Who Cares

Chapter 89 Visit

Suddenly, many armored and heavily armed guards came from the other end of the street. They used their halberds to break up the crowd and shouted in unison, “Welcoming the Emperor!” Then there were several lines of imperial guards riding tall horses escorting a jade chariot, all steadily came to the front of Zhao Mansion.

Looking at this pomp and momentum, the emperor is actually here!

The crowd immediately dropped down, shouting Long Live Your Majesty. Guan Suyi hurriedly hugged the child, followed her grandfather and father to welcome the Emperor, and then saw a dark figure coming down from the jade chariot from a distance. He was very tall and strong, with handsome facial features, and a deep silhouette, completely different from the gentle and jade-like man of the Central Plains. Instead he carried a sharpness and ruthlessness of frozen snowfield, even more, had a majestic and extraordinary feeling of arduous mountains and rivers.

If it added a beard, who wouldn’t think it’s Hunnar? Hunnar, Huo Shengzhe? Yes, “Huo” was the Central Plains surname for “Hu”, “Shengzhe” was said to be the Central Plains’ name that Emperor Sheng Yuan was given to himself, and the source was “Li Sao”, fū wéi shèng zhé yǐ mào xíng xī*, it means a perfect person with extraordinary intelligence and morality.

He is the emperor, doesn’t it means he’s a “perfect person”? What a bastard, he even dares plotting to rob other people’s wife, one after another at that, could it be he have a special hobby, and that he likes women who already married? Guan Suyi felt that she was about to explode with anger. If a little spark was splashed on her body, she would burn up in an instant.

She resisted her anger and walked up close to kneel, but she didn’t expect this person to be so daring. He didn’t consider helping her grandfather and father to get up, and obviously he saw she had stand up, but he still pretended to help her, and then gently squeezed her slender arms.

Lecher! She raised her eyes and glared at him fiercely, and quickly suppressed the unnecessary emotions.

Emperor Sheng Yuan no longer cared what Madam would think. He couldn’t wait for a moment to see her.

“This is the child that Madam worked so hard to save?” He pretended not to notice Madam’s anger, bent down, bowed his head, and looked at the child in her arms, his face was inevitably close to her, and even their breath were mix together, producing a scorching temperature and a rich aroma. She was cinnamon, he was ambergris, and for a moment it was very intoxicating.

Guan Suyi desperately wanted to avoid him, but because the other party was so tall and his aura was too majestic and powerful, he brought her whole body under his control, there was no way to hide, only obedience.

“Back to the emperor, this child is the virtuous nephew.” Zhao Luli stepped forward to answer, and seamlessly pulled his wife to his side. Seeing the emperor stood together with Madam holding the child, in an intimate posture like they were one family, he felt his eyes sting and his heart trembled, as if something important was about to lose.

“It’s inconvenient here, please ask the emperor to move inside.” He pointed to the front door.

Emperor Sheng Yuan nodded slightly, but he did not take the lead in entering, but respectfully went to support the old master, and said warmly, “Emperor Teacher, you leave as soon as you said leave, it really makes Zhen helpless. After the court finished Zhen rushed to the Emperor Teacher Mansion to apologize, only to learn that you actually going to move to the old house, so chased all the way here. You taught Zhen many things, and Chief of Ceremonies is also Zhen’s trusted aide, Zhen cannot lose any of you. Zhen is here to ask you to return to the court and continue to assist Zhen. Saving a person’s life is better than building a seven-level pagoda, even the Buddha said that, Zhen really don’t understand why when Madam saved a life, she became a monster?”

He turned to look at the Ruan family, who were kneeling at the door, and said with a cold tone, “Your family has come to Yanjing for three days, but neither come to worship the deceased’s soul nor visit the orphan. But instead accepted bribes, spread rumors everywhere, and ruined the reputation of the Emperor Teacher Mansion. You keep saying that you want justice for your daughter, and bluntly said that Madam should not cut open the abdomen to take the child out, very good, you don’t have to recognize this child. Take the fifty thousands taels of silver that Wang Youpeng gave you and go home. In your hearts, blood kinship is probably not as precious as gold and silver.”

Wang Youpeng? The son of Prime Minister Wang? It turned out that he ordered it. Old Master Guan and Guan Father looked at each other, each with their own thought.

The Ruan family slumped to the ground, despairing in their hearts. The emperor personally spoke to them and ordered them to cut off their relationship with the child, then the Ruan family would really have nothing to do with the General Zhengbei Mansion from now on! The family property earned by relying on the prestige of his son-in-law over the years would be divided in an instant. However, this was nothing, there’s a more terrible catastrophe waiting for them.

Most of the onlookers who refused to disperse were street thugs or mercenaries, who were armed with martial arts to commit crimes. In order to pick up a few coins to buy wine, they even dare to pick up the graves of the dead, what else they couldn’t do? They were the ones who were clamoring to open the coffin for an autopsy today, and they felt very powerful just now, but at this moment they felt a blade hanging on their necks, at death’s door.

The emperor said that they were carrying huge wealth. If they left the Zhao Mansion today, they would be corpses on the streets tomorrow, and their families would be destroyed! Fifty thousands taels of silver was not a small amount. For the common people who have no support, it was tantamount to a child who was swaggering through the market with golden bricks in his arms, just courting death.

Ruan Father and Ruan Mother were drenched in cold sweat, as if they were mourning their dead mother, and the rest of the juniors also looked left and right, too frighten to speak, always feeling that everyone looked at them with murderous and fierce light in their eyes.

