Who Said a Study Servant Can't Win the Imperial Exam? - Chapter 58 - The Advance of the Little Soldiers Part 1

Someone’s bullying my junior brother?

Upon hearing this, Pei Jian, who had been looking rather listless, immediately flared up with anger. “Whoever’s got the guts of a bear and the heart of a leopard, daring to bully you?”

“Just tell me, and I’ll go deal with them!”

Li Heyu, Zhuang Jin, and Gao Qi also turned to Cui Xian at once, ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work.

When it came to studying, they were lethargic. But if it was about a fight, well, that was what brothers were best at!

Cui Xian spoke up, “That person is Zhao Zhi.”

He then recounted the incident of his house being ‘robbed’ the previous day, suspecting it was a setup by Vice Magistrate Zhao. He detailed the warning note he had received at the clan school, advising caution regarding Zhao’s family.

Beside him, Cui Yu’s face turned pale. He had thought it was merely a petty thief breaking into their home. Who would have guessed it was someone maliciously stirring trouble!

Pei Jian and the others listened, their expressions growing serious. This wasn’t just about a simple brawl anymore. As the leading gentry in Nanyang County Town, Zhao’s family was not easy to deal with!

“That scoundrel Zhao Yaozu came to challenge us with poetry, and then couldn’t take the loss. Truly shameless.”

Pei Jian took a deep breath, holding back his anger. “It was just a contest, yet he wants to take someone’s life? Xian, don’t worry. I’ll go home and write to my father and grandfather!”

Not long after leaving Hexi Village that day, once it was confirmed that Cui Xian would attend the Pei clan school, Pei Chongqing and Pei Kaitai, both provincial graduates, returned to Kaifeng.

Gao Qi and the others immediately expressed their intent to seek help from their elders.

Indeed, Zhao’s family wielded immense power. But the four of them didn’t hesitate to stand up for Cui Xian.

Cui Xian felt touched but shook his head, seriously asking, “Even if I had evidence, it wouldn’t be enough to truly defeat Zhao Zhi.”

“Even with the support of your four families.”

“Unless we can uproot Zhao’s family entirely and eliminate them completely, our resistance will only provoke even harsher retaliation.”

Hiss!

Upon hearing this, the brothers all drew a sharp breath.

Pei Jian was dumbfounded, stammering, “Xian, are you saying you want to uproot Zhao’s family?”

These young masters were always bold, but never had they been so audacious as to want to crush Zhao’s family entirely!

Cui Xian smiled at their reaction. “What, are you scared?”

Pei Jian hesitated, then stiffened his neck and said, “Your big brother here doesn’t even know how to spell ‘fear’! The problem is, even if we get help from our families, we can’t eliminate Zhao’s family.”

Cui Xian looked at his brothers. “Who says it’s impossible? Anything is possible.”

“I have a plan. And we don’t need to ask our families for help. Just the few of us brothers working together can bring Zhao Zhi down!”

Ah?

Upon hearing this, they exchanged glances, their faces full of disbelief.

You’re saying that just us, a bunch of young stinking cobblers, can take down Zhao Zhi?

How could that be!

But somehow, despite feeling it was impossible, looking at Xian’s confident expression, their hearts couldn’t help but start racing.

What if… it really could work!

Then Cui Xian lowered his voice and said, “Since we last worked together on ‘Rainbow Cat,’ it’s been a while since us brothers have tackled a big task together!”

“Since Zhao Zhi is so arrogant and disrespectful of the law, let’s join forces, brothers united, and deal with him!”

“After school today, we’ll meet in the small bamboo forest by the river to discuss the details of the plan.”

“Code name: ‘Decapitation’ operation!”

That settled it.

Although I don’t know what a code name is.

But this code name alone, somehow, just fires up the blood!

The four Young Masters looked into each other’s eyes and saw the excitement reflected back.

Even the usually well-mannered Cui Yu looked eager to try.

A smile flickered in Cui Xian’s eyes.

The Zhao family wields enormous power in Nanyang; recklessly dragging the four brothers’ families into a power struggle would be unwise.

And likely unsuccessful.

Thus, a ‘surprise attack’ is necessary.

It’s meant to be a strike at leadership, but it’s also a chance to test the brothers’ skills and courage!

Education in school is important.

But putting down the books and learning to wield the pen as a weapon is equally crucial.

Zhao Zhi-

Watch as I, with a band of brothers, ‘battle’ with you!

That day.

Everyone in the school, including Teacher Wu, was puzzled.

Because Pei Jian and his three friends were frantically memorizing texts, practicing their writing with all their might, even unprecedentedly earning reward tickets.

The reason? They feared being detained after class!

