I am a Late Bloomer in the Immortal World
Chapter 17: The Rootless Floating Weed

"Light a bundle of incense for me as well."

Shan Wuju stepped aside, indicating for Wei Tu to come forward.

"Yes, Master."

Wei Tu nodded, took a bundle of incense, lit it on the incense burner, bowed, then knelt and made three deep bows. After completing these rites, Wei Tu placed the remaining incense in the incense burner.

Seeing Wei Tu perform the ritual with respect, Shan Wuju felt a bit more satisfied.

...

After the ceremony, night had fallen. To avoid any suspicion, Wei Tu took his leave from Shan Wuju and left the inner courtyard.

Along the way, he encountered a few maidservants.

These maidservants, clearly aware of Wei Tu's recent apprenticeship to Shan Wuju, had put aside their previous haughty demeanor when dealing with the common workers. Instead, they became respectful, stepping aside and offering polite greetings.

One of the plump maidservants even addressed Wei Tu as "Young Master" with a sweet, melodious voice.

This made Wei Tu somewhat disoriented. It wasn’t until he had left the second courtyard that he regained his senses.

“‘Young Master?”

“Have I become a Young Master?”

Wei Tu, somewhat dazed, returned to his quarters. He kept repeating the term 'Young Master,' a smile occasionally appearing on his face, in stark contrast to his earlier composure during the ceremony. Anyone who saw him might have thought he was afflicted by some sort of mental condition, continually smiling to himself.

In the fifteenth year of the Qing'an era, he had been sold to the Li family. Although he was valued by his masters, he had still been merely a stable boy. Now, in the twenty-third year of Qing'an, he had not only redeemed his status but had also become an adopted disciple of Shan Wuju, marking a significant elevation in social status.

Even so, no matter how composed Wei Tu was, he found it difficult to maintain his usual calm and not feel elated.

"I must not become complacent! The reason I am respected by the servants of the Shan household is because I am a disciple of Shan Wuju. This status is like a rootless floating weed, unstable and unreliable if I don't perform well."

A quarter of an hour later, Wei Tu got out of bed, drew a bucket of cool well water, washed his face, and regained his usual calm expression.

“This happy news needs to be conveyed in a letter to Xinghua.”

"I'll borrow some paper and ink from Shan Wuju tomorrow to write a letter to Xinghua."

Wei Tu thought to himself.

The west room where he stayed was a servant’s quarters, furnished only with a bed, a table, and some clothes and bedding—lacking any writing materials like paper and ink that only the wealthy and scholars would use.

At that moment, however, faint footsteps were heard outside the door.

Having practiced health-preserving techniques for so long, Wei Tu’s strength, hearing, and vision had all improved. He could tell that these footsteps were not those of a man.

Then, a knock came at the door.

"Wei Ge’er, are you resting?" asked Shan Gao, knocking on the door.

"It’s Third Aunt?"

Wei Tu was surprised.

In a large household, not only should the male servants and workers avoid causing suspicion, but the female members of the household should also adhere to this principle.

At this late hour, Shan Gao's visit to the servants' quarters seemed somewhat inappropriate.

But before Wei Tu could think further, Shan Gaoshi's next words eased his concerns.

"The west room here is too crude. My husband has instructed me to take you to a guest room in the second courtyard." Shan Gaoshi said.

Upon hearing this, Wei Tu felt relieved and let out a sigh of relief. He quickly dressed and tidied himself before opening the door.

As soon as he opened the door, he saw that not only was Shan Gao there, but also Deng An, who had just returned from the threshing grounds.

Deng An, perhaps intimidated by Shan Gao, stood at a distance, watching quietly from the eaves and not daring to go back to his room.

"Come with me," Shan Gaoshi said with a smile as Wei Tu stepped outside.

Soon, the two of them walked into the second courtyard.

As they entered, Shan Gao handed Wei Tu a key and said, "This is the key to the second courtyard gate. Keep it safe and don’t lose it."

Wei Tu nodded, attached the key to his belt, and then kept a respectful distance of about five steps from Shan Gao.

In wealthy households, to prevent accidents and misconduct within the inner quarters, the gates to each courtyard are often locked at night to restrict movement within the premises.

Before long, Shan Gaoshi led Wei Tu to a guest room in the second courtyard and instructed the maidservants to prepare the bedding and clean the room.

"Wei Ge’er, it’s getting late, so I’ll take my leave now," Shan Gaoshi said as she stood by the door. After giving Wei Tu a slightly formal bow, she disappeared down the corridor.

"This..."

Seeing this, Wei Tu was initially taken aback. After a moment of reflection, he came to a realization.

In the Shan household, since Shan Gaoshi managed the household affairs, he had regarded her as having the same status as Li Tongshi, the head matriarch.

However, it only occurred to him today that Shan Gao was merely Shan Wuju’s third concubine, without children, and was simply a favored secondary wife. In reality, her status was not particularly high.

Now that he had become Shan Wuju’s adopted disciple, his position in the Shan household was effectively equal to, if not surpassing, Shan Gao’s.

Though Shan Wuju had not explicitly stated this difference in status, it was clear to the household servants and concubines.

“This is like a floating weed with no roots, the cloud drifting with the wind.” Wei Tu reminded himself quietly.

While he had come to understand this earlier in the west room, it hadn’t fully sunk in, as he was still basking in the joy of his newfound status.

Seeing Shan Gaoshi, who had once been considered a 'matron,' bowing and showing deference to him, he realized that even he should be aware of this reality.

If his progress in martial arts did not meet Shan Wuju’s expectations, or if he failed in the upcoming examination, his status as an adopted disciple, though not necessarily revoked, would certainly become precarious within the Shan household.

Once the maidservants had finished arranging the bedding, Wei Tu began to examine his new room.

The room had a wooden bed against the east wall, draped with a printed summer cloth canopy. In front of the bed, against the west wall, was a half-table with two long-necked porcelain vases on it.

Further to the west, separated by a curtain, was a lacquered wooden desk with a stack of old books and a brush holder.

Wei Tu lifted the curtain and saw that the brush holder contained several brushes of varying sizes, made from wolf hair and goat hair. There was no shortage of paper, ink, brushes, or inkstones.

As for the old books, Wei Tu flipped through them and found that they were military texts not commonly seen in bookshops. They including “Jixiao” on military training, “Taigong’s Book” and “Yinfu Classic” on formation and strategy. {1}

"Master is truly considerate."

Seeing these, Wei Tu felt deeply grateful to Shan Wuju for accepting him as a disciple.

If previously he had a 30% chance of passing the martial examination after redeeming his servitude, now, with Shan Wuju’s comprehensive guidance, Wei Tu was confident he could increase his chances to over 50%, even 60% or 70%.

Soon, Wei Tu composed himself, prepared the ink, and began writing the letter.

In the letter, he informed Xinghua of his joy at being accepted as Shan Wuju’s disciple and advised her not to wait for him to return home for the New Year. He needed to use the time before the examination in February to address all his shortcomings.

Thus, he would be better prepared for the martial examination.

1. Links for further reading if you're interested:-

Jixiao - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jixiao_Xinshu

The Book of Taigong - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Secret_Teachings

Yinfu Classic - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huangdi_Yinfujing