All Hail Cousin Brother

Chapter 309 - 309 Duke Zhonglie

309 Duke Zhonglie

The Yu Residence was only willing to help with the funeral arrangements because they were kind. If she encountered a harsher family, they would roll her up in a mat and throw it into the mass grave.

A living human life was like a stone thrown into a lake.

Yu Youyao had been learning the “mind games” from her grandmother for an hour. Old Madam Yu was a little tired, so she asked Bai Kui to get a box and handed it to Yu Youyao.

Yu Youyao asked curiously, “Grandmother, what is this?”

!!

Old Madam Yu smiled and said, “It’s a few books left behind by our ancestor. Just like the Four Books and Five Classics, they’re also books that the descendants of the Yu family have to read. Although you’re a woman, you’ll be in charge of the family business in the future. Naturally, you have to know more about the things inside so that the servants won’t mess around.”

Yu Youyao understood immediately.

The ancestor that her grandmother was talking about was “Duke Zhonglie” who was known as the “First Minister of the Six Dynasties.” After the descendants of wealthy families were enlightened, the first thing they learned was family history.

From this moment on, it was closely related to the rise and fall of the family.

In the future, her every word and action had to prioritize the honor of her family. She could not do anything that would humiliate her ancestors and betray her ancestors.

The Yu Clan also had very complicated feelings towards “Duke Zhonglie.” There was respect, admiration, and resentment. The name “Duke Zhonglie” was like a monument on the back of the Yu Clan.

Generation after generation, the Yu Clan was almost suffocated.

Due to their Duke Zhonglie, the Yu Clan’s reputation was unprecedented. The previous emperors of the Great Zhou also treated the Yu Clan well.

It was also because of their Duke Zhonglie that the Yu Clan had gone from prosperity to decline.

Furthermore, because of the reputation of “Duke Zhonglie”, the Yu Clan had been treading on thin ice for many years. They were cautious and low-key, afraid that if they made a mistake, they would disgrace their ancestors’ reputation and cause the world to poke their backs.

Yu Shande was quite talented, but he encountered the phrase “ruling the vassal state.” Due to the monument on Madam Yu, he could only answer farming questions.

Whether he succeeded or failed, it would be due to the same person!

Old Madam Yu sighed slightly. “Read these books well when you go back. I don’t ask you to understand them now. If you learn them, you have to read carefully to understand them.”

Yu Youyao nodded and asked Chun Xiao to carry the box back to the Jade Courtyard.

There was a stack of books in the box. There were a total of 12 books. Nine of them were written by Duke Zhonglie, and the other three scripts were “Heavenly Works.”

Yu Youyao knew this book.

When she was young, the elders in class had specially mentioned this book.

This book was highly praised by its ancestors, who called it the work of a “rich and powerful citizen.” It was the only “encyclopedia” in thousands of years.

It was also because of this book that after Duke Zhonglie became an official, he placed great importance on agriculture, industry, and business. Later on, he wrote many related books, all of which were also influenced by Heavenly Works.

Yu Youyao took the first book and opened it.

The words in the book were easy to understand, but the amount of knowledge was too great. Most of the knowledge involved was on a level that she did not understand, so it was really difficult to read.

However, “Heavenly Works” was indeed a rare and extremely practical book on the market. For example, the first volume, “The Valley”, talked about soil, climate, and cultivation methods for farming.

It was not dry and boring to read.

After reading for a while, Yu Youyao was a little tired. She might as well get someone to remove the book in her hand—

Yu Youyao was stunned for a moment before she looked up and saw her cousin flipping through the Heavenly Works. “Heavenly Works is indeed a rare and good book. Back then, when Duke Zhonglie read this book, he left behind the words, ‘I caught a glimpse of it and knew the entire picture, so that everything in the world is in my hands’.”

At this point, he paused and continued—

“After Duke Zhonglie became an official, the previous dynasty was filled with internal and external troubles. It was rotten. He vigorously developed agriculture, industry, and business, reformed the court’s politics, rose and fell, and turned the tide. He prolonged the reign of the previous dynasty, but was accused of overstepping his authority. He was ostracized and framed by traitors, causing the regime to split. At this moment, the previous dynasty was embroiled in a war, and external and internal troubles erupted. It was already impossible to reverse the situation, so there was the matter of regicide.”

The previous dynasty had perished because of the internal and external conflicts between the court officials.

And how similar was the current Great Zhou Dynasty to the previous dynasty?

With Xia Yansheng to balance the royal court and the government, and Yu Zongshen to manage the Ministry of Revenue, so what if the treasury was empty?

Once internal troubles erupted, external troubles would definitely arise. It was time for the Imperial Court and the world to be in chaos.

Yu Youyao was curious. “Cousin, you’ve also read Heavenly Works?”

Zhou Linghuai nodded. “Duke Zhonglie feels that the principles of the Four Books and Five Classics are profound and biased towards teaching. The Daoist Canon is mysterious and biased towards management. A scholar studies hard, but his limbs are not diligent. How can he manage the royal court and calm the world? On the other hand, Heavenly Works is practical, and it makes up for this. Therefore, this book is very respected among scholars. Most people will read it.”

Yu Youyao was enlightened and immediately perked up. “Cousin, Grandmother gave me a box of books today and asked me to read them well. However, only one book, ‘Heavenly Works’, is the most basic. It’s already very difficult for me to read it. I haven’t read more than a few pages in an hour.”

Seeing the little girl looking at him expectantly, Zhou Linghuai couldn’t help but laugh. “Although Heavenly Works is basic, it has a lot of knowledge. It’s normal for it to be difficult to read. In the future, I’ll take an hour every day to help you interpret it so that it’ll be easier.”

Yu Youyao held her cousin’s arm and smiled sweetly, as if she had honey in her mouth. “Cousin, you’re so good. Fortunately, I have you. Otherwise, I would be exhausted from learning so much every day.”

At this point, she couldn’t help but pout.

Now that she had learned more, her knowledge was also increasing. Even her scalp felt numb, and she looked bitter.

Sigh, it was really too difficult for her.

Ever since the Flower Festival at the Marquis of Changxing’s Residence, everything had changed.

Zhou Linghuai couldn’t help but frown. “Don’t push yourself too hard.”

Sensing her cousin’s worry, Yu Youyao quickly shook her head and said, “Nanny Xu has helped me arrange my daily study schedule again. The etiquette time has been reduced by ten minutes. The pharmacology class has been canceled. It has been combined with medicinal fragrances, medicinal tea, and medicinal cuisine to be taught together for a total of two hours a day. The needlework class has also been canceled and tracing words has been added. This way, I’ll be studying for about two hours a day.”

“In addition, Cousin guides me in my studies, helps me practice calligraphy, and teaches me the zither every day for about two hours.”

“It takes about two hours to manage the household, look at the accounts, and do some miscellaneous things.”

“I took a nap and read for about an hour…”

“Are you tired?” Zhou Linghuai’s frown deepened. She still had to go for school for four hours in the morning.