Chapter 011 Linjiangxian (V)
Yunjing is a city where all the prosperity in the world is gathered in one place. The imperial residence is magnificent and surrounded by fragrant osmanthus and auspicious smoke.
The sky is cloudy today. The sound of music from the tile house is faint. The Rainbow Bridge over the Yunxiang River is wide. The vendors on both sides have no time to shout. They are all looking towards the Imperial Street not far away.
While sailing on the river, the boatmen were also absent-minded, all scrambling to look over there.
"The one wearing the purple robe is Mr. Meng, right?"
Someone stretched his neck and saw that the purple color was very conspicuous among the green and red colors.
"Who else could it be if not Lord Meng?" The shirtless man wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Lord Meng was officially appointed as prime minister when he returned from Wen County. Now he is highly valued by the government, but he still came to personally welcome his old friend back to the capital."
"How can we still be considered old friends?"
An old man with a white beard and dressed in Confucian clothes said on the bridge, "At the beginning, one of them was demoted and the other was exiled. They cut their robes at the city gate. Many people saw it clearly. Besides, now Prime Minister Meng is appointed as the co-prime minister, a legitimate prime minister. But what about Prime Minister Zhang? He was exiled for fourteen years. I heard that his son died on the way to exile. Two years ago, his wife also died of illness. Now he has returned alone, but he has been appointed as the vice prime minister under his old friend who had severed all ties with him. These two people are together now, I am afraid it is not easy for them to get along with each other."
As they were talking, they saw a carriage approaching at the end of the clean and tidy Imperial Street. The carriage was old, cramped and covered in mud.
The old coachman drove the carriage closer. The wind blew up the torn curtain, revealing a figure sitting inside.
"Mr. Zhang is here."
An official in green uniform saw the carriage and smiled.
The purple-robed gentleman standing before all the officials was about fifty years old, with gray hair on his temples, a jade hairpin tied his hair in a bun, and he looked clear-headed and had bright eyes.
He watched silently as the carriage stopped. When the coachman helped the white-haired old man out of the carriage, he couldn't help but show some surprise on his face.
Among the officials who came to welcome the second prime minister Zhang Jing back to the capital in accordance with the imperial order, there were also several of Zhang Jing's early students. When they saw their teacher again fourteen years later, they were all stunned and then their eyes turned red.
Zhang Jing looked much older than they remembered. His back was slightly hunched and could not be straightened, his hair was completely white, and his face was gaunt and sagging. He had to use a crutch to walk the few steps to them.
In fact, he is only five years older than Mr. Meng Yunxian, but now he is injured and has difficulty walking.
"Brother Chongzhi..."
When the purple-robed gentleman saw him approaching, he felt mixed emotions.
"Thank you, Mr. Meng, for coming to greet us. Zhang Jing thanks you." Zhang Jing looked away and nodded slightly. His extremely distant attitude made the atmosphere a little cool.
Zhang Jing walked forward unsteadily without stopping. The officials gathered together immediately retreated to the sides. Several of his students called "Teacher" in sobbing voices, but Zhang Jing ignored them.
"Mr. Zhang."
An official in red clothing, who had just performed the ceremony but was ignored, stood up straight again.
Zhang Jing stopped and turned around. He carefully examined the official's appearance, his eyes fixed on a black mole on his temple: "It's you."
"I am Jiang Xianming, your humble servant. I didn't expect that Mr. Zhang still remembers me. It is such an honor." Jiang Xianming is already middle-aged, with a dark beard and a very upright demeanor.
"How can I not remember? When I left Yunjing, you, Lord Jiang, were at the height of your career. Fourteen years have passed, and I heard that you are now the Chief Censor?" Zhang Jing rested his hands on his crutches.
Jiang Xianming met the old husband's gaze and said, "Mr. Zhang, what you said really makes me angry when I was in Yongzhou..."
"Don't mention him to me."
Before he could finish his words, Zhang Jing's expression darkened and he interrupted him.
At this moment, the situation became even more tense. There were no civilians on the Imperial Street. He Tong, a scholar from the Hanlin Academy, could not help but shout angrily, "Sir Jiang, my teacher is returning to the capital today. Why did you mention that traitor? The emperor has allowed my teacher to enter the two government offices again. What do you want to do by doing this in the street?"
