After Wei Zheng waited for all the officials to enter, he too returned to his own box via the skywalk. Without even looking at the interior decorations, just seeing the brass door handle and the kui dragon relief carved on the door, one could imagine the luxury inside.
Pushing open the door, behind it stood a maidservant in blue, with only a copper hairpin in her hair and no other accessories. She hadn’t even applied the facial ornaments typical of women. Plain clothes and plain face, yet gentle and well-mannered. After curtsying, she took advantage of the motion to crouch down and removed Wei Zheng’s shoes, then changed them for soft-soled cloth shoes. Afterward, she performed another courtesy and silently retreated behind the door, still standing with hands clasped respectfully.
The soft carpet underfoot was quite comfortable to step on. Looking up, he saw his wife examining the furnishings in the box one by one. Several pots of green flowering plants were most eye-catching. Among the dark green leaves were interspersed pale yellow flower buds. The entire room was immersed in a rich orchid fragrance. These were rare flowers and trees brought by mendicant monks from the far south. Who would have thought they’d have them here too.
His son Guiyu smiled foolishly as he helped his father sit down, then obediently sat himself in the chair beside him, only he kept fidgeting. In fact, Wei Zheng most loved this eldest son, precisely because this child had suffered a head injury. After waking up, he became simple-minded and never regained that clever spark from childhood. The low table beside the soft chair was filled with various foods. As long as he himself didn’t move, no matter what, this child wouldn’t move. So Wei Zheng picked up a twisted dough stick that he’d eaten before at the Yun household and handed it to his son—this thing was crispy and good for chewing.
“My lord, can you speak with Marquis Yun and ask him to sell the residence cheaper? Your wife always feels our family’s money isn’t enough. Look—all the wealthy families of Chang’an have come. When the time comes, if we can’t afford it, how embarrassing.”
Wei Zheng looked in the direction his wife pointed. He saw the theater was already densely packed with people, all wearing silk and satin, bustling about following blue-clothed servants to find their seats.
These people were all Yun Ye’s harvest! Some people harvested crops and plants, some harvested cattle, sheep, pigs and horses, others harvested metal, stone, iron and wood. Unfortunately, they had all encountered Yun Ye, who harvested wealthy people. Tonight was destined to be Yun Ye’s good day for reaping.
“Wife, don’t worry. If there’s not enough money, then we won’t pay. We’ll owe it first. When we have money we’ll repay it. If we don’t have money, we won’t repay it. Guiyu’s marriage is somewhat unfair to the in-laws. Although it was an arranged marriage before birth, Guiyu suffered from head illness and became simple and slow. Our family proposed breaking the engagement to the in-laws several times, but they refused. In that case, our family can only consider the children more in terms of money. If I don’t give him the house payment, what can he do to me?” These few sentences from Wei Zheng shocked his wife so much her mouth gaped open. Was this still her lord husband who was as clear as water and as upright as a mirror?
“Wife, don’t worry that I will be corrupt. If it were others, even if they gave me a golden mountain I would sneer at it. Only with Yun Ye—if I can take advantage even a little, I will, without the slightest hesitation.”
Wei Zheng spoke of taking advantage so righteously, as if not doing so would be insufficient to express his psychology of hating the rich. He was now already stubbornly convinced that of all these people in the opera house, except for a few who were spectators, the rest were all lambs awaiting slaughter.
“My lord, Yun Ye squanders so much—I only pity his old grandmother and that child Xinyue. Our family won’t take advantage. We’ll give him all the money. If it’s not enough, we’ll owe it but won’t renege on the debt.” Madam Wei spoke decisively.
“Wife, do you really think Yun Ye is a spendthrift? That’s right, this reputation has spread throughout Chang’an. Wife, be patient. Just wait until tonight passes and you’ll know how he squanders.”
The lights in the opera house suddenly became bright. Wei Zheng stood up. If his guess was correct, His Majesty should be arriving. Sure enough, after a long horn blast, the central box blazed with light, bright as day. Li Er and the Empress in ordinary clothes stood on the box’s terrace accepting greetings from all the guests. Some merchants from afar were even more excited, prostrating themselves and calling out ten thousand years.
Li Er only said lightly, “Everyone sit,” then returned to the box. The lighting there instantly became soft, no longer the slightest bit domineering. That scene just now left too deep an impression on everyone—like a giant dragon emerging from its lair to survey its subjects, then retreating back in. Li Er’s light sentence expressed to the fullest that he was the true master of the world. More words would actually diminish his authority.
Returning to the box, Li Er immediately kicked off his shoes and walked barefoot in circles on the carpet, appreciating the box’s arrangements. Where gold could be used, brass would never be used. Where pearls and jade could be used, cheap materials would never be used. The curtain dividing the terrace and box was strung with pearls drilled and threaded, all of uniform size. Nodding with satisfaction, he said to Zhangsun: “I thought that boy asking for a thousand strings was opening his lion’s mouth wide. I didn’t expect it was truly worth this price. I very much like this theater. Have the Inner Treasury give him a thousand strings.”
Zhangsun was standing behind the curtain looking at the dense crowd of heads below. Hearing Li Er say this, she turned her head and smiled, taking Li Er’s arm and saying: “However cunning Yun Ye is, he understands the principle of getting what you pay for. Decorating this box must have cost several thousand strings. These two pots of early chrysanthemums are blooming splendidly. When we return to the palace, let’s take them. Leaving them here wastes them—no one’s looking.”
