They've all become top scholars in the imperial examinations, and you're telling me this i

Chapter 13 The person hadn't even left yet, and the tea had already gone cold?

The midday heat of Chang'an was eerily oppressive. The streets of Zhuque were deserted, and Chen Guangrui led Chen An through the empty alleyways, their footsteps echoing on the bluestone pavement, towards the threshold of the inn.

Unlike this morning.

The postmaster's lean face was plastered with a sticky smile, as if he himself wasn't the one forcing people to sign.

A table of delicious food was already prepared in the courtyard. A fat goose, stewed to a golden brown and glistening, lay on a rough earthenware plate, with seasonal fresh vegetables placed beside it. There was even a pot of cheap wine being warmed up, the steam rising in the dead silence, the heat mixed with the greasiness.

"The top scholar has returned just in time!"

The postmaster trotted forward, his withered hands wiping the mud and grime off his clothes.

"I've ordered some light wine and snacks to be prepared in the kitchen. You must be tired after traveling all day!"

Such attentiveness even surprised a martial artist like Chen An.
"Hey old man, what's this all about?"

Chen Guangrui stood in the courtyard, his gaze sweeping over the food box without lingering, but he glanced at the postmaster's appearance, as if he had thought of something.

"The postmaster has spent quite a bit today," Chen Guangrui said calmly.

"Of course, of course!" The postmaster licked his chapped lips, but dared not look directly at her. "The midday sun is scorching. Perhaps, you, the top scholar, could have some first?"

Chen Guangrui didn't move, and Chen An naturally didn't move either.

"You're being unusually attentive for no reason. Tell me, what do you want?" Chen Guangrui went straight to the point.

The postmaster blushed slightly, chuckled dryly a few times, and then deliberately lowered his voice.

"However, just now, Commandant Zhang of the Imperial Guard came on patrol and specifically instructed that the recent 'purge' is a major undertaking, and the post stations are bustling with activity. With your 'awaiting appointment' status, it would be quite inconvenient for you to stay here for an extended period."

"Oh?" Chen Guangrui raised an eyebrow. "You mean we have to move out? What about the others?"

The postmaster's voice lowered slightly, "They'll be leaving later too."

"So you're just telling us to leave?"

Upon hearing this, Chen An was instantly enraged, shaking his fist, which was the size of a sandbag.

"Old man! You forced us to sign and put our fingerprints this morning, and now you want to kick us out? There's no such logic in the world!"

"Young master, please calm down!"

The postmaster abruptly took half a step back, his face changing from obsequious to ashen.

"It's not that I'm a petty person trying to kick someone when they're down! I really have my reasons, as Manager Wang of the coffin shop on West Street just told me,"

His Adam's apple bobbed, and his eyes darted furtively toward the courtyard gate.
"Just after Chenshi (7-9 AM) today, General Xue Wanche, the Left Valiant Guard Commander, was surrounded by the Imperial Guards at his private residence in Qianlong Valley, Zhongnan Mountain! All the men in his household, including the thirteen-year-old young master... have been imprisoned!"

"Xue Wanche? Isn't that the deputy commander of the Left Guard Army of Crown Prince Jiancheng?" Chen An gasped.

"More than that!"

The postmaster's voice trembled uncontrollably, "Everything's in chaos today! The Imperial Guards are arresting people everywhere, all of them, all of them are that person's men!"

His withered fingers almost poked towards Yongxingfang.
"I heard that just now, the Imperial Guards have completely surrounded the residence of that Wei Xima!"

Chen An's face turned as white as paper. Chen Guangrui remained calm but did not speak.

The postmaster seized the opportunity to slip a roll of paper to him.

“Your Excellency, you are a man of great wisdom! My family is all in Chang’an, and I dare not get involved in this turbulent situation… You only need to sign this document voluntarily leaving the office, and on Chengfu Street next door, the ‘Yuelai Inn’ offers good value for money! I will personally take care of it for you!”

Chen Guangrui, however, looked at the greasy food and wine on the table.

"You've already let me go, yet you still prepare this whole meal for me. Are you trying to make me feel obligated to eat your food and not be able to refuse?"

The postmaster forced a dry laugh, the smile freezing on his lips.

Chen Guangrui said with feigned seriousness, "Aren't you afraid that if I eat this meal, you'll be inextricably linked to me?"

Upon hearing this, the postmaster's face darkened, and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. He was rooted to the spot by these words that struck at his heart.

Chen Guangrui laughed loudly, then turned away with a flick of his sleeve.
"Chen An, go and try the real flavors of Chang'an."

The wind whipped up by the hem of his robe swept across the postmaster's stiff face. As he stepped out of the courtyard gate, he left only one sentence: "I'll move out after I finish eating."

"Ah? Hey! Hey!" The postmaster finally felt relieved after hearing Chen Guangrui's words.

The alleyway entrance to Yongxingfang was more stifling than other places. The black shirts of the Imperial Guards were faintly visible beneath the alley walls, their armor reflecting a cold light in the sunlight.

A row of tall locust trees lined the street, blocking out the sun. The gate of Wei Zheng's residence was tightly closed, and even the moss in the cracks of the stone steps exuded a chilling and deathly aura.

A small blue cloth car was silently driving out of a side alley. Before it had gone far, it was stopped by someone who, without saying a word, got into the car and searched it.

"Brother..." Not far away, Chen An saw this scene and his throat tightened.

"Are we really not going to keep looking?"

"Didn't you say that officials have to run away? Now that we're in trouble, shouldn't we run away too?"

