Chapter 44: The Petition
At noon, Lin Chun had a simple lunch at Qian Fuyuan and then went to the wing room in the backyard, closing the door to draw pictures and write letters. Fortunately, among the jewelry designs that Lin Chun drew for Qian Fuyuan in May, there was one that was very suitable for the Empress Dowager's age to wear. Under the nod and support of Qian Ye Li and Qian Da Shu, Lin Chun only needed to draw a picture, Lin Chun thought for a long time in the room, finally made up his mind, if he wanted to let the Empress Dowager not pursue responsibility after seeing the picture he drew, he must make the picture on the paper strike the Empress Dowager's eyes. The Empress Dowager would definitely look at the picture first and then read the letter. In order to win over the Empress Dowager's heart, in order to avoid Qian Fuyuan and Lin's family being in trouble, Lin Chun picked up his pen and drew the six-dragon-three-phoenix crown of Xiaoming Emperor Wanli's Queen Xiao Duan.
In ancient times, no matter how powerful and wealthy a family was, except for the emperor, empress, dowager empress, crown prince, etc., others were not allowed to use dragon and phoenix patterns. Lin Chun thought of another picture, only a five-fu jade pendant hanging from a string, although it meant auspiciousness and peace, but it couldn't evoke the noble woman's admiration for the dowager who was used to seeing luxurious and exquisite jewelry. Only that exquisite phoenix crown, not only magnificent, but also representing the highest status, could express Lin Chun's reverence and respect for the dowager.
Able to sit on the throne of a queen, all have experienced the bloody rain in the harem, and finally yearn for three things: kinship, understanding, and respect, which can be reflected at all times. In short, they want people to always remember and value them.
Lin Chun deeply understands the psychology of the queen, and when she herself is in a high position, what she wants most is not congratulations or blessings, but comfort and kindness after everything has calmed down.
Lin Chuyu spent the whole afternoon writing a letter, and by the time he finished, the sky had already darkened. The letter was modeled after the one Li Mi wrote to Emperor Wu of Jin during the Western Jin dynasty, when Li Mi was appointed as the Crown Prince's washroom attendant. Lin Chuyu used his own name in the letter, which was written in a format similar to that of a memorial to the throne, and described how he had lost his parents at a young age, and how his family had been struggling to make ends meet. He explained how he and his siblings had relied on each other for support, and how they had worked hard to earn money by drawing pictures, building walls, constructing houses, cultivating land, and planting fruit trees. He also mentioned that his younger brother and sister were still young and unable to take care of themselves, and expressed his own heartfelt wishes and determination. Finally, he stated that once his family's situation was stable and his siblings had grown up a bit, he would bring them to the capital to pay respects to the empress dowager, with gratitude and reverence in their hearts. The letter was sincere and well-written, although not as eloquent as Li Mi's memorial, which had moved people to tears. Nevertheless, every sentence was filled with emotion, and every word was carefully chosen. Lin Chuyu had thus told the empress dowager, a complete stranger to him in his past life, about his experiences and hardships over the past year or so since he had traveled back in time.
A thousand nights apart, at noon I had wanted to invite Lin Chun to the town's wine tower for a meal, also as a treat for their first meeting. However, because Lin Chun insisted, they didn't end up eating together. So I thought that when Lin Chun came out of her room, I would properly entertain her with a feast. But unexpectedly, when Lin Chun pushed open the door and came out, the sky had already darkened. Lin Chun had made an envelope herself, on which she drew several plum blossoms in full bloom on the upper right corner of the cover. In the letter, Lin Chun also wrote a poem about plum blossoms: Outside the post station, by the broken bridge, lonely and without owner. Already at dusk, alone with worries, even more so with wind and rain. Unintentionally struggling for spring, letting all the flowers envy. Scattered and fallen into dust, only leaving fragrance as before.
Lin Chuan believed that Taohou would be able to understand the meaning of this poem written by the great patriotic poet Lu You. Lin Chuan put the letter and two sheets of paper into an envelope, sealed it with a grain of rice at the opening, and didn't show it to Qian Ye Li and Qian Da Shu. When Qian Ye Li received the envelope, she looked at the plum blossom on the envelope, simple and unadorned, delicate but not flashy, as if it could let people smell the faint fragrance. Qian Ye Li knew that what was in this envelope was not only the future of Qian Fuyuan, but also the future of Lin Chuan and the Lin family.
Lin Chunde deeply understood the consequences of this letter reaching the Empress Dowager's hands, and waited calmly and quietly. If he could get the Empress Dowager's nod, then his journey to find his father and mother's family would be smoother in the future.
Lin Chun didn't have dinner at Qianfuyuan, and instead had Uncle Qian send someone to drive a horse carriage to take him back to Sanchakou. An He and Dashan Bo were just about to go into town to pick up Lin Chun when Dui Dui and Guai Guai started barking loudly from a hundred meters away from Sanchakou, so everyone knew that Lin Chun was back.
Back home, Lin Chun was both tired and hungry. An Pozi hurriedly brought over the warm soup that had been kept warm, Lin Chun drank a few mouthfuls, his stomach felt warm, and his body relaxed a lot. Yu Xin was delighted to see Lin Chun return safely, greeted him and then returned to Lin Jian Academy. An He sent Da Shan Bo back home, while An Pozi and Lin Pozi went back to their own rooms after arranging the beds for sleeping. Da Tou and Er Ya stayed behind, Lin Chun thought that tonight, the three siblings could sleep in the same room and also chat about heartfelt matters.
"Sister, what's the name of the young master of Qianfuyuan? Is he ugly?" Er Ya asked quietly in Lin Chunhuai's arms.
Lin Chunyi laughed at Er Ya's question. Most people would ask if someone looks good or not, but Er Ya asked if they look difficult to look at. It seems that she has met too many people with ill intentions and has developed a psychological shadow. Lin Chun was both amused and worried, amused by Er Ya's question, but worried about her trust in people. "The young master is called Qian Ye Li, he looks similar to Mr. Yu, probably around 17 or 18 years old, not bad looking. If he comes to Qingxi Town again, sister will take Er Ya to meet him."
"Sister, is he also a good person like Mr. Yu? If not, I won't see him. I hate bad people the most. By the way, sister, I heard from Big Mountain Uncle today that Little Uncle and Big Uncle will be released from the county prison in two days. Sister, will Little Uncle come to my house to set fire again? After he comes out, if he remembers his hatred for us, will he bully us again?" Er Ya's series of questions made Lin Chun fall into deep thought.
"Big Head, Er Ya, I don't know if the young master of Qian Fu Yuan is a good person or not, but he shouldn't be a bad person, right? If it weren't for Qian Fu Yuan, our family wouldn't have gradually gotten better. As for Lin Er Lang and Lin Da Zhuang, I'll let An and Big Brother accompany them to the county tomorrow to visit Uncle and Auntie as well as Shi Qi. Ah, by the way, is that little dog that Mountain Uncle brought back from Shi Jia last time still around? It would be perfect to bring it along for Shi Qi, we can't go back on our promise!"
"Hey, hey! Yesterday, I came to play with Dudu and Guai Guai too! Sister is right, Mr. Yu also taught us that as a person, we must keep our promises, one promise is worth a thousand gold!" Er Ya said excitedly, her sleepy face suddenly became wide awake.
