Chapter 160: Reminiscing with Old Friends, Protecting Her Husband
Xu Qiushui said that four years ago she was exiled to Zhangzhou Prefecture as a slave, and after being transferred to several counties, she was finally assigned to the Fengxian prison camp to serve as free local labor, planting and maintaining fruit trees.
Some time ago, she ran into the local county magistrate and, after inquiring around, learned that he was Zhang Ting, whom she had met years ago.
At this point, Xu Qiushui looked at Zong Suyi's large, round belly and sighed as she recalled the past: "Zhang Ting is a good person. You have survived a desperate situation and found a good match."
Zong Suyi patted her round belly and said matter-of-factly, "Of course." Did you even need to tell me? Hmph.
Although they were old acquaintances, Zong Suyi was a rather pragmatic person. Seeing Xu Qiushui's current disheveled and slovenly appearance, he felt quite disgusted and subtly took two steps back.
Xu Qiushui was still immersed in the past, "Although I felt that this girl was extraordinary at the time, I never dared to imagine that she could achieve the highest honors in the imperial examinations and become famous in the literary world..."
If someone were to praise his wife on a normal day, Zong Suyi would be happy to sit down and listen, but today he was busy with important matters and had no time to chat with people.
"What brings you to stop me, Lord Xu?" he asked decisively.
Xu Qiushui's thoughts were pulled back. She straightened her expression and said in a low voice, "Your Highness, I exchanged letters with the Crown Princess a few days ago. They are currently in..." Yingzhou Prefecture.
But before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted. Zong Suyi said sternly, "I am now just a commoner. What prince or princess? Lord Xu, do not mention it again! As for the Crown Princess, His Majesty has not yet established an heir. Lord Xu, please be careful with your words." His eyes darkened, full of admonition.
Xu Qiushui's chest tightened, and her heart seemed to plummet to the bottom of a lake. What did the Duke mean by this? Was he trying to distance himself, or was he warning her to be cautious and not to expose herself to others?
But Her Highness the Crown Princess is far away in Yingzhou Prefecture, where she is under strict guard and her meals are uncertain. She licked her lips, disregarding everything else, and said, "I do not wish to disturb you, but your maternal grandparents are currently imprisoned in Yingzhou Prefecture, starving. I am powerless and have spent all the money I have hidden for four years to send a letter. However, Your Highness and her husband are not young and need money to smooth things over and improve their meals..."
Zong Suyi breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, but all he wanted was some money. "When you come to the back wall of my mansion this evening, I will throw some silver to you, and you can... send it to your parents."
Hearing Xu Qiushui openly call her "Crown Princess," he felt a chill run down his spine, fearing that she might be plotting a rebellion and asking him to secretly pass on messages.
Thankfully, it wasn't.
Xu Qiushui breathed a sigh of relief and said with emotion, "Your filial piety is commendable. Those two must be extremely gratified to know this." Her Highness the Crown Princess has given birth to so many sons and daughters, each one erudite and highly talented, but in the end, the only one she can truly rely on is her grandson!
"I have important matters to attend to. If there is nothing else, Lord Xu, I will be leaving now."
Having achieved her goal, Xu Qiushui smiled broadly across her bruised face and quickly stepped aside, saying, "Please, go ahead."
Zong Suyi walked forward, a hint of weariness creeping into his eyes. He didn't have a good impression of his maternal grandmother; not long before the incident, Chen Jue had even considered using him as a tool for a marriage alliance to solidify the relationship between the Zong family and her father's family.
Ignoring her father's strong opposition and disregarding his likes and dislikes...
Finally, because of her involvement in the treason scandal, her entire family was executed.
The world is so unfair. Kind-hearted people who help others die without a complete corpse, while the one who deserves to die the most lives a good life.
...
The academy is located halfway up the mountain, shrouded in a hazy white mist.
The spacious and flat courtyard was bustling with people, whispering and chatting, creating a lively atmosphere.
