Chapter 245

Fragrant curtains cover the bluestone road, the sound of wheels is fragmented, the sound of cicadas stops.

Xie Xinghan is wearing a lake-blue mud-silver dress, with a blue jade hairpin in her hair, a touch of icy light condensing the soul of water; her skin is like white snow, and three parts of charm penetrate the slight glow. Looking at Wang Yang, her eyes are like a star lake, calm and yet filled with scrutiny.

Wang Yang felt his heart drumming as he was watched, but his expression remained natural, and he asked in a relaxed tone:

"Where is Xiao Ning? Where did Xiao Ning go?"

Xie Xinghan tilted her head slightly, her eyes seemingly hiding a blade that could pierce through a person's heart. Even though she was leaning comfortably, it made the back of Wang Yang's neck feel a fine, prickly itch:

"Does Young Master Wang have nothing to say to me?"

—Damn!

Could it be that she met Xiao Baoyue?

Could that little brat have sold me out?!

—No!

If she knew, she wouldn't need to ask like this.

She is—bluffing me.

Thinking this through, Wang Yang quickly regained his composure, looked into Xie Xinghan's eyes, the corners of his lips lifted slightly, and he wore a faint smile:

"Does the Xie Xie Niangzi want me to say something to you?"

The two stared at each other quietly.

One pair of eyes was like a cold pool reflecting stars, with undercurrents surging in the depths; the other pair was like clear snow sinking into an abyss, with waves calm beneath the gentle elegance.

One was clear and cold like the clouds, like the morning moon in a frosty sky; the other was gentle and warm like the breeze, like warm jade producing mist.

The curtains swayed slightly, the rumbling wheels crushed over the gaps in the bluestone slabs, shaking the light spots filtered through the window gauze, casting shadows in the carriage, flickering on and off, making Wang Yang's smile even more unfathomable and meaningful.

That smile was like crushed gold foil, flowing in his eyes with the light and shadow, actually winding around Xie Xinghan's heart like spider silk.

In the end, the cold clouds were blown away by the gentle breeze, and the frost was melted by the warm jade. Xie Xinghan's originally sharp probing was softened by Wang Yang's smile, and she was the first to lose.

She turned her head away under the guise of tidying her hair, avoiding Wang Yang's gaze. The previously oppressive momentum had long melted like spring snow, and the tips of her ears were quietly flushed with a faint red.

"You know..." Xie Xinghan said softly.

Uh...

Wang Yang was a little panicked: "I—I know what?"

"You know what I'm asking about." Xie Xinghan frowned slightly, turning her head away from Wang Yang, her fingers pinching the corner of the brocade cushion, her white, delicate knuckles turning pale pink from the force.

Wang Yang was stunned, a bit unsure: "What are you asking about?"

Xie Xinghan regrouped and looked at Wang Yang:

"Why did you make me put on such a show today?"

Wang Yang immediately breathed a sigh of relief: "Is that what you're asking about!"

You should have said so earlier!!!

Xie Xinghan's star-like eyes narrowed slightly: "Is there anything else?"

Wang Yang: (￣▽￣)~*

"Hey, what else could there be? It's just the matter of saving Liu Cheng! My uncle is elegant and refined, but someone has to do the work, right? There's no other way, as a younger generation, I have to put in more effort, think carefully, and prepare sufficiently so that the hope of saving Liu Cheng back can be a little greater. But if I said it directly, wouldn't it be a blow to my uncle's face? And it would be a bit like overstepping my bounds, so I had to 'openly repair the plank road while secretly crossing the Chencang'..."

"What I don't understand is why you have to take this matter upon yourself? The imperial court naturally has its own handling, and your uncle also has his own arrangements. Even if you want to help your uncle, it would be enough to help plan in advance, so why must you follow the diplomatic mission? Although there shouldn't be any problems with safety, the road to the barbarian tribes is long and dangerous, and the journey will inevitably be exhausting. Besides, the Wenyang barbarians are fierce and uncivilized; since they dared to hijack noble clans, they won't treat you as envoys of a superior state. They will inevitably try to dampen your spirits, and maybe even find ways to humiliate you..."

