Bizarre Cultivation: Starting from Being Beaten Up by Reality

Chapter 6 Identity

Master Chen's fat hand grabbed Lin Fan's right hand.

A piercing pain shot through his hand; his right hand was so swollen he couldn't even lift it. Being grabbed by this burly fat man had caused him so much pain he broke out in a cold sweat and nearly collapsed to his knees.

The pain prevented Lin Fan from even pulling his hand away. He had no choice but to let the fat man hold him, his chubby face pressed close to his.

"Kid, I'll be frank with you today, your skills are actually not very good."

"You're just a country boy; you could learn farming, carpentry, or raising chickens and ducks, so why do you insist on learning to write?"

Master Chen's bulbous nose was almost touching Lin Fan's face, and his eyes had completely lost their previous kindness, becoming extremely fierce.

"You shouldn't be able to write. It will only lead you to have unrealistic fantasies and do things you shouldn't."

"You've helped me, thank you. But from now on, it's best to forget that you can write, and forget those 'enlightenment classics' in your head. This is for your own good."

After Master Chen finished speaking, he forcefully swung his hand, freeing Lin Fan's right hand. He quickly pulled it out and unconsciously took a few steps back to distance himself from the fat man.

"That's all I have to say. You may leave now," Master Chen said, turning to depart.

Lin Fan felt he understood some of it, but not all of it.

But he realized that there was no hope for him to work at the academy.

Lin Fan bowed and thanked him before leaving.

It was still early morning; if one paid to take an oxcart, they could return to Bailin Village before dark.

Lin Fan touched the money and pastries in his pocket with his left hand, and felt less frustrated.

Thinking that his mother had probably never eaten such pastries in her life, Lin Fan kept the pastries from yesterday, intending to take them home for his mother to try as well.

……

"Old Chen, have you seen young friend Lin?"

As soon as Lin Fan left, Master Yang rushed to Shenmu Academy.

Master Yang doesn't usually live at the academy; he leaves early and returns late. He had already searched the academy but couldn't find Lin Fan. Instead, he found Master Chen.

"He's gone," Fatty Chen said to his colleagues, a smile returning to his face.

"When did he leave, and where did he go?" Before Master Chen could answer, Master Yang kept talking like a machine gun. "Old Chen, I've been thinking about this for days, and I think we shouldn't have done this."

"Young friend Lin has an exceptional talent for calligraphy; it would be a real shame to let it go to waste."

"Although I am of average talent, if I can discover such a gem, then I can say that I have done justice to the sages I have studied."

“I know that young friend Lin comes from a humble background and cannot participate in the imperial examinations, but I can take him as my apprentice. I will teach him to read and write.”

"I believe that within a few years, his calligraphy will surely amaze the entire Daqian."

"I cannot let a calligrapher who will be remembered in history be lost because of me..."

"Alright, alright." Master Chen had been listening for a long time and was already very impatient. He interrupted casually, "Old Yang, you're just thinking too simply."

"These country bumpkins are like... looking at that stinky dog ​​poop over there; once you get stuck with it, you can't get rid of it."

"If you really take him as your apprentice, he will ask you to take care of his elderly parents, and even all his relatives, and take care of everything for him when he gets married and has children."

"A teacher for a day is a father for life. When the time comes, will you take care of him or not?"

"Wouldn't that drag you down? You're just a teacher, how much money could you possibly give him to help? Even if you were willing, would your family support you?"

"Even if, as you say, his calligraphy becomes famous, so what?"

"The Great Qian is a vast and resource-rich land, and what it lacks least is talent. There are so many uneducated people in the countryside. Just think how many hidden geniuses there are?"

"A buried genius is no different from dog shit, what's it to you? Who do you think you are?"

Master Chen became more and more agitated as he spoke, looking at Old Yang's familiar old face with a conflicted expression. Realizing he had spoken too harshly, he quieted down and said, "Hey, just because others call us 'Masters' doesn't mean you're some kind of saint who teaches without discrimination. Our duty is to teach those who can afford our tuition, not just anyone!"

Master Yang hesitated after being persuaded by Master Chen, and his initial enthusiasm for making a decision was quickly dampened.

