“What happened to this Xiucai? Wasn’t it said that his unruly mother had evil intentions to harm others, so this Xiucai can no longer participate in the imperial examinations?”

“That’s what happened. It’s just like this. I heard that Liao Shi is not the biological mother of Ren Xiucai!”

“Is it true?”

“Of course it’s true. A relative of mine who works in the Yamen told me personally and said that Liao Shi was actually nothing more than a nanny. She was a servant in Ren Xiucai’s family. She took care of Ren Xiucai since he was a child, and she did her best. Ren Xiucai respected Liao Shi in his heart. After his parents died, he treated Liao Shi as his own mother, but she was also afraid of it. Liao Shi was feeling awkward, so he called her his mother to the outside world, which gave her some dignity.”

 “Since Liao Shi is not Ren Xiucai’s biological mother, what she committed will naturally not affect him. Ren Xiucai’s future is not in danger.”

“That’s right, so Ren Xiucai is now going to the county school to prepare for next autumn.”

“But having said that, Ren Xiucai is very talented and knowledgeable. Normally, he has an excellent reputation. It would be a pity if he couldn’t pass the imperial examination because of his elders’ affairs, but now it makes him feel less regretful.”

“Yes, that’s exactly what it is…”

“… “

Su Yujin heard this clearly and was a little surprised.

That Liao lady was not Ren Xiucai’s biological mother, but just a servant who took care of Ren Xiucai in his childhood.

This was quite unexpected.

But in that case, something seemed wrong.

Since Liao Shi was a servant who took care of Ren Xiucai since he was a child, she naturally came to the Ren family when Ren Xiucai was young. Given Liao Shi’s age, the daughter who passed away prematurely would have likely been conceived after Liao Shi arrived at the Ren family’s residence.

Was there a lover outside, or was it…

It was said that the private affairs in the inner house of a wealthy family were the most chaotic. It was said that this xiucai seemed to have come from a family of farming and reading, and she never thought that such a thing could happen.

Sure enough, real life was far more bloody and colorful than novels.

Su Yujin sighed with emotion.

There was a burst of gongs and drums on the stage to start the performance, and the upright character came on stage.

“The Meeting of Heroes” was originally a lively play, with many characters and sonorous and rhythmic lyrics. In addition, the Three Kingdoms is a story that ordinary people were familiar with. Even ordinary people can say a few words about the hero Cao Cao. Zhou Yu of the Eastern Wu Dynasty paid close attention to the affairs of the thatched cottage, so the “Meeting of Heroes” at this time made everyone excited and enthralled.

Cheers followed the sound of gongs and drums. From time to time, some people would throw coins and broken pieces of silver onto the stage to show their approval of the play.

Some people who were high-born and respected the rules were rewarded with a purse, fan, or a pendant, which was given to the theatre clerks to deliver to the troupe as a sign of approval for the play.

Su Yujin watched with great interest and felt that everyone in the troupe was singing extremely hard, and wanted to reward them. But He Yanxiu sat there like an old monk in a trance without any reaction, and it was difficult to get past He Yan Xiu and reward them by herself.

“Second Young Master.”

Su Yujin hesitated for a while, with a dogged smile on her face, “Second Young Master, what do you think of this opera?”

“Excellent.” He Yanxiu narrowed his eyes slightly, tapping his fingers on his knee in rhythm. His head also swayed along with the rhythm of the music. “Especially the young actor playing Zhou Yu, outstanding.”

The young man had a tall figure and a good temperament. Even with the heavy makeup, it could be seen that the person singing this niche must be a good-looking young man.

What was even rarer was that, facing the roles of Lu Su and Zhuge Liang, he was able to outshine them with his singing skills, and he really let his strength speak for itself.

Su Yujin also felt that this young student sang well.

But if others praised this young man, Su Yujin thought it was okay. But now that she knew about He Yanxiu’s unknown hobby when she heard He Yanxiu praising this young man again, she felt a little uncomfortable in her heart.

“Ahem…”

Su Yujin felt that her mind was full of unclean things, and shook her head hurriedly, “What the Second Young Master said is what the maid also thinks; that the young man sang extremely well.”

She bit hard and said “excellent” at the end. These two words.

And the tone was slightly rising, mixed with a bit of narrow-minded meaning.

He Yanxiu paused and waved Xing’an over, “He sang this opera well, I’ll give him a reward of ten taels of silver.”

Xing’an was told to give the reward.

With He Yanxiu in front, Su Yujin also threw some copper coins over.

Seeing this, the waiter from the theater brought another pot of fine tea.

The play was sung, and as the climax of the play reached, the whole theater burst into cheers, making it very lively.

The county government prison, which was not far from here, was also quite lively at this time.

Ren Jianbai brought money and good wine and meat, saying he wanted to meet Liao Shi and have a few words.

Qinghe County has always been considered peaceful. The county jail hardly ever has many inmates. Most of the cells remain empty year after year. This year, a few people have come in and gone out, but in total, only about three cells are in use.

Among these three rooms, one was a neglected widower, and the other was occupied by Shen Cang and Meng Dahai. The family members felt embarrassed and wanted to break off the relationship, so the family members naturally did not come to visit.

It could be said that these yamen runners had never seen oil and water for many years. Now that Ren Jianbai came to pay filial piety, he did a good job, with a big jar of wine, a whole braised pork head, and even the money was given.

Ren Jianbai was sensible, which pleased the yamen runners. Besides, Ren Jianbai was also a xiucai. In the future, he might become an official himself. So, giving him some favor now could be seen as building a good relationship for the future.

Furthermore, what Liao Shi committed was not a capital crime of beheading. She just had to wait for the next spring to be exiled. She was temporarily detained in a prison and could be visited for a while.

So, the cell leader accepted everything Ren Jianbai sent and personally led him to the prison.

“Thank you.” Seeing the prison boss opening the heavy iron chain lock on the cell door, Ren Jianbai bowed deeply.

“Ren Xiucai, you’re welcome.” The prison guard cupped his hands and chuckled, “We’ll watch outside, Ren Xiucai just speaks slowly.”

“Thank you very much.” Ren Jianbai thanked him again, and when he saw the prison guard walking away, he pushed the heavy wooden prison door.

Because the dungeon was mostly unused and no distinction was made between men and women, Liao Shi was placed in the innermost room. Because of this, it was darker and damper than the areas next to it. The thick hay on the ground added to the strong musty smell.

At this time, Liao Shi was huddled up in a ball with disheveled hair and leaning on the corner. Hearing some movement, she shook her head slightly. When she saw that the person coming was Ren Jianbai, she got excited and sat upright.

After mumbling for a long time, she uttered a sentence.

“Xiānggōng¹, you are here…”

(End of this chapter)

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Footnote

1. Husband