A feast in the mountains — even at the “Zhù family estate,” it had taken on something of the local frontier character.

Those in attendance, besides Zhù Ying’s own party, included the chieftains of the various counties, and also the managers assigned to different roles at the estate. Among them, Xiang Le had put in a great deal of effort during the estate’s early establishment; the others all showed him considerable respect. He and Xiang An had come to the estate when they heard Zhù Ying was returning, to ask if there was anything they could help with.

Both still held their official ranks; the court had not said a word about stripping them. But “resuming a post” was another matter entirely. The Xiang family had gone through a period of anxious worry. Xiang An had made up her mind: she would continue to follow Zhù Ying regardless. That Zhù Ying was a woman was, to Xiang An, the best news she could have received.

Xiang An had told her two brothers: “Our father’s wrong has been avenged. We have official posts. The family’s fortunes have grown a hundredfold. Now, at a moment when the Official is going through hardship, we cannot fail her. The Yigan family is never quiet; Uncle Hou Wu is growing old; Qingjun is one girl carrying a great deal on her shoulders. I have to come back and help with the estate’s defenses.”

She was going, and so Xiang Le had come along: “She and I started out together from the very beginning; there’s the main branch at home now, and they don’t need the two of us.”

Elder Brother Xiang had considered things from a broader angle: “Our family’s ties with the Official run so deep, there’s no untangling them. I can see she is not someone who can sit idle. She is a Prime Minister in the prime of her years who left because she had no other choice — something grand is coming. You two follow her; you’ll do well.”

There it was again — the two siblings rolled their eyes internally, yet no longer quarreled with him as hotly as in their younger, more headstrong years. They also conceded that he had a point. Elder Brother Xiang had further instructed them: “When you get there, do your work well, report back faithfully, and when you find the Official in a good mood, ask — what’s to be done with the guild halls and the trading ventures?”

The siblings had intended to raise exactly these matters and had no quarrel with Elder Brother Xiang; they had arrived at the estate early and each taken on a share of the guard duties.

When the estate was first established, Zhù Ying had been deliberate about it, configuring it as a county. Besides Huajie overseeing everything, each matter had its appointed manager; there were six or seven head managers in all. Beyond Qingjun, Xiao Jiang, and a few others, there were also three who had been selected from among the local residents, and all of them were present now.

Zhù Ying swept the room with her eyes and said with a sigh, “What a pity that Old Huang is no longer with us.” Old Huang had been among the first wave of people to come to the estate; in those early days he had helped manage population records and the storerooms. His words put all the estate managers in a faintly sorrowful mood. After Old Huang passed, his responsibilities had gradually been taken over by Wu Ren.

Wu Ren was a little tense; when tense, her face went completely blank, expressionless, as though everyone in the room owed her money. Zhù Ying said, “You’re doing well.” Only then did Wu Ren let out a breath of relief, and followed the others to take her seat.

After a long journey, hosts and guests alike were exhausted. People ate and drank, and those who had drunk their fill began to sing. The sounds of music and singing filled the air; no one ventured into what any “real business” might be.

Three rounds of wine in, Zhù Ying said, “I have returned in haste, and everyone has had the trouble of coming down the mountain to receive me. My thanks.”

Lang Kunwu said, “For you to speak of it this way is to not regard us as family.”

Zhù Ying cut herself short there. “Good — family, then. When you go out you bring gifts back. Bring it out.”

A few attendants, working in pairs, carried in various items and arranged them in front of each person according to the labels. Zhù Ying said with a smile, “I always said I wanted to find good weapons for everyone, but could never find the right channel to get the best ones. Come — try these; see if they suit you.”

Lang Kunwu’s eyes shone immediately. He was the first to open the lid of his box. Underneath a layer of silk and similar items were several small boxes. He opened one long narrow box to find a long blade inside. He drew it with a swift motion — the blade was dark and heavy, the edge gleaming with a cold white light. Lang Kunwu had not even tested it yet and already pronounced, “A fine blade!”

One by one, the others tested their blades.

