Volume 1 In the Countryside Chapter 33: Raising the Tiger Skin as a Banner
Zhang Shou asked Ah Liu to bring in some food, but left it for Qi Liang. As for himself, he would certainly not feel wronged.
Now that there are so many noble children coming to study, he has specially set up a bamboo house in Cuiyun Room as a small kitchen. In order to satisfy the appetite of the master, each of the noble children has a good cook who can also serve as a part-time cook. The most common thing they do every day is to send all kinds of delicious dishes to him and Zhu Ying.
The intention to please him as a gentleman was fake; the intention to please Zhu Ying, the eldest daughter of the Duke of Zhao’s mansion was real.
That evening, Qi Liang went home quietly with an empty lunch box. In the Shuibobuxing Restaurant, Zhan Jin, as usual, smiled and brought a large three-layered lunch box to Zhang Shou and Zhu Ying.
"The cook who delivered the meal today had a bruised face and nose. It seemed that he had a fight with someone in order to deliver the meal. He secretly gave me a jade pendant and begged me to tell the master that his young master would be here soon."
Zhang Shou saw Liu Yin, who had followed him in, was busy placing the dishes in the food box on the small square table. He smiled and asked, "Who is the young master he is talking about?"
Zhan Jin immediately chuckled mischievously: "There are so many cooks. If he came here in his original state, I would still remember him. But he has been beaten into a pig's head. How can I recognize him? Since I can't recognize him, I naturally don't know who his young master is!"
"I actually picked up a jade pendant for nothing!" Zhu Ying couldn't help but laugh so hard that her body shook. "You are such a bad girl!"
"Miss, it's just a worthless thing. You can probably buy two with one tael of silver!" Zhan Jin said as he spread his palm in front of Zhang Shou, and then said with disgust, "Sir, look at the quality of this!"
Zhang Shou couldn't help laughing and crying when he saw the master and maid laughing and not forgetting to bring him along. At this moment, Liu Yin drove Zhan Jin away with a smile and put a small plate in front of him. It was the braised pig's trotter that he had moved his chopsticks for a few more times. He could only raise his hand quickly to indicate that he didn't need to be served.
After he finished the meal as quickly as possible without looking away, he began to think about how to hint to Zhu Ying and the other three to go back.
But before he could say anything, Zhu Ying stood up and smiled at him triumphantly: "They came here for me before, but if they come secretly to ask for advice and I catch them, it will not only be the face that is lost, but also the substance! I will tell Zhu Hong or Zhu Yu to go back and quietly wait nearby just in case. Now I will take Zhan Jin and Liu Yin back first!"
"Wait until tomorrow, and I'll come back to ask you what good ideas you gave to others!"
Seeing the young lady leave as soon as she said she would, Zhang Shou couldn't help but smile: "Aren't you afraid that I will use your tiger skin as a banner?"
"That's fine too!" Zhu Ying smiled with her eyebrows curved, not taking it seriously at all, "Originally, I used your name to bring these people here, and now you use my name to perfunctorily deal with them, so at least I didn't get into trouble."
Seeing that Zhan Jin and Liu Yin had also packed up their food boxes and were ready to follow Zhu Ying, the three masters and maids did not drag their feet at all. Zhang Shou just felt that their free and easy temperament was really to his liking, but then he smiled to himself.
Today he said that others had nothing, but he was actually talking about himself, but the eldest lady seemed not to hear it at all!
Not long after Zhu Ying left, Zhang Shou, who was walking slowly in the room to digest his food, heard a rustling noise coming from outside, followed by a very light voice.
"Old man, can I come in?"
It was not Lu Sanlang, and certainly not the blessed Zhang Chen. He remembered that the voice belonged to Zhang Chen's follower, Zhang Wu, the fifth son of Nanyang Marquis Zhang Hanzhou!
"Come in!" The next moment, Zhang Shou saw Zhang Wu rushing into the room swiftly.
After looking around, he seemed to have found the spacious bamboo house in full view. As expected, Zhu Ying and the others were nowhere to be seen. Zhang Wu immediately knelt down and said straight to the point, "Sir, I am here to seek advice."
Seeing that Zhang Shou was not surprised at all, Zhang Wu suppressed his uneasiness and whispered, "I am the fifth child in my family and a concubine's son. My mother died early and my father treated me as a nobody. There was almost no future for me. The reason why I followed Zhang Chen was that I hoped he could help me find a good marriage. But Mr. Ke's words woke me up. I have already woken up. What can a good marriage alone do for me?"
He paused, then took a deep breath and said, "I am neither good at literature nor martial arts, and have wasted sixteen years. I don't know what I can do in the future, let alone where the future lies. Please teach me, sir!"
Zhang Shou saw the man immediately lower his head after he finished speaking, as if he was going to kowtow to the ground. He slapped the armrest without hesitation and said, "Sit up straight!"
