Mu Erpang looked conflicted. After all, the enrollment at their family’s academy was all taken care of by Shen Cui.

He often said he was the young master of the family and should help more, but he lacked experience in this area.

He didn’t know how to respond for a moment. Just as he was trying to gather his thoughts, Shen Aoshuang noticed his silence, bowed apologetically, and then turned to leave in the direction he had come from.

Mu Erpang suddenly remembered that Shen Aoshuang couldn’t see his facial expressions clearly, so he quickly said, “Brother Shen, please stay. That’s not what I meant.”

Shen Aoshuang stopped in confusion.

“I didn’t mean for you to drop out. But you’re not wrong. After a few interactions, I’ve noticed… you’re different from others. But I’ve only mentioned it to my mother, and we’ve kept it a secret from everyone at our academy.”

“Thank you for keeping it secret,” Shen Aoshuang relaxed a bit from his tense posture. “Mu Brother, rest assured, even after I leave the academy, I’ll remember your kindness.”

“No, I said I didn’t want you to leave, why do you still say that?”

Shen Aoshuang explained, “I didn’t make myself clear. Actually, today I wanted to find a place with no one around to think about leaving the academy. The environment here is just… too difficult for me to adapt to. Brother Wei was right, staying here might not just harm myself but others too.”

At this point, Shen Aoshuang couldn’t maintain his composure, no matter how good his acting skills were.

No scholar was unaware of how valuable it was to enter the academy. He knew it too.

It was precisely because he knew how rare this opportunity was that he risked being discovered with his secret and insisted on coming here.

Now, just a few days in, he had already caused so much trouble. He felt like he had been foolishly optimistic.

“What if I said… I could help you?” Mu Erpang cautiously asked.

Shen Aoshuang said, “Brother Mu means you can be my guide, right? While that would indeed be helpful for me, human energy is limited. If you have to take care of me all the time, how much of your energy would that take? You’re even preparing for the imperial exams, your time and energy are precious. And… of course, there are my own reasons too.”

He paused, pursed his lips, and said with a cryptic tone, “I don’t want to be dependent on others for everything, like a useless person. And Brother Mu knows some things, it’s fate that we’ve met more often than others. If others notice something from our interactions and realize… I don’t want that.”

Mu Erpang scratched his head, thinking his mother was right; this situation was indeed tricky.

Shen Aoshuang’s situation was somewhat similar to Cui Fei’s, both had some inferiority complex deep down.

But the difference was, Cui Fei was just overweight; he knew he had the potential to change.

Shen Aoshuang was physically disabled; he simply didn’t believe anyone could truly help him.

“I wonder if Brother Shen believes in feng shui?” Mu Erpang, at a loss for words, hesitated for a while and could only bring up this topic.

Shen Aoshuang was puzzled by his sudden change of topic but shook his head honestly, “I don’t believe in it.”

He not only didn’t believe in feng shui but also didn’t believe in superstitions and the like.

Recalling his early years, when his family discovered his differences from others, they first sought medical help.

When medicine proved ineffective, they turned to superstitions, taking him to famous temples and Daoist temples, and even believing in some fortune tellers, who made him recognize stones and big trees as relatives…

If the idols in temples and Daoist temples had spirits, why did he still end up like this?

“Mu Brother, you don’t need to persuade me, I’ll tell you the truth.” He pursed his lips, showing a bit of self-deprecating smile, “I didn’t have any big ambitions, just wanted to pass the imperial exam and become a minor official of eighth or ninth rank. As for higher exams like palace exams, I naturally couldn’t pass. To speak boldly, if I aim for the imperial exam, I actually might not be able to get into this academy. It’s my own overestimation, and now it’s time to let go.”

For the first time, he spoke so much to someone, Shen Aoshuang felt somewhat regretful, but more relieved to have expressed his long-held feelings.

Mu Erpang knew he couldn’t persuade him, so he changed his approach, “I’ve helped Brother Shen several times, could you do me a favor before you leave?”

Shen Aoshuang nodded, “Just tell me, as long as I can do it.”

“Brother Shen, you’ve always been good at poetry, while I have some shortcomings in writing poetry. I want to ask Brother Shen to give me some guidance before you leave the academy.”

“Mu Brother, isn’t…” Shen Aoshuang stopped here, thinking of Mei Ruochu’s excellent poetry talent, which was innate and couldn’t be learned by others.

On the other hand, his own excellence in poetry and literature was achieved through much more effort than usual, which could be taught and replicated to others.

So he didn’t continue asking and nodded, “That’s no problem.”

