Chapter 66: I Want to Take Revenge
What a family background!
Although Zhang Fei wasn’t a history major, he knew of the Grand Empress Dowager Cao and Empress Dowager Gao. The history books mentioned them.
Grand Empress Dowager Cao was the wife of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty, born into the Cao family of Zhending, the granddaughter of Prince Wuhui, Cao Bin.
The Cao family was a renowned military family in the Northern Song Dynasty, with an extremely prominent status spanning the entire Northern Song period. During the reign of Emperor Yingzong, she held power for a time as Empress Dowager.[1]
As for Empress Dowager Gao, she was named Gao Taotao, and was the Empress of Emperor Yingzong of the Song Dynasty. She was the niece of Grand Empress Dowager Cao, and the mother of the current emperor, Emperor Zhao Xu. She was also a very famous virtuous empress in history”.
Not only that, Empress Dowager Gao also came from a military family.
That is, the Gao family army of the Northern Song Dynasty, which could be mentioned in the same breath as the Yang family army, the Zhe family army, the Zhong family army, and the Cao family army.
Their backgrounds were extremely illustrious.
Later generations only knew that the founding emperor Zhao Kuangyin removed the military authority of his major generals over cups of wine,[2] but they overlooked one thing, that is, the Zhao royal family had marital ties with almost all the major military families.
The Yang family army, the Gao family army, the Zhong family army, the Cao family army, they were all military clans which had lasted for generations. And although the Zhao royal family chose to use civil officials to control military officials, they actively entered into marriage with these major military families. Almost all of these major military families had produced empresses and imperial consorts. Their relationships were actually very close.
The Zhao royal family did not treat these military families as disposable assets, they still managed both civil and military affairs, just using different tactics.
Faced with these major military families, even civil officials didn’t dare to be too arrogant.
Moreover, these major military families were proficient in both civil and military affairs.
In the end, it was these major military families that safeguarded the Song Dynasty. It can be seen that they were very loyal to the Song Dynasty, which was actually very rare in the late period of a dynasty, indicating the wisdom of the Zhao family’s strategy.
However, as skilled as they were, they couldn’t overcome the useless of emperors Huizong and Qinzong, the last two emperors of the Northern Song dynasty. The former liked to micromanage, the latter was obsessed with the occult. What’s more, their genes were exceptionally ‘strong’, and they even produced someone like Zhao Gou, who gave up all fight against the invading Jin forces, giving rise to the Southern Song dynasty. In the end, they couldn’t turn the tide.
And Cao Dongdong was the son of the current Deputy Commander of the Infantry, Cao Ping.
As virtuous Empress Dowagers, Empress Dowagers Cao and Gao needed to avoid giving their family members special treatment.
One could imagine that once Lin Fei complains to the authorities about Cao Dongdong and the evidence is conclusive, these two empress dowagers would probably prioritize justice over family ties.
That was the most terrifying part.
Although Zhang Fei understood this reasoning, he still had reservations. After all, this was just Cao Dongdong’s word. Generally, it didn’t make sense for a military instructor to plot against a true young master. So he said, “If that’s the case, why not agree to Lin Fei’s request?”
“How could I!”
Cao Dongdong’s expression was agitated. “If I help him get promoted today, he’ll want another promotion tomorrow. How could I keep giving in to him? It would never end.”
Well! This young master isn’t stupid after all! Zhang Fei exclaimed, “You seem to have a very clear understanding of matters.”
Cao Dongdong snorted, “The Ma family has been involved in this kind of thing a lot. How could I not be clear about it?”
“Big Brother, there you go again, thinking that my family has done every bad thing in the book.” Ma Xiaoyi said irritably.
Cao Dongdong whispered, “Didn’t we agree? You help me, and I’ll protect your whole family.”
Ma Xiaoyi remained silent, feeling frustrated.
This strategy isn’t bad. I can get involved in that in the future. Zhang Fei had an idea and asked, “So, how do you want me to help you?”
