Chapter 186 Chapter 186 Wolf Trouble
What was originally an ordinary banquet was destined to become extraordinary because of the presence of Emperor Hongxing, Grand Secretary Yang, and the Crown Prince. The Meng family held their heads high, and Minister Meng was already considering how to quickly give Meng Ying that three-courtyard house, so that future weddings would be held at the Meng residence, not the Li residence, so that outsiders wouldn't always think that the Meng family was living off their wives...
The emperor took his seat, and the banquet officially began. Servants served wine and dishes in an orderly manner, and the mansion was filled with lively noise. Aze pulled Rui Rui to sit at the same table with Emperor Hongxing. Liu Zhi hurriedly brought up Rui Rui's rice. The table was full of big fish and meat. Fearing that Rui Rui would have difficulty digesting the food, Mama Mao specially made his favorite minced meat rice.
Aze glanced at it, took a bite, and then ordered the same thing for him.
The two children ate heartily with spoons in hand, and seeing that the adults' appetites had also improved, a commotion came from the doorway amidst the clinking of glasses. Meng Guanqi stood up, thinking there were more late guests, but saw Zhao Jian excitedly leading several travel-worn men in. The one in the lead was none other than Magistrate Meng Ying.
Meng Guanqi was overjoyed: "Father!"
The other guests also stood up, laughing and teasing the father about his lateness. Magistrate Meng bowed apologetically, only to be told that the Emperor, Grand Secretary Yang, and the Crown Prince had also arrived. He hurried over to pay his respects.
Emperor Hongxing quickly raised his hand to help him up, and said with a smile, "Why is Minister Meng so late? Come over here and drink three cups of wine as punishment."
The Emperor Hongxing's joking words flattered Magistrate Meng, who repeatedly said he dared not accept such praise. However, since a ruler's words are not to be taken lightly, he drank three cups of wine to apologize to everyone.
After finishing his drink, he apologized, saying that it was unseemly for him to arrive looking so travel-worn, and that he needed to go inside to wash up and change into clean clothes before returning. Inside, Madam Liu already knew he had returned and quickly ushered him into the second bedroom. She personally fetched water and found clean clothes for him to change into, complaining as she did so, "Master, why are you so late? I almost missed it; it's embarrassing to look at you like that..."
Seeing Magistrate Meng's grim face, devoid of any smile, Liu's heart skipped a beat. She quickly stopped complaining and hurriedly asked, "Sir, you look so pale. What has happened?"
Magistrate Meng washed his face with a hot towel and dried his hands before sighing and changing the subject: "Today is a joyous day, so it's not appropriate to bring up unhappy things. Go and entertain the guests. I'm going back to the outer courtyard. We can talk about it tomorrow."
Liu thought her husband had suffered some mistreatment on the way, but the most important thing was that he had arrived home safely. Nothing else mattered. So many guests were still eating, and she couldn't stay in the house for too long. She quickly went back to the inner courtyard to entertain the guests.
Magistrate Meng changed into clean clothes and went to the front yard to entertain guests. His son and daughter-in-law had been promoted, and he had been transferred, so it was a triple celebration. He was plied with drinks and got completely drunk, and in the end, he had to be carried back home.
He was so drunk that he didn't sober up until the next day. The guests had long since left, and the Crown Prince had gone back with Emperor Hongxing. Meng Guanqi and Li Xiaoxiao had taken an extra day off to prepare for the banquet, so they were still at home.
The family sat together for lunch, and today's meal was finally a family reunion.
Magistrate Meng raised his teacup, using tea instead of wine: "This cup is to congratulate you both on your promotions, and also to celebrate our family's reunion. From now on, you will all be serving in the capital, and you will no longer have to be separated."
Even Rui Rui raised his little cup to join in the fun and clinked it with everyone's, and the whole family happily drank their tea.
Meng Guanqi then asked about why Magistrate Meng was late: "Did you miss the ship's schedule?" He almost missed it yesterday. Mao Neng told him that they met Magistrate Meng's party on their way to Tianjin, and after meeting them, they immediately turned back. By the time they arrived in the capital, it was already past noon.
Magistrate Meng put down his cup, sighed, and frowned: "It's not because of the shipping schedule, but because a strange thing happened in Mianzhou."
Strange thing? What strange thing?
Everyone looked at Magistrate Meng with curious eyes.
Magistrate Meng said, "I went directly to Brother Zhuang after I disembarked in Mianzhou. Brother Zhuang knew that I had booked a boat to the capital the next day, so he wouldn't let me stay at an inn. Instead, he let me stay at his house for the night. Unfortunately, something happened that night. His eldest son went missing."
Missing? How could a perfectly healthy person just disappear?
