Chapter 252: True Loyalty Revealed Before Disaster

It was common for the Jinyiwei to arrest people.
This was not the first time Zhang Yue had witnessed the Jinyiwei making arrests. The first time it happened was to his uncle Zhang Xin; the second time was to Liang Qian, whom he had met once at the Du family’s residence. The third time, though he didn’t see it with his own eyes, Meng Xian was still in the imperial prison under the Jinyiwei’s North Pacification Bureau. And now, it was his own mentor’s turn.

Watching as the carriage disappeared in a cloud of dust, followed by a group of brightly dressed men speeding after it, he clenched his fists and took a deep breath, reminding himself repeatedly—without the Jinyiwei, there would still be the Eastern Depot; without the Eastern Depot, there would still be the Western Depot or other internal agencies. In short, even in an era without such agencies, life, death, honor, and disgrace all rested in the emperor’s whim.

Emperor Zhu Di was by no means a kind-hearted man; moreover, he was extremely protective of those he favored. Du Zhen’s journey to pass through would likely be no easier than Meng Xian’s. After all, despite being labeled a meritorious official, Meng Xian’s fate remained uncertain. Just based on that, the two men most likely to become his fathers-in-law were now destined to become cellmates in the imperial prison?

Seeing Zhang Yue return to the government office with a troubled expression, Ling Hua wanted to follow after him and give him some advice, but after thinking it over, she decided against it. At this point, nothing said within Qingzhou Prefecture would matter. What was crucial was the power struggles in Beijing—ultimately, it all depended on what the emperor decided. A few years earlier, there would have been no doubt about Du Zhen’s fate—he would surely have died. But now that the Han Prince’s influence was weaker than before, there might still be some hope.

“I heard Lord Du was once a favorite of the emperor. How could he be so foolish this time?” He kept pondering, feeling something was odd, yet he couldn’t pinpoint what. In the end, he simply sighed heavily. “Anyway, my position is low, and I can’t say much now. It’s better to go back and prepare a gift for Brother Zhang.”

By early May, the weather had already become hot. Many cicadas perched on the two large trees in the courtyard, chirping loudly at noon, adding to the restlessness of those already anxious. Ling Xi, who was observant, remembered that Zhang Yue had complained the cicadas were too noisy the previous day. Now, she was directing several servants to use bamboo poles to catch the cicadas from the trees. Just standing in the sun for a short while in such heat left her drenched in sweat, with her hair plastered to her forehead.

As soon as Zhang Yue stepped through the courtyard gate, he saw this scene and quickly waved to call Lingxi over. After asking a few questions, he learned that Du Wan was not in the house, which made his expression change slightly as he felt puzzled. Although he had intended to hide Du Wan’s whereabouts, she was extremely intelligent and surely could not be kept in the dark forever, nor could she allow her father to be taken away without doing anything.

Lingxi gently wiped her head and face with her sleeve, then said seriously, “Miss Du is very thoughtful. She must have realized that today’s events were inevitable, so she is thinking about the future. She has always been very considerate of others and knows that the young master must also be very troubled. It’s unlikely they could come up with a good solution if they met, which is why she didn’t come.”

“You’re right.”

Pressing his temples with both hands, Zhang Yue took a deep breath. “I’ll be returning to Beijing in three days. Hurry up and get everyone ready. If everything goes smoothly this time, that’s fine, but if not, we might have to stay for a long time. So, you might as well pack properly. It doesn’t matter if you set off a few days later after I leave. By the way, since we’re leaving, seal up those gifts given by the Han Prince’s mansion exactly as they were. The Censorate and the Shandong branch of the Imperial Censorate will take care of them later.”

For every sentence Zhang Yue said, Lingxi nodded in agreement. After repeating it in detail, she prepared to go inside to pack. Before she had taken a few steps, she heard Zhang Yue’s voice behind her and quickly turned around.

“Has there been no news from Beijing these days?”

Seeing Lingxi shake her head, Zhang Yue felt quite disappointed. Although Mu Ning had assured him that the emperor’s anger this time was only because the Han Prince had made false accusations and the Censorate was stirring up trouble—just a minor scare with more noise than substance—there was absolutely no word from home in Beijing, which was extremely unusual. Even though Duke Zhang Fu had gone to Xuanfu to train troops to defend against the Mongols, with the wife of the king and his grandmother still there, why wasn’t there any news even though he himself was being blamed?

