The old hunter had been a hunter for decades. It was not as though he had never hunted wolves before, but wolves in winter were exceptionally fierce. They would either accidentally fall into traps dug by hunters or be wounded by their arrows. Because wolves were agile and difficult to strike in a vital spot, the ones they eventually killed were usually covered in scars, with holes torn all over their bodies.
The more holes there were, the less valuable the pelt became. The old hunter had never seen a wolf pelt this intact.
His son, Daqing, had also been hunting alongside his father for many years. As he looked at the mass of wolf flesh left after the pelt had been removed, he suddenly noticed something and exclaimed, “Father, look here.”
He pointed at the gray wolf’s skull.
By the time Li Xiaoxiao drove the ox cart back to the rear courtyard of the county government office, the moon was already high in the sky. Hearing her knock on the gate, Mama Mao carried a small lantern over to open it. Before she could even make out the person’s face, she began scolding, “Why did you come back so late?”
Li Xiaoxiao had been gone the entire day. It was already dark, yet she still had not returned, and Mama Mao had thought she had taken advantage of the chaos to run away!
But after thinking about it, she realized that was impossible. Li Xiaoxiao was a servant who had signed a deed of sale, with neither a travel permit nor household registration. Where could she possibly go? And considering that she was all alone, what if she had encountered bad people and been captured?
So even though it was already time for bed, Mama Mao had been too worried to sleep, constantly listening for any movement at the back gate.
By the light of Mama Mao’s lantern, Li Xiaoxiao tied the ox in the cowshed. As she unhitched the ox cart, she said, “I went a little farther than usual. Mama Mao, look!”
She lifted the little deer for Mama Mao to see.
The little deer weighed around thirty-odd jin, and its body was still soft.
Mama Mao leaned closer, both surprised and delighted. “It’s a deer! You, you actually hunted a deer?”
Li Xiaoxiao nodded in satisfaction. “If I hadn’t gone after it, I wouldn’t have come back this late.”
Venison was highly nourishing. Thinking of how Magistrate Meng was currently ill and needed nourishment, Mama Mao had already thought of several ways to prepare the venison. She immediately stopped blaming Li Xiaoxiao for returning late and urged her to wash up. “Go take a bath and eat dinner first. I’ll butcher the deer tonight.”
Li Xiaoxiao had spent the entire day trekking through the mountains, and her clothes had been torn to shreds by branches. After returning to her room and washing up, she found that Mama Mao had already brought the dinner set aside for her and placed it on the table. She ate in great gulps, and the nausea in her stomach was finally completely suppressed by the fragrant aroma of cooked food.
As expected, once she had grown accustomed to cooked food, raw food became difficult to tolerate.
After finishing her meal, she sat down and carefully sensed the condition of her dantian.
That supernatural ability, which had been on the verge of breaking off and was as faint as a thread of breath, had grown considerably stronger. She could feel that the connection between herself and the necklace had been restored.
Unfortunately, she still needed more supernatural ability to open it.
Her gaze fell on the water flask beside her. There were roughly two bowls’ worth of deer blood inside.
If she finished the deer blood over the next two days, the necklace should be able to open, right?
She brought over a basin of water and placed the soft leather flask inside. The weather was too hot, and she could not let the blood spoil. She still needed to drink it over the next two days.
After putting the basin in place, she left the room. Mama Mao was alone, wielding a knife and chopping up the venison, with the freshly removed pelt lying beside her.
When she saw Li Xiaoxiao approach, Mama Mao said happily, “There’s about twenty jin of meat after butchering the deer. Tomorrow, everyone in the whole household can have venison.”
Li Xiaoxiao had never eaten cooked venison before. Her eyes lit up at the words. “Is venison good?”
“It’s delicious, much better than pork. You’re the one who hunted this deer, so I’ll give you extra tomorrow.”
Li Xiaoxiao nodded repeatedly. She was truly looking forward to Mama Mao’s cooking.
The next day, Mama Mao showed off her culinary skills, and Li Xiaoxiao ate the best meat she had tasted since coming to this world. She polished off three jin by herself. Unexpectedly, however, the venison Mama Mao had carefully prepared for Magistrate Meng was returned untouched.
