When Xu Mo let out this angry snort, it not only startled Xu Mo to stop in his tracks, but also surprised Qi Huai and his father.
The Minister of Rites spoke with concern, "Old Dou, could it be that you've run into an acquaintance?"
Dou Weiming's face was stern as he spoke harshly, "How is that possible? I'm just a mundane nobody, how could I recognize a metropolitan graduate from the Imperial College, Xu Jieyuan from Anshui Prefecture?"
The Minister of Rites, "..."
After exposing the other's background completely, he still denied knowing him - this duck really could be stubbornly hard-mouthed.
Not wanting to get involved, the Minister stood to the side to watch the excitement, while subtly hinting for Qi Huai to keep quiet.
Dou Weiming also remained silent, just harrumphing angrily beside them.
After a long awkward pause, Xu Mo finally dared to stand up straight. Looking at the confident middle-aged man, he smiled wryly and greeted him, "Student Xu Mo pays his respects to Prefect Dou. It has been almost two years since we parted in Anshui Prefecture. I wonder if you are well?"
When they had separated, Xu Mo was still only a scholar.
When they met again now, he had already become a metropolitan graduate and was preparing to take the imperial examination.
What should have been a joyous reunion instead became rather awkward, especially in such an unexpected situation. Even the clever Xu Jieyuan had lost his composure. He could only force an awkward smile and remain bowed for a long time, not daring to rise.
Jiang Sheng, watching from the sidelines, couldn't help but worry and murmur, "If Big Brother stays bent over like that for so long, I fear he may break his back."
Chang Yan quickly covered her mouth, afraid that others would hear.
Big Brother was so smart, even bent over for so long, he must have his own ideas.
Sure enough.
After about half a cup of tea's time had passed, Dou Weiming could no longer restrain himself. Shaking out his sleeves, he strode forward and grabbed Xu Mo with one hand, berating sharply, "Bent over like this all this time - do you plan to take the imperial exam by lying prone on the ground like the qualifying exam?
The Prefect cared deeply for talented scholars and would definitely not stand by to see his most outstanding student be tired to death here.
Xu Mo pursed his lips and sincerely said, "This student feels deep remorse. It was this student's breach of our agreement that came first. This student is at fault."
Having said that, he moved to bow again.
This time Dou Weiming used both hands to support him, with only his mouth still stubbornly displeased, "I told you to come find me as soon as you entered Fengjing, but instead you'd already been here over half a year with no sign or sound of you. If it weren't for my wife craving sausage and cured meats this past New Year's, leading us to taste the nostalgic flavors at You Ran House, I still wouldn't have known you'd long arrived!"
"Let that pass. But for an exam candidate like you to actually get tangled up in..." His voice suddenly lowered as he glanced around before continuing, "...actually daring to get involved in the exam fraud case - if Old Qi hadn't given me notice, even he would've gotten dragged into it!"
The Minister of Rites beside deeply concurred, nodding while also glancing meaningfully at Qi Huai.
This made Qi Huai flustered, wishing he could bury his head between his legs.
Xu Mo seized the chance to sincerely explain, "This student was afraid of causing trouble for you Sir, which is why I didn't dare pay you a visit. The exam fraud case concerns grave matters of state, I too feared..."
Dou Weiming abruptly cut him off, "You understand it concerns matters of state, you know to be afraid!"
Xu Mo immediately quieted, not daring to speak up again.
"Do you think there's only the Zhu family behind them? The powerful families of Fengjing have complex ties of kinship and business partnerships with each other, connected together like the branches of a great tree, with no one able to shake them." Dou Weiming slowly said, "With just you, a frail and insignificant student, how could you hope to uproot them entirely? This isn't Anshui Prefecture; and they aren't the Sun Family either."
It was true.
Fengjing was far more complex than Anshui Prefecture, and the powerful Fengjing families wielded far greater power than the Sun, Wang, or Bian families.
The might of the Sun Family back then was entirely due to the support of the Fang Family. The fight between Wang Family's madam and eldest daughter to secure the Fang Family's backing was also the reason why He Prefecture governor had no choice but to take action against the children of Zanhua Little Manor.
But Fengjing was at the Son of Heaven's feet! With the imperial family overseeing, shouldn't it be more fair and impartial?
As if he could read Xu Mo's doubts, Dou Weiming laughed.
