The bathroom was filled with the fragrance of roses. It was early summer now, all freshly picked roses soaking in the water to nourish the skin.
Wang Daxia’s head buzzed like thousands of bees dancing in his mind. It was the familiar scene! The familiar routine! His first time with Wei Caiwei had happened here!
Back then he didn’t understand romance. Wei Caiwei had played a game of finding roses with him. He clearly knew where she had hidden the rose but didn’t dare reach for it.
Now, this game could no longer stump the experienced Wang Daxia. He was like a candidate who had practiced the imperial examination questions in advance—encountering the same question in the examination hall, he was certain of victory.
Wang Daxia immediately rolled up his sleeves and reached into the bathtub, exploring toward where Wei Caiwei had hidden the rose last time.
Hmm… nothing there.
Wei Caiwei, who was relaxing in the bathtub, let out a startled cry and angrily slapped the water surface: “What are you doing? Get out quickly!”
Wei Caiwei had also been excited all night last night and hadn’t slept well. When she got up this morning, she had dark circles under her eyes. The hairdressing lady had to pat at least two ounces of powder on her face to cover the dark shadows under her eyes. The makeup took an hour, plus the heavy headdress and wedding dress, the wedding ceremony, and so on.
Wei Caiwei was tired after a whole day, her muscles and bones aching. She just wanted to soak in hot water and rest well. Just when she was most relaxed, something intruded, startling her!
Water droplets splashed onto Wang Daxia’s face. He sheepishly withdrew his hand, not daring to wipe the water drops: “So it’s not… looking for roses.”
Wei Caiwei suddenly remembered the night three years ago when she had taken Wang Daxia’s virginity, not knowing whether to laugh or cry: “You’re really like marking a boat to find a sword. What’s the point of using the same trick twice?”
Wang Daxia was very embarrassed. He had been rubbing his hands together outside, planning to perform well on their wedding night, but had “fumbled” at the opening and been defeated.
However, Wang Daxia didn’t give up so easily. Relying on his thick skin and Wei Caiwei’s love for him, he picked up a rose from the water surface and leaned over, saying: “Playing twice is also quite interesting. I want to play again. This time, I’ll hide it and you find it.”
Oh my, this blockhead had actually learned how to flirt.
Wei Caiwei laughed: “You want to hide this thing somewhere on your body? Oh, I know—your mouth always says no, no, but your body is still very honest.”
Wang Daxia suffered another blow: It’s over. You can’t mechanically copy such things. Men and women’s bodies are different. The place where Wei Caiwei hid it, he simply doesn’t have. If he were to hide it, he could only hide it in…
No! Can’t let her poke there again—at least not on the wedding night. It concerns my dignity as a groom.
Wang Daxia’s ear tips turned red as rouge, but he still put on a brave face, saying: “Your thoughts are too evil. I wasn’t planning to hide the rose there.”
Wei Caiwei said: “So you’re planning to hide it in your nostril or ear canal?”
For the sake of face, Wang Daxia went all out and stuffed the rose into his mouth.
Wei Caiwei quickly reached out to pinch his chin: “You fool, spit it out quickly! The rose has been soaking in my bath water. Be careful not to get an upset stomach.”
Having diarrhea on the wedding night would probably leave a lifelong psychological shadow.
Wang Daxia had to spit out the rose. After three consecutive blows, he felt that tonight he would probably be scorned by his wife again.
Seeing his dejected appearance, Wei Caiwei felt sorry for him and said: “Bring me the scented soap.”
Wang Daxia complied, handing her a bar of scented soap: “Here.”
At this moment, Wei Caiwei had changed from sitting to lying face down in the bathtub, exposing most of her back, meaning for him to help scrub her body with the scented soap. Always hiding roses was boring—time to change the game.
But Wang Daxia clearly didn’t understand her meaning and just stuffed the scented soap into her hand.
This fool, this old lady’s back is exposed for nothing. Wei Caiwei took the scented soap and pretended her hand slipped—the soap clattered to the floor.
