Chapter 79
Zhou Chengwang, who had claimed he hadn’t made up his mind, jumped off the carriage as soon as it stopped at the Du residence. He shouted Du Yuling’s name and ran into the Du family’s gate, as familiar with the place as if it were his own home.
Jiang Lin was left behind.
Jiang Lin: “...”
At this moment, Jiang Lin’s inner thoughts were probably something like: Hmph, men are truly no good.
Although the gatekeeper also recognized Jiang Lin, he was much more polite to him than to Zhou Chengwang. He even asked Jiang Lin who he was looking for and offered to guide him, as if it was Jiang Lin’s first time visiting the Du residence.
Jiang Lin was looking for Du Yuling’s father, who happened to be home at the time. The gatekeeper led Jiang Lin to see him.
On the way, Jiang Lin curiously asked the gatekeeper, “What about Zhou Chengwang? Doesn’t anyone ask who he’s looking for or guide him when he comes to the Du residence?”
The gatekeeper smiled. “Young Master Zhou only ever comes to the Du residence to see one person. He’s been to the young master’s courtyard more times than we servants have. He doesn’t need us to guide him.”
So, this guy had practically turned the Du residence into his own home, yet he still claimed he hadn’t made up his mind. Jiang Lin looked up at the sky and elegantly rolled his eyes. He didn’t believe a word of it.
The gatekeeper led Jiang Lin to the study door and then left. Jiang Lin knocked, and Du Yuling’s father called for him to enter.
Du Yuling’s father was looking at a map of Dayue, with several places circled in ink. Jiang Lin glanced at the names and realized they were all prefectures suffering from severe drought this year.
Du Yuling’s father turned around and looked at Jiang Lin, somewhat surprised. “Why did they bring you to me? That brat is in his own courtyard.”
Jiang Lin cupped his hands in greeting. “Uncle, I came specifically to see you. I have something serious to discuss.”
Du Yuling’s father gestured for Jiang Lin to sit. “Alright, then I’ll listen to what serious matter you have to discuss.”
Both the Zhou and Du families, whether the elders or the younger generation, were good people. This could be seen from the fact that even when Jiang Lin’s reputation was at its worst, neither family had stopped Zhou Chengwang or Du Yuling from associating with him. Even though Jiang Lin had changed significantly since then, Du Yuling’s father still treated him as a junior and didn’t think Jiang Lin had anything truly serious to discuss.
But Jiang Lin was indeed serious. He took out a small booklet and handed it to Du Yuling’s father. “I’d like to ask Uncle to bring up the disaster relief methods written in this booklet during court discussions.”
The booklet contained methods Jiang Lin and Wei Yunzhao had discussed and written down in advance. Now that the drought and locust plague were in full swing, it was the perfect time to present them.
Du Yuling’s father skimmed through the booklet and found that the methods were good, practical, and applicable. But he knew this wasn’t Jiang Lin’s true purpose. He asked, “What do you want?”
Jiang Lin smiled. “Talking to someone as wise as you, Uncle, is always straightforward. I want the Yun family to become a royal merchant, so they won’t be targeted by thieves for their wealth.”
“Uncle, you might want to send someone to investigate what the Yun family has been doing in Jiangnan over the past six months. Don’t worry, Uncle. With half of the Yun family’s wealth, this disaster will surely be overcome.”
The Du family had served as imperial tutors for generations and were loyal only to the ruling authority. If Du Yuling’s father brought this up, Emperor Changde wouldn’t suspect anything. Moreover, the Yun family had genuinely contributed and spent their wealth. All they sought was self-preservation, which Jiang Lin didn’t think was unreasonable.
The simultaneous drought and locust plague affected many prefectures. If the court had to handle disaster relief alone, it would likely deplete the nation’s resources. When Jiang Lin looked at the map earlier, he wasn’t just looking at the affected prefectures, he was also thinking about what would happen if a war broke out at the border while the court’s grain reserves were being used for disaster relief.
But if merchants also contributed to the relief efforts, the situation would be entirely different.
Dayue wasn’t lacking in grain, it was lacking in grain that could reach the mouths of the disaster victims.
“I agree,” Du Yuling’s father said after a moment of thought.
Jiang Lin stood up and bowed in thanks. “Thank you, Uncle. Don’t worry, the Yun family becoming a royal merchant will only benefit the court, not harm it.”
Du Yuling’s father naturally understood this. He said, “I’ll make sure this happens. Now, go find that brat and have some fun.”
Alright then. Jiang Lin bowed and walked out. As he reached the door, he heard Du Yuling’s father say, “You’ve all grown up.”
There was a hint of nostalgia in his tone, which left Jiang Lin somewhat puzzled.
He turned back to look, but Du Yuling’s father’s gaze had already returned to the map, giving Jiang Lin no further clues.
Jiang Lin shook his head and didn’t probe further. He turned and headed toward Du Yuling’s courtyard.
He arrived at an inconvenient time. Zhou Chengwang and Du Yuling were in the middle of a heated argument. To make matters worse, the two were hugging each other while shouting at the top of their lungs.
Jiang Lin, who had pushed the door open, silently closed it again. He didn’t deserve to be in the same room as them.
Perhaps sensing Jiang Lin’s presence, the two stopped arguing, and Du Yuling quickly opened the door. He glanced at Jiang Lin and invited him in.
Jiang Lin hesitated. “Won’t I be interrupting you?”
Du Yuling smiled. “Interrupting our argument?”
Alright then. Jiang Lin entered, and the three of them sat around the table. Zhou Chengwang was glaring at Du Yuling, while Du Yuling was looking at Jiang Lin. Jiang Lin’s eyes darted between the two. “Well? Say something. What’s with the staring contest?”
“Hmph!” Zhou Chengwang started with a single word.
Jiang Lin: “Hmph hmph!” Then he gestured to Du Yuling. “Your turn.”
Du Yuling: “...”
He chose silence.
Then Zhou Chengwang scolded him. “Can’t you even say ‘hmph hmph hmph’?”
Jiang Lin silently thought to himself that only pigs went “hmph hmph hmph.”
Looking at these two, he felt he should be merciful and act as a proper mother hen to resolve their relationship issues.
Jiang Lin didn’t ask Zhou Chengwang anymore and went straight to Du Yuling. “What are your thoughts?”
Du Yuling said, “I have feelings for him, but I’m afraid I’ll hold him back.”
No comments:
Post a Comment