Chapter 214 – Camel Hump

Zhuang Renshao looked pale as he watched Xu Chun on horseback, waving his whip, a scene reminiscent of that night – the same arrogant and spoiled demeanor, surrounded by a group of ostentatious servants. Under the bright sun, they appeared exceedingly resplendent.

Xu Chun asked maliciously, “Your Zhuang family, in order to curry favor, forced your own young zhuangyuan to die in remonstration. Zhuang Zizhan refused, so you attempted to murder him. Zhuang Zizhan, who had received deep grace from the Saint Emperor, would not slander the benevolent monarch as a tyrant, nor would he commit such an unjust act. He blew up the courtyard wall and fled, gravely injured. When you couldn’t find him, you pinned the blame on this Marquis, spreading rumors that I was covering up a murder. What? Do you think I’m dead? You deceive the world and steal names, dying for reputation and righteousness, besmirching His Majesty’s merciful and noble name, all for the sake of earning the Zhuang family’s eternal loyalty and fame. How hateful!”

“Such perverse actions, seeking fame and reputation at any cost, I don’t know how to comment on them. There are many scholars in the Ministry of Rites. Why don’t we go inside the official office hall and ask the officials of the Ministry of Rites to judge?”

After he finished speaking, the crowd in front of the Ministry of Rites was thrown into an uproar. They began discussing amongst themselves, all looking at Zhuang Renshao and those two nephews with unkind eyes. Dying in remonstration! Yes, it was the duty of loyal ministers throughout history, but forcing someone to do so was truly despicable. Moreover, Xie Yi himself was a benevolent ruler who never killed anyone for their words. To demand death in remonstration without cause was akin to insinuating that the emperor was a tyrant who did not accept remonstrance. If everyone followed suit… or if their own clans forced them…

Everyone felt a chill down their spines, coming to a unanimous agreement: This trend must not be allowed to grow!

Moreover, if they succeeded in forcing Zhuang Zizhan to die in remonstration today, who would dare to do so in the future when faced with something that could not be remonstrated? Would they also be plagued by rumors that they were coerced by their clans and had no choice but to die in remonstration? What would be the point of dying then? Scholars died in remonstration, warriors died in battle. Would the eternal loyalty and righteousness become a laughingstock?

Some young Hanlin scholars, who had been friendly with Zhuang Zizhan, were already filled with righteous indignation. “Deceitful and shameless scoundrels!”

“The hardships of studying in cold windows, the difficulty of becoming a young first-rank scholar, and the Zhuang family has such a shameless heart, forcing the killing of an imperial official. They should be punished!”

“What’s more than forcing the killing of an imperial official? This is a grave sin against the emperor! Marquis, why haven’t you arrested them yet!”

Those two nephews looked around in panic, blurting out, “Don’t talk nonsense, we didn’t!”

Zhuang Renshao took a step back, realizing that the Marquis had recognized Zhuang Zizhan that night but had only staged a play to snatch him away. Now it seemed that Zhuang Zizhan was in his hands, and he hadn’t suffered serious injuries at all. So why hadn’t he been seen in these two days? He must have returned to his original family!

Zhuang Zizhan’s concubine! The Zhuang family was facing imminent disaster!

He turned around hastily, attempting to escape, but the clerks on duty at the Ministry of Rites had already called the constables to apprehend them. There were also guards behind Xu Chun who drew their swords and approached. In no time, they were bound and captured. Fan Mukun, the vice minister of the Ministry of Rites, had already come out. Seeing Xu Chun riding high on his horse, laughing smugly,

He was somewhat helpless, ordering people to take the Zhuang suspects to the Jingzhao Fu. Meanwhile, he invited Xu Chun inside. “The Emperor has already ordered me to draft an edict. The edict will arrive in the next two days. Commander Fang and Brother He probably haven’t even reached the Fang family yet. Why are you so anxious these few days, unable to wait? With your noble status, personally arguing with these vile people at the entrance of the great hall, you’re giving them face. And you’re just adding fuel to the fire for others.”

Xu Chun said, “Do I have the leisure to look for them? They came looking for me. Could I let them off easily? Blind to come and provoke me, hmph, I only found out today that there are rumors outside saying that I kidnapped someone to cover up because I was afraid Zhuang Zizhan would impeach me. It’s too much! I specifically wanted to expose the hypocrisy of these fake gentlemen in public and show it to the whole world. What am I afraid of?”

“Zhuang Zizhan must have arrived first. Zi Xing and Big Brother He are taking the steamship; they will definitely arrive first. Even if they try to send word now, it’s too late. I feel that at this point, even if they know, they won’t be in the mood to bother Zhuang Zizhan’s mother.”