In the two terms she had served as regional commander, Zhù Ying had accumulated a good deal of bows, arrows, blades, and armor — easy to come by in that role, and even fleeing prison she had managed to bring some along. These were not all equal to the finest pieces from Zheng Hou’s decades of collecting, but for Wuzhou they were uncommonly fine.

Even the sparrow chieftain-father-in-law, a man of such experience, had a gleam in his eyes. “Now this is something! Official, gifts this generous are far too much.”

Zhù Ying said, “I came back in a hurry, and there are things I was not fully open with everyone about. Consider this also an apology.”

Lu Guo said, “Official, talk like that just kills the mood.”

The group spent a while appreciating the weapons, then looked through the other items in their boxes. Knowing their tastes as well as she did — calligraphy and paintings held little interest for them — Zhù Ying had made sure everything she selected was clearly and obviously expensive. The delight on the chieftains’ faces was all the more genuine for it.

After the meal, everyone went back to rest. The household servants began clearing the main hall. Zhù Ying walked toward the back of the house, and had taken only a few steps when she turned around to find Huajie, Xiao Jiang, and Zhù Qingjun all following behind her, with Wu Ren at Huajie’s side. Xiang Le and Xiang An were a step or two back.

Xiang Le hesitated slightly, not sure whether it was appropriate for an outside man like himself to follow. When Zhù Ying turned, his step faltered; his foot ground against the floor, and he very nearly twisted his own ankle. Zhao Su came up and clapped him on the shoulder: “What are you standing around for?”

Huajie said to Zhù Ying, “It’s already late — but tired as you are, you still need to know something before you can sleep. Tell me everything about the estate, so you can handle things in the morning. You won’t just be sitting there watching; whatever I’ve been managing — when you’re ready to hear it, I’ll tell you. Let’s at least cover enough for you to get through tomorrow morning.”

The morning meeting had been a habit learned from Zheng Xi; Zhù Ying had kept it, and Huajie, managing the household, had carried it on. Zhù Ying had been away from home for ten years; though there had been correspondence, what could really be said in a letter was far too little compared to what could be explained face to face.

Zhù Ying said, “All right.”

The group entered the study, a room that was large and spacious, with an ancient quality to it that the Prime Minister’s residence had lacked. The things she had brought back, together with what had been collected over the years before, had all been moved in.

The lamps were lit. Zhù Ying sat at the head. The others took seats in two rows. Huajie produced a key first and opened the large cabinets along one wall: “I’ve kept the estate’s land and population records in two copies; there’s also one set here, identical to the one in the front accounting room.” She took out a ledger book, a consolidated summary, set the small book on Zhù Ying’s desk.

Then Wu Ren came forward and submitted the estate’s financial records — the ledger that, in their reckoning, represented Zhù Ying’s “private funds.”

Wu Ren said, “Those are the estate’s main accounts — building the perimeter wall, laying roads, settling the tenants, the garrison commander drilling soldiers, the manager’s monthly wages, all come from that account. This one covers only the household expenditures.”

The Zhù family also needed to live, and so Huajie had kept two sets of accounts: a large account managing the entirety of “Zhù County,” and a small account covering the Zhù family household alone — though the entire estate was technically her property.

Both were placed on the desk.

Zhù Ying asked, “Are your parents and siblings well?”

Wu Ren said, “Once I came to the estate, they had nothing to worry about. The family has some land back home — they can’t leave it — and I am more comfortable here than I would be down in the county.”

Zhù Qingjun’s domain was military training and defense; she also submitted a ledger. “Training soldiers costs money — I didn’t dare train too many. In total, five hundred.”

Huajie said, “The salt fields are producing now. We’ve had to keep the price down, but there is still a profit; it’s enough to cover expenses.”

Zhù Qingjun also submitted a large map. “I redrew the terrain map of the surrounding area and corrected some of the inaccuracies.”

Xiang An and Xiang Le spoke of affairs in the lowlands. The sugar operation was still in the Xiang family’s hands. Xiang An said, “The profit is down two points from when you were here, Official. It wasn’t so noticeable while you were here; as soon as someone else took over, you could see who was capable and who wasn’t.”