Cao Dongdong suddenly looked at Ma Xiaoyi.
Ma Xiaoyi hurriedly said, “Big Brother hopes to use your methods to counter-sue Instructor Lin for extortion and clear his name.”
Cao Dongdong nodded directly but then shook his head. “Whether we can sue Lin Fei or not isn’t important. As long as I get through this, I have ways to deal with him. But the most important thing is to prevent my grandaunt and aunt from punishing me.”
Finding a pen-in-cap to handle your family affairs, you really are a clever one. Zhang Fei pondered for a moment and said, “That’s not easy. Putting aside whether we can win this lawsuit, even if we do, the Grand Empress Dowager might still punish you. After all, whether she punishes you or not is unrelated to the law!”
Cao Dongdong snorted, “If it were an easy problem, why would I come to you?”
Zhang Fei nodded. “That’s true.”
Ma Xiaoyi suddenly said, “Brother Zhang San, you see, we saved you today. You can’t just stand by and do nothing!”
Cao Dongdong nodded repeatedly. “Exactly! Exactly! We are your benefactors now! You have to repay our kindness.”
These two youngsters were quite eloquent. Zhang Fei recalled the recent attack on him, still feeling a lingering fear. If the assailant had intended to kill him, he would probably be dead by now. He couldn’t help but think, Benefactor Xu can only protect me in the imperial court, where he can argue based on reason, but he can’t ensure my personal safety outside. Perhaps being on good terms with them might help with my personal safety.
With this in mind, he began to ponder seriously.
Cao Dongdong and Ma Xiaoyi glanced at each other, not daring to disturb Zhang Fei’s thoughts.
After a while, Zhang Fei suddenly said, “I can agree to help you.”
Cao Dongdong hurriedly asked, “Have you figured out a solution?”
Zhang Fei replied, “As long as it’s a lawsuit, there’s a way to fight it. But you must promise that everything you said earlier is true, and you must narrate the entire process in detail. Only then can I help you.”
Cao Dongdong was overjoyed, nodding eagerly like a chicken pecking at rice. “As long as you can ensure that my grandaunt won’t punish me, I’ll do whatever you say.”
Then, Zhang Fei had Li Si bring writing materials and asked Cao Dongdong to recount the process in detail.
Cao Dongdong complained, “Didn’t Little Ma just explain it?”
“He only gave a general overview. I need specifics.”
“Oh.”
Cao Dongdong had no idea what details meant. He just repeated Ma Xiaoyi’s explanation.
Listening to it, Zhang Fei felt both pain and drowsiness. He thought, No, I might fall asleep like this.
“Get to the main point first.”
“What’s the main point?”
“What happened when you first interacted with Lady Lin that night?”
“Oh, at that time, Instructor Lin and Officer Wu were already passed out from drinking, and I was almost drunk too. Lady Lin asked the maidservant to help me rest, but as I said earlier, Lady Lin kept teasing me during the banquet. I knew that this had to be initiated by the man, so I refused the maid and pulled Lady Lin over so she could help me instead. Heh heh.”
“Did you touch?”
“Touch what?”
“Lady Lin!”
“I did!”
“Where did you touch her?”
“What? Do I need to say this?”
“In lawsuits, details matter. Can touching a hand be the same as touching a buttock?”
“I touched her.”
“Where?”
“Her buttocks.”
“What about her chest?”
“It seems… I touched that too.”
“Were they big?”
“Do I really have to answer that?!”
“Of course. If you can’t say whether they were big, how can you prove that you actually touched it?”
“Big Brother, why are you being shy? Just answer the question!”
“I think they weren’t small. She used her hand to cover her chest, so I don’t know if I touched it or not.”
“But you did try to touch them.”
“Yeah.”
“Did you kiss her?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
“On the face.”
“With tongue?”
“Tongue?”
“I mean, you didn’t kiss her on the lips, right?”
“I didn’t get the chance.”
