Chapter 594: The Pillow

The Earl's Mansion, Jia Cong's courtyard.

Just now, during the meal with his sisters, to avoid arousing their suspicions, Jia Cong spoke lightly of the poisoning of the Ministry of Rites officials.

But in truth, he had not let go of the matter; after speaking with Lin Daiyu for a while and seeing her back to her quarters, he returned alone to his study.

He took down the blue-bound volume from the bookshelf, flipped through it idly, until he reached the page listing candidates for the chief examiner of the spring imperial examination.

The names on it, besides the three already appointed as chief examiners—Wang Liu Shilun, Chen Mo, and Huang Huang Hongcang—

included those who had been eliminated or withdrawn for various reasons: Grand Secretary Cai Xiang, Minister of Rites Guo Guo Youchang, and Deputy Director of the Temple of Ancestral Worship Zheng Yan.

And those who had been rejected due to insufficient seniority: Minister of Works Li Li Dekang, Left Vice Minister of Revenue Xu Xu Liangxiong…

Huang Huang Hongcang's accidental poisoning means he can no longer serve as chief examiner; which of these men will replace him?

Although on the surface, under the transcription system of the metropolitan examination, the identity of the chief examiner seems irrelevant to the candidates—success depends solely on scholarly talent—

once the examination results are announced, the chief examiner will know exactly which candidates he has selected.

A firm master-disciple bond forms between the chief examiner and the successful candidates, a relationship with immense political weight, capable of determining one's future career trajectory, fortune or misfortune.

Though Jia Cong, as a scion of a noble family, would not be greatly influenced by his master,

within possible limits, he himself hoped his future master would be someone whose temperament and political views aligned with his own.

Thus, he naturally paid close attention to who would succeed Huang Huang Hongcang as the new chief examiner.

…

He was staring blankly at the blue-bound volume.

Suddenly, he heard soft footsteps and a faint, sweet fragrance; Xing Xing Xiuyan had entered the study without his notice, her face glowing with a tender smile, hands clasped behind her back, concealing something.

Jia Cong noticed her attire today was strikingly elegant, unlike her usual plain style: a crimson robe with embroidered branches of jade orchids, a white inner collar, and a water-red long skirt.

She looked fresh, graceful, like early spring at the tip of a young shoot—truly pleasing to the eye.

He smiled and asked: "Xing Xiuyan, what are you hiding behind your back? Why not show it?"

Xing Xing Xiuyan blushed slightly, then pulled out what she had concealed: a soft silk pillow, made of pale blue brocade with subtle floral patterns, embroidered with moon and osmanthus trees, exquisitely crafted.

Jia Cong took it with a smile; he understood the symbolism of the moon and osmanthus—auspicious for winning the imperial examination—and guessed Xing Xiuyan had put much thought into it.

Xing Xing Xiuyan said: "Brother, you're entering the examination hall soon; I heard you'll be confined there for nine days, and the bedboards are narrow and hard. I made this soft pillow so you can sleep better at night."

In truth, she had finished the pillow two days ago but had been too shy to give it to Jia Cong.

Originally, she thought his many trusted maids would have already prepared all his necessities for the examination, leaving her no role to play.

But then she learned the examination cells were not only cramped, but the bed was formed by joining planks together—nothing like the comfort of home.

Worried he would be uncomfortable inside the cell, she suddenly conceived the idea of making him a light, soft pillow so he could sleep soundly.

Yet after eagerly finishing it, she realized giving a sleeping pillow felt overly intimate and intimate, making her hesitate to give it to him.

Today, when the sisters gathered at Jia Cong's courtyard, she realized he would enter the hall in two days; if she didn't give him the pillow now, she feared it would be too late.

But in front of the sisters, she felt too shy—especially with Shi Xiangyun, that quick-tongued girl, who would surely tease her.

So only after the sisters had left did Xing Xing Xiuyan come alone—and she knew well he would cherish what she had made…

Jia Cong gently patted the pillow twice; it was wonderfully soft and springy. "Sister, your thoughtfulness is remarkable—this is perfect to bring into the examination cell."

"I've slept on those examination planks more than once; they're unbearably hard. With your pillow, I'll sleep far more soundly at night."

Xing Xing Xiuyan was delighted by his praise.

Though she had just passed her teens and still retained a touch of childishness, her radiant smile now revealed her innate beauty: bright eyes, white teeth, a face like peach and plum in bloom—graceful and captivating.

Jia Cong suddenly remembered something, his expression turning regretful: "I forgot—candidates entering the examination hall are strictly searched to prevent cheating."

