Volume 1, Chapter 3 – Turning It to Advantage

Chilong No. 1 High School sat in a bustling commercial district, and both the west and south gates drew plenty of street vendors.

The school had a cafeteria, but there were always students with money to spare who went out to satisfy their cravings, and many parents who came to pick up their kids chose to eat nearby as well. Come mealtime, business on both streets boomed.

The place Bai Xiang had mentioned was formally called ‘Zhangfa Beef Soup.’ The owner’s surname was Niu, a dark-skinned middle-aged man who rarely smiled. Only he and Mrs. Niu ran the shop. They’d reportedly moved here the year before last and, with a rich, well-spiced beef tallow chili broth, quickly conquered the whole school. Even teachers sometimes came by. This year they had already leased the second floor for expansion.

It was past six in the evening, that time in autumn when night comes a little early. The sky hung dark and overcast. A fine rain pattered on the road, and puddles reflected neon in a wash of color.

Tang Min, also a student in Grade 12 (Class 1), came out the school gate and went straight for the second floor of Zhangfa Beef Soup, fingers now and then fiddling with the mask on her face.

As class monitor she had joined the student council this year and had appeared at a few speaking engagements. This time she was out to attend an impromptu dinner chaired by the student council president, Zhou Ji.

She stepped into the shop and paused—she had seen, in a corner of the first floor, a short girl with twin ponytails tied by orange hair ties. It was a familiar face from class, the art class rep Chen Jing, with whom she didn’t get along.

On an ordinary day, Tang Min would never wear a mask. This was a student council dinner; everyone at Chilong No. 1 knew that joining the council let you ride its coattails. That alone was enough to offset her family background and let her look down on her classmates.

Not this time.

The task assigned by the council was a bit too sensitive. If possible, she didn’t want Chen Jing to know she had been here.

So she acted like a passerby, didn’t glance again at Chen Jing, and followed the customers ahead up the stairs.

She found the private room; some of the council people were already there.

“Minmin.”

Zhou Ji, the student council president of Chilong No. 1, tall and straight in a white shirt and tie, had been sitting on the sofa chatting and laughing with two girls. When he saw Tang Min come in, his eyes flickered. He stood at once, took her by the arm, and pulled her out to the emergency stairwell.

The other students in the room froze for a beat, looked at one another, and whether male or female all showed knowing, mischievous smiles.

Zhou Ji, however, had none of that on his mind. After making sure no one was eavesdropping in the stairwell, he asked urgently, “Well? Did you get it in?”

“I did, but I’m not sure she drank it.” Tang Min took off her mask and drew a deep breath, bit her lip, and stared at him. “Can you deliver on what you promised me?”

“I asked Zhou Tao—he said she didn’t go to the dojo this afternoon!” Zhou Ji ignored her question, looking distinctly displeased. “Once you’d put it in, you should’ve stayed and watched her drink it. Foolproof!”

“…I couldn’t be there!” Tang Min’s breathing quickened.

“Would that help?” Zhou Ji laughed, as if mocking her naivety. “You’re the only one in your class with a key to the classroom. If they really investigate, you’ll be the first they ask.”

“And the water in the thermos is evidence, and there are cameras. There’s no getting away either way.”

Tang Min went chalk-white. “That’s not what you said beforehand!”

“Confirm the dorm situation first.” Zhou Ji, now calm again, fixed her with a stare. “Don’t make me say it twice.”

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White-faced, Tang Min pulled out her phone with trembling hands and, in front of Zhou Ji, made a call—to a girl who had skipped class and stayed in the dorm that afternoon.

“…So she really holed up in her dorm? Didn’t come out all afternoon?”

“Okay… okay… got it…”

“Good.” Zhou Ji had gotten what he wanted from the exchange. He loosened his tie and resumed his devil-may-care air.

“Don’t scowl.” He slipped an arm around Tang Min’s waist.

“It’s just a strong laxative.”

