When the ship reached Luoyang, Yun Ye disembarked to visit Daya. At the same time, six military orders had already been sent along the postal routes. The scattered fleet divisions of the Lingnan Navy transporting currency in various locations would fully complete their handovers, then enter the Yangtze waterway to assemble in Yuezhou. Yun Ye had made up his mind to confine himself within the military camp—he didn’t believe those people had the ability to penetrate the military camp and find him. If even this couldn’t guarantee his safety, he wouldn’t be safe anywhere.
Liu Fang disembarked halfway, taking several dozen men with him. When Yun Ye asked questions, he wouldn’t say, only stating he would definitely arrive in Yuezhou on time and wouldn’t delay matters. Wu She wanted to go with him but was refused. Using Yun Ye’s waist token to exchange for horses at the postal station, he left along the main road. From his hurried appearance, he must have had something very important to handle.
He stayed one night at Dan Ying’s home. The fellow certainly knew how to live well. The entire courtyard wasn’t large, but it excelled in refinement. Daya shyly held her belly as she paid respects to her elder brother, then happily went to prepare dinner. Knowing her brother’s taste was very particular, she personally cooked several dishes for him to enjoy with wine.
Dan Ying put on regular clothing, changing out of his usual hemp garments. No matter how Yun Ye looked, he couldn’t get used to it, especially the square high hat he wore—that was the attire of wealthy household stewards. Why was Dan Ying wearing it now? However, after seeing his two brothers’ outfits, Yun Ye wasn’t surprised anymore. It would be strange if a turtle’s nest could raise a phoenix. One wanted to hang all his belongings on himself, while the other actually wore rouge and powder like a transvestite—supposedly this was Luoyang city’s most fashionable dress. By comparison, Yun Ye with his bare head tied in a topknot, inserting a jade hairpin and wearing a blue robe—he looked shabby no matter how you viewed it.
“The rich people of Luoyang are all like this?” Yun Ye pointed his chopsticks at the two brothers eating at another table. Dan Ying apparently also noticed and embarrassedly removed his hat, then took off his outer robe. Wearing just his inner garments looked much better than before.
“So what’s the situation? Have you settled your home in Luoyang? Establishing a home isn’t just about having a residence—it also requires corresponding means of livelihood to support it. That matchstick factory’s profits are meager, mainly because you’ve taken them to provide relief for your father’s former subordinates’ families. What means do you rely on to support Daya and your unborn child?”
As her elder brother, these matters had to be clarified. If Dan Ying became a highway bandit again, Daya would spend her life in fear. A mountain bandit’s wife didn’t have an easy life, and it was extremely dangerous.
“I’m grateful for elder brother’s concern. Some days ago I received a letter from Xi Tong saying there’s a big business deal that requires our joint effort. The letter didn’t explain clearly. Because I was going to Yuezhou with elder brother, I turned down the matter and didn’t ask what business it was. It seems I must make a trip north.”
With this explanation, Yun Ye understood. Xi Tong still wanted to go to the polar regions to capture bears, then bring back the pelts to sell. Ordinary people going to the polar regions might very well not return—only someone like Dan Ying could live comfortably in the polar regions. He wanted to find a companion.
This was the bad thing about Great Tang. If brothers’ wives and children were scattered across the land, wanting to see each other again required great determination and traveling vast distances. Wang Bo once wrote in a poem: “No need to tarry at the crossroads, with children sharing tears.” Such scenes played out countless times by the Ba Bridge. Previously, Yun Ye was very unaccustomed to two grown men being sentimental at parting, but now he was used to it. Two brothers in one lifetime, damn it—after not long apart, one goes to Lingnan, one goes to the northern desert. This lifetime they could probably only be “close friends within the seas, neighbors though at the edge of the sky.” Wang Bo described this state of mind very aptly—no wonder his poetry could be passed down for over a thousand years.
Yun Ye missed Na Rimu, missed his daughter, missed Xi Tong, and also missed the reinforcements from Meng Family Village who’d just returned to Lingnan. After only two days away from home, he already missed his grandmother, missed Xinyue, missed Li Anlan, missed Lingdang. When leaving, Lingdang had cried her heart out. He’d very much wanted to turn around right there, but unfortunately could only muster his remaining courage and sail south.
Sentimental people get drunk very easily. Cup after cup went down his throat, and before he knew it he was intoxicated. Finally drunk to unconsciousness—this state didn’t appear often in Yun Ye. This time, just from Dan Ying’s one sentence, infinite melancholy was stirred up from the depths of his heart. Speaking of which, he was a marquis, but a marquis who could live a life separated from wife and children—there was probably only himself. He could have forcibly kept Na Rimu, could have forcibly kept Xi Tong, but he hadn’t done so, letting them follow their own natures. Now one was herding sheep on the grasslands, and his daughter was probably also dragging a long snotty nose while herding sheep. Xi Tong, for the sake of his damn livelihood, had to travel several months alone to the North Pole to catch bears and sell bear pelts. What was wrong with everyone? I’m a marquis of Great Tang, I’m a marquis of Great Tang—Yun Ye kept shouting this as he fell into dreams, where perhaps things would be better.
Daya sat at the bedside continuously using the wet cloth in her hand to wipe the vomit from the corners of her brother’s mouth. Watching her brother’s uncomfortable appearance, scratching his chest and lungs in distress, tears streamed down her face. This appearance was her most genuine elder brother. Although her elder brother at this moment lacked his usual elegant charm and didn’t have his usual confident appearance, Daya felt her elder brother should originally be like this.
