A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 469 Autumn Chrysanthemum
"Rou Niang, Er Lang has returned from Yu Su Township."

A maid dressed in a high-waisted ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) trotted into the small courtyard of the west wing to inform Zheng Rouniang of the news.

Zheng Rou Niang was watering the flowers in the courtyard. Although the courtyard was not large, it was decorated very warmly. There was a pomegranate tree in the courtyard and an osmanthus tree in the corner.

At this time of year, the osmanthus flowers have just faded, but the chrysanthemums under the corridor are blooming one after another.

August is the month of osmanthus, and September is the month of chrysanthemum.

Chrysanthemums bloom after the frost, and their fragrance arrives in September. Zheng Rou Niang planted many varieties of chrysanthemums because she loved their proud and noble beauty as they defied the frost.

Some of these chrysanthemums are elegant and graceful, some are magnificent like a rainbow, some are pure white that defies frost and snow, and some are like dragons and phoenixes dancing, their fragrance soaring to the sky.

Zheng Rou Niang knew that her second brother was on their father's orders to go to Wuji Fort in Yusu Township to see Li Yi and discuss his marriage on the eighth day of the ninth month.

Her face was as cold as ice, but the corners of her mouth were slightly upturned, and her eyebrows were curved.

"Rou Niang, I think Erlang seems very unhappy. He started cursing as soon as he came in. The servant was a little slow in leading the horse and was whipped twice."

Zheng Rou Niang's heart tightened, and she put down the kettle in her hand.

"I'll go take a look."

She even forgot to take off the apron she was wearing as she hurriedly left the courtyard and headed towards the main hall.

The main hall of the Zheng family was also the central hall, shaped like the Chinese character "工" (gong).

The north and south halls are connected by a corridor in the middle.

Her father was in the south hall at that moment. As soon as she entered, she heard her brother angrily complaining to their father about Li Yi and listing all his rudeness.

Hearing that Li Yi refused to come to pick up the bride and made the Zheng family send the bride themselves, and even demanded a dowry of at least one million and a compensation of one million for the family's expenses.

Zheng Rouniang stood at the door, somewhat stunned.

Zheng Shanguo looked up and saw his daughter arrive. Suppressing his anger, he said, "Rou Niang is here. Come in and listen to what's happening."

He sat upright in the main hall, wearing a fine silk robe with large floral patterns and a gold and jade belt around his waist, holding a celadon teacup from the Gongxian kiln in his hand.

The principal wife, Madam Lu, sat beside her, her head adorned with jewels, gleaming with precious stones.

Zheng Rou Niang remembered that when her grandmother, Old Madam Cui, was still alive, the family was frugal. From the old lady to her father and stepmother, the whole family often wore coarse silk clothes, which were all sewn by themselves. Unless it was for ancestral worship or entertaining guests, there would be no wine or meat on the table at home.

At that time, the stepmother, Lady Lu, although she came from the Lu family of Fanyang, only wore one or two silver hairpins.

However, during the reign of Emperor Dali, after his grandmother, Madam Cui, passed away, his father gradually became extravagant. He was no longer as honest and upright as before, and he no longer completely refused gifts from others. The number of guests visiting his home also increased.

The jewelry and clothing of the stepmother, concubines, and aunts gradually became more luxurious and extravagant.

Since his father returned to Chang'an after surrendering to the Tang Dynasty, he has gradually gained importance in the court. He is now the Left Vice-Minister to the Crown Prince and concurrently the Minister of Civil Affairs, and has just taken on the additional role of Acting Minister of the Court of Judicial Review.

The family became more extravagant. For example, his elder brother Xuanxu formed a polo team, and his stepmother Lu also organized a women's polo team. These two polo teams alone cost a great deal of money.

Zheng Xuandu shouted, "Father and Mother, how can such a thing happen in the world? Li Yi, relying on his status as a prince and Minister of Works, actually wants us to pay him a million in compensation."

One million is indeed not a lot of money. Our Zheng family of Xingyang, the third branch of the Northern Ancestor, can afford this amount, but this is unreasonable.

"If we pay this money, wouldn't the whole world laugh at the Zheng family for currying favor with the powerful and having no shame whatsoever?"

The eldest son, Zheng Xuanxu, was also furious. "This Li Yi is simply taking advantage of our kindness. He's done this repeatedly. I think he's doing it on purpose. He doesn't want to form a marriage alliance with our family at all. He's just doing this on purpose."

