Chapter 065: Eternal Joy (IV)
During the Qingming Festival, it rained heavily.
Next to Zhang Jing's tombstone knelt the old eunuch Liu Jiarong, who kept repeating the action of throwing paper money into the basin. If someone came to burn incense, he would stand up and step aside, light the incense, and hand it to the visitor.
He Tong was standing guard nearby, and ordered his servants to prepare incense and candles. He forgot to shave his beard, and looked depressed and tired.
As Meng Yunxian and Pei Zhiyuan approached, they saw someone bowing and burning incense in front of the tombstone. He Tong heard footsteps, looked up and saw Meng Yunxian, and bowed, "Mr. Meng."
Standing up, he looked at Pei Zhiyuan who was beside Meng Yunxian, nodded and called out, "Master Pei."
The man who was burning incense turned around at the right time, and Pei Zhiyuan saw that he was wearing a dark green brocade robe and a fu hat. His handsome facial features were weathered and no longer young, and he had a medium-length black beard on his chin.
There were tears in my eyes at this time.
"Pan Sansi."
Pei Zhiyuan suppressed his surprise and bowed.
"Minxing, why are you being so polite?" Pan Youfang wiped his face and looked at Meng Yunxian again. "Mr. Meng, I was not in the capital when you returned to the court. It has been more than ten years. It is only now that I have met you."
"I was still wondering when I came back."
Meng Yunxian pointed at Pei Zhiyuan beside him and said, "I asked Minxing why I didn't see Pan Sansi. He said your father passed away and you went back to your hometown to mourn."
"Yes, three years of mourning."
Pan Youfang looked back at the tombstone and sighed, "I heard about Mr. Zhang's story on my way back to Beijing. I hurried and missed the funeral, but at least today is Qingming Festival."
The old eunuch Liu Jiarong lit the incense at the right time and bowed to pass it over. Meng Yunxian took it first. Pei Zhiyuan, who was standing a few steps behind them, also took the incense and bowed.
After Meng Yun offered incense, he stared at the words on the tombstone for a long time before turning around and staring at He Tong, "Your eyes are so swollen, didn't your wife give you hot compresses?"
"It will be fine in a few days."
He Tong's voice is a little hoarse and has a heavy nasal tone.
"Master He, I'm sorry."
Pan Youfang looked over when he heard the voice and tried to comfort him.
He Tong lowered his head and responded.
Meng Yunxian wanted to stay for a while, but Pei Zhiyuan reminded him that there were still some matters to be dealt with in the government hall, so he had to turn around and go to the carriage parked not far away. Many people came one after another, and those who recognized him bowed to him.
"Pan Sansi is also going to enter the palace?"
Meng Yunxian stopped and looked back at Pan Youfang who was approaching.
"Yes, I returned to the capital today, but I haven't met the emperor yet," Pan Youfang nodded, his eyes still red, "How about Mr. Meng come with me?"
Meng Yunxian said, "If the emperor knew that you came to pay tribute to Chongzhi just after returning to Beijing, I'm afraid he would be angry with you."
"Many officials in the court have come here before. If I don't come here because of this, wouldn't it be too cold? Mr. Zhang was the chief examiner when I took the imperial examination. He personally approved my admission as a Jinshi. He is even more grateful to me for recognizing my talent."
Pan Youfang was clear-headed and calm, "Even if the government asks, I will answer like this."
"Mr. Meng, please come with me. Don't you have anything you want to ask me?"
He said.
Meng Yun paused, "What should I ask you?"
"The events of Yongzhou and the changes at Mushen Mountain."
The rain kept pattering on the umbrella eaves. Pan Youfang put his hands in his sleeves and said, "Back then, Jiang Xianming was the governor of Yongzhou, and I was the military supervisor sent by the government to the border."
"Of course I remember that you were the military supervisor. It was Chongzhi who recommended you," Meng Yunxian stretched out his hand and asked the servant beside him to raise the brim of the umbrella a little higher. "I asked you and Jiang Xianming about the military report of Yongzhou and the testimonies of so many people. What else do you have to ask now?"
"But I don't know why Mr. Zhang..."
Pan Youfang hesitated as he tried to speak. His throat moved and his voice was a little hoarse. "I also heard his last words before he was tortured."
"Who knows?"
Meng Yunxian shook his head, "We parted ways in the past, and today we part ways in death. Chongzhi and I have had nothing to say to each other since fifteen years ago."
"Let's go, let's go into the palace together."
Meng Yunxian said.
Pan Youfang nodded silently, and walked a few steps side by side with Meng Yunxian with an umbrella held by someone, when they met Jiang Xianming who was walking with the support of a servant.
Since Zhang Jing was tortured to death, Jiang Xianming fell seriously ill. He claimed to be sick and stayed in bed at home for many days. It was only today that he managed to come here to pay tribute.
