Paper Dragonfly

Shen Changqing heard Gu Yu's clear and joyful shout as soon as he approached.

In fact, Gu Yu didn't need to call out; he could recognize her at a glance, even though she was wrapped up tightly in front of him.

“Chen Lang…” She walked quickly toward him. “This road to the Ministry of Rites’ examination hall is the only way, so I’m waiting for you here.”

"This is freshly baked Ding Sheng Gao (a type of rice cake) today. Take it with you; it's better than those dry rations, so eat it sooner rather than later..."

She kept talking, which made Shen Changqing, who hadn't seen her for a long time, a little stunned.

These past few days, Ding Sheng Gao (a type of rice cake) has been delivered to her residence every day; it's a thoughtful gesture.

Only now did he realize what the strange feelings that lingered in his heart were: when he couldn't see her, he felt melancholy longing; when he saw her, he felt joy and happiness.

His life, from the age of three when he began learning calligraphy, unfolded like a meticulous and orderly traditional Chinese painting scroll.

At the age of ten, he astonished the literary world with his "Ode to Viewing the Stele on a Snowy Night"; at the age of twelve, he became a government-subsidized student while wearing a square scarf on his head; at the age of fifteen, he won the top score in the provincial examination with his "Ode to the Clear River"; the ink in his inkstone was more than the tea that others had drunk.

According to plan, he should have won the top score in the provincial examination, then the imperial examination, and finally married the legitimate daughter of a prominent family.

Or like Gu Yu of the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion, who held the military seal, or like the beautiful and talented women from noble families who were well-versed in poetry and literature.

After their marriage, they lived in perfect harmony. She managed the household affairs while he rose through the ranks. Finally, in the year he retired, he received a plaque inscribed with the words "Minister of Statecraft" by the emperor himself, which brought them a perfect union.

To his surprise, while he was trying to win her heart, he also developed feelings for her. He didn't know if this was a good thing or a bad thing.

He looked down at her pale, almost translucent face. "Are you feeling better?"

"Much better." Gu Yu smiled and put the pastries into his exam basket. "Chen Lang, it's not difficult for you to pass the imperial examination. Then I wish you success in achieving your goal."

Her earlobes turned bright red, and she hesitated, unable to finish her sentence, "When the time comes..."

Shen Changqing suddenly smiled, his smile melting away like ice and snow, as if a banished immortal had been stained with the rouge of the mortal world.

"I know, Ayu. Take good care of yourself and wait for me to come and marry you."

Gu Yu was so ashamed that she dared not look at him again, and urged him to hurry to the examination hall so as not to be late.

Shen Changqing smiled and nodded, then strode through Chongwen Gate and lined up in front of the examination hall for inspection. Although the yamen runners were exceptionally polite to him, they still carefully examined the writing implements in his examination basket.

The examination hall consisted of rows of neatly arranged examination cells, each less than five feet square. Each cell was separated from the other by a half-person-high wooden board. The walls were uneven, likely because some candidates had carved words on them, which were then worn away.

Once inside the cell, except for using the toilet, everything else, such as sleeping and eating, is done in the cell.

He spread out the Chengxintang paper that had been distributed and pressed it flat with an inkstone.

The imperial examinations officially began. The north gate of the examination hall was sealed off, and guards with swords patrolled in front of it.

Paper dragonflies floated everywhere in the streets and alleys, seemingly appearing from nowhere. The north wind swept across Shengjing City like an untimely snowfall.

Too many!

It's everywhere you look.

Some of them fell to the ground and were picked up by illiterate children to use as toys, while others, oblivious to the danger, smeared them on the faces of passersby, forcing them to frown and scrutinize the contents.

"Cough cough..." Wei Cong frowned and picked up the things that had fallen to the ground.

The above contains the examination questions for the provincial examination.

He frowned and picked up a few more paper dragonflies.

The meanings of the Four Books, the meanings of the Classics, the arguments and pronouncements, and the policies on current affairs in the classics and history are all similar in some aspects, but most of them are different.

He folded the paper dragonfly he picked up from the ground and put it into his sleeve.

My forehead is still burning hot today, and my thoughts are all jumbled up, but Dongfang Hongyao is even more seriously ill than me.

At least he can still get up and go to the clinic to get some medicine, while Dongfang Hongyao is still lying in bed talking nonsense.

As for why they ended up like this, we have to go back to the day before yesterday.

Wenxuanju is located in the north of Chengnan Street. This area is mostly filled with taverns, grocery stalls, and residences, and is generally quiet. Therefore, many restaurants have been set up to accommodate traveling merchants.

In addition, there were various guild halls specially set up by fellow villagers for students. As long as one had the status of a Juren (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations), one could stay in either a restaurant or a guild hall for free one month before and one month after the spring examinations.

South of Chengnan Street is the largest guild hall in Shengjing—Chengnan Guild Hall, which was donated by Zhang Weijun, a famous scholar of the previous dynasty.

