Chapter 93: Translate, translate, what the hell do you call a surprise!

Inside the study, four octagonal glazed palace lanterns hung at the four corners, their bright light instantly filling the entire room.

Zhang Juzheng was seen leaning against a grand tutor chair, looking at Zhang Yunxiu as he entered with a stern expression.

"Father." Zhang Yunxiu cupped his hands and called out.

Zhang Juzheng nodded slightly and pointed to the purple wood square table on his left, where a pale paper scroll lay flat.

Zhang Yunxiu stepped forward, picked it up, and looked at it; his entire face immediately turned strange.

It turned out that the happy event You Qi had spoken of was actually his own marriage.

It was said that this July, the former Senior Grand Secretary Xu Jie, who was also Zhang Juzheng's mentor, had passed away.

The Xu Family possessed vast wealth, and seeing that they had suddenly lost their backing, the members of the Xu Family were filled with fear and anxiety, so they set their sights on this Senior Grand Secretary.

For one, Zhang Yunxiu was not yet married, so the position of his primary wife was still vacant; for another, he was not only the son of the Senior Grand Secretary, but also a favorite walking right before the Emperor.

After some weighing of options, the eldest master of the Xu Family, Xu Fan, sent a letter, wishing to betroth his youngest daughter to Zhang Yunxiu.

Zhang Juzheng thought that since Xu Jie was his mentor who had taught him, and now that his mentor had just passed away, if he did not agree to this marriage...

People outside would say he was callous and ungrateful, so he simply agreed to it.

The atmosphere froze for several seconds before Zhang Juzheng looked at his son and asked, "Finished reading?"

"Finished." Zhang Yunxiu nodded and added, "However, Father, this child feels it is somewhat inappropriate. Now that Grand Tutor Xu has newly passed away, his granddaughter should be observing mourning; getting married now seems a bit too early."

"It does not matter. We can set the marriage first and wait two years before holding the wedding." Zhang Juzheng did not care at all and said in a tone that brooked no refusal, "The Xu Family has already sent over their daughter's birth date characters; you two are quite a match."

At this, Zhang Yunxiu did not know what else to say.

To marry a woman he had never met and spend his life with her was somewhat dreamlike.

"What? Do you have other thoughts?"

Zhang Juzheng's face darkened, and he barked, "I know you keep a mistress outside. I don't care what you do out there, but this woman from the Xu Family, you must marry her and bring her home."

"Yes." Seeing his father like this, he stopped struggling with the matter.

Zhang Juzheng nodded and waved his hand, instructing, "Go down and rest. Five days from now, you will accompany Jingxiu to Huating to pay respects to my mentor on my behalf and, at the same time, improve our relations with the Xu Family."

Zhang Yunxiu bowed to his father, walked out of the study, and then closed the door behind him.

Outside the door, a bleak autumn wind blew; Zhang Yunxiu shivered, tightened his robe, and strode away.

After leaving the Grand Secretary Mansion, Zhang Yunxiu boarded a carriage and headed straight for the residence of his fourth brother, Zhang Jianxiu.

Upon seeing each other, Zhang Jianxiu immediately ordered a feast to be set.

After the two were seated, Zhang Jianxiu rolled his eyes, scanned his younger brother up and down, and couldn't help but laugh: "With the wind and sun out at sea, look at you, you've gotten much darker."

"This isn't from the sun, it's from exhaustion." Zhang Yunxiu poured a cup of tea, tilted his head back to drink it, and then mocked himself, "Suffering and toiling, all just to earn that bit of silver."

"Don't try to fool me, kid. Zhang Fu told me everything; you made a killing this time." Zhang Jianxiu pressed his left hand on his brother's arm while his right hand made a gesture of counting money, "I put in a lot of effort, so I should at least get twenty percent."

"Sigh, look at what you're saying. We are brothers, who is who?"

"Then I've said it, twenty percent."

"Don't worry, I won't forget your share." Zhang Yunxiu smiled and changed the subject: "Do you know about the young lady of the Xu Family?"

"The one you're about to marry?" Zhang Jianxiu confirmed.

"Yes."

"Although I don't know her, how could a girl raised in a wealthy family like the Xu Family look bad?" Zhang Jianxiu patted his chest and guaranteed, "Just put your heart at ease. Besides, the Xu Family has vast assets; the dowry will surely be substantial."

Dowry?

Hearing these two words, Zhang Yunxiu's eyes lit up instantly.

The Xu Family was located in Huating County, Songjiang Prefecture, which was today's Modu, belonging to the Nan Zhili region.

Their family was in the fertile and wealthy Nan Zhili region, and their land alone amounted to a full two hundred and forty thousand mu.

Calculating at ten taels of silver per mu, the land assets alone were two million four hundred thousand taels.

"Then how much of a dowry can they offer?" Taking two deep breaths, Zhang Yunxiu leaned over and asked.

"How would I know that?" Zhang Jianxiu rolled his eyes at his brother and muttered, "But the Xu Family is in quite a bit of trouble right now. Your future father-in-law is no simple character; he brings disaster to the countryside and is a bloodsucker."

