Chapter 261 – Who is Cheng Cheng? (Part 5)
According to my dear wife, Cheng Cheng isn’t very good with words in his usual life, but his writing is sharp, and his insults are nothing short of spectacular.
Liu Zhi’s mind quickly whirled, and a vivid image of Cheng Cheng holding a book in one hand and a brush in the other—turning adversaries into weeping messes—flashed before him.
The thought was too amusing; he dared not continue or risk bursting into laughter in front of Cheng Cheng.
Liu Zhi hosted Cheng Cheng and his wife, having provisions and warm water prepared for them. Though the conditions were humble, they excelled in attentiveness. Meanwhile, Jiang Pengji took her guards to bury those fallen comrades who had met their end protecting Cheng Cheng and his wife.
Upon returning, she brought back several wagons. Noticing the marks they left as their wheels sank into the ground, her curiosity was piqued.
Cheng Cheng, now free from worrying for his life, was overjoyed to see Jiang Pengji thoughtfully return those wagons. Without a thought to the onlookers, he hopped into one, opening box after box and breathing a sigh of relief upon seeing the treasures safe and sound.
Cheng Cheng’s wife chuckled, “You really ought to change that temper of yours, lest you become the laughingstock of Liu Zhi and Lan Ting. These book boxes were left by the roadside, yet you treat them like they’re your lifeline. People would think they’re worth a mountain of gold!”
Cheng Cheng flushed with embarrassment, feeling somewhat shy at his wife’s playful teasing.
After all, it wasn’t exactly sane to haul several carts filled with books around like this.
Liu Zhi stepped in to defend Cheng Cheng.
He understood all too well how difficult it was to acquire books these days.
To the common person, a few cartloads of bamboo slips couldn’t compare to even a small amount of gold; they were merely firewood-level bamboo pieces.
But for someone with vision, they were priceless gems, worth more than their weight in gold!
Cheng Cheng secretly grinned at his wife, a hint of smugness showing, making onlookers smile in return.
Since Cheng Cheng was injured and couldn’t handle much more rough treatment, Liu Zhi arranged for a wagon for the couple. The shock-absorber system of the Liu Residence’s wagon was top-notch for this era.
At first, Cheng Cheng and his wife didn’t realize Liu Zhi’s thoughtfulness, but once they boarded the wagon, they appreciated the kindness behind it.
Privately, Cheng Cheng’s wife tended to her husband’s wounds and casually mentioned the bandits from earlier.
“Did my husband have anyone particular in mind?”
Cheng Cheng’s expression darkened, disappointment evident in his tone, “Sigh, if I offended anyone today… it would only be that one person…”
“That person?” Cheng Cheng’s wife’s eyes flashed with curiosity, seemingly trying to guess who it might be.
“Cangzhou Meng Zhan…” Cheng Cheng hesitated to say, “But I think even if Meng Zhan is not as he seems, he wouldn’t be so ruthlessly wicked. It’s hardly worth it for him to go after my life just over some scandal.”
If Meng Zhan truly sought revenge for overhearing a scandal about “substituting the illegitimate for the legitimate,” he wouldn’t have been able to leave Cangzhou.
Why would he wait months to settle the score?
“A mere scandal? What scandal could it be…” Cheng Cheng’s wife pondered, “My husband isn’t one to gossip or buckle easily…”
Looking at her husband’s wounds, she felt a pang of heartache.
If she discovered who was behind the dark scheme, she certainly wouldn’t let them off easy.
“A while back, didn’t Meng Zhan lose a legitimate second son? On the surface, it was said he was born of the main wife, but there’s a possibility he was born of a concubine.”
Cheng Cheng didn’t hide anything from his wife.
If it weren’t for today’s incident, he wouldn’t have shared this with anyone.
Gossip about family matters should not be a gentleman’s pursuit.
Cheng Cheng’s wife gasped, clearly taken aback.
In an era where legitimate and illegitimate lines were so clearly drawn, mixing them up was seen as a failure of family management—or worse, as a breach of propriety that could shame an entire clan, making it difficult to hold their heads high.
For prominent families like the Meng Clan, the higher their status, the greater the scrutiny, and the consequences of any scandal would be all the more severe.
Considering this train of thought, it wasn’t impossible for Meng Zhan to hire someone to kill.
However, Cheng Cheng’s wife shared her husband’s doubts about Meng Zhan being the killer.
“Let’s think again… maybe it was someone else…”
Cheng Cheng sighed heavily, deep in thought yet still without clarity, reluctantly pushing the matter to the back of his mind for now.
Initially planning to part ways at the nearest post station, Cheng Cheng and Liu Zhi found their personalities quite similar and enjoyed a hearty conversation. Liu Zhi’s warm invitation led both families to decide to travel together, aiding each other while also sparing Cheng Cheng and his wife any awkwardness.
If they were to send messages home from the post station, it would take at least a month for someone from the family to arrive.
“Is Lan Ting also interested in these books?”
Though traveling on the road with modest comforts, Cheng Cheng’s injuries had healed after some time of care.
The Six Arts of the gentleman were essential studies for scholars today, and naturally, Cheng Cheng could ride and shoot. Now that he felt better, he didn’t want to stay cooped up in the wagon. So he rode out for some fresh air and noticed Jiang Pengji staring contemplatively at his collection of books.
“Hmm, I noticed Cheng Uncle’s collection is even more extensive than Father’s study.”
In this era, books were mostly held by the powerful families, and the deeper their roots, the richer their libraries.
Based on her observations over time, Jiang Pengji realized that Cheng Cheng wasn’t a direct descendant of the Cheng family, yet he possessed thousands of bamboo slips—all his own. It was impressive, and she wondered where he had gathered so much literature.
If only she could replicate a few portions!
Books were crucial for the transmission of human wisdom, and civilization couldn’t advance without them.
Of course, to break the stranglehold of family-dominated knowledge, they must be abundant and freely available.
Cheng Cheng was unaware of Jiang Pengji’s thoughts, but hearing her remark, he couldn’t help but swell with pride.
It wasn’t boastful; some of the texts within might even be absent from the libraries of long-standing noble families.
“Some of these books are from family collections, while others are fragments of ancient texts I’ve gathered. Whenever I catch wind of a rare classic at a certain family, I’ll have the audacity to pay them a visit…” At this point, Cheng Cheng became somewhat vague in his account, implying that his “audacity” might have involved some uninvited visits, “…and over time, I managed to accumulate all of this…”
Cheng Cheng’s wife often joked with him, saying she wasn’t the main wife but rather a favored concubine he had married, while those scrolls inside the boxes were his legitimate family’s treasures… though it was said in jest, it showed how much he cherished these books.
“Sigh… in these chaotic times with war among the sixteen nations, the common people suffer and are left without food… I fear how many precious ancient texts have been lost… My lifelong wish is to pass these down to future generations and restore the ancient texts lost in turmoil… so that future generations may see them…”