Fan Mukun laughed helplessly, inviting him to sit in the main seat of the hall of the Ministry of Rites, ordering tea to be served, and asking him, “Please have some tea. You’ve come here with such humility. Since it wasn’t to block these few people, you must be here for me?”

Xu Chun said, “I wanted to discuss something with you. First, you already know about Prince Shun’an. Let’s make an appointment to pay our respects together in a few days. Also, he donated a sum of money to me. I was thinking of building a library in the Jiuchou Academy. Building a garden and erecting a monument would fulfill his wishes.”

Speaking of Xie Fei, Fan Mukun’s face showed a sense of sorrow. He said softly, “He had been observing mourning for a long time. I was also demoted to another place. We drifted apart over the years and hardly interacted. After returning to the capital, I visited him once. He had lost a lot of weight. At the time, I only advised him a few words. I told him that even if my Fan family was like this, His Majesty could still tolerate me. He didn’t need to be stuck in the past and should focus on the future.”

“But later, the princess consort fell seriously ill and didn’t live long. He was devastated, his illness worsened, and… Alas!”

His expression was very melancholy. “The charity school he founded is still flourishing. Now that His Majesty wants to build an academy, if he were healthy, he could have made contributions and displayed his talents.”

Xu Chun said, “I thought of the charity school he established in the past. Since he entrusted it to me before his death, I can’t betray his wishes.”

Fan Mukun agreed happily. “That’s great. I’ll incorporate the library into the plans. I’ll show it to you later. But you should at least inform His Majesty. It’s better to follow proper procedures. Otherwise, if other powerful people start donating, how will you handle it? You need to think about it. You can’t just name things after donors. After all, this is an educational institution.”

Xu Chun chuckled. “Actually, if it were like that, this business would definitely thrive. You scholars just won’t bend your knees.”

Fan Mukun couldn’t help but laugh. “Xu Yuanlin, you’ve studied for many years. Why won’t you admit you’re a scholar when you open your mouth? What’s wrong with scholars?”

Xu Chun hummed. “Look at those scholars outside. They are trying to gain fame by bringing me down. Tell me, this Jiuchou Academy is clearly led by you and Zhuang Zizhan. Why are they targeting me?”

Fan Mukun laughed. “Who made the Emperor only value you? Throughout the entire court, who doesn’t know that Lord Linhai is favored by the Emperor? Who else could get the Emperor’s support to establish maritime affairs despite opposition from the entire cabinet? Your achievements over the past few years wouldn’t have been possible without His Majesty’s unwavering support, openly favoring you. Any other minister would have been impeached by the censors for life if they dared to speak out.”

As he spoke, he also felt a bit sentimental. “Do you think mediocre officials are willing to be mediocre from the start? Who doesn’t strive to achieve great things when they advance in their studies? It’s just that their hearts grow cold in the endless political attacks of the court.”

Xu Chun raised his eyebrows and smiled. “Fan Dongye, I’m not a great scholar, but I know your ‘manifest when there is the Way, withdraw when there is not’ philosophy. But if the world isn’t at peace, where can you retreat to? Besides, if you want to withdraw, why not just resign? Why take the country’s salary and find excuses? If officials don’t serve the people, they might as well go home and sell sweet potatoes.”

Fan Mukun was overwhelmed by his ambitious vitality, feeling slightly invigorated. He only laughed. “There were some matters I wanted to remind you about, but after hearing your teachings, I feel embarrassed to mention them. Forget it.”

Xu Chun noticed his expression and had a hunch. “You wouldn’t happen to be talking about His Majesty taking in the Shun’an Prince’s heir to raise in the palace, right?”

Fan Mukun shook his head silently, knowing that someone closer to Xu Chun must have already mentioned this matter to him. He kept silent about it and only laughed. “That’s a matter for the imperial family. We won’t discuss it. I only wanted to consult you about some issues regarding the construction of the academy. Since you’re here, I’ll have to trouble you.”

After saying that, he pulled out a scroll from his sleeve. It contained a list of problems encountered in establishing the academy, ranging widely and being complex. However, Xu Chun was preoccupied with the roasted camel hump, fearing that it would cool down and lose its taste. He said, “This is easy. Give me the list. I’ll send a capable person tomorrow to assist you and solve these problems.” After that, he got up to bid farewell.

Fan Mukun saw that he still had matters to attend to and didn’t insist on having him stay for dinner. He politely bid him farewell and sent him out.

==

Suiyu Palace.

When Xie Yi returned to the palace after court, he could smell the aroma of grilled meat as soon as he reached the courtyard entrance of Suiyu Palace. Thinking of the last time with the ox head, he couldn’t help smiling slightly even while in the dragon carriage.

