Chapter 51: Leaving Zhaojia Village
Zhao An didn’t let the villagers see the bloody tragedy upstairs, but he didn’t hide the matter from them.
Because Zhao An and Hu Sheng had come to the same conclusion: these assassins were from the emperor.
He wasn’t sure if the emperor had any other tricks up his sleeve besides the assassins. He couldn’t go against the emperor in this country, so he was going to leave with Hu Sheng. Before leaving, he certainly couldn’t hide this news from everyone.
“Back then, I discovered some ways to make money but didn’t tell the emperor. Later, I had people promote improved seeds in the several southwestern provinces and offended the gentry,” Zhao An said, pointing at the assassin with the broken head. “These are the people they sent to kill me. There are more than a dozen bodies upstairs. This time, I was lucky to have escaped their assassination. Perhaps next time, what awaits me will be the encirclement of the army. So I’ve decided to leave with Hu Sheng’s horse caravan.”
Hearing this, Zhao Zhushan was immediately agitated and wanted to speak, but Zhao An stopped him with a raised hand. “After I leave, I won’t take the craftsmen from the kiln with me. You can offer the formula for firing cement to the higher-ups. Besides, the law does not punish the masses. Our village has nearly five hundred people. They won’t do anything to you.”
All the people who had followed him fell silent. It was only then that they truly realized that Zhao An was going against the imperial power, and when the imperial power wanted him dead, not only did he not die, but he had also killed the people who had come to take his life, which was adding to his crime.
But the people of Zhaojia Village were no longer the simple and honest farmers of three years ago. They had enjoyed a good life for three full years, and with Zhao An’s repeated encouragement, almost everyone had learned to read. They had even written some things themselves and published them in a self-printed monthly journal.
They expressed their opinions, including family conflicts, farming experiences, and tips for raising chickens. This had gradually opened their minds and made them understand many things, including that what they had worked hard for should belong to them. Even if they had to pay taxes, their things could not be taken away at will.
At this moment, everyone was shouting in their hearts, feeling that this was very unfair.
Although some people felt that the emperor might not be wrong, and that Zhao An’s merits might not have reached the emperor’s ears, they still very much agreed with Zhao An’s decision to leave. Even if you were wronged, you couldn’t just stand there and be beaten. In the most popular martial arts novel in the monthly journal, The Golden Light Saber Manual, the protagonist was wronged in his sect, but he first escaped, obtained The Golden Light Saber Manual in a cave, mastered the divine skill, and then found a way to clear his name with the sect elders.
Thinking of this, many people began to feel regretful. If Zhao An left, would The Golden Light Saber Manual be discontinued?
Unconsciously, many people in Zhaojia Village, including the entire Changxi County, had been culturally influenced by Zhao An. They hoped for fairer treatment, because no one wanted to be wronged like the protagonist of The Golden Light Saber Manual. They hoped for a purer love, preferably a mutual one, which was also the view of love held by the protagonist of The Golden Light Saber Manual.
Seeing that everyone had accepted this fact, Zhao An said to them, “Everyone, leave now. Pretend you didn’t see anything. Don’t go near my house, and don’t notice when I leave.”
Most of the people left with tears in their eyes, leaving only Zhao Zhushan, Liu Huan, and Scholar Zhao. Zhao Zhushan said, “Young Master, I must go with you.”
Zhao An was touched and patted the boy’s head, then kicked him. “What did you say when you begged me to get married? That you would treat Yun Niang’s parents as your own. Are you going to abandon your parents and go with me so soon?”
He wanted to say more, but Zhao An’s face turned cold. “The old folks can’t stand the turmoil. You should stay here.”
Liu Huan sighed. “Yes, I’m too old to walk. Young Master Zhao, take care on your journey.” After speaking, he turned his head with red eyes and staggered away.
But Scholar Zhao stood there, his eyes seemingly filled with an anger of “hating iron for not becoming steel.” Zhao An thought he was going to scold him and was about to drive him away, but unexpectedly, he opened his mouth and said, “Is the feng shui of our Zhao family’s ancestral grave not good?”
He looked at Zhao An, at the house behind him, and said, “Back then, your father passed the imperial examination at a young age. How glorious. Although he had already married the daughter of the Libationer of the Imperial Academy and moved to the capital, our whole clan was happy for him.
Later, he rose through the ranks. He was so lucky that he even reached the position of a minister. But Zhao Tongming’s father was extorting money everywhere and suppressing us side branches. In the end, the minister upheld justice and killed his own brother, which also sent him to the position of prime minister, and at the same time, cut off the path of promotion for our entire Zhao clan. I had already passed the scholar examination at that time. Even if I didn’t continue to take the examinations, I would have had a chance to become an official by studying at the Imperial Academy. But I, Zhao Wenju, will never have a chance in this life.”
This was the first time Zhao An knew that Scholar Zhao had such a history with their family. No wonder he was always finding fault with him.
Then he heard him continue, “When your sister became the empress, I was still very happy in my heart. I thought she might bring blessings to our hometown and some benefits to us clansmen. However, three years have passed, and I haven’t received a single grace from Her Majesty the Empress.”
