Shi Er was drinking when he received the letters from his two junior brothers.
Shi Er was already over sixty, and at his age, he shouldn't be drinking too much. But he had been drunk day after day for the past few days, and was rarely sober.
Robben persuaded them a few times, and then he started drinking too. The master and the apprentice shouted Li Bai's poems together, howling like two ordinary drunkards.
The timing was very coincidental, as the letter arrived during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The moon was bright and round, and Shi Er and Robben were enjoying their drinks. They had invited Chen Ji and others to join them, but no one showed up.
Zhang Shicheng also held a Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, but none of them attended.
This group of counselors drank their own wine at home, as if they wanted to drink up all the wine they had stored over the years.
"That brat Liu Bowen, is he mocking me again?" Shi Er drunkenly opened the letter and lay on the couch, half-closed his eyes, reading the letter in the dim light of the lantern. "Sure enough, he's mocking me again."
Robben drank a cup of tea and sobered up a little: "Uncle Ji also has a letter."
Shi Er opened his shirt, letting out the heat of his drunkenness, his eyes half bleary. "Ji Shanfu? This fellow wouldn't laugh at me. Let me read his letter first."
Shi Er threw the half-read letter from Liu Bowen to Robben, sat up, took Ji Renshou's letter from Robben, and read it carefully while pressing his temples.
After reading it, Shi Er was stunned for a long time. He drank a cup of hot tea, shook his head, and looked a little more sober.
He looked up and saw Robben's slightly excited expression.
Shi Er sighed and said, "That scoundrel Liu Bowen's letter probably said the same thing as Ji Shanfu."
He exchanged letters with his disciples and frowned as he read the letters full of ridicule from Liu Ji.
As expected, Liu Ji and Ji Renshou talked about the same thing, hoping that he could persuade Zhang Shicheng to blame the Yuan Dynasty for the death of Zhang Shide, who was at odds with Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhang Shicheng, so that Zhang Shicheng could naturally declare himself king.
After a moment of excitement, Robben calmed down. "Doing so will indeed redeem the lord's reputation. But how will this benefit Zhu Yuanzhang? Does he still want to repair his relationship with the lord?"
Shi Er raised an eyebrow. "What relationship do you want to mend? What's true is true, and what's false is false. Even if we cooperate with Zhu Yuanzhang for the sake of reputation, the hatred of Zhang Shide's death on Zhu Yuanzhang's territory will not be wiped out."
Shi Er sneered and said, "Just like Zhang Shicheng used this excuse to deceive the world and gain a good reputation. We all know that it is fake, all fake!"
After Shi Er finished speaking, he pressed his hands on his chest and gasped for breath.
Robben rushed over to help Shi Er calm down.
Seeing the teacher like this, he couldn't help but burst into tears and choked up, unable to speak.
He wanted to ask his teacher whether he should leave his lord.
But he asked himself if he couldn't stay.
After returning from Zhu Yuanzhang's territory, Robben devoted himself to the construction of Zhang Shicheng's territory with great enthusiasm.
He tried to attract more labor by using work-for-relief.
However, Zhang Shicheng handed over the work-for-relief task to his younger brother Zhang Shixin and son-in-law Pan Yuanshao. This good deed instead aroused public resentment.
He tried to follow Zhu Yuanzhang's example and distribute land to the people, but like previous dynasties, he did not prohibit buying and selling, and did not replicate the well-field system.
After the land was divided, Robben went out to gather information and discovered that the common people's land had just been acquired by the rich, and the common people had become tenants. Although they could still get by, their personal freedom was tied to the rich tenants, making it impossible for them to provide troops for Zhang Shicheng.
He tried to strictly regulate the military and allow Zhang Shicheng to regain control of the army, rather than allowing the generals to threaten Zhang Shicheng with war.
However, Zhang Shicheng could not bring himself to kill any of his subordinates, and was unable to make an example of them, so the rectification ended in vain.
Zhang Shicheng's benevolence spread far and wide, and countless poets sang his praises. However, Robben, who had advised Zhang Shicheng, was given a reputation for being mean and ungrateful, and was forced to withdraw from Zhang Shicheng's core advisory group.
Robben was also one of the people who praised Zhang Shicheng's virtues before.
Now that he has become a villain who has been "cut off ties" with his friends, he asks his friends, his lord, and himself, "Can I become an emperor just by relying on virtue?"
No one answered him. All he heard was the closed door.
