The next day, Yuan Cheng, Secretariat Drafter, submitted a memorial presenting several major viewpoints regarding the arrival of delegations from the two nations.
The memorial contained two important points. The celebration of spring by envoys from both nations was truly a matter of national importance. The capital’s waterways were extensive and deep, and to prevent those with ulterior motives from sabotaging the three-nation meeting, he recommended deploying naval garrison warships to patrol all major waterway entrances to the capital, implementing strict entry and exit controls to maintain order in the capital. He also proposed that in celebration of this universal occasion, the people’s taxes for the coming year should be reduced, relief stations should be established for refugees still wandering in displacement, public free medical clinics should be opened, and winter grain rations distributed, to demonstrate Great Zhou’s commitment to peace throughout the realm.
This memorial was personally deliberated by the Emperor in court, triggering fierce debate between the conservative faction and the reform faction.
The conservatives argued that warships should not enter the capital’s ports—ancient regulations must not be changed. The reformers supported Yuan Cheng’s proposal.
The reformers countered that accepting Yuling refugees was already an extraordinary act of grace and should not require further treasury expenditure for relief, and tax reduction was even more absurd—instead, increasing military provisions was urgent. Yet on this point, the conservatives supported Yuan Cheng.
However, the Emperor favored all of Yuan Cheng’s proposals, so deliberations continued, and continued again.
Court officials large and small argued noisily for several days, until finally Yuan Cheng himself proposed a compromise. Warships would not enter the docks but would resupply at shipyards. The Capital Guard would strictly control the shipyards, and naval personnel could not go ashore to disturb civilians without War Ministry orders. Tax reduction was withdrawn, while refugee relief expenses would be obtained through donations, coordinated centrally and distributed by district.
Both factions had exhausted themselves in debate, so the compromise naturally passed. The Emperor issued an edict for the Secretariat to lead the Six Ministries of the Department of State Affairs in implementing this matter immediately. This was the first time in Great Zhou history that the Secretariat’s authority exceeded that of the Department of State Affairs. However, because this involved such a minor matter as welcoming envoys, it attracted no attention, not even from the Secretariat Director himself, who at most simply enjoyed the feeling of being able to command the ministers.
Later historians, however, marked this as the pivotal event when the Department of State Affairs descended from its position as the supreme administrative body, while the Secretariat gradually rose to become the de facto central decision-making authority, creating a favorable transition period for subsequent official system reforms. Historical records even preserved the full text of Yuan Cheng’s memorial, calling it the Chengming Forward Memorial.
At month’s end, winter thunder and rain fell, ice-cold as steel pellets.
At midday, the sky showed neither sun nor moon, dark clouds hung low as if one could reach up and tear down a piece. The river roared angrily, waves crashing in heavy winds, the large ship carrying over a hundred soldiers and officers rocking like a mere leaf.
The ship flew two great banners that, though drenched by rain, were pulled straight by the wind—one reading “Zhou,” one “Xiao”—this was precisely the naval garrison warship under Xiao Wei’s command, patrolling the capital’s rivers and waterways by imperial decree. Despite the bone-chilling winter weather, the soldiers aboard remained in high spirits, frequently inspecting passing vessels.
Inside the cabin, Xiao Wei and Zhong An were examining a map of the waterways, discussing which direction to head for provisions.
Shi Lei blew on his hands and came through the door, grabbed the warm teapot, took a huge gulp, then shouted loudly, “Damn this cursed weather! Cold enough as it is, but it’s also raining ice daggers—the brothers are about to freeze to death.”
Zhong An stoked the brazier hotter, had Shi Lei warm himself, and said with a laugh, “The men we brought aren’t so weak—they’re not young ladies or misses. How are the river conditions? Without resupply, can we hold out another day?”
“Compared to Jingyu Rapids, this is smooth as walking on solid ground. I could go three to five more days hungry, but I’m afraid the brothers can’t take it. We’re not actually fighting a war—no need to drill them this hard, right?” Unashamed to mention how seasick he’d gotten back then, Shi Lei warmed his hands without changing his wet armor. “The scout boats report several passenger ships are privately built, without official business permits. Even those with household registrations weren’t allowed through. They’re asking how to handle the detained people—should they be turned over to the capital prefecture office?”
