Lyu Yunchang was greatly disappointed by the trip to Longqing County. His immortal master had merely shared a drink with that woman and chatted idly about trivial matters, without even a hint of romantic intrigue, let alone a grand battle against the underlings of the Fish Dragon Gang. Before leaving, Lyu Yunchang kept grumbling about how the female leader of the tenth most powerful sect in the realm was plain-looking and mediocre in cultivation. In short, he was trying to defend his immortal master’s honor, implying that he himself would not waste his energy on such an unremarkable woman. Surprisingly, Xu Fengnian, who usually disliked wasting words with Lyu Yunchang, shared some of his inner thoughts. He said that he wasn’t looking for a wife, and Liu Niron’s appearance was irrelevant. As for her talent in martial cultivation, it did not affect whether she was the female hero in his heart. When Lyu Yunchang heard this, he widened his eyes and exclaimed, “Does Liu Niron even qualify as a female hero?” Xu Fengnian rewarded the boy with a four-character evaluation: playing the zither to a cow.
Next, the master and his three apprentices headed for Liangzhou. Along the way, Xu Fengnian gradually taught Wang Sheng over ten rough sword forms, including Old Huang’s Nine Swords, the Old Man in the Sheepskin’s Two Swords, and Wen Hua’s One Sword. He allowed her to grasp the essence without delving too deeply into the details. He did not show favoritism to Wang Sheng, as the blade techniques he taught Lyu Yunchang were also top-notch, even sharing Gu Jiantang’s “Fang Cun Lei” without reservation. These two youths were both hardworking and silently competing, fearing they might fall behind the other. They practiced martial arts with great passion and intensity. However, it was evident that Lyu Yunchang’s progress was significantly faster than Wang Sheng’s. His rolling and dragging blade techniques had become highly proficient, showing hints of a grandmaster’s demeanor. Occasionally, when he overheard Xu Fengnian explaining the subtleties of sword techniques to Wang Sheng, he could even offer insightful observations based on his own understanding. In contrast, after Wang Sheng acknowledged Xu Fengnian as her master, for reasons unknown, her personality became increasingly reserved and taciturn, no longer as innocent and carefree as before. Perhaps it was due to the martial talent displayed by Lyu Yunchang, which caused the young girl to feel silent pressure. Xu Fengnian was fully aware of this but did not attempt to console or guide her through this heavy burden.
As they approached Liangzhou, Xu Fengnian rarely took the official roads, instead choosing remote paths where he had Wang Sheng and Lyu Yunchang take turns attacking him with their weapons. Comparatively, Lyu Yunchang naturally had more momentum (qi shi, momentum or aura). With his frosty long blade in hand, he was ready to fight to the death, not even fearing the heavens. He never held back when facing his immortal master, charging forward with full force. Wang Sheng, however, was somewhat inferior. Every time she unsheathed her Goose yellow (e er huang, a sword name), even if her techniques were about sixty to seventy percent accurate in form, her spirit and intent were only twenty to thirty percent, which was precisely contrary to Xu Fengnian’s expectations for her. Over time, Wang Sheng herself became aware of this issue. Her already dark and rugged face grew increasingly stiff. Each time she looked at Xu Fengnian’s calm expression, she hesitated to speak, feeling guilty and uneasy.
After passing the Huanghua Pass and traveling another ten miles, they would reach Liangzhou. Within the current Northern Liang Province, there were now fourteen garrison commanders stationed at fourteen key passes. Strategically, this was based on the theories of Gu Dazu, the pioneer of military strategy, who proposed a system of beacon towers, watchtowers, and fortresses spaced at intervals of five, ten, thirty, and one hundred li respectively. Previously, Northern Liang was not lacking in these structures; in fact, their numbers were quite substantial. However, they were mostly disorganized and, in times of war, often failed to coordinate effectively. Now, with slightly reduced numbers, the defensive situation in Northern Liang had become much clearer. Huanghua Pass was one of these fourteen key passes, guarded by the seasoned commander Li Maozhen with three thousand elite soldiers. Li Maozhen was a cautious and reliable general, deeply trusted by the old Prince of Liang. Otherwise, Xu Xiao would not have entrusted him with guarding the eastern gate of Liangzhou.
