Zhangsun took a sip of tea and said to Yun Ye: “His Majesty shares this attitude. When I mentioned it to him, he also said the more chaotic the better—chaos now is better than chaos later, chaos in the present is better than chaos in the future. Buddhism monopolizing power is not good, and Daoism being too rampant is also not good. Finding a balance in the chaos is best.”
“His Majesty speaks true principle. Religion needs guidance and cannot run rampant. Once divine authority exceeds royal authority, even if you want to cry, you’ll have no tears left.”
“They wouldn’t dare!” Zhangsun’s willow-leaf eyebrows stood on end as she slapped the chair’s armrest. Truly worthy of being the mother of a nation—when her anger erupted, Yun Ye was the only person left standing in the entire room. Everyone else had their heads pressed to the ground like quails.
This scene was witnessed by Little Wu, who came in carrying a teapot. Although frightened into kneeling, Yun Ye saw the child grinding her back teeth, seemingly wanting to stand up. Aside from kneeling to her parents and master without inner resistance, kneeling to anyone else seemed to be a kind of humiliation to her.
This won’t do, silly girl. Do you really think Zhangsun is a pushover? He quickly walked over, took the teapot from Little Wu’s hands, and had everyone else temporarily withdraw.
Little Wu left mixed among the crowd, still sneaking glances at Zhangsun from time to time, very envious of Zhangsun’s powerful presence.
“Yun Ye, is there really such a thing as divine authority exceeding royal authority?” No matter how Zhangsun thought about it, she couldn’t understand how monks and Daoists could be more revered than the imperial family.
“Of course there is. In some countries, the emperor is appointed by the Pope—who would you say has greater power? Emperor Wu of Liang offered himself to Tongtai Temple four times. In that era, didn’t divine authority exceed royal authority?”
“That corn you had Qing Que bring to the palace last time tasted very good. His Majesty loves it, and Zhi Nu does too. Changle usually doesn’t eat much, but she has a special fondness for corn. Pick more today—I’ll take it when I leave. You’re not allowed to sneak any more. Such good grain—save the rest for seeds.”
“I’ll have someone pick it right away. We’ll pick it all—what seeds to save? Potatoes are such a good thing, yet they’re still being fed to pigs.”
One sentence made Zhangsun laugh. The potato matter was decided by several ladies, with Zhangsun as the leader. The common people harbored doubts about potatoes. If given to them for free, they definitely wouldn’t cherish them, but buying them at a high price would be different. This cheap mentality wasn’t limited to commoners—even wealthy families had it. As for the disputes between monks and Daoists, it was all about interests. One blow would settle things. Daring to covet imperial power—tired of living! The more said, the more annoying.
“Potatoes will be planted on a large scale next year. Are you satisfied now? Plant the corn properly—don’t throw a tantrum. If the people of the world don’t take it to heart, His Majesty and I do. If you want to go to Chang’an to watch singing and dancing, go secretly—just don’t get caught by the patrol officers. Oh, that person in your household who can shoot arrows at night—send him to guard the palace at night, that would be good.”
He absolutely couldn’t agree to Zhangsun’s request, even on pain of death. Dan Ying guarding the palace at night—the person he most wanted to shoot dead was Li’er. Last time he failed to shoot him, he already regretted it. If he saw him again, he might once more develop the idea of killing the emperor.
“No way. He’s a thief and scoundrel. He’s already almost stolen away my sister. If he goes to the palace and carries off a princess or two, my troubles will be huge. Absolutely not. This fellow is determined to become a highwayman. If not for me holding him back, he probably would have already claimed a mountain and started that unprofitable business.”
Zhangsun thought Yun Ye was lying to her. She pursed her lips and said: “Look at your stingy appearance. I even agreed when you brought Wu She to the academy as an instructor, but asking you for one person is so difficult. The imperial family has plenty of such people. The military has countless sharpshooters waiting to enter the palace as guards. Asking you for someone is honoring your household—you don’t know what’s good for you.”
She said she didn’t want him, but everyone could see the regretful expression. Cursing Yun Ye all the way, she left the study. Outside, that amiable Empress returned. She pulled Grandmother aside with congratulations, praised Xinyue for managing the household well, and even Na Rimu received a hairpin. She held each child and looked them over, saying auspicious words. She had both the empress’s dignity without losing approachability, maintaining just the right distance—neither too far nor too near. She had long since perfected this routine.
She admiringly picked up the corn that the Yun household guards had hastily broken off and rode back to get, praised it a few times, then returned to Chang’an with her grand procession. Little Wu stretched her neck until she couldn’t see them anymore before returning to the residence. Just entering the gate, she discovered Yun Ye looking at her with a grin. Her small face reddened as she prepared to bypass Master and head to the rear residence.
“Like that kind of ostentation? Just now in the room you were quite resistant to that feeling of being suppressed. You ground your back teeth to dust, didn’t you? Want to become the emperor’s concubine in the future? I have a very good relationship with the Crown Prince. You have no chance at being Crown Princess—he’s already married two wives. If you marry over, the best situation is being number three. If you’re not satisfied with that position, you can eliminate the two women above you. Perhaps the process will be very bloody. Only after killing everyone in your way can you sit in the empress’s position. Perhaps in this process you might accidentally be eliminated by others too.”