Prefect Xu was not corrupt or brutal, but to find a person like Zhù Ying in Jiyuan Prefecture was a rare thing indeed. The more capable officials, like Jiang Zheng, had already been promoted away. Those with connections, like Yao Chenying, would never have come to a place like this; Yao Chenying, though he had served in the western frontier regions, had gone as prefectural governor. Jiang Zheng had gone to the salt region to take over a mess in a time of crisis, summoned by the Council of State and noted in their records.

Jiyuan Prefecture was in a slightly awkward position — you needed connections to be assigned someone who wouldn’t cause trouble in a county that got its livelihood from a single product, and the connections in question led to someone not stirring up that livelihood.

Besides the sugar operation, the rest of Jiyuan Prefecture told much the same story. Fulu County fared slightly better — Fulu County had been shaped most deeply by Zhù Ying’s influence; its local gentry were the canniest around, and the county magistrate was kept firmly in check by them.

Xiang Le then asked, “Official, the guild halls and the trading routes — what’s to be done? All of that is your life’s work, and it also sustains the livelihoods of many people. Before, you were there to watch over everything; if you step away now, I’m afraid it will be squeezed to ruin by those looking to make trouble.”

Zhù Ying said, “There is no rush. A few more days and there will be a direction.”

“Yes.”

Then came matters of criminal cases and the jail. Xiao Jiang said, “We added onto the jail. There are three people on death row, all confirmed cases, and only those three right now.”

There were both men’s and women’s sections. Over the ten years, three people had been executed: one for beating a neighbor to death in a brawl, one for poisoning a rival in a love affair, one for killing the owner of a house during a robbery when the owner unexpectedly came home.

Zhù Ying said, “I know about those.” At the time, Huajie and the others had been very troubled. This estate — they did not want outside interference. But without a proper court office, how could they carry out an execution? Huajie had written a letter to Zhù Ying asking what to do with the prisoners and who should be responsible for passing sentence.

Zhù Ying had written back: execute them yourselves.

The arrests had been made by Xiao Jiang; the cases had been judged by Huajie; the heads had been taken by Hou Wu.

Zhao Su broke in unexpectedly: “From now on, none of you need ever worry about that sort of thing again! The business of our own county is handled within our own county!”

Xiang Le said, “So we really are going to be granted our own territory?”

Zhù Ying said, “Of course!”

The Xiang siblings felt their convictions solidify. In unison they clasped their hands together in salute: “Congratulations, Official!”

Zhù Ying said, “Leave all of this here. I’ll go through it slowly.” She looked at Zhao Su. Zhao Su nodded: “I’m staying as well. Grandmother need only tell me what to do.”

Zhù Ying pointed at a row of cabinets. “All of this will be your responsibility eventually, but right now I have something else for you to handle.”

“Yes.”

“You and Su Zhe know the court’s protocols well. The two of you — prepare to receive Chen Meng’s second son. That young man is full of schemes; if anyone else goes, I’m afraid they’ll end up getting outmaneuvered by him before they know what’s happened.”

Zhao Su thought about it and agreed: “Yes.”

“Once the appointment edict arrives, each person can receive their proper title.” Zhù Ying said with meaningful intent.

Huajie said, “The school I’ll keep for myself. Everything else is yours to arrange.”

Zhù Ying said, “Good.”

She swept her eyes over everyone present: “None of you should feel rushed. The days ahead are still long.”

Zhao Su said with a laugh, “Indeed — with several counties all petitioning for you to serve as Governor of Wuzhou, in the future there will even be a Governor’s office to establish. A pity, though — it is still a loose-rein frontier post.”

Zhù Ying said, “We take it step by step. All right — that’s enough for tonight.”

But Zhao Su deliberately lingered behind.

Zhù Ying said, “It will keep through the night.”

Zhao Su said, “It’s not that I’m in a hurry to go through all of this. Compared to the Ministry of Finance, what is one county’s land and population?”

“Oh? Then what is on your mind?”

