Hypocrites

Under Shen Yu's watchful eyes, Cui Ji turned and entered the west courtyard, and his conversation with the officers and soldiers was heard——

"Finished?"

"There is also the East Court."

"I've checked the East Court," Cui Ji said to the officers and soldiers, not as humble as ordinary people, with a kind of arrogant confidence in his words, "It was originally used to stack firewood and raise horses, it's nothing to look at."

"That can't be done, Mr. Cui, the order from above is not to let go of any corner of the city, please make it easier for you."

"This is my house!" Cui Ji's voice quickly approached the east courtyard following the footsteps of the officers and soldiers.

He dodged in front of the officers and soldiers, not afraid of the gleaming silver blade: "You searched around in my private house, damaged things..."

Before he could finish speaking, he was pushed to the ground.

Cui Ji is a scholar, and he has no strength to restrain a chicken.

Officers and soldiers filed in, Cui Ji clenched his fist and hammered the ground, and yelled in grief and indignation.

There is nothing in the east yard.

The officers and soldiers used the handles of their knives to pick apart the pile of firewood, kicked the straw from the stables with their military boots, and turned around symbolically.

"Young Master Cui, I'm sorry, I'm in a hurry to arrest the imperial court's offenders. It's so offensive. Your lord has a lot."

That being said, the officers and soldiers didn't pay attention to Cui Ji who was on the ground. The small courtyard was stirred up like a mountain torrent, and they patted their buttocks and left.

Cui Ji got up, his clean gown was stained with dirt and dust, he didn't realize it, his heart was beating wildly, and the powerlessness of the rest of his life filled his limbs and bones.

He didn't even dare to call out Shen Yu's name, he tiptoed into the stable and rummaged through the place where Shen Yu had stood, as if Shen Yu had the magical power to transform into a piece of grass and hide it in the straw pile.

Then his eyes fell to the manger in the stable.The trough was piled with dead branches and grass ash, imprinting the shape of a person. Cui Ji slammed his buttocks on the ground, panting heavily while holding on to the trough. Shen Yu's face under the grass ash faced the ceiling of the stable, and his eyes were quietly open.

Cui's carriage stopped at the doorstep of the house, with two stone piers blocking the front and the back, the curtain was raised and then lowered, the coachman urged the horse's hooves, and left Shengpingfang in an orderly manner.

The house next door to the school was Cui Ji's private property, Shen Yu really didn't know it beforehand, and he didn't expect that officers and soldiers would launch a search all over the city, and he was bound to be arrested and brought to justice.

It is taken for granted that Shen's family, from the sheriff to the wife, from the master to the students, were all slaughtered, only Shen Yu was missing, and the people behind the scenes wanted his head in their dreams.

Whoever shields him will die.

Cui Ji wasn't afraid of death at all, on the way home he even went to the pharmacy to grab herbs to stop the bleeding. "Shan Guan's eyeliner is everywhere in the city," Cui Ji said, "I dare not call a doctor, I only have a few medicinal herbs, I will smash them up and apply them to your face when I go back."

He noticed blood oozing from the corner of Shen Yu's mouth, probably from a wound in his mouth.

Shen Yu asked, "Are you not afraid of single officials?"

Cui Ji seemed to be insulted by him, and sneered: "My family has been upright for generations, a single dog dares you!"

Shen Yu said: "My family has been upright for generations."

Cui Ji immediately shut up, with an expression of sympathy and distress.

Furong Lane, the four famous families in Ruyang County, two households at the head and two households at the end, Cui's carriage drove into the depths from the entrance of the alley, and there were clusters of lotus pollen in the water flow on both sides of the road, which was more than a foot wide. At the corner of the curtain, Shen Yu's skull-like eyes saw the chilling seal pasted on the gate of Shen's residence among the flowers.

