Zhou Shaojin was a little dazed.
Cheng Chi only said that he grew up in the capital, but did not say who chose him or how he came to be in charge of the Seven Stars Hall.
Is there something else fishy going on here
Zhou Shaojin thought of Old Madam Guo.
Thinking about Cheng Chi who has not gotten married yet.
She had a vague feeling that these things might be related to Cheng Chi's parents and brother...
Zhou Shaojin didn't dare to think about it anymore, nor did he dare to ask any more questions.
She stood up obediently, made another cup of tea for Cheng Chi, and handed it to Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi took the teacup with a smile, smelled the tea, and took a sip.
He was a little reluctant to say it.
But today is an opportunity.
Perhaps if he missed this opportunity, he would never be able to tell Shao Jin so frankly.
"It was the ancestor of the second branch who chose me to be in charge of Qixing Hall." Just when Zhou Shaojin thought that Cheng Chi would not tell her any more secrets of the Cheng family, Cheng Chi continued slowly, "I have been naughty since I was a child. I did a lot of things like climbing up the roof, lifting the tiles, and going down to the river to fish. This annoyed my father. My father was so angry that he often threatened to send me to the Xishan camp to be a warrior." As he spoke, he smiled lightly. His smile was relaxed and gentle, and it could be seen that he was in a good mood.
Uncle Chi should have a good relationship with his father.
Zhou Shaojin was thinking in his heart, but in a flash he saw a sharp light flashing in Cheng Chi's eyes, saying: "The Cheng family is a family of scholars, how could they send me to the Xishan Camp to be a warrior? It can be seen that there are some things that cannot be arrogant - when I was seven years old, my father passed away. After mourning for my father for 49 days, my brothers were still at home, but I was sent back to the capital and began to practice martial arts with Qin Zongguan's father!"
It can be seen that Cheng Chi is very dissatisfied with this arrangement.
Was it because the decision of his elders had cut off his career path? Or was it because he had suffered too much while practicing martial arts
The thought flashed through Zhou Shaojin's mind, and Zhou Shaojin quickly denied the latter.
Uncle Chi must have suffered a lot to get to where he is today.
Since he can endure suffering, it is impossible that he is unhappy because of his martial arts training.
That is the arrangement for the elders
Zhou Shaojin didn't know what to say, so he had to pour Cheng Chi another cup of tea.
This time, Cheng Chi did not reach out to take it. Instead, he stared at the teacup in front of him and whispered, "My father died on July 4th, the 15th year of Yongchang, in the Dingchou year. That summer, he caught a cold and delayed his treatment due to work. By the time he realized something was wrong, he had already developed tuberculosis and died soon after.
"At that time, he had been promoted to the position of Left Censor-in-Chief of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, a second-rank official, one of the Nine Minor Officials. If he took another step forward, he would have been appointed as a prime minister. The ancestor of the second branch of the family was already a Grand Secretary of the Yingwu Palace and the Minister of Personnel. The main reason why my father had not yet entered the cabinet was because the ancestor of the second branch of the family was his cousin.
“It is impossible for the court to allow both uncle and nephew to serve in the cabinet at the same time.
"The ancestor of the second branch was already over 60 years old, but my father was still in his 50s. Everyone said that after the ancestor of the second branch retired in a few years, my father could join the cabinet.
“But my father died before the second branch’s ancestor.
"Also, my two elder brothers have both passed the imperial examinations. One is now serving as the Left Censor of the Ministry of Works, and the other has just been selected as a Scholar-in-Chief and is now observing government affairs in the Ministry of War.
"But when my father passed away, my two brothers had to return home to observe the mourning period. The eldest brother was lucky, as he had been selected as a Shujishi, but the second brother had no chance of becoming a Shujishi and could only become an ordinary Jinshi."
Zhou Shaojin gradually figured out what was going on.
The eldest son's career originally had a bright future, but it became uncertain due to the death of Cheng Xun.
She said, "Is that so? That's why the Second Old Master came out to support the family at that time."
There was a period of time when Cheng Shao was very popular, and many people thought that he would be ranked second in the Six Departments.
Cheng Chi sneered and said, "When negotiating with others, you naturally have to have a trump card! When my father was alive, he had different political views from the second branch's ancestor. When my father passed away, the second branch's ancestor even argued with my second uncle over whether my father's body should be kept for 49 days or 62 days."
If the elder is still alive and the younger one dies first, it is considered unfilial and the younger one cannot observe the full mourning period of 49 days. If one wants to observe the mourning period, it can only be 67 days (42 days) or 57 days (35 days).
At that time, Cheng Chi's grandfather Cheng Bei had passed away.
He didn't let Cheng Chi and others perform a 49-day ritual for Cheng Xun. Wasn't it because he felt it was not good for Cheng Xun as a living elder
Zhou Shaojin was very angry and asked, "Can't he be more tolerant?"
Cheng Chi said disdainfully: "Now that his father is gone, he has nothing to worry about. Who is he being tolerant for?"
yes!
Why should he be afraid of or tolerant of people like the Cheng family who are completely incapable of shaking his foundation...
"So my second uncle had to try his best, hoping that he could promote my two brothers when they were re-employed after the mourning period..."
Zhou Shaojin's heart moved, and she couldn't help but mutter, "So, the second old master finally went to the Hanlin Academy to be a lecturer, and Uncle Jing was appointed as the chief clerk of the Dali Temple as soon as he was appointed. He was promoted to the Dali Temple Secretary in just half a year, and then to the Dali Temple Junior Secretary in another year... Uncle Wei also went directly to the Hanlin Academy... And you were also involved. You want to learn martial arts from Qin Zongguan's father so that you can take over the Qixing Hall..." As she spoke, she raised her head suddenly, her face flushed with anger, "Can't you resist? Can't you just sit there and let him manipulate you?"
