Lin Shu: "This poem must have been given to Yu Qiongzhi by someone else?"
Qian Chang: "I also think so. In TV dramas, I've seen that in ancient times, if a woman's arm was shown to others, it was considered a loss of chastity. If she wrote this poem, did she not want to live?"
Furthermore, someone who dares to collect corpses in the middle of the night shouldn't do something so disgraceful.
Yu Qiongzhi went to collect Mingpei's remains because she understood right and wrong. She's not ignorant; why would she do something so irrational?
Shi Jinzhe took out a butterfly knife and made a few cuts on the stone. He then placed it under the light to observe it for a long time. After observing it, he used the knife to carve words on the surface of the stone again.
The stone is of poor quality, and the carving feels a bit rough. Only the side with the inscription has visible texture; the back has a rough and messy texture, and the color is a dirty brownish-red.
It's a seal stone, probably of the Zhejiang Red variety. It's very cheap on the market, but occasionally unscrupulous merchants will take decent quality pieces and pass them off as Shoushan stone.
The Yu family is so wealthy, and they have a scholar named Yu Shuang who is an official in the capital. They would never choose this kind of material for their seals. Even if Yu Qiongzhi is a girl, and her family doesn't allow her to carve seals, they can't stop her from buying a couple of better stones.
Shi Jinzhe picked up the half-stone fragment, an idea forming in his mind. Finding writing too slow, he decided to have Shekh act as his mouth-sucker.
Shekh tapped the table to get everyone's attention.
"This is a seal stone, given to Yu Qiongzhi by someone else. No matter how the Yu family treated her after her death, the fact that so many items were buried with her ensured that she would have no problem with food, clothing, shelter, and transportation while she was alive."
"Such a quality seal stone is only used by beginners. She is someone who can do things for her father and brother. Even if she were practicing, she would not carve this poem. It must have been given to her by someone else, and the person who gave her this stone had very impure motives."
"More than 600 years ago was a time when women valued their reputation. The Yu family was wealthy and powerful, and she and Yu Shuang were siblings. I think there must have been many people who had designs on her."
"Turning the rice into rice is a timeless tactic," Jiang Xiaowan scoffed. "Yu Qiongzhi's affair has definitely been discovered. Otherwise, given the level of feudal superstition in ancient times, and her status as a worshipper of Mingpei, she shouldn't be living such a miserable life."
Jiang Xiaowan pulled back the curtain, which was covered in a century of dust. The fragile fabric broke at the slightest touch, and a thick layer of dust flew up into the room.
"Look up there."
Qian Chang was confused: "...What happened up there?"
Yao Shu opened her mouth: "The beams and pillars are made of Phoebe zhennan wood, the best quality."
Qian Chang: "Are the other houses like this too?"
Fu Guan said, "Why don't we go and see for ourselves?"
After searching Yu Qiongzhi's courtyard and finding no new clues, the group left.
As he was leaving, Shi Jinzhe, as if possessed, took another look at the dead kapok tree. To his surprise, he found a crow perched on it, tilting its head and staring at them.
Then the crow took flight and quickly disappeared.
Shi Jinzhe turned his gaze away and listened to their discussion of what had just happened.
As they walked, they checked several courtyards in succession, and finally found a house with beams and pillars made of Phoebe zhennan wood in a courtyard located due east.
Yao Shu: "The house faces south, and the east is the largest. This is the main house, the residence of the head of the family."
"So the Yu family father and son doted on Yu Qiongzhi." Fu Guan concluded, then suddenly thought, "Didn't Yu Guang have any concubines? Did he only have this one child?"
Jiang Xiaowan: "Who knows? Even if there is one, who can remember a concubine from six hundred years ago? Even the emperor's harem history books don't have a complete record."
Fu Guan said with a hint of regret, "Besides the possibility that someone wanted to take a shortcut, that stone could also be out of jealousy. Yu Qiongzhi is doing so well, and living in the same house, it's inevitable that it would arouse envy."
Jiang Xiaowan disagreed with this idea: "The Yu family has opened an academy, so it's more likely that someone wants to use it to climb the social ladder. Don't underestimate people's determination to climb up the social ladder. What's a gigolo? Marrying Yu Qiongzhi is half the battle won in life."
Fu Guanzai: "But how can the person who delivered the stone get in? This courtyard is not small, and the Yu family father and son are not teachers at the academy. How can an outsider enter the inner courtyard? There is no excuse."
"According to what you're saying, it's also possible that they're not outsiders. Aren't there other people in this house?"
The two of them went back and forth, each holding their own opinion.
Shi Jinzhe found a round-backed chair, cleaned off the dust, and sat down with Shehe to listen to their argument.
Sheh rested his chin on his hand, listened to Fu Guan's words, and then wrote a note: [What Fu Guan said makes more sense; someone in the manor is jealous of Yu Qiongzhi.]
Unless Yu Qiongzhi did so willingly, obtaining this stone inscribed with erotic poems would be extremely difficult. Even if it were brought in by an outsider, someone inside would still need to be there to receive it.
The people who want to use her to climb the social ladder are not from wealthy families, so the success rate of bribing her with money is too low. The people who help her and the people who give her the stones are a community of interest. In the end, it's because there are people in the house who can't stand Yu Qiongzhi.
After thinking for a moment, Shekh wrote again, [If the scholars in the academy could successfully marry daughters of wealthy families using this method, why bother writing so many stories about fairies and ghosts repaying their kindness? It's all just wishful thinking since it's impossible.]
Shi Jin had to admit that her thought process was sometimes quite peculiar.
He actually thought this reason was quite reasonable.
He said, "The Yu family made their fortune in Banshan. This is our ancestral home, so there must be an ancestral hall in the house. You can tell by looking at the ancestral tablets on it."
[How should I look at it?]
Shi Jinzhe turned his face to the side, and Shekh gave him a quick kiss, oblivious to everyone else.
When learning new knowledge, she always had a high tolerance for Shi Jinzhe.
"Speak."
“Looking at the memorial tablets, I believe Yu Shuang and Yu Guang had a brother. Otherwise, Yu Guang wouldn’t have given up his only son to be recognized as his father. In that era, filial piety and carrying on the family line were highly valued. He wouldn’t have dared to do this if he didn’t have a son as a backup.”
Shi Jinzhe immediately started looking for him, pulling Shehe along as they walked outside. Suddenly, everything went black before his eyes, and he stumbled, nearly falling over.
Shekh supported him: "Have I drained you dry?"
Shi Jinzhe knew what she was going to say without even hearing her voice: "Don't spread rumors about me. I'm just tired of keeping the defensive formation up."
"hehe."
This person is just fooling themselves; they're actually so concerned about a role or identity.
Qian Chang looked over here, "Hey, where are you two going?"
Shekh: "Find the memorial tablet."
"Let's go together, everyone stay together," Qian Chang said, moving closer.
Shi Jinzhe admired their obedience and thought to himself that it would be great if all the players he encountered in the future were this perceptive, which would save him a lot of trouble.
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