Chapter 10: Long route

Jiang Changbai, hearing this, was startled, her eyes unconsciously widening. Xie Qianbing, on seeing this, couldn't help but become panicked, standing up from the chair in a flash, advancing a step forward, about to kneel down. Jiang Chngbai got up, wanting to hold her up, but, having barely stood up, she sat back down again, only quietly and calmly waiting for Xie Qianbing to explain.

"For these years, this minister's food and clothing were all paid for by the Prince's residence, and there were barely any expenses. The things you gifted this minister in the past were all kept in my home. Bixia has always been this minister's master, at the Prince's residence, and even more now.

"Last night, in a night terror, I heard that the state had difficulties and needed money, and I hated my inability to do anything. Thinking on it for a long while, I could only take everything in my home that could be sold off to be pawned, thinking that whatever I could exchange it for is what I could, and it counted as a small amount of my humble contribution."

On then at this did Xie Qianbing notice a spot she'd made an oversight. She'd only remembered that those items were gifts that the Princess Jiang Changbai had bestowed on her, yet she'd forgotten that the princess of the past had at this time become the bixia, and forgotten that items bestowed by the emperor, even if one were in hard straits, couldn't change owners. She only felt that the oppressive might that had enclosed Lin Yingqing's figure just at this moment enclosed her figure, and for a moment, her heart couldn't help but feel somewhat apprehensive.

"Alright," Jiang Changbai said, this time standing up in the end, and came around the table to come before Xie Qianbing, slowly raising her up. "If the court were filled with ministers like you, how could my Great Li's state treasury come to hold only four hundred thousand liang of silver." As she spoke, Jiang Changbai patted Xie Qianbing's shoulder. "It's just that, since I said I see you as a sister, you don't need to follow Lin Yingqing and be a minister with a single basket of rice and one ladle of water. Those are all a false reputation; what We need is industry, can you understand that?"

"This minister understands."

"What are Bixia and Xie-daren doing?" Song Juguang's voice came from far away. Actually, after taking Lin Yingqing out of the palace gates, she'd looked for an excuse to depart, and when she'd come to the Shengru Palace's doors, she'd seen the two of Jiang Changbai and Xie Qianbing face to face, a tableaux of the depths of emotion of a master and a servant. An inexplicable jealousy arose from the depths of Song Juguang's heart, and as a result, she couldn't pay attention to any court etiquette, and, separated by the distance, had raised her voice to speak.

Jiang Changbai still had some remaining words she hadn't finished saying to Xie Qianbing, but seeing Song Juguang walking over from a distance, was only able to swallow down what she'd wanted to say. As she walked closer, only then did she ask, "A Guang, didn't you leave the palace with Minister Lin?"

"Is this Bixia not welcoming this minister?"

"Of course not," Jiang Changbai said, her gaze somewhat evasive. "I had assumed you had business."

"This minister feels that the most important business this minister has now is assisting Bixia in stabilising the country; Bixia, what do you think?"

Although Jiang Changbai had some restrained fear towards Song Juguang, these words of hers, she hadn't said incorrectly at all; as a result, Jiang Changbai could only nod her head and agree. But, in the direction which Song Juguang hadn't paid attention to, Xie Qianbing's gaze towards her was somewhat disdainful. Xie Qianbing had always been disapproving of Song Juguang; in the past, when both had been in the Prince's residence, she would occasionally let out a few mocking words. It was only that the current situation was like this, and even loathing, she could only express it somewhere she couldn't see.

Song Juguang had no way of knowing Xie Qianbing's thoughts; of course, even if she knew, she wouldn't pay much attention. And Jiang Changbai wouldn't give her the time to pay attention, either.

Jiang Changbai, looking at Song Juguang, spoke, her eyes flashing with some hope. "Now, the state treasury is empty, and taxes will be hard to collect for a while; what does A Guang think?"

"This minister thinks, the capital doesn't lack in officials who have lived like princes for a great many years; maybe there are even fourth-rank officials whose riches can also match the current treasury." Before she had finished speaking, Song Juguang raised her eyes, only watching Jiang Changbai attentively.