Every summer, wealthy families would replace the paper covering their windows with various light and breathable gauzes. In the past, when they were in Beijing, the maids in the Meng family would have been busy with this already. But now, as they were away from home and facing major changes, with insufficient funds even for food and medicine, no one had the heart to deal with such things. Only Meng Min’s half-brother and sister, who had never suffered hardship before, had been bitten by mosquitoes many times, leaving their arms and legs covered in red bumps.

When Meng Xian was still alive, Concubine Zhong had always been favored for her youth and beauty. Now that her son, whom she regarded as her reliance for the rest of her life, was in such a miserable state due to insects, she could no longer hold back her anger. Ignoring the fact that Lady Wu was still ill, she went straight to the main room and said bluntly, “Young lady, as the days grow hotter, if things stay this way, it will be impossible to live on!”

Concubine Liang, who came with her, also held her daughter Meng Lan’s hand and shouted loudly, “Lord is still imprisoned by the Jinyiwei. We can’t just stay in Qingzhou, living in someone else’s house while Lady Wu remains ill. To be honest, it’s only natural for you to take care of Lady Wu here. We can’t help at all, so it’s better to go to Beijing quickly. If anything happens, we can at least look after Lord. It would also be convenient to seek help from the Marquis of Baoding.”

“And that Miss Du who’s been staying at our house for days—rumor has it her father has also been captured by the Jinyiwei. At this critical moment, our Meng family is struggling to survive. It’s better to avoid trouble. Young lady, please don’t push Lord further into danger!”

“That’s right! Right now, even the third son of the Zhang family is in trouble. If we rely on him, we might get dragged down as well!”

Hearing the two concubines arguing, Hong Xiu grew furious, her face turning ashen. Although she had once disliked Du Wan for interfering, spending time with her these days had made her realize Du Wan’s merits and how much help she had given their young lady. At this moment, while Lady Wu was resting inside, these two concubines recklessly caused a scene. It was utterly outrageous—did they think no one would support the young lady now that Lady Wu was ill?

Meng Min’s face was also pale. Though she had been devoted to taking care of her mother and hadn’t gone outside these days, that didn’t mean she was oblivious to what was happening. She had been keeping an eye on Zhang Yue’s situation. How could she not know about such a big disturbance? Remembering how he had helped her without hesitation when she sought his help, and how he had gone to great lengths afterward, as if he didn’t care about his father’s initial enthusiasm for that marriage for other reasons, her heart burned with emotion, and she couldn’t help but clench her handkerchief tightly.

After Aunt Zhong and Aunt Liang’s back-and-forth arguments finally came to an end, she coldly asked, “Have the two aunts finished speaking? Setting right and wrong aside, don’t forget—when we were driven out of the Du Si yamen, who took us in? Why didn’t those people worry about our Meng family’s misfortune back then and try to distance themselves? Sister Du lived in our house, covering all her own expenses, and even gave our family a lot of money. A lot of what you’ve eaten and used these days has come from others—why didn’t you consider them a threat at that time?”

Aunt Zhong’s face turned blue. Though she knew Meng Min had always been in charge of the household, she had always thought she was gentle-hearted. She had never heard her speak so mercilessly before. Relying on the fact that she had raised a son for the Meng family, she took a deep breath and spoke sharply, “What kind of words are these, young master? Just because someone is kind for a while does that mean we have to stick with them forever? This family isn’t just yours—Brother Bai and Girl Lan are still young. We can’t let them get dragged into outsiders’ affairs because of your personal feelings…”

“Aunt, please be more respectful!” Meng Min interrupted Aunt Zhong in a firm voice, her pale face showing an indescribable anger. “It’s one thing for you to accuse me of wrongdoing, but why drag others in? Sixth Brother and Seventh Sister have always lived comfortably because of their surname Meng. Just because they enjoyed wealth before, does that mean they can’t share hardships with the family now? This family isn’t just mine, but since Mother entrusted me with managing it before she fell ill, I naturally must enforce rules! Aunt, you asked people to sell jewelry three times to get money, yet not a single penny was put into the household funds, nor was any given to Sixth Brother. What’s going on with that?”

