Great Zhou Wensheng

Chapter 46: Investigating a Case in Jiangyin, Passing the Imperial Examination in the Same Year!
Jiangzhou Prefecture.

The Zhao family, one of the ten great families.

The plum rains that have lasted for three days in Jiangzhou Prefecture are dripping from the eaves of the waterside pavilions and towers.

Inside the pavilion, the silk curtains fluttered without wind, and the ever-burning lamp suddenly dimmed to a greenish hue. Inside a bronze cauldron infested with bookworms, something rolled from the table to a corner, churning with a pungent, black, demonic aura.

"Snap!"

"You've ruined ten years of my hard work!"

In a fit of rage, Zhao Bingzhu, the head of the Zhao family, overturned the table, and the celadon teacups on it shattered on the ground.

Since his failure to compete with Li Mo for the position of magistrate of Jiangyin County three years ago, and his subsequent removal from office and demotion to his hometown, he has been capricious and has been plotting to bring down Magistrate Li Mo.

Starting with the "Jiangyin County Annals" and "Jiangyin Financial and Tax Accounts," falsifying historical materials and framing criminals is undoubtedly the most discreet method.

He altered the history of Jiangyin, intending to start with a thousand-year-old volume of the "Jiangyin County Gazetteer" to let the bookworms test the waters. After all, a county gazetteer from a thousand years ago was unlikely to be scrutinized closely.

Unexpectedly, the carefully planned scheme was ruined, and the silverfish that had been raised for ten years were killed.

"Who killed me, the Inkworm?"

Zhao Bingzhu's face turned ashen, and he shouted, "Guards—!"

"Homeowner!"

The sound of clothes rustling through the air came from under the corridor. Four assassins dressed in black armor, with sharp blades at their waists, knelt in a row in the rain.

Rain dripped down their expressionless faces, revealing faint tattoos on the back of their necks—they were originally death row inmates, but were bailed out by the Zhao family head.

"Go to Jiangyin County immediately!"
Investigate three things!

Zhao Bingzhu crumpled up the unfinished fragments of "Ode to the Demon Saint" from the "Jiangzhou Prefecture Gazetteer," and coldly said:

"Investigate the county government office to find out who did this, and check the library."

Second, search for the ink beetles and bring back their remains. If you can't bring them back, you can burn them!

The one who killed my spirit insect will be brought back to me with his life!

"Master, this matter has alarmed the Jiangyin County government, and I'm afraid things will get tense. The yamen runners will be investigating very closely!"

The leader of the men in black said with some concern.

The hundreds of yamen runners in the county government and the thousands of soldiers patrolling the county town were all difficult to deal with.

"You are given three months to return and report back."

Remember, you were originally death row inmates in Jiangyin, and you should have died long ago, but I managed to get you out.

Now I've become a hidden assassin of the Zhao family for many years, surviving to this day! If I am captured, I must commit suicide immediately before my identity is exposed, and I must never reveal any of my origins!

"My Zhao family has raised your wives and children for decades; it's time to repay that debt of gratitude."

Zhao Bingzhu said in a deep voice.

"Yes!"

The man in black's pupils contracted to pinpoints.

Their wives, concubines, children, and families are all currently residing in the Zhao family mansion, and they dare not disobey.

The main hall of the Jiangyin County Government Office.

Clerk Cui Mingyuan, his sword-like eyebrows raised and his eyes burning with rage, sealed the ink-worm demon into a mysterious ice box and brought it before the county magistrate Li Mo, the chief clerk Shen Yanqing, the county assistant Zhou Wenyuan, the county lieutenant Zhao Tieshan, and other officials.

"Lord Li, esteemed officials!"
Today, I ordered the county school students Jiang Xingzhou, Gu Zhimian, Zhang Youyi, and others to clean the library, where they discovered this monstrous insect.

This monstrous insect is hiding in the archives of the government office, altering the history of my Jiangyin, attempting to destroy the achievements of my human saints and praise the demon saint!
This must be at the behest of traitorous intellectuals!

"I will not rest until I have brought this traitorous scholar, who is attempting to tamper with the history of Jiangyin County, to justice!"

Cui Mingyuan said angrily.

When County Lieutenant Zhao Tieshan saw the half-foot-long ink-worm demon being frozen to death in an ice box, he couldn't help but gasp. The goose-feather saber at his waist almost couldn't hold back and rang out.

"Rebellious intellectuals, rewriting history?"

County Magistrate Li Mo's face was gloomy.

This ink-boring demon insect has a rather familiar scent.

It made him uneasy.

Over the past few decades, the library in Jiangyin County has also been plagued by bookworms.

Many historical records on criminal law and grain transport taxes have been completely devoured, and the accounts within them can no longer be found.

However, at that time he was not yet the magistrate of Jiangyin County and did not know the details.

Now, these ink-worm demons have returned with renewed force!
Falsifying history is a serious crime!
This is far more serious than bookworms gnawing on books or books being lost.

If they succeed, it will be a major defeat. If the imperial court finds out, his position as the magistrate of Jiangyin County will probably be over.

"This ink-boring insect is a foot long, so it must have been raised for more than ten years and was deliberately placed in the library by a traitorous scholar."

