Chapter 25 The Top Scholar Who Murdered His Wife and Daughter (Twenty-Five) The Rebellious Son of a Farmer...
He had been working outside all day, and in the evening, Manager Fan invited his neighbors to celebrate with him. It wasn't until dusk that he was finally able to return to his courtyard.
"My husband is so amazing!" Du Ningwan tried hard to suppress the smile on her face, but she couldn't help it and burst out laughing: "Wan'er is also benefiting from this."
“It is because of Wan’er and our child that I have the motivation to keep going.” Song Ce took Du Ningwan’s hand and led her to the desk, smiling, “We should also tell our parents and father-in-law the good news.”
The couple snuggled together and finished writing two long letters home. After they finished, they blew out the candles. Song Ce also held Du Ningwan and whispered to her for a long time until she fell asleep. Only then did he carefully put her down, tuck her in, and gaze at the bright red scholar's robe for a long time before returning to bed and falling into a deep sleep.
Next, Song Ce was almost constantly busy. First, he went to the palace to submit a memorial to express his gratitude, and then received the list of merits and all the rewards personally bestowed by the emperor. Since he was the top scholar in all three levels of the imperial examination, the palace rewards were much more generous than in previous years.
After expressing his gratitude, at lunchtime, Emperor Shunyuan waved his hand and invited Song Ce to have a royal banquet in the Yu Nuan Pavilion. This move caused both the Prince Cheng's faction and the Prime Minister's faction to discuss it in their study without even having lunch. Even the Second Prince, who was constantly being watched in the palace, secretly wrote several letters and sent them out of the palace one by one.
The emperor and his minister talked for a long time in the palace. When Song Ce left the palace, he was followed by a secret guard who was given the name Lianyang.
After that, Song Ce immediately attended the Qionglin Banquet, chatting and getting to know his colleagues. Then there were banquets to thank his teachers, banquets to hear good news, banquets to pay respects, banquets to enjoy the spring... After attending all the banquets, the newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) and their entourage went to the Imperial Academy to pay their respects to the late sages and teachers. The purpose was naturally to learn from the noble character of the late sages and teachers and to express their gratitude for their contributions.
After all that work, only the final step remained: erecting a memorial stele and compiling a record of the year of the new scholar. The stele would contain detailed information about the new scholar, including his name, age, wife's name, names of his three generations of ancestors, and place of origin. Once all these tasks were completed, he would report to the Hanlin Academy, pay his respects to his superiors, and officially begin his career as a Hanlin compiler.
...
Tomorrow is the day Song Ce officially enters the Hanlin Academy. Coincidentally, this morning, the couple received a reply from their family in Qingzhou County.
The carpenter Zhou and Fang had specially commissioned someone to write the letter. When the scholar heard that it was a letter to the newly appointed top scholar of the imperial examination, he was so happy that he didn't even ask for the writing fee. He carefully copied it over before sending it over.
In her letter, Fang said that upon learning of Du Ningwan's pregnancy, she immediately wanted to take her family to the capital. However, her father-in-law persuaded them to stop, saying that with elderly and young family members to care for, a long journey would be inconvenient. He had already arranged for capable people to go to the capital. Meanwhile, Liyang Prefecture learned that a top scholar had emerged from Qingzhou County under its jurisdiction, achieving the highest honors in all three levels of the imperial examinations. They immediately purchased a spacious three-courtyard house for Song Ce's family in Qingzhou. Du Zhiyuan, being the magistrate of Qingzhou County and the top scholar's father-in-law, received the best performance evaluation in the annual assessment. Therefore, his family had already moved to the county town, which was very close to the county government office, and the couple was told not to worry.
The letter from Du Zhiyuan, the father-in-law, was even longer than Song Ce's letter home. He had already arranged for servants to take care of Du Ning during her late pregnancy, and the steward had brought them to the capital. The letter not only inquired carefully about the couple's living conditions but also included several detailed reflections on officialdom. The letter was earnest, instructing Song Ce to be upright and honest, to serve the country and its people, and to share the emperor's burdens in the court, never to be arrogant or complacent. Enclosed in the letter was a 1,200 tael silver note—300 taels were a reward from the Liyang Prefecture for Song Ce's top score in the imperial examinations, 200 taels were a reward from the teachers of the Qingzhou County School, and the remaining 700 taels were Du Zhiyuan's life savings, hoping that this would help the couple purchase a courtyard in the capital and settle down.
