Chapter 75: Finding Joy in Suffering Finding Joy in Suffering
Only after their backs disappeared did Su Fengzhang let out a breath and sit back down.
After talking for a while, the already cold food became ice cold. If the temperature in the south wasn't so high, the food would have turned into ice by now.
Su Fengzhang seemed not to notice and stuffed the food into his mouth in big mouthfuls. In a short while, he finished all the food.
The man next to him took a look and said with a grin, "Tsk tsk tsk, Mr. Scholar, you look so delicate and tender, but you can really endure hardships. I find this food disgusting."
Su Fengzhang handed the empty plate over and said calmly, "If you don't eat, you'll starve to death."
The calmer he was, the more curious the man next to him became. He pressed on, "Scholar, were those your family and friends? Did you really kill someone? You don't look like a murderer."
Even though Su Fengzhang and the others didn't speak loudly, they could still hear a few words because they were in the cell and couldn't avoid other people.
The three prisoners who had just given him trouble now wanted to get away from him as much as possible. They even said, "No wonder he's so fierce. He must have killed someone before. Why did the jailer lock him up here?"
Su Fengzhang was too lazy to pay attention to them. He didn't want to sit down right after dinner, so he just stretched his body while reciting the book in his mind. After reciting several books in this way, not only did his hands and feet feel warm, but his emotions also calmed down.
He lay down with his clothes on. He could faintly smell the moldy smell in the straw, and he could hear a rustling sound when he moved a little.
"Mr. Su." The jailer came over holding a rolled-up torn quilt. Although it was torn, all the prisoners around looked over.
The jailer handed it directly to Su Fengzhang, glared at them and shouted, "If you want it, just ask your family to buy it."
Even if you put a quilt on the straw, it is still difficult to sleep well, but I have to say it is much better than sleeping directly on the straw.
Closing his eyes, Su Fengzhang couldn't help but think of Lin Changqing covered in blood. They were clearly still discussing poetry a few days ago and had agreed to take part in the provincial examination together next year, but that man was lying on the cold ground.
Human life is so fragile. Even if you are extremely talented and gifted, you will still be so vulnerable and powerless in the face of death.
This feeling of powerlessness made Su Fengzhang even more unyielding, especially when he was taken to the yamen and the spiritual spring water was spilled, he hated his own powerlessness.
If he was braver and opened the door to those people, perhaps he could have fed Lin Changqing the spiritual spring water. Although the spiritual spring water is not a panacea, who knows if there will be a miracle after drinking it?
Guilt and powerlessness lingered in his body, and Su Fengzhang had to take deep breaths silently to prevent himself from being driven crazy by the feeling of being unable to breathe.
Perhaps the imperial examination was not just a means for him to reassure his mother but also a means to stabilize his status and life.
Only by going further and standing higher can he have the right to make decisions, not only for himself, but also for others.
Su Fengzhang thought a lot that night, and he didn't even care about the spiritual spring water that kept dripping and disappearing.
It was not until the morning light of the next day poured in through the low window that he squinted his eyes and climbed up. He looked around and vaguely remembered that this was a prison cell and he didn't even have the conditions to wash.
"Mr. Su, good morning." The man next door also woke up and looked over here with his legs crossed.
Compared to the day before, Su Fengzhang's mood was much more stable. He sat over there and said, "Uncle, good morning."
The man didn't expect him to answer. The straw he was biting fell out of his mouth and he laughed out loud, "Good morning, good morning."
"My name is Su Fengzhang, a student at the county school. I haven't asked for your full name yet." Su Fengzhang recovered and was a little curious about this person, so he asked.
The man opposite looked at him carefully, with a puzzled look in his eyes, but he still said with a smile: "What's your surname? Wang Huan, I'm just a traveling merchant. I came here to do business and offended someone, so they framed me and threw me in here."
"It turned out to be Uncle Wang."
Wang Huan chuckled and asked, "Su Xiucai, why aren't you anxious? This prison is not a good place. They all say you killed someone. If that's true, you'll be beheaded."
"I didn't kill anyone. Judgment depends on solid evidence. Why should I be afraid if it's not something I did?"
"If you say it's not true, then it's not true. Aren't there enough wrongful convictions in this world? Even if you are innocent, if the county magistrate is a fool and chops off your head first, it will be too late even if you know it's an injustice."
Su Fengzhang raised an eyebrow and looked at him. "There are indeed many wrongful convictions in this world, but our county magistrate, Lord Cai, is not a fool. He will definitely investigate thoroughly. Once he does, it won't be difficult to find that I'm innocent."
"You are really confident. Do you have any personal relationship with Lord Cai?" Wang Huan asked curiously.
Su Fengzhang shook his head and said, "This has nothing to do with personal relationships. Officials serve the people and will not make arbitrary judgments unless the person is corrupt and lawless."
He said this in a bright and cheerful manner, but in fact, the relationship between him and Lord Cai as both a teacher and a friend was very important. If he had not had a close relationship with Lord Cai and had not been in close contact with him, he would not have been treated so well now.
Wang Huan's eyes turned and he continued, "If you say so, then the Hushan County Magistrate is a good official. If he is a good official, why did he arrest you and put you in here too? I'm not sure about you, but I'm sure he is a good person. I was wronged."
