Chang Zhi had the list in his hand and knew clearly that the Ding family's scholar had lost his title, but the list did not mention that the family had borrowed money at interest. Hearing another cry, Chang Zhi walked over with a heavy heart.
The servant stopped him and said, "It's dangerous ahead."
The guard dressed as a servant also whispered: "It's better to be careful."
Chang Zhi waved his hand and said, "Nothing, let's go over and take a look."
When they arrived at the door of Ding's house, they saw an old woman lying in a pool of blood in the yard. A couple and several children were kneeling beside her. The five debt collectors were dumbfounded.
One of the men said, "It's bad luck."
The kneeling man grabbed the knife on the ground, his eyes red, "Say it again?"
The man's eyes were full of sarcasm. "Master Xiucai, no, you are no longer a scholar. How dare you fight me with a knife? Humph, the old lady committed suicide. If you want to hate someone, don't hate me. You should hate your elder brother who died a long time ago."
The man seemed to have been drained of his energy, and the knife in his hand fell to the ground. Two older children froze, their eyes filled with fear and confusion.
Chang Zhi also got all the information from the conversation of the villagers. The kneeling man was the person he was looking for. The one who borrowed money with interest was his elder brother Ding Jue. He borrowed some silver when he went to take part in the Autumn Examination. He failed the examination which he was sure to win. His mother at home was seriously ill. The elder brother at home could not borrow money and had nowhere else to go, so he was deceived into borrowing money with interest.
One can imagine what happened next. After failing the exam, he had to repay the borrowed money and interest. He sold the last piece of land in the family to repay the borrowed money, but once the interest was borrowed, he could never pay it back. To make matters worse, Ding Jue lost his official title. In order to repay the money, Ding Jue's eldest brother died unexpectedly, and his sister-in-law left behind two children.
The Ding family has not had a single day of peace in the past few years.
Chang Zhi looked up at the sky, but he couldn't get rid of the anger in his heart until the sky was clear.
The servant lowered his voice and said, "The one who lends money at interest is the Third Master of the An Family."
Chang Zhi nodded and said, "Even if the people given by the emperor want to investigate you, they can find out even if you hide behind the scenes. Besides, the An family is not low-key."
At noon in the capital, Zhou Shuren left the Ministry of Revenue and went to a teahouse. Wang Ju had arrived early and was sipping tea while listening to storytelling downstairs.
Zhou Shuren came in, "You finally went out."
This was the first time Wang Ju stepped out of the house after the old man left, which shows how sad Wang Ju was after the old man left.
Wang Ju signaled the servant to close the door of the box and poured tea herself, "I won't go out, and you won't come to see me."
He thought he could get comfort from Zhou Shuren, but it turned out that this guy didn't return the notes in person!
Zhou Shuren shuddered, "Speak properly."
Wang Ju cleared her throat and said, "I'm out of touch with the news at home, so I don't want to come to you to comfort you."
Zhou Shuren glanced sideways and said, "It has nothing to do with your Wang family."
Wang Ju understood, "It doesn't matter. I'm just afraid of falling into a trap that I shouldn't fall into."
Zhou Shuren, "With me watching, what are you afraid of?"
Wang Ju then smiled and said, "Then I will continue to stay at home."
Zhou Shuren stroked his beard and said, "It's been a while since we last met. You've lost so much weight that I almost didn't recognize you."
Wang Ju pointed at her belly and said, "It's gone. The clothes have all been altered."
Zhou Shuren said sincerely: "Keep it up, I think you are healthier now."
Wang Ju laughed dryly, "That's what the doctor said, too."
The two chatted about other things, and Wang Ju suddenly asked, "The Changzhong Prefecture exam is over, aren't you worried about it?"
"I have confidence in him."
Wang Ju said cheerfully, "I am also waiting for your family to produce a top scholar."
He also has confidence in Changzhong. When he goes to the Marquis' Mansion, he will test Changzhong when he meets him. This child is likely to fulfill the Zhou family's dream.
In Pingzhou, Changzhong brought Minghui to the appointment. Cheng Xiang had seen the two from afar. When he saw them arrive, he hurriedly stood up to greet them, "Please come in, gentlemen."
Changzhong looked up and saw other people in the box. He nodded and walked in.
Cheng Xiang introduced them, "They are all sons of officials in the prefecture. They knew that Master Zhou accepted my invitation, so they came here shamelessly."
Changzhong, "Nice to meet you."
Cheng Xiang breathed a sigh of relief and continued to warmly invite everyone to sit down. He then said, "There's no need to introduce these two people. Everyone knows them. Please introduce yourselves."
Then they introduced themselves one by one, and they were indeed the sons of officials in the prefecture.
Changzhong and Minghui are the center of attention at today's banquet. To them, these are just small events. Changzhong's circle of friends is too high, and Minghui's circle of friends is not low either, so they are very calm.
Cheng Xiang looked at it for a while and understood what was going on. He was indeed a young master of the Marquisate. "Come on, stop talking, let's have some tea."
Changzhong raised his eyebrows slightly. This prefectural son was quite interesting. He was always setting the pace for the banquet and was very good at controlling it. He was not annoying at all.
Cheng Xiang saw Master Zhou looking at him and said with a smile, "My father was talking about you yesterday."
"What did the prefect say?"
Cheng Xiang, "Let me read more of your article."
He ran away during the day yesterday and was taken to the study by his father at night. He finally read Zhou Changzhong's article and blushed.
The party ended quickly. Knowing that Changzhong was coming back to take the imperial examination, no one dared to take him to any indecent place. In the end, only Cheng Xiang was left, and everyone else left.
Changzhong, "You want to send us back?"
Cheng Xiang glanced at the guards beside the carriage and said, "I would like to, but it's a pity that I can't use it."
Minghui said playfully: "Then let's go ahead."
Cheng Xiang moved the corners of his mouth, but didn't say anything in the end. After the people left, he sighed and thought that his father's plan to use the young master of the Zhou family to enter the Marquis' Mansion was not likely to succeed!
In Xiaoxi Village, Chuanzhou, Changzhi came back again. The Ding family had already passed away. The coffins in the yard were all borrowed, and not many villagers came to help. The scene seemed particularly desolate.
The servant held the document in his arms and said, "Sir, shall we send it over now?"
Chang Zhi, "Well, don't let the old man leave without peace of mind."
He sent someone to pay back the silver and get the receipt back. The Ding family had repaid more than twenty taels of silver over the past few years, but the borrowed silver was less than one tael. If no one had died, it would have been difficult to get the receipt back.
The person sent by the emperor had his own connections, so he didn't need to go out and got the document in the afternoon.
When the servant entered the yard, crying broke out again. Then Ding Jue ran out of the yard, stumbling all the way, and finally knelt in front of Chang Zhi.
Chang Zhi looked down at Ding Jue, "What are you doing?"
Ding Jue felt that his life was particularly ridiculous. He passed the imperial examination smoothly all the way, but the second autumn imperial examination was a life-changing event. In the past two years, he had seen a lot of ups and downs. When he was most discouraged, he saw the light again. "Sir, please let my mother go in peace. I have no merits and cannot repay you. What do you think of me?"
Changzhi frowned, "Are you going to sell yourself?"
Ding Jue smiled bitterly, "My family really can't afford to pay you back, sir."
He didn't want to sell himself as he had a family to support, but he really couldn't afford to pay the money back to the gentleman!