Chapter 242 Public outrage
"Do you still want to see Xue Han?" The prison warden was somewhat impatient upon hearing Master Qiu's request.
"Give him an extra set of mattresses."
The prison warden's expression was somewhat indescribable.
Your old father is still sleeping on a tattered bed; you should give the extra bedding to someone else.
No, what's wrong with the people in the Yongqing Marquis's mansion?
"Please do me a favor." Master Qiu San slipped a coin into his hand.
The prison warden looked at the silver in his hand, his expression becoming even stranger.
Even the bribes he received were larger than the amount he received when he went to see the Earl of Yongqing.
Thinking about that little bit of silver, the prison warden even felt sorry for the Earl of Yongqing: I understand now, so for this Master Qiu, seeing his old father is fine if he can see him, and if he can't, so be it, he's really filial.
After accepting the money, the prison warden instructed the jailer to take Master Qiu to Xue Han.
"Don't stay too long."
Xue Han was quite surprised to see Master Qiu.
"uncle."
Master Qiu shoved the bedding into his arms: "Thank you for taking care of Heng'er."
"Uncle, you're too kind. It's my pleasure," Xue Han said politely, holding the bedding.
Master Qiu was not happy to hear this: "It is only right that I take care of Heng'er, and others should thank me."
Xue Han: "..."
"There are some snacks here, Heng'er asked me to share them with you." Master Qiu reluctantly handed over a bag of snacks.
Is there no one at home to discipline this kid? He even has to divide Heng'er's things.
It wasn't much, but the fact that this kid seemed to hold more weight in Heng'er's heart than he, her old father, made him unhappy.
"Thank you, Uncle." Xue Han reached out to take it, but found that Master Qiu was holding on tightly and wouldn't let go, so he silently increased his grip.
Master Qiu walked away with his hands empty and a stern face.
Xue Han opened the oil paper package, and as he had guessed, it contained red bean cakes.
Xue Han silently picked up a piece of red bean cake and took a bite.
The pastries were soft, sticky, and sweet, a familiar taste. If it were Hu Si, he would definitely eat several pieces.
Thinking of Hu Si, Xue Han felt a pang of pain in his heart.
Master Qiu was not the first to come and see Xue Han; Xue Quan had already come around noon.
But no matter what, it's good that people are alive.
Xue Han ate the red bean cake slowly, thinking to himself.
As soon as Master Qiu returned to the Yongqing Marquis's Mansion, he went to Qiansong Hall.
There were people from all three branches of the family in Qiansong Hall, waiting to hear about Qiuheng's situation.
"Heng'er has lost weight, but she's in good spirits. Lots of people went to see her; I waited quite a while before I finally got to see her..."
The old lady breathed a sigh of relief and instructed Master Qiu, "Tomorrow, send some more food to Sixth Girl; prison food is sure to be hard to swallow."
Master Qiu nodded repeatedly.
"Grandmother, let me deliver food to Sixth Sister tomorrow," Qiu Fu said.
Qiu Ying quickly said, "I'll go with Fourth Sister."
The old lady glanced at the two sisters and refused, "Don't cause trouble. When Heng'er comes home, you two can take good care of her."
Qiu Ying couldn't help but ask, "Grandmother, will Sixth Sister really be alright?"
The old lady said with certainty, "Yes, it will."
On her way back to her room from Qiansong Hall, Qiuying clutched the sash of her cloak, feeling uneasy: "Fourth Sister, why do you think Grandmother is so confident? It's said that those who are imprisoned in Dali Temple are all serious criminals and wanted criminals."
Qiu Fu rolled her eyes at her: "The question you asked Grandmother was asked more than a dozen times before Sixth Sister came back."
"That was a fall off a cliff while heavily surrounded by troops!"
If she weren't afraid of bothering her grandmother, she could ask a hundred times.
Qiu Fu looked at the brightly lit Lengxiang Residence and exhaled white breath: "Sixth Sister came back alive under those circumstances. Now she's just in jail. I believe she'll be fine."
Sixth Sister was the one who effortlessly helped her escape the quagmire of the Fang family and give her a new life; Sixth Sister is incredibly capable.
"Fourth Sister." Qiu Ying suddenly lowered her voice.
"how?"
Qiu Ying unconsciously tightened her grip on the cloak belt: "Tell me, if Sixth Sister had stayed in the capital, wouldn't Third Sister have been able to—"
Before she could finish listening, Qiu Fu's face turned cold: "Don't mention her, it was her own choice!"
Qiu Ying sighed softly and looked around. The courtyard was desolate under the cold winter night.
"I hope my sixth sister will come home soon; the house is getting more and more deserted."
The capital city became lively because of Qiu Heng and Xue Han's return.
While the court is still debating the arrangements for the two men, new rumors are already circulating in teahouses and taverns.
"Have you heard? The two loyal men who killed King Xijiang were thrown into prison as soon as they returned to the capital. The court is going to send them to apologize to King Xijiang."
"Such a thing is true?"
"It's absolutely true. Overnight, walls in the streets and alleys were covered with many pieces of hemp paper that described the heroic deeds of the two righteous men, as well as the imperial court's plans."
"Let's go take a look."
Everywhere you look, people can be seen gathered in front of walls, pointing and commenting on the posted posters.
"Do you remember that scoundrel surnamed Yuan? Someone wrote his evil deeds on hemp paper, and it was everywhere. To this day, no one knows who posted it."
"Alas, Yuan's evil deeds were indeed exposed later. So, what was written on the hemp paper must be true."
"Such a hero, who returned to the capital after surviving a near-death experience, is not only not rewarded, but is instead sent to Xijiang to apologize. Are all of us in Great Xia spineless?"
"Bah! We're not spineless cowards, we're spineless officials like that traitor Yuan!"
"Young master, once you become officials, do you lose your backbone?" A young man who looked like a thug asked, pointing at a boy in the crowd.
The boy looked to be about eighteen or nineteen years old, wearing a scholar's cap and a white robe, dressed like a student of the Imperial Academy.
The boy was being questioned so bluntly, and the contemptuous gazes were like knives scraping at his sense of shame.
The boy, his face flushed, fled the encirclement in a disheveled state. When he reunited with his classmates, the blush on his face had not yet faded.
Shame and anger made his young eyes burn, and his chest felt like it was on fire.
"We can't just do nothing." The boy squeezed out each word from his chest, which was filled with shame and anger.
"We study the classics and learn the principles of sages not merely to gain official positions, wealth, or glory for our families. Fellow students, have you all heard what the people have been saying these past few days?"
The boys all looked ashamed.
In the past, when I walked down the street in this imperial college student's uniform, I was met with admiration and respect; now, however, I am met with disdain and questioning.
They are still students, not officials. But the common people don't distinguish between them. They used to respect them as officials, but now they curse them as corrupt officials.
"Brother Huaiqing, what do you think we should do?"
The young man tightened his grip, his voice resounding: "To establish a moral compass for Heaven and Earth, to secure a destiny for the people, to continue the lost learning of the sages, and to usher in an era of peace for all generations. We will go to the palace gates to plead with His Majesty to release Xue Han and Qiu Heng, and absolutely not send them to apologize to Xi Jiang!"
Soon, a chorus of agreement rang out: "Alright, we'll go and ask for permission!"
A group of people left the Imperial Academy and headed to the capital to petition for orders. More students from the Imperial Academy joined them along the way, and when they passed the Imperial College, many more students from the Imperial College joined them, making the procession grow larger and larger.
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