Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 221 New and Old Relatives

In front of Zhang’s house.

A carriage arrived early in the morning.

Soon two people got off the car, wearing brocade robes that looked quite smart, but a closer look revealed that the material of the clothes had actually faded, was slightly white, and had many wrinkles, and did not look very noble.

The two men were none other than Queen Wang's two younger brothers, Wang Yuan, the Earl of Rui'an, and Wang Qing, a captain of the Imperial Guard.

"Is this the Zhang residence?"

After Wang Qing got off the carriage, his legs and feet were numb and he could not stand steadily, probably because he had been curled up in the carriage for too long. It took him a while to relax before he could stand without the help of the carriage.

The two of them looked up at the Zhang family's gate with a hint of disbelief in their eyes.

This house...

Isn’t that great! ?

Wang Yuan looked around and said cautiously, "My guess is correct... I sent a visiting card before, and they also sent gifts in return. They also sent someone to invite my brother and me to their house for a chat. No matter what, the two big characters "Zhang Mansion" on the lintel can't be wrong, right?"

Wang Qing nodded slightly, then asked curiously, "Isn't it said that Zhang Honglu is just a poor family in Hejian Prefecture? Brother, look, a big house like this in the north of the city must cost at least one or two thousand strings of cash, right? Even so... can it still be called a poor family?"

"I don't know. Logically speaking, we shouldn't be so extravagant!"

Wang Yuan shook his head repeatedly, obviously he couldn't understand what was happening in front of him.

Because just looking at the living conditions of the Zhang family, not to mention compared with his second brother Wang Qing, who was a salaried official who didn't get much salary every year, even his own living conditions as the Earl of Rui'an were actually much inferior.

After all, Wang Yuan has only been conferred the title of Earl for more than two years.

Wang Qing was appointed as a Thousand Households in the Imperial Guard in the 18th year of Chenghua, which was only four or five years ago. He had not accumulated any wealth at all.

I had come to help as ordered by the Queen, but when I arrived I felt a little ashamed of myself just standing at the door.

"Go ahead and knock on the door. Now that you're here, go ahead."

Wang Yuan mustered up his courage and said, "He will be the head of the maternal relatives in the future, so his situation is different from ours. We must first establish a friendship with him."

Wang Qing shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Hey, we look so shabby, just like a poor relative begging for food, which makes me want to turn around and leave. But we just need to grasp the present, as for what the future will be like... who knows?"

"Right."

Wang Yuan listened to his brother's complaining words and nodded, "I am just hanging around in the officialdom of the capital, making a living and not letting my family go hungry. As for the future structure of the court, it has little to do with me."

It may be that the Wang family is full of pessimism and disappointment about the future.

After all, the emperor has already bestowed the title on the Wang family, and Queen Wang is not Zhu Youtang’s biological mother. Even if the current prince ascends the throne, what can he bring to the Wang family?
Can it be better than it is now?
Everything is unknown!
Although the Zhang family does not have much status in the court, they have unlimited prospects. After all, they are the family of the future queen.
Of course, it’s hard to say when I’ll become the queen.

Be patient and wait!
Besides, flowers do not last forever. In the recent and future generations of the Ming Dynasty, the queens did not live a good life. Not to mention Queen Qian during the reign of Emperor Yingzong, let's just talk about Empress Wu and Queen Wang, and then Empress Xia, the wife of Emperor Zhengde, and those unlucky people in the palace of Emperor Jiajing...

Even if it was Empress Zhang of the old Zhang family, if history had not changed, her later years would have been miserable.

To the extent that the Ming Dynasty's external relatives actually became a high-risk industry, one day in the future they might suddenly lose power for no apparent reason, or even be doomed to failure.

……

……

When the two brothers Wang Yuan and Wang Qing came to visit, the Zhang family set a very high standard for their reception.

After all, they came to say hello in advance.

Moreover, this time Zhang Luan had his son to plan for him. When he learned that the two brothers had arrived at his doorstep, he immediately brought Zhang Yanling to the door to greet them in order to show his importance to them.

This meeting can be regarded as a contact between the new and old generations of in-laws. In a sense, it is a kind of inheritance. Of course... Zhu Jianshen is still alive, so it is too early to talk about inheritance. After all, it is the first contact.

"Mr. Zhang Honglu is a man of great learning and talent. I have always wanted to visit him. Today, I am here with my brother simply to ask for his advice. I hope you can give me your guidance."

After all, Wang Yuan was not born into a scholarly family. He did not have the confidence to show off his knowledge in front of a serious Imperial Academy student like Zhang Luan, so he tried to speak in a straightforward and easy-to-understand manner.

Of course, he didn't know what kind of person Zhang Luan was. He thought that as rumored, Zhang Luan was a great scholar in the area, and that he could teach his daughter to be well-educated and well-mannered, and successfully become the Crown Princess. How could his abilities be bad?
Zhang Luan bowed and said, "Lord Rui'an is so polite. I am new to the capital and not familiar with everything. It is a great honor to have your guidance.

"If you hadn't been so busy these past few days, I would have come to visit you long ago. I feel so ashamed to ask you two to come in person now. I'm sorry for not welcoming you in person. Please come in."

"it is good."

The Wang brothers were cheered up and felt very proud.

Zhang Luan did not look down on the two brothers at all because of their status as scholars.

Nowadays, any scholar who has achieved fame will have his eyes set on the best. For example, those who can enter the Imperial Academy as a student are definitely considered the best among scholars - after all, after graduating from the Imperial Academy, students can become officials just like Juren, and can easily become a local teacher and become a model of scholars.

