Chapter 51: Determination and Decision-Making

The powerful often used veiled language in their letters to convey hidden meanings. Zhang Yue had once helped Du Zhen read letters from several old friends in the capital, all of whom now held high positions, so he had long been trained to handle such things. After a quick first read, he thoughtfully reread it once more, then a third time.

For Zhang Yue, this was routine, but Gu, standing beside him, couldn’t hide her astonishment at his focused repeated readings. With both of her sons absent, and Zhang Chao and Zhang Qi not being particularly steady or wise, her own grandson Zhang Jiu, though hailed as a prodigy, was still too young to handle matters as well as his three older brothers. Thus, she had initially thought only of Zhang Yue, who had grown increasingly outstanding over the past four years. It seemed she hadn’t chosen the wrong person.

“Have you finished?”
Zhang Yue lowered his head to fold the letter, about to return it to Gu, when he heard her question and looked up to find his grandmother staring at him intently. Accustomed to such scrutiny over the years, he nodded without hesitation. “Grandmother, I’ve finished.”

“What do you think of the Duke of Yingguo’s proposal? In other words, do you think it’s feasible for your second uncle to return to Jiaozhi, avoid the turmoil in the capital, and try to exonerate your eldest uncle?”

“He’s your nephew, not mine. I’ve never had anything to do with him—how could I know if it’s feasible… or even trustworthy?”

Though skeptical, since his grandmother had no one else to consult, Zhang Yue prepared to offer advice. After organizing his thoughts, he said, “After all, the Duke of Yingguo is a meritorious high official. If he really tries to resolve this, it would be far better than our family rashly sending someone to the capital to handle it. Besides, both my second uncle and father are unfamiliar with the situation in the capital, and my eldest aunt and fourth brother have been away for a long time. Making a mistake could harm my eldest uncle. Moreover, my second uncle hasn’t yet been reassigned, so if more excuses arise, our Zhang family will be in an even harder position.”

Seeing his grandmother nod slightly, he gained more confidence and added, “However, the Duke of Britain’s family first lived in Yanjing City and then stayed in Nanjing City. Although they are related to our Zhang family from Xiangfu and are truly willing to help this time, it wouldn’t be right for us to do nothing and rely entirely on them. Even if my second uncle can’t go to Nanjing, at least someone should be there—first to bring back accurate news, second to represent our Zhang family’s stance, and third to reassure my eldest uncle.”

At first, Lady Gu thought Zhang Yue’s analysis was quite organized, but upon hearing these three points, she was deeply moved. She sat up straight immediately and examined her grandson carefully once again, as if seeing him for the first time, before finally letting out a long sigh.

“I always thought the four of you brothers were similar, with slight differences in strength. But now it seems they’re far inferior to you. I originally thought Mr. Du was just highly learned, but the fact that he could teach a student like you shows his talent is sufficient for high-ranking positions in the government! If I had known this earlier, I would have spent any amount of money to hire him to teach your three brothers!”

Hearing Du Zhen’s name, Zhang Yue looked embarrassed. After hesitating for a moment, he stood up and knelt in front of the bed, bending one knee: “Grandmother, there’s something I’ve been too afraid to tell you. Before leaving, Mr. Du left behind all the money he had received from our family over the past four years, along with gifts for his departure—a total of a thousand taels of silver and jade pendants, emeralds, and other items. I was afraid you’d be angry, so I didn’t say anything…”

After pondering for a long time, Zhang Yue still didn’t mention that Du Zhen had predicted a crisis for their family. Instinctively, he felt it was not beneficial to let others know that his teacher could see so far ahead. Du Zhen, who was far away in Nanjing, didn’t seek high positions in the government or fame; he certainly didn’t need his help in gaining influence. As his student, it was his duty to keep such things hidden from others.

“He really didn’t take it?”

Lady Gu was truly surprised. After all, the salaries in the Ming Dynasty were meager, and civil officials received less than military officers. Since Du Zhen was going to the capital when he clearly needed money, not only did he refuse the gifts for his departure but also returned the money he had received over four years. Such integrity went beyond simplicity—it could even be called extremism. After a long silence, she finally realized she had completely misjudged that man.

At this point, she had no time to regret, so she didn’t dwell on it and quickly returned to the main topic. After discussing things further with Zhang Yue and seeing his fluent and composed responses, she became even more determined.

So, after Zhang Yue left, she immediately called Lingxi in and asked in a serious tone, “You keep track of those amounts—how much is left now?”
Lingxi quickly understood what Lady Gu meant by those amounts and carefully calculated them in her mind before stepping forward and saying in a low voice, “Including the old lady’s dowry and the earnings and rents from the estates and shops over the years, there’s roughly over forty thousand taels of silver. But much of it can’t be touched; only about twenty thousand taels can be used directly. If we pawn some unnecessary valuables, we might have around thirty thousand taels in total.”
“It’s a pity. Though precious paper money is useful, it’s now practically worthless in most places…” Lady Gu muttered these rebellious words softly, then waved for Lingxi to come a few steps closer before instructing her in an almost inaudible voice, “Go and find a way to exchange fifteen thousand taels of silver for gold. I’ll need it in a few days.”
Although Lingxi wasn’t one to ask too many questions, hearing that the old lady wanted to use twenty thousand taels of silver still caused her to show a look of shock. She couldn’t help but say, “Old lady, if we exchange fifteen thousand taels of silver for gold at once, the gold-to-silver ratio in Kaifeng will likely drop sharply, causing significant losses…”
“Stop talking. I have my own plans,” Lady Gu said firmly, waving her hand dismissively. Seeing Lingxi nod in agreement, she sighed softly. “If it weren’t for such an urgent situation, why would I use this silver? I need to save it for their weddings, for Yi’s marriage, and as a fund for my own funeral… But if even the eldest son can’t be saved, what’s the point of worrying about these things? Money is just an external possession—we bring it with us at birth but leave it behind at death. We can’t expect others to work hard and pay for it.”
As Lady Gu’s most trusted confidant, Lingxi realized she had made up her mind. She secretly admired her in her heart and said, “Then I’ll follow the old lady’s orders. I’ll go see Lady Gao right away to get the gold exchanged as soon as possible.”
“Be thorough. It’s better to lose a few taels than let rumors spread. Try not to let anyone know it’s the Zhang family exchanging gold,” Lady Gu said, thinking of Jin, the prefect of Kaifeng who had broken off their engagement. She sneered, “Those shallow fools can watch us suffer from afar for now, but they’ll regret it later! The Zhang family has survived even the toughest times—what’s this minor setback compared to that?”