Chapter 144: Scholars

Liu Liwa understood that Wu Liniang had given him this information and sent him to approach these three people because she intended to groom talents from a young age. By winning them over now, once the Grace Examination results were announced and they topped the imperial exam, they would surely help in the future. Of course, Wu Liniang’s way of winning them over was definitely not as simple as treating them to meals or giving silver taels.

Liu Liwa and his companions sat for a while and casually ate some food. It was already mid-morning, and on the government road, travelers and carts grew more and more numerous. There were backpackers journeying far away and traders coming from distant places, making it very lively.

Not long after, a crowd appeared at the end of the road. The bright sun pulled their shadows long, making them seem grand and endless, as if arriving from the sky’s edge. Chattering and talking with each other excitedly, they slowly came closer. Liu Liwa and his friends stood up, realizing this was the group heading to the capital for the exam they had been waiting for.

The group had about a hundred people, huge and impressive. Some wore simple coarse robes and carried bamboo cases, typical scholar outfits. It was unknown if they’d met female ghosts or fox spirits while camping in wild places during their travels. Others were in fancy silk clothes. Like those Leftover Warriors around them, they carried white paper fans, wore gold belts, and sported special shoes. Servants circled them, tending carefully—some even had sweet maids close by. Though walking together, these two types ignored each other or acted hostile, showing the gap between rich and poor.

Scholars in lavish robes came from important backgrounds with money and power, naturally looking down on poor scholars. The poor scholars had their own pride and mocked those who just lived off family wealth and focused on fun.

However, there was a third kind. They were smooth talkers, pleasing both sides. With poor scholars, they discussed poetry and books. With the rich young men, they talked about Chun Hua and Qiu Yue. Thanks to people like them, the whole group walked together without conflict.

In the front group, one young man stood out. His clothes were plain—not fancy but not ragged. He carried a bamboo basket himself, with a stool inside and brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. He had no helper, so his status seemed low. But rich young lords and poor scholars both crowded around him now. They listened as he talked eagerly: “Think of this couple who parted fifty years ago. They met again when over seventy. Even with changed feelings, they got close. Passion flared, and they walked deep into a thick forest. After some time together, the old man sighed to the old woman: ‘The river’s spring has all dried, the two tall hills flattened to plain, leaving just two dried grapes—so sour!'”

After hearing this, they paused for a breath, then exploded with loud laughter. These scholars, rich or poor, were men aged eighteen to thirty. Some had wives already, some many women, some chased lovers—and those who hadn’t done it read books with stories to know what he meant. They got it and laughed hard. One man spoke up eagerly: “Lord Du, after the old man said that, how did the old woman reply to him?”

“Well?” Du Shaofu rolled his eyes, glanced at nearby snack stalls on purpose, shifted his shoulders under the bamboo basket, and teased them. “All of you, guess!”

That made them even more curious. But guessing such dirty jokes needed imagination. Right away, a rich young lord said: “Brother Du, don’t hold back—tell us quick! When we enter the city, I’ll buy you wine.”

“Right, right, brother Du, speak fast. I’ll carry the basket for you!” A poor scholar in plain clothes, paying close attention, rushed over and lifted the bamboo basket from Du Shaofu’s back.

Seeing he’d hooked them, Du Shaofu laughed and said: “The old woman naturally lamented time aging her, matching the old man’s words. She said: ‘Digging everywhere in the straw, never found a diamond spear, saw only one dried-out radish… and it was bent!'”

Hearing this, they roared with laughter, swaying and crying. They all gave thumbs-up, loudly praising Sir Du’s cleverness!

Watching from nearby, Liu Liwa saw this Du Shaofu, full of confidence and dirty tales. Then he checked Wu Liniang’s notes and confirmed this was one target—Du Shaofu, the scholar from the south. He hadn’t expected such a sneaky, witty guy—a lot like himself!

Laughing loudly, the group led by Du Shaofu passed Liu Liwa. Behind came another group, split the same way between rich and poor. In its middle stood a ragged young man with clothes full of patches. Shaking his head, he spoke: “The sage said: ‘A scholar should honor duties without mistakes, and be polite to others, making brothers of all within the world. Everyone, when we serve well and make no errors, being courteous to scholars, all gentlemen under heaven can be our brothers. Why join those who pretend to be friends but are just wolves and foxes in disguise?'”

“Sages’ ultimate truth, brother Wu’s wisdom!” cheered those around him at once. Actually, Liu Liwa saw that earlier this group had watched brother Du’s team laughing with envy, wanting to join, but not feeling friendly. Now, brother Wu used the sage’s words and old quotes, opening their minds to agree thoroughly.

Liu Liwa could see brother Du’s group were the sneaky sort, while this brother Wu’s belonged to bookworms. They disliked dirty jokes as cheap, but secretly wanted them. After Wu quoted the classics, they quickly became followers of sages, staying pure.

As for this brother Wu, it was clearly Liu Liwa’s other target—Wu Yuzhou, who came from the coastal city in the east. He wasn’t ordinary; while stuck with bookworms, he knew how to use wisdom smartly. He deserved his fame, yet calling such tales cheap seemed stubborn and silly.

Now Du Shaofu leading the sneaky group and Wu Yuzhou leading the bookworms had both shown up. Where was the last big player, Liu Chengye, only son of the Imperial Tutor?

Just as these two groups passed Liu Liwa, some took notice. Without helpers or bamboo baskets, Liu and his crew still looked around their age and manner, so they seemed like fellow scholars.

In that time, finding people was easy: just four kinds. First, men and women. Second, scholars and workers. Scholars held the highest status; even upstarts like Brother Chun and Lord Zeng often faked it—holding fans or saying ‘zhīhūzhěyě!’—to act like scholars and gain respect. Like later times, every summer, men wore bold shiny gold chains. But don’t let rain fall—some dyes wash off. Some youths never fought and feared blood, yet tattooed dragons on their skin. All to gain respect, they’d fake wealth or toughness, lying to themselves.

Liu Liwa handed out tasks. He sent Zi Long and A Sun to join brother Du’s sneaky bunch, because they looked the part. Then he had Xing Shi and Bing He join Wu Zhou’s bookworm team, since they seemed like protectors. Meanwhile, Liu Liwa stayed ready, watching for the big fish Liu Chengye to appear.

Right then, a shout cut through: “Out of the way, out of the way! The official carriage has no eyes—it won’t care for any hurt or dead!”