Nobility doesn’t tread on base ground—this saying suited the imperial princess before him perfectly. No need to think about it; this one was definitely a highborn noble. Yun Ye had seen plenty of such people—for instance, Li Chengqian, Li Tai, and Gao Yang.
That air of nobility was ingrained in their very bones. Li Chengqian would never wear the same garment for two days, no matter the circumstances. Clothes could be torn, could be old, but they absolutely could not be dirty. What was most irritating was that even when this fellow wore the most tattered clothes, he still looked like a crown prince. Standing in a crowd, you could tell at a glance who was the most noble.
The manner of speaking carried the same disposition. It sounded like a very polite consultation, but the commanding tone in its essence made you involuntarily want to comply. Great personages throughout history all possessed this quality—something that absolutely couldn’t be compensated for by Yun Ye arranging a few fully armed household guards.
The more refined a person was, the more they could feel this imposing pressure. Of course, there was another type of person who would also ignore this mysterious and ineffable feeling—those without refinement, the very crude sort. For instance, Yun Ye was being very crude right now, wearing an eyepatch over his eye, with several burly men standing beside him. No matter from which angle you looked, he didn’t resemble a cultured person.
“Takayama Yoko, hand over my gold, and you can continue your journey.” Yun Ye got straight to the point.
“Lord Marquis seems to have no understanding of reason whatsoever. Those are war spoils won by my warriors. Why should they be handed to you? Could it be that you would actually commit highway robbery?”
“I feel it’s unjust for those Goguryeo people. They should have originally been robbed by me, but who knew they’d be robbed by some uncivilized savages instead. I imagine their hearts must be filled with resentment. To appease their resentment, I’m prepared to take back what should have originally belonged to us. If that’s not possible, we’ll just seize it back. Takayama Yoko, do you think this reason is sufficient enough?”
Yun Ye’s words not only shocked Takayama Yoko but also left the officers on the ship so astonished their mouths hung open. They couldn’t understand—would being robbed by the Marquis necessarily be more fortunate than being robbed by the Japanese?
“I’ve met many Tang people—gallant ones, refined ones, kind ones, and honest ones—but I’ve never met anyone like Lord Marquis. It seems that even in the Tang nation, you are quite singular in your independence.”
“The Honglu Temple is like that—they always display the best people for you to see. People like me can only hide far away in corners, fearing discovery by others. Today there’s no choice—on the open sea, I’m the only one who counts as a dignitary, so I have no choice but to come out and make a fool of myself. You return my gold to me, and when you reach Chang’an, you’ll discover even more good people. Each and every one is cultured and refined, courteous and respectful. A beauty like you—they’ll surely invite you to visit Yanlai Tower.”
“Impudent! Do you think I don’t know what kind of place Yanlai Tower is? Do you think I don’t know what a sordid existence Pingkang Ward is? You’re an imperial marquis—do you not have even half a measure of courtesy toward guests?”
Yun Ye frowned. Speaking in a low voice across the human wall, he said, “How does a woman like you even know about places where men seek pleasure? Could it be you’re quite familiar with Chang’an City? Did you bring these people planning to attack Chang’an?”
“Clear the way, or I will appeal to His Majesty of the Tang nation and ask him to arbitrate for me, a weak and defenseless woman.”
“Do you know what I’m thinking?” Seeing Takayama Yoko’s aggressive manner subside, Yun Ye smiled and had his subordinates disperse, then asked Takayama Yoko with a grin.
Seeing Yun Ye’s carefree attitude about everything, Takayama Yoko suddenly shivered and abruptly raised her head to say to Yun Ye, “My current situation is like a sheep in a tiger’s maw. Perhaps you’re thinking of annihilating us all completely, then pretending you’ve never seen me before. Am I right or not?”
Yun Ye shook his head, scratching his chin as he said quietly, “I’m not planning to kill everyone. For instance, you won’t be killed. The Japanese women I’ve seen in the Great Tang made me vomit for three days. It’s rare to encounter a pleasing one. What do you think I’ll do?”
“Yun Ye, courtesy name Bu Qi, a rarely seen hereditary marquis of the Tang nation, commanding the Lingnan Navy, and also the actual helmsman of Yushan Academy. His wife is Yun Xin Shi, with whom he has one son named Shou. His concubine is a steppe barbarian named Na Rimu, with whom he has one daughter. Of course, your minor romantic affairs with Great Tang princesses are not something I, a foreign imperial princess, can discuss. Am I correct?”
Seeing Takayama Yoko casually revealing everything about his entire family, Yun Ye laughed with great delight. He discovered he finally had a reason to go on a killing spree without needing to feel the slightest bit guilty.
“Five days ago, before I had even attacked Chifeng Town, I dispatched a fast ship back to my country to report my intentions to my father. Three days ago, the moment I discovered the Great Tang naval forces, I dispatched another ship to Dengzhou to inform your officials that I, Imperial Princess Takayama Yoko of the Land of the Rising Sun, would be going to Chang’an to pay respects to His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Tang. Marquis Yun, isn’t it somewhat late to want to kill me now? I believe your Dengzhou officials have already dispatched ships to welcome me.”
Yun Ye removed the eyepatch from his eye and said to Takayama Yoko, “Since you know my background, you should know what kind of person I am. You’ve taken my gold and want to keep it all to yourself—that’s impossible.”
