Chapter 114: The Entrance Exam

Before Fang Jie went to the Martial Arts Academy, he went to Gold-Sharing Duke’s residence first. He asked Mu Xiaoyao and Qi Lin to move here with Chen Qingshan and Da Quan who still haven’t recovered, and he told them not to leave this place in the next few days.

Then, Fang Jie took out his red horse that was kept at Gold-Sharing Duke’s residence, and he waved at the four after he jumped onto the horse.

“I’m going to slap others’ faces in the Martial Arts Academy; aren’t you going to bless me?” he asked.

Chen Qingshan laughed, “Don’t get your face slapped by others.”

Da Quan said, “I hope your hands swell up from slapping others.”

Fang Jie shook his head with a smile, but he couldn’t get rid of the nervousness that he was feeling.

It was a huge challenge for him to grasp this turning point in his life. Even though he was confident, it didn’t mean that he had no worries.

There were only two types of people who were confident and had no worries. The first group was those who were powerful enough to ignore all opponents, and the second group was idiots.

Clearly, Fang Jie wasn’t in either group.

Mu Xiaoyao pointed at Fang Jie’s horse and asked after a moment of hesitation, “Are you planning to ride this red horse to the Martial Arts Academy?”

Fang Jie nodded.

Mu Xiaoyao asked again, “Aren’t you afraid that it would be too eye-catching?”

Fang Jie laughed, “I’m trying to have a high profile today. Although I want to be low-key, I’m afraid that I would be dragged out even if I hide among people. Therefore, I’m going there on a tall horse, letting others see me clearly. I was planning to hang a plate before my chest that says [I’m Fang Jie], but it would look like I’m selling myself, so I didn’t do that.”

After saying that, Fang Jie turned around and left. Mu Xiaoyao and others watched until he disappeared into far before turning around.

Qi Lin asked Da Quan worryingly, “Does Fang Jie really don’t need us behind him?”

“What can we do?” Da Quan asked with a smile.

After thinking for a while, Qin Lin responded seriously, “We really can’t do anything other than mother-f*cking…”

Da Quan replied earnestly as well, “That is tough physical work.”

Qi Lin didn’t understand what he meant, but Chen Qingshan and Mu Xiaoyao both glanced at Da Quan and cursed, “Shameless!”

Then, they walked away together; it was rare for them to be on the same page.

Since Qi Lin didn’t understand, he asked, “Da Quan, what do you mean? Why did the two of them walk away? What do you mean by it is tough physical work?”

Da Quan explained patiently, “There are too many people in Chang’an who dislike Fang Jie. If we have to do that to their mothers, it would be extremely physically demanding, and your body will shrink to my size.”

Qi Lin thought for a moment and finally realized what Da Quan meant. He glared at Da Quan and said, “Shameless!”

Da Quan pouted and said, “You are calling me shameless after I told a joke. In Fangu, Fang Jie peeked at Widow Sun when she took baths; how come none of you called him shameless?”

Qi Lin replied, “Although I wasn’t in Fangu with you, I’m sure that you are the one who encouraged him. You probably let him stand on your shoulders to look over the wall.”

Da Quan replied with a dignified expression, “How? I always jumped onto the wall before pulling Fang Jie up.”

Suddenly, Da Quan paused, and his expression turned ugly. He recalled that small city and the people who lived there.

Although Da Quan and Mu Xiaoyao hid in Fang Jie’s room most of the time, he liked the kind and honest residents of Fangu and the aromatic wine and stewed meat. However, none of them remained.

“What is going on?” Qi Lin asked after seeing the silence.

“Nothing,” Da Quan said with a smile, “Qi Lin, can you do me a favor?”

“What is it?”

“Go and help me buy some joss paper.”

“Huh?” Qi Lin was shocked. “Fang Jie is taking the entrance exam today, yet you want to burn joss paper?”

[TL Note: Joss paper, also known as ghost or spirit money, are sheets of paper or papercrafts made into burnt offerings.]

Da Quan froze for a second before cursing with a smile, “If Fang Jie learns what you said, he will fight me! I’m burning joss paper for some acquaintances. They all died in Fangu after we left, and Fang Jie has been thinking about them. I wanted to burn joss paper for them a few days ago, but Fang Jie said that they are too far away to receive the ghost money. However, I know that Fang Jie is more frustrated and saddened by what happened in Fangu compared to me.”