"Back then, when Grand Tutor Xu was pushed out by Gao Huzi, this eldest master of the Xu Family was immediately sentenced to military exile." "It was only later, when our father became Senior Grand Secretary, that the sentence was changed."

"It's a pity that Grand Tutor Xu was upright his whole life, only to have his late reputation ruined by these descendants in the end."

Speaking to the end, Zhang Jianxiu looked indignant.

Zhang Yunxiu also frowned; this eldest master of the Xu Family, Xu Fan, was born to Xu Jie's first wife.

When he was only two, his mother passed away. At that time, because Xu Jie had offended the Senior Grand Secretary Zhang Cong, he was kicked out of the capital and sent to Fujian.

Knowing he had failed his eldest son, Xu Jie spoiled and indulged him, which led to his tyrannical behavior.

"Sigh, I just hope this young girl remains untainted by the mud and doesn't pick up her father's habits." Shaking his head, Zhang Yunxiu frowned and said with some helplessness.

"What of it? At worst, we'll just treat her like a Buddha statue in the house." Zhang Jianxiu picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks and swallowed it down in one gulp.

"It's fine if you don't mention Buddha, but when you do, I feel uneasy."

"What's wrong?"

"It's that noble person in the palace, she likes to throw money into the sea."

"Tell me, how does she throw it?"

Zhang Jianxiu was full of curiosity and pressed him. Zhang Yunxiu swallowed a mouthful of hot tea to moisten his throat and then said: "Li Taihou wants to renovate temples again and even wants the Emperor to become a monk."

"Ah! Not managing the world properly? Going to become a monk?"

"Not exactly, she's finding a substitute to become a monk for the Emperor." Zhang Yunxiu added, looking as if he had swallowed a dead fly, "You tell me, what's so good about those bald donkeys? If the imperial court used the money spent on supporting these monks to pay the border troops, would the Tatar dare to invade?"

"You're angry just because of this?" Zhang Jianxiu asked after listening.

"Yes."

"Sigh, I thought you had learned some of the ways of officialdom, but you're still a greenhorn. The Jiajing Emperor likes Taoist alchemy, and the status of the alchemists even surpasses that of the ministers. You tell me, in the entire court, who dares to interfere?"

"Only that greenhorn Hai Rui dares to touch the Emperor's nerves."

"Empress Dowager Li is only repairing temples now; it doesn't count as anything major. Even Father doesn't concern himself with this, so why do you?"

Zhang Yunxiu was about to retort, but Zhang Jianxiu waved his hand to interrupt, smiling, "Enough, I'm in a good mood today and don't want to argue with you about these trivial matters and hurt our brotherhood."

"That's true." Zhang Yunxiu gave a carefree smile and stopped dwelling on the matter.

As the two were eating happily, a boy with a round, tiger-like head peeked in at the doorway, rolling his dark, glistening eyes.

"Zhongrun." Zhang Yunxiu caught sight of him and beckoned with a wave.

Zhang Zhongrun moved his short little legs and ran in quickly, bowing respectfully when he saw the two, "Father, Fifth Uncle."

"Hey." Zhang Yunxiu smiled, scooped Zhang Zhongrun up onto his lap, and teased him while staring into his eyes, "Little fellow, I haven't seen you for a few months, and you've gotten quite a bit heavier."

Zhang Zhongrun raised his chubby little hands, looked at them, and then rubbed his own cheeks, his face full of dejection.

"Hahaha!" Zhang Yunxiu was highly pleased; he unhooked a jade pendant from his waist, handed it to Zhang Zhongrun, and said, "This is for you, just a small gift for your schooling. When your studies show some progress, I'll give you a big mansion."

Zhang Zhongrun, already five years old, had now begun his elementary education.

Hearing that there was a reward to be had, his eyes immediately lit up.

"Why don't you hurry up and thank your Fifth Uncle?" Zhang Jianxiu barked with a stern face.

Zhang Zhongrun gave a start, then quickly looked up and smiled, "Thank you, Fifth Uncle."

"Why be so polite with me?" Zhang Yunxiu feigned displeasure, frowning, "Zhongrun is your son, but he's also my own dear nephew; what's there to thank me for over a small gift?"

"Even brothers should keep clear accounts." Zhang Jianxiu pursed his lips, then suddenly thought of something, leaned over, and urged, "You're not young anymore; hurry up and produce a nephew for me, it would be just right for him to be a companion for Zhongyun."

"Forget it, let's not talk about this, let's keep eating." Seeing the fire spreading to himself, Zhang Yunxiu hurriedly changed the subject.

Zhang Jianxiu laughed heartily and said no more.

The two ate for over two hours; the sunlight streaming through the window scattered its final glow, and the light inside the room began to dim.

Zhang Yunxiu stood up, stumbling as he prepared to take his leave, and Zhang Jianxiu held him steady, complaining, "With your tolerance of only three cups, you must never try to be a hero when you're out in the future, or you'll lose all of our family's face."

Looking at his Fourth Brother's concerned expression, Zhang Yunxiu felt a warmth in his heart and grinned.

(End of chapter)