Chapter 014: A Murder Occurs

A prosperous household is generally a good thing. Yet now, with another mouth to feed, Xue Rui found himself in a difficult position.

Half a month ago, Xue Rui and his mother had been driven out of the family estate by his uncle and aunt. They hadn’t even had time to gather their belongings, leaving them with nothing to their names. Fortunately, that very day, Madam Liu still wore a gold hairpin given as part of her dowry. She entrusted Zheng Debiao to pawn it, exchanging it for a little over ten taels of silver, enough to rent their current modest residence.

Over the past fortnight, the expenses added up—household necessities, paying Zheng Debiao to gather news at the Imperial Prison, and hiring a physician for Xue Rui’s injuries. The silver dwindled, and now less than two taels remained.

With Susu’s arrival, mother and son were indeed delighted, but the pressing issue of their livelihood could not be ignored. Xue Rui had entered the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, but as a probationary student, he received little more than a meager meal and scarcely any stipend. The top-scoring hereditary students were given a modest rice allowance, but that was far out of reach for him. At his current level, he’d be lucky not to come in dead last on the monthly exams.

“If it comes to it, I’ll just have to borrow from Master. We can’t starve,” he thought. Time was not on their side; the season would soon change, and they needed supplies before prices in the capital soared. If they waited, the cost might multiply several times over.

After breakfast, Susu eyed her young master with an expression suggesting she had something on her mind. Xue Rui, puzzled, touched his face. “Why do you keep staring at me? Is there something on my face?”

Susu scrutinized him closely and asked, “Young Master, when did you learn to cook? I’ve never seen you step foot in a kitchen before.”

“Why do you ask? Can’t I have learned on my own?”

“That’s hard to believe. The way you cook, and the taste of your food—it’s so practiced. It takes years to reach that level. How did you manage it?” Susu looked at him curiously.

This little girl was quite sharp! Xue Rui couldn’t help but sigh. Madam Liu had asked him the same thing before, but as her cooking was nothing special herself, he’d made up some excuse and she hadn’t pressed further. Susu, young as she was, was not so easy to fool—having often assisted the cook, she could spot technique at a glance. Without a reasonable explanation, she would surely keep suspecting.

After pondering for a while, Xue Rui finally came up with a plausible answer and, affecting a mysterious air, said, “You don’t understand. I learned from books. As the ancients said, ‘Within books, houses of gold and beauties are to be found’—surely you’ve heard that? There are all sorts of things to be learned from reading. The books I read had plenty about cooking, but I never had the chance to try until now. Recently, necessity forced my hand, and it turns out the knowledge is quite useful. In any case, leave the matters of scholars to the scholars!”

With that, Xue Rui hurried off, giving Susu no chance to ask further. Watching his retreating figure, Susu tried hard to recall—just how many books had young master actually read in his life?

***

Early the next morning.

Xue Rui was still dreaming when Susu came to wake him. Having exhausted himself the day before, he’d slept especially deeply and was still abed well after dawn.

“You’re not fully recovered—why not sleep a bit longer?” he said, yawning as he looked at the maid carrying in water.

Susu, wringing out a face cloth, replied, “Madam is already up. How could I, as a maid, stay abed? It wouldn’t be proper. Naturally, I must rise early as well.”

This little courtyard had only two rooms fit for living. The main bedroom was Madam Liu’s; the smaller was Xue Rui’s. Now that Susu had arrived, she could only share a room with Madam Liu.

Seeing it was already late, Xue Rui said no more. After washing up and hastily eating the simple breakfast prepared by Madam Liu and Susu, he hurried out the door.

Yesterday, unfamiliar with the rules of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, Xue Rui had arrived at the office a quarter of an hour early. Today, having risen late, he barely arrived on time.

Upon entering, he sensed something was amiss. The usually busy student astronomers were idling in small groups, deep in conversation. Passing the main hall, he noticed even the supervising officials, usually stationed separately, were gathered together, apparently discussing something important.

It hardly concerned him, so he made his way toward the archives. As he passed the window by the corridor, he glanced inside and was surprised by the unusual scene, causing him to stop instinctively.

Inside, the hereditary students had formed a large circle around Liu Jin, even Fan Yan—who usually didn’t get along with Liu Jin—was there, listening intently, his expression grave.

“Liu Jin, are you making this up?” a student asked, skeptical.

Liu Jin, visibly agitated, slapped the table. “This concerns a life—would I dare fabricate such a thing?”

“Then who exactly is dead?” Fan Yan craned his neck to ask.

“How should I know? Someone from our bureau, that much is certain. Supervisor Xu has already sent Clerk Cui to the Pig Market Gate to identify the body. Just wait—a message will be back within half an hour,” Liu Jin shook his head.

The mention of a death, and the Pig Market Gate, made Xue Rui’s face change slightly as he listened quietly.

The students had all sorts of rumors—multiple versions of the story, but all agreed that yesterday afternoon, someone from the Imperial Astronomical Bureau had died violently at the Pig Market Gate, alerting the Shuntian Prefecture. A large number of constables were investigating.

Just as Xue Rui was lost in thought, his own name was suddenly brought up.

“Say, do you think Xue Rui’s late today because he offended Scribe Peng yesterday and got dealt with in secret? He lives outside the city, after all!”

“Hush! If you’re right and Scribe Peng hears, we’d all be silenced,” another student warned.

A chill went through Xue Rui. These idiots were linking the murder to him—did they want him dead?

Yet the students’ imaginations had already run wild, debating whether the victim was indeed him. Furious, Xue Rui could no longer eavesdrop. Taking a deep breath, he strode into the archive room.

“Fellows, what’s all the excitement about?” he called from the doorway.

“A ghost—!” Several students on the outer edge turned and, seeing Xue Rui, erupted into chaos.

Angry, Xue Rui scolded, “I’m standing here alive—how am I a ghost? In broad daylight, in a place like the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, what ghost would dare appear?”

“You snuck in without a sound and gave us a fright!” the students complained, having confirmed he was alive.

“You were all so engrossed, you wouldn’t have heard anything even if I announced myself,” Xue Rui retorted.

Liu Jin let that go and asked, “Xue Rui, have you heard? There’s been a death in our bureau!”

Xue Rui feigned surprise. “Who died? How?”

“No one knows. According to the messenger from Shuntian Prefecture, the deceased had an official document from our bureau. Clerk Cui has gone to the scene to identify the body,” Liu Jin said, his expression grave.