Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 42 Opportunism
Ever since the conversation between father and son, Zhang Luan has been absent-minded the whole day.

Zhang Yanling did not tolerate his bad habits. When he saw his old father trying to ease the relationship several times, he just pretended to be polite and left his old father aside, which made Zhang Luan quite embarrassed.

After dinner, Zhang Luan watched Zhang Yanling try on new clothes and said with a smile, "Madam, this looks good on Yanling. I plan to hire a teacher to teach him well so that he can take the imperial examinations and become a successful person in the future."

Jin said, "That's a good feeling, but I don't know if he is good enough for study."

Zhang Yu quickly chimed in: "Mom, I think my brother can do it."

Zhang Heling protested: "Dad, why don't you find a teacher for me? I want to study too."

Zhang Luan lectured him with a stern face: "Big brother, you don't have that talent, so don't waste the family's money... Now that the family has no income, we have to live frugally. Your brother is smarter than you."

"Is he strong?"

Zhang Heling looked at his brother, very unconvinced.

Two months ago, the two brothers were a pair of perfect match, so how come there is a clear winner now?

It was clearly me who took my younger brother out to play, and he always listened to me. How has the world changed in the blink of an eye?

"Yanling, come in, your father has something to tell you."

Zhang Luan said this and turned to walk into the main hall.

Zhang Yanling glanced at Jin, who was unaware of the celebration between the father and son during the day. She pushed her son and said, "Why are you still standing there? Go and talk to your father. Studying is a good thing. It would be a pity to miss it."

Only then did Zhang Yanling calm down and go into the main room.

……

……

In the main hall, under the light of the tung oil lamp, Zhang Luan smiled and said gently, "Son, I am sorry for my careless words during the day and for any offense I may have caused you...

"I was angry at the time, so my words were a little harsh. Please understand..."

Zhang Yanling pouted and said, "Dad is the head of the family. Of course, Dad has the final say on family matters."

"Why are you still angry?"

Zhang Luan smiled and comforted him, "Don't be so angry, kid, otherwise you won't grow tall. At worst, I'll go buy some material tomorrow and make you a new dress."

Zhang Yanling shook his head: "My sister is getting married soon. Father should prepare more dowry for her and leave the good materials to her."

Zhang Luan praised: "It's rare, it's rare that you have learned to be humble at such a young age... By the way, your sister's marriage is currently uncertain, so don't worry."

Zhang Yanling said, "But as far as I know, the court will select a concubine for the crown prince at the end of the year. Now it is the twelfth month, so I think it won't be long."

"what?"

Zhang Luan asked in surprise, "Why did your uncle never mention this matter... How did you know about it?"

Zhang Yanling raised his head and said with a haughty face: "Father has just arrived in the capital, so it is not surprising that he does not know. There is another important matter in the palace. The concubine Wan, who is favored by His Majesty, is now ill and I am afraid she will not live long."

"You...what did you say? You...you..."

Zhang Luan was so shocked that he was speechless.

Zhang Yanling said: "In fact, these things can be linked together... It is precisely because Concubine Wan is ill and she has always had a prejudice against the prince and has always hoped to make Concubine Shao's son the prince that His Majesty repeatedly asked Li Zisheng, Deng Changen and other Taoists about disasters. "Your Majesty also intended to depose the prince before, but was blocked by the ministers with the excuse of disasters. Your Majesty wants to choose a time when there are no disasters and depose the prince, so as not to give people a chance to talk about him."

"what?"

After hearing this, Zhang Luan suddenly felt that his IQ was not enough.

After he digested his son's words, he said, "What you said sounds reasonable, but how did you know that?"

Zhang Yanling said, "Father, don't ask. Listen to me first. When Concubine Wan was alive, she would obstruct everything that involved the prince, not to mention the major events in his life. As a result, the prince is already eighteen years old but still has not married. If Concubine Wan dies, the prince will have to choose a concubine, and it will probably be at the end of this year or the beginning of next year."

Zhang Luan said, "You mean to let your sister participate in the selection of the Crown Princess, and also want to... report the disaster to Li Zisheng and do a favor for the Crown Prince? What a deep calculation!"

Zhang Yanling asked, "Father, do you think this can be accomplished?"

Zhang Luan frowned, his tone was a little impatient, and he said with a little sadness: "You kid, you only think about good things. According to what you said, predicting disasters can certainly have the effect you said, but your father is completely ignorant of the stars and calendars, let alone geomancy, and even the art of medicine is just a superficial knowledge. How can I predict it?"

Zhang Yanling said: "But Li Zisheng believes you."

"Thaksin?"

Zhang Luan smiled bitterly and shook his head, "He doesn't believe me, he just wants to test me. If I try to be mysterious in front of him, he will expose me to my face after years of studying Taoism. Don't think of using those crooked ways to succeed."

Zhang Yanling suddenly discovered that his father had a certain talent for taking shortcuts.

Look at the problem comprehensively, know where the loopholes are, and avoid them in time.

Zhang Yanling said, "So, it's best for Dad not to go to see Li Zisheng, but to have my uncle tell him... Just tell him that an earthquake will occur in Ningxia on a certain day in mid-December, and he can believe it or not."

"..."

After hearing this, Zhang Luan was speechless for a moment.

Zhang Yanling said, "If father thinks this is not credible, you can just exaggerate it. For example, on the night of Bingzi in the twelfth month, there were three earthquakes in Ningxia, all with sound... Just tell him so and let him choose whether to believe it or not. If he chooses to accept father's opinion in order to fight against his competitors, then wouldn't it be a success?"

Zhang Luan said: "Even if you talk nonsense, you should be more reliable... You can't fool a ghost with such words."

Zhang Yanling smiled innocently like a child: "Father, report it, and the follow-up depends on God's will... If it really happens, it will be great. If it doesn't, just think that the magic is not good enough, there is nothing to be ashamed of... But, if Li Zisheng really reports it, do you think there will be an earthquake in Ningxia that day?"

"Hey, what do you mean by that?"

Zhang Luan was originally angry at his son's nonsense, but after hearing this, he calmed down a little and seemed to start to consider whether his son's plan was feasible.

"Father, that was Li Zisheng. He has a strong background in the court, and many officials are dependent on him. He said there was an earthquake in Ningxia that day. Even if there was no earthquake in the local area, it is normal to report it like this."

Zhang Yanling acted very confident. Zhang Luan was a little surprised and said, "Even if he is extremely powerful, he can still turn black into white and even make something like an earthquake out of nothing?"

Zhang Yanling said: "Didn't father claim to have seen through the officialdom? Today, the Ming Dynasty seems to be peaceful and prosperous, but in fact, the court is full of treacherous officials and the people are living in misery. Such deceptions are rare in normal times, right?

"If the earthquake hadn't happened, Li Zisheng would still think that we were no real threat to him and were just talking nonsense. Because my father was famous for preventing and treating smallpox, Li Zisheng wouldn't question whether my father was really capable. Geomantic divination is not something doctors are good at, so he wouldn't be on guard against us."

Zhang Luan said: "It's not wrong, but I feel like this is...helping the tyrant. What good will this do for us?"

Zhang Yanling said quickly: "Father, have you forgotten our big plan? Help my sister select the Crown Princess! If Li Zisheng is willing to help us, then we have achieved our goal.

"Li Zisheng has benefited from my father, so he must want to show his favor to the Crown Prince. He can take this opportunity to raise my sister's rank in the selection of the Crown Prince's concubine. Maybe my sister will enter the final selection stage? At that time, my sister's chances of being selected as the Crown Prince's concubine will increase greatly."

(End of this chapter)