Chapter 190: Prison Visit
Candidates who ranked in the top three could be directly appointed as officials, but the official positions were generally not high. The top scorer could only be appointed as a sixth-rank Hanlin editor or something like that. The other candidates who ranked in the second and third places would be lucky enough to be appointed as an eighth-rank county magistrate, which was only equivalent to a deputy county chief and not even the level of a county magistrate.
After the list was released, Wanli's idea was about to be implemented. The main purpose was to test the work ability of the top three. The case recommended by Liu Chengxuan just happened to meet Wanli's goal, so the two sides hit it off. The case was transferred to the Dali Temple for trial, with the top three presiding judges and the Dali Temple and the Metropolitan Procuratorate as jurors. The jury was actually to observe the performance of the three top three and be responsible for scoring.
A joint trial was inevitable, but it also had its benefits. Under the watchful eyes of the public, and as it was a job that could impress the emperor, no one dared to mess around or show favoritism, which indirectly eliminated the possibility of Wan Yangui interfering.
Su Luo was happy to know that Zhou Chongwen won the third place in the imperial examination, but she was still a little relieved because of Qin Huai's matter. Su Luo knew that Wan Yangui was not entirely right in this matter, and his words seemed to be a trick, so Qin Huai's crime would not be too serious.
Liu Chengxuan found Su Luo the day after the results were announced and wanted to take Su Luo to see Qin Huai to fulfill his promise.
Su Luo kept his word and brought Qin Qi along. Qin Qi had lost a lot of weight in the past few days, and his little body looked even thinner.
Liu Chengxuan was stunned for a long time when he saw Qin Qi, "Qin Huai's son?"
Su Luo nodded, and Liu Chengxuan laughed again. He wanted to touch Qin Qi's head, but Qin Qi dodged. Liu Chengxuan smiled indifferently, "I didn't expect he's this big. But is it appropriate for him to go too?"
Su Luo patted Qin Qi's shoulder and said, "Xiao Qi is not little anymore, right?"
Qin Huai raised his head and nodded seriously. Liu Chengxuan had no reason to object, so he closed his folding fan and said, "Let's go."
All the prisons in the world are the same, except that the one in Dali Temple has more guards.
Liu Chengxuan negotiated with the jailer and showed him a token. The jailer then asked the guard to take Su Luo and Qin Qi into the prison.
The internal structure of the cells was basically the same. Even the cells in the Dali Temple were only slightly larger than the county-level cells that Su Luo had lived in before, and there was no essential difference. At most, the quality of the prisoners was obviously not at the same level. The prisoners here were very quiet, most of them leaned against the wall with their eyes closed in contemplation, but there were also some who recited poems and composed couplets in the cells, and their ability to entertain themselves was quite good.
After not seeing Qin Huai for a few days, Qin Huai seemed to be in good spirits and his clothes were neat, but the warm smile on his face was gone. Instead, there was a kind of indifferent tranquility, which made Su Luo uncomfortable.
"Don't tell me you are happy living here." Su Luo felt so depressed that he wanted to vomit blood when he saw that expression.
"Unhappy, but calm." Qin Huai looked at Su Luo carefully, "Are my mother and the others okay?"
Su Luo lowered her head and said sadly: "How can they be okay with you here?"
"Take care of them for me."
"I will." Su Luo bit her lower lip. "You already know about the trial, right?"
Qin Huai nodded and raised the corners of his lips, "That's good."
"Is this what you wanted?" Su Luo suddenly felt a little tired. "I hope that after this incident, you can let it go, and Wan Yangui can let it go too."
The corners of Qin Huai's lips slowly calmed down, and he sighed softly, "I hope... I can let it go."
It was strange. Before coming here, Su Luo had a lot to say to Qin Huai, but now that she saw him, she didn't know what to say. Someone behind her gently pulled the corner of her clothes. Su Luo smiled and stepped aside to let Qin Qi behind her. Qin Qi had been hiding behind Su Luo, and because the light in the cell was dim, Qin Huai didn't find him at the first time . Qin Huai's body stiffened for a moment, "Xiao Qi?"
Qin Qi kept his head down and called out in a trembling voice: "Dad."
Qin Huai looked at Qin Qi with complicated eyes, and slowly squatted down, "I'm sorry for letting you see Dad like this."
Qin Qi's tears welled up in his eyes, his face flushed red, he took two steps forward and knelt in front of Qin Huai, "Dad, Xiao Qi was wrong."
Qin Huai pulled him up through the fence and patted the dust off his knees. "You did nothing wrong, you don't need to apologize. Speaking of mistakes, it's Dad who shouldn't be angry at you. As for you, your idea is not wrong, it's Dad who was angry and embarrassed that made you kneel for so long. Will you forgive Dad?"
Qin Qi finally couldn't hold back any longer, he reached his hand through the fence and hugged Qin Huai, crying loudly, "Xiao Qi will definitely be obedient in the future."
This might be the first time that this father and son had such an intimate contact. Qin Huai was obviously at a loss for a moment. Qin Qi only did this on today's occasion. If it were any other time, even if he wanted to, he wouldn't dare to do it.
