Chapter 061
Author: Feast of Masks
Raws: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=3185016
Translated by Gumihou
“A spy?”
Xue Tingxiang nodded. “There is something odd about the situation. There had to be a spy for everything to make sense.”
“So, what do you plan to do now? Send people out to search every village?” Zhao’er asked.
Seeing the hesitation flicker across his face, she added, “Rather than casting a wide net, I think it’s better to fish with intent. That student’s family must still be in Qinghe Academy right now. Why not sneak into Qinghe Academy and find out what we can?”
“But how?”
“Don’t forget Xue Juncai!”
That’s right, ah. Xue Juncai was a student at Qinghe Academy.
“Will he help us?” Xue Tingxiang frowned. He despised asking others for help, especially from someone he had once regarded as a sworn enemy. Even if that old resentment had faded, the mere mention of ‘Xue Juncai’ was enough to stir his aversion.
Zhao’er glanced at him and sighed. “Xue Juncai may be annoying, but he’s not a bad person. Don’t pin the sins of your uncle and aunt on him.”
Xue Tingxiang pressed his lips together and said nothing.
It was the same old tale of inherited guilt. So long as Xue Juncai was the son of the main branch, he also bore their sins in the eyes of the second branch.
“Did you forget that time when you were little? He used to share his snacks with you. It was your grandmother and your aunt who stopped him from doing so. You also turned away from him. That’s the reason why the two of you drifted apart.”
That was true enough. When they were much younger, the two had been close. But after his parents’ deaths, Xue Tingxiang had instinctively pushed the main branch away. Each time Xue Juncai came to visit, he was met with cold indifference. In time, they became estranged.
Yet, once upon a time, the two of them had even studied books together.
Books were precious and expensive, and the Xue family could not afford a full set for every grandson. Xue Juncai used the primer that had once belonged to Xue Qingshan, while Xue Tingxiang had none of his own. So the two boys would sit together, poring over the same pages. That was when they both learned their first characters.
It was painful to recall these memories, and the old bitterness still lingered. Knowing what lay behind his silence, Zhao’er said softly, “I’ll go talk to him. If he can help, good. If not, we’ll think of something else.”
Please read this at kitchennovel dot com ~
Meanwhile, turmoil was spreading within both academies—Qingyuan and Qinghe alike.
Someone had mysteriously died in the middle of the night, within their dormitory, frightening everyone in the room.
Unlike Qingyuan, Qinghe Academy boasted a far larger student population and required all students to live in the school dorms. This meant their dormitories housed eight to ten students per room. Xue Juncai happened to share a room with Sun He (river). In fact, Sun He’s bed was right next to his.
That afternoon, Sun He had not gone to class, which Xue Juncai had found odd. When he asked the youth what was wrong, Sun He (river) had refused to answer.
Later, he noticed the youth pressing on his stomach repeatedly and assumed that the youth must be suffering from some stomach ailments. That night, after the lights were doused, he had heard faint groans drifting over from the next bed. Xue Juncai was not the only one who heard it. Xu Hai, another dorm-mate nearby, heard the groans too and even scolded Sun He for disturbing his sleep.
Back then, Sun He had not said anything. Neither did Xue Juncai.
It was not uncommon for bullying to happen between senior and junior students. Xue Juncai only started learning about the harsh reality of the world after entering Qinghe Academy.
Like him, Sun He was an outcast. Though a senior student, his family’s poverty made him the target of ridicule. The wealthy sons in the academy often took pleasure in teasing and humiliating him. At first, Xue Juncai had bristled against such behaviour, but in the end, helplessness prevailed. He learned to bend, to bring silver from home as offerings of goodwill—only then could he avoid being singled out.
Sometimes, when the night was deep and silent, he would wonder when it would all end.
