After Being Mistakenly Taken for a Fellow Traveler by Emperor Long Aotian - Chapter 67
Lu Xiandao: …
Zhou Xun couldn’t help but clear his throat gently to stop the Emperor’s petty behavior.
Emperor: …
“Forget it, we won’t tear down those houses.” The Emperor coughed and said, “We’ll nationalize them and use them for new administrative offices in the future…”
“But selling official posts is truly despicable!” The Emperor said resolutely, “Are there any other places involved in such corrupt practices? Investigate them thoroughly… no, handle them!”
Zhou Xun: … I heard the word “confiscate.”
He saw the Emperor’s eyebrows lift in delight at the windfall. Lu Xiandao, however, didn’t understand this. He respectfully said, “The items confiscated from the officials’ homes have been added to the national treasury. I’ve reviewed the calligraphy, antiques, and such, selected some good ones, and sent them to the palace… Would Your Majesty like to see them?”
Emperor: “No need to see them, just auction them off at the Treasure Pavilion.”
Lu Xiandao: ?
Aren’t these the Emperor’s favorite things anymore?
“Understood.” Lu Xiandao didn’t ask further questions or waste words, directly taking his leave.
As a direct subordinate of the Emperor… or as the pawns in Bai Yuhang and others’ eyes, he had no need to guess the Emperor’s intentions. His job was simply to execute the Emperor’s orders.
Zhou Xun felt the Emperor’s gaze shift towards him.
Zhou Xun: ?
He soon realized that the Emperor was subconsciously waiting for his opinion.
It was a habit of the Emperor to turn and ask Zhou Xun’s thoughts when reviewing petitions. Yet today, he seemed deliberately avoiding him but still made this subconscious gesture…
With others present, Zhou Xun simply shook his head, indicating he had nothing to say.
Though he only shook his head, Lu Xiandao observed this scene with shock, as if it were a stormy sea.
Lu Xiandao looked at the young man sitting in the chair, a trace of subtle contemplation in his eyes.
“…Now that the involved officials have been punished and their homes confiscated,” the Emperor twirled his brush and said, “what about the involved merchants? The ones who bought the official posts?”
Lu Xiandao: “They have each paid fines according to the level of the posts they bought.”
The Emperor immediately straightened up: “How much?”
Lu Xiandao reported the amount.
Emperor: “…!!”
“…So much money, these merchants are really wealthy these days.” The Emperor muttered, “They can casually come up with such amounts. Their lives are even better than mine! To wear the crown, one must bear its weight…”
“Although merchants are wealthy, they are still the lowest in status compared to scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants.” Lu Xiandao replied, “If it weren’t for this, why would the merchants in Qingzhou have resorted to such corrupt practices?”
He spoke casually, but Zhou Xun took note.
Indeed, in the Kingdom of Jing, merchants were the lowest in status but held vast wealth. Many were dissatisfied with their social status not matching their wealth, so they strived through various means to ascend to the upper ranks…
Vaguely, Zhou Xun had an unformed idea about filling the national treasury.
However, having been educated in the scholarly traditions, he was unfamiliar with dealings involving gold and silver. So he decided to keep this idea in mind, intending to research a few merchants in the capital when he had the time, and make a summary later.
The case of selling official posts in Qingzhou was thus resolved. After Lu Xiandao’s report, the Emperor was so hungry he seemed ready to ascend to the heavens. He laughed and said, “You’ve worked hard. You must be tired after all this travel, right? If there’s nothing else…”
“Your Majesty, there is one more thing to report.” Lu Xiandao bowed and said, “It concerns the orphan of the late Imperial Physician Zhang from Xizhou.”
“Oh,” the Emperor finally remembered, “Zhang Taiyi’s granddaughter? Is she already in the capital?”
Hearing this, Zhou Xun also looked over.
Lu Xiandao nodded, “Yes, Zhang Lingsu is currently temporarily staying at an inn. Her cousins, who wanted to seize her family property, had sold her as a concubine to a crippled man in his fifties. When I arrived in Qingzhou, she was being carried in a bridal sedan chair to the cripple’s house. Fortunately, I arrived in time. Subsequently, Zhang Lingsu didn’t want to stay in Qingzhou, so I had to wait for her to sell part of her assets and pack for the capital, which delayed things.”
Emperor: “Then…”
“May I ask, sir.”
Zhou Xun, who had been silent beside them, spoke up. He stood and bowed to Lu Xiandao, saying, “How were those who harmed Miss Zhang dealt with?”
Lu Xiandao answered straightforwardly, “Their tongues were cut out, and they were allowed to die of disease. As for the Zhang family’s ancestral home, it naturally belongs to Miss Zhang. She was reluctant to sell the ancestral home, so she found two trusted servants to guard it, and contacted the local officials. It is unlikely that anyone will attempt to claim that property again.”
Zhou Xun was relieved and thanked him, “Thank you for your efforts.”
Lu Xiandao said, “Young Master Zhou is a compassionate person, showing concern for this young lady.”
Zhou Xun smiled, “It’s just putting myself in others’ shoes. Having suffered such misfortune myself, I wouldn’t want to see someone else go through the same hardships.”
At his words, Lu Xiandao’s typically stern eyes softened a bit. He said, “Miss Zhang knows that it was you who mentioned her to the Emperor and is very grateful. She said that once she arrives in the capital, she wishes to meet you to thank her benefactor…”
“…Since she’s already in the city, spend a hundred or two hundred taels of silver to find her a house in the capital. Since she came to the capital to become a medical woman, it just so happens that Imperial Physician He is busy preparing a medical academy and has just recruited the first batch of students. There’s a need for additional help. Have her take the qualification exam there. If she passes, let her join and assist.”
