Top Scholar

Chapter 418 The Paperhanger of the Ming Dynasty

Outside Di'anmen, in Mao'er Hutong, the courtyard walls are over ten feet high, with imposing battlements and overgrown thorns, effectively isolating the inside from the outside.

The streets are deserted of pedestrians and shops, devoid of any signs of daily life, and desolate and bleak all year round.

This is because the notorious imperial prison, which inspired fear in all who heard of it, was located here. Beneath the white plaque with the black characters "Northern Garrison Command," a pair of stone lions bared their teeth and claws.

Beside the stone lion, the heavy iron gate remained tightly shut all day long. In front of the gate, a captain wearing a flying fish robe and an embroidered spring knife hung at his waist, staring indifferently at the few people who dared to stop in front of the yamen.

Around noon, the cold wind that had been howling for days finally stopped.

With a creak, the heavy gate of the Northern Garrison Command slowly opened, and a voice hissed, "Get out."

Liu Ying and Liu Bing finally stepped out of the imperial prison.

The days of imprisonment had left the two men pale and weak, their legs unsteady, each step feeling like walking on cotton, their faces still bearing the dazed look of having survived a disaster.

"master!"

"Your Excellency!" The two men's attendants and subordinates rushed forward to drape overcoats and put fur hats on them.

"How did you get the news?" The two Lord Lius, wrapped in fur coats, finally calmed down a bit.

"It was the Grand Secretary who sent someone to summon us," said Liu Bing's subordinate. "He even sent a sedan chair to pick you two up."

As they spoke, the sedan chair bearers carried over two blue sedan chairs. A young man in his twenties, dressed as a student of the Imperial Academy, bowed to the two Lius and said, "You two gentlemen have been frightened. My father has prepared some simple wine at my humble abode to help you calm your nerves."

"Thank you." The two Lius could not refuse, so they got into their sedan chairs and headed to Li Dongyang's residence.

~~
Two official sedan chairs arrived at Li Gelao Hutong in the west of Shichahai, where Li Dongyang moved after becoming a Grand Secretary.

However, the place name did not originate from him, but from the previous Grand Secretary Li, Li Xian, who served as the chief minister during the reign of Emperor Yingzong. In fact, the official residence bestowed upon Li Dongyang by the late emperor was Li Xian's former residence.

Two prime ministers have lived here, one of whom is still in office. One would think that the place would be bustling with visitors, but there are hardly any cars or people coming and going. It seems like no one ever comes to visit...

For the Grand Secretary to invite someone to dinner, he has to send a sedan chair to pick them up directly. Grand Secretary Li's status is truly unique.

The Imperial Guards at the gate opened the main gate and let two sedan chairs into the sedan chair hall.

The two officials, surnamed Liu, had already tidied themselves up in the sedan chair and changed into respectable robes. After getting out of the sedan chair, they followed Li Dongyang's stepson into the living room, where they saw the Grand Secretary already waiting there.

The two quickly bowed deeply to express their gratitude to the Grand Secretary for saving them.

"You two are too kind," Li Dongyang said, rising to greet them with a calm expression. "This is simply my duty. It is you two who have suffered this undeserved misfortune, which is truly distressing."

"It's alright, I didn't suffer much, it's just that they wouldn't let me sleep." Liu Ying said with a wry smile, "They suddenly stopped last night, and I slept on the table until this afternoon."

"My experience was exactly the same," Liu Bing said. "I just realized that when people are extremely tired, they can fall asleep sitting up."

"You two have suffered," Li Dongyang said, offering a few words of comfort. He then gestured for them, saying, "You haven't eaten yet, have you? Let's have some hot pot and chat while we eat."

"We're really hungry." The two Lius, having already arrived, decided to make the best of it and greeted each other with a smile and clasped hands, saying, "We've troubled you, Elder Yuan."

~~
The three adults then moved to the flower hall and started enjoying a traditional Beijing copper hot pot. The red and white lamb brains paired with chive and sesame sauce were absolutely authentic!
The two Lord Lius each finished three large plates of hot pot mutton, and finally their weakness subsided, and they had the strength to speak again.

The two raised their glasses of strong liquor and toasted Li Dongyang again, this time with even greater sincerity.

