Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 202 Bond (Fourth update, please give me a monthly ticket)
In front of the Qin Mansion.

Qin Ji had just got off the carriage and was being helped by the coachman to walk towards the door when he saw a ten-year-old boy appear in front of them, which made Qin Ji suddenly nervous.

"This is Eunuch Tan, right? I am a descendant of the Zhang family. My father, Zhang Luan, has just been appointed by the court as the Minister of the Honglu Temple."

Qin Ji was about to call for help from the yard, but after hearing this, he waved his hand, signaling the coachman blocking his way to move aside.

"You are... the young master of Zhang Honglu's family?"

Qin Ji had a look of confusion on his face.

When he saw Zhang Yanling holding a brocade box wrapped in cloth in his hand, he seemed to have guessed what Zhang Yanling was here for.

A gift?
I have no connection with the Zhang family. Could it be that they are giving me gifts just so that the Crown Princess can get some care after entering the palace?

The Crown Princess is the master and I am the servant. Is it necessary?
Zhang Yanling said, "Yes. My father has something very important to tell others, and it is not convenient for him to come in person, so he asked me to come and visit."

"Your father..."

Qin Ji's face was wrinkled, and he pointed at the thing in Zhang Yanling's arms with his cracked fingers and asked, "Is it related to this?"

"Yes."

Zhang Yanling looked at the driver again and said, "Some things are indeed not convenient to talk about outside. However, this is definitely a matter of great importance. It is not just a family matter, but it concerns the safety of the prince. Please, Eunuch Tan, let me in to talk."

Qin Ji's face was full of doubts.

If Zhang Yanling really came to give gifts, it seemed that he could just inform them of his origins and leave the things behind and then leave. But now he looked so cautious, even as if he was wary of the coachman, which made him feel that the matter might be really unusual.

After all, Qin Ji was a man who had experienced many ups and downs. He had been in the palace for decades and had even become the most trusted and loyal servant of the prince. It would have been impossible for him to do this without the ability to read people's expressions.

He nodded and said, "You are a guest, please come in."

……

……

The courtyard of the Qin Mansion is a quadrangle, but it has only one entrance.

At this moment, an old woman of the same age as Qin Ji was picking up coal ash in the yard. In the capital city, coal was very popular among the people because it was close to the coal-producing West Mountain.

"Go down, I have something to talk to someone."

As Qin Ji spoke, he invited Zhang Yanling to the main room on the north side, asked the servants to serve tea, and then asked everyone to leave.

Zhang Yanling immediately put the things on the table, which were a large wooden box and a small wooden box. After opening the large wooden box, he found the yellow coral ornament that Peng Hua's son had given to Zhang Luan.

"This is?"

Even with Qin Ji's broad knowledge, he found it difficult to identify what this thing was at first.

Zhang Yanling said, "Today someone gave my father an ornament. This is it. It is a rare yellow coral from the sea."

Qin Ji asked curiously, "Is this coral? As far as I know, most corals are red. It is rare to see golden ones like this."

Zhang Yanling added: "This may be something used by the emperor."

"what?"

Qin Ji originally wanted to reach out and touch it, but he quickly retracted his hand upon hearing this, and then looked at the young man who was talking in front of him with a slightly horrified look.

Zhang Yanling continued to explain the situation: "Today my father went to Beiyong to meet his old classmates. During the dinner, the son of Pengge Lao's family said that he wanted to ask my father to treat his illness and gave him this item. But after my father took it home, he found that something was wrong with it."

Tan Ji said: "If you think it's wrong, then just return it. Elder Peng has helped Your Majesty draft imperial edicts for a long time and is highly valued by Your Majesty. Or was it bestowed by Your Majesty?"

"Eunuch Tan really thinks so?"

Zhang Yanling smiled and asked, "If we retreat rashly, will it alert the enemy?"

"Young sir, does your father have such concerns about this thing?" No matter how mature and prudent Qin Ji was, he obviously would not have thought that this matter would be related to the prince's position as crown prince.

Zhang Yanling asked, "This yellow coral shouldn't be something stolen from the palace, right?"

Qin Ji shook his head and said, "I have never heard of such a thing before, and the palace has been very peaceful recently. No one has the courage to do that. Just let your father rest assured."

Zhang Yanling asked again: "What if this was purchased from the people and prepared as a tribute to Your Majesty?"

"That's even more impossible... uh..."

Qin Ji had only said half of his words when he realized that he had said too much.

Zhang Yanling said, "Eunuch Qin, do you think it is possible that someone purchased a batch of tribute, but it was stolen on the way, or lost in some way, and happened to appear in the capital and fell into my father's hands?

"Besides my father, have those who are related to the Eastern Palace, such as the Eastern Palace Lecturer, or you, Eunuch Tan, also received similar gifts?"

Qin Ji seemed to understand something and walked to the door to greet him: "Who's on duty? Come over here!"

A servant came forward upon hearing the noise.

Qin Ji asked, "Has anyone come to your house to give you gifts recently?"

The servant replied, "Master, don't you forbid us to accept expensive gifts? If anyone brings gifts after the New Year, they will be confiscated."

Qin Ji frowned and asked, "Didn't you take any of them?"

The servant was stunned for a moment, then suddenly thought of something and said quickly, "There is a decoration, a potted pine tree, which was just delivered yesterday afternoon... The person said it was sent by someone from your hometown to relieve the pain of homesickness... Didn't the master not come back yesterday? The matter itself was not a big deal, so I forgot to report it to you..."

"Bring it..."

No matter how calm Qin Ji was, he looked annoyed at this moment.

……

……

Soon, a half-person-high pot, supported by a long ceramic pot, with a whole stone on top and a potted pine tree growing on the stone, appeared in front of Qin Ji. Qin Ji dismissed the servants, turned around and closed the door, walked around the potted plant several times, his face becoming more and more ugly.

