Zaixing Tower.
The clever waiter was busy shuttling between the tables, pouring tea and water. When he saw a new customer coming in, he immediately threw away his sweat towel and greeted him attentively, “Dear guests, please come in~”
But when the waiter saw who was coming, he was stunned for a moment.
The young man was wearing a green robe, which was simple and neat. His face was not outstanding, and one could only say that his features were regular, but his temperament was indescribably elegant and graceful.
He walked gracefully and freely, his posture was upright and relaxed, and he held a paper fan in his slender, jade-like hands, looking like a handsome and elegant young master.
Therefore, as people enter the door, the bustling teahouse becomes quiet unconsciously, and only becomes lively again after a while.
Shen Qingzhuo nodded slightly, “Excuse me, there are three of us.”
The waiter only then noticed that there were two servants following the elegant young master.
“Alright, Young Master, please go to the second floor!” He came to his senses and immediately turned around to lead the way.
Shen Qingzhuo went up to the second floor with his robe lifted and sat down by the window. He looked at the two people on his left and right and couldn’t help but smile and said, “Sit down ah, are you two here to act as wooden stakes?”
Xiang Chen held the sword and replied expressionlessly, “I want to protect Master.”
Xiao Dezi quickly replied, “The ser—servant dares not.”
Shen Qingzhuo frowned slightly, “If you two continue to do this, don’t come out with me in the future.”
The two looked at each other and chose to sit opposite him obediently.
The waiter came over to serve tea and couldn’t help but chat with him: “From Young Master accent, you don’t sound like a native of Yancheng?”
Shen Qingzhuo smiled and said, “We came from Shengjing and passed by your place.”
Since leaving the palace that day, he asked Xiang Chen to change his appearance after returning to the Shen Mansion and quietly left the capital overnight.
Since he came to this world, he has never left Shengjing except for the last time he went to Suzhou to investigate a corruption case.
But unlike the arduous journey to Suzhou, this time they traveled along the way, stopping as they went. They not only fully felt the local conditions and culture of Dayong but also got a firsthand experience of the real life of ordinary people.
“Then Young Master should have a good time in Yancheng for a few days,” the waiter introduced enthusiastically. “Although our place is small, but there are many delicious and fun things here!”
“Sure.” Shen Qingzhuo glanced at the person opposite him, and Xiao Dezi immediately understood and took out some change from his waist bag to reward the waiter.
At this moment, a loud voice suddenly came from the side and front: “Brother Chen, congratulations on passing the autumn examination! When you go to the capital to take the imperial examination next year and win first place, don’t forget your younger brothers ah!”
Young Master Chen modestly said, “No, no, the Spring Examination gathers the best talents in the world, Chen dares not boast about this.”
The previous speaker complimented again, and the others echoed him.
Another voice poured cold water, saying, “Do you really think that the Spring Examination is a ladder for poor students like us to climb to heaven? The imperial examination is just a trick played by the nobles. It is easy to pass the provincial examination, but it is almost as difficult as climbing to heaven to get a good rank in the imperial examination.”
“Brother Li, you are wrong. In the past two years, the imperial court has thoroughly investigated officials who committed fraud in the imperial examinations, which is enough to show fairness.”
“You guys are too naive. It’s just a show. Hasn’t it been a long time since the noble families have suppressed the poor? If you don’t believe me, say it, how many of the top three high school students in Dayong are actually from poor families? There is so much dirty collusion behind this.”
Shen Qingzhuo held the teacup in his hand and couldn’t help but chuckle when he heard this.
This statement clearly sounded like that of a poor student who was cynical about the world.
He had an outstanding temperament, and everyone paid special attention to him. When the speaker saw him laughing, he couldn’t help but be a little annoyed: “This Young Master, what’s so funny about what I said?”
Shen Qingzhuo opened his eyelashes and replied with a smile, “This Young Master wants to hear an example? The current Second Assistant, Lord Pei Yanqi, is the second person in the history of Dayong to win the top three prizes in a row. He was actually from a poor family.”
