After school each day, Master Lin would teach Zhan Feiyu for an hour alone.
"Thus, a gentleman must be cautious when he is alone," Master Lin finished speaking, and Zhan Feiyu smoothly continued, "Zengzi said: Ten eyes are watching, ten hands are pointing, how solemn is that... Thus, a gentleman must be sincere in his intentions."
Master Lin spoke again, "The three families conclude with 'Yong'."
"The Master said: 'He assisted the Duke, the Son of Heaven was solemn, what does this have to do with the halls of the three families?'" Zhan Feiyu had already memorized the Analects, and no matter which sentence Master Lin chose, she answered fluently.
"Today, I will begin to explain the meaning to you." Master Lin's clear voice sounded in the study as he slowly explained the meaning to Zhan Feiyu. Although the Great Learning was only a little over two thousand characters, the commentary on it, "The Great Learning Commentary," was Zhu Xi's most diligently worked-on book, which he was still revising the day before his death.
Outside the window, the sky gradually darkened. Zhan Feiyu, like a sponge, frantically absorbed the knowledge imparted by Master Lin, occasionally asking questions, and then understanding Master Lin's broken-down explanations, she felt a sudden enlightenment and exhilaration.
"That's all for today." As soon as Master Lin said this, Zhan Feiyu froze, her little face fell, and disappointment radiated from her whole body, as if she hadn't had enough.
Seeing this, Master Lin couldn't help but laugh, pointing outside the window, "Winter days are short and nights are long. From tomorrow, you will come to the private school half an hour earlier."
Her eyes lit up instantly, and Zhan Feiyu grinned, looking smug as if she had gotten a good deal, "Thank you, Master. I will definitely go to bed and wake up early."
Lin Family Private School was not far from Jinlin Village, but walking at night was still unsafe. Master Lin planned to have Old Man Dong escort her, but who knew that Zhan Feiyu was such a nimble little fatty.
"Master, I'm leaving. Da Huang must be here to pick me up!" Under the twilight, Zhan Feiyu skipped away with her short legs. Her cross-body cloth bag swung, and at first glance, she looked like a country girl.
"Xiao Yu has such a lively side?" Lin Xiuyuan looked at the departing figure in astonishment. In his perception, she was a diligent and studious junior sister, intelligent and bright, yet also steady, not at all like a seven-year-old girl.
"The handwriting reflects the person. Although Xiao Yu's handwriting is neat, it hides a sharp edge," Master Lin concealed a hint of unease in his eyes. Extreme intelligence leads to harm, and being too rigid leads to breaking!
From Zhan Feiyu's daily conversations, Master Lin could vaguely sense the sharp edge hidden beneath her composure. If everything went smoothly, it would be fine. Master Lin only worried that she was a standout talent, but she was not someone who would passively accept things.
After entering October, it got dark earlier and earlier. Zhan Feiyu hummed a little tune on her way home. When a slender shadow suddenly appeared behind her, Zhan Feiyu's heart skipped a beat. Was it a ghost?
There was someone behind her! Zhan Feiyu suppressed her unease and continued forward with unchanged steps. The dark shadow remained, but she couldn't hear any footsteps. This was a trained fighter!
The path was bordered by farmland on one side and a forest on the other. Zhan Feiyu veered to the right and suddenly slipped, her small body tumbling into a small ditch.
"She's quite alert," a clear male voice filled with mockery and disdain walked slowly towards where Zhan Feiyu had "slipped," his steps like the death knell of a demon.
The ditch was dug by villagers specifically to prevent mud and rocks from the mountain from rolling down and injuring people during heavy rain. The ditch was about three feet deep, and in it, besides tangled thorny bushes and weeds, there were only some broken stones and withered leaves.
Where did the person go? The man standing in front of the ditch suddenly changed his expression. His initial得意 turned into distortion and ferocity. His cold gaze meticulously searched the ditch.
The traces of someone slipping were clearly visible, as were broken withered branches, but Zhan Feiyu, who should have been in the ditch, had disappeared.
The prey in his grasp vanishing before his eyes made the man's face even more contorted. Could there be a hidden ditch or a secret passage?
Zhan Feiyu crouched on a tree branch, her chubby paws covering her mouth. It was him? But why did he want to kill her?
The man hesitated for a moment, then suddenly jumped into the ditch. His cold gaze swept around like a venomous snake. He found no one, nor any hidden mechanisms or secret passages.
In the dark night, the man looked up at the pitch-black forest before him and suddenly let out a clear and pleasant laugh. However, this sound, mixed with the rustling wind, made one's hair stand on end.
"As expected of the 'child prodigy' praised by Magistrate Chen." The man laughed, took out a fire starter from his body, slowly lit the withered leaves on the ground, and then picked up a withered branch to light it.
On the tree branch, which was only a little over a person's height, Zhan Feiyu held her breath. Although the man was disheveled, his eyes clearly belonged to a young man, but at this moment, illuminated by the firelight, they appeared sinister, terrifying, and pathological.
The man smiled, his lips curled, and he brought the burning branch towards the dry grass on the ground. Instantly, the withered yellow grass ignited upon contact with the open flame.
Setting fire to the mountain? Zhan Feiyu, hiding in the tree, felt fortunate for her somewhat useless golden finger. Although it only granted invisibility for half an hour, it had at least saved her life.
But now, as the fire blazed higher and higher, Zhan Feiyu knew clearly that if she continued to hide, she would only suffocate. However, if she jumped down from the tree to escape, even though she could be invisible, her footsteps could not be hidden.
She had to risk it! Zhan Feiyu clenched the "murder weapon" in her hand.
It was called a murder weapon only because it was a small item she had pestered Zhan Lao San to make. The iron piece, one finger long, was sharpened and then inlaid into wood, resembling a crudely made dagger. Zhan Feiyu kept it in her schoolbag for self-defense.
"Little girl, if you don't come out, you'll be burned to death." The man's voice was cheerful yet pathological. His sinister gaze scanned the forest illuminated by the firelight, waiting for Zhan Feiyu to lose patience and escape.
Zhan Feiyu looked down at the man under the tree. After estimating the distance, she tightened her right hand around the "dagger" and, like a wild monkey, pounced on the man.
In the darkness, the moment he sensed danger, the man suddenly turned around. There was nothing in front of him, but he felt a weight on his body.
As Zhan Feiyu lunged onto the man, the dagger held high in her right hand instantly slashed towards his carotid artery. Blood splattered, and by the time the man reacted, he had struck Zhan Feiyu off his body with a palm.
With a bang, she hit the tree trunk. Zhan Feiyu doubled over in pain, rolled on the ground, and once again disappeared from sight.
The man's eyes widened, and he stared in disbelief at the person who had vanished into thin air. Blood gurgled from between his fingers. With his carotid artery severed, even the strongest fighter would die.