Tang Dynasty: A Guide to Avoiding Pitfalls for Li Er at the Start

Chapter 338 The Elite Clan: Have They Changed Their Nature?
"Brother~"

The Fengbo Pavilion of Dali Temple...

Oh wait, it's not here.

Outside the wooden bars of the Dali Temple prison.

The little girl pouted her pink lips, tears falling like broken pearls onto her clothes. Her fair little hand reached through the gap in the wooden bars, desperately trying to grasp Wen He's hand. Her voice trembled with sobs: "Brother... Xiao Rou can't live without you... How could you be locked up here..."

Her tear-streaked face evoked a sense of pity in anyone who saw it.

Wen He sighed deeply in the cell, his voice heavy, "Xiao Rou, life has its ups and downs. You have to learn to take care of yourself. I'm afraid your brother won't be able to stay by your side this time."

"How could His Majesty allow you to suffer here!"

Wenrou cried even harder, her little hands gripping the wooden railing tightly.

"Little Rou!"

"Brother!"

Li Chengqian, Li Ke, Li Tai, and Li You silently watched the scene of "deep brother-sister affection" unfolding before them.

The four of them looked at each other, their eyes filled with helplessness.

Inside the cell, in the center, stood a carved nanmu bed covered with a snow-white fox fur quilt.

Beside the bed stood a gilded table, upon which sat celadon teacups, candied fruits and pastries, and even writing brushes, ink, paper, and an inkstone.

A charcoal brazier burned under the table, the flames crackling and warming the entire cell, preventing even a trace of cold air from getting in.

Not to mention that Liu Dewei, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, specially transferred a clever servant from his residence to serve Wen He tea and water, tidy her clothes, and take good care of her.

To keep Wenhe quiet, all the prisoners in the nearby jails were moved away, so there wasn't a sound at all.

This is hardly like being in jail.
They've clearly moved the top-class rooms from the restaurant here!

Li Chengqian couldn't bear to watch this overacted scene any longer. He coughed twice and stepped forward, trying his best to sound concerned: "Sir, Father said he has ordered the Dali Temple to investigate thoroughly and will surely clear your name. Please don't be sad..."

Wen He glanced at him and replied in a flat tone, "Oh."

That "I didn't care at all" attitude showed no sign of being wronged.
Just then, a fragrant aroma wafted over.

A jailer strode over carrying a tray with a plate of roasted mutton, golden brown and glistening, still steaming.

He approached the prison door, his face beaming with a smile hotter than a burning ember: "Sir, the roasted mutton you ordered is ready! Do you like it? If the young lady and gentlemen don't mind, would you like to try some?"

Wen He picked up a strip of mutton, took a bite, smacked her lips, and said with a hint of disdain, "No, the mutton still has a strong gamey smell, and the cooking time is a bit off. It's far inferior to the mutton grilled at home."

The gentle girl, who had just been sobbing, pouted and said, "The mutton here isn't tasty at all, brother. How about I ask Uncle Zhou to call the cook from home? He can grill it for you outside the prison, and I guarantee it won't have any gamey smell!"

The little girl didn't think that "calling the cook to the jail" was such an outrageous thing.

Wen He immediately shook his head, and said with a "righteous" expression, "Xiao Rou, although your brother is upright and has nothing to hide, and has not made any mistakes, one must abide by the rules and not abuse one's privileges. How can you call the family cook to the prison just because the mutton here is not good? If word gets out, people will say that I, Wen He, am abusing my status and showing off. That would be terrible."

"Brother is absolutely right!"

A gentle moment filled with adoration.

Li Chengqian, Li Ke, Li Tai, and Li You stood to the side, their lips twitching involuntarily.

They exchanged a glance, each thinking to themselves.

The gentleman is right. Even if this prison cell is more comfortable than the side hall of the East Palace, if the gentleman says there is no abuse of power, then there is no abuse of power.

After finishing her mutton, Wen He wiped her hands, then suddenly put on a stern face and looked at the four princes, her tone serious: "Alright, you can all go back now. Although your teacher is on vacation now and doesn't have to go to the East Palace to teach, you can't fall behind in your studies. You all need to do your homework well, and I'll check it all when I leave. Anyone who dares to slack off will be punished by having to copy books!"

Li Chengqian nodded quickly, his tone obedient: "Don't worry, sir, we will definitely do our homework well and never slack off!"

Li Tai said somewhat reluctantly, "Sir, you're still in jail."

As soon as he finished speaking, Wen He in the cell threw a sheep bone at him.

"So what if I go to jail? Even if I'm in jail, I'll still be your teacher. If you don't behave, I'll show you what it means to be a teacher!"

Wen He's eyes widened, and Li Tai quickly shook his head and said, "I'll do it, okay?"

"what about you?"

Wen He glanced at it.

Li Ke and Li You nodded quickly.

Wenrou held Wenhe's hand and gave her a long lecture before reluctantly leaving with the four princes.

After everyone left, the servant quickly poured Wen He a cup of hot soup: "Sir, if you feel bored, shall I read you a passage to cheer you up?"

Wen He took the hot soup handed to him by the servant, took a sip, and placed it on the table. Leaning back on the bed wrapped in a fox fur coat, he said leisurely, "Prepare the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. Since we're idle anyway, let's finish writing the remaining chapters of 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms'."

"Alright!" The servant's eyes lit up, and he quickly and skillfully laid out the Xuan paper and ground the ink, his heart filled with joy.

Who would have thought that serving the son of Gaoyang County would come with such perks?

