.

Hearing this, Zhuge Yuan immediately nodded. "Yes! It's Minglun Hall. My teacher mentioned Elder Wang Changxu of Minglun Hall."

"Oh, my, that's extraordinary, simply extraordinary!" the old man exclaimed.

Hearing the praise, Zhuge Yuan smiled and cupped his hands to the old man. "Old man, you flatter me," he said. "May I ask if Minglun Hall is very famous in Baixia City?"

The old man's eyes immediately widened. "Oh my, it's not just famous in Baixia City; it's renowned throughout the entire Great Qi!" he exclaimed. "You're able to get in, and you don't even know what kind of place Minglun Hall is?"

"Uh..." Zhuge Yuan was a bit embarrassed and didn't know how to answer. He couldn't exactly say he had just come out of the mountains.

But the old man didn't give it much thought and began to explain to Zhuge Yuan. "Minglun Hall is a place of great learning. Anyone who can get into Minglun Hall doesn't even need to take the imperial examination; they can directly become an official!"

"But I've heard that many people who enter Minglun Hall no longer wish to become officials; only a select few choose that path."

"Oh? Then, if I may ask, old man, what do the others who don't enter officialdom do in Minglun Hall?" Zhuge Yuan couldn't help but feel curious about the place his teacher had introduced.

"They pursue scholarship!" the old man said with a proud expression.

"Pursue scholarship? May I ask what kind of scholarship?"

Zhuge Yuan's question immediately stumped the old man. "How would I know that? I'm not a scholar," he said. "Look, that's Baixia City up ahead. When you get to Minglun Hall, just ask the people inside."

As Zhuge Yuan turned his head, he discovered a magnificent ancient city gradually emerging from behind the steep cliffs.

The first thing that came into view was the dock, where passenger and cargo boats of all sizes crowded, struggling to move amidst constant shouts and calls. Zhuge Yuan's gaze moved upwards from the dock. The colossal moss-covered walls draped with vines blended seamlessly with the surrounding green mountains and waters. Coupled with the light mist of the day, it was like a scene from a painting.

As they drew closer, Zhuge Yuan noticed more details: the majestic towers atop the city walls, the antique sculpted beast heads on the walls, and the flags fluttering above them.

"Wow, this is Baixia City!" Zhuge Yuan exclaimed in awe. It was the first time he had seen such a large city in his life.

Once he disembarked at the dock, he ran towards the increasingly massive city walls, carrying the bamboo basket on his back.

After passing through the city gate, a scene of prosperity unfolded before him. The streets were bustling with people, and in addition to the shops lining both sides, various small vendors were haphazardly arranged along the roadside. For Zhuge Yuan, who had never seen so many people, his eyes couldn't take it all in.

As he continued to observe, he gradually understood the true appearance of some things he had only read about in books. The wafting scent of incense drew Zhuge Yuan's attention to a shrine inside a house on the left. There stood a snake-headed deity statue wearing white jade armor. Standing behind the flickering incense smoke, it appeared exceptionally mysterious. In front of the statue was a black lacquered spirit tablet, on which seven boldly written cursive characters declared: "Seat of General Yuli." Two elderly women were kneeling in front of the spirit tablet, murmuring incantations while shaking the bamboo sticks in their bamboo tubes.

"Hmm, do the people of Baixia City still believe in this?" he thought. "Didn't the books say nobody believed in it anymore? My teacher was truly right; indeed, 'reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles.'"

Zhuge Yuan continued walking forward, stopping occasionally to look at places that interested him. The wonders of the outside world made him regret not having come out a few years earlier.

Walking and observing, Zhuge Yuan snapped back to reality and realized that the sun, hanging in the sky, was now half-hidden behind the city walls.

"Oh no, oh no, I forgot the main business!" Zhuge Yuan poured all the fried tofu wrapped in a lotus leaf into his mouth and, chewing with a mumble, ran towards Minglun Hall.

Having wandered for most of the day, he had actually already inquired about the location of Minglun Hall. However, Zhuge Yuan felt he still had time and decided to play around first. He just hadn't expected time to pass so quickly.

As dusk fell, Baixia City's walls, bathed in the fading light of the setting sun, gradually grew dim. Zhuge Yuan finally arrived before Minglun Hall just as night was fully descending.

Just as the creaking gate was about to swing shut with a thud, Zhuge Yuan's hand slapped heavily onto one of its round copper studs. "Wait!" he cried.

When the bewildered guard, who was closing the gate, pulled it open, he saw a handsome young man gasping for breath, hands on his knees.

"Come back tomorrow. The time is past," the guard said firmly, about to close the gate again.

"Big brother, please don't!" Zhuge Yuan pleaded. "It'll be curfew soon. My teacher has an old acquaintance with Wang Changxu of Minglun Hall. Please make an exception." As Zhuge Yuan spoke, he quickly took out the letter his teacher had given him from his bamboo basket and handed it over.

The guard took the letter, hesitated and glanced at it twice, then looked Zhuge Yuan up and down. "Wait here," the guard said. With a thud, the gate closed heavily again.

Wiping the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, Zhuge Yuan let out a long breath. He looked up at the huge plaque of Minglun Hall above him and couldn't help but wonder, "Am I really going to study in this place from now on?"

He glanced left and right, seeing no one, and secretly peeked through the crack in the gate. Through the crack, he could see a magnificent building with gracefully tiered eaves, its pillars and walls clearly visible. Numerous sword bamboos were planted around the building, rustling as the evening breeze blew through them.

"Cough!"

A light cough from behind startled Zhuge Yuan. He quickly turned around and saw an old man with his hair tied up, wearing a black and white robe, staring at him with a deep frown. To be honest, the man's appearance was very ordinary, not as striking as the old boatman, but his eyes gleamed with such radiating light that one dared not look directly at him.

"Youngster, is your teacher an old friend of Elder Wang Changxu?"

"Huh?" A bewildered Zhuge Yuan glanced at the closed gate, then at the old man in front of him, and quickly stood straight and bowed. Before Zhuge Yuan could speak, the old man's words stunned him into silence. "Elder Wang Changxu passed away a hundred years ago," he said. "Is your teacher truly an old friend of Elder Wang Changxu?"