A night of endless tender passion—much of the time Yun Ye lay there listening while Li Anlan spoke, the candles burning until daybreak…

In the morning when the young master nursed, he was very puzzled. Why had his breakfast diminished so much? Both bowls of breakfast were quite meager. Greatly displeased, he spat out the nipple and began wailing, denouncing whoever had stolen his breakfast.

Yun Ye felt very awkward. Li Anlan laughed until she doubled over. The embarrassed and angry Marquis pinched his son’s chubby cheek, pushed open the door, and went out. Many people were gathered at the entrance. Liu Jinbao looked at the Marquis with eyes full of admiration. Madam He was indignant. Lingdang didn’t dare look at Yun Ye, her head drooping almost to her chest, exposing her slender neck.

Every person’s reaction fell within Yun Ye’s observation. There was no time for explanations, nor was there any need. Hong Cheng was still waiting for him in the reception hall.

Many soldiers wanted to stay—a full thousand men. At this point, discussing which family’s retainers these people were had no meaning whatsoever. As long as they remained in Lingnan, the influence of those aristocratic families would be reduced to the minimum. The saying “beyond the reach of one’s whip” had concrete meaning in Great Tang.

Liu Fulu had also assembled some civil officials who had been exiled here. They came bearing all manner of wretched appearances. Upon seeing Yun Ye, they knelt and wept bitterly—exile had worn away their last shred of dignity. Yun Ye sighed, pitying their misfortune yet angered by their lack of fighting spirit. He consoled them with warm words. Seeing their ragged, tattered clothing, he instructed servants to take them to eat and gave each person enough money and grain for their entire family to use for half a year, counting it as compensation for their stipends. He truly couldn’t believe these fellows—surely they knew how to do something besides being officials? Lingnan’s wild fruits were everywhere. Even eating those things, one wouldn’t starve to death.

Hong Cheng stood there grinning, watching the spectacle. He was a traditional military general—seeing civil officials in such miserable straits only brought him pleasure.

“Old Hong, these days you need to make a statistical account of all income. His Majesty will likely need to use this money. Tally every household clearly without omissions. The money and grain for the soldiers should be disbursed from within first. They can’t sell a year of their lives only to return home empty-handed in the end. The Yun family’s profits should all be allocated to the Princess’s Manor—just keep the family trading company’s earnings.”

“Marquis Yun, are you saying His Majesty plans to confiscate all this money and grain into the national treasury? This will cause major problems. Those wealthy aristocratic households contributed manpower and money—they won’t allow His Majesty to take it all away. Are we sure there’s no problem doing this?”

“Even if there’s a problem, we needn’t fear. Nothing is more frightening than all the aristocratic families being obscenely wealthy. With His Majesty’s wisdom, he’ll certainly arrange this matter properly. We don’t need to worry too much. If you still want to be restored to your original position, this is your last chance. The court is currently campaigning east and west, spending money like water. The national treasury has long been running deficits. These things are perfect for shoring up the treasury and giving His Majesty some confidence. The surrounding disloyal territories need to be pacified one by one—this is a great undertaking requiring our united efforts.”

Hong Cheng’s wish was to hope that someday he could be enfeoffed as a marquis. Last time, because of Dou Yanshan, he was dismissed and stripped of his title. His heart like dead ashes, he had agreed to come to Lingnan for one last gamble. Now that the dawn was breaking, how could he let this pass? Even if there was only the slightest glimmer of hope, he wouldn’t give up.

After finishing official business with the relevant people, Yun Ye went to the inner courtyard kitchen. He first fried some rice, then instructed the kitchen to grind it into rice flour to add some solid food for his son. A child almost one year old couldn’t keep eating only milk. He himself began making braised pig trotters. Lingdang, following behind, had already pleaded several times. That was fine—Li Anlan could eat some too, perfect for producing more milk since the child wasn’t getting enough.

Ever since Yun Ye appeared, Li Anlan held the child without letting go, constantly holding him up before Yun Ye to show off. The stinky little fellow also laughed gleefully without stop—this was his favorite game.

The bright, glistening braised pig trotters were ready. There were no other dishes, just one large basin of braised pig trotters. Whenever Yun Ye ate, Wang Cai would rush over. He stuffed a pastry into its mouth and shooed it aside—couldn’t even eat pig trotters in peace.

Li Anlan ate very daintily, holding the trotters with chopsticks to nibble. Lingdang was different—like Yun Ye, she used her hands directly. The tender, chewy tendons suited her appetite perfectly. She ate two in one go before drinking some wine—sweet rice wine, not the Yun family’s strong liquor. These days required a constantly clear mind to deal with various emergencies.

Little Lingdang could really eat. A large pile of bones had already accumulated in front of her, and her hand was reaching into the basin to grab another when Li Anlan, who hadn’t even finished one, slapped her hand away. “No more eating. If you eat more, you’ll get sick. Save the rest for tonight.” Only then did Little Lingdang reluctantly withdraw her hand, unhappy.

“Brother, you’re learned and talented. Little sister has something to ask your advice about. Do you know about the mountain god beating his drum?”

Everyone liked the evaluation of being learned and talented, but as for the mountain god beating drums, Yun Ye truly didn’t know about it. The worst thing about finishing pig trotters was having sticky hands. He washed them in clean water before asking in return, “What mountain god beating drums? Tell me about it.”

