A young maid came running in: “Second Young Master, Second Young Master, there’s a young Master Fang here who says he’s your friend and wishes to see you!”

Surnamed Fang, a friend of his?

The only person he knew with the surname Fang was Fang Ji, who was his eldest sister-in-law’s cousin. If Fang Ji wanted to see him, he would simply tell the gatekeeper, and a manservant would escort him in…

Xu Siyu couldn’t help feeling somewhat puzzled. Seeing that Jin Ge’er was sleeping soundly, he said a few words to A’jin and headed to the receiving parlor.

Catching sight of Fang Ji’s familiar figure, he couldn’t help but laugh: “What’s the matter with you, Elder Brother Fang? You announced yourself as my friend, and I was left guessing for quite a while…” As he spoke, the smile froze on his face. “Elder Brother Fang, has something happened?”

Fang Ji’s expression was grave. Not a trace of a smile appeared on his face when he saw Xu Siyu.

When Xu Siyu asked, Fang Ji pulled him to the corner of the wall with a solemn expression and said in a low voice: “Liu Shaoyan has been taken away by the people of the Yingtian Prefecture!”

Liu Shaoyan was one of the authors of this time’s ten-thousand-word petition.

Xu Siyu was greatly startled, yet also vaguely felt this was something to be expected.

“When did this happen?” he said quietly. “Elder Brother Fang came to find me — is there something you need me to do?”

Straightforward and decisive.

A flash of admiration crossed Fang Ji’s eyes, though he felt this was not the moment for such things and composed himself. “I have no acquaintances in Yanjing. Can you help me find out what charges have been brought against Liu Shaoyan? Whether there are victims and physical evidence.”

Xu Siyu did not hesitate. “Does Elder Brother Fang wish to wait here, or would you like to sit at Sanjing Hutong for a while?”

Fang Ji thought it over and said: “I’ll wait for you at Chunxi Tower. Right now we don’t know what the situation is — better not to alarm the elders and worry them.”

Xu Siyu saw him wearing an air of perfect composure, and thinking of the friendship Fang Ji had shown him these past days, he couldn’t help saying: “Elder Brother Fang, there is something I must say — whether you like hearing it or not.”

Fang Ji was taken aback.

In his impression, Xu Siyu was not only courteous and refined, but also careful with his words and actions… He hadn’t expected him to suddenly say something like this.

“I’m not the sort of small-minded person you might think,” he said with a smile. “Say what you have to say quickly so you can go and handle things for me.”

A hint of warmth appeared in Xu Siyu’s eyes.

He liked dealing with someone like Fang Ji.

“In my view, this matter ought to be brought to the elders,” he said quietly. “Who in this life doesn’t do something foolish once in a while? I believe that since the Shuntian Prefecture has taken Liu Shaoyan into custody, there must certainly be both victims and evidence. It would be better for Elder Brother Fang to prepare for the worst beforehand.”

Fang Ji was a shrewd man. Upon hearing this, his expression changed: “You mean to say…”

“Although His Majesty wishes to deal with Li Zhong, dealing with Li Zhong is one matter, while being compelled to deal with Li Zhong is quite another.” Xu Siyu spoke with meaningful implication. “I recall that at the founding of the dynasty, scholars sitting the spring examination once submitted a ten-thousand-word petition over the corruption case of Li Rui, founding meritorious subject and Grand Academician of the Hall of Literary Profundity. In the end, although Li Rui was beheaded, some of the scholars who had submitted the petition were barred from the imperial examinations for life, while others were prohibited from sitting for three years…”

Before Xu Siyu had finished speaking, Fang Ji was already breaking into a cold sweat.

He bowed deeply to Xu Siyu.

“Great kindness needs no words of thanks.” Fang Ji cut Xu Siyu off. “I will go to find Vice Minister Liu at once. As for Brother Shaoyan, I still ask that you, younger brother, run about on his behalf for a while. Whatever happens, we cannot simply wash our hands of this and leave him to his fate.”

Xu Siyu said: “I’ll go to the Yingtian Prefecture right now. The moment I have any news, I’ll inform you, Elder Brother.” Then he left word for Shi’yiniang, saying that he and Fang Ji had gone out to dine — and with that, he and Fang Ji went out the door.

When Shi’yiniang received the message she didn’t pay it much mind. For one thing, Xu Siyu was grown now, and it was perfectly natural for him to have his own social life; for another, Fang Ji enjoyed considerable fame as a man of letters in Jiangnan, and being able to associate with him and through him to meet other people would be greatly beneficial to Xu Siyu’s future.

