Top Scholar

Chapter 391 The Coward's Game

Outside the main building of the west courtyard of the top scholar's residence, two Imperial Guards, carrying embroidered spring knives, stood on high alert.

The candlelight flickered behind them, casting shadows of Qian Ning and Su Lu indistinctly.

Hearing Su Lu's words, Qian Ning also laughed and said, "That depends on how well you write your article. If it satisfies Eunuch Liu, he might just name you the top scholar."

"Hehe..." Su Lu was amused.

"What does 'hehe' mean?" Qian Ning frowned.

"It doesn't mean anything," Su Lu said.

"What do you mean by 'it's meaningless'?" Qian Ning asked. "Just tell me whether you're going to write it or not."

“I won’t write it.” Su Lu said calmly, “I can’t speak for my teacher. His meaning can only be determined by his own expression.”

"You don't need to worry about so much, just write it as I say, and everything will be fine once you're done!" Qian Ning said, sounding annoyed from working too long overtime, as he heard the third watch drum sound outside.
"Like I said, once you've finished writing, you can go to your bridal chamber and we'll go back. You don't need to worry about the rest."

“I am responsible for my own words. I must take full responsibility for every word I write, and I will bear all the consequences.” Su Lu said matter-of-factly, “How can I not worry about it?”

"You're so young, don't try to be like those intellectuals!" Qian Ning said in a muffled voice.

“Those scholars are my teachers and predecessors. If I don’t learn from them, who should I learn from?” Su Lu retorted.

"You!" Qian Ning slammed his fist on the table, saying each word slowly and deliberately, "Don't be so stubborn! If you're really sent to the capital as a wanted criminal, you'll regret it, you know?"

“I’ll give you the time it takes for an incense stick to burn to consider…” Qian Ning said again.

"No need. Even if I think about it for three days and three nights, I won't write a single word." Su Lu's expression was calm and fearless.

"Have you thought this through? If you don't write it down, you'll never have the chance to consummate your marriage with Miss Huang in this lifetime," Qian Ning said through gritted teeth.

"We've already gone through the proper betrothal and wedding ceremonies, and we've finally become husband and wife," Su Lu said calmly. "If we can't consummate our marriage for this reason, I believe she'll understand."

"As for being sent to the capital in a cage and imprisoned by the emperor, that's not unusual these days," he paused, then continued, "who told me to be born in such an era?"

"Are you going to remain stubborn?!" Qian Ning stared coldly at Su Lu.

"It's simply a matter of putting knowledge into practice," Su Lu said calmly.

"Then don't blame me for being ruthless!" After a moment of staring at each other, Qian Ning suddenly turned fierce and overturned the table.

Su Lu remained expressionless, without even blinking.

"Very well, I underestimated you. I didn't expect you to be such a hero!" Qian Ning suddenly reached out and caught the candle in mid-air.

He used his strength with exquisite precision to stabilize the nearly extinguished candle flame, and then placed the candle into Su Lu's hand.

"Come again next time, and I'll treat you like a hero!" With that, Qian Ning slammed the door and left.

"Let's go!" Qian Ning whispered to his men outside the door.

Two Imperial Guards followed behind him, and two others left the east wing and returned to their original formation.

~~
A large crowd gathered outside the west gate, with guests anxiously awaiting the results.

They waited until the third watch of the night before the courtyard gate was suddenly pushed open, and Qian Ning led four of his men out with dark faces.

But Su Taisu Lu was nowhere to be seen...

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief; at least they hadn't taken the person away on the spot.

"Tonight is our wedding night, so I won't disturb you any longer," Qian Ning said, cupping his hands in greeting to the Su family. "We'll come back another day to discuss this further."

"..." Everyone held their breath again. Was it not over yet?

"Godfather, are we just leaving like this?" A member of the Imperial Guard said reluctantly as they reached the entrance of the Jieyuan Mansion.

“Yes, Godfather, we’ve never come back empty-handed.” Another person agreed wholeheartedly.

"Otherwise what?" Qian Ning pushed open the gate of Jieyuandi's courtyard with a dark face.

The group of Imperial Guards were immediately stunned by the sight before them. Torches lit up the sky outside the gate, and the street was packed with people, making it completely blocked.

"Make way, this is the Embroidered Uniform Guard on duty!" one of the Embroidered Uniform Guards shouted, and the crowd slowly parted to make way.

The five of them bravely stepped into the silent sea of ​​people, bracing themselves against the hostile gazes they were met with.

Their hair stood on end, their muscles tensed, and their hearts were in their throats... If they were suddenly attacked, even the most skilled martial artist would be crushed into mincemeat.

Fortunately, they came empty-handed, which did not provoke an excessive reaction from the people of Hejiang.

Having escaped Jieyuandi Street unscathed and away from the crowds, the five of them breathed a sigh of relief, only to find their backs soaked with sweat. Only by experiencing it firsthand can one truly grasp the terror of walking through a hostile crowd in the dead of night…

"If we brought Jieyuanlang with us, would we even be able to get out of this street tonight?" Qian Ning snorted. "We failed to fool that Su guy, and now we're going to get ourselves involved too?"

"That won't do." The Imperial Guards all shook their heads. They were already working hard enough on their business trips; there was no need to risk their lives on top of that.

"Godfather, shall we just go back like this?" a bearded guard asked. "What a joke," Qian Ning shook his head decisively, "I returned empty-handed last time. If I go back empty-handed again this time, who knows what those snobbish people who are jealous of my sudden rise to power will say about me."

