Chapter Seventeen: Joy and Sorrow Are the Main Themes of Life

After the Zhang family’s birthday banquet, Kaifeng City, which had been bustling for several days, gradually returned to its usual calm. Aside from a few relatives and old friends who had come from afar, most guests had left the Zhang residence, leaving the small courtyard reserved for them empty. Shen Can, who had arrived just on the day of the banquet, stayed for only four days before rushing back to Nanjing. Before leaving, he invited Du Zhen to visit Nanjing as well, but Du Zhen evaded the invitation with a noncommittal response.

That day, all three generations of the Zhang family gathered in the main house of the Gu family to talk. After listening to the middle-aged manager read out the lengthy list of gifts, Lady Gu didn’t show much reaction to the huge amount, but instead sighed.

“All these gifts this time are more than twice as generous as those given for my fiftieth birthday. It will likely be difficult to repay these favors in the future.”

The older generation nodded in agreement, while the younger children were confused. But Zhang Yue had already started making plans. Salaries in the Ming Dynasty were notoriously low, far inferior to the generous treatment given to scholars and officials in the Tang and Song dynasties. He even maliciously speculated that Du Zhen might have stopped serving as an official because of the meager salary.

Zhang Xin pondered for a moment before responding, “Mother is right. That’s why the Duke of Ying also said it would be best to acquire more land in Henan. Otherwise, as the family grows larger, we’ll likely face even greater financial difficulties.”

“That’s true,” Lady Gu nodded slightly, but then her face showed signs of annoyance. “If you already know we’ll be short of money, why did you two go to such lengths preparing birthday gifts? The eldest son even gave a white jade mat—aren’t you afraid people will accuse you of being extravagant and greedy? And the third son, as a scholar supported by family connections, you’re still so wasteful! The price of that hundred-year longevity embroidery is equivalent to ten hectares of land!”

When the topic of birthday gifts came up, everyone in the room was stunned. Seeing that his mother didn’t seem truly angry, Zhang Xin smiled and explained that a sixtyth birthday couldn’t be taken lightly. Zhang Zhuo, who had been feeling proud these past few days, saw that his stepmother didn’t seem determined to pursue the matter, so he also smiled and said it was just an expression of filial piety, delivering a series of flattering words.

Thus, the topic was quickly dropped, and the whole family enjoyed a warm and harmonious atmosphere filled with motherly love, filial respect, and brotherly affection.

Zhang Yue had no idea what had happened after the other two families left. All he knew was that he returned to the western courtyard with his parents. As soon as the curtain was drawn back, he saw the two people who had seemed so respectful earlier now smiling broadly, their expressions truly remarkable. Before he could react, his mother pulled him into her arms and stroked his head over and over again. He couldn’t resist at all and could only grit his teeth and let her do as she wished.

“Your elder brother at least got the upper hand at the birthday celebration. We not only did well there, but you also showed yourself prominently. This time, the second family member will probably be seething with anger. Although your second brother is in Jiaozhi, he still makes progress in various ways. Who knows what other deals are going on? For the old lady’s 60th birthday, she only gave a pair of vases.”

“Enough, enough! You always know how to slander your second sister-in-law. It’s fine to laugh at this, but speak less of such things.” Yet, Zhang Zhuo’s face showed unmistakable excitement. Seeing Zhang Yue looking up at him with a smile, he couldn’t help but pat his head twice and exclaim joyfully, “Yue, you’ve finally lived up to expectations!”

With such pressure, how could one not strive?

Zhang Yue wore a obedient smile on his face, but inwardly he was sighing. Over the past two months, he had practiced in front of the mirror countless times until he mastered this unbeatable smile. But now his face felt stiff—after all, aside from the time when his siblings gathered yesterday, he had been smiling all these days, leaving his cheeks sore.

Of course, Sun Shi was happy that her husband and son had shown up, but thinking of what her mother-in-law had said today, she suddenly became worried. “Sir, is the gift you prepared for the old lady’s 60th birthday really worth dozens of acres of land? Don’t end up in debt just to please her. It will be hard to make up for it later.”

