Chapter 42 Half a Day of Leisure in a Floating Life

When Fei Qian woke from his heavy hangover, the sun was already high in the sky.

This was the one good thing about the Eastern Han Dynasty. As long as there were no major crises, one could sleep until naturally waking. There were no various blaring horns, electric drills, alarm clocks, or chaotic, meaningless store music. There were only the occasional crows of roosters and barks of dogs—truly a paradise for those who loved to doze in spring, feel weary in autumn, and nap in summer.

Uncle Fu had already prepared breakfast. The moment Fei Qian finished washing, it was served immediately. Uncle Fu stood nearby, beaming with joy as he watched Fei Qian eat, thinking happily to himself, "Our young master has finally made something of himself! He has been accepted as a disciple by two of the greatest contemporary scholars of the Eastern Han. If the old master's spirit in heaven is aware, he must be bursting with happiness..."

Once Fei Qian finished eating, Uncle Fu cleared away the plates.

Feeling a bit drowsy after filling his stomach, Fei Qian yawned and thought to himself, "It seems I am getting more and more accustomed to this kind of life. That wicked feudal society has actually corrupted an upright, aspiring youth like me to the point where I just reach out for clothes and open my mouth for food... Watching Uncle Fu running around busily, should I buy a maid or a servant girl to share the workload? I could even..."

Just as Fei Qian's thoughts were wandering aimlessly, Uncle Fu walked back in carrying two letters. Fei Qian took a look; one was from Fei Min, and the other was from Cui Hou.

Cui Hou's letter stated that ever since the two emperors fled to Mount Beimang that day, Cui Hou's father, Cui Yi, had fallen ill and had not yet recovered. Cui Hou had been taking care of him all this time and thus deeply regretted being unable to attend his worthy brother's apprenticeship ceremony. At the end, the letter mentioned that the estate had recently harvested some fresh fruits and melons, which would be sent over later, asking him not to disdain such a humble gift. Naturally, it also dropped a hint expressing the hope that Fei Qian could visit the Cui family estate when he had free time, where they would definitely sweep the mats to welcome him.

Cui Yi was ill? Probably angered sick by Min Gong...

Cui Hou's letter was quite standard and proper, but Fei Min's letter was somewhat intriguing.

Originally, Fei Qian had promised Fei Min that he would leave Luoyang after settling the matter with the Cui family, and that the family's stored books—except for the remnant volume of the *Qi Analects*—would be "temporarily stored" at Fei Min's house. However, he had not expected the situation to change so rapidly. Within just a few days, Fei Qian had transformed from an obscure, ordinary reserve court official into the envy of everyone as a disciple of two great scholars. Although Fei Min had not attended the apprenticeship ceremony in person yesterday, he had still sent his estate's steward to the scene with congratulatory gifts.

Throughout the entire letter, Fei Min did not mention a single half-word about the books. Instead, he offered congratulations on Fei Qian becoming a disciple of Cai Yong and Liu Hong, demonstrating an elder's joy at a junior's achievements and encouragement to strive for even greater heights. At the end, he mentioned that Fei Qian was no longer young and should start considering the issue of family succession, adding that he should come over as a guest sometime to meet and get acquainted with some people...

Musing on this for a long time, Fei Qian wondered: Is this rhythm hinting at acting as a matchmaker for me? Considering family succession combined with introducing people to me—could it be that Fei Min is about to introduce a bunch of my female cousins or something?

In fact, Fei Qian guessed correctly. Originally, Fei Min had intended to misappropriate the book collection left behind by Fei Qian's father, but he never expected that in the blink of an eye, Fei Qian would make connections with two heavyweights like Cai Yong and Liu Hong. Although their official ranks were not particularly high, they were giants in the academic world, with an overwhelming web of students, friends, and connections. It would no longer be appropriate to seize Fei Qian's books.

Yet, Fei Min felt extremely reluctant to give up completely, so he simply resorted to the ultimate weapon of the aristocratic clans—intermarriage. By marrying an age-appropriate woman from his own clan to Fei Qian, the two families would naturally become one. Fei Qian's books would then be the Fei family's books, and Fei Qian's teachers would be the Fei family's teachers...

Oh dear, what should be done about this? Fei Qian felt a mild headache. Can't they just let me live in peace for a few days? Why must everyone scheme and plot against each other every single day without feeling tired?

The crux of the matter was: what famous women were there in the Fei clan anyway? He had never heard of any... If there were beauties like the Greater and Lesser Qiao, he might reluctantly submit...

Just as Fei Qian's thoughts were drifting wildly, Uncle Fu reminded him, "Young Master, the hour is getting late. Do not delay your expression of gratitude to your teachers." In other words: Young Master, stop daydreaming. Others only need to thank one master's family, but you have to thank two. Better hurry up...

Hearing this, Fei Qian thought, *Indeed.* According to ritual, today was the day to show gratitude for his teachers' grace. He hurriedly got up to change his clothes while asking, "Ah, yes. Quick, quick, Uncle Fu, are the gifts for thanking the teachers prepared?"

"They were fully prepared yesterday, Young Master..."

***

When Fei Qian emerged from Liu Hong's residence, he felt rather sheepish.

As a young man, he had kept an elderly teacher like Liu Hong waiting for so long, which was somewhat inexcusable.

Fortunately, knowing that Fei Qian had consumed too much alcohol the day before, Liu Hong did not blame him, offering instead gentle words of encouragement. At the same time, Liu Hong mentioned that he had already completed the handover of his official duties at court and would soon assume office in Sanyang Commandery. Consequently, he might temporarily be unable to personally instruct Fei Qian, though the books he needed to study and the assignments he had to complete had all been arranged...

Then, when Fei Qian caught sight of that thick stack of book scrolls, he failed to filter his thoughts and blurted out, "How can there be so many!" The consequence, naturally, was predictable: he was severely scolded by Liu Hong, and was only let off after displaying submissive and meek behavior, showing a deep realization of his error and a sincere intention to reform.

Truly, whether in ancient times or modern times, teachers never seem to think their assigned homework is too much...

Yet, looking at it another way, ancient teachers genuinely treated every disciple like their own child. Take Liu Hong, for instance: so many book scrolls, and he gave them away just like that, without a hint of hesitation. One must understand that during the Eastern Han Dynasty, book scrolls were virtually priceless and unavailable on the market; no amount of money could guarantee you could buy them. Imagining modern-style bookstores or libraries where one could freely browse and purchase was simply out of the question.

If calculated merely by the ordinary market price of a hundred gold pieces per scroll, the books Liu Hong gifted exceeded a value of three thousand gold pieces. Furthermore, among the books Liu Hong bestowed were rare and unique editions, rendering their value utterly immeasurable.

An old man whom he had met only a few times, simply because he sensed Fei Qian possessed potential in mathematics, was willing to selflessly impart his own learning and generously gift his cherished book collections, with the sole hope that Fei Qian could inherit his legacy and carry forward the study of mathematics.

On the way to the Cai estate, Fei Qian sighed all the way. This was thousands of times better than those modern teachers who only recognized money, understood nothing about teaching students in accordance with their aptitude, and spent every day demanding that parents buy various useful or useless reference books.

When Fei Qian arrived at Cai Yong's residence from Liu Hong's manor, he learned that today happened to be the day of the Great Audience, and Cai Yong had gone to court and had not yet returned. However, Cai Yong had left instructions that if Fei Qian arrived, he should wait inside the estate...