Zhù Ying received the approval notice even before Su Zhe did. She first registered the matter on Su Zhe’s behalf at the Court of Foreign Affairs, then coordinated with the relevant authorities to forward the approval through the proper channels.

That evening, Zhù Ying returned home to find Su Zhe and Zhù Qingtian and the others chatting and laughing together. The moment they saw her come in, they sprang to their feet to welcome her: “A’Weng! / Teacher!”

Zhù Ying said, “You all know already?”

Su Zhe broke into a wide grin. “Yes! Thank you, A’Weng!”

Zhù Qingtian said, “This puts everyone’s minds at ease.”

Zhù Ying said, “Tell the kitchen to get ready — we’ll celebrate tonight.”

Lin Feng stood to one side rubbing his nose. He was the youngest son of the Shanque mountain father-in-law’s family. Inheritance was his older brothers’ business — with the eldest gone, there was still the second son — and his place in the succession was rather like that of a Prince of Lu. It so happened that Su Zhe was the one with good news today, which left him feeling a touch awkward.

Zhù Ying said, “Both of you, make your preparations — starting tomorrow, don’t go out for a while. I’ll have someone come and review your etiquette with you.”

Su Zhe agreed at once. Lin Feng looked bewildered. “Me? What do I have to do with any of this?”

Zhù Ying said, “You’re about to meet the new Regional Inspector. You came from Wuzhou, so of course you’ll need to see him.”

“Yes, sir!”

Zhù Ying said to Su Zhe, “You still have something to attend to — come speak with me in the study.”

She brought Su Zhe to the study, where Su Zhe stood obediently before her desk and waited. Zhù Ying said, “Do you know what needs to happen next?”

Su Zhe thought for a moment. “I was still young when A’Ma served as county magistrate, but I remember there has to be a memorial of gratitude?”

Zhù Ying said, “That’s right. You must write a memorial expressing thanks. Whether His Majesty grants you an audience is his business, but the memorial is something you absolutely must submit. Furthermore, since Prince Qiyang holds a nominal governorship over Wuzhou and is now the new Regional Inspector, both you and Lin Feng must pay him a visit — I’ll arrange that. Then there are Chief Minister Wang and the others — I’ll arrange those meetings as well. Your task for today is to write a draft of the memorial. After dinner tonight, pick up your brush; your work is due before bed.”

“Yes!” Su Zhe said loudly.

“Go and prepare.”

“Yes, sir.”

Zhù Ying then sent Zhù Wen to fetch Lin Feng. By the time Lin Feng came in, most of his awkwardness had already faded. Zhù Ying asked, “You’ve been in the capital for a while now — what are your thoughts?”

Lin Feng said, “Godfather, I’ve walked around the capital several times already. Personally… I haven’t quite figured it out. Could you just arrange things for me and teach me what to do?”

Zhù Ying said, “Going forward, would you rather return home and take turns serving as Deputy Governor or Chief Secretary? Or would you prefer to hold office elsewhere?”

Lin Feng was startled. “Holding office elsewhere — surely they wouldn’t take kindly to someone like me?” He had grounds for saying so. He was a “barbarian,” which put him at a natural disadvantage over others. Anyone who had studied even a little knew about the strict distinction between the civilized center and the outer peoples. In the old clash between Wuzhou’s frontier academy students and the official academy students, Lin Feng had been one of the main combatants.

Zhù Ying said, “Going back? That’s one option too — but then you’d have to work hard at your studies. When your turn comes, you’ll have a post; but when it’s not your turn, what will you do? Either way, you need to keep studying.”

“Yes!” Lin Feng perked up the moment he heard Zhù Ying thinking things through on his behalf. The five families had their old grievances, but they all shared one conviction about Zhù Ying: when she wanted to help you, she would genuinely think things through for you.

Lin Feng said, “Honestly, I can’t quite figure it all out on my own — I’ll do whatever you say, Godfather.”

Zhù Ying said, “Good. You must also prepare yourself to meet the new Regional Inspector.”

“There’s a new Regional Inspector already?”

“You need to start learning to be more composed. Let others finish what they’re saying, and pay attention to the words people have spoken.” Zhù Ying tapped her own temple and repeated the matter of Prince Qiyang to him.

Lin Feng said, “Yes, sir.”

That evening after dinner, Su Zhe wrote out a draft memorial and brought it to the study. Zhù Ying corrected the memorial, editing as she went and explaining the key principles: “First, you must address His Majesty…”

——

Early the next morning, Zhù Ying took the revised memorial and submitted it on Su Zhe’s behalf. That memorial was a straightforward expression of gratitude; it was stamped “noted,” and the Emperor, feeling too indolent to bother, did not summon Su Zhe for an audience. Zhù Ying then informed Luo Sheng: “Prince Qiyang holds nominal jurisdiction over Wuzhou. Su Zhe and Lin Feng wish to pay their respects to the Prince, but since he has long resided deep within the palace, a meeting would not be easily arranged without first seeking prior approval.”