"This beautiful pillow will surely be torn open by the yamen runners—your thoughtful gift will be ruined."

Xing Xing Xiuyan smiled with quiet pride. "I've already considered all this—I thought of it while making the pillow."

She took the pillow from Jia Cong's hands, turned it over, and said: "Look, Brother."

Jia Cong saw a row of knotted buttons on the back and couldn't help smiling.

With deft fingers, Xing Xing Xiuyan undid the knots, unfolded the pillow, revealing neatly packed fine palm fibers inside.

She smiled: "See? I planned it all. When you're searched, just undo these buttons—let them inspect it. The pillow won't be damaged."

Jia Cong laughed: "Sister, you've thought of everything—even adding buttons to a pillow. How did I never think of that?"

Xing Xing Xiuyan scooped up two handfuls of the palm fibers and held them to Jia Cong's nose. "Smell, Brother—isn't it fragrant? I heard from Second Sister that you usually use Qinghun incense."

"But incense isn't allowed in the cells. I've steeped these fibers in Qinghun incense for days before stuffing them into the pillow. Now you can sleep more soundly—and win first place in the metropolitan examination."

Jia Cong smiled: "Sister, this pillow is perfect—you've gone to such trouble."

"But if I sleep on your pillow, I'll grow too comfortable—I won't be able to sleep on anything else. I think I'll have you make all my future pillows."

Xing Xing Xiuyan burst into laughter. They placed the pillow on the table, their hearts light, chatting and laughing as they repacked the fibers.

A cool breeze drifted in through the window, rustling the pages of the blue-bound volume on the desk…

…

Love Shenjing, eastern city, Imperial Examination Hall.

The spring examination proclamation posted at the hall's entrance had faded noticeably from days of exposure.

Only the names of the chief examiners and their subordinates, inscribed on the edict, remained sharply clear, each stroke like carved by axe and chisel.

The spring breeze continued to blow, causing one corner of the edict to curl and dry, rustling noisily in the wind.

The sun had begun to sink; from the far end of the street came hoofbeats, accompanied by the low rumble of wheels on pavement.

Five carriages followed one another, slowly approaching the hall's main gate, escorted by over twenty embroidered uniform cavalrymen, swords at their sides.

Among them rode Zhou Jun, Director of the Court of Judicial Review, and Zheng Zheng Yingquan, Chief Clerk, surrounded by over a dozen inspection captains.

The procession rolled forward, blades gleaming, hooves thundering—imposing and formidable.

Since the spring examination was set to begin in two days, most candidates were in final study.

Thus, few candidates witnessed this scene.

Though the street held many pedestrians and vendors, to them the examination was distant and alien; they merely stood by the roadside, gazing at the spectacle of the mounted escort.

On the second floor of the teahouse opposite the hall, Liu Liu Wenxuan sat by the window, having remained motionless for nearly half an hour, quietly observing the street below.

As the tea boy refilled his second pot, he saw a sizable cavalry escort halt before the hall's gate.

He recognized the two men stepping down from the lead carriages—he had seen their portraits before: Grand Secretary Wang Liu Shilun and Minister of Personnel Chen Mo.

At dusk on the sixteenth of March, the three chief examiners enter the hall to close themselves in; they will not emerge until the examination concludes.

Before the fourth hour of the seventeenth, the final examination questions, drafted by the three chief examiners, will be delivered to the palace, reviewed and approved by the Emperor, to become the official questions for the examination.

Moreover, each chief examiner drafts his own questions, unaware of the others' until the actual exam begins.

Should any examiner cheat by leaking questions, he alone bears the punishment—no one else can be implicated.

The methods of assigning responsibility for examination questions have varied across dynasties; the Great Zhou, building on previous dynasties' rites, has developed its own system…

At this moment, Liu Liu Wenxuan's eyes burned with focus; Wang Liu Shilun and Chen Mo appearing was expected—his attention was fixed on the third carriage.

For the man stepping from it would be the third chief examiner, replacing Huang Huang Hongcang.

The carriage curtain parted, and a man in his forties stepped out, dressed in third-rank civil robes, dignified and composed, short beard beneath his chin, bearing a refined and lofty air.

Liu Liu Wenxuan recognized him at once—his eyes brightened—he rose, paid his bill, and quickly left the teahouse.

…

At the hall's gate, Zhou Jun watched the three chief examiners enter; two hundred elite imperial guards, already assembled, surged to all entrances and exits, sealing them off. As the great gate groaned shut, Zhou Jun turned his horse and returned to the Court of Judicial Review.