Dan Ying sat on the windowsill, watching his wife attend to his brother-in-law’s vomiting. He also felt this was quite good. He’d thought his brother-in-law was a tough man whom heaven couldn’t crush and earth couldn’t harm—turns out he also had such weak moments. Very good indeed.
At this moment, Yun Ye wished he could vomit out his stomach and wash it in clean water—it was too uncomfortable. The Yun family’s neither-fish-nor-fowl distilling method was, fundamentally speaking, more like alcohol than liquor. That was basically a method for refining alcohol. Later, out of greed for profit, it was gradually diluted with water to become baijiu. The entire liquor culture lacked several hundred years of fermentation and settling. Things rapidly produced always had various problems—no wonder Yuchi Gong wanted to commit suicide after getting drunk.
He continued suffering until the third watch before Yun Ye finally fell into a drowsy sleep. Daya lowered the bed curtains and was helped to the bedroom by Dan Ying. As for the two other drunkards in the garden, Dan Ying chose to ignore them.
When daylight was bright, Yun Ye finally woke up. His brain matter seemed to have separated from his skull—even shaking his head hurt terribly. He took his belt and cinched it tightly, ordering servants to bring a basin of cool ice water. He buried his entire face in it, cold enough to make his whole body shiver. However, after being stimulated by the ice water, he felt much more comfortable.
He vomited whatever he ate. Even his favorite millet porridge, cooled to lukewarm, was swallowed in one gulp. Probably before even reaching his stomach, it was forced back up by powerful air currents—not a drop remained. Forget it, he couldn’t eat. Yun Ye put down his bowl and chopsticks. Today he still had to report to the Luoyang Governor’s Office—he couldn’t delay. It was already nearly noon; if he went any later, it would be considered disrespectful.
The chief official of the Luoyang Governor’s Office had been replaced by Pei Liangce. Hou Junji had gone to the northern desert to kill people, while he was left behind to guard Luoyang. All military officers passing through Luoyang needed to report to the Governor’s Office and submit to inspection to see whether their seals were complete. Those whose seals weren’t complete would be immediately arrested—needless to say, they were planning to rebel in another region. This was a very serious matter.
No matter how serious the matter, Yun Ye could turn it into a joke. On the road, seeing someone selling roasted potatoes, his appetite was greatly stimulated. He exchanged two copper coins for a pile, held them in his hand, peeled them, and ate. What a bad habit—someone who vomited everything from silver ear and lotus seed soup to fragrant millet porridge ate three fist-sized potatoes along the way and still felt unsatisfied.
Ignoring Liu Jinbao’s screams behind him, he strode into the official hall. Pei Liangce had been waiting for quite a while and gave Yun Ye face by not sending people to arrest him. He had this authority, given by the Emperor. The seals displayed on the table were both larger than the two Yun Ye had tucked in his bosom. Pei Liangce had finally managed to wait for Yun Ye’s arrival and prepared to exchange pleasantries before beginning official business. When he looked up, anger burst from his nostrils. His finger pointed at Yun Ye, trembling for a long time before he fiercely put down his hand and angrily rebuked: “Look at yourself—you’re also an important official of one region. Which regional governor takes up his post with an army? This is His Majesty’s generous favor to you. How can you be so unappreciative? Official protocol, official bearing, official appearance—which one conforms to regulations? First go wash your hands, then return to the official hall to conduct business.”
Yun Ye was baffled by the scolding and was about to get angry when he saw those subordinate officials all lowering their heads and snickering. Only then did he understand—there must be something improper about his appearance. He looked at his clothes—no problem. Hat? He wasn’t wearing a hat. The hair Daya had combed for him this morning couldn’t possibly have issues. It wasn’t until he saw his own hands that he knew where the problem was.
Damn it, Tang Dynasty people were stupid enough—they couldn’t even roast a potato properly. Couldn’t they set up a large-chambered stove and slowly roast the potatoes? Instead, they had to throw them into charcoal fire to cook? The outer skin was pitch black. He’d just focused on eating earlier and completely forgotten about this. Needless to say, he now definitely had a black ring around his mouth. There was no face to see people now. Covering his face with his sleeve, he hurriedly went to the rain cistern outside the official hall and carefully washed his face before returning to the hall to apologize to Pei Liangce.
“Last night I got terribly drunk. This morning I couldn’t swallow a bite of anything. On the road I saw someone selling roasted potatoes, which saved my life. I ate rather hastily—Governor, please don’t blame me.”
Seeing that Yun Ye truly hadn’t deliberately embarrassed him, Pei Liangce’s expression finally relaxed. He said softly: “This is understandable. Officials going south all have some displeasure in their hearts. Getting drunk in Luoyang city is also a common occurrence. Since Marquis Yun has already sobered up, please present His Majesty’s decree, the Ministry of War’s orders, and your military seal for this old man to verify.”
After finishing speaking, a subordinate official brought a tray before Yun Ye, waiting for him to produce these items. The seals had always been tucked in Yun Ye’s bosom—he placed them on the tray. Yun Ye then pulled out the imperial decree and Ministry of War documents from the leather pouch on his back and placed them all on top. Subordinate officials surged forward with rubbings to verify each item one by one. They examined the seal especially carefully, looking again and again. Yun Ye’s heart stirred, and he suddenly said to Pei Liangce: “Grand Governor, this subordinate has some private words that need to be spoken with the Grand Governor alone.”