Chapter 90
At this moment, there were indeed four people in the private room on the second floor: Liu Zheng, Tan Lingyue, Liu Gu, and Tian Chengmin.
Liu Zheng, dressed in fine clothes, held a folding fan in the dead of winter. He tapped it lightly on the table twice and said with a teasing smile, "Brother Du, you truly have a connection with Buddhism. Even when you are angry, you do not forget to help others. I really admire you."
"If he truly meant it, he should properly honor Brother Du's precious shoes to repay your kindness." Although Du Yin was indeed angered by the other party's slanderous words about the Perfect Young Master when he threw the shoe at him, that was only one aspect of it. Apart from that, Du Yin was actually acting with good intentions.
They were sitting on the second floor, and they could see the commotion below clearly. The new group of people who came in were low-key, but they were obviously not ordinary people, especially the young master in the lead. His clothes were made of Shu brocade, which was a tribute to the emperor!
Liu Zheng's family had a cloth business, and he himself loved wearing fine clothes, so he naturally knew a lot about these things. At that time, he guessed that even if this young master was not a member of the royal family, he must have come from an extraordinary background and was very likely a relative of an important official in the court.
What surprised Liu Zheng even more was that he actually recognized the person accompanying this young master.
He was the second-ranked scholar in Jiangnan Prefecture and knew the scholars there very well, especially Cui Zhuo, who was above him. Although they were rivals, they were also friends. Cui Zhuo was rather aloof and arrogant and disdained to play with people who couldn't keep up with his way of thinking. As a result, he had very few friends. There were only a handful of people in the entire Jiangnan Prefecture who could truly talk to him, and Liu Zheng happened to be one of them.
Liu Zheng knew that Cui Zhuo had a cousin who failed the imperial examinations three times. He also knew that his cousin's failure was not due to a lack of ability, but rather to differences in bloodline and social status. He wanted to help his cousin by pulling strings and approached Liu Zheng, who had many friends. Thus, Liu Zheng met Cui Zhuo once, but he did not expect that Cui Zhuo's cousin was even more difficult to deal with than Cui Zhuo himself. He was tense throughout the meeting and rejected Cui Zhuo's suggestion without the slightest hesitation.
Liu Zheng knew that Cui Zhuo had brought his cousin to the capital to look for opportunities long ago. He didn't expect to see him here. For someone from a family like Cui Zui to be able to make contact with him, the young master's status must be high or low.
Looking at the reactions of the group after hearing the scholar's foul language, Liu Zheng was surprised and suspected that the identity of the "Perfect Young Master" was far higher than the rumors circulating in the streets, so he couldn't help but raise his importance even higher.
Although Liu Zheng also disliked the scholar's words, he couldn't help but sigh that the scholar had kicked a hornet's nest and was likely to suffer the consequences. It was not easy to study hard for ten years and reach the level of a successful candidate in the imperial examinations. It was a pity that he would fail at the last minute because of his inappropriate words. How could he not feel disappointed?
Liu Zheng didn't think there was anything wrong with the young master and his group lecturing him; in his view, they deserved it.
Just then, Du Yin stepped forward, reprimanded the scholar, and gave him a way out, which was a win-win situation.
"Amitabha Buddha, it was nothing, thank you very much." Du Yin didn't mince words when faced with the teasing, and readily put his hands together and chanted a Buddhist prayer.
The group exchanged glances and burst into laughter.
The waiter brought over the shoes, and Du Yin sat back down to continue working on his problems with paper and pen. Liu Zheng, meanwhile, subtly pulled the waiter aside and inquired about the group that had just come in. The waiter couldn't ascertain their identities, but he did learn that Cui Zui had given them dishes.
"This..." The group looked at each other, unsure of what to do.
Logically, they should have gone to express their gratitude in person, but the young master was of unusual status, and they might be misunderstood as trying to curry favor if they failed to express their thanks. After all, the waiter had made it clear that it was "the master dressed as a general with a bow on his back who gave the order."