Setting down his wine cup, Liu Ying asked, "Master Yuan, what's the current situation with Supervisor Xiao?"

“The Embroidered Uniform Guard has evidence of his involvement in the case, and it will take some time to investigate. However, the torture has been suspended and he is receiving proper medical treatment.” Li Dongyang took a bite of cabbage and thought to himself, “Let’s take it one step at a time.”

"Alas, if this case is allowed to implicate others, who knows how many innocent people will be implicated?" Liu Bing sighed as he took a sip of his wine. "Moreover, it sets a bad precedent for literary inquisitions, and the social atmosphere will become even more corrupt in the future."

Li Dongyang then slowly said, "Liu Jin has softened his stance and agreed not to expand the scope of the repercussions. But the condition is that no one among the civil officials jumps out to make trouble again."

"..." The two Lius exchanged a glance, both feeling it was a difficult situation. Those people had already set up the stage and hired the performers; the show was about to begin, how could they possibly not put on a show?

"If we really want to settle this, we have to release both Xiao, the provincial education commissioner, and Su, the provincial education commissioner," Liu Ying said. "Especially Su Hongzhi, he's a huge powder keg right now, one spark and... bang!"

“I think he’s pathetic,” Liu Bing said quietly, “He was completely used as a pawn…”

“Indeed,” Liu Ying agreed. “I know Su Hongzhi fairly well. That kid will just say what he wants to say directly. He won’t try to be clever or play word games.”

"Yes," Liu Bing nodded, and recited:
"The vast sorrow of parting lingers as the sun sets; my whip points east, and the horizon stretches before me."

Fallen petals are not heartless things; they turn into spring mud to nourish the flowers!

Having said that, he asserted, "With his poetic talent, wouldn't it have been better for him to directly write a poem criticizing Liu Jin? Why bother with such subtle and veiled criticism in his examination essay? Wouldn't it be embarrassing if no one understood it?"

“That child still needs to be escorted to the capital for trial.” Li Dongyang nodded slightly and said in a solemn tone, “In fact, Eunuch Liu also knows that the child has been used, but that’s precisely why he won’t let him go easily.”

"It seems Liu Jin is also going to use him as bait," Liu Ying said clearly, "to see who will jump out and attack us under the guise of saving him."

“That’s exactly it.” Liu Bing agreed wholeheartedly. “Liu Jin’s list of treacherous officials is about to be released for the second time. I’m afraid there will be even more people this time, and the local areas will also be affected.”

"Master Yuan, what's the cabinet's attitude?" Liu Ying asked. "..." Li Dongyang was quite embarrassed. The cabinet was too busy arguing; what attitude did they have?

He sighed softly and said, “As you know, I have always opposed reckless actions, and for that I have been criticized. But I still hold the same attitude—between empty fame and real disaster, I would rather give up empty fame and avoid real disaster. But I am not avoiding disaster for myself, but to save the Ming Dynasty, its people, and its officials from disaster.”

In the past, the two Lius would have scoffed at his words, but now that they had avoided trouble because of the Grand Secretary, they could only nod silently.

"Therefore, my personal opinion is to do everything I can to resolve this case, ideally minimizing its severity and preventing a repeat of last year's tragedy." Li Dongyang sighed again.

"As for that child Su Lu, to be honest, he and I have a very close relationship. Although I have never met him, his teacher was my student, so he is my grand-disciple..."

“Indeed.” The two Lius nodded. Wang Shouren was a Jinshi in the twelfth year of the Hongzhi reign, and the chief examiner for that examination was Li Dongyang.

Moreover, Li Dongyang had watched Wang Shouren grow up and had always believed he was destined to be the top scholar. Unfortunately, that year a cheating scandal broke out in the imperial examinations, and to avoid suspicion, he was given a lower title.

With this sense of guilt, the relationship between master and disciple was naturally extraordinary. Otherwise, Li Dongyang wouldn't have risked his reputation to plead with Liu Jin to save his disciple.

That's why Wang Shouren sought help from Li Dongyang immediately after Su Lu's accident.

Moreover, Li Dongyang hadn't told the two Lius about his relationship with Headmaster Pang yet, and that old man had threatened to release his 'private chat records' to make sure he saved Su Lu.