She simply called Wenzhu over: “If Second Young Master is short of money, come to me and draw some silver.”

Wenzhu quickly replied: “Second Young Master has very little in the way of daily expenses. He has more than enough silver.”

Shi’yiniang didn’t say more and turned to go see Jin Ge’er.

Jin Ge’er had just woken up and was sitting on the edge of the heated brick bed eating an apple. Seeing Shi’yiniang come in, he spread his arms wide, asking his mother to hold him.

Shi’yiniang held him, fed him pieces of apple, and chatted with him as she always did: “…What has Jin Ge’er been doing while Mother was away? Did you take your afternoon nap today? Have you had dinner yet? These apples were bestowed by your aunt — that is, the current Empress — as a gift. They say they’re tribute from Shandong. Your seventh aunt was married to a place in Shandong called Gaoqing. When you’re older, you must go and visit her there…”

Jin Ge’er tilted his little head and blinked his bright eyes at Shi’yiniang, seemingly wondering what on earth his mother was going on about. Shi’yiniang couldn’t help but let out a long sigh and rubbed Jin Ge’er’s head dejectedly: “You’re nearly a year and a half old. I’ve been talking to you every single day, so why won’t you ever answer me?”

On his end, Xu Siyu spent two days running about before he went to report back to Fang Ji.

“What did Vice Minister Liu say?” He first asked about Fang Ji’s situation.

“We don’t know yet.” Perhaps because the initial shock had already passed, Fang Ji’s manner was relatively calm. He said with a smile: “Uncle Liu said that since His Majesty has already set his mind to this, there’s no avoiding someone suffering for it. But things can’t be allowed to go too far. He told me to concentrate on preparing for the examinations, and that everything else he would handle himself.” He went on: “These past few days I’ve also thought things over carefully. If I cannot sit the spring examinations, I don’t really mind for my own sake. It’s only that it would grieve my mother…” At this, his gaze dimmed. “And my uncle. He was by nature a man who floated free as idle clouds, as wild as a soaring crane. If my father hadn’t offended powerful men at court and resigned his post to return home, why would my uncle have traveled ten thousand li, suffering through all that wearisome official paperwork? He had pinned all his hopes on me achieving glory in the examinations, so that he might lay down the burden of supporting the family, return to Huzhou, read books and till the land, and live that life of ‘gathering chrysanthemums beneath the eastern fence, leisurely gazing at the southern mountains’…”

Xu Siyu was astonished: “Is the Elder Brother speaking of our sister-in-law’s father?”

Fang Ji nodded, his expression showing a trace of shame: “Uncle has always hoped that I would pass the imperial examinations for the presented scholar degree, but I have always feared the constraints of official life and have spent my days in idle amusement. Both my father and uncle have turned a blind eye, letting me carry on as I pleased… If this time I am barred from the examinations for life, how disappointed they will both be… Second younger brother, though young, was already far behind me in his studies in his early years. I don’t know whether he’ll be able to uphold the family name when the time comes…” He murmured softly, his tone carrying a measure of melancholy, but he quickly rallied himself and said with a smile: “Enough, let’s not speak of these things anymore. Since you’re here, there must be some development in Brother Shaoyan’s matter. What exactly has happened?”

Xu Siyu quickly composed himself and said: “Elder Brother Liu was taken in on the charge of ‘forcibly seizing a commoner woman.’ Both the victim and the physical evidence are fully in place.”

Fang Ji listened and couldn’t help but give a bitter laugh: “Truth be told, this is the one failing Brother Shaoyan has. Who could have imagined it would become someone else’s handle against him.”

Hearing this, Xu Siyu felt a chill creep silently through him.

Perhaps it was because Vice Minister Liu’s efforts had borne fruit, or perhaps because His Majesty felt that arresting those few men with moral blemishes was already sufficient — on the eighteenth day of the third month, Fang Ji entered the examination grounds without incident. Both Xu Siyu and Xu Siqin, who had come to see him off, breathed a sigh of relief.

The two of them went to Sanjing Hutong.

When Fang Shi heard the news, she pressed her palms together and murmured “Amitabha,” then went to the Buddha hall to light a stick of incense for the Bodhisattva, and sighed: “I hope that Elder Brother will not disappoint everyone’s expectations. That way, Father can finally return to Huzhou. Shaanxi is truly no place for a person to live.”

Xu Siqin was somewhat displeased.

