Chu Ruoyan felt a twitch at her temple—this scene felt all too familiar.
She immediately spoke up, "Madam Li, don’t panic. Wen Jing isn’t the kind of child to stir up trouble. There must be more to this!"
Madam Li clutched her handkerchief silently, while the nursemaid added, "Madam, you may not know this, but among the children Young Master Wen Jing buried in the pit was the son of the Minister of Rites..."
Xu Yan, the Minister of Rites?
Chu Ruoyan pressed a hand to her forehead, steadying herself. "Who else? Just tell me everything."
Madam Li gave a bitter smile. "Sister-in-law, perhaps the better question is—who wasn’t involved? Nearly all his classmates from Class A were dragged into this mess. Only the young master from the Xue family’s second branch managed to escape..."
Those who could study at the Imperial Academy were all children of influential families.
Even if Yan Zheng held the highest position as Chief Grand Councilor, offending so many powerful figures at once was unthinkable.
Chu Ruoyan sighed inwardly but steeled herself and boarded the carriage.
By the time they arrived at the Imperial Academy, her sigh grew even heavier.
"Finally, someone from the Chief Grand Councilor’s family has arrived! Well? How do you plan to settle this?"
"My son has never had any quarrel with your child, yet he was tricked into eating dirt—what kind of nonsense is this?"
"If the Yan family doesn’t give us an explanation today, we’ll file a joint petition!"
"That’s right! We’ll take this all the way to the Emperor if we must, but justice will be served!"
Amid the clamor, the loudest voice belonged to the Dowager Countess of Pingxi.
Given that her family had recently been shamed by Feng Yun’s disgrace, how could she still show her face so boldly?
Chu Ruoyan found it rather baffling, while Madam Li hastily bowed in apology.
She scanned the crowd and asked, "Where are Teacher Tang and Wen Jing?"
The Dowager Countess of Pingxi sneered, "Isn’t it obvious? The Chief Grand Councilor’s family holds such power that the Academy feared we might harm your precious jewel, so they took him away!"
Madam Li exhaled in relief, but Chu Ruoyan countered, "That’s an unfair accusation. From the Grand General to the Chief Grand Councilor, has anyone ever heard of the Yan family bullying others with their influence?"
The Dowager Countess choked on her words, and the crowd gradually quieted.
People exchanged glances—indeed, no such incidents came to mind.
The only one Wen Jing had ever fought, Gu Hongzhi, had long since left the Academy.
Seeing this, Chu Ruoyan raised her voice. "There has never been such behavior in the past, and there won’t be in the future. If this matter is proven to be Wen Jing’s fault, I, as the County Princess, along with the Chief Grand Councilor, will ensure he faces strict punishment and gives everyone a proper explanation."
The crowd’s anger simmered down slightly, though the Dowager Countess muttered, "Fine words mean nothing when the culprit is nowhere to be seen..."
Before she could finish, Chu Ruoyan cut in, "Summon Teacher Tang and Wen Jing. Also, invite Ritual Master Guo. With such a major incident, we need an impartial witness."
Before long, Teacher Tang arrived with Wen Jing in tow.
The little troublemaker looked utterly unbothered, flashing a sweet smile. "Auntie, Second Auntie, you both came?"
Madam Li frowned, ready to scold him, but Chu Ruoyan stopped her. "Wait a little longer."
Soon after, Ritual Master Guo Si arrived belatedly. He clasped his hands in greeting before addressing Chu Ruoyan, "County Princess Changle, I’ve heard of the incident. How do you intend to resolve this?"
In his view, it wasn’t even a serious matter—children fought all the time.
As long as no one was hurt, a stern reprimand should suffice.
But with so many noble families involved, he had no choice but to intervene.
Understanding his thoughts, Chu Ruoyan nodded slightly. "Thank you for your time, Ritual Master. I only ask that you bear witness—if Wen Jing is at fault, we will not shield him. But if he isn’t, I trust you’ll judge fairly."
Before Guo Si could respond, the Dowager Countess of Pingxi burst out again, "What do you mean, ‘if he isn’t’? Dozens of eyes saw him push the others in!"
