I go to the ancient imperial examinations

Chapter 204 Qi Heng is Missing
The left courtyard of Juwenzhai.

"Qi Heng, tell your servant to go outside." Qi Yan looked at He Sheng who was following behind Qi Heng with disgust. It would be fine if he was a little book boy serving him close by. Followed in and dirty the place of their scholars.

"Third cousin, is this the guard? It seems that little cousin Qi Heng is still too young to go out alone." The young man in the red brocade robe standing next to Qi Yan smiled meaningfully, and his words were clearly sowing discord .

The post that Qi Heng received was sent by Qi Yan, but he came with his guards, which clearly shows that he doesn't trust Qi Yan.

Several brocade scholars who heard this not far away also laughed, and one of them raised a teacup to Qi Yan, "Qi San, what are you waiting for, you still owe me a poem."

"Haha, Qi San has to take care of the milk doll today, so I don't have time to write poems, it's better to save it for the next literary meeting." The young man sitting lazily on the chair said slowly, picked up the teacup and took a sip of tea, "I have some time today. Miss Ling's Fei Tian Wu, children shouldn't come."

As soon as these words came out, the expressions of the people present changed slightly, and they looked at Qi Yan and Qi Heng with complicated eyes. Thinking that Tang Lin and the eldest son of the Qi family had a good relationship, it was not surprising that he would specially remind Qi Yan.

Qi Heng stood upright with a small body, even though he was not very suitable for such an occasion, he was not stage fright, and his attitude was neither humble nor overbearing, and he was a handsome little gentleman.

"Brother Yan, I'm young and it's my first time to participate in the literature fair, so I brought the book boy with me. Please be more tolerant of Brother Yan and all the elder brothers." Qi Heng said in a loud voice, and bowed to everyone with his hands together.

The youngest scholars who came to participate in the Wenhui were fourteen or five years old. There are indeed few children like Qi Heng who are seven or eight years old. After all, the Wenhui can drink, and there are also singing and dancing. If you drink too much, some ambiguous scenes are too small Children are really not suitable.

It's not easy for everyone to embarrass Qi Heng, a child, and he just brought a book boy, which is harmless.

Besides, Qi Heng is still the No.6 in the Nanxuan Mansion Examination, he is already a child, no accident, he will definitely be on the list in the August Academy Examination, an eight-year-old talent, they really have no face to make things difficult.

Miss Ling is good at dancing, especially Fei Tianwu. Her graceful figure and flowing dress are enough to make any man burst into excitement. Among them, the one who loves Miss Ling the most is Qiu Dingsi, the only son of Qiu Qianhu. People are both civil and military.

Whenever Miss Ling appeared, Qiu Dingsi would definitely be there, and everyone present knew that Qiu Dingsi and Liu Baihu were called brothers, and Liu Baihu broke his leg. The common people didn't know why, but the scholars present knew the inside story.

When Qiu Dingsi came, if he saw Qi Heng, he might not be kind. Thinking about it this way, the eyes of everyone looking at Qi Yan were also very complicated. Was he unintentional or intentional?

"He's also a book boy with his big-bodied appearance? Haha, are you thinking we're being fooled by fools?" A mocking voice sounded, and the corner of the young man sitting on the right curled his mouth, showing no trace of hostility on his face.

"Zhang Changsong, what's the matter with you?" Qi Yan asked in a cold voice, the two were about the same age, and they would fight when they met.

One is Qi Tongzhi's youngest son, and the other is Zhang Tongpan's youngest son. The fathers are at odds, and the younger generation naturally quarrels because of their different positions.

Qi Yan is still a white body now, but Zhang Changsong is a scholar, and he overwhelms Qi Yan.

But Qi Tongzhi's official position is higher than that of Zhang Tongpan, and Qi Yan has regained the game, so when the two meet, it's like a needle point against a wheat awn, and the fight is evenly matched, each winning or losing.

Qi Yan glared at Qi Heng and He Sheng angrily. If they were them, how could he be ridiculed by Zhang Changsong.

Ignoring Qi Yan, the little fat man Qi Heng took two steps forward, looked directly at Zhang Changsong and asked in a loud voice: "Judging people by their words, you will lose Zaiyu; judging people by their appearance, you will lose Ziyu. That is, reading sage books for a gentleman, why is it superficial?" So far."

Uh... The spacious and bright hall was quiet for a moment, I didn't expect Qi Heng to retort sharply, but after thinking about it, I realized that Qi Heng is also a child student, not a scholar like Qi Yan who can only speak quickly.

Zhang Changsong's complexion turned extremely ugly in an instant, he stood up abruptly, pointed at Qi Heng with one hand and said in a cold voice: "Writing is based on deeds, and sincerity is the first. You are a child, but you are talking nonsense, you really don't know what to say!"

