Chapter 19 (Did a sutra copyist offend you?)
A gentle breeze rustled through the woods, brushing against the young man's faded old robe.
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The young man was tall and slender, dressed in inconspicuous clothes. Upon closer inspection, he was a handsome man with deep features and bright eyes. He held the riding whip without moving, and although he was looking up at Lu Huaying and her group, his gaze was sharp and his slanted eyebrows were like swords, exuding an aggressive aura.
But no matter how imposing he may seem, a single glance at his clothes, his background, and his poverty reveals all.
Thus, the young man's imposing manner appeared somewhat feeble and powerless in the face of a group of well-dressed, spirited scions of wealthy families.
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The young men in brocade robes saw that the young man was still holding onto Lu Huaying's riding whip, cursed him as a lecher, spurred their horses forward, and lashed the young man's face with their whips.
The young man's face was swollen and bloody, his hair was disheveled from being whipped, but his back remained straight. He gripped Lu Huaying's whip tightly and asked the man who had suddenly jumped out of the woods and startled Lu Huaying's horse, "Were they the ones who came hunting a few days ago?"
A withered, hunched-over villager with a weathered face emerged from behind him. He glanced up at the young men in fine clothes on horseback, his expression filled with fear. He knelt down with a thud, kowtowing and pleading, "I beg you gentlemen to have mercy..."
The boys stopped whipping their whips, looked at each other with furrowed brows, and wondered if this emaciated villager had stopped them to beg for alms.
Young Master Cui, who had suggested the hunting trip, was enraged. He lashed out at the kneeling villagers, yelling, "You unruly country bumpkins are hopelessly stupid! You'd rather have your money than your lives!"
They were all sons of wealthy and powerful families, surrounded by servants and servants. Whatever they wanted, a glance from them would be bought and delivered to their hands. They never carried money or silk with them. Moreover, today they were hunting, carrying bows, arrow quivers, and knives. Who would carry money?
The villagers quickly covered their heads and begged for mercy meekly.
Lu Huaying suddenly loosened her grip, and the young man released her riding whip, stepped forward, stood in front of the villagers, and grabbed Cui Gongzi's whip.
Young Master Cui's expression changed drastically. He tried to steady himself, but the young man pulled him off his horse with astonishing strength and threw him to the ground!
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The valiant servants riding behind were stunned for a moment, then came to their senses and jumped off their horses.
Several people rushed forward to help Young Master Cui up, while others surrounded the young man, shouting and cursing at him.
"Ten days ago, Young Master Cui came to Wangchuan to hunt." Facing the fierce servant and the fist that was about to hit him, the young man remained calm, his gaze fixed on Young Master Cui, who was getting up from the ground in a disheveled state. "Young Master Cui's hunting dogs broke into the village and killed all the villagers' livestock. It's busy with spring plowing, and the villagers have no oxen to plow the fields. The yamen said they couldn't handle this matter, so the villagers can only wait here for Young Master Cui to come again. The villagers have been waiting for ten days."
The young man, neither humble nor arrogant, said, "Please, Young Master Cui, compensate the villagers for their losses."
The villagers on the ground burst into tears, saying, "We have elderly parents to support and young children to raise. Our families barely survive on a few acres of land. Now all our livestock are dead, even the ox is dead. We are all starving. Please, sir, have mercy!"
Young Master Cui was taken aback for a moment, then noticed out of the corner of his eye that the other young masters surrounding Lu Huaying were all grinning smugly, and a look of annoyance flashed across his face.
He did come to Wangchuan to hunt ten days ago, and he brought hunting dogs with him, all of them muscular greyhounds.
He didn't know that his hunting dog had killed the villagers' livestock. Even if he did, he wouldn't care about such a trivial matter. It was just a few animals.
Young Master Cui didn't want to lose his temper in front of Lu Huaying, so he bit her.
Gritting her teeth, before she could even utter a word of explanation, Lu Huaying had already lost all interest in hunting. She turned her horse around and headed straight back to Chang'an.
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“A young man surnamed Wei, he was a sutra copyist at Luyuan Temple.”
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One day, Lu Huaying sneaked out to drink and climbed over the wall to return home at night, where she was caught red-handed by her sister-in-law, Wang Yu.
Wang Yu put her arm around Lu Huaying and fed her a sip of hangover soup.
Unexpectedly, a few days later, someone in the court suddenly impeached the Duke of Yan, saying that the Duke of Yan's daughter, Lu Sanniang, was arrogant and domineering, and deliberately released dogs to kill villagers' livestock while hunting for amusement. The court was asked to punish her severely, otherwise the people would be resentful!
Looking at the horsewhip that Lu Huaying had thrown down on the ground, Young Master Cui felt as if he were seeing himself in it.
When the Duke of Yan was ridiculed to his face at court, he returned to his mansion and flew into a rage.
Lu Huaying suffered an undeserved misfortune and didn't want to pay any attention to Young Master Cui. Under her elder brother's supervision, she obediently stayed at home for a few days to reflect on her actions. Once her brother's watchful eye loosened, she had her maid act as a cover and climbed over the wall to go out and play.
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The next day, she went on a picnic in Qujiang with her sister-in-law, and she quickly forgot about the incident.
Lu Huaying hugged Wang Yu tightly and said coquettishly, "Sister-in-law, you love Feifei the most, don't tell my brother."
Wang Yu took a towel and wiped her face: "Feifei, I didn't come to arrest you. The monks from Luyuan Temple came to the manor today to deliver scriptures. They stammered and pleaded with me, saying things like 'it is better than building a seven-story pagoda.' Feifei, did a scripture copyist offend you?"
The other young masters hurriedly followed, not forgetting to turn back and wink at Young Master Cui: "You can't just walk away from the trouble you caused. We won't cause you any more trouble, we'll head back first!"
The girl glanced at the riding whip in her hand, disgusted that a strange man had touched it, and casually tossed it aside before riding off into the distance.
Lu Huaying looked completely bewildered. The hunting dog that killed the villagers' livestock clearly belonged to Young Master Cui, so how did it become hers?
Duke Yan waved his hand to indicate that he did not want to listen, and sneered: "What difference does it make whether it was done by the man surnamed Cui or by you? Why doesn't the censor impeach other young ladies in Chang'an, but only you, Lu Sanniang? Isn't it because you don't uphold the virtues of a woman and openly show your face in public? You were spoiled by your grandfather!"
Lu Huaying returned to the Duke's mansion and got a new horsewhip.
"You wait, I'll teach him a lesson and show him what respect and rank truly mean!"
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In an instant, a surge of hot tears welled up. Lu Huaying clenched her fist, turned away, and tried to hold back the tears, but they still fell.
Feeling guilty and ashamed, Young Master Cui came to the mansion to apologize, saying he wanted to avenge Lu Huaying: "It's all that Wei's fault! He must have gone to the censor to report us. Third Sister, I found out that the scholar who stood up for the villagers is surnamed Wei. He copies scriptures for the temple. Scholars like him, of lowly birth and unknown, will do anything for power. He has no money or influence, and no one appreciates him, so he takes crooked paths, using this selfish method to promote his good reputation and climb up by stepping on us!"
...
A clatter of hooves echoed, and dust billowed up.
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