Top Scholar

Chapter 445 Cuju Master
Plainclothes eunuchs stood at both ends of the alley to prevent anyone from disturbing Eunuch Zhang and Su Jieyuan's conversation.

"When he left, Eunuch Liu brought a troupe of acrobats. They were swallowing swords, breathing fire, and there were even monkeys. In the past, given that gentleman's temperament, he would have long forgotten about what he was supposed to do and would have been watching the acrobatics with great interest," Zhang Yong said to Su Lu with a smile.
"Guess what happened this time? They couldn't stop that young master, you know?"

"Really?" Su Lu couldn't help but laugh. "So you're saying I'm even more fun than a monkey?"

“Of course not.” Zhang Yong patted his back with a complicated expression and said, “If you become a eunuch, then we’ll be out of the picture.”

"Uncle, don't worry, I definitely have no intention of taking your job," Su Lu said with a smile, waving his hand.

"Don't give me that." Zhang Yong snorted, a half-smile on his face. "How many times did I wink at you last night? I just couldn't stop you from seducing that young master."

"Let me tell you, my dear nephew, you must not underestimate him. That man may love to play, but he has been learning the art of imperial rule since he was eight years old. Anyone who tries to control him will die without even knowing how they died."

"Thank you for sounding the alarm for me, Uncle, but I had no choice," Su Lu sighed. "Look, Uncle, even Qian Ning, a son of a concubine and a commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, was so frightened by Liu Jin that he went to raise pandas. That shows how terrifying those people are. How could I not be afraid? How could I not cling to such a powerful figure?"

“Qian Ning is nothing but a prince’s son. The emperor learned from us eunuchs since he was a child, and he likes to be someone’s godfather.” Zhang Yong snorted and said, “But can the emperor be the same as us? He’s just doing it for fun! He’ll treat him like a toy for a while and then forget about him.”

"..." Su Lu knew that Zhang Yong was also reminding him that the emperor only found him amusing and that his interest in him would not last long.

Seeing that he had suppressed Su Lu enough, he changed the subject and smiled, "But you, the top scholar, are quite honest and not pretentious at all. That's rare."

"You just have to adapt to the situation and talk to the right people," Su Lu said with a smile.

"So our family are just a bunch of uncouth people?" Zhang Yong glared at him.

“Uncle is one of us,” Su Lutu said bluntly.

"Hehehe..." Zhang Yong was indeed flattered, his old face blossoming into an increasingly lively smile as he affectionately patted Su Lu's back and said:

"Nephew, you are truly a wonderful family, and you are the most wonderful one of them!"

He lowered his voice and said, "Don't worry, just for that one sentence, your uncle will protect you with his life."

"My nephew will do the same in the future, regardless of whether he has the ability or not." Su Lu was going all out for the safety of his family.

"Don't worry, it's definitely there! Uncle's future depends on you ensuring a peaceful end." Zhang Yong became even more affectionate towards Su Lu, leaning closer to whisper in the secret manual:

"I'll tell you the truth now, so you don't make things worse—first of all, our Emperor didn't receive maternal love from the Empress Dowager when he was young. Originally, the Emperor regarded his wet nurse as his mother, but when he was four years old, the late Emperor joked with the Empress Dowager and told the Emperor to take a picture of this bad woman, and the Emperor obediently took the picture."

"The Empress Dowager was quite displeased at the time, so she asked the Emperor to take pictures of her wet nurse. The Emperor couldn't bear to do it and refused to take any. This infuriated the Empress Dowager, who then banished the wet nurse from the palace..."

"Good heavens!" Su Lu exclaimed in surprise. How could Empress Dowager Zhang be on the same level as his aunt? "And then what happened?"

"The Emperor cried all night after losing his wet nurse, which alarmed the late Emperor and Empress Dowager so much that they sent people four times in one night to ask the wet nurse to return to the palace as soon as possible. Although she returned, the Empress Dowager could not tolerate her anymore, so she made us eunuchs spend more time playing with the Emperor. Once the Emperor became close to us, she was sent away again."

Zhang Yong sighed and said, "As a result, the Emperor transferred his affections from the wet nurse to us, especially towards Liu Jin, his close companion."

Su Lu suddenly realized that the emperor actually regarded Liu Jin as his mother...

"So you must never speak ill of Liu Jin in front of the Emperor," Zhang Yong instructed.

"Okay." Su Lu nodded quickly to indicate that he had made a note of it.

“But I said yes,” Zhang Yong added.

"Understood. From now on, I will speak with Uncle first, and then Uncle will decide whether to speak with the Emperor or not," Su Lu said knowingly.

"That's exactly what I mean." Zhang Yong nodded with satisfaction. Talking to smart people is so easy.

"Furthermore, you are now a key target of the Imperial Guards. Spies from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Eastern Depot, and the Western Depot are all watching you, and your every word and action will be recorded," he continued to remind them.

"I know, that's why I'm keeping it." Su Lu wasn't surprised, which is why he was being unusually low-key at the Sichuan Guild Hall today. But he couldn't control what others said; those excessive remarks from the top scholars would probably reach Liu Jin's ears soon.

"The main thing is not to say anything that would displease the Emperor," Zhang Yong said. "As for Liu Jin, let him curse if he wants to. Anyway, if you don't curse him, he will curse you."

"Does Eunuch Liu have a lot of opinions about me?" Su Lu asked.

