Frank Bolton was truly frustrated in his heart, so he let out a heavy grunt, waved his hand, and said, “It’s nothing, you all may go!”

　　After a few of the servants had walked away, he stomped his foot and said angrily, “Follow me!”

　　They walked along a corridor, at the end of which was Brian Bolton’s room. The door was ajar, leaving only a crack. Emily Thompson sensed something, raised his eyes, and saw a copper basin placed above the door. If someone pushed the door open rashly, the basin would surely fall. In ancient times, copper basins were extremely heavy, at least thirty to fifty jin. If it hit someone, even if it didn’t kill, a concussion would be unavoidable.

　　“A spoiled young master with a mischievous heart, but truly vicious!” Emily Thompson immediately made up his mind about this young lord. He saw that the steward seemed unaware and was about to push the door open. Emily Thompson was just about to warn him, but then remembered the steward’s earlier troublemaking. Besides, if he didn’t let the basin fall now, he’d surely run into other misfortunes sooner or later. In a moment of urgency, he bit his tongue and swallowed the warning.

　　He quickly took a step back, looked at the steward with pity, closed his eyes, and then heard a loud ‘clang!’ followed by the steward’s miserable cry. He opened his eyes slightly and saw the steward clutching his right shoulder, crouching down in pain. Fortunately, he had reacted quickly and avoided a fatal disaster.

Chapter Three: The Daoist Who Cheats for Food and Drink (Part 3)

　　After a while, a low exclamation came from inside the room: “Ah! It’s the head steward.”

　　“Hurry, help him away, don’t alarm my mother.”

　　A maid with a flushed face ran out of the room. She was exceptionally plump, her red jacket almost bursting at the chest. She was the same person seen earlier in the courtyard. She hurriedly helped the injured head steward up, apologized softly, and supported him as he limped away.

　　“My shoulder is probably ruined!”

　　“No, the head steward’s name has the character ‘福’ (fortune), so he’ll surely turn misfortune into blessing.”

　　……

　　The voices gradually faded away. When they reached the courtyard gate, Frank Bolton suddenly remembered something, turned back, and glared fiercely at Emily Thompson. If not for him, how would he have suffered such a calamity?

　　Emily Thompson chuckled, stepped forward, and entered the room. The place was filled with the scent of cosmetics, the walls painted plain white. A mirror was nailed directly opposite the door, with a small dustpan below it containing a pair of scissors. Diagonally across hung a painting of Zhong Kui catching ghosts. Below the painting was a large sandalwood table, on which sat only an agate dish holding several boxes of rouge. In the northeast corner of the room stood an ivory bed, draped with a soft gauze canopy the color of clear sky after rain. The curtain was only half drawn, revealing a young man lying inside, his face deathly pale, but his eyelids twitching.

　　Emily Thompson did not approach, but found a chair and sat down, looking at him. After a long moment, he slowly said, “I’m not really a ghost-catching Daoist. I know you’re pretending. How about we make a deal?”

　　Seeing the young man remain silent, Emily Thompson smiled and continued, “I have a way for you to obtain the tongsheng qualification, but you must help me get through today.”

　　The young man sat up with a start and smiled, “You really have a way to get me the tongsheng?”

　　Emily Thompson got up to close the door, then turned and said, “Tongsheng isn’t really an official title. It all depends on the county magistrate’s pen. I’ve heard your eldest uncle is the Inspector of Jiannan Circuit, and your second uncle is the Judge of Jiannan. With such prominent relatives, how could the county magistrate not try to curry favor? For him, granting a tongsheng is just a matter of lifting his hand.”

　　Brian Bolton thought to himself, “That’s not untrue. Magistrate Liu often comes to my house just to get close to my uncles. But if my uncles find out about this, I’ll be in serious trouble!”

　　So he said, “That won’t do! My uncles know my situation and won’t let me mess around. Besides, I want to be a juren, not just a tongsheng.”

　　Emily Thompson had expected this and smiled, persuading him, “You have to eat one bite at a time. First get the tongsheng qualification, then slowly figure out how to become a juren. Pretending to be crazy can only fool people for a while, not forever. If you pass the exam, great. If not, you still have such a big family fortune—why make yourself suffer? Besides, there’s still a year before the juren exam. Anything could happen in that time. If it really doesn’t work out, just spend some money to hire a ghostwriter to take the exam for you, and everything will be fine.”

　　This speech made Brian Bolton’s heart pound. At first, he had thought the matter too serious, but now, after Emily Thompson’s words, he realized it wasn’t so bad. He’d heard of hiring ghostwriters before. His uncles had a great relationship with the Jiannan Military Commissioner, so even if it was exposed, nothing serious would happen. But if it wasn’t exposed, the position of county constable would be his. Imagining himself in official robes, Brian Bolton couldn’t help but get excited. Besides, after pretending for so many days, he was tired of it and started to long for the pleasures of Cuihua Tower. It was just the right time to step down from the act.

　　Thinking this, he looked Emily Thompson up and down. From what he’d seen and heard, this was a bold and daring man. Suddenly, Brian Bolton had an idea and smiled, “If you can guarantee I get the tongsheng, we have a deal!”

　　Emily Thompson only needed his agreement and didn’t care about what came after. He raised his right palm and smiled, “A gentleman’s word—”

　　Brian Bolton was overjoyed, also raised his right palm, and slapped it down hard, “A team of four horses can’t chase it back!” He forgot, though, that the other was no gentleman, but a Daoist who lived outside the Three Realms.