In his рrеviоus lifе, thе Third Prinсе wаs dеmоted to a соmmanderу princе fоr mеddling in thе mаttеr of estаblishing the heir. In this life, for some unknоwn rеasоn, he rеmаinеd silеnt when thе Еmреrоr designаted the Impеriаl Grandsоn, thus preserving his рrincelу title and bесоming thе еldеst surviving sоn of the Еmрerоr.
Аt sоme рoint, hе сollabоrаted with his rеsident scholаrs to comрilе а boоk titled Ten Rесоrds of Аgriсulturе аnd Sеriсulture, whiсh рrimarilу foсused on fаrming and sеriсulturе. It doсumеntеd thе evolution оf various agricultural tоols from anсient times tо the рrеsent аnd also elaborated on methods of farming, silkworm rearing, oil extraction, and ramie processing.
On the twenty-fourth day of the eighth month, during the Empress Dowager’s birthday celebration, the Third Prince presented this book to the Emperor.
It was the first book in the dynasty dedicated to agriculture.
The Emperor was overjoyed and rewarded the Third Prince with five hundred gold pieces, granted him access to the Qianqing Palace, and ordered the nationwide promotion of the book.
For a time, the Third Prince enjoyed unparalleled prestige, with countless nobles and officials flocking to congratulate him.
Yet he shut his doors tightly, claiming that his actions were merely an unintentional effort to share the Emperor’s burdens after witnessing the Emperor’s distress over the northern drought and southern floods the previous year, and that such praise was unwarranted.
Rumors of the Third Prince’s filial piety soon spread throughout the court and the populace.
Even someone as reclusive as Zhou Shaojin heard about it.
She puzzledly asked Old Madam Guo, “Isn’t this going too far? Even if it was an unintentional act out of concern for the Emperor’s hardships, simply keeping a low profile would suffice. Why say something like ‘such praise is unwarranted’? How strange!”
Old Madam Guo chuckled and said, “Shaoji, you’re finally starting to resemble the mistress of an official household. In official circles, nothing happens without reason. When something becomes common knowledge even among women and children, it’s often not as simple as it seems. Just wait and see. There’s more to come.”
Zhou Shaojin’s face flushed with warmth.
A few days later, news spread in the capital that the Eighth Prince had contracted smallpox, and the Third Prince had purified himself through fasting and bathing to make offerings to the Smallpox Goddess on behalf of the Eighth Prince.
In her previous life, Zhou Shaojin had known little about this prince.
By the time she had settled into the estate in Daxing, caught her breath, and begun listening to the idle chatter of the maids and servants, the Third Prince had already been demoted to a commandery prince. After that, he had remained quietly in the capital, keeping to himself, and she had heard nothing further about him.
Zhou Shaojin had assumed that the Third Prince had merely been coaxed by his brothers into participating in the matter of establishing the heir. Thus, in her previous life, the Emperor had shown him leniency, and in this life, he had managed to remain a prince peacefully. She never expected things to take such a turn, and now he was pulling such stunts.
“Could I have misjudged him in my previous life?” she murmured one night while nestled under the covers with Cheng Chi, whispering intimately as she leaned into his embrace. “Would he dare to step forward and contend for the throne with the Imperial Grandson? Would the Emperor think his actions too aggressive?”
Cheng Chi gently stroked her glossy, silky hair and chuckled softly. “Otherwise, why would the Emperor only reward him with five hundred gold pieces? And why transfer him to serve in the Qianqing Palace? It’s likely to observe what he’s truly up to, isn’t it?”
Zhou Shaojin was somewhat surprised. “You mean the Emperor is testing him? But isn’t making offerings to the Smallpox Goddess going too far?”
Cheng Chi smiled. “Let’s not concern ourselves with this matter. Isn’t there still the Imperial Grandson? If he remains indifferent to his own interests, others can’t rush him into action. However, why did he pass away so early? It’s a pity. That child was exceptionally sharp-minded and unconventional—truly suited for scholarly pursuits.”