Chen Guangrui, on the other hand, was much more confident. "At this critical juncture, we're like a plague, unable to even stay at the post station. Who are we going to see now?"

As they were talking, instead of heading towards Yongxingfang, they walked in another direction.
"Come on, instead of worrying, let's eat and drink something good!"

Just then, a cheerful voice came from behind: "Brother Chen? Wait a moment!"

Zhou Ping, a newly appointed scholar who had just passed the imperial examination, arrived with a smile. A few ink stains remained on his cuffs, indicating he had just left the academy.

"I heard that Brother Changling hosted a banquet at noon, inviting all those who passed the imperial examinations. He even said that Lord Sun Fujia sent someone to offer wine! Brother Chen, it seems you've gone the wrong way?"

Chen Guangrui didn't stop walking, but he didn't seem to care at all.

"Zhang Changling never sent me an invitation."

"Huh?" Zhou Ping's smile froze instantly, and he was momentarily embarrassed and speechless.

Chen Guangrui was the top scorer in this year's imperial examination. How could the second-place scorer not invite the top scorer to the banquet? Zhou Ping couldn't figure out the key to this for a moment.

In a flash of inspiration, he suddenly remembered that Zhang Changling had whispered to him during the banquet yesterday, "That guy surnamed Chen actually went to Yongxingfang!"
Looking at our current location, isn't it right at the entrance of Yongxingfang, not far from Wei Zheng's house?
A chill ran up from the soles of his feet. Looking at the imposing, imposing walls of Yongxingfang behind Chen Guangrui, Zhou Ping suddenly felt the book in his hands burning. He could only laugh awkwardly and take a few steps back, inwardly cursing himself for being so talkative and insisting on striking up a conversation with Chen Guangrui.

"Ah... I, Zhou, am going to the West Market to find a copy of the Analects. I'll go ahead!"

As they spoke, they were already ten steps away, their backs turned as if they were fleeing a plague.

This caused Chen An to curse for a long time, until he finally stopped when he found the Eight Immortals Restaurant with Chen Guangrui.

The window seat on the second floor of the "Eight Immortals Building" in the East Market.

Chen Guangrui ordered a plate of freshly sliced ​​sashimi and a dish of snacks, slowly dipping them in the garlic and soy sauce.

The sunlight outside the window was cut off by the eaves, casting a shadow that covered half of his body.

Chen An's expression was grim; he found the food on his plate unpalatable. He downed two cups of wine in silence, but still felt oppressed. His mind was filled with images of Wei Ting's bloodshed in the marketplace and Xue Wanche's entire family being imprisoned.

And then there was the ugly-faced postmaster and those fellow graduates who avoided them like the plague.

His knuckles turned white from gripping the weight so tightly.
"That postmaster was clearly trying to get rid of us because he was afraid of being implicated. And those Zhang Changling and Zhou Ping, they were talking so nicely one minute, and then they changed their tune the next. What kind of people are they!"

Chen Guangrui fiddled with a piece of sashimi as thin as a cicada's wing at the tip of his chopsticks, his tone as calm as ink in an inkstone.
It is easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow. This is true of all people. When you are prominent and glorious, all your guests are good people; when you are in distress and danger... look around and you will find no good people at all.

"But are we really just going to sit here and wait to die?"

Chen An was so anxious that his eyes were blazing with anger.

"If all else fails... should I try asking the steward of Fang Xuanling's household? Perhaps they know of a former subordinate of the Prince of Qin who can put in a good word for me?"

Before he could finish speaking, a burst of unrestrained laughter suddenly erupted from the next private room!

"Brother Zhang! Your metaphor of 'fishing for corpses' was truly a stroke of genius!"

Upon hearing this, Chen An's face turned angry. He hadn't expected that the place he had chosen was the same place where Zhang Changling was hosting a banquet. He muttered "bad luck" under his breath and thought to himself that he would leave after finishing his meal and stay away from those petty people.

At this moment, a voice rose sharply; it was Zhou Ping, who was avoiding Chen Guangrui like the plague.

"It's a pity that Scholar Chen wasn't here! Otherwise, he could have learned from the old locust tree outside Yongxingfang and waited with his fishing rod for the fish that would take the bait. Wouldn't that have been brilliant?"

Another person chimed in, “Wonderful! Wonderful! Today’s news is even more extraordinary! I heard that the top scholar actually went to the Jing River… Could it be that he’s hoping to catch a golden dragon to carry him to heaven?”

The room erupted in laughter again, with glasses clinking and rattling.

Chen An slammed his hand on the table and was about to stand up, but Chen Guangrui gently pressed the back of his hand down with the tip of his chopsticks.

Chen Guangrui listened to these people gossiping with great interest.

"Brothers, please don't laugh,"

At this moment, Zhang Changling's voice came from the private room again.

"Scholar Chen has become obsessed with his studies, actually going to seek out Wei Zheng, in my humble opinion,"

He drew out his words, satisfied with the way everyone listened attentively.
“Even if such a person were the reincarnation of the God of Literature, in this Chang’an City…” He shook his head, “he wouldn’t be able to escape even if he had wings!”

The cheers and applause grew louder, and some even imitated the fisherman casting his net, eliciting wild laughter from the crowd.

Little did they know, at that very moment, a new imperial decree had already been issued from the Qin King's residence:
Wei Zheng, who served as the Crown Prince's tutor, was appointed as the chief clerk of the Imperial Household Department.

(End of this chapter)