Chapter 36: Crows Cry at Night (Part 5)
The sunlight faded, making the lantern tower appear even brighter.
For a moment, Xu He Xue mistook it for the pagoda in Youdu, its flickering lights resembling the floating soul fire.
“Sir, your mooncakes,” the vendor said, handing him the oil-paper-wrapped pastries and glancing at him curiously.
His face was unusually pale, as if he had been ill for a long time.
“Thank you,” Xu He Xue nodded, taking the mooncakes and turning to see the young woman in white still standing there, her gaze fixed on him amidst the crowd.
Like a child afraid of getting lost, waiting for him to return.
He walked over, and she took his sleeve. He lowered his eyes, glancing at her hand, then took a round mooncake from the package and offered it to her. “Red bean paste filling. Do you like it?”
“Mmm,” Ni Su said, sniffling, taking a bite as she walked beside him.
Passing the lantern tower, Xu He Xue felt uncomfortable under the occasional glances, even though they were casual, not curious or intrusive. But he couldn’t shake the thought that only fifteen years had passed in the mortal realm. He might encounter former classmates, his teacher, or others who knew him, or whom he had known. He couldn’t face those casual glances.
He was afraid someone would call out his name, “Xu He Xue,” in front of her. He looked at her profile, wondering how she would react.
But she was quietly eating her mooncake, not looking at the road, simply holding his sleeve and following him.
He knew he couldn’t let his anxiety make him vanish, leaving her alone.
She needed someone beside her now, someone real, someone visible, someone who could help her blend into the bustling crowd.
He no longer had a physical body.
He couldn’t be that person.
But he wished he could.
He watched her eat the mooncake, round and full like the moon, then incomplete as she took a bite.
***
The servants at the Wu residence were busy cleaning and sprinkling water to dispel the bad luck brought back by their young master. An imperial physician was examining Wu Ji Kang, while Liang Shen Fu, the Chief Eunuch, was drinking tea with Grand Mentor Wu.
“Such fine tea, Grand Mentor. You shouldn’t have,” Liang Shen Fu said with a smile, as a maidservant brought several jars of tea leaves.
“Eunuch Liang, serving by the Emperor’s side, you must be a connoisseur of fine tea. If you enjoy it, then it’s not a waste,” Grand Mentor Wu said, then coughed.
“Your cough hasn’t improved, Grand Mentor. Perhaps you should consult a physician again,” Liang Shen Fu said, feigning concern.
“It’s nothing,” Grand Mentor Wu waved his hand dismissively. “Just a cough. Some medicine should do the trick.”
“Take care of your health, Grand Mentor. Although the Emperor hasn’t seen you, the Imperial Concubine has been by his side constantly,” Liang Shen Fu said, having accepted the tea, knowing he should say something more. “Years ago, when the Emperor was traveling incognito in Jiangzhou, he encountered a rebellion led by a man named Fang. If it weren’t for your bravery, confronting Fang alone and negotiating his surrender, who knows what might have happened…”
Liang Shen Fu had been by the Emperor’s side then. The Emperor had wanted to visit a Taoist temple in the mountains but hadn’t brought enough guards. They discovered the temple had been occupied by bandits.
“Although you’re no longer serving in the court, the Emperor remembers your contributions and loyalty. And there’s also the Imperial Concubine. How could she let her brother be executed?” Liang Shen Fu continued. “That Ni Qinglan was just a scholar. The Emperor never even met him. But Young Master Wu is different. He often visits the Concubine in the palace, and the Emperor sees him differently…”
He lowered his voice. “Grand Mentor, the Emperor understands the pain of losing a loved one. You had a son in your old age. The Emperor won’t let you lose him.”
“I understand, Eunuch Liang,” Grand Mentor Wu said, relieved. “It’s my fault. The Emperor is re-implementing the new policies and tightening the restrictions on positions granted through imperial grace. I know the Emperor has shown great favor to my family and the Concubine, so I wanted Ji Kang to earn his position through merit, not through connections, to show our gratitude. I pushed him too hard, which led to this foolish mistake…”
Grand Mentor Wu had cleverly expressed his loyalty and support for the new policies. Liang Shen Fu, the Emperor’s closest confidant, understood who these words were truly meant for. He smiled. “If the Emperor hears these words, he’ll understand your loyalty.”
Although he had accepted a bribe, Liang Shen Fu wasn’t acting solely because of the tea. The Emperor favored Grand Mentor Wu, so he did too.
