Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 188 The Reasons for Parents' Travels

The Imperial Academy of Arts and Sciences in Beijing.

As Haiyue stepped into the backyard, Old Master Fan came out to greet her with a broad smile: "Young Master, you've come at the right time! The Master and Madam have replied; we just received their letter!"

"Okay!"

Haiyue gladly accepted the letter.

His father, Haihao, and mother, Zhulin, were away from home for many years. Their only connection to their hometown was to send letters back to Qiongshan every year to let them know they were safe. There were two old servants who delivered the letters, one of whom was this Mr. Fan. Later, it was discovered that the Yinglue Society martial arts school in the capital was run by this very man.

Master Fan's initial attitude was that Haiyue, as a student of the Imperial Academy, had a bright future in the literary world and did not need to associate with them, a group of martial artists. However, Haiyue did not think so at all.

He was from Qiongshan, coming from the isolated island of Hainan, but now, who in the Imperial College would mention him?

They not only don't mention it on the surface, but they also don't talk about crickets behind the scenes; they genuinely ignore their regional background.

Haiyue firmly believes in one thing.

Competence is the most powerful weapon to break down prejudice; self-loathing cannot earn true respect.

Therefore, he did not deliberately hide the existence of the Yinglue Society. Lu Bing had been here before and even sparred with Yu Dayou in the training ground in the backyard. He knew that this was the Hai family's property, and if anything happened, the Embroidered Uniform Guard would definitely take care of it.

With the establishment of the Yinglue Society in the capital, communication with family members became much easier. Letters no longer needed to be sent back to Qiongshan and then forwarded; they could be delivered directly through Mr. Fan.

When the results were released in September, Haiyue confirmed that she had ranked second in the exam. She wrote two letters, one to share the good news and the other to mention her marriage. Now it's November, and judging by the time, a reply should be coming soon.

Haiyue opened the letter, read it through, and then raised her eyebrows: "Father and Mother are going to the capital?"

"That's natural!"

Old Master Fan beamed with joy, every fine line at the corner of his eyes revealing his satisfaction: "With the young master's remarkable achievements, the master and madam have long wanted to come to the capital to visit him!"

'Then why didn't you come sooner?'

Haiyue's eyes flickered slightly. He had entered the capital last year and stayed at the Imperial Academy for more than a year. Now that he had even finished the provincial examination, his parents still hadn't shown up. This was quite unusual.

To be honest, in this day and age, those who can travel around are not ordinary people. Haihao was known as the number one warrior in Qionghai in his early years. He can ensure his own safety when he is away from home, but he doesn't go home for many years and doesn't even visit his son when he comes to Beijing. Could there be some special reason?

Taking this opportunity, Haiyue asked directly, "Old Fan, what have my parents been doing all these years?"

Old Master Fan's smile remained unchanged: "The master and madam are traveling abroad."

Haiyue didn't mince words, and sighed softly, "Old Fan, is there anything we need to be polite about among family? Don't you even trust me?"

"no no!"

Old Master Fan quickly shook his head, his smile fading slightly: "Young Master, we won't stand on ceremony, but matters of the martial world are indeed not your concern. Master and Madam know what's going on, so you don't need to worry..."

"A mother worries when her son travels a thousand miles, and vice versa. My parents are away from home for many years, how could I not worry?"

Haiyue said seriously, "Besides, the affairs of the martial world are often fraught with danger and bloodshed, and vendettas are commonplace. There's a saying that goes, 'If you walk by the river long enough, you're bound to get your shoes wet.' Even if Father is exceptionally brave, there's no guarantee he won't get hurt! My second and fourth brothers have already established their own families and careers, and are respected in Qiongshan. I've also achieved some success and have gained a foothold in the capital. Why should Father and Mother get involved in the affairs of the martial world?"

"Young Master is truly a filial son!"

Old Fan was increasingly pleased, and then subconsciously sighed, "But things in the martial world are not like ordinary matters; they are often unavoidable..."

"Can't avoid it? Then the enemy must be difficult to deal with?"

Hai Yue's tone sharpened: "Who is the enemy? A gang of outlaws colluding with local authorities? A secret religion rooted in the common people? Even with the power of the imperial court, the government's hand is not enough to eradicate them?"

This barrage of menacing questions finally caused Old Master Fan's expression to change: "Young Master, this matter cannot be handled by the imperial court... and it's really not easy to say it outright..."

"Mr. Fan, we should speak frankly as a family, and knowing ourselves and our enemy is even more crucial!"

Hai Yue's expression grew increasingly serious: "If the thieves are truly so rampant, wouldn't they have come to the capital? My Hai family is no longer unknown; we have people in the court who are already paying attention. We should always be prepared for the worst. What exactly are you trying to cover up?"

Old Master Fan fell silent for a long while before slowly saying, "Very well, even if I get scolded by the master and madam, I'll tell the young master the truth today! Young master, you don't need to worry about thieves coming to the capital, because what the thieves want is definitely not in Beijing. They will tacitly avoid this important capital city..."

Haiyue asked curiously, "What do they want? What do the thieves want?"

Old Fan went to the window, made sure no one was around, returned to the front, stroked his long beard and said with a wry smile, "The thief is looking for a secret treasure, hmm... Jianwen's secret treasure!"

"Huh?" Haiyue was stunned: "Jianwen... the secret treasure?"

"Yes! It is the secret treasure left behind by the Jianwen Emperor!"

