After the awkward and dangerous encounter in the morning, Ming Shu obediently followed Madam Lin throughout the day, not wandering off anywhere.
With only four days left until the Third Prince and the Minister of Rites were due to visit the academy, Madam Lin had a multitude of tasks to manage. Ming Shu assisted her, in handling paperwork, running errands, and other miscellaneous duties. As long as it didn’t involve cooking or embroidery, Ming Shu could handle most tasks efficiently. Madam Lin grew increasingly fond of her, appreciating her quick wit and diligence, and began to chat more freely with her.
“Madam, have some water and catch your breath,” Ming Shu said, hurriedly pouring a cup of tea as Madam Lin rushed into the room.
Madam Lin slammed the account book on the table, gulped down the tea, and exclaimed, “Finally, some water! My throat was about to catch fire.” She plopped down in an armchair, complaining, “I’m exhausted. A batch of potted plants just arrived, but the numbers don’t match the records. Everything’s piled up outside the Snow Garden, and I can’t store them until I’ve checked everything. And I still have a mountain of other tasks breathing down my neck. It’s driving me crazy!”
Ming Shu picked up the account book and flipped through it. It contained several purchase orders and inventory lists detailing about ten types of potted plants, including Buddhist pine, nandina, gardenia, azalea, and others, each with its quantity. Ming Shu quickly calculated in her head.
As Madam Lin prepared to head to the Snow Garden after resting briefly, Ming Shu spoke up: “Madam Lin, the total number of plants is correct. The error is in the quantities of these two types. Look… The names of these two plants were probably switched when copying the records.” She pointed out the discrepancies between the purchase orders and inventory lists.
After examining for a moment, Madam Lin exclaimed joyfully, “You’re right! Thank goodness for you, child. You’ve saved me a lot of trouble.” As she put away the account book, she grumbled, “I don’t know what’s wrong with Tang Li lately. He’s been making so many mistakes. Even such a simple error…”
Ming Shu quickly asked, “Tang Li? Is he… the child adopted by the Headmaster?”
“You know him?” Madam Lin asked, puzzled, as she hurried out with the account book.
“I met him once when I came to visit my brother before,” Ming Shu lied smoothly.
“That’s right, he’s the child the Headmaster adopted. Brought him in at six years old, and he’s been at Songling Academy for nearly ten years now. Clever boy, he’d secretly listen to lectures through the windows and learned quite a bit. When the Headmaster saw his potential, he let him study alongside the other students. Your Madam He often has him help with paperwork, including these registrations and inventories.”
“He’s sixteen now, right? Shouldn’t he have taken the child’s examination? What about last autumn’s provincial exam?” Ming Shu asked curiously.
“He can’t participate because of his family…” Madam Lin shook her head without elaborating. “The Headmaster and Madam He intends for him to learn practical skills and perhaps secure a position as a clerk at the academy in the future.” She then teased Ming Shu, “Little girl, why are you so interested in Tang Li? Could it be…”
Ming Shu lowered her head, feigning shyness. “I’m just asking casually, Madam Lin. Please don’t tease me.” Inwardly, she pondered why Tang Li couldn’t take the exams. In the Da’an Dynasty, not everyone could participate in the imperial examinations. For instance, descendants of certain professions or criminals were barred from taking them. She wondered which category Tang Li fell into.
“It’s best if you are just asking casually. That Tang Li… he’s not a suitable match for you,” Madam Lin remarked.
“Madam, I am just asking out of curiosity,” Ming Shu protested, then probed further, “I saw him quite close to the Yongqing Marquis’s heir. I thought they might be of similar social status, but it turns out he’s actually…”
“The Yongqing Marquis’s heir is kind and sociable. He’s friendly with many students at our academy, not just Tang Li. But he’s indeed closer to Tang Li than others. They’ve known each other for nearly ten years, so it’s not surprising,” Madam Lin explained. Having been at the academy for over twenty years, there was little she didn’t know.
“Known each other for ten years?” Ming Shu was astonished. That was about as long as she had known Wen An.
She wanted to ask more, but they had arrived at the Snow Garden. Madam Lin had no time for further chat and quickly approached the stacked potted plants, calling out, “Come on, everyone. Please check these plants against the list one last time. If everything’s correct, don’t bother storing them—just take them directly to Mingli Hall.”
With important visitors coming to the academy, decorations were being prepared. These potted plants were to be distributed throughout the academy, primarily in the teaching areas, with Mingli Hall being the largest lecture hall.
As Madam Lin directed the servants to recount the plants, a page boy ran up to her, panting, “Madam Lin, the masons and carpenters you requested have arrived. They’re waiting for you.”
Madam Lin stamped her foot in frustration. “When it rains, it pours!”
Songling Academy has a history of over a hundred years, and many of its buildings needed repair. These craftsmen had been hired to renovate the structures.
“Ming Shu, oversee things here for me. Once the count is complete, bring them to Mingli Hall to find me,” Madam Lin instructed, unable to be in two places at once.
“Certainly,” Ming Shu agreed promptly.
After Madam Lin hurried off, Ming Shu efficiently managed the plant counting and loading. Once everything was in order, she led the group with two carts full of potted plants toward Mingli Hall.
Thanks to the map she had drawn in her notebook the previous day, she navigated the route effortlessly.
After about a quarter of an hour, Ming Shu arrived outside Mingli Hall with the two carts of plants. Madam Lin was busy showing the craftsmen areas that needed repair and couldn’t attend to her immediately. Ming Shu waited patiently outside the hall.
