Chapter 673: A Clear Conscience

On their way back to Nanjing from Zhangyan Town, the group took the overland route. At that moment, Zhang Yue took the thick stack of papers handed to him by Du Wan, flipped through them casually, and couldn’t help but burst into laughter. Cui Mama, who was sitting in the same carriage, didn’t understand what was going on. She glanced at the papers and asked curiously, “Young master, everything written here is neat and proper—nothing problematic. Why are you laughing?”

Zhang Yue gently tapped the stack of papers before raising his head. “My father-in-law’s question was: What are benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and integrity? What are etiquette, honesty, and shame? These questions aren’t particularly difficult or easy. Yet most of the Du family’s descendants thought it was a test of their knowledge of classical texts, so they must have pored over countless books to come up with such answers. If I’m not mistaken, some of them even consulted famous scholars. It’s a pity they don’t understand my father-in-law’s character. Among those descendants, there are seven-year-olds as well as those in their early twenties. If it were truly a test of knowledge, how could such a vague question be sufficient?”

Du Wan had already heard about the tactics Zhang Yue used in his early years to win over her father, so she smiled. “Mother always said you understood Father best. It seems true after all. Then tell me, how should one answer this question properly?”

Amused by his wife’s teasing, Zhang Yue smiled even more. “How to answer? Naturally, one should answer based on one’s own understanding. Why memorize so many classics? Everyone has their own ideas about benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and integrity, as well as about etiquette, honesty, and shame. As long as one has a clear conscience, what’s there to hide? My father-in-law isn’t one of those pedantic scholars; he values sincerity and wisdom above all. After reviewing these answers, only two or three were fairly interesting.”

Although she didn’t understand those profound concepts, Cui Mama grasped Zhang Yue’s explanation easily. Seeing him select two papers to discuss with Du Wan, she whispered to Lingxi, “I heard that when Lord Du was still a teacher at the clan school in Kaifeng, he gave the young master a copy of The Analects. The young master read it day and night, taking a long time to finish it. It was because of this that he later became such a devoted student of his teacher. Now, with Lord Du selecting people in this way, there’s… well, a similar approach.”

Lingxi couldn’t help but laugh at Mother Cui’s last idiom. Thankfully, she was usually reserved and quickly suppressed her smile. Remembering that they had used just one carriage with four attendants to avoid drawing attention along the way, she thought Zhang Yue was thorough about big things but careless about small ones. As the carriage jolted along, she saw the couple gradually leaning against each other and falling asleep, so she quickly covered them with a blanket. In the blink of an eye, she noticed that Mother Cui had also fallen asleep.
“Really, at her age, she still doesn’t know to stay warm!”
After covering Mother Cui with a cloak, she thought of Qiuhen and Hupo still in Nanjing and couldn’t help worrying if anything might happen to them. Although Zhang Yue had taken proper leave for this trip, with such a major incident occurring, she had the leisure to do so, but Du Wan certainly wouldn’t have the heart to return home for ancestor worship at such a time. Judging from past behavior, it seemed she deliberately wanted to avoid it.
Lingxi didn’t dare think any further and lifted the carriage curtain to look outside. Seeing Peng Shisan happen to look her way and smile at her, she gave him an annoyed glare before lowering her hand and simply closing her eyes to rest. With those men around, why should she worry so much?
After sleeping in the carriage for most of the day, and seeing the weather warming up, Zhang Yue got out of the carriage and rode a horse, taking the opportunity to observe the scenery along the way. To travel from Songjiang Prefecture to Nanjing by land, one had to pass through Suzhou Prefecture, Changzhou Prefecture, and Zhenjiang Prefecture. These areas were all under the jurisdiction of Nanjing Directorate and contributed most of the region’s taxes. Thus, in early spring, farmers could be seen working hard in the fields everywhere.
That evening, they stopped in Suzhou Prefecture and stayed at a clean inn. Since Du Wan wasn’t feeling well, he had food and drinks brought to their room. After dinner, before curfew, he took Peng Shisan out of the inn to stroll around. As the sun set, there were fewer pedestrians on the roads, and many street stalls were closing down, creating an orderly atmosphere everywhere. Passing by an outdoor tea stall, he saw several people sitting inside, drinking tea and chatting loudly. He hadn’t paid much attention at first, but when he heard them discussing the local governor, he pulled Peng Shisan in and found a seat for them.
“Suzhou and Songjiang account for half of the country’s taxes. Every year, our region pays a huge amount of taxes to the imperial court. Yet the governor has now been dismissed over such a trivial matter. It’s said he might be removed from office soon!”

