After a male student transmigrated into the body of a widow,

Chapter 180 Autumn Banquet

Three days later, the autumn banquet will be held.

After changing into the clothes prepared by Da Yan, Gu Lin walked out of the courtyard, only to see a tall, elegant young man standing in front of him.

As Gu Lin approached, he noticed that although the other person was dressed in ordinary clothes, it was different from usual. Compared to his usual simple and casual style, Zheng Hao had his hair tied up with a jade crown and a warm white jade pendant hanging from his waist.

Seeing the young man approach, Zheng Hao explained why he was there: "At this autumn banquet, not only did the wife of Prefect Ren and the wife of General Yu invite Uncle Gu, but Prefect Ren and General Yu also invited me."

Upon hearing this, Gu Lin's brows furrowed in surprise, as if he were asking how something like this had happened a few days ago.

Zheng Hao explained, "Prefect Ren's invitation arrived the day before yesterday, and General Yu's invitation arrived yesterday. Seeing that Uncle Gu was busy setting up the white porcelain factory, I didn't send anyone to disturb him."

With his departure imminent, Gu Lin didn't ask any further questions after Zheng Hao explained the matter.

The two of them took a carriage to the residence of Prefect Ren.

Upon arriving at the residence of Prefect Ren, servants and maids immediately came forward.

Although they were both attending the autumn banquet, Zheng Hao was a male guest and Gu Lin was a young master. They went to different places. The young man followed the servant to the front yard, while Gu Lin followed the maid to the back yard.

As Gu Lin walked through the corridor of Prefect Ren's residence, his gaze lingered on the garden scenery. He finally understood why Prefect Ren's wife and General Yu's wife dared to hold an autumn banquet in the fall.

An autumn banquet is held when flowers have withered and lush green trees have turned yellow. Most hosts would not choose to hold a banquet at such a time, as the scenery is barren and it doesn't look good.

However, the situation was quite different in the residence of Prefect Ren. Although it was autumn, the garden of the residence showed no signs of desolation, withering, or decay. Instead, it was filled with abundant fruit and a rich fragrance.

"Is this Mr. Gu? Seeing is believing, indeed!"

After Gu Lin was led into the garden by a maid, the maid withdrew. Immediately afterwards, a kind and elegant lady, surrounded by many young men and women, approached the young man.

Seeing that all the husbands and wives present were following the other party's lead, Gu Lin made a guess about the other party's identity.

"I, Gu, have met Madam Ren."

Gu Lin bowed with his hands clasped in greeting.

Madam Ren smiled and helped him up: "You mustn't, your Master Zheng and my master are colleagues."

Not taking the other person's words seriously, Gu Lin lowered his eyes slightly and smiled shyly.

Although Zheng Hao was acting as the emperor's military supervisor and inspecting Jibei Prefecture, thus surpassing Prefect Ren in terms of imperial favor, Prefect Ren was still a fourth-rank official, and his wife held an imperial title. Therefore, both in terms of etiquette and reason, Gu Lin had to pay his respects to him.

When she first met Gu Lin, Madam Ren, the Prefect, was quite surprised. She had learned from her husband that Lord Zheng had an elder brother, so she assumed that the man was about the same age as her. However, upon closer inspection, she found that he was almost the same age as her eldest son.

While thinking this to herself, Madam Ren, the prefectural governor's wife, kindly led the young man to identify people.

She pointed to a strikingly beautiful woman beside her and said to Gu Lin, "This is the wife of General Yu, a Red Army commander in our town."

Gu Lin raised his hand in a bow: "I, Gu, greet General Yu's wife."

General Yu's wife nodded. She seemed to always have a tense expression, without a trace of a smile, and her tightly furrowed brows revealed her inner irritation.

Then, the Prefect's wife led the young man to meet several other ladies and husbands before leading him to his seat.

She looked up and addressed the ladies and husbands who had come to the banquet, saying, "The backyard of the mansion has been prepared long ago and is set up today specifically for the female guests. You are all welcome to enjoy the beautiful scenery as you please."

Which of the ladies and husbands at the banquet was stupid? As soon as Madam Ren finished speaking, when they saw the ladies who were still sitting at the banquet and whose status was second only to Madam Ren, they understood that Madam Ren wanted to get rid of them.

The people left the banquet in twos and threes.

Watching what Madam Ren, the Prefect, did, Gu Lin remained silent at the table from beginning to end. On the table were delicate and small pastries, spicy and sour cold dishes, and refreshing tea.

Gu Lin didn't touch anything else, only occasionally picking up his teacup to sip a few mouthfuls of tea.

After everyone had left, Madam Ren, the prefect's wife, said to Gu Lin, "A few days ago, I heard that Lord Li's brother-in-law offended Mr. Gu. I wonder if Mr. Gu was hurt anywhere?"

