Chapter 6

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“I have always believed that the founders of dynasties in ancient times must have had a wise consort to assist them in establishing their great achievements. I hereby posthumously confer the title of Prince of Xu upon my maternal uncle, and grant my maternal aunt the title of Lady of the Prince.”

“Also, considering that when one passes, the soul wanders back to its homeland, a temple shall be established at the burial site so that officials may perform ancestral rites in spring and autumn. Today, we select an auspicious day to send the prince to enshrine the spirit tablet in the new temple, so that the spirit may be honored and bear witness to this.”

Crown Prince Zhu Biao read the imperial edict aloud. The first officially posthumous princely title granted since the founding of the Ming dynasty was that of Prince of Xu, Ma Taigong. At the same time, it was publicly announced that the empress had a younger brother—Ma Xun.

After the edict was read, Ma Xiuying held the spirit tablet while Ma Xun stood closely beside her, formally completing the burial ceremony for Ma Taigong.

At this moment, Zhu Yuanzhang no longer wore mourning attire—for such an occasion, he was the emperor.

Once the burial was completed, the courier station was lively and bustling.

Fifteen-year-old Crown Prince Zhu Biao, fourteen-year-old Zhu Zhu, twelve-year-old Zhu Qiang, ten-year-old Zhu Di, and nine-year-old Zhu Tuo were all lively and spirited. There were also eight-year-old Zhu Jingru and seven-year-old Zhu Jingxian.

Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma were quite fertile, having children one after another.

There was also twenty-five-year-old Mu Ying, though an adopted son, Zhu Yuanzhang and Ma Xiuying treated him as their own.

Seeing the children’s lively table, Zhu Yuanzhang felt very gratified. His own household had once been very lively too, but after the chaos at the end of the Yuan dynasty, many had died or scattered, leaving only a few of the large family.

Zhu Biao stood up proactively and poured a cup of wine for Ma Xun. “Uncle, please start eating.”

Zhu Biao sat at the main table with Zhu Yuanzhang, Ma Xiuying, and Ma Xun.

Mu Ying sat at the children’s table, overseeing the younger siblings. Don’t think that this was a slight to Mu Ying; having such a role meant he was truly part of the family, not treated as an outsider.

Zhu Yuanzhang deliberately picked up a piece of fish and offered it to Ma Xun. “Little brother, eat this. It’s the fish belly—very delicious.”

Ma Xun instinctively felt nauseous but tried to force himself to eat.

Zhu Yuanzhang immediately took the fish back. “Good things like this, I can’t bear to give you. I’ll eat it myself.”

Zhu Biao quickly rose and took the dish closer. “Father, you know I like fish, yet you put it so far away. Put it right in front of me—I’m younger, so everyone should give me some.”

Ma Xiuying hurriedly said, “Little brother, have some roast goose. I personally roasted this goose—it’s your sister’s husband’s favorite. You try it and see if it’s tasty.”

At the children’s table, Zhu Tuo whispered, “Doesn’t big brother dislike fish?”

Zhu Qiang immediately whispered back, “What do you know? Uncle was probably a boat-dwelling fisherman before; he ate so much fish. Without oil or salt, try eating it for ten-plus years and see if you’d get used to it!”

As the ‘youngest son,’ Zhu Tuo said, “I like eating fish and shrimp; they taste great. Boat dwellers are good—they eat meat every day. That’s better than us; I can’t eat meat every day.”

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Zhu Zhu immediately scolded, “You don’t know anything! I told you, no oil, no salt—how can that taste good? Do you know what boat dwellers are? They live their whole lives on boats. Even the poor on land are better off; land people look down on boat dwellers!”

Regarding the children’s education, Zhu Yuanzhang and Ma Xiuying were very attentive, and their sons had considerable insight.

Mu Ying helped explain, “Boat dwellers are said to be descendants of the Minyue people. Throughout the dynasties, they had no homes on land and didn’t farm. Men and women lived on boats, making a living by fishing. During the Yuan dynasty, they were even more discriminated against—banned from living onshore, forbidden to learn to read or write, forbidden to marry land dwellers, and prohibited from taking imperial exams. The government didn’t register them, so they had no official household registration.”

Zhu Tuo was shocked. “Are they even human?”

“Shut up!” Zhu Zhu immediately scolded. “Eat your food and don’t provoke Father and Mother right now!”

The noise at the children’s table was audible even at the main table.

Zhu Biao cautiously observed Ma Xun’s expression, while Zhu Yuanzhang gripped his chopsticks, ready to angrily discipline the children at any moment.