Surrounded by fellow scholars from her hometown, Cui, the scholar, closed her book and said impatiently, "It's a disgrace to scholarship... and they still haven't arrived."
"That's right, that's right. It's almost Chenshi (7-9 AM) and we haven't seen a single person. And he's supposed to be the headmaster of the academy?"
"A man who shouldn't be staying at home embroidering is running an academy and becoming its dean! This is truly outrageous!" someone said sarcastically. "She studied hard for years and is still just a poor scholar, while a frail pregnant man has become the dean?"
"I wonder what the local magistrate is thinking? Sending a man out to show his face. If that were my husband, I'd divorce him as soon as I got back!"
"Great, Sister Lin, you have such great courage!"
These outsiders are like people who eat from a bowl and then curse its master. They call themselves scholars and officials, but they're ungrateful and worse than dogs!
The Phoenix Fairy on the other side were completely enraged. They gathered together and walked towards the other side.
Putting aside the Dean's support for Fengxian students, he is also the husband of the County Magistrate's wife. With the County Magistrate's wife not at home, he can't let these little bastards bully his family!
"Those bastards from out of town! If they don't want to study, they should get out! They've enjoyed the benefits of the academy, and now they're criticizing the headmaster?"
"You shameless, filthy wretch! You're unworthy of being a scholar!"
Although they were not famous and had no official titles, they would never allow anyone to bully the county magistrate's husband.
The scholars and officials from other places felt a chill run down their spines when they saw the large crowd approaching. They swallowed hard and took a few steps back.
Scholar Cui wiped his sweat and stepped forward to smooth things over, saying, "Since we're all gathered here, we're all colleagues and sisters. Why let a mere man ruin our harmony?"
The Fengxian people don't care about sisterhood. If I were your sister, would you give me a bowl of rice during a famine? What a joke!
An elderly scholar stepped forward, his eyes resolute, his words ringing out: "In Fengxian, the county magistrate is our god! Your disrespect for her husband is an insult to all the people of Fengxian!"
Scholar Cui never expected that the dean's wife would enjoy such high prestige in this place. He should have known better than to raise his head!
She realized she had made a huge mistake, cold sweat beaded on her forehead, and she forced a laugh, saying, "It's all a misunderstanding, it's all a misunderstanding."
Feng Xianren wasn't having any of it and blocked them in the middle, yelling, "Get out of the academy! Get out of the academy!"
"Fengxian doesn't welcome scoundrels!"
These were all scholars who valued their reputation, and they were so angry that their faces turned pale from being humiliated and questioned like this.
If they've lost face so badly today, and they're all elites from other places, why would they care about your poor, remote little academy? They should have stormed out long ago.
However, the group stubbornly refused to move, their necks stiff as if their feet were glued to the ground.
The reason is simple: the title of "the wife of a top scholar who achieved the highest honors in all three imperial examinations" is too prestigious, its prestige enough to make them endure any humiliation. Leaving is absolutely out of the question; they'd rather die than leave!
Someone in the crowd spat, "Pah! Shameless scoundrel!"
These words reached the ears of the group, and their faces instantly turned bright red, but their feet remained frozen in place, not moving an inch.
The other students who came from other places to study all stayed away from these few people, fearing that they would also be driven away.
Being able to get a head start on studying at the academy taught by the top scholar's wife is a dream come true for many students. How could they just pack their bags and leave without a clear explanation?
Zong Suyi, who had just entered the academy, knew nothing about this. He only saw a group of students gathered together, making a lot of noise and being very excited. He thought that a bloody incident was going to happen on the first day of school.
Such an unlucky thing must not happen!
He hurriedly ran over, clutching his belly, much to the alarm of his servants behind him. "My lord, do you even remember you're pregnant?!"
"What are you all doing standing around like that?" he reprimanded sternly.
The crowd fell silent instantly, all turning to look at the newcomer. His imposing and dignified aura sent shivers down their spines, making their limbs tense.
The crowd dispersed hastily in fear, and stood obediently in several rows.
Fengxianren belatedly realized: Wait a minute, I didn't do anything wrong! Why am I running away!
