Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 218 Merit is Everywhere
In addition to the original farmland, a large area of ​​hills to the south of the city was also included in the farmland, extending all the way to the northern foot of Wan'an Mountain.

This wasn't Zhang Dai using his privileges to seize land extensively; he bought it with real money. Most of this land consisted of gullies and slopes, not farmland. It was once allocated to households as permanent land, but its actual development value and degree of development were very limited, so large tracts were left uncultivated.

After purchasing these lands, Zhang Dai hired people to level the ditches and dig irrigation canals at the foot of the slope. After the renovation, mulberry trees were planted at the foot of the slope, and fruit trees such as peaches, apricots, plums, and jujubes were planted on the top. Compared with the previous appearance of undulating ditches and overgrown weeds, it has been completely transformed.

It is early February, the time when apricot blossoms are budding and about to bloom. From a distance, the hillside is covered in a light pink color, like a colorful ribbon wrapped around the green mountain.

As everyone was enjoying their drinks on the estate, they gazed at the apricot orchard on the hillside and couldn't help but feel a surge of interest. Upon learning that it also belonged to the estate, they all clamored to go and admire it: "Zhang Liu is truly a wealthy young man, with so much land and peach and apricot trees covering the hillside!"

Zhang Dai was both amused and exasperated upon hearing this. It wasn't exactly a good reputation; Lu Congyuan, the Minister of Justice, failed to become prime minister precisely because of his nickname, "Old Man of Duotian." Moreover, this vast expanse of land didn't strictly belong to him. Although he had acquired it, it was being managed on behalf of the Prince of Qi's family.

It was inconvenient to elaborate on this connection, and since it was just friendly banter, Zhang Dai didn't offer any further explanation. He ordered the servants to bring horses for transportation, and then he and the others left the manor and headed towards the apricot orchard on the hillside.

"Although Zhang Liu has a lot of businesses, he is not good at managing them! First, plant willows along the canal below the slope, then plant apricots in the mulberry grove, and then peaches and pears on top of the apricot grove. When the willow branches sprout in spring, the apricots and peaches will be in full bloom and the stream will be full of flowers. In late spring, the pear blossoms will be whiter than snow, which will make tourists linger and not want to leave!"

Li Yi pointed to the mulberry grove below the slope and shook his head as he spoke. He came from the Zhao County Li clan, whose family had considerable assets around Luoyang, and he also had his own insights into managing industries.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai smiled and said, "I am not as fond of refined tastes as Li Shiqi. The reason I set up this mulberry garden is to raise silkworms and reel silk, and to help the industry."

"This mulberry orchard must be over ten acres. How many weavers does Zhang Liu have at home?"

Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed slightly, and some even revealed a hint of resentment towards the rich.

Although Yan Gong Zhang Shuo has never been known for his integrity, if even one of his sons owns such a vast estate and employs at least a hundred weavers to weave for profit, then he is truly excessively greedy!
Zhang Dai had no intention of flaunting his wealth. Seeing the somewhat misunderstanding looks in everyone's eyes, he patiently explained, "The reason why we have built such a large mulberry garden here is not because my family needs to profit from silk reeling. Last year, Henan and Hebei suffered great disasters. Consort Hui of the palace led the palace women to raise silkworms, and fearing the suffering of the disaster victims, therefore..."

Upon hearing this, everyone realized that Zhang Dai was actually managing such a massive disaster relief project. On the one hand, they felt ashamed of their earlier misunderstanding, and on the other hand, they admired Zhang Dai's noble deeds in disaster relief.

"In the past, I only thought of Zhang Liulang as a noble young master, otherworldly and unaware of human suffering. He could talk about romance, but not about worldly matters. Now that I know about Liulang's deeds, I realize how shallow my previous understanding was!"

Chang Jian said with a sigh, and the others nodded in agreement.

Zhang Dai was somewhat surprised when he heard this. So this was the image he had in the minds of these people.
He was completely unaware of this, always thinking of himself as a righteous young man who had worked tirelessly, even harbored deep resentment, suffered many interpersonal difficulties for no reason, and was full of compassion for saving people and helping the world!

Hearing Chang Jian's sigh, it's likely that he had been somewhat cautious in his interactions with me in the past, worried that he might offend a proud young master who had never suffered much injustice!
However, it's understandable that others might misunderstand. To be honest, if Zhang Dai had truly been born of the legitimate wife and had been pampered since childhood, he might have developed that kind of personality.

His uncle Zhang Ji and his brother Zhang Yi, for example, may be polite in their interactions with others, but that politeness is more of a performance. Deep down, they are still self-centered and do not genuinely appreciate others.

Zhang Dai knew his own situation well. His predecessor, Zhang Luonu, was not blessed with such good fortune. He had improved his current circumstances little by little through his own hard work, and he had even faced life and death several times. How could he not know the hardships of the world? He even had a deep understanding of the hardships that people had not yet experienced.

"Although I am in charge of this matter, I have been preoccupied with the provincial examinations and have not had time to go to the disaster area to visit the victims. I can be said to be ignorant of the suffering of the people. Therefore, I plan to travel down the river after the examinations to see how many people have benefited from this matter and how much they have not benefited!"