Zhao Su said, “The estate — that you will manage with ease. Governor — that too you can manage. But Wuzhou is a loose-rein frontier territory…”

Zhù Ying had already understood his meaning and finished his thought: “The officials may not be court-appointed, but they are still all taking turns wearing an official title as a decorative shell. And the counties don’t answer to the prefecture either; even if I become Governor, it won’t be much more than being a county magistrate. That would be altogether too uninteresting, wouldn’t it?”

Zhao Su relaxed visibly. “You’ve already thought of it.”

Zhù Ying said, “Of course.”

“Then…”

Zhù Ying said, “West and northwest of Wuzhou, the world opens up vast and wide. Not just the Yigan family — there are also the Xika and others, who certainly cannot be content with their slaves running away and young men and women coming to Wuzhou. They are in the same position as Lu Guo’s people used to be. When Lu Guo’s people came, I had enough surplus to offer them a share and make them willing, barely willing, to accept. Today’s Wuzhou is entirely different from what it was back then.”

The old strategy of half-coercion, half-inducement, half-bribery — it would not work. There would have to be war. Once won, the captured land and population became spoils. And those spoils needed to be divided.

Zhù Ying said, “Further west — take that whole stretch of territory. Having borders with the western tribes would allow us to apply pressure from both sides against the court, and hold the western tribes in a pincer. As a military governor, overseeing two or three prefectures beneath me — that would not be unreasonable, would it? The newly established prefectures would need their own justification. And Wuzhou itself, through these campaigns, could well — change its arrangements.”

Zhao Su grew more and more excited as he listened: “If things go that far, it would truly be…”

“Hush.”

The next morning, Zhù Ying rose early. She dressed and was ready when Zhù Wen came smiling with two girls carrying water for her to wash.

Zhù Wen said, “We’re the ones who got up the earliest.” People in households that had to rise for court were in a truly miserable position when it came to early rising.

Zhù Ying said, “And the others?”

“The others — oh, they’re here!”

Zhang Xiangu had also risen early, and came over with Huajie.

Zhang Xiangu asked, “How did you sleep?”

Zhù Ying said, “Wonderfully.”

“Really?”

Zhù Ying said, “Really.”

Mother and daughter exchanged idle pleasantries. Then Dajie brought breakfast over, full of eagerness: “Official, do try my cooking! All of it is the best! The buns — the freshest pork. The congee — the newest rice. The water — drawn from the clear spring. The sugar — clean white granulated sugar.”

Dajie’s heart was entirely sincere: “All of it is the best!”

Zhang Xiangu said quickly, “I’ve been feeling low on energy, and Huajie has things to manage outside. Isn’t that enough to keep you busy here? Don’t bother cooking today. Let it go from now on.”

Huajie said, “Yes — leave it to the others.”

Dajie said, “I’m still not easy about it, but — little Wu can manage.”

A look of suffering passed briefly across Huajie’s face. Zhù Ying looked at her, and Huajie said, “Wang Daniangzi is a woman who excels at managing a household — capable in all things, cooking included. When parents take good care of everything for their children, the children don’t need to learn any of it for themselves…”

Dajie said, “Little Wu is different! She is careful in choosing her ingredients and puts her heart into it.”

Zhù Ying reached out and picked up a bun, bit into it — the pork was indeed fresh.

After breakfast, Zhù Ying and Huajie went to the front courtyard. The courtyard was packed with people — all who had sat together at dinner the night before were there.

Huajie first asked Zhù Ying to sit in the center position, then said, “The estate was built by her from the beginning. Now that the rightful mistress of the house has come home, we should all listen to the mistress.”

Zhù Ying said, “I’ve only just returned; it is still better for you to conduct things while I observe. Everyone can be at ease — do your own duties well. I will see to everyone’s safety.”

Nothing particularly out of the ordinary followed. The most important matter was Zhù Qingjun’s domain — security. The Yigan family caused trouble from time to time. The specifics of how to handle it were beyond Huajie’s area of knowledge; Zhù Qingjun knew exactly what to do, and so everything in that regard was handed over to Zhù Qingjun.

