Late Ming Dynasty: Oops, I am surrounded by the Donglin Party

what?

Zhang Shikang spoke casually, but Zhang Zhiji and Sun were stunned when they heard it. They looked at each other, as if they were both confirming whether their son was talking nonsense.

"Son, how dare you fool me?"

"Son, are you telling the truth?"

"Third brother, where is my sister-in-law?"

"Wuji, don't talk nonsense!"

Dad, mom, younger sister, and brother, the four of them spoke almost at the same time.

The father frowned, thinking that his son liked to joke more and more.

I didn't believe it, but there was an expectant expression on my face, as if I was willing to believe it was true, but I was not sure.

Zhang Shize certainly didn't believe it either. He felt that although this brother was mischievous, before that, he never even went to a brothel and only enjoyed low-level hobbies like cockfighting and dog fighting.

Although there have been a lot of changes in the past two years, he has been fighting everywhere and has four wives, all of whom are pregnant. It is impossible to fool his parents like this.

As for my younger sister Zhang Jingyi, she’s just pure gossip.

"It's true. I slept with Zhu'er two years ago, and Zhu'er got pregnant first at the beginning of this year.

Last year, when I was in Nanjing, I fell in love with seven girls. Now they all live in my mansion in Nanjing.

I just received letters from them. Three of them are pregnant with children, and are six or seven months pregnant.

Alas, I have never experienced this before, so I want to discuss with you what to do. "

Seeing that none of his family members believed him, Zhang Shikang had to explain everything, including the identities of the seven girls.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Zhiji frowned even more after hearing this.

"Nonsense!" he slammed the table and shouted angrily.

Zhang Shikang didn't dare to say a word. The reason why he had kept it a secret from his family was, of course, because of Chen Yuanyuan and the others' background.

In this society with a strong feudal ideology, the more prestigious a person is, the more they value the idea of marrying well when getting married.

As for the so-called romantic scholars along the Qinhuai River, they are just romantic. No matter how beautiful or talented the singers are, no one really takes them seriously.

Even if there are lovers in the world, they will basically take them as concubines, and once they are old and ugly, the ending can be imagined.

There was also a tradition at that time. If the concubine was from a good family, a small ceremony would basically be held during the day to invite relatives and friends for a meal and drinks.

But if the concubine was a prostitute, the marriage would basically be done at night, and the concubine would be brought back home to do the work.

In short, as a top noble, duke, and marshal of the army, it is not a decent thing for him to have an unclear relationship with a singer and have a child before getting married.

Of course, Zhang Shikang didn't care about this. He had a good reputation in the eyes of the common people, but in the eyes of the literati and even businessmen, his reputation had long been ruined.

Zhang Shikang doesn't care about his own reputation, but he cannot completely ignore his parents' reputation.

After all, his father is the Duke of the current dynasty. Strictly speaking, he is also the backbone of the defense of feudal ethics. Doing these things by himself will undoubtedly cause trouble for his father.

This is what Zhang Shikang thought, but Zhang Zhiji's next words once again overturned his view of his father.

"What nonsense! Since they are your women and are pregnant with your children, why do you let them stay in Nanjing?

You have offended so many people, and that place has just experienced war. What if you are hurt by bad guys?

That's my Zhang family's flesh and blood!"

Zhang Zhiji stood up, stopped eating, and walked around the living room anxiously with his hands behind his back while speaking.

After Zhang Zhiji said this, Sun also became anxious.

"Yes, Wuji my son, why are you so ignorant?

Why didn't you tell the transvestite earlier?

Do you know how girls can bear it when they are pregnant and have no family around them?"

As she spoke, Mrs. Sun began to pace around the living room anxiously.

"Wuji, you are indeed reckless." Zhang Shize also glanced at this ignorant brother.

Only the younger sister Zhang Jingyi, after satisfying her gossiping heart, said to Zhang Shikang playfully:

"Third brother is really amazing. Doesn't that mean I have eight more sisters-in-law all of a sudden?"

Zhang Shikang still underestimated the huge impact of his power.

If he was just the third son of the Duke's Mansion, perhaps his father would be concerned about his reputation. After all, it would not sound good if the news got out that his son had a bunch of singing girls.

But who is Zhang Shikang? Just that long list of titles is enough to scare everyone.

Who dares to speak nonsense when a person who controls the world's military power is in power?

Given the high regard that the current emperor holds for Zhang Shikang, who would be so blind as to dare to make irresponsible remarks?

Haven’t you seen the old man Shiquan, who went to the south of the Yangtze River in the name of a secret visit to look for prostitutes, and his story has been passed down to later generations as a good story.

Generally speaking, true superiors are all like this in being compatible with those below them. With the blessing of various halos, people may just think that this person does not care about his identity and is a strong person who dares to love and hate.

This is actually similar to the situation in later generations where people would believe whatever the richest man said.

And Zhang Shikang had been promoted by the emperor to the hereditary title of Duke of Zhenguo a few days ago. This title alone was enough to show how much the current emperor valued his son.

According to etiquette, once Zhang Shikang was officially conferred a title by the court and had performed the ceremony of coming of age, he should have separated from the Zhang family compound and established his own family.

Although Zhang Shikang has been staying in the Duke's Mansion and is unwilling to live in his own mansion, theoretically speaking, Zhang Shikang is already the head of his own family.

Therefore, Zhang Shikang could have made his own decision on the matter of taking a concubine.

Based on the above reasons, Zhang Zhiji and his wife only care about the four grandchildren who suddenly appeared.

Oh, of course, having a child out of wedlock is also a factor, after all, it always feels weird.

However, Zhang Zhiji had long since let it go. His son had already reached a high position in the government, and he knew that all the new policies now being implemented by the court were actually being carried out under the leadership of his son.

Since my son is so capable, who would care about such a trivial matter?

This is actually not a bad thing. Before this, Zhang Zhiji was worried that his son would be too successful and would threaten the emperor. If there were no flaws, he might end up being abandoned after the cunning rabbit dies.

But it’s different now. My son will reveal his shortcomings to the emperor. It must be like this, Zhang Zhiji said with certainty.

Because his son was not lustful before!

"Son, according to dad's opinion, we should bring them all home first." Zhang Zhiji made up his mind.

"Master is right, but our daughters-in-law are all six or seven months pregnant, and Nanjing is not close to us.

We have been traveling so long, what if something goes wrong?" Sun said worriedly.

"Mom, it's okay. I have deployed more than a hundred factory guards over there, and there are also dozens of my personal guards left over there.

My son asked the Jinyiwei to rush the journey 300 miles, and it would only take about ten days to reach Nanjing.

When the time comes, let them arrange the best carriages and the best boats, and find a few of the best medical officers to accompany the team, there should be no problem."

Zhang Shikang thought for a while and said.

After all, those seven girls were young and in good health, and the people he left there were all capable of doing their jobs.

With his military orders, local officials had to present them wherever he went.

Seeing Zhang Shikang so calm, Zhang Zhiji and his wife felt a lot more at ease.

Suddenly, there are eight more daughters-in-law and four grandchildren. Everyone is shocked but happy at the same time.

Zhang Zhiji also indirectly criticized the eldest brother Zhang Shize, saying that this guy was already thirty years old, but had only given him one grandson, which was really outrageous.

Sun was also very happy. She asked about Chen Zhuer's situation, then about Chen Yuanyuan and others. After asking for a while, a big question suddenly popped up in her mind.

"Son, if we bring him back and hold a wedding right away, then we'll have eight children coming into the family at once, who will be the eldest?"

……