Madam Lu was so angry she wanted to smash her teacup. "What kind of background does Li Yi have? Does he even deserve to ask our Xingyang Zheng family for compensation? When he married the daughter of the Du family of Jingzhao, he gave them a million in compensation. Our Xingyang Zheng family is far superior to the Du family. We are the most prestigious family in the world!"

The surname Jia is the head of all the noble families in the land.

Zheng Shanguo's face was gloomy, suppressing his anger, and he asked his second son many details, especially Li Yi's original words, tone and expression at the time.

After hearing that, I got even angrier.

Li Yi truly disregarded him and the Zheng family, even claiming that the Zheng family wanted to curry favor with him.

"I'll go to the Crown Prince and ask him to cancel this marriage." Zheng Shanguo had never suffered such humiliation before. It was only when he was forced to follow the regicide Yuwen Huaji northward, where he was captured after failing to oversee the siege of a city in Hebei.
He was mocked by Dou Jiande, who came from a peasant background, which angered him so much that he hanged himself.

This was the second great humiliation he had suffered in his life. Li Yi had previously caused trouble several times, even investigating the Zheng family in Henan, arresting his illegitimate son and imprisoning him, and forcing the Zheng family to lend money and grain to the government.

He could tell that Li Yi was not only arrogant, but also full of hostility towards the Zheng family and had no intention of getting married.

If he agrees to these conditions, the Zheng family will lose all face and will never be able to stand up among the gentry again.

How could the reputation of the Zheng family, as leaders of aristocratic clans, be preserved?

Zheng Shanguo got up to change his clothes and go to the East Palace to see the Crown Prince.

Zheng Rou Niang snapped out of her daze and hurried forward. "Father, Mother, Brother, Rou Niang has a few words to say."

“There’s nothing more to say. Li Yi is doing this on purpose; he has no intention of getting married.” Madam Lu said bluntly, “You are a daughter of the Zheng family of Xingyang. If this matter is dropped, your mother will find you a good match. Cui, Lu, Li, Wang, Wei, Yang, Pei, Xue, Liu, Du, Xiao, Shen, Wu, Zhang—any one of them would be better than Li Yi’s family.”

“Mother, what Rou Niang wants to say is that the Crown Prince acted as matchmaker, His Majesty issued an imperial decree to grant the marriage, and a contract has already been signed. The Princess of Wu'an has also sent betrothal gifts to the family.”

"There's no reason to go back on your word now." Zheng Shanguo frowned.

Madam Lu was also dissatisfied, "What nonsense are you talking about? Li Yi is deliberately bullying my Zheng family. How can you still be siding with outsiders? What kind of bewitching potion did Li Yi give you?"

Or is it true, as the rumors say, that you secretly met with Li Yi in Luoyang and did something improper, something that couldn't be done in public?

Zheng Rou Niang blushed, never expecting her stepmother to say such a thing to her.

She bit her lip and insisted, "Mother, the betrothal contract has been signed and the betrothal gifts have been given. Now, the only thing missing is the formal marriage ceremony. But I am just a concubine of the Li family and have no right to such a grand ceremony."

Whether by law or tradition, I am now a concubine of the Li family.

"Daughter, you can go to Wuji Fort in Yusu Township by yourself on the eighth day."

Zheng Shanguo's beard trembled with rage. "You scoundrel, how could you say such shameless things!"

"Father, without the imperial decree and the betrothal contract, my daughter going to the Li family would be considered an elopement, and I would accept it even if you beat me to death. But now, with the Crown Prince as matchmaker, the Emperor's decree of marriage, and the family having signed a contract with the Prince of Wu'an's mansion and received betrothal gifts..."

I am now Li Jiaying's wife.

"At home, she obeys her father; after marriage, she obeys her husband. A married daughter is like water spilled from a bowl; she is already a member of the Li family, and even in death, she will be a ghost of the Li family..."

Zheng Shanguo pointed at his daughter, his hand trembling.

He may have neglected this illegitimate daughter before. When the Crown Prince proposed to give one of his illegitimate daughters to Li Yi as a concubine, he agreed. At that time, the Tang Dynasty had just been established, and his position in the court was not stable. He could not refuse the Crown Prince's proposal and also wanted to form a marriage alliance with Li Yi, who was popular in the court, to gain more support.

Who could have imagined things would turn out this way?
Now even his daughter is betraying him like this.

