Chapter 134: Conditions
Chu Xu shook his head: “I don’t know.”
Those assassins shouted to kill him, clearly stating they didn’t want him alive, only the corpse.
“If Father and Elder Brother were here, they would definitely know who sent those assassins.”
Shang Wan felt trouble upon hearing this. The child had this identity and situation, and it was right in the midst of war. Even thinking with her toes, she knew this matter most likely involved political struggles in the Imperial Court.
She silently estimated her family’s strength. They completely lacked the qualifications to sit at the table.
She asked: “What about the assassins chasing you?”
“They saw me jump off the cliff and probably thought I was dead.” Chu Xu frowned his little face. “They shouldn’t come chasing.”
“So young and already daring to jump off a cliff—commendable courage.” Shang Wan patted his head. “But your thinking is a bit too naive.”
Chu Xu tilted his head in confusion.
Shang Wan explained: “There’s a saying: ‘If alive, produce the person; if dead, produce the corpse.’ Since they are assassins who took the mission, they definitely need to bring back your corpse to complete it. They might even be circling nearby looking for you right now.”
“Nearby?” Chu Xu’s voice rose in fright.
After all, he was just a six-year-old child who had just survived an assassination attempt and nearly lost his life. How could he not be terrified?
Being able to calmly recount his ordeal now was already quite impressive.
Still, he was a bit too immature.
If Shang Wan were the type to fear for her life, she could kill him now and toss him into that valley to avoid the killers coming to their door.
In fact, Shang Wan was considering it.
Of course, she didn’t think she would lose to those assassins. It was just that she had no obligation to shelter Chu Xu and drag her own family down with him.
Shang Wan always distinguished clearly between her own people and outsiders.
Who knew how many waves of killers there were? If they killed one batch and another came, their peaceful life would be disrupted, which was something she didn’t want to see.
Lu Chengjing’s thoughts aligned perfectly with Shang Wan’s—everything prioritized their own family.
Seeing the two fall silent, Chu Xu’s heart pounded. Were these two not wanting to help him?
“I’ve told you everything, and you promised to help me.”
The child’s voice was aggrieved, his pair of amber cat-like eyes misting over. The way he looked at Shang Wan was like staring at a big liar who coaxed children.
Anyone looked at with such eyes would feel a surge of affection.
But Shang Wan not only felt no sympathy—she even wanted to laugh a little.
“Doesn’t pinching your leg hurt?”
Still putting on an act in front of her. A six-year-old child with plenty of cunning, full of little tricks.
Chu Xu: “…”
He silently released the small hand pinching his thigh. With a blink of his eyes, the tears he had desperately squeezed out were held back.
He pursed his lips and asked softly: “Are you still going to send me away?”
“I’m considering it. I don’t want to drag myself and my family down with you.” Shang Wan didn’t deceive him. “But if you can convince us, I can let you stay.”
Chu Xu was stunned. Convince?
His little head spun rapidly. Convincing probably meant offering benefits, right?
Father had said that on the battlefield, heavy rewards bring brave men. It should be the same now, right?
If the benefits he brought this woman outweighed the losses from the assassins, she would let him stay.
But what benefits could he bring this family?
While thinking, Chu Xu seriously sized up the two. Suddenly, a spark lit in his mind, and his gaze fixed on Lu Chengjing.
“You’re a scholar, right?”
Lu Chengjing nodded.
This was a breakthrough!
Chu Xu tried to suppress his excitement. “As long as you’re willing to keep me and protect me fully, I can let you study at Bai Hong Academy. You know Bai Hong Academy, right? It’s the place all scholars in the world want to enter. It has produced many top scholars.”
He worried that Lu Chengjing, from a small place, might not know how great Bai Hong Academy was, so he tried to describe it with what he knew, hoping to make Lu Chengjing moved.
Unfortunately, Lu Chengjing’s expression didn’t change at all. He said calmly: “I’ve heard of it.”
Chu Xu looked at him eagerly. And then?
Lu Chengjing also looked at him, his gaze extremely calm.
It was like a basin of cold water poured over his head. The little spark of excitement in Chu Xu’s heart instantly extinguished.
He didn’t understand—how could a scholar not be moved by Bai Hong Academy?
He wasn’t lying. Bai Hong Academy really was the holy temple that all scholars in the world dreamed of!
“Then do you want to enter the Imperial Academy?” Chu Xu changed the condition. “I can have my family recommend you to enter the Imperial Academy.”
If Bai Hong Academy didn’t move him, the Imperial Academy should, right?
That was the Imperial Academy!
Only officials of fourth rank and above had recommendation slots!
Lu Chengjing gestured for him to look at the wheelchair he was sitting in and said slowly: “With this crippled body, how could I enter the halls of power?”
The Imperial Academy was indeed great. The students there were practically reserves for Imperial Court officials, with chances to meet the emperor. But a guy in a wheelchair couldn’t even get through the gates of the Imperial Academy.
He had thought Lu Chengjing was just temporarily injured, but it turned out his legs were crippled?
Realizing he had poked at someone’s sore spot, Chu Xu lowered his head in annoyance and said sincerely: “Sorry, I didn’t mean to. I thought your legs were just injured.”
Shang Wan looked at the back of his head.
Proud but not spoiled, able to empathize with others—decent character.
She coughed lightly. “The unknowing are not to blame.”
Chu Xu sneaked a glance at Lu Chengjing and saw he really didn’t look angry, so he lifted his head and looked at Shang Wan. “What do you want? I’ll promise anything I can do.”
He had been foolish earlier. Asking directly was obviously faster than guessing.
Shang Wan and Lu Chengjing exchanged a look, and Chu Xu’s gaze also shifted to Lu Chengjing.
“Three promises.” Lu Chengjing said warmly. “We protect you fully, in exchange for three promises from Duke Dingguo’s Mansion.”
Chu Xu: !!!
He really wanted to curse the two for taking advantage of his distress. Could promises be given out casually like that?
And three of them!
It was completely asking for the moon!
“I’m planning to send you away tonight. Give us your answer before dark.” Shang Wan ignored Chu Xu’s little face turning red from anger and pushed Lu Chengjing out.
The sky was gradually darkening. The sun at the edge of the mountain was left with only a thin line. Summer was approaching, and even the night breeze carried a bit of restlessness.
Shang Wan caught a basket of palm-sized crucian carp and had Xiao Huan stew soup.
Xiao Huan discovered that adding two home-grown bok choy during stewing could eliminate any fishy smell from even the most pungent ingredients, saving quite a bit of spices.
Dinner was served, the enticing aroma making stomachs rumble.
Everyone ate and chatted, the atmosphere lively.
The new house was already more than half built and should be completed in another half month.
When Gao Yan and Ma Jieyong weren’t working, they liked to stroll around the village. Whenever they saw someone building a house, they’d chat a bit, and gradually, they picked up quite a few odd jobs.
He SIZhi wanted his apprentices to do more work to gain experience, so he let them go as long as it didn’t delay the new house.
The two had inherited He SIZhi’s skills fully. Their wages were similar to Zhang Family’s, and they had gained some fame in the village. Even people from other villages came to ask them to help build new houses.
