You tell me, is it too much for me to give such a good girl two taels of silver every time
Zhu Shouren's sighs were like heavy hammers, hammering down on the soft hearts of Mr. Zhu, Mrs. Zhu, the third and fourth sons, and everyone else present. It was also like a 3000cc tube of chicken blood that was suddenly pressurized and poured into the blood vessels of everyone present...
"Is that too much?! Zhu Shouren! How dare you ask such a question?! Damn it, are you trying to piss me off so that we can split up the family?! With your lazy look, you would have starved to death hundreds of times if we split up the family! If I don't beat you to death today, you bastard, I'll take your last name!"
Mr. Zhu was the first to react. With lightning speed and the spirit of sacrificing relatives for the greater good, he used almost all his strength to swing the fire stick at Zhu Shouren!
"Dad, you take my brother's last name, isn't it still Zhu?" The fourth brother, who was watching the fun at the side, was indeed a bystander who saw things more clearly. He grasped the loopholes in Grandpa Zhu's words as keenly as Sherlock Holmes and uttered a thought-provoking soul-searching question.
"What the hell!"
After hearing what the fourth brother said, Mr. Zhu felt a surge of rage gushing out from his dantian. All of a sudden, he felt a surge of strength all over his body, and he swung the fire poker in his hand, leaving an afterimage.
Seeing that the fire stick was about to make a close contact with Zhu Shouren at this critical moment!
An old hand grabbed the fire stick! It was Old Lady Zhu!
"You still want to protect this rebellious son?!" Old Master Zhu suddenly exploded and roared at Old Lady Zhu.
It was still mother who came to his rescue at the critical moment. Zhu Shouren, who was hiding behind Old Lady Zhu, breathed a sigh of relief.
"No, the fire stick is not strong enough. Try this one instead."
Old Mrs. Zhu shook her head and handed over a thick mallet for pounding clothes that she had obtained at some point in her life.
Zhu Shouren... ...
"Dad, Mom, please spare me, I was wrong... Ah... It hurts..."
"Don't hit me in the face, don't hit me in the face, Dad..."
From the Zhu family's old house came Zhu Shouren's screams like a pig being slaughtered and his pleas for mercy, which became louder and louder.
"It's not a festival, why are they slaughtering pigs at the Zhu family mansion? What happy event is this..."
"Who knows what happy event there is? Maybe one of the daughters-in-law in the old Zhu family mansion is pregnant. The old Zhu family is also blind. In the early years, the second family was divided and let the second family take the blame. As a result, Ping'anlang from the second family worked hard and passed the exams one after another. In the end, he produced a top scholar, and the second family soared to the sky. The eldest son of the Zhu family, who was protected by the old Zhu family mansion, is still an old student. He has been taking exams for more than 20 years, but he has not even passed the exam to become a scholar."
People who were basking in the sun at the entrance of the village heard faint screams coming from the Zhu family's old house. They thought that the Zhu family was slaughtering pigs and speculated whether there was another happy event in the Zhu family.
If there were not two scholars named Hu Wei and Xia Qiang who came to the old house to look for Zhu Shouren, Zhu Shouren would not know how long he would be beaten.
At the junction of Xiahe Village and Shanghe Village, there is an archway near Xiahe Village with three large characters "Zhuangyuanfang" inscribed on it. In front of the Zhuangyuanfang there is a pavilion named Zhuangyuan Pavilion.
Zhuangyuanfang was built after Zhu Ping'an passed the imperial examination at the request of the village head of Xiahe Village and funded by the local county government.
The Zhuangyuan Pavilion was built with funds provided by the local county government when Zhu Ping'an was promoted to the fifth-rank bachelor of the Hanlin Academy.
At this moment, Zhu Shouren, with his clothes fluttering, led his two friends to visit Zhuangyuanfang and Zhuangyuan Pavilion.
"Brother Hu, Brother Xia, please..."
Zhu Shouren, with his clothes fluttering, extended his hand gracefully and invited the two to come closer to have a look.
If it weren't for the bruises on his face and the limp he walked with, he would have certainly been more graceful and dignified.
"Brother Zhu, your injuries are not serious, why don't you go see a doctor first?"
Hu Wei couldn't help but glance at the injuries on Zhu Shouren's face and body, and asked with concern.
"Yes, Brother Zhu, it is important to heal the wound first." Xia Qiang also said.