Wang Daxia crouched down to pick up the scented soap. Wei Caiwei, lying on the bathtub, took the opportunity to untie his belt. Wang Daxia only felt a chill below—his pants had slipped to his ankles.
If Wang Daxia still didn’t understand, he would be an idiot. Overjoyed, he lifted his long legs and jumped into the bathtub. The bath water splashed and overflowed like two mandarin ducks playing in water, unable to calm down for a long time.
Mandarin ducks dance with intertwined necks, jade birds in blissful embrace. Eyebrows bashfully gather frequently, vermillion lips melt more warmly. Breath clear with orchid fragrance, skin moistened with jade richness. Too weak to lazily move wrists, so charming loving to bend the waist. Sweat gleams like pearls dotting, hair disheveled green and loose. (Note 1)
Here in the mandarin duck curtains they intertwined with love, hating the rooster’s crow until dawn. A thousand li away in Fengzhou, in the territory of Mongol An Da Khan, at Bansheng land, was another scene entirely.
The northwest morning in early summer was still very cold. Ding Wu got up early wearing a fur coat, riding to a wheat field in the suburbs.
Originally nomadic peoples had no farmland, only pastures, but ever since White Lotus Sect leader Zhao Quan brought his followers to seek refuge with An Da Khan, everything changed.
The vast majority of Zhao Quan’s followers were illiterate farmers and craftsmen, brainwashed by his faith and deceived into coming here, taking root, clearing wasteland to farm, establishing villages just like those in the Central Plains.
Over ten years later, this had become fertile land. In good harvest years, the White Lotus Sect’s grain could even supply various tribes of An Da Khan.
Among the followers were also carpenters, blacksmiths, and masons who built brick houses here, established fixed residences, traded with each other, gradually forming marketplaces similar to those in the Central Plains. The tribes no longer needed to go to the Central Plains to buy iron pots.
An Da Khan benefited from this. Though he believed in Lamaism, he wasn’t opposed to this heretical White Lotus Sect. In recent years, as the Ming Embroidered Uniform Guard found and severed Sect Leader Zhao Quan’s power networks in the Central Plains one by one, he simply developed followers in Fengzhou, cultivated land, and consolidated local power.
Now Fengzhou had over fifty thousand White Lotus Sect followers taking root here, already becoming a force not to be underestimated. Sect Leader Zhao Quan could directly request audiences with An Da Khan.
The White Lotus Sect could no longer cause trouble in the Central Plains, but grew stronger and stronger in Fengzhou. This wasn’t the result Ding Wu wanted to see.
A glimmer of dawn appeared in the sky. Today was the first day of sworn sister Wei Caiwei’s marriage.
Was she happy? Would Wang Daxia always treat her well after marriage? When would he be able to become an uncle…
Ding Wu watched the dawn in the wheat field, silently thinking his thoughts. When dawn completely broke free from darkness and the sun vigorously emerged from the east, shining so brightly he couldn’t open his eyes, Ding Wu closed his eyes, dismounted, and walked into the wheat field.
It was colder here than the Central Plains, so winter wheat couldn’t be planted. All was spring wheat planted after spring when ice and snow melted.
The early summer wheat seedlings were lush and green, not yet forming ears, like rows of chives. Ding Wu crouched down, looking at the seedlings. This year had too little rain and drought weather. The artificially diverted river water was far from enough for the wheat fields. The wheat grew poorly, each plant looking malnourished and drooping.
The fields had already cracked into turtle-shell patterns due to drought. If it didn’t rain soon, this year’s wheat fields would probably have no harvest at all.
Wheat fields needed water, and the nomadic livestock pastures also needed water. This great drought would not only cause the White Lotus Sect to lose their entire harvest, but also kill large numbers of grassland livestock. Come autumn and winter, without meat and grain for the winter, people couldn’t survive.
