Chapter 494: Not believing my “Ping’an,” but believing an outsider instead?
“Let your elder brother finish what he has to say.”
Seeing that the situation was beginning to spiral out of control, Old Master Zhu finally stepped forward.
In his own mind, he was thinking of the greater good of the Zhu family. At least, that was how he justified it to himself.
Zhu Ping’an was his pride—his most brilliant grandson. There was no one in the world who wished less than he did for something bad to happen to the boy.
But the misfortune had already occurred.
And when disaster struck, one had to think about the future.
About the future of the entire clan.
Aside from Zhu Ping’an, the only remaining hope for bringing glory to the Zhu family name now lay with his eldest son.
Furthermore, after hearing everything Zhu Shouren had explained earlier on their way here, Old Master Zhu found himself largely agreeing with the proposal.
After all, Shouren was a scholar—educated, knowledgeable, quick-witted. When trouble arose, he did not panic but instead thought of solutions.
This was the Ming Dynasty, the peak of a feudal empire where hierarchical rituals and patriarchal authority dominated society.
Old Master Zhu was the patriarch of the Zhu family.
Even though Zhu Ping’an’s branch had formally separated from the household years ago, they were still members of the Zhu clan. That fact could never be erased.
Once Old Master Zhu spoke, Madam Chen had little choice but to restrain herself.
Though anger toward Zhu Shouren burned fiercely in her chest—so strong she nearly ground her teeth to dust—she forced herself to remain silent out of respect for the old patriarch.
Seeing that Old Master Zhu had restored order, Zhu Shouren calmly lifted his teacup with one hand while adjusting his sleeve with the other. He took a delicate sip, set the cup down, and adopted the solemn air of someone deeply concerned for the future of the Zhu family.
Clearing his throat, he began in a serious tone:
“Second Brother, Sister-in-law, I understand your feelings. Zhī’er is the qilin child of our Zhu family—a once-in-a-generation prodigy. I would never wish for misfortune to befall him either. But heaven brings unexpected storms, and human lives are fragile, subject to fortune or disaster in a single moment. When something unfortunate happens, we must think about the future. I believe that a clever child like Zhī’er would think the same way.”
Heaven brings unexpected storms; human lives face sudden fortune or misfortune…
The moment Madam Chen heard those words, the fury in her eyes flared again like sparks flying from a blazing fire.
It felt as though the very air around her might ignite.
“Second Brother,” Zhu Shouren continued calmly, pretending not to notice her murderous glare, “have you ever calculated how much tax your family’s land would owe each year?”
“My family doesn’t pay taxes,” Zhu Ping’an’s father replied quietly, shaking his head.
“Yes, for now you don’t,” Zhu Shouren said, standing up and pacing slowly with his hands clasped behind his back. “But what about the future? The reason you’re exempt from taxes now is because of Zhī’er’s scholarly rank. But if Zhī’er were no longer here… then your household would have to pay taxes and perform corvée labor like everyone else.”
If Zhī’er were no longer here.
Those words struck Madam Chen like a whip.
Her teeth clenched again with an audible grinding sound.
She shot Zhu Shouren a freezing glare before speaking in a voice as cold as ice.
“You need not trouble yourself over that. I hold the imperial title of Sixth-Rank Anren.”
Zhu Shouren shook his head and sighed.
“According to the laws of the Great Ming, Sister-in-law, the title of Sixth-Rank Anren grants ceremonial privileges only—such as not kneeling before officials. But it carries no administrative power, nor does it exempt one from taxes or labor obligations.”
“So what?” Madam Chen replied impatiently.
“Well…”
Zhu Shouren leaned forward slightly.
“Even if we ignore the ten thousand mu of farmland that the Li family just sent today as part of the dowry, your household’s existing lands alone would require at least a hundred taels of silver in annual taxes. That’s no small sum.”
In truth, Zhu Shouren did not know the exact amount of land Zhu Ping’an’s household owned.
But he had a rough idea.
After Ping’an passed the xiucai examination, the family had purchased farmland.
When he later became a juren, they bought even more land, and many people had voluntarily transferred property under his name.
Then came Ping’an’s triumph as Zhuangyuan, after which the family acquired even larger estates.
Even counting only those lands, the taxes alone would exceed one hundred taels each year.
The logic was simple.
The more land one owned, the more taxes one paid.
Zhu Ping’an’s father glanced at his elder brother but remained silent.
“And that’s only your original property,” Zhu Shouren continued dramatically.
“If we include the ten thousand mu of farmland that the Li family sent today as dowry…The tax burden would multiply several times over.”
But that dowry land—
It belonged to Li Shu, Zhu Ping’an’s bride.
It was her private dowry, her personal property.
Madam Chen looked at Zhu Shouren with open sarcasm.
“So, Elder Brother,” she said lightly, “what brilliant advice do you have?”
Zhu Shouren’s eyes lit up.
