Chapter 7: Unforgettable at a Glance (Collect and recommend!)

  When I returned to the dormitory, the sky had completely darkened.

  Chen Hao opened the materials in his hand and looked at them very seriously, although he didn't recognize them, but he looked very serious, one word at a time, from beginning to end. After reading through it once, Chen Hao slowly closed his eyes, and those words came alive in his mind.

  Although he didn't know what these characters meant, yet he could be certain that he could write them down completely and accurately, without a single mistake.

  Never forget what you have read.

  His memory was just as extraordinary as his hearing and vision. From the time he began to take notice of things until now, everything that he had heard or seen, he could remember without exception.

  "Chen Hao, are you asleep?" Just then, a soft voice came from the doorway.

  "Not at all!" Chen Hao hastily replied, opening the door. Chen Hao knew that Xiaoling had already read his information and was now coming to help him.

  "Xiao Ling'er, trouble you, just help me read it through." Chen Hao handed the materials in his hand to Xiao Ling'er and said softly.

  "Okay, let's turn on the light first, it's pitch black, how can we see anything!"

  "Oh, okay." Chen Hao hastily turned on the light.

  "Chen Hao, don't get angry after you hear this, I think... once you learn to read and write, you'll be just like us!" Little Ling'er said softly. She had already roughly flipped through the first few pages, so she basically knew what Chen Hao was going to face.

  "It won't be like this." Under the dim light, Chen Huan's eyes shone like stars. He spoke in a low voice, but with determination. He believed that the unfair treatment would definitely change as he grew stronger.

  "Hmm!" Xiao Ling'er responded with a sound, opened the file and started reading: "Today, you bring honor to the Xiao family; tomorrow, the Xiao family will be proud of you."

  The first page of the opening chapter had these sixteen big characters. As Xiaoling read them out, Chen Hao also matched the sixteen characters with those in his mind.

  "Xiao family disciple rules. Any Xiao family disciple must follow these few rules, if you violate them, lightly, you will have to face the wall and reflect, heavily, your martial arts will be abolished and you will be expelled from the sect. You must remember!" Little Ling'er read out loud from the materials, but while reading, in order for Chen Huan to understand, she made some slight changes.

  "Wait a minute, Xiao Ling..." Chen Hao suddenly frowned and interrupted Xiao Ling.

  "What's wrong?" Little Ling'er asked in puzzlement.

  "You don't need to add anything, just read it as is, I can understand..."

  "Oh, okay." Xiaoling said and started reciting again.

  "Xiao Family Outer Gate 8th Generation Disciple Xiao Xianghao's Daily Schedule."

  After finishing reading the Xiao family rules and things that Xiao family disciples must know, Xiaoling finally read the schedule specially written for Chen Huan. The previous content was the same as other disciples, but only this part was special.

  Xiao Ling'er was worried that Chen Huan wouldn't be able to bear it after seeing the content of this page.

  Xiao Ling'er stopped. Chen Hao also opened his eyes.

  "Go ahead, Xiaoling. I'll be fine." Chen Hao looked at Xiaoling's worried face and smiled slightly, saying softly. What's the point of being unfair again? What hardship haven't I experienced? Now that there's food to eat and clothes to wear, just these two points are already much better than before.

  He can endure, but that doesn't mean he will always endure. All of this is brought about by a genius named Xiao Jihan. One day, he will use his strength to tell this genius that Chen Huan is not someone who can be bullied!

  "Hmm." Little Spirit responded with a murmur.

  "1. From 6:00 to 7:30 in the morning, attend the primary class morning reading at Wenyuan Pavilion Xiao's Academy;

  2. From 9:00 to 12:00 in the morning, attend the primary class lessons at Wenyuan Pavilion Xiao's Academy;

  3. From 2:00 to 6:00 in the afternoon, attend lessons at Wenyuan Pavilion Xiao's Academy.

  The above three items will be implemented from today onwards and must not be missed until the completion of 'Xue Hai Wu Ya'."

  From head to toe, there wasn't a single "wu" character. After finishing this page, Xiaoling thought Chen Hao would be unwilling, sad, and angry, but when she looked at Chen Hao, she found that he was very calm, except for his bright eyes which seemed even brighter than usual, without any change at all.

  To know, "Xue Hai Wu Ya" has more than 70,000 words, including 3,400 commonly used characters and over 60,000 rarely used characters. Even Xiaoling only recognizes common characters, let alone recognizing all of "Xue Hai Wu Ya", which is not an easy task! Even contemporary scholars dare not guarantee that they can recognize all of it, especially the ancient texts, which are extremely complex. It's not something that can be accomplished in one or two years! However, such a daunting task has fallen on Chen Huan, who has never attended school!