Yingchun was deeply worried. “My lord couldn’t eat a single bite. He only asked for some rice water. Madam wants the venison given to everyone.”
Mama Mao had deliberately chosen the most tender and delicious cuts of the deer to prepare for Magistrate Meng. He had still been able to eat roast suckling pig yesterday, so how could he possibly refuse even a bite of venison today?
She scooped up a piece from the bowl and tasted it herself. The meat was fresh, fragrant, and tender. There was no reason Magistrate Meng should find it difficult to swallow.
It had already been eight days since Magistrate Meng fell ill. After seeing him manage to eat something yesterday, they had thought his condition was finally improving. Who could have expected it to suddenly take a turn for the worse today?
How long could someone last without eating properly, drinking only rice water while taking medicine every day? Mama Mao was no longer young herself, and upon hearing this news, she already had a bad feeling.
“Has the eldest young master still not returned?”
Meng Guanqi had set out for Lin’an two days ago. By all accounts, he should have been able to return by today at the latest.
“Madam has already sent Steward Zhao to wait at the city gate,” Yingchun said. “Before the eldest young master left, he said he would definitely return by today at the latest.”
She quietly stepped forward two paces and lowered her voice. “Doctor Xie from Huichun Hall came again this morning. Madam wanted him to prescribe a new medicine, but Doctor Xie still told us to continue taking the medicine he originally prescribed. He left without even leaving a prescription.”
Mama Mao’s heart tightened. He had left without even leaving a prescription, which made her feel even more uneasy. Yet she did not dare say anything and could only sigh. “I hope the eldest young master comes back soon.”
The physicians in the county seat were no good, but surely the ones in the prefectural city would be better, right?
She remembered that when Magistrate Meng was still in the capital, whenever anyone in the household suffered from a headache or fever, they could have an imperial physician come to the house to treat them. Who could have imagined that now that he was so seriously ill, they could not even find a decent physician?
Inside the main room, Magistrate Meng, whose illness had caused his cheeks to become deeply sunken, suddenly opened his eyes.
He quietly glanced at Madam Liu, who was dozing beside him, and a trace of pity flashed through his eyes.
During the time he had been ill, Madam Liu had also become terribly haggard, looking at least ten years older.
Because of the trouble he had caused, his wife and children had been dragged into it as well. As a husband, his conscience was clear, but he had failed his own family.
He could feel that he did not have much time left.
He slowly sat up.
Madam Liu was startled and abruptly opened her eyes. When she saw him sitting up, she hurried over to support him. “My lord, you’re awake. Is there anything you want to eat? I’ll have the kitchen make it for you.”
Magistrate Meng shook his head. “Have Madam bring me the ginseng broth. I’ll have a few sips.”
Madam Liu was both surprised and delighted. Granny Qi, who was keeping watch on the other side of the room, was quick to react and had already brought over the ginseng broth.
Magistrate Meng drank several sips and felt a little strength return to his body. “Madam, prepare some writing materials for me. I want to write a memorial.”
Madam Liu was startled and hurriedly said, “My lord, you’re still ill. Writing a memorial is exhausting. You should wait until you’ve recovered before writing it.”
Magistrate Meng gently shook his head, his tone firm. “If I don’t write it now, I’m afraid I won’t have the time to write it later… Madam, don’t grieve. Everyone has to face that day eventually. I do not fear death, but I must make arrangements for you and the children in advance. If I don’t explain to His Majesty as soon as possible why we took in the refugees and opened the granary to release grain, I’m afraid that once I’m gone, someone who wants to kick us while we’re down will take the opportunity to accuse me, turning our family into the household of a convicted official and costing you and the children your lives. Go.”
Tears streamed down Madam Liu’s face, and she was too choked with emotion to speak.
Granny Qi fought back her tears. “My lord, you merely caught a cold. Why say such heartbreaking things? Once the eldest young master brings a physician back, your illness will surely be cured.”
But Magistrate Meng knew his own body well. If he did not write it now, he feared that once he lay down again, he would never have the strength to get back up.
He insisted on writing, and Madam Liu and Granny Qi had no choice. They could only go to the study to fetch the writing materials, then help Magistrate Meng sit at the desk. He had been sick for so many days that his entire body was weak, but strangely enough, the moment he picked up the brush, it was as though all his strength had returned. He wrote each word and sentence with remarkable fluency.
