Top Scholar

Chapter 578 Absence Makes the Heart Blossom

Li Dongyang changed the subject and returned to Su Lu:

"In my opinion, Liu Jin can only stay in power for a maximum of three more years. After three years, your term will be over, and you will face the crucial decision of opening a small workshop—if you fail to do so, you will have to leave the Hanlin Academy and take up a post in a ministry or even a local government, and you will no longer be considered a candidate for prime minister."

As he spoke, he glanced at Su Lu, his eyes filled with worry, and said:

“Master is not exaggerating. Although you are the top scholar, opening a memorial hall should be no problem for you. But if your reputation among scholars is too bad in these three years, you will be unable to refuse. What will you do then? Are you going to do what Grand Secretary Jiao did, threatening your superiors with a knife and forcing them to add your name?”

"That won't do." Su Lu touched his nose and laughed, "It's not like I absolutely have to join the cabinet. What difference does it make where I go to be an official?"

"Don't say such discouraging things," Li Dongyang said in a deep voice. "You were destined to enter the cabinet smoothly. You mustn't ruin your bright future because of these three years of maneuvering. That would be a grave sin for your master. So I will never let you fall into that situation..."

He sighed sadly, "But once Liu Jin falls, even your master himself will be in danger. At that time, I'm afraid he won't be able to protect you anymore, child."

He raised his hand and gently patted Su Lu's arm, saying sincerely, "That's why I need to plan ahead for you now, to avoid future disasters."

"Thank you very much, Master." Su Lu nodded gratefully.

~~
When Su Lu returned to his residence, it was nearly midnight.

His aunt went to bed early, and the courtyard was quiet at the moment, so he didn't dare to disturb her and tiptoed into the third main courtyard.

The courtyard gate was ajar, letting in a warm yellow light. Su Lu felt a warmth in his heart and slowly pushed the gate open.

But the people in the courtyard were listening to the commotion. Guanqi and Ruhua quickly came out upon hearing the noise, greeting him with smiles. "Young Master is finally back!"

Two pretty maids quickly took the lantern from Su Lu's hand, one taking it from him and the other lifting the curtain to welcome him into the main room.

A charcoal stove was burning in the main room, making it warm and cozy. Huang E was sitting by the stove, reading a book and waiting for him. When she heard Su Lu's voice, she put down her book, tidied her hair, and happily got up to greet her husband.

The young couple hadn't seen each other for several days, and were naturally overjoyed. They held hands and embraced for a long time, until Su Lu's stomach started rumbling.

The two maids covered their mouths and chuckled. Huang E glared at them and said, "Hurry up and bring the noodles!"

Chicken soup simmered in an earthenware pot on a charcoal stove, and thin noodles were already prepared, just waiting for him to return so they could be cooked.

Huang E washed his hands himself and, while putting the food into the jar, jokingly asked Su Lu, "Why wasn't there a meal provided at Master's house?"

Su Lu smiled wryly and said, "Don't forget, Grand Tutor's wife is the sister of the Duke of Cheng. Even if she provides meals, I wouldn't dare to eat them."

“That’s true,” Huang E couldn’t help but chuckle. “I heard that the Duke of Cheng’s two hundred thousand taels of silver went down the drain.”

"Yeah, their family has the most." Su Lu said half-jokingly, "You can't be too careful. I didn't even dare to drink a drop of water from their house."

"Hurry up and pour water for your husband!" Huang E scolded the two maids who were secretly laughing. "You're getting more and more oblivious."

"Yes." Guanqi quickly served Su Lu the brewed tea, and Ruhua served her some snacks. Actually, the two of them were afraid that if they did too much, their mistress would accuse them of being overly attentive...

"How is Master's health?" Huang E asked again.

"Don't even mention it, that old rascal is really something. The moment we met, he was coughing up blood and wheezing like he was about to die. But then, as we were chatting, he probably forgot about it and didn't cough once for a full half hour!" Su Lu sipped his tea, finding it amusing.

"Huh? Could it be that Master was faking illness to trick you into going there?" Huang E asked in surprise.

“He is indeed sick, but it shouldn’t be that serious,” Su Lu said. “He probably just put on a show to make me suffer, and managed to squeeze an extra 2.5 million taels out of me.”

"How could you do this? Isn't this disrespectful to your elders?" Huang E said indignantly. "How could you scheme against your own grand-disciple?"

"I told you before, my master is a tea master." Su Lu chuckled. "It's gotten to the point where I can't tell if he's doing this for my own good or if he's plotting against me?"

“That’s normal. Yuan Weng was the smartest man in the Ming Dynasty. He served as prime minister for longer than my husband has lived.” Huang E smiled and comforted him, “It’s normal for a grand-disciple to be no match for his grandmaster. Don’t be discouraged.”

“I’m not discouraged, I’m used to it.” Su Lu sipped his tea with some snacks and smiled. “Think about how my wife and I left Sichuan. From then on, I learned how formidable top-level civil officials are. I know that fighting against them is just too difficult…”

"So you should just stay away from them," Huang E suddenly realized, "and hide in the Leopard Chamber, letting Liu Jin fight them?"

“What do you mean by hiding in the Leopard Chamber? I was compiling books by imperial decree.” Su Lu chuckled and said, “That’s the gist of it. Since I can’t get any benefits from dealing with them and always end up getting the short end of the stick, I might as well switch tracks and compete with the eunuchs. That’s a much more relaxed and effortless way to go.”

