Chapter 71 Ink stains dripped onto the ground.

After leaving Achan's house, Song Yan returned to his residence in Anpingfang, which was a small courtyard.

After arriving in Beijing, he has been renting a place here. The landlord's family of four lives in the larger courtyard next door.

When Song Yan opened the door, the landlady next door heard the noise and came out. Seeing him, she immediately smiled and said, "Mr. Song, you haven't been back for several days."

“I visited a friend,” Song Yan said gently, then added, “Aunt Gu, I’m not renewing my lease at the end of the month, so I’m moving out today.”

"Why? Has Mr. Song encountered some difficulties?" the landlady asked with some surprise.

"No, it's just that I'm planning to go back to my hometown."

"Ah, I see." Aunt Gu said with a hint of regret. This Mr. Song was very easy to talk to, never caused trouble, and never looked down on people like them who made a living in the city just because he had read a few books. He would even teach her children to read occasionally.

Although she was reluctant to leave, the landlady said, "Going back to your hometown is fine. Although the capital is prosperous, it's still not as good as your hometown."

“The old lady is right.”

After chatting with the landlady for a few more minutes, Song Yan entered the courtyard.

After opening the door, Song Yan stood in the doorway and looked inside. The room was empty. Although he had lived there for a long time, there was no trace of life in the room.

Song Yan entered the room, tidied up the clothes, shoes and socks folded in the box in the corner and put them in the package, thus completing his luggage packing.

When he went to the capital, he only brought a few changes of clothes and a book box. When he left, that was all the luggage he had with him.

The inkstone that he once cherished most has now been handed over to Miss Ji, so he no longer needs to worry about it.

After tidying everything up, Song Yan slung his book box over his shoulder, picked up his bundle, carefully locked the door and the main gate, returned the key to Aunt Gu next door, and strode away.

Looking at his tall and straight back, Aunt Gu felt a pang of regret, thinking that it would be hard to find such a good tenant in the future.

The little girl from Aunt Gu's family peeked her head out from behind her mother and asked in a clear voice, "Mom, why did Brother Song go out again?"

Aunt Gu gently patted her youngest daughter's head and said in a soft voice, "Mr. Song is going home."

"Will he come back later?" the little girl asked innocently.

"Perhaps. A man as talented as Mr. Song might return to the capital after passing the imperial examinations."

The little girl nodded: "Brother Song is so smart, he will definitely pass the exam."

After leaving his original residence, Song Yan went straight to Tianjie Street and found an inn there. This inn was in a good location, but it wasn't cheap either. The minimum price was five hundred coins per night. Song Yan asked for a lower-class room, paid three taels of silver, and booked six nights.

After putting his luggage back in his room, Song Yan left the inn with the completed painting of the pine tree.

After leaving the inn and turning left, you only need to walk past two shops to arrive at Sun Bo'an's calligraphy and painting shop.

When Song Yan walked in, Sun Bo'an was talking to a waiter. When he saw Song Yan, his eyes lit up and he walked around the waiter to greet him.

"Young master is indeed punctual, but the painting I requested has already been completed?"

Song Yan nodded slightly and handed the scroll in his hand to Sun Bo'an.

Sun Bo'an took the scroll and eagerly unfurled it, nodding as he looked at it: "Young master, you have painted this pine tree very well. It is resilient and upright in the frost and snow, and it is tenacious and unyielding. It has a wonderful artistic conception and excellent painting skills."

Hearing his effusive praise, Song Yan smiled faintly.

After Sun Bo'an finished admiring the painting, he said to Song Yan, "I am very satisfied with this painting. What do you think of the price of two hundred taels of silver, young master?"

I thought Song Yan would take the opportunity to raise the price, but to my surprise, he agreed very readily: "This price is very fair."

Sun Bo'an was overjoyed and quickly sent his assistant to fetch two hundred taels of silver.

Song Yan took the silver note and was about to leave when Sun Bo'an quickly stopped him: "If you have any new paintings to sell, you are welcome to come and find me."

Yes, it will.

After Song Yan left, Sun Bo'an hurriedly called over the shop's mounting master and loudly instructed, "Master Zhang, this is a painting I recently found. You must mount it carefully, as I intend to give it away in a few days."

Master Zhang took the painting and repeatedly agreed, "Don't worry, sir, it won't interfere with your business."

Hearing this conversation, Song Yan, who was standing outside the door, turned around, smiled slightly, and walked back to the inn.