The mountain estate had no complicated large-scale affairs; the meeting was over quickly. The various managers dispersed. Zhù Ying then needed to convene another meeting with the chieftains.

The chieftains had risen a little later. Su Zhe was up earliest, and she and Su Mingluan talked animatedly together for a while. Once everyone else had also gotten up, they all came to find Zhù Ying.

This gathering, in the main hall, was considerably more serious in its atmosphere.

Lu Guo spoke first: “The Official is back now — what do we do about the Yigan family? Even if we wait until after the harvest, we need to have a plan, don’t we?” His and Xi Jin’s families were closest to the Yigan family and most affected by them.

Zhù Ying said, “Of course — we first send them a message. Observe the proper courtesies before resorting to force; that is always the right approach.”

Su Mingluan, well aware that Zhù Ying was by no means a purely virtuous person, still recalled that all those years ago Zhù Ying had not immediately agreed to help take on Lang Kunwu’s family, and had actually urged reconciliation first — and felt that Zhù Ying was still the same person she had always known.

Lu Guo was somewhat put out by this.

Zhao Su took over the thread of conversation: “Taking up arms is a major undertaking. It requires obedience to a unified command. Soldiers who go to battle must eat; they must also have blades and spears. How are all of these to be provided?”

Under the mountain tradition, each family discussed things and then each brought their own people, food, and weapons, and went to fight. Tactics and coordination were limited; it was often each fighting for themselves. That was why, decades before, they had been beaten so badly by the court’s armies, losing many lives, and only the combination of dead and difficult terrain had eventually ground the court down until it no longer wanted to keep spending.

But Zhao Su was not saying this purely to improve their fighting methods. He was saying: “If our Grandmother is to serve as Governor, a Governor’s office must be established. Why not have everyone bring some soldiers, some grain, and place it all under our Grandmother’s command?”

The sparrow chieftain-father-in-law’s expression shifted to one of suspicion. Even Su Feihu coughed uneasily twice. Su Mingluan deliberately asked, “And then what?”

Zhao Su said, “Then we fight. After the victory, everyone is rewarded according to their contributions — official posts, land grants.”

Lang Kunwu asked with puzzlement, “If our Grandmother is already back here, can we still be promoted? How? Would we have to go back to that court?”

Zhao Su said, “Little Sister — what did our Grandmother do in the north?”

Su Zhe’s eyes lit up. “Military governor!” She launched into a delighted explanation for the others of what a military governor meant. As she spoke, she also worked it out for herself: “Right! As long as the territory taken is large enough, you can set up an additional prefecture — and then there are two prefectures, with a military governor above them all!”

The chieftains grasped the meaning at once!

They all said, “When the time comes to fight, just give us the word.” And they stopped asking for more of a plan. In the mountains, a battle was generally not planned months in advance with detailed strategies.

But they could not leave yet — they had to wait for Chen Meng’s second son to arrive.

Chen Fang arrived in Jiyuan Prefecture not many days later. Zhù Ying’s party, traveling by boat, laden with people and cargo, should by rights have been much slower. Chen Fang had brought a group of strong, fit attendants and still arrived a few days late. The reason was simply that this errand had taken considerable effort on Chen Meng’s part to secure!

The Emperor — and the court — had grown more and more uneasy about the matter the longer they sat with it; a breath of resentment was truly hard to swallow. They wanted to at least send an envoy to give Zhù Ying a good tongue-lashing before delivering the appointment, and have the edict itself include several lines of stern warning. Chen Meng could not agree to that, and had to argue for sending his own son. The arguing alone had cost time.

Chen Fang had been uneasy all the way down the road. He was not afraid of much in this world, but Zhù Ying — her, he found daunting.

Entering Jiyuan Prefecture, he noticed many literacy-promoting markers along the way. He was sharp-witted, and the half-familiar official dialect he heard here gradually became more comprehensible to his ears — unlike his attendants, who “couldn’t make heads or tails of the local speech even though they claimed to know the official dialect.”