“I wouldn’t call it brilliance,” he said modestly. “But it is a workable solution. In the past, your land was tax-exempt because of Zhī’er’s rank. If we now find another person with scholarly status and transfer the land under his name…Wouldn’t the tax exemption continue just the same?”
“And where might we find such a person?” Madam Chen asked knowingly, her voice dripping with disdain.
“Well…”
Zhu Shouren smiled faintly.
“With so much land involved, trusting outsiders would be risky. Better to entrust it to someone familiar. After all—brothers fight tigers together, and father and son fight side by side in battle. We’re family. One cannot write the character Zhu twice. There is no one more trustworthy than one’s own kin.”
He paused, letting the moment build before delivering the true proposal.
“Why not transfer your land into my name? That way, I would be exempt from taxes and labor, and your land would remain tax-free as well. The land would still belong to you in practice—only the registration would be under my name. I wouldn’t touch a single grain of it. You’d save over a hundred taels each year. And surely that money could be put to far better use.”
The moment he finished speaking, the sarcasm in Madam Chen’s eyes deepened.
At last—
The fox’s tail had been revealed.
After all the twisting and circling, the real target had been their land all along.
Pathetic.
Here was a grown man who refused to study diligently for his examinations.
Instead he spent his days concocting crooked schemes.
He never once thought of relying on his own efforts.
When Ping’an first began his studies, this uncle had already been a tongsheng.
When Ping’an became a tongsheng, he was still a tongsheng.
Ping’an later passed the xiucai, then juren, and now even the Zhuangyuan examination.
Yet this elder uncle—
Was still a tongsheng.
With that level of laziness, even another few decades might not be enough for him to pass the xiucai exam.
“Oh? Transfer the land to you so the taxes are exempt?”
Madam Chen spoke calmly.
“Well then… perhaps we should include the dowry lands that came today as well.”
She pretended to think for a moment.
“Oh yes—and the shops in town too. Quite a number of those were part of the dowry. Let’s transfer those into your name as well.”
“What?!”
For a moment, Zhu Shouren could hardly believe his ears.
Even the dowry?
Even the shops?
The sudden wave of fortune felt almost too good to be true.
He had expected Madam Chen to be the hardest obstacle.
Yet after only one round of persuasion, she seemed to have agreed.
Women truly have long hair and short wisdom, he thought smugly.
His breathing quickened with excitement, veins bulging on his forehead.
Beside him, the eldest aunt and Zhu Pingjun’s wife both began smiling broadly.
“Second Sister-in-law… you’re not joking, are you?” Zhu Shouren asked cautiously.
“You were the one who started the joke,” Madam Chen replied coldly.
“You—”
“If I remember correctly,” she interrupted smoothly, “Elder Brother hasn’t even passed the xiucai examination yet. Yet you still pay taxes like everyone else. Why not wait until you actually become a xiucai before discussing such matters?”
Her voice dripped with disdain.
“Woman’s foolish view!” Zhu Shouren snapped angrily.
“This time my success is guaranteed! Lord Liu himself has promised support. And through introductions I’ve already contacted the steward of the provincial examiner’s household. My calling card has been registered. By tradition, anyone whose name is recorded like that is certain to pass!”
His tone brimmed with confidence, as if obtaining the xiucai degree were as easy as reaching into one’s pocket.
But Madam Chen had heard these words before.
Many times.
Every year since Zhu Shouren first attempted the exam, he had made the same boast.
Each time he spoke with absolute certainty.
And each time—
He failed.
Only Old Master Zhu and Old Madam Zhu still believed him.
Connections, back doors, bribery…
All crooked paths.
Never genuine effort.
Madam Chen rolled her eyes dismissively.
“Let’s discuss it again after Elder Brother actually passes the exam,” Zhu Ping’an’s father said quietly.
Zhu Shouren’s face darkened.
“You… you still don’t know what trouble Zhī’er caused in the capital, do you? Ah… that foolish child…”
Unwilling to give up, he changed tactics and once again recounted the story of Zhu Ping’an’s memorial accusing a general of killing civilians and thereby offending Yan Song.
This time he exaggerated the danger even more dramatically.
But Madam Chen remained unmoved.
“Whatever Zhī’er did must have been right,” she said firmly. “I trust my son.”
“Why?” Zhu Shouren protested. “Zhī’er was misled! That general—”
“I don’t trust my own son,” Madam Chen cut him off sharply, “but I should trust outsiders instead?”
Her response was completely different from Old Master Zhu’s earlier reaction.
Zhu Ping’an’s father added quietly:
“Our family shares both joy and hardship with Zhī’er. As his parents, we may not have great abilities, but we are not afraid of trouble. If anyone seeks to harm us because of him, we will demand justice for our son.”
Old Master Zhu frowned.
“But the taxes are no small matter.”
Madam Chen replied calmly:
“First, Elder Brother has not yet obtained the xiucai degree. Second, the harvest from our land will always exceed the taxes.”
She paused before adding gently:
“As long as we have food to eat, Father and Mother will never go hungry.”