"Your meaning is?" Jiang Changbai seemed to have guessed what Song Juguang was thinking of.

"This minister's meaning is, search their houses and confiscate their possessions."


The Minister of Ceremonies, Bi Rui, had just stepped out of the palace, and hadn't yet gone directly home, rather, going with a group of colleagues to the Honghailou to eat. It was only at this time, when he returned home, not even having had the time to take off his official's gown, when he sneezed. He mumbled somewhat doubtfully to himself, "This day doesn't even count as cold."


Jiang Changbai, at this moment, knew why Song Juguang had first had to take Lin Yingqing away. If he were to have heard these words, he would probably have knelt, mouth full of archaic language, to beg her to think it over.

Song Juguang followed immediately afterwards, "Isn't Bixia curious as to, a month ago, when Liu Zihe bought that theatre group, how much money he spent in total?"

Jiang Changbai wasn't fond of dramas; in regards to this matter of the price, she knew even less. It was just that it was difficult for her interest to not be piqued by this question of Song Juguang's, and, following her words, she asked down, "How much?"

Song Juguang quirked her lips, spreading her hands. "Fifty thousand liang of silver."

A number that caused one to be speechless. Not only that, but expenditures of the Minister of War, Wu Dongmu, whose relationship with him was good, ought not be underestimated either. The two of them, one a scholar and the other a military man, had disciples and followers who actually took up almost half of the positions in the Great Li's court. The one who counted as most astonished had to be Xie Qianbing, who sat to the side. All of what she'd saved, bit by bit, in her twenty plus years, was only the cost of what a single person spent on a theatre group; no matter who heard it, they would be somewhat wrongfooted.

Yet Jiang Changbai, on that side, had already reflected on it. The matter of the Great Li's bureaucratic corruption had long since become something which wasn't the work of a day or two; the great ministers like Liu Zihe and Wu Dongmu, who held the true, received in a year "filial money" which wasn't a small number. But Jiang Changbai still had some misgivings. "But Liu Zihe has been an official for many years, and has even acted as the Imperial Exams proctor a number of times. Now, a not small number of great ministers have to call him shifu; searching his house and confiscating his possessions without consideration, I fear that it would cause the ministers to be dissatisfied, and disrupt the court."

Although the military leadership could be said to now be in Song Juguang's hand, the operation of the entire machine of the nation still relied on the original senior and junior officials. A new ruler naturally didn't have a foundation; if the reforms were too bold and decisive, it might cause a great disturbance.

Song Juguang had clearly thought of this point as well, and said, light as a feather, "Then first arrest the small ones, and resolve the extremity of the fire burning the brows."

Emperor Tai had coveted the pleasures of life, and hadn't paid attention to governance; all the great and small ministers in the court more or less had some grey income. At first, it had all been hidden and clandestine, but afterwards, it wasn't even hidden; if one wanted to investigate it now, it really wouldn't be a hard matter.

Xie Qianbing hesitated over and over again, and then spoke; even if she didn't like Song Juguang, as it was for the affairs of the state, her own preferences could naturally first be put aside.

The room was still deliberating when the sun outside was unexpectedly already gradually setting. By the time Song Juguang returned to her own residence, the moon had already risen to its zenith.

"General, Wei-daren has been waiting a long time for you."

Song Juguang had only just dismounted her horse when the servant waiting at the gate took the opportunity to come over and say it quietly. She let out an "en" of acknowledgement, as if long since having foreseen that she would have come. So, she put the reins into the servant's hand, and went inside in long steps.

Song Juguang's place of residence was in the suburbs of the capital, the south and north along with the Prince Ling's residence; as a result, these few years, although she and Jiang Changbai had both been in the capital, they'd never come across each other. Actually, speaking of it, Song Juguang's residence had originally not had many servants, and the small number of them had been released from indenture and dismissed before she'd left the capital; the Cangwei army[1] beneath her were all stationed outside the city, and adding on the fact the night was already deep, occasional crows flitting past the dusky windows, it unexpectedly gave the newly-appointed Prince Regent's residence a degree of gloom.

Yet the central hall was lit up.

