Yun Ye was perhaps the first person in this world to demand that King Yama provide evidence. Gae Suwen was so furious he nearly went mad, yet there was nothing he could do. Those silk threads were too vicious, rendering his strength useless. Yun Ye had given him a vivid lesson in politics—that is, brazenly lying with eyes wide open. When someone refused to acknowledge reality even when it was right in front of them, who in the mortal world could make them tell the truth?

They say a commander’s character determines an army’s culture—this saying was extremely accurate. When Lai San stood before the Dengzhou Governor, he too spoke with conviction: “Your Excellency, we also don’t know why Mount Daehei caught fire. The Grand Marshal took us out to sea to fish. You know our Lingnan Navy—the soldiers are all restless types. Combining training with fishing has long been our tradition. Don’t we do this every year? There’s nothing strange about it.”

“The soldiers’ provisions are meager, they can never eat their fill. The Grand Marshal took pity on us and opened this loophole. We stayed on Sansan Island at night. While the Grand Marshal was roasting fish, he discovered fire on the opposite shore. We thought the Goguryeo people had carelessly started a mountain fire. This has nothing to do with us—we never went to the other side of the sea. The Grand Marshal posted sentries and then let us sleep. We truly don’t know how the fire started.”

Yuan Dake looked suspiciously at Lai San’s obviously scorched hair and eyebrows, and his tattered military uniform, then asked again, “Do you know which places in Goguryeo were burned?”

“I know. What burned was Beisha City. Don’t know how the people there fared. The fire is still burning, no one can get in. It’s pitiful—even if we wanted to lend a hand, there was no way to help. Then the Grand Marshal sent people to notify the Goguryeo people at Sansan Port, telling them to go fight the fire. They’re all Goguryeo people, more convenient for them to help.”

Yuan Dake rubbed his brow and continued asking, “Did the Goguryeo navy from Sansan Port go to rescue Beisha City?”

“Oh my, Your Excellency, you don’t know—when those Goguryeo people heard Beisha City was on fire, they rushed to rescue it like madmen. The fire was burning dozens of zhang high, yet they dared to plunge in. In the end, they all went to Beisha City. We don’t know the outcome now. May Heaven bless them to save some people.”

“Never mind all that. Why did you bring over two hundred Goguryeo warships to Dengzhou? Did all those Goguryeo people, without exception, go to fight the fire?”

“Your Excellency is sage and wise. The Goguryeo people are all stubborn—couldn’t hold them back. In the end, many ships were left behind. The Grand Marshal said it would be a shame to leave the ships floating on the sea, so he ordered this subordinate to bring these ships to Dengzhou to find them good masters. This way we can give those Goguryeo people an explanation. The Grand Marshal said we must hand them over to good people. For example, He Shao, who came from Chang’an—Lord He is a great man. Your Excellency is also a good person. If you like ships, get three for your children to play with fishing—that would be nice.”

Yuan Dake nodded and had Lai San go eat, while he spread out his memorial, preparing to submit a report to the Emperor. After the respectful opening, the first sentence began: “This subject, Dengzhou Governor Yuan Dake, prostrates himself from a thousand li away. Recently, the Marquis of Lantian, Commander of the Lingnan Navy Yun Ye, first achieved a great victory at Beisha City, then defeated the Goguryeo navy at Sansan Port… The heavenly fire blazed magnificently, with smoke and ash falling three hundred li away. When this subject reports, the fire still has not ceased. Smoke and fog block out the sky and sun. Dengzhou can still smell the smoke and fire. Over fifty intact Goguryeo warships were captured, the rest badly damaged. Merchants wish to purchase them at great cost, but were blocked by this subject. In a few days, these intact warships will be presented before Your Majesty’s steps…” After finishing the memorial, he summoned Lai San and said to him, “Select the sixty best warships and wait for people from Chang’an to handle them. As for the remaining wrecks, just sell them off. This old man still has some savings at home. You pick out three with more wood and sell them to my steward.”

Lai San immediately beamed like a flower, repeatedly cupping his hands and saying, “This subordinate will certainly select carefully, keeping the best for His Majesty. I’ll definitely pick out three with plenty of wood to sell to the steward. It’s just that they’re all broken ships, not much use. If you take them back, you can only use them as firewood. It wouldn’t matter to give them to you, except I fear it would damage Your Excellency’s reputation. You know how it is in the military—everything has to be accounted for. This subordinate dares not be partial. Each pile of wood costs one string of cash. Won’t sell for less.”

Yuan Dake nodded and entered the back hall. The steward said with a grin, “Only my master is so easy to bully. Whose rotten wood can sell for a string of cash? Sail that rotten wood to my family’s dock, and I’ll pay the money then.” The two men, winking and nudging each other with shoulders, went off to the seaside.

He Shao reclined on an enormous brocade couch. A beautiful Hu maidservant fed him an iced grape mouth-to-mouth—she had already warmed the grape almost to melting in her mouth.

With the maidservant’s help, He Shao, massive as a mountain of flesh, laboriously turned over. He pointed at the golden bell on the table. Another maidservant picked up the golden mallet and gently struck it once. A Hu steward wearing a leather cap walked in and bowed in greeting.

“My respected master, your servant awaits your instructions.”