Luo Sheng was very pleased with his son-in-law and said, “Have the Court of Foreign Affairs draft the formal document. Coordinate with the palace to set a date — it is only proper that they pay their respects.” Zhù Ying wrote the official document, Luo Sheng signed it, and it was then dispatched to the Imperial Guards, the Eastern Palace, and other relevant offices. There was no reply that day. The following morning, the Emperor’s endorsement from the previous day arrived — approved. The Eastern Palace and the Imperial Guards followed in succession with their own replies, all in agreement. The Eastern Palace, having more to handle, requested that Zhù Ying come ahead of time to brief them; Prince Qiyang wished Zhù Ying to explain in advance the specific situation in Wuzhou.

Luo Sheng entrusted all of this to Zhù Ying’s handling and urged her earnestly: “His Highness Yaoshi is young. You, Zizhang, are both talented and virtuous, thorough and experienced in affairs. I do hope you will offer him much guidance.”

Zhù Ying said, “How would I dare to ‘offer guidance’ to His Highness? Wherever His Highness has questions, I, his subordinate, will have answers.”

Luo Sheng said sincerely, “But that’s not the same thing at all. Even though I’m not very skilled at officialdom, after all these years I’ve seen enough. Putting in a little more genuine effort is entirely different from going through the motions. I may not be able to say exactly how it ought to be done, but I can tell the difference. I just regret that I’m too dull to put it into words. Zizhang, I am counting on you.”

Zhù Ying said, “You needn’t worry, sir. I have a connection to Wuzhou, and I want to see its affairs properly settled.”

Luo Sheng said, “You have no idea — the court has been even more trying of late. I’d rather not attend court at all, but when I think of what would become of my family if I stopped caring about things entirely, I have no choice but to grit my teeth and go.”

“It’s no more than a bit of wrangling.”

“No, no — it’s different now, has been for some years, it seems.”

“How do you mean?”

Though Luo Sheng was not particularly skilled at maneuvering, he went to court with both ears and his mind open: “Ah — you were still in Wuzhou for the past few years, so you wouldn’t know. When you came back, the Eastern Palace had a new Crown Prince, and things settled down for a while. Now it’s starting again. These past several years, the various princes have been at each other so fiercely…”

Luo Sheng could not help speaking ill of his brothers-in-law: “They fight among themselves, and below them the officials take sides, some backing one and some backing another, and then the officials quarrel with each other on top of that — mutual accusations and attacks without end. Today it started again. A Censor impeached the Prince of Lu for arrogance, and even Seventh Brother had to offer an apology, saying he had not properly kept the Prince of Lu’s household servants in line while here in the capital.”

Using Censors as weapons from the outset — that was standard practice. And today there was yet more bickering among the officials: the Ministry of War had uncovered irregularities in the promotions of several military officers, and the man behind it was the Prince of Tang’s foster brother.

Luo Sheng said, “Just wait and see — it’s beginning again. Why can’t things settle down even now that a Crown Prince has been established?”

Zhù Ying thought to herself: If everyone settled down and accepted the situation, they’d all just be sitting around waiting for the Emperor to die so they could each advance one rank and lord it over others afterward. I don’t think our Emperor is quite that sanguine about it. Wasn’t it precisely for this reason that the late Crown Prince had been put under his own father’s scrutiny?

She could not say that aloud, so she only offered: “The Eastern Palace was established too late — there was no other way. Given time, things will settle.”

Luo Sheng said with no small measure of worry: “I used to think the same, but looking at things today, it doesn’t quite seem that way. Zizhang, I’m counting on you! You’re an intelligent person, a hundred times sharper than I am. If anything comes up, I hope you can show me the way.”

Zhù Ying said, “You are too kind, sir. I am willing to deliberate over these matters together with you.”

“Good, good. With those words from you, I can set my mind at ease.”

“Then — shall I head to the Eastern Palace now?”

“Please, please go ahead.”

——

The entire Eastern Palace belonged to the Crown Prince. Although Prince Qiyang had already been ennobled as a Prince of the Second Rank and had taken a wife, he had no staff of his own within the Eastern Palace. Whenever the Crown Prince had matters to attend to, he had his son participate in the affairs of the Office of the Crown Prince’s Administration.