If Brother Hongyao hadn't met him on the way, he would definitely have gone to the South City Guild Hall. However, he preferred the secluded and less crowded Wenxuan Residence, so Brother Hongyao stayed with him.

The day before yesterday, the two of them went to the South City Guild Hall to return the ancient books they had previously borrowed to Wen, a scholar at the guild hall. The three of them hit it off again and talked about poetry and essays with Wen until midnight.

When they took a shortcut back to Wenxuan Residence and entered a dark alley, they were suddenly hit on the back with a club.

When they woke up again, they were both tied up tightly, their mouths stuffed with cloths, and thrown into a secluded alley.

In the dead of night, with no one to turn to for help, he was frozen all night before being discovered by the night watchman at dawn.

The person who knocked them unconscious wasn't trying to rob them—nothing was missing—nor was it to kill them; otherwise, they could have just attacked them directly.

However, neither Wei Cong's frail scholarly physique nor Dongfang Hongyao's luxurious lifestyle could withstand the biting cold of February. They fell ill shortly after returning home and going to bed.

He was delirious with fever yesterday, but Dongfang Hongyao was still clear-headed. He sent someone to fetch a doctor and get a prescription.

Today, Wei Cong had some strength left and was able to go to the imperial examination hall, albeit with difficulty. However, upon seeing Dongfang Hongyao rambling incoherently on the bed, he ultimately suppressed his desire to go to the examination hall.

His body hasn't fully recovered yet. The imperial examination is on the 15th, and he probably won't last more than a few days before collapsing.

Moreover, he and his brother Hongyao came to Shengjing together, and should have been on the list together, but it's been three years...

He pondered the test questions recorded on the paper, feeling that something was amiss.

Since arriving in the capital, both of them have been cautious people and have never offended anyone. How could they have been assassinated?

"Red Robe..." Dongfang Hongyao's face was pale, even his usually rosy lips were bloodless, but his forehead was burning hot. "Green Ripple...this young master is thirsty...I need water..."

Wei Cong poured a bowl of water, but it was ice water. He brought the teacup to Dongfang Hongyao's lips, making him feel very uncomfortable. He drank some water in a daze, shivered from the cold, and suddenly became more awake.

"...I want warm water..." Dongfang Hongyao couldn't see who was in front of him. He squinted and felt like he was in a furnace. The sensation of being both hot and cold was even more unbearable.

"Young man, cough cough, could you please boil some hot water and bring it in, cough cough cough—" Wei Cong covered his lips, coughing incessantly, and handed the medicine he had grabbed to the waiter. "Cough cough, thank you for your trouble. Also, boil one dose of these medicines every day, twice a day, morning and evening, and put them in two bowls and bring them to my room."

Yesterday, for reasons unknown, the doctor wrote a prescription, but no one went to get the medicine. He guessed that Brother Hongyao had fainted before he could finish giving instructions.

Fortunately, he was a bit more lucid today, which allowed him to go out and get his medicine.

The waiter took the medicine packet but didn't leave. Wei Cong then remembered something and took out a few copper coins from his front pocket. "Young man... cough cough cough... thank you for your trouble..."

"Alright, I'll go brew your medicine right away. I'll bring you hot water right away." The waiter immediately beamed, took the copper coin from his hand, and clutched it in his palm.

Wei Cong, still inside the room, remembered the paper dragonflies floating on the street.

He unfolded the folded paper dragonfly; the handwriting on it was neat but haphazard, making it impossible to discern which school of writing it belonged to.

The ink still smells fresh, as if it was written recently.

Today is the first day of the imperial examinations, and when he found this item, an absurd thought inexplicably popped into his head—

Could this be one of the questions for this year's imperial examination?

If that's the case, then fortune and misfortune are intertwined. His and Brother Hongyao's failure to attend this spring examination is not a disaster.

The situation in Shengjing City was even more murky than he had imagined. Three years ago, something went wrong with the imperial examinations, and this year's examinations were likely to be problematic as well.

Without anyone noticing, he clutched the paper, slumped onto the table, and fell into a deep sleep.

The second day of the third lunar month marks the end of the imperial examinations.

The chief examiner, deputy examiner, and a group of people were all locked inside the examination hall along with the candidates.

The gates remained locked for fifteen days, and apart from imperial edicts, no one dared to break the seals and enter the examination hall.

However, just as the Imperial Examination Hall was reopened at noon today, a group of Imperial Guards with tokens entered the hall and surrounded Shi Zhixuan, the Minister of Rites and Grand Secretary of the Cabinet.

Before the bewildered officials could react, Li Shiqin, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, spoke first.

"Lord Shi, the imperial examination questions have been leaked! They're all over the capital now, take a look—"

He handed the paper with the written test questions, which had already been torn open, to Shi Zhixuan. Shi Zhixuan took a look and immediately turned pale, his legs trembling.

“Commander Li, I did not do such a thing, I am innocent.”

