Chapter 856: The Rise and Fall of the Marquis Family – Uncovering the Truth

Due to the high favor enjoyed by Concubine Guo during the Hongxi era, the Marquis of Wuding’s residence was built under imperial orders by the Ministry of Works, making it naturally magnificent. The main gate consisted of three bays and five rafters, adorned with gilded animal-faced bronze rings; the central hall had seven bays and nine rafters, covered with black-tiled roofs featuring intricate tile beasts, while the beams, rafters, and eaves were painted in colors. The doors, windows, beams, and columns were covered in gilding, all reflecting opulence and luxury.

After Zhang Yue was led into the central hall by Marquis Guo Xuan of Wuding, he immediately noticed the large plaque with black background and gold characters at the center, reading “Hall of Loyalty.” Below it was written, “In the first month of the first year of Hongxi, bestowed upon Marquis Guo Xuan of Wuding,” with the imperial seal standing out prominently. Since it was written by Emperor Hongxi, Zhu Gaochi, not only did Zhang Yue immediately bow in respect, but Guo Xuan and the others also bowed. After these formalities, Marquis Guo Xuan, filled with trepidation, sent the servants away and stared at Zhang Yue.

“I merely came to convey the Empress Dowager’s summons for the Marquis of Wuding to enter the palace.”
These casual words sent Guo Xuan into further panic, sweat appearing on his forehead. Since the main hall housed imperial treasures, he rarely stayed or held gatherings there, and the heating system was seldom used. Moreover, since last evening, his household had been in chaos, leaving no time to attend to this place. As a result, it was almost as cold as outside, yet his feet were frozen, while his back felt hot and cold alternately. He wanted to say something, but words got stuck in his throat. After a while, he mustered up the courage and knelt down with a thud.

“Dear nephew… no, Lord Zhang, please intercede for my family. It’s all because of my wayward son who failed to follow family traditions. After finding out, I already beat him half to death and confined him to a farm outside the city. If you don’t believe me, I can…”
Faced with Guo Xuan’s sudden action, Zhang Yue was initially stunned. Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Yue quickly supported him with both hands. Although he was a civil official and Guo Xuan a military officer, Guo Xuan relied solely on his family’s legacy and had never fought a single battle. In his panic, he couldn’t resist Zhang Yue’s strong grip and was pulled up. However, Zhang Yue’s wrist was also tightly held by Guo Xuan.

Although at this moment Zhang Yue could have ordered the Jinyiwei outside to intervene and pull them apart, the guilt of the Guo family still hadn’t been determined. Empress Dowager Zhang merely ordered the Jinyiwei to surround the mansion—neither sending anyone in for a search nor questioning anyone. They only went to the farm and captured Guo Cong, which showed that she intended to keep things under control, at least temporarily. So, he didn’t pull away from Guo Xuan’s hand but instead helped him sit down on a sandalwood chair to the side.

“Marquis, aside from your son being your son, you are still you. The Empress Dowager has merely summoned you to the palace; she hasn’t issued any other orders. You’re also a son of a military family. With the situation still unclear, why rush to ask for help recklessly?”

As soon as his buttocks touched the chair, Guo Xuan regained his senses. He had been stunned by the news that the Empress Dowager had sent Zhang Yue to deliver the message, thinking disaster was imminent. But upon hearing Zhang Yue’s words again and realizing it was Zhang Yue who came rather than the head of the Eastern Depot or Jinyiwei, he quickly came to his senses, realizing there was still a chance. However, he couldn’t undo his earlier actions, so he couldn’t help but steal a glance at Zhang Yue, thinking he was lucky he had sent the servants away; otherwise, if anyone else had seen it, things would have been even more complicated.

With this realization, a hint of color returned to his previously pale face. Striving to forget his act of kneeling, he still held Zhang Yue’s hands gratefully, tears in his eyes: “I’ve lived a long life yet still can’t see through things. I owe it to you, my dear nephew, for reminding me. You’re right—the Empress Dowager is kind and will surely see through everything…”

Guo Xuan kept talking on and on, but Zhang Yue was growing impatient. He didn’t mind listening to nonsense, but what was with this guy persistently holding his hands? Finally, when his monologue came to an end, he quietly pulled his hands back and said with his hands behind his back, “Since the Marquis understands the Empress Dowager’s good intentions, prepare your horse and go to the palace as soon as possible.”