Privately building vessels beyond a certain carrying capacity violated Great Zhou law.
“Release them. Arresting them would just cause more trouble,” Xiao Wei ordered while still studying the map. “Zhong An, after we disembark, go tell the War Ministry to issue a nationwide emergency notice explicitly prohibiting private ships from entering the capital.” Though illegal, private ships accounted for twenty percent of all vessels.
Because shipyards couldn’t meet demand, the authorities could only turn a blind eye.
“I heard the Secretariat already issued it—by the twelfth month things should quiet down considerably.” Zhong An saw that Xiao Wei seemed to have no reaction to the three words “Secretariat,” relaxed slightly, and continued, “This time, with the Six Ministries under Secretariat leadership, they’re working more effectively than before. Not only are they thorough in their planning, but they’re also swift and precise in execution. The War Ministry sent me a letter this morning saying that with the weather turning cold, they’re increasing grain, rice, winter clothing, and various other supplies, and we can collect them ourselves from the warehouse with credentials.”
Shi Lei sounded quite surprised. “Usually they deliver directly, and every time we don’t get everything, they make up random excuses. This is better—we go get it ourselves, no chance for them to skim off the top.”
“It’s already become customary.” Zhong An came from a martial family, though not a particularly distinguished branch. His great-grandfather had been a concubine’s son who received an inaugural viscountcy at the fifth rank for merit—that was the ceiling. Zhong An’s family didn’t associate much with other martial families, but in recent years following Xiao Wei, he’d received considerable attention. “Considering General Baiyu’s position, they skim less from us.”
“So this time is good. The Secretariat gets things done more reliably than the Department of State Affairs. Hey, Baiyu old brother, isn’t your third brother the newly promoted Secretariat Drafter? Could he have had a hand in this?” Shi Lei, being crude and unrefined, didn’t care about court fluctuations and simply aligned himself with Xiao Wei and Zhong An.
“Not him as Secretariat Drafter, but another one. You know him too. Yuan Cheng.” After Zhong An spoke, he glanced at Xiao Wei. His composure seemed good today—apparently no need to worry about him fighting someone over a woman.
“That corrupt official?!” Shi Lei slapped his forehead. “How is that possible? If it were him, shouldn’t he have embezzled most of it and left us to starve?”
Xiao Wei’s sword-like brows drew together. “He’s no fool—he wouldn’t shoot himself in the foot right after being promoted. I just can’t imagine the Emperor trusts him so much as to adopt his memorial.”
“Even though I don’t want to admit it, I must say this person is genuinely quite capable. To become Prime Minister of Nande definitely wasn’t achieved solely through flattery and accepting bribes. Look at this time—deploying troops, managing public sentiment, balancing internal and external concerns, the whole plan is flawless. If he were truly devoted to serving the Emperor…” Zhong An was being objective.
“Impossible!” Xiao Wei’s preconceptions ran deep, and since he fundamentally disagreed with Yuan Cheng’s methods and character, he remained perpetually vigilant. “His schemes run too deep. Since he can’t be straightforward, he must be hiding unspeakable motives. Look at the people he associates with—all from the ministerial faction of the late Emperor’s old officials. And now he’s entered the Secretariat and won over the Secretariat Director. At minimum, he’s not on our side, so how could he truly be loyal to the Emperor? This memorial was just opportunistic speculation, trying to gain both fame and profit to pave the way for his future. This man is treacherous—I won’t align with him. You all be careful too, don’t let his small favors deceive you.”
Zhong An couldn’t say more. Some things required seeing with one’s own eyes to verify—he’d reserve judgment for now.
Suddenly, the ship lurched violently!
Xiao Wei reacted fastest—while everything in the cabin was still shaking wildly, he’d already grabbed the door and rushed out.