"Let them talk. As long as the Emperor and Eunuch Liu think our godfather is good, everything will be fine, right?" said a Jinyiwei guard with a hooked nose.

"Foolish! The snobbish people I'm talking about are my hundreds of sworn brothers—I became a son of the Emperor the latest, yet I rose above them. Wouldn't they be jealous and find fault with me to pull me down and replace me?" Qian Ning said dejectedly.

"This time, it was all their doing that Eunuch Liu sent me to Guizhou. They sent me away for a few months so that Father Emperor would forget about me. If I mess up the mission again, I can forget about ever seeing Father Emperor again when I get back..."

She choked up as she spoke, saying, "Father, they are not truly filial to you. You must not let them bewitch you."

“Our godfather is truly filial…” The imperial grandsons also joined in the sorrow.

"Therefore, I must complete this task to Eunuch Liu's satisfaction. Only when Eunuch Liu is satisfied can I see my father again!" Qian Ning clenched his fists heavily and said in a deep voice, "I still have a trump card to use. I'll go back and make full preparations first, and come back another day!"

"Yes," the group of Imperial Guards replied in unison.

~~
The West Courtyard of the Top Scholar.

As soon as Qian Ning left, Su Lu rushed out of the room and headed towards the room where his second brother was being held.

He pushed open the door abruptly and heard whistling sounds coming from inside. He saw his second brother tightly bound to a beam with leather rope, his mouth stuffed with a piece of cloth.

Su Lu quickly stepped forward and pulled the cloth out of his second brother's mouth, then went behind him to untie the rope.

"Second brother, are you okay?"

"It's nothing," Su Tai said dejectedly. "As soon as I came in, they held a knife to my neck, tied me up, and gagged me."

"We didn't interrogate you?" Su Lu asked in a low voice.

"No, they just gagged me!" Su Tai said in a muffled voice, "like they were afraid I'd say something wrong."

“That’s right.” Su Lu smiled knowingly, “It seems that what we were most worried about will not happen.”

He lowered his voice and said, "This time, we're caught in a dilemma. Qian Ning doesn't want this to be exposed, probably because he's afraid you'll talk nonsense, so he just gagged you."

"Huh? And then?" Sutai asked, his eyes wide.

"Then he tried to bluff me, but I didn't fall for it, and he left first." Hearing shouts and footsteps outside, Su Lu said succinctly, "In short, forget about the Simian Mountain incident from now on, just pretend it never happened."

"So Qian Ning's target isn't me?" Su Tai shook off the ropes binding him and stretched his upper limbs.

“That’s right, the person he’s looking for is me.” Su Lu nodded.

As the two brothers spoke, they walked to the door and said to the crowd outside who were searching for them room by room, "We're here."

"Oh dear, sons, are you alright?" Su Youcai was the first to rush over upon hearing the sound, grabbing one of his sons' arms with each hand and carefully examining him from head to toe.

"Father, it's alright, we didn't suffer any harm," Su Lu hurriedly said.

At this point, others gathered around and started asking questions with great concern.

After they finished asking their questions, Su Lu replied in unison, "The Embroidered Uniform Guard came here because of Mr. Yangming. They want to use my family's happy occasion tonight to coerce me into writing a letter that smears Mr. Yangming."

"Outrageous! The eunuch faction actually forced a scholar to submit at a wedding; they are worse than beasts, showing no regard for propriety or law!"

"This is utterly depraved! Unable to find any fault with Master Yangming, they're forcing the top scholar to slander him—they're shameless to the extreme!"

"One should not, at the very least, humiliate the integrity of scholars in this way!"

The guests erupted in uproar upon hearing this, their previously suppressed anger bursting forth. Some cursed loudly, some rolled up their sleeves and glared angrily, and some shook their heads and sighed, repeatedly denouncing the eunuch faction for being inhuman.

The students of Longgang Academy were filled with righteous indignation, shouting and yelling, their eyes blazing with fury: "The eunuch has persecuted our master and senior brother, we are sworn enemies with him!"

"Senior Brother, do not be afraid! We swear to fight alongside you to the death against tyranny!"

"Damn it! Do they really think Sichuan is devoid of talent?"

Amidst the uproar, Xiao Tixue's expression was grave. He asked Su Lu in a deep voice, "Hongzhi, the Embroidered Uniform Guard is ruthless and vicious. They must be confident in their abilities before they act. You...you didn't agree to their demands, did you?"

"..." Upon hearing this, everyone paused, and looked at Su Lu with concern.

"Rest assured, sir, a scholar can be killed but not humiliated!" Su Lu straightened his chest and said resolutely, "I, Su Lu, would rather die than write a single word for them!"

"it is good!"

"Well said!" The crowd cheered, giving him a thumbs up: "This is a true scholar! A role model for Sichuan scholars!"

After the cheers subsided, some of Su Lu's worried relatives and friends whispered a reminder to him: "The Embroidered Uniform Guards are ruthless and unscrupulous. I'm afraid they won't let this go so easily, and they will inevitably cause you trouble later..."

"It's alright!" Su Lu said without fear, "Even if they come a hundred times, a thousand times, they won't make me write a single word!"

Having said that, he raised his head high and, with a voice as clear as metal and stone, recited a poem entitled "Bamboo and Rock":
"Clinging firmly to the green hills, its roots firmly planted in the broken rocks."

"Though battered and bruised a thousand times, it remains firm and strong, letting the winds from east, west, north, and south blow as they may!"

(End of this chapter)