To avoid an awkward atmosphere, Zhang Dai then said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Wang Changling's eyes lit up, and he immediately spoke up, "Why should one need an official seal to help the world and benefit people? As long as one's heart is set on righteousness, every action is a merit! In the past, I traveled to the frontier, reflecting on the past and praising the present, and I still had unfinished business. Now that I have learned about Zhang Liu's affairs, I know that everything should be based on people! I wish to travel with him, but I wonder if that is possible?"

Zhang Dai was delighted to hear this. He was already short of manpower to help him, and if Wang Changling was willing to join in, even if he didn't manage the specific affairs, writing poems to praise him would be a reward in itself.

"After the final examination comes the selection process, and who knows how many years it will take before one can be released from officialdom. Rather than waiting idly, it's better to find something to do and gain experience. I'll go along too; even if we only help two or three people, it will be something to talk about in the future!"

Li Yi immediately echoed this sentiment, stating that the waiting period for the Jinshi degree was not fixed at the time. Some were appointed immediately after the final examination, while others waited three to five years without passing the selection process. Furthermore, social activities after passing the Jinshi degree were a way to gain experience and reputation. Following these two statements, several others also expressed their desire to participate. Leaving aside considerations of pros and cons, these individuals, not yet officially appointed, harbored a strong sense of public service and a desire to use their talents to benefit humanity!
"In that case, let's meet again after the exam to discuss the itinerary!"

Talented people are always welcome, and Zhang Dai was extremely pleased with this. These newly appointed scholars were originally selected by the court, but since the court doesn't need them for the time being, he was happy to use them first.

Zhang Dai had originally invited these people to the estate today simply to reminisce about their time together and, incidentally, to help get Yan Tingzhi out of trouble. He never expected such an unexpected surprise.

In other words, he has no authority over the Ministry of Personnel now; otherwise, if these people were doing well, Zhang Dai would have been willing to issue them internship certificates!
Because they were interested in the disaster relief matters that Zhang Dai had mentioned, everyone forgot about visiting the apricot garden and returned to the manor to learn more about the relevant disaster relief measures from Zhang Dai. Before they knew it, they had been chatting until nightfall before resting at the manor.

The next morning, after Zhang Dai got up, a villager came to tell him that two people had taken their leave at dawn, seemingly unwilling to go with him to pay their respects to their master that day. Although Zhang Dai felt a little regretful, he knew that everyone has their own ambitions, so he didn't dwell on it any further.

The remaining people on the estate gradually got up. Upon seeing that two people were missing, they all felt a little sad, but they still cheered themselves up. After having breakfast on the estate, they returned to the city together and headed straight for Yan Tingzhi's private residence in the neighborhood.

When they arrived outside Yan Tingzhi's residence, they saw the two men who had left earlier lingering by the street. Li Yi immediately and rudely asked, "Since you two don't want to come along, are you here to watch the play?"

The two men were not offended by what they heard. One of them pointed at Li Yi and shouted, "Li Shiqi, stop with the foul language! Last night you drank so much that you vomited all over me, which is why I came home early to change!"

Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter again. Regardless of the reasons for their departure or the struggles they went through to arrive, now that they were here, there was no need to ask any further questions.

The gathering of thirteen people had already alerted Yan's household servants. Two burly servants stood at the door with canes, watching them warily.

"We are all successful candidates in this year's spring examinations and have agreed to come today to express our gratitude to our master! Do not be alarmed, but take this invitation to inform him!"

Zhang Dai dismounted, took the thirteen name cards, and went forward, speaking to the wary Yan family servant.

"My lord is not at home. You may visit the Ministry of Personnel."

The servants of the Yan family still hesitated after receiving the visiting cards, and answered Zhang Dai and the others.

“We know that Master Yan is preoccupied with other matters, but the ceremony of gratitude should not be abandoned because of this. Please inform Master’s wife that if it is truly inconvenient for them to meet, we will perform the ceremony in the front hall and request a token to prove that the ceremony has been completed. We will then go to the palace to inform Master Yan!”

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai spoke again. One of the two servants hurriedly went to report, and soon returned to invite everyone into the front hall. He placed a sash on the seat of honor and said to everyone, "The mistress tells the young masters that they may complete the ceremony here. This sash of the master can be taken away after the ceremony."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai and the others frowned slightly. Although Zhang Dai had proposed such a plan, it was undeniable that Yan Tingzhi's wife actually did it and even prevented them from entering the mansion to the main hall.

It should be noted that Yan Tingzhi is currently still imprisoned, and these people still regard him as their mentor and come to express their gratitude, which also carries a certain political risk.

Yan Tingzhi's wife used such vulgar etiquette to restrain him, either because she thought too highly of herself and looked down on these newly appointed scholars, or because she was confused and couldn't understand the underlying meaning.

But since the other party had done so, there was nothing more to say. So Zhang Dai led the scholars behind him to bow and express their gratitude to the seat in the hall where Yan Tingzhi's robe and belt were placed.

As they stood up and Zhang Dai went to retrieve Yan Tingzhi's belt, a servant stepped forward again, clasped his hands, and said, "Young Master Zhang, the mistress invites you to the hall for a talk."

"No need. We will come to pay our respects again after the Master returns the next day!"

Zhang Dai was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, then shook his head, grabbed his belt, and went out with the others to mount their horses and head towards the imperial city.

(End of this chapter)