Ming Dynasty: At the beginning, the house was ransacked and the ancestral temple was burned down.

Chapter 73 Unfair!
  Jiangling.

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu, why do I have the least money? Chongguang is only four years old, and he even has more money than me to cancel the engagement. Why! Uuuuuuuu, this is not fair!"

Six-year-old Zhang Jingxiu burst into tears and complained loudly about why his "removal money" was less than that of his second brother Zhang Sixiu's four-year-old son "Zhang Chongguang".

"It's not a lot, at least there are still a hundred taels left." Zhang Sixiu comforted helplessly.

Zhang Jingxiu got even more excited: "One hundred taels cost me a wife, I don't want the money! I would rather have a wife!"

"Alas..." Zhang Sixiu sighed helplessly: "I don't want to deal with this shameful matter of breaking off the engagement. However, there are so many people coming, and the Jiangling County Magistrate pretends to be deaf and mute. It is useless to report to the official..."

Zhang Jingxiu is only six years old, so how can he understand this? He only knows that he is the 'least valuable' and he doesn't have a 'wife' yet. All he wants to do right now is cry in the storm.

The little baby cries so loudly that it should be a huge headache.

However, on the occasion of the New Year when they are about to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new, a certain section of the Zhang family who had just made a lot of money did not feel noisy, but rather 'lively'.

Especially the fourth child, Zhang Jianxiu, has the highest amount for breaking off the engagement, which means he is the most 'valuable' one.

"I didn't expect that my former father-in-law, a salt patrol censor, would be so generous. He gave me two thousand taels of 'meeting votes'!" Zhang Jianxiu sighed with emotion at his former father-in-law's generosity, and did not forget to ridicule his sixth brother. Fan:
  "Lao Liu, your ex-father-in-law is really like that. He only paid a hundred taels, but it's still a treasure. Alas..."

This time, Zhang Jingxiu cried even louder!
  For a moment, everyone laughed and comforted, but Zhang Chonghui remained silent.

Zhang Maoxiu, the third child who was always being criticized by Zhang Chonghui, saw this scene and immediately shifted the flames of war and said:

"Liu Liu, please stop crying. Look at your eldest nephew Chonghui. He doesn't even have a copper. He's not crying. Why are you crying?"

Zhang Jingxiu felt even more uncomfortable: "But he has a wife! I don't! Wuwuwu..."

At the same time, Zhang Chonghui, who remained silent, was also wondering why his whole family had been 'divorced', but he was the only one who was not.

Seeing that Zhang Jianxiu was still teasing the crying sixth brother, Zhang Sixiu, now the head of the family, spoke up to stop the noisy scene.

"Okay, fourth child, it's not a glorious thing to have your engagement broken off. What's so funny about it!"

As the current head of the family, Zhang Sixiu felt quite uncomfortable when something like being 'massively withdrawn from marriage' had caused the Zhang family to lose face.

In the past, when Zhang Juzheng was alive, his father Zhang Juzheng supported the Zhang family even when the sky fell. Later, his father Zhang Juzheng passed away, and his eldest brother Zhang Jingxiu was still in charge.

Now that both his father and eldest brother are gone, the eldest brother is like his father, so the whole family's burden falls on Zhang Sixiu, the second oldest.

But he is only able to read. When many things are critical, he really doesn’t know how to make the decision...

For example, this time a group came to break off the engagement. Before that, Zhang Sixiu had firmly disagreed with the breakup because he thought it was very shameful!

He is determined to drag the other party to death. At worst, both parties will lose in the end. He will drag the other party's reputation with him to death!

However, the imagination is beautiful, but the reality is quite cruel.

The people who came to break off the engagement collectively this time were not here to 'discuss' with the Zhang family at all, but took a very direct approach - forcing!

Don’t agree to break off the engagement? Then turn the Zhang family over! Until I find the marriage certificate! Then force the Zhang family to press their fingerprints! Forced to break off the engagement!
  What? Want to report to the official?

The government said: Oh, I have read it and cannot reply.

Zhang Sixiu ranked second in the first class in the fifth year of Wanli. As the first son of Zhang Juzheng to be a Jinshi, his official "qualifications" were deeper than that of his eldest brother Zhang Jingxiu. However, the years he was in the Hanlin Academy were the years when his old father Zhang Juzheng was in great power. He was used to the quiet time, but he had never seen such a big scene.

Zhang Sixiu was frightened when he saw that the party who broke off the engagement did not respect martial ethics. It was at that moment that he and his third brother Zhang Maoxiu truly understood one thing.
  ——The books of sages are for reading, and the teachings of sages are for listening.

When it comes to really big things, it’s all bullshit!

The eldest nephew is right, what kind of sage theory are you talking about, what kind of bullshit gentleman are you trying to do?

In the end, this farce could only end with Zhang Sixiu's compromise. Fortunately, although the other party did not follow martial ethics, he was still willing to pay.

After all, these 'in-laws' personally selected by Zhang Juzheng are not short of money.

In this breakup of their engagement, apart from Zhang Sixiu and Zhang Maoxiu having a brief struggle at the beginning, Zhang Jianxiu was just talking.

Zhang Chonghui and Zhang Yunxiu, from the beginning to the end, stood by and watched.

Because they both want to break off the engagement, and they both know that the biggest obstacle to breaking off the engagement is not the other party, but their own family members.

So what they can do, what they should do, is to stand by and watch, or even go along with the flow.

As for reputation and face, they are already guilty queens, so what kind of face can they have?
  What kind of bike do you want?
  "Second uncle, who are my in-laws?" Zhang Chonghui suddenly asked this question, interrupting the somewhat awkward atmosphere.

Zhang Sixiu also pulled himself out of his self-blame and replied: "Your father-in-law's name is Zhao Shizhen, who was the chief registrar of Honglu Temple at that time. This man was very eloquent in his life. When your grandfather was in love, he followed Yu Keyuan They, too, are loudly speaking out to gain fame.”

Zhang Chonghui didn't understand: "Since he has gone against his grandfather, why would he marry our family?"

Zhang Sixiu also shook his head: "This marriage was arranged by your grandfather. I don't know for sure. Anyway, it happened out of nowhere. Your father even had a big fight with your grandfather in order to refuse this marriage for you. "

At this time, Zhang Maoxiu interrupted: "To be honest, I really don't understand why our father insisted on setting up this marriage. Apart from his good handwriting, Zhao Shizhen's character is really hard to describe."

"Oh?" Zhang Chonghui was curious: "How difficult is it to explain?"

Zhang Maoxiu replied: "Zhao Shizhen is the kind of person who, no matter what comments anyone makes, he will oppose and make objections for the sake of opposition."

"Ah?" Zhang Jianxiu was a little confused: "What's this mess?"

Zhang Maoxiu rolled his eyes: "I just love to argue."

Zhang Jianxiu scratched his head and said, "But aren't all civil servants in the court like this?"

At this moment, Zhang Maoxiu was speechless...

Zhang Sixiu also couldn't answer the conversation...

After all, these two brothers were once 'civilian officials in the court'.

The atmosphere gradually became awkward...

At this embarrassing moment, Zhang Chonghui suddenly asked an inexplicable question.

　Please read it, please...

　　
  　
  (End of this chapter)