Finally, he gave Zhao An a disdainful look. “I originally looked down on your petty things, but I didn’t expect you to make the entire Zhaojia Village rich. As the empress’s brother, you’re just doing business to make money for yourself, and you haven’t exploited the villagers. Yet you’ve come to such an end. I can only say that the feng shui of our Zhao family must be problematic. It just won’t let us prosper.”
Seeing his red-faced and thick-necked appearance at the end, Zhao An could only comfort him gently, “We can’t blame it all on the ancestral grave. I also have a certain responsibility.”
He had been holding onto a bit of wishful thinking, feeling that the people above wouldn’t notice his small-scale activities below. But his wishful thinking was completely wrong.
However, Scholar Zhao shook his head. “Your family owes me. You have to admit that, right?”
Zhao An really wanted to say that this was all his one-sided story. What if it was just that his scholarship was too poor and he couldn’t get into the Imperial Academy? But thinking about it, Feng Shaoping’s father was also just a scholar. He felt that Scholar Zhao was indeed a bit unlucky, so he didn’t dare to touch his sore spot.
Zhao An obediently nodded. “Then what do you want? I can’t take the large items in this house with me. If you want them, you can have someone come and get them.”
“The heart of a petty person,” Scholar Zhao’s face turned red. In the end, he still said, “I want you to take my son with you. He’s your cousin. You can order him around as you please. Also, teach him how to make money, so that he can come back in glory as a great merchant in the future.”
This was a huge surprise to Zhao An. He really hadn’t expected Scholar Zhao to be willing to let his son go with him.
Scholar Zhao’s son’s name was Zhao Wencai, courtesy name Jinxue. From his name, one could see Scholar Zhao’s expectation for him, which was to study and advance. And he was twenty-four this year. Although he hadn’t passed the scholar examination, he was at least an elementary scholar.
Zhao An really hadn’t expected Scholar Zhao to let his son give up his official career and go with him. He even used the fact that his father had hindered Scholar Zhao’s official career by upholding justice against his own kin as emotional blackmail.
Faced with Zhao An’s puzzled gaze, Scholar Zhao said with a certain air of authority, “The one above is not virtuous. I’m afraid there’s no hope in studying.”
Zhao An was a little embarrassed and didn’t dare to answer. In the end, he still asked in a low voice, “But, have you asked for Jinxue’s opinion?”
“Hmph~” Scholar Zhao said, “He’s my son. He has to listen to me.”
“Alright then. If he can come to my house within a ke, I’ll take him with me,” Zhao An finally agreed to his request.
Zhao Zhushan saw all of this, and hope was rekindled in his eyes. He looked at Zhao An and said, “Young Master, you should take me with you too. I can do accounts now without a draft. I can also do your laundry and cook. I’m really useful, much more useful than that Zhao Wencai. He’s always last in the guard team’s training.”
Zhao An could only sigh. “Not this time. When the situation stabilizes in the future, I’ll send someone to pick you up.”
“But…” he wanted to bring up Zhao Wencai again, but was interrupted by Zhao An. Without caring that Scholar Zhao was still present, he said bluntly, “That’s a strategic investment. You’re on my side. You don’t need to state your position.”
From the moment he and Hu Sheng had gotten married and the dowry and marriage certificate were read, Scholar Zhao had known about their relationship. Later, he had seen the caravans of Hu Sheng’s men coming and going. Although there were only two or three hundred people each time, the people were different each time. In total, there were probably several thousand.
He had several thousand men under his command, all strong and healthy, and armed. And he had occupied a piece of territory abroad, which was enough for many people to make a heavy bet.
For example, the He family, who had once wanted to marry Feng Shaoping, had found Hu Sheng with a batch of silver. They wanted to invest in Hu Sheng, not a business alliance, but just giving him money without asking for the reason.
After all, it was also difficult for merchants to live in this era. One day, they might accidentally offend a powerful person, and their whole family’s lives would be in danger. If they could find a safe place abroad to take refuge, that would also be a rare way out.
So Hu Sheng had chosen to accept his money and at the same time, had distributed his network of forces more closely in the several southwestern provinces.
So it was not without reason that the people above saw Hu Sheng and Hu Sheng as a threat. But they had always been honest and law-abiding within the borders of the Xu Kingdom, paying taxes and making connections at all levels. Except for the time they had gone to intercept and kill Zhao Nanyu, they had never crossed the line and had no intention of provoking trouble. They just wanted to live a peaceful life.
But, this world just wouldn’t let people be at peace. Zhao An stood on the hill behind his house, looking at the curling cooking smoke rising from Zhaojia Village below, and still shed tears unpromisingly.
Finally, he gritted his teeth. “Let’s go.”
Zhang Wei and his dozen or so men had also lived in Zhaojia Village for a long time and were also a little nostalgic. They were all war orphans from the borderlands, with no parents, no home, and no property. In their hearts, they had also come to regard Zhaojia Village as their home. To suddenly have to leave, everyone’s mood was very low.
Just as Zhang Wei was at the very end and wanted to take one last look at Zhaojia Village, he saw an ominous cloud of dust rising outside the village. It was the dust produced by a large-scale military movement.
He immediately turned his head in horror and said to Hu Sheng, “General, a large army has come to Zhaojia Village.”
