Chapter 1254 The Eve of the Ceremony
Although she is in the harem and has the power to assist in managing the six palaces, Nan Yan is unable to see through the subtle changes of every person in the harem at every moment.
Just like she knew that people's hearts were fickle, but she couldn't predict whose heart would change and how it would change.
In a blink of an eye, it was the eve of the ceremony.
The night was deep, like a thick black curtain, covering the originally quiet and elegant Bamboo Academy, adding a deep and eerie atmosphere to the place.
In the dimly lit room, there is a solitary lamp as small as a bean.
Jian Ruocheng sat at the table, looking at the flickering candlelight, just like his wavering mood at the moment.
At this moment, there was a sound of light footsteps outside the door.
A gust of wind caused the candlelight in front of him to sway slightly, and also made Jian Ruocheng's eyes flicker. He said in a deep voice, "Who?"
"Master, it's me."
Hearing this voice, Jian Ruocheng frowned slightly, stood up and opened the door, and saw a student standing in front of the door holding a candle. It was none other than the student who had caused a disturbance in Zhujian Academy because of illness and injury before - Qian Xiuwen.
He bowed respectfully to Jian Ruocheng: "Master."
Jian Ruocheng asked, "Xiu Wen? It's so late, what are you doing here?"
"The student saw that the light was still on in the teacher's room."
"Um?"
"These past few days, the Master has hardly slept all night."
Jian Ruocheng was silent for a moment, then said, "I just can't sleep, come in."
After he finished speaking, he turned around and walked to the table and sat down. Qian Xiuwen followed him in, placed the candlestick in his hand on the table, and then knelt down opposite him in an orderly manner.
There were two candles on the table, which made the elegant house brighter.
However, facing these two flames, Jian Ruocheng's eyes were still cold, even deep and dull.
He looked at the student in front of him and said gently, "How is your injury?"
Qian Xiuwen looked down at his wrist, which was still wrapped in a thick bandage, but it no longer hurt. With the recuperation over the past two days, he felt much better.
He said: "The students are fine."
"Have you ever had this illness before?"
"It has happened before, but each time he just fainted for a while and woke up on his own. It wasn't as serious as this time, so the students didn't take it seriously."
"That won't do. No matter how much you study, you can't neglect your health."
"After this experience, students know they will never be careless again."
"That's good."
Qian Xiuwen looked at the gloom on his face and said softly, "Master, are you still worried about the grand ceremony tomorrow and the students' eulogy?"
Jian Ruocheng was silent for a moment, then said, "Aren't you worried?"
Qian Xiuwen said: "Some fellow disciples are quite angry."
“…”
"Especially this morning, they wanted to leave the academy, but were stopped by the guards outside. It felt like we were in prison."
“…”
Jian Ruocheng smiled faintly.
There was some helplessness and bitterness in the smile.
The academy was supposed to be a free place, and these students came only to study and solve their problems. But now, because of him and them, they have become "prisoners". It is even possible that unknown dangers are waiting for them in the future.
He was not without pressure in his heart.
However, he looked up at the student in front of him and found that his face, which was extremely pale due to illness, was very calm, so he said, "You don't look too worried."
Qian Xiuwen thought for a moment and said, "In the past, I was very resistant to the affairs of the imperial court, but with so many things happening these past few days, I've had some thoughts and would like to discuss them with you, Master."
Jian Ruocheng knew that this was his purpose tonight.
Then he said, "You say."
Qian Xiuwen said, "The young man who saved me is actually His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei. I heard that he might also be the future Crown Prince, right?"
Jian Ruocheng glanced at him, hesitated for a moment, and said, "It's just a possibility."
But I added in my heart - but this possibility is getting smaller.
Qian Xiuwen said, "His father, the man who came to the academy that day, is the current emperor."
"good."
Qian Xiuwen took a deep breath.
Qian Xiuwen said with a complicated expression, "Before, I've been hearing rumors about the emperor's cruelty and ruthlessness, personally killing Prince Ning—his own brother. He's also been accused of erratic and unreasonable behavior. Furthermore, some say he's not from the royal family and unworthy of inheriting the throne."
"Well, what do you think?"
"I haven't had any contact with him, so I can't say for sure. But this time, the King of Wei was falsely accused of harming me. This is a major case no matter where it is. Furthermore, our academy has been making statements that are detrimental to the court and the emperor, yet he didn't take action against us. This is still very surprising to me."
“…”
Jian Ruocheng didn't say anything.
