Damn that Xu Erniang, it must be his fault. Otherwise, Second Uncle who cares for me so much wouldn’t make me drink this vile thing… Xu Qi’an put down his bowl, wiped away the tears that had been squeezed out, and looked at Xu Xinnian with a smile on his face but curses in his heart.
It’s all Big Brother’s fault. If he hadn’t come up with that bad idea and insisted I bring back green tangerines for Lingyin to eat, how could I, Xu Xinnian, have lifted a stone to drop on my own foot… Xu Xinnian secretly frowned, cursing his elder brother a hundred times in his heart.
The brothers lowered their heads to eat, trying to fill their stomachs churning with sour soup.
“Look at that, the brothers have perked up instantly. Their appetites have improved tremendously,” Uncle Xu piled on, laughing heartily.
Xu Qi’an and Xu Xinnian ignored this middle-aged man who appeared honest on the outside but was actually full of tricks.
After the urge to vomit was suppressed by food, Xu Xinnian slowly exhaled and slowed down his eating pace.
“Cixiu, Big Brother has a question to ask you.”
Considering that the friendship between him and his younger brother was in a precarious state, Xu Qi’an chose his words very carefully.
“What is it?”
Xu Xinnian looked just like his mother, arrogantly lifting his chin. Seeming to remember something, he added: “I won’t do anything unreasonable.”
For example, asking where Big Brother’s Diaochan was.
Xu Qi’an had long forgotten about this trivial matter, because Fuixang was very satisfied with his stamina, so Xu Baipiaoer was very confident in his abilities and gradually put this sudden creative idea out of his mind.
“You’ve read through historical records. Do you know if Emperor Yuanjing ever deposed an empress?” Xu Qi’an asked.
“Hey!” Xu Pingzhi’s chopsticks hit the bowl rim with a crisp ding, admonishing: “Even though we’re at home, you should still respectfully address him as His Majesty. Make it a habit to avoid slipping up outside and causing trouble.”
Yuanjing was the era name.
Using an era name to refer to the emperor was highly disrespectful, just like how many people in the jianghu liked to call Wei Yuan by the name Wei Qingyi.
“Emperor Yuanjing deposing the empress? Yes, I know about that. It was said to have caused quite a stir at the time,” said Xu Erniang.
“Hey, you…” Uncle Xu looked at his son.
But nephew and son tacitly ignored him and continued their conversation.
“Why did he want to depose her?”
“I don’t know. It’s not written in the historical records, but it caused quite an uproar at the time. All the civil and military officials were remonstrating to the death. The censors and remonstrance officials were jumping up and down, almost wanting to climb on Emperor Yuanjing’s head to defecate and urinate, just to show off their literary fame,” Xu Xinnian picked up some food with his chopsticks and said while eating:
“In the end, they persuaded him against it through their remonstrances. Although the empress wasn’t deposed, she was banished to the Cold Palace and only came out in the 14th year of Yuanjing.”
Usually, every word and action of the emperor, and the emperor’s behavior in court, would be recorded by court historians.
Regarding Emperor Yuanjing’s cultivation of Taoism, in the first few years, the historians’ records were: The Emperor cultivates Taoism, neglecting state affairs!
Emperor Yuanjing was furious when he saw this and demanded the historians revise it. The historians were willing to die rather than yield, not afraid of being “404ed”. However, after three consecutive court beatings and one dismissal, the historians humiliatingly bent their knees and changed it to:
The Emperor cultivates Taoism, yet state affairs are not neglected.
However, years later, when posterity revises this part of history, Emperor Yuanjing will likely be restored to his original image, or even be vilified.
“So how did she get released later?”
Xu Qi’an hadn’t dared to ask Huaiqing more at the time, after all, it was an unpleasant experience for her parents. But then again, whose parents haven’t considered divorce before?
“That year, Wei Yuan greatly defeated the northern barbarians and returned triumphantly. Emperor Yuanjing granted a general amnesty, and the empress was pardoned as well,” Xu Xinnian said.
