Chapter 285: Announcing the Death

Chapter 285: Death Knell

"Ze Ning wrote a letter this thick? He must have really been pushed around this time." Meng Wan picked up the thickest letter on Song Tingzhou's desk. The envelope bore Zhu Ze Ning's courtesy name, and the seal had already been broken by Song Tingzhou. Meng Wan hefted it to gauge its thickness but didn't feel like reading it just yet.

Song Tingzhou pointed to the other letters on the desk. "There's one from Zhao Yuan too, plus one from Senior Brother and a few of my old classmates from the palace exam."

"You were never close with those guys anyway. You weren't particularly warm with them even in the capital, and after being posted to Lingnan, you've had no contact at all. What's their deal now, writing to you? They're not writing to chew you out, are they?"

Meng Wan picked up a letter from someone whose name he didn't even recognize and was completely grossed out by the sickly-sweet tone inside. He checked the envelope twice, then said in disbelief, "This is your fellow candidate? Now serving as a sixth-rank capital official? Why's he writing you such mushy stuff, like some lovesick schoolgirl?"

Honestly, Meng Wan felt a little queasy reading it.

"He's fifty-three this year. We were never close—just nodding acquaintances at best." Song Tingzhou said, his words coming a bit fast.

Of course, only people with no real ties to him dared write now. The ones who'd sucked up to Wu Qianzhang or stabbed him in the back wouldn't have the nerve to come crawling back.

Song Tingzhou didn't want to dwell on those pains in the neck, so he returned to the topic of Zhu Ze Ning and Wu Zhao Yuan. "Chai Jun has been giving Ze Ning a ton of grief over the Lan Niang business. Now that the little weasel's got power, Ze Ning just has to suck it up."

Meng Wan got it now—no wonder he'd written so much. Half that letter was probably just him trash-talking Chai Jun.

"There's no way around it for now; he's just gotta tough it out." As Meng Wan spoke, he picked up Lin Congrong's letter to read. It was way more to the point, just laying out the current state of the court.

Court officials who used to back the Crown Prince, openly or not, had gone quiet lately—some seemed totally deflated. Prince Lian's faction was growing increasingly active at court. Before, when they were recruiting, they didn't dare aim high—just scraped up small fry like Chai Jun. But now, the moment court let out, they had their underlings out there openly schmoozing people.

Lin Congrong was one of the ones being courted, and it was really getting to him—he was afraid it'd cause problems. He told Song Tingzhou not to write him for a while, so he wouldn't get dragged into it.

"Man, Senior Brother's worried about dragging us down—we'd be lucky not to drag him down." Meng Wan was genuinely touched. They only called Lin Congrong "Senior Brother" because of Xiang Yun, but he'd always looked out for the two of them, constantly scheming on Song Tingzhou's behalf.

Song Tingzhou could already tell Lin Congrong's situation was getting dicey. "Senior Brother's position is special. Anyone with half a brain can see His Majesty's grooming him for Minister of Personnel. It's no surprise Prince Lian wants to win him over."

Normally, even a crown prince wouldn't dare mess with imperial officials. But Prince Lian was a special case—he had a powerful maternal grandfather backing him. So the fact that Lin Congrong wrote this letter at all meant he might already be in hot water.

Meng Wan frowned. He'd long thought there was something seriously wrong with that Prince Lian. "So what do we do? We're stuck out here in Lingnan—can't do jack."

"It won't be long now." Song Tingzhou's voice was low. "The court's definitely gonna declare war on Annam around the autumn harvest." When that happens, the court'll be in chaos. For now, Lin Congrong just needs to keep his head down. The worry is, as one of the 'pure stream' types, he might refuse to bend and end up pissing off Prince Lian, who's only getting stronger.

With a rare day off, Song Tingzhou had a lot on his mind, and he kept pausing to write back to people. Meng Wan left him to it and took Huang Ye to the storeroom.

Fei Geer had been here for ages, and he still hadn't put together a welcome gift!

Meng Wan had a ton of nice stuff, usually kept by Huang Ye, who had it all sorted by category in the storeroom.

The two of them roped Xue Sheng into helping haul stuff, and after digging around for a bit, they found five fancy wooden boxes of different sizes. Meng Wan grabbed them all to take to Fei Geer.

"This welcome gift of yours is a bit much." Nie Zhiyao casually opened one small box and was instantly amazed. Inside was a whole box of pearls, wrapped in three layers of silk. Every pearl was the same size, like they'd been measured with a ruler—plump, glossy, way more valuable than your average pearl.

"The box you opened has the small ones—Fei Geer can get 'em sewn on his clothes or strung up as accessories."

Meng Wan opened another box. The pearls inside were of similar quality to the ones Nie Zhiyao had opened, just larger. "These are the big ones—he can have 'em set into jewelry."

