LC chapter 33

 

After working for over half a month, Lin Ruan’s project is almost finished. Once Fang Chengze has reviewed it, he can enter the competition.

The sky was overcast that day. Shortly after noon, a light rain began to fall, wetting everything.

Lin Ruan walked into Fang Chengze’s office. Fang Chengze was not there. A nearby teacher told Lin Ruan that Fang Chengze had just left and would be back soon. Lin Ruan stood by Fang Chengze’s desk and waited.

A student approached with a pile of books and accidentally knocked one off of Fang Chengze’s desk. Lin Ruan squatted down to pick it up and saw that it was a vernacular magazine opened to a page discussing military leaders and their families.

Lin Ruan glanced over and saw that Fang Chengze had returned.

He saw Lin Ruan and poured him a glass of water. Lin Ruan handed Fang Chengze the design drawings, which he glanced through and approved. He said he needed to review the details before discussing them with Lin Ruan.

Lin Ruan placed the magazine on the table, hesitated for a moment, and asked, “Professor Fang, do you think the Gu family is bad?”

Fang Chengze was stunned, then saw the magazine and realized, “Many things can’t be judged simply as good or bad.”

Fang Chengze placed his water glass on the table, gathered his thoughts, and said, “The Gu family is remarkable. Grand Marshal Gu and Young Marshal Gu fought on the battlefield to protect the city and the northern part of China.” “Peace in the north and south is the most important thing. But warlords are warlords. They can protect territorial integrity but cannot properly manage internal affairs. Take Beijing, for example. The upper class is divided into factions, the lower class is mixed, and people’s lives are in dire straits.”

Fang Cheng paused and said, “Most importantly, the Gu family and all the warlords created the north-south divide. You can see now that the north and south are not open to each other. War without negotiation seems to be a kind of harmony. But this kind of harmony is the most dangerous.

There was something in Fang Chengze’s eyes that Lin Ruan couldn’t understand. “Harmony for one year, harmony for ten years, and then what will happen after that? Will there be a division between the north and south? Will such a huge country be torn apart like this? By then, won’t the Gu family be condemned to eternal damnation?”

Lin Ruan asked, “What should we do then?”

Fang Chengze smiled and said, “Unifying the country, expelling foreign enemies, and creating a new world of peace and harmony is the mission of our generation.”

He handed Lin Ruan a magazine co-published by some of his friends. “If you’re interested, you can take it home and have a look.”

Lin Ruan took the magazine home. It covered a wide range of topics, including science, livelihoods, literature, and politics. Many of the articles were written by unknown authors, yet their views resonated deeply.

Lin Ruan was so engrossed in one article that he stayed up for two nights to finish the entire magazine.

At the dinner table, he mentioned this to Zhan Xi, who looked a bit surprised. “What did your professor say?”

Lin Ruan repeated Fang Chengze’s words verbatim, and Zhan Xi smiled. “Interesting.”

“Sir, do you think Professor Fang’s words make sense?”

Zhan Xi simply replied, “No matter what he says, national unification is inevitable.”

Zhan Xi wiped his mouth with his napkin and continued, “These magazines have always been on display at the Lan Mansion. If you’re interested, you can look for them in the study. Besides this magazine, there are many others. Listen to both sides, and you’ll understand. You need your own opinion on these matters.”

Lin Ruan seemed to understand. The next day, he returned the magazine to Fang Chengze, who asked for his opinion. After thinking for a moment, Lin Ruan said, “If there truly is a democratic, equal, and harmonious society, I’m willing to work for it.”

Fang Chengze smiled. Lin Ruan always enjoyed dreaming of beautiful things.

As a teacher, Fang Chengze noticed the occasional look of confusion in Lin Ruan’s eyes, but he knew it wasn’t because Lin Ruan’s mind was empty. On the contrary, it was because his mind was filled with so many bizarre and unconstrained ideas that he couldn’t make sense of them.

“I’m having a cultural salon this weekend. Some of the magazine’s contributors will be there, too,” Fang Fangze said, handing him an invitation. “If you’re interested, you can check it out.”

Lin Ruan nodded in agreement.

Two days later, Gu Ji came to see Zhan Xi at home. Dressed in his neat military uniform, he seemed to be just passing by. He sat in the living room talking with Zhan Xi.

Meanwhile, Lin Ruan came down the stairs, and Zhan Xi beckoned him to sit next to him. Gu Ji glanced at Lin Ruan and continued the conversation.

He had come to deliver a wedding invitation to Zhan Xi. His adjutant was getting married, and the bride was Wu Yue from Yanzhi Hutong.

Adjutant Zhuang followed Gu Ji everywhere. He had no parents or family — utterly alone. Logically, he shouldn’t have been short on money, but, in reality, as a bachelor, he spent whatever he had and gave any extra money he had to his fellow soldiers. Over the years, he hadn’t saved a penny.

Wuyue’s redemption price was two thousand dollars, but Deputy Officer Zhuang hadn’t paid anything upfront. He scraped and borrowed until he could buy Wuyue’s freedom.

However, redeeming him wasn’t enough—he didn’t want Wuyue to be wronged. He wanted to give Wuyue a proper, grand wedding full of joy and celebration.

As both a boss and a brother who had been on the battlefield, he would definitely help. However, he didn’t have much money. The Gu family supported millions of soldiers, so money was always scarce.

He approached Zhan Xi and asked for a two-entry courtyard in Anqing Hutong. Zhan Xi and Gu Ji arranged it for Adjutant Zhuang.

Zhan Xi looked at Lin Ruan and asked, “Do you want to go see it?”