Su Fengzhang explained, "During the Lunar New Year, Master Cai returned to his hometown and was not in Hushan County. Whenever a case occurred here, the officers on duty would first take the suspects into custody and wait for Master Cai to return to solve the case one by one."
"But don't worry, Uncle Wang. As long as you've been wrongly accused, you'll be able to get out sooner or later."
Wang Huan laughed, "I'm not worried about myself. That's just a small matter, at most I'll get a fine. But you're involved in a lawsuit involving a life."
"I didn't kill anyone, and there is no lawsuit. It's all just a misunderstanding." Su Fengzhang said firmly.
Wang Huan didn't know what he was thinking about, so he said, "Even if you are finally released, you will have to suffer for the next few days."
"Although prison is tough, coming here can be considered as a way to gain experience." Su Fengzhang said.
Wang Huan looked at him and asked, "Su Xiucai, are you sincere in what you said? You're not just saying nice things but cursing in your heart, are you? Actually, it doesn't matter if you curse. Everyone here has cursed before, and we won't laugh at you."
"I do think so." Rather than going to jail, it was Lin Changqing's death that bothered him.
Wang Huan laughed out loud, and wanted to see if this guy was sincere, or if he could still be calm now, but wait until he stayed for a few more days and knew the difficulties here, and whether he could still be so calm.
Su Fengzhang didn't care about his thoughts and sat down by the window.
This place can get some sunlight and is the throne in the cell. However, after the two incidents yesterday, the three did not dare to compete with him for it, for fear that he would suddenly attack and kill people. They would be released after a few days, so there was no need to provoke him.
Su Fengzhang leaned against the sun and began to recite silently. If the conditions were not so limited, he would have liked to practice calligraphy, but it was obvious that there was no pen, ink, paper or inkstone in the cell.
After reciting for a while, he felt tired, so he stood up to stretch his muscles and bones, and then sat down to recite again after his hands and feet were warm.
For twelve hours a day, Su Fengzhang still followed a strict schedule, but he used all the time he spent practicing calligraphy and the other six arts to memorize. Perhaps because he was focused in the cell, his memorization progress was not slow.
It was really boring to recite, so he picked up some clean straw to weave small animals. His craftsmanship was very average and only a rough shape could be seen, but at least it was a toy to pass the time.
Wang Huan next door was amazed. Was this man here to serve time in jail or to further his studies? If it weren't for the presence of other prisoners in the surrounding cells, he would have thought Su Fengzhang was a monk in a temple.
It was not until the third day that Su Fengzhang's life became more eventful. Gu Beichen came again. This time he did not come alone. He brought not only delicious food boxes but also many supplies.
He must have stuffed some silver in there, otherwise these things could never have been brought in so casually.
Smelling the fragrance of the food box, Su Fengzhang couldn't help swallowing his saliva. The food in the cell was really too torturous. He could only grit his teeth and finish it every time, all for the sake of not starving to death.
"Beichen, I'm sorry to have cost you money again. Everything is fine here. You don't have to worry about me."
Gu Beichen smiled and said, "Given our relationship, why should you be so polite? Besides, these things were prepared by Aunt Su. I was just responsible for helping to bring them here. She was afraid of spending money, so she stuffed me with quite a bit of money. I was just responsible for helping out."
Even so, Su Fengzhang knew that the manpower and material resources spent here could not be calculated in terms of money.
He accepted the favor and said, "Then I won't be polite. I'll have to trouble you to go to the old house later and tell my mother that everything is fine here. I can leave when Master Cai comes back."
Gu Beichen nodded and continued, "Lin Changqing died in the county school. This is a serious matter. The government has already sent people to investigate and urgently summoned a coroner to perform an autopsy. I believe Lord Cai has also received the news and will definitely return soon."
There is nothing else to say except comforting each other.
Not long after Gu Beichen left, Liu Xiong came over with a few classmates. As soon as they came in, they said, "Brother Su, we all believe that you would never kill anyone. Don't worry, we will help you outside and will never let you be wronged."
Lin Changqing caused a huge disturbance for a while, so naturally some people avoided Su Fengzhang and distanced themselves from him.
But there were also people who trusted Su Fengzhang and were willing to work for him, even visiting him in prison without hesitation. Su Fengzhang was touched, but he could only comfort them first.
"Brother Liu, I appreciate your kindness, but I ask you brothers to refrain from doing this, so as not to get involved."
Without waiting for Liu Xiong and the others to speak, Su Fengzhang continued, "I understand your good intentions, but I believe that Lord Cai would never kill a good person by mistake. Everything just needs to be investigated thoroughly."
"If you were to be implicated in this matter, it would make me unable to sleep or eat."
"Brother Liu, Brother Zhao, Brother Sun, Brother Lu, I'm so happy that you can come to see me and talk to me."
After hearing what he said, the few people who were originally filled with righteous indignation calmed down. In fact, what could they do? They couldn't go to the county government to protest. They had to listen to Su Fengzhang and wait for the county government to investigate everything.
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The author has something to say: When I first started writing the outline, Changqing's younger brother would leave very quickly, Bai Yueguang~
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