"Why is Mr. He doing this? I'm just curious, why did Mr. Zhang ignore you, his students?" Jiang Xianming took two steps forward, but lowered his voice, "Or, in Mr. Zhang's eyes, there are students who are more important than you?"
"What did Lord Jiang say?" Meng Yunxian suddenly spoke up, and seeing Jiang Xianming bow his head, he laughed again, "Mr. Zhang hates people crying the most. It's not surprising that he ignored a seven-foot-tall man who behaved in public."
Jiang Xianming heard the voice and looked at Zhang Jing who was protected by his students . Even though he had gray hair and decayed, he still had a proud and elegant demeanor.
After a moment, Jiang Xianming bowed solemnly again, and his attitude suddenly relaxed and respectful. "Please don't blame me, Mr. Zhang. It's because I haven't forgotten the scolding you gave me at the city gate before you left Yunjing. I came to welcome you sincerely today, not intentionally to make things difficult for you. It's been fifteen years. I admit that when I was the governor of Yongzhou, the punishment of lingchi on the traitor Xu Hexue was really indignant to the people and also to me. It was indeed caused by selfish motives. The laws of Daqi don't have the punishment of lingchi first. I punished him first and then reported to you, which is indeed a crime."
"Hasn't the emperor absolved you of your guilt, Lord Jiang?" a famous official said carefully, "What you did that day was what the people wanted, so you don't have to worry about it. That traitor who committed treason should be beheaded if not lingchi."
"But I want to ask Mr. Zhang,"
Jiang Xianming still bowed, "What are you thinking now?"
What are you thinking?
The smile in Meng Yunxian's eyes faded a lot, but he didn't say anything. Several of Zhang Jing's students were about to speak for the teacher, but when they saw the teacher raise his hand, they fell silent for a moment.
The sky was overcast and grey, the willow trees by the Yunxiang River were green, the music from the tile house was fainter as it reached the Imperial Street, Zhang Jing leaned on his crutches, the long-lost Yunjing breeze blew his sleeves, "When the traitor was fourteen years old, he was no longer my student."
As Zhang Jing's students, several officials headed by He Tong all breathed a sigh of relief.
If we were to say who the officials in the court feared the most, it would be Lord Jiang, the Chief Censor, who was known for his uprightness and severity. He held the power of impeachment, and the emperor allowed him to speak out based on hearsay, without sufficient evidence. Even a few words could become grounds for impeachment and be submitted to the emperor's desk.
Furthermore, who can guarantee that his questioning today was not instructed by the government?
"Your humble servant Jiang Xianming respectfully welcomes Mr. Zhang back to the capital."
Having said this, Jiang Xianming's expression became even more respectful, and he leaned towards the old man again.
Officials on the Imperial Street came and went, escorting the two ministers of the current Great Qi towards the Forbidden Palace. The officers and soldiers guarding the road were also divided into several teams and left one after another.
"Xu Ziling?"
Ni Su watched enough of the excitement on the bridge and turned around, only to see that the lonely soul beside him seemed even thinner, the sky was gloomy and the sunlight was dim, and he was staring at one place in a daze.
"Who did you see?"
Ni Su looked back again, but there was no one on Imperial Street anymore.
The breeze blew through the willows, and the river ripples. This was the place Xu Hexue had left for many years and had forgotten for many years. But now that he was standing here again, all the past events seemed as clear as yesterday.
"My teacher."
He said.
That was when he was fourteen years old. In Xie Chun Pavilion at Yong'an Lake, his teacher said to him, "If you dare to leave, never come to see me again in this life."
"Do you want to see him?"
Ni Su asked him.
Xu Hexue said nothing, but moved his gaze back to her face. After a while, he said, "I still have your brother's soul fire here. As long as I release it, I will know your brother's whereabouts."
There was nothing unusual about the soul fire along the way, which proved that Ni Qinglan did not leave Yunjing.
As soon as he finished speaking, Ni Su saw him raise his hand slightly. He didn't know what magic he cast, but traces of light smaller than sparks flew out from his sleeves. Ni Su turned around in the direction they were floating, and saw them flying over the sky above Yunjing City and flying into the back of the multi-story buildings.