The one carrying the bow was Cui Zui. These days, he had been practicing archery with Xue Jin'an every day with his bow, and it had become a habit. He didn't think there was anything wrong with carrying a bow and arrow around the capital.
Unable to reach a conclusion, they all turned their attention to Du Yin, the person in question, only to find that he was so engrossed in the topic that he hadn't listened to their conversation at all.
Even Liu Gu, the great scholar who was known for his stubbornness, was speechless at this moment. He reached out and covered the paper, saying, "The imperial examination is coming soon, so you should focus on the questions for the examination."
Although Du Yin was raised in a small county town in Huaibei Prefecture, he was actually born into a prominent family. His branch was even the main branch, but unfortunately, he did not do well and had to return to his hometown to live. As a result, the collateral branch replaced the main branch and became the representative of the Du family.
Du Yin's grandfather was naturally unconvinced and wanted to urge his descendants to revitalize the family. However, things went from bad to worse when their family suddenly became a single-lineage line. Du Yin's father had no talent for studying and failed to become a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the lowest level of the imperial examinations) after forty years of study. Thus, the heavy burden fell on Du Yin's shoulders.
This was Du Yin's third time taking the imperial examination. The first time, he was under too much pressure and caught a cold and diarrhea during the exam. He couldn't hold on for long and had to be carried out of the examination hall. The second time, Du Yin was assigned to the "stinky" section and fainted from the stench before finishing the first exam paper.
Old Master Du was somewhat superstitious and felt that this might be due to evil spirits. He believed that the collateral branch of the family didn't want them to rise to power and had deliberately sent someone to seduce them. He wanted to find a master to exorcise the evil spirits. Du Yin was indeed exhausted from the exams and felt terrified at the metropolitan examination. So he had someone bribe the so-called master, who said some things that prevented him from taking the metropolitan examination twice.
If it weren't for the fact that even while ill, Old Master Du was still preoccupied with revitalizing the family, Du Yin would have really wanted to just keep putting off the exam. But now that he's here, he has to get a ranking, even if it's second or third place, he has to make the list. Old Master Du is getting old, and the doctor said he might not live to see the next one.
Du Yintong and the others had mentioned these things, and Liu Gu had also subtly reminded him of them.
Du Yin put down his pen somewhat awkwardly and said, "If I fail the exam, I won't think too much about it and will just say that my cultivation is not good enough. But if something goes wrong halfway through the exam, then I really have to believe in fate."
“I have a hundred-year-old ginseng here, which I dug up myself from the mountain. I’ll share some with you later. I guarantee that once you get in, you’ll be able to finish the exam.” Tian Chengmin patted him on the shoulder.
"Then thank you very much," Du Yin said with a smile. "In that case, getting a top-three finish will be enough to do justice to my family."
Tan Lingyue's youthful voice was clear and bright. He said with certainty, "Brother Yin's knowledge and talent must be among the top two."
“Yeah, you can even do these questions. It’s not very ambitious of you to be a top three.” Liu Zheng tapped the paper on the table with his folding fan.
The problems Du Yin was working on were from the same problem book as the "Perfect Prince". He had always been very interested in mathematics, and when he encountered such challenging problems, he couldn't help but delve into them. Unfortunately, he felt that he had limited talent in this area, and it often took him one or two hours to solve a single problem, unlike the "Perfect Prince".
Du Yin greatly admired the Perfect Young Master, which is why even someone as good-natured as him would get so angry after hearing those words.
Thinking of this, Du Yin couldn't help but say, "If only I could meet the Perfect Young Master once."
Just then, dishes were served one after another, and soon the leftovers on the table were replaced with fresh ones. The group was all surprised. They thought Cui Zui had only brought one or two dishes, but now it seemed that he had brought a whole table of food. This time, they couldn't help but thank him.
