Chapter 7

In recent days, the city of Nanjing has been hit by a rainstorm. The rain in Jiangnan always seems like a case of prostatitis, always hesitating to fall, never completely stopping, and just like a woman with a half-covered face, it always lacks the thoroughness.

The weather suddenly turned colder. At the Eastern Palace, a eunuch brought a new set of clothes to Zhang Shian, sent by the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess, who were worried that Zhang Anshi might not know when to dress warmly or lightly.

Although Zhang Anshi was not short of clothes, he knew that whenever the weather changed, the Eastern Palace would always send clothes, which was actually a reminder for him to add another layer.

Zhang Anshi then went to the school with great enthusiasm.

However, today, the school had changed.

Outside the courtyard wall of Hu Yan's residence, there were guards in flying fish robes standing at every three or five steps, looking as if they were facing a great enemy.

Inside the courtyard, cries of pain could even be heard.

Zhang Anshi got off the carriage, his legs tightening.

He glanced at Zhang San, who had come with him, in shock: "Oh... Is my teacher Hu Yan being searched?"

Zhang San blinked, swallowed, and was too scared to speak.

Zhang Anshi entered the school alone and found that in the front courtyard, dozens of young men were kneeling on the ground.

Zhu Yong was in even worse shape, his head hanging down, and someone had even put a wooden collar on him. When he saw Zhang Anshi, he shouted, "Brother, run fast."

Zhang Anshi shuddered and then heard a cry of pain.

The cry gradually became clearer, and he saw someone being tied to a wooden bench and whipped.

Zhang Anshi focused and saw that it was none other than Zhang Ge.

Zhang Ge was howling, and when he saw Zhang Anshi, he shouted, "Brother, Brother, run fast, they are going to beat you too."

The executioner was dressed in a flying fish robe, and a cold-faced eunuch stood nearby.

Zhang Anshi was so scared that his legs trembled.

Although he had lived two lives, he had never seen such a grim scene before.

Instinctively, Zhang Anshi wanted to run, but then he thought: Is it too late to run now?

He was afraid that running might make the consequences even worse.

Taking a deep breath and calming down, Zhang Anshi obediently said, "I won't run, I will accept the punishment, and I will kneel too."

Saying this, he quickly tried to find a spot among the kneeling young men.

But the eunuch looked up at Zhang Anshi and asked, "Who are you?"

Zhang Anshi replied, "Zhang Anshi."

The eunuch then took out a ledger, flipped through it, and said, "Zhang Anshi? Oh, your memorial is quite good, showing that you have worked hard, so you don't need to be punished."

Zhang Anshi immediately felt relieved.

At that moment, another whip was fiercely swung down.

*Slap...*

Zhang Ge screamed like a pig being slaughtered.

He mumbled, "Brother, didn't you say it was just a random write-up?"

Zhang Anshi almost shed tears of sympathy.

The eunuch then said, "Since Master Zhang doesn't need to be punished, and there are no classes today, please go back."

Zhang Ge also groaned, "Brother, it's too painful for you to stay here, just go, I can endure it."

"Okay." Zhang Anshi nodded and ran away like a rabbit.

Zhang Ge: "..."

But Zhang Ge didn't have time to think, and soon he let out another scream like a pig being slaughtered.

...

Zhang San was taking care of the carriage, looking around outside, and then saw Zhang Anshi dart out of the residence like a rabbit.

Zhang San sighed in relief and approached with surprise, "Young Master... What happened? Was Master Hu really searched?"

"The situation is more serious than I thought, my brothers might be in trouble."

"But Young Master, you..."

"I have done well in my studies, so I won't be punished."

Zhang San lowered his head, his mind racing, trying to figure out if there was any hidden meaning in these words.

Zhang Anshi said, "We should leave quickly, don't waste time here. My brothers are being beaten, and I am very worried, I need to get them some medicine."

"Okay." Zhang San nodded blankly.

...

