A Poor Man's Son-in-Law: He Picks Up the Daughter of a Duke's Mansion at the Start

On April 27th, Lu Qingyan went to town early in the morning.

He first went to visit Mr. Zhang. Mr. Zhang's private school was located at the east end of the town. It was a small courtyard, and the sound of children reading could be heard from inside. Pushing open the door, he saw Mr. Zhang leading a dozen or so children in reciting the Three Character Classic.

"At birth, human nature is inherently good..."

Mr. Zhang looked up and saw him, paused for a moment, then smiled and said to the children, "That's all for today, you can review on your own."

The children looked at Lu Qingyan with curiosity, then dispersed, whispering among themselves.

"Qingyan's back?" Mr. Zhang patted the chalk dust off his hands. "When did she arrive?"

"I just arrived yesterday." Lu Qingyan bowed respectfully. "How have you been, sir?"

"Good, good." Mr. Zhang led him to the inner room and poured him tea. "I've heard about your affairs. A third-place scholar, a compiler in the Hanlin Academy, good, good."

He said "good" several times, his eyes getting a little red.

Lu Qingyan took out Li Mubai's letter from his bosom: "This is a letter from Academician Li of the Hanlin Academy to you."

Mr. Zhang took it, opened it, and his hands trembled slightly as he read: "Mu Bai still remembers me, his teacher."

Li Mubai was also Mr. Zhang's student, and he was the top scholar in the imperial examination twenty years ago. Now, the two, teacher and student, are worlds apart: one is an official in the capital, and the other is a teacher in the countryside.

"Scholar Li said that he owes a great debt to your guidance back then," Lu Qingyan said. "He is too busy with official duties to visit you in person, so he asked me to convey his regards to you."

Mr. Zhang wiped his eyes: "He's very thoughtful. Qingyan, you should study hard under Mu Bai at the Hanlin Academy. He's a down-to-earth person, solid in both scholarship and officialdom."

"The student understands."

The two talked for a while. Mr. Zhang asked about his experiences in the capital and about his duties at the Hanlin Academy, and Lu Qingyan answered him one by one. When he mentioned the Emperor's bestowal of a marriage, Mr. Zhang paused.

"What is the temperament of the young lady from the Duke's mansion like?"

"It's good," Lu Qingyan said. "She's just a little spoiled, but kind-hearted."

"It's inevitable for daughters of high-ranking families to marry into them," Mr. Zhang sighed. "Now that you've married her, you must protect her. In the future, the Duke's mansion will be both your asset and your constraint in the officialdom. You must know how to maintain the right balance."

These words were exactly the same as what Li Mubai had said. Lu Qingyan nodded: "The student council will keep that in mind."

After leaving the private school, Lu Qingyan went to the cloth shop and bought a thick piece of cotton cloth for Mr. Zhang, as well as some writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. He had the shop assistant deliver them and then turned to head south of the city.

There was a teahouse in the south of the city that Lin Guangbiao frequented. When Lu Qingyan arrived, Lin Guangbiao was entertaining guests in a private room on the second floor. The waiter recognized him and led him upstairs to wait.

About fifteen minutes later, Lin Guangbiao came out after seeing his guest off. When he saw Lu Qingyan, his eyes lit up: "Brother Lu! When did you get back?"

"The other day," Lu Qingyan stood up and cupped his hands, "Boss Lin's business is booming."

"Thank you, thank you." Lin Guangbiao pulled him down to sit and personally poured him tea. "I heard you achieved the third-highest rank in the imperial examination and also got a position in the Hanlin Academy. Congratulations!"

"Boss Lin is well-informed."

"In our line of work, you can't afford to be out of the loop," Lin Guangbiao chuckled. "To be honest, brother, I've been keeping an eye on things in the capital. I heard the Emperor has bestowed a marriage upon the Duke's family?"

Lu Qingyan nodded: "Yes."

"Good, good!" Lin Guangbiao clapped his hands. "From now on, you've established yourself in Beijing, brother." He lowered his voice, "That Zhou Wenyuan hasn't caused you any more trouble, has he?"

Lu Qingyan was somewhat surprised: "Boss Lin knows?"

"I know a little bit." Lin Guangbiao sipped his tea. "That Zhou boy is narrow-minded and can't stand seeing others do well. But with Scholar Li around, he can't cause any real trouble. As for his father, Vice Minister Zhou, you should be careful. Those people in the Ministry of War have a long reach."

