Chapter 212 – Trivial Matters

When Xu Chun was having breakfast on the second day, Xie Yi told him about Xie Fei’s passing last night.

Xu Chun was taken aback. “I even sent people to Jinhai Fortress to invite those two Western missionaries to take a look at him… How did it suddenly worsen?” After saying this, he was indeed saddened, his eyes reddening slightly. “Even though we originally became friends for profit, back when we were in the Imperial Academy, he helped me out quite a bit. He was also full of aspirations, wanting to make a difference—yesterday, he even entrusted his son to me. I wonder if anyone is taking care of the young prince now.”

Xie Yi said, “I have already arranged for him to be raised in the palace. There are wet nurses and palace attendants to take care of him, so there’s no need to worry.”

Xu Chun was relieved. “That’s good. I heard him say that he had no direct blood relatives to entrust his child to, and his brother-in-law had an unsavory character. I was worried that the child would suffer alone.”

Xie Yi said, “It might not necessarily be unsavory. Don’t just listen to Xie Fei’s side of the story. His princess consort, Lady Yan, was chosen from a prominent family in Shu by the former Prince Shun. She’s actually quite gentle and honest.”

Xu Chun was surprised. “Why marry someone so far away?”

Xie Yi explained, “Naturally, they were looking to strengthen ties with the Shu region’s aristocracy. The dowry was substantial, and the Yans thought their daughter was marrying the crown prince of the princely residence. He was handsome, and his future looked bright. They say that Prince Shun initially used the marriage alliance to extort a considerable sum from the other party. The wedding was rushed, and as soon as the crown princess entered the door, trouble arose. The Yans were dissatisfied at the time.”

“Princess Consort Yan died giving birth to her son. On the other side, they were angry about this, and tensions had already arisen. The Yans knew that Prince Shun’s death wasn’t exactly honorable. Most likely, they severed ties under the pretense of reclaiming the dowry to avoid any misfortune affecting their family. Logically, since the princess consort had a son, the dowry could have been left for the crown prince. But Xie Fei was a proud man. Faced with the disturbance, he returned everything in anger and cut off contact. The other side was far away in Shu, so they couldn’t be trusted anyway.”

Xu Chun finally understood. “So that’s how it was. I didn’t think of that point. The dowry is a minor issue. When things blew up and everyone knew they had severed ties, that was the real reason.”

Xie Yi nodded. “Xie Fei may not have been unaware in his heart, but it was simply a matter of stubbornness. Still, he chose well by picking you. You know my son Lin’er; everyone knows he’s straightforward and loyal.”

Xu Chun: “…” Why did he feel like this praise was a bit passive-aggressive? He replied, “An orphan holding onto a fortune isn’t exactly peaceful. He probably heard that the dividends here are relatively stable, so he thought of entrusting his assets to me, and he donated half…”

Xie Yi continued nodding. “This habit of rescuing damsels in distress seems unchangeable. I’ll have to bail you out constantly.”

Xu Chun: “…”

Xie Yi added, “I’m giving you a half-month leave to sort out your household affairs, meet with teachers and old friends, and then you should return to court. If there are matters at the Military Affairs Office, you still have to come to discuss them.”

Xu Chun naturally agreed. Xie Yi continued, “I’ve instructed Pei Dongyan to report your daily schedule to the palace. If he asks you about your plans, don’t be impatient.”

Xu Chun chuckled. “How does Older Brother Ninth know I’d be impatient? I’ve always been polite to Commander Pei.”

Xie Yi said, “What don’t I know about you? You dislike being restricted. Even your elders at home didn’t dare to strictly discipline you. It’s easy to guess.”

Xu Chun recalled his rebellious times in the past, wondering how such reckless antics had led him to today. He felt a bit lost. After seeing Xie Fei yesterday and thinking about the past, he realized that everything changed after meeting Older Brother Ninth. He secretly reached out to pinch Xie Yi’s arm again, noticing that Xie Yi was dressed neatly. Not wanting to bother him, he whispered with a smile, “I only obey Older Brother Ninth.”

Xie Yi smiled, remembering that Xu Chun had always listened to him. However, the attendants and guards beside him knew that he was actually an extremely stubborn and willful person. He patted Xu Chun’s hand. “Go back to the Duke’s Mansion. Don’t delay. Come early tonight.”

