Futile Devices Scans

Tao Mo hesitated. “This…”

Gu Xiaojia suddenly brought his fist down hard on the top of Sun Nuo’s shoe.

With a yelp of pain, Sun Nuo jumped into the air.

Everyone’s attention was immediately drawn to him.

Hurriedly suppressing his grimace, Sun Nuo said, “Your Excellency, this absolutely must not be done.”

Lu Zhenxue said, “Why not? His Excellency is the parental official of the people of Tanyang County. For parents to set a wedding date for their children—is that not perfectly natural?”

Sun Nuo replied, “His Excellency may be the parental official of the people of Tanyang County, but the Liang family are not residents of Tanyang County. Furthermore, there are countless people in Tanyang County. His Excellency manages affairs daily without rest. Is he supposed to set wedding dates for every citizen one by one? Even taking ten thousand steps back, Second Miss Qiu and Young Master Liang both still have parents living. If His Excellency rashly fixes a wedding date in the judge’s chambers, would that not be overstepping his authority?”

Seeing Old Master Liang desperately signaling him with his eyes, Lu Zhenxue frowned slightly and said, “If Brother Sun had spoken those words outside the courtroom, they would indeed make sense. But this is a court of law. Since the dispute between the Qiu and Liang families has been brought before the court, it should naturally be decided solely by His Excellency. Otherwise, why should His Excellency waste his time sitting here with the rest of us?”

As Tao Mo listened to Lu Zhenxue speak, he felt the argument was reasonable. When he listened to Sun Nuo, that too seemed reasonable. The scales in his heart swayed back and forth, unable to settle. Instinctively, he looked toward Adviser Jin. Still irritated over Tao Mo allowing Gu Xiaojia into the courtroom without consulting him, Adviser Jin lowered his head the moment he noticed the glance and pretended not to see it.

Left with no choice, Tao Mo turned toward Mu Chun beside him.

Mu Chun smiled faintly and gently shook his head.

To Tao Mo, it felt as though a spring breeze had brushed across his face. An indescribable sense of comfort washed over him, instantly sweeping away his earlier anxiety and filling him with confidence. He lightly tapped the judge’s block.

The courtroom, already silent, remained silent.

Tao Mo said, “This matter requires further consideration. We shall discuss it another day.”

Lu Zhenxue frowned. “Does Your Excellency intend to adjourn and hear the case again later? When does Your Excellency plan to resume proceedings?”

Tao Mo instinctively replied, “Then what do you think—”

Lu Zhenxue hurriedly said, “Naturally, it would be best to conclude the case today.”

Mu Chun smiled. “Your Excellency, noon is approaching. Why not postpone the hearing until the third quarter of the Wei hour?”

Tao Mo nodded repeatedly. “Very well. The hearing is postponed until the third quarter of the Wei hour. Court dismissed!”

For such a straightforward and minor case to be postponed, discussion quickly spread throughout the city. Many people lost confidence in the abilities of the newly arrived county magistrate.

Back in the study, Tao Mo paced back and forth twice before asking Mu Chun and Adviser Jin, who were leisurely drinking tea nearby, “What do the two of you think? Should I set a wedding date?”

Adviser Jin glanced at Mu Chun. Mu Chun remained silent.

Feeling a small surge of satisfaction, Adviser Jin said, “In my opinion, the key issue is not whether a wedding date should be set, but why the Liang family has delayed proposing marriage for so long.”

Tao Mo suddenly understood. “That’s right. Why is that?”

Adviser Jin replied, “Judging from Old Master Liang’s expression, he does not seem to want to break off the engagement. Perhaps there are hidden circumstances at work.”

“Adviser Jin makes a good point,” Mu Chun said leisurely. “Perhaps the one who wishes to proceed with the marriage is Old Master Liang, while the one who does not is Young Master Liang. That would explain why this marriage has been delayed until now.”