Beside him, Zheng Zheng Yingquan spurred his horse forward. "Sir, the owner and his wife of Hongxing Southern Goods Shop, and the servant who delivered goods to the Huang residence, have all been apprehended and interrogated."

"All three have been tortured, but none knew the crocodile meat was poisonous. I observed them closely—they are not lying."

"If we apply heavier torture, they will say anything to stop the pain—false confessions won't help us find the true murderer of Huang Huang Hongcang."

Zhou Jun sighed: "I suspected as much—those three from the shop are merely minor players; we won't learn anything from them."

"The one behind this dared poison a third-rank chief examiner—this is no small matter. The mastermind won't be so foolish as to leave obvious traces. Hongxing Shop is merely a decoy."

Zheng Zheng Yingquan frowned. "If you already suspected this, why publicly arrest them? Aren't you alerting the real culprit?"

Zhou Jun smiled darkly: "I arrested those three only to make a show. Huang Huang Hongcang can no longer serve as chief examiner—but the matter is far from over."

Zheng Zheng Yingquan, sensing Zhou Jun's cryptic tone, knew he had other plans; since Zhou Jun chose not to speak, Zheng did not ask—it was their long-standing unspoken understanding.

He added: "Sir, earlier at the Huang residence, we used Physician Li Li Chengming's method: we fed roasted crocodile meat to stray dogs—it did not poison them."

"This proves the crocodile meat from the shop was not toxic. Huang's mother and daughter, and Li Li Chengming, witnessed it. The new chief examiner was visibly displeased when we arrested the shopkeepers."

!

Now that we've confirmed the three shopkeepers are innocent, shouldn't we release them immediately, to avoid giving our enemies grounds to accuse us?"

Zhou Jun frowned slightly. "The shopkeepers will be released—but not yet. Only after the eighteenth, when candidates enter the hall and the examination begins."

"But one thing puzzles me: Huang Huang Hongcang spent days on leave, never leaving home, eating every meal with his wife and daughter."

"To poison him, besides the crocodile meat, I can't imagine another method—yet that meat was not poisoned."

…

Eastern Love Shenjing, Yuping Street, Hongjin Silk Shop.

Liu Liu Wenxuan returned to the shop, gave a few casual instructions to the clerks, then entered the back courtyard.

Without pausing, he left through the rear gate and entered the alley behind Yuping Street.

He walked a while, turning several corners, navigating only the narrow back lanes behind the main streets.

After half a cup of tea's walk, he stopped at the quiet end of an alley and knocked on a small courtyard's brass doorbell.

The single, rhythmic metallic chime echoed through the silent lane…

But this time, the door was opened not by the tall woman, but by a middle-aged man in short brown tunic.

After entering the courtyard, Liu Liu Wenxuan said: "Master, your guess of the new chief examiner was spot-on—I saw him enter the hall myself just now."

"But this man, like Huang Huang Hongcang, is a pillar of the court—how could you be certain he would help us succeed?"

The middle-aged man smiled faintly: "I never truly believed this man could help us succeed."

Liu Liu Wenxuan heard this and looked puzzled, but he knew his employer never acted without purpose—everything he did had reason behind it.

The middle-aged man led Liu Liu Wenxuan into the study, picked up the blue-covered ledger on the desk, and turned to a page listing five or six candidate chief examiners for the spring imperial examination.

He said: "I am certain the man who will help us succeed is not Huang Huang Hongcang!"

Huang Huang Hongcang is upright in character and incorruptible in office—I've been watching him for a long time.

Though he has advised Wu Liang and Zhou Yan on question drafts, if he becomes chief examiner, he will leave no opening for exploitation—there will be no selling of exam questions.

Since the court announced the decree for the spring examination and named him chief examiner, I've placed spies to monitor daily movements at his residence.

Before he was poisoned, he had been on leave at home for five days, refusing all visitors and never stepping out—he was surely fully immersed in drafting the exam questions.

With his talent and vision, such painstaking deliberation means the questions he creates would never duplicate his own draft questions—that would violate his very nature.

The three chief examiners for the spring examination: Wang Liu Shilun is a Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, the highest-ranking official, deeply favored by the current Son of Heaven; Chen Mo is Minister of Personnel, one of the six department heads, with deep roots in court and countryside.

Both are pillars of the bureaucracy; having weathered decades of official life, they would never leave a flaw in overseeing the spring examination.

Moreover, they are key ministers with vast networks of influence—should either of them fall, it would be like stirring a hornet's nest; the fallout would be impossible to contain.

But Huang Huang Hongcang is different—he holds the lowest rank among the three chief examiners, has served ten years with integrity and humility, and is quiet and practical. Such a proper, upright official is not favored in court circles.

