The Seven Lodges Bureau had always been part of Hua Zhi’s plan. Without that great force pressing over everything, many things simply could not be set in motion.
She walked him through what had already been discussed. Gu Yanxi met her gaze, and the meaning between them was immediately clear — the more the Emperor wanted something, the less Hua Zhi intended to give it to him. The matter had been put on the agenda and could not be left aside, but who could say it had to be finished within a few years? From the way things now stood, Xiao Liu had to ascend the throne — only with Xiao Liu on the throne could Hua Zhi’s safety be ensured. And that meant this achievement — one that would leave a bold mark in the historical record — could rest on Xiao Liu’s name perfectly well.
Though the Emperor had used the Hua family to compel her, the initiative was entirely in Hua Zhi’s hands. The Hui River alone stretched nearly two thousand li; the original construction had taken twelve years, and subsequent years of maintenance and repair had brought it to its current scale. A new waterway estimated at roughly twelve hundred li — even if it took six or eight years, who could say Hua Zhi was not giving it her full effort?
Zhu Haocheng glanced at Gu Yanxi, then returned to the thread of their earlier conversation. “Top-down policy has always met with counter-measures from below. The finest decree, by the time it filters down, may well become just another tool for lining pockets. Do you have a plan for this?”
“In any undertaking, wherever there are those who benefit, there are those who are harmed. What actually sustains the enormous networks of the salt trade is the salt workers — and yet they are the ones who cannot eat their fill, who go without proper clothing, whose lives carry no guarantee of safety. What I want to achieve is not merely the collection of salt revenue, but to have all income from salt sales go directly into the state treasury — every expenditure and deposit clearly recorded, with a small accounting every month and a full accounting every quarter. That leaves little room for officials to manipulate the ledgers. If the Seven Lodges Bureau were then to station inspectors and make it easy for salt workers to bring grievances forward — with each measure reinforcing the next — even those who are greedy would have to stay within tolerable limits.”
“Salt workers have been oppressed for generations. They may not have the courage to file complaints.”
“What if they see someone who did file a complaint — and won?”
Zhu Haocheng understood what Hua Zhi intended. He gave a measured nod. “If properly guided, they would learn to protect their own interests.”
Hua Zhi took several sips of tea, then shifted direction: “That is only a rough outline of a workable approach. Nothing will go this smoothly, and none of it will be easy.”
“Naturally. And yet if it truly succeeds, it will benefit not only the court but the common people.” And as the Minister of Finance, he would have his share of the credit — a thought that made Zhu Haocheng’s blood run warm. Officialdom was full of things one had no choice in, but there was no one who did not want to leave a name worth remembering — to be known as a capable and upright minister.
Gu Yanxi added from the side: “Oversight has always been part of the Seven Lodges Bureau’s mandate. Stepping forward to supervise this matter would be entirely justified.”
These past few days had been taxing on the mind, and her head had ached without relief. Hua Zhi used the motion of pressing lightly at the wound on her forehead as cover to press at the pain beneath. Gu Yanxi was immediately attentive: “Is the wound hurting?”
“It doesn’t hurt. It itches.” Hua Zhi kept her expression composed as she told the lie, and used the excuse to press several more times before quickly moving on to forestall further questions. “Water and land transport will also touch the interests of many parties — but if we find a way to offer them a different form of benefit, it may be possible to act without causing major disruption.”
Zhu Haocheng raised a hand to stop her. “You’re moving too fast. The moment salt is disturbed, it will send shockwaves through the court. If land and water transport are stirred up at the same time, people will be pushed to desperation.”
Hua Zhi was quiet for a moment. “But this one brings in money quickly. And the ones growing fat from all those toll checkpoints aren’t necessarily the officials at the top — they’re those mid-level figures, each of whom if pulled out at random would be found living in a grand compound with a string of concubines. If we move only against those local strongmen and redirect a portion of what they were taking toward those standing behind them, their superiors may well be willing.”
