Top Scholar

Chapter 440 A turtle looking at green beans

Inside a private room on the second floor of Fuxinglou Restaurant.

Zhu Shou was a man of action, and immediately instructed Zhang Yong: "Go and tell the people in the Ministry of War to build a few large ships, and let's have a Zhengde-style voyage to the West!"

"No way!" Zhang Yong was startled, thinking to himself, "With this guy's temper, he really would go out to sea!" He quickly waved his hands and said repeatedly, "The sea is too dangerous!"

He glared at Su Lu, trying to make him take back his words. Su Lu replied, "Even if we build a ship now, we can't sail to the Western Ocean."

"Why?" Zhu Shou asked, puzzled.

"During the Chenghua era, a eunuch suggested to Emperor Xianzong that they resume the voyages to the Western Ocean in order to acquire rare and exotic treasures," Su Lu said.

“Look, we, grandfather and grandson, are thinking the same thing.” Zhu Shou said, then tried to cover up his lie by adding, “I was talking about me and that eunuch.”

He quickly changed the subject and asked, "And the result?"

"Emperor Xianzong ordered Xiang Zhong, the Minister of War, to search for the navigation records of Zheng He's voyages to the Western Ocean." Su Lu replied, "As a result, Minister Xiang sent his subordinates to search the archives, but they could not find anything."

"Damn it!" Zhu Shou exclaimed angrily, "How could such valuable information be lost? What were the people in the Ministry of War doing?!"

Then Su Lu said, "At that time, Minister Xiang was also very angry and wanted to severely punish the officials in charge of the treasury. At that time, Liu Daxia, who was serving as the Director of the Department of Military Affairs of the Ministry of War, stood up and said, 'The Emperor Sanbao's voyage to the Western Ocean cost hundreds of thousands of taels of silver and grain, and tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians died. This was a corrupt practice at the time. Even if the documents still exist, they should be destroyed to eradicate the root of the problem. Why bother to investigate whether it exists or not?' So the matter was dropped."

"Liu Daxia deserves to die!" Zhu Shou was furious. "How are we going to sail to the West now?"

“Yes,” Su Lu nodded. “Although I know a lot of stories about voyages to the West, I don’t know the specific star charts and water routes. This matter can only be discussed in detail later.”

"Hmm..." Zhu Shou tilted his head back and took a sip of wine, then said to Su Lu, "Tell me the stories you know first to satisfy my curiosity."

“Okay.” Su Lu nodded and then vividly recounted the story to Zhu Shou:
"Let's first talk about how magnificent Eunuch Sanbao's treasure ships are. Each ship is 44 zhang long and 18 zhang wide, with nine masts alone! The deck is wider than the Mule and Horse Market Street outside, and can hold hundreds of banquet tables at the same time! The cabins below are divided into five levels, which can store grain and fodder, carry soldiers, and even bring warhorses on board for training."

"Wow, how big is that?" Zhu Shou was dumbfounded. "Compared to this treasure ship, the dragon boats on Taiye Pond are just small sampans."

"The entire fleet consisted of more than two hundred such treasure ships and over twenty-seven thousand soldiers. On the day of departure, Emperor Taizong personally visited Taicang to see them off. In Liujiagang, the sails were like a forest, blocking out the sun. The soldiers on the ships shouted 'Long live the Emperor!' The shouts could be heard from more than ten miles away!" Su Lu's eloquence was already superb, and this was also the great achievement of Zhu Shou's ancestor. Naturally, he was so excited and his blood boiled that he forgot to eat.

"Tell me quickly, what happened after we went out to sea?" He clenched his fists, his eyes widened, and even his breathing became heavier.

Su Lu took a sip of wine, and said with the same leisurely longing:
"The fleet was even more impressive when sailing on the sea. During the day, hundreds of ships lined up in a long formation stretching for miles, their dragon flags fluttering, like a giant dragon floating on the sea. At night, each ship hung strings of lanterns, forming a continuous line that was brighter than the Milky Way in the sky!"

