Yizhou was in turmoil, and the Yihe River was once again at the heart of the storm. In this tragedy, only the city of Yihe suffered, where twenty-four clans of forty different surnames faced calamity. On the spot, no fewer than seven hundred local tyrants were killed within the city of Yihe. Those implicated but spared death were mostly exiled to the border garrisons. Those local bullies who had the sense to keep a low profile at the time, according to continuous reports from spies, now bore little resentment. The reason was simple: with deaths came new territories. Though the lion’s share went to Beiliang, the leftovers were still considerable. These fence-sitting families took over, and the benefits were tangible—grain and money for their loyal retainers and servants, women and servants from rival families who had long been coveted, and cheaply acquired treasures, calligraphy, and paintings.
After entering the city, Xu Fengnian repeatedly lifted the curtains of his carriage to look out, and each time he saw many cold, indifferent, hateful, fearful, and resentful eyes—each filled with different shades of hostility.
Upon returning to the general’s residence, Song Yan and Wang Xihua had not yet returned. The two high-ranking officials from Lingzhou, temporarily assigned to Yizhou, did not directly interfere in the details of the cleanup in Yihe. The main officials overseeing the matter were General Huangfu Ping and Governor Wang Peifang, the two senior officials of Yizhou. Xu Fengnian himself was unsure how these two political rivals had managed to work together. At the time, he had deliberately drafted Song Yan to serve as the Deputy Governor of Yizhou, assisting the newly appointed governor Hu Kui, who came from a military background. It wasn’t that he distrusted Hu Kui, who had performed exceptionally well as governor of Liangzhou. Rather, in the future, the four provinces of Beiliang would inevitably require a balance between civil and military officials—a trend not limited to the surface roles of general and governor. As for Wang Xihua, whose literary talents stood out in Beiliang, he was somewhat like a “good omen” for the blood-soaked and death-plagued Yizhou. Moreover, the Qingludong Academy needed a prominent literary figure to maintain its dignity. Starting anything was difficult, and it was impossible to immediately place all the scholars who came to Beiliang into officialdom. This had to be a gradual and orderly process. Besides, among the scholars were many who were merely pretenders. They needed to be sifted through the academy first, so that their abilities could be roughly categorized into tiers.
Xu Fengnian sat in the unusually simple study of Huangfu Ping. There were few books, no decorations, and the room was cold and bleak—just like Huangfu Ping’s temperament.
Xu Fengnian was flipping through a low-grade book on physiognomy when he said without looking up, “Come in.”
The one who entered was surnamed Liu, the head spy of Yihe City, reporting to the King of Beiliang the gossip he had gathered that day—mainly snippets of conversations between Song Yan and Wang Xihua. It turned out that after witnessing the bloodshed in Yizhou and learning the truth, the two had no objections to the handling of the Huang family of Yihe. However, regarding the matter of confiscating the household of the teahouse listeners, they had serious disagreements. Wang Xihua insisted that the sixty-five people who had listened to the storytelling, whether commoners or nobles, did not deserve such severe punishment from the King of Beiliang. Song Yan, a staunch Legalist, believed that each of them deserved their fate. The two had come to Yizhou, and originally, without incident, Song Yan was to serve as Deputy Governor of Yizhou, while Wang Xihua would oversee the province’s education. But their dispute led to a bet: if Wang Xihua won, they would exchange positions. Song Yan claimed he would certainly win, and the positions would remain unchanged, but Wang Xihua would have to formally salute Song Yan as a subordinate from then on.
Upon hearing this, Xu Fengnian put down the book and smiled, “Those two ministers really do have a sense of leisure. Could it be that they’ve investigated each of the sixty-five individuals?”
The head spy Liu replied softly, “Not exactly. Wang Xihua only selected three individuals.”
Xu Fengnian nodded, “Scholarly righteousness—he fears winning without honor. Go on, tell me who these three were.”
The unassuming head spy of Yihe respectfully replied, “They were Cao Sheng, a member of the Cao family of Yihe; Qi Fengnian, the manager of Qi’s Silk Shop on Xi Street; and Han Laicai, a simple farmer. Among them, Cao Sheng was a regular at Jingyixuan Teahouse, and the Cao family was a minor military clan in Yihe. Qi Fengnian was a son-in-law, well-regarded on Xi Street. Han Laicai had pretended to buy wine and drink at the teahouse but was actually too poor to afford it, hiding in the back to listen to the storytelling. These matters were all carefully reviewed in the records after the bet between Song Yan and Wang Xihua. Wang Xihua selected the three within the span of an incense stick, and Song Yan nodded in agreement.”
