Ming Dynasty: My Father Zhang Juzheng

Chapter 101 Red Beans Expressing Love

Time flies, and it is November in a blink of an eye.

It has been a month since Zhang Yunxiu came to Huating. During this month, he and his brother accompanied Xu Yuanchun to meet the nobles in Songjiang Prefecture and even Yingtian Prefecture.

Zhang Yunxiu knew what Xu Yuanchun meant.

It's nothing more than two words: "take advantage of the situation" to let those who dare to set their sights on the Xu family take a look. If they want to take a bite of the fat meat of the Xu family, they should first consider whether they have the strength of their own teeth.

After some intimidation, those officials who coveted the Xu family and wanted to take advantage of the situation to rob them immediately restrained their thoughts.

Treasure is good, but a head is better. There is no need to lose your life for these material things.

At the same time, the autumn in the south of the Yangtze River was getting colder and colder, and Zhang Yunxiu knew it was time to return to Beijing.

That evening, Zhang Yunxiu had just finished his dinner when a green "bean sprout" came to his door and whispered, "Master Zhang, the young lady asked you to go to the back garden at twilight hour."

Zhang Yunxiu recognized that the voice belonged to Xu Ruoxi's personal maid Luluo, so he was delighted and replied, "I know."

The days are short in autumn. Once the hour of You arrives, the sky is covered with darkness, wrapping the earth tightly.

Bright lights had already been lit in the Xu family's back garden. In front of an attic, a scarlet curtain blocked the door.

Zhang Yunxiu followed the instructions and came to the front of the curtain. Just as he was about to continue to look inside, a trembling voice suddenly came from inside: "Don't come in, just stay outside."

"Okay!" Zhang Yunxiu responded helplessly.

This lady from a noble family in the Ming Dynasty was really conservative. She thought it was like asking for her life to see her fiancée.

It’s no wonder why those socialites are so popular.

Because, even if you are a newly-minted scholar, a prominent businessman, or the daughter of a wealthy family, you can never see her.

These socialites, who were well-educated, well-mannered and proficient in musical instruments, became substitutes for the ladies of noble families.

When the people inside heard that Zhang Yunxiu was not making a fuss, they heaved a sigh of relief, then opened their red lips and said sweetly, "Mr. Zhang will be back soon. I am not very talented, so I will sing a song for you."

"Then we are all ears."

Zhang Yunxiu straightened his back, Xu Ruoxi chuckled, and then gently plucked the strings of the zither, and the pleasant sound came out through the scarlet curtain.

The gentle parts are like the whispers of a young girl in love, the exciting parts are like the collision of swords, and the coquettish parts are so charming that it makes you feel intoxicated just by listening to them.

Looking through the scarlet curtain, the beautiful woman's white neck is clearly visible.

Zhang Yunxiu felt as if a caterpillar was crawling through his heart, feeling itchy and comfortable.

After the song was over, Xu Ruoxi raised her delicate head and smiled to the outside, "I am sorry that you, Mr. Zhang, have made fun of me because I am not very good at learning."

"Ruoxi, can I come in?" Zhang Yunxiu asked shamelessly.

"No!" Xu Ruoxi blushed and muttered, "I let you see enough last time. If you didn't want to leave, I wouldn't have come to find you."

"But we are husband and wife." Zhang Yunxiu wanted to tease her.

"That's after we get married." Xu Ruoxi clenched her jade hands and said nervously, "We are not married yet. There is a difference between men and women. Zhang Lang, just stand outside and talk to me for a while."

"What's the point of talking through a curtain?" Zhang Yunxiu was disappointed and turned away.

"Hey!"

Xu Ruoxi became anxious and chased after him. Zhang Yunxiu turned around and looked at her with a smile.

Xu Ruoxi instantly realized that she had been tricked. She bit her red lips tightly, blushing, and stomped her feet back into the scarlet curtain: "Then go away, go away, and don't come to see me after you leave."

"Oh."

Zhang Yunxiu turned around again.

"You come again? I won't be fooled." Xu Ruoxi tilted her head and leaned against the attic door.

