At twelve years old, Zhao Changyu’s reputation had already spread throughout Yu State, and even the aristocratic families of Luoyang City had heard of his talents. Many people wrote to Shangcai Marquis, inviting his son to the capital for exchanges.
At that time, Shangcai Marquis was already ill, but after pondering for a while, he still called his eldest son and discussed with him: "Go to Luoyang, visit a few old friends. If you can have a chance to meet Your Majesty, that would be even better."
He coughed lightly and said, "My health is failing, and I’m afraid I won’t last much longer. If the old friends support you, you will inherit the title more smoothly. This is the honor left by our ancestors, not for power or wealth, but to inherit the ancestral legacy. In the future, the Zhao Family will depend on you."
Shangcai Marquis advised him, "The clan school must continue. All the children in the family, regardless of gender, must begin reading at the age of seven, not to stand out, but to learn etiquette, and understand shame."
Zhao Changyu’s small face tightened, and he agreed seriously.
Shangcai Marquis continued, "If you have the chance to enter government service in the future, you must always remember the character of your grandfather and uncle. Don’t tarnish their reputation and virtue."
Zhao Changyu agreed to everything.
Shangcai Marquis then sent him to Luoyang.
He was gone for two years, and everyone in Luoyang City knew that a young man from Runan Xiping had emerged, with profound knowledge, a good memory, versatile talents, and charisma. He was the nephew of Xiahou Xuan, whose family had been exterminated a few years ago.
Xiahou Xuan was killed four years ago, although he was slain for the crime of treason. Few in Luoyang City dared to mention his name, but there were many who mourned him privately.
Xiahou Xuan was frank and clever, considered one of the four most intelligent individuals in the country, and also handsome, so there were many who admired and submitted to him from their hearts.
Zhao Changyu took his uncle as a life role model, hoping to make friends broadly, be smart and studious, and also handsome like his uncle.
Unfortunately, he easily achieved the latter two, but the first...
Making friends widely requires a lot of money.
Zhao Changyu’s family was average; he didn’t bring much money on this trip to Luoyang. To visit some famous teachers, he needed to prepare gifts, so he had to be frugal in other areas, thus he couldn’t make many friends.
However, these two years were still quite fruitful.
Seeing the worsening situation in Luoyang, Zhao Changyu left early under the pretense of going home to care for the sick.
Indeed, he left just in time for major events to occur in Luoyang thereafter.
On the day of May jichou, the emperor personally led guards and palace slaves out of the palace to rectify the chaos, but he was assassinated by Jia Chong and Cheng Ji outside the palace walls.
At this time, he had just returned to Xiping not long ago.
His father, hearing that the emperor had been murdered in the street, spat out a mouthful of blood in rage, unable to cry aloud, only holding Zhao Changyu’s hand with tearful eyes, "Change is coming, change is coming. The Sima Family’s actions are unlikely to win the people’s trust, from now on, who knows how chaotic this world will become. You, you must be cautious. After I die, just stay at home and read, do not enter government service."
Zhao Changyu, only fourteen years old this year, was full of ambition and had high expectations of his abilities; how could he obey his father’s last words?
He thought, even if the country split apart like the end of the Han dynasty, he could, like Lord Cao, once again unite the forces of the world. Moreover, the situation hadn’t reached such a dire state yet, so he was sure he could assist the new emperor to stabilize the country and strengthen the court.
It didn’t matter whether the new emperor was surnamed Cao or Sima.
Soon after, Sima Zhao established a new emperor, and while the country was still under the Cao name, Zhao Family father and son knew that the Sima’s usurpation was only a matter of time.
Given that they had killed the emperor in the streets, would they return the power to the Cao Family?
This was something impossible to conceive, even with one’s toes.
Shangcai Marquis, full of worries about the country’s future, the plight of the people, and concerns for his family, passed away. Before he died, he scattered his wealth, leaving only an old two-chamber house and some family land. All else was used to purchase sacrifice fields to establish the clan school. The only two shops were entrusted to the clan for management or leasing, with profits likewise invested in the clan school.
He lived a frugal life, didn’t have much money, and the remaining funds were given to nearby impoverished households, leaving behind a frugal funeral will, and then he left this world.
Having scattered all family wealth, frugality was inevitable.
Zhao Changyu tidied up the daily items his father was used to and buried them with him, aside from some manuscripts and calligraphy pieces. He made backups and buried the ones he didn’t like in the grave, keeping the ones he liked as mementos.
In his words, "Looking at these things will remind us of father, we can read and commemorate him at any time."
Nobody doubted his words and had no objections to him keeping the bulk of the manuscripts and calligraphy pieces.
Just over ten-year-old Zhao Zhongyu, during the period right after his father’s passing, went to the study every day to hold his father’s manuscripts and cry.
By comparison, Zhao Changyu didn’t have time for grief because his father had scattered the family fortune, and he needed to worry about making a living, otherwise he couldn’t even pay the servants’ wages.
Moreover, after his father’s burial, there were ceremonies on the seventh day and the hundredth day, even frugally, they required money.
His brother, of limited intelligence, needed more than just clan school education to have a future; finding prestigious teachers for him was essential.
Fifteen-year-old Zhao Changyu only mourned for a few days, then rolled up his sleeves and went down to the fields with the family servants and tenant farmers to harvest wheat. Once the wheat was harvested and dried, he had learned about grain prices all over.
Immediately, he picked a dozen strong men from the tenant farmers, selected a few literate and numerate servants, loaded up the newly harvested grains, and went around the village. With his father’s good reputation and his eloquence, he successfully obtained twelve carts of wheat on credit.
He discovered that the county government would soon be transporting a batch of grain to the garrison; he visited the county office and negotiated with the Chief Clerk to have his caravan follow the county grain convoy.
For his first caravan formation, Zhao Changyu accompanied it personally. After delivering the grain to the drought-stricken county where grain prices had soared, his grain sold out in less than three days. Instead of returning home immediately, he sent people to the neighboring county to purchase cocoon silk and leftover fabrics after the previous year’s tax.
After touring the county, he couldn’t resist buying land with all his money and acquiring a shop, leaving a servant there, selecting tenants, signing agreements, and finally returning with the cocoon silk and fabrics he bought.
Thus, with an in-and-out strategy, while his liquid money hadn’t increased, his assets did substantially.
The village didn’t have enough cocoon silk, but many weavers; he sold or bartered silk with them, or offset wheat debts with it. High-quality fabrics sold, and the average ones were exchanged, used as tax payments to the court.
Gradually, Zhao Changyu accumulated some money.
He quickly developed a liking for management, and with thrift, after three years of mourning, the family’s assets multiplied several times; at least, they were no longer strapped for cash.
But when he finished mourning, after the mourning period was over, he was drafted by the court.

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