“Sigh, our lord is truly a good official. Over the years, he’s encouraged land reclamation, provided seeds, and stabilized prices—doing countless good deeds. Yet he’s so poor that his official robes are patched up again and again! The only reason he received gifts for my birthday is because those people willingly gave them. Even if he accepted them, what crime of corruption is that?”
“That’s right! The imperial court is too harsh on good officials! How much land do those noble officials and aristocrats have, compared to our lord? Those officials who are fixated on him must be idle and greedy, eyeing the lucrative position in Suzhou Prefecture to exploit the local people! If they really remove our lord from his post, the people of Suzhou Prefecture will jointly petition to keep him!”
The various prefectures in Nanjing Directly Governed Region are renowned for their fertile lands. Besides farmers who own their own land, there are also many tenant farmers belonging to noble families. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, granted land has always come with tenant farmers. For example, although Zhang Fu bought a lot of land in Northern Directly Governed Region, he still owned numerous estates in the Jiangnan region. These estates included 700 officially granted tenant farmers, plus additional farmers who joined him, bringing the total to nearly a thousand tenant families. It was thanks to the income from these estates and the shops run by his servants in Jiangnan that the Zhang family could live comfortably without having to rely on other sources of income.
Although Zhang Yue didn’t engage in farming or business, he had a father who was very skilled in management. Excluding the land owned by the official family, his own estates and shops also amounted to a significant sum, so he could live comfortably without exploiting others. However, ordinary officials didn’t have the same advantages as these noble families. Relying solely on their meager salaries, it was hard for them even to afford meat. Those from poor families couldn’t bring their families to their posts, leading to separation between family members, and even having children became a problem.
So, hearing that the governor of Suzhou was so popular, Zhang Yue took the opportunity to ask a few curious questions. At that moment, an enthusiastic middle-aged man began listing the governor’s achievements one by one, before finally saying indignantly, “I heard it was some imperial censor who filed complaints… Tch! They only deal with trivial matters, ignoring the well-being of the people and the peace of the prefecture. What kind of censor is that? A complete fool!”

Hearing the word “idiot,” those around him all agreed, and in no time, the censor from Nanjing who didn’t even have a name known to anyone was thoroughly insulted. Zhang Yue shook his head as he listened from the side. Just then, a voice that stood out from the crowd said, “Anyway, our lord has indeed accepted money from others. Calling him corrupt isn’t slander…” Before he could finish speaking, there was a loud thud—as one of the tea drinkers suddenly stood up, pointed at him, and shouted angrily, “You’ve forgotten your roots! Although Suzhou Prefecture is prosperous, it has faced natural disasters and man-made misfortunes over the years. Every time, our lord would immediately send people to assess the damage and submit petitions to the imperial court for tax reductions and relief. Although the reductions were limited, Lord Luo showed sincerity! It’s because of his efforts to encourage agriculture and support commerce over the years that Suzhou Prefecture has reached its current state! What’s the harm in being corrupt? In my opinion, for doing such great things despite taking a little money, he should be rewarded by the court! The previous lord didn’t take a single penny, but he only focused on writing poems and painting. As a result, thugs ran rampant in Suzhou Prefecture, and there was no hope even during disasters!” Seeing that the others around also started talking loudly, their noise grew even louder. Someone with keen information must have revealed that the people in the Censorate were even more greedy than anyone else, instantly igniting the crowd’s anger. It wasn’t until someone reminded them that curfew was approaching that the crowd dispersed. Zhang Yue paid the tea bill, stood up, and watched the departing people. His frown had eased. He had originally thought that the common people would blindly support honest officials who were incorruptible, but it seemed they had the ability to distinguish right from wrong. Merely being honest wasn’t enough compared to real achievements. By now, it was already late. Peng Shisan followed Zhang Yue out of the teahouse and murmured softly, “The current policy of the court is light taxes but heavy corvée labor, low salaries but strict punishments. The former harms the common people, while the latter harms those officials from poor backgrounds. Moreover, if even the Censorate can’t be honest, how can we expect lower-ranking officials to be completely incorruptible? The Zhang family is the luckiest—constantly under the watchful eye of censors, as if they’re desperate to find some crime of treason! Even our lord, despite being so cautious, has been criticized several times. As for you, young master, you’re also a thorn in the Censorate’s side—let alone just being the governor of Suzhou. But are you really going to deal with this matter?”

