She is Jianxiu

Several days later, in the Wenyong Tower of the Sique Mansion.

Si Queyi stood with his pen in hand, secretly holding his breath and concentrating, staring at the yellow paper in front of him, but for a moment he did not dare to put down his pen.

Beside her, her mentor Zhan Yan stood with his hands behind his back, noticing that the person in front of him was absent-minded. She had tried to write several times today but had not made any progress. He suspected that she had been working too hard lately, so he wanted to tell her to take a break. "If you are tired, take a break first. There is no need to rush."

After saying that, he waved his hand and pointed to the seating area, saying, "Come and try my new tea, and I'll write again in a few quarters of an hour."

Si Queyi breathed a sigh of relief, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said to his teacher with embarrassment, "I had too many distracting thoughts in my mind, Master Zhan. Please forgive me."

Zhan Yan had long noticed that she had something on her mind. In the past few days, her homework had been much worse than before. He was afraid that she had been given a hard time by Jingchuan and others in private. So he called her to Wenyong Tower today, firstly to give her some guidance, and secondly to comfort her.

So, following this line of conversation, he asked further, "You are young and easily influenced by the outside world, but that's nothing to worry about. However, since we are master and disciple, if you encounter any difficulties, you can tell me about them today, instead of keeping them to yourself."

Si Queyi gave an awkward smile, not daring to tell the other party that she was worried about the Suotu family's affairs.

After returning to the manor that day, Zhao Chun went out alone for a short time, about two or three hours. She returned to the courtyard in less than half a day, and her words and actions were no different from usual, as if nothing had happened.

Three to five days later, things were indeed as calm and uneventful as Zhao Chun had said. On the contrary, Si Queyi was worried and found it difficult to eat or sleep, with a heavy heart.

That's when Zhan Yan finally saw through the deception.

However, Si Queyi dared not speak of this matter to outsiders under any circumstances, and could only offer some words to appease the other party for now.

Fortunately, Zhan Yan did not intend to investigate further. Seeing that the student was unwilling to reveal the truth, he assumed that this matter touched a raw nerve and immediately decided not to continue asking. So he picked up his teacup, changed the subject, and started talking about academic matters.

The two were chatting away, and just as they were getting into the conversation, a commotion suddenly broke out outside.

"What's going on?" Zhan Yan frowned, suddenly stood up from his seat, and reached out to stop the person next to him, gesturing with his eyes, "You sit here, let me go out and take a look first."

They wanted to see who dared to make a scene in the Wenyong Building, where the esteemed masters rested.

She had been holding back her anger for a long time, and as soon as she stepped out the door, she saw several teachers from the Jiazi Room being called out one after another, their faces showing an expression of shame and indignation. They were barely able to suppress their anger so as not to immediately lash out.

Zhan Yan's heart tightened. He had never seen such a strange scene in Wen Yong Tower. He also thought to himself that the tutors in the Jia-character room were all highly respected fifth-rank scholars in the Si Que clan, whose status was second only to the old ancestor who was now studying in seclusion. It would not be an easy thing to invite them all out at the same time!

It seems something big is about to happen.

After the fifth-rank scholars had all left, the remaining mentors gathered together. One of them, who was well-informed, briefly recounted a major event that had suddenly taken place in Mianzhou City in the past few days.

Inside the hall, Si Queyi had already put down his teacup, but couldn't help placing his hands on his knees, his mind in turmoil.

Not long after, Zhan Yan, who had gone out to investigate the situation, walked in furiously, his eyes blazing with anger, and said, "This is outrageous! This is absolutely outrageous!"

When anger got the better of him, he didn't even care about his student, Si Queyi. He clenched his fists, paced back and forth in the hall, and angrily cursed, "What a Suotu Hong! What a Suotu family! They are so domineering. Just because they have that third-rank scholar, they don't take my Si Que family seriously. How can there be such a way to bully people in this world!"

Upon suddenly hearing the name of the Suotu family, Si Queyi trembled and sprang up from his seat, urgently asking, "The Suotu family? Doesn't the Suotu family have very little contact with my Si Que clan? What's going on today?"

Her expression was strange, and she seemed to be in a state of panic. Zhan Yan assumed that she was still young and could only show fear after hearing about this. He never expected that Si Queyi, an eighth-rank scholar, could be involved with the Suo Tu family.

"This is a family scandal, and I shouldn't be telling you, but the Sotu family is acting arrogantly, and now they've already broken through the gate, so I don't see any point in hiding it anymore!"

Zhan Yan frowned and let out a long sigh, saying, "Just now, people from the Suotu family came to our door, saying that a few days ago, a fifth-rank scholar named Suotu Hong from our clan was murdered in a separate residence outside the city. Because this person was the elder brother of Patriarch Suotu, the entire Suotu family is determined to find the real culprit and give Patriarch Suotu, who is far away in Lijing, an explanation, even if it means turning this entire city of Mianzhou upside down."