It takes a lot of effort and planning to achieve this!
"Lord Zhao, this matter is entrusted to you. The county magistrate will be in charge of investigating this case!"

"I am a county magistrate," said Li Mo in a deep voice.

"Yes!

"I will dig three feet into the ground to find that traitor! If we can solve this case, expose this traitorous scholar, and report it to the court, it will be a great achievement!"

County Commandant Zhao Tieshan was overjoyed, rubbing his hands together as he accepted the Xuanbing Box. These traitorous scholars who betrayed the Great Zhou Dynasty and sided with the demon race usually lay low. Unearthing them was a remarkable achievement.

"This ink-worm demon raised by the rebellious scholar is an extremely important clue, and it may very well lead to the discovery of its owner."

Even if it can't be detected.

These woodworms are important evidence of the crime!

Its owner might feel guilty and try to destroy the evidence.

Why don't we use it as bait to lure those traitors into our trap!

If I'm not mistaken, within a month or so, someone will come looking for its remains and take them away.

Chief Clerk Shen Yanqing waved his feather fan and snapped it open.

"That's a brilliant idea!"

Cui Mingyuan smiled.

The case of the bookworms in the library alarmed the Jiangyin County government. County Commandant Zhao Tieshan led twelve constables to thoroughly investigate the matter of the traitorous scholars altering historical records.

Security was also increased both inside and outside the county government office.

However, these disturbances have nothing to do with Jiang Xingzhou anymore.

Every day at 3:45 AM, the young man would always be in the outer dormitory of the county school, practicing the Four-Character Mantra and literary arts.

Phrases such as "seeing every bush and tree as an enemy soldier," "turning beans into soldiers," "summoning wind and rain," "marking a boat to find a lost sword," and "riding the clouds and mist" are all very practical literary techniques.

As the school bell rang, Jiang Xingzhou stepped onto the vermilion threshold of the county government's library and, along with Gu Zhimian and other students, continued cleaning up the book's termites.

For the next two weeks, everything went as usual.

Nothing happened.

Jiang Xingzhou was working in the library.

A thousand volumes of the "Jiangyin County Gazetteer" lay on his desk, and he would read them one by one whenever he had a spare moment.

It opened his eyes.

Aside from history, customs, and geography, the records of the gate are filled with all sorts of demonic cultivators.

"The nine-tailed fox, who had transformed into a beautiful woman, was practicing her cultivation by absorbing incense offerings at the City God Temple."

"The magistrate has suppressed the River God Fish Monster!"

There are even numerous records of the methods used by officials throughout history to govern counties and prefectures.

The sound of the drum at the hour of Xu (7-9 PM).

The lights of Langhuan Pavilion were lit.

Jiang Xingzhou stepped into the study under the moonlight.

The mayfly on the jade table was fluttering its translucent wings; it had already reached adulthood.

But see,

Xue Lingqi, with the tassels of a jade hairpin dangling from her hair, sat cross-legged on a sandalwood seat, her lotus-colored dress exuding a fresh and refined elegance.

With her slender hands holding a wolf-hair brush, she wrote swiftly on the Chengxintang paper.

Because she needed to copy pages to feed the bookworms, she had been visiting Langhuan Pavilion more often lately, often staying until late at night.

The two exchanged tips on feeding mayflies and recited the Book of Songs to them.

Mayflies love to listen to the song "Deer's Cry," often becoming so engrossed that they flutter their elytra.

Suddenly, the green-winged insect flapped its wings and flipped the page to the "Guanju" section of the Book of Songs.

This caused the two to exchange a knowing smile.

Outside the lattice window, the spring rain is getting heavier.

Xue Lingqi suddenly put down her purple-tipped brush. As she lowered her head, the candlelight cast a flickering shadow beneath her butterfly-like eyelashes, dancing in her eyes: "Young Master Jiang, will you be attending the Jiangzhou Prefecture Examination this midsummer?"

"The imperial examinations of the Great Zhou Dynasty have four crowns."

Jiang Xingzhou gazed at the mayfly swimming in the inkstone, its tail leaving a ripple in the ink pool, and fell silent for a moment.

Among the four imperial examination accolades of the Great Zhou Dynasty, besides the three of [Triple Top Scholar, Imperial Judgment of the Confucian Temple, and Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination)], there are others.

There was also one who was called [the first in the same year].

This means passing the imperial examinations for the ranks of Tongsheng, Xiucai, and Juren within a single year—the spring thunder heralds the Tongsheng, the summer cicada molts the Xiucai, and the autumn carp leaps over the dragon gate to become a Juren, all within the cycle of one year.

This is not only a great honor, but also a stepping stone to a career in government.

Those who win the title of "top scholar in the same year" have a much better career path than ordinary scholars, and can even become prefects.

Even for ordinary scholars who passed the imperial examinations, it was very difficult to become a county magistrate.

Cai Chao, the county education commissioner and county academy official, was also a successful candidate in the imperial examinations, but he could only accumulate seniority and achievements in the position of county education commissioner, waiting patiently for promotion.

Li Mo, who was also a Juren (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations), also had great difficulty in obtaining the position of magistrate of Jiangyin County.

"go with!"

(End of this chapter)