Whether it was because Zhang Zhuo was too happy and a bit reckless, or because he was glad his son had grown up to bring honor to him, upon hearing his wife’s worried words, he waved his hand dismissively and said, “Don’t worry. This gift was purchased with the profits I mentioned to you last time. Besides, if we don’t use those precious coins saved from distributing monthly allowances over the years, they’ll just become worthless paper. Using them now means no more worries.”

As he spoke, he walked over to his wife and son and lowered his voice, saying, “After completing that last task, that person gave me a fair share of the profits. Although our family isn’t as powerful as my eldest and second brothers, we still have enough silver—several thousand taels—to spare… In short, we have some resources now, and when it’s time to be generous, we must be! Yingru, we can’t compare ourselves to my eldest brother and his wife right now, but who knows what the future holds?”
Sun Shi felt her heart heat up at her husband’s fervent tone and couldn’t help but nod repeatedly, saying, “My lord is right. We’ve made it through all these years; even for Yue, we’re not reluctant to spend money.”
Zhang Yue was confused by his parents’ words. Even so, he could only listen and not ask questions, pondering in silence. He had heard from Liansheng and Lianhu that the common currency at that time was copper coins and paper money, with no such fine thing as ingots yet, but silver was still the most useful in the market.
The problem was that several thousand taels of silver wasn’t a small amount in the early Ming dynasty—where did it come from? And who was that person?
No matter how many doubts Zhang Yue had, his age meant he couldn’t get involved in such matters, as he had more important things to do—namely, formally becoming Du Zhen’s disciple.
After that birthday banquet, he didn’t understand Du Zhen’s sudden appearance, but he did benefit from it, and he also found Mr. Du’s ways to be in line with his own preferences. If he had initially agreed to his father’s request just to change his family’s awkward position within the Zhang clan, now he was happy to have such a seemingly aloof teacher.
According to Zhang Zhuo’s plan, this apprenticeship ceremony should have involved countless famous guests and nobles, ideally making it widely known throughout the land. But Du Zhen, as the teacher, didn’t want any publicity, and Zhang Yue, as the student, had no desire to show off. As a result, the ceremony took place in Du Zhen’s humble room, with no one present to witness it, and the generous gifts prepared by Zhang Zhuo were unused.
However, seeing his father’s awkward situation, Zhang Yue stepped in to defuse the tension, saying, “Father, if the teacher values material things, he could have simply continued serving as an official quietly. Now, we wouldn’t lack money or rank. It’s better if you take those gifts back.”

At first, Zhang Zhuo was startled by his son’s boldness. Seeing that Du Zhen wasn’t annoyed but instead nodded in approval, he realized he had been wrong and regretted not consulting his son before preparing the gifts for the apprenticeship. Meanwhile, though embarrassed on the surface, he secretly rejoiced at the understanding between the teacher and student. So he immediately got up to leave, leaving his son in that humble room with complete confidence.

In the simply furnished room, the two who had just become master and disciple stared at each other for a long time, as if their eyes were becoming sore from staring. Only then did this strange situation come to an end. But staying silent indefinitely wasn’t feasible, and eventually, Du Zhen, as the elder, spoke first.

“If I had taken you as my disciple in front of Shen Minwang, you could have become famous throughout Henan and even the whole country. But I didn’t. Do you know why?”

Zhang Yue had imagined what Du Zhen might say or ask after taking him as a disciple, but he never expected this question. Yet he was quick-witted; in the blink of an eye, he smiled and said, “It’s easy for a young person to become arrogant once famous. Is that why, sir?”

“Yes, but not entirely.”

A faint smile appeared on Du Zhen’s cold face.