Fang Shi suddenly realized she had misspoken.

Her father-in-law was also serving as an official in Shaanxi — and from all appearances was having such a fine time he had no thought of returning.

By way of compensation, she smiled and said: “My husband doesn’t know about people from Jiangnan — as long as a family has some means, once a son has passed the presented scholar examinations and spent a few years serving as an official, they feel they’ve done their duty by their ancestors.”

It was the first time Xu Siqin had heard this. He laughed and said: “But there are many people from Jiangnan serving at court!”

Fang Shi only smiled and said nothing.

Xu Siyu thought of Fang Shi’s dowry of twenty thousand taels of silver and laughed: “I fear most of them come from humble origins!”

Fang Shi felt this was somewhat too absolute and said with a smile: “Not entirely. It’s just that the people of my family all love their ease, which is why it is so.” Feeling this was not a pleasant topic, she asked Xu Siyu: “I’ve newly engaged a Yanjing cook whose braised pork knuckles are simply wonderful. Why doesn’t Second Uncle stay for lunch?”

Xu Siyu thought that there was nothing pressing for him to return to, and agreed with a smile.

He came early and left late, spending three days mixing about at Sanjing Hutong, before going in the evening to receive Fang Ji as he emerged from the examination grounds.

“Elder Brother Fang, what were today’s topics?” Xu Siyu took the examination basket from Fang Ji’s hand.

Fang Ji’s eyes were bright and piercing: “From the Analects, the two lines: ‘When the Way prevails in the state, his words suffice to create trust’; from the Doctrine of the Mean, the two lines: ‘In all things, prior preparation leads to success; without preparation, failure follows’; from Mencius, the two lines: ‘All men have a mind that cannot bear to see the suffering of others’; and the poem topic was ‘Gazing at the Lingering Snow on the Zhongnan Mountains After the Skies Have Cleared.'”

“Oh!” Xu Siyu was greatly interested. “How did Elder Brother Fang answer?”

But Xu Siqin saw that Fang Ji’s expression was weary and quickly said: “Let’s leave all that for later! — Let’s go back and eat first. After the meal, the two of you can talk all night by candlelight!”

The two of them exchanged a glance and smiled, then boarded the carriage to Sanjing Hutong. And indeed they did talk through the night by candlelight. Knowing that Xu Siyu wanted to collect examination papers, Fang Ji volunteered to help him — Xu Siyu had been worrying about this very matter, so naturally he was overjoyed, and the two discussed it at length. They decided that Fang Ji would handle the palace examination papers for the top three candidates, while Xu Siyu would be responsible for the top ten papers from the metropolitan examination. On the day the results were posted, the two went early. Though there were crowds packed like mountains of people and seas of humanity, Xu Siyu still spotted Fang Ji’s name at a single glance — he was ranked first, in the position of Metropolitan Examination Top Scholar.

He called out to Fang Ji excitedly. Fang Ji stood there with a somewhat dazed expression, as if he couldn’t quite believe it. After a moment he broke into happiness and clapped Xu Siyu on the shoulder: “Come on, let’s go to Chunxi Tower and drink. Tonight we won’t leave until we’re drunk — it’s my treat.”

Xu Siyu was also very pleased and nodded repeatedly.

But Xu Siqin pulled the two of them back: “Wait a moment, wait a moment. I recall that Fourth Aunt’s fifth elder brother-in-law also sat the examinations this year — a man named Qian Ming. Let’s look for his name too, so we can go and bring Fourth Aunt the good news.”

Only then did Xu Siyu remember, and he couldn’t help feeling somewhat ashamed.

Fang Ji, in this moment of elation, was in high spirits and everything seemed agreeable to him. He immediately gave instructions to Xu Siyu: “You look through these sections of the posted results, I’ll look through these sections, and brother-in-law, you look through those sections. Let’s finish reading the results quickly so we can go drink.”

The two of them readily agreed and squeezed through the crowd, and after a great deal of effort finally found Qian Ming’s name tucked away in a corner.

“Qian Ming of Yichun. Ranked three hundred and thirty-second.” Fang Ji said loudly. “That should be the man you mentioned. Given this ranking, he has most likely obtained the auxiliary presented scholar degree.”

Xu Siqin and Xu Siyu couldn’t help but look at each other: “So then… should we still go and report the news?”

Fang Ji pulled the two of them away: “What’s there to celebrate about the auxiliary presented scholar degree? Just pretend you didn’t see it. Let’s go drink!”

—