The gauze screens around the Emperor’s pavilion had been lowered for a long time, and the music and singing outside continued for just as long. Only when sounds came from within again did the eunuchs standing on both sides gesture for the performers to stop and lift the screens.
The Emperor sat up with a hint of drowsiness, his spirits much better than before.
“Has Xun come?” he asked.
His Majesty’s memory was increasingly poor these days. The eunuch bowed his head and carefully said, “He paid his respects to Your Majesty and left with the Crown Prince.”
The Emperor made a sound of acknowledgment, narrowing his eyes—perhaps remembering now—and reached for a cup of wine that had been poured nearby, slowly taking a sip.
“What did the Crown Prince say? Why has Xun come to the capital?” he asked again.
The eunuch repeated what the Crown Prince had said earlier and added what the Crown Prince had omitted.
“Official Liang asked the Court of Judicial Review to help find the Chu family’s young lady. The Court then requested the Prince of Zhongshan’s assistance in intercepting her on the road, after which the Prince’s heir escorted her back.”
Hearing this, the Emperor put down his wine cup and asked with narrowed eyes, “He escorted the Chu family’s daughter back? Who asked him to do so? Was it Chu Lan?”
“No, no,” the eunuch hurriedly said. “As it happens, the Prince of Zhongshan’s heir was quite unfortunate. When the Chu young lady’s party was traveling through the Prince of Zhongshan’s territory, they encountered bandits. The incident was severe, requiring military intervention, and many civilians were injured or killed. Since there were court officials among the Chu young lady’s party, the Prince of Zhongshan was very concerned and specifically came to the capital to explain to the court, having submitted a request in advance which the Crown Prince approved.”
The Emperor made a sound of understanding and smiled: “My royal brother is truly cautious, unwilling to let slip even the slightest word, constantly fearing others might harm him.”
The eunuch also sighed in relief, pouring wine for the Emperor: “It’s good to be cautious. That’s proper protocol.”
Only the Emperor’s sons could disregard protocol in his presence—not his brothers or nephews.
The Emperor drank slowly, seemingly both drunk and lucid: “What was the matter with Chu Lan’s daughter again?”
The eunuch responded: “Chu Lan’s daughter beat the Liang family’s young lady. Official Liang was relentless, so Chu Lan sought help from Your Majesty, and Your Majesty resolved his trouble.”
The Emperor said nothing, draining his cup of wine in one gulp.
“Your Majesty, regarding Chu Lan’s letter, do you wish to reply?” the eunuch cautiously asked. “About that matter he requested—”
As the words fell, the Emperor’s expression turned furious.
“Why should I reply to him?” he shouted. “Who does he think he is! Daring to lecture me! Blame me! He’s the one who made the mistake! ‘The best military strategist subdues the enemy’s forces without fighting, captures the enemy’s cities without attacking, and destroys the enemy’s state without prolonged warfare—'”
He smashed his wine cup on the ground, and not satisfied with that, he also overturned the wine jug, the items in front of him, and the table itself.
These were the words Chu Ling had used to reproach him years ago. So much time had passed, yet they remained carved in the Emperor’s heart, showing how estranged the two had become. The chief eunuch sighed inwardly as he led everyone to kneel.
“Your Majesty, please calm your anger.”
Hurried footsteps approached as a group of palace maids escorted a magnificently dressed consort who arrived gracefully, asking loudly: “Your Majesty, what’s the matter?”
Seeing this consort, the eunuchs and performers all sighed in relief, calling out, “Noble Consort Zhao has arrived.”
Noble Consort Zhao had already reached the Emperor’s side and embraced his arm. “Who has angered Your Majesty again?” Without waiting for an answer, she tugged at the Emperor’s arm. “Your Majesty, Your Majesty, don’t be angry. Come play chess with me. I’ve learned something new, and this time I’ll surely defeat Your Majesty.”
The Noble Consort, already in her thirties, still maintained a girlish demeanor. Being swayed by the beauty, the Emperor’s anger instantly dissipated, and his eyes revealed a smile.
“Don’t cry to me if you lose,” he said with a smile.
Noble Consort Zhao took the Emperor’s hand. “Come quickly, come quickly.”
The Emperor followed her, stepping over the mess on the ground as they left. His previous fury seemed never to have occurred.
The remaining eunuchs and performers waited until they could no longer hear footsteps before standing up, sighing in relief.
One eunuch smiled bitterly: “The Noble Consort asked who angered His Majesty. If it weren’t for the Third Prince—”
His words were cut short by a slap on the head from the chief eunuch.
