Chapter 10: Choose any one
This little boy was a new face; she had never seen him before. So, she nodded and asked, "I’m Zhao Zhitong. Who are you?"
She had just cried her eyes out over the matter of selling children. Now, as she suddenly turned around, her eyes were still misty and red-rimmed.
Seeing this, Qiao Muchen was at a loss. The imposing aura he had arrived with instantly diminished by half. "I... I didn’t bully you. You... why are you crying?"
Zhao Zhitong valued her dignity above all else. She immediately rubbed her eyes, stood up, and said huffily, "Something just got in my eye. I wasn’t crying!"
"Alright then." Qiao Muchen pursed his lips, puffed out his chest again, and boldly stated his purpose, "My name is Qiao Muchen. I heard from the Teacher that you’re very capable and solved a problem that had troubled Uncle Wei for a long time. I’ve come to challenge you!"
This matter had to be recounted starting from the first time Zhao Zhitong came to the school with Sun Mei.
That day, much like today, was clear and sunny, the sky a brilliant blue.
After placing Zhao Zhitong at the kitchen entrance and instructing her not to wander off, Sun Mei went into the kitchen to get busy.
Zhao Zhitong, being the restless little monkey she was, couldn’t possibly behave. She played by the kitchen entrance for less than a minute before darting off.
By chance, she wandered into the front courtyard.
The school was divided by a courtyard wall into a front and a back courtyard. The back courtyard contained the kitchen and the dining area for the scholars, while the front courtyard was where the scholars studied.