"Boss Xie Lin reminded me."

"Don't mention it." Lin Guangbiao waved his hand. "We've known each other for a long time. By the way, your second brother's bonsai are selling quite well in Jiangnan these days. I had someone send another batch over last month, and the price has increased by 30% compared to last time."

Lu Qingyan was grateful: "Thanks to Boss Lin for taking care of me."

"It's mutually beneficial," Lin Guangbiao said with a smile. "Your second brother has excellent craftsmanship, so he'll never have trouble selling his goods. If I have the opportunity in the future, I'd like to open a shop in the capital that specializes in these elegant collectibles. At that time, I'll still need your help, little brother."

"must."

The two then discussed business matters for a while. Lin Guangbiao brought up maritime trade, saying that the imperial court intended to lift the sea ban, which presented an opportunity. Lu Qingyan recalled the Maritime Silk Road from her previous life and mentioned it briefly, which made Lin Guangbiao's eyes light up.

"Brother, you have remarkable insight!" he exclaimed. "If the sea ban is truly lifted, we can cooperate. I'll provide the ships and goods, and you can offer the ideas."

"The students are just talking theory."

"Even theoretical discussions need to be accurate," Lin Guangbiao said earnestly. "Brother, you didn't get third place in the imperial examination for nothing. You'll understand as you gain more experience."

After leaving the teahouse, Lu Qingyan bought some things in town—tonics for his parents, fabric for his brother and sister-in-law, and hair accessories for his two younger sisters. Just as he was about to go home, he suddenly heard someone calling him.

Looking back, he saw it was Magistrate Zhou's advisor.

"Lu Tanhua!" The clerk hurried over. "The magistrate requests your presence at the county office, saying he has important matters to discuss."

Lu Qingyan followed him to the county government office. Magistrate Zhou was waiting in his study. When he saw Lu Qingyan enter, he dismissed everyone else.

"Lu Tanhua, I have a favor to ask of you," Magistrate Zhou said bluntly. "The county is compiling its gazetteer this year and would like you to write the preface. Also, the county school would like to invite you to give a lecture to the students on your experience in the imperial examinations."

This request is reasonable. Lu Qingyan nodded: "Okay. What should the preface include?"

"The county gazetteer has been completed. It mainly records Yongning County's achievements in governance, people's livelihood, and education this year." Magistrate Zhou handed over a thick booklet. "Take a look through it and write a preface. As for the lectures, we'll schedule them for the third day of the fifth lunar month, how does that sound?"

"The students need to return to Beijing by the fifth day of the fifth lunar month," Lu Qingyan said. "The third day is fine."

"Alright, it's settled then." Magistrate Zhou said with a smile, "Lu Tanhua is now the pride of our Yongning County. We hope he will continue to support our hometown in the future."

"It's a student's duty."

As Lu Qingyan left the county government office, dusk was approaching. He quickened his pace and headed back.

It was already dark when he returned to the village. Zhao was looking out the door when she saw him return and breathed a sigh of relief: "Why are you so late? The food has been reheated twice already."

"I went to the county government office to discuss some matters." Lu Qingyan entered the room. "Where's Father?"

"He's smoking inside." Zhao was serving rice. "Several groups of people brought gifts today, and as you said, we only accepted the usual gifts and returned the expensive ones."

"Thank you for your hard work, Mother."

During the meal, Lu Qingyan mentioned that he was going to give a lecture at the county school on the third day of the fifth lunar month. Upon hearing this, Lu Tiezhu put down his pipe and said, "We should go. Our family has received so much help from the villagers; we should repay them."

"That's what I think too," Lu Qingyan said. "Besides, the county is compiling a local history and they want me to write the preface. I'm thinking of including the changes our Lu family has undergone over the years, so that future generations will know that even poor families can produce outstanding individuals."

Zhao's eyes reddened: "Good, good...write it in, so your grandparents and great-grandparents can see it. Our family has made something of itself."

It was late at night, and Lu Qingyan lay in bed, but couldn't fall asleep.

He was thinking about how to teach the classes at the county school and how to write the preface to the county gazetteer.

The bright moonlight shone through the window and fell on the bed.

He suddenly remembered that he should write a letter to Yun Shuwei. Tell her that everything was fine at home, and that he missed her.

He got up, lit the lamp, spread out the paper, and picked up his pen.

"To Shu Wei..."

As the pen tip touched the paper, the corners of my mouth unconsciously turned up.

Perhaps, this is what it means to be concerned.