Chapter 2: Which Teacher Wouldn’t Like A Polite Student?
The sky was dimly lit.
In a remote and dilapidated courtyard in the city, a young man was holding a wooden stick and practicing martial arts, with each move and stance methodical.
Chop, sweep, lift, thrust, flick, and so on.
There were no fancy moves, only practical ones.
Lin Fan held the stick with one hand, leaped up, and forcefully chopped the wooden stick toward the ground. With a bang, it stirred up a cloud of dust, leaving a stick mark on the ground.
【Beginner Staff Technique proficiency +1】
“Phew.”
Lin Fan stood firm, retracted the stick, and slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air. His body gradually heated up.
Seeing the proficiency increase, he nodded in satisfaction.
This was the result of hard work.
Back then, when he was swinging wildly at random, he comprehended Beginner Staff Technique, then frantically grinded the proficiency. From Beginner to Minor Accomplishment, then to Great Accomplishment during this period.
He discovered that the staff technique had undergone earth-shaking changes imperceptibly.
This feeling was like self-correction.
Now, in modern time terms, it was only five o’clock. Back when he hadn’t transmigrated, at five o’clock, he was still sound asleep, impossible to get up.
But after transmigrating to this unfamiliar world, there was always a tense sense of oppression in his heart, urging him to seize every minute and second, using time on the blade.
There was a saying, how did it go.
At this point, you still have the mind to sleep?
Continuing to practice the staff technique, the whooshing sound produced when swinging the stick was very dull. After a long time, the sound of a door opening came from next door. A tigerish little kid, as usual, stood in front of the fence, staring with big eyes, watching intently.
Of course, for the current Lin Fan, he turned a deaf ear to outside matters, single-mindedly swinging the stick.
【Beginner Staff Technique proficiency +1】
……
After a long time.
Lin Fan stopped his movements, breathing rapidly, sweat seeping from his forehead, face flushed, having used most of his strength.
He glanced at the proficiency.
【Beginner Staff Technique（Great Accomplishment 63/1000）】
From waking up until now, one hour, proficiency increased by fifty points. This was his fixed daily improvement speed upon waking. Once it reached a certain proficiency, he stopped cultivating.
Just right at the limit his body could accept.
Now was urgent, but he couldn’t desperately rush.
Lin Fan’s gaze fell on the snot-nosed kid. This boy was seven years old, nicknamed Hu Zi, his neighbor, living with his mother, family just barely able to make ends meet.
He had seen the kid’s mother a few times; she was fairly good-looking. She seemed to know Lin Fan mixed with Loyalty Hall and didn’t dare have too much contact with people like him, so she always avoided meeting him.
Yong’an City’s security was decent, but it couldn’t avoid dirty things happening in shady areas.
Lin Fan picked up a small short stick from the corner, walked to the fence, and handed the wooden stick to Hu Zi. “Here, take it to play.”
“Thank you, brother.” Hu Zi happily took the wooden stick, then thought for a moment, took out a cooled cooked flatbread from his pocket. “Brother, eat flatbread.”
Lin Fan smiled, touched Hu Zi’s head. “Keep it for yourself, brother doesn’t eat it.”
“Oh.”
Then Hu Zi happily bit into the cooked flatbread while swinging the small short stick randomly in the courtyard.
No man could resist a straight and long stick.
Lin Fan went back inside to wash up. When leaving, he turned his head and happened to lock eyes with Hu Zi’s mother, scaring her into quickly pulling the child who still wanted to play back inside.
“Am I that scary?”
Lin Fan touched his face, thinking he was quite handsome, one of the top handsome men in Yong’an City.
……
Qingfang Private School.
Lin Fan stuffed the remaining steamed bun into his mouth, pushed the door and entered. He saw the teacher sitting there, an old man in green clothes, and respectfully called out.
“Teacher.”
The old man nodded.
Lin Fan found his seat, sat down, and opened the book placed in front of him. This old man taught law. When young, he was a government office clerk. When old and unable to work, he opened his own private school to teach law.
《Direct Interpretation of Laws and Decrees》 This thing was somewhat obscure and hard to understand. When he read it himself, his brain felt like it was about to explode.
He could only spend some silver to attend classes.
At this time, the old man looked at Lin Fan, who was sitting there with his head down reading. He nodded quite satisfied. He had a deep impression of this young man. Although his understanding of law was not much and acceptance was low, he really studied seriously.