“Why do you want to burn joss paper for them today?” Qi Lin asked.

“I’m burning joss paper for them on Fang Jie’s behalf. I hope that they could receive it and bless Fang Jie from Heaven,” Da Quan replied with a serious expression.

After freezing for a moment, Qi Lin nodded and said, “I will go buy joss paper right now; I will buy a cart full of joss paper.”

The Martial Arts Academy was in the southeast of the city, not far from Qian-Shining Gate of Chang’an. The training field was about 15 kilometers away from Qian-Shining Gate outside the city.

When the First Emperor of Great Sui established the Martial Arts Academy, it was much smaller.

As Great Sui grew more powerful and prosperous, more students were enrolled, and the academy had to be expanded.

Since its inception, the Martial Arts Academy had been expanded five times.

When the previous emperor came into power, the training field was built outside the city since the Martial Arts Academy needed it to practice and create battle arrays.

The training field was giant, and it took five years to build. The area was flat, but a hill, a forest, a river, a lake, and a small city were all placed on top of the flatland.

Many officials had written memorials to the throne, asking the Martial Arts Academy to move into the training field. Then, the students wouldn’t need to travel between these two places.

However, the previous emperor didn’t agree, and the current emperor had the same response that confused the officials.

“The one inside Chang’an is the Martial Arts Academy, and it wouldn’t be the Martial Arts Academy anymore if it is outside.”

This response didn’t make much sense.

The Martial Arts Academy was the same regardless of where it was, but the emperors didn’t agree to the move, so the officials couldn’t do anything.

Some people said that all the students of the academy were elites of Great Sui, and the emperors were worried that things would happen to them if the Martial Arts Academy wasn’t inside Chang’an that was the greatest city in the world.

However, this argument was quickly debunked.

It would be extremely challenging for foreign enemies to get into Great Sui, especially getting close to Chang’an. Also, even if foreign enemies got close, the students could all retreat into Chang’an.

There were a ton of discussions, but no one could change the emperors’ minds.

The Martial Arts Academy had to stay inside Chang’an, and this was something that multiple emperors agreed on.

There was a darker hypothesis, and people believed that it made the most sense. Some people thought that the emperors were worried that chaos might appear in Chang’an, and the students of the academy who were all elites and loyal would protect the emperors. If these students gathered, their combat strength couldn’t be ignored.

When Fang Jie got close to the Martial Arts Academy, he found that the streets were all packed.

All kinds of horse-drawn carriages parked on the side, and the participants had to walk to the Martial Arts Academy.

Royal soldiers guarded the streets with sabers drawn and bows loaded with arrows. They could control the situation if any mess occurred.

During this time every three years, the policemen of Chang’an would work with the royal soldiers and city-defense soldiers, maintaining order.

Since most people were walking over, Fang Jie who was riding on a horse was extremely eye-catching.

“Who is this person? How come he is so arrogant? Most of the participants are walking, and even those with prestigious status got off their horse-drawn carriages. However, this guy is riding on his horse! It seems like he is going to ride his horse into Xuanwu Street.”

“He doesn’t seem like someone from big families. Look at his poor border soldier’s uniform!”

“Among the border soldiers, the most famous ones are Mo Xidao from Phoenix Terrace, Zhang Kuang from Anyuan City, Wang Wei from White Water City, and Fang Jie from Fangu. Mo Xidao and the other two must be at least 27 years old, but this guy looks quite young. Is this person Fang Jie who was summoned by His Majesty already?”

“So what? Since he is riding on his horse and looking arrogant, he must lack real knowledge and experience. Look at Cui Pingzhou of the Cui Family, Pei Chuxing of the Pei Family, and Xie Fuyao of the Xie Family; all of them are walking!”

“You are right! This guy is too arrogant!”

Fang Jie was truly eye-catching today by riding on his tall red horse in the crowd.

Although he was smiling, he looked arrogant. However, his border soldier’s uniform looked low. This strong contrast made many people have a hard time accepting this.

“Fang Jie!” Just as Fang Jie was about to get to Xuanwu Street, someone suddenly called out to him.

