Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 1: The Hai Brothers
During the Ming Dynasty, there were Northern Zhili, Southern Zhili, and Thirteen Provincial Governments, commonly known as the "Two Capitals and Thirteen Provinces."

The Guangdong Provincial Administration Commissioner's Office had jurisdiction over ten prefectures and one prefecture, Luoding.

The southernmost of the ten prefectures is Qiongzhou Prefecture, located on Hainan Island.

The capital of Qiongzhou Prefecture was in Qionshan County.

This place belonged to Yazhou during the Han and Tang Dynasties. It was the so-called end of the world, isolated overseas. In the eyes of people in the Central Plains, it was a barren land.

Fortunately, it is now the ninth year of Jiajing, 1530 AD. As the most prosperous place in Qiongzhou Prefecture, the cityscape of Qionshan County is also like that of the towns in the Central Plains, with brick and tile buildings standing in rows, wide streets, pedestrians coming and going, and vendors hawking their wares.

The difference is that the vendors in the Central Plains are all men, but here there are more women, carrying loads and shouting to sell their goods.

Young people often dress up beautifully, with charming eyes. Some of them show their legs and go barefoot, looking very graceful and elegant, attracting the attention of passers-by.

But on this day, no one had time to look at the slim young lady.

The constables from the government office were dispatched, armed with sticks to clear the area. The pedestrians who were driven to the sides were puzzled at first, but when they saw the guards coming out of the government office, with a large sedan chair in the center, parading through the streets, they could not help but start talking.

"Who's sitting in that sedan? What a grand ceremony! Is he a high-ranking official from the capital?"

"You don't know? It's the prince of Annan who's on a diplomatic mission! He arrived in Qiongshan seven days ago and has been staying at the government office ever since! His men come out every day to buy things, and they're so generous with their spending, always wanting the best!"

"Annan... Oh, Jiaozhi!"

During the Yongle reign of the Ming Dynasty, Jiaozhi was recovered and divided into two capitals and fourteen provinces. Later, it was abolished and Jiaozhi became independent again, calling itself "Dai Viet" internally and "Annan" externally, and regarded itself as a vassal state.

The people of Guangxi and Yunnan are undoubtedly more familiar with the Kingdom of Annan. After all, they are adjacent to each other and there are frictions on the border. But this is Hainan, Guangdong. Merchants from Annan occasionally come here by boat, but when have they ever seen an envoy from a country?

"The Annan people came to the capital to pay tribute, and then went north through Qiongshan?"

"That's great! Whatever these Annan people like, we'll sell it to them tomorrow!"

The onlookers whispered to each other, and the merchants, sensing a business opportunity, were delighted. The government officials rode on horses alongside the sedan chairs, their voices filled with resignation: "Envoy Li, don't forget your duties! Return to the government office!"

"I had hoped to arrive in the capital as soon as possible, but Lord Gu refused and told me to wait patiently. I am deeply grateful for your hospitality, but life in the government office is truly unbearable..."

A clear voice rang out from the sedan chair, speaking Ming Dynasty Mandarin, though with a slightly odd accent: "Years ago, I stumbled upon a copy of 'Newly Published Illustrated Journey to the West'. I was so impressed after reading it that I don't know how many times I've read it! Unfortunately, it only reaches the 30th chapter, with no further chapters to follow. I heard that this book was written by a talented scholar from your family. If I could meet the author, it would be the fulfillment of a long-cherished wish. I hope Magistrate Shao will help me fulfill this wish!"

The government official frowned and said, "My Qiongzhou bookstores have many books such as 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms', 'Rhyme Palace's Jade', and 'Rhyme of the Brothel'. If Envoy Li is interested in the novels, he is free to read them."

Prince Annan's voice drifted out from the sedan chair with laughter: "Different! Very different! I love traveling to the West alone. Please lead the way to meet that talented man!"

"Well, let's go!"

A group of people marched through the streets and headed southwest.

After all, Qionshan County is not as big as the Jiangnan towns. Less than half an hour later, a group of buildings with green tiles and high walls came into view from afar.

The sound of reading is loud and the fragrance of ink is light, which gives it a sense of cultural heritage.

The sedan chair landed, and a thin, elegant-looking man stepped out. It was the Prince of Annan. The government official also dismounted and introduced the place, saying, "That's the Dongpo Academy, the seat of the Qiongshan County School."

Prince Annan looked around the academy and said sincerely, "I've heard a lot about you!"

The government official was surprised: "Has Envoy Li heard of this academy long ago?"

Prince Annan rolled his eyes and asked with a smile, "How could I not know Mr. Dongpo in the Collection of Essays of the Eight Great Masters of Tang and Song Dynasties?"

"I see!"

The government official suddenly understood and showed respect: "More than four hundred years ago, the sixty-year-old Buddhist Su Dongpo was demoted three times and went to Danzhou, Hainan, where he established a school and promoted learning..."

Going to Lingnan to eat lychees was a nightmare that ancient officials avoided, not to mention being demoted directly to Hainan Island, which would mean going into the sea. Su Shi was really miserable back then. An old man in his sixties was subjected to such torture.

However, this great writer is very open-minded.

"I asked if Lingnan was a bad place. But I said, 'My hometown is where my heart is at peace.'" "I am originally from Dan'er, but I live in Xishuzhou. Suddenly I cross the sea and leave, just like traveling far away." "Ask you about your life's achievements, Huangzhou, Huizhou, Danzhou."

These poems are by no means complaints or self-mockery. When Su Shi arrived in Danzhou, he not only did not spend the last years of his life in decadence, but instead established a large school, which attracted many scholars to travel far and wide to follow him, and even led to the prevalence of academic atmosphere in the whole of Hainan.

