Lingyang School
Lingyang School.
Nanyi's school for Cultivators.
Its divided into three: Imperial College for scholar courses, East College for the martial arts courses, and the Supplies District where students can simply ask for what they need in classes for free. However, in regards to Pharmacy Herbs for class, students are given limited supplies to be fair for everyone else.
It's a State-Sponsored School where everything is paid for by the state. From the taxes sent to the Emperor.
Facilities. Supplies. Necessities. Equipment and Tools. Materials. And expert teachers to teach the next generation of Experts.
Only wealthy cultivators can go as cultivation is expensive. But once in a while, the counties governed by the nobles will look for twenty talents among commoners at age 12 who notably stood out in Temple Schools to be sponsored by them to add to the school rosters. Food, Supplies and Lodging as well as clothing are paid for.
Unlike the typical wealthy students, Sponsoreds have a different curriculum.
They study in Imperial College first, taking up Literacy and Arithmetic, studying words they need to know, in order to learn what is discussed in East College Classes. At home in Temple Schools, they learn words needed to know in life. In Lingyang, they learn Martial Arts Terminology. Those with elements are made to pursue Summoner Classes or Pharmacist Classes if they have Earth Element. Those with no Element have the choice to be either Warrior or Enchanter.
People call this...Scholarship back in Earth. Here, it's Sponsorship.
Before for ages, no such thing as Sponsorship. Cultivation is a privilege for the wealthy only. But ever since war happened and after the death of the previous Emperor, this system was started by the Grandqueen on Princess Royal's recommendation, and continued by her royal brother when he ascended to becoming Emperor. All Counties are obligated to send twenty talents to Lingyang School. This in turn, gave rise to Mercenaries when these commoners graduated and began working as mercenaries for large rewards to raise large families back home upon marriage and train their kids hard in order to score Sponsorship, and round and round it goes...that as years went by, more and more talents come to Lingyang thanks to these parents!
Because Beiyue was too young, the Grandqueen handles her share of Sponsoreds. Every year, that was her schtick as Grandqueen found out that for all their claims of Regency, Xiao Yuancheng and his women never did that part of their responsibility too! She had to explain away to many officials and upset mercenary families in Qinghe and Miyang why scouts never came and left many youths disappointed. So to compensate, she had taken sixty talents per year in both counties starting the summer of two years ago, ages 12-15 instead of just 12.
These angered the mercenary families at the Xiao Clan and they have no idea that the princess supposed to sponsor her fiefs had quite the life! That it wasn't her fault why 'she neglected her fief'.
Among the Sponsoreds come Beiyue's turn, was Dongling.
Dongling never dreamed she'll get sponsored to Lingyang School.
Then again, she's one privileged maid, reward for all her years of loyalty despite the unfairness that began when Princess Royal died, that she enjoyed mocking the maids who abandoned her and her miss to their fates in the cruel mercy of the Xiao Family when their lady died.
She's beautiful with baby-soft, lily-white skin, educated, trained AND A CITIZENSHIP so that means she has a monthly salary, stuff Slaves are NOT allowed to have! Her maid uniform is also beautifully-tailored. Pink in spring, orange in summer, red in autumn, purple in winter with appropriate flower prints! She was the envy of all maids in the Palace.
Who's laughing now?!
And now, she's a sponsored student in Lingyang School, to enter the Summoner Course as she was hopeless as a Pharmacist due to her hotheadedness and short-fuse in patience department as all her patience solely went to her miss, and training. That before the exams began, they hunted for her a beast, and she got a three-star Rock Ape...whom in turn, she trained in hand-to-hand basics.
See, Dongling is a Silver Class A BEFORE she became a Summoner after chowing down needed Elixirs and Herbs needed to gain the foundation for Summoner's Cultivation. Then after that, her rise in power depends on her Spirit Beast from hereafter.
In terms of Summoner Rank, that translates to ONLY 1-star Mastery. All that effort converted to one measly rank that made Dongling wanna cry. So supposed even if she obtained Gold Class, she'll just be 2-star and barely-Intermediate Rank?! Sob...
Upon gaining her Rock Ape, she rose to 2-star Mastery.
Beiyue would have, but her stunt uh...made her spiritually ill she cannot perform the Assessments for Warrior Course. Not that her lady cared. Everyone took it upon themselves to destroy her reputation since she was a child so she really doesn't care for what she never got to begin with. Reputation. She doesn't care for the public opinion of people with no ability to think for themselves and just goes with the flow, without bothering to see the truth for themselves.
Ignoramuses, she called them and Dongling agrees, that she was trained to think for herself and judge for herself.
They have taken their Assessment Exams the week prior as exams lasts days from 8:00-6:00 at night.