“Yes, yes…” Guo Xuan nodded repeatedly. Suddenly remembering something else, he asked tentatively, “Why, won’t Lord Zhang come with me to the palace? Those Jinyiwei in front of and behind my house…”

Zhang Yue was fed up by Guo Xuan’s repeated references to him as either “nephew” or “lord,” which gave him a headache. So he interrupted Guo Xuan, saying, “I’ve already told you—the Empress Dowager just asked me to deliver a message on the way and to bring a few Jinyiwei with me. As for the guards around this mansion… it’s the same for all the dukes, marquises, and high-ranking officials in the capital, it’s just a matter of the number of guards. Please urge your family members to behave properly. The truth will eventually come to light, so don’t do anything irreversible at this moment.”

As he listened, Guo Xuan, who had initially become fearful again because Zhang Yue hadn’t followed him into the palace, gradually began to believe him. A casual summons and a special imperial order were clearly different things. It seemed there might indeed be a glimmer of hope. So he nodded his head repeatedly. Only after seeing Zhang Yue out of the main hall did he realize that, in his panic, he had dismissed all the servants and hadn’t even offered tea. Thinking back to his earlier embarrassment, he, who always valued etiquette, felt extremely ashamed.

“Lord Zhang, please forgive any rudeness from me just now.”

Hearing these words, Zhang Yue, who had already stepped down the steps, stopped and turned around. He exchanged a few polite words, but his gaze couldn’t help but fall on the three large gold-painted characters in the main hall. Zhu Gaochi had only been on the throne for a few months. Among the ministers, only a few top-ranking nobles in charge of various government departments and key officials like Yang Shiqi and Jian Yi had received imperial inscriptions. Yet Guo Xuan had an imperial plaque in his main hall. Unless he was truly plotting rebellion, Empress Dowager Zhang would likely show leniency.

Zhu Gaochi didn’t hold Zhang Yue in high regard; he relied on the Zhang family more out of necessity than true trust. If Zhu Gaochi had lived a few more years, the Guo family might have thrived thanks to Concubine Guo, just like the Jia family in *Dream of the Red Chamber*. If they could produce capable descendants, they might even become another powerful family like the Zhangs.

This realization reached its peak when he left Guo’s house and saw the carriage still parked outside. Two marquises in one family, a concubine of the founding emperor, two princesses, and a son-in-law… After more than twenty years of decline, they had experienced a brief revival, but it had split the family apart. With this incident, the Guo family now had no chance left. Even if they didn’t collapse completely, they would be severely weakened.

Zhang Yue wasn’t one to dwell on sadness, so once he crossed the bridge and left Fengcheng Hutong, he cast aside the gloom he had picked up from the Guo family. He stopped his horse, glanced at the fairly clear sky, and then at the snow beginning to melt around him. Unable to resist, he stretched himself out on the horse.

As he left the palace in a hurry and his two attendants were also from the palace, he was now left alone at the Marquis of Wuding’s residence to accompany Guo Xuan back into the palace. Even so, when he stood alone on the street at the entrance of the alley with his horse, it not only attracted many curious gazes but also made many people take detours.

The reason was simple: warriors rode horses while scholars traveled in carriages. Although Zhang Yue wasn’t wearing official robes, he was dressed in a Confucian-style cap and robe over a cloak. In such a tense situation where everyone was on high alert, standing alone on Xuanwu Gate Street, who knew what he was up to? This strange situation continued until a carriage suddenly stopped in front of him, blocking many views.

The lattice curtains of the carriage were pulled open halfway, revealing an angry face: “Hey, what are you standing here doing by yourself? Do you know your sister and your family are almost dying of worry?”

“Xiao Wu?” Zhang Yue had just been wondering what Zhu Ning meant by mentioning Xiao Wu, and now that he saw her in person, he smiled, shook the reins to turn his horse sideways, and said, “I just came out of the palace to handle some matters, so I’m standing here to catch my breath. From what you say, you’ve been to my house?”

“It’s freezing cold here, and this is right in the wind. Standing here in the wind and calling it catching breath?” Xiao Wu stared at Zhang Yue in surprise, almost wanting to get off the carriage to check if her brother-in-law had a fever. “Sigh, don’t you see how many people are watching you… Are you going back to the yamen? If not, find a place to stop. I still have a lot to ask you. You’re even more troublesome than my old Wan. Mom, my sister, and everyone in your family are all thinking of you.”

“Coincidentally, I also have something to say to you.”

Although continuing northward past Xisi Pailou and several alleys would lead to his own street, Wuanhou Street, Zhang Yue knew that Empress Dowager Zhang had sent him out of the palace not to go home and report safely to his family. So he turned his horse southward and said to Xiao Wu in the carriage, “How about going to that restaurant of yours by Yuhé Middle Bridge?”

