Chapter 929 - 771: Five Adopted Sons

In the Qing Mansion, Mrs. Zhang, Zhang Xia, Zhang Zheng, Xiao Man, and the little monk sat absentmindedly by the square table, with a table full of breakfast but no one picking up chopsticks.

Zhang Xia sat upright on one side with her eyes closed, chanting scriptures. Xiao Man saw her diligent practice and pinched the little monk, urging him to chant the scriptures as well.

The little monk looked eagerly at the table and reluctantly muttered, "Thus I have heard, once the Buddha was in Trāyastriṃśa Heaven, preaching for his mother, at that time in the worlds of ten directions, one could not describe thin-skinned vegetable buns, steamed cakes, osmanthus sugar taro seedlings, red bean rice balls..."

The little monk’s throat moved when he chanted "red bean rice balls."

At that moment, Er Tong strode into the main hall, and all sounds ceased abruptly.

Zhang Xia stopped chanting the Cloud Covering Scripture and looked up: "How is it?"

Er Tong shook his head: "We didn’t get anything out of him, that Fang Family servant is very tight-lipped. Now we only know they came because of the Anti-Japanese Army, but we don’t know what exactly happened over in Huaixi. Our foundation in Jinling is still shallow, and we have no other means to get more information."

Thirty-two, waiting outside, thought for a moment: "Madam, Madam Dowager, please wait, I’ll make a trip to the government office."

With that, Thirty-two and Thirty-seven went out like a gust of wind.

Mrs. Zhang, sitting at the head of the table, placed the porcelain spoon on the rim of her bowl, her gaze occasionally drifting outside the door: "Chen Ji, that kid, didn’t even return home after going back to the Ning Dynasty, quietly ran off alone to Huaixi to do things. He is ultimately weak alone; trying to stir the court in a place like Huaixi is as hard as climbing to heaven. He should come to Jinling and let’s figure things out together."

Zhang Xia silently recited the Cloud Covering Scripture and did not answer.

But Mrs. Zhang continued her lament: "I inquired a bit yesterday, those scholars over in Huaixi are quite fierce; many county magistrates and county chiefs have suffered great losses at their hands. I hope Chen Ji won’t suffer losses."

While speaking, Thirty-two jogged back, and Mrs. Zhang immediately fell silent, picking up a bowl of red bean rice balls and eating them in small bites.

Now only they knew that it was Chen Ji leading the Anti-Japanese Army; others didn’t know he was still alive.

Thirty-two stood by the door and reported: "Madam, I found out that the Anti-Japanese Army previously sold military merit to scholars, sold twenty-six households, allowing them to self-recruit troops to resist the Wokou. As soon as these scholars raised the troops, the Anti-Japanese Army immediately led soldiers to rob these scholars, probably taking away a thousand people."

Mrs. Zhang slowly widened her eyes: "The Anti-Japanese Army robbed those scholars?"

Zhang Xia was puzzled: "Where did you hear this from?"

Thirty-two chuckled: "Don’t worry about that, Landlord hasn’t given any instructions on this matter, we can’t make decisions on our own to tell you. But rest assured, our lamp has been running in Jinling for many years, we do have our reliable sources."

Mrs. Zhang ignored these, continuing to ask: "Continue with the Anti-Japanese Army’s story. After they robbed the troops, what happened then?"

Thirty-two recalled: "The Anti-Japanese Army not only robbed the troops but also took the children of each family, forcing them to pay money and grain monthly... They should have returned to Jingjiang County by now. The scholars were forced to take fast boats into Jinling overnight to lodge complaints, but fortunately, Madam promoted Zheng Jiye ahead of time, so they shouldn’t be able to deal with Zheng Jiye now."

Xiao Man curiously asked: "Sister Axia, how did you know they would target Zheng Jiye? You even wrote an article praising him last night."

Zhang Xia shook her head: "I didn’t know. It was just a precautionary measure, giving him a Death Exemption Token in advance so that others would be wary when targeting him."

She looked up at Thirty-two: "They should be discussing in the government office on how to deal with this variable, the Anti-Japanese Army. Could you get the news from inside the government office?"

Thirty-two thought for a moment: "The line inside the government office isn’t under our control; it depends on whether the people inside want to release the news. Today, they didn’t say much, to know more might take some time."

Zhang Xia pondered: "It’s still a big figure inside the government office."

Thirty-two chuckled: "Madam is smart, I can’t say more."

Zhang Xia acknowledged: "Take a rest."

Thirty-two was about to leave, then suddenly stopped and said: "Oh, there’s a small matter... It is said that Zheng Jiye has five sons."

