CH 34

Does it still hurt, let me rub it.

Zhao Su thought he was about to die, but it definitely wasn’t due to the lashes but because he was being squished to death by someone. His chapped lips moved a bit, and a hoarse voice was heard.

“Get….” up quickly.

Zhu Yijun was wholly unaware, he cheerfully rubbed his body against Zhao Su, not moving his hands and feet, he looked like an octopus.

“You… are crushing me to death.”

“Susu, Susu, let me tell, you were able to be saved this time, and it was all down to me, father and I went to the palace to see royal grandpa…”

“…..” Zhao Su was already having trouble breathing in, his eyeballs were starting to flip upwards. Luckily at this time Yuan Shu opened the door holding some medicine, seeing this scene, he quickly pulled the child down. Then he carefully helped Zhao Su up, sweeping his back.

“You’re awake?”

“Water…”

After half a cup of water went down, his throat immediately felt better and his thirst relieved, Zhao Su closed his eyes and breathed out slowly.

“Are you okay?” Yuan Shu carefully wiped off the cold sweat from his forehead, and then undid his robes to take a look.

“Your wound has opened, let me re-bandage it for you?”

Zhao Su shook his head, gasped for air, and then asked: “How did I get out, how is everything?”

“His Highness, the Prince of Yu went to the palace to plead on your behalf, and his Majesty agreed to pause the investigation. He said that on the day of the Court Examination, he will test you personally to see if you cheated or not. You’ve been asleep for two days. This morning, Gao da-ren and Chen da-ren both sent someone over to ask about you, his Highness, the Prince of Yu also wants you to recover well.”

“What about my hand…”

He looked at his own right hand which had been bandaged up layer after layer. The bandages were wrapped so tightly that he couldn’t even move. It was still painful but not as painful as before.

Yuan Shu knew what he was asking, he said: “Your little finger and ring finger are both broken, the physician said that you need to rest well, you’ll still be able to write but your handwriting will be a bit ugly.”

Zhao Su smiled bitterly: “As long as I can still write.” He was afraid that by the time the court exam came along and he couldn’t write then he’d have to waste another three years.

“Susu, Susu, father didn’t say much, it was all me—!” Zhu Yijun who had been ignored next to the bed was unwilling to be left out, he stretched out his syllables as he spoke, his bright eyes widened, wanting to go up to Zhao Su again.

Zhao Su wanted to laugh but he really didn’t have the energy.

Yuan Shu’s mouth twitched, because of the child’s identity and status, he could neither push away nor scold the child, he could only block him softly. After he finished feeding Zhao Su his medicine, he coaxed the child to go outside, before coming back into the room, he smiled whilst complaining: “His Highness, the Prince of Yu is kind-hearted and taciturn, so how come the little princely heir is so clever?” He originally also wanted to say noisy and troublesome, but then remembered Zhu Yijun’s identity, so he held his words back. Zhao Su nodded his head, he had just woken up, so he wasn’t really wanting to speak.

Yuan Shu said at the edge of the bed, he stopped talking and just rested for a while.

Zhao Su saw that he looked upset, he could only say: “I’ve made you all worry these past two days.”

Yuan Shu paused, and then he angrily said: “You would could say such a thing!”

Zhao Su’s mouth curled up: “Isn’t this just giving you another reason to scold me.”

Yuan Shu suddenly turned silent, after quite a while, he quietly said: “Just before you woke up，Secretary Xu sent someone to fetch me. He said that I received an outstanding evaluation for my last three years in office, he asked if I was willing to become a Secretary1 in the Ministry of Revenue.

Zhao Su’s eyebrows twitched and then he laughed:“The Ministry of Revenue is the most prominent of the Six Ministries. Although becoming a Secretary is an idle position, there are great opportunities for promotion. There are often people who work hard and are able to jump up several ranks. Congratulations, shixiong.”

The corner of Yuan Shu’s mouth seemed to turn up slightly: “After you were imprisoned, I once asked Secretary Xu to save you, but he was ill at the time and didn’t even let me in. This time, seeing that you were able to be saved by the Prince of Yu, he’s trying to do me a favour now.”

