The Princess’s manor was in complete chaos. Li Anlan was on the verge of losing her mind. In name, this was her home, but in reality, her words carried no weight. Take right now, for example—Liu Jinbao completely ignored her repeated orders and was leading over a dozen guards, bringing dried provisions, weapons, and medicine, preparing to venture into the deep mountain forests to search for gold. Madam He was even egging him on from the side, hoping he would dig up an even larger piece of gold for the young master. Her pet phrase was: “There’s nothing people from the Yun Family can’t do.”
Liu Jinbao was Li Anlan’s greatest security guarantee in Lingnan. Although he never listened to orders, deep in her heart he was her most reliable subordinate. If anything happened, the one who would risk his life to protect her and her son would definitely be someone from the Yun Family. Even if he wasn’t loyal to her, as long as he was loyal to her son, there was nothing she couldn’t tolerate. In these times, a devoted and faithful guard was worth a thousand gold pieces and hard to find. She had never understood why everyone who came from the Yun Family was cut from the same cloth.
“Liu Jinbao, who gave you the audacity to go searching for gold? There’s something wrong with this—it might very well be a trap. If you take away half the guards, what am I supposed to do? What about the heir’s safety?”
Li Anlan’s voice carried a shrill edge. Little Lingdang was so frightened she trembled. Zhang Zhuhuan stood behind Li Anlan supporting the Princess’s decision. Now that Hong Cheng wasn’t here, Liu Jinbao was the women of the Princess’s manor’s pillar of support—he couldn’t leave.
Liu Jinbao thumped his chest heavily and said to the Princess: “There’s nothing we Yun Family people can’t accomplish. Over these years, which brother from the household hasn’t traveled north and south, passing through life-and-death trials? Except when returning to the estate, who doesn’t sleep with a blade under his pillow every night? Look at the equipment we’re wearing—can those local dogs compare? Armor forged from refined iron, impervious to blades and spears. The court regulations prohibit private ownership of heavy armor weighing more than thirty jin, but our Yun Family’s armor, even the heaviest pieces, are no more than twenty-eight jin, yet they’re sturdier than fifty-jin Guangming armor. With this on my body, even through mountains of blades and seas of fire, Old Liu here can charge through seven or eight times.”
Li Anlan had always wanted to obtain more Yun Family armor, but Xinyue simply refused to give it. Later, Yun Ye made a set of women’s armor each for her and Lingdang. They were beautiful and lightweight, with absurdly strong defensive capabilities. It was just wasted on Lingdang. When Li Anlan had her put it on, she only wanted to test the armor’s defensive capabilities on Lingdang’s piece. The moment she pulled out the knife, Lingdang crouched on the ground with her head in her arms, shrieking incoherently, wasting a perfectly good set of armor. Yet when asked to give it to someone else, she refused, insisting on keeping it herself. When idle, she would take it out to polish it, apply some oil, and even spray perfume on it. She would often stare at the armor with a foolish grin—there was no saving her.
Li Anlan suddenly caught sight of her chubby son nestled in Madam He’s embrace. She snatched him up in one motion and stuffed him into the arms of Liu Jinbao, who had been gesturing with his chain hammer. This panicked Liu Jinbao into quickly dropping the hammer and carefully holding the young master, not daring to act rashly anymore.
Li Anlan said with a smile: “Your young master has grown up now and should see more of the world. This time when you go out, take your young master along. Searching for gold is wonderful—have your young master find two large pieces for his mother. They can’t be smaller than the one in the house.”
Liu Jinbao hung his head dejectedly while holding the young master, saying nothing. He waved irritably at the other guards, and one by one they pursed their lips, shook their heads, and dispersed. Going into the forest was now out of the question.
If they took a nursing infant on an adventure, Madam He and Old Liu alone would tear them to pieces, not to mention the infant’s father secretly watching from behind.
Li Anlan had achieved victory. She called over Madam He and, bringing Lingdang and Zhang Zhuhuan, went to her son’s treasury to select treasures. The Emperor’s birthday was approaching, and as a daughter, she ought to show some filial sentiment. She had asked her son about it—he had no objections.
The moment the treasury door opened, Li Anlan felt dizzy. The red pine shelves were filled with all manner of rare treasures. When she saw a crystal-clear glass rabbit in the center of the shelves, her eyes went round. What an extraordinary treasure this was! Its eyes were rubies without a speck of impurity. This rabbit alone could be called priceless. No matter where she moved, the rabbit seemed to be smiling as it watched her.
Lingdang had already lost her mind, clutching the rabbit and refusing to let go. Zhang Zhuhuan stared fixedly at the rabbit, continuously pinching herself, thinking she must be dreaming.
“Princess, this rabbit won’t do. It’s a zodiac gift from my young mistress to the young master, carefully selected from thousands. The young master also loves it very much—you cannot take it.”
Madam He looked down on the Princess’s bumpkin behavior. Glass wasn’t valuable at the Yun Family estate. She herself had two glass cups at home. But people from the Yun Family estate never mentioned this to outsiders. When others spoke of how precious glass was, even the farming old men from the Yun Family estate would give a slight smile and then leave, convinced that the person who had just spoken to them was a bumpkin unworthy of standing beside them in conversation.
“Auntie He, I’ll just look at it here, I won’t take it out. Is that alright? Let me play with it a bit longer,” Lingdang pleaded with Madam He.
Lingdang was naturally lovable, especially to Madam He, who had no daughter of her own and was delighted whenever she saw Lingdang. Naturally, there was no reason not to agree.