When Jiang Xianming saw Pan Youfang coming over with Meng Yunxian, he was surprised and bowed to them, "Mr. Meng, Mr. Pan."
"Is Censor Jiang sick?" Pan Youfang looked at him.
"It's just a minor illness. I didn't make it to the funeral of Mr. Zhang . Today is Qingming Festival, and I have to come no matter what." Jiang Xianming said, and then he coughed violently.
"Then you go. Mr. will go into the palace first." Pan Youfang said.
Meng Yunxian did not speak to Jiang Xianming from beginning to end. Jiang Xianming barely stood up straight and looked back at the two adults passing by him. "Mr. Meng."
Meng Yunxian stopped and turned around.
In the misty rain, Jiang Xianming took out a paper umbrella from the hand of the person next to him and said, "I have something to ask Mr. Meng."
Meng Yunxian had no expression on his face, and he didn't say anything. He just glanced at Pei Zhiyuan and said to Pan Youfang, "Pan Sansi, it seems that you and I can't go together."
"How about I go with Pan Sansi?" Pei Zhiyuan said at the right time.
"In that case, Lord Meng, I will go first with Minxing."
Pan Youfang nodded.
Pei Zhiyuan and Pan Youfang rode in a horse-drawn carriage. When Meng Yunxian saw the carriage rolling through the mud and going away, he took a paper umbrella from the hand of the servant beside him, and the servant stepped back in time.
The grass in the mountains was dark green and moist. Jiang Xianming and Meng Yunxian each held an umbrella and sat in silence.
"Is Censor Jiang having trouble sleeping?"
Meng Yunxian finally spoke. He stared at the tired look on the man's face and asked, "Because you heard Chongzhi's last words?"
Jiang Xianming did not refute, "Mr. Meng and Mr. Zhang have been friends for many years, so I want to hear what you think of Mr. Zhang's words before he was tortured, Mr. Meng?"
"Nowadays, who in the court dares to tell the truth in front of you, Censor Jiang?" Meng Yunxian curled the corners of his mouth with implicit sarcasm.
Jiang Xianming holds the power to report rumors, so anyone who speaks in front of him must be extremely careful.
"Only Lord Meng and I know what I said today. Jiang will never use this to threaten you."
"But I have nothing to tell Censor Jiang. It was you who was in Yongzhou back then, and it was you who personally ordered the execution of General Yujie. I am thousands of miles away, how can I know the reasons better than you?"
"Yes, indeed."
Jiang Xianming simply threw away his umbrella to clear his confused mind. "I am also checking the Daizhou grain draft. Qian Weiyin approached me first instead of Zhang Xianggong. If I had not hesitated for a moment, if I could have submitted the memorial first before Zhang Xianggong, maybe Zhang Xianggong would not have died...
He is a person whom I, Jiang Xianming, respect in my heart. I also know that the so-called private acceptance of good land and forming a clique for personal gain must be a deliberate frame-up by the people behind the criminal officials in Daizhou. But I can't understand why Zhang Xianggong said such a thing before he died. I was in Yongzhou that year. What I saw and found out all told me that the person I executed was a traitorous and treacherous official who was guilty of the country and whose crimes were unforgivable! "
"Then continue to believe in your evidence!" Meng Yunxian stared at him under the umbrella. "For the past sixteen years, Jiang Xianming has never doubted anything, right? You come to ask me just because of what Chong Zhilin said? Then who should I ask?!"
The rain soaked Jiang Xianming's hat and he was speechless for a moment.
"You are a close minister to the emperor. If you were to report this grain bill, your fate would be even worse than Chongzhi's. I understand your hesitation. I also know that you, Censor Jiang, are upright and honest, and you are not a coward." The sound of rain covered up all the noise. Meng Yunxian approached him, "But today I want to ask you, why do you think the emperor regards you as a close minister?"
Jiang Xianming was a loyal minister, and Zhang Jing was also a loyal minister, but Jiang Xianming was a loyal minister to the government.
If Jiang Xianming brings up the grain bill again, even if he has the ironclad evidence of Qian Weiyin, he will not have a good ending, because he is a deception left by Emperor Zhengyuan to the world in a situation where his orders are as powerful as the sky.
Emperor Zhengyuan used him to tell the world that I have loyal ministers by my side and I am not acting arbitrarily.
He is just a decoration. He has worked diligently for more than ten years, and has been devoted to serving the emperor and father until his death. Do he really think that he is the eyes and ears of the government to listen to the opinions of the people, and the mouthpiece for the people?
When the government doesn't want to listen to him, he is nothing.
Jiang Xianming tightly gripped the umbrella handle, was stunned for a while, and forgot to speak.
"Censor Jiang, it is more important than anything else to understand your own situation."
Meng Yunxian stopped talking and didn't want to say any more. He turned around and walked forward on the muddy mountain path.