A look of worry appeared between Xie Xinghan's brows, as if nebulae were condensing into rain that couldn't be dissolved, pressing heavily on the bottom of her eyes.

Wang Yang thought to himself: Why? Because I was forced to go!

But he couldn't tell Xie Xinghan this, lest she be dragged into danger.

Wang Yang smiled bitterly: "I know, I know. It's just that I've already promised the Prince of Badong, and I also have a certain responsibility for Liu Cheng's matter..."

"He harmed others and himself! What responsibility do you have?!" Xie Xinghan suddenly said angrily.

She got angry whenever this matter was mentioned! If it weren't for Liu Cheng bribing the manager of the Music Bureau to open the secret door, how could the barbarians have taken advantage of the gap? Wang Yang almost didn't come back! If he hadn't brought it upon himself and been kidnapped by the barbarians, she would definitely report him to Uncle Liu and give him a good beating with hundreds of sticks!

Seeing that Xie Xinghan was angry, Wang Yang didn't dare to face her head-on. He first clearly agreed with her a few times, then smiled bitterly:

"But after all, we encountered danger together, and I came back, but he didn't..."

Seeing that Xie Xinghan was still indignant and about to speak, he immediately added: "And my uncle invited me to go together, so it's not easy for me to refuse. Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. I'll just treat it as a tour, and it's not a bad thing to gain some knowledge along the way."

Xie Xinghan was silent, her star-like eyes lowered slightly, as if she had accepted Wang Yang's explanation.

Just when Wang Yang thought he had "passed the test," Xie Xinghan suddenly raised her eyes, stared at Wang Yang, her pupils contracting slightly, as if she were measuring every emotion in the depths of Wang Yang's eyes inch by inch:

"Are you telling the truth?" Xie Xinghan asked suspiciously.

This... why is there suddenly such a sense of oppression?!

Wang Yang smiled embarrassedly:

"It's not entirely the truth. Actually, I also want to take this opportunity to establish some fame."

The 23rd rule of the Wang family's lying code: Smart people like to catch lies, so give them a chance to expose a small lie!

Xie Xinghan was indeed fooled. "There should be countless land and sea in the imperial capital, I can't bear to cut off my ambitious heart." She had guessed before that Wang Yang doing this was very likely for his future. Whether it was to follow the Prince of Badong's wishes, get close to his distant uncle, or use this to establish merit and accumulate prestige to pave the way for his future official career, these were all expressions of Wang Yang's "ambitious heart." What's more, if he could take this opportunity to turn enemies into friends with Liu Cheng and befriend the Liu family, it would be of great benefit to Wang Yang's official career in the future. It's just that...

"Actually, with your talent, it's not difficult for you to enter officialdom through the classics. Are you worried that because you shook the *Ancient Text Minister*, you will be expelled by the Imperial Academy?"

The Imperial Academy divides doctors by classics.

Among them, the *Ancient Text Minister* department has doctors from both the Kong and Zheng families: one studies the Kong family's commentary (the commentary written by Kong Anguo for the *Minister*, also called the Kong Commentary), and the other studies Zheng Xuan's *Minister Commentary*. Both major doctors are based on the *Ancient Text Minister*. How many disciples have advanced through this? It can be said that this is the headquarters of the *Ancient Text Minister*. Wang Yang refuted the *Ancient Text Minister* as a fake book, how could he be tolerated? So they will definitely do their best to stop Wang Yang from entering the Imperial Academy.

There are so many county schools in the world, and every year the students selected from the counties are like crucian carp crossing the river, all top-notch students from various places, but very few are admitted by the Imperial Academy. Originally, with Wang Yang's family background and scholarship, he would definitely be selected. Not to mention anything else, just based on the four words "Langya Wang clan," he would already have one foot inside the door. But this time it's different.

Xie Xinghan only learned today that Shen Linsi, one of the three lecturers at the White Tiger Dojo, had gone to the Imperial Academy to accuse Wang Yang of slandering the sage's classics and demanded that his student status be revoked, only to be scolded bloody by the newly appointed Imperial Academy doctor Du Qianguang.

The Kong and Zheng families' ancient text doctors took action, but Du Qianguang was not afraid at all, fighting two with one, and the lawsuit went directly to the Taichang. Although the student status was not revoked for the time being, the resistance when the county selection comes can be imagined. With so many candidates waiting, once Wang Yang is expelled to reconcile the conflict, the next selection will be three years later.