  This is purely harassment!

  "Go on reading, little spirit." Chen Hao said softly.

  "Hmm!" Xiaoling turned to the next page, which was also the last page. She hadn't seen this page before. But when she saw it, she hadn't even read it yet, and she became furious!

  "Why is it like this, it's too unfair? The last one, should it be like this?" Xiaoling said angrily.

  Looking at Xiaoling's expression, Chen Hao said: "Xiaoling, don't worry about me, you read it! No matter what it is, I will definitely do it!"

  "How did you do it? How can you recognize everything in just three months? And yet, they want to expel you from the sect. Is the Xiao family so unreasonable? Just because I'm the last one, does that mean I should be bullied like this? Moreover...this last place should have been mine." Little Ling'er said, and big tears welled up in her eyes. In just half a day of interaction, kind-hearted Little Ling'er had already considered Chen Huan as her friend.

  "Is it just this book? I can remember! It won't even take three months, Xiaoling don't worry!" Chen Hao comforted.

  "Can you remember the person who taught you and can they finish teaching in three months?"

  "Isn't it enough?" Chen Huan innocently asked, knowing nothing about the school.

  "You..." Xiaoling was truly shocked by Chen Hao's ignorance. She seemed to have seen the outcome that Chen Hao would face three months later, but looking at Chen Hao's confident and determined gaze, for some reason, she felt that he might really be able to do it.

  At Chen Hao's request, Xiao Ling'er read out the content of the last page, only one sentence, but it made Xiao Ling'er feel angry for Chen Hao: "The Xiao family relies on martial arts to establish their home, therefore, if Xiao Xianghao cannot start practicing Xiao family martial arts after three months, he will be expelled from the clan."

  This material specifically for Chen Hao is indeed cunning and can be used to attack or defend. Recognizing the entirety of "Xue Hai Wu Ya" generally means recognizing 3,400 commonly used characters. For ordinary people, it's difficult to master these 3,400 commonly used characters in three months, so Chen Hao is basically destined to be eliminated. However, if Chen Hao happens to be a genius, then recognizing the entirety of "Xue Hai Wu Ya" can be understood as recognizing all the words in "Xue Hai Wu Ya". Of course, this requires that no one is investigating.

  A small and newly admitted disciple of the Xiao family, Sixth Elder Xiao Bo didn't think anyone would use this to make things difficult for himself, and no one would even bother to ask about this information.

  "Xiao Ling, nothing will happen, this material is over a thousand words, I've already memorized all of it. You just need to help me read through this book and I'll be able to remember it, no need for the teacher to teach!" Chen Hao said with a pretended ease, looking at Xiao Ling who was worried on his behalf.

  "Really... did you really remember everything? Are you telling the truth?" Little Ling'er stared at Chen Hao with wide eyes.

  "Uh-huh. Got it."

  After a moment, Xiaoling finally confirmed that Chen Hao was one of those abnormal people who never forgot anything they saw.

  "I only know the first three thousand or so commonly used characters, and as for the ones after that... I can barely recognize a few." Xiaoling said: "You'll have to find someone else to help you, otherwise you definitely won't be able to finish learning in school!"

  Are you looking for someone's help? Upon hearing Xiaoling say this, a angel-like figure suddenly appeared in Chen Hao's mind.

  "My name is Xiao Jiyuan, and from now on I'm your senior sister! Remember to call me Senior Sister... Hehe, finally have a junior brother... Alright, I'll go cultivate now. If you encounter any difficulties in the future, remember to ask Senior Sister for help. Senior Sister is very powerful, hehe..."

  Thinking of the angel-like girl Xiao Jiyuan, Chen Huan shook his head. They had only met once, and she was about the same age as Little Ling'er. Even if she were willing to help, she probably wouldn't be able to recognize many characters.

  "Hmm, now help me recite what you know, it's better to learn a little... there are still three months left, don't worry!" Chen Hao said.

  Xiao Ling'er felt that the hope was slim, but looking at Chen Hua's eyes full of confidence, she couldn't bear to crush him. In her heart, she secretly decided that if all else failed, she would ask her own father for help. At any rate, she definitely couldn't let Chen Hua be driven out of the Xiao family.

  Thinking of this, Xiaoling'er murmured in agreement and picked up the thick "Endless Ocean of Knowledge". The two sat shoulder to shoulder and began reading.

  Less than half a time, in Xiaoling's shock, Chen Huan had already learned all the characters she knew. Not only could he recite them, but when Xiaoling randomly said a word, Chen Huan could quickly write it out. This powerful memory was no longer just a matter of forgetting after reading.