With Xu Chun’s return, the palace was filled with the warmth of daily life. He had thought that Xu Chun would stay at the Duke’s residence tonight.

As soon as he got off the carriage, he indeed saw Xu Chun holding a piece of meat and wrapping it in spices. Next to him was a lit brazier. Su Huai licked his lips. “This is one of the Eight Delicacies. Today, thanks to Marquis, we can have a taste.”

Xie Yi asked with a smile, “What are the Eight Delicacies?”

Xu Chun looked at him, his eyes twinkling. “It’s camel hump. Originally, I had Xia Chao wait outside to roast it and bring it back hot. But I ran into that stubborn old man from the Zhuang family at the Ministry of Rites gate. I scared him a little, and he didn’t dare say anything. He immediately tried to run. Haha, he’s not very brave. Unfortunately, how could he think of running in front of this Marquis? The people from the Ministry of Rites sent someone to capture him and deliver him to the Jingzhao Fu.”

Xie Yi said, “Your status is precious. Just send people to arrest him next time. Don’t do this again. What if the other party, driven to desperation, decides to take you down with them? Even Zhuang Zizhan, in a critical situation, could set off a fire bomb. Today is not like the past. You can’t be careless.”

Xu Chun sneered. “People like him, who only seek fame and are obsessed with power, use other people’s lives to remonstrate. Knowing what kind of person he is, would he be willing to sacrifice his own worthless life?”

He was excited. “He probably realized that Zhuang Zizhan must have defected to my side to save his life. He ran like he’d seen a ghost. The officials present were all discussing and criticizing them for deceiving the world and stealing names.”

Seeing Xie Yi’s disapproval, he quickly changed his tune. “Today, it was a coincidence that we bumped into each other. I just got carried away for a moment. I definitely won’t do it again next time.”

Afraid that Xie Yi would continue lecturing him, he quickly changed the subject. “They wasted a lot of my time. My ordered roasted camel hump cooled down. It’s not very tasty, and they’re stingy with the spices. Xia Chao also said that the spices outside might be mixed with something dirty. If it’s for imperial consumption, we should be cautious. I thought it would be better to buy the sliced camel hump and camel meat from them and roast it ourselves. Our own spices are better.”

Xie Yi examined the sliced camel hump, the pink fat inside resembling congealed jelly. He smiled. “This is all oil. Can it be eaten?”

Xu Chun said, “Have you ever eaten roasted sheep tail fat, Ninth Brother? The more oil, the more fragrant it is. The texture is rich, tender, and crisp, with a unique aroma. It’s just a bit gamey, so you have to wrap it in more spices and eat it while it’s hot. Ninth Brother, have a taste. I know you’re conservative in your diet. If you don’t like it, there are other options here: deer meat, donkey meat, rabbit meat, and mutton.”

Xu Chun’s fingers were covered in spices as he wrapped another piece. Then he put down the piece of meat and went to wash his hands in a silver basin. Seeing that Xu Chun was solely focused on preparing food for him, Xie Yi felt warm inside. He first went into the inner hall to change out of his formal attire and put on a fine linen robe before coming out. He asked, “Why didn’t you stay at the Duke’s residence? Didn’t I hear that your father returned from the temple outside the city?”

Xu Chun said, “He’s busy. My mother is also busy. She told me that the purple flower cloth from Jinling is very popular overseas. With the textile factory, large-scale production is possible. Now she and Miss Helan are working on this. They’re also buying up all the purple flower cloth on the market. Therefore, they’re extremely busy and urged me to serve the country more.”

Xie Yi: “…Purple flower cloth is indeed good. It’s soft and comfortable when worn close to the skin. If they buy the cloth at a high price, it will also provide a livelihood for the weavers. It’s a good thing.”

Xu Chun nodded. “Isn’t that so?” He added resentfully, “They criticize us for setting up factories and taking away the people’s livelihood. Don’t they realize that if we tap into the overseas market and export extensively, that’s true wealth for the country and strength for the people?”

Xie Yi laughed. “Exactly. Ignore the nonsense of those corrupt scholars, Yuanlin.”

Xu Chun handed a piece of roasted camel hump to Xie Yi, who opened his mouth to eat it. He only laughed. “It tastes good. It’s rare for Yuanlin to think of bringing food for me when walking on the streets.”

Xu Chun leaned in to look at him. “Ninth Brother, the weather is warm now. It’s just after the Double Ninth Festival. Why don’t we go to the night market? Isn’t that more interesting than reviewing memorials in the palace?”

Seeing the bright and eager expression in his eyes, Xie Yi’s heart stirred. “Alright.”