AUTHOR'S NOTE: THERE'S ACTUALLY A LOT MORE TO EXPLORE BUT I'M MAKING THIS MOVE A FASTER STORY HERE
Year One
Two months after returning from the Mirror Academy, Li Qingshan sat in his yard, reading the second letter from Master Wei Ling inviting him to return as a permanent lecturer. He had politely answered the first letter, saying he still needed time to reflect. This second letter was more urgent, offering a higher position and better facilities.
Li Qingshan slowly folded the letter, looking out at Harmony Alley as it began to stir with familiar morning activities. Sister Lin was watering plants in her yard, Chen Wei was opening his workshop, and the sounds of cheerful laughter from the children playing in the street began to fill the air.
Thirty years, he reflected, feeling the subtle resonance of his fourteen understandings that had become an integral part of his identity. I will spend thirty years in Hexin, living fully as Li Qingshan. After that, the world will still be waiting for me.
This world is not limited to the Qinlu Empire. This is still just a small part of the true world. I've only explored this region for over three hundred years. The world is still so vast, with so many communities that might need help, so many places where wisdom can be sown.
But for now, he decided with quiet certainty, Hexin is my place. Thirty years to truly understand what it means to be a part of a community, to contribute in the most authentic way, to plant deep roots before finally continuing my journey.
Li Qingshan picked up a brush and ink, and began to write his reply to Master Wei Ling:
"To the esteemed Master Wei Ling, I deeply appreciate the trust and opportunity you have offered. However, after profound reflection, I have realized that my place for now is in Hexin, serving the community that has become my home. Perhaps one day our paths will cross again, but for now, I choose to grow deeper roots in the soil that has accepted me with love..."
Year Two
Li Qingshan was walking home from the market when he saw a sight that moved his heart deeply. On a street corner, a small boy about seven years old sat alone, his clothes tattered, his face dirty, and his large eyes staring blankly at the bustling street.
A street child. An orphan.
Li Qingshan approached slowly, kneeling before the child. "Hello, little one. What's your name?"
The boy looked at him warily, but something in Li Qingshan's eyes made the tension slowly melt away. "A-Ming," he answered in a voice that was barely a whisper.
"A-Ming, when was the last time you ate?"
The boy shook his head, not answering, but his small stomach rumbled loudly.
"Come on," Li Qingshan said gently, extending his hand, "I know a place that sells really good baozi."
This is the first, Li Qingshan realized as he led A-Ming to the nearest food stall. The first of many children I will find.
Over the following months, Li Qingshan began to notice other street children. There was Xiao Hua, a five-year-old girl who had lost both her parents to illness. There was Jin, a nine-year-old boy who had run away from a cruel uncle. There was Liu-er, a six-year-old girl who had been abandoned at the market.
They were scattered throughout Hexin, living their own way, surviving by begging or stealing scraps of food.
Li Qingshan couldn't ignore them. Slowly, he began to bring them to his house, providing food, a place to wash, and most importantly—a feeling of safety and acceptance.
"Qingshan," Sister Lin said one afternoon when she visited and found five small children having dinner at Li Qingshan's house, "what are you doing?"
"I can't let them live on the streets," Li Qingshan answered as he helped Xiao Hua cut vegetables. "They're just children. They need a family."
Sister Lin sat down and watched how the children interacted with Li Qingshan—with a natural trust, as if they had found a safe harbor after a long storm.
"You want to adopt them all?"
"Not formally adopting," Li Qingshan said thoughtfully. "But giving them a home, an education, and a chance to grow into good people. To be... an informal patron for them."
"That's a big responsibility."
"Yes. But it's also an extraordinary privilege."
Year Three
Li Qingshan's house was now filled with the sounds of children's laughter and conversation. Their number had grown to eight—A-Ming, Xiao Hua, Jin, Liu-er, and four other children he had found in various states of need.
What was surprising was how the Harmony Alley community responded. Instead of complaining about the noise or inconvenience, the neighbors helped in various ways. Madam Wang provided remedies when the children were sick. Chen Wei taught the boys basic woodworking skills. Sister Lin helped prepare large quantities of food.
"We're like one big family now," Granny Zhou said one day while watching the children play in the yard. "And it makes life feel... more full."
But Li Qingshan realized that providing food and shelter was not enough. These children needed education, skills, and most importantly—a purpose in life.
They need a school.
The idea started simply. Li Qingshan began teaching his foster children to read and write at home, using simple books and a small blackboard. But then some children from the neighbors started to join in, drawn by his gentle and patient teaching methods.
"Uncle Qingshan," Chen Daming said one afternoon, "can I join the lessons too? Your way of teaching is different from the teachers at the city school."
"Of course. But what's different?"
"You don't get angry when we make mistakes. And you always help us find the answers ourselves, instead of just telling us."
Exactly like how I taught children in Ziran Village centuries ago.
Within a few weeks, Li Qingshan's house in the afternoons was filled with fifteen children learning together. They sat in the yard in a circle, sharing books, helping each other, and most importantly—learning not just academics, but also values of kindness, cooperation, and mutual respect.
"Qingshan," Mister Shen from the House of Words visited one day, "I hear you've informally started a school at your house."
"It's not a formal school," Li Qingshan answered humbly. "Just... sharing knowledge with children who want to learn."
"But your approach is very effective. The parents of the children who have joined the lessons say their children have become more thoughtful, more compassionate, and surprisingly, more eager to learn."
Mister Shen sat in a familiar wooden chair. "I have a proposal I'd like to make. What if we formalize this? Create a proper small school, with support from the city, but still maintain the approach and philosophy you use?"
Li Qingshan felt a mix of excitement and trepidation. A formal school would mean greater visibility, greater responsibility. But also a chance to help more children.
"I need to think about this," he answered honestly.
That night, Li Qingshan sat in the yard that was now familiar with the sounds of eight children settling down to sleep in the various rooms of the house that had expanded to accommodate them all. He felt a deep sense of fulfillment, but also an awareness that he was standing at a crossroads that could define the next phase of his life in Hexin.
Thirty years, he reminded himself. Still twenty-seven years to truly understand what it means to build a sustainable community, to raise a generation that is wise and compassionate, to create a legacy that will continue long after I am gone.
And perhaps, he thought, looking up at the brilliant stars in the clear sky, founding a small but meaningful school is the next natural step in this journey.
A school where children don't just learn facts and skills, but also the wisdom of how to live with kindness, how to serve others, how to be authentic and useful members of their communities.
A school that could become a model for a more holistic and human-centered educational approach.
With a decision that felt both exciting and right, Li Qingshan decided to accept Mister Shen's proposal. Tomorrow, he would begin conversations about establishing the Hexin Small School—a place where academic learning and character development could be integrated in ways that serve the whole child, not just intellectual development.
The first three years in Hexin as a fully committed Li Qingshan have been about putting down roots, about discovering what it truly means to belong to a community. The next phase will be about extending those roots even deeper, about contributing to the growth and development of the next generation in ways that could have a lasting impact.
And who knows, he added with a thought that carried both humility and a quiet ambition for service, maybe the approach developed at the Hexin Small School could eventually be shared with other communities, becoming a contribution to educational philosophy that could benefit children in many places.
But for now, the focus is on the eight children sleeping peacefully in this home, on the fifteen children who are eager to continue learning together, and on the community that has embraced this vision with remarkable generosity and support.
Deeper roots, for more meaningful growth.