Chapter 555 Mission
Manbao and Bai Shanbao looked at each other, and then they gritted their teeth and told the story of how they sneaked into the Yan family next door today.
Mr. Zhuang showed no emotion at all. He was obviously prepared for the mischief of his three children, so he listened to them quietly.
When Mr. Zhuang heard Manbao recite the two paragraphs she had memorized, his expression changed. He was silent for a moment and asked, "Where is the booklet?"
"Daji took it," Bai Shanbao said. "He wouldn't show it to us, saying he had sent it back to my grandmother."
Mr. Zhuang subconsciously looked out the window and saw a figure there, who was obviously Daji.
The three children obviously didn't mind Daji knowing that they had told him about this, and likewise, Daji was not afraid of him knowing.
But think about it, this matter is not important, what is important is the content of the booklet.
Mr. Zhuang rubbed his forehead and asked, "What do you want?"
Mr. Zhuang glanced at the bewildered Bai Erlang, then his gaze fell on Bai Shanbao and Manbao, and asked, "Now that you know there's this booklet, what do you think?"
Manbao said blankly, "We don't want to do anything. We just think this is evidence of a crime and shouldn't we hand it over to the court?"
Mr. Zhuang sighed and asked, "Who should I give it to?"
Bai Shanbao said somewhat unsurely, "Leave it to County Magistrate Tang?"
This was the only official they knew in Yizhou, and he was also in charge of Yan's house.
"What will happen next? County Magistrate Tang accepts the case. What will he do?" Mr. Zhuang leaned against the head of the bed and pressed his hand to let them sit on the footrest.
Manbao and Bai Shanbao sat down, and Bai Erlang followed suit. They thought for a moment and said, "Should we submit an impeachment petition and hand over the evidence to the Dali Temple?"
"Yizhou is the fiefdom of the King of Yizhou. Do you think his evidence can be safely delivered to the Dali Temple in the capital?" Mr. Zhuang paused and then said, "Even more, can the evidence in your hands be safely delivered to Magistrate Tang?"
Not only Manbao and Bai Shanbao, but even Bai Erlang opened his mouth wide, "Could they kill people to silence them?"
"Silly boy, the account book you're looking at begins with the ninth year of the Dazhen reign, and the tenth year of the Dazhen reign saw a flood. Don't you have any idea what kind of money they're embezzling?" Mr. Zhuang said, "Think about how many people died in the flood three years ago, and how many officials were beheaded afterwards. It's just a few more lives you've lost. What's wrong with that?"
Manbao was a little angry and looked up to speak, but Mr. Zhuang continued, "Not only you, but also your family members behind you."
Manbao's anger suddenly subsided and he opened his mouth wide.
"So it's right for Daji to take it. You are still young now, and you can't take charge of this matter."
Bai Shanbao asked in disbelief, "Then, just don't care about it?" This was completely different from the education he had received since childhood.
Mr. Zhuang reached out and patted his head, saying, "Wait for the right time."
He said, "You are young now, and you can always see the results of what you do immediately, but you must know that in this world, the vast majority of things will not show results immediately."
"Spring sowing requires autumn to harvest. You learned to read at the age of three, yet you're only taking the provincial entrance exam now. You might have to wait until you're a man, or even longer, before you can enter the government. That's another matter," Mr. Zhuang said slowly. "And the matter of the King of Yizhou also has to wait until that time arrives."
Bai Shanbao and Manbao were lost in thought.
Mr. Zhuang did not urge them and let them kneel and think.
After a while, Bai Shanbao nodded and said, "Sir, I understand. I will keep this in mind instead of saying it out loud. I will wait for the right time."
Manbao also nodded.
Mr. Zhuang was very satisfied. After thinking for a while, he said, "Look for the Han Shu and the Hou Han Shu over the next two days. Don't just look at the surface. Look carefully and count the number of officials who were abolished."
Manbao blinked and nodded blankly with Bai Shanbao.
The officials who were beheaded in "Book of Han" and "Book of the Later Han" are naturally not listed explicitly, and have to be read carefully. For example, the first chapter of "Book of the Later Han" is the Chronicle of Emperor Guangwu. Everyone was fighting during this period. Not counting the dead and wounded soldiers, just those with names, you hit me and I hit you, and many people died.
During this period, it was common for you to attack me and I to fight back, but Mr. Zhuang did not just let them count heads.
Why was that head chopped off? Why was this head gone? What was that head's life like? What happened to this head after his death?
In this way, the books they want to read are not just "Book of Han" and "Book of the Later Han".
Mr. Zhuang wrote down the questions they needed to answer on a piece of paper, handed it to them, and then waved his hand and said, "You can go back and rest."
Bai Shanbao looked at the paper of questions and finally remembered something particularly serious. "Sir, I still have to prepare for the provincial school exam."
So where is the time to find answers to so many questions?
Mr. Zhuang said quietly, "You have time to play with holes in the wall, but you don't have time to read?"
Bai Shanbao walked out with his neck shrunk, feeling guilty. Manbao didn't dare to say anything and followed him obediently. Bai Erlang had a look of gloating on his face.
When they got outside, Daji was standing in the yard watching them.
Bai Shanbao had no time to pay attention to him now, and went back to the house dejectedly.
Daji watched silently, and waited until their lights were on before knocking on the door and entering Mr. Zhuang's room.
Mr. Zhuang did not lie down to sleep, but sat at the table. As soon as Daji came in, he motioned him to sit down and answer.
Mr. Zhuang is now receiving a high salary from Mrs. Liu and Mr. Bai, and is personally teaching Bai Shanbao and Bai Erlang. Of course, that money is not taken for free.
In this era, the relationship between a formally apprentice master and apprentice is like that between father and son, and they share the same interests.
So Daji didn't intend to hide this matter from Mr. Zhuang at first.
He recounted what happened today in detail, and what he said was slightly different from what the three young masters said, for example: Miss Man seemed to know that there was something hidden in the wall, and she reached out to touch the wall.
However, Mr. Zhuang skipped over this matter and asked directly, "Where is the booklet?"
"I've had someone send me back to Qili Village."
"Can that man be trusted?"
"He's trustworthy. He's a servant of our Bai family. The old lady opened a shop in Yizhou City, and the managers and clerks there are all trustworthy."
Mr. Zhuang was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect that the Bai family had a shop in Yizhou.
He thought for a moment and then smiled, "Your old lady trusts me, and she also trusts your young master."
Daji lowered his head and explained, "I bought that shop two years ago."
He paused and said, "A lady from our Bai family married into Yizhou City. Before we came here, the old lady said that if the young master can pass the entrance exam to the provincial school, then we will come to visit her. If not, then he can follow the master's advice and go study elsewhere. There is no need to bother her."
Mr. Zhuang understood as soon as he heard it. Although that relative was a blood relative, their relationship was probably average and not very close, so there was no need to visit him on a daily basis.
He nodded, "I understand. Keep a close eye on them these days and don't let them run away again."
Daji lowered his head and replied "yes".
The next chapter will be around 4 p.m.
(End of this chapter)
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