Ma Xun hurriedly reassured Ma Xiuying, “I haven’t drifted at sea for too long; I just fish occasionally in the river to fill my stomach. I also like eating snails.”

Zhu Yuanzhang decided to handle his sons later. Seeing that the little brother had to forage for snails to survive at such a young age made him feel especially sympathetic. So he kept putting mutton, duck, and other meats into Ma Xun’s bowl.

“Little brother, you don’t have a family yet, which isn’t good,” Ma Xiuying said. “Come back with us to the capital, and I’ll find you a wife.”

Ma Xun quickly replied, “No need. Just grant me some land; if you can give me a house, that would be even better. I’ll stay in Suzhou and guard the family.”

Zhu Yuanzhang said displeased, “Little brother still doesn’t acknowledge me as his brother-in-law, huh?”

Ma Xun hastened to explain, “That’s not true! I’m very happy to recognize you. Having family makes me happy. But still, someone has to be here on ancestral land.”

Ma Xiuying said, “When you have children and grandchildren, then you can send them back here. For now, you’re alone, and as your sister, I should take care of you.”

Zhu Yuanzhang added, “The eldest sister is like a mother. If I leave you, a mere lad, back home alone, wouldn’t my father-in-law blame me and your sister?”

Zhu Biao quickly advised, “Uncle, have you been to Zhejiang or Fujian? You’ve seen quite a bit. The furthest I’ve been is back to Fengyang, our hometown, and Suzhou. Uncle, you must tell your nephews what the outside world is really like!”

The family of three was extremely affectionate, genuinely close to Ma Xun. Their concern was not just out of duty but also taking his feelings into account. If he didn’t go with them to Yingtian Prefecture, it would be Ma Xun’s fault.

After eating and drinking his fill, Ma Xun returned to his room to rest. He felt safe now and believed that wealth and honor were not far off.

Back in the house, Ma Xiuying worriedly said, “Chongba, you saw how little brother still treats us like strangers, afraid we’ll despise him. He’s just a child to me; how can I not care for him?”

“I envy Lao Chang now,” Zhu Yuanzhang sighed. “His uncle is good to him.”

Ma Xiuying laughed, “That’s true, but things are different there. Lan Yu has always stayed on, so there’s no estrangement. Not to mention, you and your brother-in-law are close.”

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Mentioning her own brother-in-law, Zhu Yuanzhang got excited. “Sister, my brother-in-law is great! I’m a brother-in-law myself now, so no matter what, I can’t be worse than him or Lao Chang.”

Ma Xiuying said, “Brother-in-law is impeccable, I respect him. But little brother is distant from us—what will you do? Judging by him, he’s unwilling even to go to the capital. If you grant him an official post or title, will he accept it?”

Zhu Yuanzhang said fiercely, “Even if he refuses, I’ll give it to him anyway! He’s my little brother-in-law; I won’t let him suffer. Sister, you can rest assured. Bring little brother back, teach him well for a few years, and he’ll grow close to us.”

Ma Xiuying worried, “He’s grown up now, and his temperament is set. It’s thanks to my father’s good teaching that little brother is so polite and knows his place.”

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded in deep agreement. His sister’s words were right—that was the good teaching of their father-in-law.

Over the years, Zhu Yuanzhang had seen many people grow arrogant after gaining power, and many newly rich peasants became boastful and overbearing. But his little brother-in-law showed no signs of arrogance or presumption.

The more modest and indifferent little brother-in-law was, the more Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to give. The reason was simple: he was his sister’s brother, the only hope in her family.

From now on, if anyone dared to say that his sister had no one left in her family, he would have his brother-in-law lead the charge to fight back!

A new day began, and Ma Xiuying heard the donkey braying and the children’s noisy chatter.

“What’s so great about riding a donkey? Riding a tall horse is much more impressive!”

“Feed the donkey for uncle; don’t bully it! Uncle’s entire property is just this little; you all should be more careful!”

Ma Xiuying opened the door and saw the second and third sons sitting comfortably in rattan chairs, directing the fourth and fifth sons to feed the donkey.

The two girls were busy cutting grass and mixing fodder.

The donkey named Wangcai was little brother’s beloved pet. It had pulled the coffin for over half a year to return to Suzhou, so naturally, it needed good care.

Ma Xun also came out hurriedly, saying, “I’ll feed the donkey. You all can rest.”

Zhu Zhu and Zhu Qiang jumped up eagerly. “Uncle, leave such small tasks to us. Don’t worry; we’ve been feeding horses and donkeys since we were little. We’ll definitely take good care of Wangcai.”

Zhu Di, who was feeding the donkey, was unhappy—he and the youngest brother fed it, so why should the credit go to second and third brothers?