Hearing the sound of the Zhao Mansion’s door being slammed shut, these people woke up from their stupor and rushed up the steps to beat desperately, “In-law, open the door! Madam, open the door! Let us in to give our daughter a stick of incense! You have been merciful and righteous, you have saved our poor grandson, our hearts must be covered with lard to slander you everywhere. We are not human, we are beasts, we will kowtow and admit our mistakes, only please open the door and let us go in to guard our daughter.”

If they could not enter the Zhao house and have the protection of the General Zhengbei Mansion, the Ruan family, who had a huge fortune of fifty thousand taels, would have no other way but to die. Even after the funeral was completed, if they want to go back to their hometown, they have to depend on the General Zhengbei Mansion to send hundreds of soldiers to escort them.

However, now they had released rumors, directly scolding Madam Guan for destroying human remains and practicing demonic ways, which also equivalent to saying that their grandson should not survive and a filthy thing. Their words and deeds had long cut off their ways to survive, it’s too late to regret it.

“Don’t knock, they won’t open the door for you. Didn’t you listen to the old madam just now? She asked Madam Guan to cut the stomach in order to keep the bloodline for the second house. That General Zhao don’t have it easy, maybe this is the only seedling in this life, you still insisted to let people stuff it back, and made a ruckus so all over Yanjing know that you not only called Madam Guan a witch, but also called your grandson a goblin, this reputation is much worse than a coffin child*. I also don’t know what you were thinking, it’s not easy for the grandson to survive, and you have to give him this reputation, then how he live with himself when he grows up? Not to mention that the Zhao family can’t tolerate you, that is, when the child understand thing in the future, carrying a reputation of evil monster, he will definitely hate you to the bone!” A discerning man shook his head and sighed.

“Isn’t it! If my family were in this situation like the Zhao family, let alone the child in the mother’s belly,  even if it’s in the cow’s belly, the horse’s belly, or even in the cracks on the ground, I would have to try my best to get him out. To have only this one drop of blood and bone in one lifetime, even if it kills me, I’m willing!”

“Exactly, the heir is the most important thing. In the end, Madam Guan is still very courageous.” The onlookers slowly dispersed while discussing and sighing, but a few were hiding in the dark, staring at the Ruan family.

The Ruan family was ashamed and embarrassed, and wished they could run away. They only saw the immediate benefits, how could they think that if Guan shi’s reputation was bad means the grandson’s reputation was also bad? Ruan Mother grabbed Ruan Father’s ear and scolded him for being greedy for money. Ruan Father pushed her away, blaming her for her shallow eyelids. After accusing each other, they continued to kowtow, hoping that the Zhao family would accommodate them.

After knocking for about a quarter of an hour, the corner door opened, and the housekeeper of the Zhao Mansion leaned out half of his body and said impatiently, “Don’t put on an act, who still doesn’t know who? You won’t come to worship after arriving for three days, but now you are in a hurry. The eldest Madam asked me to tell you that the official memorial ceremony will only start tomorrow, and you should go to Jueyin Temple at yinshi (3-5am).” Then he slammed the door, almost knocking Ruan Father’s nose.

Tomorrow at yinshi , then how they spend the night? Everyone was terrified. They knelt down for a long time before left in fear. However, they were met by several waves of bandits that night, and their money was looted. Fortunately, the emperor rectified the social atmosphere, strengthened defense, and cracked down on crimes, so that no one was killed. But once again, when it rains it pours, the news that the Ruan family had cut off relations with the General Zhengbei Mansion was send back to their hometown. Thousands of hectares of fertile land were carved up by the local nobles, leaving only a dilapidated house to live in.

A good and wealthy family, in a blink of an eye, ended in a tragic end. It was difficult to make a living after the great changes, so they had to often run to Zhao Mansion to plead guilty and wanted to recognize their grandson, but they couldn’t even get through the door. But this is a story for later, let’s not mention it for now.

Inside the courtyard wall, Emperor Sheng Yuan helped Old Master Guan to the front of the mourning hall, and personally lit a stick of incense for him, waited for him to worship and inserted it into the incense burner, only then he himself lit a stick, made sufficient respectful appearance, and appropriate etiquette, giving the Zhao Mansion a big face.

The second daughter-in-law died violently, and the eldest daughter-in-law was discredited by the Ruan family, so few people came to attend the funeral. Seeing the deserted mourning hall and the incense burning, the old madam used to feel desolate, but now she regain her spirit again. It didn’t matter if others come or not, the Emperor Teacher came, Chief of Ceremonies came, and even the emperor also came, just those three were worth the honor of the whole Yanjing.

The second daughter-in-law had her spirit in heaven, and she had no regrets when she died.

“The mourning hall is gusting with wind, and the rain is miserable, afraid of hurting the dragon’s body, still ask the emperor to move to the main hall to rest for a while and use some food.” After everyone finished inserting the incense stick and burn paper money, Guan Suyi opened her mouth to invite.

“Alright. Zhen is here to persuade Emperor Teacher and Chief of Ceremonies to return to the court. It’s inconvenient to talk here, so let’s go to the main hall. Emperor Teacher please, Chief of Ceremonies please, Madam please.” Emperor Sheng Yuan seemed to be polite and easy-going, but he deliberately added “Madam please”, telling Guan Suyi to follow even if she didn’t want to.

The rest of the people were just commoner, so it was inconvenient to accompany them, only knelt down to salute and avoided them. Zhao Chunxi kept looking back at the tall, strong and majestic man, and sighed in her heart: It turns out that this is the man whose mother chose to abandoned her husband and abandoned her children to cling to, sure enough he is mighty and powerful, with phoenix exterior and dragon looks*. However, it’s lonely at the top, what did she get after she exhausted all her scheme? After being demoted from Ye Jieyu to Ye Cainu, this life is probably already hopeless.

She was sympathetic for a while, helpless for a while, and finally abandoned her distracting thoughts and slowly walked away.