After Liang Shen Fu and the imperial physicians left, Grand Mentor Wu sat coughing. Servants bustled in and out, the beaded curtains swaying constantly.
“Leave,” he said hoarsely.
The steward dismissed the servants, and silence fell upon the room. He closed the door.
“Come out,” Grand Mentor Wu said, his eyes narrowed, looking at the sliver of light coming from under the door.
“Father, I’m still unwell…” Wu Ji Kang said, his body stiffening. He couldn’t see his father through the screen and curtains. He tried to sound weak.
But his father didn’t reply.
His anxiety growing, Wu Ji Kang got out of bed and went outside.
“Kneel,” his father said coldly.
Wu Ji Kang’s knees buckled, and he knelt down.
“Did they torture you at the Yin Ye Si?” Grand Mentor Wu asked, his expression unreadable.
“No…” Wu Ji Kang whispered.
“Then why did you confess so easily?”
“It was Jia Yan! He confessed first! They didn’t torture me, but they tortured him right in front of me! Father, he implicated me! I… I was terrified…”
Jia Yan was Wu Ji Kang’s servant.
The thought of him made Wu Ji Kang want to vomit. He remembered how Jia Yan had been tortured, his body mangled, right before his eyes.
He tried not to think of Jia Yan’s bloodied face, his pleading eyes, but the images wouldn’t leave his mind. He trembled, his body convulsing, and he retched.
“Do you think you’re invincible because your sister is in the palace and I’ve found people to protect you?” Grand Mentor Wu asked, his face darkening.
“Aren’t I?” Wu Ji Kang crawled towards his father and clutched his robe. “Father, I won’t die, will I? You and Sister will save me, won’t you? I don’t want to go back to the Yin Ye Si! There’s so much blood! So many people being tortured! I have nightmares! So many nightmares!”
Grand Mentor Wu kicked him hard in the stomach. Wu Ji Kang fell back, his eyes watering with pain, his body curling up on the floor.
“If you knew this would happen, why did you cause such trouble?” Grand Mentor Wu stood over him, glaring down. “When you bribed Du Cong to cheat for you, did you ever think this would be exposed? I’ve been trying to cover for you, and you, instead of framing Ni Qinglan’s sister, gave Han Qing, that rabid dog, a reason to investigate!”
“The Emperor will protect me! He’ll protect me!” Wu Ji Kang gasped, struggling to breathe. “I just wanted her to stop! I wanted her to leave Yun Jing! If she wouldn’t leave, I would have killed her! Just like… just like I killed Ni Qinglan! It would have been so easy…”
He seemed to be in a trance.
Ever since Ni Qinglan’s death, he had been haunted by it.
“How could I have raised such a useless son!” Grand Mentor Wu roared, kicking him again. “Why did you put Ni Qinglan’s body in that mud Buddha statue? If you had been more careful, no one would have found it!”
“To… to help his soul ascend,” Wu Ji Kang mumbled, his reaction slow. “I put him inside the statue so he could cultivate with the Buddha and ascend to heaven. Then he wouldn’t become a vengeful ghost and haunt me…”
“Father, I only forgot to feed him. I didn’t mean to kill him. But he starved to death…” Wu Ji Kang rubbed his head, his hair falling loose. “Why did he have to have a sister? If it weren’t for her, no one would have found out! No one!”
“Look at you! You’re a disgrace! You can’t even study properly, let alone kill someone competently!” Grand Mentor Wu kicked him again.
“Then adopt Ni Qinglan as your son!” Wu Ji Kang cried, his eyes welling up with tears. “Ye Shan Lin said he was brilliant! They all said he would become a Jinshi! But me? No matter how hard I study, I’ll never be a good son to you!”
Grand Mentor Wu’s face darkened. Wu Ji Kang cowered in fear, but continued to mutter, “You force me to study, but I’ll never pass the examinations…”
Everyone thought Grand Mentor Wu doted on his son, even his sister, the Imperial Concubine.
But only Wu Ji Kang knew the truth.
His father cared more about his reputation than his son.
What good was a son born in his old age if he was useless and incompetent? Ever since Wu Ji Kang had been publicly criticized by Scholar He Tong, Grand Mentor Wu had taken over his education.
Since the age of thirteen, Wu Ji Kang had lived under his father’s strict tutelage, often punished with a ruler, forced to kneel until his legs went numb, terrified by a single cold glance.
But even under such pressure, he couldn’t meet his father’s expectations.
He had hoped to secure a position through imperial grace, but the Emperor, reinstating the new policies, had tightened the restrictions. His father, eager to demonstrate his loyalty, had insisted he participate in the examinations along with commoner scholars.