Also, since this was the result of a struggle between the first and second branches, the fact that Uncle Chi was chosen to take charge of the Seven Stars Hall was something that everyone in the first branch agreed to!
This also includes Uncle Chi’s biological mother, Mrs. Guo, and his brothers Cheng Jing and Cheng Wei!
Uncle Chi… was only seven years old at that time… still an ignorant child… If he had not been gifted and intelligent and had not passed the imperial examination, perhaps he would have been a pawn managing mundane affairs all his life!
That’s why Uncle Chi ran away from home in his previous life!
But when Uncle Chi knew that the Cheng family was raided and Cheng Xu was executed, he still came back to save Cheng Xu and took Cheng Xu all the way south... Uncle Chi looks cold and heartless, but he is actually a soft-hearted person!
As she looked at Cheng Chi, it seemed as if a seed in her heart had taken root and sprouted, breaking through the soil.
Cheng Chi did not notice Zhou Shaojin's mood. He smiled bitterly and said, "Although my second uncle is well-educated, he is a bit bookish. It's okay for him to entertain those evildoers in the officialdom for a while, but after a long time, he will be a little overwhelmed. Otherwise, he would not have been hiding in the Hanlin Academy for so many years... He has no intention of being an official, and he doesn't even want to be a chief priest."
Zhou Shaojin thought of Mr. Wu, whom he met at Hanbi Mountain Villa, who seemed to be Cheng Shao's aide.
Mr. Wu came that time because Cheng Jing recommended him to be the chief academic officer of the Imperial College. Cheng Shao sent Mr. Wu to plead with Mrs. Guo.
But she still felt angry when she thought about the treatment Cheng Chi received, and said, "That can't be the case! You are so young, and although you are active, who can be sure that you have a talent for martial arts?" After that, she asked Cheng Chi, "Your martial arts must be very high, right?" Then, without waiting for Cheng Chi to answer, she continued, "You didn't officially fight with people outside at that time. What if your martial arts are not as superb as imagined? Wouldn't you end up with the same fate as Old Master Li? How could they do this?"
Zhou Shaojin's sweet voice, and the aggrieved and unwilling emotions contained in it, made Cheng Chi suddenly feel that all the unfair treatment he had received in the past had become his wealth - if he had not been in charge of the Seven Stars Hall and was just an ordinary scholar, when he met Zhou Shaojin, would he dare to hug this girl who had laid her heart in front of him and allowed him to ravage her at will
What really made him feel angry was when he was eighteen years old and Qin Zining died in front of him but he was powerless to do anything.
For the first time, he witnessed the cruelty and bloodiness of the underworld.
In the past, these cruelties and bloodshed were just stories told by other people.
When it happens to him, you will realize how sad and angry you are in your heart.
But he was faced with many thorns along the way, and had no time to feel compassion or to reminisce. He grew up quickly, learned to treat others with the same cruelty and bloodiness, and also realized that the pain in life can sometimes become wealth in life, guiding you on a smoother path.
But knowing is knowing.
Whenever he thought of Qin Zining's death, he would feel uncontrollable pain in his heart... and it was hard to let go!
Only this time, he calmly accepted the things that he had previously considered unfair.
Perhaps, this is the feeling of being dependent on each other
Cheng Chi looked at Zhou Shaojin quietly, with a cheerful smile on his face. For the first time, he took seriously what Qin Zongguan's father had said about him: "Master Qin said that I am a martial arts genius that only appears once in a hundred years..."
"That can't be the case!" Zhou Shaojin was still dissatisfied and interrupted Cheng Chi with a coquettish look, "Sailing and riding a horse is already dangerous, not to mention that you are with desperate criminals like Xiao Zhenhai every day? The ancestor of the second house will not say in front of you that this is a good thing, right? Cheng Shi is not young anymore and has two sons. Why doesn't he let Cheng Shi take over the Seven Stars Hall? Cheng Shi is only a juren, and you are a jinshi! Who is more important and who is less important, anyone with a discerning eye can tell! If he thinks Cheng Shi doesn't practice martial arts, doesn't Cheng Shi have two sons? Then just pick one of them..." She also felt that all these things were caused by the Seven Stars Hall, and said, "I think we should not open the Seven Stars Hall. Don't those people want it? Just give it to them. You'd better not worry about those things and live in peace for a few days! As for the income of the Seven Stars Hall, the moon is full and the water is overflowing. The Cheng family has been rich for so many years, and it's time to let go!" When she said this, she thought of a more serious matter.
She leaned forward and approached Cheng Chi, whispering, "Uncle Chi, look, in the previous life, the Cheng family was raided. Could it be related to the Seven Stars Hall? The knights violated the law with their martial arts, and the imperial court has always been very strict about such matters!"
Cheng Chi looked at her pink and shiny face, which was so smooth that there was not even a tiny flaw. Her black and white eyes seemed to be filled with water, which could make people indulge in it. He couldn't help but gently flicked her forehead and smiled, "Didn't you say that the Cheng family was confiscated because my eldest brother was disrespectful in front of the palace and my second brother was found to be embezzling? If it was because of the Seven Stars Hall incident, the emperor could have accused the Cheng family of treason. Why bother finding such a ridiculous excuse?"
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Sisters and brothers, I’m sorry, I’m in a hurry and the typos can only be corrected tomorrow!
Tomorrow's additional update will still be around 5pm. If there are any special circumstances, we will notify everyone in advance.
Good night everyone!
O(∩_∩)O~
※(To be continued)