Zhan Xi said, “Then let’s go.”

He handed the deed to Gu Ji, who beamed. He put away his belongings and left without stopping.

On the wedding day, the crabapple blossoms were in full bloom and the day was bright and sunny. The walls of the Zhuang family courtyard were draped in red satin.

The two handsome young men—Adjutant Zhuang in his crisp military uniform and Wu Yue in his bright red gown—stood together, a perfect match.

Someone gossiped about the two men’s marriage and Wu Yue’s background. Gu Ji would shoo anyone who said anything out of the house.

With him maintaining order, visitors, regardless of their sincerity, were forced to offer their blessings.

Lin Ruan watched as Gu Ji’s soldiers drove a man away. The man stood outside the door, still berating Gu Ji, as if the consequences of the marriage were the digging up of his family’s ancestral graves.

Lin Ruan asked Zhan Xi, “Who is that man? Why doesn’t he approve of Adjutant Zhuang and Wu Yue’s marriage?”

Zhan Xi didn’t even raise his eyelids. “He’s just a passerby with no connection to today’s protagonists.”

“Then why did he disapprove and curse so harshly?”

“Because he can’t stand the sight of two men together,” Zhan Xi said, pinching Lin Ruan’s neck. “Some people always want everyone else to like what they like, but they can’t even like what they don’t like.”

Lin Ruan frowned. “That’s too much.”

“Yes,” said Zhan Xi, looking at Lin Ruan. “As long as it doesn’t harm anyone, anything goes. Just like with marriage. As long as it’s not illegal, doesn’t violate any rules, and doesn’t cause trouble for anyone, it should be allowed.”

The weekend was beautiful. Dressed in a respectable shirt and trousers, Lin Ruan said goodbye to Zhan Xi and headed out to attend Fang Chengze’s salon.

Zhan Xi waved at him. He walked over to him, and Zhan Xi straightened his collar. “You seem to like Professor Fang very much.”

Lin Ruan blinked. “Professor Fang is a very nice person.”

Zhan Xi looked at Lin Ruan. “What if I don’t want you to go to this salon?”

“Why not?” Lin Ruan asked.

“Because I don’t like it.”

“Then I won’t go,” Lin Ruan said flatly.

Zhan Xi smiled and said, “Just kidding. Go if you want to. When you get back, call home, and I’ll have Shi Ning pick you up.”

Lin Ruan nodded and left.

Zhan Xi didn’t get involved in politics, but he didn’t object to Lin Ruan’s involvement in these matters. It wasn’t that he didn’t understand. Besides, it isn’t a bad thing that Lin Ruan is interested in certain things spontaneously.

The weather was beautiful, and the sunlight bathed Zhan Xi in warmth. Zhan Xi threw open the greenhouse’s windows and doors for ventilation, then sat on the sofa and strummed his jinghu.

“So leisurely?” Xie Qingming’s voice drifted from the distance.

Zhan Xi looked over and saw Xie Qingming. He was dressed in a royal blue robe and holding a folding fan. He was strolling slowly towards Zhan Xi.

Zhan Xi’s gaze fell on the fan. It was a sunny March day; there was no need for a fan.

“Why are you fanning yourself in this weather? Are you alright?” Zhan Xi scoffed.

Xie Qingming replied, “I’ve got something wonderful to show you.”

As he spoke, Xie Qingming unfolded his fan. A calligraphy piece was displayed on the landscape painting. It was a poem by Du Fu[mfn]Du Fu (杜甫) was a famous Chinese poet from the Tang dynasty (712–770 CE). He is often called the “Poet Sage” (詩聖) and is considered one of the greatest poets in Chinese history, alongside Li Bai (李白). Du Fu wrote over 1,400 poems, one of his famous poem is 《春望》 (Spring View) — written during the An Lushan Rebellion, expressing sorrow for his country’s suffering.[/mfn]. The brushstrokes were vigorous and powerful; the tip of the pen was sharp enough to catch one’s eye. It was a truly beautiful and impressive piece of calligraphy.

“Where did you get it?”

“A friend of mine wrote it.” Xie Qingming pulled up a wooden stool and sat down. Most of the artifacts that Zhan Xi had brought back had already been restored, which is why Xie Qingming could finally rest.

“His name is Fang Chengze. He was my classmate and a very talented person.”

Zhan Xi raised his eyebrows slightly and said, “It’s him again.”

Xie Qingming looked at Zhan Xi. “Do you know him?”

“He was Lin Ruan’s teacher.” Zhan Xi lowered his eyes and plucked the strings.

“What a coincidence,” said Xie Qingming. “What do you think of him?”

Zhan Xi replied, “Why ask?”

“Just tell me.”

Zhan Xi lowered his head and rubbed his strings, casually saying, “Fang Chengze’s father was an imperial scholar from a distinguished family. Fang Chengze was your classmate when you were young. He went abroad to study at eighteen and returned to China at twenty. He traveled to many cities across the country before returning to Beijing and co-founding an influential magazine with some friends.”

Xie Qingming wasn’t surprised that Zhan Xi had thoroughly investigated Fang Chengze. He was a cautious man who wanted to know everything about everyone he encountered.

“…an idealist,” Zhan Xi commented on Fang Chengze.

Xie Qingming asked, “Do you think he’s unrealistic?”

Zhan Xi didn’t answer, only saying, “Those with different ideals cannot work together.”

Zhan Xi believes in self-preservation and lacks the ambition to benefit the world. He’s not on the same page as Fang Chengze or even Gu Ji.