Shen Cui, Ma Xie, and the four great masters in Ruyang did not work as officials or do business at first, but were famous for teaching and educating people, and they were known as the masters of the world.In the past hundred years, great masters have emerged in large numbers, and most of the talented scholars of the Southern Dynasties who were able to be listed in "Character Items" are from these four schools. Their strong academic style has sent countless literati to the Nanqi court. Call those scholars who have entered the four schools of thought.

Shen Jin, Cui Xian, Ma He, and Xie Lan are also known as the Four Greats of Ruyang. Their virtuous names are out there, but the state capital has been rebuilt one after another. One of Fu Dewang's four teachers has gone.

Things hurt their kind, Shen's house was executed, Cui's family also looked lifeless, the servants dragged their feet to stop and tie the horse for the master, the scorching sun made everyone wear a dry mask.

Shen Yu followed Cui Ji, and the servants tacitly did not ask more questions.In troubled times, you must take good care of your eyes and mouth.

At this time, Cui Xian, who is the head of the family, was not in Ruyang.

Cui Xian is the father of Cui Ji, a school master who is as famous as Shen Yu's father, Shen Jin. The imperial court hired people to teach, and once issued an edict to all the four Hao in Ruyang. Only Shen Jin was qualified for this job, so he was later awarded the title of county Keep the seal.

"My father is not here, so I have the final say at home," Cui Ji led Shen Yu into the main room, "You can rest assured, the Cui family does not have double-faced villains."

In the main room, Cui Ji's wife was also there.She is a standard lady of the family, well-educated, gentle and virtuous, and when she sees a ghost-like person behind her husband, she screams just like a fishmonger's wife.

"What's your name!" Cui Ji immediately closed the doors and windows, "You don't remember? This is Shen Yu."

It was a good thing not to introduce, when the word "Shen Yu" came out of Cui Ji's mouth, his wife's face was so pale that she could faint at any time.

Her hands and feet began to tremble, and her eyes rolled up.In the past half a month, the word "Shen" has become a banned word in Ruyang, and even the entire Southern Dynasty. Once someone reports it, he will be beaten as an accomplice and imprisoned immediately, waiting to be questioned and executed.Those who complained for the Shen family, and those who persuaded the emperor to think twice, fell for eight lifetimes and happened to be surnamed Shen, and the blood shed could stain Zhuo River red for three days and three nights.

"You have to..." Cui Ji's wife broke out in cold sweat, holding her lower abdomen with her hands through the brocade material, "If you don't think about me, you have to think about the child..."

She turned out to be pregnant.

Cui Ji opened his mouth, then looked at Shen Yu: "My dear brother, go to the back room to rest for a while."

Shen Yu had already encountered the same situation once, but the fishmonger still treated him as a nobleman, and he was embarrassed to ask him to avoid him, but he closed the door and tried to persuade his wife.

There was a couch in the back room, warm water and rice soup were thoughtfully placed beside the couch, and Cui Ji even thought that Shen Yu had a wound in his mouth, so he didn't give him hard-to-eat pastries.

So considerate.

Shen Yu leaned on the couch, feeling his breath became hot, and his limbs were heavy and weak, which was probably the result of eating and sleeping in the open air, being injured and catching cold.It's really precious, he laughed at himself, the blood from the rice soup wrapped up the wound flowed into his stomach, which somewhat relieved him.

Through a half-covered curtain, Cui Ji and his wife's discussion could be heard clearly.

"I thought it wouldn't be like this," Cui Ji's wife was not as hysterical as the fishmonger's wife, she was sober and calm, "Back then, the father-in-law and Master Shen were ordered to teach and entered the storage palace together. The prince is the foundation of the country. In the Ninth Five-Year Plan, the teacher who becomes the prince will be the emperor's teacher in the future, and he will be honored and favored forever. In the end, Master Shen won the favor of the prince. Since he has a mentorship with His Royal Highness, how can His Highness sit back and watch the Shen family suffer? I was really born in the emperor's family, so ruthless..."

Cui Jidao: "Speak carefully, at this moment, it is better not to talk about state affairs."