When Shi Er calmed down, Robben knelt on the ground, still crying.
Shi Er's eyes were blank for a while, then he slowly stood up and said, "Let's go find Jingchu. Jingchu should have received the letter as well."
Shi Er staggered to his feet, and Robben also quickly stood up and supported the drunk teacher.
Shi Er said dejectedly: "Go find Jingchu, then find Daoyuan..."
Robben supported Shi Er, and the master and disciple staggered forward and walked out.
Shi Er's old servant tied the old horse to the carriage. Shi Er, supported by Robben, slowly climbed onto the carriage.
As he climbed onto the carriage, Shi Er's eyes were dull and he was still mumbling, "After we find Daoyuan, let's go find Jiezhi and Mingfu... Then we'll go find the lord and Zhang Shicheng..."
He went to Zhang Shicheng and offered his last plan.
Countless rare chrysanthemums were placed in the courtyard where Zhang Shicheng held the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet.
Some chrysanthemums are planted in precious white porcelain pots, while some are picked when they are at their most beautiful, woven into green vines, and made by skilled craftsmen into a chrysanthemum tree that does not exist in the world.
These chrysanthemum trees are all made of golden osmanthus. Under the silver light of the full moon of Mid-Autumn Festival, the chrysanthemums and osmanthus flowers stand out among the leaves.
The singing girls played stringed instruments and bamboo tunes, and their gentle Wu dialect made people's bones go soft.
Zhang Shicheng smelled the sweet fragrance of osmanthus and the light scent of chrysanthemum. He was already a little tipsy before he drank much of the wine.
At this time, someone reported that Shi Er, Chen Ji, Liu Liang, Rao Jie and others jointly requested a meeting.
Before Zhang Shicheng could recover, Zhang Shixin, who was hugging two slender singing girls beside him, started cursing, "Are these pedantic old men here to spoil the fun again? When the Yuan Dynasty was strong, we had no choice but to accept its offer. Now that the Yuan Dynasty is in chaos and so weak, are we really going to be subservient to it?"
Pan Yuanshao pushed the singing girl away, straightened his clothes, and said, "Master Taishan, you are now the most reputable and wise ruler among the scholars. Everyone in the scholars hopes that you will become king or emperor, so that they can submit to you openly. Looking at Zhu Yuanzhang's smug look, I'm afraid he's almost calling himself the King of Wu. Does Master Taishan intend to give the title of King of Wu to Zhu Yuanzhang?"
Zhang Shixin pinched the singing girl's buttocks and squeezed out two tears: "Thinking of my poor brother who died at the hands of Zhu Yuanzhang, brother, we can't give the title of King of Wu to Zhu Yuanzhang."
After these two people spoke, other drunken celebrities also persuaded Zhang Shicheng that the current civil strife in the Yuan Dynasty was the best time to become king, and he must not be stopped by villains.
Zhang Shicheng waved his hand and looked down at the full moon reflected in his wine glass. The glass swayed, and the full moon swirled. He drank the fragmented moonlight in one gulp and said calmly, "They have been advising me for many years, and they won't harm me. Let's just listen to what they say."
When Shi Er and others arrived, they had already tidied up their clothes and used sobering soup to dispel their drunkenness.
Those who came to meet Zhang Shicheng this time were all famous scholars invited by Zhang Shicheng himself, and Robben was not qualified to come.
Robben replaced the groom and personally drove the horses to bring the teachers to this extremely elegant garden. Now he was lying on the horse's back, holding a piece of straw in his mouth, staring at the sky in a daze.
Everyone at Zhang Shicheng's banquet was drunk, but Shi Er and the others appeared sober. When they arrived in front of Zhang Shicheng, they seemed out of place.
Zhang Shicheng couldn't help but sit up straight, his face showing the kind smile he usually gave to scholars: "Gentlemen, what's the important matter that has brought you here?"
Shi Er bowed and said, "Since our lord has decided to claim the throne, we will not stop him. However, I'm afraid your rebellion against the Yuan Dynasty twice will damage your reputation. We have a plan that will allow you to escape the Yuan Dynasty smoothly and gain universal praise."
Before Shi Er finished speaking, a soldier shouted angrily: "What do you mean?! My lord's reputation..."
Before the scholar could finish his words, Shi Er unsheathed the long sword at his waist, and the tip of the sword landed accurately on the side of the scholar's neck.
The scholar was like a chicken with its neck strangled, and suddenly became speechless.
