Chapter 29 May you live an upright life.
Upon hearing her voice, everyone paused in their tracks.
This Yu Erlang is practically tearing the sky apart, what else does he want to do?
“Since we’re already here, let’s clarify the old case from six months ago. He Erlang has been carrying this fabricated charge for long enough.”
Yu Mingshu smiled brightly, looking at He Zheng outside the window, "Second Brother He, if you were to stand here today to be tested, are you confident that you could handle it with ease?"
He Zheng was startled, suddenly becoming the focus of attention for all the teachers and students in the college. Facing the burning gazes, the blood in his body seemed to freeze for a moment, and then flowed through his body even more turbulently.
The moment He Zheng's eyes met Yu Mingshu's, he could clearly hear his own heartbeat. He felt a strange, indescribable feeling, a mixture of bitterness and sweetness, like spring water.
The court did not convict him or punish him six months ago, nor did it clarify the matter; it was as if the matter had simply passed.
But he knew very well that he couldn't get through it.
He couldn't get over it in his heart, and he couldn't get over the way others looked at him.
The ambiguous stigma weighed lightly on him, like snow falling in winter. But even snow has weight, and if it weighs on you for too long, it can make it hard to breathe.
For half a year, Yu Mingshu was the first person to clear the snow from his body.
"Of course." As he uttered these two words, the resentment that had been building up in his heart for so long suddenly vanished, and He Zheng looked at Xie Huaijin provocatively.
"Xie Sanlang, you shouldn't have forgotten the article from half a year ago, right?"
Xie Huaijin's usual refined and humble expression froze on his face, as if he wanted to clench his molars to pieces.
The events of six months ago were similar in nature to today's events, but their natures were completely different.
He did not deny the rumors in the courtyard at the time, and implicitly agreed with the claim that He Zheng had plagiarized him. Now, it was no longer plausible for him to use ignorance as an excuse.
The murmurs among the crowd grew louder. With the Xie family having run into trouble so often, the students were no longer as wary of the Xie family's power as before, and some even openly mocked Xie Sanlang for his moral depravity.
Yang Congen sighed silently, glancing around at the doctoral students beside him. Some were pretending to be asleep, while others were staring intently at the article. Everyone seemed busy, and none of them intended to step forward and offer Xie Huaijin a way out.
He opened his mouth to speak, but a gasp of surprise rang out from not far away.
"Xie Sanlang! Sanlang, what's wrong with you!"
"Xie Sanlang has fainted! Quick, take him to the clinic!"
"Why send him to a clinic? The Xie family has their own physicians. Quickly help him into the carriage and send him back to the mansion!"
Seeing this, the students who always followed the Xie family's lead anxiously circled around Xie Huaijin on the ground, while the students who usually disliked the Xie family took two steps back and secretly mocked and laughed.
He Zheng frowned. "His fainting happened at just the right time."
"Could it be an act?" Yu Dan tiptoed to the center of the crowd to investigate. The voices of doubt were not small, but few people heard them in the noisy environment.
Remove the word "cannot".
Yu Mingshu appeared beside the two of them without them noticing, and He Zheng's eyes lit up.
"I never expected that Yu Erlang would also have such a chivalrous spirit, willing to offend the Xie family for my sake."
"It was just a small thing," Yu Mingshu said.
“Although Xie Sanlang is a son born out of wedlock, none of the Xie family members are easy to mess with.” Yu Dan said with some unease, “Sister, we must be careful from now on. I’m afraid he will retaliate.”
"A clear conscience fears no accusation. I'm not afraid of them smearing me or making false accusations within the academy. If they dare to make a move, I can counter it. As for tripping me up elsewhere..."
Yu Mingshu did not continue speaking, but Yu Dan and He Zheng both understood what she meant.
Speaking of officialdom, the Yu family only produced one official in three generations, Yu Zhui, who died young. The rest of the connections that required going through several twists and turns were not even worth mentioning; they wouldn't even be the ones to be exterminated along with their entire clan.