Once people here felt they couldn’t survive, they would raise troops to plunder the Ming border passes. The White Lotus Sect, familiar with their homeland’s terrain, would lead the way in front while Mongol cavalry burned, killed, and plundered behind, seizing enough supplies for winter and sharing a portion with the White Lotus Sect as payment for guiding.
The White Lotus Sect, brainwashed by doctrine and reality, competed eagerly to devise ways to harm their homeland, utterly shameless. Seeing their hometown people die under Mongol cavalry, they showed no mercy. Sect Leader Zhao Quan repeatedly told them this was the “heavenly tribulation” these people suffered for refusing to join the White Lotus Sect.
“Enter our holy sect, join the sect to avoid tribulation.” If they refused to join, they deserved to encounter divine punishment and die.
You all joined the sect. Even encountering disaster years with no harvest, relying on the sect’s relief, you can still eat your fill and stay warm, surviving disaster years and avoiding “heavenly tribulation.”
Under Sect Leader Zhao Quan’s bewitchment, followers were all willing to guide Mongol soldiers, taking pride in being accomplices.
Ding Wu rode around the fields all day, confirming that crop failure was unavoidable. He wrote intelligence that this year the grasslands would have severe drought, by autumn and winter An Da Khan would definitely send troops to raid the passes, the Ming must prepare well and strengthen border defenses to deal with large-scale enemy attacks. He emphasized at the end that there would definitely be major warfare this year—if preparations weren’t made well, they might repeat the Gengxu Rebellion from Emperor Jiajing’s time when Mongol armies besieged the capital.
The intelligence was sent out through secret contacts, but Ding Wu’s heart remained suspended. His Ding family’s tragedy was caused by the Gengxu Rebellion. Would the Ming survive this calamity this time?
Ding Wu went to the White Lotus Sect’s main hall in Fengzhou to request an audience with Sect Leader Zhao Quan.
Three years ago in Xinghua City, Tie Niu, one of the four major transmission leaders who had helped Sect Leader Zhao Quan make money, betrayed the White Lotus Sect and established his own sect, only to be eliminated by the combined forces of Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou. Zhao Quan lost the Central Plains’ biggest source of wealth and began suspecting Ding Wu.
Because as soon as Ding Wu left, Tie Niu betrayed the sect and became independent, claiming to be the reincarnation of the Bright King, then was annihilated by Ming forces—all this was told to him by Ding Wu when he returned. There was no real evidence. Tie Niu’s head had been cut off; dead men tell no tales, so naturally whatever Ding Wu said was accepted as truth.
But Zhao Quan also had no evidence to suspect Ding Wu. Moreover, Ding Wu had Third Madam as backing—he didn’t dare subject Ding Wu to harsh interrogation.
From then on, Zhao Quan distanced himself from Ding Wu. If you can’t provoke someone, you can at least avoid them.
Zhao Quan wouldn’t see Ding Wu, so Ding Wu lingered at the main hall refusing to leave.
Even when beating a dog, you must consider its owner. For Third Madam’s sake, Zhao Quan finally appeared: “How does Young Master Ding have time to visit our holy sect today?”
Ding Wu said: “Has the Sect Leader forgotten? I am one of the four major transmission leaders of the holy sect. Today I toured Bansheng land, and the crops in the fields aren’t growing well. I’m concerned about the future livelihood of the sect’s fifty thousand followers, so I came to discuss with the Sect Leader how fifty thousand followers will survive this winter.”
Zhao Quan wasn’t worried at all, saying: “There’s nothing to fear from drought and natural disasters. Even if there’s complete crop failure, the White Lotus Sect’s fifty thousand followers won’t starve to death. I have my own methods to feed them and get through the drought disaster. ‘Enter our holy sect, join the sect to avoid tribulation’—this isn’t just a slogan. The holy sect keeps its word and won’t let any sect member go hungry.”
The implication was returning to their old trade—guiding Mongol soldiers to plunder grain and wealth from the Ming.