"Is that so?" Chu Ruoyan arched a brow. "Then Wen Jing must be remarkably strong—to single-handedly overpower a dozen boys. Is he that skilled, or were the other young masters simply too weak?"
The Dowager Countess flushed crimson, and the crowd fell silent.
Indeed, how could one boy overpower so many at once?
All these children had martial arts tutors—even if some were less adept, at least a few should have escaped unscathed.
Madam Xu, the Minister of Rites’ wife, turned to her son. "Tell the truth. What really happened?"
The boy hesitated before pointing at Qi Rui. "It… it was Qi Rui who said there was gold buried in the back hill. That’s why we all went digging..."
The Dowager Countess paled. "Impossible! My grandson would never lie!"
But other children corroborated—they’d seen Qi Rui bring back gold, which convinced them.
Yet instead of gold, they’d dug until the ground collapsed, sending them all tumbling in.
Later, Qi Rui claimed it was all Wen Jing’s trap and urged them to blame him, knowing their parents would punish them less if they pinned it on someone already disliked.
The crowd was stunned. A few hot-tempered parents immediately scolded their children, "You believed such nonsense? What have you been learning in your classics?"
Realizing the tide had turned, Qi Rui burst into tears. "N-no! It wasn’t me! It was him!" He pointed at Wen Jing. "He’s the one who said there was gold and told me to gather everyone! It’s true!"
The Dowager Countess hastily backed him. "That’s right! My Rui’er never lies—you all know that!"
Chu Ruoyan finally understood. She glanced at Wen Jing.
The little schemer instantly switched from smugness to pitiable tears. "Dowager Countess, how can you say that? If Qi Rui doesn’t lie, does that mean I do? I truly didn’t do this—Xue Baiqing can vouch for me!"
Xue Baiqing piped up in his childish voice, "Brother Wen Jing is right. I wanted to go too, but he said there couldn’t possibly be gold in the dirt, so I didn’t."
Silence fell over the Academy.
Guo Si waved a hand. "Now that the truth is clear, please take your children home and tend to them." He inwardly lamented the disgrace—this was the Imperial Academy, a place of scholarship, yet these boys had acted like superstitious fools!
The parents left in shame, some shooting venomous glares at the Qi family, as if blaming them for corrupting their children.
The Dowager Countess’s heart sank. Sure enough, Madam Xu soon approached Teacher Tang, gesturing toward them.
Moments later, Teacher Tang delivered the verdict: "Dowager Countess Qi, given the circumstances, Madam Xu and others have chosen not to press charges. However, since Young Master Qi deceived the others first and then coerced them into lying, it’s best he withdraws temporarily. We’ll reconsider whether to place him in Class B or C later..."
The Dowager Countess swayed on her feet. Qi Rui wailed hysterically, "No! I won’t change classes! It was Wen Jing—it was him! Believe me, it really was!!"
But no one listened. The crowd dispersed without a backward glance.
Chu Ruoyan and Madam Li led Wen Jing to their carriage and departed.
Madam Li clutched her chest, still shaken: "Thank goodness we got to the truth, or else it would have been our Wen Jing who’d be ostracized and forced to switch classes!" She then patted the boy’s head, adding sympathetically, "Poor Wen Jing, framed and wronged like this."
Chu Ruoyan raised an eyebrow, and in the next moment, the little schemer dropped to his knees, confessing earnestly: "Aunt Li, Wen Jing wasn’t wronged. What Qi Rui said is true—I buried a few gold pieces first, lured him into digging them up, then tricked the others into coming. When the timing was right, I triggered the trap and buried them all!"
Madam Li was speechless, her hand trembling as she pointed at him. "Y-you… how could you do such a thing?"
Who would have thought this usually well-behaved and clever child could devise such a meticulous plan—and walk away unscathed?
What kind of monster would he grow up to be?
Chu Ruoyan studied him quietly for a moment before speaking. "Wen Jing, you’ve improved a lot. I’ve told you before to consider the consequences of your actions, and you’ve clearly done that. But I still have to ask—why did you do this?"