"Since he is my junior, I have no reason to abandon him. Once he is escorted to the capital, I will act accordingly and find a way to ensure his safety. You can rest assured," Li Dongyang said, emphasizing his words.
"And those people, I will also negotiate with them. I will not let even a disciple be left behind."

"That's good..." The two Lius were relieved, knowing that the other party's own grand-disciple would definitely do his best.

"But this case has already blown up, and it won't be easy to resolve it peacefully." Li Dongyang changed the subject, his face showing worry.
"It concerns Eunuch Liu's authority, so he won't easily back down. If those people cause too much trouble, the situation could escalate further. Anyway, I'll do my best to mediate between the two sides and try to avoid the worst-case scenario."

"It wasn't easy for Yuan Weng," Liu Ying sighed.

“Yes,” Liu Bing nodded, “It’s too difficult to reconcile yin and yang, especially since the two sides are like fire and water.”

"I'm like a donkey in a mill—suffering from both ends." Li Dongyang gave a bitter smile, but he was still comforted, at least two more people understood him.

"Come on, let's continue with the hot pot..." he called to the two of them.

~~
After finishing their hot pot meal, the three of them went back to the front hall for tea, where the atmosphere became even more harmonious.

Li Dongyang said to the two Lius, "Now that you are safe and sound, you will still have important responsibilities to shoulder next."

“Brother Tieke,” he said, glancing at Liu Ying, “I’m taking this opportunity to seek a better life for the people of my hometown… I request that you be appointed as the Governor of Huguang.”

Liu Jin's new policies only abolished eleven governorships; some crucial positions were retained.

“Brother Wen Huan,” Li Dongyang said to Liu Bing, “How about your promotion to Right Provincial Administration Commissioner of Fujian? If neither of you has any objections, you can go to the Ministry of Personnel to process your official documents at any time.”

This was naturally a good arrangement for the two Lius, allowing them to escape the vortex of the imperial court.

The two hesitated for a moment, and Liu Ying asked, "That guy surnamed Jiao kept dragging his feet on the appointment, hoping we'd bribe him. Why did he give him the position so readily now?"

"What is the price?" Liu Bing asked softly, this matter needed to be clarified.

"..." Li Dongyang pondered for a moment, then dipped his finger in tea and wrote the two characters 'Huiyuan' on the table.

The two immediately understood and felt extremely uncomfortable.

"The talent selection ceremony is the foundation of the nation; how can it be tarnished?" Liu Bing frowned and said, "Under such circumstances, I really don't want to continue working here."

“Yes, although the top scholar in the provincial examination is not as prestigious as the top scholar in the imperial examination, it is still an honor that all scholars in the world dream of. How can it be exchanged?” Liu Ying also could not accept it.

"This is actually the condition for Jiao Fang to mediate and make peace. Your official positions are just compensation for his failure to rescue Xiao Tixue," Li Dongyang said quietly.

"Uh..." The two looked at the fading words on the table and remained silent.

What's more disgusting than finding a fly in your food is finding half of one...

"Both of you are high-ranking provincial officials, responsible for governing entire regions. You shouldn't be like those young, upright officials, only concerned with protecting your own reputations," Li Dongyang earnestly advised.

“The more turbulent the country is, the more we should step forward and do our best to remedy the situation. Now, more and more people in the court are turning to Liu Jin. If you two abandon your posts, the provinces of Huguang and Fujian will fall into the hands of the eunuch faction, and millions of people will suffer.”

"..." Upon hearing this, the two lowered their heads and remained silent.

"To be frank, under the exploitation of the eunuch faction, there are signs of instability in various provinces. Once they encounter floods, droughts, or locust plagues, it will inevitably lead to great chaos," Li Dongyang said, emphasizing his point.
"With you two taking office, the people of two provinces will be protected from the scourge of eunuchs. I can then focus my efforts on other provinces, doing my best to eliminate potential threats and reduce the suffering of the people..."

After saying that, he stood up and bowed deeply, saying, "I'm begging you!"

"Alas..." The two hurriedly returned the greeting and sighed, "Since Master Yuan has said so, we have no choice but to obey."

"For the sake of the country and its people, let's all do our best," Li Dongyang said emotionally.

"Yes, sir." The two Lord Lius nodded emphatically.

(End of this chapter)