Song Ce clutched the few thin silver notes, and the couple looked at each other, their eyes reddening, and they embraced tightly.
The next morning, Song Ce looked at Du Ningwan, who was sleeping soundly, carefully got up, put on his official robes as a Hanlin compiler, and then called Lian Yang over and instructed him: "Lian Yang, find a suitable house in the next two days. Now that the lady is pregnant, it is not appropriate to rent a house. It doesn't need to be too big, just quiet around."
"My lord, this is what His Majesty prepared for you." Lian Yang took out a thin house deed from his bosom and presented it with both hands.
Upon hearing this, Song Ce's eyes reddened slightly, and he immediately knelt down to thank the emperor for his grace.
The gates of the Song Dynasty's top scholar, who had achieved the highest honors in the imperial examinations, had been bustling for over a month. Now, he had become a sixth-rank Hanlin Compiler in the capital, and his life was gradually returning to normal.
Waiting at the door was the same Qin-surname coachman who had driven Song Ce to the palace examination that day. When Song Ce pushed open the door and came out, the coachman said happily, "I congratulate you on becoming the top scholar! Now you have become a sixth-rank official in the capital. I hope you will patronize my business in the future!"
Song Ce was amused by this and said, "Brother Qin, a sixth-rank official is nothing special. I'll have to trouble you more in the future."
"Oh dear! How can a mere coachman like me be worthy of being called 'brother' by an adult like you! Please sit tight, we're on our way now!" Coachman Qin said with a smile.
Song Ce leaned against the car window, thinking that the banquets he had attended these past few days had not been in vain. He had already roughly found out the situation in Hanlin Academy, such as what kind of work he would do there, who his superior was, who would mentor him when he first entered Hanlin Academy, and what his specific relationships were.
The carriage traveled steadily for a quarter of an hour, and Song Ce arrived at the main gate of the Hanlin Academy. After entering and registering his name, someone led him to pay his respects to his superior.
Song Ce's superior, named Lu Can, was a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) during the reign of the late emperor. Like Song Ce, he came from a humble background. Because he was too outspoken, he offended many people in the court. As a result, he had been stuck in the Hanlin Academy for many years and had only been promoted one rank. He was now a compiler in the Hanlin Academy, just like Song Ce.
Such arduous tasks as mentoring new recruits naturally fell to Lu Can.
As mentioned before, Lu Can was straightforward and intolerant of any wrongdoing. Although he had been working in the Hanlin Academy for many years, he still harbored no ill intentions. He exchanged a few words with Song Ce, took a stack of draft documents related to the Records of Cultivation and the ceremonies of the Dali Dynasty from the bookshelf, placed them in front of Song Ce, and instructed, "Take a close look at these documents first, and come find me when you're done."
Song Ce nodded in agreement: "Commissioner Lu, is it enough to just look at it? Is there any need to take any notes?"
Upon hearing this, Lu Can placed his hands on the table, his face expressionless, but his tone was impolite: "Song Zhuangyuan, although you have achieved the highest honors in the imperial examinations, you are still relatively inexperienced. What else do you want to do besides reading the Records of Compilation? You should first learn what we compilers do before you start to pursue your ambitions."
Those walking or reading nearby couldn't help but prick up their ears, paying close attention to their movements. Some thought that Lu Can was being too impolite; such a young scholar who had achieved the highest honors in the imperial examinations had a bright future ahead of him, so why bother arguing with him? Others thought that Song Ce was being too arrogant; as a newly appointed compiler, he should just listen to what his superiors said, so why was he trying to stand out?
Upon hearing this, Song Ce bowed and, ignoring the sympathetic or inwardly critical remarks of the crowd, focused intently on his reading.
Although the original owner was a scumbag, his work ability was genuine. Combining the experience from the original owner's memories, Song Ce flipped through the books faster and faster. By the time he finished his shift, he had already read two volumes of the Palm Cultivation Records.