Fan Laodao said, "This is a rumor that started a hundred years ago. It is said that when Emperor Jianwen was in dire straits, he hid the wealth of the country in a secret box and ordered his guard Feng Cheng to lead a hundred elite soldiers to move the palace treasures, Hongwu secret documents and these treasures out of Jiankang as soon as possible, in the hope of making a comeback in the future."

"On the night of the Jingnan Rebellion, Emperor Jianwen escaped through the secret passage of Fengxian. He also split the Imperial Jade Tablet in two, leaving one half in the fire to deceive Emperor Taizong and create the illusion of self-immolation. He took the other half with him, but later his personal eunuch betrayed him and leaked the news. Emperor Jianwen was still alive, and the existence of the secret treasure was also exposed."

"It is said that Emperor Taizong sent Zheng He on his voyages to the Western Ocean to find the whereabouts of Emperor Jianwen and this secret treasure, but he searched in vain..."

Haiyue found it both funny and absurd.

In fact, the claim that Zheng He's voyages to the Western Ocean were to find Emperor Jianwen has been around for a long time. It is even clearly recorded in the "Biography of Zheng He" in the History of Ming: "Emperor Chengzu suspected that Emperor Hui had fled overseas and wanted to find him. He also wanted to show off his military power in foreign lands to demonstrate China's wealth and strength."

But that was during the Yongle reign. He never expected that now, during the Jiajing reign, more than a hundred years later, the legend of the Jianwen Emperor's secret treasure is still circulating.

Haiyue shook her head secretly, but went along with it, saying, "If Emperor Jianwen really fled south back then, the secret treasure should have been moved to Southeast Asia as well. Why are those thieves searching on the land of my Great Ming?"

Fan Laodao said, "There is such a theory, that Emperor Jianwen later used this secret treasure to establish a country in Southeast Asia and pass on his dynasty, but he no longer used the name of the Ming Dynasty. But there is another theory, that Emperor Jianwen fled in a hurry and did not have time to retrieve the secret treasure. Later, he became a monk, lost all hope, and had no intention of restoring the country. The secret treasure has been hidden somewhere, waiting for future generations to discover it."

Haiyue was speechless: "So no one found it a hundred years ago, but now people are starting to search for it a hundred years later?"

"That's not true!"

Old Fan shook his head slightly: "In fact, there is a group of people who have been searching for the whereabouts of the secret treasure for decades. They even claimed to have obtained the key clues to the treasure and were only one step away from retrieving this amazing secret treasure!"

Haiyue didn't care about the so-called earth-shattering wealth: "Let them dig it up, what does it have to do with my parents?"

"It's laughable, but the final step in retrieving the secret treasure is indeed related to... the master and mistress!"

Old Master Fan smiled bitterly: "Therefore, the master and madam were forced to leave their hometown all these years. These bandits are vicious and ruthless. If they had stayed in Qiongshan, they would have inevitably implicated the young masters and many more members of the Hai family!"

Hai Yue's face darkened, and she did not continue to talk about annihilation. Instead, she said, "I have a question. Why did those people stop threatening the lives of my Hai clan after my parents left?"

Mr. Fan explained: "Because they knew very well that the Hai clan members who remained in Qiongshan had nothing to do with Jianwen's secret treasure, and they also had their own concerns about the consequences, and did not want to really fight to the death."

Hai Yue narrowed her eyes slightly: "So Elder Fan didn't want me to use the imperial court's power because he was worried that once this balance was broken, the other side would have no scruples and would simply resort to any means necessary?"

"Yes!"

Old Master Fan nodded and said earnestly, "Young Master, I know you are filial and capable, but some grudges and entanglements cannot be resolved by simply cutting them off. Young Master, you should focus on the imperial examination now. If you pass with flying colors and bring honor to your ancestors, that will be the greatest comfort to your parents!"

Haiyue pondered for a moment, then nodded: "Alright! Thank you for your explanation, Elder Fan!"

Old Master Fan breathed a sigh of relief: "What are you saying? I didn't say anything before because I was afraid the young master would worry too much. Once the master and madam arrive in the capital and the family is reunited, they won't hide it from you. It's just that I overstepped my bounds..."

"Old Fan is my elder, like family. How can you say I'm overstepping my bounds?"

Haiyue's few words pleased the old man, and after asking if there were any problems with the operation of Yinglue Society, she finally said goodbye and left.

Once outside, he turned to look at the plaque, a look of deep concentration on his face.

During the conversation, he keenly sensed that the other party was not lying about the general direction, but was concealing some key reasons. However, he knew that asking further would not yield any results, so he let it go and did not delve into the details.

When it comes to the secrets of close family members, should one pretend to be ignorant or investigate thoroughly?

There is probably no standard answer.

Haiyue wouldn't dwell on it too much. Anyway, her parents would be arriving in the capital soon, and she would see how things progressed then.

Back at the Imperial College, he resumed his intensive preparation for the upcoming imperial examination.

Compared to the provincial examination's thirty-to-one elimination rate, the metropolitan examination had a much lower elimination rate, approximately ten to one.

However, with around three thousand successful candidates vying for three hundred spots in the imperial examinations, the competition was actually more intense than ever before.

Because there are no weaklings here, those who can enter the examination hall are all outstanding talents, and there are quite a few top scorers in local prefectures and counties. To stand out from this group of people is truly a matter of being tested by the best!
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye, and just as the capital was once again plunged into the depths of winter, Yan Shifan walked into the hall with a beaming smile and extended an invitation: "My marriage is settled, and I would like to invite my friends to the betrothal ceremony. Everyone must come!"

(End of this chapter)