After Meng Yunxian's carriage left, Han Qingcai, the night envoy, came out from the other side of the mountain road. He looked at the Imperial Censor Jiang Xianming standing in the rain not far away, and said to the young man beside him: "After you and my family pay tribute to Mr. Zhang, you will set off for Zezhou immediately. Don't expect to dig out any different excuses from those criminal officials."
"As soon as Zhang Xianggong brought Qian Weiyin into the palace, Hanlin Attendant Scholar Zheng Jian immediately filed a petition to smear Zhang Xianggong. These days are enough for them to prove that Zhang Xianggong privately accepted the good farmland and formed a clique for personal gain. You don't have to worry about it. We sent you there to avoid the troubles that your father brought upon you. You have been assassinated so many times recently. You are injured all over, so go to Zezhou to recuperate."
Han Qing sighed, "The Night Bureau is the government's Night Bureau. Now only by proving Zhang Xianggong's crime can we suppress the public anger. The Night Bureau cannot be involved in overturning Zhang Xianggong's case."
Han Qing also felt unspeakable pain in his heart. Lord Meng could not interfere in Lord Zhang's case in the court, and he could not let his emperor and father find out anything, and he could not easily associate with Meng Yunxian.
The emperor and father ordered the Night Bureau to send people to Zezhou to supervise the local investigation and punishment of the officials involved. The Night Bureau must not disobey the emperor and father on this matter.
"Don't worry, Mr. Zhou Ting understands."
Zhou Ting nodded in response.
It rained a lot during the Qingming Festival. After Zhou Ting and Han Qing went to pay homage to Zhang Jing's tomb, they rode a fast horse into the city. After returning home to pack up their luggage, they set off for Zezhou with Chao Yisong and others.
Riding a horse through Nanhuai Street, Zhou Ting pulled the reins, lowered his eyes for a moment, then dismounted and walked towards the clinic.
"Huh? Miss Ni doesn't seem to be here?"
Chao Yisong knocked on the door several times but heard no sound from inside.
Zhou Ting glanced at the tightly closed door of the clinic, turned around and walked to the drugstore opposite without saying a word. Ah Fang was dozing off, and when she heard the footsteps, she turned around and met the pair of dark and cold eyes, and she was startled, "Who are you looking for?"
She felt that this person looked familiar.
"Miss Ni from the clinic opposite, do you know where she went?" Zhou Ting asked.
Afang had a similar impression of him. She saw the sword on his waist and felt a little scared, so she answered honestly: "She just said that she was going on a long trip. I don't know where she went."
"Did he go back to his hometown in Que County? Will he never come back?"
Chao Yisong said from behind.
“It doesn’t seem to be…”
Ah Fang said timidly, "From what I heard from her, it seems like she will come back."
"When did she leave?"
Zhou Ting was silent for a moment and asked.
"I've been gone for a few days."
"Thank you very much."
Zhou Ting turned around and left the pharmacy. Chao Yisong came up to him and said, "Master Zhou..."
"Let's go to Zezhou."
Zhou Ting mounted his horse and interrupted him.
The journey from Yunjing to Yongzhou was long. Ni Su and Qingqiong traveled together. After walking for a few days, they settled in an inn in Cang County due to a sudden rain.
Ni Su asked the waiter to buy a basket of incense and candles. Before it was completely dark, she lit several candles in the house and then sat at the table to eat.
She had a poor appetite and ate very little, but Qingqiong had a good appetite and almost devoured it all.
After taking a bath at night, Ni Su lay down on the bed with the medicine basket in her arms, opening the quilt. The room was brightly lit. She rested her cheek on the soft pillow, looking at the bright white light in the medicine basket. It had a furry tail, and as long as she stretched out her hand, it would come close to her, and even its tail would move.
She put the quilt over the medicine basket and watched it float inside.
There was a chaotic sound of rain outside the lattice window. Ni Su held the medicine basket and closed her eyes. Occasionally, she could hear the subtle flickering sound of Yingchen. In the past few days, she had become accustomed to such sounds.
And along with this sound, she had a dream.
In the dream, there was a silhouette. He was wearing the clothes she had made by herself, with a cinnabar red collar, a frost-white and moist outer robe, and a crimson silk ribbon around his waist swaying in the wind.
Ni Su wanted to call him, but she couldn't open her mouth.
She saw the clothes fall to the ground and disappear, and he turned into a ball of unclear blood mist, floating alone in a field of lush and luxuriant reeds.
He brushed past the reeds like a madman, and soul fire flickered from them, floating sporadically in the drizzle. They turned into translucent human figures, and every wandering soul that passed by him was a strange face.
Only he was a ball of blood mist, never taking shape.
"Don't look for it."
When Ni Su heard such a voice, a man had stood up in the reed bushes. He had a beast face and a gray, curly beard.