But he had no choice but to endure. His parents and grandparents had pinned all their hopes upon him. He knew well that they had sold off land so that he could study. And as for the second branch of the family, he knew too how the villagers gossiped, how they compared him to them. He had to prove that he, Xue Juncai, was the most capable member of the Xue family. Therefore, even if he could not endure it, endure it he must.
But Sun He’s death had nearly broken him.
He had watched with his own eyes how Sun He had coughed blood and died. The dark red blood had gushed from his mouth like an unending river. Everyone in the dormitory froze in horror. When the teachers and headmaster arrived, they sealed off the entire room that night.
No one knew what had truly happened. All feared that Sun He’s death might somehow drag them down as well. The night stretched long and sleepless until dawn, when at last they were finally released.
The headmaster had spoken to them then, and from that day onward, Sun He(river)’s name became taboo. No one was permitted to mention it again.
Yet Xue Juncai more or less guessed what had transpired. He heard that Sun He’s family had come, and even made their way to Qingyuan Academy. He also knew that this matter would not touch him, so long as he kept his mouth shut.
But how exactly had Sun He died?
The question gnawed at him for the past two days. He thought of Sun He’s unusually delicate features, of how he would return after being summoned by those wealthy youths, pale as a ghost. When coupled with the whispered gossip he had overheard…
Each time, he would lurch awake from a nightmare in cold sweat.
“Xue Juncai, your elder sister’s here to see you.”
He sat up on his bunk, dazed. He must have dozed off.
Elder sister?
He got down clumsily, still half-asleep. As he was being led out, someone hissed into his ear, “Remember what the Headmaster said. Do not speak of anything you shouldn’t.”
He flinched and nodded faintly.
A tall young woman stood within the reception hall. She was bright and striking in appearance with her almond-shaped eyes, high nose and red lips. Her long hair was coiled neatly into a bun with two thin braids falling down on either side of her cheeks. She wore a blue headscarf decorated with tiny white flowers on her head.
A single glance was enough for anyone to tell that she was a village girl.
Yet, her beauty was undeniable. Though her skin was darker than that of those delicate city ladies, she carried a vitality and warmth that they could never match.
When Xue Juncai saw Zhao’er, he froze in place.
He had never seen her dressed like this. Normally, Zhao’er cared little for appearance. At most, she would put up her hair neatly, but that was it. He had never seen her dressed up so well as today.
“Juncai! You’ve no idea how much your sister’s missed you!” she greeted brightly, stepping forward with a smile, her voice warm and affectionate.
He blinked, startled, and murmured, “Sister…”
“Aiya, what happened to you? Look how thin you’ve gotten in just a few days. Your little aunt’s wedding came and went, yet we didn’t see you at all. Mother’s been so worried, afraid that something’s happened to you, or that you’re not eating properly. So she sent me to bring you some food from home. Here, there’s meat, eggs, and look at these big white buns.”
Her warmth was overwhelming. She sounded every bit the caring sister. Worn down by anxiety these last few days, Xue Juncai felt his eyes prickle as she held his hand and fussed over him.
“What’s wrong?” Zhao’er asked gently, wondering if she had actually frightened him.
“I’m fine… just busy with lessons. That’s why I didn’t go back this time,” he murmured.
The attendant standing by relaxed.
“It’s good that you’re well,” Zhao’er said, setting down the bamboo basket on the table. “Come, see what I brought.”
She lifted the cloth covering the basket. Inside were a dish of stir-fried meat, two small clay jars, and several soft white buns wrapped in cloth.
The dish was called ‘Meat Passed Through Oil’, it was essentially thin slices of pork that were quickly fried in hot oil and tossed with different kinds of vegetables and seasoning. For this dish, Zhao’er had included black fungus, green peppers, sliced cucumbers, pickled bamboo shoots and a small spoonful of bright red chilli peppers. The aroma filled the room.
It was unmistakably Zhao’er’s cooking.
Xue Juncai glanced at her. He had often watched her prepare food for Gouzi, and though he had secretly longed for a taste, he had never had the courage to ask.