“At most you’ll write a self-crit and get a public reprimand. I’ll find someone to pull your file afterward—there won’t be any record left.”

“And don’t you want to get into Qizhou U?”

“Once the fuss dies down, you can be on the roster at my family’s dojo. As long as the proctors are still from the Chilong Circuit, they’ll give us some face.”

Soothed, the color returned to Tang Min’s cheeks.

Neither noticed that, on the walkway reflected in the nearby floor-to-ceiling window, a white-clad figure with her hood up was approaching.

Dressed in a white hoodie, slightly fitted black pants, and spotless white sneakers, Bai Xiang pushed open the door and stepped into the first floor.

Owner Niu was delivering dishes to a table. He glanced toward the entrance at the sound of the chime—and his pupils tightened.

Not because of the face revealed when she lowered her hood, but because of the long sword she held, sheathed in her hand.

In Great Yu, only those who had earned a swordsman’s license could carry a live blade.

A swordsman’s scabbard bore a plum-blossom emblem midway for easy identification. This scabbard had no plum blossom, but it did have three white stripes carved into it.

It was a senior-year sword-student’s wooden sword.

Not daring to be casual, Owner Niu set the dish down and hurried over with a smile. He asked Bai Xiang, “How many?”

“Two.”

“Then you can first—”

“No need. My friend is already waiting for me.”

With the owner deflected, Bai Xiang went straight down the aisle, drawing quite a few lifted heads.

The white hair alone turned heads, to say nothing of a figure and face that were anything but ordinary. It would have been stranger if no one noticed a girl like that.

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Chen Jing was even more surprised!

In her eyes, this transfer student she’d only known a few days strode in with a long sword in hand, ignoring every look cast her way, giving the impression she didn’t care in the slightest.

But she hadn’t been like this before, had she?

At first glance the cool, aloof air was the same, but when people stared before, this big sister had clearly shown discomfort.

When Teacher Gao introduced her to everyone, he said she was solitary and a bit introverted. Chen Jing had been thinking she should give her deskmate some warmth and care. How had she changed so much in a single day?

Bai Xiang noticed Chen Jing’s surprise, of course, but said nothing. She sat, laid the sword across her thighs with the longer end tucked into the inner seat, then looked over with those golden eyes.

“Order first.”

“Oh… oh!”

Chen Jing finally snapped out of it and raised the menu.

“Um… this meal’s on me! What do you want to eat, Sister Xiang?”

“As long as the portions are generous, I’m fine with anything.”

“…???”

She shot Bai Xiang a long, suspicious look, didn’t reply, finished ordering in silence, and then started talking on her own.

“Seeing you okay, I finally feel relieved…” She fixed her eyes on Bai Xiang and spoke slowly. “You’re new, so you might not get it yet, but… even if you really want to apply to Qizhou U’s Sword Institute, you don’t have to say it in front of everyone.”

Bai Xiang’s gaze rippled slightly. She asked directly, “What did I say?”

“Eh? Uh… I just remember you said you were definitely registering for the sword exam, that you’d definitely get in, that kind of thing. You didn’t really say much after that.”

Chen Jing’s face drooped, brows sagging as she complained, “You didn’t see it—Tang Min’s face was awful…”

She watched Bai Xiang’s expression carefully, then added, “But don’t be too hard on her. Her family situation isn’t great, and she’s been set on this path—training sword from a young age—so of course she cares about competitors.”

Competitors?

Bai Xiang asked again, “Is competition among sword-track students that fierce?”

“Of course it is!” Chen Jing’s eyes widened, shocked she would ask something like that. “Take our Chilong Circuit—fifty thousand register for the Big Exam every year, and a tenth of them are sword-track! Our school alone has several hundred!”

“Several hundred… have they all entered the Dao?”

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People rarely said “Know the Self” outright; “entered the Dao” was the more tactful phrasing.

“How could they! If you’ve entered the Dao, you can get into 972! It’s just a matter of rank!”

“972…?”