Takayama Yoko executed a beautiful turn and sat on the deck before Yun Ye, also lifting her veil. Indeed, Gai Suwen hadn’t lied—this truly was a vixen. Unlike other Japanese women who painted themselves like ghosts, with red lips and white teeth paired with a fox-like oval face, she truly had brows like distant mountains, with a beauty mark at the corner of her brow. Who knew if it was deliberately applied or natural? Good heavens! If such a seductress met that lecher Li Er and made even a small complaint, he himself would absolutely be in deep trouble.
“Marquis Yun, now that’s more like it. This is the proper tone for discussing matters. Considering you’ve made a wasted trip, half of the gold on my ship is yours.”
Yun Ye clapped his hands and laughed heartily. This was best! He immediately ordered his subordinates to go to the Japanese ships to retrieve the gold, then personally poured a cup of tea for Takayama Yoko, explaining the benefits of tea drinking and the characteristics of various tea leaves. For a time, the two sat side by side on the deck chatting quite happily.
While the fleet was busily retrieving the gold, the raft convoy from the Liao River also slowly approached. Takayama Yoko pointed at the hemp sacks piled on the rafts and said, “Has Marquis Yun already retrieved the remains of those former Sui soldiers? That means Dawang City has already fallen to you?”
Originally, the most appropriate distance for a man and woman conversing was three feet, but Takayama Yoko and Yun Ye had unknowingly leaned together. Yun Ye felt the warmth transmitted from his shoulder and arm as he laughed heartily, “Naturally so. Since the Goguryeo people wouldn’t listen to reason, of course their only path was destruction. The surprise attack that even the Goguryeo people didn’t know about—yet Your Imperial Highness knows it in such detail.”
“This is the benefit of exchange. The Tang nation is currently flourishing in all endeavors. We small nations with few people naturally need to seek guidance from the upper kingdom in all matters. I’ve heard that the Yushan Academy commanded by Marquis Yun is the foremost academy in the Great Tang. I wonder if I might enter the academy to seek instruction in mathematics from Marquis Yun day and night?”
Yun Ye smiled without answering. Takayama Yoko seemed to become even more gentle, bending down to pour tea for Yun Ye. The clothes she wore were originally loose-fitting, with sleeves hung by a silver clasp. In just a glimpse, Yun Ye seemed to see through the sleeve opening a snow-white mound, upon which a cherry-red point was clearly visible.
This was really too improper, wasn’t it? As Yun Ye sipped his tea, he pondered—no preliminaries at all, jumping straight to the lewd course? Did she think all men of the Great Tang were lechers?
Everyone was taking advantage of the time before sunset to transport the cargo and remains from the rafts to the large ships, otherwise the nighttime wind and waves wouldn’t be something crude things like wooden rafts could withstand.
“Marquis Yun, look—I’ve already paid in full the gold you wanted. So I should return now. Thank you for your hospitality. This richly fragrant tea is truly an incomparable treasure. Yoko has been educated.”
Watching this Japanese imperial princess bow in courtesy and prepare to withdraw, Yun Ye said with a smile, “Princess, please wait a moment.”
“Marquis Yun, my boarding your ship was already improper. If I were to lodge overnight on your great ship, that would compromise national dignity. I take my leave now. Seeing you again tomorrow will be the same.” After speaking, she even waved her pair of snow-white little hands at Yun Ye. At this moment, she suddenly transformed into a chaste and virtuous woman, as if the one who had just lifted her arm to reveal a glimpse of spring wasn’t her.
“Princess misunderstands. You are a Japanese imperial princess—how would Yun Ye dare act improperly? It’s just that we need to properly discuss the matter of the gold. This is an important matter—how can we easily avoid discussing it?”
Takayama Yoko’s eyes immediately narrowed, and within them, the cold light reflected by the evening glow actually emitted a trace of crimson luminescence. “Marquis Yun, we seemed to have agreed on half each. The gold has all been transported to your ship. How is there still a problem?”
“Naturally there is. What’s been transported to the ship is my gold. Now let’s discuss the gold on your ship.” Yun Ye spoke very earnestly, his face also wearing an utterly serious expression.
“The gold on your ship is yours, so the gold on my ship should naturally be mine. What’s there to discuss? Could it be Marquis Yun wants to break his word and profit from it?” Takayama Yoko appeared even more furious. She had never encountered such a person.
“Princess is mistaken. The gold on my ship is of course mine. Very obviously, the gold on your ship is also mine. The Great Tang’s rule is just like this: what’s yours is mine, and what’s mine is still mine.” Yun Ye spoke these words with resounding force, decisive and firm. Takayama Yoko actually detected several traces of indignation in them.
“I never like sharing with others, especially not with Japanese. I painstakingly burned Beisha City, eliminated the Goguryeo navy at Sanshanpu, thoroughly scouted out everything about Chifeng Town, and just when I was about to make my move, you dared to exploit the opportunity. What do you think the Great Tang Navy is? Just because you flaunt yourself a bit, that can equal fifty thousand taels of gold? Even the most expensive woman isn’t this expensive. Now you’re on my ship. With one order from me, all of you will feed the fish. Think carefully—do you want your life or the gold!”