The Immortal Seeker: Legend of Bronze Mirror-Chapter 27 - 23 The Fledgling Phoenix

With the help of the Guo siblings and a group of officers from the Government Office, Xu Qing's family quickly moved into the old residence of the Gu family, now called Li Mansion.

Although the residence with four courtyards is not small, it is considered insignificant in official circles.

Many retired elders from South Zhili no longer fancy building extravagant residences but prefer to construct gardens.

Nowadays in places like Jiangning Prefecture and Yingtian Prefecture, low-key yet luxurious gardens with depth are ubiquitous.

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Back in the Middle Ages, the mansions built by scholars were not gardens, but fortified manors complete with defense systems, essentially small kingdoms.

Now, merely constructing gardens, even if exceedingly luxurious, merely serves to accessorize one's rank and poses no threat to Imperial Power.

If even this displeases the Emperor, then it might be time for the Emperor to take a dip in the water.

Li Mansion has four courtyards, respectively the front courtyard, central courtyard, and both the eastern and western back courtyards.

The front courtyard is typically used for hosting banquets, the central courtyard for the main hall and guest hall geared towards private gatherings, while the back courtyard is where one would reside.

Each courtyard is standalone with a large gate for entry and exit, which, once closed, ensures privacy from one another.

Xu Qing lives in the eastern courtyard, which is exactly where the previous two owners resided.

Li Gongpu was initially fearful that residing here would bring misfortune, but Xu Qing was unafraid and convinced Li Gongpu with the principle that "the wise speak not of supernatural powers and chaos."

After all, if anything untoward did happen, they could just move out again.

However, on the first night after moving in, Li Gongpu still cried.

Because the courtyard Xu Qing was born in was much larger, and that was the kind of deep residence and large estate in which he should have been living all along.

With a courtyard, naturally, there must be servants, but the Li family of three didn't need many. Primarily, they needed someone responsible for cleaning and guarding the gates.

Wealthy families generally employ their own offspring rather than buying slaves, with the exception of those with exceptionally clear backgrounds. Ordinary households prefer to hire help through contracts, as it is cheaper and replacements are easy to find if they prove unsatisfactory.

Historian Li, of course, chose to employ servants through contracts.

With Historian Li's status, selecting people from the servant market could not be any easier.

However, Xu Qing didn't require any attendants, living alone and taking care of himself; he just went to the western courtyard to eat.

What about boiling water for a bath?

He now takes cold baths to condition his body, and besides, the eastern courtyard has its own well, making water retrieval convenient.

Right, there's also an Old Wutong Tree in the courtyard, not far from the ancient well whose rim bears the calligraphy by a previous owner, Gu Feng, taken from the Book of Songs:

"The phoenix cries upon the high ridge; the parasol tree grows toward the morning sun."

Beneath the tree are stone benches and tables, once the very place Gu Feng studied and socialized.

By May, the weather has gradually warmed up, and sitting beneath the parasol tree provides Xu Qing a cool shade.

Yet, looking at the ancient well from the stone table, one can't help but feel a chill. But the Bright Strength of Crane Form at Great Success, is not afraid of such chill at all.

Moreover, as a young man full of vigor, he rises energetically each morning with no trouble.

A Daoist by the surname Zhang once said, it is ideal for a youth to train in Kung Fu!

Having lived there for two days, Xu Qing felt nothing out of the ordinary.

Each morning, he would begin his Cultivation of the Crane Form to train his Bright Strength.

Whether it is because Crane Form has reached Great Success or due to the lack of Breathing Skill and new supplementation method, Xu Qing's Crane Form has difficulty progressing further.

His advancement now comes almost entirely from his body's natural growth.

As for the warmth generated from practicing the Crane Form, its contribution to physical enhancement has become minimal. It seems his body is at a bottleneck, unable to absorb this heat, even guided by Divine Soul proves futile.

However, Xu Qing discovered another use for this warmth: rapid recovery of injuries.

Currently trying to strike hard objects with Bright Strength has inevitably resulted in minor bruises. With the heat generated from Crane Form, these bruises vanish in no time.

Hence, he consciously began to leverage the healing nature of this warmth to train his body's resistance to strikes.

"Stones are too hard, and ordinary wooden piles cannot withstand the blows." Xu Qing's gaze fell on the sturdy Old Wutong Tree in the courtyard—isn't this a naturally suitable wooden pile for practicing punches and kicks?