"How long will it take?"
Ni Su looked at the eaves.
The thin silver light disappeared at Xu Hexue's fingertips. His face turned even paler. The countless scars hidden under his sleeves cracked inch by inch. The bright red blood flowed down his wrists into the gaps between his fingers, dripping onto the bridge and turning into dust. He endured the pain and said calmly, "The soul fire is weak. It may take some time."
When Ni Su turned around, he gathered his sleeves, and no trace of blood could be seen on his dark black cloak.
"The Yanzhou scholar who is on good terms with my brother mentioned in his letter the inn where he and my brother stayed in Yunjing before. Why don't we go there first?"
"good."
Xu Hexue nodded.
As soon as Ni Su arrived at Qingfu Inn, she asked for two rooms as usual. After putting her luggage in the room, she went downstairs to talk to the owner.
"My dear, the previous winter exam was a joint exam approved by the emperor temporarily. There was no precedent for this in the past. It was also because the emperor wanted to welcome the two gentlemen Meng and Zhang back to Beijing to promote the new policy, so this winter exam was held to select new talents for the new policy. During those days, not only our inn was full of candidates, but other inns were also full of candidates. With so many people, how could I remember the one person you asked about..." The shopkeeper was troubled by the question and waved his hands repeatedly, "If you want to ask me about the top three in the palace exam, I can still tell you their names, but none of the people who stayed in my inn passed the exam."
Ni Su didn't get any information, and she didn't even know which room her brother had stayed in in the inn.
As the sky gradually darkened, the night market in Yunjing revealed a different kind of liveliness than that in the daytime. The lattice windows could not block the sounds of stringed instruments from the tiles, but Ni Su had no intention of appreciating the unique style of Yunjing. After eating a few bites of food, she put down her bowl and chopsticks, ran to the door of the next room and knocked.
Xu Hexue on the couch opened his eyes. He stood up with difficulty and said in a hoarse voice: "Come in."
Ni Su heard his voice and pushed the door open. The several candles burning on the table were all the ones she had lit for him earlier. She walked closer and saw Xu Hexue sitting on the couch, wearing a cloak.
"You don't look well."
Ni Su looked at him and said.
"It's okay." Xu Hexue smoothed his sleeves to cover his wrists.
Ni Su sat down on the folding chair opposite him. There was a candle beside her, and she lit another one. "I came here to ask you, what is the name of your old friend? How old is he now?"
After hearing the word "fangling", Xu Hexue suddenly raised his eyes.
"Ni Su, I never said my old friend was a woman."
"Not a woman?"
Ni Su looked at him. In the bright candlelight, she could still vaguely see the words embroidered on the edge of his sleeve. "I'm sorry, I saw the beautiful handwriting on your sleeve, so..."
She naturally thought that the person who prepared winter clothes for him should be a woman. After all, generally speaking, no man would embroider his name on winter clothes.
"He has a childhood sweetheart, and this embroidery must have been done by her."
Xu Hexue said.
"I misunderstood."
Ni Su blushed as she looked at the young man sitting on the couch. He was pale and frail, even his lips were pale and bloodless, his clothes were neatly tied, and he looked very graceful.
Xu Hexue was about to say something, but she saw a ray of silver light coming from the lattice window behind her, but there was no trace of soul fire that he had released during the day.
His expression changed slightly and he stood up instinctively, but was suddenly struck by a strong dizziness.
When Ni Su saw him stagger, she immediately went forward to help him. When they touched, she felt like she was holding a handful of snow when she held his wrist, and she shivered with the cold.
But Ni Su didn't let go and helped him onto the couch. "Why are you..."
Her fingers touched something cold and wet, and she stopped talking abruptly. She lowered her eyes and realized that he was hiding under his cloak. His snow-white sleeves were stained with bright red blood. The blood was flowing down his arms, staining his thin and pale hands. His long knuckles were curled up, and the veins were bulging under the thin skin on the back of his hands.
Silently showing what he is going through at this moment.
Ni Su let go of her hand and watched as the blood on her palm turned into floating dust and disappeared in the candlelight. Ni Su realized something and raised her eyes suddenly:
"Will helping me find my brother cause you to get hurt?"