For some reason, the Emperor suddenly interrupted their conversation, quickly making arrangements: “Let her get settled first, and we’ll acknowledge her gratitude later…”
Zhou Xun: …
Zhou Xun couldn’t help but feel that the Emperor seemed to speed up his speech after hearing that “Miss Zhang wants to meet him privately.”
“Regarding her accommodation, I should have arranged a residence for Miss Zhang in the capital,” Lu Xiandao said, “but since she has matters to discuss with Your Majesty that concern her upcoming plans, I have temporarily put off finding her a residence.”
“What could be related to her plans?” The Emperor furrowed his brow. “Does she not intend to stay in the capital long? What does she want to do here?”
“Miss Zhang said…”
The news from Lu Xiandao made both men sit up straight.
“She has completed the prescription left by her grandfather for treating the plague in Xizhou.”
…
After Lu Xiandao finished his report, he left. Zhou Xun noticed that Lu Xiandao looked at him again when he departed. Though his gaze was sharp, it was not malicious, so Zhou Xun remained calm.
In sharp contrast to Zhou Xun’s calmness was the Emperor’s excitement. Upon learning that Miss Zhang had completed her grandfather’s prescription, he walked back and forth in the study.
“…It’s just like saying ‘Speak of the devil and he shall appear,’ or ‘When it rains, someone brings an umbrella; when one wants to sleep, someone brings a pillow. When I need money, corrupt officials are confiscated; when there’s a plague, someone brings a prescription; when I want to manage the censors, someone brings an old man…”
Zhou Xun: …
The Emperor caught Zhou Xun’s slightly sharp gaze and quickly corrected himself, “…an experienced elder who can converse with you.”
Zhou Xun: ^_^
The Emperor: “Other emperors might be carried by the tide, but I am simply…”
“…carried by the tide and also capable of rowing!” The Emperor stood up and struck a pose with one hand on his waist and the other pointing to the sky, “I am the Son of Heaven! I am the golden finger! I am Dragon Aotian(Long Aotian)!”
Zhou Xun: …Your Majesty, please be humble.
The Emperor: “By the way, others can’t even understand memorials, but I have a built-in translator!”
Zhou Xun: …
Well, it seems that after hearing the Emperor’s long-winded speech, the issue finally landed on him.
The Emperor turned to Zhou Xun, trying to gain some approval with his strong desire for survival and flattery. Zhou Xun, however, remained calm, sipping his health tea (yes, red dates, goji berries, and brown sugar in hot water had become his standard drink in the palace) and said, “So, Your Majesty is no longer avoiding me?”
The Emperor was stunned by his question, “I, I’m not avoiding you.”
Zhou Xun: ...But you are.
He thought that saying “you are” would make him seem childish, like a kid running around with sugar paintings. To avoid lowering himself to the Emperor’s level, he didn’t say it.
“…After visiting Qianji Valley earlier, Your Majesty has been avoiding me and not speaking to me. Did something happen in the carriage?”
...Such as I drooled on him while sleeping. Zhou Xun thought silently.
Emperor: …
Zhou Xun: “Your Majesty?”
“I had an urgent need to relieve myself.” The Emperor laughed heartily, “I’ll leave first.”
Zhou Xun: …
While the Emperor could shamelessly escape by saying he needed to use the restroom, Zhou Xun couldn’t quite match that level of shamelessness by suggesting they both go to the restroom. He sat on the sofa for a while until a eunuch named Xiao Li carefully asked, “Young Master Zhou, would you like to return and rest?”
Zhou Xun said, “Yes, let’s go.”
Zhou Xun followed Xiao Li back to the side hall. Xiao Li said, “The Emperor mentioned earlier that Changle Palace will be cleaned up, but it’s not ready yet, so you’ll stay in the side hall for now…”
Zhou Xun had no particular demands about his living arrangements and nodded. He arrived at the side hall and noticed that the flowerbeds outside were filled with water, and a patch of rice was exceptionally green.
Zhou Xun: ??
He doubted his eyes.
Zhou Xun: “…Is this some kind of special orchid?”
Xiao Li: “Young Master Zhou, this is just rice, your favorite rice. The Department of Internal Affairs specially selected it. They put a lot of effort into keeping it alive here…”
Zhou Xun: ...Rumors should not be fully trusted, and it’s completely unnecessary to put so much effort into such a place.
That day, the Emperor left him a small surprise. The Emperor had chosen four people with clean backgrounds from the Department of Internal Affairs to serve as his personal servants and palace maids. There were two men and two women, each with given names: “Lele” and “Duoduo” for the servants, and “Ningmeng” and “Lianrong” for the maids.
Zhou Xun now had his own staff.
As Zhou Xun went back to his room to rest, a little eunuch who had been spying outside the Yangxin Palace withdrew his gaze.
“This Warm Wine has many ingredients and a complex production process. I bribed the steward at the Herb Garden earlier and got some medicinal materials. Now we’re still missing three ingredients…” The little eunuch of Concubine Zhao pondered, biting his lip, “Forget it, let’s ask Xiao Qian at the Book Collection Pavilion if he can bring these three ingredients next time he leaves the palace…”
While he thought about the ingredients for the Warm Wine, he still held a whole pork knuckle stolen from the Imperial Kitchen: “If only I had some measuring cups for the medicinal liquid, or equipment to filter out the dregs and keep the essence…”
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chocolala
Thank you for the translations, this one has been one of my favourite lately. Just one thing, can you fix the link for the chapters on novelupdates? Lately it all brings to the table of contents page and it has been annoying having to scroll down and find the chapter below the locked chapters. Ideally the link should directly go to each chapter.