“This, this…” The talkative student blushed and tried to explain, “This is just an isolated case, just an isolated case…”
“After the new emperor ascended the throne, he issued several new policies, many of which were edicts to maintain the fairness and justice of the imperial examinations. For poor students, now is the best opportunity.” Shen Qingzhuo replied slowly, “In the morning, you may be a farmer, but in the evening, you may enter the Emperor’s palace[mfn]What it means is, don’t underestimate the farmers and villagers, maybe they can become high-ranking officials in the future.[/mfn]. As long as you have real ability, the court will not bury you. In the future, you can all become the pillars of the country and jointly create the prosperity of our Dayong.”
Just these few words made the students, who had suffered a setback, feel overwhelmed with emotion and full of fighting spirit. They expressed their determination to realize their ambitions through real learning.
“Having said that, after the current emperor ascended the throne, the decrees he issued were indeed beneficial to the people.” Someone from another table interrupted, “Especially the crackdown on local tyrants and returning the land to the people. This has never been seen before in the history of Dayong!”
“Yes ah, after His Majesty issued the decree, I heard that the wealthy merchants and gentry in various places were frightened and reported their property and paid property taxes without waiting for the common people to report it. Now the court has a lot of money.”
“What’s the use of the court having money? It won’t be distributed to us common people anyway, hahaha!”
“You are so short-sighted! You still want to take part in the imperial examination when you are like this!”
……
Everyone was arguing with each other, and the atmosphere in the teahouse was becoming increasingly heated.
Shen Qingzhuo drooped his eyelashes and listened to their debate calmly, trying to absorb useful information or constructive opinions from it.
After finishing the teacup, he put it down and stood up. “We should go now.”
Unexpectedly, the young man who had previously been speechless by him suddenly came forward and blocked his way.
Shen Qingzhuo looked at him calmly. “May I ask what advice this Young Master has for me?”
“Don’t misunderstand me, Young Master. The humble person is not a cynical person.” The man bowed with his hands clasped, and his attitude was very sincere. “It’s just that this humble’s brother was treated unfairly in the imperial examination and has been depressed since he failed. This is why the humble have a deep prejudice. But today, Young Master’s words have enlightened the humble, so the humble came here to thank you.”
Shen Qingzhuo was slightly surprised. He didn’t expect there was such a reason.
After a brief thought, he borrowed a piece of paper and a brush from other students, picked up the brush, and wrote something, then handed the paper to Young Master Zhou. “When Young Master Zhou goes to Shengjing to take the exam later, you can find Shen with this.”
Young Master Zhou looked at the flowing words on the paper, raised his eyes, and wanted to ask where to find Young Master Shen, but found that he had already walked away.
***
Shen Qingzhuo went down the wooden stairs and was about to leave Zhaixing Tower, but he heard someone on the first floor speaking with a strange accent, asking people around him about Shengjing.
He paused slightly and looked sideways at the two people. On the surface, they looked like ordinary people, but their looks had an exotic feeling.
“Xiang Chen.” He hooked his finger and whispered in the secret guard’s ear, “Go try those two people.”
Xiang Chen took the order and walked towards the table without saying a word, slashing it with his sword.
As expected, the two men subconsciously drew their swords to defend themselves but stopped themselves and just took a few steps back.
There was a sudden commotion on the first floor; even the teahouse owner was alarmed and rushed over to mediate.
After Xiang Chen swung the sword, he put the sword away with a cold face and returned it to his owner, as if everything that had just happened had nothing to do with him.
Shen Qingzhuo rubbed his forehead helplessly and then asked Xiao Dezi to take money to compensate the teahouse owner and the two frightened people and then slowly left the Zhaixing Tower.
“Young Master, why did you try those two people just now?” Xiao Dezi asked curiously, “Is there something unusual about them?”
“They don’t look like people from Dayong.” Shen Qingzhuo waved his paper fan intermittently, looking thoughtful. “Also, the questions they asked were very strange, as if they were deliberately trying to find out some information.”
Xiao Dezi nodded, not quite understanding, and asked, “Young Master, then where are we going next?”
Shen Qingzhuo replied nonchalantly, “Next, let’s follow those two people.”
As expected, the two people went straight to Shengjing.
