Chapter 40 Reveals the Signs of a Noble Person

Chapter 40 Reveals the Signs of a Noble Person

Seeing Du Min flee as if escaping, Du Li asked as if he had just realized something, "Did you give him a lesson?"

Meng Qing glanced at him, then couldn't help but laugh, "You knew that?"

“If there’s one, there will be two. It’s not hard to guess.” Du Li, carrying the pottery, took a few steps, then looked back at her and explained, “After all, I’ve attended classes before, so I’m familiar with the reactions after attending classes.”

Meng Qing couldn't tell if he was teasing her, and she felt unusually uncomfortable and embarrassed.

“He came to me a few days ago to ask for money, and I pointed out his shortcomings and weaknesses to him,” she explained as she followed him.

"It's rare that he's willing to listen to you; he's become so arrogant that he looks down on everyone else," Du Li sighed.

“Because I made it clear to him from the beginning that my interests were the same as his, and I genuinely wanted him to live well, without any intention of harming him,” Meng Qing explained. “Your third brother’s wariness stems from his inability to see people’s true nature. He is full of calculations, yet he fears betrayal and manipulation by others. He has a very selfish personality. My stance is altruistic, so he will choose to trust me.”

Du Li pondered her words. So, if Du Min wanted to get along well with people, those people had to be altruistic. In other words, Du Min would only listen to those who were useful to him.

"This is also one of Du Min's strengths. As long as it is beneficial to him, he is willing to rack his brains to accomplish even the most difficult things, and he can listen to even the most unpleasant words. He is willing to change and has the courage to change." Meng Qing admired Du Min for this. He agreed with her words, and without saying a word, he came to Ruiguang Temple the next day to listen to the sutras and read books. He really risked getting beaten up to go out. He had a strong sense of action.

“That’s true.” Du Li agreed, and exclaimed, “Your ability to see into people’s hearts is truly remarkable. You can persuade him as easily as persuading a villain to lay down his butcher’s knife and become a Buddha on the spot. Why would he go to the temple to listen to the monks chanting sutras? If he had any wisdom, he would ask you to have a heart-to-heart talk and some lessons with him from time to time. That would be better than anything else.”

Meng Qing's lips curled up higher and higher.

Meng Chun was waiting outside the neighborhood. When he saw people returning, he ran back in a flash. “Mother, my sister and brother-in-law are back. Quickly serve the rice and dishes.”

When Meng Qing and Du Li returned home, the food was already on the table.

Seeing Meng Qing's rosy cheeks and his cheerful demeanor, Meng's mother chuckled to herself. This honest son-in-law had some skill in making his wife feel like she was floating on air.

"The eel soup is quite delicious," said Meng's father.

"After all, it's a yellow eel that's been around for several years. This thing is inconspicuous in the mud, and it seems like lowly food. But if you compare its age to that of a chicken or goose, a four- or five-year-old chicken or goose is so delicious that everyone wants to make soup. And fish, how big would a four- or five-year-old fish be? But a four- or five-year-old yellow eel is less than a pound. It only gains a little bit of meat in a year, so you can imagine how nutritious it is. It's like ginseng, which also grows slowly and is small in size." Meng Qing muttered to himself.

“What you said makes a lot of sense. Thinking about it, it really is true.” Meng’s father understood and said to Meng’s mother, “You should drink more eel soup to nourish your body.”

Mencius' mother glared at him fiercely, signaling him to shut up.

Meng's father felt wronged by the glare and immediately became unhappy, then fell silent.

Du Li looked around anxiously, unsure of what to do, and dared not speak. Looking at Meng Qing and her brother Meng Chun, the two seemed oblivious and clueless, continuing to eat and drink.

This was a lunch filled only with the sound of spitting out crunchy bits.

"It's getting late, let's go to the paper horse shop first. Qingniang, you stay home and sit with your son-in-law for a while, and then go to the shop after you've seen him onto the boat." After finishing her meal, Meng's mother put down her chopsticks.

Meng Qing nodded, "Okay."

Mencius' mother looked at her husband, who wiped his mouth and walked with her silently. Once outside, he sternly questioned her, "Why are you glaring at me? Is it wrong for me to care about you? What did I say that offended you? You glared at me so fiercely in front of the children."

