NOVPUBHe couldn’t figure out the problem and shook his head, intending to leave when suddenly two figures blocked his path.
Liu Shang tried to bypass them but was stopped by the pair once again.
Liu Shang’s brow furrowed. He was about to say something when the two spoke first,
"The court officials are forbidden to consort with prostitutes. The Ministry of Justice will handle the case according to the law."
"Lord Liu, please come with us."
Liu Shang looked up at the two men, his vision suddenly going dark, no longer having the will to ponder the ultimate meaning of life.
There were many officials in Chang’an who consorted with prostitutes, but the Ministry of Justice had never arrested anyone for that reason before.
Their coming for him this time was certainly not to request a musical performance from him.
No matter the reason.
The only thought in his mind was,
It’s all over!
...
Although Li Nuo had never been to the Ministry of Justice, of the many government offices in Chang’an, he had the strongest connections to the Chang’an County Government and the Ministry of Justice.
Housekeeper Wu was also very familiar with this place.
He only needed a word and someone would take care of all his affairs neatly.
Of course, he never abused his power to do anything illegal.
He only provided a piece of intelligence.
Liu Shang was the Director of Music, holding a standard seventh-rank official position, a proper mid-level official of the court.
According to Daxia’s "Official System Law," officials who consort with prostitutes are to be detained for one day, but the detention can be avoided with a payment of ten taels of silver.
Meaning they could either be detained for one day or pay ten taels, one or the other.
The punishment was not severe compared to forming cliques for selfish ends, abusing authority, corruption and bending the law, planning to harm the loyal and good, or treating human life as grass—it was nothing at all, even the Imperial Censors were too lazy to bother.
Just detaining Liu Shang for a day didn’t even warrant disturbing his father.
A Minister at the Ministry of Justice, after completing Liu Shang’s disposition result and stamping the seal, added another day to the numbers on the Law Code, turning it into 180 days.
A standard seventh-rank official, two levels higher than the Liyang County Captain, could actually add a day to their life even for a minor offence.
But when Li Nuo flipped through the Law Code, the portrait of Liu Shang was not shining.
This puzzled him greatly.
Liu Shang was the Music Department top scholar from the previous Imperial Examination, the number one in music among a hundred thousand candidates, definitely satisfying the conditions of the Law Code.
Could they have arrested the wrong person?
He went straight to the cells of the Ministry of Justice.
There were two types of cells in the Ministry of Justice. One was the Death Prison for death row inmates, located underground with poor conditions.
The other was for the temporary detention of officials who committed minor violations of the law.
This type of cell, single room with a bed and a window, even provided fruits and snacks. It was meant for officials to reflect and was comparatively comfortable to stay in.
Liu Shang was detained in this second type of cell.
Li Nuo stood at the doorway, glanced inside through the bars, and asked, "Is he the Director of Music, Liu Shang? You haven’t arrested the wrong person, have you?"
The respectful minister replied, "No chance of a mistake, sir. Lord Liu was the top scholar of the Music Department in the last Imperial Examination. I have some impression of him."
Li Nuo’s face revealed his bewilderment.
That was odd.
Changes to the numbers in the Law Code indicated the arrest was legally effective.
But Liu Shang’s portrait was dim, implying the Law Code didn’t favor him, not acknowledging any special talent.
A top scholar of the Music Department without special talents, that had to be a joke...
Could his title as the top scholar of the Music Department have been obtained through connections?
Whether this former top scholar really had any talent could be determined by having him play a piece.
Li Nuo turned to the Ministry of Justice official beside him and asked, "Do you have any musical instruments here?"
The man nodded and said, "Director Zhang Sizheng is fond of music and often plays in the government office. There should be a zither in his room. I will fetch it."
The minister left briefly and soon returned, followed by a middle-aged man carrying an ancient zither in his arms.
Li Nuo gave them a few instructions before saying, "Open the door."
The door to the cell holding Liu Shang was unlocked, and a few silhouettes entered.
Liu Shang, who had been sitting on the bed lost in thought, shuddered at the words and quickly hid in the corner of the bed.
Director Zhang Sizheng placed the zither on the table in the cell and said, "Lord Liu, please play us a piece."
Liu Shang’s expression was vacant.