Hearing Zhang Yunxiu's footsteps getting farther and farther away, she poked her head out and looked outside, but there was no one outside.

"Really gone?"

Xu Ruoxi's heart skipped a beat. She walked back to the guzheng in a daze and sat down in front of it. She supported her chin with her left hand and raised the red bean bracelet in her right hand. She looked a little dazed for a moment.

"You are the toughest talker in my body." Suddenly, a teasing voice sounded from outside again.

Xu Ruoxi's eyes lit up, her face full of smiles, and she said angrily, "I knew you didn't leave."

"Okay, since you've begged me so much, I'll stand outside and talk to you for a while." Zhang Yunxiu said, and he found a small stool from outside and sat down on it.

After thinking about it for a while, Xu Ruoxi asked nervously, "Do you have a concubine in the capital?"

"Yes." Zhang Yunxiu did not hide anything and said directly, "Her name is Zheng Xier, she is two years older than you, and she was originally a maid in the palace. But don't worry, she has a good temper."

"Oh." Seeing Zhang Yunxiu talking so much to her, Xu Ruoxi felt as if she had eaten candied fruit.

"You are often by the emperor's side. Can you tell me what the Forbidden City looks like? I have never been to the Forbidden City."

"There's nothing to see, just a few red walls with some people living inside. Although the people inside are of noble status, they are trapped between those red walls and green tiles for their entire lives, without any freedom. It's really pitiful."

After Zhang Yunxiu finished speaking, he smiled and said, "Do you still think the Forbidden City is fun?"

A trace of disappointment flashed across Xu Ruoxi's delicate face. She shook her head through the curtain and replied, "So, being the emperor's woman is the most miserable thing in the world. You will never be favored by the emperor in your whole life, and you can only be trapped in the deep palace."

Ok?
You are this far away from me?

Zhang Yunxiu heard the hidden meaning behind the words, so he teased: "You are so bold that you dare to criticize the imperial concubine and imply that the emperor is unkind and ungrateful. Aren't you afraid of being blamed by the emperor?"

"Didn't you say that too?" Xu Ruoxi snorted with a pout.

"I don't count. You can't see the emperor, so won't the emperor believe whatever I say?" Zhang Yunxiu started to act like a rogue.

"You are so shameless." Xu Ruoxi frowned and searched her mind for a long time before she squeezed out such a dirty word.

Is that all the attack power?
Zhang Yunxiu curled his lips, not caring at all. It was clearly an insult, but after being spoken in the beautiful woman's soft Wu dialect, it had a different flavor.

Suddenly, a perverted idea emerged from Zhang Yunxiu's mind. He cleared his throat, tilted his head and whispered, "Scold me a few more times and see."

"What?" Xu Ruoxi couldn't believe her ears.

"You scold me again."

"You... you're not mentally ill, are you? Why do you want me to scold you?"

"Oh, forget it. You don't understand."

Zhang Yunxiu shook his head and stopped the topic. Xu Ruoxi thought she had misheard and asked about the northern affairs again: "Then tell me, what is the difference between girls in the north and girls in the south?"

"There's no difference, they both have one head and two eyes." Zhang Yunxiu replied jokingly.

"You're talking nonsense. My third aunt is the daughter of Lord Zhongcheng, Mr. Lu Bing. Her height and appearance are different from those of us southern girls." Xu Ruoxi's voice suddenly became higher.

You know and you still ask?

Zhang Yunxiu muttered to himself.

People are shaped by the land and water they live in. Northern women tend to be taller and more aggressive and bold.

The girls from the south are petite and gentle, just like the misty rain in the south of the Yangtze River.

"So do you like girls from the north or girls from the south?" Seeing that Zhang Yunxiu didn't say anything.

"I like you, okay?"

Zhang Yunxiu raised his hands in surrender.

Xu Ruoxi felt sweet in her heart. She clasped her hands together on her chest and smiled secretly for a while, then asked about Zhang Yunxiu's personal affairs.

For example, what kind of food do you like, what kind of flavor do you like, from what you wear to what you eat.