"The fleet arrived in the South Seas first. The kings of those small countries had never seen such a large ship before. They thought it was a heavenly army descending from the Milky Way. In a panic, they led their entire court of officials, carrying gold, jewels, and treasures, to the shore to welcome it..."

"There were also those suspicious kings who insisted on personally boarding the ship and touching its deck before they would believe it was real. When our Ming soldiers stood at the bow, their armor gleaming, the subjects of those small countries were so frightened that they dared not raise their heads."

"Many kings boarded the ship and refused to disembark. Later, they even followed the eunuch Sanbao back to Nanjing to pay homage to Emperor Taizong. They were granted permission to live out their retirement in the Ming Dynasty and were eventually buried there."

Zhang Yong was so engrossed in listening that he forgot his usual caution and couldn't help but interject, "That's right, the tomb of the King of Brunei is still in Nanjing to this day..."

"Really?" Zhu Shou suddenly found it even more believable and urged, "Go on, go on..."

“The world overseas is full of rare treasures, exotic birds and animals, and even the people are different from those in our Great Ming, not to mention the customs and systems!” Su Lu took a sip of tea and said, “If I really told you about it, I wouldn’t be able to finish in ten days and ten nights.”

"Then tell the story for a hundred days!" Zhu Shou said excitedly, "I was just wondering what to do."

“Alright, since we’re friends,” Su Lu said with a smile. “I’ll give you a general overview today, and then I’ll tell you all the details after the exams…”

"Alright, alright, go ahead and tell me." Zhu Shou nodded vigorously.

Su Lu then used the language of art to describe to him those magnificent overseas wonders:

"The fishermen of Liushan Kingdom can dive into the water and easily find pearls the size of a fist..."

"At night, schools of bioluminescent fish swim in formation, their shimmering light spreading out like the Milky Way cascading into the sea..."

"In the markets of Hormuz, rubies and sapphires were casually piled in bamboo baskets and sold, as commonplace as cabbages and radishes in the capital..."

"The local specialty rose liqueur has a sweet floral aroma that's so refreshing that you won't get a headache even if you drink a lot..."

The lecture lasted for one or two hours, and Zhu Shou listened with great interest. Su Lu repeatedly said, "Let's continue next time," but Zhu Shou persisted, saying, "Tell me one more time! Tell me the last one!"...

There was nothing else Su Lu could do but keep telling stories until the midnight drum sounded, finally ending today's story session.

"That was so much fun!" Zhu Shou was full of energy and not sleepy at all even though it was midnight. As he went downstairs, he made an appointment with Su Lu for another round, saying, "I'll come back another day to hear you tell me about 'Zheng He's Voyages to the West.' Oh, and by the way, we also need to make a 'Flying Dragon in the Sky' lantern!"

"Let's talk about it after the exam," Su Lu said with a yawn. "If I stay up all night drinking with you every day, what's the point of taking the exam?"

"Haha, I don't care." Zhu Shou laughed, "It doesn't matter if you fail the exam, I'll introduce you to the palace and work with me!"

"That won't do! I just got married, and I haven't even had a child yet!" Su Lu exclaimed in surprise. "Hahaha! I was just kidding," Zhu Shou laughed.

"You can't joke like that," Su Lu said awkwardly.

Seeing Su Lu's embarrassed state, Zhu Shou's strange laughter echoed for a long time on the long street.

"Alright, don't bother seeing me off anymore, go back now." Zhu Shou waved his hand at him and said, "I'll come find you another day!"

"See you later." Su Lu waved his hand and watched Zhu Shou walk towards Chang'an Street, surrounded by Zhang Yong and others.

Only when Zhu Shou's figure was out of sight did he finally let out a long sigh of relief, feeling utterly exhausted. This night had been more tiring than taking the provincial examination...

The other party came to question him tonight—or rather, last night—clearly with a huff.

Fortunately, Eunuch Zhang had given him enough hints during the day, so he knew how to answer. Therefore, calling him "Uncle" was entirely justified...