The main hall suddenly quieted, Mrs. Zhang’s hand holding the red bean rice balls paused in mid-air, Xiao Man widened her eyes, and Zhang Zheng spat a small wonton from his mouth onto the floor.

Zhang Xia raised her eyebrows, heightening her voice: "Five sons?"

Thirty-two hurriedly corrected: "I misspoke, it’s five adopted sons, Ah Xing, Ah Xi, Jiang Chai, Li Si, Zhou Chang, among them, the one called Ah Xing is a Seeking Dao Realm Official, the rest should be in the Innate Realm... Nowadays in the Jianghu, they are called the Five Tigers of the Anti-Japanese Army."

Zhang Xia slowly exhaled a turbid breath: "I see, you go ahead."

...

...

Once there were only family members left in the main hall, Mrs. Zhang was left in surprise: "How did he suddenly have five adopted sons?"

Zhang Zheng pondered: "Ah Xing, Ah Xi... Why did these two hide their surnames? Something’s fishy."

Zhang Xia thought for a moment and speculated: "Ah Xing... What was the name of the person from whom my uncle took away nine years of life? The Right Martial Guard Commander Yuan Xing. Yes, their last name is Yuan, that’s why they hide their surnames, these are people Chen Ji brought over from the Jing Dynasty."

Zhang Zheng was doubtful: "Impossible, Yuan Xing is the Right Martial Guard Commander, also the personal nephew of Yuan Xiang. Why would he come to the Ning Dynasty to work for Chen Ji and even acknowledge a godfather? And where did those other four adopted sons come from? I feel something’s not quite right."

The little monk muttered softly: "On someone else, I might not believe it, but thinking it’s Benefactor Chen Ji, I find it quite reasonable."

Mrs. Zhang was silent for a long while, then suddenly asked Zhang Xia: "How about... we go to Jingjiang County as well?"

Xiao Man muttered softly: "Madam just suggested having the young master come to Jinling."

Mrs. Zhang glared at her fiercely.

But Zhang Xia shook her head: "No, Chen Ji has his own things to do, and we have ours. Coordination inside and outside can make offense and defense both effective."

At this moment, Er Tong hurriedly returned, panting: "Mountain Master, troops from the Central Army Commander’s Mansion are quietly capturing our Red Gate brothers on the street, seven or eight have already been taken away. Some are guarding the river port, capturing whoever sells newspapers."

Zhang Zheng lamented: "They react quickly, faster than the Imperial Capital."

Zhang Xia shook her head: "In the Imperial Capital, it was because His Majesty tacitly allowed Chen Ji to use newspapers, so no one cared. But now, since Chen Ji brought down Qi Xianzun using newspapers, everyone knows how lethal the newspapers can be, naturally they won’t let us continue publishing freely."

Er Tong quietly asked: "Mountain Master, what should we do?"

Zhang Xia immediately said: "We can’t stay at that newspaper office on Sanshan Street, the Central Army Commander’s Mansion will find it soon."

Er Tong hesitated: "We can trust all our Red Gate brothers."

Zhang Xia shook her head: "There are no heroes under the execution stick. We bought two bookstores at the time, use the other one today. Tell the brothers to sell newspapers discreetly in the future, no longer high-profile."

Er Tong regretted: "But this way, it’ll be difficult for the newspaper to spread throughout Jiangnan."

Zhang Xia shook her head: "You go ahead, I’ll think of a way."

Er Tong took the order and left.

The main hall fell into silence; they were new to Jinling, unfamiliar with the place. They had just made a little progress with the Wuxiang Morning News, and it was immediately banned. Everyone was momentarily at a loss for words.

During the silence, Jiutong rushed in as well, reporting: "Mountain Master, a man named Li Si with several children about thirteen or fourteen years old found our brothers selling newspapers on the street, claiming to be the sons of old friends."

The dignified and calm Mrs. Zhang couldn’t help but roll her eyes: "Sons of old friends? What a mess."

Zhang Xia got up and asked: "Were they from the Anti-Japanese Army, where is he?"

Jiutong answered: "That boy is cunning, didn’t follow over, said it wasn’t safe, only asked me to pass on the message."

Zhang Xia calmly asked: "What message?"

Jiutong whispered: "He said an old friend guessed that the Wuxiang Morning News wouldn’t sell for long in Jinling, so they take turns leading the Anti-Japanese Army to secretly transport the newspapers out of Jinling daily, selling them throughout Huaixi. He told us to rest assured, as they can now walk horizontally in Huaixi..."

Zhang Xia’s lips curled slightly.