The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 1027 - 106: Reluctance

Chapter 1027: Chapter 106: Reluctance

"The second possibility," Bai Shan also stretched out a finger, "is that the Crown Prince still has no son, and the Third Prince still wants to compete with his older brother for the emperor’s throne. Knowing this, the Prince of Yizhou divulged the news after learning that one of the Crown Prince’s concubines was pregnant, resulting in the Third Prince arranging for the concubine to have a miscarriage. Then the Prince of Yizhou informed the Crown Prince about this, and the Crown Prince, furious, confronted the Third Prince. The emperor, even angrier upon knowing this, then ordered us to accuse the Prince of Yizhou."

"And then, and then," Bai Erlang said anxiously, "the child was actually lost because of the Prince of Yizhou, who then framed the Third Prince for the deed. The Crown Prince, being rather slow, failed to find out the truth, but the Emperor did, so he was angry with both of them—he punished the Crown Prince and commanded us to denounce the Prince of Yizhou."

Manbao, infuriated, slammed the table, "Aren’t all these their own damned family issues? Why should we be the ones to stick our necks out?"

Bai Erlang shrank his head and said softly, "You can’t say it like that. The emperor has no personal affairs; this is also a matter of the state. Manbao, you need to speak more quietly."

Bai Shan wasn’t pleased either, "Since it’s a matter of state, we have to take it even more seriously. Look at the official histories, the unofficial ones, and those storytelling scripts—whenever has a struggle for succession not led to rivers of blood?"

He said, "Whether we like it or not, we have already been dragged into this. Further complaints or dislikes won’t change anything."

Bai Shan, with a glint in his eyes and tightly pursed lips, conveyed his displeasure, "If there’s a mountain in front, we’ll climb over it; if it’s a river, we’ll wade through it."

Manbao asked, "What if it’s fire, or a knife?"

Bai Shan glanced at her, "Can we even retreat? We’ll just have to grit our teeth, bleed a little, suffer some injuries, and then it’ll be over once we get through it."

Retreating was indeed not an option. Manbao felt her spirits sink and with tears welling up in her eyes, she asked, "But, what if we can’t get through?"

Bai Shan lowered his eyes, hiding the tears within, "Then we would die."

Even Bai Erlang fell silent, and the two young masters and the young lady sat without a word, the car quiet.

Bai Erlang whispered, "I, I don’t really want to die..."

Who would wish for death?

Manbao wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes and after pursing her lips said, "No, if we are to die, we can’t just die like this. I will have to write down our story, so that if we die, our tale will be passed down to future generations like the books of today."

Bai Erlang too, dabbing his tears, nodded again and again, "Right, let future generations curse the Prince of Yizhou," he lowered his voice, "and even the Emperor."

Bai Shan lifted his reddened eyes to look at the two of them and said, "At most, that will be part of the unofficial history. The official works won’t record it. Unofficial history is only fodder for casual gossip; who would take it seriously?"

Manbao, "Regardless, I still want to write."

"Alright, write then," Bai Shan said. "Show it to me once you’re done."

"I won’t." Since she wrote for the sake of her potential descendants and later generations to see, how could she show Bai Shan, especially with Keke included?

Manbao glanced at him and said, "What if we don’t die, but you end up reading it anyway?"

Bai Shan perked up, looking at her with suspicion, "You’re not planning to write bad things about us, are you?"

Bai Erlang also looked at Manbao warily.

Manbao said, "Of course not, I am a fair person. I will write the truth, without unfairly praising or demeaning anyone."

Bai Shan expressed his doubt, "I think you should read more recent histories and spend less time with the Book of Documents and The Spring and Autumn."

Manbao huffed, "The teacher said that in the past, historians recorded without fear of emperors. Now everything is veiled, and ordinary readers often don’t understand. I refuse to do that. My book will not only be for the educated but also for common folks. Hmph, if we die, I’ll make sure their names stink for thousands of years."

Bai Erlang voiced his concerns, "It’s not easy for that to happen. Even if you write it, others may not believe it’s true. If they don’t believe, how can their names stink for thousands of years? Besides, it’s not certain whether your book will even be good."

Manbao said, "I can’t guarantee anything else, but my writing is certainly better than yours."

Bai Shan glanced at her, "You should think about how you’ll spread your book. If you can’t print it or disseminate it, your story will just rot in the ground."

Manbao fell into thought, "Then, when I have money, I must open a bookstore or something to print exclusively my books. I’ll sell them cheaply, even at a loss if I have to."

Bai Shan and Bai Erlang couldn’t help but remind her, "...Will you even live long enough to have the money to open a bookstore?"

The subject returned to more somber territory. Manbao, "...I don’t know."

Daji, seeing the carriage grow quiet again, couldn’t help but shake his head and sped up to return home.

Not far behind them followed a carriage at a measured distance—it was exactly the Yin Family’s carriage, just turning out of another main street.

Changshou saw the familiar Bai Family carriage from behind and quickly informed his young master, "Young Master, look, that’s the Bai Family’s carriage ahead."

Yin Huo lifted the curtain and glanced forward, nodded, and said, "It’s getting late, let’s go home."

"Yes."

When Manbao and the others returned home, Mr. Zhuang was already waiting for them in the study. Seeing them return, he waved them over and asked, "How did it go? What did you find out from Madam Tang?"

By now, they would no longer keep anything from Mr. Zhuang; since the teacher already knew everything, there was no point in keeping secrets.

Apart from their minor thoughts, they would not dare to hide such big matters or keep them secret.

Mr. Zhuang listened and pondered for quite some time. He weighed the situation and realized there was nothing that could be done.

He sighed and asked, "What do you plan to do?"

Bai Shan said, "We’ll take it one step at a time. Teacher, since His Majesty is no longer willing to wait, can we start making our name known?"

Mr. Zhuang nodded, "Make a name for yourselves. The more renowned you become, the greater your chances of surviving."

Although in the face of all powers that chance was slim, it was still a chance, wasn’t it?

Mr. Zhuang, who came from a humble background himself, understood all too well that urge to seize any opportunity, no matter how slim.

He reached out to touch the three children’s heads, encouraging them, "You have always been smart, and I believe you will certainly be able to do it."

Bai Erlang lifted his head, eyes sparkling as he asked, "Teacher, does that include me?"

The excited Bai Shan and Manbao suddenly calmed down.

Mr. Zhuang, however, looked at Bai Erlang and smiled, "Of course, that includes you. Erlang is quite good as well."

Bai Erlang gleefully smiled and even glanced at Bai Shan and Manbao.

Mr. Zhuang softly said, "Alright, you’re tired from the day’s events. Go rest. I’ve prepared some homework for you, and I will tell you about it tomorrow."

The three disciples: ...