"Wow!" Fei Geer was still a kid. He was usually well-behaved, but even he couldn't help gasping at all those gorgeous pearls.

Meng Wan smiled and led him over. "These are all from your little uncle for you to play with. See if you like 'em."

He casually opened the other three boxes for Fei Geer: one with raw jade, one with Zhuang brocade handkerchiefs, and one with jadeite and gemstones.

These were all things the typical young gentleman liked—classy, pricey, good for making jewelry or selling off. They certainly lived up to Nie Zhiyao's assessment of "generous."

The more Fei Geer looked, the more his eyes lit up. He snuck a glance at his dad.

He didn't know how much Meng Wan had made in Xiwu Prefecture over the years, but it was clear the guy's family fortune had gone up a notch or ten. Nie Zhiyao didn't bother with formalities and nodded at his son. "Your little uncle isn't an outsider. Since he gave them to you, accept them, and be sure to thank him."

Fei Geer gave a little whoop. "Thanks, Little Uncle!"

His favorites were the two boxes of pearls—prettier than any pearl jewelry he had. When he got home, he could have the servants set 'em into his shoes.

Fei Geer had his page carry the pearls and scurried back to his room, barely able to contain himself.

"Fei Geer was never this happy back in the capital." Nie Zhiyao watched his son's light-footed retreat, feeling a pang of sympathy.

Yuezheng Qi's family didn't treat him right, and his own relatives kept their distance. Every time he brought Fei Geer back, his brothers and sisters would mock him. He and Yuezheng Qi could take it, but Fei Geer was just a kid, and he got caught in the crossfire.

Even though they'd split from the family, skipping the holidays would be seen as unfilial. To keep up appearances, Fei Geer put up with a lot, and it made him timid at such a young age.

Meng Wan patted his arm. "Don't beat yourself up. I know things are rough for you in the capital. It's the world that's messed up—not you or Fei Geer."

Nie Zhiyao smiled. "You still know how to say the right thing."

Meng Wan smiled too. He knew Nie Zhiyao was sharper than most and wouldn't spiral into self-doubt or pointless worry.

He got up and invited Nie Zhiyao, "Wanna come with me to Heshan County tomorrow? We can also stop by Teacher Nie's place and see Nie's Second Husband."

"I was thinking the same thing. Glad I can go with you—I've been dying to see the famous Heshan Sugar Mill."

"Trust me, you won't be disappointed. Heshan County's got more than just my sugar mill these days."

Nie Zhiyao and his son settled in at the Song place. With Tong'er gone, Fei Geer picked up a new playmate. But A Yan thought Fei Geer was too uptight and didn't like playing with him—he'd rather hang out with his buddies from the academy.

Seeing how quiet and obedient Fei Geer was, Meng Wan suggested Nie Zhiyao send him to Songyun College. Fei Geer had never played with so many other kids before, and within days he went from dragging his feet to begging to go.

In the dead of summer, the court finally issued the decree: Prince Lian would lead troops to crush Annam, and all officials in Qinzhou were to stand by for support.

He rolled in with a big show, and the Provincial Administration Commission staff fell all over themselves to suck up to him. Officials in Xiwu Prefecture and Qinzhou all took their cues from Song Tingzhou. They might've wanted to suck up to the prince, but without Song Tingzhou's go-ahead, they stayed in line behind their boss.

"Lord Song, long time no see—you're looking as sharp as ever! The Ministry of Personnel's noted your fine work handling the epidemic in Qinzhou in your eval file. I'm sure good news is coming after autumn." Prince Lian held his chin up, his fancy, lightweight robes giving him an air of authority. His mom was the emperor's favorite consort, so Prince Lian was naturally good-looking, but the ambition in his eyes always showed through and made people uncomfortable.

He blew right past the Provincial Administration Commissioner, who'd been groveling, and went straight to Song Tingzhou. The commissioner's face fell for a second before he covered it up.

Nobody in that position was stupid—if Prince Lian caught that look on his face, he'd be screwed.

Song Tingzhou bowed. "Your Highness is too kind. I was just doing my job." His posture and tone were perfectly proper, but compared to the other officials' groveling, he came off a little cold.

The smile on Prince Lian's lips disappeared as he shot Song Tingzhou a dark look. "Lord Song's so capable—go to the border and help me collect military provisions."

Song Tingzhou kept that same flat tone. "Your Highness must be joking. I hear the Ministry of Revenue already allocated funds for the troops. Why would we need to levy supplies in Lingnan?"

Aside from the prefectures around Xiwu Prefecture that'd gotten rich, Lingnan was still mostly dirt poor. Qinzhou had literally gotten disaster relief from the court earlier this year. Levying military supplies here now? That's just ridiculous.

