The carriage was pulled by two horses, and the bay steeds had gorgeous jade beads and bells strung on their manes.
Ruo Hong had already stepped in front of the lady. The carriage was right in the middle of the road, and it seemed that the visitor meant no good.
"I, Song Zhiyu, a commoner, would like to invite Lady Xiao to my humble abode for a chat," Song Zhiyu said slowly.
"No," Yi Qing replied. She hadn't seen Song Zhiyu yet, but his voice was lazy and charming. Such a voice would surely fascinate any woman.
"I sincerely invite you, Lady Xiao. Why do you keep me at arm's length?" Song Zhiyu's voice was still as clear and pleasant as a gurgling spring.
"Whether you're sincere or not is your business. Whether I accept or not is mine. I'm not going," Yi Qing refused without hesitation.
Song Zhiyu peeked at Lady Xiao standing on the road through the gauze curtain. Lady Xiao, who had never been accepted by the powerful and noble, was living so freely: "Doesn't Lady Xiao want to know the truth about Mo Kong's death?"
Yi Qing lowered her eyes and glanced at Xiao Duo. Then she looked at Song Zhiyu and said, "He was just a child. No matter what grand plans you have, you shouldn't have used him."
Song Zhiyu was surprised: "Does Lady Xiao already know everything?"
"I'll find out sooner or later," Yi Qing said as she led Xiao Duo and Ruo Hong away.
Song Zhiyu's carriage took up most of the road. When Yi Qing passed by, she was very close to the carriage. She smelled the scent on it and walked straight on.
When Ruo Hong passed by, she curiously took a look. The light veil was hazy, and she could only see a slender side profile. She couldn't see his face clearly.
"Sir," Xiu Zhu softly called out when he saw that Lady Xiao had walked far away.
"This Lady Xiao is really interesting," Song Zhiyu said with a self - mocking smile.
It was already afternoon, and Yi Qing hadn't eaten yet. She first drank a large pot of tea. Jushuang carried a large stack of visiting cards over.
"What are these?" Yi Qing picked one up and looked at it. "Lady Xia?" She looked at Jushuang. "Who is she?"
"She's the wife of Grand Scholar Xia from the Imperial College," Jushuang replied.
During the more than a year when the general and his wife were away from the capital, Jushuang's main job was to help Lu Youming with the accounts. Lu Youming was very observant, and since most of their shop's customers were from the powerful and noble families, Jushuang gradually got to know them.
"I've never heard of her," Yi Qing said as she picked up another one. "Lady Zhou?"
"She's the wife of the Minister of Rites," Jushuang explained.
Yi Qing flipped out another one. "Lady Jia?"
"She's the daughter - in - law of Grand Tutor Jia," Jushuang said.
"Daughter - in - law?" Yi Qing thought Jushuang's introduction was a bit strange.
"Grand Tutor Jia's son died during the rebellion of the deposed emperor. Lady Jia vowed to remain a widow for her husband. The emperor even bestowed a chastity memorial archway on her and granted her the title of a first - rank imperial lady," Jushuang said.
Yi Qing suddenly felt that the title of a first - rank imperial lady wasn't that valuable. It seemed that anyone could get it.
That was because all the first - rank imperial ladies were in the capital, and people of the same rank were most likely to socialize with each other. In the past, Yi Qing was young, and there were too many controversies about Xiao Jinghan, so no one came to get close to Yi Qing.
Yi Qing threw the visiting cards back into the tray. "The grand scholar, the minister of rites, and the chaste Lady Jia..." Yi Qing laughed at this point. She guessed that they were here because of her mother's matter.
She hadn't thought about what her mother had done before. Now, no one dared to approach her mother, but they all came to her instead.
"Put them away first," Yi Qing said. She planned to ask Bai Chengyi what else had happened that day besides his inappropriate confession.