"Was I fierce? I was just giving you a look to tell you not to talk nonsense." Mother Meng had a point. "My son-in-law is such a kind person. He'd rather eat or drink the good things himself than eat them himself. He even sent Da Mao's fodder from afar, which shows how much he cares. You told me to eat more and nourish myself in front of him, and he heard it and remembered it. In the future, he'll probably feed us the eels he catches first, and he won't make any money selling them."

The pent-up anger in Meng's father's heart immediately disappeared. "That's true, you're so thoughtful. You rest for a while, I'll go and brew your medicine."

Mencius' mother immediately beamed with joy.

"I'm full, I'm going out now," Meng Chun said.

Meng Qing nodded.

Seeing Meng Chun walk quickly out the door, Du Li turned around and asked, "What happened to Father and Mother just now?"

"It's their business as a couple, don't interfere," Meng Qing said casually.

Du Li choked, "What are you saying? I'm not meddling in other people's quarrels on the street. These are our parents."

“Don’t worry about it. Couples get angry quickly and it goes away quickly. They don’t need outsiders to interfere, and their children don’t need to either,” Meng Qing said.

“Fine, you’re full of logic, I’ll listen to you.” Du Li handed the child sitting on her lap to her. “He’s probably hungry, you go feed him, I’ll wash the dishes.”

Meng Qing carried Wang Zhou back to the house.

Lunch was late, the kitchen utensils were cleaned up, and it was already quite late; Du Li had to go catch the boat.

"You're going back, right? Come on, I'll take you." Meng Qing carried Wang Zhou out.

Du Li stared at the yawning child and said, "Never mind, no need to send him off. You can stay with Wang Zhou and go to sleep."

“Let him see you leave with his own eyes, so he won’t wake up and look for you everywhere,” Meng Qing said. “Let’s go.”

Du Li followed, carrying a bucket of pottery.

The family of three arrived at the ferry and saw Zhu's boat about to leave in the distance. Du Li shouted twice, and Zhu rowed the boat back.

"Hurry up and get on, or you'll miss my boat!" the boatman called out.

Du Li handed the bucket over first, then turned around and said, "I'm leaving now. I'll be back in three or four days."

Meng Qing nodded, "Let's get on the boat."

The boat, carrying passengers, was propelled by a long pole against the bluestone slabs of the ferry crossing, and the awning boat drifted away like a light, graceful duck.

Wang Zhou stared sleepily for a while, and when he saw that the small boat was not coming back, he suddenly realized what was happening and reached out to grab the departing boat, making noises.

“Your father will be back in a few days.” Meng Qing held him tightly to prevent him from falling over.

Wang Zhou couldn't understand, and he could no longer see the people on the boat. He burst into tears.

Meng Qing carried him away; she didn't go back, but took him straight to the paper horse shop.

Wang Zhou cried all the way, and Meng Qing was covered in sweat from his struggles. When they finally arrived at the paper horse shop, she breathed a sigh of relief and immediately handed over the large live fish she was holding.

"Oh dear! Your father is gone, but your uncle is still here." Meng Chun took his chubby nephew and coaxed him, "Come on, your uncle will take you out to play. We'll go to the temple to watch the monks chant sutras."

"Are you really going? Then you should also stop by your uncle's place and see if he's gained or lost weight. Tell him I want to make him two sets of monk's robes for him to wear in the winter," Meng's mother instructed.

Meng Chun was too scared to go alone, so he called out to Meng Qing, "Sister, let's go together."

“Okay.” Meng Qing followed, and on the way, she instructed, “Uncle Wangzhou is at Ruiguang Temple. Don’t be surprised if you run into him.”

"What is he doing at Ruiguang Temple? Does he want to become a lay Buddhist disciple?"

“No, he just changed his reading location,” Meng Qing said simply.

The two of them took their child into Ruiguang Temple. At this hour, there weren't many worshippers in the temple. The young monks were sweeping and cleaning. From the scripture hall in the distance, there were sounds of chanting and striking wooden fish. The temple wasn't quiet, but it brought peace to the heart.

Wang Zhou stopped crying and looked around.