Xu Fengnian stood up and said, “Wang Xihua believes in the inherent goodness of human nature, that everyone has compassion. Song Yan, on the other hand, studied under the doctrine of human nature as inherently evil. Their dispute is not about moral writings, but rather about the nature of the human heart beyond the pages of books. If I had to guess, Wang Xihua, the moralist, certainly lost, but not honorably. If the roles were reversed, and they searched among the wicked for good deeds, Song Yan would surely lose. But of course, Song Yan would never agree to such a bet.”
The head spy Liu hesitated for a moment but still gathered his courage to say, “In my humble opinion, Song Yan did not win dishonorably. Besides Cao Sheng, who was involved in two murders, both the wealthy merchant Qi Fengnian and the commoner Han Laicai were, by law, deserving of imprisonment.”
Xu Fengnian waved his hand, “In a place like Beiliang, chivalry is strong, but true righteousness is rare. It is easy to commit crimes, but hard to avoid them.”
The spy fell silent.
Xu Fengnian smiled, “This time, many families in Yihe City are busy reaping profits. Liu Jingxing, you might as well take some gold and silver from them as a reward for your brothers. There’s no reason for those who work hard to be left empty-handed while those who do nothing take all the advantages. I doubt they’ll dare to refuse to give up some of the spoils. However, I must make it clear to you in advance—this is only an exception, not a new rule for your future operations.”
Liu Jingxing grinned happily, still not showing the cunning one would expect from a sharp spy, but rather appearing more honest and simple. Who would have thought he was the kind of cold-hearted spy who would casually mention Song Yan and Wang Xihua by name? Xu Fengnian picked up his book again, and Liu Jingxing wisely took his leave. As he crossed the threshold and gently closed the door behind him, he caught a glimpse of a young girl from the corner of his eye, which startled him greatly. From beginning to end, Liu Jingxing had not noticed this girl at all. She wore a golden hairpin tilted on her head and was squatting beside a tall blue-and-white porcelain vase, staring at him. Liu Jingxing quickly averted his gaze, lowered his head, and shut the door completely.
Not long after Liu Jingxing left, Song Yan, still serving temporarily as Deputy Governor of Lingzhou, knocked on the door and entered. Xu Fengnian pointed with the book in his hand to the chair opposite the table. Song Yan sat down calmly. Xu Fengnian teased, “Our Master Wang really walked straight into your trap.”
Song Yan was not surprised that the spies had learned of the day’s events. In recent days, spies had been everywhere in Yihe City, and he and Wang Xihua were particularly conspicuous. Song Yan sighed a little helplessly, “Wang Xihua was originally considered one of the more adaptable civil officials in Beiliang. If even he is like this, it shows how difficult it will be to govern Beiliang.”
Xu Fengnian smiled at Hehe Girl and said, “Please bring us two pots of wine.”
The girl silently left and indeed returned with two pots of green ant wine. Xu Fengnian and Song Yan each took a pot. Xu Fengnian sighed, “I used to understand the difficulty of managing affairs, but only after actually sitting in this position did I truly realize how hard it is to be the one in charge. You have to struggle with people, with evil people like the Huang family of Yihe, and even with good people like Huang Shang and Wang Xihua. You have to struggle with heaven itself. In the past, listening to the rain and admiring the snow were joyful things, but now I have to consider the harvests and famines in my domain. Right now, I have a stack of secret letters to deal with. One says that Song Tanglu, a steward of the Prince’s Mansion, colluded with officials to alter his nephew’s clan ranking. The Lu family’s descendants have been accused of seizing farmland. When the matter was exposed, a senior member of the Lu family bought expensive calligraphy and paintings, only to discover they were forgeries. He refused to return them and threatened to cause trouble. A minor master of martial arts in Liangzhou got into a fight over a courtesan and killed the son of a military family. Neither party was innocent, and logically, both should be executed to avoid future problems. There’s also the younger son of the Deputy Commander-in-Chief Yu Tieshan, who fled to the neighboring Hezhou with stolen goods, carrying sixteen large chests of illegal gold and silver. He was detained by the border guards, and soon rumors spread that the soldiers had insulted his wife. There’s also a young officer favored by Gu Dazu, who was mysteriously beaten half to death outside the pass.”
Song Yan said calmly, “As long as there are families, there will be conflicts. Even between father and son, husband and wife, there can be friction. How much more so in a vast place like Beiliang?”
Xu Fengnian smiled, “From now on, all the major and minor affairs of Yizhou will be entrusted to you and the two officials, Hu Kui and Huangfu Ping, for your joint efforts. The Governor has always been on your side, saying that you, Song Yan, have the knowledge and ability but no opportunity to apply them. He hopes that by transferring you to Yizhou, you will finally have a place to use your talents.”