Seeing Shi Er's actions, some celebrities were so scared that they almost fell off their chairs. Some celebrities looked for guards, and some celebrities shouted at Shi Er for his rebellion.
Shi Er retracted his sword, sheathing it, and said, "My lord is the only one above me. Even if I kill you all, it wouldn't be considered as insubordination. My lord, this concerns your reputation. You should know right from wrong. Anyone who tries to stop us now deserves death."
When Shi Er suddenly attacked, Zhang Shicheng was startled but remained calm.
After all, he is a man who has experienced many battles. Even if he is indulging in enjoyment now, he will not be scared by an old scholar.
Zhang Shicheng glanced at the postures of the famous scholars, stood up and bowed, saying, "Please teach me, sir."
Shi Er looked at Zhang Shicheng's humble attitude, and his eyes softened for a moment, but were quickly frozen in place again. "My lord, please send your attendants away. This plan must not be known to others. Especially..."
Shi Er followed Zhang Shicheng's gaze and glanced at the people in the field: "Especially those with bad intentions."
Zhang Shicheng always accepted advice when he should have, but he only occasionally disobeyed the advice.
He was not stupid. Although he was persuaded and wanted to be king, he also knew that rebelling against the Yuan Dynasty would probably damage his reputation.
Zhang Shicheng was completely obsessed with reputation and was particularly concerned about his reputation among the literati. If he could become king and occupy the moral high ground, he would certainly be happy to do so, so he readily agreed.
Zhang Shicheng, Shi Er, and the others left and went to the study to discuss matters alone. Naturally, the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet could not continue.
Zhang Shixin and Pan Yuanshao agreed to go somewhere else to continue having fun, while the other celebrities went home.
Some celebrities hurried home and immediately wrote letters to ask people to take them away from Pingjiang City.
They stood at the door with their hands behind their backs, looking up at the bright moon in the sky, feeling extremely nervous.
…
When Zhang Shicheng and others held the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, the Chen family was also celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Zhu Yuanzhang first celebrated the festival and had a meal with the generals who stayed in the city to recuperate from their injuries, and then said bluntly, "Mid-Autumn Festival should be celebrated with your families, you should go back and reunite with your families." Then he gave them a large reward and quickly returned to the Chen family.
Zhu Yuanzhang's subordinates were holding large rewards, laughing and joking, and they went home as fast as Zhu Yuanzhang.
Obviously, no one wants to socialize with colleagues during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
When Zhu Yuanzhang returned home, Chen Biao had already directed his servants to hang lanterns and place chrysanthemum pots and osmanthus trees in the house.
Ma Xiuying asked, "Isn't that a bit wasteful?"
Chen Biao smiled and said, "Mom, these things in our house will be sold out by tomorrow. Don't underestimate me, a wealthy merchant! Mom, do you know that there's a popular thing called chrysanthemum and osmanthus trees among the wealthy families now? Cut a slit in the osmanthus tree and insert a chrysanthemum branch. Basically, the chrysanthemums and osmanthus flowers will be almost dead by the next day and need to be replaced with new ones. That's why chrysanthemums and osmanthus flowers are selling so well these days!"
Ma Xiuying rubbed Chen Biao's head with a smile: "Okay. It's my fault. I underestimated Biao."
Ma Xiuying smiled at first, then her face suddenly turned cold and she scolded, "Chen Jing!"
Chen Jing, who was climbing up the osmanthus tree, immediately slid down the same way he had come, turned around, put his hands behind his back, and smiled at Ma Xiuying foolishly.
Chen Xun held Chen Biao's hand and said to him, "Brother, look, my third brother is still so silly. Unlike me, I am already a mature and good boy."
Chen Biao looked at Chen Chong, who was the same height as him, and felt a little sad.
In fact, Chen Biao's height is among the highest among his peers. Zhu Yuanzhang even sighed that it would not be convenient to carry Chen Biao on his neck in the future.
But unfortunately, Chen Biao's younger brothers were as tall as flying monkeys, and they were taller than Chen Biao both vertically and horizontally.
Looking at his chubby second brother, Chen Biao tried to hug him, and Chen Chong's feet barely left the ground.
Chen Biao sighed, "In a few years, the eldest brother won't be able to hold the second brother."
Chen Xun immediately said, "It's okay! I'll grow stronger and stronger, and I'll be able to carry big brother while I run!"
Chen Biao's face darkened: "You'd better not do this kind of thing."