“Come, have a few bites. If you don’t eat anything, how can I face Mother later?” she urged. Then she cast a glance at the attendant. “Sir, you must be a teacher from this school? Have you eaten? Perhaps you’d like to join us. It’s just some humble country fare; I hope you won’t find it coarse.”
The attendant had been sneaking glances all along, swallowing hard at the aroma. Being called out so directly made him flush with embarrassment.
He cleared his throat and said stiffly, “You’re too kind, miss. I’m not a teacher.” Then, to Xue Juncai, he said, “Since your sister brought you food, finish it before returning to your quarters. Don’t linger too long.”
“Yes, sir.”
When the attendant left, Zhao’er watched his back suspiciously. Then, lowering her voice, she muttered, “Why do I get the feeling that the man’s acting strange?”
Xue Juncai’s hand paused. “What’s strange about him?”
He knew very well that the man had been watching him—to make sure none of them talked. Even their leave had been cancelled because of the incident. Until the matter was resolved, no one was allowed to leave the school.
As Zhao’er made a show of putting food and steam buns on his plate, she whispered, “I actually came for something else. Do you know a student named Sun He, not the ‘He’ for crane, but the ‘He’ for river?”
The chopsticks slipped from his fingers. He quickly bent to pick them up.
“What’s the rush?” Zhao’er said in a lightly chiding voice. “Come now, there’s plenty to eat. I’ll make more when you come home. Really now, this academy of yours doesn’t let its students rest.”
Even as Zhao’er chattered on, Xue Juncai hissed, “Why are you asking about him?”
From his reaction, Zhao’er was certain he knew something. Keeping her tone bright, she spoke loudly between quiet whispers, slipping in her real message between the concerned sister act.
“A life has been taken, and now several innocent people are being framed, including the headmaster of Ting’er’s school. He’s a good man who is doing his best to protect his students, but a life is a life. If you know anything, tell us, so that your classmate may finally rest in peace.”
Xue Juncai didn’t answer. He simply lowered his head and ate.
He ate like a starving man, shovelling food and buns into his mouth. The spice burned his lips red, sweat beading on his forehead, though the air was still cool.
When he finished, he sat back, chest tight. Zhao’er poured him tea, and he drank deeply, gulping until he could breathe again, but the heaviness in his heart remained.
He thought of the Headmaster’s warning. It was the first time he had seen that gentle man’s face twist in rage. And he thought of the wealthy students who tormented others with impunity.
When Heaven entrusts a man with a great purpose, it first tries his heart with hardship, wearies his limbs, starves his flesh, and lays bare his spirit.
This was what the books taught him. It was what the teachers told them over and over again. It was what he had told himself. But some pain, he knew now, could only be felt by living through it.
He thought of Sun He’s perpetually pale and lifeless face…
He knew what was expected of him. What would aid him? The headmaster had promised them: if they kept silent, they would each be guaranteed a Tongsheng title next year. The very thing his father had dreamed of for him. Yet there was no joy in it.
Before he knew it, words were spilling from his mouth in a hoarse, unfamiliar voice.
When he finished speaking, he gulped down more tea, stood, and said clearly, “Sister, tell Mother not to worry. Everything’s fine at the academy. I’ll study hard and pass my exams next year.”
Zhao’er, still reeling from what she had just heard, nodded blankly. “All right. When you’re on break, I’ll come fetch you home.”
“Mm.”
Xue Juncai gathered the two jars of pickles she’d brought and returned to his dormitory.
Zhao’er left soon after, basket in hand. She kept her head down as she walked down the road. She continued walking until a familiar voice stopped her.
“Did you find out anything?” It was Xue Tingxiang.
“I did,” she replied.
[Gumihou: The MPV of the year is…]
Kitchennovel.com has a Membership System!!
Please click on the table below to check it out~
Naturally, you can also choose to support us through Patreon or tip us via Kofi~!
Don’t forget to leave a comment at novelupdates too!
