The next day was the day Zhao Liben returned home. Coincidentally, the buyer also came to collect the house on this day.

Early in the morning, the five generations of grandparents and grandchildren carried their bags and walked out of the magnificent gate of the Zhao Mansion.

Standing beside the pair of majestic stone lions, the Zhao family members naturally felt very uncomfortable as they watched the buyer's servants climb up the ladder and take down the "Zhao Mansion" plaque on the vermilion lacquer lintel.

Zhao Liben wept bitterly, covering his face and sobbing, "I have spent my whole life as an official, but ended up like this. It's just like a dream..."

His children and grandchildren all cried with him, and only then did he calm down.

Then Zhao Shouzheng took the initiative to say, "Dad, my father and I have discussed sending you home first, and it won't be too late to come back to Nanjing later."

Zhao Shouye also echoed from the side: "Yes, father, let the second son take you there. Anyway, he and his father are fine."

"No need." Zhao Liben waved his hand and said in a casual voice, "I came here empty-handed and I leave empty-handed. It breaks my heart to see the end of the world. I am strong and can go back by myself. You can go your separate ways and leave me alone for a while."

After saying this, he slowly sat down in front of the screen wall and stared in a daze at the big red palace gate which no longer had a plaque.

Zhao Liben always kept his word, and the Shouye brothers did not dare to disobey him. They had no choice but to bring their son along and kowtow to the old man. Then the four of them walked towards the street corner, looking back every few steps.

~~

After turning the corner and no longer seeing the old man, Zhao Shouye stopped and said to his brother, "Second brother, I can only live in the official residence for now. It's small and I'm not familiar with it. It's not convenient for outsiders to stay... Do you have anywhere to go?"

"I still have some loose change on me, so I'll rent a place to stay first." Zhao Shouzheng answered honestly.

"Alas, I'm just a sixth-rank Shangbao Cheng, and my meager monthly salary is really not enough to help you." Zhao Shouye sighed, wanting to cut off Zhao Shouzheng's words about borrowing money.

Zhao Shouzheng, however, had not thought about that. He nodded in agreement and said, "That's right. Father spent half his life in officialdom to get this position. Big brother, you have to stick with it. After nine years, you will be promoted."

"Well, just hang in there." Seeing that his brother was still thinking about him, Zhao Shouye couldn't help but feel ashamed of his dirty thoughts, and hurriedly changed the subject: "But second brother, what else do you have to hope for if you stay in Nanjing?"

Zhao Shouzheng looked at his son and said, "It's the year of the big exam, so we have to try again..."

Zhao Xian, who was standing by, couldn't help but sneer when he heard this.

Zhao Shouye glared at his son, but he also had no hope for his brother's success in the imperial examination.

"Don't waste your time. I'll help you find a restaurant to sit in. It will always be able to make a living for you and your son."

But Zhao Hao suddenly interrupted and said, "Uncle, it's really kind of you to give me some money to help you out in an emergency."

Zhao Shouye couldn't help but feel a pang of pain, but since his nephew had said so much, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and take out two ingots of gold.

After hesitating for a moment, he took back another ingot and said, "After your aunt and sister come back, I will also find a house to rent. This is all I can give you." The Zhao family is not full of bachelors. Zhao Shouye has a wife and a daughter, but when the old man got into trouble, she took her daughter back to her parents' home...

Zhao Hao was afraid that Zhao Shouye would go back on his word, so he quickly took the five-liang silver ingot.

Zhao Shouzheng also made an agreement with his eldest brother that after the father and son found a place to live, he would go to the official residence of the Honglu Temple to inform them, and then he and his son would go north.

Zhao Shouye kept watching his brother and nephew cross the Wuding Bridge and their figures disappeared across the Qinhuai River. Then he slowly withdrew his gaze.

"Oh..." He sighed deeply, seeming very sad.

Zhao Xian finally couldn't hold back and asked, "Dad, I clearly saw you put forty taels into your pocket this morning, how come there are only ten taels left?"

"Alas, I stuffed twenty taels into your grandfather's bag." Zhao Shouye sighed again: "The old man said not to give him a penny, can I really take it seriously?"

"What about the remaining ten taels?" Zhao Xian spoiled the mood and asked again.

Zhao Shouye was immediately furious and kicked his son on the buttocks, saying, "Are you stupid? Your grandfather's family is greedy for money. How could they let us stay with nothing?"

Zhao Xian couldn't help but be surprised and asked, "Ah? Aren't we going to live in the official residence? Why do we have to go to grandpa's house?"

"Is there anyone in the official residence to wash your clothes and cook for you? Why don't you cook for yourself when there is ready-made food? Do you know how to count?!" Zhao Shouye said to his son with a stern face.

