Top Scholar

Chapter 136 Taking the Back Door

In the main room of my uncle's house in Hejiang County, a gloomy atmosphere hung over the place.

No one expected that their joyous New Year celebrations would turn into such a disastrous turn of events...

The old man held Xibao'er in his arms, and the old woman held Dongge'er in her arms, sitting in the main seat listening to their daughter-in-law's tearful complaints.

My aunt had gained a lot of weight, and her eyes were as red as peaches. She wiped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief and sobbed, "Yesterday at this time, we were having dinner when suddenly some officials burst in with a government warrant, saying that someone had died from drinking Ma's wine and they wanted to arrest him and take him back for questioning!"

"Where did he get the wine?" the old man asked with a dark face.

“He brought back two jars of Erlang wine for the Double Ninth Festival,” my aunt replied. “He said he wanted to promote the family business, make Erlang wine a well-known brand in the county, and get some orders to prove that he’s not just a freeloader.”

"Yes, they're not eating for free anymore, they're eating prison food now." The old man's face turned as black as charcoal.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Su Tai, who was usually mild-mannered, said decisively, "We threw away all the distilled liquor, it's impossible for anyone to die from drinking it!"

"I remember the distillery would be careful about this kind of thing, right?" Chun Ge'er said softly.

“Of course, we keep a sample of each batch of wine after distilling it, and seal it up, just to prevent this kind of thing from happening!” Su Tai nodded.

"What about the rest of the wine?" Su Lu asked.

"One jar was finished, and the other one was almost empty; it was taken away by the government officials," the aunt said.

"..." The two brothers exchanged a glance, both feeling helpless.

"There's nothing we can do about it. When the authorities arrest someone, they'll definitely need to collect evidence," Su Man said softly.

"What do we do now, Dad?" Aunt and her younger sister looked at the old man.

"Get them out first. It's too much suffering for them in jail. They might even be tortured into confessing. Let's get them out first," the old man said with deep concern.

"How do we get it? Does anyone know anyone in the county?" The auntie wasn't exactly ignorant, but she really didn't know anyone in the county.

But then he saw that everyone in his family was looking at Su Lu.

"Brother Qiu, Mr. You's words weren't just polite formalities, were they?" the old man asked, somewhat embarrassed.

There was no way around it; this time, he couldn't unleash his full power just by gathering it up. The county and the garrison were not part of the same system, so the old man was completely clueless and couldn't use his full skills.

“It’s definitely just polite talk,” Su Lu sighed. “But as long as the money is right, it can become anything.”

"Money is no problem, I'll go get the money!" Upon hearing this, the aunt quickly went into the inner room and soon returned with a money box. After opening it, she said breathlessly:

"After a year of sitting around and eating away at our savings, we only have a dozen or so taels left of our dowry... No wonder Arima is anxious."

"Keep the money." The eldest aunt, who had been silent until now, rummaged through her basket and pulled out fifty taels of silver, handing it to Su Lu and asking, "Is this enough?"

"More or less," Su Lu nodded.

"Sister-in-law..." The aunt's eyes widened in surprise, she hadn't expected her sister-in-law to be so generous. When she came last year, she clearly didn't have a single tael of silver, her blue short jacket was faded from washing, and her inner garment had several patches in inconspicuous places...

She had been so busy crying when she saw her family that she hadn't noticed her sister-in-law looking completely refreshed. Her clothes were brand new and shiny, with fine stitches, indicating that the workmanship and materials were of the highest quality. The outer green vest was embroidered with a circle of golden chrysanthemums on the front, and although it was made of ordinary ginger-yellow cotton thread, it immediately exuded an air of nobility.

My aunt was already tall and still had a charming appearance; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to give birth to Chun Ge. Dressed up, she looked even more presentable, especially with the way she took out the silver, which gave her the air of a matriarch.

Before, when Arima said that things were going well at home, his aunt thought he was just trying to make the family look good. Now she knows he was telling the truth; the family does have real money.

She thought back to how she had insisted on sending her sister-in-law back, and felt even more ashamed. She choked back tears, unsure whether to apologize first or express her gratitude.

"Stop talking nonsense, saving lives is the priority!" The aunt waved her hand decisively and turned her head away.

The younger sister-in-law thought her older sister-in-law was still angry with her, little did she know that she dared not look at her "great marshals" again, she really couldn't bear to part with them...

This way we can at least save on buying two courtyards, sob sob sob...

~~
The two babies were probably frightened; they cried all night.

The family was filled with worry, and as a result, everyone except Jinbao didn't sleep well all night.

The old man, feeling depressed, went out for a walk in the middle of the night...

As soon as it was light, the three Su brothers got up, dressed, and prepared to set off!
Xiaotian brought them noodles made by her aunt; there was no way she would let them go out on an empty stomach.

The three brothers then picked up their large bowls and began slurping down their noodles.

Xiao Tiantian stood to the side, and only after Su Lu finished eating his noodles did she whisper, "Brother, are we going to be in trouble again?"

"How could that be?" Su Lu ruffled Xiao Tiantian's fluffy hair, gave her a confident smile, and said, "Watch me take care of it."

"Yes, brother is the best!" Little Tiantian smiled happily, but after Su Lu and his two brothers left, a worried look returned to her face...

~~
The three brothers went out. As they had discussed the night before, Su Man went to ask his classmates in the county town for news. The county town wasn't big, and the people living there knew a lot about things…

Su Lu then went straight to the Hejiang County Government Office with his second brother.