Chen Chong lowered his head, arched his back, and rubbed his head against Chen Biao's chest like a spoiled calf.
While Ma Xiuying was scolding Chen Tan and Chen Tan was acting coquettishly towards Chen Biao, Chen Gou'er and Chen Mao'er, who were already able to walk unsteadily, came over hand in hand under the care of their nanny.
Chen Maoer greeted his mother and brothers in a baby voice. Chen Gouer only greeted his mother and eldest brother, then unzipped his pants and tried to pee into a pot of chrysanthemums.
Chen Biao rushed over, pulled up Chen Gou'er's pants, and took Chen Gou'er to the toilet.
"Don't urinate or defecate anywhere!" Chen Biao scolded.
Chen Gou'er raised his little head: "But Daddy is everywhere. I will learn from him."
Chen Biao was furious: "You are not allowed to learn!"
Chen Gou'er tilted his head in confusion: "Who should I learn from then?"
Chen Chong followed Chen Biao and walked over, saying, "I've already told you, if you want to learn, learn from big brother. Why learn from that dad?"
Chen Gou'er interrupted: "But my elder brother is not often at home."
Chen Biao said, "Even if I'm not at home often, I still spend more time at home than that father."
Chen Gou'er nodded: "Yes. Big brother, let's see who can pee the farthest!"
Chen Biao frowned again: "No competition!"
"Let me compete, let me compete!" Chen Chong immediately unbuttoned his pants.
Chen Biao quietly left the toilet and asked the servant to prepare two new sets of clothes.
After these two people finish peeing, there is a high probability that they will pee on their clothes.
Second brother, second brother, you just said that you are a mature, sensible and good child.
Chen Biao sighed deeply. Never mind. My second brother is not even seven years old yet, and he is the most mischievous at that time. I can't wait for him to be mature and sensible.
Chen Biao recalled when he was six or seven years old... Well, it seems that I didn’t have a rebellious period in this life, and I directly entered the role of the caring head of the family.
Why am I so miserable!
After Chen Chong and Chen Gou'er finished their peeing competition, they both peed themselves. The servants immediately helped them wipe their bodies and change their clothes.
When Chen Biao returned to the yard with a younger brother in his left hand and another younger brother in his right hand, his expression seemed to have aged several years.
Chen Maoer pounced over and gave Chen Biao a big red chrysanthemum.
Chen Biao glanced around the yard and saw that there was indeed a pot of flowers that had been destroyed by Chen Maoer.
However, since Chen Maoer was so cruel to the girl for the sake of him as her brother, Chen Biao still thanked her happily.
Never mind. Selling a few fewer pots of flowers won’t affect the Chen family’s status as a wealthy businessman, so I’ll just let my younger brothers pinch them for fun.
When Chen Biao agreed to let his brothers pick flowers, Zhu Yuanzhang hurried back to find the yard in a mess.
Zhu Yuanzhang was puzzled: "Didn't we say we were going to appreciate chrysanthemums? Where are the chrysanthemums?"
Chen Biao said expressionlessly: "The chrysanthemums are withered, the ground is covered with wounds, and someone's smile has turned yellow."
Zhu Yuanzhang: "Biao'er, speak human language."
Chen Biao said: "It was played away by your sons except me."
Ma Xiuying smiled and said, "They all look like you, cut from the same mold. All the money for Juhua today will be deducted from your little treasury."
Zhu Yuanzhang: “…”
Although he didn't need the money, he really wanted to beat his son.
Zhu Yuanzhang carefully examined his second, third, and fourth sons, whose hands and faces were covered in chrysanthemum petals and chrysanthemum juice, and his fifth son, who he thought was very well-behaved, with a critical eye. He said categorically, "They don't look like me at all!"
Ma Xiuying and Chen Biao asked in unison: "Who does it look like?"
Zhu Yuanzhang thought for a moment, his eyes shifting between Ma Xiuying and Chen Biao before he said uncertainly, "Maybe like... like their grandfather?"
Ma Xiuying and Chen Biao laughed out loud at the same time.
Zhu Yuanzhang also laughed: "Okay, isn't it time to eat? I'm starving!"
Ma Xiuying said, "Bah! It's the Mid-Autumn Festival, don't talk about such taboos! I'll have the kitchen serve the food right away."
Ma Xiuying left in a hurry. Chen Biao asked curiously, "Didn't you say that the Lord came back specially for the Mid-Autumn Festival? How could the Lord let you go hungry?"