The couple was chatting happily when suddenly they noticed the lights in the great hall dim while that stage became bright. A trembling fat man stood on stage, looking around fearfully. Only after the surroundings quieted down did he stammer: “Today’s auction has received the support of His Majesty, Her Majesty the Empress, His Highness the Crown Prince, and all the worthies of our Great Tang. We are extremely grateful and have only prepared some song and dance, hoping not to disappoint everyone.”
Having finally finished reciting, sweat on his forehead flowed down like a stream. Those sitting nearby who saw it spread the word, immediately provoking everyone to roar with laughter. Seeing the soaking wet patch on the fat man’s back, they laughed even more heartily.
“Such a wine-and-pleasure type, a drinking buddy and wastrel—he dares bring him out to show off! This is Yun Ye having no one around him. Shameful! If our clan produced such a spendthrift demon, we’d beat him to death. To have wasted building this opera-whatever-it’s-called so magnificently and luxuriously—Yun Ye’s skills end here.” In a box, a white-haired elder sighed deeply, feeling that none of these wet-behind-the-ears youngsters could accomplish anything.
Li Chengqian, sitting on the platform between the first and second floors, laughed so hard he nearly fell. The beauty in yellow beside him gripped him tightly, afraid he’d fall. Between the two there seemed to be no barriers—very intimate.
“Tan’er, you know what? This fellow is just pretending. Usually he’s boldest and most cunning. Now that he’s scared enough to sweat profusely, there must be something wrong. Did you tell your father not to buy glass items tonight?” As Li Chengqian asked, his hand had already grasped the young lady in yellow’s small hand and wouldn’t let go. Behind them, Princess Changle, who was monitoring, was about to speak, telling them to move apart—this was a task Her Majesty the Empress had assigned her.
Who could have imagined that a hand would reach out from behind, cover her mouth, and drag her out through the door? Very quickly someone grabbed her legs and carried her rapidly toward a box. The guards on the skywalk seemed not to see, continuing to stand there like wooden stakes.
Changle was so frightened she nearly fainted, but was put down. Then she heard a familiar voice from behind her: “Silly sister, Big Brother obviously wants a private meeting with his own wife. What are you doing standing there? No sense at all.”
The tears that were about to flow from Changle’s eyes suddenly disappeared. Turning around, she saw Li Tai and Li Ke standing behind her making faces at her. Honest children rarely got angry, but once angry were terrifying. She grabbed Li Tai’s hand and bit down hard, not letting go, holding on with her teeth. Watching the shrieking Li Tai, Li Ke turned sideways and carefully let the siblings pass, returning to his box himself.
Just returning to the box, he heard drums and music resound in unison on stage. A heart-rending voice roared: “Receiving commands from the sovereign, together we go to punish rebellious ministers. All sing ‘Music of Breaking Through Enemy Lines,’ together celebrating people of great peace.”
Hearing this, Li Tai silently called out “oh no,” and quickly went back out to drag Li Tai and Changle inside, saying to Changle: “Quickly let go! The Music of Breaking Through Enemy Lines has begun. If we don’t stand properly, we’ll be punished by Mother Empress.”
Only then did the two release. Li Tai rubbed his wrist and asked Li Ke—has Yun Ye gone mad? Taking the Music of Breaking Through Enemy Lines, which requires one hundred twenty-eight people to perform, and staging it here? Something’s wrong with his head.
Speaking, he looked toward the stage. Sure enough, it was just at the moment when armored soldiers began dancing. Huge gongs, huge drums, loud nomadic reed pipes, melodious and circuitous Kuchean tunes mixed together. The sight made everyone from Chang’an in the theater boil with passion.
With paper wads stuffed in his ears, Yun Ye was chatting happily with Li Baiyao, one of the Music of Breaking Through Enemy Lines’ compilers: “Marquis Yun is truly brilliant. Performing and dancing to this Music of Breaking Through Enemy Lines in this theater—the effect is indeed best. The sound of gongs and drums echoes in the ears, ancient Kuchean music arrives gracefully. The formations on stage circle left and square right, first skewed then in fives, fish-scale and wild goose formations, fan-shaped and wing-spread, interlacing flexion and extension, beginning and end互换, symbolizing battle array formations. Each change makes four formations with advancing and retreating, swift and slow, striking and thrusting gestures responding to the song’s rhythm. Listen—now we’ve reached the middle section.”
Even with paper wads in his ears, that ear-piercing demonic sound still penetrated: “Imperial virtue covers the four seas, for a thousand years virtue’s water is clear. No longer need to wear military uniform, today we announce success achieved.”
One actor shouting would be one thing, but the theater’s thousand-plus people shouting together was fatal. In his past life he’d never liked rock music. Now he was suffering from his own actions. Wasn’t it just a hundred-some people doing group calisthenics there? He’d seen Olympic scenes with tens of thousands. Watching a hundred-some people running frantically about to highlight that idiot in white armor jumping up and down in the center, wanting to escape but unable, Yun Ye thought of Xi Tong’s twenty-one wives. Singing praises was fine—this was the victor’s right. But you should at least find good husbands for those women about to starve before praising!
“How is it, Marquis Yun? Look at this majestic momentum, myriad phenomena, mixing music from the four seas. Most wonderful is the Kuchean music—soaring and beautiful. The great drums shake the heavens, transmitting sound for hundreds of miles. It can move heaven and earth!”
Li Baiyao put his mouth to Yun Ye’s ear and spoke loudly, not knowing that right now he wished for death rather than life, only hoping those last few lines would quickly finish: “The sage lord opens a prosperous era, loyal ministers uphold great principles. Look, after putting away weapons, it’s an autumn of great peace.” Please finish reciting quickly so he could save his life.