Xu Chun said, “Ah, there’s a crowd at home. I don’t want to go back. The other day, we had a family dinner, and even Xu Gu came back to the capital. He’s waiting for the Ministry of Personnel to assign him a position.”

Xie Yi said, “If you don’t like it, I can have the Ministry of Personnel send him back out again.”

Xu Chun said, “It’s not that bad. He seems more sensible now. He got married while serving in office and brought his wife and children back. Mother likes her, saying she’s reasonable and generous. She told me that without Grandmother and the others to lead her astray, Xu Gu knows right from wrong.”

“Although she’s from a humble background, her family is well-off, and they have some literary knowledge. They’ve produced scholars in the past. Mother has arranged a residence for him, which is reasonably close to the Duke’s Mansion. Mainly, both my sisters are engaged. Father is useless, but he can help alleviate Mother’s worries. With these family matters, I don’t have the time now. He’s willing to go to the groom’s families to negotiate, which is much better. And there’s also Sister-in-Law, who can take care of my sisters and check how the other party’s inner circle is.”

Xie Yi nodded. “Right, you have another younger brother who became a scholar, right?”

Xu Chun said, “Yeah, the other day, he mentioned he also wants to study at the International Academy. I told him to wait for Jiuchou’s place and see if he can pass the exam.”

Xie Yi laughed. “You’re starting to act like an older brother.”

Xu Chun sighed. “To say that Father truly has good fortune. He doesn’t have to manage anything, yet his children have all grown up. Previously, he became obsessed with building gardens. These days, he’s suddenly become fixated on traveling, visiting mountains, and worshipping temples. He’s been talking to the abbot at Dabeci Temple in the outskirts of the capital for a few days, planning to donate funds to build a Buddhist garden for the temple, hoping to cultivate good karma for the next life. He’s been staying there for half a month, discussing the construction of the garden with monks, literati, and local elders every day.”

Xie Yi laughed. “That’s actually a proper matter. The abbot of Dabeci Temple has found a rich fool like your father to build a garden.”

Xu Chun chuckled quietly. “The abbot of Dabeci Temple is a high monk. He told my father that I’m the reincarnation of a carp from Guanyin Temple. That’s why I have golden scales. Also, because I listened to the Bodhisattva’s teachings, I reincarnated as a human. Therefore, I have the great aspiration to save the world. I’m not interested in women and shouldn’t get married too early. If I get involved with worldly desires too soon, I’ll lose my spirituality and my blessings.”

Xie Yi held back his laughter. “That makes some sense.”

Xu Chun said, “He even told my father that with my past-life connection to Buddhism, I should enter the Buddhist order. I’d surely achieve great success. He said that in the secular world, I’d be a general or chancellor, stabilizing the country, and if I became a monk, I’d save the world and spread the teachings. He also said that my father is a fortunate person with three lifetimes of kindness. That’s why the auspicious carp was reborn under his care. My father believed it!”

Xie Yi remained expressionless. “Is that so?”

Xu Chun said, “Isn’t it? Originally, he was very enthusiastic about finding me a wife. Since the abbot told him these mystical things, he believes them without doubt. Amitabha, now he’s solely focused on becoming a great benefactor, donating lamps and porridge every day. Now, he wants to donate a Buddhist garden and create golden statues, determined to enjoy that fortune in the next life.”

He clapped his hands. “This move works. I’ve already found that old Taoist priest, Xuchenzi, and am preparing to stoke the fire! I’ll have him add to what my father hears during geomancy sessions. He’ll tell my father that if I get married, it’ll be very unlucky for my family. Heh heh he.”

Xie Yi held back his laughter. “Don’t go overboard. At your age, if you don’t get married soon, you’ll need a legitimate reason.”

Xu Chun said, “Well, now when people mention marriage, my father uses that excuse to shut them up. I guess they’re encountering someone who takes Buddhist and Taoist words seriously for the first time. They think he’s pretending to be foolish to refuse, so they don’t bring it up anymore.”

