Chapter 138: Chapter 76 Little Girl Tong_2
He looked up and faintly saw a ladder gleam with golden light in the void above him, gradually shattering into pieces, like a heavy coffin lid, crashing down upon his head.
"Master, master—"
Behind him came Zhao’s frightened cries.
Fan Zhenglian’s eyes rolled back, and he fainted away.
...
After a candidate from the Zigong Academy in Shengjing committed suicide by poisoning, news came one after another.
First, it was discovered that the Assistant Minister of Rites had secretly colluded with the families of the examination candidates, shamelessly cheating on their behalf within the Tribute Court, resulting in the Assistant Minister of Rites being imprisoned. Later on, even the famous "Fan Qingtian" of Shengjing was implicated.
It was said that "Fan Qingtian," the Examiner Official of the Trial Court, was the one who conspired with the Assistant Minister of Rites, amassing wealth for himself through the autumn exams.
Fan Zhenglian had a good reputation in Shengjing, and many refused to believe the news when it came out.
In the medical hall, Du Changqing was moving the sign from outside indoors. The sky was overcast, and rain was imminent.
He said, "That Fan Qingtian, an official in charge of the penal system, has even stretched his hand into the Tribute Court, quite skillful indeed." Then he turned to Lu Tong to inquire, "Didn’t you just go there before to deliver medicine to his wife? How did you not notice he was such a beast?"
Lu Tong said, "True integrity has no name, those who seek reputation are the greedy."
Du Changqing rolled his eyes: "I don’t understand."
He placed the wooden sign on the cabinet and glanced at the felt curtain inside the hall, then moved closer to Lu Tong, "Speaking of which, what exactly happened between you and Rongrong?"
Lu Tong followed his gaze and looked over, the felt curtain hanging between the courtyard and the interior remaining motionless. She pursed her lips and remained silent.
These days, Xia Rongrong was constantly avoiding Lu Tong.
When the medical hall was devoid of patients, Xia Rongrong used to do embroidery work in the shop and casually chat with Lu Tong. But recently, whenever Lu Tong sat in the hall, Xia Rongrong and her maid would often run out, and by the time they returned, it was already late, and they barely spoke to Lu Tong.
It was evident to anyone with eyes that she was avoiding Lu Tong, and even Du Changqing had taken notice.
"Did you two have a fight?" Du Changqing asked with suspicion, glancing at her, "That’s not right, with your temperament, you don’t seem like someone who would easily get into a quarrel."
As Yin Zheng passed between them, she nudged Du Changqing aside with a laugh, "Shopkeeper Du, there’s no need for you to inquire about the thoughts of a young lady like that, you wouldn’t understand anyway."
Du Changqing snorted, "I couldn’t care less to inquire." He called for Ah Cheng to leave, and before departing, he advised Lu Tong, "It’s likely to rain tonight, make sure the doors and windows are shut tight, beware of the herbs getting wet."
Lu Tong acknowledged, and after Du Changqing left, she closed the door of the medical hall and returned to the courtyard.
It was time to light the lamps, and in the autumn days, darkness fell early. Inside Xia Rongrong’s quarters, a light was burning, casting a dim yellow glow through the window cracks onto the stone-paved ground of the courtyard.
Lu Tong returned to her own room.
Yin Zheng was rummaging in the chest for clothing that Lu Tong would need for going out that night. Autumn in Shengjing arrived too early, and it seemed to cool down overnight. The autumn clothes were not ready yet, and the old clothes in the chest felt too thin.
Lu Tong stood in front of the small alter, lit some incense before the white porcelain image of Guanyin.
In the dimness, the burning incense appeared like the eyes of a specter in a graveyard, flickering on and off, and she placed the incense into the censer.
Yin Zheng finally found a hemp-colored cape, unfolded it against the light, and gave it a few shakes, then looked out at the pitch-dark sky, sighing deeply: "It’s about to rain again."
Lu Tong stared at the Guanyin statue, speaking softly, uncertain whether to herself or to someone else, "Is rain not good? Rain on the paulownia leaves at the third watch... I like rainy days best."
Yin Zheng was startled, but Lu Tong had already turned around, taking the cape from her hands.
"Let’s go."
...
The autumn rain was mournful at night.
Light mountain rain wove a dense net between heaven and earth, heavily enveloping the entire mountaintop.
At the foot of Mount Wangchun, someone was clad in a straw coat, trudging through the muddy mountain path, sinking one foot deep and lifting the other lightly.
The cold wind scraped across the face sharply, like a knife, and Liu Kun tightened the straw coat around him, his lips turning white from the cold air in the mountains.
He couldn’t understand how things had come to this.
His family had still been dreaming of "two successful candidates from the same home." But in just one night, their life had turned upside down.
In the final session of the examinations, a student at the Tribute Court committed suicide by poison, causing a huge commotion that drew the capital’s attention. It subsequently led to the scandal of collusion and cheating in examinations involving the Ministry of Rites and the candidates. All related individuals were arrested for questioning, including those high officials.
Liu Kun couldn’t grasp why the death of a lowly scholar could cause such a commotion or how it could result in so many people being taken down all at once.