Qing Yao

Chapter 136 The Old Master is Tough
Good heavens! Giving a gift landed him in jail!
Zhao An racked his brains but still couldn't figure out what the old master was up to.

Is it too little?
Or is it that they are truly honest and incorruptible, regarding gold and silver as dirt?

That shouldn't be the case. If they really didn't accept money, why would the prefects and magistrates in various places send tributes to the provincial officials every year?

Old Ding, the richest magistrate in Jiangbei, doesn't he send money to the governor, viceroy, provincial governor, judicial commissioner, and education commissioner every year? Each time he sends money, it starts at several thousand taels!

There's no reason why someone would be arrested for bribery after paying double to him!
There must be some misunderstanding.

This misunderstanding must be so serious that the old master would have to make an example of him.

What misunderstanding?

Zhao An couldn't figure it out, because he had never even met the old master before, so how could there be any misunderstanding?

Completely baffled, he longed to speak with the old master, but the old master directly used his power as the imperial envoy and supervisor of education to strip him of his official robes and then throw him into the dark and hopeless Jiangyin prison.

For three days in a row, they ignored him, with neither jailers coming to teach Zhao An "rules" nor anyone interrogating him; they simply left him in the cell.

The only advantage is that I live in a standard single room, and I don't have to squeeze in with other prisoners to sing "Tears Behind Bars".

The food was worse than what a dog would eat. There wasn't a single drop of oil in the dishes, not even in the soup!
After eating it for three days, I almost got constipated.

The hygiene conditions in the single rooms were also extremely poor; people had to relieve themselves in the urinal in the corner, which was full of foul odor.

toilet paper?

Dreaming.

They either wiped it with the dry grass on the ground, or they scraped it with bamboo sticks that had been used by countless people.

If you don't want to think about either, take a look and see if your left hand or right hand is cleaner.

The feeling of being isolated from the world was truly unbearable. Whenever he heard the slightest footstep, Zhao An would subconsciously look outside, but no one came.

Thankfully, after three days, someone finally came to visit him.

He is a good subordinate and instructor.

Knowing that the food in prison was not good, Instructor Tong specially brought a roast goose for the principal to nourish his body.

Zhao An, who hadn't smelled meat for three days, was so hungry that he grabbed a piece and started gnawing on it.

"Sir, please eat slowly, don't choke again."

Seeing the principal who led the academy to prosperity fall to this state, Instructor Tong felt extremely bad.

"Mmm, I'll eat. Tell me, what's the situation outside right now?"

As Zhao An spoke, he pulled off a goose leg and stuffed it into his mouth.

He was really hungry.

Instructor Tong hurriedly replied, "The information I obtained from the Education Bureau is that the old master has submitted a memorial to the court to impeach Your Excellency."

"Refute me for what?"

Zhao An pulled out the goose leg bone, which was now completely devoid of meat, and casually tossed it into the corner. He let out a burp and looked at Instructor Tong with some nervousness.

According to what Tong Xundao had inquired about, the old master said that with the provincial examination approaching, the professor of Yangzhou Prefectural School had openly bribed him, which was utterly outrageous. Therefore, he wrote to the court requesting that Zhao Youlu's academic achievements and official position be revoked.

The memorial was sent to the capital by express messenger the day after Zhao An was imprisoned. It is estimated that it has already reached Shandong territory and cannot be caught up with.

"My lord, what should we do now? Should I pass on a message to the lady?"

Instructor Tong meant well, but his good intentions resembled those of someone arranging the principal's funeral.

There was nothing they could do. The principal was only a seventh-rank official, while the old master was only a second-rank official. They couldn't win.

The facts are indeed true. It is said that after the principal was arrested, the old master publicly displayed the ten thousand taels of silver notes that the principal had given him, presumably to warn the other professors not to do the same. The principal, however, grabbed his hand through the wooden fence, staring intently at him: "Old Tong, do you still consider me your professor?"

This made Instructor Tong a little nervous. He looked around and whispered that as long as the imperial court's decree of dismissal hadn't been issued, the principal would always be the best professor in his heart.