“It’s Master Huiming.” Meng Chun saw Huiming talking to two young novices.

Huiming looked over upon hearing the sound, stepped forward, and asked, "Two benefactors, what brings you here at this hour? Are you looking for Benefactor Du or to see my master?"

"Is Master Konghui available?" Meng Qing replied, then asked, "Do you know that Du Min is at the temple? Has he seen you?"

“Benefactor Du came to me and asked me to arrange an empty meditation room for him to study,” Huiming replied with a smile.

"Did I cause you any trouble?" Meng Qing was worried that Du Min might not behave himself at the temple and might try to use her name to curry favor.

“No,” Huiming replied. “Benefactor Du is very studious. He has been reading in the meditation room since he came to the temple and is extremely polite to everyone.”

Hearing this, Meng Qing felt relieved. She explained, "My brother-in-law often has a troubled mind when he is studying at the academy. I suggested that he come to the temple to listen to the sutras and clear his mind."

Huiming nodded and approached Master Konghui's Zen temple. He suddenly said, "I observe that Benefactor Du's confusion is gradually dissipating, and he is showing signs of nobility. Listening to more sutras will benefit him."

Meng Qing stopped in her tracks, staring at Huiming in astonishment.

Huiming smiled slightly, "Master is inside, please come in, all three of you."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Meng Qing turned around, and Huiming walked away unhurriedly under her gaze.

"Sister, what does he mean?" Meng Chun asked with delight. "He has the appearance of a noble person. Could Du Min become an official?"

Meng Qing snapped out of her daze and waved her hand, "You can't say that. If he hears it, he'll be strutting around like crazy."

Meng Chun said "Oh," and added, "I won't tell anyone, not even my parents."

Meng Qing pondered that on the day of the full moon at Wangzhou, Huiming had refused to read Du Min's fortune, yet today he brought it up out of the blue. Did this mean that Huiming had seen through Du Min's lack of success in his fortunes back then, but couldn't say it, lest he discourage him and create trouble for himself? Now, Du Min's appearance might have changed, and Huiming was revealing this to her out of personal consideration.

“A person’s appearance can change, and whether he can pass the imperial examination depends on his own fate,” Meng Qing said. She thought to herself that she really was Du Min’s benefactor, the one who saw through his confusion.

An old monk emerged from the Zen temple. Master Konghui calmly looked at them and asked, "This humble monk has been waiting for guests for a long time. How much longer will you three benefactors chat outside the gate?"

"Uncle." Meng Qing jumped up, and smiled ingratiatingly, "Uncle, you knew we were coming?"

Meng Chun followed closely behind, calling out to people.

Master Konghui turned and went inside, followed by Meng Qing and Meng Chun. As they entered the Zen courtyard, they found Konghui pruning peach branches by the wall, which explained why he knew there were guests outside.

"Uncle, my mother sent us to see if you've lost or gained weight. She's planning to sew you two sets of monk's robes for the winter," Meng Qing honestly explained the purpose of their visit.

Master Konghui smiled and said, "Your mother makes me winter clothes every year. I haven't even worn the monk's robe she sent last year. Don't let her make any more this year."

"It's what we want to do; it's our heartfelt gift. If you can't wear it all, you can give it to one of your disciples," Meng Qing said.

Master Konghui did not refuse upon hearing this.

The Zen temple fell silent, and even Wangzhou remained quiet and well-behaved.

"Uncle, could you tell my fortune?" Meng Chun asked eagerly.

“Your sister is right. A person’s fate depends on their own destiny. Fortune telling is a heretical practice of Taoism and should not be believed. You don’t need to take Huiming’s words seriously,” Master Konghui said.

Meng Chun exclaimed, "Huh?" and then added, "This...this..."

Even after leaving the temple, Meng Chun was still wondering, "Between these two, which one is telling the truth?"

“Choose a good letter.” Meng Qing took the boat and said, “Let’s go back to the paper horse shop.”

Meng Chun sighed and muttered, "So superstitious. Nothing happened when I came, but now I have something to worry about when I leave. I'll have Dad come next time, I won't come anymore."

Meng Qing smiled.

"What are you laughing at?" Meng Chun followed up and asked.

