Chapter 130: It’s Easier to Get Things Done with Kind People’s Help

The title of “kind savior” truly left Zhang Yue stunned.
When the woman raised her head after bowing, he quickly waved his hands and said, “Sister-in-law, have you mistaken me for someone else? I’ve never met you before, let alone done you any favors.”
“I am Lady Kang Liu. Four years ago, the Daxiangguo Temple in Kaifeng saved my family. You may have long forgotten that kindness, but for my family, it was a life-saving grace. Without the silver you gave us afterward, my family likely wouldn’t be alive today.” After saying this, Lady Kang Liu’s eyes reddened. Taking advantage of Zhang Yue’s surprise, she bowed three more times before standing up. “All that silver you gave back then was meant for my daughter. My husband and I were truly useless, and now that we have no way out, we came to the Anyang Prince’s mansion to look for relatives.”
At that moment, those long-forgotten memories resurfaced in Zhang Yue’s mind. He studied Lady Kang Liu carefully. Whether it was because her appearance had changed greatly over time or because he had only glanced at her briefly before, he still didn’t remember much about her. However, the image of that timid little girl came to mind.
“So you were from back then…” Seeing Lady Kang Liu’s gray hair, haggard face, and frail frame that seemed ready to be blown away by the wind, Zhang Yue naturally realized her family must have been living in hardship. Though he never considered himself a saint, it was still a family he had helped in the past. He couldn’t help but ask, “You said you came here to find relatives. Who exactly are you looking for?”
Lady Kang Liu glanced up at Zhang Yue again. Seeing his neatly dressed but unostentatious attire, and his gentle yet authoritative tone, she felt somewhat ashamed and didn’t dare say that she was there to find her cousin—Lady Liu, the wet nurse of Prince Anyang, Zhu Zhanhuan.
Meng Min had been standing quietly aside the whole time. Hearing Zhang Yue ask questions, she smiled and said, “Brother Yue, it’s quite a coincidence. Just as I was leaving, I happened to meet Sister Kang lost outside the door. She’s looking for her relative, Mother Liu, the wet nurse of Prince Anyang. I’ve met her before, so I brought her along.”

At this moment, Lady Kang Liu was truly grateful from the bottom of her heart to this young lady before her. Though she couldn’t find her way, she was too exhausted from hunger and cold to keep going. The lady had given her snacks and a warm felt coat, and even taken her there in a carriage. Now, she was just claiming to be lost to cover up other reasons. Although she was in a difficult situation now, she had encountered several wealthy families’ daughters in the past—whose appearance and character could compare to this one?

“Fortunately, Sister Kang met such a kind person as the Fourth Sister,” Zhang Yue said. Seeing Hong Shou behind Meng Min making a face and Lady Kang Liu looking ashamed, he realized there must be more to this story. Yet he also thought Meng Min was very perceptive. Smiling again, he said, “Since it’s all a coincidence today, let’s not just stand here in front of the Anyang Prince’s Mansion. Why not go in together?”

Emperor Yongle, Zhu Di, had four sons. The crown prince and the Han King and Zhao King were all legitimate sons, and compared to the crown prince, the Han King and Zhao King had been more favored in the past. Zhao King Zhu Gao Sui, like the Han King Zhu Gao Xu, had many concubines, but he didn’t have as many descendants as his brother—only two sons, the heir apparent and the Anyang Prince Zhu Zhan Tun. Thus, the Anyang Prince’s Mansion in Beijing was naturally built in great splendor.

Lady Kang Liu followed closely behind Zhang Yue and Meng Min. The deeper they went, the more uncontrollably her legs trembled. She had never been inside such a grand mansion before. After passing through several doors and courtyards, she lost track of direction entirely. Seeing the servants along the way dressed in bright colors, even the lower-ranking maids wearing more splendid clothes than her, and countless curious gazes fixed on her, she almost wished she could find a crack in the ground to hide in, feeling increasingly humiliated.

Meng Min had already sent someone inside to inform Nurse Liu. As they walked, she kept talking to Zhang Yue. When she heard that Duke Yingguo Zhang Fu had recovered and that, according to Imperial Physician Shi, he would be able to ride out in the spring, she immediately joined her palms together and said, “Amitabha! Good people truly get good rewards! A while ago, when I met Princess Chenliu, she said the emperor’s mood was unpredictable. I suppose once Duke Yingguo returns, everything will get better.”

Zhang Yue smiled upon hearing this. As they approached the front gate, he suddenly saw a woman with a horse-like face, dressed in a light-colored Hangzhou silk jacket, rushing toward them, so he slowed down. Glancing at Meng Min beside him, seeing her give him a slight nod, he realized this must be Nurse Liu.