The Huaiyuan Gate of this pass was a favorite among generations of frontier poets. The gate symbolized the imperial court’s benevolence and far-reaching influence, stabilizing the western frontier. The dark green walls extending from both sides of the gate resembled a dragon winding through the desert and Gobi. The dragon’s head connected northward to the red rock mountains of Sheyan Mountain, where the beacon tower known as the “Number One Beacon in the World,” Suoyin Beacon, was located. In the past, Huanghua Pass welcomed bustling markets, especially on the first and fifteenth days of each lunar month, when crowds gathered and the area was lively and prosperous. However, since becoming one of the fourteen key passes, Huanghua Pass had become much quieter. Trade caravans traveling through the northwest regions of the empire had to detour, causing widespread complaints. As a result, the aging commander Li Maozhen submitted a memorial to Qingliang Mountain, requesting the reopening of the city gates and military farming. With three thousand elite soldiers, he believed they could sustain themselves without relying on military pay from Liangzhou, and even support the border troops. At that time, Xu Fengnian was not at the Prince’s Mansion (Wangfu, Prince’s residence), and there was some debate among the The Crimson-Editing Hanlin (Pi Hong Hanlin, officials responsible for reviewing memorials) in the Phoenix Tree Courtyard (Wutong Yuan, Phoenix Tree Courtyard). Finally, Lu Chengyan, who had replaced Lüyi in the Wutong Yuan, made the final decision to reject Commander Li’s memorial. It was said that the venerable and still vigorous Commander Li was so enraged that he nearly resigned and retired, openly cursing the women of the Wutong Yuan who, despite their long hair and short sight, had taken control but knew nothing of the hardships of life, warning that they would eventually drain the Prince’s Mansion’s resources. Even the young prince was not spared, as the old commander muttered, “A beardless youth cannot be trusted to handle matters properly.”
Six or seven elite light cavalry galloped out of the Huanghua Pass, surrounding an elderly man in civilian clothes with white hair. The old man stopped his horse at a farmstead outside the city, squatting by the field, sighing deeply. Although the Northern Liang Circuit had imitated the imperial court’s Ministry of Works to establish a new Tuntian Bureau responsible for all military farming within its territory, in the eyes of this official, well-versed in bureaucratic customs, it was merely a reluctant measure by the new Prince of Liang to accommodate scholars from other regions. The essence of military farming lay in the words “defensive cultivation,” and once handed over to outsiders, it would inevitably become a tool for exploitation and corruption. However, the old man was still a subject of Northern Liang, how could he truly confront the Liang Prince’s Mansion? Fortunately, the young scholar who headed the Tuntian Bureau, though wearing the rank of an external official, had not yet extended his hands too far. Though inexperienced in agricultural affairs, his subordinates were competent and diligent. The new settlers who had migrated from the fourth state of Northern Liang, Liuzhou, were also obedient and peaceful. Thus, the old man had to reluctantly accept the situation, or else he might have taken the bold action of driving them out with his troops.
The old man had not been at the farm for long when several young officials arrived in haste. The leader was a young man wearing the eighth-grade yellow oriole insignia, followed by two ninth-grade quail insignia officials. Though their ranks were not high, they held real power. The eighth-grade official was one of the six assistant commissioners of the Northern Liang Tuntian Bureau, named Liu Gongren. The other five colleagues were stationed at the border, while he alone was responsible for the agricultural affairs of Liang and You provinces. It was said that this was because the Tuntian Bureau feared Li Maozhen, the “cone in the bag,” so Liu Gongren was implicated and had to remain in the interior instead of going to the border to showcase his ambitions. After Liu Gongren arrived, besides surveying the land, he had visited the General’s Mansion several times with formal invitations, but the powerful commander Li Maozhen, who held a nominal general title, gave the young man no face at all, always refusing him at the gate. After the emergence of the Northern Liang’s Fourteen Commanders, it was as if the region had become a patchwork of warlords, with most of them being new faces. The arrogant old man squatting by the field, turning his back to Liu Gongren, was none other than the backbone of Huanghua Pass, the weak-string commander Li Maozhen.