If he hadn't seen He Sheng teaching Hong'er how to read, Qi Heng would have thought that He Sheng was just a trainee. Now, looking at Zhang Changsong who insists on this, Qi Heng would definitely not let him take the dirty water of dishonesty. If you pour it on yourself, scholars will pay more attention to their reputation.

"You don't need to argue about this, why don't you give me some face." Tang Lin, who was in his thirties, said with a smile, "If this is a book boy, let him take care of Qi Xiaotong, how about it?"

Tang Lin is the organizer of today's literary society, and he has a reputation for raising people. Both Qi Yan and Zhang Changsong will give him face, and they will lose their value because of pestering a rough man.

Seeing that no one objected, Tang Lin looked at Qi Heng and said with a smile, "Why don't you ask Qi Tongsheng's book boy to write a few words."

Most schoolchildren are literate, but their handwriting can tell the length of time a person has been studying. The guys in Juwenzhai are also literate, but if they are asked to write with a pen, the writing is like a turtle crawling.

Juwenzhai's pens, inks, papers and inkstones were all prepared, but He Sheng still looked dull and honest, but his posture of holding the pen was correct, which made Zhang Changsong's face darken.

After a long while, "Juwenzhai" appeared on the paper in big ink and black characters. I can't say how good it is, but apart from the scholars who took the imperial examination, He Sheng's character is definitely upper-middle class.

"Qi Tongsheng, please." Tang Lin greeted Qi Heng with a smile, and motioned for the waiter to clean up the pen and ink on the table.

Although Zhang Changsong looked ugly, he didn't bother him anymore.

As time went by, one after another people entered Juwenzhai with posts, and the entire left courtyard became lively instantly, with the sound of silk and bamboo, and the sound of talking and laughing, which made passers-by who occasionally passed by outside the wall yearn for it.

……

In the Wushu building, Zhan Feiyu put down his pen and stood up abruptly, "You said Qi Heng is missing?"

"Yes, my brother sent a signal." He Nuan's face was also dignified. Their brother and sister are close protection ladies, and there are five people in secret. These five people will not show up on weekdays. Once there is danger, they will use specific signals. Let's get in touch.

"The fire has been brought under control, and young master Qi was not among the three people burned to death." He Nuan said hastily, who would have thought that those people would be so frantic.

Zhan Feiyu wanted to leave here, Hong'er immediately grabbed the bamboo pole and followed, but when he thought of Qi Heng's disappearance, Zhan Feiyu patted Hong'er's head, "Hong'er, you stay with Mr. something happened to him, my sister is going to find him."

Hong'er still looked sluggish, but he wasn't really stupid, it was just that he was frightened at the beginning. Now after hearing Zhan Feiyu's words, the little guy looked at her blankly, and nodded vigorously after a long while, but his little hands were tight. He held Zhan Feiyu's sleeve tightly and did not let go.

Wei Daru patted Hong'er's hand, "Be obedient."

Perhaps seeing Zhan Feiyu's eagerness, Hong'er loosened her tightly clenched hands little by little, and retreated obediently to Wei Daru's side, but stared straight at Zhan Feiyu with her dependable eyes.

"Let's go." Ming San's face was also extremely solemn, something could happen with He Sheng's protection, this time the Wenhui was clearly a Hongmen Banquet, he should not have let Qi Heng go if he knew that.

Juwenzhai is a courtyard facing the street, and the passers-by surrounding it have blocked the road at this moment, and the smell of the fire can be smelled even from a distance.

Zhan Feiyu and Mingsan got out of the carriage, and when they heard passers-by talking about the ferocious fire at that time, both of them looked ugly.

"Okay, everyone back up!" Yamen's catchers and clerks yelled loudly from time to time to prevent passers-by from rushing over, "There is nothing to see, everyone go home, back up..."

Juwenzhai is a second-floor courtyard in the shape of a Chinese character “Pin”. Although the left courtyard was completely burned down and spread to the right courtyard, there are still many valuable items inside. thing.

Moreover, the open fire was extinguished, but the beams in the courtyard on the left were all burned into charcoal. People really went in. If the roof collapsed and the walls fell, people would probably die.

It was Qian Butou who was in charge of maintaining law and order, and he quickly greeted him, "Miss Zhan?"

"I was in Juwenzhai before the same year. I don't know if it's convenient to catch the head?" Zhan Feiyu looked up at the sky with green smoke, and Baozi's face was gloomy and frightening at the moment.

Thinking of the missing Qi Heng, Qian Butou immediately said: "It's not safe inside, miss Zhan, be careful."

"Thank you." As Zhan Feiyu went inside, the smell of fireworks became stronger and stronger. There were still open flames in some places, but they were quickly extinguished by the fire master.

"Zhang Yi, come here." Qian Butou yelled, and saw a young man in his thirties walking over quickly, his face covered with black and gray.

Handing over the wooden bucket in his hands, Zhang Yi glanced at Zhan Feiyu in surprise, "Qian Butou, what are your orders?"