Qiongshan and Danzhou both belong to Hainan. When Su Shi crossed the sea alone in a boat, he stayed at the Jinsulu Temple in Qiongshan. Later, he was pardoned by the imperial court and stayed temporarily in Qiongshan again on his return north. In memory of him, the locals of Qionshan built a college, now hundreds of years old. Destroyed during the Li Rebellion 30 years ago, it was renovated and became the Qionshan County School, still commonly referred to as the Dongpo Academy.

Prince Annan listened with a somewhat nonchalant expression, seemingly unconcerned with the past history. When the introduction was finished, he couldn't wait to say, "I understand, my lord. Let's go meet the brilliant author of Journey to the West!"

The government official was somewhat displeased and turned his head to look at the accompanying legal advisor.

The lawyer understood what he meant and quickly entered the academy through the side door to look for the person first.

"please!"

The government officials led the Annan envoys and their entourage towards the academy, where the instructor and tutor happened to come out in a hurry to greet them.

"Huh? What game? What?"

The instructor at Qiongshan County School was an old man with a white beard. He spoke slowly and slurred his words. It took him a long while to figure out what he was saying. His expression suddenly turned indignant: "The story of the Journey to the West! That was made up by Hai Shisanlang! Ugh! He lost it halfway through. It pissed me off!"

Prince Annan immediately felt the same way, nodding his head repeatedly. "Right, right! After Tang Sanzang drove Wukong away, he was killed by the demon king in Baoxiang Kingdom and turned into a tiger. Did Bajie find his eldest brother? Did Tang Sanzang regret wrongly blaming this disciple? What happened next?"

"Didn't you hear what I said? There's nothing after that!"

"Oh! How could there not be!"

Seeing that the two of them were getting anxious as they talked, the officials in the government office were a little confused.

Isn't it just a Journey to the West? The story of Xuanzang's journey to the West became a household name, even being included in the Yongle Encyclopedia. Since then, new adaptations have emerged one after another, each one seeming so bizarre...

The officials in the government office had not read the new version of Journey to the West that was very popular a while ago, but they concluded in their hearts that it would not be a good work. It was most likely the same as the "Record of Loyalty" sold in bookstores. It simply narrated the historical materials about Yue Fei in vernacular and included related memorials, inscriptions, manifestos, and letters. It had no literary quality at all.

But despite such poor quality, the novel has an astonishing sales volume, and there is even an edition exclusively for the imperial court. This really doesn't make sense. We can only say that the novel is indeed a work that many people enjoy talking about.

Annan is a barbarian land, and people don't know that classics, history, and literature are the most important subjects for students. But now the old teacher of the county school has lost his composure like this, which is hard for him to understand.

Fortunately, at this moment, the teacher who had been sent out earlier hurried back and came to his side and whispered, "Dong Weng, the author's surname is Hai, given name Yue, he is not yet an adult, the thirteenth in the family, and is known as Hai Shisanlang in the academy."

"Not yet crowned?"

Being able to write a book at such a young age, even if it was a novel, was indeed quite impressive. Officials in the government office could not help but feel regretful: "You are so young and precocious, but instead of seeking the way of sages, you have gone astray... Alas!"

The master paused, then continued, "I met Hai Shisanlang and told him that the foreign envoys loved his new version of Journey to the West. He showed no joy, but instead frowned. He said he would no longer be distracted by other things and would only focus on his studies, obtain a high degree of honor, and bring honor to his family."

"Oh?"

The officials in the government office were somewhat skeptical.

The teacher added, "This Hai Shisanlang has a brother of the same age. His surname is Hai, his name is Rui, and he's fourteenth in his class. He's called 'Mr. Daoxue' by his classmates at the academy. They treat him as a teacher and ask for his advice. They all say he's a good candidate for a government scholarship. The two of them are studying together for the county exam next month."

"Well...admitting one's mistakes and correcting them is the greatest virtue!"

The government officials nodded in praise, saying that he was dedicated to the imperial examination and was trying to make up for his mistakes. This saved a lot of impression points. Combined with the surname, they murmured, "He must be a relative of the late Imperial Censor Hai Cheng!"

In the Ming Dynasty, there were three Jinshi in Hainan - Li Shan, Hai Cheng and Chen Shi, who served as the Censor of Nanjing, the Censor of Sichuan and the Censor of Guangxi respectively. The imperial court had established three embroidery workshops in their hometowns. Among them, Hai Cheng was from the Hai family of Qionshan, and the locals also respectfully called this clan the Xiuyi Hai family.

This surname is not common, and it has a long family background, so it should be correct.

While they were discussing the students' backgrounds in low voices, Prince Annan and the academy's instructor exchanged ideas and walked towards the school.

The students in the academy were alarmed long ago. When they heard that someone had come from the government office and that they were accompanied by envoys from foreign vassal states, they rushed to the door and bowed deeply together.

The two students who did not follow the crowd were the two students sitting in the back row by the window.

A man dressed in a moon-white robe, with handsome eyebrows and eyes, and a tall stature, has the elegant temperament of a scholar, and the strong and handsome figure that other students do not possess. He is indeed a dignified man.

The other one had somewhat similar facial features. He was wearing a faded blue shirt. He had a slender figure, sharp bones, and an air of strength and unyieldingness.

"Hai Yue! Hai Rui!"

Everyone's eyes involuntarily passed over the front row and looked at the two young men who were neither humble nor arrogant, and they exclaimed in admiration: "Xiu Yi Hai family, what a pair of virtuous brothers!"

(End of this chapter)