Luan Tang was momentarily at a loss for how to respond, because he understood that Prince Ning’s words made sense.

Without any basis, without any reason, to casually send someone over to say a few words and then expect some kind of commitment from Prince Ning?

He looked toward Prince Ning, but Li Chi said nothing more and strode out of the main tent.

Yu Jiuling looked at Luan Tang with an expression of deep sympathy, the general meaning of which was… *Brother, not only are you ugly, you’re also stupid.*

One of Li Chi’s personal guards came over and made a welcoming gesture.

“Master Luan, this way please.”

Luan Tang followed the guard out the door, his mind still turning things over as he walked, wondering whether he had been too hasty.

*Pledging allegiance, pledging allegiance — to pledge with sincerity. Should that sincerity be presented right now?*

He instinctively patted the area over his chest. Concealed within his clothing was a map — a complete map of Jingzhou, with hundreds of prefectures and counties all marked within it.

Beyond that map, there was also a register: a roster of all the generals serving under the Jingzhou Military Commissioner, as well as a roster of every civil official of the fifth rank and above within Jingzhou.

Presenting these two items to Prince Ning — perhaps that would count as having offered some genuine sincerity.

He was led by the guard to a tent that had already been prepared for him, with fresh bedding laid out, and tea even brewed and waiting.

Before long, a soldier entered and set down four dishes, a soup, and a basket of warm steamed buns on the table. No wine.

Luan Tang was not about to stand on ceremony. Thinking that since he’d come this far there was no rush, and that he had been genuinely exhausted and hungry from the journey, he decided to fill his stomach first and worry about everything else later.

He had barely been eating for long when he saw the man referred to as General Yu lift the tent flap and step inside.

Luan Tang quickly rose and clasped his hands in a bow. “My respects, General Yu.”

Yu Jiuling said, “No need for formalities, Master Luan. Keep eating. I just dropped by for a casual chat.”

Luan Tang asked, “Has the General eaten yet?”

Yu Jiuling said, “Not yet. No rush.”

Luan Tang smiled. “Since the General hasn’t eaten either, if you don’t mind, why not join me?”

Yu Jiuling said, “I don’t mind you — you just keep eating. If I ate with you, there’d be nothing left for you.”

Luan Tang wasn’t quite sure whether to take that literally or look for some deeper meaning.

With someone seated beside him, Luan Tang felt too self-conscious to keep eating, and set down his chopsticks. “General, from the moment I laid eyes on you, I felt an immediate sense of kinship — as though we were old friends meeting again.”

Yu Jiuling thought to himself: *If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. You’re far uglier than I am, and yet you’re looking at me like I’m some kind of pleasant sight? Pleasant my foot.*

He smiled. “Since we feel like old friends, then I won’t stand on ceremony. I’ll say whatever’s on my mind.”

Luan Tang nodded. “Please, General, grace me with your guidance. I am all ears.”

Yu Jiuling said, “I’d like to ask — a talent such as yourself, serving under the Jingzhou Military Commissioner — what official post do you hold?”

Luan Tang replied, “I hold no official position. I am simply an advisor at the Commissioner’s side.”

Yu Jiuling muttered under his breath, barely audible: “Not bad. The Commissioner isn’t blind, at least.”

Luan Tang hadn’t caught it clearly — Yu Jiuling’s voice was genuinely too low — and only faintly made out the words *Military Commissioner*, so he asked, “What was that you said about the Military Commissioner, General?”

Yu Jiuling said, “I said the Military Commissioner has a keen eye for talent.”

Luan Tang smiled. “I am a man of mediocre ability, unable to offer the Commissioner any grand strategies. I only possess a measure of courage, and I am willing to relieve the Commissioner of his burdens — so here I am.”

Yu Jiuling nodded and exchanged a few idle words with him, and Luan Tang kept pace with the conversation, answering whatever was asked.

And so Yu Jiuling grew increasingly exasperated.

He had no choice but to make his meaning clearer: “You people who hold official positions at court — when you want to get something done, what’s the general process? What’s the first step, what’s the second step…”

Luan Tang looked puzzled. “I’m not sure what process the General is referring to.”

