Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 1057 Family Honor

Chapter 1057: Chapter 1057 Family Honor

Two days later, Zhulan personally saw Yang Wen out of the city. Yang Wen was headed to the National Protection Camp, which was not far from the capital. Since others were with him, Yang Wen did not need to bring many things. Nevertheless, Zhulan still prepared plenty of broken silver and some dried meat and shrimp for him.

Sharing good food could quickly integrate one into the group, so she prepared sustenance that could stave off hunger, conducive for socializing.

Chang Zhong clung to the carriage window, watching Yang Wen leave; his eyes filled with envy. "Mother, what do you think about your son becoming a general? He would certainly be impressive."

Zhulan pinched her son’s face. "Didn’t you say you wanted to bring back the title of Top Scorer for your father?"

Chang Zhong, somewhat weary of studying, hung his head—his days filled with reading and writing, "Son wants to protect Mother, like Yang Wen, by standing at the door with a sword."

Yes, that was indeed his thought—not that he had grown averse to studying.

Zhulan knew her son’s situation very well. Recently, the teacher had also reported his performance. Her son was intelligent, but his intelligence was precisely his downfall. The brighter the child, the less patience they displayed after learning something; repeating the same tasks daily gradually bred disdain, coupled with the teacher’s rigidness and lack of Wu Ming’s engaging teaching style. Her son’s academic mood had been low lately, even the characters he wrote seemed perfunctory.

Chang Zhong was most afraid of his mother watching him with an expressionless face. He unconsciously straightened up and did not dare to move. "Mother, why do you look at your son like that?"

Zhulan gestured to the coachman to head home before pulling her son closer. "You do not need to study these next few days."

Chang Zhong was stunned. "Mother."

She didn’t scold him, and she agreed to him not studying?

Zhulan did not say much more—explaining or reasoning, neither suited the current Chang Zhong; the child was still too young. She could not treat her son as an older child.

Seeing his mother closing her eyes and remaining silent, the carriage felt particularly quiet; he could hear the peddlers’ cries and the sounds of the carriage wheels, which made him increasingly uneasy. Was he in the wrong?

In Zhou Village, Zhou Changzhi looked at Wang Laosifour with indescribable emotions, thinking he must have misheard, then stiffly turned his neck to look at Steward Ding.

Steward Ding looked at Wang Laosifour with a hint of sarcasm and respectfully said to the young master, "Young Master, you heard correctly."

Zhou Changzhi laughed dryly twice; it wasn’t that he hadn’t taken any students as a scholar, even if he had entered officialdom, he wouldn’t take any, "I have no intention of taking disciples."

Wang Laosifour was anxious inside; his son’s studies were a mess, always ranking last since entering school. He felt the Zhou family did not earnestly teach children from other surnames. " You misunderstand my meaning—my intention is a nominal disciple; you wouldn’t need to teach."

Zhou Changzhi frowned. He had just returned and wasn’t very familiar with his hometown; these past few days, he had been chatting with the Clan Leader to understand changes within the clan or meeting with elders from within the clan.

Steward Ding whispered the situation of Wang Laosifour’s family into the young master’s ear then retreated to the side.

Zhou Changzhi was displeased; the Zhou family, for a good reputation and to build influence, had always allowed children from other surnames to enroll in the clan school. The clansmen who taught in the clan school, for the sake of the family, dared not treat anyone differently. Yet, Wang Laosifour actually felt there was discrimination because of surnames!

Zhou Changzhi’s expression chilled, "The clan school of the Zhou family is fair. If you feel it is unfair, you can withdraw and go to another private school."

He would not indulge someone—he had to set the rules today because he believed Wang Laosifour was not the only one with such thoughts.

The Zhou family’s children indeed learned better than children from other families. This was due to the accumulation of books over the years by their father, and there being more Scholars lately. Going back home to teach and guide was normal. Lastly, the Zhou family’s children had developed a sense of honor; each child knew their family had produced a second-place Scholar and a degree holder, which was a matter of pride. To protect this honor, the children studied even harder.

Wang Laosi, watching Zhou Changzhi walk away, finally regained his senses with a somewhat heated brain. Trembling, he had actually dared to make a request to Zhou Changzhi; it must have been his second daughter who confused him and caused his folly. Now, all he hoped for was that the Zhou family would not take notice of him.

In the capital, Prince Liang held the note, unsure whether he should go to the Palace to see the Emperor. He thought about investigating privately but feared the Emperor might not wait for him to get to the bottom of it. Finally, he gritted his teeth and entered the Palace.

Inside the Palace, as Rongchuan was about to leave upon seeing Prince Liang, the Emperor said, "No need to leave, you stay here."

Prince Liang glanced sideways at Rongchuan. He had always known that the Emperor favored Rongchuan and was aware that Rongchuan often visited the Palace. Previously, he thought nothing of it, assuming the Emperor saw Rongchuan as a noble young master. But now, why did it seem strange to him that the Emperor, knowing what he was about to discuss, insisted that Rongchuan stay!

The Emperor cleared his throat. "You mentioned that you had discovered something about the Rong family; now that you see me, you can speak."

Prince Liang suppressed the odd feeling inside, as he had important matters to discuss. He handed the Emperor the note from his pouch, "Today someone sent this note in. I thought it was from an assassin, but upon discovery, please have a look, Father."

The Emperor did not take it; he was most protective of his life at that moment, especially after seeing various medicines from previous dynasties.

Eunuch Liu carefully held it up for the Emperor to see.

Prince Liang, "..."

He suddenly thought about visiting the Imperial Physician later; he was still not cautious enough!

The Emperor straightened up. The note was brief but clear in its implication: there had been survivors back then.

Prince Liang kept watching the Emperor’s reaction. The Emperor did not hide his emotions; the excitement in his eyes was unmistakable. Indeed, the Rong family mattered too much to him. "Father, your son requests permission to investigate."

The Emperor, with his eyes closed, was not mature back then and knew little about the Rong family. Later, he was completely confined to the inner Palace. What he knew came from old servants and letters from his mother. Before establishing the dynasty, he had sent people to investigate, and even after the dynasty was established, the investigations had not ceased, yet no traces were found.

His knowledge was too limited, having seen only a few direct members of the Rong family.

The Emperor’s expression changed. To have this information and understand the Rong family so well must mean involvement from the people back then. They were afraid of survivors and had been tracking and eliminating threats ever since, possessing the Rong family’s clan records and knowing who had slipped through.

After the initial excitement, the Emperor’s anger surged – the table beside him was flipped, and a Jade Pendant, carved at great effort, shattered.

Prince Liang, chilled by fear, knelt on the ground. "Your son is at fault; please, Father, punish me."

The Emperor, after closing and then opening his eyes, his anger seemingly subsided, "I grant you permission to investigate. I want to see the living or the bodies dead; if someone impersonates, kill them."

Prince Liang, thinking about possible impersonators, bowed his head, "Yes."

Rongchuan had already picked up the note from the floor, kneeling motionless.

The Emperor looked at his younger son, "Rongchuan, I assign you to assist Prince Liang in investigating the remnants of the Rong family. You and Prince Liang leave the Palace together."