Adviser Jin slapped his palm. “Exactly. Old Master Liang’s insistence that His Excellency set a wedding date may not be aimed at restraining the Qiu family at all. It may be intended to restrain Young Master Liang.” Only after speaking did he realize he had unconsciously echoed Mu Chun’s opinion, which made him somewhat uncomfortable.

Tao Mo nodded. “That’s true. Young Master Liang wasn’t present in court today.” It was understandable that Second Miss Qiu, being an unmarried young woman, would be unwilling to appear in court. But Young Master Liang’s absence was certainly worth investigating.

Adviser Jin sighed. “Unfortunately, there isn’t enough time. We can’t summon Young Master Liang back from the neighboring county before the hearing resumes.”

“What do you mean there isn’t enough time?” Tao Mo said. “I can simply postpone the hearing again.”

Adviser Jin hesitated. “Would that really be appropriate?” He turned to look at Mu Chun.

Mu Chun said, “To outsiders, the dispute between the Qiu and Liang families may seem like a trivial matter. But to them, it is certainly a major affair. Might it be possible that Young Master Liang is already in Tanyang County?”

Though Adviser Jin felt there was some merit to the idea, Mu Chun sounded far too certain. He probed, “Could it be that Adviser Mu has already seen Young Master Liang somewhere in town?”

Mu Chun laughed. “I’ve never met Young Master Liang in my life. Even if I passed him on the street, we would merely brush shoulders. How would I recognize him?”

Adviser Jin said, “Yet Adviser Mu sounds remarkably certain.”

Mu Chun replied, “Whether he is here or not, His Excellency need only send someone to the place where Old Master Liang is staying to find out.”

The moment Tao Mo heard this, he thought it made perfect sense and hurried outside excitedly.

Yet that trip lasted nearly the time it took for an incense stick to burn.

Both Adviser Jin and Mu Chun were beginning to feel hungry and were preparing to take their leave when Tao Mo finally returned and handed a letter to Mu Chun. “Read this for me. What does it say?”

A trace of displeasure rose in Adviser Jin’s heart. True, he had been sitting farther away from Tao Mo than Mu Chun had, so perhaps handing the letter to Mu Chun had been unintentional. But that very unintentional act revealed something—that in Tao Mo’s mind, Adviser Jin was not as trusted as Mu Chun.

Unconcerned with the turmoil brewing in Adviser Jin’s thoughts, Mu Chun casually unfolded the letter.

Tao Mo watched him expectantly.

Mu Chun said, “Expedite hearing.”

Tao Mo blinked. “And?”

Mu Chun flipped the paper over.

There were indeed only two characters.

Adviser Jin was deeply displeased by the tone of the letter’s author. “Who wrote this letter?” he asked coolly. “How arrogant.”

Tao Mo grinned foolishly as he carefully put the letter away.

Mu Chun shook his head with a laugh and turned to leave.

Adviser Jin felt another spark of irritation. He had a feeling Mu Chun knew exactly who had sent the letter, while he alone remained ignorant. Though becoming an adviser had not originally been his preferred path, now that he held the position, he had no desire to be outshone by someone else.

With that thought in mind, he said to Tao Mo, “Master, I have already informed Clerk Cui of the matter you instructed me about.”

Tao Mo blinked. “What matter?”

Assuming Tao Mo did not wish to openly discuss the matter of accepting bribes, Adviser Jin thought he understood and smiled knowingly. “Nothing.”

Tao Mo stared blankly at Adviser Jin’s departing figure, utterly bewildered.

After lunch, Tao Mo took the letter into the study, placed it on the desk, and summoned Hao Guozi to grind ink.

Hao Guozi stared in surprise. “Young Master is going to write?”

Tao Mo nodded with a smile.

“What is Young Master going to write?”

“Expedite hearing.” Tao Mo pointed at the characters on the paper and carefully read them aloud.