"Does this winding pine tree look like a flying dragon?" Zhang Yanling looked at it for a few seconds and said with a smile, "Eunuch Tan, it seems that my father guessed it right again."

Qin Ji quickly looked at Zhang Yanling and said, "Just looking at this thing, it's not surprising. Could it be..."

Zhang Yanling shook his head and said, "Given Eunuch Tan's cautiousness, he would not accept valuables casually. But if it is a pot of green plants like this, Eunuch Tan will not care too much, because this thing is priceless and in the eyes of ordinary people, it is at best a rare grass or stone."

"Ah."

Qin Ji smiled bitterly and said, "It seems that someone wants to stir up trouble in front of His Majesty and the Crown Prince..."

He stopped talking halfway.

After all, Qin Ji was not very reassured about the Zhang family.

Zhang Yanling knew that he should come up with some useful information now to let Qin Ji know that there were some things that the Zhang family could see through without him having to point them out.

Zhang Yanling said: "If besides Eunuch Tan, there are many people related to the Eastern Palace who have also accepted such things, once the matter is exposed, I am afraid they will all be held accountable for it.

"Given the kindness of the prince, I'm afraid he will not stay out of this matter. He will definitely explain the whole story to your majesty and plead for mercy. But these are tributes after all. If the prince does this, it will be suspected of being unfilial, and he will be held responsible for not investigating."

"Then you should have returned the items earlier..."

When Qin Ji heard this, he became anxious and said quickly.

"It's not easy to return it." Zhang Yanling said, "Or, where should I return it? In the current officialdom of the capital, many people give gifts. Unsigned rare flowers and plants like these cannot be sold for cash and can only be used for viewing. Who will pay too much attention to them after receiving them?"

Qin Ji nodded and said, "Yes. Even if we find the perpetrator, he will deny it."

Zhang Yanling said: "The conspiracy is already brewing and is about to explode. In the near future, someone will come forward to expose it, and then the prince will be in a dilemma.

"For now, the only solution is to inform the Crown Prince first and have him expose the matter. This is the only way to...get ahead of others. This can also prevent more innocent people from being involved."

Qin Ji hesitated and said: "That being said, but..."

Zhang Yanling asked, "Does Eunuch Tan think that the Crown Prince should stay out of this matter and not care about it? If so, who in the court will speak for the Crown Prince when His Majesty brings up the matter of... changing the crown prince?"

"what?"

Qin Ji's face changed immediately.

Although some things are laid out in the open, it is rare to find someone as straightforward as Zhang Yanling.

Who among the royal family would casually mention the word "change of crown prince"?
Zhang Yanling said: "You must know that many of those who received the gifts are future pillars of the court, and their hearts are with the prince."

Qin Ji took a deep breath. It was obvious that he had not initially considered the supportive officials in the court. He just wanted to keep the prince out of the matter as much as possible.

After he understood the key points, he realized that the prince was in a dilemma and how thrilling the current situation was.

If you bring it up, you'd be disloyal and unfilial!

If you don't mention it, it may seem that you can stay out of it, but a large number of your supporters will quit, and no one in the court will dare to speak for you anymore.

"This matter is of great importance and has not yet happened. How can the prince bring it up?"

Qin Ji's face showed worry.

Zhang Yanling then opened the wooden box next to him and said, "Speaking of which, in front of Your Majesty, everything should be done to show the Crown Prince's filial piety first... Here are a few special gifts. Eunuch Tan can pass them to the Crown Prince, who can then present them to Your Majesty, which may help solve the urgent problem."

"I don't know...what is this?"

Qin Ji was smart. He understood the connection after a little thought. He frowned and said, "Presenting the gift to the emperor at this time can indeed show the prince's filial piety and give him a chance to tell the whole story, but..."

He hadn't finished speaking yet, and he stopped midway.

The general meaning is that you just find something and think it is better than the tribute and can please the emperor?

Do you think the emperor can be fooled so easily?
Zhang Yanling said: "Eunuch Tan, if you don't see it with your own eyes, how can you know that His Majesty doesn't like it? At least these things... are unique in the world. This one is called a telescope... and the other one... is called soap..."

……

……

Zhang Luan was sitting at a roadside stall with a bowl of mixed noodles in front of him. The aroma was overwhelming, but he just didn't want to pick up his chopsticks.

He turned his head from time to time to look towards the entrance of the alley where Qin Ji lived.

Finally, he simply turned the stool around and squinted his eyes to look at her carefully...

That's right...

Having studied for half his life, and because his family was very poor and had no money to buy candles or lamp oil for lighting, Zhang Luan's eyes were damaged and he became severely myopic.

"Sir, your noodles have gotten cold. Would you like some hot soup?" The shop owner was very polite. He was afraid that poor hospitality would damage his reputation, so he approached and asked attentively.

Zhang Luan seemed to be covered in thorns, and angrily shouted: "Is it bothering you if I sit here for a while? I didn't sit here in vain."

"Sir, you misunderstood. There are not many customers at the stall today. You can sit as long as you want. I just want to ask you, the noodles are clumping together, do you need some hot soup?"

The shop owner felt very aggrieved.

Good intentions are regarded as the liver and lungs of a donkey.

Are you a mad dog that bites people as soon as you bark?

Zhang Luan said, "Then serve another bowl of noodles. Remember to add more meat... Yes, my son likes the kind with two servings of meat."

After that, he threw a few more copper coins on the table with a "clatter" and instructed in a cold voice: "If there are any left, buy some peace and quiet, don't disturb me."

(The update is over, please guarantee your monthly ticket!)
(End of this chapter)