gnovel Chapter 25 Zhang Quzhuo Dies
Chapter 25 Zhang Quzhuo Dies
In the fourth year after the four kingdoms attacked Liang, Zhang Quzhuo's health deteriorated. The daily and nightly political affairs, coupled with the war, caused him to fall seriously ill in the winter of that year.
He handed over the administration of Liang to Zhang Yu.
Just as Zhang Yu had said at the banquet that night, he remained silent until he made a stunning debut.
He handled government affairs with remarkable skill and ease, as if he were a natural-born expert.
At this moment, in Liang Palace, Zhang Yu was sitting in front of the sickbed, leaning down to listen to what his father wanted to say.
Zhang Quzhuo's time is running out; he no longer even has the strength to gallop on horseback.
This was unacceptable to Liang Bo, who was a strong-willed man all his life, but birth, aging, sickness, and death are all predestined.
"Yu, I'm getting old, I'm getting old..." Zhang Quzhuo's withered hand gripped Zhang Yu's wrist tightly, and turbid tears streamed down his face.
"Father, you must take good care of yourself. Liang Kingdom cannot do without you."
Zhang Yu's expression was extremely sorrowful. Although he said that, he knew all too well that his father was nearing the end of his life.
Recalling the time he spent with his father when he was young, and now that the two are about to be separated forever, Zhang Yu was overcome with grief and could not stop crying.
"Yu," Zhang Quzhuo said shakily, reaching out to wipe away Zhang Yu's tears. "I'm going to see our ancestors. There's something I want to tell you."
"Father, please speak, Yu is listening, Yu is listening..." Zhang Yu grasped Zhang Quzhuo's hand and said sadly.
"Si clan... since the time of our ancestor Duke Zhao, they have been loyal to the Zhang clan. Our Zhang clan has wronged the Si clan throughout the ages. You, after you become the ruler of Liang, must treat them well. You cannot bestow great favors, nor can you make excessive demands. Can you do that?"
"Yu remembers, Father, Yu remembers."
"Zhao Han is a talented man whose abilities are no less than his father's. Originally, I intended to place him in the position of prefect for your brother's future use, cough cough..."
"Father, please stop talking, please stop!"
Zhang Quzhuo waved his hand, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his clothes, and continued, "Your elder brother... has no interest in state affairs. You and... Zhao Han have an old friendship. You can... you can entrust the Six Ministers to him."
"Father..." Zhang Yu lowered his head and couldn't stop crying.
"Treat your brother well, do not make things difficult for him. Treat your subjects well, treat your people well, and unless absolutely necessary, do not harm them..."
"Father, Yu can do it, he can do it..."
Upon hearing Zhang Yu's answer, Zhang Quzhuo let out a long sigh of relief, as if he had finally relaxed.
"After I die... I will be buried... next to your mother..."
After saying this, Zhang Quzhuo wanted to say something more, but his previous words had exhausted his strength, and he could barely speak. He could only use his index finger to write two words in Zhang Yu's palm.
Then, his hand slipped from Zhang Yu's grasp like a kite with a broken string.
Liang Bozhang Quzhuo died.
"I know, I know..." Zhang Yu knelt on the spot, head bowed and sobbing. After a long while, he slowly straightened up, pulled the old quilt up to cover his father's chin, and moved very gently, as if afraid of waking him.
Then he took two steps back and tripped over the threshold.
He didn't get up, but simply rolled over, lay on his back on the ground, and covered his eyes with one arm, muttering, "May Lord Zhao protect me, may Lord Zhao protect me..."
He could no longer contain his grief and burst into tears, crying out, "Da Liang..."
The death of Zhang Quzhuo marked the passing of the Zhang family's first patriarch, a man of great talent and ambition, and a figure of divine destiny. Heaven and earth mourned his passing.
You have obtained the item - Heavenly Rank Ancestral Temple.
Celestial Temple: Summons the souls of ancestors from past generations to reside in the ancestral tablets of the ancestral temple. Based on each ancestor's posthumous title, the temple bestows protection upon their descendants; different posthumous titles result in different effects. (The ancestral temple does not need to be built in the real world and can be used directly.)
……
Legend has it that after a person dies, although their body can no longer move, their consciousness will remain clear for a period of time.
Zhang Quzhuo didn't think it was just a legend at this moment, because he heard Zhang Yu's mournful cries and heard him calling out "Da Liang".
