Chapter 34 (Revised)

The two of them looked at each other in silence for a while. Lao Buyu picked up the pen, crumpled the paper that had been smeared, and cautiously asked, “Madam, is that what I had in mind?”

Shen Cui nodded. “It should be what you had in mind.”

Lao Buyu’s eyes twinkled for a moment as he pondered. Then, pointing at Shen Cui, he chuckled, “Well done, Madam Mu. I always thought you had some resources. Running a school is a good idea too. Don’t laugh at me. I envied how successful my senior brother’s school was. Unfortunately, I haven’t obtained my official position yet; the court has just swept it away, and I haven’t earned a single penny. I really couldn’t come up with the capital… I wonder, Madam, how many teachers do you plan to hire, how many students do you plan to enroll, and where do you plan to open the school?”

Shen Cui touched her nose again, but remembering what the system had said, she felt confident!

She put her hand down and said confidently, “I don’t plan to hire additional teachers or enroll more students for now, just us few. So, we’ll stay in this old house for now, and I don’t plan any major changes. Just tidy up the things in the house and put up a plaque.”

This is supposed to be a school? Even the village’s small school looks more lively! Can this ragtag group be called a school?

Lao Buyu choked again. If he said it one more time, he might as well have written “You really dare to think” on his face.

But after a few days of interaction, both sides had a certain understanding of each other. Lao Buyu quickly processed it himself, then said, “I understand.”

Shen Cui didn’t know what he understood, as he couldn’t possibly understand that she had a system for raising exam candidates, just for completing tasks.

“Madam Mu wants to make some money to support Little Fatty’s living expenses. Worried about the price of several tens of taels a year, she came up with the idea of a school. It’s normal for students to pay a bit more for studying and living in the school.”

After figuring it out, Lao Buyu looked at Shen Cui again. The look in his eyes was no longer that of pity or sympathy but rather seemed to show more respect and a sense of inferiority!

So this can also work! This pretext is really good, logical both internally and externally!

Shen Cui suddenly realized this, but didn’t show it on her face. She nodded as if to say, “The master understands me.”

Lao Buyu began to think seriously and said, “My senior brother’s name has the character ‘Qing’ in it, so the school he founded is called ‘Qingzhu Academy.’ At the banquet before, I happened to hear Madam’s name being called, so why don’t we use the character ‘Cui’ and call it ‘Cuiwei Academy’? How about that? Cuiwei is a type of orchid, and orchids symbolize noble character.”

Lao Buyu didn’t mention another point: ‘Cuiwei’ compared to ‘Qingzhu’, this also sets a precedent. What if Wei Xi and Mu Er Pang achieve something in the future?

When people ask where they studied, hearing the name ‘Cuiwei Academy,’ they would subconsciously think that this Cuiwei Academy must also be a prestigious school like Qingzhu Academy, with a large scale and grandeur!

Everyone would have face at that time!

The name was indeed a good one, but rural folks didn’t care much about the idea that a woman’s name shouldn’t be known to outsiders. The whole village knew the original owner’s name, but… it was a bit embarrassing!

The headmaster dared to name it this way because he was originally a scholar! He was practically a living advertisement.

What was Shen Cui’s status? If she really had the ability to educate people, then it would be fine, but she didn’t.

Thinking like this, Shen Cui’s scalp felt numb with embarrassment, so she touched her flushed face and didn’t respond.

At that moment, the servants from the Wei family had almost finished packing up Wei Xi’s things, and Mu Er Pang, supporting Wei Xi, also came out.

Shen Cui and Lao Buyu exchanged a glance, and they tacitly stopped speaking.

After the steward carefully inspected the arrangements made by the servants, he finally felt reassured and prepared to leave.

Before departing, the steward invited Shen Cui and Lao Buyu aside and pulled out two red envelopes from his pocket. He said, “These are a token of appreciation prepared according to the regulations of the family. This one, Master, is for your fees, and this one, Madam, is for the expenses for Young Master in the future. Every month, either the eldest young master or the youngest one will send more funds.”

Ordinary schools or academies usually charge fees annually. However, the intention of the Wei family was clear—they wanted to pay monthly.

Sending money monthly would allow them to visit Wei Xi legitimately every month. It also subtly implied that they didn’t entirely trust them and were worried about Wei Xi being neglected.

Shen Cui and Lao Buyu didn’t mind. They were from humble backgrounds and didn’t fuss over such matters. It was normal for Wei Xi’s family to want to visit him every month, especially considering his fragile health. Shen Cui even thought the Wei family might leave a couple of servants to take care of Wei Xi, but apparently, Wei Xi didn’t want that.

The two of them simply thanked the steward and accepted the envelopes.

The envelopes didn’t contain heavy silver coins but soft layers, indicating they held banknotes.

After finishing the task, the steward didn’t linger. He turned to bid farewell to Wei Xi, reminding him to apply the medicinal wine brought by the family on time, then left with his people.

Once again, the servants filed out of the room, and the house returned to its normal state.

Wei Xi felt embarrassed as he bowed to them, “I’m sorry, Master Lao, Madam Shen, and Brother Mu… I didn’t expect more people from home would come. If you don’t want them to come every month, I’ll find a way to talk to them.”

Shen Cui and Lao Buyu both waved dismissively, one saying it was a sign of their family’s concern, which was normal, and the other saying it only delayed them for half an hour, which wasn’t a big deal—

After speaking, the two of them synchronously turned away and opened their red envelopes.

The Wei family was indeed wealthy; both envelopes contained ten taels of silver banknotes.

Of course, for them, this was a considerable sum of money, especially since it was for a month’s expenses!

So, they realized they had underestimated things a bit; after discussing for a while, they had settled on thirty taels per year!

