Chapter 29: Meeting My Lord
“Officialdom?” Yang Xuan was puzzled.
“Yes,” Cao Ying replied with a gentle smile. “After the Crown Prince departed, the Emperor and Empress regretted their actions and posthumously honored him as Emperor. But who did their anger fall upon?”
“The Crown Prince’s confidants.” Cao Ying answered his own question. “Sir... I’d better address you as ‘Master,’ lest I confuse you with Lady Yi later. Master was unjustly wronged and has suffered beneath the earth; Yang Lue killed too many skilled men from Jingtai and the palace back then, and it’s hard to forgive. Unless the Emperor pardons him.”
“Is that possible?” To Yang Xuan, Yang Lue was more like family.
While the old man who sacrificed himself for the Emperor seemed a stranger.
Cao Ying shook his head. “Hard. Unless... you become a high official. Do you know what a high official can do?”
Yang Xuan narrowed his eyes, silent.
This master is no fool!
Cao Ying, who had worried Yang Xuan from the countryside might be too honest, felt secretly delighted. “A high official can forge alliances and wield influence; even the sovereign must take him seriously, sometimes even compromise. When that time comes, it will be possible to resolve this matter.”
“To reach the rank of Left Chancellor?”
“Yes.”
“How many years would that take? Can Yang Lue live to see it?”
Outside the kitchen, Lady Yi, carrying a wooden basin, glanced over with worry.
Cao Ying sighed. “After the former Emperor ascended the throne, all those close to the late Emperor were suppressed. We were fortunate to disperse early, but even so, we couldn’t enter officialdom and had to be wary of further purges. Lady Yi fled to a Daoist temple, I retreated to the countryside, Yang Lue escaped to Southern Zhou... Master, we must protect ourselves.”
“What do you mean?” Yang Xuan sensed something more.
“We, the fallen, are of little concern, but what about our descendants?” Cao Ying sighed, tears shimmering in his eyes. “I withdrew to the countryside so as not to implicate my children, yet recently I learned my grandchildren can’t even attend school.”
“This...” Yang Xuan thought of Yan City. His own children might well be targeted for revenge by the Five Great Families, which was why Zhao Sanfu had been keeping an eye on the situation.
“We cannot serve as officials, cannot influence politics. Our only hope is you.”
Cao Ying’s tears fell.
“You want me to enter officialdom?”
“Yes,” Cao Ying said gently. “Students from the Imperial Academy can become officials. You’re admitted, that’s fate.”
Yang Xuan pondered deeply.
“I am dull-witted...”
Cao Ying seemed to hear the greatest joke. “If you were dull-witted, could you have befriended the Wang clan? Could you have entered the Imperial Academy?”
Yang Xuan was a little embarrassed. “That was luck.”
Had it not been for luck, he could not have met the Wang clan nor entered the Academy.
Lady Yi walked behind him, speaking softly, “Master, your identity is in question. If you wish to clear everything, you must either flee to Southern Zhou or Northern Liao, or... carve out your own path!”
Cao Ying stroked his beard, seeming to shine with light in that moment. “Often, luck is a form of strength.”
“Let’s eat.”
Lady Yi brought out the stewed lamb. The three ate in silence, each with worries weighing heavily.
“What will Master decide?” After the meal, Cao Ying and Lady Yi strolled slowly in the courtyard.
“I do not know,” Lady Yi sighed. “Perhaps we’ve been too impatient.”
Cao Ying shook his head. “Chang’an feels strange.”
“You’ve noticed?”
“The guards at the city gate have changed before their usual rotation,” Cao Ying’s eyes grew cold for the first time. “There are differing voices within the Golden Guards, and the Five Great Families are reaching everywhere. Why would the Emperor replace the gate guards?”
“There’s only one possibility.” Lady Yi sneered. “He fears for his life!”
“Who could threaten his life?”
Their eyes flashed with schadenfreude.
“The Five Great Families and their vassals.”
Lady Yi lowered her head. “Do you think Master will refuse?”
Cao Ying shook his head. “He might.”
“Then... what should we do?” The strong Lady Yi seemed suddenly helpless, like a young girl.
Cao Ying stood with his hands behind his back, calmly saying, “I have my ways, and I guarantee Master will agree.”
“What ways?” Lady Yi clenched her fists. If this hypocrite dared deceive her, blood would be spilled.
Cao Ying replied sincerely, “Though we’ve only spent half a day together, I can see Master... values affection.”
Lady Yi nodded. “So what? If you dare exploit that—I'll castrate you alive!”
Cao Ying’s legs trembled slightly. “Your wisdom is not sufficient to discuss such matters with me.”
Lady Yi’s hand gripped her sword at her waist.
Her seductive eyes now glinted with menace.
Cao Ying sighed, “Let me borrow your sword later.”
“What for?” Lady Yi was puzzled.
Cao Ying placed his right hand as a blade against his neck. “Tell me, if I place the sword at my throat and threaten to kill myself should Master refuse, what then?”
“You truly are shameless, exploiting Master’s compassion.”
Lady Yi beamed, “Just pull hard when you do it.”
Inside, Yang Xuan wore headphones.
“I don’t quite believe what they say.”
“If there’s anyone I trust in this world, it’s Yang Lue.”
“Yang Lue gave his ring to Lady Yi, which means he knows what they plan.”