They immediately stood up and asked the waiter, who waved his hand and said with a bitter face, "Please forgive me, gentlemen. That guest didn't want to be disturbed and didn't want me to reveal the place where we were dining. I really dare not say."
This was Fu Lu's request. Liu Zheng wasn't the only one who recognized the fabric of Xue Jin'an's clothes. Even if they didn't recognize Xue Jin'an, who was a stranger, it wasn't uncommon for people who traveled around the capital to know Cui Zui. Even if they weren't sure, it wouldn't stop them from trying to build connections and find out more.
Fu Lu, anticipating a rainy day, blocked their path before they could react.
Everyone has a brain, and after a little thought, they understood the other party's concerns. They didn't try to find out more, but they still went to pay their respects and express their gratitude. So they simply ate and waited until the other party paid the bill and left before going over.
An hour passed before Liu Zheng and Tan Lingyue had to leave, as neither of them lived there.
Liu Zheng's family was wealthy, and his parents and elders had great confidence in him, firmly believing that he would pass the exam and stay on as a member of the Hanlin Academy. They directly purchased a house in the capital, even taking into account the commuting issue. It was the house closest to the palace within the maximum scope of authority—it wasn't that he couldn't buy a house any closer, but he couldn't buy one without being an official.
Tan Lingyue stayed at her uncle's house. The Tan family was a family of scholars and officials, and they didn't have enough money to buy a house in the capital. However, Tan Qinghui, as a scholar of the prefectural school, naturally had some close friends in the court. Tan Lingyue was a young genius with a promising future, so there were many people willing to do him a favor.
Besides the two, Liu Gu, Du Yin, and Tian Chengmin also lived here. Liu Zheng had thought about inviting them to his home, but considering their personalities, he figured they would definitely pay the market rent. Even if he pleaded with them to pay less, it would still be too high and would only add to their burden.
So they gave up.
The food for Xue Jin'an and his group had already been removed. The reason they stayed for so long was that Cui Zui was trying to figure out just how familiar Xue Jin'an was with the capital, and he was also filling his head with a bunch of random routes that he had never even heard of before.
Cui Zui was silent for a moment, then suddenly leaned closer and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Master, admit it, how many troops have you amassed in the capital? When will you launch your attack? If I join now, is it still too late to share in the credit for supporting the emperor?"
Xue Jin'an answered methodically, "There are no troops stationed in the capital. The Northwest Army is 63% complete. They can rebel before the ninth day of the tenth month of the thirty-fifth year of Jiahe. There is still time."
"Goodness, Master, you really dare to think big." Cui Zui didn't take this too seriously and joked, "I heard from my grandfather that Helian Cheng will be coming to the capital this year. When do you plan to kill him and seize control of the Northwest Army? I'll come and help you."
“You can’t beat him, forget it,” Xue Jin’an said, indicating his refusal.
Even if it was the truth, Cui Zui couldn't help but clutch his heart and cry out in anguish, "Master, how could you hurt me like this? Am I your disciple or is he your disciple?"
"..." Xue Jin'an didn't understand this kind of behavior that was so desperate to get himself killed, but he respected it.
So he readily agreed, "Fine, you beat Helian Cheng, and I'll collect his corpse for you."
The ignorant Cui Zui laughed foolishly: "Yay!"
Not long after, Cui Zui, who actually fought General Helian Cheng in the arena, was filled with regret.
After Xue Jin'an agreed to Cui Zui's request to commit suicide, the group drank another cup of tea before getting up to pay the bill and leave.
"Young master, please stay, cough cough—" Liu Gu, who was on the second floor, happened to see them coming out. He immediately stood up, wanting to call out to them, but he was too hasty and choked on a gust of wind. His words were drowned out by his cough.
Liu Gu was in poor health due to his past imprisonment, and the other two immediately gathered around him anxiously upon hearing him cough.
Liu Gu waved his hand and nudged Du Yin, saying with difficulty, "Cough cough—"
"Hey, they're leaving!" Tian Chengmin noticed too, and quickly said, "Brother Liu, I'll take care of them. You go after them."
