TGCFNM -Chapter 126 Persuasion

The next day at noon.

Wan Sanjin returned from outside, bringing the latest news.

Xiao Lengjue had returned to the capital. Chu Rou hadn’t gone with him, but the information she had sent had already reached him.

“What about your older brother?” Chu Ling asked with a smile.

Wan Sanjin crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair, and propped up his legs. “She wants to cooperate with my brother in business, and she plans to establish the top intelligence organization in Great Zhou. She also intends to use some of the information she knows to help my brother become the undisputed richest man in Great Zhou.”

Chu Ling couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

She could completely imagine the speechless expression on Wan Xing’s face when facing Chu Rou, and wondered how he had managed to restrain himself from flipping out and kicking her out.

With a smile in her eyes, Chu Ling asked, “How did your brother respond?”

“My brother borrowed your method,” Wan Sanjin said, “He said he’d been struck by lightning, has aftereffects, and the doctor said he doesn’t have much time left. He can’t really become the richest man in Great Zhou.” Wan Sanjin couldn’t help laughing as he spoke.

“Hahaha!” Chu Ling laughed until tears nearly came to her eyes.

“My brother said that Chu Rou seemed genuinely disappointed. She asked him to think it over, hoping that before he dies, he could have one last glorious moment—for the Wan family. My brother said he would think about it carefully and then sent her away. I don’t know where she’s headed.” Wan Sanjin wiped the tears of laughter from the corners of his eyes.

Chu Ling understood immediately. “I know where she’s going—she’s heading to the Yuan family.” She wants, just like Chu Yue, to gain the friendship and support of the Yuan family.

She was wholeheartedly getting close to Xiao Lengjue, trying to help him, aiming to become the Chu Yue of the previous life, to become Xiao Lengjue’s only one.

But someone ambitious enough to aspire to be emperor wouldn’t allow a person full of doubts to accompany them. She was far too naive.

“Tell your brother not to underestimate her. Better to be cautious than regret it,” Chu Ling advised. “For Xiao Lengjue, she’s capable of doing anything.”

Wan Sanjin clicked his tongue, shook his head, and poured himself a cup of tea from the teapot. “Su He said, Master, yesterday a dog bit you and you went somewhere to save someone?”

Chu Ling: “Mm… more or less.”

Wan Sanjin curiously asked, “How did it bite you? Did it grab your arm and drag you?”

Cui Xi, annoyed, put her hands on her waist and commanded, “Wangcai, go, sit by Master Wan and stick your tongue out at him.”

Wangcai let out a howl, ran over, jumped onto the table, and faced Wan Sanjin, sticking out his tongue and barking several times.

Chu Ling watched amusingly, slowly sipping her tea.

“Master, don’t you feel a bit cold?” Wan Sanjin rubbed his arms and asked.

Chu Ling raised an eyebrow. With a ghost maid standing beside her and a ghost dog sitting opposite, of course it felt cold.

“You were busy with affairs this morning and probably skipped breakfast. I’ve told you before—if you skip breakfast, you’ll feel cold,” Chu Ling said, setting down her teacup.

Wan Sanjin looked doubtful. “Really?”

Chu Ling raised an eyebrow. “Of course.”

Just as she finished speaking, she saw Zhang Dong rushing over, looking anxious. She waved and asked, “Zhang Dong, you’re back. Did that person survive?”

Zhang Dong looked a bit aggrieved. “Master, I watched over him all night. In the morning, his fever subsided, but then he tried to hang himself.”

“Ah?” Chu Ling was shocked. “He died?”

Zhang Dong shook his head. “No, I saved him. But as soon as he had any strength, he tried to die, so I knocked him out.”

Wan Sanjin suddenly laughed. “Zhang Dong can even knock people out now.”

Chu Ling felt a bit of a headache as she looked at the black dog, which had turned to stare at her at some point. The thin black dog looked pitiful, whining several times, melting her heart.

“Let’s go. I’ll go take a look. Wan Sanjin, come along.” Chu Ling stood up, stretching her back helplessly. “I need to ask… why does he want to die? Isn’t living better?”

The man stared at Chu Ling with no will to survive, letting out a bitter laugh.

“What’s so good about living?”

Chu Ling felt a headache coming. How was she supposed to persuade someone who wanted to die?

“I saw writing on the straw mat outside. Did you write it?” Wan Sanjin asked.

The man glanced at it and nodded. “No money for paper, so I wrote on the mat. After writing, I’d wipe it with cloth and continue—just kept writing.”

Chu Ling found a way in. She quickly said, “You love reading so much. Then you should keep reading! Next year you can take the spring imperial exams!”

“If you need travel money, I can lend it to you. I’ll make a written note. I’m not pitying you—I just think it would be a shame if you wasted this,” Wan Sanjin added.

The man let out a bitter smile and shook his head. “What good is it to study? It’s useless.”

“Why useless?” Chu Ling asked.

“To study hard is to take the imperial exams and become an official. But officials can buy their positions, and those with family connections can become officials directly. So why should I toil so hard?” he asked, looking at Chu Ling.

Chu Ling cleared her throat and scratched her head. “Well… that’s true. Some positions can be bought—I donated for mine myself.”

The man paused, then said apologetically, “I’m not talking about you, sir. I’m not some bookworm ignorant of the world. I know you are a good person; everyone praises you.”

Chu Ling asked seriously, “Then why do you want to become an official?”

The man recalled, “My family fell into hardship when I was young. My mother supported me by washing clothes, then rented this house so I could study properly. Once my mother was mistreated, the local prefect helped her and even gave me books so I could study. I wanted to be an official like him—a good official.”

Chu Ling shrugged. “Exactly. If you want to be a good official, you have to study and take the imperial exams. So why try to end your life?”

“Sir… even knowing my goal is so laughable, should I keep pursuing it?” the man asked angrily. “From birth, people are already divided into ranks. Children of wealthy families have smooth paths, while I struggle in the mud. Is it worth it, trying to reach that tiny, insignificant possibility?”

“It’s worth it,” Chu Ling answered straightforwardly.

The man froze, eyes red, shaking his head violently and choking on his words. “Where is it worth?”

“Although I believe people are born equal, it seems like a joke,” Chu Ling said helplessly. “As long as feudal systems exist, true equality is impossible. But still, you, rolling in the mud, should try to reach that possibility.”

“This world cannot have only the children of wealthy families as officials. They don’t see how hard it is for commoners to farm, they don’t understand why the hungry can’t have meat porridge, they don’t understand how people can live in such conditions, and they don’t understand that some can’t even afford books.”

“But someone has to see the suffering of the people, witness their hardships, and then stand just a bit higher to raise their voice for them. Just like the prefect who helped your mother and gave you books.”

“You should become that kind of person, helping thousands of people like yourself. That goal is not laughable—it is great. It is difficult, but someone must do it. Right, Lu Zheng?”

Lu Zheng stared at Chu Ling, tears streaming down his face, then nodded heavily.

—

After leaving the house, Wan Sanjin muttered with his hands behind his back, “I don’t think what you said—that people are born equal—is laughable.”

Chu Ling smiled. “Wan Sanjin, you really have insight.”

“But I still left him some silver, saying it’s a loan. Once he recovers, he can go to the Tiansheng Grand Bank to make an IOU,” Wan Sanjin said.

Chu Ling nodded. “That’s good. It’s not pity, just that it would be a shame to waste him.”

“Sir… the prefect he mentioned, is that Song Shisheng, Prefect Song?” Wan Sanjin asked softly.

Chu Ling nodded. Judging by the timing, it should be him.

The ghost scholar sighed a little. “Such a good official… what a pity.”