After eating, Yi Qing felt sleepy. She originally wanted to go and tease Xiao Ran, but Xiao Ran was sleeping, so she decided to take a nap too. When she woke up, it was already dark. Yi Qing stared at the window for a long time before she realized what time it was.
"Madam, Lord Xu is waiting outside," Ruo Hong reported. "Lady Xu is also here."
Only then did Yi Qing get up, tidy herself up in front of the mirror, and stroll out.
"Sister - in - law," Ran Ran was very happy to see Yi Qing. "Haven't you rested well yet, sister - in - law?" Ran Ran saw Yi Qing looking tired.
"I just woke up," Yi Qing said. She had slept for too long today and felt a bit uncomfortable. "Why did you come at this time?"
"I thought that you and big brother had just returned and must be very tired and need a good rest. But then I heard that there were quite a few visitors, and you even went to Yunyang Academy. If I didn't come, you might think that I didn't care," Ran Ran said with a cute look.
Looking at Ran Ran like this, Yi Qing knew that Xu Maozhi treated her very well. Otherwise, she wouldn't be acting like a little girl and even knew how to act coquettishly: "We don't need to care about these things."
Xu Maozhi bowed and said, "I've investigated the people from the charity cemetery. The Chen family didn't tamper with the bodies."
"Can't you just let sister - in - law have a good rest? You start talking about these things as soon as you meet," Ran Ran pretended to be angry.
Xu Maozhi was a bit embarrassed. He was a workaholic, and this matter was so serious that he just couldn't help it.
"It was the Mo family, or rather, Song Zhiyu," Yi Qing said directly.
When Song Zhiyu blocked her today, she had suspected that there was something wrong with this matter, but she just hadn't confirmed it yet.
"Them?" Xu Maozhi was a bit confused. "Why did they want to hide this?"
"If the truth of this matter were revealed too early, it wouldn't arouse people's curiosity and attention," Yi Qing said with certainty. "Check into Song Zhiyu's background."
"No need to check. Song Zhiyu and I took the imperial examinations in the same year. He was the most promising candidate at that time. But unfortunately, his teacher was involved in a fraud case just before the palace examination. He was implicated and couldn't take the palace examination, so I became the number one scholar that year," Xu Maozhi said with a dry laugh.
"That makes sense. The matter of Mo Kong has now become an issue related to the imperial examinations. It's said that for a humble person like Mo Kong from a poor family, even if he has the opportunity to study, his official career will eventually be ruined because of the recommendation system. Even if he's finally recommended, he'll still be implicated because of others. And Song Zhiyu was implicated in such a matter," Yi Qing said.
"Yes," Xu Maozhi finally understood completely. "I'll go and interrogate Mo Dengxian and Song Zhiyu right away."
"Wait," Yi Qing stopped him.
"What else do you want me to do?"
"Has the emperor set a deadline for you to solve this case?" Yi Qing asked with a sly smile.
"The emperor said the sooner the better," Xu Maozhi replied.
"As long as there's no deadline. You first conduct a thorough investigation of Song Zhiyu and Mo Dengxian, and then investigate the Chen family. Make sure that Mo Kong was really killed by the Chen family," Yi Qing said.
Xu Maozhi looked at Yi Qing. "Do you want to make this matter bigger?"
"Although the recommendation system makes some sense, it's really unfair to the poor scholars. It's true that a decade of hard study can't compare to others' contributions in founding the country or generations of accumulation. But we can't bury talents. After all, long - term stability depends on a continuous supply of talents. Even if there are flaws, we can't give up eating for fear of choking," Yi Qing said.
Xu Maozhi couldn't quite agree. Xu Maozhi came from a noble family, but unfortunately, the family had declined. By his generation, there was only him left, and his parents had passed away early. But in his bones, he was still a member of the noble family.
"The poor scholars who want to change their fates through a decade of hard study usually have narrow - minded thoughts. Once they enter the officialdom, they can only attach themselves to others. The recommendation system actually ensures that all officials don't fight alone and can achieve something," Xu Maozhi said.