Top Scholar

Chapter 404 Teamwork
Pang Shanzhang, leaning on his cane with one hand and supporting himself on his son's arm with the other, stepped into the hall.

"My last disciple has been arrested by the Embroidered Uniform Guard. How can I sleep?!" His Buddha-like face was covered with frost, turning him into an angry Vajra.

Prefect Lu quickly stood up and gave his seat to the old headmaster.

After the old mountain chief sat down, he said in a deep voice, "Your analysis until dawn is useless. You should hurry up and discuss how to save people."

"That's right. The most urgent task is to rescue Hongzhi!" Prefect Lu nodded upon hearing this and said solemnly to everyone:

"The top scholar is the pride of Luzhou and the leader of Luzhou's talents—only by saving him can Luzhou's literary fortunes flourish! If such a once-in-a-century genius is lost, the literary tradition of Luzhou may truly be destroyed!"

"Grandfather is right." The officials and gentry in the hall nodded in agreement, even the two patriarchs of the Li and Han families, who had never gotten along with Su Lu, wholeheartedly agreed.

"There won't be another person like Su Hongzhi in a hundred years, at least not in Luzhou, so we must protect him at all costs!"

"Alright, now that we've reached a consensus, let's pool our wisdom and resources, and contribute whatever connections and methods we have!" Prefect Lu said in a deep voice.
"I will naturally join forces with the three county magistrates and the commanders of the three guards to represent the civil and military officials of Luzhou in submitting a memorial to the court, detailing Hongzhi's achievements and loyalty, and requesting the Emperor and the court to discern the truth and not to wrong the innocent or destroy the pillars of our Luzhou that we are cultivating for the Ming Dynasty."

He paused for a moment and said, "Of course, the provincial level goes without saying. I will go to Chengdu as soon as I can and ask the provincial governor and the provincial judge to intercede for Hongzhi."

He then chuckled self-deprecatingly and said, "But as you all know, I have no classmates or mentors, so I can only rely on you all in the capital."

"I will write a letter to the Grand Secretary tonight," the old headmaster said proudly. "I have known him for decades. Even after I retired, we have never stopped corresponding. He has said countless bad things about others to me."

After a pause, the old abbot said quietly, "If he refuses to protect my mantle as his successor, I will publish his letter throughout the world and see where he puts his face then!"

"No, no..." Everyone thought to themselves that the old headmaster was really going all out, even using this killer move.

"Grand Secretary Yang is from our hometown. Over the years, you all must have shown him your respects with gifts of ice and charcoal on major holidays and birthdays, right?" Zhu Jie asked the heads of the families.

"Hehe..." Everyone laughed awkwardly, clearly no one was an exception. "Grand Secretary Yang is an honest official who never accepts gifts. We all delivered them to his hometown in Xindu. I'm afraid he doesn't even know who's who."

"Then let's go ask Old Master Yang!" Master Bai said decisively. "I'm going to Xindu tomorrow. Who will come with me?"

"I."

“I’ll go too,” Master Wang and Master Li replied.

"Prepare a gift for me, and I won't go to Xindu for now. I'll go to Ba County instead," Zhu Jie said. "I'll make a trip to Scholar Liu's residence."

"Of course," everyone nodded and said, "As your representative, you should also prepare a gift for us."

“I’ll go with you,” said Master Lei.

~~
The candlelight flickered in the hall as a group of officials and gentry from Luzhou sat around discussing matters, sorting out their usually hidden networks of connections, and revealing all their old friendships and acquaintances among high-ranking officials in the two capitals and among the censors and officials in charge of the imperial censors.

After brainstorming, everyone was assigned tasks and made separate contacts—some visiting each other to ask for help, some writing letters to plead their case, and some asking others to intervene—in order to make a big splash and create enough momentum so that Liu Jin would be hesitant to take action against Su Jieyuan.

"Gentlemen, our vision must not be limited to the two capitals!" the old abbot reminded everyone.

"We still need to find a way to contact the provinces! As long as we hold fast to one point—Liu Jin's literary inquisition and framing of Su Jieyuan today endangers the very foundation of scholars across the land!"

The old abbot emphasized, "Which scholar in the world doesn't have poetry and prose? If we allow Liu Jin to use a few words to fabricate charges and frame the innocent, who can guarantee they won't be harmed by the powerful eunuch tomorrow because of a single word? At that time, everyone will be in danger, and every little thing will lead to trouble! It will be a disgrace to scholarship and a catastrophe for all scholars!"

"Brilliant! Indeed, experience is the best teacher!" Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions brightened, as if the heavy weight on their hearts had suddenly lifted. They couldn't help but clap their hands in praise, "The old abbot's words have awakened us from our slumber! Indeed, this principle, once revealed, will surely stir the hearts of scholars throughout the land, and unite them in overcoming this crisis in the literary world!"

"Then let's do as the old headmaster said. In all thirteen provincial administrations, wherever there are academies and scholars, we should try our best to contact them and let all the scholars in each province know that this is not just Su Jieyuan's injustice, but a calamity for the entire scholar community! If we swallow our anger today, tomorrow the scholars of the world will only be able to look at each other with disdain and burn their books!"

So the group redistributed tasks, with each person assigned to one or two provinces with connections, to write letters to relatives, friends, and colleagues in those provinces, asking them to help create momentum...

Such events that hit the nail on the head only need to create momentum, and they can escalate and spread like wildfire without any further fanning of the flames!

~~
The group discussed the matter until midnight before finalizing their plan. They then took their leave of the prefectural office and set off separately the next day.