  After Xiaoling went back to rest, Chen Hao devoted himself wholeheartedly to the book "Xue Hai Wu Ya", for a whole night, until the sky was bright, Chen Hao finally imprinted all the words in "Xue Hai Wu Ya", including the extremely complex Xianwen, into his mind.

  ……

  "Bang... Bang... Bang... Bang... Bang...... Clang......"

  Not long after Chen Hao finished watching "Boundless Learning", the clear but distant sound of the watchman's drum echoed throughout the Xiao family. Five beats of "dōng" and one beat of "táng", from yesterday's information, Chen Hao knew that it was now 5:30 in the morning. The sound of the drum was to wake up the disciples of the Xiao family.

  Chen Hao simply washed his face, re-tied his long hair and walked out of the house.

  His eyes were still bright, like stars in the night sky, his spirit was still full, without a hint of fatigue after staying up all night.

  Taking a deep breath of the fresh air, Chen Huan turned his head to look at Xiaoling's house. The lights were already on, and Xiaoling should have gotten up. However, Chen Huan was clear that she had her own schedule - she would be heading to the Martial Arts Arena for her first morning training session to learn the Xiao family's martial arts. As for himself, he needed to rush to the Wenquan Academy's elementary school.

  A map of the Xiao family's residence appeared in Chen Huan's mind, and he quickly ran out of the dormitory area.

  In the past, he rarely ran because it would make his already hungry self even hungrier. So, he never knew that he could run so fast. But last night, he ate well and a lot, although still not full, but he knew that those meals would at least give him energy for three days. Moreover, he was clear that now he could eat three meals a day without worrying about having no food to eat. So, he ran very fast. He liked this feeling of flying.

  Chen Hao ran at an astonishing speed and arrived at Wenyuan Pavilion in just a few minutes, covering a distance that would normally take nearly half an hour.

  "This is the Wenyuan Pavilion! I recognize these three characters!" Chen Hao looked at the three solemn and ancient words on the door plaque, and thought to himself as he slowed down his pace and walked in slowly.

  A wide and spacious bluestone road leads directly to a massive building. On both sides of the road are quiet gardens, with winding paths that crisscross through them, filled with all sorts of flowers and plants that Chen Huan didn't recognize. At the edges of the two gardens stand two slightly smaller buildings.

  The massive building directly opposite the main gate is the Xiao family's advanced school, while the building on the left side of the garden is the primary school, and the one on the right is the intermediate school. Although he had mentally prepared himself, seeing these three massive schools still shocked Chen Huan. He had seen Er Gouzi's school, which was the largest and best in Taiping Town, but it couldn't be compared to the Xiao family's schools at all.

  The Xiao family rose to prominence through military prowess, but it wasn't solely due to their martial strength that they became one of the four major families in Yunzhou.

  Both literary and military talents, this is where the true strength of the Xiao family lies.

  That's why all the disciples of the Xiao family, apart from practicing, have to enter the school every morning to study. Poetry, books, etiquette, astronomy and geography, the way of being an official, the way of doing business... everything is covered. However, those are the contents of intermediate and advanced schools, but Chen Huan is going to the primary school now, the first step in learning literature and recognizing characters.

  Newly recruited outer disciples of the Xiao family usually directly enter the intermediate school for study. As for the primary school, it is open to children of the Xiao family, including those from the direct line of the Xiao family, children of inner disciples, and children of outer disciples who stay in the Xiao family to work, most of whom are between five and eight years old.

  Morning reading, only children from Xiao Jia Primary School will participate.

  At this time, the entire Wenyuan Pavilion was unusually quiet, and no one had arrived except for Chen Huan. Chen Huan took out the "Xue Hai Wu Ya" and came to the entrance of the primary school hall, borrowing the weak light to take another look. Although he had already completely memorized it, he still flipped to the last part of "Xue Hai Wu Ya", Xian Wen.

  For some reason, although he didn't recognize these celestial scripts, when he looked at them, they gave him a very special feeling, especially the complex yet natural and smooth lines of the celestial script, which made Chen Huan feel very comfortable. It seemed that every time he looked at it, he had a different feeling, as if his own thoughts were gradually merging into it.

  Just as Chen Hao was completely absorbed in the novel, a figure appeared beside him. However, Chen Hao, who was deeply immersed in the fantasy world, did not notice and continued to stare intently.

  The onlookers were slightly surprised, especially when they saw Chen Huan was reading the last chapter of "Xue Hai Wu Ya" with such great concentration.

  "Cough...cough..." The newcomer coughed lightly twice.

  Chen Hao suddenly woke up and, seeing an old man beside him, immediately imitated the appearance of Er Gouzi and others when they saw their teacher, bowing respectfully and saying in a low voice: "Sir, good!"