Zhou Shaojin found this amusing. “Then is he suited to be an emperor?”"We don't know yet," Cheng Chi said with a smile. "Everyone likes clever children. The Emperor should be no exception."
Zhou Shaojin sighed.
Knowing the outcome but being unable to change it, especially when it involved human lives, left her feeling somewhat melancholy.
Yet she wouldn't say anything to Cheng Chi about it.
They were ordinary people, and Cheng Chi was already struggling to protect the Cheng family—how much more difficult would it be to protect an Imperial Grandson?
She wasn't so foolish as to misunderstand this.
As Cheng Chi had said, some things could only be handled by oneself.
If the Imperial Grandson wanted to secure his position and avoid that life-or-death calamity, he too would have to rely on himself.
Zhou Shaojin quickly put the matter aside and wholeheartedly urged Cheng Chi to proceed with establishing the Cheng clan school.
Those around them were very supportive upon hearing about it.
Gu Jiuniao donated two hundred books to the clan school. Yuan Bieyun, who had cut his travels short upon hearing that Gu Jiuniao had come to the capital, donated five hundred brushes and three carts of rice paper to the school.
Cheng Chi couldn't help but laugh and said to Yuan Bieyun, "If you're truly sincere, come occasionally to serve as a tutor for me and share your travel experiences with the children."
Though it was called the Cheng clan school, it only included Cheng Shao's two adopted grandsons, A Bao and A Ren; Cheng Xiao's son Rui Ge'er; and the three great-grandsons of the Earl of Pengcheng. Even Zhou Chujin's son Guan Ge was still too young to begin his education.
Establishing the clan school and achieving the reputation of the Jinling Cheng clan school would be a long and arduous journey.
Yuan Bieyun remained as carefree as ever, his robe half-open as he lounged on the arhat bed in the study, leaning against a large pillow with his legs crossed, eating grapes from a crystal dish. "If I lecture here, what about our own clan school?" he said.
Cheng Chi replied, "I didn't know you were planning to move back to Tongxiang!"
"You rascal!" Yuan Bieyun laughed, plucking a grape and tossing it at Cheng Chi. "Even as a father now, you're still as serious as ever when joking. Speaking of which, I haven't met your Yun Ge'er. Since I'm here, why haven't you had him brought to see me? I'm not like Jiuniao, who's stingy and tight-fisted. I have a gift for him."
Cheng Chi ignored him and asked, "Will you leave again after this trip?"
"Of course I will," Yuan Bieyun said, a flicker of bitterness in his eyes. "Otherwise, what will happen to my elder brother? I don't want to cause any trouble that would make us a laughingstock."
Yuan Bieyun was the third son in his family but the cleverest among Yuan Weichang's sons. His eldest brother, though not as scholarly as him, was honest, diligent, and humble in dealing with others, earning him excellent relationships. Like Yuan Bieyun, he had passed the imperial examinations early and was now a supervising secretary in the Ministry of Rites. Yuan Weichang, dissatisfied with his eldest son's simplicity, had repeatedly tried to replace him with Yuan Bieyun as the head of the Yuan family branch. Unwilling to cause trouble for his brother, Yuan Bieyun avoided responsibilities, spending years traveling and even causing a scandal with a mistress.
Truly, every family has its own troubles.
Cheng Chi said, "Alright. If there's anything you need help with, just tell me."
"Of course," Yuan Bieyun said playfully. "I won't stand on ceremony with you."
Cheng Chi led him toward the inner courtyard. "You should also meet my wife... the one who barged into the Three Branches Pavilion during the Second Branch's ancestor's eightieth birthday celebration...""Impossible?!" Yuan Bieyun widened his eyes. "If I recall correctly, that young lady is much younger than us..."
Cheng Chi frowned and said, "What are you talking about? She's much younger than you, not me... Don't forget how many years older you are than me..."
The two argued all the way as they entered the Moon Gate. They met Zhou Shaojin and Yun Ge'er, but that's another story.
