My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 36 My fellow disciples
Liu Mansion.

The mansion where Liu Xuan now lives was bestowed upon him by Li Jiancheng. It is very close to the Li residence. Although it is not large in scale, the high courtyard walls, exquisite corridors, and gravel paths are all quite impressive, much better than Liu Xuan's residence in his hometown.

At that moment, seventeen people stood before him.

These people were mostly young men, not very old. Judging from their clothing, most of them did not come from well-off families. Their clothes clearly showed signs of mending, and some of them were even covered in dust and dirt, not at all like scholars.

Liu Xuan looked at the disciples in front of him and sighed silently in his heart.

Everyone is having a hard time.

These people were all from respectable families, whose families were originally quite well-off, able to afford their education and hoping to pursue official careers. But now, putting aside any aspirations for officialdom, even making a living has become difficult, not only due to corvée labor but also because of the heavy taxes.

Liu Xuan himself was a victim of taxes. Even he, as a teacher, couldn't afford to pay taxes, let alone his disciples.

He glanced at his nephew Liu Hun beside him, "Why are there only so few people? Where are Cheng Jie and the others?"

Liu Hun paused for a moment, then slowly said, "They were captured halfway there and headed to Hebei."

Liu Xuan's face turned red, and he raised his hand several times, wanting to curse, but he held back.

He looked at his disciples and said, “In the letter I wrote to you, I dared not say much, lest someone find a handle against me. Now that you are all here, I will explain in detail the jobs I have found for you.”

The disciples bowed their heads and listened.

"I now work in the Duke of Tang's mansion, and I am the tutor of the Duke's third son."

"Your assignment this time is to serve as attendants to the young masters of the Duke's family. Do whatever they tell you to do."

Liu Xuan glanced at everyone's expressions and then said, "Don't feel ashamed, and don't think about your career anymore. Serving the Duke's family is not shameful. Look, even I work for the Duke's family."

His disciples were young and impetuous, and Liu Xuan worried that they would feel ashamed to be someone's followers, so he persuaded them one by one.

His disciple Zhang Du spoke first, "Master, don't worry, we would never think that way."

"Before receiving your letter, I had been hiding in my own hamlet, avoiding the officials who came to conscript men."

“I didn’t feel ashamed to hide in the slums for several days. What’s so shameful about being someone’s attendant? Especially being an attendant to the Duke’s son. If I do well, I can use the Duke’s influence and perhaps I won’t be bullied in the future.”

The other disciples nodded in agreement.

They were no longer the arrogant young men who studied under Liu Xuan. This wasn't just having their edges smoothed out; they had been ground into powder.

They all began to pour out their grievances. Many of them had been separated from Liu Xuan for a long time, and when they met again, they couldn't wait to tell their teacher all the bitterness in their hearts.

“Master, my grandfather is dead, and my mother is dead too. I even had to borrow money to bury them. My younger brother is the only one I can support by living with my uncle. Every time I go to my uncle's house, my brother cries and begs me to take him away, saying that my uncle makes him work and my aunt doesn't give him any food.”

"But I can't even support myself."

As the young man spoke, tears streamed down his face.

Another person said, "The officials are arresting people arbitrarily. My family paid money, but they don't acknowledge it and want me to serve in the military. When Brother Liu arrived with your letter, I was sharpening my axe in the yard. I originally wanted to chop that damned village chief up!"

"That dog dynasty"

At this point, the man became extremely agitated, veins bulging on his forehead, and he was on the verge of exploding. Then he slowly calmed down and bowed his head to Liu Xuan, "Master, I lost my composure."

Liu Xuan simply shook his head slightly.

"It's fine if you say these things to my face, but don't say them outside the house."

"Be careful, understand?"

As everyone was complaining, suddenly, an old servant hurried in from outside. This was Liu Xuan's old servant, who had followed him all the way to Xingyang. He quickly reported, "Master, the Third Young Master has arrived."

"Ok?"

Liu Xuan was quite surprised. He looked at everyone and said, "Come and meet your junior brother. Although he is young, his talent is higher than all of yours! He is kind and has the demeanor of a generous elder at such a young age."