“If that’s true, little shixiong should be happy, but why are you so sulky?”

Zhao Su smiled slightly: “He’s willing to do this favour for you because you have value. What Secretary Xu did was completely understandable and can’t be criticized so harshly.”

“Yes, you see things clearer than I do.” Yuan Shu looked at him with much focus, and then laughed: “But I have already said to Secretary Xu, that he should arrange to send me out to some remote and scarce location even if the conditions are harsh there it’s still ok.”

Zhao Su stared blankly: “Are you insane?”

He thought that Yuan Shu told him this matter was settled, but he didn’t expect that the other would actually actively seek further distance, and would rather give up the favourable environment and the opportunity for faster promotion to run towards more hardship.

“At first, I was hesitant, because staying in the Capital meant at least I could take care of you, but then after thinking it through, now I am a low-ranking civil official, and if something were to happen, not only can I not help you, but I may even harm you.”

Yuan Shu’s face was pale, “I originally thought that these three years in office outside of the Capital was enough training, but now that I think about it, I was too naive. Compared with these old foxes in Beijing, there’s still a difference between Heaven and Earth.”

“So I want to get stronger, our teacher is now out in the Borderlands, but I have never forgotten what he taught us – improve upon oneself first, then manage one’s family, then govern one’s country; that is the only way to bring justice and virtue to the world2 his dream should be realised through us.”

“Shao Yong, you have always had a calm demeanor, and you handle things with maturity. In the future, with what you can achieve, you will certainly go further than me. Now I have no way of helping you, but this way, I won’t be a burden on you either.” He slowly said these words, and seeing from his facial expression, he had said it after careful consideration, and not on impulse. Zhao Su looked at the person in front of him, at that moment he didn’t know what to say.

Yuan Shu was younger than him by three months, meaning that he was not even eighteen yet.

What was it like to be eighteen years old in modern times, normally, it was when you had just finished high school and would be called a teenager, starting university, being dropped off by your parents at university. Basic needs taken care of in every possible way, soaking in the sweet campus lifestyle, experiencing for oneself, one of the great splendours of one’s lifetime. But this was five hundred years in the future.

Putting aside Zhao Su whose soul was much older than the body he occupied. Yuan Shu, Chen Zhu, and even Xu Shixing and the others all showed amazing precocity. In them, Zhao Su saw many scholars like them who lived in this era who had a feeling of responsibility to their country, which was completely different from what he had originally thought.

Who said that there was no hope in the Great Ming?

As long as these people existed, this country would never not have hope.

Zhao Su sighed deeply, and asked: “Have given much thought to finding a remote post that has slightly better conditions. You might end up following the bad example of others, unable to muddle through, working arduously, but aftering having worked nine or ten years perhaps no one will even remember you. But in the Capital, it is like being under the nose of the Emperor and Grand Secretaries, at least you can make your mark here.”

Yuan Shu nodded: “I know, but where there are gains there will also be losses. It’s not possible for one person alone to fight for all that is good in this world. Back then, Liu Jin plotted against Wang Yangming and the latter was banished from the Imperial Court and was demoted to Longchang3, in Guizhou Province. That kind of environment must be far worse off than what I am to endure, but within six years, he made a comeback, and he was promoted to the fourth rank of the imperial court as an Imperial Censor that no one was able to contend with. Although I am not as talented as he is, he is an outstanding example and can be counted as something to strive for.”

“Well said Tongjia-xiong4! Men should aspire to travel far and make one’s mark, but Tongjia-xiong has chosen a huge mountain to climb. Your aspirations are far greater than the common man!”

Before Zhao Su could speak, he heard a voice abruptly cut in and then Chen Zhu walked in through the door.

There was one who had already made up his mind, and here came another bookworm to fan the flames, Zhao Su rubbed his forehead.

“Since little shixiong has decided, then I won’t try to stop you, but you will be alone out there, so you must be careful in everything.”

Yuan Shu saw that his face was pale and tired, and he felt distressed: “I haven’t received the official documents yet, I don’t know where I will be assigned. When did you learn to be so sensitive? Let’s drop it for now, why don’t you sleep for a while!”