Song Yan nodded, “It is my duty to give my all.”
Xu Fengnian did not pick up the half-finished wine pot. He stood up and walked out of the study with Song Yan. After Song Yan took his leave, Xu Fengnian went to find Wang Xihua, who was temporarily staying in a side courtyard of the general’s residence. He told him that they were going to visit someone. Wang Xihua, puzzled, followed him out of the residence and into a carriage, leaving Yihe City and heading to the outskirts. There was an irrigation canal here, nurturing a lush expanse of reed marshes. Beiliang’s land was barren, but the reeds were versatile and valuable, earning them the title of “golden grass.” Near the reed marshes were several small villages clustered along the river. The spring breeze was cool, and the sunlight was warm. Walking along the narrow dirt path, the air was filled with the fragrance of fresh reeds. Groups of village children were picking tender shoots. Xu Fengnian and Wang Xihua slowly approached a small ferry by the river, where clusters of reeds swayed gracefully—a rare scene of tenderness and beauty in Beiliang.
Xu Fengnian held a green reed stem, hollow like a crude flute. Sitting on the ferry made of smooth stones, he blew a mournful tune. Wang Xihua did not sit, standing by the riverbank, thinking that the young prince might be dissatisfied with his bet with Song Yan, questioning his actions in Yizhou. But perhaps out of consideration for their former closeness, the prince had not used the usual political tricks to deal with him.
Xu Fengnian stopped playing the flute and looked up, pointing northeast with his hand, “There was a poor scholar from Beiliang who went to the capital seven years ago and finally made a name for himself. The year before last, he became a close aide to the emperor, serving as the Recorder of the Imperial Court. Last year, he was appointed as the Director of the Evaluation Bureau, assisting Minister Zhao Youling and the Crown Prince’s advisor Yin Maochun in conducting the capital’s official evaluations. This year, he is participating in the grand evaluation of the fourth-rank officials in the Liangyang provinces. In early spring, he secretly visited the south with the Crown Prince Zhao Zhuang, and upon returning to the capital, he married. The emperor personally granted him a mansion, and the Crown Prince and Crown Princess attended the wedding, bringing great honor. On the wedding night, with red candles and a red veil, the bride was a noble lady of the Zhao family. This scholar is destined for a meteoric rise, and even becoming a prime minister is within reach. In seven years, he sent only two secret letters to Beiliang—one about the selection of the Crown Prince and the other about the emperor’s health. Despite his great contributions to Beiliang, he only wrote two words at the end of each letter, asking Beiliang to relay a message to someone.”
Xu Fengnian paused and said calmly, “Don’t miss me.”
“Don’t wait.”
Wang Xihua sighed.
Xu Fengnian continued slowly, “Before this scholar rose to prominence, a spy from the Zhao family had been watching him for many years. So even those four simple words were never known to the one who longed for him.”
Wang Xihua asked softly, “Is that devoted woman still waiting?”
Xu Fengnian nodded and patted the stone beside him, “She used to see him off here when he went to the capital for the imperial exams. Since then, she has never married. When she missed him, she would come here to wait, because he had promised her in person that no matter whether he succeeded or not, he would return to marry her.”
Wang Xihua sincerely sighed, “Such a scholar and such a woman should have become a happy couple. Even if the King of Beiliang personally presided over their wedding, it would not be excessive.”
Xu Fengnian ignored him and said, “Since the end of last year, the woman has no longer come to the ferry to wait.”
Wang Xihua was stunned.
Xu Fengnian threw the hollow reed into the water. Without turning his head, he pointed to a distant spot near Wang Xihua, “She died in the reed marshes and was buried there.”
Xu Fengnian put his hands into his sleeves, “I came to Yizhou, to Yihe, to kill. In your heart, you accuse me of killing innocents. I think those nobles may be innocent, but none more so than this woman. Moreover, such women and such tragedies are countless in Yizhou. You scholars claim to work for the peace of the world, but I, Xu Fengnian, think that world peace is too far away. Peace nearby is close enough, and I must start with that.”
Wang Xihua turned pale.
Xu Fengnian stood up, shook his sleeves, and bowed toward a small grave in the reed marshes.
He turned and left, leaving Wang Xihua sitting in despair. Xu Fengnian said solemnly, “It is fortunate to be born human, but if one does not treat others as human, then one is not human oneself. In Beiliang, I will kill every such person I see.”
More than a hundred Yizhou warriors emerged from the reed marshes, thinking they had caught the lone Prince of Beiliang and could kill him on the spot.
Xu Fengnian stood with his hands behind his back and, in one breath, struck down all one hundred, splitting each in two.
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