Chapter 13

Xu Shi had been eagerly waiting at home for a long time when she finally saw Zhan Jianxing return. She quickly pulled her close and examined her from head to toe, fearing she might have lost even a single strand of hair.

Zhan Jianxing smiled and said, “Mother, I’m fine.”

Xu Shi didn’t believe her and pressed for details about her experiences at Prince Dai Manor. Worried that complete silence would only make Xu Shi more anxious, Zhan Jianxing revealed a little: “The Royal Grandson has a bit of a peculiar temper. But it’s nothing—I just go along with him and don’t provoke him.”

Xu Shi sighed with worry, “Ah, it’s all because I’m useless, making you endure others’ moods.”

“I’m not suffering, Mother. Let me tell you—the tutor at Prince Dai Manor is wonderful, a Hanlin academician. If I stayed at home, how could I ever find such a learned teacher? Even if I have to put up with some moods, it’s worth it to study under him for a few years.”

As she spoke, Zhan Jianxing’s eyes sparkled, her lips curled up, and the faint dimples on her cheeks appeared. Those small dimples were usually hidden when she smiled, only revealing themselves when her whole face lit up with joy.

Such genuine happiness was hard to fake, and Xu Shi finally felt a little relieved. She lovingly patted her head and asked, “Is that so?”

But then she frowned slightly, “But what about the future—”

Even if Prince Dai Manor wasn’t a dangerous place, Zhan Jianxing, a girl, couldn’t keep mingling with boys forever. While her age still allowed some ambiguity, in at most two years, they would have to find a way out. Though their poor household couldn’t afford to fuss over maidenly reputation, basic propriety between men and women couldn’t be ignored. If her reputation were ruined, it would affect her for life.

But Zhan Jianxing hadn’t considered any of this. Her top priority was survival, and that alone already consumed her current existence.

Marriage was far too distant a concern for her.

“Mother, I’ve thought about the future,” Zhan Jianxing said softly, her eyes shining even brighter. “I won’t stay at Prince Dai Manor forever—that’s not a long-term solution.”

Xu Shi was more than eager to stay as far away from Prince Dai Manor as possible and quickly asked, “That’s good! What’s your plan, Xing’er?”

“Mother, now that I have a good tutor, I’ll study hard with him for two years. Then I can try taking the Children’s Examination—”

“What?” Xu Shi exclaimed. She remembered Zhan Jianxing mentioning the idea of taking the Imperial Examination once while in prison, but they both knew it was impossible. They had laughed it off bitterly back then—but now?

“Xing’er, that was just a frustrated remark. How can you take it seriously?” Xu Shi grew flustered. She and Zhan Jianxing relied on each other, and though she strongly disapproved, she couldn’t bring herself to scold her daughter. Instead, she blamed her late husband: “It’s all your father’s fault. My precious girl is no worse than anyone else, yet he insisted on raising you like a boy. Now that he’s gone, he’s left you all confused.”

Zhan Jianxing had lived with a mistaken gender identity for years. Though Xu Shi had quietly corrected her as she grew older, the habits ingrained over time weren’t so easily erased.

Xu Shi suspected that Zhan Jianxing might still be somewhat confused about her own gender, which was why she had come up with this idea.

“I’m not being stubborn, Mother. Grandfather and Grandmother are obstacles we can’t avoid. As long as we’re in Datong, we’ll remain under their control.” Zhan Jianxing’s eyes turned colder. “The only way to escape their grasp is to go somewhere far beyond their reach.”

In other words, they had to leave Datong.

But without sufficient reason, it would be difficult to obtain a travel permit from the authorities. The problem circled back to the original dilemma.

“I don’t aspire to top the Imperial Examination—just passing as a Licentiate would be enough. I’ve heard from my teacher that Licentiates aren’t restricted by the hundred-mile travel limit. Getting a travel permit would be easy, and the officials couldn’t stop us. With this title, whether we return south or go elsewhere, we won’t be trapped anymore.”