The old man ignored Liu Gongren’s bureaucratic pleasantries, snorted coldly without even looking up, and sarcastically remarked, “Minister Liu, you really have the leisure to come all the way here to cozy up to this old general. Aren’t you afraid of delaying the great agricultural work of the two provinces? Or is it that you think befriending a weak-string commander will help you climb the ranks in your future career?”
The two young assistant commissioners, who were about the same age as their superior, were furious upon hearing this and were about to speak out when Liu Gongren, with a dry mouth and cracked lips, waved them off. He took a few steps forward, intending to sit beside the old man, but was blocked by a strong attendant wielding a knife. Liu Gongren smiled, and after some consideration, the attendant, probably feeling that this seventh-grade official’s eyes were clear and that he couldn’t muster hatred against him, hesitated and stepped aside, allowing Liu Gongren to sit by the field next to the old man. He shook his official robe and adjusted his collar. It turned out that the assistant commissioner was drenched in sweat, his fingernails caked with dirt, and his official insignia stained with dust. Li Maozhen, with his sharp eyes, caught another flaw at a glance and sneered, “Minister Liu, what a fine official you are! Wearing your official robe while working in the fields—who would still think you’re idle and ignorant of the five grains? Or are you just afraid others won’t recognize you as a seventh-grade official?”
Liu Gongren smiled calmly and said, “Wearing official robes while working is not only uncomfortable but also cumbersome. However, if I didn’t wear them, I would be driven out of the farmland by your old general’s tiger and wolf soldiers.”
Li Maozhen frowned but said nothing.
At that moment, several attendants who had followed Li Maozhen out of the city became alert. On the path by the field, three suspicious figures slowly approached. When the two groups were about ten meters apart, the young nobleman with empty hands smiled and asked, “Is that Li Maozhen?”
Li Maozhen, whose name was called directly, turned his head and looked at the faintly familiar and refined face. His heart was in turmoil, but he was somewhat uncertain. Li Maozhen was an old general of Northern Liang and naturally remembered the unparalleled beauty of the late Princess of Northern Liang, Lady Wu. But how could the old man believe that the young man before him was really her?
The young man standing beside two sword-carrying and knife-bearing youths smiled and said, “Li Maozhen, now that you’re standing in front of me, you don’t scold people anymore?”
Hearing this teasing remark, Li Maozhen immediately recognized the person’s identity. He quickly stood up and was about to kneel to pay homage. However, the scholar-like young man had somehow already walked to Li Maozhen’s side and sat down next to the old man, one on each side of him, alongside Assistant Commissioner Liu Gongren. Li Maozhen’s several cavalry attendants were startled and were about to protect him when Li Maozhen ordered them to retreat and return to the city first.
Liu Gongren and the two assistant commissioners from the Tuntian Bureau, who had been standing all this time, were completely baffled.
Li Maozhen was visibly moved and didn’t know what to say. The old man wasn’t really foolish. With the Prince of Northern Liang sitting beside him, he wouldn’t dare to scold him even if he had ten hearts of a bear and a leopard. Besides, he had already regretted his harsh words after submitting the memorial. In fact, if the young prince had personally responded to his memorial instead of letting the women of the Wutong Courtyard handle it, he wouldn’t have argued back even if the Prince of Northern Liang had scolded him mercilessly.
The visitor was naturally Xu Fengnian. He leaned over Li Maozhen and looked at Liu Gongren, who wore the eighth-grade official insignia, and smiled, saying, “You must be Assistant Commissioner Liu, who once studied at the Shangyin Academy. You two continue your conversation; I’ll just listen.”
Liu Gongren mistakenly thought this person was a local power broker feared even by General Li, a scion of a prominent military family in Liangzhou. But since he was here, he decided to take the opportunity to explain to the old commander why the Northern Liang Circuit had “unnecessarily” established the Tuntian Bureau. However, before the young official could speak, Li Maozhen turned his head and glared at him fiercely, saying, “The Prince is sitting beside you, personally supporting you. What reason do you have to argue with this old man? From now on, I will strictly discipline those subordinates who deliberately make things difficult for the Tuntian Bureau. If you, Assistant Commissioner, encounter any further difficulties, you can directly enter the Gu You General’s Mansion within the pass.”