If the Xie family wants revenge, they'll need to find a way to do it, right?
Yu Mingshu suddenly remembered some brutal methods of revenge, stopped walking out, and turned to look at He Zheng: "Does the Xie family have a precedent of using sacks to fight in underground boxing matches?"
“Noble families would disdain such behavior,” He Zheng said. “But who knows? What if they set a precedent for you?”
Yu Mingshu's expression gradually became serious.
He Zheng suddenly regretted it; why did he have to make such a joke to scare her?
"I'm talking nonsense. Xie Shichang isn't that stupid. He wouldn't give anyone a handle to use against him."
…
The steward reported everything that happened at Chang'an Academy to Xie Shichang. After hearing it, Xie Shichang was furious and cursed the two idiots for only causing him trouble.
Despite the criticism, he is now in charge of the Xie family, and he cannot allow the family's reputation to be tarnished.
Xie Shichang had just changed out of his official robes when he was forced to put on an outer robe, took two jars of wine, and went to the Yang family.
When the moon was high and the stars were few, Xie Shichang rushed back from the Yang family and went straight to the ancestral hall.
The Xie family ancestral hall was tightly closed, and the interior was dimly lit by candlelight. Two figures, one tall and one short, knelt in the center.
As the whipping subsided, the servants loosened the ropes binding Xie Huaijin, who collapsed onto the cold, hard floor tiles.
Xie Shichang looked down at him and said, "I've chosen a house in Yongningfang. It's not big, but it's quiet. You don't need to go to the academy tomorrow. Take a few people to the outskirts of the city to bring back the Su family. After that, you can move out."
Xie Huaijin suddenly raised his head. "What do you mean by this, brother? Are you going to expel me from the Xie family?"
"Don't worry, you will receive your due allowance in full," Xie Shichang said. "This is just a temporary measure."
Xie Huaijin clenched his fists and glared hatefully at Xie Ansheng.
Xie Zhang looked at Xie Huaijin with concern and comforted him, "Sanlang, don't blame the lord. Your testimony is contradictory. Even if the lord wants to protect you, he can't silence the gossip in the academy. After all, this matter concerns the reputation of the entire Xie clan, and the lord has to prioritize the overall situation."
It's ridiculous. The mastermind is completely innocent, and he's not even an accomplice, yet he's gotten himself into all this trouble.
Xie Shichang was probably among those who forced him to admit to writing that article, wasn't he? How could he have the nerve to talk about it being for the sake of the family or as a temporary measure?
“I can leave, but I will never leave Chang’an Academy.”
Xie Shichang stepped forward and lit three incense sticks for the ancestral tablets, then turned around and walked very slowly to Xie Huaijin.
"How dare you even show your face at the academy?"
Xie Huaijin stared straight into his eyes: "If I'm not afraid, what are you afraid of?"
Xie Shichang remained silent for a long time before finally uttering two words: "Whatever you say."
Seeing that the two hadn't started arguing, Xie Zhang breathed a sigh of relief and quickly helped Xie Huaijin up to leave the ancestral hall, making sure to close the door behind him as he left.
Xie Ansheng felt no remorse for his half-brother's impending departure from the Xie family. He devoured the rolled pancake brought to him by the pageboy, patted the crumbs off his hands, and then stood up and jumped twice.
"Brother, that second son of the Yu family is so ostentatious, he has ruined the reputation of our Xie family with just a few words! Are we just going to let him go like this?"
Xie Shichang said calmly, "Do you think that just because I cleaned up your mess, today's matter is over?"
"Half of the teachers at the entire Chang'an Academy are from my father's school, and most of the students' fathers and brothers are also students of the Xie family." Xie Ansheng said nonchalantly, "What happened today was originally nothing serious. Brother, you are now on edge."
Xie Shichang suddenly said in a deep voice, "Xie Ansheng, this is the capital, not Taozhou."
Xie Ansheng was stunned, not understanding what he meant.