The "Lord Li" mentioned by the wife of Prefect Ren was the Tongpan of Jibei Prefecture, who was also the brother-in-law that the eldest son of the Li family always talked about.

Setting down his teacup, Gu Lin looked back at Madam Ren, the Prefect, and smiled slightly, "It's alright. Fortunately, the guards in the house did their best to protect us, and Mingzhang returned to the city in time, so Lord Li's brother-in-law was able to avoid making a big mistake."

As soon as the young man finished speaking, everyone at the banquet paused.

They exchanged glances, wondering why the young man's words sounded like he meant no harm at all. It was more like he was settling scores with the Prefect's wife, indirectly blaming the Prefect and Li Tongpan for their poor management.

Lady Ren, the prefect's wife, observed the young man's expression. Seeing that he was open and honest and did not seem like a scheming person, she guessed that Gu Lin was harboring resentment that he had not yet vented. No wonder, how could he not be angry when someone threatened him with a knife while he was strolling in the market?

Despite being insulted, Madam Ren, the Prefect's wife, was not angry. She explained to Gu Lin, "To be honest, that young master of the Li family is not Lord Li's legitimate brother-in-law. Lord Li's wife is present at the table, Madam Li."

The prefect's wife beckoned to a nearby lady, who then got up and came over.

Approaching the young man, Madam Li said apologetically, “My concubines have become spoiled and arrogant, allowing the Li family to bully the people. It’s also my fault that my husband is always away, busy with the affairs of the prefecture, and I am devoted to Buddhism and serving my parents-in-law. I have not been able to discipline my concubines, which has made them more and more audacious.”

“After the incident that day, I immediately sent the concubine back to the Li family. As for what you want to do with her, you don’t need to consider my master’s feelings. You can deal with the concubine and the Li family according to the laws of the Great Qian Dynasty.”

Gu Lin looked at Madam Li, who spoke softly but whose words completely distanced herself from the Li family. He didn't know Madam Li's attitude towards the concubine surnamed Li, but he could tell from the arrogant words and actions of the eldest son of the Li family in the market that day that the other party had been bullying others in Jibei Prefecture for more than a day or two. Under such circumstances, how could Madam Li and Madam Li not know?

However, according to Madam Li, the Li family was simply using the reputation of their prefectural office to bully others, and they were also victims.

Although Gu Lin is a businessman and has a silver tongue, he is no match for officials like Madam Li.

Instead of attacking the other's strengths with his own weaknesses, Gu Lin put on an honest but indecisive appearance: "I, a mere lad, don't understand these legal matters. I heard from Mingzhang that Lord Ren is an honest and good official, and he will surely investigate the matter thoroughly, so that no one is wronged or blamed."

If Supervisor Zheng had truly handed over the eldest son of the Li family and the yamen runners to Prefect Ren without sending anyone to interfere, Madam Li wouldn't be in such a hurry.

Looking at the young man's serious and honest expression, Mrs. Li, who originally thought that she could get away with the farce at the market by apologizing, gradually felt a sense of crisis, not knowing whether the other party really thought so or was just pretending to be stupid.

However, before she could continue speaking, General Yu's wife, who had remained silent until now, said, "Given how young Mr. Gu is, how can he have a nephew as old as Lord Zheng?"

Gu Lin had no intention of hiding his relationship with Zheng Hao, as anyone with a keen eye could easily find out.

He explained calmly, "Mingzhang and I were originally father and son. I married his father to live with him, but one day, his father was killed while hunting in the mountains, so I started living with Mingzhang."

"After remaining a widow for three years after his father's death, I had no intention of remarrying. I only wanted to raise Mingzhang. For the sake of convenience when traveling, I addressed Mingzhang as my uncle and nephew."

After the young man explained, the people at the table looked at each other in surprise, and then exclaimed, "I see."

General Yu's wife said, "No wonder Lord Zheng is so filial to his husband, Gu."

Upon hearing this, Gu Lin's eyes flashed with a strange light. If it were the wife of Prefect Ren, or anyone else present, who had said such words, he wouldn't have found it strange. But these words came from the mouth of General Yu's wife, who had no expression and spoke in a cold tone.

He was considerate in his interactions: "He treated his elders at home and his fellow villagers the same way."

General Yu's wife changed the subject: "Lord Zheng is almost twenty, and I heard he is still unmarried?"

This is something many people know, and Gu Lin nodded.

“Most men who are eighteen or nineteen years old are already fathers.” General Yu’s wife said to Gu Lin, “Gu’s husband is Lord Zheng’s elder. Lord Zheng is busy with official business and has no time for his own marriage. Gu’s husband should consider his needs even more.”

The conversation abruptly shifted from Li Tongpan and the Li family to Zheng Hao's marriage, but Gu Lin handled it with ease.

