Chapter 59: A Family, Crime Against the Throne

"Big brother, let's talk this out!"
Caught off guard, Zhang Yi was struck by Zhang Yuchu's surprise attack. His mischievous instincts kicked in, and he bolted.
Zhang Yuchu, having harbored this anger for a long time, would not let him escape easily and immediately gave chase.
"If you have guts, don't run! Today, our bond is severed—I will kill you!"
"Zhang Yuchu, when have you ever beaten me in a fight? If I hadn't cared about our brotherhood, the grass on your grave would already be three feet tall!"
"Who said we're brothers? If we were, would you let Father beat me?!"
The two brothers chased one another, provoking laughter from everyone present.
Even Zhang Zhengchang, for once, did not assume the role of patriarch and simply called out to stop their antics.
Stripped of his position by Old Zhu and forced to "voluntarily" relinquish much of the Celestial Master's authority, Old Zhang had been quietly cultivating on Mount Longhu. In doing so, he rediscovered a peace the Zhang family had lost for eighty years.
Such harmonious scenes of "brotherly affection and filial respect" had been absent for far too long.
After the brothers had finally settled down, he spoke:
"Quiet, all of you. Yuchu, as the elder brother you must set an example and not lead your younger brother astray!"
Zhang Yuchu: ???
The words rang familiar.
Old Zhang's notorious double standards left Zhang Yuchu feeling utterly disheartened.
Zhang Yi, seeing that Zhang Yuchu had stopped chasing him, jogged back to his older brother's side.
He realized, more or less, the reason for Zhang Yuchu's anger—it wasn't hard to guess.
Now, Zhang Yi held nearly equal standing in Zhang Zhengchang's eyes. In his family letters, he had reminded Zhang Zhengchang to strictly discipline Zhang Yuchu, and it seemed Zhang Zhengchang had listened.
He did not regret suggesting Old Zhang take such measures; rather, he felt it was a responsibility toward Zhang Yuchu's life.
Zhang Yuchu was, after all, the last great Daoist of the Zhang family; even within the history of Daoism, his place was assured.
Yet his standing was awkward—his greatest achievements as a Celestial Master lay not in Daoism, but in Confucian scholarship. The renowned scholar Song Lian of the early Ming dynasty once said, "At the dawn of the nation, famous monks abounded, but among Daoists of letters, only Yuchu stood alone; after him, there were few…"
If he were an ordinary Daoist, these words could be taken as praise. But as a leader of the Daoist sect, it was rather peculiar—it's as if you were an emperor and people commended your carpentry skills!
This was understandable, though; in the original timeline, Zhang Zhengchang died young and did not pass on Mount Longhu's true teachings to Zhang Yuchu. He inherited the title as a youth, and carving out a path through Confucianism was proof of his talent.
However, another matter was even more embarrassing.
His tenure as Celestial Master was short-lived, and he was dismissed by Emperor Jianwen for "improper conduct in the village," which was truly mortifying!
Were it not for Judy, the beloved, pulling him back from disgrace, the humiliation would have been immense!

So was it wrong for him to ask Father to keep an eye out? Not at all, right?
"Big brother, no matter what faults I may have, please forgive me!"
Zhang Yi knew his brother wasn't truly angry and conceded. Zhang Yuchu glared at him, fuming:
"I've always treated you well, and you leave home without so much as a word to me? At least say something! We're a family—I wanted to see you and Father off, but only Father returned… sob…"
As he spoke, Zhang Yuchu's eyes reddened.
Zhang Yi took a deep breath—damn it, he mustn't be moved by a brat!
Despite all the arguments he had prepared, Zhang Yi was left speechless. He could only bow again:
"Big brother, your younger brother was wrong!"
"Enough, both of you, not another word!"
Zhang Zhengchang interrupted their exchange and turned to Deng Zhongxiu:
"Take them back to the previous Daoist temple to rest. I have matters to discuss with your two junior brothers."
Deng Zhongxiu nodded and led the accompanying Daoists away.
"Father, why did you bring big brother along this time?"
As the instigator behind the scenes, Zhang Yi understood Old Zhang's purpose for coming to the capital. Yet, with important matters at hand, bringing Zhang Yuchu along seemed odd.
Zhang Zhengchang looked somewhat embarrassed. If he could have understood Zhang Yi's book himself, he would not have brought Zhang Yuchu.
Song Lian was right—among the Daoist literati of the early Ming, there may have been many great Daoists, but only Zhang Yuchu stood out for his scholarship.
What Zhang Yi considered a popular science book proved challenging for the ancients; even for them, it was difficult to grasp.
Especially since Zhang Zhengchang needed to comprehend and absorb the material quickly to meet the emperor's demands, he found that Zhang Yuchu could quickly distill the main points. With time pressing, he simply brought his son along to help recite the book during their journey!
But such humiliating facts could never be spoken aloud. Old Zhang merely said,
"It's good for him to gain some experience!"
"Let's find a quiet place for the three of us to talk.
Let's go to my alchemy chamber—it's absolutely safe!"
Zhang Yi's alchemy chamber was the most valuable place in the entire Daoist temple. To pursue his ideas, Zhang Yi had invested almost all his silver there, making it the ideal spot for their conversation.
Zhang Yuchu was puzzled why the father and sons needed to talk somewhere other than a room.
When Zhang Yi led them in, Zhang Zhengchang said to Zhang Yi,
"I followed your method and have successfully inoculated for smallpox. All on Mount Longhu have been inoculated. A few days ago, smallpox broke out in Li Family Village below the mountain, but not a single person from Mount Longhu contracted the disease!
Moreover, we selected some villagers for the remaining inoculation, and none of them fell ill!

This method is a benefit for generations to come and will let Mount Longhu go down in history. Zhang Yi, in the name of the forty-second generation Celestial Master of the Zhang family, I thank you for your efforts for Mount Longhu!"
Zhang Zhengchang first solemnly thanked Zhang Yi. Zhang Yuchu, hearing this, stared in disbelief.
This scenario was entirely different from what he had imagined!
"Preparation is all that matters, Father. This is an opportunity for Mount Longhu, a chance for us to step beyond the confines of Daoism and influence history. The stage is yours, Father!"
Zhang Yi dared not accept his father's formal thanks and quickly returned the bow.
Father and son bowed to each other. Zhang Zhengchang recalled his previous request to Zhang Yi before leaving the capital and smiled with satisfaction.
"Wait!"
Their harmonious atmosphere was interrupted by the utterly bewildered Zhang Yuchu.
"Father, Dad, I don't understand. Isn't the inoculation method a divine technique imparted to Father by our ancestor in a dream?"
Zhang Yuchu was anxious, as if he had just heard something incredible.
Zhang Yi and Zhang Zhengchang exchanged a smile, and the latter replied,
"You are of the direct line of the Zhang family—it's time you knew. The tale of the immortal's instruction is just a pretext. The inoculation method came from your younger brother's dreams…
That 'Scripture of the Supreme on the Subtle Wonders of the Microcosm,' and the medical book in my hand, were both authored by your brother!"
Hiss~
Zhang Yuchu's worldview nearly shattered. So the one who received the immortal's favor was not Father, but his brother Zhang Yi?
It turned out that the so-called celestial encounter of Zhang Celestial Master was just a scheme arranged by the father and son.
And now, they were planning to send this method to the palace for Mount Longhu's benefit?
"Father, this is a crime of deceiving the emperor!"
Zhang Yuchu was panicking.
"It's nothing—just deceiving the emperor!"
Zhang Yi even went over to comfort him!
Zhang Yuchu: …