Yu Jiuling had no choice but to be even more explicit. “I’m just giving a casual example — back when the corrupt eunuch Liu Chongxin was in power, many people went to flatter and curry favor with him, hoping he’d look after them. But when they went to fawn on him, surely they didn’t show up empty-handed?”

Luan Tang said, “I… I never had any dealings with that corrupt eunuch.”

Yu Jiuling cursed inwardly and simply said it outright: “Suppose you wanted to ask someone a favor, but you didn’t know the person directly, and through roundabout means you came to know one of his subordinates — wouldn’t you… show some gesture of appreciation to that person?”

Luan Tang feigned a sudden realization. “Oh! I see now.”

He quickly stepped forward. “If the General would be willing to put in a good word for our Commissioner before Prince Ning, I will express my deep gratitude.”

Yu Jiuling smiled. “Isn’t that still just empty words?”

Luan Tang thought to himself: so this is the sort of person Prince Ning keeps close — the kind who so shamelessly comes looking for a cut himself.

Yet this sort of person apparently held quite a high standing at Prince Ning’s side. If he didn’t offer something, this man would likely find ways to obstruct him.

But if he were to offer something — what should it be?

He turned the question over in his mind. The most valuable things he carried were the map and the roster, but those absolutely could not be revealed at this moment — and besides, this man wasn’t after that kind of thing.

He hadn’t come with any plan to bribe his way through to Prince Ning first. He had come with only a handful of guards, whom he had left waiting far outside the camp perimeter, having entered alone to request an audience.

So in truth, he had very little silver on him at all.

After much deliberation, he reached out and unhooked a jade pendant from his belt, presenting it with both hands to Yu Jiuling. “This piece has been in my family for generations. It is not of great monetary value, but it holds deep personal significance to me.”

Yu Jiuling didn’t take it, and instead asked, “If it holds such personal significance, why are you willing to give it to me?”

Luan Tang thought: *because you shamelessly asked for it yourself* — but that was something he could only say in his heart.

Luan Tang sat in silence for a moment, then rose and, quite unexpectedly, dropped to his knees.

Yu Jiuling reached out to help him up. Luan Tang shook his head. “Please, General, hear me out.”

He took a deep breath, then said with gravity: “The people of Jingzhou, from when the war began until today, have lost four or five in every ten. Several years ago, Prince Wu fought Yang Xuanji in Jingzhou, and the people of Jingzhou gave everything they had to supply the army with grain — yet hundreds of thousands of ordinary people still starved to death that year.”

“Why does the Commissioner seek to submit to Yang Xuanji? It is not that my lord fears to fight on — it is that he cannot afford to. The people of Jingzhou cannot endure another war. There is no one in this realm who loves the people as Prince Ning does, and that is why the Commissioner sent me to seek an audience.”

“If the General can help bring this to fruition — if the millions of Jingzhou’s people can live in peace, if thousands of li of fertile land can be given the chance to rest and recover — never mind this jade pendant. Even if you asked for Luan’s life, General, you could take it.”

Yu Jiuling picked up the jade pendant and looked it over. With his experienced eye, he could tell at once that it was nothing particularly valuable.

But as he took it, he caught a glimpse of Luan Tang’s expression, and saw the reluctance in his eyes.

Yu Jiuling weighed the piece in his hand. “Not much heft to it.”

Luan Tang said, “I will not deceive the General — this is no famous piece and is not worth much. It is simply something my late mother left to me, which is why I have always kept it on me.”

Yu Jiuling said, “The piece has no value. Is that all you have?”

Luan Tang rummaged through his things and produced a handful of silver fragments: “That is everything.”

Yu Jiuling let out a cold laugh. “A worthless jade pendant and a handful of broken silver — and with this you expect me to speak up for you before Prince Ning? If I agreed to that, wouldn’t that make me just as worthless?”

He set the pendant and the silver on the table. “Think again. If you have anything of real value, look for it. If you truly have nothing, I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do for you.”

Luan Tang’s anger rose steadily, and a fury he could barely suppress flickered into his eyes — yet he was powerless to do anything about it.

He thought to himself: *why is it that in this world, in this age, the men who surround those in power are always such petty villains?*

*How did the Great Chu fall?*

*It’s right there in front of you.*

He had thought Prince Ning was so extraordinary. He had thought the future lay with Prince Ning. But now, looking at this — no different at all.

