Chapter 18 The Ancient Scholar Used as Cannon Fodder (18) ...

Qian Youcai, who had a mysterious bias towards the Chu family, actually believed Chu Qing's words and recounted the whole story in detail, adding, "If this matter is not handled properly, I'm afraid not only will his scholar title be revoked, but he will also have to pay a fine."

The incident hasn't happened yet; if we want to stop it, there's still time. We can send someone with the fastest horse to deliver a message.

“Why did we stop him? He framed my elder brother for cheating in the provincial examination, and he almost succeeded!” Chu Qing’s eyes were cold. “If he can’t pay the fine, he will naturally be punished with a cane.”

Qian Youcai hesitated and said, "If he is stripped of his Xiucai degree, the fine should not be too high, only a little over a hundred taels, which should be enough for him to pay."

“Then let him not be able to come up with it. His family’s wealth was all earned by his parents. Why should they fill the hole for him? If…” Chu Xiaomei whispered something to Qian Youcai. After hearing it, Qian Youcai gasped.

I thought Prime Minister Chu's methods were already quite clever, but I didn't expect this one to be even more cunning. Han Qige must be out of his mind to scheme against someone and not be a close friend like him.

Han Qige also felt that he had lost his mind. How could he have listened to Qian Youcai and made this trip?

He has all the knowledge of the modern world in his head; he could sell any part of it for money. There's no need for him to travel so far for two hundred taels!

They thought delivering goods would be as simple as taking the imperial examination, just a trip by carriage, but it turned out they were a caravan and could only travel along civilian roads.

Unlike candidates like Chu Nanfeng who were traveling to the capital for the imperial examinations, other merchant caravans, while exempt from a certain percentage of taxes, were not eligible to use the official channels.

If the contract had not been reported to the government, Han Qige might have been able to apply for study abroad under the name of a scholar, but now he can only suffer through the mountains and forests.

Han Qige did not tell her parents the truth. She only said that she did not do well on the exam and wanted to go out with the caravan to relax. They offered her food, lodging and twenty taels of silver.

Twenty taels of silver was not a small sum for the Han family, and since it was the Qian family's caravan that was following them, the Han family parents were not too worried.

My son is not young anymore. It would be good for him to go out and gain some experience. Maybe he will become more mature after seeing more of the world.

Along with Han Qige, there were eight workers in three carriages transporting goods. The carriages were loaded with cloth, leaving only a narrow space for people to sit, which was very uncomfortable.

The mountain roads were difficult for the carriage to traverse, so Han Qige not only had to get out and walk, but also had to help push the carriage when the road conditions were bad. She was exhausted, with a sore back, aching legs, and cramps.

The group of men were polite to him on the surface, but none of them helped him when he couldn't walk anymore, or even let him catch his breath.

Hearing the distant roars of wild beasts and the mournful cries of birds overhead, Han Qige dared not be left behind, dragging her leaden legs and barely managing to lag behind.

The twenty taels of silver that Boss Qian gave them were actually the expenses for the entire journey of these nine people and three horses. Even when they passed through the county town, they could only stay in the cheapest inns and eat the cheapest food.

Twenty taels of silver is actually quite a lot; it could allow the group to have a good meal. However, Han Qige always felt that the money was meant for him and should rightfully belong to him.

Unfortunately, the staff didn't treat him well, so he didn't want to spend money on them. But the more he acted this way, the more perfunctory they became, making his life even more difficult.

While regretting his actions, Han Qige comforted himself, thinking that once he got the two hundred taels of silver, he could start a business empire. At that time, he would make Qian Youcai his errand boy!

At night, they even had to sleep in the wild, each person wrapped in an old quilt, leaning against the car to sleep, with a campfire lit around them.

It wasn't particularly cold at this time, so lighting a bonfire in the middle would have been enough. Han Qige didn't know why these guys had gone to all that trouble to gather a bunch of firewood and light a whole circle of bonfires.

Keep in mind that their group, including men and horses, formed a considerable area. Not only did they need someone to watch the fire and keep it from going out, but they also had to be careful of sparks blown by the wind so that they wouldn't burn things or people.

They have to take turns keeping watch every night, which is a thankless and exhausting task.

