Qiang Jin Jiu (Author : Tang Jiuqing 唐酒卿)

Chapter 137 : Letter Reading

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Shen Zechuan was writing a letter in the room, so Qiao Tianya and Fei Sheng took their leave. 

Fei Sheng felt the itch to smoke, but did not dare to do so while standing under the eaves, worried that he would reek of smoke should Shen Zechuan call for him later. He stood still for a moment, but when he saw that Qiao Tianya wasn’t moving along, he knew what this was all about. 

“Something’s the matter, huh?” Fei Sheng took a few steps outwards, leaning against the banisters along the corridor. “Tell me first, what kind of relationship do you have with that ‘Unpolished Jade Yuanzhuo’?” 

“We’ve met before, but we’re not close. I have some impression of him.” Qiao Tianya mentioned casually. 

The more Qiao Tianya tried to make light of the matter, the more suspicious Fei Sheng was. He asked, “Yao Wenyu isn’t a court official but a commoner who spends most of the year traveling out there. It’s even difficult for Marquis Helian to meet him. Where did you encounter him?”

“Fate brought us together.” Qiao Tianya did not answer seriously. “I didn’t expect it either. Isn’t this why I’m asking you to help me ask around?”

As Fei Sheng could get nothing out of him, he gave up probing and reported. “Secretariat Elder Hai, before he met with mishap, had previously wanted Yao Wenyu to leave Qudu and return to Jincheng, the hometown of the Yao Clan. There are students of Grand Preceptor Yao there who could watch over him on behalf of the Secretariat Elder, but Yao Wenyu didn’t go.”

Qiao Tianya uttered an “oh” and remained standing under the eaves to watch as the rain continued to fall. 

Fei Sheng continued, “Yao Wenyu had probably realized at that time that Secretariat Elder Hai asked him to leave because he had already made up his mind to remonstrate to the death. So Yao Wenyu got on the carriage and circled around once before returning to wait in the residence for Secretariat Elder Hai to finish court. Who would’ve known that what he ended up with was news of Secretariat Elder Hai’s death instead?”

Droplets of rain dampened the toes of Qiao Tianya’s boots as he watched the gradually intensifying haze in the courtyard. His gaze fell upon a puddle, and he saw his own reflection.

Fei Sheng paused for a moment. It was only when he observed that Qiao Tianya’s expression was normal that he continued. “When Secretariat Elder was buried, tens of thousands of people came to send him off. Yao Wenyu was his only student, and he conducted the funeral for Secretariat Elder as a son would for his own father. It didn’t take a few days for the students from the Imperial College to start a riot; all of his books were torn entirely. If not for Kong Qiu hiding him in time, he may very well have ended up getting ripped to shreds by the students. However, he seems to have vanished into thin air after the matter of the emperor’s daughter was revealed. My informers in Qudu couldn’t find a trace of him either.” 

Qiao Tianya shifted his gaze to him and repeated, “Vanished?” 

“That’s right, he vanished.” Fei Sheng lifted the arm he had placed against the banister and drew a circle in the air. “When I escaped from Qudu with you, I lost contact with my informers for a period of time, and I only re-established contact with them a short while back. By then, Yao Wenyu had already vanished. Qudu is the territory the Imperial Bodyguards are most familiar with. If my men say he disappeared, it’s more than likely he’s dead.” 

Qiao Tianya immediately replied, “Impossible. Kong Qiu still wants to revive the moderates, and Yao Wenyu is an indispensable candidate. Whether it’s for official or personal reasons, Kong Qiu would never let him die.”