Top Scholar

Chapter 213 The Su family's sons are all outstanding!
Su Lu had a family reunion dinner at home, but his mind was still on Master Zhu's side. He left the table early with his uncle and took a car to the county government office.

The county town was unusually quiet tonight. Soldiers and officials could be seen patrolling everywhere, and the people stayed at home obediently to avoid being arrested and put in shackles as idlers.

The Su family's carriage was checked three times along the way. The closer they got to the county government office, the more they felt threatened.

Fortunately, the Su family had already established a strong presence in the county town, and everyone knew about their relationship with the county magistrate. After revealing their identities, they were allowed to pass.

Because it was a private banquet at the county magistrate's residence, the carriage drove to Ya Hou Street.

This is even more outrageous; the entire Yahou Street was blocked off by the Zhuangban leader, Feng, and his men, preventing any unauthorized personnel from approaching.

Su Lu had no choice but to get out of the car and use facial recognition.

"Oh, Young Master Su has arrived!" Headman Feng immediately beamed and ordered his men to let him pass. He was the one who had used his head to support the master's buttocks on the river earlier that day, so he naturally knew the importance of this young master.

"Brother Feng's security is really tight tonight." Su Lu couldn't just go over without saying a word, so he made up a few words. "Could it be that some villain dares to harm the two lords?"

"No, but we have to be careful not to let troublemakers take the blame." Foreman Feng spoke frankly to him, whispering, "The magistrate has been in power for twelve years, and he has inevitably offended some enemies. We can't let them find an opportunity to upset the magistrate on this joyous occasion."

"That makes sense, thank you for your hard work." Su Lu replied perfunctorily, then followed the carriage into the back street of the government office.

The street was brightly lit, and all the restaurants were open. The two officials and Master Zhu's entourage dined in the restaurants, and of course, the bills were all recorded in the county government's accounts.

However, it's hard to say how many of them will actually get their money back.

After having Youli and Youxi find a place to drop off the carriage, Su Lu and his uncle went to the back gate of the county government office. There were guards from Huang Bingxian and officials from the prefecture stationed there. These layers of security made Su Lu truly realize the importance of high-ranking officials.

No wonder everyone wants to be an official, especially a high-ranking one.

Fortunately, Su Lu came with the two adults, otherwise it would have been a huge struggle just to get through the door.

The doorman led the two men to the back hall of the master's house. Just as they were about to go in to announce their arrival, You Muyou came out from inside.

Upon seeing Su Lu arrive, You Muyou breathed a sigh of relief and said, "You've come at just the right time! The banquet is about to end, and I was just about to send someone to fetch you!"

"It's over so quickly?" Su Lu was also a little surprised. He had planned ahead, but the timing was just right.

"There's nothing we can do," You Muyou said in a low voice. "Huang Bingxian has the character 'Xian' in his name, but he hasn't even had a single drink. He just said he has important business to attend to tomorrow, so let's call it a day."

"Understood." Su Lu nodded. He also disliked social engagements and thought to himself that Huang Bingxian's approach was quite good...

So the three of them waited under the eaves for the banquet to end at any time, and Su Lu took the opportunity to exchange a few pleasantries with You Muyou.

"How have you been, sir?"

“Alright, alright,” You Muyou nodded, a tired yet excited smile spreading across his face. “I’ve been busy. For four whole months, I haven’t had a single day off, all of which has been dedicated to promoting your phonetic spelling scheme.”

"That student is truly guilty," Su Lu said softly.

"Ah, it's a meritorious deed, a great merit!" You Muyou shook his head decisively, giving Su Youjin a thumbs up and saying, "Your nephew has done a great deed that will be remembered for generations. We all feel honored to have been a part of it!"

"Is it that exaggerated?" Su Youjin asked in surprise. Although Chun Ge'er was also one of the teachers at the community school, the father and son lived in Erlangtan and the town respectively, so they rarely saw each other.

Besides, given Chun Ge'er's personality, even if they met, he wouldn't talk about these things with him.

"What does Lord Su think?" You Muyou pointed around and chuckled softly, "Such a grand occasion, could it be just for a little celebration? Both of you are here for tomorrow's business."

"My God!" Su Youjin was dumbfounded, never expecting his nephew to have made such a commotion without making a sound. "Hongzhi, where did you get the time?"

"I only worked with Mr. Zhang to come up with a set of phonetic symbols; the rest is all thanks to the magistrate, Mr. You, and the other officials in the county," Su Lu quickly explained.

“Sigh, all of us are busy running around, but in the end, all the glory will definitely go to the young master.” You Muyou shook his head and said, “The county has already achieved results, the next step is the prefecture, the province, and the county level…”

Next, You Muyou completely entered a fantasy phase: "I estimate that before it even reaches the whole province, the phonetic spelling scheme and Young Master Su's name will have already reached the ears of the emperor!"

"His Majesty is determined to govern well and has issued several decrees to build community schools to educate the people. Unfortunately, due to limitations in manpower and resources, as well as the practical difficulties of teaching, this has not yet been achieved," You Muyou said, his voice rising involuntarily.
"Our plan can greatly save manpower and financial resources, significantly reduce the difficulty of teaching, and enable everyone in the world to learn to read and be polite!"

As he spoke, he excitedly grasped Su Youjin's hand and said, "Isn't this exactly the effective method of education that His Majesty has been searching for? He will surely reward your nephew greatly, and may even summon him to the capital to meet the Emperor!"

You Muyou excitedly said to Su Lu, "If the emperor is pleased, he might even let the young master study in the Hanlin Academy and groom you to be the second Li Chaling!"