"I'm laughing at you for getting angry because your uncle refused to do your fortune telling," Meng Qing said, revealing his true intentions.

"Nonsense, I didn't," Meng Chun retorted stubbornly.

"You know perfectly well whether it's true or not," Meng Qing said with a deliberately loud laugh.

Meng Chun lost her composure. She yelled and punched her, saying angrily, "It's just that my fate is not worth predicting. I'm just a merchant, I don't have any great destiny."

“If your uncle doesn’t say anything, it means you’ll have a smooth life. If you ever encounter misfortune or hardship, he’ll definitely tell you,” Meng Qing stopped to comfort him.

"That's right, this is also a happy event." Meng Chun was a little happier.

The siblings returned to the paper horse shop and continued making paper horses. They had already finished fattening up two paper horses and started mounting them. One of them made a paper horse made of raw lacquer ink paper, and the other made a paper horse made of tung oil white paper.

Meng Qing chose to make paper horses from tung oil-coated white paper. To achieve the translucent amber color, she opted to use clear cow glue instead of bone glue.

After mounting one layer of paper and waiting half an hour for the glue to dry, a second layer of paper is mounted... By the time the work is finished in the evening, the paper horse has only been mounted with three layers of paper, barely enough to cover the uneven texture caused by the straw.

The next day.

After mounting the paper horse with five more layers of paper, it was basically finished. However, the actual product was far from what Meng Qing had expected. It had an amber color, but it lacked a sense of translucency. The reason for this was that the repeatedly soaked paper mulberry bark was too wrinkled, with too many folds and textures. Layer upon layer of wrinkles affected the sense of clarity.

When Meng Qing went out and came back, she had an iron shovel for building walls and several kilograms of charcoal in her hands.

"What are you doing?" Meng's father asked.

"Iron the paper flat, then re-mount a paper horse," Meng Qing said. She lit a charcoal fire, hung an iron shovel over the fire for a while, and used the high temperature to iron out the wrinkled paper.

"Ouch! The shovel is on fire! Quickly throw the shovel away!" Mencius' mother shouted when she saw the charcoal brazier burst into flames.

Meng Qing threw down the shovel, hissing as she shook her hand.

"Did it burn?" Meng's father and Meng Chun asked hurriedly.

Meng Qing looked at her fingers and breathed a sigh of relief. "It didn't burn, it just hurt from the heat."

Meng's father picked up the shovel and looked at it, saying, "It was tung oil that got on the shovel and caused the fire. You step aside, I'll handle it. My hands are calloused, I'm not afraid of getting burned."

"You still want to test it after it's already on fire?" Shen Yuexiu asked.

"Try again, there's always a way." Meng's father rubbed the shovel on the ground a few times to remove the tung oil. He then wiped the ash off the shovel with the hem of his clothes and hung it over the charcoal fire to heat it.

“That’s about it.” Meng Qingshou said from the side, and she instructed, “The temperature of the shovel should not be too high, otherwise it will burn the paper or even set it on fire... Press the shovel on the paper and iron it quickly at first and then slowly. The temperature of the shovel should decrease as you go on, and you need to iron it for a while to smooth out the wrinkles.”

After ironing two sheets, Meng's father got the hang of it and wasn't afraid of getting burned, so he took over the job.

The ironed paper was then used for pasting, and Meng Qing made a new paper horse. It took another day, and she made a deep amber-colored paper horse, with a clear but not translucent texture, because the paper was not thin and transparent.

"How about applying a few more layers of glue? Just like making the roof of a paper house, apply several layers of glue to create a texture similar to glazed tiles," Meng Chun suggested.

Meng Qing shook his head. "You can only apply one layer of ox glue. The paper horse is large, so you have to coat it with a thick layer of ox glue. When burning it, you have to melt the outer glue first before you can burn the inside. Unless you put it in the stove to burn, the paper horse's skeleton will still be intact even if the fire goes out."

“That makes sense.” Meng Chun wrote it down.

"No need for further improvements, it's perfect as it is. Don't you think it looks like a bronze horse?" Father Meng picked up the paper horse and placed it at the door. "Look at it from a distance, doesn't it look like a bronze horse?"

