Testing

Bang bang bang!

Intense knocking resounded from the heavy doorboard.

Inside the cabin, Xie Man, who was sleeping soundly under a worn-out quilt, was instantly awakened. Rubbing his eyes, he sleepily called out.

“Coming.”

In the middle of the Month of Revival, the weather was still a bit cold.

After putting on old clothes, Xie Man grabbed a leather coat he used as a second blanket and put it on before opening the wooden door.

Outside, Old Roger was leaning on the carriage, holding a whip in one hand and a smoking pipe in the other.

“Hurry up, it’s getting late. If you’re late, you’ll get scolded.”

“Got it.”

Xie Man closed the wooden door, skillfully climbed onto the carriage but showed no urgency in his demeanor.

Roger glanced at him without saying more, gave a hard whip, and the old horse grunted, slowly pulling the carriage forward.

Xie Man leaned against the carriage rail, looked at the dark sky, and closed his eyes to doze off.

Based on past experience, it would take half an hour to reach the inner fortress, and by then the day would have dawned.

Xie Man was an orphan.

According to Old Roger, he found Xie Man on a snowy day. Since he had no children, he took Xie Man home to raise him.

All these years, Old Roger had been relying on his job of cleaning up garbage for the nobles and clearing it outside the city, working hard to raise Xie Man to the age of twelve.

Xie Man was full of gratitude towards Old Roger.

Although he knew they weren’t blood-related, in his heart, Old Roger was his father.

Unknowingly, the carriage entered the inner city.

A habitual reflex made Xie Man wake up automatically.

From a distance, he saw that majestic and tall castle, and his eyes revealed a look of envy and longing.

That was where the lord and knights lived.

Countless times, Xie Man dreamed of becoming a noble, living in a luxurious castle, enjoying a life of high luxury.

Or perhaps becoming a powerful knight, gaining the lord’s favor, and becoming the lord’s guardian, earning a place to live in the castle.

In the boy’s shallow understanding, that castle was the most wonderful place on earth.

But he was very clear inside that if not for work, a commoner like him would never step foot in that castle in his lifetime.

Let alone live in it.

Once awake, everything in the dream would disappear, leaving only the cold reality.

Old Roger once told him that after he passed, Xie Man could inherit the two cabins and the carriage, continuing the work of clearing garbage for the nobles.

Xie Man thought that was the extent of his future.

The carriage stopped in front of the castle, and Xie Man followed Old Roger down the carriage to approach the towering guard.

In the past, when they entered the castle to clean up garbage, they were always extorted by the gate guards and the stewards inside, who would demand various benefits.

However, since the previous lord was executed and the new lord moved into the estate, replacing a batch of guards and servants with boldness, they haven’t faced extortion anymore.

Just this alone made Xie Man have a good impression of the new lord they never met.

Over the months, the gate soldiers had become quite familiar with Roger and him.

Seeing them arrive, they simply inspected and let them pass.

Spending the whole morning, Old Roger and Xie Man skillfully cleaned up the garbage, sweeping it all into the carriage, then prepared to transport it outside the city.

Before leaving, one of the guards suddenly called Xie Man, looking him up and down, and asked: “Little Xie Man, how old are you this year?”

Xie Man was stunned but honestly answered: “Twelve.”

“Can you read?”

Xie Man nodded.

For a commoner working for noble lords, literacy was generally rare, but because Old Roger once apprenticed as an accountant for a shop in his younger days, he learned to read and later taught Xie Man.

Hearing Xie Man’s words, the guard smiled and said: “Perfect timing, the lord recently issued a decree. All youths in the territory aged twelve to fifteen who can read, regardless of gender or background, must go to the testing place for evaluation. You should head there later.”

“Testing? What kind of testing?”

Xie Man was still in a daze, but Old Roger panicked first and quickly said:

“Sir, little Xie Man has always worked diligently and has never done anything wrong.”

The guard waved his hand, laughing and said: “Don’t worry, it’s a good thing. His Excellency Su Nan is recruiting apprentices from the entire Shining Lands. Everyone who passes the test can become his apprentice and receive a monthly stipend of one gold coin.”

Roger and Xie Man were stunned, their faces full of shock.

They worked hard for a month, with an income of less than ten silver coins.

But becoming an apprentice could earn one gold coin each month?

Could such a good thing really exist?

But then Roger was somewhat hesitant.

Was there really such a lucky break, or was it a trick to deceive people into something bad?

Seeing Roger’s expression, the guard could tell what he was thinking and laughed, scolding him: “His Excellency Su Nan is a legendary wizard, and the decree is issued by the lord. Do you think those two esteemed figures have nothing to do except con a poor ghost like you?”

“I wouldn’t bother to remind you if little Xie Man weren’t so obedient usually.”

Roger quickly laughed apologetically.

Thinking about it, the guard made sense. A decree issued by the lord couldn’t be fake.

After thanking the guard, Roger pulled Xie Man onto the carriage.

On the way back, Roger thought for a while and said to Xie Man: “Once we’ve delivered the garbage, wash yourself up, change your clothes, and head to the testing place.”

Xie Man nodded vigorously, his eyes shining.

If he could become an apprentice of the mentioned Su Nan, he would receive one gold coin each month. In a year or two, he could save up and move into the inner city with Roger to open a small shop, never having to clean garbage again at dawn.

Perhaps he might even have a chance to live in that castle!

Thinking of this, Xie Man felt incredibly excited, wishing he could sprout wings and fly to the testing place immediately.

Returning from outside the city, Xie Man dashed home, washed up, and put on his best set of clothes before heading straight to the place the guard mentioned.

The testing site was set up at the junction of the outer and inner city.

In front of the temporary wooden shed, hundreds of boys and girls of about Xie Man’s age were lined up.

Many were excitedly whispering to each other, frequently peering towards the front of the line.

Xie Man noticed these people’s attire was well-matched, the worst being clean clothing, unlike him in his washed-out, patched clothes.

After all, in these times, those who could read usually came from decent families.

He was a rare exception.

“Get in line at the end, don’t wander around.”

Nearby, a soldier noticed Xie Man and instructed him to get in line.

Xie Man obediently came to the end of the line and waited quietly.