“Fourth Miss, I heard from the maid that you brought a relative for me?” Lady Liu hurried over, bowing respectfully with a smile spreading across her face. “To be honest, there are so many people trying to establish kinship with the royal family these days. There’s no need for you to worry about it. Most of them are ignorant women from some unknown place, trying to attach themselves to our prince like climbing a big tree!”
Hearing Lady Liu’s vulgar words, Zhang Yue couldn’t help frowning slightly. Then he remembered how Lady Kang had spoken so tactfully and gracefully in front of the royal palace earlier, as if she had some education. Turning around, he saw Lady Kang’s face pale, so he smiled gently and said, “Sister Kang, since you claim to be a relative, do you have any proof?”
Lady Liu had initially shown disdain, but upon hearing the name Kang, she was stunned. She quickly stepped forward, her small eyes wide as she stared at Lady Kang’s face and body before suddenly laughing.
“I thought it was someone else pretending to be a relative. It turns out to be you, my third sister! Back then, weren’t you doted on by your uncle? How did you end up in such a sorry state so quickly? Tsk tsk, if I had known, you wouldn’t have rejected such a good marriage offer and insisted on marrying that poor wretch, Kang the Third. Now, as expected, you’ve suffered retribution.”
This was someone else’s family matter. Meng Min didn’t want to intervene, but as Lady Liu’s insults grew more outrageous, she frowned and snapped, “Mother Liu, what are you talking about?”
Filled with resentment over old grievances, Lady Liu was too busy seeking verbal satisfaction to remember there were outsiders present. Seeing Meng Min’s dark expression and the unfamiliar nobleman’s displeased look, she felt a pang of fear and quickly said with a smile, “Fourth Miss and this young master, please don’t take it personally. I’m just straightforward. I was just joking with my third sister!”
As she spoke, she eagerly called Lady Kang “third sister” and asked what she was doing in the capital. When Lady Kang stammered that her husband was involved in a lawsuit and was now working on building city walls in Beijing, leaving their family in a desperate situation, Lady Liu’s face showed unmistakable schadenfreude before she pretended to wipe away tears.

“Third sister, it’s not that I refuse to help you. In this palace, I’m only slightly above ordinary servants, barely getting by thanks to the fact that I once nursed our young prince. But since you’ve come to me as a relative, I certainly won’t let you go empty-handed. Well, the young prince gave me twenty taels of gold when he was born; I haven’t used them yet. Take them back first to tide you over in emergencies. It’s my way of showing some kindness to your brother-in-law and niece.”
“Oh, it’s really lively here!”
Lady Kang Liu could easily tell her cousin was taking pleasure in her misfortune. Yet if she lost even this last relative, her whole family would be left with no way out. So she could only gratefully accept with humiliation. Just then, she suddenly heard a voice from the side and saw a young man dressed in a bright red brocade robe embroidered with pythons. She was stunned.
Zhu Zhanhuan initially didn’t take it seriously when he heard Meng Min had come to visit his queen. But when he learned that Zhang Yue had also been brought by Meng Fan and Meng Tao, he became interested. Though he wasn’t as closely tied to Zhu Di as Zhu Zhanji was, he was still well-informed. Even if Zhang Yue might not inherit the title of Duke of Ying, he was at least a close associate of Zhang Fu, and with the Meng family’s connections, Zhu Zhanhuan decided to win him over. After all, though the Eastern Palace had been settled, there were still many uncertainties in the world.
He glanced at Lady Liu and snorted angrily, “Mother Liu, what are you doing here? Is this the place for you?”
“Young prince, I…” Although Lady Liu was the nurse who had raised Zhu Zhanhuan, her status was only slightly higher than that of a servant. She could be proud in front of others, but how dare she act arrogantly in front of Zhu Zhanhuan? She quickly smiled and explained, “Fourth Miss sent word that a relative had come looking for me, so I came to check.”
Zhu Zhanhuan then glanced skeptically at the poor-looking woman he had ignored earlier. Seeing her gray hair, he lost interest and turned away, ignoring Lady Liu once more. Instead, he said to Zhang Yue with a smile, “You’ve been by the Duke of Ying’s side these past few months, hardly seeing anyone. It’s the first time I’ve seen you since you arrived in Beijing. The Meng brothers have done a good deed this time! Although Lady Zhang has passed away, since you’re not of direct blood relation, there’s no need to be so restrained. Why not try your skills at the archery field later?”
As he spoke, he turned to Meng Min and nodded politely, “Fourth Miss, the queen is waiting inside. You can go in by yourself.”

Lady Liu never expected her young prince to treat Zhang Yue with more courtesy and familiarity than Meng Min. Now, she resented Lady Kang for coming uninvited. She hurried over, took her cousin’s hand, and said, “The masters are talking right now. If you have anything to say, come to my room—don’t interrupt them!”
“Wait a moment.”
Zhang Yue, who had been observing coldly until now, realized that if Lady Kang followed Lady Liu back to her room, she would likely be sent out of the palace empty-handed in no time. Helping her was a trivial effort for him, but it could be a matter of life and death for her. He immediately spoke up, took out a few gold coins from his purse, and thrust them into Lady Kang’s hands without hesitation.
“The silver coins I gave you at the Daxiangguo Temple have already been used. Now take these and go buy some necessities. It’s a small token of our shared hardships.”
Meng Min had brought Lady Kang to the Anyang Palace out of kindness, but after several twists and turns, she found this woman rather strange. She quietly reached out to Hong Xiu beside her and then, following Zhang Yue’s lead, handed over a string of exquisite silver coins, saying with a smile, “Meeting each other is fate. Take these back as a memento for your younger sister.”
By now, Zhu Zhanhuan had finally understood something. Seeing Lady Liu standing there dumbfounded, he grew angry and snapped, “Since she’s your relative, treat her properly! Stop standing around—take her downstairs to change clothes and eat something. Do I even need to teach you how to host relatives?”