Glory

Ye Yaming was a thorough person; she naturally wouldn't let Cui Zijin take the lead in accusing Song Yifeng.

Although Zijin wasn't her real name, the surname Cui was her mother's maiden name. Once Song Yifeng was imprisoned, she planned to disguise the aunt and niece pair and relocate them to an alleyway for a few months. In this era without surveillance or electronic communication, it would be difficult for Yu Shi to find them.

By next spring when the weather warmed up, she intended to find a way to obtain travel permits, ideally altering Cui Zijin's household registration details, and then send someone to escort them out of Lin'an City to a southern town.

However, two women undergoing a triple court trial would face insults from Yu Shi and curses from Song Yifeng, making their situation precarious. If any bailiffs or local thugs targeted them while they were vulnerable, and Ye Yaming momentarily lost oversight or couldn't intervene at the yamen, they might fall victim to others' schemes.

Therefore, Ye Yaming certainly wouldn't let Cui Zijin and her niece become directly entangled in this lawsuit just for revenge against Song Yifeng. She had someone leak the information to one of Song Yifeng's rivals at the prefectural school.

This man, named Tang Kun, was considered a young talent who had once earned Wang Wenzhi's admiration. But after Song Yifeng passed the Imperial Examination and caught Wang Wenzhi's attention, Tang Kun fell out of favor.

Under normal circumstances, Tang Kun would merely feel resentful. That alone wouldn't drive him to destroy Song Yifeng.

However, Tang Kun also aspired to become Wang Wenzhi's son-in-law. Before Song Yifeng entered Wang Wenzhi's circle, Wang had hinted at this possibility. But when the more talented, younger, and handsomer Song Yifeng appeared—despite being already engaged and thus ineligible to marry Wang's daughter—Wang Wenzhi lost interest in Tang Kun.

Wang Wenzhi likely thought it wouldn't hurt to wait until both men participated in the Imperial Examination and became Presented Scholars before discussing marriage. He constantly hinted at marrying his daughters to these scholars, essentially stringing them along to gauge their value.

After all, given his status and his two daughters' pearl-like beauty—above-average in appearance, literate, and educated—they were quite presentable and unlikely to lack suitors.

But Tang Kun failed to see through this and grew bitterly jealous of Song Yifeng. Especially during prefectural school exams, Song Yifeng consistently outperformed him. Tang Kun believed his own essays were excellent, yet the school officials only noticed Song Yifeng, overlooking him.

Not just in the prefectural school, but in the Imperial Examination two years later, Song Yifeng would be a formidable competitor. With Song Yifeng present, Tang Kun's ranking would always be pushed down one spot. He might even end up just below the cutoff line.

Moreover, Ye Yaming had investigated Tang Kun and discovered he was ruthless. Whenever someone crossed him, he would seize any opportunity to retaliate, making him a perfect pawn.

One day, Tang Kun received an anonymous letter claiming that Song Yifeng had written poems and essays expressing discontent with the court, the emperor, and officials like Wang Wenzhi. He was immediately thrilled.

The letter even specified where these writings were hidden, suggesting it couldn't be false.

And what did it matter if it was true or false? He had no intention of exposing himself and attracting trouble. Although the prefectural school officials disapproved of Song Yifeng's character, they acknowledged his talent and hoped he would place as the top candidate in the next Imperial Examination, bringing glory to Lin'an Prefectural School and themselves.

If they knew he had reported Song Yifeng, they would certainly view him unfavorably.Therefore, Tang Kun changed his handwriting and used his left hand to write an anonymous letter, sealing it tightly before having a trusted subordinate pay a street beggar to deliver it to the government office.

The clerk, seeing that the letter reported a scholar for writing taboo poetry, dared not conceal it and immediately reported it to Qi Zhipei.

The letter provided vivid details, and Qi Zhipei knew that if he ignored such a report and it later came to light, his official position would be at risk. Moreover, the accused was Song Yifeng, whom Qi Zhipei strongly disliked. There was no reason for Qi Zhipei to shield him and bring disaster upon himself.

He immediately ordered the assistant prefect to take officers and search Song Yifeng’s residence.

At the time, Yu Shi was at home, locked in a battle of wits with Cui Mama.

Yu Shi looked down on Cui Zijin in every way. The only reason she had moved into the rental property arranged by Cui Zijin was that she noticed Cui Zijin’s comfortable lifestyle and apparent wealth, aiming to take advantage of her.

After moving in, Yu Shi constantly complained about poverty, contributing not a single coin to household expenses. Day after day, she waited for Cui Zijin and her maid to pay for rice and vegetables, all while putting on the airs of a future mother-in-law, demanding that Cui Zijin serve her and follow her orders.

How could Cui Mama stand by and watch her niece be bullied? Besides, being too accommodating would only make the Song mother and son suspicious of them. So, adopting the demeanor of a loyal old servant protecting her mistress, she took advantage of Song Yifeng’s absence at the prefectural school to engage in frequent arguments with Yu Shi—major disputes every three days, minor squabbles every two.

She didn’t raise her voice but instead used sharp retorts and sarcastic remarks. Then, when Song Yifeng returned, she would switch to a completely different attitude, leaving Yu Shi fuming with anger.

Yet, it was true that Cui Zijin covered all household expenses and paid the rent. Yu Shi was indeed benefiting from the arrangement. Additionally, with her son being criticized and isolated at the prefectural school, Yu Shi dared not constantly involve him in settling these disputes.

Moreover, Yu Shi found some relief in venting her frustrations through these arguments with Cui Mama, which helped ease her pent-up resentment.

Thus, the four people in the household lived their days in a lively, tumultuous manner.

But on this day, an official suddenly arrived with officers, knocking on the door and barging in without explanation. After confirming which room was Song Yifeng’s bedroom, they pushed the door open and began rummaging through his belongings.

The anonymous letter had clearly indicated the location of the poetry. The officers quickly and precisely found the writings.

The assistant prefect, upon seeing the poems, immediately darkened his expression. He took the officers to the prefectural school and, in front of all the instructors and students, had Song Yifeng arrested and bound.

Song Yifeng initially protested his innocence, assuming it was another scheme by the Ye family using Master Wu to harm him. But when the assistant prefect held the poems before his eyes, he collapsed to the ground in despair.

Although Wang Wenzhi and others despised Song Yifeng’s character, they had still hoped he would pass the imperial examinations and become a Presented Scholar. If he succeeded, they would all serve as officials together and would need to maintain mutual respect. After giving Song Yifeng the cold shoulder for a few days, they had relented when he approached them tearfully with explanations and forgiven him.

His classmates, mindful of Song Yifeng’s potential future, dared not offend him too severely. Some even believed in showing kindness during his hardship, offering him warmth and concern in hopes of earning his favor for future patronage once he became an official.

Thus, although Song Yifeng’s days at the prefectural school were not as triumphant as before, they were still tolerable.

Now that he had been arrested, the instructors naturally inquired about the situation. The assistant prefect showed them the confiscated poems.

The instructors easily recognized Song Yifeng’s handwriting. When Wang Wenzhi saw a poem filled with resentment directed at himself, his face instantly turned pale.