“We’ll move on.”
“And you also wrote a confession?” Zhang Fei suddenly put down his pen, looking at Cao Dongdong in surprise.
Cao Dongdong nodded, feeling annoyed. “He said he was going to report me to the authorities, and I was scared, so I just wrote that confession in a panic.”
Now things were really bad! That was solid evidence! Zhang Fei furrowed his brow and said, “Did the confession mention your promise to help him get promoted?”
Cao Dongdong shook his head. “No, it didn’t.”
Looks like this is turning into a real mess! Zhang Fei nodded and said, “Continue.”
Cao Dongdong shook his head again. “That’s all! After I wrote the confession, they let me go.”
Zhang Fei carefully reviewed what was written and then said to Cao Dongdong, “I need to think about how to handle this lawsuit. For now, you just have to play along with Instructor Lin and not alert the authorities.”
“Got it! Got it! I understand.” Cao Dongdong said, “A few days ago, Little Ma asked me to come find you, but at that time, you were still living in the Xu manor, so I didn’t dare to. I was afraid that Lin Fei or Old Xu would find out.”
“Being cautious is a good thing. Look at me!”
Suddenly, Zhang Fei groaned, clutching his stomach again, then turned to Cao Dongdong and said, “I’ll temporarily take on this lawsuit, but first, I need to deal with some personal matters.”
Cao Dongdong clicked his tongue. “You help me with this matter first, and I’ll help you after. Wouldn’t that be better?”
Zhang Fei frowned. “You can’t help me with this matter, but don’t worry, I’ll try to find a solution as soon as possible. When the time comes, I’ll contact Little Ma. Don’t try to contact me.”
Although Cao Dongdong was reluctant, he still nodded. “Alright, but you mustn’t forget about my matter.”
Zhang Fei nodded, then suddenly remembered something. “You may need to testify in court regarding what happened to me today. Are you willing?”
Ma Xiaoyi excitedly said, “Brother San, I get to argue in court too?”
Zhang Fei rolled his eyes. “You’re a witness. You just need to describe what you saw when I was attacked, not argue.”
Ma Xiaoyi muttered, “That’s boring.”
Cao Dongdong chuckled. “I did a good deed this time, so of course I’ll testify.”
It seems like it wasn’t them who did it. It’s probably Director Wang. Anger flashed in Zhang Fei’s eyes as he said, “It’s not certain yet. I’ll let you know if I need you. Young Master, don’t spread the word. If I need a witness, it’d be Little Ma, not you.”
Cao Dongdong agitatedly said, “Why? Why can’t I show my face for a good cause?”
Zhang Fei said, “Then find someone else for your matter.”
“Fine, fine, I won’t go.”
After seeing them off, Zhang Fei immediately lay down. He had recently taken a severe beating and was barely holding on.
“Ouch! Ah—! Damn it, those guys were so ruthless.”
Li Si looked at the huge footprint on Zhang Fei’s stomach and said, “Brother San, should I go get some hot water for you to apply?”
“No need!”
Zhang Fei looked down at the huge footprint and said, “This is evidence.”
“Evidence?” Li Si asked, “Brother, are you going to report this to the authorities?”
“No.”
Zhang Fei gritted his teeth. “I’m want to take revenge. Let’s go, we’re going to the Kaifeng Prefectural Office.”
[1] Emperor Yingzong succeeded Emperor Renzong to the throne as the son of Renzong’s cousin. This was because Emperor Renzong died without leaving any sons. For a time, Emperor Yingzong was ill and Empress Dowager Cao ruled as regent. She gave up power later, somewhat reluctantly.
[2] This was an event where the founding emperor convinced his generals to relinquish their military authority over cups of wine at a banquet. These were generals who fought with and for him in order to establish the dynasty, but they would become a threat if allowed to retain military power. At this banquet, they agreed to relinquish military power and the founding emperor also agreed to treat them generously. This event has become a metaphor for the Song transition from military to civil authority.