Chapter 164: Responsibility

Inside the room, it was dim and heavy.

Sunlight filtering through the window formed beams in the air, spilling onto the marble floor in alternating white and yellow, briefly lending the room a rare warmth.

On the fine-grained wood silk-curtained bed near the inner wall, Zhang Yunxiu opened his eyes, his face full of exhaustion.

He looked around.

Zheng Xi'er was wearing a long red dress, lying prone on the edge of the bed with half her cheek exposed, sleeping soundly.

A wisp of sunlight hit her fair cheek, making her look even more charming.

How wonderful.

A warmth stirred in Zhang Yunxiu's heart, and he couldn't help but reach out to gently stroke Zheng Xi'er's pretty face. After he returned yesterday, he had felt physically and mentally drained; the moment he got home, everything went black and he collapsed on the floor.

In his daze, a soft, fragrant body had supported him.

By the time he woke up again, he was already on this large bed.

He figured Zheng Xi'er must have been patiently keeping him company the whole time.

Perhaps sensing the warmth of his large hand, Zheng Xi'er let out a soft murmur and slowly opened her pair of fluttering almond eyes.

Their eyes met, and Zheng Xi'er was the first to cry out in alarm: "Husband, you've finally woken up! You nearly scared Xi'er to death yesterday!"

As she spoke, Zheng Xi'er wept with joy, thick mist moistening her eyelashes.

Zhang Yunxiu felt a pang of heartache; he pulled Zheng Xi'er into his embrace and patted her shoulder to comfort her: "Husband is fine, husband is fine. From now on, I'll go out less and stay home to keep you company."

Zheng Xi'er, however, looked entirely unconvinced.

She knew her husband was born unable to sit still, and she didn't harbor the delusion that she could keep him by her side forever. As long as Zhang Yunxiu kept her in his heart, that was enough.

Thinking this, she nudged her head into Zhang Yunxiu's chest.

Feeling the heat of his beloved, Zhang Yunxiu's breathing grew heavy, his calm breaths turning into gasps.

Zheng Xi'er's cheeks flushed red, thinking he wanted to be naughty; she moved her delicate hand to undo her own buttons, but Zhang Yunxiu grabbed it, shaking his head: "Just like this, let me hold you for a bit. I still have some things to take care of later."

Oh.

Zheng Xi'er nodded obediently, kicked off her embroidered shoes, and climbed onto the bed with her whole body.

The two of them just held each other like that, not speaking, dappled light and shadow playing upon them.

It was warm and very comfortable.

Yesterday must have been the most sound sleep Zhang Yunxiu had ever had.

From dusk, he had slept straight through to the dusk of the next day. That sense of chaos where one thinks of nothing and does nothing was something Zhang Yunxiu had never experienced since coming to the capital.

He was too tired.

But he knew he could not rest.

Zhang Juzheng had fallen, and he, a short man, had now become the pillar of the house. To protect his family, he had to bear the pressure and continue moving forward—Xi'er, Ruoxi, his brothers—there were too many people he had to protect.

He finally understood the pressure Zhang Juzheng had faced before.

"Xi'er." After a long silence, Zhang Yunxiu suddenly lowered his head and called out.

"Hmm." Zheng Xi'er raised her beautiful head to look at her husband.

"You are so good, so beautiful."

"Why is Husband saying these things?"

Zheng Xi'er's small face turned slightly pink; they were an old married couple, why say such things?

However, Zheng Xi'er noticed that since her husband returned this time, there were far fewer smiles on his face, replaced by a sense of composure.

She saw it in her eyes and felt anxious in her heart. Her husband was only a young man in his early twenties.

It should have been a time for romance, fine wine, and the company of a beautiful woman.

Yet he rarely indulged in such things; the two of them only shared intimacy five or six times a month at most.

For someone his age, that could be considered very little.