Commoners are first as they're the quickest to test for their aptitude in martial arts after the typical Written Tests everyone from all walks of life took. Commoners took up 5 days of the week to test, while the royalty and wealthy combined just took two days. They have fewer children after all, as well as only childes and summoners get to cultivate, other children were sent to Imperial College.
(A:N- I tried studying how ancient chinese tell time, it just caused my brain to melt and boom, I gave up)
Here, Dongling will wear her maid uniform as to stir trouble on purpose and stir dissent between masters and their servants. She was given the surname Yang to symbolize that they WILL raise trouble when Beiyue talked to Grandqueen in giving Dongling Citizenship. Yang, meaning 'to raise'.
Grandqueen never knew what the girls intended when Beiyue gave Dongling that surname...
'OK, here we are.' said Beiyue as they got off the carriage. 'Remember Dongling, in this nasty culture, might makes right, however unjust it was. So social status be damned, you have the right to defend yourself and use my name to back you up. Sure they'll laugh, but not even they can offend a royal power.' Beiyue reminded Dongling. 'And should they come to me, why, I can just cripple them myself, if you hadn't done that already.' Beiyue smiled sinisterly, her eyes cold as Dongling smiled darkly in turn. 'Off you go now and have fun!'
'Yes, miss!' Dongling bowed before skipping off for Imperial College after all students walked the long concrete bridge to school. Not far from them, were the royal siblings.
'Geeez, she could have shared a carriage with us.' Yingye pouted. She was in Imperial Course before, because her mother wanted to protect her from politics to avoid her ending up like her mother. But when her mother left, she reapplied for Summoner Course as her subjects-be-damned, she was a 1-star two years ago, now she's a 3-star at 14.
'Years of mistreatment doesn't go away in a mere handwave, and two years of father and grandmother's efforts to rehabilitate her before she fully went mad.' said Prince Jing. with a frown.
Their father and grandmother sat them down and talked to all of them about their 'cousin's situation and asked them to be understanding with an open mind.
And recently, Beiyue experimented on herself, just to keep her cultivation to ensure her faulty dantian won't disperse her ki! Their father and grandmother were horrified as ANYTHING can, and will go wrong! It was a miracle Beiyue got off light, and this was because she studied Medicine and the human body!
So come Assessment Exams, she could only apply for exams in Imperial College, and her martial prowess be determined when she fully recovers. Beiyue and the Royal Physicians deemed her body ready for testing come Autumn. Until then for her reckless stunt, NO ki usage!
'She can't trust anyone. Sure she trusts father and grandmother because even after it's known that she had a faulty dantian, they still cared for her and she knew that, as did Royal Aunt Xihe, so they have her ear.'
'You can try your luck once she softens some more.' Zhanye told his sister. 'I agree with Jing...but we also have part in blame. We were never there and we're family.'
Their father loved them all equally as he did his concubines.
Yet for all that women he's got, he only has officially five children. Why?
His other children died from Harem Wars. Vicious concubines assassinating others' children before they got the chance to be toddlers. Jing, Third and Fourth Prince were lucky to survive as Zhanye and Yingye were protected by the Mu Clan with vicious guard considering they were just pawns for their grandfather's schemes. Tools like his own family.
But he hated his Empress and they learned why from their grandmother when Mu Shi left the city. So to make her lot easier in life, Grandmother treated Mu Shi kindly, aware what monster Mu Mixin was. Her happy ending was her own father's Execution of Shame, and being divorced so she can remarry after changing her identity. And her mother freed from her suffering as well.
It was no wonder that when Mu Shi left the palace, she was happy, instead of sad over losing her status and prestige. And left the city with her mother, far away from the Mu Clan at night.
That story, Jing and Third Prince told to their mothers who in turn told their families who in turn told friends...and round and round it goes.
It gave bitter clans fire to mock the Mu Clan with. Bitter because their daughter representatives never got the chance to be Empress by fighting for it.
And when Mu Shi was gone, that very war will begun anew and with fair chances, when Zhanye ascends the throne as Crown Prince. When Emperor married Mu Shi, he bestowed some of his concubines to officers and officials who earned the right amount of merits worth the lady, keeping only the mothers of Jing, Third and Fourth Prince...who's in Beiyao, by the way...
xxx
At Imperial College...
Beiyue's chosen courses were History, Literature, Painting and Mount Archery. Three out of four were time-wasters but she as a royal, must set an example by excelling. So she would have no choice but to do her best. And Archery on a Horse...its a Japanese Art, why not? She's never done it before though! What do they call it again? Oh yeah! Yabusame!
She wore a colorful yellow kimono with large sleeves and obi sash to fit in this world's culture, and her hakama is the skirt kind. A circular, pleated skirt about calf length just to show she wears boots on her feet. Her long hair is simply in a half ponytail with a large ribbon, in place of her usual butterfly clips. She only wears her butterfly things on cold weather. Right now?