Only Song Tingzhou could stay calm in the face of such a ridiculous demand. The Provincial Administration Commissioner had already shrunk into the background, not daring to step up. If they seized all the grain in Lingnan for Prince Lian, the people would starve and turn into a wave of refugees. When the court came looking for someone to blame, Prince Lian would walk away clean—but him? He wouldn't just get demoted; he'd lose his head over it.

Screw sucking up to the prince—he needed to save his own skin!

Prince Lian had planned to give Song Tingzhou a little face, but the guy was impossible to win over. As a prince, ever since the Crown Prince died, who at court didn't show him respect? Getting shot down over and over by Song Tingzhou's cluelessness, he started to get pissed.

His advisor, Master Mo, who was right behind him, caught the shift and jumped in before the prince could blow his top. "Your Highness, we should get going to the military camp."

Prince Lian let out a cold snort, thinking that once he took the throne, even if people tried to talk him out of it, he'd find a way to have this man killed on the down low.

The spring exam came every three years and would keep feeding the court fresh talent—the empire's scholars weren't just limited to Song Tingzhou.

A prince who pays back every slight is not someone you mess with. Even though Prince Lian, held back by his advisor's and Xia Yuan's warnings, didn't send men to kill Song Tingzhou, he still found plenty of petty ways to make his life difficult once he got to Lingnan.

The royal family and commoners are worlds apart. Song Tingzhou had clawed his way to his current position through sheer vigilance, yet Prince Lian casually ordered him about for any excuse.

Meng Wan had no idea Song Tingzhou was being pushed around. In Xiwu Prefecture, he got hit with sudden, devastating news.

"Master, the old lady gave specific instructions before she passed—she asked us to tell you not to grieve when we brought you the news. She said... she had lived to such an old age, painted the vast landscapes of the Yu Kingdom, and taken in such an outstanding disciple as you—she had no regrets in this life." A middle-aged man in coarse yellow-white hemp clothing stood before Meng Wan, his face worn with exhaustion and grief.

This was Mother Geng's son, who had come from far away to break the news of the deaths. Xiang Yun and Lin Yi, the couple who had retired to the countryside in Yangzhou, had both passed away.

Meng Wan's mind went blank for a moment, his vision blurring into a swirl of colors. He staggered backward and fell into a chair, the wood scraping against the floor with a jarring sound. His voice came out raspy as he choked out the words, "How could this be? At this time... my master and her husband... they're both gone?"

Nie Zhiyao steadied his arm and offered comfort, his voice tinged with sorrow, "Mr. Xiang and Lord Lin had already reached a ripe old age—this is a celebration of a long life. You shouldn't grieve too deeply."

Meng Wan shut his red-rimmed eyes, his lips trembling slightly as he said to Mother Geng's son, "Go get some rest for the night. I'll send someone to Hexian County to let Second Uncle Nie know. Once he arrives, we'll set out for Yangzhou."

After Xiang Yun had passed, Mother Geng's son had rushed straight to Xiwu Prefecture to deliver the news, so worn out from the journey that he could barely keep his eyes open. Hearing this, he bowed to Meng Wan and followed Gui Cheng to the guest room to rest.

Nie Zhiyao stayed to offer a few more words of comfort to Meng Wan before leaving. Nie Zhiyao himself had no direct ties to Xiang Yun—she only saw him as a regular junior because of Second Nie Furen. Since Meng Wan and Second Nie Furen were going to deliver the news, it made sense for him to tag along.

Once everyone else was gone, Meng Wan buried his face in his sleeves on the side table, crying silently. In his previous life, fate had been unkind—his parents died early, and he never got to enjoy much family love. Luckily, Chang Jinhua later raised him like her own son, so he got to experience a real mother-child bond. Chang Jinhua was his closest kin.

Xiang Yun was different. She wasn't a strict teacher, nor did she care for juniors as attentively as Chang Jinhua, but her protectiveness toward Meng Wan was obvious. She was the second most important elder to him.

Meng Wan knew she and Lin Yi were old and didn't have much time left, but he never thought the day would come so fast. Even though he'd braced himself, the grief still hit him hard.

His muffled sobs sounded like his mouth was stuffed with cotton. Meng Wan hid his whole face in his wide sleeves, his shoulders shaking slightly as grief filled the empty room.

Someone gently pulled his hands away, asking in a soft, tender voice, "Wan'er? What's wrong?"

"Song Tingzhou... my master and her husband... they... they're dead..." Meng Wan sobbed like a heartbroken child, collapsing into Song Tingzhou's arms, his cries fading into wordless tears.

Song Tingzhou's eyes widened for a split second. He held Meng Wan tightly, recalling the image of Lin Yi and Xiang Yun's last visit to Xiwu, and his eyes also filled with sorrow. "Their letters after the new year were fine—how could this happen so suddenly?"