Zhang Yunxiu forced a smile, not answering her directly, but instead reaching out to tidy Zheng Xi'er's messy hair, saying softly: "Alright, time to get up. If you sleep any longer, you'll really turn into a piglet."

After a hurried wash and dinner, Zhang Yunxiu finally gathered some spirit.

He first went to Zhang Juzheng's bedroom to check on his father, then paced to the side chamber next to the bedroom.

Inside, Zhang Jianxiu was already sitting upright at a dark round table.

Zhang Yunxiu stepped forward, and Zhang Jianxiu pulled out a stool for him to sit. The two sat around the table, and Zhang Yunxiu went straight to the point: "I went to the palace yesterday. The Emperor is doing fine; there are no major problems."

Zhang Jianxiu nodded, then gritted his teeth: "Zhang Siwei is making significant moves. He is promoting Wang Xijue and Qiu Shun—whom Father had kicked off to Nanjing—back to the capital."

At first, when his younger brother told him that Zhang Siwei had the heart of a wolf, he hadn't believed it.

Now, just as their father had fallen ill and Zhang Siwei had been in charge of the Grand Secretariat for less than a month, he was already conducting such frequent official reassignments.

His wolfish heart was already plain to see.

Zhang Yunxiu, however, was neither panicked nor impatient; he waved a hand to signal his brother to be at ease: "Before I returned to the capital, I was also drumming with worry. But after returning, I'm not worried in the slightest."

"Oh? Tell me about it?" Zhang Jianxiu was startled by his brother's composure and moved his stool closer to him.

"The Emperor needs to make money, and I can help him make money. Furthermore, he cannot directly clash with the hundred officials; he needs to push someone out to clash with them on his behalf."

"You are that person?"

Zhang Yunxiu nodded quite confidently.

He had Wei Qing and Zheng Guifei helping him in the Inner Palace, and on the outside, he could inherit Zhang Juzheng's political legacy. Most importantly, the Emperor needed a friend—a friend who could help him.

The two were of similar age and could play together.

His father was skilled at planning for the country but clumsy at planning for himself.

He, on the other hand, planned for himself first, then for the country.

The logic was simple: if he couldn't even protect himself, how could he realize his political ideals?

Hearing his brother say this, the worry in Zhang Jianxiu's heart dissipated by seventy or eighty percent, and he sighed: "Now, even I have to rely on you. When you become successful in the future, you mustn't ignore your poor brother."

"Look at how you say that, am I that kind of person?" Zhang Yunxiu curled his lip and added, "The most important thing now is when Father can return to normal; only when he returns to normal can the Zhang Family be truly free from worry."

"Yes, Father's illness came too suddenly." Zhang Jianxiu nodded in agreement.

However, it was not strange; their father was already over sixty, and having such an illness was part of the Dao of Heaven. Fortunately, their fifth younger brother had the foresight to hire a doctor for him early on and had him cultivate his character and nourish his nature.

Otherwise, it would not have been as simple as just a stroke.

Thinking of this, Zhang Jianxiu felt a wave of lingering fear, and cold sweat could not stop breaking out on his back.

The two brothers then discussed a few more matters, at which point their eldest brother, Zhang Jingxiu, walked in, and the two hurriedly stood up to call out, "Eldest Brother."

Zhang Jingxiu nodded, signaled for the two to sit down, and looking at Zhang Jianxiu, said, "Jianxiu, you have been keeping watch here for a day as well, go down and rest; I will keep watch over Father tonight."

"How could that be? It was supposed to be my turn to keep watch over Father today." Before Zhang Jianxiu could answer, Zhang Yunxiu repeatedly refused.

"You have traveled a long distance, you should rest more. I am the eldest son, naturally I must shoulder more of the eldest son's responsibilities." Zhang Jingxiu straightened his face, putting on the dignity of an eldest brother, "Could it be that my words as your eldest brother no longer carry weight?"

Zhang Jianxiu and Zhang Yunxiu exchanged a glance, cupped their hands, and withdrew.

(End of this chapter)