"Why is this?"

“Because the competition among eunuchs is all about the emperor’s favor, and I’m not inferior to them in that respect. I’m also much more learned than them, so I can directly crush them.” Su Lu said with a self-deprecating smile, “Unfortunately, I can’t hide in the Leopard Chamber forever. I can’t help but come out from time to time and get a lecture from the old fox, so that I’ll know my place.”

"Then why was it so easy for Eunuch Liu to deal with them?"

"Because Liu Jin is actually the embodiment of imperial power, and he is also a strange character with no way out but to be tough to the end. This is going to be the death knell for the civil officials. All their methods are ineffective against him. If it weren't for the emperor's relatively mild personality and the fact that my mentor was able to maneuver without regard for reputation, do you believe me? He could have destroyed the court." Su Lu sighed.

"Why do civil officials always talk about rules and laws? Because once they lose the protection of these rules, they will be completely at a loss."

“It’s just like brine curdling tofu – one thing can subdue another.” Huang E laughed. “My husband isn’t afraid of Liu Jin. Liu Jin can deal with civil officials, and civil officials can make my husband suffer.”

“My wife’s summary is quite accurate.” Su Lu said with a wry smile, “Unless I cut myself off from the civil officials, I have to follow their rules. But that’s all messy and complicated, and all my energy is wasted on pointless power struggles. So I’d rather have a separate table than deal with them.”

"I see." Huang E scooped up a mouthful of the white, silvery noodles, then added a spoonful of bright yellow chicken broth, and pinched some emerald green scallions. A bowl of delicious chicken soup noodles, with perfect color, aroma, and taste, was then placed in front of Su Lu. "The noodles are ready, my husband, please enjoy."

"Thank you for your kind hands in preparing the soup, madam." Su Lu said with a smile, took the chopsticks and spoon handed to him by Huang E, and tasted the soup. It was surprisingly delicious.

"Wow, it smells so good! My wife's cooking skills are getting better and better!" He then began to eat with relish.

Huang E wiped his lips with a handkerchief, her eyes crinkling as she said, "Of course. I'm serving a new mother and a pregnant woman now. If I don't improve, my aunt will nag me."

Su Lu felt a pang of heartache upon hearing this. He held his wife's soft hand and said gently, "That's just how Auntie is. I'm sorry you had to go through all this."

"At first, I was indeed a bit helpless," Huang E shook his head, his face full of admiration, "but now, the woman I admire most is my aunt."

As she spoke, she recounted with great interest, "You know, the other day, the lady of the Wuding Marquis across the street came to plead for us, but she was scolded by my aunt, who said that the women of our Su family would never cause trouble for men."

"Really?" Su Lu didn't expect that the nobleman would actually resort to the madam's route in order to get his money back.

"Yes, yes, Lady Wuding argued that noblewomen should speak for men and say things they can't say themselves." Huang E then imitated her aunt's voice and gestures:

"As a result, Auntie said—I don't care what others do, as long as I am still the matriarch of the Su family, this rule cannot be broken! No one can change it!"

"After saying that, she pointed to the three plaques in the main hall and said arrogantly, 'These three plaques were earned in this way!' This left the Lady of Wuding Marquis speechless, and she slunk away."

"Hahaha." Su Lu couldn't help but laugh. He didn't expect that his aunt was not only invincible in Erlangtan Village, but could still maintain a stable output after coming to the capital.

“These days, several noble ladies have come to plead for leniency, but none of them have been able to get past Auntie’s hurdle,” Huang E added.

Su Lu then commented, "Auntie is always clueless about small things, but she's always right about big things. She's annoying, but she's also the most reliable!"

"Pfft..." The two maids had tried to hold back their laughter, but they couldn't help but burst out laughing again.

"As expected, she was raised by her aunt..." Huang E laughed heartily.

"Don't laugh, you have to be respectful to your auntie." After finishing two bowls of noodles, Su Lu felt completely warm inside. He put down his chopsticks, took a sip of tea to rinse his mouth, and teased, "We've finally come home, are we planning to chat all night?"

"Then what else do we need to do?" Huang E glanced at him shyly, her eyes brimming with spring-like affection.

Su Lu gently tugged at a strand of Huang E's hair that fell beside her cheek with his fingertips, and said with a wicked smile, "Now that you've eaten and drunk your fill, it's time to stretch your legs."

Before he finished speaking, he scooped Huang E up in his arms.

Huang E gasped softly, quickly wrapping her arms around his neck. Her pretty face flushed slightly as she buried her face in his chest, her fingertips gently touching his chest. She said coquettishly, "You're so unruly, still indulging in the game of chess and painting."

Su Lu gently kissed the blushing earlobe of the beauty in his arms and laughed, "What's there to be afraid of? They have a good eye."

Upon seeing this, Guan Qi Ru Hua smiled, bowed slightly, and quietly lowered the curtain for the two of them before retreating to the outer room.

Su Lu carried Huang E into the inner room, whispering sweet nothings as they walked: "The real reason I gave them the day off today is because I missed you."

"I missed you too." Huang E leaned on his shoulder, her entire body now burning hot, not just her face. Her voice was barely audible as she whispered, "I even added goji berries to the chicken soup..."

"Haha, your husband is too old for that!" Su Lu laughed, tossing her onto the softly quilted bed. The candlelight flickered by the bedside, casting their intertwined shadows, filling the room with a spring-like atmosphere…

P.S. Post first, edit later.

(End of this chapter)