Qian Xiuwen continued, "Of course, the one who surprised the students the most was King Wei."
"Oh? Why?"
"Master, you may not know this yet, but before I became ill, I was following your instructions and working on bamboo cutting. But I was deeply troubled and couldn't find the right method. It was your words that suddenly opened my eyes."
"Oh? What did he say?"
"He told me that bamboo doesn't change, and nothing else does. The only thing that changes is the human heart."
"Human heart?"
"Yes, he said, everything is born from the mind."
“…”
“So, what I want to distinguish is the bamboo in my heart.”
“…”
"I think he's right. If the heart remains unchanged, everything remains unchanged. Only when the heart is covered with dust, the bamboo is no longer the bamboo it once was."
After hearing these words, Jian Ruocheng's originally calm eyes were slightly shaken.
He murmured, "Dust on my heart...?"
For some reason, these words kept stirring in his heart, as if something was surging, but he couldn't tell what it was.
After a long silence, he murmured to himself, "This kid is making rapid progress."
"Um?"
Qian Xiuwen didn't hear clearly, so he looked up at him and said, "Master, what did you say?"
He hurriedly shook his head and said to cover it up: "Nothing, go on."
"oh."
Qian Xiuwen added, "Of course, as a prince, he is more knowledgeable than us, which is not surprising. However, it is still not easy for him to see this."
“…”
"But what I really didn't expect was that he had such excellent medical skills that he would do anything to save me."
“…”
"Master, there are many people around us who study medicine, but most of them do so to make a living or to inherit family traditions. However, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei is clearly not one of them. He took the initiative to study medicine, which shows that he is a very kind person."
“…”
"I can't help but wonder, if such a person could inherit the throne and become the emperor of our Great Yan Dynasty, wouldn't everything in the future be better?"
“……!”
Jian Ruocheng's eyes flickered slightly along with the flickering candlelight.
He said: "You think long-term."
“…”
"It's rare that your focus isn't just on the present. It seems all your studies these days haven't been in vain."
Qian Xiuwen smiled modestly.
Then, he revealed a trace of worry and said, "What the students don't understand is Xia Fuxiu."
Jian Ruocheng said: "Oh?"
"He, who is he?"
“…”
"Master, does this academy belong to you, or to him? Or does it belong to someone else? We never thought about this question before coming here to study, but now we find it very strange."
“…”
"Looking back, the Master was teaching us literature, and all along, it seemed that Xia Fuxiu and his people were spreading some of the things about the court and then telling us about them."
“…”
"And I heard from my fellow disciples that this time, Xia Fuxiu falsely accused the King of Wei of murder. To silence him, he even attacked me—"
When he said this, his face was full of grief.
Jian Ruocheng's brows were also twisted into a knot.
Qian Xiuwen took a deep breath and said, "Master, who is he? Why did he do this?"
“…”
"What is his purpose in doing this?"
“…”
"After what our academy has experienced this time, what will happen in the future?"
Looking at his serious and worried eyes, Jian Ruocheng sighed softly and said, "This is also what you are all worried about, right?"
“…”
"You can't sleep because you're worried about the future of the academy, right?"
Qian Xiuwen nodded slightly.
Jian Ruocheng looked at him for a while, with a faint, barely perceptible smile on his face, and said, "You don't have to worry, after this incident-"
When he said this, his throat choked for some reason.
Qian Xiuwen looked at him in surprise. Jian Ruocheng smiled and said, "Everything will be settled."
"……Yeah?"
"Um."
"That--"
For some reason, even though Jian Ruocheng was smiling, Qian Xiuwen could still sense that the teacher was showing a different emotion than usual. However, he had no way of asking further questions, so he could only stand up and bow to him: "Well, I'm sorry to bother you. Teacher, please go to bed early."
Jian Ruocheng sat at the table and nodded: "Go back and rest early. Tomorrow's ceremony will be very tiring."
"yes."
Qian Xiuwen turned and walked out.
Jian Ruocheng didn't move, listening to his footsteps gradually fading away. The wind gradually picked up, rustling the bamboo leaves outside, making the originally quiet night seem a little restless and flustered.
Just like his mood at this moment.
After an unknown amount of time, he slowly stood up and walked to a very hidden cabinet. He opened the door and took out a box from inside. Then, he took out a key from his body and carefully opened the box.
The moonlight is cold.
The moonlight coming through the window shone on his wooden face and also on the box.
A tattered book, and three clear words written on it:
Daily records.
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