Mencius' mother nodded, "Yes, it's similar."

“This kind of paper horse might be more popular.” Meng Qing no longer insisted on the crystal-clear paper horse. She said excitedly, “A bronze horse! Even princes and ministers might not have bronze horses buried with them.”

“The paper-made brass horse doesn’t violate the rules, and it looks good too.” Meng Chun clapped his hands. “That’s fine, no need to change it.”

"Apply another layer of glue to prevent the fabric from catching fire due to friction with the tung oil paper," Meng Qing said.

The five paper horses are two lacquer-inked paper horses, one tung oil-inked paper horse, and two tung oil-colored paper horses. One of the tung oil-colored paper horses has been ironed, and the other has not. The tung oil-colored paper horses are all coated with a layer of ox glue, while only one of the lacquer-inked paper horses is coated with bone glue.

After the glue dried, the Meng family carried the five paper horses downstairs, intending to test whether they were waterproof and moisture-proof.

"You're here again! What are you doing? What are you doing sneaking around like this? Are you up to something bad?" Shen Yuexiu grabbed Du Min and shouted, "Wenjiao, quickly call for Master and Mistress! I've caught a thief!"

"Let go! I'm not a thief, I'm Uncle Wangzhou!" Du Min was furious.

Meng Qing and Meng Chun ran out, followed closely by Wen Jiao and four other male apprentices, each holding a bamboo pole.

"Second Sister-in-law," Du Min called out awkwardly, glaring at Chen Yuexiu, "Aren't you going to let go of my hand?"

Shen Yuexiu awkwardly let go of her hand and explained, "This is not my fault. This is the second time I've seen you peeking out from outside. You are Uncle Wangzhou, why are you hiding? I thought you were trying to steal a child."

Meng Qing was speechless. "He's my brother-in-law. You can go in."

Mencius's parents also came out. Mencius's father greeted her and said, "Qingniang, is his third uncle here to see you? Take him back and talk to him. We'll keep an eye on things here."

Meng Qing walked over and asked, "Did you need something from me?"

"No, I was just passing by and wanted to take a look. I came to tell you that the Gu family didn't lay a hand on me." Du Min patted the hem of the clothes that Shen Yuexiu had been clutching.

"It seems the Gu family isn't planning to cause you any trouble," Meng Qing said.

"They might be holding their breath, waiting until I take the provincial examination before making their move," Du Min said.

Meng Qing didn't know what he wanted to say. Thinking of what Huiming had revealed, she patiently asked, "What do you plan to do?"

"I was just saying it was a possibility, nothing more." Seeing that she didn't seem to realize his intention, Du Min felt embarrassed to say anything more and changed the subject: "I'm on my day off in a couple of days and I'm planning to go back. Do you want to take Wangzhou back with you? If you're interested, we can go together."

Meng Qing couldn't help but exclaim, "Oh dear!" "You're going back? Planning to make up with your parents?"

Du Min gave a forced smile, his eyes cold as he said, "This is what you taught me: don't be too ruthless in your dealings with others, or you'll only embarrass yourself. I have to go back eventually, sooner rather than later, to avoid any unpleasant rumors."

Meng Qingguan didn't suddenly become filial and choose to forget past conflicts and reconcile with his family. It seems he chose to be outwardly harmonious but inwardly discordant.

She breathed a sigh of relief and felt at ease.

“It’s time to go back,” Meng Qing agreed. “When do you take your ten-day break? I’ll go back with you then. If your parents lock themselves up and beat you, I can at least be the one to break it up.”

"We'll have a ten-day break the day after tomorrow," Du Min replied.

“Then the day after tomorrow, I’ll wait for you at home.” Meng Qing made the agreement with him.

"Okay, I'm leaving then."

Meng Qing remembered Shen Yuexiu's words. Du Min had come here before. She called out to him and invited him, "Would you like to go to the paper horse shop? We made waterproof and moisture-proof paper horses today and are going to do an experiment."

“Then I’ll go take a look,” Du Min readily agreed.