“Shortly, an officer from the navy will come. Entertain him. There are one hundred Goguryeo warships that need to be received, though they’re now civilian vessels with all weapons removed. Just pay him according to the agreed price. No need to treat him with special courtesy—as long as the money isn’t short by a single coin, he won’t say anything. Don’t send gifts either, don’t even provide a meal. If necessary, even skip the tea. Even if you gave these people the greatest personal benefits, they still wouldn’t take a coin less than what’s owed. The usual tactics won’t work on him—too wasteful. A household needs frugality to last long.”

While He Shao spoke, his hands weren’t idle either, groping at some part of the maidservant. The maidservant bit her teeth, her eyes watering, trying hard not to cry out. The Hu steward kept his head lowered, not daring to look. He acknowledged the order and hurriedly withdrew.

“Your father is becoming increasingly capable. He manages business affairs with great skill. He needs more salary. When you all return to that Venice of yours, you’ll have more gold too. I’m very curious about your city built on mud and islands. Someone who is the cleverest person in the world told me that Venetians are all skilled at business, which is why I took you in. However, this glass bead business was truly foolish. The Great Tang has had countless glass beads for ages. Even children’s toys are prettier than what you brought. I really don’t know why he said you were good merchants.”

Speaking of this, the maidservant became sorrowful. She cradled He Shao’s corpulent head against her bosom and said, “That clever person wasn’t wrong. Venetians are indeed skilled at business. But this failure was something no one anticipated. My father ambitiously wanted to spread the glass business throughout all inhabited lands. The previous batch of merchants who returned home truly earned a great deal of money. Who knew that just two years later, glass would become worthless.”

“Ha ha ha, Taozi, don’t worry. As long as you and your father work diligently for me, in just five years you’ll return to your homeland. Perhaps the rewards I give you will exceed what you earned from glass.”

The Hu woman smiled sweetly, lowered her head, and tenderly kissed He Shao’s sausage-like lips…

Compared to He Shao nestled in his tender paradise, Yun Ye was so irritated he wanted to kill someone. He had already been stranded on Sansan Island for eight days. The great fire across the strait still hadn’t extinguished, and moreover showed a trend of spreading inland. No one could cross this narrow strait at this time. As long as a large ship passed through, one had to be prepared for the sails to be ignited by sparks. What’s more, to make the sails sturdier, tung oil had been applied in many places. It would be strange if they didn’t catch fire when sparks hit them. Although one could douse the sails with water and pass quickly, Liu Fang said Sansan Island was a good place and shouldn’t be abandoned lightly.

The original plan was now useless. By now, all enemies in Liaodong knew Beisha City had caught fire—they just didn’t know whether it was man-made or a natural disaster. With the situation unclear, the level of vigilance would inevitably increase dramatically.

Liu Fang drank his tea with an air of having everything under control. Seeing Yun Ye kick Old Xiong again—who kept pestering him—he said with a chuckle, “Old Xiong is a good man. Having him join your household as a retainer isn’t bad. Your household’s retainer numbers are still somewhat few. Hereditary Marquises generally have three hundred personal guards. What’s more, you’re the Commander of the Navy. Having just over a hundred household retainers in your entire family—how is that enough?”

“I’ve never seen someone so eager to become a servant. Once he becomes a household retainer, he’ll have no more opportunities for advancement. Doesn’t he understand? I’ve never heard of anyone who became a household retainer leaving halfway through. If that happened, how could he continue to show his face?”

“Where do all your strange notions come from? Once he becomes your household’s retainer, he’ll share your family’s fortunes. If your family prospers, he benefits; if your family falls on hard times, he eats husks with you. You’re only just over twenty this year, a dignified Hereditary National Marquis. Speaking of it brings more honor than some ducal households. Following you means three generations without worries. Do you think such opportunities are plentiful?”

This time, Liu Fang thoroughly witnessed the power of fire oil. A great fire that still couldn’t be extinguished even now. The scout who risked climbing to the opposite side to investigate reported that the ash on the other side was a full foot thick, and the ground was so hot feet couldn’t touch it. Stepping on stilts, he barely managed to enter a little way. He saw no one. Beisha City’s walls had been burned white, and the iron bars on the city gates had melted. The scout said if there were still living people in the city, he’d rather accept military punishment.

Therefore, Liu Fang had no worries about future battles. If the Goguryeo people wanted to regain control of this bay, they would need at least half a year. Now that the great fire blocked the path, he wasn’t anxious either. Rafts had long been prepared. Until the full moon arrived, the tides wouldn’t rise to their highest. How could they enter the Liao River estuary? Spring had only just arrived, the wind was still weak. If they relied on men to pole the rafts to the King’s City, before the battle even began, all the soldiers would be exhausted and collapsed. Better to wait for the spring winds.

There were still a full twelve days until the time to advance, so he wasn’t anxious. Each day he appreciated the splendid scenery of Sansan Island, looking quite content to forget about returning home.

Ever since last time when he explained military strategy to Yun Ye, he had absolutely refused to mention anything about a general’s cultivation or the way of command. Most of the time, he did everything himself. He believed that doing it himself was easier than explaining military strategy to Yun Ye. He wanted to live a few more years to see his grandson marry and have children. Right now, he didn’t want to be angered to death by Yun Ye.