As the winter examination approached, Wu Ji Kang had been filled with anxiety, fearing his father’s wrath if he failed. Unable to focus on his studies, he had been persuaded by his servant, Jia Yan, to attend gatherings with other officials’ sons.
Among them were a few from less privileged families, invited for entertainment, including Ye Shan Lin.
After a few drinks, the conversation turned to the winter examination. Ye Shan Lin, having nothing else to boast about, mentioned someone. “I know a scholar from Que County. He displayed his talent at Master Lin’s poetry gathering and won first place! He’s sure to make a name for himself this time!”
Intrigued, someone suggested, “Let’s invite him. If he’s truly talented, we can make his acquaintance beforehand!”
Ye Shan Lin shook his head. “He won’t come. I’ve never even met him.”
“Is he so arrogant just because Master Lin favors him? We have several officials’ sons here. Who wouldn’t want to meet us?”
“It’s not arrogance. I heard he dislikes such gatherings. But his talent is genuine. I know his friend, He Zhong Ping. He showed me his essay. It was brilliant! This winter examination is meant to select talent for the new policies. It would be strange if someone like him didn’t pass!”
Ye Shan Lin, slightly drunk, rambled on, even reciting some of Ni Qinglan’s poems and essays.
Wu Ji Kang had his servant bribe Ye Shan Lin for a copy of Ni Qinglan’s writings. Reading them, he lost his appetite for wine.
He was ashamed of his own mediocrity.
He wished those poems and essays were his own, so he could finally be the son his father wanted, admired and respected.
This thought quickly turned into a plan.
Wu Ji Kang, using his father’s connections, bribed Du Cong. Du Cong arranged everything. By switching Ni Qinglan’s paper with his own, Wu Ji Kang could secure an official position without having to study.
To ensure Ni Qinglan wouldn’t cause trouble, Wu Ji Kang had him drugged and confined to a house outside the city after the examination.
Jia Yan had helped him with everything, even capturing and torturing Ni Qinglan when he escaped.
Wu Ji Kang had initially planned to silence Ni Qinglan permanently and send him back to Que County after securing his position.
But one night, Jia Yan had rushed back, panicked. “Young Master, the guards got drunk and let it slip! Ni Qinglan knows why you’re holding him! If you release him, he won’t let this go! What if he reports to the Emperor?!”
The Emperor?
Wu Ji Kang was too preoccupied with his father’s wrath to care about the Emperor.
And then, disaster struck. The next morning, he heard that the Emperor had changed his mind and decided to hold a palace examination after the winter examination.
That night, Wu Ji Kang went to see Ni Qinglan.
Despite his bloodstained clothes, the young man sat with composure in the damp, dilapidated room. “Young Master, since your plan failed, let’s forget this ever happened. We’ll never speak of it again. How about that?”
“Really?” Wu Ji Kang asked, wavering.
He envied Ni Qinglan’s calmness in such dire circumstances.
“I have no wish to be your enemy,” Ni Qinglan said.
Wu Ji Kang had almost believed him, but Jia Yan had said, “Young Master, didn’t Minister Du say that Ni Qinglan’s paper was guaranteed to pass? If you release him now, you’re letting a tiger go free! He might not be able to challenge you now, but once he becomes an official, who knows how powerful he’ll become? What will you do when he seeks revenge?”
“And what if Grand Mentor finds out…?”
The mention of his father made Wu Ji Kang’s blood run cold. Jia Yan continued, “Young Master, he escaped once already. He tricked us into revealing your scheme. He’s cunning! He’s lying to you!”
Wu Ji Kang, convinced, had said angrily, “Don’t feed him!”
Not only did he withhold food, but he also had Jia Yan and the others torture Ni Qinglan. Although the torture wasn’t fatal, it caused Ni Qinglan to suffer from soul loss.
Wu Ji Kang hadn’t intended to kill him. He simply didn’t know what to do with him. But with the soul loss, Ni Qinglan couldn’t eat.
He starved to death.
Wu Ji Kang had been debating whether to call for a physician, terrified of being discovered, but Ni Qinglan had died before he could make a decision.
The sky darkened, thunder rumbled, and a storm erupted.
Grand Mentor Wu looked at his son, sprawled on the floor like a pile of mud, his wrinkled face devoid of emotion. He raised a whip and lashed out, sneering.
“If Ni Qinglan were my son, and you had merely tampered with his examination paper, without taking his life—”
“I would still demand your life in return.”
But he wasn’t.
You are.
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