※
On Qin Zi'an's side, after hearing Qin Ziping's words, he felt extremely dejected.
Qin Ziping advised him, "Since sister-in-law isn't remaining unmarried just for the sake of propriety, you should cut off your feelings from now on and regard her as our sister-in-law. Don't bring up marriage again."
Qin Zi'an nodded gloomily.
Jiying lifted the curtain and entered, followed by two maids carrying wine and tea.
Qin Ziping said, "Let's have a drink. We won't talk about this anymore."
Qin Zi'an gave an "mm" of agreement and lowered his eyelids.
After he left, Jiying couldn't help but complain, "What kind of situation is this? It's not like we're preventing Nanping from entering the family. Who is he putting on that stern face for from start to finish?"
"Enough, enough," Qin Ziping said with a laugh. "You should say less. Isn't he just unhappy right now?"
Jiying had always felt that Qin Zi'an was arrogant and looked down on others. She had never liked him, so seeing him frustrated now actually pleased her. After saying a few more words, she put the matter aside and brought up the Double Ninth Festival: "For Old Madam's birthday, from what I understand of Shaojin's intentions, she wants to make it lively for her. Why don't we go shopping in the street one of these days to choose a birthday gift for Old Madam?"
Qin Zi'an happily agreed and, taking advantage of his day off, accompanied Jiying to the street. They selected a string of purple sandalwood prayer beads and a Hetian jade pendant engraved with "Everything as You Wish" for Old Madam. On the ninth day of the month, they happily went to Chaoyang Gate.
Since it wasn't a milestone birthday and Old Madam Guo wasn't fond of socializing, only family members were invited on her birthday.
When Jiying went to pay her respects to Old Madam Guo, Old Madam was sitting and chatting with Madam Chang. Hearing that Jiying had come to greet her, Old Madam happily took her hand and spoke with her for a while, introducing her to Madam Chang, and then called Zhenzhu in to lead her to Zhou Shaojin.
Madam Chang smiled and watched Jiying enter the room before saying, "The 'Auntie' that Yun Ge'er keeps talking about must be this lady, right? She's truly beautiful. And she seems quite capable in her actions."
Old Madam Guo hadn't been familiar with Jiying when she served by Cheng Chi's side. It was only after she married the grandson of Chief Steward Qin, became friends with Zhou Shaojin, and taught Yun Ge'er water drifting that they grew closer.
"Exactly," Old Madam Guo said with a smile. "Since she's been around, the household has become much livelier, and Shaojin has someone to talk to."
Madam Chang smiled slightly, thinking that the Cheng family members were broad-minded and never judged people by their background. Cheng Shao was like this, and so was Cheng Shao's sister-in-law.
No wonder Cheng Shao respected this sister-in-law so much.
He had advised her to discuss any matters with Old Madam Guo.
So Madam Chang spoke to Old Madam Guo about A Bao and A Ren: "...Originally, there was no one at home to take care of them. Now that I've begun managing the household affairs and Madam Xie is pregnant, it's not appropriate to keep the two children living at Second Master's house all the time. My husband and I have discussed bringing the two children back home."After all, he is Second Master’s adopted grandson, and now Madam Qiu also has to take care of Madam Xie. Old Madam Guo smiled and said, “That’s fine too! The kindness of birth is not as great as the kindness of upbringing. With the two children following you, you’ll have something to keep you occupied.”
“That’s what I thought as well,” Madam Chang said with a smile.
At first, Cheng Shao disagreed, saying they were too old and might not be able to take good care of the children, but how would they know without trying?
Old Madam Guo then sent someone to invite Madam Qiu.
Just then, a young maid hurried in and reported, “A nanny from the Fourth Prince’s consort has arrived, saying she was sent by the Fourth Prince’s consort to offer birthday wishes on her behalf.”
※
Dear readers, here is today’s update.
Wishing everyone a joyful Mid-Autumn Festival!
o(n_n)o~
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