"Alright!" Du Yin forgot to put down the paper and pen in his hand and ran down the stairs. He was going down the stairs too fast, and the shoe that he had casually put on his foot and hit someone with earlier flew out and hit the young master on the back of the head.
Du Yin's eyes widened, and without thinking, he lunged forward, sending all the papers flying. Then he lost his footing, screamed "Ah!" and tumbled down the remaining stairs. Luckily, there weren't many steps left, or he would have definitely been seriously injured.
He didn't care about anything else, and with his eyes filled with stars, he got up to chase after the person. When he turned around, he found that the young master was standing there looking at him, holding a feathered arrow in his hand, with the shoe that he had thrown off hanging on the arrow.
"Is there something you need?" Xue Jin'an asked.
Du Yin couldn't help but cough, but luckily he was thick-skinned. He quickly stepped forward, took the shoes, and put them on before stepping back and bowing deeply. "Thank you so much, young master, for your generous gift of food and wine. I am deeply grateful."
Just as Xue Jin'an was about to tell the truth, "I didn't give it to him," Cui Zui stepped forward and admitted it to him, saying, "My master is very kind-hearted. He didn't take such a small matter to heart. There's no need to be so serious."
"Master?" Du Yin was taken aback, never expecting that this young master, who was so young, would have such a high status. For a moment, he even thought it was due to the different customs of the capital.
"You heard me right, it's my master, who is like a father to me." Cui Zui praised Xue Jin'an without reservation. "My master is amazing, the best in the world."
Du Yin quickly realized what was going on, immediately accepted the premise, and even added a helpful comment: "Among three people walking together, there must be one who can teach me."
Cui Zui smiled with satisfaction at his reaction and words.
Cui Zui's act of bringing wine and food was not only due to his satisfaction with Du Yin's speech, but also partly intended to garner some support for Xue Jin'an.
He didn't know Du Yin and had never met him, but he had read some of his articles in his early years. The literary style in the North was not as prevalent as in the South, especially in the Jiangnan region, where there were countless scholars who traveled and founded publications. The fact that the articles of Northern scholars could reach Jiangnan already showed the level of their writing.
Cui Zui never expected that this person was taking the imperial examinations when he was just beginning his education, while he himself had abandoned literature for martial arts, and this person was still taking the imperial examinations. This person was either all show and no substance, or just had bad luck.
Cui Zui still prefers the second option.
Since Master has no family background, he has to start from scratch to cultivate influence in the court. It is perfect to win over some talented but unlucky newcomers who are about to enter the officialdom. When Master enters the court to listen to the government, these newcomers will have grown up and become Master's helpers.
Cui Zui rarely did anything for his master, so naturally he wanted to do everything in his power to make this happen.
Xue Jin'an deduced his thoughts from his behavior and ultimately did not reject his kindness.
Cui Zui and Du Yin chatted happily. Fu Ling stood guard in front of Xue Jin'an to protect him at any time. Fu Lu picked up the scattered papers on the ground one by one. When he saw the questions on them, he couldn't help but show some doubt. He felt that the questions were quite familiar, as if he had seen them somewhere before.
Xue Jin'an glanced at it, then quickly looked away.
Fu Lu, who knew nothing about mathematics, thought he might be overthinking things and handed the collected manuscripts to Du Yin.
Du Yin and Cui Zui were so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't notice Fu Lu's actions. They were immediately startled and bowed to express their gratitude.
Cui Zui quietly poked his master with his finger. He knew his master could read lips, so he silently opened his mouth and said, "Master, aren't you going to say something? Hurry up and win him over."
What did you say? Xue Jin'an pondered for a moment before uttering, "You miscalculated your fifteenth step."
Du Yin was taken aback, and slowly typed out a question mark: ?
Wait a minute, how can such a young child solve such a difficult problem at a glance?! Are all the kids in Beijing this amazing?!
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