"Alright, immediately send someone to the Suzhou Provincial Judicial Office and tell the Judicial Commissioner that Zhao Youlu of Yangzhou is in trouble. Please ask the Judicial Commissioner to look into it, and it would be best to take me to the Judicial Prison."

After saying that, Zhao An took out two large silver notes from his inner pocket and stuffed them into Instructor Tong's hand.

There were two bills, each with a face value of five thousand taels, clearly intended to deliver ten thousand taels to the Provincial Judge.

Before Instructor Tong could ask why he needed to find the Provincial Judicial Office, Zhao An instructed, "Also, you personally go back to Yangzhou and find Manager Shi of the Hengli Money Exchange branch."

"What are you looking for him for?"

Instructor Tong was a little confused. Why would he need to contact the money exchange for something so important?

"Don't ask about that. Just tell Manager Shi that I've been imprisoned in Jiangyin by a senior master from the provincial government. Tell him to send this news to the headquarters in the capital as soon as possible, and make sure that Grand Secretary He knows!"

This time, after saying that, Zhao An didn't take out any silver notes from his pocket. Instead, he solemnly grasped Tong Xundao's hand and added, "Tell Manager Shi that if something happens to me, Zhao Youlu, I won't have the money to pay back the debts, and that will cause him trouble too!"

"Oh, oh."

Instructor Tong nodded repeatedly, seemingly understanding, but not quite. He thought that if the professor really died and the academy replaced him with a new professor, everyone might not be able to get rich. So he quickly did as the professor instructed.

The prison returned to calm, and after two more days of hardship, someone came to visit Zhao An again.

It's Teacher Lou.

"I just got back and heard about this. Sigh."

Looking at Zhao An, who was already disheveled, Teacher Lou felt a surge of pleasure for no reason. To be honest, if Zhao An hadn't borrowed 100,000 taels from the bank in his name, he would definitely have stood by and watched.

However, aside from checking on the kid, Teacher Lou seemed to be powerless to do anything else.

Zhao An, as if grasping at a straw, asked Lao Lou, "What's wrong with you, Grandmaster? Why do you insist on criticizing me?"

"do not know."

Teacher Lou answered decisively, and then comforted Zhao An, saying, "You've already paid the penalty money, so at worst you'll just be dismissed from your post."

"."

Zhao An accepted Teacher Lou's good intentions, but said helplessly, "If I am dismissed from my post, you will have to repay the 100,000 taels you borrowed yourself."

After a long silence, Teacher Lou said helplessly, "The old master has already submitted a memorial to the court, but I am powerless to do anything about it. This matter is probably related to the old master's strong sense of justice and hatred of evil."

Lord Lou meant that you, Zhao Youlu, were born into a family that donated money to become an official, and then you became a professor at the prefectural school by taking shortcuts and paying bribes. You were also inexplicably granted the status of a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) by the emperor. This might be something that other officials envy, but in the eyes of the school officials, it is a great irony for scholars and for the imperial examination system.

Therefore, the old master mostly did this to uphold the fairness of the imperial examinations and to maintain the principles of law and order, which is why he represented all the academic officials in the country to punish Zhao An.

You only have yourself to blame, Zhao An. You foolishly handed over the silver notes without fully understanding the old master's character. If he didn't get revenge on you, who would he get revenge on?

"No matter what, I was promoted by the Emperor. That old bastard surnamed Hu should at least consider the owner before beating a dog, not the monk. Isn't he afraid that the Emperor will be angry with him for causing trouble!"

"The old master was the second-place scholar chosen by the Emperor, and also the first-place scholar selected by the Emperor upon completion of his studies."

Teacher Lou didn't think Zhao An's status could compare to that of the Grandmaster, especially since the Grandmaster had served as an examiner for the provincial and metropolitan examinations in various regions since leaving the Hanlin Academy.

What does this mean?
This shows that the old master held a very high position in the emperor's heart.

"The old master was also the teacher of Prince Jia, personally appointed by the Emperor. The prince started his studies with the old master when he was seven years old. I think you're going to be in big trouble this time."

Teacher Lou sighed deeply, not for Zhao An, but for himself.

(End of this chapter)