……

……

The two members of the Wang family and Zhang Luan entered the main hall together.

The three of them took their seats one by one, and Zhang Yanling consciously stood behind Zhang Luan. At first glance, he looked like a servant, but Zhang Luan quickly introduced his son to them.

"Your young master is really...dignified."

After all, the Wang brothers didn't know Zhang Yanling's worth. Judging from his appearance alone, he was just a child, so they couldn't compliment him on his knowledge, as that would seem too hypocritical and deliberate. Instead, it would be better to praise him on his appearance.

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "I followed my father to the north and broadened my horizons along the way. After arriving in Beijing, I was taught by my family teacher and learned a lot. I have gained a lot. I am honored to meet you two elders again today."

The Wang brothers looked at each other and were amazed.

This child has a pretty good ability to handle situations. When meeting with his elders, he can speak so easily with a smile on his face. This at least shows that he has a good psychological quality.

"My son is about the same age as you."

Wang Yuan didn't say anything, but Wang Qing on the side said something casually.

Wang Yuan is only about thirty-five or thirty-six years old, and his younger brother Wang Qing is only in his early thirties. There is a big age difference between them and Zhang Luan, and they seem like two generations apart.

However, because Zhang Yanling was not the eldest son in the family and had an older brother, it was normal for him to be of the same age as Wang Qing's son.

Zhang Yanling did not know much about Wang Qing's family background. After all, Wang Qing died in the 13th year of Jiajing. At that time, Emperor Jiajing Zhu Houzhao had already reorganized the titles of foreign relatives, and Wang Qing's title was not passed down. He was directly "eliminated as a precedent."

However, Zhang Yanling knew that Wang Yuan's eldest son was named Wang Qiao. In the third year of Jiajing, he inherited the title of Earl of Rui'an instead of the title of Marquis, but was eventually deprived of his title by Emperor Jiajing.

Zhang Luan couldn't help but say, "Then... if we have free time, we can let the younger generations meet more often and learn and improve together, how about that?"

"This……"

Wang Qing was actually a little unhappy, and thought to himself: My son will definitely be the future pillar of the family. He studies well and knows right from wrong. He will be a top student even in the cram school. Maybe he can even become the top scholar in the future... And your son, although he doesn't seem to be stage-frightened, this is his only advantage, right?
Wang Yuan, who was standing next to him, felt extremely close to Zhang Luan's words.

After all, given the Zhang family's current embarrassing situation, if the Wang family interacts too frequently with the Zhang family, they might be suspected, and it is even possible that someone might impeach them in order to gain recognition in front of the emperor.

But if it is just interaction between younger generations, there will be no such concern.

Now that Zhang Luan has taken the initiative to raise this point, it is enough to show that the other party does not regard them as outsiders and has fully considered the various possibilities of future exchanges between the two families.

Wang Yuan smiled and said, "Second brother, Zhang Honglu means well. It is indeed possible to allow the next generation to visit each other more often in the future. By the way, Zhang Honglu, why don't you meet your eldest son?"

Before coming, the Wang brothers did their homework.

In addition to a little daughter, the Zhang family also has two sons. The eldest son is about fifteen years old and should not be the child in front of him who looks only a little over ten years old.

"The dog..."

Zhang Luan was too embarrassed to mention his disappointing eldest son.

I am now bringing my awesome youngest son to chat with you, showing my respect for you. Yet you don't appreciate it and even ask me where my eldest son is?
If you knew that the gap between my two sons is as big as that between heaven and earth, you would never say such things.

Zhang Yanling smiled and continued, "My brother has been studying hard and staying indoors lately. I happened to be at home today, so I accompanied my father to meet the two elders. My father also hopes that I can gain more experience and knowledge so that I can treat people better in the future."

"Yep."

Zhang Luan agreed mechanically.

Wang Yuan smiled and said, "Zhang Honglu, your son is quite good. He can speak so clearly in front of others. You must have taught him well. Second brother, do you think so?"

"Yeah."

Wang Qing nodded hurriedly.

Anyway, it's just a compliment to others, and it doesn't require much effort, so just agree to it.

Zhang Luan glanced at his son and thought, there are many people praising my son, but it is rare to see people praising him from your perspective.

But it’s better this way. I can’t let you know how capable my son is, otherwise you will be jealous, or even hate him out of jealousy, or even covet my son, which would be bad.

……

……

The Wang brothers and Zhang Luan only met for the sake of courtesy and did not have many words to talk about.

The gifts they brought were not valuable, or they could not afford valuable things. Instead, when they were leaving, Zhang Luan took out two cans of Huangshan Yunwu Tea as a gift, which surprised the Wang brothers.

"This is a gift from someone else, so just think of it as a token of my appreciation. I hope you two won't mind." Zhang Luan said with a smile.

"This... Huangshan Cloud Tea is extremely valuable. You can't buy it even if you have money. How could I despise it?"

The Wang brothers sniffed the tea fragrance that seemed to penetrate the jar, looking honored.

The gifts I brought with me were not good enough at all. Any tea they took out looked like a divine product.

As expected, when comparing the in-laws, one cannot rely on their seniority, but also on their family background.

They were also wondering, how much did Zhang Qi, the Liaodong governor, embezzle? How could his family be so wealthy? Even his cousin had such strong financial resources?
"Come often in the future."

Zhang Luan greeted.

"Brother Laizhan, please come to my humble abode when you have time."

Wang Yuan smiled and said, "We have to visit each other every day. After all, we will see each other in the court every day, so our two families must visit each other more often, so that our friendship will become deeper and deeper.

"Farewell!"

(End of this chapter)