After Lu Can finished organizing today's content, he glanced at Song Ce and saw that he was reading attentively. He snorted and got up to pack his things. When he was almost at the door, he said to Song Ce, "Let's stop here for today. This can't be finished in one day. It's time to go." Without waiting for Song Ce's reply, he strode out.
“Yes, Lu Xiuzhuan!” Song Ce answered loudly.
Today was Song Ce's first day at work, so he went to a restaurant and bought a few dishes that Du Ningwan liked, then quickly returned home.
Du Ningwan rushed to greet him when she saw him return: "Today is your first day on duty, husband. How are you feeling? Are you tired?"
Song Ce led Du Ningwan back to the house, saying as they walked, "It's alright, it feels pretty good. I have a superior from the Hanlin Academy to guide me. Today I only had time to familiarize myself with the daily routine of the compiler and read some books. It's quite good."
"Now I can rest assured," Du Ningwan said with a smile.
Song Ce had the two maids in the room set out the meal, leaving only the couple inside. Holding Du Ningwan's hand, Song Ce said, "Wan'er, His Majesty has bestowed upon me a residence. Once the people arranged by my father-in-law arrive in the capital, our family will move there. Is that alright?"
"How could His Majesty bestow such an honor upon my husband? I'm afraid he will be envied by others." Du Ningwan said with mixed feelings of joy and worry.
"Now I am the Emperor's disciple, and His Majesty cherishes me. Since we cannot understand the reasons behind this, let us not dwell on it. From now on, I will do my best to share His Majesty's burdens and serve the court to repay His Majesty's kindness in bestowing this residence upon me," Song Ce said with a smile.
Du Ningwan smiled upon hearing this, and the couple enjoyed their meal together. Du Ningwan was in the early stages of her pregnancy, so she tidied up and went to sleep. After she fell asleep, Song Ce read for a long time until late at night.
For the next five or six days, Song Ce spent his time at the Hanlin Academy reading the "Records of the Imperial Cultivation." He was gentle and did not have the arrogant air of someone who had passed the imperial examinations three times in a row, so he also made some friends with his colleagues at the Hanlin Academy.
As it was almost time to end his shift, Qin Wangfu, the Qin Tanhua, came over from the next room and said to his colleagues inside, "I have received a lot of help from you all these past few days. I have already prepared a banquet on a boat on the Xiang River. Please come and join me tonight!"
Few people in the capital knew that Qin Wangfu was the elder brother of the Second Prince's concubine. Everyone knew he was from the capital, but there were no officials with the surname Qin in the capital, so they all assumed that his family was a low-class merchant family. Now that he had passed the imperial examination and become a third-ranked scholar, his family's reputation had been elevated, so everyone was happy to give the third-ranked scholar face.
"In that case, we thank Editor Qin for his kindness."
"Don't worry, Editor Qin, we will definitely go as promised."
"It seems we are all blessed today! Thank you, Editor Qin."
Qin Wangfu thanked his colleagues and then walked over to Song Ce: "Brother Song, we are both on the same list of candidates for the imperial examination. Compiler Song, please do me this favor and come along!"
Upon hearing this, Song Ce quickly thought: "The original owner of this body and the Second Prince made their connection through Xia Changlin. It seems that the Second Prince is going to start with Qin Wangfu this time. I need to be more careful."
“Okay, but my wife waits for me to eat with her every day, so I need to go home first to tell her,” Song Ce said with a smile.
"Commissioner Song is truly blessed! I'll leave this matter to you, my humble brother! I'll have a maid deliver a message to Madam Song," Qin Wangfu said with a smile.
"Alright, then I'll trouble you, Brother Qin."
The Hanlin Academy entourage marched out of the gate in a grand procession. Qin Wangfu beckoned to the page waiting at the door and gave him instructions. Xia Ruhong happened to be nearby and overheard everything. He stepped forward and said with a smile, "Brother Qin, why go to such trouble? My maids are over there. Why not have them make the trip? It will save your page the time it would take to get back to your residence."
Qin Wangfu gazed at the inconspicuous Xia family carriage in the distance, gave Xia Ruhong a deep look, and said gently, "Then I thank you very much, Brother Xia."
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Author's Note: The conspiracy has begun~ [starry eyes] Thank you for your support and for adding this chapter to your favorites. This chapter has been slightly modified QAQ You can read it again, thank you.
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