After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 716 A Small Request
Ma Shangyi looked at Jin Jiashu in shock, as if she didn't expect him to say such a thing.

After a long while, she said in a hoarse voice: "Brother, how can you say such things? If Madam Xu knew, how sad she would be! She was hoping for your best, but you didn't appreciate her kindness..."

Jin Jiashu looked calm, as if he was not shaken by her words. "Since I was born, I have not had a few years of decent life. My mother left home before I was a hundred days old and I have not seen her since. My father only knew to leave me to the care of the wet nurse. At first, he would ask me a few questions a day, but after he married a stepmother, he always disliked me and beat and scolded me every few days. The stepmother didn't let me eat enough, ordered my wet nurse to do all the dirty and tiring work, didn't let me read and learn to read, and asked my uncles and cousins ​​to bully me, but my father just pretended not to see it. If it weren't for the wet nurse protecting me, maybe I would have died long ago!

"After my aunt in the capital got married and sent me some money, my father treated me better and was willing to let me go to school, but he didn't want to see my face. I don't know if he really didn't know or pretended not to know when others bullied me. Anyway, I still had a hard life. Beating and scolding were the least of my punishments. My stepmother also tried every way to throw dirty water on my head. I was not even ten years old, and she spread the word that I was unfilial, lustful, and naughty... Whenever a teacher took a fancy to me and was willing to take me as a student, she would ruin it. She also said that my father was a juren, so why should I worship others as my teacher? But if my father was willing to teach me with all his heart, why should I look for others?!"

Ma Shangyi's face turned red and white. She had actually heard about these things, but she just hadn't asked about them in detail. Jin Jiashu had suffered a lot from his biological father, stepmother and vicious relatives since he was a child, so it was normal for him to have complaints in his heart. But she didn't expect that Jin Jiashu had a good life for a few years now, but the resentment in his heart had not been eliminated, and... it seemed that he even blamed it on his biological mother, Concubine Xu. But Concubine Xu was unable to leave the palace back then, not because she wanted to, everything was the fault of the Sun family. Although Concubine Xu asked the emperor to send a letter and a reward to the Jin family, so that Jin Juren knew that his original wife was not dead, but became a concubine of the emperor, and she also had a grudge against her son, but if she hadn't sent this letter back then, Jin Jiashu, who had been tortured by his stepmother, would not have been able to start his studies properly!

Besides, since Mr. Jin was willing to teach Jin Jiashu, he couldn't be that bad to his son...

However, Ma Shangyi also knew that she had only heard the news from others, and she had not experienced it personally, so what she knew might not be accurate. If Jin Jiashu really had resentment in his heart, it would be better to vent it out earlier, rather than keep it in his heart and bear a grudge against his biological mother and brother in the palace...

After Jin Jiashu finished talking about his miserable childhood, he began to review his life in Chang'an in recent years: "I have indeed lived a good life in these years. I no longer have to worry about food and clothing, and no one bullies or scolds me anymore. I know that this is the confidence given to me by my aunt, and I am not ungrateful for her kindness in my heart. I know that it is not easy for her in the palace, and she has to look at the emperor's face, and the eighth prince's position as the crown prince is not necessarily stable. Therefore, I have always been very obedient and did things according to your wishes. You said that my aunt and the eighth prince were isolated and helpless in the palace. Now they have to look at the emperor's face, and in the future they will have to look at the faces of the court officials. They need to have trustworthy people in their own hands in the court to live well. I believed it, and worked hard to study and write articles. In less than five years, I participated in the provincial examination. I think I have done my best..."

Ma Shangyi coughed twice, slowed down her tone, and tried to comfort him: "I know it's not easy for my brother. He has been getting up early and studying hard all these years. Earlier, he followed the brother of the Hai family to learn riding and archery. In recent years, he has spent all his time studying, and his body is much weaker than before..."

"But in fact, my aunt and the Eighth Prince don't need me that much." Jin Jiashu said calmly, "The emperor prevented me from passing the provincial examination, and my aunt and you only told me to be patient and wait for the new emperor to take the throne. But isn't this the time when you need help the most? When the new emperor takes the throne and you have power in your hands, which court official will dare to go against you? Without an official relative like me, will you really be unable to live? By the time I have become qualified to join the cabinet from a newly-appointed Jinshi, the new emperor will have grown up and ruled the country, right? All the treacherous officials will have died of old age, and the new ministers will be the talents selected by my aunt and the new emperor. What's the big deal about losing me?"

Ma Shangyi was about to speak, but Jin Jiashu interrupted her immediately: "The emperor asked Xin Zhifu to depose me, and the reason he gave was that he could not let new relatives in power. The examiners at the time also acquiesced to this. It can be seen that the Sun family's domineering behavior has aroused public anger, and the court is not willing to have any more powerful relatives in the future. Tao Gelao is different. He has been keeping a low profile for more than 30 years until the emperor had no one else to use and treacherous ministers were in power. He came forward to save the tide. Why should I compare with him? As a crooked relative like me, as long as I can pass the imperial examination, I can find a leisurely position in the future and live a stable life in the capital. It would be good. I have suffered enough since I was a child, and I have no interest in fame, wealth and power at all.

"I used to think about being proud in front of my enemies, but now almost all my enemies are dead. No matter how glorious I am, there is no one to show off to. It is better to live my own life behind closed doors. No worries about food and clothing, decent appearance, marry a beloved wife, read and paint every day, plant flowers and enjoy the moon, raise two children, and teach them to read. No matter how many ups and downs there are in the court, they have nothing to do with me. I can go to the palace to see my relatives once a month, or let my wife go to see them. If the nobles in the palace think highly of me and reward me with some homemade snacks during the New Year, so that I can be decent in front of outsiders, that would be great; if the nobles in the palace are impatient to see me, then I will not be tactless and pester them. It is also good to stay at home and study quietly. I think... this is the kind of relatives that the emperor and the court want, right?"

Jin Jiashu raised his eyes and looked at Ma Shangyi: "If Madam Xu had a relative like me who was sensible and obedient, I am afraid that the emperor, the new monarch, the court officials and the royal family would look up to her and respect her even more."

Ma Shangyi looked at him deeply, "Brother, are you sincere in what you said? Is this what you want? Have you ever thought that nothing in the world is stable? Since you are the nephew of Madam Xu, when Madam Xu is doing well, you can naturally live your own life behind closed doors, do whatever you want, and Madam Xu will not have the heart to embarrass you; but if one day, Madam Xu falls into poverty, even if you don't want to be involved, it's impossible! You only think about a stable and leisurely life, and you never thought that you have no power and a low position. When Madam Xu and the Eighth Prince need help one day, you can't help even if you want to. You can only watch them suffer, and you will be unlucky too! By then, won't you regret it?!"

Jin Jiashu pulled the corner of his mouth and smiled: "Then please try harder, aunt, to keep your own and the Eighth Prince's status stable! I don't blame her for her previous choice, and I won't cause her any trouble now. I know that what she values ​​most right now is that the Eighth Prince can inherit the throne steadily, and everything else can be put aside. I will help her and help her realize her wish wholeheartedly. I don't need her to repay me with a high position and generous salary, as long as she works harder so that I can continue to live the leisurely life I want."

It’s just such a simple little request, Auntie...can’t you satisfy him?

(End of this chapter)