Qin Huai slowly reached out his hand and patted Qin Qi on the back. A trace of warmth flashed across his eyes. Finally, he gently hugged Qin Qi and said, "I have always been afraid of seeing you. Seeing you will remind me of your mother."
Qin Qi raised his tear-stained face, as if he didn't understand why Qin Huai didn't want to think of his mother.
"When your mother was with your father, she was very unhappy. Later, she died. Your uncle was very sad, so he never liked us. Your grandmother, aunt and I were also afraid to see your uncle."
Such a complicated story is really not something a child can understand, but he still heard the "like" and "dislike" clearly. Qin Qi bit his lower lip, as if after a great struggle, he finally said, "Dad, can you not hate your uncle?"
Qin Huai was stunned for a while, "Do you know what hate is?"
"just do not like it."
"No." Qin Huai shook his head. "Hate is a very extreme thing. It is ten or a hundred times more than dislike, and the pain you endure is also greater. If someone hates you, you are in pain; if you hate others, you will be even more painful. Xiaoqi, Dad hopes that you will only use 'dislike' in your life, and never have the opportunity to 'hate', okay?"
Qin Qi nodded, not quite understanding. Qin Huai stood up and patted Qin Qi on the head, "Dad doesn't hate your uncle. People have to take responsibility for their mistakes . Now it's Dad's fault, so Dad is taking the responsibility."
Qin Qi wiped the tears from his face with his sleeves and asked expectantly, "So, when can Daddy come home?"
"Soon." Qin Huai said with a smile, "When dad is away, you have to take good care of grandma and aunt, okay?"
Qin Qi nodded vigorously immediately, took a deep breath, suppressed his sobbing, wiped his face with his sleeve, and said to Qin Huai: "Xiao Qi, go out first, Dad will talk to Aunt Su."
Qin Huai looked at the dark and gloomy road ahead and couldn't help asking, "Aren't you afraid?"
Qin Qi shook his head, "I am a man, and I have to take care of my grandma and aunt. Men are not afraid of anything."
Su Luo and Qin Huai both laughed. Qin Qi walked up to the jailer who brought them in and said, "Uncle, please come with me. My father and...my mother have something to say."
The jailer looked at Su Luo and Qin Huai in surprise. He had heard what they had just said. It seemed that the boy's mother was dead. Was it haunted?
People who have been in prison for a long time are not afraid of ghosts and gods. This jailer is just weird. Didn’t his mother die in this prison? How could she be here?
The jailer scratched his head, but he was not overly embarrassed. He said to Su Luo: "I will send this young master out first, and I will come back to pick you up later."
Su Luo was a little embarrassed by Qin Qi's address. After hearing what the jailer said, she nodded quickly and said, "Thank you, big brother." She took off the purse from her waist and handed the whole bag over. The jailer waved his hand and said with a smile, " This case will be reported to the emperor."
Su Luo did not force it and took back the money bag. "Brother, please take good care of me these days. I will send you a few jars of good wine someday for you to taste."
"Yes, yes."
The jailer turned around and led Qin Qi away. Su Luo withdrew his gaze, but still did not dare to look up, only staring at his toes.
"Luo'er...I want to hug you."
Qin Huai's gentle voice made Su Luo's face a little hot. She still stared at her toes, took a step forward, and the next second she was embraced by Qin Huai.
When I say "hug", there is actually some meaning in it. There was such a thick fence between the two people that they only touched each other's backs.
Qin Huai's warm breath was just above her head. Su Luo gently closed her eyes and enjoyed this moment of tranquility. She was really too tired these days.
"Can I kiss you?"
Su Luo's body trembled slightly, and she dared not open her eyes. There was a warm touch on her lips, but it was not Qin Huai's lips, but his thumb, stroking Su Luo's lips, "No consent..."
Su Luo quickly opened his eyes, "No..."
Qin Huai chuckled, "I didn't object."
Su Luo's cheeks flushed instantly. How could she express her agreement or disapproval? Surely men should be a little more rogue, right? Like Li Rusong...
Su Luo's eyes flickered, then she closed her eyes and raised her head slightly. Qin Huai smiled and let go of her hand, but his fingertips were still attached to her. "I owe you money first, and you can return it to me when we get out."
Su Luo bit her lower lip, not knowing whether she should express her opinion. In the end, she nodded, her face flushed red.
"I have a bad feeling..." Qin Huai suddenly sighed, "If..."
Su Luo pushed him away fiercely, glaring at him in reproach, "What if? I have already found out about this case, it's not a big deal at all, and you can't give him a heavy sentence. Besides, do you know who is the presiding judge? It's Zhou Chongwen!" Su Luo laughed and said, "Are you relieved now? You know what? That guy used to sit on the street corner and write letters for people. He could exchange a broken bowl for a letter. He was so useless. I didn't expect that he could pass the exam after studying for a few days. His ancestors must be so lucky..."
"Luo'er." Qin Huai interrupted Su Luo's deliberate laughter and said seriously: "If anything changes, send my mother and Qing'er away, please."
