Reading

Over at the Guchuan Dam, Lin Xiao stayed by Sun Yigao's side, keeping a close watch on the shore to ensure the safety of the drafted laborers who were toiling away.

Having not seen each other for several days, Lin Xiao shared the recent changes and events that had occurred in the sect with Sun Yigao.

Upon hearing about artifact forging, talisman crafting, and array engraving, Sun Yigao also showed great interest.

"After some time, when I finish participating in the academy exam and return, I must properly learn these things as well."

Lin Xiao laughed, "Now that you have Senior Liao as your second master, I imagine he will certainly be very willing to impart all of his five hundred years of experience to you without reservation."

Seeing that it was getting late, Sun Yigao urged Lin Xiao, "Sect Master, you should go back first. The number of people here is not too large yet, so I can handle it alone."

The drafted laborers who had rushed over to repair the dam were only the first batch of people closest to the Guchuan Dam. Later, laborers from areas further away would arrive one after another. By then, there would truly be a lot of people.

Lin Xiao also thought that this was not something that could be finished in a day or two. Moreover, he had come out in a hurry today and forgot to inform his family. Thus, he no longer declined and nodded, "Then I will go back for a trip first, and come over tomorrow to take your place."

The two bid a swift farewell, and Lin Xiao hurriedly rushed back to Xiushui Village.

He had to tell his family and everyone in the sect about having to go to the Guchuan Dam recently. He also needed to make more large and small reinforcement arrays as backups, and assign the task of learning the Four Arts of Cultivation, letting Senior Liao supervise everyone's studies.

There was also the construction of the Path of Seeking the Heart, which he currently had no clue about...

With so many things to do, Lin Xiao felt that he might need an assistant.

His brother and father still had to take care of the fields every day. His eldest cousin Lin Lei had to go home to help in the afternoon. Aunt Yang had recently taken over the work of copying the mental cultivation methods and those basic encyclopedias. Tietou's cultivation base was too low, and he was busy every day taking the two little girls to decorate the sect. Mo Yuanjiao was busy cultivating and learning the Four Arts, and Little Luan and his disciple... were not within the scope of consideration.

As for Fuzi, well, Lin Xiao felt that compared to being an assistant, there must be a more suitable place for him, so an assistant role was out of the question.

Thinking it over, the only one with strong execution ability, who currently had nothing on his plate and was handy to use, seemed to be Baldy.

So early the next morning, Lin Xiao told Baldy about his wish for him to act as an assistant to help manage the miscellaneous affairs of the sect.

Hearing his words, Liu Yunan was extremely happy.

He immediately nodded in agreement and patted his chest, guaranteeing that he would definitely do a good job as an assistant.

Meanwhile, the drafted laborers of Xiushui Village had already set off to gather in Cuifeng Town, preparing to head to the Guchuan Dam.

For a time, the village entrance was filled with the sorrow of parting.

On the other hand, the people of the Lingxian Sect, knowing that Lin Xiao and Sun Yigao would be guarding there recently, felt very settled in their hearts. Watching the villagers reluctantly bidding farewell at the village entrance, they really wanted to tell everyone about this, but forcefully held back.

Anyway, if they really told them now, probably not many people would believe it. It was enough for them to know in their hearts that they shouldn't have to worry about their lives. Let them cry for a while; who hasn't cried before?

And so, after handing over the recent miscellaneous affairs of the sect to Liu Yunan to push forward, Lin Xiao restfully set off to station himself at the Guchuan Dam.

With Lin Xiao and Sun Yigao guarding, the repair work of the Guchuan Dam proceeded very smoothly.

For five consecutive days, the number of drafted laborers increased every day, but the number of accidental deaths remained at zero. It was only inevitable that some people would be injured by earthbags or tools rolling down from above, but after a night, these injured people basically no longer had any life-threatening concerns.

This was because whenever a casualty occurred, Lin Xiao or Sun Yigao would quietly sneak into the injured person's location and use spiritual energy to soothe and heal their wounds. However, the two of them also maintained a good sense of proportion. They did not directly heal the person completely, but would treat the life-threatening injuries according to the injured person's physical condition, leaving the remaining minor injuries and pains to keep up appearances.

Meanwhile, in the Liaoju Prefecture, Prefect Tong Shuzheng also hurried to find time to come back and finish grading the candidates' papers, announcing the results of the prefectural exam.

Afterward, he didn't even have time to go through the usual formality where the prefect would summon the top three admitted students. He hurried back to the Guchuan Dam overnight to personally supervise the repair progress.

When the Guchuan Dam was first built, there was no cutting corners. But this dam had been built for over a hundred years. Although there was no cutting corners at the beginning, it was precisely because of this that over the years, the governors who took office in Hufang Province were very perfunctory about repairing this dam, which led to its current crumbling state.

Prefect Tong knew this very well, but he had unspeakable bitter difficulties.

Because if this matter was really reported and exposed, it would not involve just one or two people, but all the officials who had taken office in Hufang Province over the years.

To be honest, he couldn't afford to offend them.

So he could only swallow his bitterness and do his best.

If this Guchuan Dam really burst, it wouldn't be too late for him to fight to the death then.

As for the results of this prefectural exam.

Sun Yigao once again topped the list, becoming the freshly minted top scholar of the prefectural exam.

Although Lin Xiao knew Sun Yigao's character, seeing him win first place in both the county and prefectural exams consecutively, he couldn't help but quietly ask Sun Yigao:

"You didn't use any cheating methods, did you?"

Hearing his teasing, Sun Yigao laughed:

"I can't completely say no. Since I started cultivating, my memory and comprehension of books seem to have greatly improved. Having the experience of cultivation that ordinary people lack, does this also count as a kind of cheating?"

"Is there another round of academy exams after this?" Lin Xiao thought of his shallow memories of ancient imperial examinations from his previous life, figuring that the mortal realm here seemed similar to the past, so he asked.

Sun Yigao nodded:

"Yes. After the academy exam, the examinations will temporarily end. If I pass, I can then participate in the provincial exam held every three years. The last provincial exam was held in August the year before last. If I want to participate, I'll have to wait until August next year."

Speaking of this, he suddenly remembered something and said to Lin Xiao:

"By the way, Brother Xiao, I want to open a private school in our village after finishing the exams this year. What do you think?"

"A private school? Do you have any specific plans?" Not expecting him to have this idea, Lin Xiao was somewhat surprised.

Sun Yigao nodded and said:

"If I can pass this academy exam, I will have some tax-exempt fields under my name. I've already discussed it with my father. The money saved from these exempted taxes will be given to me to buy cheap paper and pens. A portion will be sold at cost price to the students studying in the private school, and a portion I will use to copy books. In the future, the students will use my books for class. As for the tuition fees, I want to set them as low as possible to allow more children in the village to read and write."

When he was teaching everyone in the Lingxian Sect to read and understand mental cultivation methods, he thought that being literate was truly too important. One didn't have to pursue an official position to need to read.

The purpose of reading is to comprehend the myriad principles accumulated by generations of predecessors. This is of the utmost importance.