Zhang Wu subconsciously sat up straight with a start, and then he saw Zhang Shou taking off his hat and veil. When he saw that otherworldly young face, he felt his mind go completely blank in an instant.
Isn't that an old man?
"If you want to do something, you must first straighten your spine! Are all the high-ranking officials in the court born into noble families? No, many of them were poorer, more miserable, more downtrodden, and more embarrassed than you when they were young!"
Zhang Shou poured some chicken soup into Zhang Wu's mouth without waiting for his response. He said word by word, "You chose to follow Zhang Chen because you hoped to have someone to support you. He stayed to study but didn't forget to give you a tuition. It's clear that he has you in his heart. However, he hasn't planned for the future yet. The best he can give you is a decent marriage."
"But what kind of marriage is considered good? What kind of marriage is really suitable for you? Aren't there enough in-laws who try to sabotage each other ? You should know what kind of people those famous families in the capital are like. It's easy for them to give up a daughter, let alone a son-in-law!"
"What you need is not a relative, but a noble person who is willing to support and finance you. Such a noble person is more reliable than a marriage. And such a noble person requires you to show all your abilities in front of him! Think about it carefully, do you really have nothing? You have the courage and guts to be the first to come here, and this alone makes you better than others!"
Zhang Wu suddenly forgot Zhang Shou's age and status, and was completely immersed in Zhang Shou's words. He then subconsciously asked back: "Excuse me, sir, where did such a noble man come from?"
“As far as the horizon, yet so close at hand!”
Seeing Zhang Wu's eyes wide open, as if wondering who Zhang Shou was, Zhang Shou smiled slightly.
"You have appeared in front of the eldest lady so many times. Don't you think she is not a noble person? She is of noble birth, upright character, daring and daring. She comes and goes in the palace as if she were at home, and has a wide range of friends. In the past, it was only because of her father and brother in front of her that others could only see her arrogance and willfulness, but not her merits. But you should be able to do it!"
Zhang Wu was still a little dazed until he left Shuibobuxing Pavilion after talking with Zhang Shou for a long time. However, as the cool night breeze blew on his face, he suddenly woke up, and he could still hear the words, and he became very excited all of a sudden.
Stand on Zhu Ying's side? Nonsense, he didn't think those rumors would affect Zhao Guogong Zhu Jing, otherwise why would he follow Zhang Chen here? Compared to his father who didn't take him seriously, the Zhu family was too strong a backer!
Zhu Ying is the daughter of Duke Zhao. Although they usually pursue her, they are simply out of their reach. Why doesn't she agree now?
As for that old gentleman who is actually too young and handsome... he must be Duke Zhao's confidant hidden in the dark to assist Zhu Ying!
Zhang Wu started the conversation, and then visitors came to the Shuibobuxing Hall one after another. Each visitor asked his trusted followers to wait outside, and quietly went in to ask for advice on the future. When they came out, some were worried, some were lost, some were smiling, and some were in high spirits.
Therefore, those who were observing secretly and were still hesitating whether to seek advice from the old gentleman eventually joined this group.
However, everyone was careful to avoid the previous person, which made it difficult for the followers who were watching the wind. They had to find the right time to clear the way for their master and grab a decent position, so that they could send people into the Shuibo Buxing Pavilion.
When the sky gradually turned pale, Zhang Shou, who had hardly slept the whole night and had been acting as a confidant, looked tiredly at the arrogant Zhang Chen, who was the last one to leave. Then he yawned several times.
The visitors throughout the night were divided into three categories.
The first category is Zhang Wu, who is of humble origin, neglected by his family, confused about the future, but willing to fight, and has a certain level of awareness and ability. He showed his true colors and recruited Zhu Ying. This kind of people, as long as they are given some guidance, support and opportunities, are likely to be able to stand on their own in the future, so as not to waste resources.
The second type is Zhang Chen, who is conceited and arrogant, but has high expectations and low skills. He taught people a lot of secrets about officialdom and chicken soup for the soul, gave them some inscrutable advice, and then sent them away. Of course, among the noble children who followed Zhu Ying here, there were relatively few such people, and there were only two of them, including Zhang Chen.
The third category is people like Lu Sanlang who firmly believe that they are born with talents and have some talents and abilities. He also recruited such people on behalf of Zhu Ying, but he didn't show their true colors. People who are too smart are not so easy to intimidate and fool.
After stretching his body, Zhang Shou looked up at the roof and suddenly asked out of nowhere , "I remember the eldest lady said before she left that she would send someone over just in case. Is there anyone else on the roof or outside?"
After a long while, he finally heard Zhu Hong's familiar hesitant voice: "Mr. Shou, is there something wrong?"
Zhang Shou laughed and said nonchalantly, "I'm fine here. Go back and tell the young lady what you saw and heard tonight. Just say that I recruited a bunch of people for her without asking for her permission. If she's angry, come and settle the score with me!"
