Chapter 120: Heartless and Ungrateful

Zhang Yue had heard of the story of cutting flesh to feed eagles, as well as the tale of cutting one’s own flesh to serve one’s parents. Though these stories demonstrated kindness and filial piety, they could not conceal the underlying sense of bloodshed. The former was a Buddhist story, which need not be discussed here, but the latter was criticized by later generations as foolish and excessive filial devotion. Yet in an era when supernatural beliefs were deeply rooted in people’s hearts, cutting one’s own flesh to serve one’s parents was regarded as pure filial piety. Even though Zhang Yue did not believe in such miraculous cures, he still held deep respect for those who would do such a thing.

Without advanced hemostatic equipment, what kind of determination and willpower would it take to make such a cut in one’s own thigh or arm?

Upon returning, he learned from Rong Shan that Zhang Fu had not yet returned. After some thought, he went to Zhang Fu’s residence again but stood outside the porch without entering. As he pondered, he heard a movement at the door curtain. Looking up, he saw Shi Quan, the middle-aged imperial physician, coming out. He quickly stepped forward and asked, “Imperial Physician Shi, how is my great-uncle now?”

The Imperial Medical Academy was full of all kinds of people, but Shi Quan was the kind who devoted himself entirely to medicine and paid no attention to external matters. That was why he had stubbornly tried to stop Zhang Fu and his son the previous day. Seeing Zhang Yue’s polite demeanor, he became slightly more lenient toward him. Now, he shook his head expressionlessly.

“The first few physicians were too cautious with their medication. They didn’t realize that the Duke of Yingguo was usually very healthy. Since his illness came on so suddenly, strong medicine was needed. Hesitation only delayed treatment. Although I have now used the right medicine, the illness progresses rapidly but recovers slowly. If the Duke can survive this winter, things should gradually improve by next spring.”

Though he didn’t hear any good news, at least a clear explanation was given, giving Zhang Yue some confidence. Seeing Shi Quan head straight for a side room after speaking, he quickly followed after him after a moment’s thought.

“Imperial Physician Shi, I heard that cutting one’s own flesh to serve one’s parents can cure all diseases. Is that true?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Shi Quan suddenly turned around. At first, his face showed surprise, then he smiled. “Medical texts do mention using human flesh in medicine, but it’s not certain that it can cure all diseases. The Duke of Yingguo’s illness doesn’t require human flesh. However, it’s rare to see a nephew show such filial piety. But it’s not necessary to do this now.”

Seeing Shi Quan finish speaking and enter the inner room, Zhang Yue standing there could only force a bitter smile. He had merely asked casually, yet the other person had misinterpreted it as him planning to sacrifice a part of his body to serve his family! If it really came to that, Zhang Fu and his son might vie to do it first—there was no way it would be his turn, as he wasn’t interested in that title at all. Thinking of this, he shook his head and returned to his own room.

It was already autumn, and the weather in the north was different from that in summer. The days were still hot, but nights turned cool. So, Qiu Hen had already replaced the reed mats on the bed and asked Hu Bo to fetch a bed covered with fine silk cloth from the housekeeper’s wife. At that moment, she was busy making the bed when she suddenly saw Zhang Yue enter. She put aside her tasks, stepped forward to take off his outer coat, and seeing that he was drenched in sweat, she hurried to fetch water and wring out a towel. Although Zhang Yue wanted to do it himself, he couldn’t stop her.

By the time Zhang Yue’s sweat had dried, Qiu Hen was also sweating profusely. Though she smiled, she complained, “We arrived just yesterday, and today I and Hu Bo actually ran into several strong male servants outside. How is that acceptable? There must be rules in this house. It doesn’t matter if there aren’t enough people, but rules must be established. People shouldn’t come and go freely, or else we’ll be laughed at. Shouldn’t the young master discuss this with Manager Rong?”

Although Zhang Yue didn’t take matters of gender separation that seriously, he knew that lacking boundaries between inside and outside wasn’t good, so he began to ponder. He knew that Zhang Fu and his son were the kind of arrogant people who didn’t care about affairs, so he hadn’t planned to take on responsibilities right away. But now it seemed that if he didn’t step in, those two would ignore the chaos in the house.

“The eldest uncle is sick now, so Manager Rong probably doesn’t have the heart to deal with these matters. You’re right. I’ll go talk to him later. Even if we can’t establish household rules, we should at least come up with some guidelines. Otherwise, without rewards or punishments, those people won’t be diligent.”

Seeing that Zhang Yue agreed with her, Qiu Hen was quite pleased. After chatting for a while and noticing that Hu Bo still hadn’t returned, she grew worried and said, “That’s strange. I asked Hu Bo to get a bed covered with fine silk cloth from the housekeeper’s wife half an hour ago. Why hasn’t she come back yet? The house is in such disarray—maybe she ran into someone?”

