Chapter 221: The Road to High Office 21

Chapter 221: The Road to High Office 21

The clothing store was intended to be managed by Cheng Ge Er in the future, so Xu Linshi did not unilaterally decide what to sell. Instead, she discussed it with him when Cheng Ge Er and Hua Luo were handing over the embroidery workshop’s accounts.

During their discussion, Xu Linshi realized her old ways of thinking couldn’t keep up with the younger generation. She simply handed over two hundred taels of silver notes and let Cheng Ge Er handle everything on his own.

She also instructed him that if the silver wasn’t enough, he should send Xia Tian back to Xu Mansion to inform them.

Over time, Xu Zeping had given Cheng Ge Er silver notes totaling no less than five thousand taels. Cheng Ge Er had also made a good deal of money selling private goods from the embroidery workshop, making him quite wealthy.

To be honest, the silver notes given by Xu Zeping alone exceeded the assets of the Xu Family’s second branch.

Therefore, even if Xu Songshan asked Cheng Ge Er to hand over the management of the embroidery workshop, Cheng Ge Er would still be able to survive on his own. Cheng Ge Er didn’t want the silver notes from Xu Linshi—his aunt and uncle had already treated him better than most biological parents.

Seeing him decline, Xu Linshi comforted him, saying, “This is for Pingping’s business. In the future, Pingping will need silver to navigate the officialdom. Don’t drag Pingping down.”

The location for the clothing store had already been scouted by Xu Songshan—it was the pastry shop next to the Xu Family’s embroidery workshop.

Although East Diagonal Street, where the Xu Family’s embroidery workshop was located, was just a side street, the steady flow of customers brought in by the embroidery workshop’s business made it quite lively.

The pastry shop had failed because the owner liked to cut corners, which gradually ruined its reputation, leading to a lack of customers.

The pastry shop owner was renting the store, and now that it was closed, no one had taken it over yet.

Xu Songshan had his eye on the store but hadn’t finalized the deal because he wanted to buy it rather than rent it.

The annual rent for the store was around seventeen to eighteen taels, but buying it could cost just over one hundred taels if they negotiated the price down.

The store was a two-story building, with the ground floor for selling goods and the second floor for Cheng Ge Er to rest.

Although Cheng Ge Er already had a business plan, Xu Songshan was concerned that the store owner might take advantage of Cheng Ge Er’s youth and inexperience during the price negotiation. Therefore, Xu Songshan handled it himself.

It took about ten days of haggling, but the store was eventually acquired for 110 taels. The deed was put under Cheng Ge Er’s name. Since Xu Zeping had already passed the provincial examinations and would soon become an official, it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to be associated with a merchant business.

Putting the store under Cheng Ge Er’s name made it seem like his dowry, which sounded much better.

For this clothing store, Cheng Ge Er planned to do things differently. He would sell only clothes for young ladies and gentlemen here, ranging from undergarments to shoes and socks.

With sufficient funds on hand and Pingping not worrying about him squandering money, Cheng Ge Er felt quite bold.

As soon as the store’s deed was transferred, he threw himself into his new venture.

As a result, Xu Zeping didn’t hear from him for ten days or more. When Xu Zeping missed Cheng Ge Er, he could only watch from a distance. If he tried to sneak over and chat, Cheng Ge Er would send him right back to his studies.

Cheng Ge Er still remembered Pingping’s promise, so the most important thing now was for Pingping to pass the imperial examinations soon!

Xu Zeping’s days of studying at home weren’t entirely peaceful. He had already received numerous invitations from scholars—it was either Wang Xiucai or Li Juren, and even minor clerks from Yongan would invite him to banquets, which annoyed Xu Zeping greatly, making him understand his elder brother’s previous frustrations.

Xu Zeping wasn’t one for pretentious elegance. To avoid these banquet invitations, he planned to return to Jiangping Village to hide for a bit.

It would also give him a chance to check on his new land holdings. Thinking about going back to Jiangping Village reminded him of Xu Fanlin’s situation.

It had been a long time since he learned the truth from Jiangdong Bao, and he still hadn’t figured out how to tell Ah Yang about this matter.

Since his elder brother was about to head to Shang Jing, Xu Zeping decided to ask for his advice.

"Brother."

When Xu Zeping entered the study, Xu Zeli was bent over his desk, writing a policy essay. A stack of drafts was already laid out on the table, each filled with policy essays.

The topics of these essays were all past questions from the spring examinations, each one addressing state governance and current affairs.

Seeing Xu Zeli's essays, Xu Zeping suddenly felt that his own essays seemed like child’s play in comparison.

Xu Zeli's essays not only used words smoothly and precisely, but his viewpoints also seemed naturally fitting, as if they were meant to be. The most striking feature was the uniformly black and square regular script throughout, making it unforgettable at first glance.

"Is there something troubling you?" Xu Zeli glanced up and knew immediately that his youngest brother had something on his mind. He put down his brush and said gently, "Tell me about it."

Unlike Xu Zeping, who had a preference for writing with a brush, Xu Zeli seemed to be a natural calligrapher, able to produce beautiful ink work with ease.

Xu Zeping, on the other hand, preferred hard brushes. This was why he was particularly fond of wolf-hair brushes, and it was also the reason he was unhappy with the soft brushes prepared by Changxiang Prefecture for the imperial examinations.

Soft brushes, which were very popular in the Great Jing Dynasty, were cheaply made, mostly from the scraps of chicken and sheep feathers.