He then sent Liu Hun to bring Li Xuanba in.

Liu Xuan's disciples stood on both sides, curiously tiptoeing to see what was going on; they were quite curious about this junior brother.

Suddenly, a little child walked in from a distance. The little child was not very tall and was quite thin, but his eyes were exceptionally bright, as if they were shining.

Li Xuanba strode in, greeted his teacher, and then immediately greeted his fellow disciples.

"Greetings, brothers!"

"I dare not, I dare not, I dare not!"

"Third Master is the son of the Duke, how dare I accept such courtesy!"

Everyone was quite frightened and quickly avoided his bow.

The Guanlong Group is exceptionally powerful. Don't be fooled by the Zheng family's empty talk; once they arrive in the capital, even a child from a military family can ride them like horses, showing them no respect whatsoever.

The Duke of Tang holds an extremely high position within this group. Li Jiancheng's banquets are always packed because he is the future Duke of Tang and is currently one of the best among the younger generation of the Guanlong Group. While it's hard to say whether he will become the head of the group in the future, it's certainly no problem for him to be among the top.

Before the Duke of Tang, these commoners were truly nothing. Even though Li Xuanba was not the Duke's eldest son, they would never dare to accept his courtesy.

Li Xuanba said, "Although my father's status is noble, I have no title or merit that deserves respect. I am just a commoner. My elder brothers entered school earlier than me and are older than me, so I should pay my respects first."

Liu Xuan sat in the seat of honor, listening to Li Xuanba's words with a slight smile on his face.

"Alright, no need for formalities, please sit down."

Because Liu Xuan's family didn't have enough chairs, everyone had to follow the example of the ancients and sit on the ground.

Li Xuanba sat in the seat closest to Liu Xuan; he had been pushed there by his senior brothers.

When they first met Li Xuanba, everyone thought he was just a child, but after hearing what he said, they immediately stopped looking down on him and their sense of restraint lessened considerably.

Liu Xuan then introduced each of his disciples to Li Xuanba.

After they met, Liu Xuan asked curiously, "Weren't you going to Zheng Family School today? Why did you suddenly come here?"

"Master, something has happened, and I probably won't be going to the Zheng family anytime soon."

Liu Xuan nodded, unconvinced. With his own guidance, there was no need to go to the Zheng family.

Li Xuanba looked at his disciples and said, "Master must have informed you all of the tasks."

"Originally, my second brother wanted to gather all the elder brothers to do the work, but now that my second brother has run into some trouble and is unable to do it, I have to do it myself."

"What I want to do now is extremely dangerous, and I cannot let the news get out of the loop. It is a matter that could endanger the lives of my whole family."

"Therefore, I would like to make it clear to you brothers first. I am not forcing you to take risks. If you have any concerns, I can provide you with travel expenses to return home. However, once you have made up your mind to do things with me, you cannot go back on your word."

Li Xuanba spoke very seriously.

Everyone was shocked.

Even Liu Xuan's eyes widened. Wasn't the mission to protect the farm? How did it turn into a matter that endangered the lives of his entire family?
What are you trying to do? Are you plotting a rebellion?
After a moment of silence, Zhang Du stood up first. “My lord, you may not know this, but we have been unable to make a living for a long time. None of us have jobs, we can’t support ourselves or our families, and we suffer humiliation and ridicule. Today I will tell you the truth, my lord, so please do not be afraid.”

He looked at the people around him and said with a serious expression, "Six days ago, my fellow disciples and I had agreed to kill the official who had humiliated us and hide in the mountains to become thieves. It was only after seeing our teacher's letter that we gave up on that idea."

"Please give your orders, my lord. No matter how dangerous the task, we will undertake it!"

Liu Xuan looked at him blankly.

Ah? ?

Zhang Du raised his hand and said, "I, Zhang Du, swear to heaven that if I am cowardly and leak secrets, thus implicating my beloved, may I be struck by lightning and die without a burial place!"

The other disciples also stood up and began to swear a solemn oath.

These people had long been driven to the brink of desperation, and were on the verge of going up the mountain. They had even considered rebelling.

We've been forced to this point, what danger are we afraid of?!

Fuck him!

(End of this chapter)