Zhang Yue paused for a moment before remembering that it had indeed been a bit cool last night when he went to bed. He smiled slightly. He had long been accustomed to Qiu Hen’s attentiveness. Now, thinking about the lack of order in the house, he grew worried about Hu Bo. He stood up and said, “Since you’re worried, I’ll go check on her. You stay here and keep an eye on the door.”

Seeing Zhang Yue say that and then lift the curtain to leave, Qiu Hen widened her eyes before bursting into laughter. After going back to make the bed, she dug out the piece of work that had been rushed out together with Amber from the bottom of the box. Touching the embroidery on it, a hint of joy appeared on her face, only to be replaced by concern as she began to mutter to herself.
“It took so much effort to finish this, yet one problem after another came up, and in the end, the young master still missed the provincial exams. I thought I’d wait until he passed the exams before showing it to him, but now I don’t know when it will be useful.”
Walking under the scorching sun, Zhang Yue couldn’t help but quicken his pace. Although this was the inner courtyard, he encountered several male servants along the way. It would have been fine if that were all, but these men seemed idle, like flies with no purpose. Gradually, he grew annoyed. When he reached the deserted warehouse, he heard voices of two people inside.
“What’s so special about a bedsheet of gauze? We don’t have it here, but I have plenty where I am. Come with me, and I’ll have my maids find it for you.”
“Thank you for your kindness, Young Master Bin. Since Sister Liu says it’s not here, I’ll just go back and report to the young master that it’s not available.”
“Hmph, you and the Liu family have searched this warehouse for half an hour. If you go back and report that it’s not here, won’t you get blamed? Tsk tsk, such a pretty girl, yet stuck with that incompetent guy—he must be treating you badly… Why are you hiding? There’s no one here. Sister Liu said to look elsewhere—she’s already left. Do you still expect to get away?”
“Young Master Bin, please behave!”
“Behave? Damn it! Let me tell you, even if you run now, if I ask your master for you, will he dare not give you to me?”
“Of course he will!”
Furious, Zhang Yue kicked the door open and rushed in. He saw Amber already cornered against the wall, while Zhang Bin turned around with a stiff expression. His immature hand was just a few inches away from Amber’s face, which made him even angrier. Seeing a stool nearby, he grabbed it immediately, intending to throw it, but then stopped.
Zhang Bin had initially used subtle glances to send away the Liu family woman in charge, never expecting Zhang Yue to burst in at that moment. Seeing Zhang Yue grab the stool as soon as he entered, he was shocked and quickly dodged, shouting feebly, “What… what do you want?”
“What do I want? It seems like I should be asking you that, right?”

Zhang Yue saw that Amber’s face was pale, though her clothes were intact, so she probably hadn’t really suffered any harm. He felt a little relieved, but his anger remained unquenched. He slowly stepped forward and saw Zhang Bin retreating step by step, his eyes flickering nervously, as if ready to call for help at the slightest sign of trouble. Zhang Yue narrowed his eyes and smiled, “You trapped Amber here just so you could have this place to yourself and no one would come, right? Since you sent that Liu family woman away, she should also keep others at bay, don’t you think?”

As he spoke, he took a few more steps forward, his expression growing colder. “I say, Brother Bin, don’t you want to inherit the title of Duke of Britain? If, at a time when the Duke is seriously ill, his own nephew does something improper and Princess Chenliu finds out, she’ll likely report it to the emperor right away in her anger, don’t you think?”

Zhang Bin was now truly panicked. He thought he was fearless, but he had been defeated twice by Princess Chenliu, and this time he had even been severely scolded by his father. He didn’t want to mess with that young princess anymore. After regaining his composure, he looked up at Zhang Yue and said, “Don’t talk nonsense! I don’t believe you can just find Princess Chenliu!”

“My teacher’s daughter is Princess Chenliu’s close friend. Of course I can find her!” Zhang Yue said, nodding at Amber. Seeing her stumble behind him, he shook the stool and sneered, “Amber is someone who’s with me. Don’t even think about her! If I see or hear anything else, don’t blame me for not being gentle!”

With that, he viciously threw the stool at him. With a thud, the stool hit the wall, sending up a cloud of dust.

Zhang Bin never expected Zhang Yue to act on his words so quickly. He was stunned for a moment before covering his head and crouching on the ground. After a long while, sensing no movement, he stood up, but the dust made him cough repeatedly. By the time he looked again, Zhang Yue and Amber had disappeared. Frustrated, he stood there cursing loudly. After cursing for a while, finding it pointless, he simply stomped his foot and left.

By then, Zhang Yue had already pulled Amber through the Moon Gate and into the alley. After walking a distance, he stopped, turned around, and saw that Amber’s face was still pale as she bit her lip silently. He released her hand and instructed her carefully, word by word, “This isn’t Kaifeng, nor is it the Duke of Britain’s residence. What if I don’t make it here? What if we encounter those shameless opportunists from the Liu family again? Next time you go out, remember to take Qiu Hen with you. It’s best to bring Manager Rong as well.”