Xu Shi hesitated. “But—isn’t this deceiving the court? They search candidates before the exam. What if you’re discovered—”

“Mother, no one knows I’m dressed as a man. What is there to fear?” Zhan Jianxing patiently explained. “When I went out before, I saw how officials search examinees. They just check the exam basket for hidden notes and pat down clothes for concealed books. It’s not hard to pass. As long as I don’t intend to cheat, there’s nothing to worry about.”

At this time, only fifty or sixty years after the dynasty’s founding, the Imperial Examination system was still maturing. As Zhan Jianxing had observed, entry inspections were similarly lax across regions.

Officials hadn’t yet anticipated that, as the path for scholars grew narrower, the Imperial Examination would become the sole ladder to advancement. Years later, cheating methods would grow increasingly sophisticated, forcing inspections to become stricter—even requiring candidates to remove hats, shoes, and outer garments, a humiliating spectacle. Yet despite such invasive searches, examinees would still devise ways to cheat, proving that for every measure taken, there was always a countermeasure.

But this was still too shocking for Xu Shi. She pleaded, “Xing’er, you should give up this idea. If those officials don’t trouble us, we should count ourselves lucky. How can we willingly throw ourselves into their hands? If you’re exposed and punished with dozens of strokes, how could I go on living?”

Zhan Jianxing sighed—a rare sound from her, revealing the helplessness she could no longer conceal. “But Mother, if I don’t study now and find a way out, in a few years, even setting aside Grandfather and Grandmother, the government will bring us trouble.”

Xu Shi was bewildered. “What trouble?”

“Corvée labor,” Zhan Jianxing replied. “After the New Year, I’ll be thirteen. In three more years, if I don’t change my identity back, I’ll have to serve corvée.”

Xu Shi’s face turned deathly pale.

She had completely forgotten about this!

In her heart, she knew very well she had borne a daughter. Dressing as a boy had always been a necessity, and she’d never imagined corvée labor would concern her daughter.

But the world offered no free advantages. According to dynastic law, boys became adults at sixteen, thereafter serving annual corvée—both regular and miscellaneous duties—until age sixty. The labor was grueling, and evasion carried severe penalties. Worse, one might escape temporarily, but how could one evade decades of such demands?

The road ahead was fraught with difficulties, but Zhan Jianxing was not as disheartened as Xu Shi. Her voice carried a lighthearted tone: “Mother, it’s alright. As long as I pass the Licentiate exam within these three years, I can be exempted from the Corvée. Then we can leave Datong—the world is vast, and we can go anywhere. No matter how much effort Grandfather, Grandmother, and my uncles put in, we won’t have to pay them any mind.”

This vision was so bright it seemed like stepping from a cramped alley onto an open road. Even Xu Shi was moved by it, but her worries couldn’t simply vanish.

Zhan Jianxing had already made up her mind. She comforted Xu Shi, saying, “Mother, don’t overthink it. For now, I’ll focus on studying hard—that can’t be wrong. If anything unexpected happens, we’ll discuss it together.”

Though Xu Shi often complained that her late husband shouldn’t have raised their daughter like a son, her own doting had led Jianxing to grow increasingly independent. As a widowed woman with little say in many matters, Xu Shi found herself relying on Jianxing more and more. Far from being a pampered girl, Jianxing wielded authority no different from that of a capable young man who could uphold the household.

Trapped in her own helplessness and lacking better ideas, Xu Shi finally nodded hesitantly. “Well… alright.”

**

As the New Year approached, Zhan Jianxing had one more task: to bid farewell to her former private school teacher.

This teacher, surnamed Qian, had begun taking the Imperial Examinations at fifteen and persisted until he was forty, only ever achieving the rank of Tongsheng. Eventually, ashamed to continue sitting exams alongside candidates young enough to be his sons, he gave up on scholarly pursuits and opened a small private school at home, taking in students to make ends meet.

Since Teacher Qian couldn’t even clear the first hurdle of the Imperial Examinations, his academic prowess was questionable. But he had one advantage—his Tuition Fee was low, and anything more expensive would have been beyond Jianxing’s means.

On this day, Jianxing brought some gifts to the Qian household. She had been absent for some time due to family troubles. Qian Shulan, Teacher Qian’s youngest daughter, was hanging laundry in the courtyard. A year younger than Jianxing and dressed in a red jacket, she dropped the clothes in delight when she saw her. “Brother Zhan, you’re here! Is everything at home better now?”