One night, Han Qige saw a pack of wolves. More than ten wolves surrounded them and glared at them for half the night, which terrified him so much that his hair stood on end.

The men, however, were unfazed. They made the fire burn even brighter and threw something into it, which emitted a pungent smell of smoke. The wolves turned and ran away.

To prevent Han Qige from acting rashly, the men explained to him that what they threw into the fire was the dung of wild animals, used to scare away the wolves.

While the others continued to sleep, Han Qige was too frightened to fall asleep. Even when she managed to close her eyes, she would be awakened by nightmares, making her look even more haggard.

After suffering quite a bit, Han Qige had his crew replan the route, taking a slightly longer detour, but still managing to get into the city every night, determined to stop camping in the wild.

After traveling for several more days, they finally arrived at Qing County, which was not far from Yunzhou. Just as Han Qige and his party entered the city, a group of government officials suddenly surrounded them and took them away, along with their goods.

The reason for their arrest was simple: when one of the workers was moving goods, he accidentally let some silk slip out, which was seen by a passing merchant who then reported them.

It was only then that Han Qige learned that the fabric they were transporting was called Yun brocade, and that this kind of thing could not be bought and sold privately, as it was considered smuggling.

Han Qige, who had always looked down on ancient rules, was somewhat bewildered. He only knew that salt and iron could not be privately traded, so how could cloth also be smuggled?

Caught red-handed smuggling brocade, the magistrate of Qing County slammed his gavel and immediately convicted Han Qige.

No matter how much Han Qige explained, the contract he found in his pocket clearly showed his name on it.

As for the few employees of the Qian family he mentioned, they were bodyguards hired by the escort agency and had absolutely no connection with the Qian family.

Han Qige was stripped of his scholar title, fined 100 taels of silver, and temporarily imprisoned until his relatives could pay to ransom him.

There weren't many people in the cell. Han Qige was put in solitary confinement. The cell was relatively clean and had a worn-out quilt. Apart from the bland food, it wasn't unbearable.

Inside the study, the magistrate of Qingcheng was whispering to one of his employees: "Didn't we agree to confiscate the goods, strip them of their official titles, and then release them? Why are we making this person pay money?"

He looks so poor, he doesn't seem wealthy at all. What if he pushes someone to the brink of desperation?!

"Don't worry, sir. If he can't come up with the money later, just do as the old rules and give him a beating in court, but don't go too far."

The man gestured with his fingers to indicate the quantity in tons (t), saying, "The boss said that once the deal is done, he only needs to pay the cost price for this batch of goods!"

The magistrate, calculating the benefits he could gain, readily agreed. With such solid evidence, a beating would be nothing to worry about.

It turns out that the Qian family's smuggling operation was a different kind of operation. The imperial court had decreed that goods confiscated by the government, unless they were tribute items, could be disposed of by the government itself.

The brocade confiscated by the county government was not up to the standard required to be handed over to the imperial court, so selling it was in accordance with the rules.

Once they got their hands on it, even some spoiled brats who weren't of high enough rank could wear Yun brocade. As long as it wasn't a formal public occasion, basically no one would care.

Han Qige was ordered to pay the fine within a month, or she would be flogged forty times. However, when Han's father rushed over, he did not bring any money with him.

“Qige, just two days before your message came back, someone brought you a contract you signed, saying that he had given you a deposit of five hundred taels. Not only did you not deliver the goods to him, but you also took the opportunity to smuggle Yun brocade.”

With trembling hands, Han's father took out a contract from his pocket, the very contract that Han Qige had personally signed and sealed.

“This is on record with the yamen. The county magistrate directly ordered us to pay back the money. We even had to sell our house to raise the money.”

Han Qige snatched the contract, gritting her teeth in hatred. How could the Qian family have schemed against her like this! She was determined to avenge herself!

The sight of that ferocious face terrified Qian's father, but fortunately, Han Qige's mind wasn't on that. He asked, "How much money is left in the house?"

Han's father lowered his head and choked up, saying, "Son, I don't have the ability to get that much money, but I've found out that you'll be given forty lashes in court. They usually don't go for the kill in these cases."

We still have over twenty taels left. Father will give you a little more to help you suffer less. Anyway, you're a boy, so don't worry about being seen."