Magistrate Meng said, "At first, I was also puzzled. His eldest son is twenty-seven years old this year and is already the patrol inspector of Mianzhou, with at least fifty soldiers under his command. How could he just disappear like that? Then Brother Zhuang told me that there was a strange thing happening in a town called Fuyuan Town in Mianzhou. Villagers often disappeared without a trace, neither alive nor dead. The local villagers had already reported it to the yamen, but when the yamen officials organized people to search, the lone people also disappeared one by one. Such strange things caused panic among the people. The case was quickly reported to the prefect of Mianzhou Prefecture, and the prefect sent Brother Zhuang's son with thirty people to Fuyuan Town to investigate. As a result, they also disappeared without a trace."
Gone and never to return? Meng Guanqi asked in surprise, "Has everyone disappeared? Could it be that they were captured by bandits?" Thirty able-bodied young men, soldiers at that—it's impossible for so many people to all have vanished at once, right?
Magistrate Meng frowned: "When Brother Zhuang's son led his men into Fuyuan Town, many villagers saw them, and some even led them to the place where the previous people disappeared. I thought that with their numbers, they would surely be able to find something, but even the people who led the way did not return. Fortunately, his son was cautious and left one person in the town to wait for news. However, after waiting for a whole day and night, there was still no news, and they did not return. The soldier was terrified and dared not go looking for them. He rushed back to Mianzhou overnight to report the matter to the prefect. Brother Zhuang's son was the leader, and he couldn't sit still when he heard the news. His whole family stayed up all night. Given this situation, I couldn't say goodbye, so I went to Fuyuan Town with him at dawn."
Li Xiaoxiao listened intently: "How many people went this time?"
Magistrate Meng said, "More than a hundred people went this time, and the Prefect also went. We found a local to guide us into the mountains..." Suddenly, an extremely painful and nauseous expression appeared on his face. His chest seemed to be churning as if he was about to vomit. His face turned ashen, and a layer of fine sweat appeared on his forehead.
Those at the table who had seen it clearly were all taken aback. Liu quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe his sweat and couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong? Did you find those missing people?"
Magistrate Meng endured the nausea for a long time, finally suppressing it, and said with a pale face, "Found it, but it would have been better if we hadn't found it at all..."
What does that mean? Everyone was puzzled.
Magistrate Meng gestured for Liu Zhi to take Rui Rui down to play, because what followed was completely inappropriate for children: "We didn't find a complete corpse, but rather a pile of corpse fragments."
Liu covered her mouth in horror, almost screaming. Meng Guanqi and Li Xiaoxiao also stared wide-eyed in surprise, looking at Magistrate Meng in disbelief.
Magistrate Meng cried out in anguish, "The crime scene was a small hillside, covered in blood. Countless severed limbs were scattered everywhere, and not a single intact body could be found. These limbs were still wearing soldiers' uniforms, but they were torn so haphazardly that it was impossible to tell who was who. Moreover, the heads of these corpses had all been bitten off and scattered everywhere, and all the internal organs in their chests had been pulled out. Some of them must have been eaten, but most of them were scattered in various places. Not a single corpse had any internal organs inside them..."
Thinking of the terrible scene he witnessed, he couldn't hold back any longer and rushed out to vomit.
Liu cried out in alarm and hurriedly ordered someone to fetch water and hot towels. Magistrate Meng cleaned up the mess before sitting back down at the table. “Brother Zhuang fainted on the spot. The scene was filled with cries and screams… In the end, we couldn’t identify all the bodies. We only found thirty-four heads. Thirty were soldiers, one was Brother Zhuang’s son, and the other three were local villagers. As it got dark, the prefect dared not let anyone stay in the area and had to take these dozens of heads back to Mianzhou. After such a tragedy, I naturally couldn’t leave immediately. After Brother Zhuang calmed down a bit and knew I couldn’t stay long, he insisted on putting me on the ship, which allowed me to enter the capital yesterday afternoon.”
Meng Guanqi couldn't help but ask, "Did they encounter a pack of wolves? Or tigers?" He couldn't think of any other animal besides these two ferocious beasts that could bite a person like that.
Magistrate Meng frowned deeply: "At the crime scene, we found several clumps of hair that had been cut off with a knife. The prefect questioned the village hunters, and they confirmed it was wolf fur. The people who went into the mountains encountered a pack of wolves. What's strange is that although they entered the mountains, they didn't go very deep, and they entered during the day. How could a pack of wolves dare to attack a group of strong men in broad daylight? It's not that no one in Mianzhou has ever seen a pack of wolves before. According to their habits, wolves are always active at night and are afraid of light and fire. Unless it's a lone hunter in the deep mountains, they might be attacked. There has never been a case of a pack of wolves attacking a village. And what's even more terrifying is that none of the thirty-five people escaped."
Meng Guanqi said, "It's only mid-November, and the mountains haven't been snowed in yet. Even if there were wolves, they wouldn't be so hungry that they would come down the mountain to attack the villagers. This is indeed very strange."