However, scholars are all stubborn, and they couldn't immediately admit their mistake after Master Yang had spoken. Naturally, they wanted to argue their point.

Before he could finish speaking, Master Chen's last words shut him up.

"To put it another way, if you said you wanted to take on a carpenter as an apprentice, do you think the academy director would agree?"

Master Yang lowered his hand again after raising it, swallowing his impassioned words. He helplessly lowered his head, sighed, and turned to leave.

Master Chen breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that he had successfully dissuaded his colleague from doing something foolish. However, his expression was not good. He picked up a copy of the "Enlightenment Classic" that Lin Fan had copied and began to turn the pages one by one.

……

Lin Fan yawned on the oxcart. He hadn't slept for more than a few hours in the past few days, but he didn't dare to sleep at all now.

The oxcarts on the narrow road were not a safe place. Even if they were less likely to encounter bandits during the day, there was no guarantee that other travelers on the same journey wouldn't try to steal from their pockets.

To stay alert, he even bought a sesame flatbread before setting off. This flatbread was so much tastier than his own cornbread. It was even sprinkled with sesame seeds and smeared with a little oil; it smelled incredibly delicious.

Lin Fan tore off small pieces and stuffed them into his mouth, keeping himself busy. Or he would pick out sesame seeds one by one and eat them.

Almost there. They've covered most of the journey, and there's only an hour left before they can go home. Lin Fan finally felt a little relieved.

Suddenly, the oxcart stopped abruptly.

Lin Fan subconsciously shrank his body further into the pile of hay.

The oxcarts don't normally stop; hopefully, it's just the drivers who need to release water.

Lin Fan wasn't afraid of being questioned by the authorities, since he hadn't done anything wrong.

However, reality is often not so kind.

"Be smart and hand over your valuables." A hoarse and unpleasant voice said.

Why are these bandits out here before dark? Aren't they afraid of running into government inspectors?

A bandit with a large blue patch on his left cheek and a sickle on his back was collecting money from passersby one by one.

When it was Lin Fan's turn, he respectfully handed over five copper coins with his left hand.

The bandit with the green spots looked displeased, but he steadily grabbed the five copper coins and put them into his pocket.

"You're trying to fob me off like a beggar."

The bandit slapped Lin Fan across the face. Lin Fan felt dizzy and his lip was cut, with blood flowing down his cheek.

Before Lin Fan could explain, the bandit with the green spots grabbed the bag from his body.

He emptied the bag, and more than thirty copper coins fell into his dark hand. He grinned, revealing a mouth missing a few teeth, nodded, glanced at Lin Fan who seemed to have lost his soul, and then went to find the next person with satisfaction.

Lin Fan breathed a sigh of relief. Ordinary bandits would only take a few feathers as they passed by, and he had finally gotten through this ordeal.

After the bandits left, the oxcart slowly started moving again.

Da da da.

The sound of horses' hooves? Lin Fan looked in astonishment toward the direction of the sound.

A man on horseback led a small group of bandits to join the bandits from before.

Even among bandits who robbed travelers, only the leader could afford to keep horses, and Lin Fan immediately sensed something was wrong.

Without hesitation, Lin Fan jumped out of the car and ran into the roadside bushes.

It was getting dark, and walking back along the mountain path was very unsafe. But if he could get into the mountains, even bandits wouldn't be able to catch him easily.

Unfortunately, Lin Fan hadn't run more than a few steps when he suddenly felt a blur before his eyes, and a noose was put around his neck.

With that sudden pull from the horse, Lin Fan instantly lost his balance.

Soon, dozens of people gathered on the open space by the roadside; they were all passersby like Lin Fan.

Everyone, regardless of age or gender, was completely naked.

These bandits were relatively law-abiding. Even though there were young women and girls in the crowd, they only groped them under the guise of urging them on, and didn't do anything too outrageous.

A group of people stood before him, their white clothes creating a strange scene. Lin Fan, however, paid little attention, his gaze fixed intently on his own clothes not far away.

Six hundred and ten coins, the money he had earned with his life on the line, the money that allowed him and his mother to keep their freedom, lay quietly inside.