The Unruly Immortals

"Fourth Young Master, Fourth Young Master!" The Master's voice shifted Zhuge Yuan's attention from the dragonfly flying outside the window to his authoritative face.

"Daydreaming again!" The Master looked frustrated. "Fourth Young Master, from my perspective, greatness is not measured by cleverness and agility, but by diligence and humility!"

"Yes, Master, your teachings are correct." Zhuge Yuan solemnly bowed to him.

Seeing Zhuge Yuan with a look of indifference, the Master sighed and walked to him, examining the half-grown youth from head to toe. He asked, "Fourth Young Master, living life so aimlessly daily, have you ever thought about what kind of career you want to pursue in the future?"

"Yes! I want to be a great hero!"

"Have you been reading storybooks again? Where are they hidden? If I find them, I'll burn them all! Why aren't you this eager about reading serious books?"

After angrily searching without results, the Master, feeling a bit helpless, said to Zhuge Yuan again, "Want to be a great hero? Daydreaming in the classroom won't do. To be a great hero, you need great skills. At the very least, you should have some qualifications, right?"

"Look at yourself now, what do you have that matches that? With your current state, you want to be a great hero? If you were thrown out, you'd struggle to support yourself!"

Just as Zhuge Yuan was about to defend himself, a small book the size of his palm slipped out from his sleeve. "Oh dear! I've caught you this time!"

Seeing the Master rolling up his sleeves and walking towards him, Zhuge Yuan was startled, shuddering, and suddenly woke up.

Looking at the beam above and glancing around the small room that barely fits a bed, Zhuge Yuan then realized he no longer needed to attend school.

But before a hint of relief settled, an intense longing surged within him; he missed the Master and the others.

"Bang bang bang!" The door was knocked heavily, "Hurry up! We've got a big job today! Get up quickly!"

"Coming! Coming!" The people sleeping on Zhuge Yuan's left and right sides scrambled to get up, dressing and washing quickly.

"Ah~" Zhuge Yuan, feeling a bit melancholic, sat up and also began his day's work.

Just as the sun began to rise, Zhuge Yuan struggled to carry several books outside. Once outside, he opened the old books one by one on the green stone slabs, using the fierce sunlight overhead to drive away mold and insect eggs.

After drying the books, Zhuge Yuan straightened up, wiped the sweat from his forehead, picked up the Water Calabash at his waist, opened the stopper, and drank with gulps.

Feeling refreshed, he looked at the courtyard filled with scrolls. These books, some new, some old, contained all sorts of content.

However, the contents of the books were prohibited for them to read, as seniors claimed they were not qualified. Reading too many miscellaneous books at their age leads to chaos of mind.

Yet Zhuge Yuan's mind was still in chaos despite not reading. He had been at Bright Wheel Hall for some time, constantly doing odd jobs without learning anything substantial, even becoming rusty with what he learned from the Master. This wasn't what he envisioned when leaving the village.

Recalling the dream earlier, Zhuge Yuan's gaze became resolute, "I can't continue like this. If this goes on, how will I fulfill the promise I made to the Master when I left the village?"

If they don't teach, I'll find a way to learn myself. If that's impossible, then I'll simply leave Bright Wheel Hall, explore vast lands and seas, and find my own way. I can't continue wasting away like this.

"Hey, what are you doing? Stop dawdling." A chubby young man with a mole on his left cheek put down his book and asked.

Zhuge Yuan turned his head towards the friend he knew from living together and, after some thought, asked, "Longke, isn't it said that the people in Bright Wheel Hall are very skilled?"

"Yes, indeed. They're very skilled. Last year, during heavy snow, I saw someone flying in the sky!"

"When will they start teaching us?"

"Teaching what?"

"Teaching skills, like the flying skill you mentioned, or teaching knowledge."

Tang Longke reached out to feel Zhuge Yuan's forehead, "Kid, you haven't gone mad, have you? Why are you talking nonsense? Why should they teach us?"

"Hmm?" This left Zhuge Yuan puzzled. "Why can't they teach? Aren't we disciples of Bright Wheel Hall too?"

"Brother, we're not disciples of Bright Wheel Hall. When did you hear we were Bright Wheel Hall disciples? We're just menial workers here!"

"Yes, I know we're handymen at Bright Wheel Hall. But shouldn't handymen also be disciples? Shouldn't we also be taught?"

"Have you ever seen a school that teaches handymen?"

"My family's Master taught in his school, isn't teaching without discrimination supposed to be the norm?"

Tang Longke looked helplessly at the boy in front of him. This guy had a good heart, but he seemed like a wild man from the mountains who understood nothing about worldly matters.

"Kid, they're prestigious scholars, while we're servants. People are divided into ranks; we came to Bright Wheel Hall to serve them. Understand now?"

Zhuge Yuan thoughtfully pondered, then shook his head earnestly, "I don't understand. People are just people, why divide them into ranks and classes? Even if someone had an extra head, they should still be the same."

"Ah, go figure it out yourself, I've got work to do."

Just then, a group of people wearing fine silk came out of the house looking troubled, and Zhuge Yuan noticed an elder he once met when he first arrived at Bright Wheel Hall was speaking to them.

As Zhuge Yuan approached, snippets of their conversation became audible.

"Brother Wenshui, lately the southern harvest has been poor, paper prices have risen so much, continuing at this price isn't reasonable."

"Yes, yes, at this price, we can't even buy white rag paper, let alone white board paper."

"Gentlemen, rules are rules. If you don't wish to supply paper, then don't sell any books; the hall can certainly find other sources."

"Ah, it's tough being a scholar merchant."

As Zhuge Yuan stood at a distance, those men sighed and walked away, and the elder turned to head back inside.

"Elder!" Zhuge Yuan hurriedly approached and respectfully bowed to the elder.

Yet the elder seemed oblivious, silently turning to go inside.

Zhuge Yuan quickly stepped forward to block his way, "Elder, may I ask when a disciple can go to the inner courtyard school?"

The elder finally spoke, his tone somber. "What type of clothes are you wearing now?"

Zhuge Yuan looked down at his brown clothes, "Menial worker."

"Since it's menial work, then serve honestly as a menial worker. That's the rule."

Zhuge Yuan stepped forward again, "But Brother Yuting mentioned before that I can enter—"

With anger flaring in his eyes, the elder interrupted him, "What if he said it? I said no, so no! It's because of you people clinging to connections like leeches that Bright Wheel Hall has become like this! Bright Wheel Hall disciple? Do you even deserve that?"

"Go away!" With that, the elder stamped his feet, his frail body rushing towards Zhuge Yuan like a mighty bell.

Seeing he was about to be struck, Zhuge Yuan instantly formed a hand seal with his right hand, his figure quickly moved aside, dodging with a shadow trail.

The elder paused, turned back, and looked at Zhuge Yuan with a trace of surprise. "Who taught you that trick?"

"Some little tricks taught by friends in the past school." Zhuge Yuan stood firm and bowed to him again.

"Not bad, you have talent."

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Yuan's eyes were about to light up, but the elder's next words quickly followed.

"But rules are rules! What if you have talent? What if you know some tricks? Since you're now a menial worker, then do the menial work diligently!"