Prefect Lu gave Su Youcai a look, signaling him to wait. After everyone had left, he asked in a low voice, "Brother, are you going to Chengdu tomorrow too?"

"Yes." Su Youcai nodded.

"Whom did you see?" Prefect Lu pressed.

“His Highness the Prince of Shu and Governor Du are quite fond of Hongzhi. I had no choice but to swallow my pride and come to him for help,” Su Youcai replied truthfully.

"Let's go and plead with Eunuch Wei again. Eunuchs know best about matters concerning eunuchs, and they're the ones who can best help," Prefect Lu said softly.
“I will also ask him for help, but you’ve gone all over Chengdu seeking Buddhist guidance, yet you haven’t even paid a visit to him. Eunuch Wei will definitely feel embarrassed, so why would he be willing to help?” Fearing Su Youcai might be resistant, he added, “We can’t condemn all eunuchs; they are human too, with distinctions of loyalty and treachery, good and evil. Eunuch Wei is a decent man; at least he does his job after taking the money. If he agrees to say a few words for Hongzhi, he will definitely relay the message to the rightful owner.”

"Don't worry, my ancestor. I'm willing to ask anyone to help Hongzhi." Su Youcai nodded emphatically. "When I get to Chengdu, I will definitely try to pay my respects to that Eunuch Wei."

“Just say you are Su Jieyuan’s father, and he will naturally see you.” Lu Zhaoye lowered his voice and said, “The salt and copper trade was proposed by Hongzhi, and Eunuch Wei still has high hopes for it.”

"Is that so..." Su Youcai couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement. He never knew his son was so capable and successful until something happened.

~~
The next morning, Su Youcai and Su Man rode their horses to the provincial capital.

They changed horses but not riders along the way, and arrived in Chengdu in two and a half days.

Upon seeing his second brother and his entourage appear at the entrance of the prefectural government office, Su Youma exclaimed in surprise, "They've arrived so quickly! I rushed here as fast as I could, and I've only been here for half a day."

“We didn’t waste any time, we just stayed overnight in Luzhou.” Su Youcai slowly dismounted.

Su Youma quickly helped his second brother up: "How's your back?"

"It's alright." Su Youcai patted his waist, making a thumping sound, and said, "I tied on the wide belt that Xia Ge'er used to lift stones. It not only protects his waist, but it's also quite warm."

"That's good," Su Youma laughed. "I was just worried about your back."

"Don't worry about me. How are things on your end? Have you managed to get an audience with the Prince and Governor Du?" Su Youcai asked impatiently.

"We've been granted an audience. And they've already given us a reply, saying we can come anytime." Su Youma nodded, and couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement, "Hongzhi has quite the connections; I didn't even get such a smooth experience when I asked to see a county magistrate."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Su Youcai turned around to mount his horse again, but Su Youma stopped him, saying, "You should at least wash up and change your clothes, otherwise it will be too impolite."

"..." Su Youcai then realized that he was disheveled and travel-worn, and could not possibly meet the prince like this. So he nodded and said, "Alright."

~~
After washing themselves clean and changing into clean robes, the uncle and nephew followed Su Youma to the Shu Prince's Mansion.

"Oh, you've finally arrived." Eunuch Qi was waiting at the palace gate. When he saw three handsome men—one tall, one middle-aged, and one old—who looked similar to Su Lu, he knew that the people he was waiting for had arrived. "If you hadn't come soon, I would have had to go to the government office to ask you to come."

Eunuch Qi was all smiles, even more enthusiastic than he had been towards Su Lu last time.

"Please forgive me, Your Highness," Su Youma quickly clasped his hands in apology, and slipped a gold ingot into Eunuch Qi's sleeve. "I was about to leave when my second brother and nephew arrived. Could I trouble Your Highness a couple more times? So I was delayed for a while, waiting for them to come together."

"No need to be so polite with us," Eunuch Qi said, leading the three of them inside while stuffing the gold ingot back into Su Youma's hand. He added sternly, "Remember, Su Jieyuan is the Prince's savior and also our family's great benefactor! If we accept your family's money, we will suffer retribution."

"Huh?" The three members of the Su family were stunned. They had never heard of Su Lu saving the prince.
"What? Didn't Su Jieyuan tell you?" Eunuch Qi asked in surprise.

“We definitely didn’t say that.” All three shook their heads.

"Oh my, how can there still be such good people in the world? They bestow kindness without expecting anything in return, and do good deeds without seeking recognition." Eunuch Qi was so moved that tears almost welled up in his eyes, and he asked again:

"By the way, why isn't Su Jieyuan here?"

"He's been arrested," Su Youcai said in a low voice.

"Ah?!" Eunuch Qi covered his mouth in shock, no longer daring to linger. "Quickly, come with me to see the Prince."

~~
The Songyun Pavilion was still the same quiet place, but this time the intermittent coughing was no longer heard.

His Highness the King of Shu actually stood under the corridor to greet the guests, and the three of them hurriedly bowed deeply in respect.

"No need for formalities!" Zhu Binhan looked much better than before, and his face had regained some color. When he saw the three members of the Su family, he laughed heartily and said, "What a family of handsome men! But where is my benefactor?"

His Highness the King of Shu spoke with renewed vigor, his voice no longer weak.

"Your Highness!" Eunuch Qi cried anxiously, "The top scholar has been arrested!"

"Oh?" His Highness the King of Shu's expression darkened, but he wasn't too surprised.

P.S. I'll read the next chapter tomorrow morning...

(End of this chapter)