Zhao Su had just woken up and they had already talked so much. He was indeed a little tired, so closed his eyes when he heard Yuan Shu say this.

Yuan Shu seemed to think of something suddenly: “By the way, there is something else… Zhao Rong is dead.”

Zhao Su hummed in acknowledgement softly, without uttering a word. Originally he still had wanted to ask someone to intercede to see if Zhao Rong could be rescued, but now it seemed that that was no longer necessary. Zhao Rong’s matter was certainly down to him, Zhao Su also had to take responsibility for his own lax discipline, which led to this disaster today.

He was still thinking about this with his eyes closed, and he soon fell asleep.

Seeing him sound asleep, Yuan Shu and Chen Zhu looked at each other and stepped back outside to talk. Chen Zhu sighed out loud: “Shao Yong is still young, but he has a lot to worry about. Spending so much effort on worrying can be harmful to his health, I’m worried that…”

Yuan Shu looked at him, and suddenly bowed solemnly: “May I be so bold to ask you a favour. My shidi is from a poor family, he has suffered enough since childhood, but he has not only not let anyone worry about him but has also spent the last few years worrying about others. Although he is accomplished yet still so young, it is inevitable that he has neglected himself. My teacher and I are not by his side, and there is no way for us to remind him from time to time, so I can only trust you to help us.”

Chen Zhu replied solemnly: “Tongjia-xiong speaks too seriously. I have a close friendship with Shao Yong. This matter, I will of course take care of without remit. Please rest assured, I will take good care of him.”

After he finished speaking, he suddenly felt that perhaps the way he spoke was a little ambiguous and he couldn’t help but blush.

Yuan Shu didn’t notice it, he just nodded gratefully. He was thinking of how weak Zhao Su looked and thought about going to the pharmacy to buy some soups and tonics to aid his recovery.

Meanwhile, Zhao Su had slept for two hours before waking up again, naturally he was unaware of the conversation between Chen Zhu and Yuan Shu.

When he woke up, he found that the room was empty and there were congee and some side dishes on the table next to him, which were still piping hot. He slowly got up and put on his robes, and then slowly moved to the table, trying as much as possible not to disturb his wounds but it was still painful and he could not help gritting his teeth in pain.

After finishing the meal, and accepting himself as a handicapped person, he put aside the chopsticks and bowl and slowly walked to the rattan chair in the courtyard to sit down.

The sun was just right, the warm rays were shining down on him, it was so different from the dark days in the Imperial Guard Prison, as if it were two different worlds, Zhao Su really did not want to recall the scenes of his torment.

He tilted his head back, leaning on the rattan chair, and looked up at the blue sky in a daze.

He heard the door near him being pushed open, and a little head popped out.

Zhao Su turned his head to take a look. He couldn’t hold back his smile, his mood immediately improved. “Princely Heir?”

“Susu!” The little kid looked left and right to check that those other irksome people weren’t around. He couldn’t help but be overjoyed and rushed towards Zhao Su.

Zhao Su was afraid of his strength, and quickly grabbed him. “Slow down, slow down, I’m still hurt!”

Zhu Yijun scratched his head: “I forgot…” He rubbed himself against Zhao Su gently, “Does it still hurt, let me rub it!”

He stretched out his little claws to untie his robes, but was quickly stopped by Zhao Su.

“Naughty little brat, did you study obediently these few days while I was away?”

“Yes, yes, I also used what you taught to teach royal grandpa so he let you go!” Zhu Yijun said triumphantly, with the words written across his face that clearly exclaimed “you should pay me a compliment”.

Zhao Su had a head of black lines, he could only stroke the other’s head gently: “Little princely heir is really amazing. If I am unable to carry on from now on, I will come here and just follow you! But what did you say to your royal grandpa?”

When Zhu Yijun heard what he had said, he began to repeat the scene of that day using even his arms and legs to explain. He had an excellent memory. Except for the two or three words that his father had said which he hadn’t understood, the rest he was able to recall with great detail.