As Meng Qing walked into the shop, she vaguely discerned the truth. Du Min had inexplicably come to the paper horse shop to report that the Gu family hadn't caused him any trouble, and then suddenly asked her to go back to Dujiawan. Was he telling her that he had repented? He had sneaked into the paper horse shop, but only dared to wander around outside and didn't dare to come in. As soon as she asked, he agreed. Was he trying to prove that he didn't look down on the merchants?

"Uncle Meng, Aunt Pan," Du Min greeted them respectfully. "My second sister-in-law said you made waterproof and moisture-proof paper horses, so I came in to see for myself."

"Oh? Okay, welcome." Meng's father reacted quickly and said warmly, "I've been wanting to invite you to come and see for a while. Our paper horse shop has been able to get such a big business thanks to you."

Meng Chun quietly walked up to Meng Qing and whispered, "Is he having another episode? Or is he plotting something again?"

“He probably considers me his mentor,” Meng Qing said, staring at Du Min.

Meng Chun looked at her suspiciously, "Do you know what you're saying?"

Meng Qing didn't explain much, and she herself couldn't believe it, but Du Min seemed to really rely on her to some extent, and she didn't know if he had noticed.

Five paper horses, each about half a person's height, were lined up in a row. Six apprentices brought six basins of water, and they splashed water upwards. The water droplets fell and hit the paper horses, making a clanging sound like raindrops hitting a drum.

"The water has all slid down," Meng's father said, bending down to check.

"Let's just splash some water on it and see," Meng Qing said.

The remaining water was poured on top, and it quickly flowed down, soaking the soil on the ground, but the paper horse remained dry.

"Waterproofing is no problem, and moisture-proofing should be fine too. Next, we'll test it by burning it to see how easily it burns," Meng Qing said.

“I’m going to Jinxiufang to deliver a message later to see if the guests can come tomorrow. We’ll burn it for them on the spot,” Meng Chun said.

"These two guests were introduced by Dr. Xu. They are silk merchants and are said to be good friends of Dr. Xu," Meng Qing introduced to Du Min.

"Really?" Du Min was somewhat skeptical. Dr. Xu was making friends with businessmen?

Meng Qing didn't answer. She looked at her parents and said, "Father, Mother, I have an idea. I want to rent a painted boat and invite two silk merchants, Dr. Xu, Steward Chen from the Chen family, the Gu family, Master Xie, other scholars who bought funerary objects from our shop before, and Master Yu from Yu's Rice Shop—basically, all the big customers of our paper horse shop. On that day, we'll arrange a small boat to float five paper horses on the river, from Wumen to Lumen. The guests can sit on the painted boat and watch. After reaching Lumen, we'll retrieve the paper horses to see if they're still waterproof, and then take them outside the city to burn them."

“I’ll come too,” Du Min said enthusiastically. “I can help write the letter and invite my classmates from Chongwen Academy over.”

"How much will that cost? Renting a pleasure boat must cost a lot, right? We've been spending money on these waterproof and moisture-proof paper horses all this time, and we haven't earned a single penny yet." Meng's mother was distressed about the money.

"Renting for half a day shouldn't cost much, but with snacks and tea, it might cost three strings of cash." Du Min knew about this.

“I’ll pay,” Meng Chun said.

Meng's father pressed his hand down, "We don't need you. We'll pay for it. You two can take care of the arrangements."

"Let's set the date for the day after tomorrow. I'll be taking a break from work the day after tomorrow," Du Min interjected, offering his suggestions: "To avoid any mishaps, you should first soak a paper horse in the river for two hours. If the paper horse doesn't get wet, then go all out and invite more guests. Whether they come or not is another matter. Just make a big splash and establish your reputation once again."

The Meng family all looked at him, and Meng Chun couldn't help but ask, "Brother Du, aren't you going to avoid these kinds of business dealings? Aren't you afraid people will gossip about you having too much contact with merchants?"

Du Min looked embarrassed. He couldn't very well say that he was desperate to find an opportunity to get closer to Dr. Xu and Master Chen; how could he avoid it at a time like this? His second sister-in-law was truly his benefactor; just when he was troubled, she presented him with an opportunity.

“I was too attached to appearances before. You are my second sister-in-law’s family, which means you are my relatives. We are just normal relatives interacting, and we are not afraid of people talking about us,” he said in a grand manner.