After waiting for a good half hour, Cai Jing's coughing finally subsided in the carriage.
"Someone!"
Hearing Cai Jing's call, his attendant hurried over.
"What are your orders, Sir?"
"Take this memorial and wait at the entrance of the Directorate of Transmission. Tomorrow morning, deliver this memorial to them at the earliest opportunity…"
"Understood!"
Although Cai Jing's voice was filled with an indescribable exhaustion, the attendant dared not delay. After taking the memorial through the carriage window, he rushed towards the Directorate of Transmission.
Having completed this task, Cai Jing's face was filled with relief.
He pushed open the carriage window, cast one more glance at the brightly lit Bianliang City, adjusted his clothes, and then slowly took out the purple jade bottle from his sleeve.
Watching the last section of the candle in the lantern burn down, Cai Jing slowly poured a crimson pill from the jade bottle…
In a daze, he seemed to return to Hangzhou City, to the rented courtyard. He sat silently at his desk, his old wife sat by the window, holding a peach wood comb, gently complaining to him that a few more strands of white hair had appeared on her head.
Even though many years had passed, her charming demeanor always made him feel as if it were yesterday whenever he dreamt of it at midnight.
Looking at the smile on his wife's face, Cai Jing suddenly felt a pang in his chest. Then, his wife's figure slowly dissipated, and his vision gradually blurred. The scene flashed by, and the gentle, kind woman who had accompanied him for half his life was now at her last breath…
"I'll protect him with my life through this trial. You won't blame me anymore, will you…"
A mouthful of black blood surged from the corner of his lips. Cai Jing whispered softly…
A gust of strong wind blew, stirring up sand that made the surrounding attendants squint. From somewhere on the distant Bian River, singing drifted:
Green is her robe, lined with yellow.
My heart's sorrow, when will it cease!
…
Green is her robe, with a yellow hem.
My heart's sorrow, when will it fade!
…
Green silk, spun by you.
I think of the ancients, that I may avoid fault!
…
Fine linen, cool in the wind.
I think of the ancients, they truly capture my heart!
"The candle is out!"
Seeing the last flicker of candlelight extinguish, several attendants exchanged glances and nodded silently to the coachman.
As the carriage wheels turned, this powerful official who had dominated the Song dynasty's political arena for decades completely exited the historical stage…
"Young Master, you seem to be in a bad mood?"
In the carriage on the way back, Gao Shun asked cautiously.
"It's nothing, just a bit of shared sorrow for the departed. Perhaps one day, a young man like me will, on a similar night, say the same words, do the same things, and then place an identical medicine bottle before me…"
Han Mo said this with a sense of desolation, finding this damned life incredibly boring…
"What are you talking about? I don't understand," Gao Shun asked, his face full of confusion as he looked at the loneliness in Han Mo's eyes.
"Never mind. By the way, how are your studies going?"
Seeing his bewildered expression, Han Mo was amused by him.
"I'm actually just… those characters recognize me, but I don't recognize them…"
Gao Shun felt a pang of shame as he said this.
"Forget it, forget it. You handle it yourself. Life's troubles begin with literacy. It's fine if you don't study!"
Han Mo felt a bit amused now, seeing such a tall man hang his head.
Given his current age, it was indeed a bit difficult for him to study elementary books.
"Thank you, Young Master!"
Upon hearing Han Mo's words, Gao Shun breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said to Han Mo as if granted a great pardon.
"Let's go, we're going home. Also, tell them to get ready, pack our things, and we'll set off back to Mingzhou the night after tomorrow!"
"Understood!"
The actions of the imperial students quickly alarmed half of Bianliang City. In less than half an hour, even Liang Shicheng had been alerted.
Whether it was the Palace Guard, the Imperial Bodyguard, or the Kaifeng Prefecture, they all felt an immense headache at this moment.
After all, the ones causing trouble were all imperial students, and among them were many scholars from the highest ranks, with even quite a few children of officials mixed in. They couldn't stop them, nor could they beat them, which was extremely troublesome for the patrolling soldiers and constables.
The founding emperor had left a vow tablet stating that officials and those who submitted memorials would not be killed. Any descendant who broke this vow would be struck down by heaven.
With so many people present, if even one or two were accidentally killed or injured, it would be difficult to explain.
"Sir, what should we do? So many imperial students, aren't they just causing trouble?"
Looking at the imperial students in blue robes at the forefront of the crowd, several subordinate officials from the Kaifeng Prefecture were as anxious as ants on a hot pan.
Although the palace gates were closed, these students were making such a fuss. If the Emperor were to be disturbed, they might all suffer the consequences.
"They want to submit a memorial, don't they? Then let them submit it. Send out all the constables from the Kaifeng Prefecture and strictly guard against any petty thieves or ruffians mixing in. We must ensure the safety of these scholars!"
Zhan Shaoyou merely glanced at the organized imperial students and then yawned before giving his orders.
"Th-that's it?"
Hearing him say this, his subordinates were all stunned. Wasn't this the time to figure out how to persuade them to go back?
"Otherwise? Do you think you have the ability to persuade them to go back? If you have that ability, then go ahead!"
Seeing the disdain in Zhan Shaoyou's eyes, everyone fell silent.
If this matter could be resolved with a few words, would it have escalated to this point?
"Sir, I suspect this matter was instigated. Please look at this!"
Just as Zhan Shaoyou was about to turn away, a patrol officer, with a fawning smile, took out several crumpled pieces of white paper from his sleeve and handed them to Zhan Shaoyou.
Looking at the writings on the paper, Zhan Shaoyou couldn't help but nod.
"This proclamation is written with great skill!"
"Cough—cough—cough—"
As soon as he finished speaking, Wang Tie Zhu began to cough violently.
"Are you having trouble with your throat?"
Zhan Shaoyou naturally understood that the young man was reminding him, but in this matter, he hadn't really considered staying out of it.
"Sir, should we investigate this matter?" the patrol officer asked obsequiously.
"Indeed, we must investigate thoroughly. Here's what we'll do: I'll give you one night and five more constables. Before sunrise tomorrow, I want this matter thoroughly investigated and find out who wrote this proclamation!"
"O-one night…"