"..." Su Lu was alright, but Su Youjin was completely dumbfounded. "There's such a good thing?"

"We'll see if you don't believe me?" You Muyou said confidently.

Su Lu couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking that You Muyou's excitement was probably a consequence of the county's general mobilization over the past six months.

He had to say exactly what the master wanted to hear all day long, and then turn around and encourage the people below. Over time, he even started to believe it himself.

If this matter succeeds, all will be well; but if it fails, how much of a blow will it be to him? As they were talking, the door to the hall opened, and several adults and Master Zhu came out. Su Lu hurriedly went to greet them.

Magistrate Lu repeatedly instructed Su Lu to take good care of Master Zhu, and then ordered You Muyou to escort Master Zhu over before he and Commander Ma escorted the two officials to their lodgings.

Su Lu and his group then invited Master Zhu back to his home.

The Su family courtyard was brightly lit, and dozens of family members were waiting for the arrival of Master Zhu... In order to entertain the distinguished guest, more than twenty capable and observant men and women from the clan came to help.

This display startled Zhu Jie, who smiled at Su Lu and said, "You said your family was just an ordinary family, but I don't think it's ordinary at all."

“The house is newly bought; this is the first time I’ve seen it,” Su Lu said, spreading his hands.

"These are all clansmen who came to help. Our family has no other advantages than having a lot of people," Su Youjin said with a smile.

“It’s good to have many people; we have quite a few family members too,” Zhu Jie said with a kind smile.

Su Lu's lips twitched. "Is your family quite large? Everyone's being rather modest..."

~~
The Su family invited Second Master Zhu to sit in the main hall, with the old master sitting beside him. You Muyou, Su Daji, Su Youjin, and others sat in the east and west rows according to their ancestral order.

The old man first thanked the Zhu family for taking care of Su Lu for so long. "I've caused Mr. Zhu a lot of trouble; I really don't know how to repay them."

"Hey, Uncle, don't say that." Zhu Jie waved his hand and laughed, "Who doesn't like Hongzhi? We've been together for half a year now, and we're like family, right, Hongzhi?"

"Yes, yes." Su Lu quickly nodded and smiled, "My senior uncle cooks delicious food for me every day."

"Oh my, what a blessing this child has!" the old man exclaimed.

At this moment, the clansmen served tea, and the old man greeted Zhu Jie, saying, "The wild tea from the mountains is fresh and potent, please don't mind it, Master Zhu."

"Not at all, not at all." Zhu Jie picked up the teacup, sniffed it, and immediately smelled its delicate fragrance. He took a sip and politely praised, "What a wonderful cup of tea!"

"As long as Master Zhu can eat it, that's good." The old man said with a smile.

"Uncle, you're being too polite. I'm just a scholar who passed the imperial examinations. At home, let's address each other as uncle and nephew," Zhu Jie said with a smile.

The old man repeatedly said, "I wouldn't dare."

“Hey, Hongzhi calls me his senior uncle, and you’re his grandfather. What are we if not uncle and nephew?” Given Zhu Jie’s status and position, if he wanted to get closer to him, how could he not?

The old man had no choice but to reluctantly address him as "nephew".

"Haha, that's right." Zhu Jie smiled and waved his hand, and his attendant quickly presented the gift list. He continued with a smile, "I've been wanting to come and get acquainted with your family for a long time. This time I've finally caught the opportunity. Let's visit each other often in the future to strengthen our family ties."

"Yes, yes, definitely." The old man nodded, flattered. To be honest, the past year had felt like a dream. How come all these important figures who used to ignore him were now eager to befriend him?
Since we are going to establish a good relationship with our families, it is natural to have someone from our families introduce us.

The old man then called the women out so they could all get to know Master Zhu. Zhu Jie knew everything about the Su Lu family and had even prepared gifts for everyone; today, they finally understood each other perfectly.

As the younger generation bowed to him, Zhu Jie immediately noticed the handsome young man with the features of Song Yu and a refined, elegant demeanor—

His eyes lit up, and he asked Su Lu, "Is this your eldest brother?"

"Yes." Su Lu nodded.

"What a handsome young man!" Zhu Jie said to the old man with a smile, "Uncle's family really knows how to raise sons; each one is outstanding!"

"Hehehe..." The old man wanted to say something modest, but he couldn't bring himself to be modest, so he said, "Indeed."

"Your name is Su..." Zhu Jie then pulled Chun Ge'er aside with great interest and asked him all sorts of questions.

"Uncle, my name is Su Man." Su Man was neither humble nor arrogant, and his speech was more composed than Su Lu's.

"You seem so refined and scholarly, you must be a student, right?" Zhu Jie asked excitedly, "Are you still studying?"

"Yes." Su Man nodded and said, "I have studied hard since I was a child, but unfortunately I am not very bright. After failing the state examination, I taught at the local school in my hometown."

"I see..." Zhu Jie nodded, then asked, "You're not even twenty yet, are you? You've taken the preliminary exams several times, why are you in such a hurry to teach?"

“My brother took the imperial examination for the first time last year and ranked third in the county examination, but when it came to the prefectural examination…” Su Lu then spoke on behalf of his elder brother, “At that time, the family’s financial situation was not good, so he did not advance any further.”

"Understood, understood." Zhu Jie nodded. He understood everything about this. He could even help with the process. But these things couldn't be discussed openly, especially since he had come on Magistrate Jia's boat.

He then smiled and encouraged Su Man, saying, "Fortunately, there will be another opportunity next year. As long as your essay is good, you will definitely pass next time."

"Yes." Su Man cupped his hands in thanks for Zhu Shishu's encouragement.

(End of this chapter)