"Isn't that obvious?" Zhang Yong glanced at him and said, "He failed to stop the Emperor from seeing you today, so he probably won't be able to eat dinner tonight."

“But don’t get too cocky,” Zhang Yong paused, then continued, “Our boss is notoriously fickle. Don’t be fooled by how much he likes you now; he might lose interest any day now.”

Seeing that Su Lu had no reaction, Zhang Yong reminded him more bluntly: "You expect to have a lasting friendship with the Emperor? That's nonsense! The Emperor will not become friends with anyone."

"I just want to live, Uncle," Su Lu said softly.

“Making friends with the Emperor will only get you killed.” But Zhang Yong said quietly, “But Zhu Shou can have friends…” “What does Uncle mean?” Su Lu stared at him intently.

“Zhu Shou is Zhu Shou. Never treat him like an emperor. The day you treat him like an emperor is the day our friendship ends. Can you do that?” Zhang Yong stared intently at Su Lu.

"Yes." Su Lu nodded solemnly.

"Also, never ask Zhu Shou for anything," Zhang Yong added, then added with a teasing smile, "You can't blame anyone else for this; it's just that you instilled in that young master the idea of ​​'friends asking for nothing in return,' which he took as gospel."

As he spoke, he couldn't help but chuckle and said, "Well, I've never had any friends before, and I don't even know what friendship is. I just believed your nonsense and thought that only those who ask for nothing in return are true friends. So don't contradict yourself."

"Don't worry, I won't ask him for anything," Su Lu assured him.

“That’s a wise man. You’re incredibly lucky to be friends with him. He’ll keep all your misfortunes away and make all your wishes come true!” Zhang Yong said earnestly.

“Indeed.” Su Lu wholeheartedly agreed.

After finishing their important conversation, the two left the alley and headed towards the Su family's courtyard.

Just as they were about to enter, Zhang Yong suddenly seemed to remember something and whispered, "Don't get involved in the affairs of those candidates. Just focus on your exams."

“Yes, I don’t want to get involved either, but sometimes…” Su Lu sighed softly, “I really have no other choice.”

"Hehe, Liu Jin has gone too far this time. Just you wait, someone will deal with him..." Zhang Yong said, then pushed open the half-closed courtyard gate and laughed inside, "The man has been called back!"

In the courtyard, Zhu Shou was playing Cuju (ancient Chinese football) with Zhang Zhong.

Bai Da is a variation of Cuju (ancient Chinese football) without goals; two players kick the ball against each other, using their head, shoulders, back, knees, and feet to keep it from touching the ground. Zhu Shou loved Cuju from a young age, and through practice, he became skilled at performing various difficult moves.

The leather ball bounced back and forth between the two players' knees, toes, heads, and backs, never touching the ground.

"You're finally back!" Zhu Shou bounced the ball high with his knee, then unleashed a powerful shot, sending the ball whistling towards Su Lu.

"Oh dear!" Zhang Yong exclaimed in surprise and quickly dodged.

But Su Lu remained calm and composed, skillfully controlling the ball with his chest before deftly deflecting it. He then raised his knee, circling it around the ball, before hooking his instep and tapping it with his heel, sending the ball flying in a graceful arc towards Zhu Shou!

"Good shot!" The whole set of movements was smooth and flowing, with a neat and flashy style that was completely different from the ancient method of playing with bare hands. Zhu Shou's eyes lit up and he quickly caught the ball with his knee and started kicking it back and forth with Su Lu.

Zhang Zhong immediately stepped aside to become a caddy.

“That’s right. Back in school, I was number ten on the college team.” Su Lu said proudly, “The school’s record holder for juggling a ball.”

"Wow, your Sichuan academies even have teams playing Cuju (ancient Chinese football)?" Zhu Shou exclaimed in surprise.

"..." Su Lu was slightly distracted. Of course, he was not talking about Taiping Academy, nor Heshan Academy.

As the ball grazed his shoulder and flew behind him, Zhang Zhong immediately cheered, "Great!"

But then Su Lu pulled off a difficult scorpion kick, managing to save the ball from behind again...

"Wow! You can play like this?!" Zhu Shou exclaimed excitedly, trying his best to prove himself against Su Lu.

The ball flew back and forth between the two players. Zhu Shou's ancient techniques were agile and varied, while Su Lu's later skills were ingenious, making it a close and evenly matched contest for a time.

They kicked for almost half an hour before finally sitting down on the doorstep to rest, panting heavily.

Zhu Shou took the honey water offered by Zhang Yong, took two sips, and handed the silver kettle to Su Lu, saying, "I almost forgot why I came to see you."

"Aren't you a soccer player?" Su Lu didn't seem bothered by the ambergris in the water bottle and took a sip with an air of nonchalance.

"Of course not, how would I know you were a Cuju master?" Zhu Shou shook his head and said, "I'm here to settle accounts with you."

"Another score to settle?" Su Lu said helplessly.

“You lied to me yesterday!” Zhu Shou said.

Su Lu's heart tightened. Could it be that he had found out that Zheng He hadn't brought back any chili peppers?
He then calmly asked, "What did I lie to you about?"

"You said Zheng He's treasure ships were forty or fifty zhang long and eighteen zhang wide, with five decks of cabins and nine masts!" Zhu Shou said irritably, "If it were really like that, how heavy would those ships be? How could they possibly float?"

"Oh?" Su Lu hadn't expected it to be about this, and burst into laughter, "If I say it can float, then it definitely can float!"

(End of this chapter)