Every day without fail, arriving at the private school on time.
No leaving early, no late arrivals.
Especially knowing Lin Fan mixed with Loyalty Hall, he couldn’t help but think higher of him. What did this mean?
It meant this young fellow had ambition, knew mixing with a gang had no future, could endure studying, seeking a better path.
As for mixing with a gang, it must be due to life’s pressures, understandable.
Not long after, people arrived one after another. These were all here to learn law for the exam in a month, and these families were well-off. The worst family background was his, Lin Fan’s.
“Yo, you thug arrived quite early.”
Lin Fan frowned slightly, looked at the young man sitting beside him. This guy, after learning he was a low-level thug from Loyalty Hall, kept targeting him.
It made Lin Fan sometimes think, on a dark and windy night, smash your head with a stick.
Seeing Lin Fan not respond, Chen Liang continued, “Just waste time studying. You want to pass the exam? Unless the sun rises from the west.”
He didn’t take Lin Fan seriously at all.
Because his uncle was in the government office.
Uncle said, you study law, just go through the motions, arrangements will be made later.
Therefore, Chen Liang felt very unlucky seeing a thug sitting in the same private school as him.
“Quiet, class begins.”
The old man tapped the teaching ruler, glanced at Chen Liang with eyes full of disdain. But when his gaze turned to Lin Fan, it became approval. Not hasty or impatient, able to hold back when provoked, such talent was suitable for the government office.
As for these spoiled young masters, if not for livelihood, he wouldn’t bother teaching.
Lin Fan naturally caught the old man’s gaze.
He had no relatives in this world, no connections. Performing well in front of the old man to gain a good impression wasn’t a bad thing.
“Turn to page seventeen. Today we lecture on rape cases, divided into various situations. First, ordinary rape case, using violence to force a woman into relations, punished by hanging. Attempted still heavy punishment, usually caning one hundred, exile three thousand li.”
Lin Fan listened to the teacher seriously, memorizing it in his heart. This penal law was harsh. If on Earth, just a few years in prison.
“But in rape cases, there is also free citizen with low-status household, relatives. If free citizen with low-status household, then two situations. One, low-status household raping free citizen woman, heavy punishment execution. But if free citizen raping low-status household woman, then caning or imprisonment…”
Hearing this, Lin Fan paused slightly, thinking this was a feudal dynasty, so said nothing more.
“Hey, low-status household, talking about you.” Chen Liang said with a small laugh.
Lin Fan smiled at Chen Liang, memorizing his face firmly. You wait, fucker. If not for lacking strength now, not having learned martial way, where would he get the chance to jump around in front of him.
Of course, he also knew the household registration classes here.
Free citizens were scholars, farmers, artisans, merchants.
Low-status households were entertainers’ households, beggars’ households, degraded folk, boat people, slaves.
Like him, belonging to beggars’ household.
Time passed quickly.
During this time, Lin Fan benefited greatly, his grasp of law even higher. On the contrary, Chen Liang beside him listened drowsily. Law was law, reality was reality.
If he went to rape a low-status household, no problem at all.
“Class dismissed.”
The old man stood up to leave.
“Thank you, teacher. Teacher has worked hard.”
Lin Fan stood up respectfully.
The old man stroked his beard, nodded with a smile. Who wouldn’t like a sensible student? As for the others, a complete mess, no manners at all.
After the old man left.
Lin Fan looked at Chen Liang and said, “I think I know why you’re targeting me everywhere.”
“Hm?” Chen Liang was curious.
The people around who hadn’t left also cast curious gazes.
Lin Fan pointed at Chen Liang’s face, then his own. “Because you’re jealous I’m handsomer than you. But looks are innate, nothing to do. But your face, fat and full of pimples, like a toad. Sitting next to you feels uncomfortable. I’m off, bye. Looking at you a few more times, afraid I’ll puke.”
Words just finished.
The surrounding crowd couldn’t help bursting into laughter.
Bang!
“You fucking.”
Chen Liang furiously slammed the table, face ashen. What angered him most was others commenting on his face, and he couldn’t retort, because his face was really ugly.
At this time, Lin Fan had already strode away.
Not even glancing at Chen Liang.
Could only hear Chen Liang’s impotent furious cursing.