Zhu Yuanzhang said: "My lord left immediately after distributing the rewards. He also wanted to go home to spend the Mid-Autumn Festival with his family."
Chen Biao smiled and said, "My lord is quite humane."
The servants brought out the meals that had been prepared for the Mid-Autumn Festival one by one. In addition to the hot pot dishes made with chrysanthemums and chicken bones, beef bones, and pork bones, crabs were also eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
But when Chen Biao brought the crabs over, his father and brother were gnawing on the crab shells, which made him very anxious.
Chen Biao tried to demonstrate how to disassemble it. He had already prepared all eight parts of the crab, so it shouldn't be too difficult.
But his father and brother continued to gnaw on the lake crab shells and had no intention of making any crab dishes.
Chen Biao had no choice but to help his mother disassemble the crabs while others took over.
Zhu Yuanzhang chewed the crab into pieces, licked it clean, and said, "Biao'er, this is not tasty. It's all shell, no meat."
Chen Biao said weakly, "I'll help you take it apart."
He helped Zhu Yuanzhang dismantle a crab.
Zhu Yuanzhang ate the crab roe, crab paste and crab meat that Chen Biao had removed in one gulp, and still said: "Biao'er, this is really not tasty, there is really no meat."
Chen Biao said, "Dad, do you know why crabs are so expensive? Because they taste delicious, but there aren't many edible parts!"
Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the table full of crabs and felt a little distressed: "Are they expensive?"
Chen Biao said, "I sell them at a very high price. We eat them at home, so we just fish them out of our own pond. Money has nothing to do with it."
Chen Biao pointed with his chin at the chrysanthemum remains scattered on the ground: "These chrysanthemums are also grown by our family. Don't worry, the money I earned from selling flowers and crabs will definitely allow you to eat as much as you want. Spending the money you earn yourself, no matter how much you spend, is not a waste."
Zhu Yuanzhang laughed: "That's right. Come, teach me."
Chen Biao taught him, but Zhu Yuanzhang continued to chew with his teeth, and it was all in vain.
Chen Biao glanced at his younger brothers. They were happily grinding their teeth on the crab shells, so he gave up teaching them how to de-crust crabs.
Chen Biao thought that it would be better not to do those fancy things in the future and just serve the guests with delicious fish and meat.
Chen Biao also sent many crabs to the families he knew in Yingtian.
Yang Xian, who was preparing to leave early the next morning, also received the crab, the eight crab dishes, and instructions for eating crab.
Yang Xian pondered for a while and immediately made the eight crab pieces come into play.
He laughed and said, "This is interesting. If we sell it to Zhang Shicheng, we can get at least one ounce of silver per crab."
Yang Xisheng complained: "Brother, you are talking about money all the time and are becoming more and more like a businessman."
Yang Xian said, "Isn't being a businessman good? Only when you become a businessman will you realize that everything has value."
Yang Xisheng turned his head away: "Okay, okay, yes, yes."
While unpacking the crabs, Yang Xian said, "If you don't want to be a businessman, then be a scholar. Master Biao is honoring you by letting you move to Yingtian Primary School. You must not cause any trouble for me."
Yang Xian did not tell anyone in the family about Chen Biao's true identity, so he was a little worried that his younger brother would act arrogantly and offend Chen Biao.
Unexpectedly, Yang Xisheng shrank his neck and said, "Who in Yingtian City dares to cause trouble in front of the little military advisor? Don't you know that the little military advisor commanded 40,000 people to repel Chen Han's 600,000 people? How can I be defeated by them?"
Yang Xian couldn't help but laugh: "Indeed."
His eyes were full of light.
At the tender age of nine, he commanded 40,000 men to defeat the 600,000 men of Chen and Han, directly leading to their demise. This extraordinary talent was his young master.
Whose family is like ours, where both the lord and the young master have shown the demeanor and power of a heroic lord?
Li Yuan and Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty?
But the young master is the crown prince, and unlike Li Shimin, he will not have the stain of the Xuanwu Gate Incident . The young master is perfect.
The lord and the young master will surely work together to create a dynasty more glorious than the Tang Dynasty.
Being in such a promising force, even though Yang Xian couldn't drink because he had to leave the next day, he couldn't help but get drunk.
…
Late at night, Shi Er and others left Zhang Shicheng's residence.
Shi Er, Liu Liang, and Lu Yuan stood on one side, Chen Ji and Rao Jie stood on the other side. They bowed to each other, shed tears, and then left.