Liu Gongren and the two young scholar-officials behind him were shocked and stunned. Xu Fengnian raised his head and gestured with a smile, saying, “Everyone, sit down and talk.”
They all sat side by side on the edge of the field. Except for Li Maozhen, who managed to maintain a calm expression, everyone else, including Liu Gongren, was restless and filled with an uncontrollable excitement.
In the bureaucratic world, advancement is like climbing through layers of barriers, with no end in sight. Even high-ranking officials like the six ministry heads, who are pillars of the empire, are often out of reach for local officials. Even those who attend court meetings may never get close enough to these great figures, let alone exchange a few words with them. But apart from the Chief Minister Zhang Julu and Gu Jiantang, the feudal princes who rule vast territories are even rarer than these imperial pillars.
These scholars who had come to Liangzhou had already heard many stories about the new Prince of Liangzhou. Unlike his previously notorious reputation, the current rumors increasingly spoke of the young prince’s remarkable feats. But even if Xu Fengnian were an incapable figure, as long as he was the master of Northern Liang, he would inevitably be supported by formidable military talents like Chu Luxian, Yuan Zuozong, and Yan Wenluan.
Seeing that none of them were willing to speak, Xu Fengnian smiled and asked, “Minister Liu, how many miles have you walked since becoming an assistant commissioner?”
Liu Gongren respectfully replied, “Your humble servant has served as an assistant commissioner of the Tuntian Bureau for more than two months. I don’t know exactly how many miles I’ve walked, but I’ve already gone through four pairs of boots.”
Li Maozhen said softly, “Assistant Commissioner Liu, this eighth-grade official, is somewhat different from the previous corrupt officials in Northern Liang. I have looked into his background. Since taking office, he has not acquired any private residences or kept any servants. However, it’s also possible that he hasn’t yet become familiar with the intricacies of officialdom and hasn’t dared to get involved too early, for fear of ruining his future prospects.”
Liu Gongren smiled bitterly and muttered, “General Li, is that a compliment or a criticism?”
Xu Fengnian said, “With Li Maozhen’s bad temper, if he doesn’t directly criticize you, it’s all considered a compliment.”
Li Maozhen smiled slightly and nodded with a hint of self-satisfaction.
Suddenly, Xu Fengnian addressed Li Maozhen as “General Li” and asked, “Are these new officials like Liu Gongren, who have come from outside, relatively satisfactory?”
Li Maozhen grunted and said, “At the very least, they can be considered honest officials for the next three to four years. Compared to those who used to occupy positions without doing any real work, they are definitely much better.”
Xu Fengnian muttered to himself, “That’s enough.”
Li Maozhen suddenly asked cautiously, “Your Highness, shall we switch seats? I dare not sit in the central position. I always feel like Your Highness is being polite first before taking action, perhaps intending to remove my official cap?”
Xu Fengnian joked, “Xu Xiao once said that you Li Maozhen have a strong desire for official rank, which is why he specially requested from the court to secure you a quota of four for the title of You General. It seems that this is indeed the case.”
Li Maozhen laughed heartily and said, “How can one lead troops into battle without holding a high rank? I know my own worth, otherwise I would have asked Your Highness for the position of a Grand Commander.”
Xu Fengnian said softly, “There will be plenty of battles to fight soon.”
Li Maozhen was momentarily stunned, then smiled knowingly and said, “According to our old tradition, whenever a major battle is imminent, the Xu family’s iron cavalry always establishes temporary vanguard and assault units. Count me in. After all, the Great General promised me that the title of You General can be inherited. I have no other wishes left. My eldest son, Li Houshi, leads troops no worse than I do. Entrusting Huanghua Pass to him, Your Highness can rest assured.”
Xu Fengnian smiled and said, “Xu Xiao died peacefully in his bed, and you, Li Maozhen, have already seen four generations of your family. Why go to the border to join the chaos?”
Li Maozhen’s voice deepened, “Then let this be my final ride along the border for the Great General. As the strategist Li Yishan once said, we must always remind those northern barbarians of one thing: they must remember where the Xu family’s doorstep is, for that is where the gate of the empire of Liyang stands!”
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