Chapter 9 Jiankang
When they arrived in Jiankang, Sun Nian and his family learned that Sun Xiu had passed away long ago and that the one in charge of the family now was Sun Xiu's eldest son Sun Kuo.
Sun Kuo inherited the title of Marquis of Huaian County, while his second son Sun Rong served as the chief clerk in Taichang.
The decline of the Sun family was obvious. Sun Kuo and Sun Rong were reluctant to share their wealth with Sun Nian, but they also didn't want to be known as ungrateful. After weighing the pros and cons, Sun Kuo vacated a side courtyard where servants lived and gave it to Sun Nian and his family.
Sun Nian took things as they came, turning a blind eye to the eldest son's harsh treatment, but the always strong-willed Sun Wei found it hard to bear the loneliness. In his grandfather's description, Jiankang was like heaven on earth, and the Sun family were stars in the sky, respected and admired.
She thought that as long as they boarded the Sun family's express ship, their family would be able to change their fate and live a life of luxury.
But none of this happened. In the eyes of the eldest family, they were just poor relatives who ate and drank for free, even worse than servants. She even heard her cousin Sun Chan describe their family as stinking like fish, which was disgusting.
She told this to Sun Nian and begged him to take them back to An Ning, but Sun Nian scolded her for being ungrateful.
Sun Wei understood that his father had given up even his self-respect for a few dollars.
She was confused and helpless, but she was unwilling to accept this.
Just when she was suffering from inner torment, her younger brother Sun Qiao got into trouble.
Sun Kuo was very concerned about his reputation and would not allow any of the Sun family members to be uneducated. Although he treated Sun Nian's family harshly, he allowed Sun Qiao to study at the academy.
Sun Nian was very grateful for this and encouraged Sun Qiao to study hard every day.
Sun Qiao's temperament was like Sun Nian's; he was naturally cowardly and didn't dare to speak his mind. Sun Wei only felt that he was unhappy every day, and when she asked him the reason, he would evade her and talk about other things.
It was not until one day when Sun Qiao's leg was broken that Sun Wei realized that Sun Qiao was being bullied in the academy.
Seeing his brother being humiliated, he broke down and cried; while his father scolded Sun Qiao for being useless, he was submissive to the eldest son and dared not say anything. Sun Wei could not stay there for a moment.
She rushed out and came to the clear stream.
It was a crisp autumn day, and several children from prominent families were playing by the stream when she saw Wu Chong, a cousin of the Sun family, a fellow student at the academy, and the culprit behind Sun Qiao's bullying.
Sun Wei was furious and picked up a stone, intending to throw it at him.
But at this moment, she heard the sound of horse hooves.
Someone exclaimed: "That's His Royal Highness Prince Yuzhang!"
Sun Wei heard the sound and looked into the distance. She saw a red horse galloping through the golden apricot forest.
She had of course heard of the Prince of Yuzhang.
The emperor of the time loved to visit immortals and ask for advice, and most of the government affairs were left to the crown prince and ministers.
This dynasty arose from chaos. To escape foreign invasion, the people fled south and established the Xin Dynasty in Jiankang. Imperial power was weak, and the aristocratic families took turns controlling the government. Conflict was a constant in the court.
As a member of the royal family, the Sima family was almost like a puppet, and even the crown prince often felt that his position was unstable.
Among the Sima clan members, the only one who could hold the fort was Sima Jun, Prince of Yuzhang.
He had distinguished himself at a young age through military exploits. Since repelling the southern invasion of the Hu people the previous year, his reputation had grown immensely, and he had become a trusted and influential official at the imperial court. Some even said that if the crown prince died, the emperor might pass the throne to him.
He opened his eyes and looked out, only to see Sima Jun, the Prince of Yuzhang, on horseback, his figure radiating with vigor. He grasped the bow in his left hand, and the arrow in his right. In a flash, the arrow shot straight to the sky, shooting down a wild goose in the sky.
The audience cheered and Sun Wei was stunned.
At this moment, a voice beside him asked, "Isn't this Sister Sun Wei? What are you doing with that stone in your hand? Do you want to avenge your brother?"
Sun Wei came to her senses and saw Wu Chong and his men walking towards her.
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