"The fire is almost extinguished, you and I will accompany Miss Zhan into the burning courtyard." Qian Butou confessed, and then explained to Zhan Feiyu: "This fire was put out by Zhang Yi. "

"The fire started from the room under the stairs, and there is a lot of tung oil stored here." Although Zhang Yi didn't know Zhan Feiyu's identity, he made Qian Butou pay so much attention to it, and the little girl came to the fire scene in person. Zhang Yi didn't dare to hide anything, "Tung oil ignited the silk cloth in the house, and there was a lot of wine on the cabinets on the first and second floors, so the fire spread quickly."

Zhan Feiyu looked at the burnt house with only one wall left. The pungent smell made people feel very uncomfortable, "Why are so many tung oil stored here?"

Zhang Yi and Qian Butou looked at each other. It had been more than half an hour since the fire started. As for whether the fire was accidental or man-made, they were both small people, so how dare they get involved.

"I heard from the shopkeeper of Juwenzhai that the doors, windows and stairs in the left courtyard should be repainted, so I bought a lot of tung oil. The clerk wanted to save trouble, and the house that happened to be on fire had been idle, so he piled up all the tung oil. Here." Zhang Yi smelled the smell of tung oil and immediately asked the people in Juwenzhai.

Zhan Feiyu nodded, "I heard that three people died?"

"Yes." Knowing the casualties, Qian Tutou immediately replied, "Two of them are employees of Juwenzhai, and one is Miao Xin. Miao Tong injured his leg some time ago, so he didn't escape."

"Child from a poor family?" Zhan Feiyu asked, Qian Tuotou and Zhang Yi were startled, can you guess this?
There was a mocking sneer on Baozi's fair face, and Zhan Feiyu looked at the burnt mess on the left courtyard, "It seems that even if the murderer who set the fire is found, he should pay some money, and there will be no trouble."

Qian Butou and Zhang Yi's expressions instantly became awkward. There was no way to answer the words, so the two guys didn't say anything. Although Miao Xin was a child, he was indeed born into a poor family. His parents died early, and his three older brothers helped him to study.

Now that Miao Xin was burned to death, as long as he paid enough money, the three brothers of the Miao family would probably not make a fuss, after all, he was already dead.

"Miss." A figure crossed the wall, and it was He Sheng who came.

Zhan Feiyu looked at He Sheng quickly. He had blisters on his hands and a large burn on the back of his right hand. Besides, his clothes were also burned.

"Have you found Qi Heng yet?" Ming San asked eagerly, logically speaking, He Shengzai, Qi Heng couldn't have had an accident, even though the fire was arranged in advance.

Zhan Feiyu tugged at Mingsan's arm, "Calm down, let's go out and talk."

Not far from Juwenzhai is a restaurant. In the private room, the waiter brought the food and then left.

He Sheng said in a deep voice, "Because of the tung oil, the fire spread extremely quickly. At that time, the first and second floors were in complete chaos..."

Although He Sheng entered the house as a book boy, he was only standing in the corner near the stairs on the second floor. At that time, there were several other book boys standing here, as well as two young men from Juwenzhai.

Qi Heng was sitting near the window with Qi Yan's light on him, but this place is the farthest away from He Sheng, and the house that caught fire directly burned the stairs into a fire ladder.

At that time, there were at least 30 scholars sitting on the second floor, and there were more people on the first floor, and there were jugglers performing on the stage in the middle of the first floor.

"Are you going to save Qi Yan?" Zhan Feiyu's words were not to blame, but rather surprised.

The raging fire directly engulfed the stairs on the first and second floors. The fire was fierce and dangerous. He Sheng would only ensure Qi Heng's safety.

"Qi Yan was pushed down by Zhang Changsong, Zhang Tongpan's son, and his leg was trampled. In the chaos, someone pushed down the wine cabinet." He Sheng said, Zhan Feiyu and the others could imagine the danger of Qi Yan at that time.

Spirits are inherently flammable. The owner of Juwenzhai likes to collect fine wines from all over the world. There are jars of fine wines in the cabinets on one wall. When the jars were broken, the flames followed the spirits and instantly engulfed the entire second floor.

More than 30 people ran downstairs in the chaos, but the stairs were completely burned. At this time, Qi Yan fell to the ground, either burned to death by the fire or trampled to death.

After all, Qi Heng was young, even if he had conflicts with Qi Yan, his cousin in the next room, it was impossible to watch him being burned to death.

But the fire was burning too fast, and He Sheng was alerted that something was wrong. At this time, he couldn't break through the window and send Qi Heng downstairs, it would only be more dangerous then.

Apologetically, he glanced at Ming San with a dignified expression, and He Sheng continued: "I hugged Qi Heng and squeezed to the front, dragging Qi Yan up from the ground, and there were too many people and chaos at that time."

(End of this chapter)