Chapter Six: The Candle Extinguished, Yet No Regrets Remain!

[Your faith has triumphed over your fear of the darkness in reality!]

[You are well aware of the darkness and decay of the Ming Dynasty of Zombies, and you know that your whistleblowing will likely have no substantive effect. Given your master’s proficiency in such matters, this is surely not the first time he has engaged in such deception.]

[Repeatedly swindling scholarship rewards without ever getting caught proves that he is a man of great cunning and that the forces behind him are not to be trifled with. He is an Assistant Scholar-Official; therefore, the Chief Scholar-Official must certainly be in on it, and the County Magistrate cannot be absolved either.]

[This is not a manifestation of your persecution complex, but a genuine possibility. Since the acts of fraud are clearly numerous, it would be strange if the Magistrate were unaware!]

[Thus, if you truly insist on being headstrong, the outcome is already predictable.]

[But... so what?]

[“Since ancient times, countless righteous men have died for the sake of the people. They were mere mortals; did they not fear death?”]

[“Clearly, for them, there are things in this world more unacceptable than death!”]

[The people do not fear death, so why threaten them with it!]

[“If they dared to die, how could I, a new youth of the modern class, not dare? Just consider it my stubbornness!”]

[“Moreover, the Ming Dynasty may not be as dark as people say...”]

[“A mere hundred-tael case should not reach the level of the County Magistrate. At most, it is just a scheme born of the Chief Scholar-Official’s greed. Even if it were connected to the Magistrate, he could not simply pass a nonsensical judgment in open court, could he? At the very least, he must maintain the appearance of justice.”]

[Although you are young, you are not purely naive. Your precocity has led you to believe that the government will at least adhere to some semblance of procedural justice. As long as you make a scene and report it to the Magistrate in person, even if he is a corrupt official, he will have to perform the role of a righteous judge for once.]

[So, after school that day, instead of going home to hand the banknotes to your father as your master instructed, you went straight to the County Yamen with the money!]

[“I want to report a crime!”]

[The three-year-old child shouted loudly and solemnly at the drowsy yamen runner at the entrance!]

[The runners were startled and looked down, but seeing only a child, they impatiently tried to shoo you away.]

[However, you had anticipated this. You pulled the red-backed commendation letter signed by the Prefect from your robes!]

[“I have a letter signed by the Prefect himself! I want to report our Assistant Scholar-Official and the Chief Scholar-Official for corruption and fraud!”]

[Your loud cries echoed in all directions, shocking the runners and piquing the curiosity of passersby. Soon, a large crowd gathered!]

[Seeing the growing crowd—though they were merely curious onlookers—the sheer numbers caused the runners to panic. Seeing the official letter you held, they exchanged uneasy glances.]

[In the end, they had no choice but to lead you and the spectators into the Yamen.]

[And so, for the first time in your life, you saw the “upright” Magistrate of Mizhi County!]

[...]

[“Who is that before the bench, accusing an official?”]

[Forced to hold court, the Magistrate looked at the small child kneeling below and felt a surge of rage, wanting to roar that classic line!]

[Are you sick in the head, you brat? You don’t want the free money, and you have to report it... I, the ‘upright’ judge, am also involved in the corruption! How do you expect me to investigate? How do you expect me to judge? Huh?]

[The Magistrate was furious: I knew something would go wrong! Ding Shuang (the clerk-master and Assistant Scholar-Official)! You deserve to die!]

[I told you to pick a ‘child prodigy’ who was older. A brat too young doesn’t understand human speech or the stakes involved. If they run out and scream, who can handle that?!]

[And you, you actually picked a three-year-old... Have you lost your mind, Ding Shuang?]

[And you, Xue Bao (the Chief Scholar-Official)! As the Chief Scholar-Official, don’t you verify these things? The man surnamed Ding is insane, and you are too? You actually dared to report a three-year-old brat as a ‘prodigy’?!]

[The Magistrate cursed the two fools in his heart and frantically sought a solution...]

[The conclusion was reached quickly: whoever caused the trouble must take the fall! Since these two fools started it, for the sake of everyone’s safety and reputation, they must be cut loose...]

[The Magistrate struck his gavel, and several runners rushed to the school to drag the bewildered Scholar-Officials to the court, forcing them to kneel!]

[When they finally understood what was happening, they glared at you, you wretched child, with shock and anger: Are you trying to kill us?!]

[CRACK!]

[The Magistrate struck his gavel coldly: “Zhou Liang reports you for embezzling rewards, totaling 470 taels... Do you have anything to say?”]