“Manage? I’m the deputy magistrate of Ying Tianfu, not one of those chief censors from the Censorate. What authority do I have to manage such things?” Though he said this, Zhang Yue felt quite fond of the popular governor of Suzhou. After thinking for a moment, he said, “We’ll leave first tomorrow. You go and find out what’s really going on. If that governor truly has a clear conscience, then it’s pointless for the Censorate to harass him. For some issues, addressing the root cause is better than just treating the symptoms!”
Peng Shisan had followed Zhang Yue for many years and could usually guess his thoughts quite accurately. He quickly understood what Zhang Yue meant and hurriedly followed him, saying with a smile, “So, young master wants to avenge past humiliations?”
“If Liu Guan really comes to Nanjing, I’d like to challenge him. Back when Chen Ying was in the Censorate, a single memorial could bring down a person—what glory! But it was all because he acted with the emperor’s approval. Once he offended public anger, he was imprisoned or executed. Liu Guan’s favor isn’t even close to that level now. He’s not a loyal or upright official. Not only is he connected to the Prince of Han, but he also keeps causing me trouble. With the Censorate in such disarray, overthrowing him would relieve me and my uncle of many concerns, and it would be beneficial for others too.”
“Anyway, when I came along this time, my master said to follow your lead in everything. If there’s anything you need me to do, just give the order. I’ve long disliked those in the Censorate who only stab people in the back!”
Seeing Peng Shisan clench his fists with a crackling sound, Zhang Yue couldn’t help but laugh. Although Zhang Fu had won praise from Zhu Gaochi for his adherence to rituals during the national mourning, the Censorate never stopped targeting him, often including him in their accusations against nobles. It wasn’t surprising that Peng Shisan was resentful. At that moment, the drums signaling the closing of the city gates could already be heard, and the two could see the inn where they were staying. Just then, a person suddenly rushed out of a dark alley nearby.
Before Zhang Yue could react, Peng Shisan swiftly stepped in front of him. The thin man wearing a conical hat didn’t do anything unusual. He stopped a few steps away and then bowed, saying, “Lord Zhang, may I borrow a moment of your time to speak?” He paused, ignoring Peng Shisan’s wary gaze, and continued, “You once saved my life when I was in Ningbo Prefecture, and later recommended a benefactor for me. I just want to repay you.”

Hearing the words “life-saving grace” and “benefactor,” Zhang Yue couldn’t help but examine this person once more from head to toe, a sudden idea striking him. He ordered Peng Shisan to step back a few paces, then strode forward. Upon getting closer, he gently lifted the conical hat to reveal the face he remembered—so he removed his hand and said, “It’s one thing for a lady to speak of life-saving grace, but where does the gratitude for recommendation come from?”
“Sir, there’s no need to deny it. I’ve followed Lord Yuan for so many years—if I didn’t even know about your connection, I’d be a worthless spy.” Lin Sha pulled the brim of her hat down again before whispering, “I just received news that the Crown Prince is set to depart for Nanjing to pay respects at the Mausoleum of His Ancestors. Along with the vanguard of the imperial guards, many civil and military officials will be accompanying him. Among them is Liu Guan, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, who volunteered to investigate the matter involving the Nanjing Jinyiwei. Lord Yuan once headed the Jinyiwei; he told his trusted subordinates to start with him. This man is extremely despicable. Lord Yuan hasn’t taken action against him, only allowing him to fester like a hidden threat. That’s why I only ask for your order—there are many ways I can kill him. If he dies on the way, everything will be settled!”
Zhang Yue truly didn’t expect Lin Sha to corner him here over such a matter, and he felt uneasy. After staring at her under that large hat for a while, he quickly weighed his options before shaking his head and saying, “Killing is easy, but it only brings more trouble afterward. At its core, assassination is a despicable act. Since you already know certain things, I might as well tell you the truth—although Liu Guan heads the Censorate, it’s still too early for him to wield real power in Nanjing.”
Recalling how she had tried to play tricks with a food box but was thoroughly outmaneuvered by Zhang Yue, Lin Sha fell silent. After a long while, she spoke up, “Very well, I believe you… But if things become urgent, I will definitely kill him!”