Hearing footsteps from a distance, Wei Xiren promptly came out from inside the room. She still wore that attire from the daytime; maybe it was that she'd waited a bit long, but her complexion was somewhat tired. "General, you've finally returned."

The night was deep, and under the shadows of the dusky candles, Song Juguang and Wei Xiren sat across from each other. Wei Xiren, when coming, hadn't foreseen this tableaux, and now, a degree of caution rose unexpectedly on her face. Yet Song Juguang didn't seem to have seen it, and only poured wine into cups, paying attention only to her own actions. "General, I—" Whatever Wei Xiren had wanted to say, before she could finish speaking, a cup full of wine was shoved into her hand by Song Juguang. As a result, for a brief moment, her heart became terrified, and the words she'd wanted to say were swallowed.

Actually, just then, Song Juguang had, only just having walked a few steps in the residence, had turned back, and ridden to the Honghailou to order some food and drink. The Honghailou was the most prosperous restaurant in the capital, doing business the whole night, with a tide of people like a tapestry. Not only that, but the peripheral few cities around the capital also had its branches, and their state was said to not be in the slightest inferior to the one within the capital. Song Juguang asked, "Tomorrow, you'll set out on a journey; how is it that you've come over here to mine?"

"General," Wei Xiren said, holding the cup of wine and at a complete loss, her gaze evasive for a while before she finally added, "this subordinate has a matter she doesn't understand."

"Then ask it; when did you become this indecisive?" At this time, Song Juguang had lost some of the patience she'd had before Jiang Changbai, but, on the opposite end, her agility had increased.

Wei Xiren still hesitated, and only after a long while did she sigh and, her mind chaotic, say, "The state was conquered by our Cangwei army; how is it that you've held up that traitor Jiang to sit on the throne?" This wasn't only Wei Xiren's own misgivings, but also the shared misgivings of the few personal guards. Altough they'd sent troops under the flag of "cleansing corrupt ministers", they'd all only seen that as an excuse. Almost all of the Cangwei army's soldiers had been born impoverished, and had endured severe taxes and torment; each of them felt that, after breaking through the capital, this territory would change a family name, and all had assumed that the one sitting on the imperial throne would be Song Juguang.

Song Juguang's smiling expression, after she heard these words, stiffened on her face, but only for a flash. Because in the next moment, she heavily slammed the cup in her hand on the table, the wine within the cup flying in all directions, falling onto the ebony tabletop and leaving traces. "Who caused you to speak like this?" Although Song Juguang's voice was very low, her fury couldn't be suppressed, and all of it radiated outwards. As if because of the change, the wine cup which had been put on the table split in answer, and all the wine within spread across the table. The Honghailou's wine was distilled, but in this moment, there wasn't anyone who was paying attention to its scent.

Wei Xiren had never before seen Song Juguang this furious. In the past, if she were more ruthless, the corners of Song Juguang's mouth would always carry a smile. As a result, her posture weakened in a flash, and she rose, just about to kneel and admit her guilt. Wei Xiren's head was lowered, only waiting for Song Juguang's following interrogation. Yet it didn't come, and so she raised her head, unable to wait, and inquisitively looked about, only seeing Song Juguang holding a wine cup that she didn't know where it had come from, leisurely tasting it. "General, I, no one caused me."

"That's the best," Song Juguang said, returning to that appearance of gentleness as a breeze and lightness as clouds. "The title of emperor was determined by the heavens; I don't have the skill to cause whoever I want to sit on the throne just because I wish to."

Wei Xiren, somewhat confused, asked, "But, but didn't you teach me that only one's self can control their own fate?"

Song Juguang replied without speaking. "That's us."

As a result, Wei Xiren was even more confused, but before waiting for her to ask, she heard Song Juguang speak again. "We who go against the will of the heavens, of course our fates are in our own hands. But some things were long since preordained, and regardless of anything, they'll always follow the will of the heavens, can you understand it?" Her words had just finished when the originally cloudless skies inexplicably rang out with a clap of thunder, a flash of lightning flitting across and lighting the room as if it were broad day. Wei Xiren only felt that this strike of thunder was louder than usual, and closer than usual, as close as if it were by her ear. The birds perching on the trees were startled into flight and away by the thunderclap, and only the sound of their beating wings and the leaves were audible.