Xu Qing's legs and hands were still tied with sandbags, and he thoughtfully set up a target on the trunk of the old parasol tree. It was good for practicing both punches, kicks, and dagger skills.

During the process of practicing punches, kicks, and dagger skills, Xu Qing gradually felt that his Crane Form stance ultimately prioritized strengthening the body, and it lacked powerful lethal moves.

Li Gongpu was also unwilling to teach him truly lethal techniques; after all, Xu Qing was still a youth. If he acted rashly in the heat of the moment and took a life, his future could be ruined.

Because now people generally wouldn't dare to offend Xu Qing. Those who dared to seriously contend with Xu Qing certainly wouldn't be average people.

An archivist could deal with common folk just fine, but against someone backed by scholars, he's nothing at all.

Moreover, Li Gongpu had said something very sensible: with Xu Qing's current proficiency in Crane Form, which was even deeper than his own, he should just run whenever there's trouble. Unless it was a famous and notorious bandit, most people really wouldn't be able to catch him.

Xu Qing had no rebuttal to this.

Against strong enemies, being able to run fast is more useful than being strong in combat.

False martial arts masters, one man surrounds a Shaolin temple; real martial arts masters retreat while fighting, can steal and deceive...

Actually, not to joke, but being able to run fast is advantageous in both winning and losing.

If you can fight, the opponent can't escape; if you can't win, the opponent can't catch up.

According to Historian Li's work experience, if one really wants to kill someone, dealing with dagger, sword, or assassination techniques isn't as good as having a crossbow.

A powerful arrow from a strong crossbow, even those who have practiced hard Qigong like Golden Bell Shield and Iron Cloth Shirt, will still be chilled to the core.

Therefore, possessing bows and arrows or hiding crossbows and inner armor among the common folk is akin to rebellion.

No matter how much the commoners understand, they are no match for the court's knowledge!

Thus, you see many weapons being trafficked in the government office's armory, but crossbow armor is stored separately, and even the matching arrows are marked. If they are found to have flowed out, they will be traced to their source.

"I understand the reasoning, but there are always special circumstances. I still have to find a way to learn some real skills!" Xu Qing knew that there were some things you can do without, but you shouldn't be without.

But the most important thing right now is the prefectural examination.

If possible, it wouldn't be bad to end up as the top candidate in the prefectural examination.

County examination, prefectural examination, academy examination top candidates, also called the "Lesser Three Champions". With that title, even if one doesn't pass the imperial examination, it can still be used as a talisman.

However, he had County Magistrate Wu's guidance for the county examination, prepared for over two months, plus the cultivation from his past life and the state of Absolute Focus, to produce an excellent essay in the eight-legged style.

For the prefectural examination, he was completely in the dark.

Of course, as the top candidate in the county examination, even if Zhao Xiong now sided with the Magistrate and wanted to play dirty, it was almost impossible to disqualify him from the prefectural examination.

Because while the prefectural examination is under the Magistrate's control, the Academic Supervisor has the responsibility to inspect. If the top candidate of the county examination fails the prefectural examination, it would certainly alarm the Academic Supervisor.

Of course, if Xu Qing's essay in this prefectural examination is too poor, it could indeed give others an excuse.

Xu Qing thought it over and decided he still had to meet his mentor, County Magistrate Wu. What he wanted was not just to pass the prefectural examination, but to become the top candidate, which would be the best result.

If you don't try for your dreams, how do you know if you can succeed?

After all, apart from Xu Qing's own family, the person who least wants Xu Qing to rank too low in the prefectural examination is now County Magistrate Wu.

"County Master, you wouldn't want me to rank too low and shame you either," a thought popped into Xu Qing's mind.

...

...

"Student Xu Qing, pays respect to his old mentor."

"I was wondering why there were magpies chirping today, turns out the little phoenix has arrived."

The little phoenix was a playful title County Magistrate Wu used for Xu Qing during the Li family's housewarming banquet.

Because Gu Feng was a locally renowned scholar, and people called him Parasol Scholar. Xu Qing moved into his former residence and was the top candidate in the county examination, fitting in with the literary tradition, so County Magistrate Wu playfully called him a fledgling phoenix.

If Xu Qing someday achieves the rank of Second Rank Scholar, this playful reference will indeed become a delightful tale.

At that time, County Magistrate Wu would have another chance to enhance his reputation, harboring greater hopes for immortal fame.

After all, an official seeks wealth for worldly desires, but pursuing fame is the true intention.

Isn't it said, "fame and fortune, with fame coming before fortune"?