Mu Erpang finally smiled, “Then let’s make a deal. Brother Shen, you’ll teach me poetry and literature day and night before you leave the academy. You can only leave when you see me improve.”

Shen Aoshuang agreed. He thought Mu Erpang, who could achieve such high scores, must have exceptional talent. Teaching him some insights would only take a few days at most.

Then he could leave the academy according to his original plan.

After chatting for a while, Mu Erpang noticed Wei Shu had been waiting for quite some time, so he directed Shen Aoshuang to a truly quiet place, allowing him to stay there peacefully.

Actually, he was willing to accompany Shen Aoshuang himself, but he figured Shen Aoshuang might not want to be “specially” taken care of like that, so he didn’t do anything unnecessary.

The auxiliary subjects of this day were much shorter than the regular subjects.

By the time it was 3 p.m., everyone returned to the classroom, and the professor assigned homework.

Then the academy dismissed for the day.

Some scholars returned to their dormitories, some went home, and some gathered with friends to socialize.

Shen Aoshuang habitually waited in his seat for a while.

When the noise gradually subsided, he slowly walked out while recalling the map of the academy in his mind.

Outside the academy, he heard a familiar voice.

Mu Erpang stepped forward, “Brother Shen, you’re finally out. I asked Mei Big Brother and the others to go back first, specifically waiting for you. Let’s go.”

“Where are we going?”

Mu Erpang exclaimed, “Didn’t we agree that Brother Shen will guide me in poetry day and night? Tomorrow is a day off, isn’t it a good time for guidance? So, Brother Shen, instead of running back and forth, why don’t you come home with me today?”

Shen Aoshuang nodded, thinking it was right. After all, he wouldn’t stay in the academy for long, so he needed to make good use of his time.

He asked Mu Erpang to wait for a moment and then went to the meeting point with the daily and servants.

After informing them, he followed Mu Erpang onto the carriage.

Mu Erpang couldn’t help but scratch his head on the carriage.

Actually, he didn’t expect things to go so smoothly.

After all, if he were the one with a disability, his mother would definitely not be so at ease letting him go to someone else’s house.

But things went in the direction he hoped for, so Mu Erpang didn’t say anything.

He said to Shen Aoshuang, “The head of our academy is my mother and our master teacher is surnamed Lao. In addition, there’s Mei Big Brother, Wei Big Brother, my junior brother, and Afei Brother, all of whom are very easy to get along with.”

Shen Aoshuang replied modestly.

After all, the academy had been in session for several days, and he had somewhat understood the characters of the people in Cuiwei.

Especially later today, Wei Shu specifically came to apologize to him, “I was far away and couldn’t see clearly. I thought Hanshan was about to get hurt, so I spoke a bit harshly. Please don’t take it to heart.”

Shen Aoshuang naturally said he wouldn’t. After all, it was indeed his own fault.

Wei Shu also reminded him, “Brother Shen, forgive me for being talkative, but I want to remind you, the horse-riding field and archery field are both very dangerous. Next time, don’t wander around while lost in thought.”

From his words, Shen Aoshuang knew Mu Erpang hadn’t lied.

He was also trying his best to keep his secret, not even telling Wei Shu.

Otherwise, Wei Shu wouldn’t have mistakenly thought he was distracted by his thoughts and made such unusual moves.

How could an academy that could educate such outstanding students make him feel uneasy?

Instead, he felt a bit curious.

Upon arriving at Cuiwei, Mu Erpang wanted to help Shen Aoshuang off the carriage, but he restrained himself and watched as Shen Aoshuang slowly got off on his own.

He slowed his pace, introducing the layout of the academy while leading Shen Aoshuang to the door.

“The brothers just found out that you were coming as a guest, so they just started preparing some dishes.

It might take a while before dinner is ready,” Mu Erpang said.

Shen Aoshuang shook his head, “Mu Brother is too polite. Auntie doesn’t need to bother adding dishes for me.”

After all, his sense of taste… no matter what he ate, it all tasted like wax. There was no need to trouble others for nothing.

As they spoke, Mu Erpang led him into the classroom.

The others were still getting ready in the dormitory, except for Shen Cui, who was already waiting.

Seeing them coming, Shen Cui first asked with her eyes.

After all, Wei Shu and the others came back early, only saying that Mu Erpang was planning to invite Shen Aoshuang as a guest today, but whether it would succeed or not was uncertain.

Others were not very clear.

What Shen Cui wanted to ask now was, did her chubby son manage to persuade Shen Aoshuang to join their academy?

Mother and son understood each other well. Mu Erpang slightly shook his head, then shrugged and spread his hands.

Shen Cui understood—got it, it was “persuaded.”