If they were detained, they couldn’t participate in Xian’s ‘Decapitation’ operation.

This operation sounded very impressive.

They were eager to join!

In the evening.

As the sunset filled the sky, at the riverside bamboo forest.

The boys met secretly, unable to contain their excitement.

Young calves are not afraid of tigers; just with their small numbers, they dared to challenge a powerful Vice Magistrate!

Pei Jian whispered, “Xian, tell us quickly, what should we do?”

Under the eager gaze of his brothers.

Cui Xian said, “First, let’s be clear, the ultimate goal of this plan is to take down Zhao Zhi.”

“Second, while taking him down, we, too, must make a name for ourselves and make a fortune by starting up the Rainbow Cat and the Seven Heroes’ Mohoulo figurine shop.”

“It’s killing three birds with one stone!”

What?

So it’s not just about taking down Zhao Zhi, but there are all these additional benefits?

The problem is, these tasks seem entirely unrelated!

Seeing his brothers’ confused expressions.

Cui Xian pulled out a few Mohoulo figurines from his pocket and smiled, “Of course, just us alone won’t suffice. So the first step is to call in ‘troops’!”

“The sons of Zhao Zhi’s family’s craftsmen and gardeners, sons of constables and catchpoles from the Yamen, sons of waiters from restaurants and brothels, sons of tea house and brokerage proprietors-they can all be our soldiers!”

“We need to know when Zhao Zhi is in the Yamen, who he meets at home, which restaurant he visits, what he talks about there.”

“Whether he prefers tea or enjoys listening to operas.”

“If he has any mistresses, properties he has transferred.”

“Who he is close to and who he has feuds with.”

“Every piece of information, no matter how small, must be gathered! Before the ‘decapitation’, we need to grab his ‘tail’!”

“Whichever boy comes back with the most useful information gets a Mohoulo figurine.”

Initially, the Young Masters were not very hopeful.

But after hearing Cui Xian’s plan, their eyes lit up, their expressions filled with excitement.

So, in the end, it all circled back to what they were best at!

Zhuang Jin’s family was in business, one of the top merchants in Nanyang. He knew all the families with sons around his age like the back of his hand.

As for Li Heyu’s family, it was even more formidable. There were craftsmen all over Nanyang, scattered across various estates, serving as ‘eyes and ears.’

Pei Jian had the capability to extend his reach into the Yamen!

These boys were already the ‘leaders of the pack.’

And if Mohoulo figurines were offered as rewards, the younger kids would definitely scramble to get things done.

Thinking about this, Cui Xian recalled the appearance of ‘Da Chuan,’ sketched it on the spot, and handed it to Pei Jian. “Brother, when you go to the Yamen, have someone find out who this person is.”

Old Man Cui’s son-in-law, Constable Lin, clearly recognized ‘Da Chuan.’

But Cui Xian didn’t rush to investigate.

He didn’t even know who Da Chuan was. If he went probing recklessly, he’d surely blow his cover!

With Zhao Zhi watching like a hawk, Cui Xian wanted to keep pulling strings, ensuring that Constable Lin continued to look out for his family’s safety.

Pei Jian took the sketch from Cui Xian, and the other Young Masters chuckled mischievously.

Then, they each went their separate ways.

Cui Yu, without a task assigned, asked eagerly, “Brother, what about me?”

Cui Xian thought for a moment and said, “Brother, you go stake out near Zhao Zhi’s place and try your luck.”

Who knows, you might just get lucky!

That day, unbeknownst to the adults, many children were buzzing with excitement.

“Really, a Rainbow Cat Mohoulo figurine? Pei Jian-Ge, don’t worry, I’ll get this done for you! I’m tight-lipped, won’t even tell my parents!”

“Brother Heyu, my dad’s a gardener at Zhao Mansion, I’ll go snoop around!”

“Brother Zhuang Jin, I’m always at your beck and call. I don’t want anything, I’ll make sure this gets done for you!”

“Gao Qi-Ge, don’t worry…”

So many people were secretly gathering information about Zhao Mansion.

If this were a group of adults, it would have raised alarms everywhere, and Zhao Zhi would have noticed immediately.

But the beauty of it was, these were harmless young lads.

And they weren’t communicating with each other, nor did they know what they were doing. Even if exposed, it wouldn’t matter.

Because Pei Jian and the others had given a consistent story-

“Brothers, I can’t stand Zhao Yaozu. Find some useful info on Zhao’s family, and I’ll figure out how to deal with him!”

“Anyone who helps will get a Rainbow Cat Mohoulo figurine as a reward.”

“Even if you can’t help, it doesn’t matter. A month from now, a Rainbow Cat Mohoulo store will open on Market Street. Have your parents take you to buy one.”