Seeing the situation turn unfavorable, Aunt Liang quickly dragged her daughter Meng Lan to the side. It was only then that Aunt Zhong began to panic. Just as she tried to retort fiercely, the curtain of the inner room was pulled back, and someone unexpected stepped out. Panicked, she seemed to shrink in size, and it took her a long time to manage to speak.

“Madam!”

“Do you still recognize me as your madam?” Although her voice still trembled, Lady Wu’s words were as sharp as knives. “You dared to talk nonsense while I was still here. If I’m not here, won’t you all turn this house upside down? Your contract is still in my jewelry box. If you think the Meng family is now a pit of trouble, I’ll send someone to sell you right away. Then you can go live a life of luxury in another family!”

Only then did Concubine Zhong truly fear, her knees turning weak as she knelt on the ground and begged for mercy. It wasn’t until Lady Wu shouted at her to leave that she hurriedly pulled up her son Meng Bai and retreated in disarray, with Concubine Liang also frantically dragging her daughter behind her. As soon as the two of them left, Meng Min suddenly came to her senses and quickly went over to support her stepmother’s arm.

“Minnin, from now on, don’t waste words with them in such situations, and don’t show mercy!” Lady Wu sat down with difficulty at the east end of the kang, her breathing growing heavier. “I heard everything they said just now. Though it was mostly nonsense, they were right about one thing—while my illness can still be delayed, we must return to Beijing as soon as possible!”

“Mother, but how can your health withstand the journey?”

“I’m feeling much better now. If we don’t set off now, I might never be able to return to Beijing.” Lady Wu sighed tiredly, raised her head, and glanced at Meng Min’s face before smiling. “I thought I wouldn’t make it, but Dr. Feng managed to pull me back from the brink of death. I heard he even made a one-year bet. Life and death are determined by fate; insisting on holding onto that one year is pointless. His methods are already very skilled, so let’s not put him in a difficult position. When we return to Beijing, we can let him go back.”

Lady Wu had been bedridden for months. She had only reluctantly gotten out of bed because the arguments outside seemed unbearable. After saying a few words, she felt dizzy but still held her daughter’s hand tightly.

“This time we’ve burdened Zhang Yue, and Miss Du has helped so much time and again. We really owe them too much. Tell me, is what those two shallow women said true?”

Since Meng Min had strictly forbidden anyone from mentioning outside matters in front of her mother, she was somewhat embarrassed. But as Lady Wu kept asking, she briefly mentioned Du Zhen’s offense and said that Zhang Yue would likely return to Beijing soon. She then reassured her, “They’re not like Father. It’s just slander from others; I think they should be fine.”

“As for you being my elder brother, that’s one thing, but Lord Du’s situation is actually no different from your father’s.” Lady Wu was lost in thought for a moment before helplessly shaking her head. “Your father sought rapid advancement, while Lord Du’s desires are probably not of that kind, but the danger remains the same. In that case, your sister Du should also return to the capital. Have someone prepare things; we’ll all leave together so we can take care of each other on the road. Give orders that if anyone spreads rumors again, whether they’re masters or servants, they’ll be dealt with according to the rules! Those ungrateful wretches have brought shame to our Meng family!”

Du Wan didn’t return until dusk. When Zhang Yue, who had already arrived at the Meng family’s residence, saw her enter, he heaved a huge sigh of relief—had she not returned, he would have had to send the local authorities out to search the whole city. After asking her questions for a while and seeing no signs of worry or distress on her face, he brought up the matter of leaving together in three days.

“Thank you for your kindness, senior brother, but I plan to return to Jinan early tomorrow morning,” Du Wan said with a forced smile. Seeing Zhang Yue and Meng Min looking at her with concern, she explained, “When my uncle Meng was in trouble, even his colleagues at the military office turned against him. What more can be said about my father? The longer my mother stays at the administrative office, the more trouble there will be, so I need to go back quickly to bring her to Beijing. I won’t beat around the bush—could you lend me a few reliable servants for now?”

Zhang Yue couldn’t rest easy and quickly said, “Anyway, we’ll have to pass through Jinan on the official road. How about I accompany you?”

“I’ve gone through many hardships with my mother over the past decade; I can handle this situation. This time, you can take Sister Min and her family to the capital—there’s no need for you to worry about me here,” Du Wan said. She then walked over to Meng Min, gently took her hand, and said slowly, “Let’s take care of ourselves. We’ll be able to reunite once we get to Beijing.”