Xie Yi put down his chopsticks, stood up to straighten his clothes. Xu Chun had already finished eating. Seeing this, he got up to escort him out to the sedan chair. Xie Yi waved his hand. “There’s no need to see me off.” As he was about to board the sedan chair, Xu Chun glanced at the Longxiang Guard and wondered, “Why haven’t I seen Big Brother Zixing for two days since returning to the capital?”

Xie Yi said, “I sent him to Yangzhou to handle Zhuang Zhizhan’s matter. Wait for him and He Zhiqiu to collect some silver and return to establish the academy.”

Xu Chun: “…”

Xie Yi had already boarded the sedan chair and left.

Xu Chun stood there for a while before somewhat reluctantly leaving the palace. He first returned to the Duke’s Mansion. Indeed, Duke Jing Xu Anlin had returned. Seeing his most accomplished son, he was very pleased. He chattered on, showing him the plans for the Buddhist garden he wanted to build and asking for ideas.

“Look, thirty-seven levels of pagodas, each floor with a niche shaped like a teapot door, carved with bodhisattvas and cloud dragons as reliefs. The main focus is to enshrine Guanyin Bodhisattva. In the garden, we’ll construct a stele forest, inviting calligraphy masters and literary experts to write Buddhist scriptures to be engraved and erected as steles. We’ll also build a scripture pavilion, a release pond, and a dharma platform. Then, we’ll invite great artists to paint murals. It will definitely be very elegant. What do you think?”

Naturally, Xu Chun didn’t care. “Building these towers, steles, and high platforms is only for scholarly discussions and dharma talks. It’s not lively enough. Father, why not build more pavilions, corridors, and grand halls for the common people to hold temple fairs? They can set up stalls to sell clothes, food, utensils, books, and cultural objects. Wouldn’t that be livelier? Moreover, with so many people coming to worship and visit the temple fair, they’ll all know that Father donated the money. Your charitable deeds will spread far and wide. The monks will also find it convenient to give alms and do good deeds.”

Xu Anlin’s eyes lit up. “Exactly!” He immediately stood up enthusiastically and summoned a literatus. They discussed how to modify the plans.

Madame Sheng was already accustomed to his childlike behavior and ignored him. She instructed Xu Chun, “You’re busy every day, so you don’t have to come back every day. Now, Sister-in-Law Gu is often here to help me, alleviating my worries. As for your sisters, they’re all studying. It’s rare for you to come back…”

She hesitated for a moment and whispered, “Be more devoted.”

Xu Chun smiled. “I hardly have a half-month break. Isn’t it good to spend time with Father and Mother? Once I start attending court and receive assignments, Mother will have a hard time seeing me. If Mother needs me to do something, just tell me, and I’ll arrange for it to be done.”

Madame Sheng said, “There’s nothing major. Helan Baozhi just came back, and I’m busy with business. Household matters are handled by your two sisters, who are older now and can share the burden. Plus, Sister-in-Law Gu occasionally comes over and gets along well with your sisters. She’s a capable and clever woman, saving me a lot of worry.”

Xu Chun said, “Mother has always been good at judging people. If you say Sister-in-Law is good, she must be good.”

Madame Sheng sighed. “Zhuo is indeed good. She didn’t hide anything and openly told me that because Gu misses her, she still went to the Han Mansion to see Sister Kui. She asked me to please forgive Gu and her. What do I have to forgive? It was the imperial decree that dealt with it. I heard she suffered a lot in the first few years. People there are snobbish, but now that you’re in power, they’ve treated her more leniently. She doesn’t lack food or clothing. Sister Zhuo brought gifts to the door, but Sister Kui only cried. She begged for a divorce and to return home, willing to live on the estate.”

Xu Chun said, “Mother wouldn’t have softened and agreed, right?”

Madame Sheng said, “She has her own brothers. Why would I, a distant aunt, need to stand up for her? I think Zhuo was trying to gauge my reaction. I didn’t respond, and she’s a smart person. She didn’t mention it again. I suppose she has her own considerations. Why would she bring her back? That’s a serious crime of murder, personally dealt with by the palace. I don’t think she told Gu. Of course, it’s possible that Gu is pretending not to know.”

Her tone carried some resentment. “He hid it from me for twenty years. Now, pretending not to know is very easy.”