"Doesn't that make him a gigolo?" Zhao Xian muttered to himself as he followed his father towards his grandfather's house.

"It's OK as long as it's edible! No matter whether it's soft or hard..."

As the father and son talked, they went west.

~~

After the eldest brother and his son disappeared, Zhao Liben walked out of the alley with his hands behind his back.

It turned out that he was secretly following behind and heard everything his two sons said clearly.

"Alas, is it so delicious to live off others? None of them have any backbone..." Zhao Liben sighed and seemed to blame himself for his failure in education.

With a sigh, a low-key yet luxurious two-horse carriage stopped steadily beside Zhao Liben.

When the car curtain was opened a corner, a light and elegant fragrance came out.

A charming woman waved to Zhao Liben with a smile.

The coachman in a green satin robe opened the door, and a maid with pearl hairpins on her head came down and set up a brocade cushion for Mr. Zhao.

Zhao Liben remained calm, straightened his back, and stepped onto the carriage on the brocade cushion.

As soon as Zhao Liben got into the car, the maid closed the door and went straight to a carriage behind without disturbing the two people in the carriage.

The two carriages slowly moved forward along the Qinhuai River.

~~

The carriage was covered with soft carpets and placed on a small sandalwood table with some exquisite snacks and fruits, as well as a silver square box.

When Zhao Liben sat down on the couch, the woman in her forties bowed to him, her eyes full of joy.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting, sir."

"I told you to wait outside the city, why didn't you listen?"

Zhao Liben, however, did not respond at all. He sternly scolded, "What if my children and grandchildren see this? How will it end?"

The noble lady didn't care at all. Instead, she said tenderly, "I was worried about you... I heard that you were in such a disaster, so I rushed here overnight. When I arrived in Nanjing, I found out that you had been released safely."

Zhao Liben snorted, raised his chin slightly and said, "I have been in the officialdom for many years. What can't I handle? Why should you worry about me?"

"Yes, I said the wrong thing. What I admire most is your confidence, sir." The woman's eyes were full of admiration.

"Oh..." Zhao Liben sighed and reached out to pull the woman up.

The woman opened the silver box again, and inside was a hot cotton towel.

She looked elegant and noble, and at first glance, she looked like a person who was used to being bossy. But at this moment, she picked up a cotton towel and personally served Zhao Liben to wipe his hands and face like a maid.

"I see that the Zhao Mansion has changed hands, and the two young masters of the master's family seem to have nowhere to stay. Why don't you let me make some arrangements for them?" The woman leaned over again to take off Zhao Liben's boots and replace them with a pair of light, soft-soled silk shoes.

"Why are you meddling in other people's business?" Zhao Liben did not appreciate it and said sternly, "They have been pampered for decades and have become useless. I am just taking this opportunity to sharpen them."

The noble lady showed a look of sudden realization and nodded her head, saying: "I was too talkative. It turns out that your Excellency has good intentions. You are indeed worthy of being an Excellency..."

As they were talking, the carriage drove to a dock on the Qinhuai River. Zhao Liben lifted the curtain and saw a passenger ship with the flag of "Wu Ji" quietly moored there. The passenger ship was three stories high, with carved beams and painted buildings, very luxurious. Even compared with the pleasure boats of the princes and nobles shuttling on the river, it was not inferior at all.

When Zhao Liben and the woman got off the car, there was no one on the dock. Because even this dock was privately owned by the noble lady. Dozens of servants and guards had already blocked the entrance and exit to avoid crowds.

Seeing this imposing aura of wealth and nobility, Zhao Liben frowned slightly without noticing it, and then he straightened his face again and said, "I am an ordinary citizen now, I can't afford such a big scene."

"In my heart, you will always be the same as you were back then... when you were the most heroic." The noble lady tilted her head slightly and looked at Zhao Liben's profile in fascination. I wonder what's so charming about this little old man?

"Just send me home. I won't live in your house." Zhao Liben said to the woman as he walked onto the boat.

"I know you want to avoid suspicion and cannot enter my widow's house." The noble lady sighed rather resentfully, then smiled caringly and said, "How about this, I will accompany you to Suzhou to relax, and wait until you have rested and made up your mind..." As she spoke, a hint of shyness appeared on her face, and she said, "Wherever you want to go, I will follow you."

Zhao Liben nodded in satisfaction, and with a barely perceptible smug look on his face, he said, "That's pretty good."

The woman also got on board, and the two stood side by side at the bow. The passenger ship went downstream and soon left Nanjing city.

PS. It’s a new day, it’s not easy to publish a new book, please recommend and comment! ! ! !