"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Recently, I have heard that the relatives of the Crown Prince have been acting recklessly, and the imperial family has not been restrained, behaving in such a rampant manner, which is truly unacceptable. I believe this is due to the indulgence of the Eastern Palace. If the Crown Prince cannot discipline his relatives, how can he govern the country? Today, I issue this decree to warn you, so that you, the Crown Prince, know the consequences. You must not indulge them any longer. If this happens again, there will be no leniency. So be it!"

At the Eastern Palace, a eunuch was reading out the imperial decree from the palace.

The language in the decree was crude, which was typical of Emperor Zhu Di's style.

Crown Prince Zhu Gaozhi knelt on the ground, listening to the decree, and was already trembling with fear, his face pale.

After reading the decree, the eunuch carefully smiled, "Your Highness..."

Zhu Gaozhi sighed, "I understand, you may go and report back."

The eunuch left.

Zhu Gaozhi sighed again and returned to the inner courtyard of the Eastern Palace.

At this moment, Crown Princess Zhang came to greet the Crown Prince.

Zhu Gaozhi held her hand, feeling depressed.

Crown Princess Zhang worriedly said, "Has Anshi caused trouble again?"

Zhu Gaozhi nodded and sighed, "This time is different. It has reached the Emperor's ears, and the Emperor himself has issued a decree to scold... sigh..."

Crown Princess Zhang immediately realized the severity of the situation and said, "When the Emperor issues a decree, it is a signal to the officials that he is displeased with Your Highness. If someone takes advantage of this to gather more faults against you, it could lead to a situation where everyone turns against you..."

Usually, the Emperor would not scold the Crown Prince, as the Crown Prince is the heir and needs to maintain a certain level of authority. Any reprimand would be very tactful. But this time, it was so blunt, indicating that the Emperor might have some intentions.

Zhu Gaozhi was silent for a moment and said, "I am not worried about myself, but about Anshi. Those with ulterior motives might not dare to act against me, but they could use Anshi to cause trouble for him."

Crown Princess Zhang, like the unpredictable weather in Nanjing, suddenly had tears in her eyes, which fell like a string of pearls, sobbing, "Poor my brother, he lost his father at a young age. As his sister, I married into the palace, where the rules are strict, and I can't take care of him every day. He is alone outside, young and naive, and there are many bad friends around him who might lead him astray..."

Zhu Gaozhi was moved and comforted her, "Anshi's heart is good, don't cry, we can think of a long-term solution."

Crown Princess Zhang immediately stopped crying and looked at a small eunuch, "Go and call my brother."

The eunuch hurriedly left.

Zhang Anshi was truly shocked this time, especially after seeing Zhang Ge's buttocks beaten to a pulp, which made him feel a sense of sorrow and empathy.

He was summoned to the Eastern Palace and entered the inner courtyard.

Rushing into the hall, he saw his sister Crown Princess Zhang and said with a smile, "Sister."

Crown Princess Zhang put on a displeased face, "What have you done again? I am so pitiful, without any support from my family, and you, as my brother, not only fail to help but also cause trouble every day."

Zhu Gaozhi said, "Enough, enough..."

Crown Princess Zhang said, "Look at his smiling face... sigh..." and then wiped her tears and sobbed.

Zhang Anshi couldn't bear to see this, quickly stopped smiling, and lowered his head, "What have I done wrong again?"

Crown Princess Zhang said, "Today, the Emperor issued a decree, scolding your brother-in-law for poor discipline and indulgence. He is the Crown Prince, and being scolded like this, how can the officials not laugh at him!"

"You silly brother, don't you know how difficult it is for your brother-in-law? The Emperor dislikes him, and there are many evil people around the Emperor, stirring up trouble every day. Look at how worried your brother-in-law is."

Zhang Anshi then looked at Zhu Gaozhi.

He saw that Zhu Gaozhi also had a worried look but tried to stay composed, "I am a son, and I should help the Emperor, so being scolded is justified... Anshi is still young, forget it... What's the point of talking about this."