“I can’t spoil you like your father did,” Xie Shichang said. “The Xie family has been plagued by misfortunes lately, you should learn your lesson. If you dare to cause trouble again after today, I won’t hesitate to send you back to Taozhou to be filial to your father.”
Before Xie Ansheng could react, a servant stepped forward and pinned him down. The servant's rattan whip had just been stained with Xie Huaijin's blood and was now approaching him.
He panicked and shouted excitedly, "Big brother! You're my own brother! How could you help outsiders bully me!"
Xie Shichang remained silent, but gestured to his servants to take action.
A moment later, Xie Ansheng's mournful wail echoed from inside the ancestral hall.
…
The next day, Dr. Xu arrived at Zhishantang on time, ready to compare handwriting and investigate the 'mystery' surrounding the two articles.
After entering and having a cup of tea, Yang Congen politely saw him out.
The reason is simple: the case is closed and there is no need to investigate further.
Yuan Yi was instructing his servants to post a notice at the courtyard gate, which prominently displayed the punishment for Xie Huaijin.
Their provincial examination qualification was revoked, and they were demoted from the Jiazi Hall to the Dingzi Hall.
There was much discussion in the school.
"The matter was clarified in just one night?"
"It was Xie Sanlang's own idea. I can't believe he believed his speech yesterday and thought he knew nothing about it!"
"But what is he trying to achieve by doing this?"
The students looked at each other, completely baffled.
Yu Dan was indignant: "This was clearly Xie Ansheng's doing, so why isn't he being punished?"
Neither Yu Mingshu nor He Zheng responded.
With Xie Shichang vouching for him, not only was Xie Ansheng unharmed, but even Wang Youling, who gave false testimony, was easily exonerated.
Wang Youling was incredibly shameless. Xie Ansheng took ten days off, and Xie Huaijin took five days off, but Wang Youling, the initiator of the course, acted as if nothing had happened the next day, swaggering around the academy.
Yu Mingshu was quite philosophical about Xie Ansheng's disappearance. He reasoned that spoiling a child is like killing him, and given Xie Ansheng's trajectory, even with the Xie family's immense influence, he would eventually cause trouble.
Her attention fell on the first line of the report, and she asked hesitantly, "Is the character 'jin' in Xie Huaijin's name misspelled?"
He Zheng glanced at it a couple more times, "That's right."
"To cherish what is precious and hold onto what is valuable, isn't it?"
"But that's precisely what makes him cautious."
Yu Mingshu suddenly found the Xie family's naming habits rather interesting; Xie Ansheng was restless, and Xie Huaijin was also careless.
Three days after the incident, Xie Ansheng was still on vacation, but Xie Huaijin returned to school.
There were no more pageboys around him; instead, there was a pungent smell of herbs.
Yu Mingshu was somewhat surprised that Xie Huaijin's first thing upon returning was to meet with her.
"It was Xie Ansheng who did it."
"I know."
Xie Huaijin lowered his head, "I...can't expose him."
Yu Mingshu crossed her arms and looked at him. "I only have one question. If I couldn't prove my innocence that day, would you stand up for me and clear my name?"
The person in front of me fell silent.
She had expected this, and simply smiled, "You won't. You'll remain silent from beginning to end, just like you did with He Zheng six months ago, aiding and abetting the evildoer."
Xie Huaijin bit his lower lip until he tasted a slightly metallic sweetness in his throat.
"Yes, I am cowardly and weak, I am selfish and vain, I have failed He Erlang, and I have failed you."
But I have my reasons.
He just couldn't bring himself to say those words.
"You have your reasons."
Yu Mingshu suddenly softened his tone, and Xie Huaijin was stunned, raising his head in surprise.
“I’ve heard a saying: ‘Don’t advise others to be kind if you haven’t experienced their suffering.’” Yu Mingshu said calmly. “But I still want to wish you well, wish you to get rid of your unavoidable cowardice, and wish you to live an upright life.”
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