“Yesterday afternoon and evening, thundering sounds kept coming from the surrounding mountains. They rang all night long. All the wild beasts and birds in the mountains disappeared. This morning, some elderly people said this was the mountain god beating his drum, driving away the mountain beasts to select some fat ones to eat. Do you know about this?”

With this explanation, Yun Ye understood. Last night Liu Jinbao and his men had set off giant firecrackers all night. The villagers heard it and spread exaggerated rumors about the mountain god beating drums. He truly admired their imagination—they could always find seemingly reasonable explanations for things they didn’t understand.

“The mountain god beating his drum when bored is quite common. If anyone asks you, say you need to worship the mountain god—set out several pig heads and sheep heads as offerings, then distribute them for everyone to eat on behalf of the mountain god. Everyone finds an opportunity to have fun—what’s wrong with that?”

Seeing Yun Ye’s perfunctory explanation, Li Anlan knew he definitely understood what was really going on. Since he wouldn’t say, she didn’t ask either, merely repeating, “That’s fine. The mountain god beats his drum—nothing unusual. The Thunder God makes thunder too. Tomorrow I’ll take those elders to worship the mountain god. After eating the offerings, he should bless us poor people, shouldn’t he?”

Rather than using pig heads to worship the mountain god, better to let Liu Jinbao and his men eat them. The fellows who had beaten drums all night were now lying in their rooms sleeping, their snores louder than thunder.

When reporting to Yun Ye this morning, they said the scene was extremely spectacular. Tigers and bears ran together, followed by wolves. Mountain goats and wild deer weren’t afraid of those creatures either, bodies pressed against bodies as they stampeded along the paths. Pitiful creatures were constantly trampled to death by elephants. Python snakes as thick as water buckets twisted and burrowed frantically. It looked like with just another century or two of cultivation, they’d transform into dragons. A bear accidentally stepped on one and was strangled to death. It didn’t even eat it, just tossed the twisted corpse by the roadside to be trampled into pulp by other wild beasts.

When African buffalo herds stampeded in fright, even lions had to take cover. Those who didn’t run ended up flattened like pictures. With the dangerous terrain of mountains flanking a ravine, who knew if those people could outrun the wild beasts.

Yun Ye felt he was now like a kaleidoscope. From Cheng Yaojin he learned smoothness, from Niu Jinda he learned persistence, from Li Gang he learned perseverance, from Li Er he learned schemes—these were all good skills. But when they came to Yun Ye, they became distorted, becoming neither one thing nor another, making everyone who saw him find it strange while he himself felt depressed.

In fact, the person who influenced him most deeply was Dou Yanshan. That fellow was venomous as a snake, brave as a lion, cunning as a fox, and of course cautious as a mouse. If he sprouted wings, he’d probably be a flying poisonous dragon. Fortunately, he perished together with the crocodile. Regarding his death, Yun Ye even felt somewhat regretful, always feeling he could see his own shadow in that fellow.

Dou Yanshan was a poisonous dragon. What was he himself? A wild dog? The kind that looked wretched with stripes on its back, specializing in lurking in the shadows watching lions hunt, then finding companions to snatch food from the lion’s mouth?

When had the lives of two or three hundred people become sacrificial offerings in his mouth? Shouldn’t sacrificial offerings be pig heads or sheep heads? When did human heads also become sacrificial offerings?

His son appeared before him with a wide grin, drool dripping. He reached out to take him, letting him bounce standing on his legs. His earlier silence had frightened Lingdang. When Yun Ye sank into thought, his face would contort, looking quite unseemly—this was Xinyue’s assessment. Every time Yun Ye grinned foolishly or looked fierce, she would chase everyone away, afraid of losing face.

“Brother doesn’t like killing people. You only killed because of us mother and son. You’re a clean person who should be standing on a podium teaching students, instructing them in clean learning and clear principles, living happily. It’s all little sister’s fault, making a clean person become like this. I’m sorry.”

“From now on, don’t say those three words in front of me. Whether I’m clean or not, I know in my heart. Everything I do has my own reasons. ‘I’m sorry’ are the three words I most hate hearing. Saying sorry means you’re preparing to continue being sorry. From now on, it’s forbidden.”

Li Anlan obediently nodded her head. After thinking for a moment, Yun Ye said to her, “Liu Fulu is a capable person. You can’t do without trusted confidants by your side. As for him, you should visit him, bestow more favors, and there’s no harm in listening to his opinions on government affairs. Let me tell you, most corrupt officials are talented people who can be used. In Great Tang’s strict official circles, to be discovered embezzling yet not beheaded requires ability. Better to employ the flawed than the accomplished. You should find useful people among those criminal officials yourself. As the ancients said, fine steeds are common while those who recognize them are rare. If you want to establish yourself in Liao territory, you must discover and cultivate talent yourself. The court will definitely not give you any brilliant talents, but the criminal official community is a place they’ve overlooked.”

“These people now have nothing and are destitute. As long as you make their lives better and ensure their wives and children don’t suffer cold and hunger, their lives will be yours.”

“Liao territory has great potential—mountains, water, plains, harbors. There’s no reason it won’t prosper. Anlan, Heaven has treated you well, your father has treated you well. Put away your harsh temperament and learn to become a woman like Lady Xian, letting our son enjoy the glory you bring him.”