Hearing Zhang Yue directly mention “your restaurant,” the usually carefree Xiao Wu blushed slightly. After lowering the carriage curtains, she reluctantly pulled them open a crack and asked guiltily, “How did you know it’s my restaurant?”
“Your old Wan already told me. How could I not know?”

Faced with this unexpected yet logical reply, Xiao Wu was instantly speechless. He lowered the carriage curtain, gritted his teeth angrily, picked up the cushion beside him, and rubbed it hard twice as if to vent his frustration. “Damn you! You tell everyone everything—can’t you keep any secrets for me? Even running two small restaurants, you have to make it known to everyone. You’re such a chatterbox! If my sister finds out, she’ll say I’m never quiet!”

Despite his complaints, when they arrived at Cheng Ji Restaurant by the Middle Bridge of Yu River, the staff took care of the carriage and horses, allowing Zhang Yue and Xiao Wu to enter the back courtyard. Since this place was used to deliver boxed meals to high-ranking officials from the five ministries and six departments, and for safety reasons, there was no space for people to eat there, the back courtyard was extremely quiet. As Xiao Wu was the owner’s benefactor and the real master of the place, no one disturbed them. Once they sat down in the back room, Xiao Wu could no longer hold back.

“What exactly happened? I heard the sound of racing horses all night last night, and this morning I found two guards standing outside my house. Uncle Yue and Uncle Nan were both shocked.”

“Your sister already knows about this. Ask her later. For now, I have other matters to ask you.” Seeing Xiao Wu glaring at him unfriendliness, Zhang Yue added, “It’s the princess who asked me to deliver a message to you. When was the last time you saw her?”

“Sister Ning?” Xiao Wu finally stopped looking angry and asked in confusion, “Last time, Sister Ning told me there were too many matters in the palace, and she was too busy to go out and play with me or my sister. Not to mention me, even her two babies can’t see her. Even if she’s busy, she can’t just abandon her children!”

“Do you often go to the princess’s residence?”

Getting an affirmative answer, Zhang Yue became even more convinced that Zhu Ning had been implying something. He repeated the message Zhu Ning had asked him to convey to Xiao Wu. Seeing Xiao Wu sit there, resting his chin in his hand, deeply pondering with his brows furrowed, yet seemingly without any insights, he sighed inwardly and stood up again. “If you can’t figure it out, forget it. Anyway, this is what the princess asked me to tell you, and I’ve delivered it. Later, please help deliver a message back to your family, saying I’ll still be staying at the yamen these days and may not be able to go back.”

“Got it, got it…” Xiao Wu replied without even lifting his head twice. But the moment the door curtain outside fell, she suddenly sprang up with unusual agility, rushed through the curtain, and dashed out, “Brother-in-law!”

As Zhang Yue stepped down the stairs and into the courtyard, he heard such a sound. Turning around, he saw Xiao Wu rushing over quickly, holding her skirt. He hurriedly warned her, “Be careful where you step!” No sooner had he spoken than he saw Xiao Wu apparently step on some ice in the courtyard, causing her embroidered shoes to slip. Before he could react, Xiao Wu miraculously stretched out her hand to steady herself, sliding unsteadily for a while before stopping. Before she could stand firmly, she said in a rush, “I remember now. Sister Ning once taught me how to identify acupoints and administer acupuncture, and she used it on King Zhou as well. Last time, she told me that the Empress Dowager works tirelessly day and night, and even the strongest body can’t hold up. So she asked me to teach her a few more techniques besides the medicinal dishes, saying that as soon as she left the palace, she would send someone to deliver a message to our mother…”
“The princess wants to learn these techniques for the Empress Dowager?”
After asking again and seeing Xiao Wu nod affirmatively, Zhang Yue had a hunch. Perhaps it wasn’t the Crown Prince who suddenly fell ill last night, but Empress Dowager Zhang. Spreading such news was probably to conceal an even more serious truth. If that were the case, Zhu Ning, who was inside the palace, was bearing an extraordinary burden. If anything happened to Empress Dowager Zhang, even if she had been favored before, she wouldn’t be able to survive it in the end.
“Brother-in-law, brother-in-law?” Seeing Zhang Yue’s changing expression, Xiao Wu couldn’t help calling out twice. Seeing that he remained silent, she irritably waved her hand in front of his face. Once he came back to his senses, she asked, “What’s wrong? Is this news very important?”
“It is very important. After you see your sister, tell her these things as well. And pass on a message for me—ask her to keep an eye on the situation in Shanxi. If she doesn’t have enough people there, tell her to go see my father.”
Although she didn’t understand what Zhang Yue meant, Xiao Wu tilted her head and thought for a moment before nodding firmly. Anyway, her mind wasn’t suited for such things—let her sister worry about it!