I was wondering why the 13th year of Yuanjing sounded so familiar. So it was when Wei Yuan became famous throughout the land… Sorry, Lord Wei, I didn’t mean to disrespect you.
So it was the year Wei Yuan first showed his outstanding talent. On the way to Yunzhou, Number Four had mentioned that in the 13th year of Yuanjing, after the autumn harvest, Wei Yuan was entrusted with a critical mission. He went north to lead the army and defeated the northern barbarians’ cavalry in just a month and a half.
No wonder Huaiqing became Wei Yuan’s disciple. It turns out the empress also owed Wei Yuan a debt of gratitude… Xu Qi’an suddenly realized.
Although he hadn’t figured out the reason for deposing the empress, it wasn’t a fruitless inquiry.
At least Detective Xu Baipiaoer could deduce from this that even if the empress had made a mistake, it wasn’t a major one. Otherwise, Emperor Yuanjing wouldn’t have taken the opportunity to pardon her.
“Ningyan, if you have time after lunch, why don’t you go pick up Lingyin?”
Aunt maintained an attitude of being at odds with her unfortunate nephew, but she was quite blunt when it came to ordering people around.
There were only two or three books for enlightening young children, not enough to study for a whole day. Moreover, given children’s naturally mischievous nature, confining them to a classroom all day might not be beneficial.
So classes usually ended at the first quarter after noon (12:15 PM).
“Why doesn’t Cixiu go?” Xu Qi’an tried to dodge.
“Cixiu needs to study in the study room this afternoon,” Aunt said displeased, “I ask you to do one little thing and you make all sorts of excuses.”
Xu Qi’an glanced at her sideways: “Aunt, give me back all the silk fabrics.”
Aunt squeezed out a beautiful smile: “Oh Ningyan, we’re family, let’s not talk like strangers. Come, eat up. Let Aunt put some chicken on your plate.”
Ever since Xu Qi’an got promoted and made money, even buying a new residence, Aunt couldn’t hold her head high in front of him anymore. She couldn’t even speak with confidence.
After asking for the address, Xu Qi’an added: “Lingyu, why don’t you come with me? It’s a good chance to take you sisters for a stroll in the inner city. We can buy some jewelry and such.”
Hearing this, Aunt said: “Ningyan, why don’t I come along too?”
You just want to swindle money from me, don’t you… Xu Qi’an scrutinized Aunt’s beautiful face with a questioning gaze, “Sure, but we won’t be buying jewelry then.”
This stingy brat… Aunt’s face hardened, “Never mind then.”
“Second Uncle, look, Aunt just wants to take advantage of me. Poor me, I haven’t even taken a wife yet. I need to save money to get married,” Xu Qi’an immediately tattled.
Uncle Xu said helplessly: “Didn’t I just give you fifty taels?”
“You still have the nerve to mention those fifty taels.” Aunt angrily slapped the table, “Where did you get so much money from? It must have been from a certain someone.”
Xu Qi’an understood now. No wonder Second Uncle was in a bad mood today. It turned out his private savings had been confiscated by Aunt… But you don’t have to take it out on me.
He complained inwardly.
…
Qingyun Hall.
The name Qingyun Hall had two meanings. First, it implied “rising rapidly in the official ranks”. Second, it was piggybacking on the popularity of Mount Qingyun outside the capital.
The private school was run by an old scholar named Li Bingyi. At the ripe age of fifty, his eyesight was already starting to fail, which was why he had condescended to teach young children their first lessons.
The tuition fees were exorbitantly high, paid every three months.
Old Mr. Li Bingyi had a rule: families with scholars paid half the tuition. Families with officials paid a quarter of the tuition.
Of course, this only applied to civil officials, not military officers.
With this rule, Old Mr. Li Bingyi had turned Qingyun Hall into an “aristocratic elementary school”. Those wealthy families who didn’t lack money found this rule interesting, as it highlighted their own sense of superiority. Moreover, Old Mr. Li Bingyi was indeed skilled at teaching.
Therefore, wealthy families who didn’t have time to enlighten their own children were willing to send their young ones to Qingyun Hall.
