Changing Identity

"Uncle Zhong, Uncle Zhong, it's me, Big Stone."

I heard a knock on the door outside the courtyard.

Zhong Xuan, who was in seclusion in his room, slowly opened his eyes. When he pushed open the door, he saw Xu Tuo already standing at the door.

Big Stone was Xu Tuo's nickname.

There are not many elderly people in the village who are qualified to be called by this name, and even fewer who would willingly call him that name.

"Nephew, what's wrong?"

Zhong Xuan looked at Xu Tuo with a smile.

these days.

Xu Tuo had worked tirelessly to establish the school, and in just two days, two families had already agreed to the offer and even moved to the neighboring county without further ado.

Zhong Xuan naturally took note of all these contributions.

Xu Tu grinned: "Uncle Zhong, those households have already agreed."

"In five days at most, those remaining households will never appear in Xiahe Village again."

"Give them a few days to pack up their belongings. The academy can start work in a few days. Uncle Zhong, if you need any craftsmen, I can help introduce a few. You can take a look at them then."

His dedication to running a school was perhaps only slightly less than that of a woman giving birth.

Zhong Xuan spoke to him yesterday.

Moving a house is easy, but building one is difficult. There are too many cases where people take money today and then cause trouble and demand higher prices tomorrow when they see an opportunity to profit. So it's best to have those families move further away.

Xu Tuo felt that Zhong Xuan's words were quite insightful.

That's exactly why people are sitting on the ground crying and wailing at the docks in the city every day.

While the docks can be overlooked, such a thing happening at the academy is truly indecent.

The compensation Zhong Xuan provided was enough to buy a small house in a less desirable location in the city, so if anyone was greedy and wanted to get more, Xu Tuo wouldn't mind using threats and intimidation.

He did just that, and it worked extremely well.

The reason he worked so hard was not only because he genuinely wanted to accomplish something great for Xiahe Village, but also because he wanted to build his own reputation.

Although he was a bit younger than Xu Mao, it was almost impossible for him to become the village chief.

But just because the neighborhood chief is incompetent doesn't mean the neighborhood elder is incompetent.

He wanted to play the long game, preparing for what would happen twenty years from now.

Given his achievements and his status as a member of the Xu family, his chances are very high.

Seeing hope naturally motivates people to work incredibly hard.

"I trust my nephew to handle things."

Zhong Xuan looked at Xu Tuo with satisfaction.

Running a school is no easy task.

Setting up the venue alone requires a great deal of effort, sometimes taking a year and a half.

Zhong Xuan knew very well that in order to accomplish this, in addition to being generous with the compensation, he also had to choose the right people and be willing to put in the effort and offend them.

Therefore, he chose Xu Tuo instead of the village chief Xu Mao.

"Although Xu Mao is more capable and resourceful, the position of village chief is his limit. He will definitely seek stability and may not put all his efforts into finding solutions. In comparison, Xu Tuo is also capable and more motivated, so he can achieve better results."

As Zhong Xuan had predicted, things turned out just as he had.

What would normally take at least several months was accomplished in just a few days.

Zhong Xuan: "Nephew, I plan to enroll a batch of students on a trial basis after the school opens. Your Gousheng seems to be of school age, right?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Tuo was overjoyed:

"I'm just about to send that brat to school. If he could be taught by Uncle Zhong, it would be a blessing he couldn't ask for in eight lifetimes."

"Okay, it's settled then. Just bring Gou Sheng over when the time comes."

Zhong Xuan directly set the agenda in advance.

This was equivalent to reassuring Xu Tuo.

Xu Tuo immediately felt that his efforts over the past few days had not been in vain.

They gained worldly benefits so quickly.

"As expected of an elder in the village, he does things very well."

If it were a younger scholar, he might not only not gain any benefits, but might even be complained about and criticized. In comparison, Zhong Xuan's approach was much more reassuring and made people more willing to put in the effort.

Xu Tuo was seen off.

Zhong Xuan then returned to his room.

Setting up a school is an extremely complicated matter, requiring not only people, land, and money, but also the approval of the county school instructor.

However, if the school is located in the village, it may be exempted from the requirement to report to the county school.

Zhong Xuan had already made plans.

He dismissed his distracting thoughts and continued practicing his breathing techniques.

......

News of Zhong Xuan's school quickly spread throughout Xiahe Village.

Village chief Xu Mao finally arrived at the Zhong family's old residence.

"Mr. Zhong, why didn't you tell me about such a big thing?"

Xu Mao's tone carried a hint of reproach.

That being said, he had actually been paying attention to Zhong Xuan and Xu Tuo's actions for a long time, and now it was time for him, as the village chief, to step in.

Zhong Xuan chuckled: "Shulin, Uncle has been waiting for you."

"There's something I'd like you to do."

Xu Mao blinked: "What is it?"

He has already done great things for Xiahe Village, such as building canals, which has benefited several generations, so he is not really enthusiastic about running a school. But now that the matter is mostly completed, it would be a good deed if he could contribute his share.

Zhong Xuan: "I, an old man, certainly can't afford to build the school by myself, but we can't delay the children of Xiahe Village, so I came up with a plan."

Xu Mao looked on with suspicion.

Zhong Xuan slowly uttered two words:

Crowdfunding.

"And this is something that only you, the neighborhood chief, can handle."

"The money won't be taken for nothing; it will be returned in full within five years at most, and the children of the families who paid for it can use it to offset their tuition fees."

Xu Mao's eyes lit up.

Just as Zhong Xuan said, he was indeed the only one in Xiahe Village who could handle this matter.

Therefore, a meeting was already held when the canal was built back then.

It's a case of practice makes perfect.

Moreover, once it's done, his position as neighborhood chief will be completely unshakeable.

"become!"

"This is a great thing that will benefit our Xiahe Village. Since Uncle Zhong thinks so highly of me, I, Xu Mao, will definitely get it done."

Xu Mao immediately patted his chest and guaranteed it.

Zhong Xuan chuckled as he watched Xu Mao's departing figure.

Since only Xu Mao could handle this matter, even if Xu Tuo found out, he wouldn't have much of a problem with it.

There's no reason for them to complain.

With this, the last problem in running the school was also solved.

Zhong Xuan knew very well that the reason he had such great power was due to his improved martial arts skills, as well as the reputation of Linsheng and Lilao.

If you want to live forever, ascetic practices alone are not enough.

One must have power and influence.

What Zhong Xuan is doing now is cultivating his power.

......

......

Nothing happened for several days.

With the help of Xu's two cousins, Zhong Xuan, the head of the academy, became a man of leisure.

This day.

Zhong Xuan had just finished teaching at the Flying Eagle Martial Arts School when Zheng Yue called him to the backyard of the shop.

Zheng Yue led Zhong Xuan to the incense hall.

A tall figure stood in the center, like an iron tower.

They noticed footsteps.

The man slowly turned around, his aura so imposing that it was oppressive even without him deliberately exuding it.

That's a skill you only acquire after you've reached the threshold of junior year training.

"The Flying Eagle Hero is indeed formidable."

Zhong Xuan felt a chill run down his spine.

Not bad.

The middle-aged man in front of me is Qian Hong, the current owner of Flying Eagle Martial Arts School.

Qian Hong had not yet spoken.

Zheng Yue, standing to the side, chuckled and said, "Brother Zhong, how about changing your identity?"