TOO HOT that silk without coat, is the best. Then she wore rouge on her lips, recreating the equivalent of Beni, without having to use up an obscene amount of flowers just to get the effing red pigment! This rouge was of course, magical in nature that can only be removed by a harmless chemical that can take it off cleanly, so she can eat without worries!
She went to her first class, Painting.
And her day began with an all-female class as girls from wealthy homes yet cannot cultivate, are in stereotypically female-only classes. Music, Painting, Medicine and Calligraphy. She got three down pat at home.
And in taking notes?
She recreated a magical pen...ending in a thin brush of course.
When she recreated the pen and wrote with it during lessons, her father and grandmother cannot understand her writing somehow...and when she had to explain the 'strange writings' using her tool, they were unable to recognize the characters in the same language.
Tools used to write affects writing more than expected. Writing the same language using ink and brush or with a modern pen causes letters to look completely unalike!
So she was forced to use thin, brush-tipped pens and her family can now read her writing. Her father found her tool revolutionary as instead of dipping into ink every few seconds, it takes at least, 10 days to deplete the ink supply from her pen! 10 days was because he writes and signs nonstop in office. But when rarely-used, ink inside lasts longer.
So she made him and her grandmother the Pen-brushes, and gave one to her Aunt Xihe and Lord Geng too. The very few people she liked and instructions how to care and maintain.
(People noted how their handwriting got smaller and also, clearer to read, and through word of Eunuch, servants got wind of Beiyue's invention yet only few people were allowed to have it due to her Xenophobia)
xxx
For Dongling to come to class in a Maid Uniform...raised a lot of eyebrows in class. That, and unlike a typical maid, she wore lip rouge too!
'Er, you are?' the baffled teacher asked. Did this maid get lost?
'I'm Yang Dongling, sir.' the teacher looked at his class roster and found her name.
'Oh, so this was you! I never thought a maid would be privileged to go to Summoner Course! Your master must be generous!' he exclaimed as Dongling sat down in a spare seat.
The rich folk and commoners present were in shock that a maid who's basically a slave is allowed to be a student in Lingyang College, the Summoner Course?!
(When she was already a 2-star Master, that caused even more of a stir as when people start out in Lingyang, they were only 1-star!)
xxx
Lunch Break...
'Well, I'm pretty sure word will spread before sundown, though it's not known yet whose maid you are. For now.' said Beiyue as they ate under a tree in the school grounds, sitting on chairs, their lunch on a table they packed in their space rings.
'Well, tomorrow our fight begins.' Dongling speculated.
'Mm. Tonight, teach your ape better hand-to-hand and ki application like I taught you.' Beiyue told her. 'And Elemental Advantage and Disadvantage and how to exploit those traits.' she instructed.
'Yes.'
xxx
When school ended, Feng Lianyi who's a teaching assistant since he greatly excelled with the zither and the zither teacher fell ill from a mishap at the restaurant he ate at in.
He had lunch with Yingye who sadly complained to him about Princess Beiyue.
He had met the other princess when he once snuck to the palace to check her out months after she started living in the palace...and nearly got killed for his trouble he parried her sword strike in time, cue a short sparring bout as he got mistaken to be an assassin.
She was skilled and very fast to compensate for her lack of strength, justified by her being a child and he, four years older than her.
After proving his identity and he's no enemy of hers, he began making frequent visits.
She says she hates Nanyi people and he's a Beiyao Citizen, so she lets him in. After a murderous encounter, he got to know the princess who slowly started getting friendly with him and gets to enjoy her delicious food by dinnertime with the Emperor and Grandqueen who visits her. And getting to eat piping hot food is a privilege for royalty as their food is always poison-tested that by the time it reaches them, it's cold!
But even then, while he enjoys hot food as he has no worries in his residence as it's Huwen Di who cooks for him, not even he had such tasty food he begged Beiyue to teach Di.
She agreed.
All because he's not a Nanyi Citizen!
He's fine with footing hefty fees due to cultivation anyway as apparently, she uses medicinal herbs just to improve food flavors with additional benefits of making the body stronger. Thus his monthly food bill of just 20 gold coins, went up to 3000 a month since Di also eats...BUT WORTH IT! He got taller and more results in physical training in one-and-half year that they started being friends once he got past her wariness and proved to her his sincerity.
However, the 'mad princess' reputation must be a front to keep people away from her as she hated her own people. When they meet, she wasn't 'mad' at all.
She went from formal 'Prince Feng', to 'A-Yi'. A more, casual-but-friendly way to address him as compared to Yingye's 'brother Yi' because they grew up together.
So now, he's eager to go home, and have a delicious hot meal. Guess visiting her will be on weekends as usual in school year. Sigh...