Raindrops instantly pelted his head and face like ice, but he paid no attention. The ship was sailing on the wide river—it couldn’t have struck a reef, nor did it seem caused by wind and waves.
He asked the vice-general on deck, “What happened?”
“Don’t know,” the vice-general answered crisply. “I’ve sent men to check the lower hold. Young General, please wait a moment.”
By the time Zhong An and Shi Lei emerged, the two soldiers sent below had just come up on deck, soaked from the knees down, teeth chattering from the cold.
“Report to the Young General—the lower hold is breached and taking on water rapidly. Just before we came up, it was already over a foot deep.” Despite their chattering teeth, their words were clear.
Shi Lei exclaimed, jumping high, “How could it breach? This is a command ship!”
Zhong An remained quite calm. “Stupid Stone, whether it breaches has nothing to do with whether it’s a command ship.”
“What’s the extent of the damage?” Xiao Wei ignored the bickering behind him.
“Can’t see where it’s breached, but the water flow isn’t very fast. Water’s probably been coming in for a while now—the ship must have shaken when it could no longer bear the weight.” These were veteran soldiers with keen observations.
Xiao Wei immediately ordered the vice-general to monitor changes in the water level in the lower hold, then consulted with Zhong An and Shi Lei about what to do.
Zhong An knew the waterway map by heart, but hesitated, stopping and starting several times.
Xiao Wei noticed and pressed him, “What time is this to be wishy-washy? Speak freely.”
“The closest place to us is Hongyu Shipyard, five li from here.” Zhong An pointed ahead toward the bend around a cliff. “Turn around that point and you’ll see it.”
Shi Lei had apparently forgotten who owned Hongyu, and hearing “shipyard,” said, “Why didn’t you say so earlier? Steer the ship over there quickly!”
But Xiao Wei didn’t give the order. “It’s not marked on the map.”
Zhong An thought that unless he explained clearly, they’d all perish together. So he quickly said, “A few days ago I went to the Ministry of Works to collect the shipyard registry and looked it up while I was there. Hongyu is newer than the map, so naturally it’s not marked.”
“Then when I asked you earlier where the nearest resupply point was, you said Hongtu was closest?” Xiao Wei felt Zhong An was hiding something.
Zhong An gave an awkward laugh. “I was just afraid you’d feel uncomfortable going to Hongyu.”
“Why would I be uncomfortable?” Xiao Wei’s face darkened. “The court has decreed official-civilian shipyard cooperation, so cooperate we shall.” He turned and ordered the sails raised for quick passage.
Shi Lei pulled Zhong An aside and asked what would make Xiao Wei uncomfortable about Hongyu. Upon hearing it was territory managed by Mo Zi, he exclaimed and lowered his voice, “Won’t that girl refuse to let us into the yard entirely and applaud as our ship sinks? Falling into the water in the dead of winter, even if we don’t freeze to death we’d lose half our lives.”
Zhong An shook his head, saying that wouldn’t happen. “Miss Mo Zi isn’t that kind of person. Even if she has grievances with us, surely she doesn’t have grievances with an entire ship of soldiers, does she? Besides, there’s an imperial edict—even if she’s unwilling, she must help.”
Shi Lei grunted about how one couldn’t be sure, muttering to himself that Mo Zi was audacious beyond measure.
However, once the ship rounded the bend, having taken on deeper water, it moved increasingly slowly. The current was very strong, but fortunately the wind was favorable. Dozens of bamboo poles pushed down, and finally the ship managed to hold position just over a li from Hongyu.
Xiao Wei had the soldiers shout in unison toward Hongyu Shipyard, “Naval Commander Xiao Wei requests an audience with the Hongyu manager!”
The thunder and rain had turned to drizzle, so their voices carried. Several figures the size of black beans appeared at Hongyu, then two ran inside. They’d clearly heard the shouts and rushed to relay the message.
What was Mo Zi doing at that moment?
She was receiving a guest.
And who was this guest?
Master Jiang, Jiang Tao.
While the two were eating pastries made by Bai He, drinking flower tea dried by Bai He, and conversing quite enjoyably, Wei Qing came running in.