“The king of hell is easy to see; it’s the minor demons that cause trouble.”
“Then change the minor demons.” Gu Yanxi understood Hua Zhi almost before she finished — he grasped her meaning immediately.
Hua Zhi smiled. “Sometimes the most direct and forceful approach is the most useful. All the delicate balancing, all the intricate scheming — none of it compares to landing one solid blow. Hit someone hard enough and they won’t dare cause trouble again.”
Zhu Haocheng rose and paced several turns. “Replace them with whom? If the position itself is what corrupts, whoever sits in it will eventually be fattened by it.”
“Then rotate who sits in it. I don’t expect them to become paragons of virtue — just to take a little less.”
That was workable. Zhu Haocheng paced a few more turns. “Let’s set that aside for now. I’ll begin by sounding out the various parties.”
“Yes — I’m sorry to trouble you with it.”
“You.” Zhu Haocheng exhaled. “Every plan is a good plan — and a dangerous one. You’re moving too boldly.”
Hua Zhi lowered her head. She had no choice. If she could manage it, she would have no wish to push herself to the center of this storm. Even staying behind the scenes, those who knew would know her hand was in it.
“The Emperor may be pressing for results, but even he must know this cannot be rushed. There is no need to drive yourself to the edge. Take it one step at a time. Walk the road until you know what lies ahead — whether it’s mountains, water, or a swamp.”
“Yes.”
Zhu Haocheng wasn’t sure whether she had truly taken it to heart, but there was little more he could say. With a blade suspended over Hua Zhi’s head, she had to be vigilant at every moment against it falling — anyone in her position would feel the urgency.
Hua Zhi had been thinking of the reason Yanxi had come. Today’s visit had been to exchange information — there was no need to go through every matter one by one. Once the most important things had been said, she rose and took her leave, asking only that her grandfather convey her apologies to her grandmother.
Outside the Zhu household, Gu Yanxi left his horse behind and stepped up into the carriage with her. Before she could ask, he said: “Hao Yue has been taken by the Emperor.”
For a moment Hua Zhi’s mind went completely blank. She stared at Yanxi, wanting to believe she had misheard. Had this happened before everything else, Hao Yue falling into the Emperor’s hands would not have had a direct bearing on her — after all, someone like Hao Yue was not the sort the Emperor would ever bestow upon Yanxi through an imperial match. But that was before.
Now that the Emperor had her in his sights, if Hao Yue were to say something that placed Hua Zhi at a disadvantage — or if the Emperor came to regard Hao Yue as more valuable than her — the consequences could be…
Gu Yanxi moved closer to Hua Zhi and drew her against him, letting her warmth dissolve the chill locked in his chest. Hao Yue’s existence had been kept tightly concealed. A cursory investigation would never have turned it up. That the Emperor had found her at all meant he had conducted a very thorough inquiry indeed — Gu Yanxi could only be glad that apart from the matter of Hua Zhi, he had done nothing he needed to hide.
Thinking of the Emperor’s manner in recent times — how he had made it plain, both openly and by implication, that he would forgive everything if Gu Yanxi would only apologize — Gu Yanxi felt a wry impulse to laugh. Between the two of them, as uncle and nephew, had he ever once failed him?
“Don’t worry. If she has any sense, she’ll know what she should and shouldn’t say.” Gu Yanxi held Hua Zhi’s cold hands and offered quiet reassurance. “After all this time in my keeping, I did nothing more than confine her. If she dares say the wrong thing to the Emperor, she’ll find out just how lenient I actually was.”
Hua Zhi steadied herself as well. Thinking it through, she had to admit it was true — if the Emperor learned of her gift of foresight, the first thing he would ask was how much longer he had to live. There was no safe answer to that question. If Hao Yue had any sense, she would keep the secret.
And yet, even knowing all of this, an unease settled in her chest that she could not shake away.