Little Wu looked at Yun Ye and said: “Master, I like that feeling of commanding the world with authority, but I don’t like killing people, because you don’t like it, Shishi doesn’t like it, Little Di doesn’t like it, the instructors at the academy don’t like it, so Little Wu also doesn’t like it. I won’t disappoint you. Becoming someone’s concubine—Little Wu would rather die. My mother was unhappy even as a second wife. Who would want to be a concubine? I wouldn’t do it even for the emperor’s concubine, let alone the Crown Prince’s.”
Yun Ye smiled. He had always been instilling a proud mentality in Little Wu. Proud people wouldn’t shame themselves or do things that would shame them. An eleven-year-old girl was at her most sensitive time. From a physiological hygiene perspective, this was when her chest began developing. Soon she would have her first menstruation. Her body and mind would undergo major changes—this was also when she formed her optimal worldview.
Having Little Wu exist in a proud state at this time was very important. In history, Little Wu’s life at this time was the darkest period. She learned to endure humiliation and bear heavy burdens far too early. Facing pressure from several brothers, she had to learn schemes and stratagems prematurely. Not now though. Yun Ye gave her absolute protection, allowing the pride in her bones to be freely released, applying her intelligence and talent to learning. For the next generation of academy headmaster, Yun Ye very much hoped it would be Little Wu. Only such a strong person could push the academy to its peak. But he also worried she might lead the academy students in rebellion. Very conflicting indeed.
“Master, you also don’t want me to enter the imperial family, right? You never allow me to interact with those princes. Otherwise, in a few years when I grow up, I could marry whichever of those silly princes I wanted.”
Little Wu always spoke directly with Yun Ye. Yun Ye knew she was telling the truth. Li Tai always mentioned her after seeing her once. Little Wu’s intelligence left a deep impression on him. If this continued, Li Tai’s household would stage the same scene as Li Zhi’s harem. She was only eleven now and already knew to display her charm. If she grew a few years older—good heavens! Wu Zetian rose to power through beauty. Even if she didn’t marry Li Tai, with the intelligence of people like Li Yan and Li You, they’d definitely be kneaded into mud. Moreover, Little Wu had gained unprecedented insights and perspectives from him, plus all that learning of unknown usefulness.
“Don’t be so smug. Can’t you find a learned handsome man to marry? Must you set your sights on the imperial family? If you enter the palace, it will be the end for those consorts.” Yun Ye lovingly patted the little girl’s head.
“Handsome man? You mean like that?” Her finger, like a water onion, pointed into the courtyard, while her throat made a retching sound.
Yun Ye turned around to discover Chengxin coming out from his courtyard, holding a small copper mirror under the sun, grooming his eyebrows. Yun Ye felt nauseous and also wanted to vomit. Master and disciple held hands and hastily fled. The scene was too disgusting. Only a few ignorant little maids had fire in their eyes as they crowded toward Chengxin.
Reaching the bamboo grove’s edge, Little Wu suddenly stopped and said resolutely to Yun Ye: “If there’s another man like Master in this world, I’ll marry him even if it means becoming the enemy of all under heaven.”
“Give it a rest. There’s no one exactly the same in this world. If you want to marry me, just say so plainly. You wish! Go find your lover properly. Right now you’re just feeling grateful, which makes you think Master is the best person. What does an eleven-year-old girl know? You have your life to live, Master has his life to live. The intersection point of our destinies is master and disciple. If you said these words to another master, you’d get a slap upside the head. Only someone like me allows you to talk nonsense. When you grow up later, you’ll discover how ridiculous this idea was. Now go take a bath, sleep, and forget about this. Never mention it again. This is an insult to Master and an insult to you.” Little Wu carelessly agreed and ran off. Yun Ye wiped the cold sweat from the back of his neck. Too terrifying! Only a fool would want to marry you. If I married you, could the household even function?
Shaking his head, Yun Ye tossed such thoughts to the ninth heaven. Beneath Little Wu’s beautiful exterior crouched a tyrannosaur that devoured people without spitting out bones—far more terrifying than a painted skin demon. Who would want to sleep embracing a tyrannosaur? Tired of living!
After Zhangsun left, the Yun residence suddenly quieted down. No guests came to the door, and the rooftop no longer had flea-like spies, much to Dan Ying’s disappointment. He had specifically prepared a type of barbed wolf-fang arrow today, said to have amazing lethality. He drank with Old Jiang in the courtyard all night, but no one came calling—very inauspicious.
When the number on the sign at the Yun residence gate changed to one, a green-robed Daoist came before the Yun household, submitted a calling card to the Yun residence, then unhurriedly walked toward Yushan’s peak. He didn’t say a word or make any superfluous movements. His face wore a smile, genial and kindly. On his back was a sword commonly worn by scholars. The sword tassel hung over his shoulder, gently swaying with each step. The sword tassel was golden yellow…
Yun Ye saw the calling card and smiled mirthlessly. The cold intent in his eyes was chilling. Dressed neatly, he took Dan Ying up the mountain as well. Only behind him followed a local dog, tongue out, drooling, trotting along behind. It understood clearly—today there would be a delicacy to eat.