He stood in front of the blood mist, raised his chin slightly, and looked at the dark blue sky against the wind and rain. "Your teacher is not in Youdu. He has gone to the place you once didn't want to go."
There was a loud thunder and Ni Su was suddenly awakened.
She sat up suddenly, her head and back covered in cold sweat. Everything in her dream was not so clear, but she remembered the blood mist and the old man with a human body and a beast face.
Think of that beast face.
Ni Su immediately took out the animal bead from her lapel. Under the light, the wooden carved animal bead coincided with the animal face in her dream.
She looked to her side and found that there was no light under the corner of the quilt. She lifted the quilt and saw the medicine basket lying quietly beside her, but the bright white light was no longer there.
"Xu Ziling..."
Ni Su picked up the medicine basket, got out of bed barefoot, and tried to find him in the room, "Xu Ziling, where are you?"
Her shouting startled Qingqiong who lived next door. He immediately pushed the door open and saw Ni Su in a thin dress with her black hair loose. She was looking for something in the room and was calling out a name.
"Miss Ni, what's wrong with you?"
Qing Qiong just closed the door, and when he looked up, he saw Ni Su, who had her back to him, turned around, her eyes red, holding the small medicine basket, "Qing Qiong, he's gone..."
"What?"
Qing Qiong approached and saw that the medicine basket was empty. He was stunned for a moment, then reached out and touched his head wrapped in a cloth. "How could this happen? But what did you do? Or..."
"I didn't do anything."
Ni Su shook her head, "I just had a dream, and when I woke up he was gone."
"Dream? What dream?"
Qingqiong grasped this point keenly.
"I dreamed of a place with a large patch of reeds. I dreamed that he turned into a ball of blood mist. An old man with a beast face told him that his teacher had gone to a place he didn't want to go."
Qingqiong's expression was a little strange when he heard about the reed bushes, and when he heard her mention the old man with the beast face, he immediately said, "The place you dreamed of was the bank of the Henshui River in Youdu."
Youdu hates water.
Ni Su was stunned. She remembered that she seemed to have heard Xu Hexue mention it before.
Among the reeds, beside the Hate River, is the place where all the living souls collect paper money and winter clothes from their relatives and friends in the world of the living.
"I am different from ordinary people. When I was a child, I often dreamed of a place, which was Youdu. The old man with a beast face was Tubo of Youdu. I guess General Xu went back to Youdu to find his teacher, Mr. Zhang."
Qing Qiong thought carefully about what she had just said. The questions that had been hidden in his heart for the past few days were finally answered. He looked at Ni Su and said seriously, "A living soul only has soul fire. My mother is like this. I couldn't understand why General Xu's soul fire was a white ball, like a shapeless mountain spirit, but after listening to what you said about Tu Bo just now... Miss Ni, I guess that General Xu is no longer a living soul in Youdu."
"What does this mean?"
Ni Su looked up at him.
"Didn't I tell you? My father can sometimes hear my mother talking. I remember one day he heard my mother say that not all souls go to the netherworld after death." Qingqiong walked to the window and pushed open the lattice window. The lanterns outside had been extinguished by the rain. He pointed to the dark sky and said, "Some souls go there after death."
Ni Su walked to the window and looked in the direction Qingqiong pointed.
"I'm saying that even if everyone in this world thinks General Xu is a traitor, the law of nature will see his innocence. A general as good as him should become a star in the sky after his death."
Qingqiong said.
"Star?"
Ni Su murmured.
"My mother said that there are no gods in heaven. There are nine agreements between the earth gods in the earth and nine barriers between tigers and leopards in the sky. Look at how many stars there are on a clear night. They are all transformed from the souls of living beings with great achievements. The souls of the netherworld reincarnate every 100 years, while the stars in the sky reincarnate every 300 years. My mother said that they have powers that the souls of the netherworld do not have."
The sound of rain scattered and hit Ni Su's ears.
"I was just wondering why, after you transformed into a ghost and gained such an inhuman ability, Youdu wanted to punish you for using it."
"Because this is not an ability that can be used here."
On the night of the Lantern Festival, in the back alley of Wazi, Xu Hexue once answered her like this.
The water of the world does not wash away other dust.
Apart from the willow leaf water she boiled, only the bright moonlight could remove the dust and dirt on his body. He was not a ghost in the underworld, he was truly a star in the sky.
"Miss Ni? Miss Ni, what are you thinking about?" Qingqiong called her several times before he saw her move her eyes and respond.
The night wind blew on Ni Su's face, and the light hair beside her ears moved slightly. She stood in front of the window, holding the empty medicine basket tightly in her arms, looking at the deep and wet rain curtain. It was also raining in the Youdu in her dream:
"I hope this rain will stop soon."
Otherwise, what will Xu Ziling, who loves cleanliness, do?