The Ministry of Justice had brought him here, truly to play the zither...
He still hadn’t figured out what was going on.
The Ministry of Justice people had arrested him, but had not done anything to him.
They had not subjected him to torture to extract a confession, not even a single person had come to interrogate him.
A few people barged in inexplicably, asked him to play the zither without any preamble, leaving him feeling jittery inside...
But no matter what, things didn’t seem as bad as he had imagined.
He got out of bed, sat up straight at the desk, and cautiously asked, "What should I play?"
The two Ministry of Justice officials looked at Li Nuo, who remained silent. Zhang Sizheng said, "Anything will do."
Liu Shang first tested the tuning. The pitch of this zither was quite accurate, and he only made some minor adjustments.
His hands rested on the strings, and after some contemplation, his fingers began to move.
A passage of music flowed at his fingertips.
Just moments before, his face was pale and his expression fearful, but as he sat in front of the zither, the fear faded and his complexion turned rosy.
Li Nuo didn’t recognize the piece being played. When the music began, all he felt was a primitive, deep, and profound breath rushing towards him.
His heart began to surge with emotion.
The music reached his ears, and he felt as if he was in the wilderness, with ancient and enduring winds blowing from its depths.
Standing atop the wilderness, he looked up at the deep blue sky and felt an overwhelming urge to prostrate himself in worship.
Thump!
At the entrance of the cell, two Ministry of Justice officials actually, and indeed, knelt down with a thump.
Li Nuo didn’t understand music and didn’t know how to evaluate its level.
If he had to describe it with one word,
it would be "awesome."
After listening for just a short while, he felt his soul had been cleansed.
How could such talent not be appreciated by the Law Code?
Dude, can’t we lower our standards a bit?
He didn’t know if it was his illusion, but he always felt that after the "Breakthrough," the Law Code’s demands for skills seemed to have increased.
After the piece ended, Li Nuo’s emotions took a long time to calm down.
Yet, Zhang Sizheng standing beside him shook his head and said, "Lord Liu’s qin skill has greatly declined compared to three years ago. This piece of ’Cloud Gate’ doesn’t come close to the level you played at the Imperial Examination. It seems, in recent years, you have truly neglected the Music Path..."
Li Nuo was taken aback, wasn’t this good enough?
"Cloud Gate" is one of the Six Musics, played for the worship of the Heavenly God.
Worship requires kneeling.
The urge to kneel upon hearing "Cloud Gate" indicates the player has achieved a high level, capturing the soul of the piece.
Liu Shang was completely immersed in his own music and hadn’t yet regained his composure. Upon hearing such a comment, feeling insulted and forgetting his predicament for a moment, he abruptly stood up, pointed at the zither, and challenged, "You say I didn’t play well, so come on, let’s see you play. I’d like to hear for myself just how well you can do it..."
Zhang Sizheng was unmoved and said coolly, "Of course, my grasp of music is not as good as yours, but just because my qin skill is inferior, does that mean I can’t offer a critique? Lord Liu, ask yourself, have you diligently practiced your qin skill in the last three years, and how much has your Music Path regressed? You know in your own heart..."
"I..."
Liu Shang looked at Zhang Sizheng, bowed his head in silence, and ultimately did not retort.
This man was right; his qin skills had indeed regressed considerably since the Imperial Examination three years ago.
Learning is like rowing upstream: not advancing is falling back.
The Music Path is the same.
If you don’t practice for three days, you can feel yourself slipping.
If you don’t practice for three months, your peers will see through you.
If you don’t practice for three years, even those ignorant of the Music Path can distinctly hear the difference.
But for the sake of the Imperial Examination, he began practicing the zither at the age of three, dedicating four two-hour periods to practice each day.
Beyond those four two-hour periods, he also had to study the other five subjects, without a moment to call his own.
He lived like this for a full twenty years.
Persistent hard work pays off, and his efforts were not in vain, as he finally succeeded in the Imperial Examination, becoming the Music Department Top Scholar.
In the more than three years after the examination, the number of times he had touched the zither was indeed very few.
But he had played the zither for twenty years, played until he felt nauseated at the sight of it, and now that he had become an official, couldn’t he enjoy a little?
