Chapter 319.1: Taking Action
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S T E L L A R C L O U D
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O R A N G E S T A R
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G O L D S T A R
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R A I N B O W S T A R
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T H E S U N
[Michelle K.] [onepiece]
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Marquis Xuanping had been dealt a blow again.
Were all kids these days so good at making people angry?
Marquis Xuanping covered his chest.
He was the deadly Marquis Xuanping who could choke anyone to death without having to pay for it; he was simply undefeated in the capital. So how come he kept getting choked again and again by these brats?
Marquis Xuanping couldn't even remember why he was here again. He had Chang Jing help Gu Jiao down and then left with a sad expression on his face.
Today’s shift at Hanlin Academy had ended.
Reading-in-Waiting Yang had recently taken a leave. He had a lot of work to do, and there weren't many people who could share his workload. As a result, the task of teaching the Hanlin bachelors fell mainly on the shoulders of Xiao Liulang and An Junwang.
Originally, Reading-in-Waiting Yang was responsible for two subjects: arithmetic and agriculture. The Hanlin Academy Chancellor asked them to choose one subject each, and An Junwang chose arithmetic, citing that he wasn't a rural person and didn't have as much farming experience as Xiao Liulang.
Xiao Liulang didn't say anything and gladly took on the agriculture subject.
However, to say that he had farming experience was an exaggeration.
When he was in the countryside, Gu Jiao had a few acres of land, but neither he nor Gu Jiao knew how to farm, so the land was eventually abandoned.
His farming experience was no better than Little Jing Kong's, who at least watered the small vegetable garden and caught pests every day, and occasionally helped Gu Jiao weed.
In order to teach this subject well, Xiao Liulang had been learning how to farm recently.
After finishing his work, he planned to go home and farm. Ning Zhiyuan quietly approached him and winked, asking, "Want to go for a drink?"
"No." Xiao Liulang refused without hesitation, then he realized something was wrong and looked at him strangely. "Why do you want to go drinking so suddenly?"
As far as he knew, Ning Zhiyuan wasn't the type to indulge in drinking and revelry.
Ning Zhiyuan sighed, "I'm just trying to fit in, you actually think I want to go? And don't you think people aren't targeting you as openly as before now that you're teaching the Crown Prince and Reading-in-Waiting Yang is on leave? Don't you want to take this opportunity to win over a few people?"
"No thanks. I just want to go home and farm." Xiao Liulang replied after a pause.
Ning Zhiyuan: "..."
Xiao Liulang left the Hanlin Academy.
The distance between the Hanlin Academy to Xuanwu Street wasn’t too far, and by taking a shortcut, it only took about two quarters of an hour, and going straight through the Imperial Academy would lead you directly to the vicinity of Bishui Alley.
When he arrived at the Imperial Academy, he remembered something and hesitated for a moment before going to Minghui Hall.
Outside Minghui Hall, he unexpectedly ran into an acquaintance—— Director Zheng.
Director Zheng had previously served as acting Chief and had frequently caused trouble for Xiao Liulang during his time at the Imperial Academy.
Now, Old Chief had paid him back in kind.
Director Zheng was standing outside the door, looking as extremely embarrassed as he could be.
As an official of the fourth rank, his position was higher than Xiao Liulang's. Xiao Liulang cupped his hands at him and then went inside.
Director Zheng watched as Xiao Liulang entered Minghui Hall with ease, which he himself was unable to enter. He felt so wronged that tears were about to fall from his eyes.
"Why did you come here today?" Old Chief was grading papers, but when he saw Xiao Liulang, he put down his writing brush and said, "Take a seat."
Xiao Liulang sat down on the cushion opposite Old Chief and said, "I came here today to ask you about someone."
"Oh? Who do you want to ask about?" Old Chief asked.
"Someone from the palace." Xiao Liulang replied.
Old Chief's expression became serious. "Why do you suddenly want to ask about someone from the palace?"
Xiao Liulang responded after hesitating for a moment, "The person who poisoned me back then may not have been Empress Dowager Zhuang."
Old Chief's eyes lit up, and he became so excited that he almost stood up and slammed his hands on the table, "I knew it wasn't her!"
Xiao Liulang gave him a very strange look.
Old Chief coughed lightly and sat up straight, picking up his tea and taking a sip. "What I mean is, if she really wanted to kill you, there were countless opportunities to do so this past year."
Xiao Liulang stated, "She doesn't remember me."
Old Chief: ...How can I respond to that?
"Cough. Anyway, it doesn't seem like her. If she wanted to kill someone, how could she leave any traces behind?"
He definitely wouldn’t admit to having any personal motives. He and Zhuang Jinse had a pure relationship as monarch and subject!
"Did you remember something?" Old Chief got back on track.
"Yes." Xiao Liulang nodded, not mentioning that his repressed memories were triggered by an unspeakable dream. "I suddenly remembered that the person had a mole on their left wrist."
"A mole on their left wrist..." Old Chief stroked his beard thoughtfully. "I could recall if they had one on their face, but on their wrist..."
At that time, he was highly regarded by the late Emperor and frequented the Huaqing Palace, occasionally running into the imperial concubines and palace maids. However, he was not the Emperor after all and couldn't lift up the sleeves of the imperial concubines or palace maids to see if they had a mole on their wrist.
"Was it a eunuch or a woman?" Old Chief asked.
"A woman." Xiao Liulang answered.
It was a woman's voice, but right now he couldn't recall whose voice it was specifically, whether it was an old or a young, a crisp or a soft voice, he had no impression.
The only thing deeply imprinted in his mind was the mole on her left wrist.
"A palace maid from over a decade ago..." Old Chief fell into contemplation. After a while, he scratched his lapel with a great headache, "Well, I do know someone who was very familiar with the people in the palace. She was from the Imperial Household Department and often tailored clothes for people. You could try looking for her."
Xiao Liulang looked at him puzzled, "But, why do you look like that?"
"Ah, well..." Old Chief hesitated to speak, then gave up. "Forget it, let's go home together. I have a token you can bring to her, see if she still remembers after all these years."
Old Chief and Xiao Liulang left Minghui Hall and coincidentally, the classes in the Imperial Academy were also just about to finish. The two of them waited for Little Jing Kong before going home together.
Raz P.'s Thoughts
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