Cui Ji's wife said: "But you also mentioned to me before that the one in the palace is stubborn and dull, and heartless..."

Perhaps it was finally at a safe place, Shen Yu's tense nerves relaxed, and he entered a half-dream and half-awake state. Cui Ji's wife's words hovered in his ears like mosquitoes, causing a faint image to emerge in his weakened and blurred mind. idea--

Your Highness...is a heartless person...

Is a stubborn, dull, heartless...

Two years ago, Cui Ji looked even more energetic, with her hair tied up and wearing a crown, and she was dressed in plain brocade clothes woven with dark patterns, elegant and reserved.

"In short, when you father and son enter the storage palace, you must be careful in everything."

At that time, Shen Jin and his son had just traveled northward to look at the capital, and not long after settling down, Cui Ji came to remind him that he and his father Cui Xian had been defeated and left the Chu Palace sadly.

When mentioning this matter, Cui Ji hated it: "You have to check the tea yourself, don't eat the cakes given by the crown prince, it will almost damage my father's teeth."

In the past, there were innumerable children who wanted to join Shen's school because of their reputation, and they would not hesitate to carry their suitcases in order to seek advice from famous teachers. Shen Yu had never heard of such rogue students, so he was very surprised.

"Is the prince like this?"

Cui Jidao: "It was my father first, and then Mr. Ma He and Mr. Xie Lan were ordered to teach, and they all came out of luck. It is rumored that when Master Ma was teaching in the palace, he went to the street one day to do errands, and was caught by some rascals. The sack was beaten so violently that half his life was ruined, so he rushed back to Ruyang that day. Besides, Master Xie, as you know, Master Xie is a well-known handsome man, with a face like a powder and a body, and is known as an elegant teacher It is said that he was treated well in the Chu Palace, but within half a month, he hid his face and left in tears. Do you know what people say? It is the prince who admires Master Xie's beauty, and the gentleman can't bear to be bothered!"

Shen Yu was dumbfounded when he heard this, and already had a preconceived impression of the prince in his mind.

Cui Ji finally emphasized again: "He is such a ridiculous person."

Shen Jin arrived in Wangdu Wangcheng for a few days, but he did not see the prince coming to invite the lecturer, nor did he see the emperor who ordered him to enter the palace to have an audience with him. In the end, the father and son went to the gate of the Chu Palace by themselves.If not, Shen Yu suspected that the emperor and the prince had simply forgotten about him.

The master of the palace was not there, and Shen Jin and his son were entertained by half-aged little yellow men, all of them with white faces and red lips, and their looks were soft and delicate, which made Shen Yu feel that he had entered the den of goblins.

When the Prince's lecturer came to visit, Xiao Huangmen didn't take one or two of them seriously, showing a lack of etiquette.Shen Yu suppressed his anger and asked, "Where is Your Highness now?"

Xiao Huangmen immediately faltered, some said they were in the West Market, some said they were in the East Market, and told them all about the gold-selling caves in Wangdu City.

Shen Yu was the first and the second eldest, it was unexpected that the crown prince would be so foolish.On the contrary, Shen Jin didn't think it was disobedient, so he took the time to watch the bustle of the palace and eunuchs, and felt that it was quite novel and interesting to teach such a student in his lifetime.

The servants discussed and sent two little Huangmen to go to the east and west cities to find His Highness.When people returned to the palace, it was already noon, a full two hours had passed.

Shen Yu made countless assumptions about this absurd Crown Prince in his mind. Maybe he is a person with a greasy face and a big belly, or maybe he is a person who spends all night having fun, with blue eyes and haggard eyes, or maybe he is a person who makes people face each other. Boring, of course, it is also possible to be born like the grand, mighty and majestic Nanqi royal family.

But when they met, all his plans fell through.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, nicknamed Shang Liang Xia Heng, is a young boy with slender arms and legs, delicate features, and even some masculine and feminine features.

