Chapter 431
He might be a hunter, but he lived in the town, rarely venturing into the mountains, yet his life was nonetheless comfortable. His daily meat supply was provided by Song Chongjin, and not a single meal went by without alcohol.
In particular, though Hunter Qin was indeed a hunter, he seldom interacted with his neighbors. Instead, he had quite a friendship with the owner of the neighboring bookstore. The two households were neighbors with interconnected yards, practically like one big family.
The bookstore owner often carried himself with an air of superiority. When he first met Song Chongjin, he mocked him for being a stubborn, uncultivated country bumpkin who couldn’t even recognize characters.
After seeing more of him, the owner disdained Song Chongjin for being illiterate and embarrassing Hunter Qin. He threw a few books his way, like "Hundred Family Surnames" and "Thousand Character Classic," and taught Song Chongjin to read.
Whatever he was taught on one day would be reviewed the next. If Song Chongjin couldn’t answer correctly, he’d be scolded—without a single curse word, yet in a way that made one wish to die of humiliation and anger.
In the beginning, without any foundation, Song Chongjin would be so embarrassed by the owner’s scolding that he summoned the courage to tell Hunter Qin that he’d just learned hunting and was barely making ends meet.
As for studying, even if he wanted to, he had neither the time, energy, nor money. He feared he would let down the bookstore owner’s good intentions.
Instead, Hunter Qin berated Song Chongjin for failing to recognize a good opportunity. Having someone teach him to read for free was a huge favor. So what if he got scolded a bit? In other households, people would clamor for the chance to be taught without cost.
Already proud at heart, Song Chongjin’s resolve was stoked by Hunter Qin’s words. No matter how unpleasant or nasty the bookstore owner was, thinking of the characters recognized and the knowledge gained, which were his alone to keep, he could endure.
He began to learn characters, reading, and writing with the bookstore owner.
The bookstore owner claimed his surname was Zhang. Song Chongjin began to appreciate his kindness in teaching him to read and write, and wanted to kowtow to him as his teacher, but Shopkeeper Zhang flatly refused.