Hao Guozi frowned. “The characters are beautiful, but they’re difficult to copy. If Young Master truly wants to learn calligraphy, I could buy a few beginner copybooks instead.”

Tao Mo waved his hand. “I only want to learn his handwriting.”

“His?” Hao Guozi asked cautiously. “Gu She?”

Tao Mo nodded.

Hao Guozi sighed silently.

Tao Mo had never been illiterate because he lacked the means to study; he simply had never wanted to learn. Nevertheless, he still understood basic things such as how to hold a brush.

Watching Tao Mo take up the brush with a surprisingly proper posture, Hao Guozi felt a wave of relief. He could not help thinking that if Gu She had appeared a few years earlier, perhaps Young Master would not have remained illiterate, and perhaps the late Master Tao would not have gone to his grave with such regrets.

“Eh?” Tao Mo looked at the horizontal stroke that trembled like a caterpillar and said awkwardly, “Why does it look different?”

Hao Guozi said, “If Young Master wants to learn how to write, you’ll have to start from the beginning.”

Tao Mo tightened his grip slightly and said, “Y-yes, I was too eager for quick results.” He just didn’t know how long it would take before he could write such beautiful characters as Gu She.

Seeing the sweat covering his forehead, Hao Guozi said, “Young Master, why don’t you take a break? I’ll pour you a cup of tea.”

Tao Mo also felt a slight ache in his arm and nodded, but his eyes never left Gu She’s calligraphy for even a moment, as though he were imagining what Gu She looked like when he put brush to paper.

A short while later, Hao Guozi returned, with a yamen runner following behind him.

Setting down his brush, Tao Mo asked in surprise, “Is there news of Young Master Liang?”

After hurriedly completing his bow, the yamen runner replied, “Reporting to Your Excellency, Young Master Liang is currently staying with Old Master Liang at Tongfu Inn in the city.”

Tao Mo immediately set his brush aside and, without a second thought, said, “Go to Tongfu Inn and tell him that this official is summoning him to court this afternoon!”

The yamen runner hesitated briefly before turning and leaving.

Now that there was news of Young Master Liang, Tao Mo had no mind left for copying calligraphy. He hastily put away the letter and went off to discuss the matter with Adviser Jin and Mu Chun.

After hearing the news, Adviser Jin did not rush to speak as he had last time. Instead, he first turned to Mu Chun and asked, “What is Adviser Mu’s opinion?”

Mu Chun said, “Young Master Liang is clearly in Tanyang, yet he refuses to show himself. Could it be that he has some unspeakable difficulty?”

Adviser Jin said meaningfully, “Does Adviser Mu know something?”

Mu Chun smiled. “You and I have both been sitting in this room. How could I possibly know what is happening outside it?”

Adviser Jin replied, “You flatter me, Adviser Mu. Though we sit in the same room, your breadth of vision is far beyond anything Jin could hope to match.”

Mu Chun said, “You jest, Adviser Jin.”

“I am not jesting. Every word Adviser Mu says appears casual, but is in fact deliberate. It’s as if…” Adviser Jin paused and deliberately glanced at Tao Mo before continuing slowly, “everything has long been within Adviser Mu’s expectations.”

Mu Chun answered lightly, “Adviser Jin makes me sound almost supernatural. Mu Chun would not dare accept such praise.”

Listening to their back-and-forth left Tao Mo completely bewildered. Unable to hold back any longer, he asked, “Then what exactly is going on?”

Adviser Jin looked at Mu Chun. “Since Adviser Mu believes there is some hidden truth behind all this, then perhaps there truly is. As for whether that is the case, why not have someone investigate further?”

Tao Mo frowned. “If it is a hidden matter, then surely it is not something people know about. How can it possibly be investigated?”

Adviser Jin said, “That is something you should ask Adviser Mu.”

The corner of Mu Chun’s mouth curled upward. Ignoring the provocation, he smiled at Tao Mo and said, “It can be investigated.”

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