Prefect Xu then proceeded to complain to him about his woes, describing the spectacular scene when Zhù Ying returned: “They were all protecting her! How could I dare to move against her?”

Chen Fang smiled his false smile and said, “But you are the regional official in charge here.”

Prefect Xu waved his hand: “You don’t understand. The mountain people, they came with their soldiers… they…”

Chen Fang’s mouth twitched. He felt this trip was not going to be easy — and on top of everything else, his blasted father had given him two additional tasks: one, to pay his respects to two people on his behalf; two, to ask Zhù Ying if she could pretend the document did not exist.

Chen Fang had no desire to say anything unkind about his elders, yet he sincerely and wholeheartedly, in the privacy of his own heart, cursed every ancestor of the Shen family for eight generations.

Sheng Ying had made a foolish blunder, and now he was traveling three thousand li to beg a document back from his “adoptive uncle Zhù?”

Chen Fang looked at Prefect Xu and thought: you have no idea. Want to trade places?

When Prefect Xu finished his lament, he set about entertaining Chen Fang: “A small place, and no fine wine or beautiful entertainers…”

“Oh — please, none of that is necessary! My father doesn’t care for those things.”

“The Chen Prime Minister is indeed a man of upright household conduct.”

“Notify Wuzhou.”

“Yes, yes!”

A place like Wuzhou was unlike anywhere else — it had no relay roads, and no proper Governor’s office. Without first giving notice so that someone could come out and receive him, Chen Fang could plunge into the mountains and not know where he was going. It was really quite remarkable — he didn’t know how the tax revenues had been collected all these years…

Chen Fang muttered to himself as he wandered about the prefectural capital for two days, heard countless stories of the “Official Zhù sees clearly even what is hidden in autumn,” accepted a bag of sweets as payment from a dim little boy who used the payment to lead him to a temple: “There, look! That’s the one! If you have a deal with someone you don’t trust, do it here — and they’ll be on their best behavior.”

At last, Zhao Su and Su Zhe arrived.

The two of them were old acquaintances of Chen Fang; meeting again three thousand li from where they had last parted, the mood was entirely changed from what it had been.

This uncle and niece pair looked in better spirits than they had in the capital — especially Su Zhe, whose eyes blazed with a light no one could put a lid on.

Chen Fang rode with them into the mountains. The mountains were wearing — you could ride for a long time without seeing a single household. Passing through a small hamlet, the people were few; their food, clothing, and everything else were not the kind of things someone of Chen Fang’s background could take any comfort in.

The language these people spoke was completely beyond Chen Fang. Looking at the people before him — they looked like people well enough, yet their features had a curious character all their own, and their clothes and ornaments were all different. He almost thought he had stumbled into a world of beings who merely resembled people.

Chen Fang said to Su Zhe, “Coming back to a place like this — have you been able to adjust?”

Su Zhe asked with a smile, “I’ve come home. What is there to adjust to?”

“Ah — I presumed too much. I assumed that having been long accustomed to propriety, and having become so thoroughly civilized, you might find it difficult to readjust to…”

Su Zhe said with a smile, “I am not only a frontier person, I am also a woman. This ‘civilization’ you speak of — what does it have to do with me? Here, I am the daughter of a chieftain, and what lies ahead, beyond that boundary marker we just entered — another two days of walking and you still won’t have walked out of Asu County. Asu County is mine!

‘Civilization’ cannot even keep a person like our Grandmother in the court. My abilities are far inferior to hers; if I were in the capital, my fate would be a thousand times worse than hers. ‘Civilization’ — every stroke of those characters is a blade, and every blade cuts me to the bone. How I should choose — could it be any simpler?”

Zhao Su said languidly, “I am a frontier person; my situation is a bit better than hers — but only a bit. Here — all of Wuzhou — it is all like this.”

Chen Fang said helplessly, “My family and our adoptive uncle Zhù have been close as one family for years; we have caused mischief together from our youth. Don’t either of you know who you’re talking to? You can stop trying to frighten me.”

Su Zhe said, “We’re speaking our hearts to you.”