He wanted to tell him, "Don't cry, child... don't cry."
But he was already dead, and he could no longer speak.
He remembered when his father passed away, he had cried just like this child.
However, his father told him before he died that he was not allowed to cry. "Your ancestor was Duke Wenzhao, and you are the head of the Zhang clan. Everyone else can cry, but you cannot."
He desperately wanted to tell his child, "Don't cry, child, Liang and Zhang still need you."
Your ancestors are watching over you, don't cry...
A tear rolled down Zhang Quzhuo's cheek, and his consciousness grew increasingly blurred. In the darkness, he saw the Zhang family's ancestral temple.
The first thing I saw was my father's memorial tablet, followed by my grandfather, my great-grandfather... all the way to my ancestor Zhang Zhao.
He seemed to see his ancestors and past rulers standing in the magnificent temple, beneath their respective memorial tablets.
His ancestor Zhang Zhao beckoned to him, smiling and saying, "Child, child, come here, come here."
My ancestor looked exactly like the one in my dream, with a kind and friendly smile always on his face.
Zhang Zhao looked at Zhang Quzhuo, who was completely bewildered, and couldn't help but smile. He then beckoned to him, "Quzhuo, child, come here, come to me."
"Ancestor, is that you? Have you come to take me away?"
Zhang Quzhuo ran towards Zhang Zhao's direction when a burly man stopped him and scolded, "You're over fifty years old, how can you be so rude?"
"Father!" Zhang Quzhuo looked in the direction of the voice, his face immediately filled with surprise and joy.
"Hehehe...you brat, it's not just your father."
"grandfather!"
"Well done! You truly live up to the reputation of the Zhang family!"
"You are...?"
"Hahaha, my name is Zhang Buyi, you should call me Great-Grandfather!"
"You are actually the Great Ancestor!!!"
Zhang Zhao watched all this, unable to suppress the smile on his face. He coughed twice and said, "Alright, let me say a few words to this child."
Upon hearing the ancestor speak, everyone quickly made way.
Zhang Zhao floated to Zhang Quzhuo's side and said, "Child, this is our Zhang family's ancestral temple. We old folks who have died but have not dispersed have all gathered here to watch over you."
Ancestral Temple!
He learned all the information about the ancestral temple in an instant, and a smile appeared on his face.
"You've done a great job all these years, you've worked hard."
Zhang Quzhuo quickly said it wasn't bitter, but then he seemed to remember something, and after some deliberation, he cautiously asked, "May I ask, ancestor, my wife...?"
Upon hearing his question, Zhang Zhao immediately understood what he wanted to know, and simply smiled and said, "No rush, there will be opportunities to meet in the future. Come on, let me show you around our Zhang family's ancestral temple."
Ancestral Temple.
This allows the souls of Zhang's ancestors to reside in the ancestral temple's memorial tablets, thereby protecting their descendants.
Of course, the effectiveness of the blessing is related to the posthumous title given to the deceased.
Like Zhang Zhao, who was the head of the ancestral temple and posthumously honored as Wen Zhao, his blessings upon his descendants included: a 3% increase in the cure rate of diseases for Zhang's descendants, and a 3% increase in reputation per year.
Zhang Chengsi's posthumous title was "Lie," and its effect was: Zhang family head/clan leader's prestige +10 per year.
……
In the winter of 605 BC, the second year of King Zhuang's reign.
Liang Bozhang Quzhuo died of illness at the Daliang Palace in Liangyi at the age of 52.
His son Zhang Yu buried him in Sishan in accordance with his last wishes. Based on his life's achievements, the officials posthumously honored him with the title Wen, and he is historically known as Duke Wen of Liang.
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
"Duke Wen was a man of both literary and military talent, surpassing all predecessors. He possessed the ability to govern the world and the benevolence of Duke Wen Zhao! Since assuming office, he has worked tirelessly day and night, embodying the virtues of ancient sages. During his thirty-year reign, Liang was relieved of the suffering of Duke Yi, the granaries were full, the people lived in peace and prosperity, and the seas and rivers were calm and peaceful. Truly, he was a figure to be admired! From King Wu to the First Emperor who unified the nine provinces, no one has achieved such a feat!" — *Records of the Grand Historian, The Hereditary House of Zhang Liang*