A month or so ago, Old Mr. Li Bingyi encountered the nemesis of his life – the most difficult student he had ever taught.
“Xu Lingyin, stand up!”
At the lecture desk, Mr. Li picked up a bamboo stick and banged it on the table with a loud thump.
Below, over twenty young children were seated. In the corner on the east side, a little girl with her hair in a bun obediently stood up.
Her features were plain and unremarkable, her round face like a steamed bun, but her eyes were bright and lively.
“Recite the Three Character Classic once,” Old Mr. Li instructed calmly, sitting cross-legged.
“People at birth, are naturally good. Their natures are similar…”
At this point, the little girl got stuck.
Old Mr. Li was used to this. He didn’t get angry but pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, “Why is it that after half a month, you still only know these three lines?”
This stupid child wasn’t worth getting angry over.
Xu Lingyin said in a sweet voice, “My father says, one special skill is enough to eat all over the world.”
Is that phrase even used in this context?… Mr. Li was stunned for a moment, then remembered that this child’s father was a crude warrior, so he didn’t get angry.
“You recite the loudest during daily readings and have no problem recognizing characters. Why can’t you recite when asked to? The sage says, ‘investigate things to extend knowledge.’ Have you ever reflected on yourself?”
Xu Lingyin said in confusion, “But sir, you only taught us three lines.”
The whole hall burst into laughter.
Mr. Li waved his hand wearily, “Sit down.”
In this child’s family, only her second brother was a scholar, and he was a student at the Cloud Deer Academy. He really didn’t know what kind of environment and education could produce two such vastly different children.
Glancing at the water clock, it was mealtime. Mr. Li coughed, “You have two quarters of an hour for lunch. Remember, no talking while eating.”
With that, he left the classroom and went to the backyard to enjoy his lunch.
The children were instantly liberated, chattering and laughing happily as they took out food from their little cloth bags.
Xu Lingyin’s lunch today was especially sumptuous: crystal dumplings, plum blossom fragrant pancakes, fish meatballs, and several exquisite pastries from Guiyue Tower.
She had two to three times the amount of food compared to the other children.
Xu Lingyin arranged her food with great ceremony, swallowing her saliva. She had been thinking about the food in her cloth bag all morning.
In the entire school, no one had a more sumptuous or expensive meal than Xu Lingyin. Of course, there was a reason for Xu Lingyin’s lavish lunch.
Yesterday was the day of Xu Dalang’s memorial service. The Xu family had purchased a large amount of top-quality ingredients, preparing for a grand funeral.
Who knew that Xu Dalang would come back? After entertaining the Xu clan members, there was still a lot of good food left over.
“I’m taking your food.”
A chubby boy walked to Xu Lingyin’s desk, looking down at her arrogantly.
The chubby boy was the “king” among the children in the school. He was the tallest and strongest, a year older than Xu Lingyin, now seven years old.
Not only was he the tallest and strongest, but he also had the most powerful family background. His parents weren’t extraordinary, but his grand-uncle was a Lang Zhong in the Ministry of Personnel’s Bureau of Evaluations, a fifth-rank official.
The Ministry of Personnel was universally recognized as the head of the Six Ministries, and the Bureau of Evaluations was responsible for personnel appointments. Among the four bureaus in the Ministry of Personnel, only the Bureau of Civil Service Examinations could compare with the Bureau of Evaluations.
“No!”
Xu Lingyin protected her food, glaring fiercely.
“You want another beating?” The chubby boy widened his eyes.
He had taken Xu Lingyin’s bracelet before. At first, the little girl wouldn’t give it up either, but after he pushed her to the ground and hit her twice, he forcibly took it away.
This very stupid girl didn’t cry or make a fuss, as if losing the bracelet wasn’t a big deal.
When the chubby boy went home, he lied to his mother, saying he had found the bracelet. His mother was very happy because the bracelet was pawned for eight taels of silver.
Later, the stupid girl’s mother came to the school to argue, but because Xu Lingyin didn’t identify him, that fierce mother was turned away by the teacher.