Fang Jie turned around and saw that it was Zhang Kuang from Anyuan City chasing after him.

He quickly got off his horse and cupped his hands toward Zhang Kuang. “Brother Zhang.”

“You sure are eye-catching. I saw you riding on your tall horse from afar, and I called you several times, but you didn’t hear me. How are you doing; are you feeling better?” Zhang Kuang asked caringly with a smile.

“Thanks for asking. I’m feeling a lot better. I overused my strength in Guest-Prosper Dwell that day and fainted, turning myself into a laughingstock.”

“BS!” Zhang Kuang hammered his shoulder and said, “After that day, everyone would raise their thumbs after hearing your name! Not many people in Chang’an could move around in the prison that the famous Mr. Zhuo of the Royal Guard creates. You brought honor to all border soldiers, and we all admire you!”

Fang Jie blushed slightly and said with a bashful smile, “I was too impulsive.”

Then, he asked, “Oh, I heard that Brother Mo was directly accepted into the Martial Arts Academy and doesn’t need to go through the entrance exam.”

Zhang Kuang looked around first and said in a low voice, “The government owes him this. That day, His Majesty even said that Brother Mo should be given promotions since he earned many counts of military merit beforehand and experienced that incident in Eastern Chu. If the government didn’t reward him this way, many soldiers would be discouraged.”

While chatting, Fang Jie saw Mo Xidao walking over.

“Brother Fang, Brother Zhang, I’m here to root for you!”

…

“Brother Mo, what happened to that Wang Ding?” Fang Jie walked alongside Mo Xidao and Zhang Kuang, ignoring others who were pointing at him.

“I heard that His Majesty issued an edict, removing Wang Ding’s noble title. Also, Wang Ding’s father got fired and had his noble title removed. Since Wang Ding was disrespectful toward the items that the First Emperor used and tried to kill someone who contributed to Great Sui, Wang Ding is already arrested by the Court of Judicial Review. I also heard that an imperial commissioner set off to Yangtze-South; I guess that the Wang Family wouldn’t have a good ending.” Mo Xidao rubbed the scar on his face and said with a smile, “It feels great to watch this unfold!”

“What about Wang Wei?” Fang Jie asked.

Hearing this name, intense disgust flashed across Mo Xidao’s face as he said, “Don’t mention that guy. He wasn’t severely punished for some reason. He was only disqualified for this exam, and he was demoted from a lieutenant to a corporal. He probably returned to White Water City.”

“He deserves it!” Zhang Kuang cursed, “This shameless and unhonourable scumbag doesn’t deserve to wear our border soldier’s uniform!”

Fang Jie smiled and said, “His Majesty probably went lenient on him due to his military merit.”

While saying this, Fang Jie sighed in his mind, “Yangtze-South Wang Family is probably doomed.”

Although no one influential came out of the Wang Family in recent years, it had hundreds of years of history and accumulation of wealth. Since there was going to be a military operation in the northwest, the government needed a ton of money.

Using this incident, His Majesty could confiscate the wealth of the Wang Family.

Although it was hard to estimate the wealth of the Wang Family, it would help in the war.

This showed how much importance the Emperor placed in this military operation.

In order to replenish the treasury, the Emperor ignored the consequences and targeted the Wang Family which was a decaying big family.

While Fang Jie was thinking, a girl suddenly screamed in the crowd, fanning over someone. “Quickly look! Yangtze-South Gongzi Xie, Xie Fuyao, is over there! He is so handsome and cool!”

“Gongzi Xie, look this way!” a few other girls shouted.

Fang Jie looked in the direction of their gazes and saw a young man in white standing not far away and talking to his peers.

Hearing the screams, Gongzi Xie looked this way and cupped his hands, looking dashing and cool.

“Damn it!” Zhang Kuang looked at Xie Fuyao and patted Fang Jie’s shoulder. He cursed in a low voice, “He is only a useless pretty boy. You are much more handsome than him!”

Although Zhang Kuang’s voice was low, those few girls overheard him. Several angry gazes shot toward Zhang Kuang and Fang Jie.

Fang Jie looked at those angry gazes and couldn’t help but sigh, “Brother Zhang, please stop pulling more hatred toward me, ok?”