The staffing of that office was itself rather interesting — the officials the Emperor had selected for it all had, in varying degrees, some connection to the Emperor’s “old household subordinates.”

Prince Qiyang did, however, have a fair number of personal attendants. When Zhù Ying arrived, it was Lan De who led her to the Prince. Within the Eastern Palace, Prince Qiyang and his wife each occupied a courtyard — two courtyards in total. The front courtyard was where Prince Qiyang received guests and conducted business; the rear was Luo Yi’s residence. Prince Qiyang did not share quarters with Luo Yi; he lodged only in the front study.

For a proper Prince of the Second Rank, his living quarters within the imperial palace were actually less spacious than what Zhù Ying had in her own home.

When Zhù Ying arrived at the Eastern Palace, Lan De came out to receive her and said warmly, “Magistrate Zhù, His Highness has been waiting for you for quite some time.”

The two of them walked inside together. Zhù Ying asked no questions about the business of the Eastern Palace; she only asked Lan De, “Are you settling in well here in the Eastern Palace?”

“Thank you for thinking of me — I’m doing quite fine. Oh, by the way — now that Wuzhou has been renamed Jiyuan Prefecture, what about the sugar of ours…?”

Zhù Ying said, “No matter what it’s called, the three counties are all still there.”

“Good, good.”

“That outfit of yours — it must be worth quite a sum. One look and you can tell it came off someone close to His Majesty — quite different from the simplicity of the Eastern Palace.”

Lan De said, “You’ve just been too hard on yourself, Magistrate. You suffered when you were young — shouldn’t you treat yourself a little better now that you’ve grown up?”

Lan De had done rather well for himself from various procurement arrangements; his wardrobe was finer than that of most officials. Sending gifts to eunuchs was something she did — but offering them unsolicited counsel was not a headache she was willing to give herself.

The two arrived before Prince Qiyang, who was quite delighted! He could spend some time alone with Zhù Ying and discuss matters concerning Wuzhou and related affairs.

He was, after all, the Emperor’s eldest grandson, and the first among the imperial grandsons to hold a substantive post. Prince Qiyang cherished this kind of opportunity greatly.

Yet Zhù Ying’s briefing to him was formal and measured — the sort of polished official language she conveyed to Prince Qiyang. Prince Qiyang said, “All of this is already in the files. What lies beyond the files?”

Zhù Ying said, “Beyond the files, there is not much more. The five counties originally had no written script, and the court knows very little about them. Even these existing records were written by me — I wrote what I knew.”

Prince Qiyang sighed. “It’s so far away. I truly wish I could go and see it for myself.”

Zhù Ying said, “Your Highness ought now to be attending upon your father and grandfather. There is no hurry to travel.”

Prince Qiyang said, “I worry night and day, fearing I am not serving them well, and yet I do not know what pleases or displeases my grandfather.”

“What His Majesty is pleased by is nothing more than loyal subjects and filial descendants.”

“As a filial and obedient grandson, I believe I have done tolerably well — and yet I never see my grandfather’s face brighten. The Prince of Lu, on the other hand, seems to have won grandfather’s great affection. I’ve tried to learn from him but cannot manage it. I genuinely do not know how he does it. Who wouldn’t want to make grandfather happy? Fortunately I still have Yi. But yesterday when we went to visit grandfather, we encountered grandfather having two inner attendants beaten to death, and Yi was frightened again…”

Zhù Ying noticed that he did not call the Prince of Lu “uncle,” and understood that the animosity between the two households ran rather deep. She chose to sidestep the weightier matter and asked, “Is the Princess Consort doing well?”

“She has taken two doses of calming medicine and doesn’t dare say anything to her aunt on that side, nor does she dare tell grandfather she was frightened — she’s only said she caught a chill. Ah! I must ask you to keep this in confidence.”

Lan De seized a gap in the conversation: “His Majesty assigned this servant to serve at His Highness’s side, partly for the sake of the Princess Consort.”

Zhù Ying nodded. “I never speak of palace matters to those outside.”

Prince Qiyang said, “I trust you completely in that regard, Magistrate. You have always been close-mouthed — getting anything out of you is harder than climbing to heaven.”

“Well, perhaps a slight bit easier than climbing to heaven,” Zhù Ying said. “Your Highness, rather than sitting here in idle worry, would it not be better to focus on attending to things well? In a few days I will bring Su Zhe and Lin Feng to meet Your Highness. How does that sound?”

“Good.”

Seeing that nothing more could be drawn out, Prince Qiyang’s eyes showed a flicker of disappointment, but he quickly rallied and asked, “What do you need from me regarding Wuzhou?”

Zhù Ying said, “Simply govern without interference.”