After knowing the amount, they synchronously put away the red envelopes and exchanged glances—Lao Buyu intended to give his envelope to Shen Cui according to their original plan, but Shen Cui shook her head slightly, indicating that the amount was already sufficient for her, and asked Lao Buyu to keep his own share.

Meanwhile, Mu Er Pang turned red-faced and stammered, “Brother Wei is older than me, in terms of seniority and scholarship, he should be the elder brother.”

Having stayed overnight and listened to Lao Buyu’s teachings the previous night, Wei Xi understood his mistake.

But after understanding, he didn’t feel uncomfortable at all; he just thought that Mu Er Pang must have some extraordinary qualities that he didn’t know about.

“Regardless of seniority or scholarship, Brother should be the elder one since he entered the path earlier and learned from the teacher first.”

Mu Er Pang looked at his own mother for help with his flushed, chubby face.

On Shen Cui’s side, after finishing their “discussion” with Lao Buyu, she gently patted Mu Er Pang’s back and encouraged him to stand tall, “Little Xi acknowledges you as his elder brother, so you should act like one.”

Lao Buyu added, “In the rules of our school, seniority is based on entry order. There’s no need to be anxious, Han Shan.”

With both of them saying so, Mu Er Pang stopped declining. He thought it was fortunate enough to be accepted as a student by the teacher, and now his junior was even more knowledgeable than him and didn’t look down on him at all! Since he became someone’s elder brother, he should put in all his effort!

[System Prompt: Trainee 1 gains the ‘Striving for Improvement’ state. Intelligence +1, Charisma +1, Emotional Intelligence +1.]

Shen Cui raised her eyebrows in surprise, thinking that the system’s previous statement was indeed correct. Healthy competition could indeed help people progress faster!

As there were no outsiders present, Shen Cui shared the matter she had just discussed with Lao Buyu with the two children.

Despite being open with Lao Buyu earlier, it was because he himself was unreliable, and she naturally had no reservations telling him unreliable things. But when sharing with the children, she hesitated for a while before finishing her explanation. Finally, she said, “I don’t have many ideas myself. I initially wanted Master to come up with a name, but…”

But the name suggested by Lao Buyu made her feel extremely embarrassed!

Considering the need to maintain Lao Buyu’s image in front of the children, Shen Cui changed the subject, “But this school is actually established for both of you. It would be more meaningful if you two come up with the name.”

Mu Er Pang didn’t have much to offer either and blinked his lively eyes, looking at Wei Xi.

Although Wei Xi was the last to join the school, he still had the identity of an investor. Seeing that Mu Er Pang didn’t want to suggest a name, Shen Cui also looked at him.

After pondering for a while, Wei Xi said, “‘Analects: On Governance’ says, ‘Do what you want without overstepping bounds.’ I really like this phrase. In life, rules are in the heart. What we hear and see may not always be true, only by following our heart can we truly live for ourselves.”

He rarely spoke so much in front of others. After finishing, he blushed, lowered his eyes, and continued in a softer tone, “Of course, this is just my opinion. If Master or Elder Brother have better ideas…”

Top of Form

Shen Cui said, “Your suggestion is excellent. ‘From the Heart’ not only implies a fresh start but also signifies a new direction for all of us. Each of us has experienced some hardships before joining our school. Now that we’re here, we’re starting anew, moving towards new horizons!”

Lao Buyu nodded in agreement, and Mu Er Pang was even more enthusiastic. Both of his chubby hands gave Wei Xi a thumbs-up!

Wei Xi’s face turned even redder, but the feeling of being affirmed and praised was indeed pleasant. He raised his eyes again and joined everyone in smiling.

With the name decided, Shen Cui naturally urged Lao Buyu to start writing.

The task of building the academy within ten days would soon be assigned. Making the plaque, tidying up, and other preparations would take some time, so it was better to start as soon as possible.

Lao Buyu didn’t say much and began to write.

Just as he wrote the first character “From,” before continuing with “the Heart Academy,” his pen stopped.

Wei Xi, watching beside him, also blushed.

Shen Cui, puzzled, was about to urge Lao Buyu to continue writing when Wei Xi spoke up, “I wonder what name Master had in mind before?”

Lao Buyu paused, then explained the idea of naming the academy “Chu Wei” for him to hear.

Wei Xi nodded and said, “In that case, I think Master’s suggestion is better. Our master and disciples are gathered here, all thanks to Madam Mu’s efforts. It’s logical to use her name to name the academy.”

Shen Cui, who was out of the loop, was confused. “Didn’t we agree on ‘From the Heart’? Why the sudden change?”

Lao Buyu gestured for her to look at the paper herself.

He had written vertically, so the characters “From the Heart” had merged into a single character

How could they go out and announce the name of the academy like this? No wonder even Wei Xi, the one who suggested the name, changed his mind at the last moment.

Shen Cui looked at Mu Er Pang, her eyes full of expectation. As long as Mu Er Pang stood on her side, it would be two against two, and she still had hope!

Mu Er Pang hadn’t even considered the meaning of the character. He just sighed, “Both ‘Chu Wei’ and ‘From the Heart’ are good. If you ask me to choose, I definitely can’t.”

Lao Buyu crumpled the paper, rewrote the complete phrase “Do what you want without overstepping bounds” horizontally. With this complete sentence, there was no room for misunderstanding.

“In that case, let’s make this sentence our academy’s motto. We can make a small plaque or directly post it in the house where we can see it every day.”

“Master is brilliant!” Mu Er Pang and Wei Xi, the newly-minted brothers, echoed in unison for the first time.

After they finished speaking, they all looked at Shen Cui, asking for her opinion.

Shen Cui gritted her teeth and made a tough decision between sacrificing herself and letting the two children sacrifice. She resolutely chose the former.