Magistrate Meng said, "Before winter this year, such a tragedy had never happened in Mianzhou. These wolves seem to have just appeared out of nowhere. I don't know where they came from. After injuring people, will they leave? I guess this will give the prefect a headache for a long time."
Li smiled and said, "Then what does the prefect plan to do? We can't just let them go unchecked. These wolves dare to attack soldiers during the day. What if they come down from the mountain at night and bite people in the village?"
Magistrate Meng sighed, "I left early, so I don't know if they've come up with a solution yet. At most, they might set traps at the foot of the mountain to see if they can catch them. Dozens of lives have been lost in an instant. If this matter isn't handled properly, I'm afraid the people of Fuyuan Town won't dare to stay there, fearing they might be eaten by wolves one day."
Having served as a county magistrate for several years, he naturally projected his own experience onto the situation. If Biyang County were to suffer such a calamity, he estimated that he would also be experiencing a splitting headache.
Where did the wolf come from?
Meng Guanqi said, "More than thirty lives, plus the missing villagers, must have been lost to wolves. The prefect can submit a memorial to the court and ask the court to send troops to hunt them down. If they encounter a pack of wolves, they should be shot on the spot to prevent future troubles."
Magistrate Meng nodded: "I just don't know if the prefect will report it. It would be best if he could organize a force to encircle and suppress them. After all, forty lives were lost under his jurisdiction, and it would be a serious mistake if the court investigated it."
Magistrate Meng was deeply moved because his fellow examinee's son had died there, but this was, after all, a matter for Mianzhou. As a passing seventh-rank official, he couldn't very well take over the task of reporting it on behalf of the prefect, could he? Apart from feeling sorry for the soldiers and civilians who had perished in the jaws of wild wolves, he couldn't interfere in other matters.
Meng Guanqi also found this matter very strange. While on duty, he paid special attention to see if there were any memorials from Mianzhou. However, more than half a month passed and Mianzhou remained quiet.
Perhaps the prefect of Mianzhou has already come up with a way to drive away the wolves, or perhaps the wolf pack has already left Fuyuan Town. Since it has not been mentioned again, the wolf problem should have been resolved.
Meng Guanqi was left out of the story.
After returning to the capital and resting for a few days, Magistrate Meng officially went to the Imperial Academy to report for duty and was appointed as the Director of Studies, becoming the assistant to the Chancellor Xie Shangwen.
Meng Ying was very satisfied with this new job. He was never one to fight for power, and his moderate and peaceful nature, which he had developed in his early years, was not something that could be easily changed. As the Director of Education at the Imperial Academy, he was in charge of education, occasionally gave lessons to students, and could spend his free time reading in the library. He felt that this position was more suitable for him than any of the positions he had held before.
Emperor Hongxing finally couldn't resist Aze's request and granted Rui Rui, who was just over three years old but not yet four, a favor. He became the youngest study companion in the history of the Great Wu Dynasty. He would go out with Li Xiaoxiao in the morning and go to the palace with her in the evening. Emperor Hongxing specially assigned a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) from the Hanlin Academy to teach him. He sat in a small study room by himself because Li Jin, who was the second youngest in the upper study room due to his addition, was much more learned than him. He was very good at reciting and tracing, and could not be transferred to the same class as him.
The newly arrived lecturer, surnamed Deng, was excited to prepare for the lessons assigned to him by Emperor Hongxing, ready to make a name for himself in the Imperial Study. However, when he first saw Rui Rui, a short, stout girl whose legs were shorter than his own, he almost fainted.
Well, his grand ambitions ended before they even began. The three-year-old could only write his own name, and I heard that after a month of studying, he had only memorized five lines from the "Elementary Learning Classics".
Deng Shijiang knew Meng Guanqi, a genius who became a third-ranked scholar at the age of eighteen. How could his younger brother only be able to recite five lines of the "Elementary Learning Classics" after a month? It must be a rumor.
After teaching for two days, he almost had a stroke. He suspected that the child couldn't understand human speech yet and that it was too early to start teaching him. He wondered if he could send him home now.
But the person was chosen by Emperor Hongxing, and he was heartbroken. When he returned to the Hanlin Academy, he severely punished Meng Guanqi with several meals. Meng Guanqi was so badly punished that he had no temper left. He had also heard about Rui Rui's great achievements, and for a while he suspected that Rui Rui had inherited Li Xiaoxiao's intelligence, unlike his younger brother, but more like his son...
Li Xiaoxiao strongly objected to this, saying that it was hard to say compared to others, but compared to Rui Rui, she was still slightly better.
When Aze heard about what the couple was saying about Rui Rui, he angrily questioned them: "How do you know that your future child will be better than your brother?"
Li Xiaoxiao, however, was quite shameless: "That's for sure. Whether our future children are as strong as me or as intelligent as Meng Guanqi, they will definitely be rare geniuses in the world!"
Aze retorted, "What if he has your intelligence and Guanqi's physique?"
An eerie silence followed...
I guess I probably won't be that unlucky...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com