Chapter 17: Amending the Marriage Certificate

Chapter 17: Amending the Marriage Certificate

Du Yunse stepped forward half a step, shielding Qiu Huanian, and asked coldly, "Who are you?"

This action infuriated the young man in the scholar's scarf, who sneered sarcastically, "The prodigy has a poor memory. I wonder if you’ve gotten used to village life after slinking back like a stray dog this time?"

His voice was loud, drawing the attention of many in the eatery.

Qiu Huanian looked at the familiar, unpleasant expression on the man's face and finally remembered who he was.

Qiu Huanian tugged at Du Yunse's sleeve and whispered, "It's Du Yunjing, the second son of Uncle Baoquan and Zhao. He’s already passed the scholar exam and is now studying at the county school."

Because of his feud with Zhao, Qiu Huanian had thoroughly researched the family structure.

Du Yunjing rarely stayed in the village, and the original owner of Qiu Huanian's body seldom went out or spoke to others, so Du Yunjing was a vague figure in the original owner's memory. Qiu Huanian hadn’t immediately recognized his face.

Seeing the two of them whispering intimately and ignoring him, Du Yunjing’s eyes flared with anger, and he gritted his teeth, "Du Yunse, don’t think you’re so great. It’s just dumb luck. What do you have to compare with me now?"

Du Yunse looked at him, his tone still calm, "Are we that familiar with each other?"

Qiu Huanian couldn’t help but laugh, quickly hiding his face behind Du Yunse to control his expression.

"Alright, alright!" Du Yunjing laughed in anger, then suddenly changed his tone, "Du Yunse, your young husband is still youthful and attractive. After so many years alone in the village, you don’t think he’s been faithfully waiting for you, do you?"

This statement almost explicitly suggested that he and Qiu Huanian had been involved in an affair. Du Yunse’s face instantly turned cold.

Seeing this, Du Yunjing finally felt a sense of triumph. Before he could press further, Du Yunse spoke, "I am your elder clansman. You dare to slander your elder clansman and his spouse in public, spreading rumors. Is this how the teachers at the county school have taught you?"

Qiu Huanian also spoke up loudly, "The lewd see lewdness, the pure see purity. You’re slandering others with your wild imagination. What’s the difference between you and a scoundrel? If this gets back to the county school, do you think you’ll still have the dignity to continue studying there?"

The people in the eatery watched the drama unfold. Seeing Du Yunse assert his position as the elder clansman and Qiu Huanian speak so reasonably, they quickly sided with them.

"Causing trouble for his elder clansman in public and slandering his sister-in-law to her face—if this were my son, I’d slap him twice."

"The couple clearly didn’t want to engage with him, but he just wouldn’t back down."

"Is he really a scholar? How shameless!"

Du Yunjing’s face turned pale, and he finally calmed down a bit.

He hadn’t known that Du Yunse had returned to the village. Seeing him suddenly in the city, accompanied by a cheerful Qiu Huanian, he had acted impulsively and confronted them.

Now, coming to his senses, he realized that the academy exam was only two months away. At this critical moment of preparing for the scholar exam, he couldn’t afford any mistakes.

If Du Yunse and Qiu Huanian’s words reached the county school, things would turn bad. The teacher at the county school had intentions of making him his son-in-law, and he couldn’t let this get out...

Du Yunjing’s expression shifted several times, and he finally left the eatery with a parting shot, "We’ll see who comes out on top in the end."

With this interruption, Qiu Huanian no longer felt like eating noodles. He pulled Du Yunse out of the eatery, and after walking in silence for a while, he said, "About that Du Yunjing—"

"I know," Du Yunse looked down at him, "You wouldn’t be interested in someone like that."

Qiu Huanian laughed, suddenly feeling playful, "Then in your eyes, what kind of person should I be interested in?"

Du Yunse didn’t speak, but his eyes answered the question.

—Me.

Finally, Qiu Huanian looked away, slightly embarrassed, and pointed to another eatery not far away, "Let’s check that place out. It looks pretty busy."

The prices in the county town were slightly higher than in the town. Qiu Huanian and Du Yunse ordered two small dishes and two bowls of rice, spending a total of thirty copper coins.

After finishing their meal, they found a place selling fabric. The county town's fabric shops sold silk and satin, with rolls of smooth, thin, and resilient materials adorned with beautiful patterns, shining brilliantly under the indoor light.