Han Qige suddenly realized what he was about to face, and his face immediately turned pale. In court! Forty strokes of the cane!

In this damned ancient world, being flogged means taking off your pants!

He desperately urged Han's father to come up with a solution, but a hundred taels of silver is not something that can be obtained simply by thinking of a solution.

After the one-month deadline passed, Han Qige was forced to sit in the courtroom, surrounded by a crowd of people. Then, in full view of everyone, his pants were pulled down.

Before Han Qige could feel ashamed and indignant, the thick board came down hard. He immediately screamed and struggled violently, but was held down firmly and could not move.

The paddle fell again and again, and Han Qige's struggles and cries grew weaker and weaker. By the time the torture was over, he had almost fainted.

Han's father carried the person to the inn, and with the little money left, he barely managed to find a doctor to get some medicine.

When the inferior wound medicine was applied to the wound, Han Qige immediately struggled violently, but her father forcibly held her down and applied the medicine.

With no money, all they could eat was porridge made from brown rice. Applying medicine every day was like torture. It was only because Han Qige was young and had a good constitution that she slowly recovered.

After being cared for for about ten days, Han Qige, who had just been able to get out of bed and walk, suddenly disappeared. After searching for three days, Han's father sighed and went home alone.

He and Han's mother were temporarily staying in Chu Nanfeng's courtyard. His house and land had indeed been sold, but the money had not been taken away.

Han's father received a letter that said that the current Han Qige was a ghost who had been resurrected in another body, and that his son had died four years ago when he fell into the water.

The examples cited in the letter are very detailed:

The former Han Qi was down-to-earth and steady, but the current Han Qige is quite unconventional.

Han Qi used to help her parents with housework, but now Han Qige never does.

Although Han Qi was not particularly gifted, she was diligent and eager to learn, getting up early every day to practice calligraphy and read books. Now, however, Han Qi only touches her pen when someone is watching her.

Then Mr. and Mrs. Han remembered something: their son's name was Han Qi, not Han Qige!

“He, he is really not our Xiaoqi. Xiaoqi has always been a filial child. She would never have heard that after we sold our possessions, she was only thinking about money.”

Mr. Han's eyes reddened. "Back then, we deceived ourselves and refused to acknowledge that Xiaoqi had an accident, which is why this thing took his place."

Han's mother was also in tears, "Now that this thing has run away, we still need to give Xiaoqi a proper burial."

When the neighbors heard about this, they all believed it. Even the county government, after hearing about it and conducting an investigation, crossed out Han Qige's place of origin and wrote that Han Qi, the eldest son of the Han family, had died.

Four years ago, eleven-year-old Han Qi accidentally fell into the water. When she was pulled out, her face was bluish-purple and she was no longer breathing.

As Han's mother hugged her son and wept bitterly, the child, who had already been confirmed dead, suddenly turned his head and vomited a large mouthful of water.

After he regained consciousness, he was left with no health problems. Han's parents were overjoyed and doted on him even more than before.

Even though her son's temperament had changed a lot, she only thought it was because he had suffered a hardship and was frightened.

When he told them that he had dreamt of an immortal who advised him to change his name to Han Qige to avoid disaster, the two elders readily agreed and even notified their relatives and neighbors to change their names.

"Looking back now, that wasn't Xiaoqi at all. Our Xiaoqi liked to wear dark clothes, climb trees to pick fruit, and raid bird nests..."

Han's mother slumped in her chair, muttering to herself, filled with self-reproach.

They had been staying in Chu Nanfeng's room for several days, and their good neighbors came over every day to talk to and comfort them, which helped them regain some energy. They planned to rent a place and move out in a few days.

The Han family sold their property and land, raising five hundred taels of silver to repay the debt. The originally fierce creditor simply handed over the inscription to them, refusing to take a single tael of silver, and even gave them a letter.

"It must have been Prime Minister Chu who discovered the clues, and it was thanks to his reminder that we were able to see the true nature of this thing."

Han's father sighed, "The handwriting looks rather immature; it doesn't seem like the handwriting of the Prime Minister of Chu."

When Han's mother was packing up the things she had brought from home, intending to build a cenotaph for her son, she discovered that none of Han Qige's belongings had ever been used by Xiao Qi. She couldn't help but burst into tears again.

A note from the author:

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