“But…”

Zhù Ying thought to herself: with Lan De still standing there, what can I possibly say to you? She agreed with the Prince on a time to bring Su Zhe and Lin Feng for the meeting. When she brought the two of them over a few days later, Lan De was still present, and both Su Zhe and Lin Feng appeared polished on the surface but said not a single word beyond what was necessary — dull as stones in Prince Qiyang’s presence.

Seeing that Prince Qiyang’s expression was not quite right, Lan De, hoping to earn Zhù Ying’s goodwill, smiled and said to her, “Little Magistrate Zhù, really now — there’s no outsider here. The people here keep their mouths shut too.”

Zhù Ying turned to Prince Qiyang and said, “There’s nothing worth speaking of outside either. It’s only Prince Consort Luo who counts the days — he counts them carefully, and every ten days he can see his daughter. If the Princess Consort’s illness still hasn’t passed and they can’t meet, he’ll start to fret and imagine all manner of things.”

Prince Qiyang said, “She is much improved and there won’t be any delay.”

Zhù Ying said, “That’s a relief then. Every day I see him and have to stop myself from telling him — it’s been quite a strain on me.”

——

Two days later was the day for Prince Qiyang and Luo Yi to visit Luo Sheng. Luo Sheng could see that his daughter had grown thinner but did not ask directly — he only said, “It’s summer again. Is it your stomach again?”

Luo Yi said, “Mm… it’s a bit of the heat.”

Zhù Ying said, “Have some hawthorn pills made up — those are quite good.”

Prince Qiyang said, “They’ve already been prepared; we have some.”

A few words and the matter was passed over. Zhù Ying also turned and took her leave, and did not stay on as Prince Qiyang had hoped, chatting with him about court affairs and the current political situation. Over the next two days, officials from the Eastern Palace and Prince Qiyang’s uncles were once again impeached one after another. Most officials at court had flaws of one kind or another, and those who were truly incorruptible were the rare exception.

Someone like Zhù Ying — who had neither bullied the weak nor seized the property of the common people, and whose clan did not run roughshod through the countryside — was already considered a good person. Add to that a measure of real ability, and in Wang Yunhe’s eyes she was a fine junior colleague.

The new Crown Prince was encountering the same problem as the previous Crown Prince: the officials of the Eastern Palace were assigned by the Emperor, but whenever those officials had troubles, the Crown Prince had to share in the censure and offer self-criticism. Today the Emperor had raged again: “I gave you fine people, so how did they turn bad the moment they entered the Eastern Palace?” The Crown Prince’s expression was quite terrible — good thing the Emperor had gone blind and couldn’t see it, otherwise there would have been another round of fierce scolding.

As for Prince Qiyang’s maternal uncles, several of them had held no official rank until recently, and now had just been appointed. Several new men sent out into officialdom…

The situation could only be described as dire.

The Crown Prince and his son currently had no complete and dependable core of supporters — every slot in the Office of the Crown Prince’s Administration had been filled by the Emperor himself.

There were those who wished to attach themselves, but Prince Qiyang lived in the palace. Being close to the Emperor had enormous advantages, but also considerable inconveniences — access was difficult.

The one who was relatively accessible, and whom Luo Sheng spoke of so highly as trustworthy, was Zhù Ying — yet Zhù Ying kept playing the game of taking the bait and then spitting it back out.

Prince Qiyang watched Zhù Ying’s departing figure and said to Luo Sheng, “You have a fine ally. I envy you — I have none.”

Luo Sheng said, “Well, this…”

——

Zhù Ying was not unwilling to deal with Prince Qiyang — she simply felt that Prince Qiyang’s position was actually quite secure at the moment and did not need her to say anything more. Too many words would be a liability.

Who could have predicted that fewer than three days later, Princess Anren’s family would hold a birthday banquet for the old Prince Consort, that an invitation would land in Zhù Ying’s hands, and that while she was reporting for duty, Luo Sheng would go out of his way to invite her along?

Zhù Ying had no choice but to prepare a birthday gift and make her way to the Princess’s residence.

A chief steward of the princess’s household welcomed her inside, placing her ahead of many officials. As they walked, the chief steward kept remarking, “This is our Prince Consort Luo’s most capable assistant.”

Zhù Ying first paid her respects to the old Prince Consort, ate through a comfortable banquet, and was just about to head home when Princess Anren requested a word with her.

This Princess had never been so gracious before. Zhù Ying felt a faint sense of foreboding and touched the short blade at her waist.

When she came before the Princess, Princess Anren smiled and asked, “Just now all the other ladies were here with me, and it came up in conversation — you still haven’t taken a wife? What do you say? Would you like me to act as your matchmaker?”