The prices were also quite high. The most ordinary jacquard silk cost 1.5 taels of silver, while satin averaged around 3 taels.

Qiu Huanian glanced at them, admiring the beauty of traditional Chinese silk products, then turned to look at cotton fabric.

Du Yunse followed his gaze to the expensive materials. When he was in the capital, Du Yunse had seen many more luxurious fabrics. Those beauties with tinkling ornaments and flowing sleeves, but he had never paid much attention to what they wore.

But now, associating these luxurious garments with Qiu Huanian, Du Yunse's heart immediately warmed.

His Brother Hua was clearly more handsome than those people. If dressed up, he would be stunningly attractive. Unfortunately, he couldn't even afford a foot of such fabric.

"Yun Se, look at this," Qiu Huanian's voice interrupted Du Yunse's thoughts.

He turned to see Qiu Huanian gesturing to a roll of moon-white cotton fabric with the shop assistant.

"How about this color? For making a long gown for you."

Qiu Huanian had originally planned to buy a roll of fabric to make a set of short clothes for each of the four people. But after learning that Du Yunse would be taking the academy exam in two months, he changed his mind.

Short clothes only reached the thighs, saving fabric and allowing for easy movement, a common style for villagers and servants, but not very presentable.

Although Du Yunse might not mind wearing short clothes to the prefectural city for the academy exam, Qiu Huanian still wanted to dress him up. Seeing Du Yunjing dressed in a long gown, this idea became even firmer.

Even if Du Yunse wore a sack, he would still look more dignified than Du Yunjing, but he couldn't really dress worse than him for the exam!

Du Yunse didn't respond immediately, so Qiu Huanian continued on his own, "When you go to the prefectural city for the exam, even for good luck, you should make a new set of clothes. Dark-colored fabrics don't suit you. Do you want this light blue one, or another color?"

The shop assistant, who dealt with customers daily and was well-informed, realized upon hearing Qiu Huanian's words that the other young man would be taking the academy exam in two months.

In Zhang County, it was rare to see someone so young confident about passing the academy exam. The assistant quickly put on a smile and eagerly made recommendations.

"The scholar gentleman is good-looking, so naturally, he should choose good fabric to match. This ice-colored fabric is also nice, light and elegant, perfect for spring and summer; and this Changrong-colored fabric, matching the gentleman's noble aura, has a good name too."

Du Yunse hadn't yet passed the academy exam, but the assistant, aiming to sell, naturally started with auspicious words.

Ice color was light cyan, and Changrong color was light purple. As the assistant introduced each color, Qiu Huanian thought they would all look good on Du Yunse.

Seeing that Qiu Huanian seemed interested, the assistant turned to another counter, pointing at the expensive fabrics, "If these don't suit, why not cut half a roll of our newly arrived golden carp-patterned jacquard silk? It would make a very striking outfit for the gentleman."

The golden-red jacquard silk in the assistant's hands emitted a soft luster, with the carp patterns woven vividly.

Seeing Qiu Huanian's eyes truly showing interest, Du Yunse quickly went over to stop him, "Brother Hua, what do I need such expensive fabric for? Even if we buy, it should be for you."

Qiu Huanian calmed down, regretfully shifting his gaze from the jacquard silk. This roll of silk was priced at two taels of silver, half a roll at one tael, far exceeding their budget for this purchase.

Finally, Qiu Huanian chose a roll of Changrong color and a roll of moon-white cotton fabric. Both were light colors, with light purple and light blue matching well, allowing one to be used for the top and the other for the pants, avoiding everyone wearing the same.

Qiu Huanian skillfully bargained, using his clever tongue and pleasant appearance to buy two rolls of cotton fabric at the same price as in the town, spending a total of eight hundred wen, and also getting a pack of matching cotton thread from the shop.

Carrying the fabric, they returned to where they bought cotton. The cotton had already been stuffed into covers to become bedding cores. After packing everything into bundles on the cart, using straw as a base and securing it with ropes, they headed to the final stop of their trip—the county office.

Du Yunse had just visited the county office two days ago, and the guards remembered him, not giving them any trouble. They immediately went in to report, and soon, Magistrate Wang expressed a desire to meet Du Yunse personally.

