eurekapd Chapter 405: Suspicious Scholar
Chapter 405: Suspicious Scholar
After bidding farewell to Yan Qingshu, Lu Wensheng finally decided to return to the Hanlin Academy first. Compared to wandering around blindly in the palace at the risk of his life, it would obviously be safer to ask his "colleagues" for news about the emperor or the so-called great scholar.
Walking across the Nine-Turn Bridge, I see the ink-like clouds soaking the sky. Shadows spread down from the glazed tile roofs, swallowing the gilded animal spines into dark iron color. The sense of urgency in my heart becomes stronger.
Until now, he has only been running around for news and hasn't even seen the shadow of those demons. Thinking of this, Lu Wensheng felt an indescribable anxiety in his heart.
There is demonic energy on that cultivator. Even if it is very faint, the system can still detect it. What else is he hiding?
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The lattice windows of the Hanlin Academy were half open, and Chen Bangyan's laughter mixed with the scent of ink filled the air.
The outgoing second place scholar, wearing a seventh-grade green robe, was leaning over the table to read something, looking more casual than he did on the day of the Qionglin Banquet: "Brother Lu is finally back! The dean of the academy just asked about you, saying that he wants to give you the task of compiling the essays for the new Jinshi candidates!"
"Thank you for your kind words, Brother Chen." Lu Wensheng took off his official hat and placed it next to the pen holder. His eyes swept over the new pile of yellow silk files on the desk, and suddenly he noticed a thin figure standing in front of the window.
The man was wearing a moon-white robe with bamboo-joint patterns embroidered on the cuffs with green thread. He was arranging the bookshelf with his eyes lowered. His raven-feather-like hair was loosely tied up with a jade hairpin, revealing a section of pale skin on the back of his neck, which was even more translucent than the Chengxintang paper on the desk.
Chen Bangyan was born with a smiling face, and when the corners of his eyes were slightly curved, they looked like peach kernels soaked in honey. Even among the group of noble civil servants in the Hanlin Academy, he seemed particularly warm.
Without waiting for Lu Wensheng to say anything, he reached out and grabbed the young man standing next to him, and swept his sleeve across the wolf-hair brush on the desk, splashing a few points of ink stars.
"This is Xie Qingwu, Brother Qiyu." Chen Bangyan put his arm around the man's shoulders, as if they were old friends. "Our third place winner of this year's imperial examination!"
When Xie Qingwu turned around, Lu Wensheng could see his appearance clearly: his eyebrows were like a sword unsheathed, the corners of his eyes were slightly raised, and his eyes seemed to contain the first melting winter snow in a stream, which was clear and a little distant, giving him a scholarly air; his nose was as straight as a bamboo, and the whole person was like a light ink and color painting.
Rumor has it that in this palace examination, Xie Qingwu should have been ranked second, but because of his beautiful appearance he was chosen as third. Seeing him now, he really lives up to the comment that "he is as romantic as Pan An".
"Brother Qiyu's name is really elegant." Lu Wensheng bent down and picked up the manuscript, "'The phoenix roosts on the wutong tree, and the crane cries on the huabiao', it not only implies that talented people are waiting for the time, but also has a transcendent character. What a good name."
"Is it really that good?" Xie Qingwu changed his indifferent attitude. His light-colored pupils moved in the light and shadow. Suddenly, he stared at Lu Wensheng and asked a puzzling question.
Seeing this, Chen Bangyan couldn't help scratching his head: "Brother Qiyu, why do you treat me differently? I just praised your name, but you just said 'hmm' and didn't respond. Why is it different when it comes to Brother Yangming? It's like you opened up and talked a lot?"
Xie Qingwu automatically ignored Chen Bangyan's words, just leaned forward slightly, and asked again stubbornly: "Are my name and my handwriting both good?" Although his voice was light, it carried a hint of barely perceptible nervousness.
Lu Wensheng was slightly startled, and although he was a little puzzled, he saw a little light flashing in the other party's eyes, which did not seem to be a joke, so he stopped smiling and said seriously: "'Qingwu' is the place where the phoenix lives, implying a noble aspiration; 'Qiyu' has the style of living under the forest. Brother Xie's elegant temperament seems to be born for this name."
After hearing this, Xie Qingwu nodded slightly, still showing little emotion on his face.
However, Lu Wensheng and Chen Bangyan inexplicably felt that his mood seemed to be much better.
Xie Qingwu's tense shoulders suddenly relaxed, and tiny lights appeared in his hazel eyes, like cracks in the ice of a spring pond, revealing the fish swimming underneath.
Lu Wensheng and Chen Bangyan watched as the tips of his ears turned red and slightly hot, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the bamboo pendant at his waist, and even his back stretched a little, as if he had real pleasure that almost flowed out through the ends of his drooping hair.
Are you so happy just because someone praised his nice name?
Lu Wensheng just thought that it was because scholars valued their reputation and that Xie Qingwu looked cold. He didn't expect there to be such a contrast. It really shows that one cannot judge a person by his appearance.
However, his reaction was like that of a child seeking praise, and there was an indescribable sense of incongruity hidden in his bookish air. It was as if... it was like a painted skin drawn with an ink pen, which was exquisitely detailed but lacked some of the breath of a living person.
[Xiaolu, there is demonic energy in Xie Qingwu] the system suddenly spoke.
Lu Wensheng: “.......???” Wasn’t that feeling of awkwardness just his illusion?
They were all so suspicious, and they just happened to appear in front of him. He had to figure out the clues and reasons by himself. Was he in the immortal world or was he playing an escape room? Lu Wensheng was speechless for a moment.
Because Xie Qingwu was present, Lu Wensheng stroked the celadon teacup with his fingertips and glanced at the thin figure sorting books at the desk. After all, it was not a good idea to ask about the "great scholar" indirectly, so he had to suppress his doubts and thought to himself that he should make plans when Xie Qingwu was not around.
At three quarters past the hour of You, amid the sound of dripping water from the gilded clepsydra, Lu Wensheng was rubbing his brows over the pile of documents on his desk when he suddenly heard the voice of a palace maid singing "hello" outside the duty room.
The eunuch beside the emperor suddenly lifted the bamboo curtain and came in, put his whisk under his arm, and announced the emperor's order, saying that the emperor had summoned him to the imperial study immediately.
Lu Wensheng, who was annotating official documents, paused with his pen, looked at the setting sun outside the window and sighed silently - he hated bosses who had no sense of boundaries.
When I stepped into the imperial study, the gilded animal-head incense burner was emitting the scent of agarwood. Amid the curling green smoke, a landscape screen ran across the center, dividing the indoor air into two sections.
Lu Wensheng stood outside the screen with his hands hanging down, looking at the lonely fisherman in the boat in the blank space on the screen. He wondered if the screen was originally a decoration in the imperial study, or if it was specially brought here by the emperor after the morning court today.
Although the screen is separated by two places, hazy light and shadow leak through the silk surface. As the candlelight sways, two vague outlines can be seen on the other side of the screen, one standing and one sitting, with unpredictable postures.
Lu Wensheng stared at the swaying shadow - the screen was cleverly placed so that it was impossible to see the emperor's face, but it also gave a hint of the seriousness of the situation. This made him, who was here to meet the emperor by imperial decree, feel a little uneasy as if he was treading on thin ice.
While he was thinking, he heard the call of "Top Scholar, please come forward".
Lu Wensheng collected his thoughts, lifted the corner of his robe to salute, and as he leaned forward to kneel, he could clearly hear the popping sound of the candle in the hall, mixed with his own steady breathing.
"Your servant Lu Wensheng pays homage to Your Majesty."
"My dear, you don't need to be polite."