The news of Lu Zhiyuan's arrest reached Anyang County after more than a month.

The first to receive the news was naturally Huang Yunxiao, the County Captain of Anyang County. After confirming the truth of the matter, he immediately sent for Huang Qingzhou.

Inside the Government Office, the two brothers both wore grave expressions.

"Elder brother, why on earth would Master Lu, who was so well regarded, be taken by the Black Scale Guard?"

Huang Qingzhou found it hard to comprehend how Lu Zhiyuan, a renowned scholar with disciples spread across a significant portion of the officialdom, could have committed a crime that would alarm the Inspectorate's Black Scale Guard.

Huang Yunxiao sighed.

"Do you remember what I once told you?"

"Master Lu is indeed a great scholar of the time, but years ago he did something that made all the scholars of the world fear him."

"That incident not only offended numerous esteemed scholars but also caused many of his students to distance themselves from him."

"It is said that the incident caused a huge uproar in Zhili."

"In the end, it was His Majesty who intervened forcefully to vouch for Master Lu, allowing him to escape unscathed."

Huang Qingzhou was quite surprised. Being from a remote place like Yunzhong, even more so in the frontier town of Anyang County, he had indeed not heard of this matter before.

"Elder brother, what exactly did Master Lu do back then?"

Huang Yunxiao slightly shook his head, "Even I don't fully understand, just a rough idea that Master Lu refuted the teachings of ancient sages and wanted to establish a new school of thought."

"In the eyes of those conservative scholars, such an act is undoubtedly seen as a betrayal of one's teachers and ancestors, an outrageous deed."

"This..." Huang Qingzhou looked incredulous, evidently unable to believe that the seemingly amiable old man could have such ambitions.

The tradition of Literary Dao has been passed down for millennia, respect for teachers and the Dao is ingrained in every scholar's heart.

"Innovators perish when the excitement ends." Huang Yunxiao sighed and continued, "Our immediate concern is not what Master Lu did in the past."

"From what I've learned, the second young master of the Shen Family has also been implicated with Master Lu and taken to Zhili."

"I'm worried that the Shen Family might get implicated because of this. Second brother, what do you plan to do?"

Plan?

Huang Qingzhou remained silent.

He understood what his elder brother meant.

Shen Wenyan, the second young master of the Shen Family, is a student of Lu Zhiyuan. Being arrested this time might implicate his family, and if his daughter Huang Lingxiu were to marry into the Shen Family, she might also be affected.

Even if they manage to dodge the immediate threat, the Shen Family might still face suppression and exclusion in the future because of this incident.

But setting everything aside, he truly likes Shen Wenxing.

The Shen family is also quite decent, which leaves him in a difficult position.

"Alas!"

Seeing his hesitation, Huang Yunxiao sighed slightly and said, "Hopefully, I'm just overthinking this."

"The second young master of the Shen Family is just a student of Master Lu, even if it's the serious crime of treason, it wouldn't extend to students. His Majesty is wise and has a teacher-student bond with Master Lu, he should not take his anger out on others."

"However, after this incident, I'm afraid Master Lu is finished."

"You go and inform Shen Yuan about this so he can be mentally prepared."

Huang Qingzhou nodded and immediately left the County Captain's Office.

Jinliu Village.

In the small courtyard, upon hearing Huang Qingzhou's words, the couple's expressions changed drastically!

"How could this happen?"

"Ah Nu wrote not long ago saying he and Master were visiting the sages of the Cui Family in Lincang, how could this happen..."

Hu Yufen was completely flustered, her face pale as she spoke.

"Dear, don't worry yet."

Shen Yuan managed to maintain his composure, and after comforting his wife, he turned to Huang Qingzhou and asked, "Brother-in-law, do you know why Master Lu and Ah Nu were arrested?"

Huang Qingzhou shook his head.

Huang Yunxiao had specifically inquired after hearing the news, but so far, no one knew what exactly Lu Zhiyuan had done.

"Elder brother has already sent someone to Lincang. Master Lu and Ah Nu were arrested by the Black Scale Guard of the Inspectorate while in Lincang, so there might be someone there who knows some information."

"Ah Yuan, I'm telling you this just so you can be mentally prepared. I'll head back now, and I'll inform you once we have more news."

Shen Yuan stood up to see him off at the door, and watched Huang Qingzhou ride away on horseback before returning to the courtyard.

"Husband..."

With no outsiders present, Hu Yufen could no longer hold back and broke into tears.

Ah Nu is not even twelve years old yet, taken away so suddenly, how could she not worry?

Shen Yuan held her tightly, letting her tears soak his clothes, continually comforting her, "It will be fine, it will definitely be fine."

"Rest for a while, I need to go out for a bit."

After comforting his wife, entrusting Shen Wenping to look after her, Shen Yuan went alone to the edge of Black Water Pool.

Staring at the deep pool, he hesitated for a moment, then his consciousness sank into the Sea of Consciousness.

With a slight movement of his Heart Spirit, a line of text appeared on the turtle shell instantly.

[Deriving the fate of family member Shen Wenyan requires consuming 380 years of life span, insufficient life span, unable to derive.]

Hmm!?

Seeing the text on the turtle shell, Shen Yuan immediately frowned.

He just wanted to confirm if his son being captured would pose any life threat, and unexpectedly deriving it required nearly 400 years of life span!

Currently, he is in the late Postnatal Realm, and his life span would hardly extend beyond 150 years; there was no way he could afford to derive Ah Nu's fate.

But just like last time, needing such a heavy price was proof enough that Ah Nu's life would not end now.

If being captured this time posed a life threat, the turtle shell would likely only require a small price to draw a conclusion of death.

Thinking of this made him feel slightly relieved.

Nevertheless, he still worried, as there is a saying, "Capital punishment may be avoided, but dire consequences are inevitable." The Inspectorate is a special department directly under Emperor Yu, which inevitably reminded him of the notorious Ming Dynasty's Jin Yi Wei in history.

These people bore the emperor's orders, and those who fell into their hands did not meet good ends.

But for now, there was no other way.

That's the Royal City, the Inspectorate, a mere commoner like him couldn't even get a word in.

At present, he could only hope that Huang Yunxiao might find some connections, not to mention a rescue, but at least figure out why Lu Zhiyuan and Ah Nu were found guilty.

Time passed for five days amid their anxiety and worry.

Huang Qingzhou returned to Jinliu Village once again.

"Ah Yuan, news came from Lincang, saying Master Lu mentioned the doctrine of rulers and ministers during his debate with the sages of the Cui Family, which contained words of rebellion and treason. The Cui Family directly contacted the Inspectorate to accuse him, which led to his arrest."

Huang Qingzhou brought the latest news.

Rebellion and treason...

Shen Yuan's expression turned solemn at once.

This accusation weighed heavily like a thousand catties. Once placed on someone, at a minimum, it could mean exile, at severe levels, the implication could extend to nine generations of their family!

"Master Lu is not someone who speaks recklessly, why would he say such things?"

Shen Yuan was full of doubt; he had known Lu Zhiyuan for years, and he understood that Lu Zhiyuan was not a reckless person, how could he have committed such an offense?

"There is another piece of news." After a moment of contemplation, Huang Qingzhou continued, "Elder brother received a letter from General Zhang. After victories in Fengxian and He County, the Left Wing Army where Shi Tou is located has been withdrawn from the front lines and is now escorting the spoils of war to the Zhili Royal City."

"Elder brother has written to General Zhang, asking him to find a way to gather information after reaching the Royal City."

Shi Tou has been withdrawn from the front lines?

This counts as good news.

Currently, it all depends on whether Zhang Bin can gather concrete information in the Royal City.

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