Zhao Su listened with a smile, and couldn’t help thinking about Yuan Shu’s words about Zhu Yijun being clever.

Zhu Yijun was indeed very smart.

In fact, there were few emperors in the Ming Dynasty who were actually dim-witted. Needless to mention, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di, but even the infamous emperor Zhengde and Emperor Jiajing of the later generations were also extremely clever.

It was a pity that being smart didn’t equate to being a good Emperor. To be a good Emperor, being smart or not was secondary, because if a person wass powerful and intelligent, he will easily break away from the constraints of the system. Take for example, Emperor Zhengde, he played around his whole life but he still ended up with no heir.

Another example was the current Royal Highness, the Prince of Yu who would become the future Longqing Emperor. He was extremely lustful, not intelligent, and didn’t like attending morning court, but he could fully trust himself to give the Grand Secretariat all the power. Xu Jie and Gao Gong, who were both his trusted advisors, did indeed bring about a new era for the Ming Dynasty. The best Emperors were not clever Emperors, but they were Emperors who put the right people in the right places, Emperors who had trust in the right people to do their jobs.

However, for the people of ancient times, the Emperor was the Son of Heaven, he was paramount and flawless. They believed that the Emperor’s problem was not his own defects, but was down to the influence of his surrounding environment. For example, Kangxi felt that the reason why there were so many useless Emperors during the Ming Dynasty was down to the problem of childhood education, so he had very strict requirements on his princes. If the princes did not study diligently, he would ask: Do you want to be like Zhu Houzhao?

However, education does not determine everything. Qianlong was personally taught by Kangxi himself when he was a child. When he grew up, he was nurtured by Yongzheng as the Crown Prince. Wasn’t his education good enough? But there were still problems that arose. The Emperor can also overdo it, never taking rest – taking six trips down to Jiangnan, persecuting scholars for the literary work, closing off the country to foreign contact, wasting manpower and resources, squandering the state treasury that had been painstakingly built up by the former two generations.

So in Zhao Su’s view, the root of all of this lay with the Emperor.

To live during the reign of a good Emperor, everyone will live in harmony, to live during the reign of a bad Emperor, well, no one will live any restful days.

No matter how strict and perfect the upbringing and education was, one can only try one’s best to get this person on the right path, but there was no guarantee that he will become a good Emperor.

Ten years from now, because of Jiajing Emperor’s obsession with immortality and his successor, Longqing Emperor’s love for beautiful women, the Grand Secretariat was able to decentralize power from the Emperor, and so much so that sometimes even if the Grand Secretariat did not agree with something, the Emperor was not able to get his own way. This kind of internal democracy ushered in a new era of vitality and blossoming for the Ming Dynasty.

However, all hope came to an abrupt end ten years after Wanli took the throne.

Now, Gao Gong, Xu Jie, Feng Bao, Prince of Yu, Jiajing…. These legendary figures that should have existed in the history books have become flesh and blood characters, and they were appearing vividly in front of him.

And Zhu Yijun in front of him was undoubtedly the one with the greatest influence in the future.

He originally should not have been in history. History did not originally have the meeting between him and Zhu Yijun, history originally did not have their friendship.

Zhao Su thought: If there was a fork in history, does that mean he has become the variable?

Zhu Yijun finished recounting happily. Seeing that Zhao Su didn’t respond, he jumped over and shook the other’s waist gently.

“Susu, can you teach me something else? I want to learn more. If something happens to you in the future, I can save you again!”

This crow beak5… Zhao Su’s mouth twitched, but his heart was actually warmed.

“Ok.”

Translator Note:

Apologies for the delay on this chapter – I’ve had a long week and yeh needed some rest and to catch up with a few things in irl. And as the novel goes on, the chapters get longer. Blah blah blah. Anyway…..

Awww Chen Zhu is such a sweetheart, sadly it’s never going to happen. haha. I always ship Susu x little shixiong when I read this though… haha

Anyway I digress, check below for the author note from the last chap as promised. Not for the faint-hearted but if you want to know more about ancient torture methods please proceed!