Liu Zhao is a benevolent and sincere gentleman. He thought that as long as he reported it, based on Wang Yang's scholarship and those few volumes of writings, even the doctors of the *Ancient Text Minister* would be convinced. But Xie Xinghan knew it wouldn't be that simple. Every time she mentioned the Imperial Academy to Wang Yang, Wang Yang was not very enthusiastic about this topic. She didn't know if he had already guessed the difficulty, or if he was a bit disheartened by the Imperial Academy?

This time was the same. Wang Yang just smiled and didn't pick up the topic, but pushed aside the gauze curtain and looked outside the carriage:

"That's about it, just stop at the intersection ahead."

Xie Xinghan withdrew her thoughts: "You accompany me to a place first."

"Not today, I have something to do today."

"It won't take long."

Wang Yang just shook his head.

Xie Xinghan's eyes contained slight anger: "I just finished helping you!"

Wang Yang laughed and said: "Next time, next time I'll treat you to hot pot."

Xie Xinghan's thoughts turned, she looked at Wang Yang, lowered her head, and said the word "Okay."

Wang Yang knocked on the front wall of the carriage: "Stop!"

The ox cart stopped slowly, and Wang Yang smiled and bowed to Xie Xinghan:

"Thank you, Xie Xie Niangzi, for your righteous help today! Yang is deeply grateful! I will definitely prepare hot pot and duck blood in the future to thank you for your help!"

Xie Xinghan didn't raise her head, just nodded slightly, the amplitude was very small, and her willow shoulders trembled slightly.

Wang Yang was about to get off the carriage, but hesitated when he saw this, and called out again: "Xie Xie Niangzi?"

Xie Xinghan's voice was a bit choked: "It's... nothing..."

Wang Yang lowered his voice and asked tentatively: "Xie Xie Niangzi, this is..."

Xie Xinghan shook her head and refused to speak.

When she raised her head again, there were tears in her eyes!

Wang Yang was taken aback and said in a panic: "What's wrong? Why are you—"

Xie Xinghan sniffed her delicate nose.

Wang Yang lost his color and hurriedly bowed: "Don't cry, don't cry! I'll apologize to you right now!"

Xie Xinghan turned to the side, took out a handkerchief to wipe her tears, her voice aggrieved and weak, making people feel pity:

"It's not the young master's fault, it's that I am sad about my own life. The young master doesn't know that my branch of the family has many people and complex households. If we could prosper together as a clan, it would be a blessing, but when there are many people, it is inevitable that..."

Xie Xinghan paused and bowed gently. The bead strings of the blue jade hairpin swayed gently with her bowing movement, casting fragmented shadows on her exquisite cheeks:

"Young master, please forgive me, I shouldn't have criticized the clan's affairs."

Wang Yang immediately said: "What's wrong with that! When there are many people, there will be conflicts, and it's inevitable even among family members. This is human nature. Besides, I won't tell anyone else!"

Xie Xinghan twisted the handkerchief with her fingertips, her eyes filled with tears:

"Thank you for your understanding, young master. Outsiders always say that the Xie family's status is extremely high, but who knows the undercurrents within the high walls? I was forced to sign a bet before. If I lose, I'm afraid it will be even harder for me to find a place in the clan in the future. It was originally agreed to be in Jiankang, but I didn't expect the other party to send five great experts in classics to bully me directly..."

The more Wang Yang listened, the more confused he became: "Wait a minute, what bet? And where did these experts in classics—"

The tears in Xie Xinghan's eyes suddenly rippled, and she covered her face with her slender fingers, crying:

"I am a weak woman, alone like a leaf, how can I resist the pressure of five great masters of classics? It's just my own lack of talent... and I am isolated and helpless..."

She cried intermittently, sometimes mixed with one or two coughs. Taking the opportunity of coughing, she secretly leaked a line through her fingers, glanced at Wang Yang's reaction, and then continued to cry:

"Forget it, forget it, I'll just admit defeat! It's just being bullied and ridiculed from now on, and having no place to stand in the future, it's nothing... Wuwu... Wu..."