"For such a matter, the whole city has been in an uproar, and it still hasn't calmed down. Today, they even came to the gates of my Si Que family and wanted to summon all the scholars with merits of the fifth rank or above for questioning and verification. What is this if not a great disgrace!"

Of the entire Sique clan, only one was a fourth-rank scholar, while the remaining eight were fifth-rank scholars. Apart from the one who was still studying abroad, the other five were all to be brought to court for trial, which was simply unheard of.

His arrogant attitude and boastful words even made Si Queyi feel indignant. In addition, he also had some unspoken worries, which he kept hidden in his words. He said, "What about the old ancestor? Did she come out and say anything?" Zhan Yan shook his head, his face even worse. He said, "What can she say? Among the people from the Suotu family today, there are two fourth-rank scholars. Even if we ask the old ancestor to come out, I'm afraid it will be of no use."

Moreover, these two fourth-rank scholars are not the entirety of the Suotu family. Even if they can fight against two opponents and withstand their power for a while, what will they do in the future?

The Suotu family is a prominent clan that has produced a third-rank scholar. Unless the Sique family also has a third-rank scholar, this kind of harassment will never stop.

Si Queyi felt uneasy and couldn't help but wonder about the connection between this matter and Zhao Chun. She thought to herself, "Although I don't know what the connection is between Suo Tu Hong and Liu An, the timing of this incident coincides with the time when Senior Zhao went out. Oh no, I have to go back quickly and remind her to make preparations as soon as possible."

Although Zhao Chun had vouched for her to handle the matter, since the life of the coachman Liu'an was involved, the two of them would be in the same boat.

She grew anxious and bid farewell to Zhan Yan, who had no reason to keep her. He simply sighed and offered a few words of comfort before waving his hand and letting her go home.

A short while later, Si Queyi returned to the courtyard. Before he could reply to the maid Yuezhu and the others, he strode over to find Zhao Chun and said as he entered, "Senior, the Suotu family has arrived!"

His tone was both surprised and frightened, accompanied by rapid breathing, revealing the chaotic state of his mind.

Zhao Chun awoke from her brief meditation and gestured to the side, saying, "Miss Si Que, don't be in a hurry, sit down and talk."

The visitor shook his head, then turned and closed the door. He deliberately lowered his voice and whispered, "Senior Zhao, this matter has escalated. That Suo Tu Hong—"

"You mean to say that Suotu Hong is the elder brother of Suotu Yi, a third-rank scholar, right?"

Zhao Chun slightly raised her eyes and saw that Si Queyi refused to sit down. Instead, she got up and sat on the wide chair behind the table. She tapped the table with two fingers, and the sound of the tapping made Si Queyi's chaotic thoughts calm down a lot.

He asked, "Senior already knows?"

She pursed her lips, thinking to herself that this matter was indeed related to Zhao Chun, no wonder the other party knew Suo Tu Hong's identity.

“If you want to ask about Suotu Hong, then I can tell you. Yes, he did die at my hands,” Zhao Chun said calmly, like a dark pool of water, as she spoke those earth-shattering words while maintaining a composed expression. “This man obtained a precious treasure from me through a series of coincidences. The day I went to his door was precisely to resolve this matter.”

Upon hearing this, Si Queyi immediately thought to himself, "It seems that Suo Tu Hong refused to hand over the treasure, which led to his death."

He then asked Zhao Chun, "So, senior, have you found the treasure?"

Zhao Chun shook her head and said, "No, Suotu Hong didn't know the origin of my treasure, so he could only ask his brother, a third-rank scholar, for help. Now it has been handed over to Suotu Yi. Taking it back will only be more difficult than before."

Si Queyi had already prepared for the worst, but unexpectedly, the conflict between Zhao Chun and the Suo Tu family has now directly targeted Suo Tu Yi, a third-rank scholar. If it cannot be reconciled, the two may have to settle both old and new grudges.

She took a breath, her voice trembling slightly, and asked, "In that case, what are your plans, senior?"

The person in front of him smiled, shook his head and sighed, "We should first get into the Gushe Academy. Suotuyi is only a Junior Priest, so it's not good to take his life directly."

He then offered a few words of comfort to Si Queyi, seemingly not taking the Suo Tu family's visit to heart.

However, in another part of the Sique Prefecture, the situation was far less peaceful than outside.

The ancestor of the current Sique clan, who was also the only fourth-rank scholar, was named Sique Danyun. He was over two hundred and sixty years old, and was considered an old man in the entire city of Mianzhou.

A fourth-rank scholar can live up to three hundred years. In other words, if this Ancestor Danyun cannot be promoted before the age of three hundred and thus extend his lifespan to five hundred, he will have at most thirty years to live, which is not short.

Since realizing that his lifespan was limited, Dan Yun had given up the idea of ​​advancing to the next rank and instead devoted all his energy to compiling books, so as to leave a path for his descendants to refer to.

If it weren't for the arrival of two fourth-rank scholars from the Suotu family today, she wouldn't have rushed out of the pass to meet her guests. (End of Chapter)