The county government office was located on Yaqian Street, the largest and most bustling street in the county town. It faced south and had three bays. It had a front porch and a rear veranda, with vermilion doors and black tiles, and a pair of stone lions guarding the entrance.

It must have been quite grand when it was first built, but unfortunately, officials neglected to maintain their offices. After a century of wind and rain, the tiles are broken, the walls are cracked, the red paint is peeling, and it's utterly dilapidated. A gate stands in front of the sloping wall, and beneath it squats prisoners in shackles. The two brothers carefully examined them; the good news was that their uncle wasn't there, and the bad news was also that their uncle wasn't there…

Su Lu touched the slip of paper in his sleeve and was about to walk towards the gatehouse when his second brother stopped him and whispered, "If you're going to use the back door, you have to use the back door."

“That makes sense.” Su Lu nodded and followed him around to Ya Hou Street.

Tea shops, restaurants, and even a bathhouse have opened here; it's even more bustling than Yaqian Street now...

The second brother was quite embarrassed; it seemed they had the same idea.

Su Lu gave a wry smile, went to the back gate of the county government office, and knocked on the door.

"Come in." A lazy, casual Sichuan voice sounded from inside.

Su Lu pushed open the door and saw a gatekeeper in his forties or fifties, leaning back in a rocking chair, dozing off. A charcoal brazier burned in the gatehouse, making it warm and cozy, a world apart from the outside.

"What's wrong?" the doorman asked, yawning repeatedly, his eyes bulging with dark circles.

"I am Su Lu, and I have an appointment with Mr. You today." Su Lu said, showing the film that You Muyou had given him.

The doorman reached out his chicken-claw-like hand, took a look, and saw that it really was You Muyou's film. He cursed his bad luck inwardly and said, "You wait here, I'll go in and ask."

Reluctantly, he got up and staggered out the door.

Strangely enough, the moment he passed through the back gate, his back suddenly straightened, his eyes brightened, and his steps quickened...

As if he had become a different person, he skipped and hopped to the small courtyard where You Muyou lived.

You Muyou was having breakfast with Zhu Liu and his nephew, with pageboys and maids serving them.

Even the gatekeepers couldn't go in; they only dared to quietly call the pageboy out from under the eaves.

The pageboy, wearing a net cap and a blue Taoist robe, asked expressionlessly, "What is it?"

"Brother Yan, there's a young man with a letter from Mr. You, saying he has an appointment with him. I don't know if it's true or not." The doorman handed over the letter with a smile.

"What did he say his name was?" The page took the document and looked at it.

“He said his name was Erlang Su Lu,” the doorman replied.

"Oh, it's him." The pageboy realized and hurried to the back door to greet him.

The doorman, seeing this, knew that this was You Muyou's very important guest, and couldn't help but secretly rejoice that he hadn't asked for a door fee...

The pageboy ran all the way to the back door, and seeing that it was indeed the prodigy Su, he laughed and said, "Why did you come in through the back door?"

Su Luxin thought to himself, "My second brother said that if you're going to use the back door, you should use the back door." He then smiled and said, "This is my first time in the county town. I don't know the rules. It's safer to use the back door."

"Be careful." The page boy gave a thumbs up and said, "Hurry up and come inside with me. If you come any later, Headmaster Zhu will be leaving."

"Okay." Su Lu replied and quickly followed the page boy through the back door to You Muyou's courtyard.

"Master, Master Zhu, Prodigy Su has arrived," the young page announced as he pushed open the door.

"Haha, young friend, come in and have a bite to eat." You Muyou greeted him with a smile, "Let's go see your headmaster off on his journey."

"Yes." Su Lu then put on a nonchalant smile and entered the small hall.

You Muyou and his nephew Zhu Liu were sitting around an eight-immortal table, and sure enough, they had left a seat for him.

You Muyou and Zhu Liu must have had a very good chat last night, as they seemed much closer. After Su Lu apologized and took his seat, the latter smiled at him and said, "This is my prized disciple, so I'm entrusting him to Brother Yunshan."

"Of course, Brother Dejia, please rest assured, I will treat Hongzhi as my own son," You Muyou hurriedly assured him. Because Zhu Liu planned to take his courtesy name only after passing the imperial examination, he still addressed him by his courtesy name.

"Hmph." Zhu Zihe snorted unhappily.

“Hongzhi, you should also regard Mr. You as your teacher. He is very learned and also studies the Book of Rites.” Zhu Liu said to Su Lu, “We talked all night last night and benefited a lot.”

"Yes." Su Lu quickly stood up and bowed deeply. "I will have to trouble you to guide me in the future."

"Haha, no problem at all." You Muyou laughed, "There are very few people who can teach our 'Book of Rites', so we must cultivate them carefully."

He was a legitimate tribute student, with an educational background even higher than that of Magistrate Lu...

"Alright, then I won't bother you any longer." Zhu Liu was just waiting to make a connection with Su Lu, and as soon as he was done, he immediately took his leave, saying, "I have to get to the capital before the end of January, so I must seize every minute!"

“Then we won’t keep Brother Dejia any longer.” You Muyou also stood up and said, “The carriage is ready. My friend and I will see Brother Dejia off.”

"Thank you..." Zhu Liu didn't stand on ceremony with him.

~~
At the dock outside the city gate, the three watched as a fast boat bearing a yellow flag that read "By Imperial Decree to Take the Examination" sailed into the Yangtze River and disappeared into the distance.

You Muyou smiled and asked Su Lu, "Young friend, is something on your mind?"

(End of this chapter)