My Promotion Story Through Time Travel

Chapter 31 Miscellaneous Matters of the Academy

"Lin Ziping, someone's looking for you outside." Classmate A called out to Lin Ziping from the school gate.

After responding and thanking his classmate A, Lin Ziping got up and walked out of the school. He couldn't help but think to himself, "As expected of Ji Xun! My popularity at school is skyrocketing under his influence."

When he went outside, he saw that the person looking for him was Tao Ju'an, who was standing with his hands behind his back at the entrance of the elementary school. There was a peach tree in full bloom next to him. The boy was wearing a purple elementary school uniform, and his hair was neatly tied back with a hairband. Perhaps he heard Lin Ziping's footsteps, he turned his head and smiled at Lin Ziping.

"Greetings, Young Master Ziping." Tao Ju'an greeted him with clasped hands.

Lin Ziping returned the greeting with a cupped hand and asked, "Brother Ju'an, what brings you here?"

“I heard you had an accident a few days ago and haven’t had a chance to visit you. I happen to have business with Master Li today, so I thought I’d drop by the elementary school,” Tao Ju’an explained.

Lin Ziping was a little confused. Apart from Ji Xun and a few others, no one in the academy should know that he had been kidnapped by human traffickers.

After a moment's thought, he said, "Brother Ju'an, do you have time? Shall we move to another place?"

"Okay, please."

The two arrived at the big tree by the pond where they had once agreed to meet.

"How did you know that I had an accident a few days ago, Brother Ju'an?" Lin Ziping asked in confusion.

“That day I happened to be in the city with my father to buy things. When we were leaving the city, I saw Young Master Ziping… I couldn’t go up and acknowledge him that day, but I was relieved when I saw that Young Master Ziping had escaped.” Tao Ju’an explained.

"The situation was quite urgent at the time, and I didn't notice Brother Ju'an. Please forgive me." Lin Ziping bowed to Tao Ju'an again.

“There’s no need for such formalities between us, especially since Young Master Ziping is in that situation.” Tao Ju’an quickly helped Lin Ziping up.

"Brother Ju'an, what brings you to Master Li today?" Lin Zi began to change the subject to avoid embarrassment.

Tao Ju'an paused for a moment, then sighed and said, "Master Li was my mentor in my early education. If I pass the assessment in the first half of this year, I can participate in this year's state examination."

"As expected of Brother Ju'an, other students need a year or even two to advance to the next level, and they need to prepare for the state examination for a long time, but Brother Ju'an is confident in half a year!" Lin Ziping exclaimed.

“If that’s the case, that would be good. But alas, I wanted to find Master Li to hear his opinion, but unfortunately he’s not here,” Tao Ju’an said.

Lin Ziping immediately understood. This was similar to choosing between arts and sciences or selecting a major, and when feeling lost, one wanted guidance from predecessors.

Involuntarily, I replaced the usually rigid and serious Master Li with Teacher Xuefeng in my mind. The image was too beautiful to imagine!

Thinking of this, Lin Ziping wanted to pat the boy's shoulder, but his height limited him, and the way he had to reach out to pat his shoulder was undignified. Tao Ju'an looked at Lin Ziping's inexplicable behavior with surprise. To avoid an awkward situation, he covered his mouth with his fist and coughed lightly, saying, "If you are in a hurry, you can ask other teachers if Master Li is not here."

Seeing this, the boy smiled and nodded, then squatted down to look at Lin Ziping.

Lin Ziping... what is he trying to do?

"Weren't you just about to pat my shoulder?" Tao Ju'an patted my shoulder and laughed, "Now you can."

Lin Ziping was somewhat surprised, but seeing Tao Ju'an's reaction, he grinned, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Yes, I want to pat you on the shoulder and tell you that other people's opinions are just for reference, and the most important thing is your own choice."

Tao Ju'an stood up, smiled and patted Lin Ziping's head: "Thank you for your guidance, Young Master Ziping. I'm going to school now. Young Master Ziping, you should go back soon too. Another day when you're on leave from school, I'll take you to the mountains on the outskirts of the city to catch birds."

Watching Tao Ju'an's departing figure, Lin Ziping felt a pang of annoyance. "Who gave me permission to touch my head? If it happens again, I'll chop off their paw!" he thought. Remembering Tao Ju'an's words about catching birds, he realized he hadn't caught any birds in years. He recalled how, as a child, he would go up the mountain to catch sparrows, then roast them with his friends—the taste was still unforgettable! Tears of reminiscence streamed down his face.

Back at the school, Master Cheng had already begun his lecture. Lin Ziping slipped in from the back, returned to his seat, picked up his book, and began to read along, nodding and swaying his head. Master Cheng glanced at Lin Ziping, who then held up his book to block his view.

I've been here for almost half a year, and I still haven't quite adapted to this way of studying. Although my neck has gotten a great workout, effectively preventing cervical spondylosis, I feel a bit dizzy, and I feel sleepy after shaking myself a few times (-_-)zzz. I pat my face, trying to stay awake, but after a while, I lower my head and close my eyes again, still half-asleep. Sigh, I guess I really am a terrible student ╥﹏╥...

"Young Master, school's over, it's time to go home." After school, Zhu Zi came to help him pack up his books and pens.

Finally, with Cheng Fuzi's hypnotic voice gone, Lin Ziping opened his eyes, looked at Zhu Zi, and asked, "Zhu Zi, how are you doing with the notes I asked you to organize?"

As Zhu Zi washed the brush, he said, "I've finished reading it. Young Master's opinion seems to differ from what the Master said."

Upon hearing this, Lin Ziping realized that the head-shaking and swaying teaching style might not be suitable for him. He was no longer sleepy and no longer wanted to waste his energy. He instantly perked up and decided to do things his own way tomorrow.

Seeing Zhu Zi busy at work, Lin Ziping put away his book and casually asked, "Zhu Zi, what do you do in the corner room every day?"

“I didn’t know what to do before, because… no one else talked to me or played with me. So the young master taught me to read and gave me books. Later, I stood at the side gate and listened to the teacher’s lectures. Now the young master has given me his notes to organize, and I can understand them pretty well.” Zhu Zi seemed a little flustered.

The original owner used to teach Zhu Zi to read? Lin Ziping was somewhat surprised. He had taken it for granted that Zhu Zi should learn to read as a page, but he felt a little ashamed. In the past six months, he had only learned about this era from books and other people's words, as well as from old movies and novels. He only had a superficial understanding of history, and his knowledge was too one-sided. He had only seen a part of the whole picture from a small part.

“Young Master, I’ll teach my brother and Xiaoya to read when I get back tonight. You don’t know how… We haven’t missed any work,” Zhu Zi continued when Lin Ziping didn’t speak. “Young Master, after you start primary school, I won’t be able to go to school with you anymore. Could you… could you continue teaching me?”

I thought the pillar was stable just now, but now its true colors have been revealed.

"I won't be angry about you teaching Shunzi and Xiaoya. As for how you knew I couldn't have a page after I started elementary school?" Lin Ziping asked.

"What the others in the Corner Academy said is that only the Elementary Academy has a Corner Academy that allows students to bring pageboys; the other academies don't have this feature." Zhu Zi stopped what he was doing, lowered his head, and fiddled with the hem of his clothes.

Lin Ziping understood: "I will ask my uncle about this when I get home. If it is indeed the case, I will continue to teach you, Shunzi, and Xiaoya to read. Alright, it's getting late, let's go back."