What Use Do I Have
Leonard Yuan was stunned by Lily Evans' words, clearly caught off guard. After a moment, he said, "Sis, I know I can't pursue official honors anymore... Mom and Dad have already explained everything about you and Brother-in-law's situation with the court. Sigh... When Lord Alexander lived in our village, everyone was so happy. He never acted like a noble, and was always kind to common kids like me. Both Silver Bean and I liked him a lot. But who would've thought he and his father were scheming to get close to us all along..."
"People are unpredictable... Not only were you all deceived, but even the King and I were fooled by him. It's all in the past now, and thankfully, we have our own fiefdom. Leonard, even if you can't pursue official titles through the court, you can still use your talents to serve the Kingdom of Qin! The King has just founded the nation and desperately needs capable people. If you want to put your skills to use, it doesn't matter where you do it." Lily Evans patted Leonard Yuan on the shoulder and said, "Leonard, you're a smart kid. Don't get stuck in a rut."
After listening, Leonard Yuan realized Lily Evans had come specifically to comfort him. His heart warmed and he said, "Sis, you're so busy, yet you still make time to talk to me. I honestly don't know what to say, I'm really touched. But I think Mom and Dad misunderstood me. I'm not upset about missing the imperial exams in the capital. What bothers me is something else entirely."
"Oh? Something else?" Lily Evans looked at Leonard Yuan in surprise. He'd always been focused on his studies and the exams—she'd never heard of him having other worries!
"Mm... something else..." Leonard Yuan nodded and said, "I already let go of things when I was in the capital. People like Li Yanhao and his father, who used us for their own gain—I wouldn't stoop so low as to work for them! If I have the ability, of course I'll use it to help my own family, to help you and Brother-in-law. What really bothers me now is, after reflecting, I suddenly feel that all the classics I've studied haven't been much use. Or maybe, not completely useless—they've helped me understand things, but their practical value isn't that great."
As Leonard Yuan spoke, he stood up and began pacing, thinking deeply. "Someone once asked me, after reading so many books, writing essays, memorizing all those ancient texts—if I were faced with a crop failure, a natural disaster, what could I do? Would all those classics feed the people, stop the floods? I thought and thought, and the answer was: No, they wouldn't."
"I asked that person in return, 'Even if a sage faced such things, what could they do? Could you solve it?' I thought they wouldn't have any answers either, but they were so confident and said they could. I asked how, and she said, even though she hadn't read many classics or written fancy essays, the things she'd learned could make the fields grow three times more grain, let the people eat their fill; she could build strong riverbanks so floods wouldn't happen anymore."
"Back then, her words didn't hit me that hard. But after traveling with the Qin Royal Army, seeing so many places and so much suffering—families facing famine, floods, children sold just to survive—I started to think, if what she said was true, then what she learned really could save people from disaster. And all the classics I've studied, all those ancient texts—what use are they? They can't even produce a single bushel of grain. When the people suffer, all I can do is watch helplessly as hunger spreads everywhere..."