[470 taels?!]

[The two officials cursed inwardly: 70 taels for the Assistant, 100 for the Chief—where did 470 come from? Didn’t the remaining 300 go into your own pocket?]

[But they dared not argue. They were not naive children like you; they had reason and knew their limits. They knew what could be said and what could not. Furthermore, they realized the Magistrate did not want to escalate this. As long as they confessed, the matter could be buried.]

[And so the verdict was rendered. Since the two criminals confessed to the embezzlement, the ‘upright’ judge ordered them to compensate the ‘prodigy’ with the remaining 470 taels, stripped them of their positions as school clerks, and fined them an additional 200 taels to be paid to the Yamen. No mistakes allowed!]

[“A divine judgment from an upright judge!”]

[The onlookers, seeing justice served and the case concluded, cheered in approval!]

[But your heart sank into despair...]

[This is not the result you wanted!]

[The goal of risking your life was to expose the fake prodigy status, forcing the Magistrate to act on behalf of the people.]

[But now it is clear the Magistrate is in league with them. He simply turned a major case of ‘fabricating a prodigy to defraud the prefecture’ into a minor case of ‘private embezzlement’!]

[You felt despair, wanting to refute the verdict, but you did not open your mouth. You knew it would be useless. Your voice could never leave this county, and at three years old, you had no capacity to appeal to the prefectural government. From the start, this was a gamble.]

[You bet that the Magistrate would uphold justice; you staked your life on it, and now you have lost...]

[Speaking up now would not only be useless but would also enrage the Magistrate, causing him to vent his anger on your family. You are not afraid of death, but you cannot let your family die with you. Thus, it is best to stay silent.]

[You closed your eyes in despair. The flickering candle of the new era was destined to be extinguished in the boundless, ancient darkness...]

[...]

[For the first few days, everything seemed normal. The Magistrate praised your courage, calling you a true ‘Northern Shaanxi Prodigy’!]

[Then, he personally visited your home with the two disgraced men, and before your parents’ astonished eyes, he handed them the 470 taels of banknotes.]

[He scolded the two men, making them apologize to your family in person. The two did not hesitate, bowing respectfully and offering gifts, begging for forgiveness.]

[The more they acted this way, the more your parents trembled with fear...]

[When they were about to leave, the ‘upright’ judge patted your head and said to your parents with profound meaning: “Your son is such a prodigy; it is a blessing. But as they say, extreme brilliance often leads to harm... If you have more children in the future, do be careful.”]

[After he left, your parents became increasingly uneasy...]

[“This won’t do! Liang has caused such a disaster; if we stay in the county, there will be trouble!”]

[Your father gritted his teeth: “Move! We’re moving back to our hometown! Our fellow villagers are many and will be safer than this place... He’s done with school!”]

[Once the head of the household made the decision, your mother had no objections. After packing your belongings, you left for the countryside the very next day!]

[But you touched your head, recalling the golden light that had flashed in the Magistrate’s palm, and felt a bitter taste in your heart: It’s too late...]

[That night, after returning home, you suddenly developed a high fever. Your family scrambled in a panic, but they couldn’t bring your temperature down!]

[In these times, a high fever in a child is effectively a death sentence...]

[Your condition worsened day by day. In just three days, you were clinging to life by a thread!]

[Your parents, grandparents, and relatives watched you motionless on the bed with heavy hearts. You were the only son, a prodigy with a bright future, and yet now...]

[Alas...]

[They sighed in sorrow, and your parents wept uncontrollably. You, however, felt no sadness for your own death, only guilt—guilt toward your parents.]

[It was your impulsive actions that led to all this. Not only did you fail to achieve your goal, but you forced your parents to endure the pain of losing a child. This was the greatest filial impiety.]

[But you did not regret it. You only hated that you lacked the power to pierce through the dark clouds covering the sky. The result of burning yourself was merely making someone pay a little money and lose their job.]

[A single candle, in the end, could not ignite the brilliance of the sun. The result of forcing yourself to burn was simply to burn out prematurely...]

[“But I do not regret it...”]

[In your half-dream state, you evaluated your short life.]

[“I do not regret it!...”]

[Whoosh!]

[The candle flame went out...]

[In the 46th year of Chongzhen, you died at the age of three... Your life was worthy of the name “Liang” (Goodness). You were kind, and you died because of your kindness. It can be said you died for a cause.]

[Perhaps it was not worth it, but... you did not regret it. And that was enough.]