Chapter 110: Li Su's Daily Tasks

Wang Tao was still in Wenzhou and had not returned to the capital. It wasn't that he didn't want to go back; his injuries had yet to heal, and the rigors of travel were not conducive to his recovery.

Wang Tao's personal attendant and servants had temporarily settled in Wenzhou, which made life very difficult for them.

Wang Tao was filled with rage and found everyone irksome. They all knew his methods well—his servants bore the marks of whip lashes, burns, and other tortures, making their lives miserable beyond words.

The personal attendant who followed Wang Tao fared slightly better, as Wang Tao needed someone to look after him and did not treat this attendant as harshly.

The atmosphere throughout the estate was gloomy; the servants dared not make a sound as they walked, for any noise that caught Wang Tao’s attention meant a severe beating.

In just a few days of Wang Tao’s convalescence at the estate, several servants had already perished.

Each servant felt a constant threat, fearful that they might be the next to be dragged away.

Wang Tao was in no hurry to return to the capital. He summoned the secret guards arranged by his father and commanded, “Bring this person to me.”

He handed the secret guards a portrait of Li Su. “His name is Li Su. Be sure to capture the right person.”

The secret guards glanced at the portrait but hesitated. “Young master, the master only instructed us to protect you.”

Wang Tao glared at them. “Yes, but I am injured too. If you fail to carry out this task well, I will have my father punish you.”

“But if you bring Li Su to me, I will not hold your failure to protect me against you.”

The secret guards fell silent for a moment. Many secret guards from the Wei family army were stationed at Mingyue Academy. The young master could not enter the academy, and the guards had no means to abduct a student from within.

“No need to enter Mingyue Academy. Just wait for him to come down the mountain,” Wang Tao said knowingly. Forcing their way into the academy would only alert Wei Shian and cause offense.

The secret guards hesitated but nodded in agreement, promising to capture Li Su.

Only then was Wang Tao satisfied. “No matter what, make sure he survives.”

He had no interest in a corpse; he intended to subject Li Su to every cruel method he possessed, to teach him the consequences of crossing Wang Tao.

After every exam, Mingyue Academy released the students down the mountain. The secret guards would seize this opportunity to easily capture Li Su.

“Wait at the mountain gate of Mingyue Academy. As soon as you see Li Su descend, follow him and bring him here.”

“What about you...?”

“I’m fine here at the estate. Just follow my orders.”

The secret guards obeyed, departing straightaway to wait halfway up the mountain near Mingyue Academy.

...

Li Su was hand-polishing glass for a telescope, which required two core lenses: the objective lens and the eyepiece. The objective lens was a convex lens to focus light, while the eyepiece was a concave lens to correct the image.

Li Su began polishing the objective lens first, his hands aching, yet progress was slow.

He rubbed his wrists, carefully adjusting the curvature as he polished. Without tools to measure the surface, he relied entirely on feel.

“Director, I’ll stop here for today. I’ll continue tomorrow,” Li Su said, setting aside the glass and polishing tools, removing his gloves and stretching his neck.

Wei Shian also put down his work. “It’s still early.”

Li Su shook his head. “Not for me. I have other tasks.”

“What assignments did Xisheng give you?”

“Five strategic essays daily, five poems or odes, one book expanding on the imperial exam curriculum, one book on strategy, one book of poetry. I have to write summaries for all three books and practice calligraphy for an hour. The workload can only increase, never lessen.”

At first, Li Su was too shy to show Xisheng the poems he wrote, as his poetry skills were no better than his initial essays.

Though Xisheng regarded Li Su’s poetry as quite good, he still taught poetry to push Li Su to improve in all areas.

Li Su worked secretly on his poetry collection, only daring to show Xisheng his pieces once he had improved enough.

After all, Xisheng was the master he had won over with poetry. Revealing his true poetic level too soon might have angered his master and gotten him expelled.

One strategic essay was already a heavy blow—he could not endure too much pressure.

Compared to others of this era, he had access to many more classic and timeless poems for study and inspiration.

With a steady heart and dedicated effort, his progress was rapid.

Later, Xisheng realized Li Su’s poetry was not as brilliant as he had thought, but it was still gifted, for good poetry required a moment of inspiration.

Practice was always beneficial, so Xisheng increased Li Su’s poetry assignments.

Wei Shian looked on, astonished.

Was Li Su serious or just fabricating this?

How could anyone finish so much in a single day?

Li Su noticed Wei Shian’s gaze and asked, “What’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You’re not lying to me?”

“No, my master said this was already a low requirement.”

Wei Shian was speechless. Did Xisheng have no conscience? If this was low, what was high?

Then he smiled. “Xisheng’s right. He’s been lenient with you; this is indeed a low bar.”

Li Su nodded. “That’s why I have limited time for scientific study.”

“When the tutors teach, you must focus and not use that time for Xisheng’s assignments. His knowledge is vast, but the tutors at the academy are no less. You need to absorb the strengths of many schools,” Wei Shian said earnestly.

A faint smile spread across Wei Shian’s lips. He finally understood Xisheng’s mindset.

Li Su noticed the smile and wondered what was so amusing.

“I understand,” he said. He devoted his after-class time to his master’s tasks, but did the tutors’ tasks during class...

Otherwise, he really wouldn’t have enough time. He wanted to reserve at least six hours for sleep—one must learn from experience.

“I believe these tasks won’t take you too long each day. Finish them quickly and come to me.”

With Xisheng absent, Wei Shian was confident he could still secure Li Su’s time for martial arts and scientific study.

Li Su’s eyes widened. If this didn’t take Wei Shian and the others too long, it surely consumed much of his time daily. His skills were clearly lacking.

“Director, this takes me quite a bit of time!”

“Pathetic!”

“Xisheng’s not here, so you can slack off a little; he won’t know.”

“If necessary, just do it half-heartedly.”

Li Su blinked in disbelief. Was this really how one should be taught?

Wei Shian realized his words might have been inappropriate.

“Here’s a plan: bring over the materials you need. When you tire of writing, study science; when you tire of science, go back to writing.” He would manage the time for both to ensure neither was neglected.

Li Su was speechless.

“Well? Isn’t that an excellent solution?” Wei Shian asked confidently, convinced his idea was brilliant.