"You wicked child, I'll beat you to death."

Zheng Rou Niang stood there and spoke coldly, like an autumn chrysanthemum defying frost and snow, "Father, now I am a concubine of the Li family. If you want to beat me to death, you must first ask your husband."

"This is outrageous! This is lawless!" Madam Lu shrieked, exasperated.

Zheng Rou Niang simply said, "I'll pack my things and go to the Wuji Fortress in Yusu Township soon, so I won't stay and upset Father."

Madam Lu was furious. "How dare you disobey your father! You shameless little slut, siding with outsiders! Do you really think Li Yi would even look at you?"

You want to elope to the Li family, but do you have a million-dollar dowry and a million-dollar settlement? You have nothing. Do you think Li Yi will want you?

“My husband is not the kind of unreasonable person. I met and talked with him at the Chanhe Manor in Luoyang. He is a gentle and reasonable person, a gentleman.”

In a word,

This infuriated the Zheng family in the hall. His parents and brothers all started cursing at him, and even the steward and manager joined in the criticism.

But Zheng Rou Niang still stood tall in the hall.
"Father, Mother, and my two brothers, since all my aunts are so angry with me, I'm leaving now. I don't want a single penny of dowry, nor do I want any of your money to cover the cost of your wedding, and I won't take any of your servants with me..."

After saying this, Zheng Rouniang knelt down and kowtowed to Zheng Shanguo and his wife, and then kowtowed to her birth mother, Gao.

After kowtowing, he stood up, turned around, and left.

His resolute demeanor left the whole family speechless with shock.

After a long silence, Zheng Xuanxu angrily said, "Father, I'll take some men to tie her up!"

Zheng Shanguo's expression shifted between light and dark. He sighed deeply, "Fine, let her go if she wants. She brought this upon herself. If she's to be looked down upon by Li Yi, it's her own fault. I'll just pretend I don't have this daughter."

Madam Lu said anxiously from the side, "My lord, we can't let this wretched maid act so recklessly. Our Zheng family of Xingyang can't afford to lose face like this."

Zheng Shanguo waved his hand, "Stop talking. This is the end. You are not allowed to mention her again."

This daughter is so loyal to outsiders, so what if we hang her up and beat her? Can we just beat her to death?
If she can't be killed, and she runs to the Li family, how can the Zheng family arrest her?
Rou Niang was right about something: although they weren't officially married yet, this illegitimate daughter was essentially a concubine for the Li family, albeit a high-ranking one. The traditional betrothal gifts and marriage contract had already been signed, and with the Crown Prince acting as matchmaker and the Emperor bestowing the marriage upon them...
This daughter is indeed a concubine of the Li family now; she is a member of the Li family. If she goes to the Li family, the Zheng family has no right to arrest her and bring her back.

Of course, these are not the main points.

The key point is that he was clear about the Crown Prince's attitude towards Li Yi. Even though Li Yi had always kept his distance from the Crown Prince and remained indifferent, the Crown Prince cared about Li Yi's position in the court, especially his position in the Emperor's heart, and had been trying to win him over.

If he were to plead with the Crown Prince to dissolve his daughter's engagement, the Crown Prince might not agree. Even if the Crown Prince did agree, the Emperor might not.

Making a scene will only air your dirty laundry in public and make you a laughingstock for the whole world; it won't do you any good.

Now that Rou Niang is going to the Li family, it would be better to let her go alone. If Li Yi refuses to let Rou Niang in or mistreats his daughter, he can then have a legitimate reason to cause trouble for Li Yi, and that would be a different matter altogether.

After all,

Li Yi's family background was far inferior to his, but his status and power far surpassed his. In particular, the Crown Prince's attitude of trying to win over Li Yi left him feeling helpless.

What he couldn't understand was why Li Yi did this.
Others would be overjoyed to be able to form marriage alliances with the five surnames and take women from the five surnames as concubines, so why should Li Yi refuse, and even offend the Zheng family in this way?

Zheng Shanguo couldn't understand. Was it simply because of the Zheng family's previous attitude, or because the Zheng family hadn't cooperated when Li Yi asked them to take the lead in donating money and grain in Henan, and the young man had held a grudge ever since?
Li Yi seems very clever. How could he offend the Zheng family of Xingyang over such a trivial matter?

not understand,
I really don't understand.

But Zheng Shanguo will not let this go so easily.

(End of this chapter)