So the chubby boy knew that taking this “classmate’s” bracelet was fine – he got money and wouldn’t be punished by adults.
For the first few days, he kept staring at Xu Lingyin’s wrist, but after that incident, she stopped wearing bracelets.
This stupid girl was easy to bully, but before, there was no value in bullying her. This time was different. The chubby boy immediately recognized the pastries from Guiyue Tower. He had been there before and knew they were delicious.
When the chubby boy wanted to eat something, he had to have it. All the children in the school were afraid of him, and no one dared to defy him.
“Go away!”
Xu Lingyin shouted, glaring with her eyes and baring her teeth like a small beast protecting its food.
The chubby boy was stunned for a moment, seemingly not expecting this easily bullied stupid girl to suddenly become tough and even dare to be fierce with him.
He was enraged.
“You’re asking for death.”
He clenched his fists, gritting his teeth as he put all his strength into two heavy blows to Xu Lingyin’s head. Two dull thuds were heard.
Xu Lingyin painfully held her head.
The chubby boy pushed her hard, knocking her to the ground. He satisfyingly snatched the box of pastries into his arms, gloating:
“If you had known your place earlier, you wouldn’t have to suffer so much. Does your family have any more of these delicious treats? If so, bring them tomorrow.”
He strutted back to his seat triumphantly.
The children around watched this scene, some feeling envious, thinking that if they had joined in just now, they would have good food to eat now.
Xu Lingyin fell into an unprecedented rage in her six years of life.
She silently stood up, not speaking, and walked with her head down towards Mr. Li’s podium. She grabbed the hard and heavy bamboo stick.
“She’s going to hit you with the teacher’s bamboo stick,” a child behind the chubby boy warned, leaning on his shoulder.
The chubby boy looked up and saw the little girl who never made a sound even when bullied, raising the bamboo stick high. From her small chest burst a forceful yell: “Ya!”
Whack!
The bamboo stick struck the chubby boy’s head hard, with such force that it broke with a crack.
The chubby boy’s eyes rolled back, and he lost all consciousness. He fell backward, still with pastry in his mouth.
The tiger’s mouth of Xu Lingyin’s small hand was red from the recoil of the bamboo stick.
The children in the classroom were stunned, some scared, some at a loss. But some clever children ran on their short legs to the backyard to find Mr. Li.
Mr. Li was having lunch with his wife, with two maids standing by.
“Teacher, teacher… that stupid girl killed someone,” a boy ran in, panting and shouting with all his might.
Li Bingyi was a scholar with a calm demeanor. He frowned and asked, “What happened?”
“The stupid girl killed the fat boy with your bamboo stick,” the boy pointed outside, gasping for breath.
“I’ll go take a look.” Mr. Li put down his chopsticks, got up, and led the boy back to the classroom.
Passing through the inner courtyard and entering the main hall, Mr. Li saw a group of children surrounding the chubby boy, who was sprawled on the ground, seemingly lifeless.
He was immediately startled and went to the inner courtyard to call his wife to help look after the chubby boy. Without time to deal with Xu Lingyin, he sent a servant to the nearest clinic to fetch a doctor.
Fortunately, the school was in a good location, and the clinic wasn’t far. The doctor arrived quickly.
After examining the boy, the doctor’s face was grave: “There’s no danger to his life, but he’ll need to rest in bed for several days.”
Mr. Li was relieved.
“How did this child get injured?” the doctor asked.
“Just children playing rough…”
“Children playing rough hit this hard?”
Mr. Li could no longer contain his anger. He grabbed Xu Lingyin by the back of her collar, dragged her over, and shouted angrily: “Xu Lingyin, why did you maliciously hurt your classmate?”
Xu Lingyin shouted loudly: “He stole my food!”
Mr. Li became even angrier: “Just for that, you nearly beat him to death?”
Xu Lingyin stubbornly said: “He stole my food.”
This stupid and stubborn girl drove Mr. Li to the brink of fury. Just as he was about to scold her, shouts came from outside:
“Where’s my young master? Who bullied my young master?”
Two strong servants rushed in.