Xiao Dezi realized it belatedly and said, “Young Master, isn’t this the way back to Jingdu?”
“That’s right.” Shen Qingzhuo said calmly. He put away his folding fan and tapped his head. “Silly, you just recognized it?”
“But, but…” Xiao Dezi was even more confused. “But didn’t Young Master want to escape from Jingdu? Why did we come back again?”
Shen Qingzhuo glanced at him. “When did I tell you that I wanted to escape from Jingdu?”
Xiao Dezi was so surprised that he almost bit off his tongue. “Isn’t it true? I deliberately brought all the silver with me!”
Shen Qingzhuo: “……”
“Xiang Chen, don’t you have anything valuables on you?” Xiao Dezi went to seek the support of the secret guard again.
Xiang Chen replied honestly, “I don’t have any money.”
Shen Qingzhuo was both amused and annoyed and then sighed, “The whole world belongs to the king, where can your young master escape to?”
He just wanted to go out and relax, to calmly sort out the causes and consequences of the past and his own inner thoughts, and to listen to the opinions of the people of Dayong.
It’s just that he has been away from the capital for nearly a month. The person in the palace must have discovered that he is not in Jingdu and will probably find his whereabouts soon.
He just hopes his little disciple can show mercy and not completely overturn the Shen Mansion.
As they were talking, the two people they were following stopped and turned into an inn.
So, Shen Qingzhuo turned and stepped into the restaurant diagonally opposite, sat by the window on the second floor, and prepared to have lunch first.
After ordering the dishes, he rested his chin on one hand, tapped the table with his fingertips, and continued to listen to the conversations around him.
During this journey, he was fortunate to see all kinds of life.
Unlike the intrigues in the palace, the lives of ordinary people have their own hardships but also have plain and subtle happiness. He finds it very interesting from the bottom of his heart, and he sincerely wants the people of Dayong to live a life of plenty, peace, and contentment.
After a while, the restaurant suddenly became quiet, and then a noisy noise broke out.
“What happened?” Xiao Dezi looked out anxiously, “Is there something going on?”
Xiang Chen reached out his hand without looking away and accurately hooked his collar to stop Xiao Dezi from going downstairs to see the excitement.
Shen Qingzhuo smiled and heard footsteps coming upstairs.
The smile on his face froze slightly, and he felt an inexplicable sense of foreboding in his heart. Why did the footsteps sound so familiar?
Accompanied by steady footsteps, a black figure slowly appeared in everyone’s sight.
The man was wearing a black and gold brocade robe. He was tall and had a handsome face, but his expression was cold and murderous, and his whole body exuded an extremely terrifying aura.
Besides, there were four burly men following behind him, all of whom looked like they were not easy to mess with.
The guests on the second floor all looked away and shut their mouths.
At the same time, the curve of Shen Qingzhuo’s lips completely disappeared. He reflexively opened the paper fan in his hand and turned his head to try to cover his face.
But the next moment, he suddenly realized that he had changed his appearance, and it had nothing to do with his original look. His little disciple would definitely not be able to recognize him.
Thinking of this, he pretended to be calm and put down the paper fan. He then used his eyes to soothe the two people opposite him, signaling them not to reveal their true colors.
Xiao Dezi tried his best to suppress the scream that was about to come out of his mouth and lowered his head.
Xiao Shen stood at the entrance of the stairs, his gloomy eyes swept around and soon locked onto the seat by the window.
Shen Qingzhuo couldn’t help but concentrate and hold his breath. He took a sip of hot tea as if nothing had happened. He thought to himself that he couldn’t have this meal. After his little disciple sat down, they would leave.
He wasn’t ready to be caught, let alone Xiao Qi coming in person…
Unfortunately, he discovered out of the corner of his eye that his little disciple paused slightly and then walked straight towards him.
“Excuse me.” Xiao Shen lowered his eyes to look at the completely unfamiliar face and asked in a low and cold tone, “There are no empty seats. Is it convenient to share a table?”
Shen Qingzhuo: “……”
Inconvenient!
The author has something to say:
The Master: Secret Guard, your disguise skills are not good at all!
The Wolf Cub: Hehe…