As night fell, the Heavenly Street was quiet, with only the occasional patrolling guard passing by, their footsteps orderly yet very light.

The candles were still burning in Song Yan's room as he sat at the table writing a letter, the candlelight casting his shadow on the wall.

After writing the letter, he put down his pen and did not put it in an envelope, but simply left it open on the table.

Then he blew out the candle and lay back down on the bed fully clothed.

As night deepened and time ticked by, the sound of a clapper rang out, signaling the approaching midnight.

In the inn's room, Song Yan lay on his back on the bed, his posture so upright that he looked like a mannequin, with only the slight rise and fall of his chest reminding one that he was simply asleep.

A small ink stain suddenly appeared on his once smooth forehead. Gradually, the ink stain grew larger and larger, and the black ink slid down his face onto the pillow, but left no trace of ink.

After the ink blob left the body, it disappeared into the darkness and could no longer be seen.

In Sun Bo'an's shop, a blob of ink slipped through the crack in the door and entered the shop. In the mounting room at the back of the shop, an unmounted pine tree painting was placed on a large table.

The ink crawled onto the table, onto the painting, and then suddenly spread out. The ink blended into the rugged rocks and vigorous pine trees in the painting, as if giving the painting a touch of life, and then remained still.

The next morning, the framing craftsman arrived early to start work, and by the afternoon, the framing of the painting was finally completed.

When Sun Bo'an heard that the painting had been framed, he came over to look at it and suddenly let out a soft "Eh."

"Does the client feel there's something wrong?" the framing craftsman asked nervously, afraid that his skills might displease the client.

Sun Bo'an shook his head: "There's nothing wrong with it, but I feel that this painting seems more lively than yesterday's?"

The framing craftsman couldn't see the difference and instead breathed a sigh of relief, relieved that there was no problem.

Sun Bo'an was just saying it casually and didn't take it to heart. He thought he hadn't looked at the painting carefully enough yesterday, and now that he had looked at it carefully today, he felt that the painting was even better.

He carefully put the painting away and placed it in the painting tube.

In two days it will be his brother-in-law's birthday. Things are different now. There will probably be no other guests at the Duke's mansion. His unique birthday gift will surely please his brother-in-law.

Although his brother-in-law's family had encountered some minor troubles, Sun Bo'an did not think that the Duke's Mansion would be ruined because of this. As long as the heir was still alive, the Duke's Mansion would prosper sooner or later. He just needed to wait patiently.

Today, Sun Bo'an left the shop early, taking the framed painting with him.

Meanwhile, in an inn just a few dozen meters from his shop, the sleeping scholar awoke.

The scholar sat up from his bed and was surprised to find himself in an unfamiliar place.

He was somewhat bewildered until he heard a sound outside the window. He peeked out and was completely stunned.

Outside the window, traffic flowed bustling, and looking into the distance along the wide street, the outline of a magnificent palace came into view.

The scholar rubbed his eyes. He had only taken a nap, so why were his eyes blurry?

After a while, the scene before his eyes still hadn't disappeared, and the scholar finally began to feel a sense of reality.

He paced back and forth in the room several times, still unable to accept the terrifying fact that he had taken a nap in his hometown and woke up in the capital, until he saw the letter written to him on his desk.

The handwriting on this letter is exactly the same as his, and it is not signed.

The letter writer began by apologizing to him, saying that he had an unfulfilled wish, and that he happened to meet him, so he took over his body and came to the capital.

Now that her wish had been fulfilled, she left his body, leaving behind a thousand taels of silver as compensation.

Upon seeing this, the scholar hurriedly searched the book box and, sure enough, found a thick stack of silver notes inside.

The resentment he had felt suddenly vanished when he saw the silver notes. He woke up to find himself with a large sum of money, and he no longer had to struggle for a living. This seemed like something to be happy about.

The scholar was already considering buying a riverside house when he returned to his hometown, hiring a few servants, and perhaps even opening a shop.

He daydreamed for a while before continuing to read.

The letter stated that the money was of clean origin, but if he reported it to the authorities, it would likely cause a lot of unnecessary trouble. After reading the letter, it would be best to destroy it.

The letter ended abruptly. The scholar held the letter, hesitated slightly, then tore it into pieces and soaked it in water until the words on it completely disappeared.

Although many questions remain unanswered, the incident has already occurred, and the other party has provided sufficient compensation. The scholar thought to himself, "Let's just consider this an extraordinary encounter."

He could stay at the inn for another five days, during which he could enjoy sightseeing in the capital before finding a merchant caravan to return to his hometown.