According to the law of Nanqi State, five-colored clothes are used to show official positions, common people wear brown clothes, and rich people can wear purple.Liang Heng was dressed in a purple dress with gold patterns, his chest was wide open, revealing his snow-white undershirt and neck, and he looked like he had just returned from indulgence somewhere.

Shen Yu heard that the prince was the same age as him, but now he looked younger, like a rotten sapling, limp.

Educating people first establishes prestige as a teacher. Shen Yu sang a good face for his father, even when facing the prince, he would not back down. He was about to quote a few scriptures and sternly admonish him, when Liang Heng suddenly stood upright and fell face down in front of him.

Shen Yu: "..."

A strong smell of alcohol hit the face.

"Your Highness!"

"Where did you fall?!"

Liang Heng touched the corner of Shen Yu's clothes and dragged him back a step.

"Your Highness drank too much." Xiao Huangmen supported Liang Heng to sit down on the mat, waited on those who sobered up, those who tied their hair and took off their boots, and hurriedly opened, ignoring Shen Jin and Shen Yu who were separated from the case.

Liang Heng drank so much that his eyes were red, and he dazedly looked at Shen Jin who was sitting at the table opposite him.

"It's Master Shen from Ruyang who lectured to His Highness." Xiao Huangmen then explained.

Shen Yu's anger was already brewing in his heart, but Shen Jin remained calm, holding a teacup and smiling slightly.

Liang Heng said: "Ah...Master Shen! What a neglect, I should personally extend the invitation." He burped after speaking.

Shen Jin was very magnanimous: "It's okay, what should come will always come, escape is only for a while, it can't last long. Are you sober, Your Highness?"

Liang Heng probably didn't understand what Shen Jin meant, he hesitated and said nothing, and drank sober tea with Xiao Huangmen's hand.

Shen Jin also drank tea, drinking the cold tea that had not been changed two hours ago by the servants of the Chu Palace, and said leisurely: "If you drink the tea from the Chu Palace, it is considered as the tea for your highness. You have to work hard and stop playing around too much."

Liang Heng sprayed a sip of water all over Huang Men, who was serving close by, choking and coughing, startled and frightened: "Mingming, tomorrow?"

Shen Jin brought cold tea and was about to drink it, at a critical moment, Shen Yu suddenly remembered Cui Ji's warning.Although this tea was not the tea prepared by the master, it came from the womb of the empress dowager. Shen Yu's eyelids twitched and he stopped his father's teacup, only to see a pool of muddy mucus in the yellow-green tea soup.

Shen Jin hadn't noticed it yet, so she couldn't help being stunned at the moment.

Literati have always been dignified, not to mention being a teacher is like serving a father. Although Shen Jin has no official position, there are many young talents in the court who are his disciples, and serving teachers has always been respectful.Although the crown prince has a high status, he should not be humiliated like this!

Shen Yu's hand tightly gripping the teacup has a bruised vein, but it's not easy to get it right now—Liang Heng is so drunk, how can he argue with a drunk?

"The tea is cold," Shen Yu said with a cold face, "What do you want to drink?"

He casually put the cup on the table, but Liang Heng yelled: "Why can't you drink cold tea, I'm thirsty." He drank up the hangover tea given by Huangmen, then reached for the cup of dirty tea again, sinking Jin and Shen Yu stared at him.Liang Heng didn't realize it at all, he really wanted to pour the teacup into his mouth.

"Your Highness, no!" The Huangmen beside him panicked, snatched the teacup from his hand at the nick of time, and spilled two drops of tea soup on Liang Heng Jingui's robe.

"It's cold, you can't drink it," Huang Men stammered, "Pour Your Highness a warm cup..."

Liang Heng didn't know anything, and let the eunuchs surround him to arrange his clothes, shoes and socks, and headgear, like a dodder flower caught in a spider's web.Shen Yu watched silently, and suddenly understood why Master Cui, Master Ma, and Master Xie all returned in vain—the cold thoughts of the eunuchs soaked the entire palace like poison, and they wanted to get in touch with the people in the palace. You have to go through this poisonous swamp.