It wasn't that Xu Zeping couldn't write beautifully with soft brushes; it was more like a nobleman accustomed to using fountain pens suddenly being given a pencil, feeling quite stifled.

Xu Zeping took out the envelope from his chest and handed it to Xu Zeli: "Brother, read the letter first."

Xu Zeli read through the contents of the letter quickly, and Hong Dongbao's account soon came to mind, causing him to frown.

Having spent ten years in the bureaucracy in his previous life, Xu Zeli knew some secrets that Xu Zeping did not.

He had wondered why Xu Fanlin, who was fine, would suddenly go missing.

It seemed he had been caught up in the struggle between the elder and second branches of the Hong family.

The youngest, Xu Zeping, can only grasp the surface meaning of the letter, but Xu Zeli can read between the lines. Without Hong Yanchen's permission, how could Li Shu have told Hong Dongbao about the entire sequence of events under such suspicious circumstances?

Xu Zeli knew that after Uncle Fanlin joined the Western River Navy, he was highly favored by Hong Yanchen, rising from an anonymous soldier to a centurion.

At first, he wasn't sure which young general it was, but Hong Dongbao's letter made it clear that the one who valued Uncle Fanlin back then was Hong Yanchen. However, Uncle Fanlin had turned his back on Hong Yanchen and aligned himself with the second branch of the Hong family.

The more Xu Zeli thought about it, the more complicated his feelings became. Hong Yanchen was not someone easy to deal with.

In his previous life, he had met him a few times. Though Hong Yanchen appeared to be a refined and reasonable scholar-general, he was capable of openly defying his father, the Western River Governor, and supporting the Crown Prince. Neither the Governor nor the eldest son's lineage could do anything to stop him. He was far from the benevolent figure he seemed to be on the surface.

Since Hong Yanchen had hinted at this, Xu Zeli closed his eyes, realizing that Xu Fanlin was likely dead.

Seeing the change in his older brother's expression, Xu Zeping guessed that he might know something, but it involved matters from their previous lives. He couldn't ask directly and could only say tentatively, "Brother, how should I explain this to Grandfather Ah Yang? He's like a father figure to us."

"Act as if you don't know anything about this."

Let them keep their hopes alive for now. If the worst happens, Xu Zeli closed his eyes, let them pass on without regrets and reunite with Uncle Fanlin.

Xu Zeping understood what his brother meant and nodded. "Brother, I'll follow your advice."

"It's getting late. Go rest early." Xu Zeli glanced out the window. The pale moonlight couldn't ward off the biting cold. It was late October, and winter was fast approaching.

"Brother, you should also rest early."

Just as Xu Zeping was about to turn and leave, Xu Zeli couldn't help but add, "Stay clear of the Hong family in the future."

Xu Zeping hesitated, stopping in his tracks. He knew better than to trust Hong Dongbao, but he played dumb, saying, "I think Hong Dongbao's a decent guy. What's the problem?"

"The Hong family's internal conflicts are complex. The rivalry between the main and second branches could put you in danger."

After thinking it over, Xu Zeli decided not to mention that the Hong family would split into two factions in the future. Making decisions too early would arouse suspicion in his youngest sibling.

Xu Zeping naturally understood his elder brother's intentions. The fact that Hong Dongbao was being chased and attacked along the way was no joke. He was pretending to be clueless to fish for information, but seeing his brother's demeanor, it was clear that he wasn't going to tell him.

Forget it, when his elder brother was ready to talk about it, he would surely tell him.

"Elder brother, I will see you off the day after tomorrow."

Xu Zeping listened to his younger sibling's reluctant words, and his eyes softened. "Alright."

On November 1st in the seventeenth year of Sheng’an, Xu Zeli and Ding Yiqiang, under the escort of the Ding family's security service, set off on their journey to Shang Jing.

The cold winter month was graced with a rare clear sky. Under the dazzling sunlight, Xu Zeli and Ding Yiqiang waved goodbye and climbed into the carriage, one after the other.

The Xu and Ding families saw them off all the way to the outskirts of Qingshui Town, until the carriages and horses disappeared from sight.

If everything went smoothly, they would return as respected officials. With this beautiful expectation, the two families exchanged a knowing smile.

After Xu Zeli left for the capital exam, Xu Zeping returned to Jiangping Village to relax.

In the early morning, he would rise with the crowing of the rooster, have breakfast, and then review the Four Books and Five Classics until noon.

In the afternoon, he would go winter hunting in the mountains with a quiver on his back. He wouldn't always have success, but occasionally he would bring down a rabbit or a pheasant.

In his free time, he would also play the role of a teacher, giving lessons to the children. He would also secretly think about that mischievous young master.

If there were no accidents, on the 10th of December, Cheng Ge Er's cloth shop would open for business.

Listening to the children reciting the Three-Character Classic fluently, Xu Zeping suddenly remembered when he was not yet a month old, being forced by his elder brother to read the Three-Character Classic. At that time, he resented his overbearing elder brother.

He cursed his elder brother as a fool and even thought that in the future, he would make his elder brother look bad...

And now he had become his elder brother's follower, unable to make many decisions without consulting him.

Xu Zeping smiled and shook his head. He never expected this!

The branches outside the window fell silently, and Xu Zeping suddenly realized how quickly time had passed.

It was now early December, and he wondered if his elder brother had reached Shang Jing.