Chapter 36: Dream Interpretation—Shifting the Blame Back to the Family

"Young Celestial Master, we've finished reciting the Thirty-six Passages of the Earth Mother's Rebirth Sutra. Have you discovered anything?"

When Zhang Yi and his companions returned at a leisurely pace, the three members of the Chang family were already dizzy and exhausted. The sutra itself wasn't difficult to recite thirty-six times, but before leaving, Zhang Yi had specifically instructed them to kneel while chanting. Rising, all three felt faint and light-headed.

Seeing this, Zhang Yi nodded with satisfaction.

He had done this as a form of revenge for Chang family's beating of Deng Zhongxiu, deliberately making them suffer.

Madam Lan rose, disregarding the dizziness caused by her low blood sugar, and anxiously pressed Zhang Yi for answers.

"There are some clues, Madam Lan. Let's discuss them in detail," Zhang Yi said with an air of mystery, finding a place to sit.

Chang Mao, seeing Zhang Yi’s arrogance, bristled with anger. In his life, apart from his uncle the emperor and his father, he'd never feared anyone. He was used to showing off, and now a mere Daoist dared to act superior in his own home?

Zhang Yi caught Chang Mao’s attitude and sneered inwardly. This fool, Chang Mao, was exactly the sort who never understood his place—his family needed Zhang Yi's help, yet he couldn’t humble himself.

Chang Mao was tolerable for the moment, but after Chang Yuchun’s death, once he became a Duke, he would prove to be a real disaster.

Zhang Yi was disinclined to deal with him or offend him openly. But to deter this petty man from retaliating in the future, he knew he needed to frighten him a little.

Madam Lan, her back to Chang Mao, hadn’t noticed her elder son’s demeanor—otherwise, she would have scolded him thoroughly.

Seeing Zhang Yi finally ready to help, she hurried to sit down.

"There is indeed something sinister in the Chang Residence. I have a general idea of the matter’s origins, but I am not yet wholly certain. Madam, perhaps you can tell me about your dream?"

At the mention of her nightmare, sorrow welled up in Madam Lan. Ever since she lost her son, the pain of bereavement was overwhelming, and other burdens weighed heavily upon her. For a month, she’d scarcely slept or eaten well.

Her constitution was never strong, so the nightmares came frequently. Zhang Yi’s words brought her memories back, and tears fell uncontrollably.

"I dreamed my child emerged from the water, his whole body dripping wet. I called to him, but he did not answer, only stood afar, crying... My son, oh how he suffered..."

As she spoke, the Chang siblings wiped their own tears.

No matter what, Chang Sen was still their younger brother. Chang Yuchun had started life as a bandit before joining Zhu Yuanzhang, spending his years in battle. Madam Lan, though not easy-tempered, managed the household well, and so the siblings did not fall into the usual intrigues of wealthy families.

"My brother must have been pushed into the water by those two damned servants," Chang Mao insisted.

Zhang Yi ignored him, his expression unchanged.

"Later, I dreamed my child fell into the water, as if someone was dragging him down. I tried to rush over and save him, but I... couldn’t pull him out!"

As she spoke, Madam Lan’s expression grew distant, lost in memory. Her dreams were all of a kind, centered on Chang Sen’s misery.

Zhang Yi observed coldly. He felt some sympathy, but not much empathy. The saying goes: ‘The pitiful often have their own faults.’ Human nature is complex; he’d seen plenty in his previous life.

Madam Lan had her own reasons for raising her son as she did. Her grief was not feigned, yet her eagerness to shift blame was a flaw.

Some people never reflect on their own mistakes... so they must find an outlet for their failures.

Now that Zhu Yuanzhang had won the realm, Chang Yuchun, Xu Da and other common-born generals were unshakably established as Ming nobility.

Titles and offices were within reach.

They wanted to wash the mud from their feet, and at this critical moment, Madam Lan wished not to become a burden to her husband, which brought her unnecessary psychological pressure.

According to Zhang Yi’s judgment, these ladies, now wealthy, wished to establish their virtue.

Had Chang Sen died during the Zhizheng era, nothing much would have happened.

Unfortunately, Madam Lan could never have dreamed her husband would die before Zhu Yuanzhang rewarded his ministers, and the emperor cared little for her virtue. Chang Yuchun’s death, at the time when the emperor thought best of him, naturally gave him an aura in Zhu Yuanzhang’s eyes.

With guilt in his heart, Zhu Yuanzhang was generous to Madam Lan and Chang Mao.

But these were not Zhang Yi’s concerns; he only needed to solve the problem and teach Chang Mao a small lesson.

Madam Lan wept for a while before finally voicing her question:

"Young Celestial Master, do you think my child’s death was unjust?"

The last person to say 'no injustice'—Deng Zhongxiu—now sported a bruised face, so Zhang Yi knew well what answer Madam Lan desired.

She needed a reason to soothe her heart and silence others.

Zhang Yi already had a plan. He frowned in thought, then said:

"There is indeed something strange within..."

As he spoke, Madam Lan and Chang Mao were filled with hope; color returned to Madam Lan’s cheeks.

"But the truth is not as you believe, Madam!"

The smiles on the faces of the Chang family froze, uncertain whether to rejoice or rage.

"In fact, my senior brother saw it too, but could not bear to speak. As the saying goes, 'every drink and every morsel is predestined,' and this matter has two sides..."

Zhang Yi began to speak gravely, spinning tales:

"As for your younger brother’s death, there is a cause, but not a human crime—rather, a matter of fate...

Madam, have you heard of the ill omen of killing prisoners?"

The faces of the Chang family changed dramatically. This young Daoist dared to point to Chang Sen’s death as connected to Chang Yuchun?

The whole world knew that Chang Yuchun, Ming’s foremost general, was notorious for killing prisoners. Xu Da had repeatedly reported him to Zhu Yuanzhang, which troubled the emperor greatly.

Because of this, when Zhu Yuanzhang later devised his military plans, he made Xu Da the chief and Chang Yuchun the deputy.

Chang Yuchun, in a sense, lost his chance to compete with Xu Da for Ming’s top military post because of his penchant for killing captives.

This was a taboo even within the Chang family, never mentioned lightly.

Madam Lan was now deeply distressed. She had invited Zhang Yi, hoping he would help her shift blame, but instead he had placed it squarely on Chang Yuchun—mercilessly.

"Great Lord of the Heavens! Ancestor! Please, for the sake of my senior brother and me being true disciples of Dragon Tiger Mountain, let us safely leave the Chang Residence!"

After Zhang Yi finished, the room was silent as the grave.

Deng Zhongxiu felt heroic for not wetting himself on the spot.

His junior brother was truly troublesome—so strict with him, yet now causing even greater trouble!