“Yang Lue wanted me to live in Little River Village all my life. He even picked out a wife for me, a scholar’s daughter... That scholar likely failed in life, but his daughter is probably educated, capable of managing the household, and able to teach the children to read... In time, I’d become a village gentry. This was likely Yang Lue’s or my unknown father’s arrangement.”
Yang Xuan touched the small earbud, feeling awkward.
The green light was blinking.
“But I still came to Chang’an.” Yang Xuan was troubled. “Lady Yi and the others probably want to form a small group, with me as the leader, and then support me as I rise through officialdom... But what then? To reach the point where I can intervene in Yang Lue’s affairs, it would take at least twenty years.”
The green light stayed on.
“I wish to refuse and leave Chang’an. But whenever I think of Yang Lue in Southern Zhou... the Jingtai people could attack him at any time. How can I live at ease, carefree, without guilt?”
“I’ve thought of countless reasons to refuse, yet only one reason overturns them all.”
“Yang Lue spent fifteen years watching over me, neglecting his own best years... He still waits, hoping to see me safe and prosperous.”
“Do you think I’m foolish?”
The voice of Vermilion Bird came through the headphones.
“Yes!”
Yang Xuan scratched his head. “But after making this decision, I feel happy. No matter how tough the road ahead, my heart feels at peace.”
“At peace.” The green light flashed furiously, like a child banging his head over an unsolvable problem.
Yang Xuan walked out.
He looked at Lady Yi and Cao Ying.
He spoke in a calm voice.
“I accept.”
The two beneath the tree slowly knelt.
“Greetings, Master.”
Yang Xuan frowned. “Why kneel?”
Lady Yi whispered, “Quick, respond.”
The two rose, and Cao Ying spoke softly, “In this group, there must be a leader. The first time, we must pay respect.”
The first time...
But why does it look so practiced? Yang Xuan sighed inwardly. “There happens to be something.”
He needed to test Cao Ying’s abilities.
“Please speak, Master.”
“I’m studying at the Imperial Academy, and must also pursue the mission to hunt down Southern Zhou spies in Wannian County. So, what’s the next step?”
Cao Ying answered almost instantly, “The Imperial Academy must not be neglected. Most students there have backgrounds. No need to ingratiate yourself; since your origins are humble, the more you bow, the more they’ll look down on you.”
+1 point.
Yang Xuan nodded.
Master’s leadership qualities were growing more apparent.
Lady Yi beside him looked gratified.
Cao Ying gazed at Yang Xuan kindly. “Master’s only option at the Academy is to stand out. By the way, how is your cultivation?”
“Decent.” Yang Xuan didn’t know his exact level, but it wasn’t bad.
Cao Ying nodded. “That gives us greater advantage. I also investigated after entering the city and learned the Emperor and the Five Great Families seem to be plotting.”
“The current Emperor is ruthless. During the late reign of the Empress, he led an assault on the palace and managed to install Li Yuan—the current Supreme Emperor—on the throne. Two years later, he stormed the palace again, and Li Yuan abdicated for him. Such a ruler sees nothing but power, not the Five Great Families.”
Cao Ying analyzed, “Since Li Yuan’s ascension, he has been purging the supporters of Emperor Xuande and Emperor Wu; the late Emperor’s followers were among them. The current Emperor continues this pattern.”
“A new ruler, a new court,” Yang Xuan remarked.
Cao Ying’s eyes lit up. “Master summarizes it well.”
It’s from a novel, Yang Xuan smiled.
“Since the founding of the Great Tang, rulers and the Five Great Families have cooperated most of the time, sometimes clashing in secret. Though the Emperor is supreme, the vast power behind the Five Great Families often renders him powerless. So his approach is... cooperation, confrontation, confrontation within cooperation.”
A clear explanation.
Yang Xuan nodded slightly.
Cao Ying confidently continued, “I also know the Emperor seems dissatisfied with the Left Chancellor. That’s a hint.”
Yang Xuan asked, “What hint?”
“The Emperor has been on the throne three years and secured his position. Now he wants one thing: more power. The Five Great Families united are hard to move; the best opponent is the Left Chancellor and company.”
“The Left Chancellor has allied with the Wang clan and the Imperial Academy, and has some old associates. But since the Emperor has hinted, the other Four Families will likely swarm in. Chang’an is about to stir.”
This was the current backdrop.
Lady Yi added, “The Crown Princess was the Left Chancellor’s daughter.”
“Master is now just an inconspicuous student, perfect for muddying the waters,” Cao Ying’s eyes gleamed. “Master, clearing out Southern Zhou spies is an opportunity to accumulate merit.”
“Master can build a foundation at the Academy while earning merit in Wannian County. When the time comes, it will lead to promotion.”
“You all hope I achieve merit.”
Yang Xuan appeared a little displeased.
Cao Ying was about to explain.
Yang Xuan said, “There happens to be an opportunity.”
Cao Ying’s eyes lit up. “Please speak, Master.”
Yang Xuan said, “Today I uncovered over ten crates of treasure. I have some merit.”
Cao Ying’s eyelids twitched and he replied cautiously, “Master, this merit... though not small, is still insufficient.”
Why not just say it’s minor?
Yang Xuan continued, “But I’ve recalled something odd. If I can prove those treasures were intentionally placed by someone, what merit would that be?”
Cao Ying narrowed his eyes. “If you can trace more spy activity, it would undoubtedly be a great achievement!”