Xu Chun knew the rift between the first and second branches was deep. Although his mother claimed not to mind on the surface, she inevitably had a knot in her heart. He smiled and said, “It’s fine. Once the two sisters get married and my brother marries his wife, Mother will have free time. You can work with Miss Helan to achieve great things.”

Madame Sheng didn’t listen to his sweet talk and chased Xu Chun away. “You have a lot of things to do on your side. Go take care of them first.”

Xu Chun knew that Madame Sheng was indeed handling a large number of businesses and didn’t want to entertain him. He just smiled and said a few more words before getting up and leaving.

As soon as he walked out of the courtyard, he indeed bumped into Xu Gu. Xu Gu’s complexion was darker, and he had grown a beard, making him look much older and more dignified. He was watching his sister-in-law Zhuo carry her daughter to the carriage. Seeing Xu Chun, he bowed. “Second Brother.”

Xu Chun returned the bow. “Older Brother, why are you leaving? Don’t you want to have dinner before going back?”

Xu Gu said, “The child is young and not used to it. She’s crying to go back for a nap. Second Uncle is busy building the garden, so I won’t accompany him.”

Xu Chun said, “Please forgive our poor hospitality. Then, I won’t see Brother and Sister-in-Law off.”

However, Xu Gu said, “I know that Second Brother is handling matters at the Military Affairs Office and is very busy. Now, there’s a matter I want to tell you. Words can be terrifying. You should be cautious.”

Xu Chun was surprised. “What’s the matter?”

Xu Gu said, “That Zhuang Zhizhan from the Ministry of Rites, the zhuangyuan, was recently demoted for suggesting new-style academies. He was assigned to work in the Ministry of Rites alongside Fan Mukun to establish new-style academies. However, the other night, he was inexplicably kidnapped from his home. The bandits used fire bombs to blast through the courtyard walls late at night, kidnapping Zhuang Zhuangyuan right in front of his family. This incident is truly shocking. The Five-City Brigade and the capital’s officials have been investigating for two days. Despite the huge commotion, they haven’t found any clues.”

Xu Chun said, “Oh, what does this have to do with me?”

Xu Gu looked at Xu Chun, dressed in a dark purple robe today, with silk flowing and shimmering, highlighting his skin as white as jade. Under the sunlight, he was beautiful beyond compare. Yet, his words naturally carried the dignity and nobility of a superior. Xu Gu was somewhat lost in thought. After a while, he laughed. “It’s this unsolved case. Because it was too shocking, the capital officials were afraid that public opinion would destabilize if the common people knew. They didn’t allow the news to spread. However, Zhuang Zhizhan had many colleagues and fellow townspeople. A paternal uncle of his clan happened to visit the capital. Eventually, the news spread.”

Xu Chun was somewhat annoyed. “Then what? They wouldn’t think I did it, right?”

Xu Gu was somewhat worried. “Zhuang Zhizhan coincidentally disappeared just before he was about to jointly submit a memorial to impeach you. Establishing new-style academies touched on the state’s foundations… You happen to control the firearms factory. You know that private possession of firearms is forbidden in the capital. It’s inevitable that some people would speculate that you wanted to silence him…”

Xu Chun: “…”

Seeing Xu Chun’s expression, Xu Gu was somewhat reassured. His younger brother had always been straightforward. His current expression proved that he was unrelated to the matter. He believed it. Although they hadn’t seen each other for a few years, based on Xu Chun’s consistent character, he would never do such a thing. He consoled him. “In short, be careful. Gossip can be as destructive as molten gold. You should find an opportunity to dispel rumors.”

Xu Chun bowed. “Thank you, Older Brother, for reminding me. I’ll pay attention.”

The two of them exchanged bows and parted ways. Xu Chun watched Xu Gu get into the carriage with his wife and daughter and leave through the second gate. Turning his face, he sneered. “Zhuang Zhizhan, huh! When he returns to the capital, I’ll definitely get everything back.”

Chunxi and Dinghai, seeing him like this, couldn’t help but worry. They exchanged glances. “My Lord, why don’t you report this to the Emperor?”

Xu Chun hummed. “The Emperor is busy. No need to bother him. These people aren’t worth mentioning. Let’s wait until I’m free to deal with it. By then, the news of the Zhuangs being seized might return, scaring them to death.”