The scholar arranged his itinerary meticulously, and no one noticed that a new consciousness had taken over the body.

Meanwhile, Sun Bo'an waited for two days until the Duke of Song's birthday arrived. Early in the morning, he urged his servants to rush to the Duke of Song's mansion.

In previous years, the Duke of Song's mansion would be packed with guests on this day, but today the gates are tightly closed, making it seem particularly desolate.

After getting off the carriage, Sun Bo'an stepped forward and knocked on the door. After a while, the side door was opened from the inside. When the gatekeeper saw that it was Sun Bo'an, a smile finally appeared on his lifeless face: "So it's Uncle. Please wait a moment."

Sun Bo'an patiently waited at the side door for a while, and soon he saw the Duke of Song come to the door to greet him.

"Brother-in-law." Upon seeing Duke Song, Sun Bo'an hurriedly stepped forward to pay his respects.

During the period when the Duke of Song was ordered to reflect on his mistakes, Sun Bo'an was the only person who came to visit him. When the Duke of Song saw him, he felt a warmth in his heart.

"Why has Bo'an come today?" Song Guogong asked as he welcomed his brother-in-law, whom he usually looked down upon, into the house.

"Today is my brother-in-law's birthday, and I specially found a painting to celebrate it for him."

Duke Song stopped in his tracks, turned around and patted Sun Bo'an's shoulder forcefully: "Bo'an, you're very thoughtful."

“We’re all family, brother-in-law, why are you being so polite?” Sun Bo’an said with a smile, and went to his study with the Duke of Song.

This was the first time Sun Bo'an had been qualified to enter this place. After entering the study, he didn't dare to look at it for long and presented the painting with both hands.

Duke Song didn't have high expectations for the painting his brother-in-law sent. Everyone in the capital knew he loved painting, and in previous years, the gifts he received for his birthday were mostly famous paintings from ancient and modern times. His brother-in-law was just a merchant and couldn't find any particularly valuable paintings. However, since he was the only one who came today, the gift seemed all the more precious.

Duke Song took the scroll out of the painting tube and casually unrolled it.

Seeing that the Duke of Song had been staring at the painting for a while without saying a word, Sun Bo'an's face flashed with a hint of smugness, and he asked, "What does brother-in-law think of this painting?"

"What a fine painting!" exclaimed the Duke of Song, then asked, "May I ask which renowned artist painted it?"

He went to look at the inscription on the painting, but unfortunately the artist only wrote the words and did not leave a signature.

"It wasn't painted by a famous artist, but by a talented young man I met by chance. I saw that his painting skills were excellent, so I asked him to paint this picture as a gift for my brother-in-law."

Duke Song nodded. Although it wasn't painted by a famous artist, he truly admired the painting. The pine tree, even amidst the raging winds and snow, remained steadfast and unmoved.

The painting is beautiful, and the meaning behind it is also good.

The Duke's Mansion will surely remain as steadfast as Mount Tai, just like the pine tree in the painting, regardless of external slander!

Seeing that Duke Song was satisfied, Sun Bo'an felt a huge weight lifted from his heart. After presenting the painting, he did not linger at the Duke's residence. Although the emperor had not said that others could not enter the Duke's residence, it would not be good if he stayed too long and people found out.

Now that his good intentions had been conveyed and his brother-in-law had appreciated it, he should leave.

After Sun Bo'an left, the Duke of Song remained in his study. He took down his favorite painting and hung up this painting of ancient pines instead.

After Duke Song returned to his desk, he looked up and was able to see the painting.

All morning, the Duke of Song stayed in his study. He practiced calligraphy for a while, read some military books, and finally sat at his desk staring at a blank document for a long time. He wanted to write something several times, but seemed to not know what to write.

Several days have passed since the incident, and His Majesty should be less angry now. He should write a letter of apology and submit it. If it can move His Majesty, the year of reflection time will likely be reduced.

Unfortunately, the Duke of Song was not good at writing, let alone writing memorials. After gesturing for a long time without writing a single word, he decided to have lunch first and then consider other matters.

After the meal, the courtesan kept in the manor played the pipa for a while. The Duke of Song felt a little sleepy, so he dismissed her and went back to his study to rest.

Soon, snoring could be heard from the cubicle; he had fallen asleep.

In the empty study, the painting of an ancient pine tree hanging directly in front of the desk suddenly blew out large ink stains, which dripped onto the floor and gradually gathered into a pile.