Just then, the noon bell rang, signaling the end of morning classes. Soon, the sound of chatter filled Mingli Hall as students began to file out in small groups.
In addition to the exam candidates, some students not participating in the metropolitan examination were also having classes in Mingli Hall today. There were many people, but they dispersed quickly. Ming Shu spotted her brother walking down the stone steps with his head lowered. Not wanting to draw attention, she picked up some small stones from the nearby grass and threw them at him from a distance.
Lu Chang took a couple of steps before a small stone hit his head. He looked up and saw Ming Shu standing by the two carts. His lips curled into a slight smile as he was about to approach her, but someone called out from behind, “Brother Yang, wait for me!”
Lu Chang turned to look. The student surnamed Yang had stopped under the plaque of Mingli Hall, with several other students exiting the hall behind him.
Ming Shu was about to wave to Lu Chang when she saw his expression change abruptly. He turned and rushed back towards Mingli Hall.
As she wondered what was happening, she heard Lu Chang shout urgently, “Get out of the way!”
The plaque hanging above the main entrance of Mingli Hall came crashing down.
Lu Chang had just reached the area beneath the plaque. Ming Shu watched in horror, forgetting all propriety. With eyes fixed only on her brother, she cried out “Brother!” while dropping the stones in her hand and dashing up the stone steps.
BOOM!
The ground shook as the massive plaque fell. Countless screams filled the air. Lu Chang leaped forward, pushing or tackling people out of harm’s way. Those standing beneath the plaque were either knocked down by Lu Chang or pushed aside, narrowly escaping disaster. The plaque hit the ground, breaking into two pieces, with wooden shards flying in all directions.
“Watch out!” someone shouted, pulling Ming Shu back a couple of steps as she reached the halfway point of the stairs.
A flying piece of wood grazed Ming Shu’s arm but didn’t hit her directly. She regained her composure and glanced at the person who had pulled her back in the nick of time.
Song Qingzhao wanted to say something, but Ming Shu merely uttered a hasty “Thank you” before rushing up the steps again. Those who had fallen were slowly sitting up, groaning in pain. Miraculously, no one had been directly hit by the plaque, though there were some minor injuries. Students from all around began to gather, crowding the entrance.
“Brother!” Ming Shu cried out anxiously as she reached Lu Chang’s side.
“Why did you come here? Are you hurt?” Lu Chang asked immediately upon seeing her.
“How can you worry about me? Look at yourself!” Ming Shu was beside herself with worry, feeling as if her soul had nearly left her body.
Lu Chang looked at his hands. His palms were scraped and bleeding slightly from when he had thrown himself to the ground to save others, but the injuries weren’t serious. Seeing Ming Shu’s concern, he felt a warmth in his heart and said, “It’s nothing, just some scratches. Don’t worry.” As he spoke, he stood up and helped the student surnamed Yang to his feet.
The student named Yang was still in shock, knowing that if Lu Chang hadn’t arrived in time, he would have been crushed by the plaque.
Realizing that Lu Chang was fine, Ming Shu felt immense relief. She turned to help another person on the other side, someone who had also been saved by Lu Chang’s timely intervention.
“Are you alright?” Ming Shu asked, bending down to help the person up.
The person slowly rose with Ming Shu’s assistance, but as soon as his foot touched the ground, he let out a cry of pain and stumbled towards Ming Shu, leaning half his body against her arm. In the heat of the moment, Ming Shu instinctively supported his waist, but he suddenly pushed her away, losing his balance and falling back to the ground.
Ming Shu stared at him in confusion—she was a girl, and she hadn’t said anything about a man being so close to her, so why was he so agitated?
“Tang Li!” someone called out urgently, pushing through the onlookers to reach the fallen person’s side.
Ming Shu’s ears and eyes perked up as she recognized the newcomer and heard the name.
“Brother Xie, I’m fine. I just twisted my ankle,” Tang Li replied. His voice was clear and crisp, almost childlike, with an ambiguous quality that made it hard to determine if it was male or female. His expression noticeably relaxed when he saw that Xie Xi had come to his aid.
“Let me help you,” Xie Xi said, reaching out his hand.
Ming Shu finally saw the person she had been curious about for so long—Tang Li was slightly taller than her, with delicate features and a fair complexion. His mannerisms seemed no different from other young men, and Xie Xi showed particular concern for him, more so than for others.
On the other side, someone else rushed over to the student surnamed Yang, asking, “That was terrifying! Yang, are you alright?”
“I’m fine, thanks to Brother Lu’s quick action,” Yang replied, bowing gratefully to Lu Chang. However, his gaze drifted past Lu Chang’s shoulder towards Tang Li, who was now being helped away by Xie Xi.
The academy’s staff and servants rushed to the scene, with Madam Lin hurrying over with a group of craftsmen. After hearing what had happened, she clasped her chest and said, “Amitabha Buddha, thank heavens! This plaque was already scheduled for repair. It was supposed to be fixed at the end of last year, but the winter snow and rain delayed it until now. We nearly had a disaster on our hands, but thankfully everyone’s safe.” As she spoke, she directed the carpenters to inspect the fallen plaque while dispersing the crowd and sending the injured to see the academy’s resident doctor.
Lu Chang and Ming Shu walked down the stone steps together, both suddenly falling silent.
Lu Chang looked back at the now-empty doorway, while Ming Shu stared at her hand, lost in thought.
Something didn’t seem right. Was it just her imagination?