At that thought, the resolve Luan Tang had felt about pledging his allegiance began to waver considerably.

He shook his head. “In that case, I won’t trouble the General further. I am nothing but a penniless scholar. I never profited personally from my service at the Commissioner’s side, so I have nothing to offer you as a gesture of respect.”

Yu Jiuling said, “Mind what you say. You’ve spoken these words now, but I’m still willing to give you one more chance. Think carefully — if your words lead to armed conflict between the two armies and the people of Jingzhou are dragged into a catastrophe of bloodshed, would you not be the one to blame?”

Luan Tang wanted to say: *If you obstruct me like this, if you block this at every turn, and war truly does break out — are you not the one to blame?*

But he forced those words back down.

Because those very words brought him back to his senses. After a long silence, he bowed low: “If the General would help, please name your terms directly. Whatever is within my power, I will not shirk. What I cannot do, I will return and consult with the Commissioner, and do everything possible to meet the requirement.”

Yu Jiuling smiled. “How about this — write me an IOU. Say you owe me five hundred thousand taels of silver. Once your Commissioner has the silver ready for me, that’s when Prince Ning will accept your submission.”

“Five hundred thousand taels?!”

Luan Tang’s expression changed. The fury in his eyes surged up once more.

*Great Chu, oh Great Chu. Central Plains, oh Central Plains. Look at what kind of people you’ve produced.*

“I…”

He looked at Yu Jiuling, opened his mouth, and found he couldn’t get the words out.

Yu Jiuling asked, “What?”

Luan Tang exhaled heavily. “I’ll write it.”

He looked at Yu Jiuling and repeated himself, voice hardened: “I’ll write it!”

Yu Jiuling smiled. “You don’t look very willing. If you’re not willing, I’ll write it for you — you just need to put your handprint on it.”

Luan Tang clenched his jaw and nodded. “Whatever the General says.”

Yu Jiuling turned and called out toward the tent entrance: “Bring pen and paper.”

Before long, a soldier carried in an inkstone, brush, paper, and ink and set them on the table, then bowed and withdrew.

Yu Jiuling had come from a decent family as a child, and his mother had once taught him to read and write. Later, after both his parents died, he had been forced to work as a tavern errand boy and had no chance to continue his studies. After following Li Chi, Li Chi had pushed him to keep reading and writing, and by now he had acquired a reasonable level of learning.

His grip on the brush, though, was genuinely awkward — he clutched it like a fist around a club, and even the brush seemed to look worse for being held by him.

Yet his characters were not ugly at all. They even carried something of Li Chi’s style about them.

With swift strokes, Yu Jiuling finished writing and handed it to Luan Tang. “Take a look. Is there anything wrong?”

Luan Tang was seething, the fire in his chest burning so hot he could feel it in his lower back — aching as though his very kidneys had been scorched with fury.

He took it and glanced down, and suddenly froze.

What was written on the paper was:

*Prince Ning sincerely invites the Military Commissioner to meet at the southern shore of Little South Lake, at the foot of Denglian Mountain, in twenty days’ time. As a show of sincerity, Prince Ning will come without troops or cavalry.*

Luan Tang’s eyes went wide. For a long moment he stood there, mouth hanging open, unable to produce a single word.

Yu Jiuling rose with a look of smug satisfaction. “Were you furious just now? Were you ready to explode? Did you want to curse me and bite me? Who told you to call me ugly? This is what you deserved — you had it coming.”

Luan Tang was overwhelmed with emotion, stunned and at a loss. A moment later, he suddenly came to his senses: “But General — Denglian Mountain and Little South Lake are nine hundred li from here…”

Yu Jiuling said, “That is Prince Ning’s sincerity. Twenty days, nine hundred li — we’ll push through it. If it weren’t for Prince Ning wanting to meet with the Commissioner, we could push through two lots of nine hundred li. We’ve pushed through one, which we’ll call passing through on the way. The second lot of nine hundred li we didn’t push through — consider that a favor to Master Luan.”

With that, Yu Jiuling turned and walked out. “Keep your jade pendant. Your mother gave it to you — next time, no matter what anyone says, don’t give it away. If it were me, I could die before I’d let it go.”

—