Chapter 937: Chapter 933: Year of Plenty (3)

Xiqiu felt that Tong Quanzhi’s words made sense. In this dynasty, the status of military officers was inherently lower than that of civil servants. Tong Quanzhi was merely a small flag officer, going to a remote place like Liaodong. Second Lady and Second Master wanted to arrange a marriage for him but wouldn’t casually marry off a woman from a small family. What high-born lady could endure a life like that in Liaodong?

Second Lady was stunned and didn’t know what to say for a moment.

Tong Quanzhi stood up: "It’s settled, I won’t get married." With that, he left the room without looking back.

Second Lady’s tears began to fall, and she sighed: "What can be done, the Master instructed repeatedly before this trip that we must bring him back this time..."

Xiqiu had nothing to say, thought for a moment, and tentatively suggested: "If you’re really worried, why not place a maid by his side!"

Second Lady wiped her tears and looked at Xiqiu: "This seems to be the only way. I’ll pick a maid to be by his side when we return!" Having a concubine to care for his daily needs would at least put her mind at ease. Not marrying is not marrying.

Tong Quanzhi was secretly speaking with Zhi in the backyard: "First, I’ll teach you how to squat in a horse stance." He placed an incense stick in front of him: "Let’s see how long you can endure."

Zhi positioned his small body and asked: "How long can you endure?" Tong Quanzhi patted his chest: "A full stick of incense, piece of cake."

"Then I can too." Zhi furrowed his brow and squatted down, Tong Quanzhi corrected his posture and leaned aside, sitting on the ground, watching Zhi.

The cold wind was biting, and soon, sweat appeared on Zhi’s forehead. His calves began to tremble and seemed ready to collapse at any moment. Tong Quanzhi said: "It’s your first time; you don’t need to hold it for so long. Later, your legs will cramp."

Zhi shook his head, already too tired to speak.

Tong Quanzhi was secretly amazed, watching the incense burn halfway. When he first trained, he couldn’t last more than half a cup of tea. This kid, on his first try, lasted so long.

Before the incense was finished burning, Zhi sat down with a thud. Seeing the incense hadn’t burned out, he tried to get up again, but Tong Quanzhi held him and rubbed his legs: "Don’t be impatient; take it slow. You’ve already done very well."

Zhi couldn’t stand up, wiped his sweat with his sleeve, and took deep breaths: "Tomorrow, I’ll definitely be able to do it." Then Zhi looked at him: "Don’t tell my mother."

"I know, I know!" Tong Quanzhi had no choice but to nod.

In the evening, Mrs. Zhou helped Zhi with his bath. When Zhi’s legs entered the water, he couldn’t help but let out an "ah" from the pain. Mrs. Zhou was startled and asked: "Is the water too hot?"

Zhi gritted his teeth and waved his hand: "It’s nothing, it’s nothing. I’ll bathe on my own; you should leave."

Mrs. Zhou suspiciously looked at him, but didn’t think much and exited the room. The next day, Zhi went to Xiqiu to pay his respects. Xiqiu noticed his stiff, awkward walking posture and pulled him aside to ask: "What happened to your leg? Did you fall off a horse?"

"No." Zhi shook his head and casually made up an excuse: "I slept on it wrong, and now it’s numb." Then he grabbed a piece of cake from the table and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing a couple of times before choking and coughing. Xiqiu patted his back and gave him water: "Eat slowly, breakfast will be here soon."

Zhi grabbed another piece of cake in his hand: "Third Uncle is coming; I’ll go to the second gate to meet him." With that, he ran out without looking back.

Xiqiu looked at his retreating figure and sighed deeply. When Zhi returned in the evening, Xiqiu pulled him onto the kang and taught him to recognize characters. Zhi leaned against her and fell asleep soundly within moments. Xiqiu was startled and sat up to look at him, her heart griped with worry. This child always had abundant energy, never napping at noon and going to bed late at night. Such a situation had never happened before.

Just then, Fourth Master Xiao entered the door after returning from court. She pointed at Zhi: "Look at him. I just said a few words and he fell asleep. In his dreams, he keeps restless and gasps. Is there something wrong?"

Fourth Master Xiao frowned and approached, lifting his son’s legs and checking his elbows. Xiqiu said: "I’ve checked; there’s no visible injury."

"Perhaps he’s just exhausted." These past two days, he wasn’t home. The Imperial Supervision Office was investigating Jiang Shilin for selling official positions and embezzlement, and started meticulously tracing his income over the past two years. Jiang Shilin’s annual salary was thirty-six shi, including income from the Jiang Mansion’s estates and shops, and even the subsidies from Qianshan Academy were all reviewed, and found that the Jiang Family had been living beyond their means. Jiang Shilin had been taking out loans to support his family.

The officials of the Imperial Supervision Office were amazed, never expecting a third-rank official to sustain his family relying on loans...

For a time, the outcry for impeaching Jiang Shilin subsided. The Emperor was surprised upon hearing this and exclaimed: "I surely did not misjudge him back then."

The investigation into Jiang Shilin was suspended, finding no evidence of embezzlement, but Lord Zhang was quite the opposite. From the furnishings of his residence to fields and shops, his possessions were shockingly abundant.

Fourth Master Xiao sat beside Zhi, feeling his son’s weary little face, and looked up at Xiqiu: "If you’re worried, you may invite the Imperial Physician to check him over. He’s always active, climbing and jumping, who knows if he hurt himself somewhere."

Xiqiu had exactly that in mind and invited the Imperial Physician the next day. He pressed Zhi’s pulse, and the Imperial Physician said: "Little Master is very healthy and strong, showing no signs of illness."

Xiqiu grew increasingly puzzled, asking Qingyuan and Qingshan, both shaking their heads: "No idea."

"This child." Xiqiu sighed, growing more attentive to Zhi, and said to Fourth Master Xiao: "Shouldn’t we ask Third Brother? Zhi has been with him these past two days." No sooner had she spoken than she suddenly remembered, and looked at Fourth Master Xiao: "...Is Third Brother teaching him martial arts?"

Fourth Master Xiao raised his eyebrows, considering the possibility strongly. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

The next day, Xiqiu secretly followed Zhi to the backyard, seeing from afar Zhi squatting firmly among the camellia bushes. The small figure was only as tall as the camellias, his face flushed red by the wind... She stood to the side, watching for a long time, as the sweat from Zhi’s forehead gradually dripped onto his shoulders, yet he still maintained an unwavering determination, unmoved.

She was astonished by his persistence in learning martial arts, bearing such hardships at such a tender age without flinching.

"Madam." Chunliu looked on with concern: "Young Master Zhi is so young... will he hurt himself?"

Xiqiu sighed and shook her head: "Let him be." With that, she turned to leave, her silhouette somewhat desolate.

Chunliu glanced back at Zhi, then at Xiqiu, hesitating to speak.

"Mother." Zhi returned to the room and smiled: "When are we eating? I’m hungry." After a morning of exertion, how could he not be hungry.

Xiqiu wiped his sweat and softly asked: "Where’s Third Uncle?" Zhi replied: "Third Uncle said he had a meal appointment with his fellow disciples and will come in the afternoon!"

"Then let’s eat." Xiqiu ordered the set up of plates and chopsticks, and Zhi, lying on the table, devoured bowl after bowl without needing anyone to serve him food, and then looked back at Mrs. Zhou: "Fill another bowl."