“The officials in my Ming Dynasty are more difficult to serve than those in past dynasties. Those with talent who don’t want to be officials and prefer to live in seclusion will face the imperial sword; those who are arrogant because of their talent won’t be tolerated by those in power. Even those who are talented and cautious may end up in trouble if falsely accused or implicated in someone else’s crime. Moreover, our imperial examinations don’t value fame much, and those admitted aren’t necessarily well-known talents. Teachers often dislike those flashy people with high reputations. So, moderate fame is fine; otherwise, it’s useless and harmful.”

“Sir… I don’t understand what you mean.”

Although he understood perfectly, Zhang Yue had to pretend to be confused. After all, he was just a ten-year-old child. It was possible for him to have some talent or seem mature for his age, but it would be highly inappropriate for him to understand the ways of the world like an adult.

Du Zhen waved his hand indifferently and continued, “You’ll gradually understand in time. I’ve only taken one true disciple in half my life. Naturally, I’ll teach you everything I know—not only knowledge but also how to conduct oneself… A cup of tea to reward a kindred spirit. Taking you as my disciple and getting such a fine verse—perhaps this is truly fate.”

The implication of these words filled Zhang Yue with joy—there were plenty of pedantic scholars in the world, but finding a teacher who was both learned and adaptable was quite rare. At least with such a teacher, he would have ample time to prepare for this unfamiliar era.

A few days after Zhang Yue formally became his disciple, Zhang Fu, the Duke of Britain in Nanjing, suddenly sent four skilled personal guards along with a letter written by him. Lady Gu had initially been displeased because no one from the Zhang family in Nanjing had shown up to her birthday banquet, but after reading the letter, she sighed deeply, and her resentment vanished instantly.

“I sent people to offer congratulations before the New Year, only to find that the healthy five-month-old baby simply disappeared! Not only that, but the Zhang Fu and Zhang Jie brothers also faced trouble—several of their concubines schemed to seize the position of heir to the dukedom. No wonder no one bothered to attend my birthday.”

Only then did Zhang Yue realize that the Duke of Britain’s son had died young, and it was his only son. Thinking about how people in this era either died young or in their childhood, with few living long and happily, he grew even more worried about his own frail health. After all, even the emperor, with countless physicians at his service, struggled to live a long life—let alone him?

Lady Gu carefully folded the letter and put it back in the envelope, then gave orders in an unyielding tone: “The Duke of Britain believes that the Zhang family has a tradition of military excellence. Even if future generations do not seek glory on the battlefield, they should still practice martial arts to strengthen their bodies. That’s why he sent four personal guards who have fought alongside him in battles. Take your own sons outside—one from the eldest son’s family, two from the second son’s family, and one from the third son’s family. Have them serve as instructors.”

Hearing this, Zhang Chao, who loved weapons, showed great delight. Zhang Yue, after initial surprise, also felt genuine joy. Only the youngest, Zhang Jiu, frowned slightly and muttered something under his breath.

Lady Gu’s authority in the household was unshakable, and no one dared defy the Duke of Britain’s orders. Whether they wanted to or not, everyone quickly divided up the four guards and took them back to take care of them.

Yet it turned out that these four guards were just the first batch of gifts from the Duke of Britain in Nanjing. Just seven days later, a second batch of gifts arrived at the Zhang family’s home in Xiangfu.

This time, there were twelve fairly beautiful maids. According to Zhang Fu’s own letter, having descendants was a crucial matter for the family clan, so he hoped his three cousins and nephews would take more concubines to have children. These women were all former ladies from good families who had been punished and handed over to the government; their ages ranged from twelve to seventeen, and all of them had the appearance suitable for bearing children.
Who knows how one can tell from just a twelve-year-old girl that she’s suitable for having children!
The one assigned to Zhang Yue’s room was a thirteen-year-old girl with extraordinary beauty, named Amber; she was quite pleasing to the eye. Yet, despite her beauty, Zhang Yue couldn’t feel any joy, as he thought of Bi Yao and Hong Luan who had been forced into his father Zhang Zhuo’s arms, of his mother’s sorrow, and of the cruel fact that he would soon have two more mothers.
Joy and sorrow are the main themes of life—truly true.