None left behind.

Zhang Yunxiu told Xu Ruoxi everything, no matter how big or small.

Before I knew it, it was the end of the You hour and the lit oil lamp began to dim.

Zhang Yunxiu stood up and was about to leave. Xu Ruoxi stretched out her white wrist and said, "This... this is for you. I made it myself."

When I looked closely, I found it was a bracelet made of evenly-tied red beans.

Xu Ruoxi spoke softly through the curtain:
"Red beans are born in southern China, and a few branches are born in spring.

May you pick more, this thing is the most lovesick. "

"Have a good rest. I will come to see you at the latest in the spring of next year." Putting the bracelet on his hand, Zhang Yunxiu grinned, turned around, and left quickly with brisk steps.

Xu Ruoxi also walked out of the curtain at this time, staring at Zhang Yunxiu's back as he left until he completely disappeared from her sight.

In the early morning of the next day, Huating was still shrouded in thick fog. A team of about a hundred Ti cavalrymen escorted two carriages and slowly drove out of Huating County and headed north.

After five or six days of rapid march, the convoy finally entered Yangzhou City.

The office of Censor Cao Jiang was located here.

When Zhang Yunxiu came, Caojiang Censor Wang Zuan wanted to keep Zhang Yunxiu and his brothers for a few days so that he could play the role of a good host.

As time was tight, Zhang Yunxiu and the other person decided not to stay any longer and waited to meet on their way back.

After passing through three streets and alleys, Zhang Yunxiu finally arrived at the residence of Caojiang Censor. At the gate, Caojiang Censor Wang Zuan had already heard the news and was waiting there.

He was about 47 or 48 years old, tall, with a fair complexion, and big, round eyes under a pair of thick eyebrows that looked bright and lively.

She wore a bean green cashmere jacket inside and a black silk round-necked shirt outside. A glazed jade belt hung from her waist and she wore a pair of black long boots embroidered with gold thread on her feet.

Seeing Zhang Yunxiu and his brother coming, Wang Zhuan trotted over to greet them and said with a warm smile, "Oh, my two nephews, I have been looking forward to seeing you here for a long time."

"Come on, come on, we have already prepared a banquet for the two of you in our mansion to welcome you both. We will also let our own wives accompany Jingxiu's wife, and we will not neglect her in the slightest."

The Zhang Yunxiu brothers smiled and followed Wang Zan in.

Passing through a large garden, Wang Zan led the two brothers to the dining room, where there was a dark round table.

As soon as he sat down, Wang Zuan waved to the servant, who understood and shouted outside, "The distinguished guest has arrived. Serve the food!"

In a moment, pretty maids in uniform began to come back and forth, holding delicacies.

Soon, the originally empty table was filled with delicious dishes.

"My two dear nephews, come, let's have a drink together first." Wang Zan poured a glass of wine, raised the glass and looked at the two of them.

Zhang Yunxiu and Zhang Jingxiu smiled, then raised their glasses, clinked them together, and drank it down in one gulp.

After a glass of wine, the atmosphere became lively. Wang Zhan asked directly: "My two nephews, is Yuanfu in good health these days? If the sika deer we sent are not enough, just tell us and don't be polite to us."

"Ahem. Let's not talk about the deer for now." Zhang Yunxiu interrupted him.

"Why?" Wang Zan asked suspiciously.

"The doctor said that father needs to take good care of his health."

Zhang Yunxiu said this solemnly. Wang Zhan wanted to refute, but when he looked up and saw Zhang Yunxiu's stern face, he smiled and changed his words: "Okay, since it is the doctor's advice, then we should pay attention to it."

"Uncle is very receptive to advice. I admire you."

Smiling and waving his hands, Wang Zhan said modestly: "I can't be considered as someone who accepts advice readily. The old man Yuanfu is the one who has a broad vision and a strategy in mind. If it weren't for Yuanfu's recommendation, I would still be a doctor in the Ministry of Justice.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with being a doctor in the Ministry of Justice, but this Caojiang Censor is a broader stage for me."

(End of this chapter)