"Dean, these people are talking behind your back! Expel these scoundrels from the academy immediately!"
Zong Suyi's expression hardened. What? These small fry dared to curse him behind his back! He narrowed his eyes and glanced over.
Scholar Cui chuckled twice. "Dean, it's all a misunderstanding. We saw that you are pregnant and were worried that you would be working hard day and night for us. We were just concerned that you would never have the slightest intention of being disrespectful." His words were flattering, and there was no trace of his previous impatience.
The scholars echoed his sentiments, greeting him with smiles, their previous disdain completely gone.
"The dean works tirelessly for us every day. As students, how could we dare to disrespect you? We only feel guilty and worried."
"Yes, yes, we were worried about you and we had no intention of being disrespectful!"
The other students in the courtyard cursed inwardly: Insidious and shameless!
Zong Suyi glanced at the group of people with some skepticism, but since it was the first day of school, she decided not to argue with them.
He walked to the statue of the Confucian sage and delivered his long-rehearsed speech. In short, he hoped that everyone would study hard, make progress every day, live up to the sage's teachings, and make the most of the resources provided by Fengxian, and prepare with all their might for the children's examination next year or the provincial examination the year after.
"May I ask, Dean, what brings Professor Zhang back to teach us?"
This is also the issue that everyone is most concerned about, and most of them traveled to Fengxian for this reason.
Zong Suyi paused for a moment; he wanted to know more! That deadbeat always said he'd rush back as soon as he finished, but how long would it take? Half a month, three months, a year, two years? His child was almost due.
He looked displeased, and even his tone was heavy. "Zhang Jiangxi is in charge of political affairs, and she bears the heavy responsibility of the entire Zhangzhou Prefecture's thirty-seven counties and 1.31 million people. The lives of millions of people depend on her alone. How can she just walk away like that?"
The student who asked the question was filled with shame and embarrassment. Professor Zhang bore the weight of the world's well-being on her shoulders, and he had actually urged her to return to lecture—it was incredibly selfish and wrong of him!
"The student is foolish, please forgive him, Dean."
Zong Suyi nodded slightly, glanced around the courtyard, and said, "Zhang Jiangxi has worked hard and made great contributions, seeking a glimmer of hope for the people. You should study hard and pass the imperial examinations, so that you can also achieve something like her in the future!"
"yes!"
These words were met with approval from the crowd, many of whom were fervent admirers of Zhang Ting. They repeatedly asked what Zhang Ting was like when he was studying. Did he have a photographic memory or did he study day and night?
What followed was some casual conversation, and a servant brought over a stool to help Zong Suyi sit down.
Zong Suyi is the same; whenever it comes to topics related to Zhang Ting, she could talk for three days and three nights without stopping.
"Before Zhang Jiangxi passed the imperial examination, although he was exceptionally intelligent, he must have studied diligently day and night, never daring to slack off in the slightest..." He would spend his nights in his study and not come to sleep with him.
The students gasped. Even a prodigy like Zhang Jiaoxi was studying so diligently; what excuse did they have for being lazy and perfunctory? Study! They had to study like crazy!
"Zhang was so engrossed in discussing policy proposals and official documents with her teachers and friends that she forgot all about important things like eating and drinking." More importantly, she completely ignored him!
The students wholeheartedly agreed, noting that Professor Zhang's passion for scholarship far surpassed their own.
"And..." After chatting about family matters, they talked about politics. Zong Suyi dared to speak with an 800-mile filter, and the students dared to listen attentively as he boasted about how his wife had displayed great skills in the prefectural city, how she was unparalleled in the world, and how she was incredibly amazing. This stunned everyone, and they admired and revered Zhang Ting even more.
These eminent, extraordinary, and exceptionally intelligent celebrities and sages actually had the opportunity to listen to her lectures? It was truly a blessing earned through three lifetimes of good deeds!
Zong Suyi silently put her hands on her hips and smiled.
You little green bastards, grovel at my wife's feet!
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