In truth, although he had been unable to bear seeing the refugees suffer and had therefore taken them in and opened the granary to release grain, was that not also because he had faith in the imperial court? He believed the court would not simply leave the refugees to fend for themselves, allowing them to remain homeless and starve to death in the wilderness.
The capital was five or six hundred li from Yizhou, and Miyang County was more than nine hundred li away. For news of the disaster in Yizhou to reach the Emperor’s ears, even by urgent courier traveling eight hundred li, it would take seven or eight days to reach the capital. Then the Emperor would have to convene court and discuss disaster relief with the ministers. Even if the relief measures could be decided within two or three days, the Ministry of Revenue would still need to gather the money and grain for disaster relief. All things considered, even if the relief envoy could depart from the capital with silver and grain at the earliest possible opportunity, it would take at least a month.
And once the relief envoy set out from the capital, even if they traveled day and night without stopping, transporting grain and supplies was difficult. It would take at least another half month to reach Yizhou. After such a long time, how could the disaster victims possibly wait?
Magistrate Meng had acted first and reported afterward precisely to take advantage of this gap in time. He first took in the refugees, then opened the granary to distribute grain and provide relief. Once the relief grain arrived, he could simply replenish the grain in the granary. Extraordinary times called for extraordinary measures, and it was not as though there were no precedents for such actions.
But who could have imagined that more than a month would pass without the slightest news of the relief funds or grain? Prefect Song refused to take responsibility and even avoided seeing him. If the funds and grain were eventually replenished, then all would be well. But if they truly could not be replaced, Prefect Song could turn around and accuse him of disregarding the authority and laws of his superior, opening the granary without authorization, and undermining the foundation of the state. If the matter were seriously pursued, he would have no hope of escaping the charge of being a convicted official.
Therefore, while he was still capable of moving, he had to submit a memorial asking for forgiveness and explain the reasons to His Majesty, doing his best to ensure that his wife and children would remain a respectable family while he was still alive.
He did not fear death, but his son was still young and had already become a xiucai. On top of that, he was intelligent and talented. If he devoted himself to studying for several more years, he might well one day succeed in the imperial examinations. Therefore, he absolutely could not allow himself to be branded the son of a convicted official and drag his son down with him.
Magistrate Meng had grown up as a concubine-born son. With the strict ancestral rites and laws and the clear distinction between legitimate and concubine-born children in his family, he had developed a personality that dared not contend for anything or put himself forward. If he had not already considered that his actions might implicate his descendants, he would never have dared to write a memorial defending himself and explaining the circumstances. He did not seek merit, only to avoid blame.
After finishing the memorial, his body was already exhausted to the extreme, yet he still forced himself to hold it up and let the ink on the paper dry. He called for Steward Zhao. “You personally make the trip to the capital and deliver this memorial into the hands of Lord Min of the Ministry of Personnel. Be absolutely certain that it does not pass through anyone else’s hands.”
Steward Zhao looked at his master’s deeply sunken cheeks and lifeless eyes, forcing back the tears in his own eyes as he knelt and accepted the memorial with both hands. “This old servant will obey.”
Magistrate Meng wearily waved his hand. “Go. Take Zhao Jian with you. You’re getting older as well, so take good care of yourself.”
Steward Zhao did not dare raise his head. He bowed and withdrew, his heart filled with sorrow.
The capital was nearly a thousand li away. Would he still be able to see his master when he returned?
But he knew that this matter concerned his master’s life and the survival of his entire household, so he did not dare delay in the slightest. He immediately ordered Zhao Jian to pack their belongings, and the two of them set off for the capital.
They had just ridden out of the city gate when they encountered Meng Guanqi’s carriage. Steward Zhao’s eyes lit up, and he immediately urged his horse forward.
“Eldest Young Master!”
A Sheng, who was sitting beside the coachman, Yu Dayong, immediately said, “Stop the carriage! It’s Steward Zhao! Young Master, those are Steward Zhao and Brother Zhao Jian’s horses.”
…
You can grab the full book now on my Ko-fi page, available in both PDF and EPUB formats! 🖤
📎 Here’s the link to the full novel