“Ahem!”

Before Jianxing could answer, a loud cough sounded. Teacher Qian stood at the doorway of the main hall, glaring at his daughter. “Get back to your chores! A young lady should know the virtues of modesty and silence!”

Being the only daughter, Qian Shulan wasn’t particularly afraid of her father. She flashed Jianxing a sweet smile before returning to the clothesline.

“Teacher.”

Jianxing stepped forward to pay her respects and then explained her purpose for visiting.

“Understood. You may go.” Teacher Qian’s response was cold and dismissive. Without another word, he shooed her away.

Jianxing was taken aback but said nothing further. She set down the gifts and turned to leave as instructed.

There was little bond of mentorship between her and Teacher Qian. His teaching methods were perfunctory at best—most of the time, he simply had his young students recite texts mindlessly while he dozed off. Whenever Jianxing asked for explanations, Teacher Qian could only answer two out of ten questions. For the remaining eight, he had his own solution: scolding her for being overly ambitious and showing off.

Zhan Jianxing had no choice but to endure it. Her family was poor, and even finding a tutor like this was only possible because Xu Shi doted on her excessively.

Now that she was leaving, she felt no reluctance.

However, someone was reluctant to see her go.

Zhan Jianxing had barely stepped outside when Qian Shulan chased after her: “Brother Zhan!”

Zhan Jianxing paused.

Qian Shulan ran up to her, her delicate face full of disappointment: “Brother Zhan, won’t you ever come to my house again?”

Zhan Jianxing nodded.

“Oh—” Qian Shulan lowered her head, her fingers twisting the hem of her jacket nervously.

Zhan Jianxing waited a moment, but when no further words came, she said, “I need to go home.”

Qian Shulan quickly looked up. She wanted to say something, but meeting Zhan Jianxing’s usual indifferent expression, she suddenly blushed faintly. Aware of it herself, she stomped her foot, as if drawing courage from the action, and gazed at Zhan Jianxing: “If I come to your house to see you later, will you still talk to me?”

Thinking she meant to buy steamed buns, Zhan Jianxing replied, “If you come, I’ll tell my mother to give you an extra one.”

Although Licentiate Qian wasn’t a competent tutor, the respect for a teacher’s authority in these times couldn’t be disregarded. It was only proper to be courteous.

Qian Shulan felt that Zhan Jianxing wasn’t quite on the same page as her, but her girlish feelings were still vague and not fully realized. Hearing Zhan Jianxing’s response, at least it didn’t seem like she wanted to distance herself, which satisfied her. Then, thinking about meeting “Brother Zhan’s” mother, she felt shy again and murmured bashfully, “No need for an extra one—your family’s situation isn’t easy—”

“Shulan!”

Licentiate Qian stormed to the doorway, shouting, “Get back here now!”

“Yes, Father.” Qian Shulan flustered and hurriedly turned to leave.

Zhan Jianxing walked away, Licentiate Qian’s intermittent words trailing behind her: “How many times have I told you to stay away from that boy? His family is dirt poor—anyone who marries him will suffer endlessly. You’re just blinded by his good looks—”

“Father, what are you saying?”

“Hmph, what’s the use of good looks? Can they fill your stomach? His family has even offended the Prince of Dai Manor now—who knows if they’ll survive? You silly girl, you don’t understand anything…”

Zhan Jianxing remained unmoved, her expression unchanged as she strode out of the alley.

Author’s Note:

I think it’s unrealistic for a local girl to suddenly aspire to become a jinshi (top scholar) right away, so Jianxing’s ambitions will evolve step by step. For now, her goal is set on becoming a Licentiate.

I’ve seen your comments about the Imperial Examination searches—this chapter addresses that. I set the timeline shortly after the dynasty’s founding mainly for this reason.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Also, Happy Mid-Autumn Festival! I’ll be giving out some red envelopes later. I’m so lazy—*hides face*—I can’t even stick to giving out red envelopes. Starting today, I’ll give out thirty daily. Thanks to all the little angels who’ve been following this story from its early, scrawny stages (* ￣3)(ε￣ *)