He was able to see the Romance of the Three Kingdoms written by the county magistrate as soon as possible. Wen He sat up, picked up his wolf-hair brush, and as the brush tip touched the Xuan paper, the flames of the Battle of Red Cliffs gradually spread between the lines.

He wrote with such focus that he completely forgot he was in prison, only occasionally raising his hand to drink some soup or asking the servant to add a piece of charcoal. He lived a more comfortable life than he did in the mansion.

Shortly after, inside the Rikjeong Hall
"Xiaorou cried?"

After hearing Li Chengqian's description, Li Shimin couldn't help but chuckle.
“Yes.” Li Chengqian nodded, his tone tinged with confusion.

"Xiao Rou always felt that her husband was being wronged in prison and was worried that he was cold and hungry, which is why she cried so much."

"Hmph, would he suffer any injustice?"

Li Shimin scoffed lightly, his fingertips tapping lightly on the armrest of the dragon throne.

"It seems Liu Dewei has converted the Dali Temple prison into his Gaoyang County government villa. Should I have his cooks and stewards moved there so he can live comfortably in prison?"

Do you really think I don't know?

How could that old fox Liu Dewei dare to let Wen He suffer even the slightest grievance?
She must have arranged everything she could think of, and she might even be more comfortable than Wen He was in the mansion.

"Aye!"

Li Chengqian couldn't help but speak, his tone tinged with urgency.

"It's obvious that this is a treacherous scheme to frame you, sir. Why are you still keeping him in prison?"

In his view, all that was needed was to issue an imperial decree to thoroughly investigate and clear Wen He's name; there was no need for such unnecessary measures.

Li Shimin glanced at him and softened his tone: "Your husband has had it too easy. I have protected him in every way, which has made him lack experience. This time, I made him stay in prison for a few days, firstly to silence the gossip, and secondly to let him suffer a little and understand the dangers of the court, so that he will not be so easily schemed against in the future."

At this point, he changed the subject, a knowing glint in his eyes: "However, Liu Dewei panicked first, as the investigation report from the Dali Temple was submitted this morning."

Li Chengqian's eyes lit up: "Have you found any evidence?"

"There's no real evidence, but it's enough to prove Wen He's innocence."

Li Shimin picked up the note on the table and handed it to Li Chengqian.

"The coroner re-examined the bodies of Qu Mei and Lin An. There were no external injuries on either of them, not even any signs of bumps or knocks. This shows that the Bad People and Wen He never tortured them. The so-called 'forced confession' is utter nonsense."

After reading the letter, Li Chengqian breathed a sigh of relief: "Then can the gentleman come out immediately?"

"He can be released after tomorrow's court meeting."

Li Shimin nodded, but before he could finish speaking, a figure flashed past the palace gate, looking hurried.

He glanced at Gao Yue beside him, and Gao Yue immediately understood, taking small, quick steps as she walked out.

A moment later, Gao Yue returned quickly, her expression much more solemn than before. She bowed and said, "Your Majesty, there are men from the Hundred Cavalry Guard outside the palace. They say they have important matters to report."

"The Hundred Cavalry Commandery?" Li Shimin frowned.

The Hundred Cavalry Command is responsible for palace security and covert investigations. Unless it is an emergency, they would never rashly request an audience at this time.

He said in a deep voice, "Let him in."

Soon, a captain dressed in the uniform of the Hundred Cavalry Guard entered the hall, bowed, and reported: "Your Majesty, according to the Hundred Cavalry Guard's spies, the Xun family of Yingchuan recently opened a new bookstore opposite the 'Sanwei Bookstore' in Gaoyang County."

"The books in this bookstore are extremely cheap. Apart from the words of sages and some classics, the other miscellaneous books are only three coins each. What's even stranger is that many of them are rare classics privately collected by aristocratic families such as the Cui family of Qinghe, the Lu family of Fanyang, and the Kong family of Qufu, which have never been circulated on the market before."

Li Shimin's eyes sharpened instantly: "The Xun family? They've also allied with the Cui, Lu, and Kong families?"

The captain continued, "Not only that, two days ago, the Xun family secretly contacted a group of scholars from humble backgrounds and invited them to give lectures in various parts of Chang'an. All the scholars from humble backgrounds who participate will receive a monthly salary of ten strings of cash and will be able to read all the books in the Xun family's study for free. This matter has already attracted nearly a hundred scholars from humble backgrounds to sign up."

"Ten strings of cash as salary? And they're letting you read books for free?"

Li Shimin clenched his fists tightly, his eyes filled with doubt.

The aristocratic families have always monopolized knowledge and looked down on those from humble backgrounds. Now, the Xun family is not only selling rare books at low prices, but also spending money to invite scholars from humble backgrounds to give lectures. This is completely out of character for them.

He paused for a moment, then asked with a hint of confusion, "Have these aristocratic families... changed their ways?"

Li Shimin shook his head, finding it somewhat absurd.

He wouldn't believe it unless the sun rose in the west tomorrow.

“Father, how come these things are exactly the same as what Master was supposed to do before?” Li Chengqian suddenly realized this.

Li Shimin's gaze was deep and thoughtful.

Only after Li Chengqian reminded him did he remember.

If Wen He hadn't been impeached this time, he would have planned to have Changsun Wuji and Wen He oversee the study tour after the Lantern Festival.

This matter has indeed wasted a lot of time.

"Gao Yue, issue an edict to the Secretariat, immediately transferring Changsun Wuji to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel."

(End of this chapter)