Two guards came to take the horse and cart to the backyard for settling. Qiu Huanian followed Du Yunse to meet Magistrate Wang.

Magistrate Wang had served in Zhang County for over fifteen years. Without connections above, he had never been promoted. Over the years, he gradually lost interest in advancement, immersing himself in poetry, calligraphy, and painting.

Magistrate Wang greatly admired the contemporary scholar Wen Huiyang. He was deeply impressed by Du Yunse, the disciple Wen Huiyang personally brought to Zhang County.

When Mr. Wen initially said that Du Yunse was not allowed to take the imperial examinations for ten years, Magistrate Wang was very puzzled. Such a prodigy should have amazed the world while still young, so why was he not allowed to take the exams?

He prepared a meal and wine to ask Mr. Wen, who laughed heartily and said something that made him reflect with shame.

"Talent does not necessarily translate to practical ability, and writing essays is different from governing a region. He is still young, and having such talent is extremely rare, like a rare and precious gem. If he were to pass the imperial examinations and become an official too early, it would ruin him. It is better for him to travel with me, see the world, and learn how to turn his intelligence into political skill."

Now, Du Yunse has returned from his studies, almost ten years since then. Magistrate Wang is curious about the depth of knowledge this prodigy now possesses.

After paying respects to the magistrate, Du Yunse explained the purpose of his visit. Hearing it was a minor matter, Magistrate Wang directly had the constables take the proof documents to the county clerk to write the marriage certificate, while he himself began to test Du Yunse on the spot.

Magistrate Wang was a legitimate jinshi, having passed both imperial examinations, and in recent years, he had been devoted to poetry and books, with considerable scholarly knowledge. He intended to test him, asking many challenging questions, but Du Yunse answered them all with calm confidence.

Qiu Huanian listened for a while but soon couldn't understand. He had no knowledge of ancient texts or books, and his related knowledge only reached the high school level, most of which he had forgotten.

After half an hour, Magistrate Wang sighed contentedly, "Not bad. Compared to before, you have broader knowledge and better judgment. It appears Mr. Wen's words were entirely accurate."

"Will you take the autumn examinations next year?"

Magistrate Wang did not ask about the academy exam. In his view, it was a foregone conclusion that Du Yunse would pass the scholar examination in two months. After all, if not for Mr. Wen's intervention, he should have been a scholar ten years ago.

"I intend to sit for the examinations next year," Du Yunse replied. Having spent some time at the county school, he could refer to himself as a student in front of the magistrate.

"Excellent! I look forward to the day you top the golden list!"

Thinking of Du Yunse's family's difficulties, Magistrate Wang took a book from the shelf, "This is the 'Academy Exam Compendium' newly compiled by the county school last year. With your knowledge, you don't need to attend the county school specifically before the academy exam. Reading this book will suffice."

He then instructed the constables, "Go to the storeroom and take three reams of Xuan paper and three sets of writing brushes and ink for Mr. Du."

A single sheet of ordinary Xuan paper costs 3 wen, and a ream contains a hundred sheets. Just three reams of Xuan paper are worth nearly one tael of silver. Du Yunse wanted to decline, but Magistrate Wang said, "How can you take the imperial examinations without paper and brushes? As a magistrate, it is my duty to nurture the scholars under my jurisdiction. I won't force you to accept other things, but you must take these."

"If you wish to repay me, the proper way is to pass the provincial examination with high honors next year and add a line to my political achievements."

Knowing that Du Village was far away, Magistrate Wang let them leave after the marriage certificate was delivered. Before leaving, Qiu Huanian remembered the traffickers' matter. Du Yunse, seeing what he was thinking, specifically asked Magistrate Wang.

"I have already sent official documents to several surrounding counties, asking them to cooperate in the case. I estimate we will have results in about half a month. Until then, the case details will be temporarily sealed. Do not spread rumors when you return."

Magistrate Wang remembered that two people in the jail were relatives of Du Yunse's husband. To give him face, he asked, "Do you have any thoughts about your two relatives?"

Qiu Huanian, of course, would not plead for them, "Magistrate, you enforce the law impartially for the people. I have no thoughts; whatever should be done, let it be done."

Hearing this, Magistrate Wang chuckled and thought more highly of him. With Du Yunse's talent, if he were paired with a clumsy and filial country husband, Magistrate Wang would inevitably feel it a pity.