"These are just minor injuries, not worth mentioning. Alas, it's cold to be alone in a high place. The whole family is muddy but I am clear, and all relatives are drunk but I am sober. My family members don't understand my determination to study, and they force me to give up literature and go into business, or even farming. Although I, Zhu Shouren, cannot compare with the saints of ancient and modern times, I also have a firm heart to study. How can I agree to my family's unreasonable request, so I got all these injuries... ... Family disgrace should not be spread far and wide, otherwise it will only make my two good friends laugh at me."
Zhu Shouren sighed, and the image of a lonely student who was not understood by his family was fully and successfully portrayed. He concealed the truth that he was beaten up for visiting prostitutes and wasting money, and changed it to the fact that his family forced him to give up his studies and do business or farming, but he insisted on studying even if he was beaten.
This was also the reason why, when the two friends arrived at the Zhu family's old house, Mr. Zhu and others felt that family disgrace should not be made public. In addition, they also had to put the overall situation first and prevent Zhu Shouren from being unable to take the imperial examination because of his stain. So, when the two friends arrived, Mr. Zhu let Zhu Shouren go.
It was also because of this that Zhu Shouren had the opportunity to confuse right and wrong.
"Brother Zhu's desire to learn is truly admirable to us." Hu Wei and Xia Qiang couldn't help but admire him.
“No, no, it’s just normal... Ouch..." Zhu Shouren grinned indifferently. His smile pulled the wound on his face and he couldn't help but groan in pain, which was quite funny.
"Let's not talk about this anymore. My two friends, please take a look at this couplet on Zhuangyuanfang: 'Where there is a will, there is a way. After burning their boats, the 120 Qin passes finally belonged to Chu. Where there is a hard work, heaven will not let it down. After sleeping on firewood and tasting gall, the 3,000 Yue troops were able to conquer Wu.' This was written by my nephew himself. It was originally written for Wu nephew to encourage learning during his tenure. Later, it was copied by someone and carved here after being circulated for a while."
Zhu Shouren guided Hu Wei and Xia Qiang to look at the couplet.
"What a great literary talent! Your nephew is indeed a top scholar. This couplet is the best choice for encouraging learning. It is unprecedented and will never be surpassed. This couplet tells people that they must be persistent and perseverant in doing things. A person with ambition and hard work will eventually succeed."
After reading the couplet, Hu Wei expressed his amazement and praised it highly.
"Ah, isn't this what we are talking about Brother Zhu? Brother Zhu persists in his desire to study and would rather be beaten than change his mind. Isn't he a man of ambition and hard work? It seems that Brother Zhu will be able to achieve his goals.'" Xia Qiang sighed and said to Zhu Shouren with a smile.
"Haha, Brother Xia, you are too kind. In fact, to be honest, it was me who helped my nephew Ping'an to study. In order to encourage him to study hard, I always set an example myself and told him many anecdotes about sages and celebrities. My nephew liked the two stories I told him the most, namely, Xiang Yu's burning of his boats and Goujian's sleeping on brushwood and tasting gall. He often pestered me to tell them. I think it was for this reason that Ping'an wrote this couplet..." Zhu Shouren stroked his beard with one hand and put the other hand behind his back, sighing as if reminiscing about the past, and shared some of the credit for the couplet without blushing.
"Oh, I didn't expect that there is such a story behind this couplet. Behind Mr. Zhu's success in the imperial examination, there is Brother Zhu's hard work and cultivation. Brother Zhu is so talented..." Hu Wei complimented him repeatedly.
"Brother Zhu and Lord Zhu really have a deep uncle-nephew relationship." Upon hearing this, Xia Qiang couldn't help but sigh.
"It's not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning." Zhu Shouren waved his hand modestly and raised his head high. Everyone could see the pride on his face.
"I wonder why Brother Zhu invited us here for this gathering?" Hu Wei seemed to suddenly remember something and asked.
"Ahem, I got the news a few days ago that my nephew Ping'an has made great contributions in the fight against the Japanese pirates, and he will definitely be promoted soon. As the saying goes, reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. We have been studying hard in the county for so many years, and it is time to travel ten thousand miles. Therefore, I want to invite two good friends to go to Yingtian together, firstly to celebrate my nephew Ping'an's promotion, and secondly to introduce my two good friends to my nephew Ping'an. The several servants who followed my nephew Ping'an at the beginning have now been promoted to seventh-rank military officers for their merits. My two good friends are talented and their talents are thousands of times better than those servants. What can those servants do and how can they shoulder such a heavy responsibility? Only great sages like my two good friends can provide help to my nephew Ping'an and help him achieve an unprecedented feat."
Zhu Shouren coughed, looked at Hu Wei and Xia Qiang sincerely, and extended an invitation.