Chapter 663 - 662: Arrangement
This person was none other than Xu You, who later became Song Chongjin’s mentor and was also a student of Grand Scholar Qi. He had received the Qi Family’s kindness, but when disaster befell the Qi Family, he, with his limited capabilities, could do nothing.
Moreover, because of his involvement with the Qi Family, he was barred from holding an official post, and, given the relationship between Song Hong and the Qi Family, he simply sought refuge with Song Hong.
Upon hearing that this Song Chongjin was the child of Song Hong and Qi Huan, Xu You did not hesitate to take it upon himself to mentor Song Chongjin.
Driven by a mix of empathetic sentiment and the desire to repay a debt, Xu You held Song Chongjin in high regard and even bestowed upon him his years of accumulated expertise in intelligence gathering.
Later, he persuaded Song Hong to hand over control of the intelligence agencies of more than a dozen counties, prefectures, and governorships surrounding Jing County to Song Chongjin, thus providing him with a means to establish a foundation for his life.
Because of Xu You’s high esteem for Song Chongjin, he paid extra attention to this son of his, occasionally having news of Song Chongjin reported back to him for his perusal.
Song Chongjin’s participation in the Scholar examination was naturally known to Song Hong, who had taken precautions earlier by registering Song Chongjin’s household in Jing County. There was even a small courtyard in Song Chongjin’s name, which at the time had been left in the care of a trusted servant.
Song Hong knew Song Chongjin had been exploited by Song Chunhua and the Song Family because of his filial piety. More importantly, he saw that Song Chongjin had a certain cleverness; after all, he was his own son, and he could not bear to watch him being dragged down by Song Chunhua and the Song Family.
He had Xu You step in and transfer the Jing County household registration to Song Chongjin, and then he received the news that Song Chongjin had passed the Scholar examination.
That night, Song Hong, alone with his drink, spent a night in the courtyard once occupied by Qi Huan, longing to tell her that their son had grown up, had become accomplished, and truly bore the mark of his maternal grandfather.
It was then that he considered bringing Song Chongjin back to the Duke Weiguo Residence, but myriad concerns had continuously delayed the decision.