Li Anlan struggled to pull her gaze away from the rabbit, filled with resentment like a tide. If only she hadn’t had all those messy thoughts back then, wouldn’t all these treasures be hers? Now she had made herself look like a shameless bad woman, suspected this way and that by the household’s matriarch. For the first time, she felt a trace of regret.
The territory needed development, the subjects needed to eat. When officials didn’t manage affairs and she went to the subjects herself, she was greeted not with trust but with suspicion and hostility.
Hong Cheng had killed off a batch of troublemakers in the territory, including the local chieftain’s entire family—all of them had disappeared. When she arrived here, she moved into this clean and tidy lord’s manor, with maids and servants already prepared, not requiring her to worry about anything. If she lived like a pig, she would certainly be safe and happy. Unfortunately, Li Anlan always wanted to do something, always wanted to see the sight of ten thousand people paying homage to her.
Yun Ye had said long ago that this was an illness that needed treatment. Most of the Li family had this illness, and quite severely. This illness killed people easily and was contagious—when people died, they died in droves.
At the time, she thought Yun Ye was joking. Now she understood—he hadn’t been joking in the slightest. Those were all words of golden advice.
A maid stood outside the treasury, continuously calling for Li Anlan. The Yun Family guards wouldn’t let her approach. Li Anlan, who was in the middle of selecting treasures, irritably set down a large piece of green jade in her hands. She quite liked this item and had been calculating having it crafted into a set of hair ornaments. Interrupted by the maid, she stormed out of the treasury in a huff.
“Princess, the sixth young master of the Feng Family has arrived and requests an audience with Your Highness.”
What was he here for? Li Anlan was puzzled. Hadn’t it always been his brothers swarming to see her? Why had the person changed? However, Feng Zhiyong was a man of substance, not comparable to his wastrel brothers. Thinking of those brothers’ childish antics, Li Anlan found it laughable—she didn’t even have the interest to toy with them for amusement. If Yun Ye found out, they wouldn’t even know how they died.
Arriving at the front hall, Feng Zhiyong was pacing back and forth anxiously. He was full of worry about Yun Ye’s impending arrival. From when his father had told him about certain people among Chang’an’s nobility who could not be offended, Yun Ye was among them, ranking quite high. Father rarely personally instructed his enormous brood of children—he required them to comprehend on their own. What he told them was what they must know and must follow. His own blood brother had already become obsessed. Although he had deliberately inserted two other brothers into the situation as well, hoping that if something went wrong, there might be a chance to muddy the waters and perhaps save his blood brother.
“This subject pays respects to the Princess. For my presumption, I beg the Princess’s pardon.”
“You’re too kind, young master. Now that I’m in Lingnan, I need the care of the old Duke in all matters. To speak of presumption would be too distant.”
Upon seeing Li Anlan, Feng Zhiyong immediately lowered his status, placing himself completely in the position of a vassal. He didn’t know why Yun Ye was coming, what mission he was bringing, or what he planned to do upon arrival. To find any clues from Li Anlan required sufficient patience and wisdom.
“These days, I’ve heard that Your Highness has been troubled by the officials’ incompetence. This subject has some scholarly guests at home who, though lacking any heaven-shaking, earth-moving talents, can be quite useful in handling daily affairs when compensated with silver. At the very least, they can lighten Your Highness’s burdens. Among them is one named Xiao Cangsheng, most entertaining, and listening to his discourse can often dispel worries and provide relief. If the Princess has need, this subject will command them to come to the manor immediately to serve.”
Li Anlan would never allow Feng Family people into her manor. That carried the worry of being sidelined. She didn’t have much authority to begin with—if she divided some out, she would become completely idle. If that were the case, why would she give up being the matriarch of a marquis’s household to come toil in this desolate wilderness?
“Many thanks for the young master’s kind intentions, but these small labors aren’t difficult enough to trouble the Princess’s manor. There are still a few servants at home who can be put to use. I’m accustomed to the old staff and don’t wish to change them for the time being.”
“True enough. With Marquis Yun’s full support, Your Highness naturally need not worry about a shortage of talent. Marquis Yun controls the Great Tang’s largest academy. With just a slight tilt toward Lingnan, the talented people available to the Princess would be wagon-loads. Zhiyong has been presumptuous. I’ve heard that Marquis Yun will soon arrive in Lingnan. I imagine our Lingnan will certainly receive some blessings. I wonder if Your Highness could provide this subject with some guidance, so that my father may sweep and prepare to welcome him? Father often mentions to me that when he received Marquis Yun’s hospitality in Chang’an, a marquis personally cooked, creating unparalleled delicacies in the world. Since eating that meal, he often laments that all food in the world has lost its flavor. He wishes he could grow wings and fly to Chang’an to taste those delicacies again. This meeting will surely allow father to fulfill his wish.”
Li Anlan didn’t hear anything else, only catching the phrase “Yun Ye is coming to Lingnan.” She was so delighted her soul nearly left her body. The expressions on her face alternated—now joyful, now worried, now sorrowful. The shrewd and capable Princess had completely vanished, leaving only a self-pitying woman.
Feng Zhiyong sighed deeply in his heart. His brother had no chance whatsoever. The Princess’s thoughts were entirely on Yun Ye. Once they clashed with Yun Ye, Feng Zhihui had not the slightest chance of victory. Father couldn’t be counted on—with too many sons, he paid no attention to any of them, allowing his sons to fight and clash with each other. Only then would he favor the most excellent among them. Thinking of this, Feng Zhiyong felt an intense bitterness in his mouth. Perhaps Zhihui entering the mountains to search for gold was actually a fortunate way to avoid disaster.
But Father, raising sons the way one raises poisonous insects—aren’t you afraid that one day they’ll turn and bite you?