“‘Nine Daos, Seventy-Two Paths’… Sister Xiang, are you sure you’re okay? You kind of feel different.”

“I haven’t changed,” Bai Xiang lied with a straight face. “You’re overthinking it.”

She paused, then kept chatting about the Big Exam and the sword track. She learned that even at Chilong No. 1, the Know-the-Self realm was rare.

A school with several thousand students had only a bit over twenty who had entered the Dao. That worked out to one or two per class, and Grade 12 (Class 1) had only one—a boy named Zhou Tao.

“Ah, people aren’t what they used to be~” Chen Jing swayed her two ponytails and gave her verdict. “If this were a few decades ago, there’d be ten times as many seniors entering the Dao! Peace has lasted too long, and technology’s risen—fewer people take this road…”

Seeing her so regretful, Bai Xiang asked, “Then are you sword-track?”

“Of course I’m not!” Chen Jing declared, full of conviction.

The corner of Bai Xiang’s mouth lifted.

“But I plan to do ‘Sword Dao history research’!” Flustered by that smile, Chen Jing slapped the table. “Unlike some people with no talent! Can’t get in but insist on trying! Obsessing over a dead end!”

“Most of those people can finagle their way into a sword institute, but which one is another question.” Chen Jing rattled on, looking as if she were thinking of others. “A 972 sword institute is a sword institute, and a bottom-tier sword institute is also a sword institute. Everyone wants the good ones. If you get in, sure, you soar. But if you don’t, then when you come out it’s either dojo sparring partner, or security and bodyguard work—that’s not the future I want…”

“What nonsense are you spouting?”

A harsh rebuke came from the stairs, the severity of the voice making Chen Jing flinch.

She turned—and there stood a tall boy. A blue-and-white student council armband circled his left arm. A girl with a mask hanging from one ear stood beside him. Both held bundles of bottled drinks.

“Sword dao doesn’t just strengthen the body—it cultivates the character!”

Seeing many diners looking this way, the boy raised his voice further, adopting the air of lecturing Chen Jing.

“Great Yu is founded on sword dao. Swordsmanship is national art! Sword dao is the national Way! To say nothing of the recent example of Senior Chai Xuan, who burst forth after grueling training—so what if you fall short of grand achievement? Is the courage to seek not worthy of praise? Is cowardly retreat what’s honorable?”

“In my view, even if some classmates are limited by talent and cannot reach the resplendent Great Way, at least they’ve worked! They’ve tried! That’s not something you have any right to judge!”

“I…”

“Bravo!!!”

Chen Jing was about to say she didn’t mean it that way when students from No. 1 started the cheers, some clapping and stomping, egging things on in this direction.

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“Exactly right!”

“No talent means you can’t train? Who says?”

“They say you mock lack of ambition, not poverty—someone else has resolve and you still have to meddle? Who is this girl?”

“Make her apologize!”

“Apologize!”

Chen Jing had never seen a scene like this. Frustration and grievance choked her; her little face flushed scarlet.

Zhou Ji basked in the feeling of being backed by his peers.

Rousing a crowd was what he did best. He never missed a chance like this.

He just happened to be standing at the wrong angle—he couldn’t see the person hidden behind Chen Jing, and didn’t notice Tang Min’s off expression as she started trembling and backing away.

Not until Bai Xiang stood did he catch sight of her distinctive looks—and his face shifted.

She’s fine?

How is she fine?

Bai Xiang fixed her gaze on Zhou Ji’s face, then shifted it and saw Tang Min lower her head, avoiding direct eye contact.

That guilty look was a bit too obvious. Doubt pricked at Bai Xiang at once.

Tang Min…

Chen Jing had just mentioned that she didn’t like me.

Might as well turn this to advantage.

And even if I guess wrong, there’s no real downside.

“Call Teacher Gao.”

While slowly drawing the wooden sword from its scabbard, Bai Xiang gave Chen Jing her instruction.

“Tell him there’s a big surprise here.”