Zhang Yong said that the Empress Dowager asked the Emperor to reward him handsomely, but the Emperor only gave him a plaque and said it in a sarcastic tone, clearly very unhappy.

But Zhang Yong also said that his anger wasn't directed at you. So it was clearly directed at the Empress Dowager.

So the emperor is still staying at the Leopard Chamber and hasn't returned to the palace yet...

Su Lu could guess that it must have been the Empress Dowager's imperial edict to publish the "Difficult to Find Elegance" throughout the land, which embarrassed the Emperor.

In the afternoon, he pondered how to appease the emperor without escalating the situation. Having made up his mind, he spoke calmly and confidently during his audience with the emperor, achieving his goal perfectly…

What? How did he determine that Zhu Shou was Emperor Zhu Houzhao? Isn't that obvious? 'Zhenguo Duke and Mighty General Zhu Shou,' such a famous pseudonym, who among those who surf the internet doesn't know it?

"Qiu-ge'er, who is this Zhu Shou?" Well, Su Tai didn't know...

His second brother appeared beside him, looking shocked, and said, "What a huge force! The whole street is filled with his plainclothes guards. I can't even get close."

“Zhu Shou is Zhu Shou,” Su Lu said softly. “He is whoever he says he is.”

"Okay, I understand." Su Tai nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

It was getting late, so the two brothers quickly went home to sleep.

~~
Inside the carriage, Zhu Houzhao was still very excited.

He pinched his pinky finger and asked Zhang Yong triumphantly, "How was my acting? That kid didn't even realize I wasn't a eunuch!"

"Master is amazing, he can play any role convincingly!" Zhang Yong pinched his thigh hard to shake off his drowsiness and continued to deliver emotional value with all his might.

"Has Master calmed down?" he asked softly again.

"Hmm." Zhu Houzhao nodded and lowered his voice, "That boy helped me resolve a knot in my heart that I've had for many years."

"Oh, how did you untie it?" Zhang Yong asked hurriedly.

"Then don't worry about it." Zhu Houzhao shook his head, then said excitedly, "Moreover, he taught me a trick to deal with the Empress Dowager. This trip was truly worthwhile!"

"What's your secret weapon?" Zhang Yong asked again.

"Don't ask what you shouldn't ask." The emperor still shook his head.

"Hey, hey." Zhang Yong wasn't annoyed at all, and laughed from the bottom of his heart: "Seeing that Master is finally happy, this old servant is also really happy."

"Yes, I am truly happy today!" Zhu Houzhao nodded in deep agreement, "Not only have I resolved my inner conflict, but I have also made new friends."

He stroked his smooth chin again and repeated, "A friend asks for nothing. A true friend is one who asks nothing of you. No wonder you're a top scholar, your words are truly wise!"

As he spoke, he smiled at Zhang Yong and said, "Second companion, you don't need to ask me for anything anymore. I will treat you as a friend."

"Oh dear, Your Majesty, as the Emperor, you can't just make friends indiscriminately!" Zhang Yong was sweating profusely and hurriedly advised, "Friends are meant to be grouped together. No one is worthy to be in your category, not even Su Jieyuan! Not to mention this old servant..."

“You’re good at everything, except you’re such a spoilsport. Your master isn’t like that at all.” Zhu Houzhao was displeased upon hearing this.

"This old servant was wrong..." Zhang Yong slapped himself in fright. "This old servant will never dare to do it again!"

"Alright, alright." Zhu Houzhao waved his hand, but then his eyes lit up, and he slapped Zhang Yong's forehead, saying, "I've got it! I can't make friends, but Zhu Shou can! So Su Jieyuan isn't my friend, but Zhu Shou's friend!"

He was very pleased with his brilliant idea and immediately and boldly announced:
"Yes, I've made up my mind. Zhu Shou will indeed exist from now on!"

P.S. The next chapter will be available tomorrow morning. Please vote with your monthly tickets!
(End of this chapter)