“Tired of living?” he scolded. “If you don’t want to live, go drown yourself in the lake tonight.”
That eunuch sheepishly lowered his head, not daring to say another word, and hurriedly cleaned up the mess on the ground.
……
……
Deyang Hall was where the Emperor handled court affairs. Now that the Emperor had entrusted court matters to the Crown Prince, he rarely set foot there.
At present, within Deyang Hall, officials knelt, and the Crown Prince sat on the floor, with piles of memorials stacked before him.
His expression was solemn, his robust physique even more imposing as his gaze swept over the memorials before him, seemingly deep in thought about how to make decisions.
The eunuchs on both sides held their breath and remained silent.
The Crown Prince stretched out his arm, picking up one stack of memorials, and repeated this several times. Finally, satisfied, he pointed to the heaviest stack: “Keep this pile, take away the rest.”
With this decision, officials whose memorials were not in the chosen stack sighed in dismay, but no one dared to come forward and argue. This was because on both sides of the great hall stood several robust men who also wore official robes, though different from the normal ones. These men were the Crown Prince’s riding and archery instructors, whom the Crown Prince had created a position called “force officials,” and they boldly accompanied him to court.
In court, if there was any disagreement, they would not hesitate to lay hands on court officials.
The eunuchs carried away the memorials not selected by the Crown Prince based on weight, and the officials retrieved their own, reluctantly taking their leave.
“I truly cannot wait any longer. This concerns disaster relief grain,” one official said worriedly, turning to look at the Crown Prince sitting in the hall.
He bit his lip, about to step forward to plead with the Crown Prince, but was pulled back by another official.
“If you anger His Highness and he beats you, you’ll be bedridden for ten days or half a month, further delaying matters,” that official advised, pointing to a force official and giving the other official a meaningful look.
The official understood, somewhat resignedly taking out a bag of money from his sleeve. He stopped a force official and said in a low voice: “Sir, please help me.” He slipped the money bag to the force official.
The force official, sporting a full beard, accepted the money bag and smiled with satisfaction, though he also looked helpless: “Lord Qi, even the Crown Prince’s selection of memorials is unpredictable. This time he selects the heavy ones, next time the light ones, and the time after that, perhaps the medium ones. I can’t guarantee—”
The official looked distressed: “This truly cannot wait—thousands of people are waiting for food—”
The force official wasn’t one to take money without doing anything. He coughed lightly and said softly: “Lord Qi, if you want speed, why not ask Lord Yang for help?”
There were many officials surnamed Yang in the court, but the Lord Yang mentioned by the force official didn’t need to be specified—everyone knew he meant the Crown Prince’s maternal uncle.
Lord Yang, the National Uncle, currently manages military affairs in the Grand Marshal’s Office.
The official’s expression was somewhat helpless: “This is a matter for the Ministry of Revenue—”
The force officials were all warriors who understood nothing.
That force official also wore an expression as if wondering why the official couldn’t understand: “Whether it’s a matter for the Ministry of Revenue or the Ministry of War, it’s all a court matter, isn’t it?”
Wasn’t this saying that all court matters were Lord Yang’s business? Truly, the official felt somewhat helpless. Nevertheless, he thanked the force official and walked out carrying his memorial.
Even if Lord Yang took a layer of oil, at least it would allow thousands of people to satisfy their hunger and not starve to death. That would resolve the matter.
As the officials dispersed, the hall returned to silence. The Crown Prince casually looked through a few memorials before impatiently tossing them aside and asking: “Have you investigated the literary gathering that Third Brother wants to hold?”
A force official stepped forward: “We’ve investigated everything. The Third Prince has distributed notices everywhere, stating that regardless of status or position, anyone can participate in the literary gathering as long as they pass the test at the entrance of Wangchun Garden.”
The Crown Prince asked: “What test?”
Another force official smiled: “Nothing more than poetry, lyrics, calligraphy, chess, and such.”
Poetry and brush strokes couldn’t kill people. The Crown Prince nodded: “Keep an eye on those who participate, lest he uses this to recruit people he shouldn’t.”
The force officials acknowledged: “Our men are watching day and night throughout.” They then asked: “Once suspicious individuals are found, should we investigate thoroughly—”
The Crown Prince smiled: “Investigate? No need to investigate. What’s there to investigate? Beat them to death and be done with it!”
As he spoke, he stood up and flexed his shoulders, making cracking sounds.
“Let him know that playing tricks and schemes can’t compare to my fists.”