He smiled slightly, like a weak-willed young master who dared not discipline the men in his family: "Mingzhang's status is not what it used to be. He can no longer find girls and boys to marry from the village or the county town. I am new to the capital and do not know anyone. How can I make decisions for him?"

“How can you not make the decision? You raised him, and the kindness of raising him is greater than the kindness of giving birth to him. As long as you do not remarry and remain in the Zheng family, Lord Zheng will call you Father and respect and support you.”

Madam Li is right. In the Great Qian Dynasty, filial piety is the most important virtue for scholars and officials. If their political enemies and censors find out that they are disrespectful to their elders, not only will their reputation be damaged and their path to promotion be hindered, but in serious cases, they may even be demoted or exiled.

Gu Lin chuckled to himself.

If he could truly make decisions for Zheng Hao, he wouldn't be in Jibei Prefecture, but in Jiangnan.

Seeing that the other party was even more anxious than him about Zheng Hao not listening to him, Gu Lin pretended to be afraid of trouble: "Madam, please don't make things difficult for me. As the saying goes, children are all debts when they grow up. It's hard to be a stepfather or stepmother. I raised him to adulthood, which is my responsibility. But I can't use filial piety to blackmail him and wear down the relationship between us."

Seeing that neither of them could convince the other, and not wanting them to quarrel in their own home, Madam Ren, the Prefect's wife, quickly changed the subject: "What Mr. Gu said is right. Don't say that being a stepfather or stepmother is difficult. Even we biological parents go to great lengths for our children."

"Some children are stubborn, but it's a good thing. Once Lord Zheng understands, we'll take it slowly."

As she spoke, Madam Ren patted the back of General Yu's wife's hand. After listening to her advice, General Yu's wife stopped being so impatient and wouldn't let go of the young man.

Regardless of his outward appearance, Gu Lin's inner thoughts remained unchanged from beginning to end.

Madam Ren, the prefect's wife, had the servants serve everyone hot tea. Then she said to Gu Lin, "Although I am in Jibei Prefecture, I have heard of the reputation of Zhenyu Tower. Their fragrant dew, body oil and body lotion are rare and exquisite products. The ladies and husbands here are looking forward to the passing caravans from the capital so that they can buy some fragrant dew and body oil to keep on hand."

A lady at the table looked surprised: "That Zhenyu Tower actually belongs to Mr. Gu?"

Since Madam Ren, the prefect, had put it this way, Gu Lin nodded slightly: "It's just a minor incident."

"Don't be modest," said Madam Ren, the Prefect's wife. "You came to Jibei Prefecture with Lord Zheng. I heard from my husband that you want to do business. Are there any shops in Jibei Prefecture that you like?"

Knowing that his recent actions could not be kept secret, Gu Lin told the truth: "To be honest, I have been looking for a suitable shop recently."

"Have you decided where you want to buy a shop?"

Gu Lin said, "Any place that isn't too remote is fine."

After a moment's thought, Madam Ren said, "I do have a shop here that suits Mr. Gu's requirements. This shop used to sell fabrics, but it has been losing money for three consecutive years due to the poor management of its staff. I also have many affairs to attend to and no time to manage it, so I was thinking of renting it out or selling it. If Mr. Gu is interested, I can take you to see the shop another day."

Remembering Zheng Hao's instructions, Gu Lin agreed to the situation and said, "Then I'll trouble Madam Ren another day."

As dusk approached, the autumn banquet came to an end.

The wife of Prefect Ren personally escorted Gu Lin out of the mansion.

Back in the Ren family garden, General Yu's wife said coldly, "I think he's pretending to be stupid."

Knowing what the other party meant, Madam Ren shook her head slightly: "Not necessarily."

General Yu's wife turned to look at her, and the prefect's wife explained, "Although he and Lord Zheng are nominally father and son, they are not biological father and son. Now that Lord Zheng has become successful and has won the emperor's favor, how can he allow a boy who is not his biological father to decide his marriage?"

"Gu Fulang has no control over Lord Zheng and still has to live at his mercy."

General Yu's wife stubbornly said, "I heard from the capital that Lord Zheng has great respect for Mr. Gu."

The wife of Prefect Ren said, "If he wants to continue to serve as an official and get promoted, he must maintain a respectful attitude towards Mr. Gu, no matter what opinions he may have about him."

General Yu's wife said, "My general said that Supervisor Zheng is arrogant and ignorant. A few days ago, he stayed in the camp eating, drinking and having fun, and there is nothing to fear."

"But just in case, it would be best to drag him down with us."

As Gu Lin was about to board the carriage, Da Zhuo said, "My lord, the master is a little drunk."

A strange look flashed across Gu Lin's eyes, but outside the prefect's residence, he didn't say anything and got into the carriage. As soon as he entered the carriage, he saw a young man leaning against the carriage wall as if he were drunk, with his eyes half closed.