"While it's true that the Son of Heaven is wise and sage, he does not wish to see exam fraud either. But don't forget, the tangled web of powerful Fengjing houses means that even the throne cannot act rashly against them. Uprooting the radish would bring up clods of earth with it. The imperial house still needs the support of these powerful houses - how could it topple most of Fengjing's families all for the sake of some insignificant cheat-writers?"
Even if it could, after tearing them down, who would the throne rely on next?
Would those powerful houses not protest, rage, or even revolt?
Even he as a minister knew that governing depended on maintaining balance; how could the imperial house not understand this as well?
"A-Mo, you simply don't grasp that even seated in that position, the Son of Heaven cannot act entirely as he wishes or wills," said Dou Weiming with a bitter tone. "You can believe in the imperial house's wisdom, but you shouldn't expect too much."
What was black was black, what was white was white.
What seemed right wasn't necessarily fully so, what seemed wrong wasn't fully so either.
The uprightness and integrity Father had taught him to never yield in the face of power and temptation now lay shattered, reassembling into a new picture.
Xu Mo had always thought he had become more thick-skinned after entering Fengjing, only now realizing how far off the mark he still was.
The Fengjing houses could not be shaken, the exam fraud case could not be opened up. Those cheat-writers would continue to exist, continue being exploited, continue substituting for the scions of powerful houses during exams.
Xu Mo's eyes grew damp and he clenched his fists, choking out, "Then what about An Jun? What about him?"
If the imperial house truly did not crack down on the exam fraud, wouldn't they end up harming An Jun?
"Don't worry, he'll be fine," said Dou Weiming, realization dawning that he had been too blunt just now. He patted Xu Mo's shoulder, "It's not that they can't punish the exam fraud at all, only that they can't act rashly. This matter is like an abscess - whenever it's lightly lanced open, the surface heals while the inside remains putrid and foul."
The Minister of Rites stroked his sparse beard and added, "If you want to uproot it entirely, you must have ample patience to allow the knife to penetrate deep to the bottom before striking the fatal blow."
So this time it wasn't that they were wrong to expose the exam fraud, but that they shouldn't have exposed it so rashly, is that right?
Xu Mo suddenly jerked his head up to lock eyes with Qi Huai.
Where they had gone wrong could be corrected; flaws could be amended and shortcomings made up for.
As long as the road ahead was bright and held hope, they dared to continue walking it.
What they feared most was straying onto a lightless path where no matter how they struggled it was useless, blindly grasping at darkness.
"The reason the Son of Heaven did not thoroughly punish the cheat-writers was because of how extensively they were tied up with the powerful houses," said the Minister of Rites, tugging at his sparse beard. "But the throne did make its best effort to hold the Zhu house people accountable for having An Jun ghostwrite for them. An imperial edict stripped Zhu house's young master of his honors and achievements."
"To protect An Jun, the imperial house ordered him to study at the Imperial College. He has also been permitted to bypass the normal process and directly participate in the imperial exam. As long as he attains the scholarship candidacy, passing the palace exam afterward would cement him as an official candidate scholar."
This was practically equivalent to restoring An Jun's previous status as an examination graduate.
Although they were unable to reveal the truth behind the powerful families' involvement with exam fraud or rescue all the cheat-writers, the throne's handling of An Jun's case undoubtedly soothed the cheat-writer students' hearts.
Finally they no longer had to be afraid or live in fear that their experience would ruin their futures and official careers.
This news thoroughly invigorated Xu Mo and Qi Huai, sweeping away the gloom in their hearts.
Although the imperial house was neither decisively punitive enough nor sufficiently impartial, at least it did not blindly favor one side or disregard ordinary students as beneath notice.
That was enough.
They firmly believed that with sufficient effort in times ahead, once the throne was no longer so reliant on the powerful houses, both the exam fraud as well as any unjust or falsely accused cases in Fengjing could eventually come to light and receive fair trial and resolution.
The youths gazed ardently up at the heavens overhead.
A wind stirred, lifting their robes fluttering, as if to allow the heavens a glimpse of their conviction and resolve as well.
They strode forward with high-held heads, shining brightly, remarkably reminiscent of Dou Weiming and Qi Gongzhen twenty years ago in their primes.
The two middle-aged men exchanged a glance, smiling in that moment as if the sands of time had flowed backward to that passionate, dynamic era of their youth...