Actually, Wei Xiren hadn't understood what Song Juguang was saying; she didn't understand why, within, Song Juguang's mouth, the matter of who was the emperor was preordained. But in the depth of darkness, she knew that she herself ought not continue questioning, and so she nodded, and said, "This subordinate understands."

Song Juguang waved her hand and said, "Don't keep kneeling there, come, sit up."

Wei Xiren obediently rose, but before she sat down, she heard Song Juguang say, "If you let me hear such words again, don't blame me for tidying up the group myself. There isn't any traitor, only the Great Li's Emperor. All things will obey the Emperor."

"This subordinate understands," Wei Xiren said, and opened her mouth, wanting to say more, but in the end, she swallowed the words down, and only said, "this journey west will absolutely be taken in low-profile, going around the towns to take the quickest route; I won't disappoint the General's expectations."

"No, you don't need to go around the towns," Song Juguang said, shaking her head. "Actually, I need you to take a circular route north, along which each town counts; go inside and survey each one."

Wei Xiren only felt that this night of hers had constantly been mystifying; Song Juguang's words had also become particularly hard to understand. She couldn't help but furrow her brows, the two characters of "not understanding" written on her face.

Song Juguang put on a smile, and explained: "Each province's memorials in the North has reported that their infrastructure was largely damaged in the chaos of war, and they urgently need the court to send money to restore and rebuild. But you ought to know, when we fought our way north, we didn't stay in any place for long, and more than that, we didn't burn, kill, loot, or damage infrastructure."

Wei Xiren blinked, seeming to have grasped some threads. "Those people want to destroy our Cangwei army's reputation."

Song Juguang hummed. "Their original intent wasn't this, but what you say isn't wrong, either. Everything you see on this journey, have someone send a letter back; overall, we can't have them cover our heads with their chamber pot."

"Understood!" Wei Xiren raised her voice to call out, shaking the wine in the cup into having some ripples. Once she finished speaking, the wine in the cup was drained in a single swallow, and only then did the deeply moving military might emerge.

Wei Xiren was going to to depart early the next day, and thus didn't inconvenience the Prince Regent's residence and stay late. The problem had already received a solution; although she didn't understand it at all, she still hurriedly bid goodbye to Song Juguang, about to leave. The two walked to the doorway of the Prince's residence, and it was difficult to halt.

"Now isn't like before; be cautious when marching the army; do not raise weapons because of anyone." Song Juguang took the proffered reins from the servant's hand and geve them to Wei Xiren, warning as if she couldn't stop worrying. Wei Xiren had been born on the western border, and when she hadn't been enlisted, she'd led around a not insignificant number of troops at the border, and had won a not insignificant amount of victories, and had caused a not insignificant amount of enmity.

As it happened, Wei Xiren was someone with an excessively upright and outspoken character; if she were used by someone who had aspirations, it might actually cause some other problems. Jiang Changbai had only just ascended the throne, and the obstinate powers in the court were beginning to stir; all places had those with aspirations and ulterior motives; Song Juguang was unwilling to cause many disturbances in this sort of situation, and so as a result she urged even more.

However, falling on Wei Xiren's ears, these words were all Song Juguang's concern for her. She couldn't help but associate it with her rise from a roving bandit to an official's position, each and every one depending on Song Juguang's guidance; unexpectedly, the rims of her eyes flushed, and she was just about to start weeping. "General, this subordinate—" Yet Wei Xiren had only said these few words when her voice began to tremble.

"Go quickly," Song Juguang said, somewhat tiredly, only paying attention to pushing the reins into Wei Xiren's hand. "In the future, don't call me General; the Emperor conferred me with the title of Prince Regent, and it would be better to change your address to Dianxia."

"Dianxia," Wei Xiren said, holding the horse's reins, and sh raised her other hand to her chest, imitating the greeting of scholars. "Take care."

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Translator's notes:

[1]: 沧威军 (Cangwei jun), roughly "vast, mighty army".

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