Aside from some prestige within the Ministry of Rites, he has almost no political connections. If he falls, it will cause the least stir.

Since the three chief examiners form an unbreakable bloc, if we must pry loose one, Huang Huang Hongcang is undoubtedly the best choice!"

The middle-aged man flipped the blue-covered ledger to another page at random…

He continued: "I was still uncertain about this plan until I received word from a bookshop on Wenhans Street."

"Two candidates visited that shop to buy books, and during their conversation, they mentioned matters related to the spring examination. Neither knew their names—one styled Xiwén, the other Brother Bao Kun."

The middle-aged man glanced at Liu Liu Wenxuan and said: "If you managed to steal Huang Huang Hongcang's draft questions from his study, you should know who these two are."

Liu Liu Wenxuan's eyes lit up: "Wu Liang and Zhou Yan!"

"That's why you decided to remove Huang Huang Hongcang and replace him with someone else—but will the new chief examiner truly benefit us?"

The middle-aged man said: "Liu Qiu Xuan, I've told you before—the spring examination is a matter of national importance. We've pushed this as far as we can."

Wang Liu Shilun and Chen Mo cannot be touched—I cannot be certain the new chief examiner will favor us."

But as long as Huang Huang Hongcang remains in office, we cannot succeed!"

Only by breaking the balance among the three chief examiners can we seize our chance. Success or failure now lies not in our planning, but in Heaven's will."

I moved against Huang Huang Hongcang before he entered seclusion for the exam—timing it precisely to create urgency."

All affairs work this way: change demands novelty; haste breeds chaos…"

…

As they spoke, they heard a faint sound of footsteps landing in the courtyard.

The middle-aged man smiled: "It must be Shenglan returning—she's the only one who never uses the main gate."

Liu Liu Wenxuan saw a shadow shift at the doorway, and a tall, graceful woman stepped calmly inside.

The middle-aged man asked: "Shenglan, what's the situation outside?"

The woman named Shenglan replied: "This morning, Li Li Chengming, Director of the Imperial Medical Bureau, entered Huang's residence—he was surely sent by the palace to treat Huang Huang Hongcang."

Upon hearing Li Li Chengming's name, the middle-aged man's gaze sharpened slightly: "Li Li Chengming comes from an esteemed lineage—he's a man of considerable skill. He'll likely cure Huang Huang Hongcang."

Shenglan said: "As you ordered, the rat-mang grass poison I used isn't lethal—I mixed it with hallucinogens from the Miao frontier, causing only stagnation of vital energy and prolonged unconsciousness."

Even if Li Li Chengming finds an antidote and revives Huang Huang Hongcang, it will take at least five or six days—and ten days to fully restore him. He won't interfere with our plans."

Shenglan added: "This morning, the Investigative Bureau's Captain Zhou Zhou Junxing arrested the owner and his wife of the Southern Goods Shop, along with the young servant who delivered goods to Huang's residence."

The middle-aged man asked sharply: "We used that shop as a front—did you leave any trace?"

Shenglan replied: "Relax, Master. The crocodile meat sent from the shop was tampered with beforehand—it was indeed poisoned."

But after sunset yesterday, when Huang Huang Hongcang consumed the crocodile stew, I swapped out the remaining meat that night—and even collected and disposed of every scrap of leftover stew discarded by the Huang household's cook."

Zhou Zhou Junxing is meticulous, and Li Li Chengming is a master physician—they'll suspect Huang Huang Hongcang was poisoned by crocodile meat. But the crocodile meat still in the Huang residence is clean."

Since you said Li Li Chengming comes from an esteemed lineage and is highly skilled, he'll surely detect the crocodile meat is harmless—so we cannot pin the blame on Hongxing Southern Goods Shop."

The middle-aged man smiled slightly: "You're right. Zhou Zhou Junxing would suspect crocodile meat was poisoned, and Li Li Chengming would confirm it wasn't."

Yet this Investigative Bureau Chief Zhou still made a public arrest at the shop—as if he doesn't fear Li Li Chengming will denounce him for unlawful persecution. There's more here than meets the eye…"

The middle-aged man glanced at Liu Liu Wenxuan and smiled: "I just said—we've done all we can. Whether we succeed now depends not just on human effort, but on Heaven's will."

It seems others are watching the spring examination too. Zhou Zhou Junxing of the Investigative Bureau excels at framing people with cruelty, seeking the Emperor's favor to advance his career."

We've created the opportunity—now someone like him will rush to exploit it, stirring chaos, swimming in murky waters. I hope he doesn't disappoint me…"

(End of Chapter)