"Whether it's a case of injustice or not, I will naturally investigate and give you justice. But now that the exam questions have been leaked, I ask for your cooperation in the investigation."

"Take them all—"

Li Shiqin waved his hand, and the Imperial Guards behind him, armed with embroidered spring knives, surrounded everyone.

Inside the examination hall, both officials and candidates realized that the leak of the exam questions was a serious matter. Whether they had something to hide or not, they all understood that if they couldn't get through this, they would have no hope of passing the imperial examinations for the rest of their lives.

Not only that, but they might also lose their lives.

Immediately, the examination hall erupted in cries and wails. Some shouted "Injustice!", others tried to rush out but were terrified by the swords and spears, and still others collapsed to the ground, incontinent...

There were over three thousand candidates and examiners in the examination hall. Li Shiqin had to mobilize many soldiers from other places to barely stabilize the situation.

However, because of the Ministry of Personnel's affairs, the Shengjing prison already had a large number of people, and now another three thousand people have to be imprisoned and investigated one by one...

Thinking of this, Li Shiqin rubbed his temples with a headache. These past few days have really been a turbulent time.

He recalled how the emperor, who had rarely attended court, had lost his temper on the very first day of the imperial examinations. When he summoned him, the emperor flew into a rage, demanding to know whether the spies he had planted in Shengjing had been effective, and why he had only found out after the fact, causing him to lose face in front of the people...

This should be the last time he handles a case as the Commander-in-Chief. If he can find out the truth, he can atone for his crimes and might even be spared. If he can't find out the truth, he will naturally not survive.

Fortunately, he left enough money for his family so that they could live a worry-free life in their later years. Very few people who serve the imperial family end up with a good ending.

From the very first day, he began investigating where those paper dragonflies filled with test questions came from. The winds in Shengjing in February were too strong, and there were far too many paper dragonflies filled with test questions. Even after fifteen days of cleaning, there were still some that had slipped through the net.

He checked the paper; it was just ordinary paper, available at every place that sells paper and ink, and the ink was also ordinary ink.

Moreover, he had investigated the buying and selling of paper and ink in Shengjing shops and found that there was no such large outflow gap.

However, the only thing that can be confirmed is that these papers are all printed.

Judging from the direction and clarity of the ink characters, it is wood-based printing, originating from folk methods, something that every literate person could do.

It's highly likely that they made their own wooden printing blocks, which were then burned to ashes after printing, leaving no evidence whatsoever.

Following the clues in the handwriting yielded no results, so the path to finding the source of these paper dragonflies that were flying all over Shengjing City was completely unworkable.

The only way to investigate is through the leaked exam questions...

"Commander Li, what exactly happened outside?" Shen Changqing took a few steps back, deliberately staying behind to try and find out some information from Li Shiqin.

Li Shiqin glanced at Shen Changqing, and thinking of the kindness his younger brother had received from Shen Xiuwen, he spoke up.

"The questions for the first day of the imperial examinations were printed on paper dragonflies and flew all over the capital. The Emperor was furious when he found out, but he still waited fifteen days, and the results of this year's imperial examinations will be decided as normal..."

Upon hearing this, Shen Changqing's fingertips trembled. The exam questions had been leaked. Under these circumstances, the candidates on the list were most likely those who had bought the exam questions, which greatly narrowed down the pool of candidates.

Even though he did not open the letter with the exam questions as his father had said, he still passed the imperial examination on his own.

Even so, if he really won the top prize, who would care about the truth?

Upon realizing this, Shen Changqing's calm and composed expression vanished, replaced by a trembling heart and cold sweat pouring down his face.

Li Shiqin continued speaking.

"I couldn't find anything by investigating from the outside, so I have to try a different approach."

After he finished speaking, he turned to his subordinates and instructed them, "Search this entire examination hall thoroughly. Don't overlook any of the inscriptions on the walls. See if there's anything we're looking for here."

Li Shiqin paid special attention to Shen Changqing's unusual expression, but he couldn't figure out why Shen Changqing was like this. Was he worried about his reputation, or something else?

Three years ago, Shen Xiuwen was the deputy examiner, but this time it was clearly not related to Shen Xiuwen at all.

He watched Shen Changqing's departing figure, lost in thought...

"Brother Xu?" Shen Changqing frowned slightly when he saw Xu Qiu, who was slowly trailing behind. He reached out and patted Xu Qiu's shoulder, but unexpectedly heard the man cry out in pain.

"Hiss—" Xu Qiu grimaced, clearly having been hit on his wound. He turned around and saw that it was Shen Changqing. "Brother Shen, you hit my wound."

"What's wrong, Brother Xu?"

"I did something wrong and was punished." Xu Qiu said with some helplessness, "I should have known better than to participate in this year's imperial examination. The wound on my back hasn't been dressed for fifteen days, and I don't know if it will become a chronic condition."

"If that's the case, why did you come, Brother Xu?"