"Have you heard? As soon as Prince Qi passed through Luming County, sweet rain fell from the heavens."
"Is that true? It sounds almost too miraculous. Could Prince Qi truly be a harbinger of fortune?"
At the Morning Court of Da Yin, held during the mao hour, officials had already gathered by the yin hour and three quarters, waiting in the hall. Acquaintances whispered among themselves.
"Does this mean the abbot of Fahua Temple has some real power? My wife goes to Fahua Temple every month to pray and make offerings, and I used to laugh at her for wasting her efforts. Now I realize her wisdom."
"Do you remember that rare flower discovered during the autumn hunt a few years ago? It was on the verge of withering, but after Prince Qi merely touched it, the flower revived two months later."
"Wasn’t that the work of the Imperial Flora Department? The Chief Florist has revived more than one type of flower, and many others touched it at the time…"
"Ah, but others are others—how could they compare to Prince Qi? No matter how skilled the Chief Florist is, without the prince’s touch, that flower would not have survived. Remember this, and say so when His Majesty arrives."
Sure enough, once the Morning Court began, those with keen perception stepped forward to ease the emperor’s worries, delighting the imperial heart.
"Your Majesty, Yuzhou has long suffered drought without rain. Prince Qi, following Your Majesty’s decree to provide relief, had only just passed through Luming when sweet rain poured down, nourishing the common people. This is surely heaven’s protection, using Your Majesty’s beloved son, Prince Qi, to affirm Your Majesty’s achievements and demonstrate Your Majesty’s benevolence toward the people and wisdom in governing the nation."
Those nearby were astounded. How could someone speak so eloquently? They had only thought to praise Prince Qi, but this colleague managed to extend it to the emperor himself—no wonder he rose through the ranks so quickly.
Take note, take note.
The emperor laughed heartily. "Prince Qi has performed meritorious service in disaster relief. By Our decree, he shall be rewarded with a carriage and horses of gold, ten fine steeds, and may choose three treasures from the inner treasury!"
All officials bowed in unison. "Your Majesty is benevolent and virtuous. Prince Qi, having personally received Your Majesty’s sacred instruction, demonstrates the unity between ruler and ministers and the harmony with heaven’s will! We, your humble officials, are honored to serve in court and respectfully congratulate Your Majesty and the state!"
As Prince Qi was not in Shengjing, an imperial messenger was dispatched posthaste to Yuzhou to convey the emperor’s sacred decree.
After the Morning Court concluded and the emperor departed, the other ministers gradually dispersed.
The Crown Prince, brimming with satisfaction, was surrounded by a crowd of sycophantic officials, basking in the limelight for a time.
No one regarded Prince Qi as a threat to the Crown Prince. Prince Qi and the Crown Prince were born of the same mother. Of course, in the imperial family, kinship might not count for much, but this also meant they shared the same maternal relatives and external influence.
Prince Qi was eight years younger than the Crown Prince. By the time Prince Qi was born, the Crown Prince’s network of interests had already been established. Barring unforeseen circumstances, they would not abandon the Crown Prince to support Prince Qi instead.
Moreover, the Crown Prince, as the eldest legitimate son, held the rightful claim according to ancestral law.
Fortunately, Prince Qi and the Crown Prince had always maintained good relations. Prince Qi himself was part of the Crown Prince’s faction, and any favor he received would translate into support for the Crown Prince. The moment had not yet come when they would have to choose between the two.
The Minister of Personnel muttered to the Vice Minister, "Weren’t both princes sent out this time? His Majesty’s actions—rewarding only Prince Qi—what must the Sixth Prince be thinking?"
The Vice Minister glanced around in alarm, lowering his voice. "Minister, how dare you speak so freely? His Majesty dislikes the Sixth Prince. If someone overhears and reports you to His Majesty, think how unjustly you would suffer!"
"I know, I'm not foolish enough to make it public." The Minister of Personnel also lowered his voice, sighing, "It's just that occasionally I feel the Sixth Prince is quite pitiful."
The Sixth Prince joined the military at fourteen. Even children from military families rarely went to the battlefield so young. It was simply because he lacked maternal clan support and did not enjoy the emperor's favor.
After guarding the border for two years, he had barely rested upon returning when he received an edict to go to Yuzhou for disaster relief.
In truth, everyone knew this disaster relief mission was purely to accumulate merit for Prince Qi. The emperor had dispatched capable officials separately, so there was no need for the two young and inexperienced princes to do any actual work.
But the purpose of sending the Sixth Prince was simply to have him serve as a guard.
After all, the Sixth Prince excelled in military strategy. With him present, the emperor and the Crown Prince could feel more at ease about Prince Qi's safety.
The Minister of Personnel said pityingly, "If he weren't a prince, if he had been born into another noble family… or even if he came from an ordinary background, with the merits he earned through real battles these past two years, his future achievements wouldn't be lacking."
Prince Qi was the seventh among the princes and princesses, two months younger than the Sixth Prince, yet he had already been granted a fiefdom and a title.
Pitifully, the Sixth Prince had guarded the border for two years, repeatedly wounded and bloodied, with only a few rewards, nothing more than some gold and silver.
"But he has bad luck." The Vice Minister sighed, delivering his judgment. "He has no one behind him."
Shen Mingyuan sneezed.
Lu Shaozhi poured him a cup of warm water. "A cold?"
"No." Shen Mingyuan rubbed his nose, uncertain. "Maybe someone is talking about me."
Lu Shaozhi gave an "mm" but didn't inquire further, burying his head again in the complicated official duties on his desk.
Originally, managing the small county of Luming had been relatively easy for him. But after meeting Shen Mingyuan, in just a few days, he suddenly had a lot of work to do. Having lived half his life with ease, Lu Shaozhi was experiencing for the first time the state of being startled awake from sleep just by thinking of the word "official duties."
He rubbed his temples and looked up, dark circles under his eyes. "The medicinal herbs need time to mature. Are you forming a merchant caravan now?"
"Of course." Shen Mingyuan flicked his wrist, and the folding fan snapped open with a crisp sound. "Lord Lu, have some ambition, will you? How much money can be made selling herbs from just Luming County? Jiangnan's silk, Guangzhou's tea industry, Ruyue's porcelain, and the indispensable grain—these are the trades that can extract silver from the nobility."
"Alright, alright, Master Shen, you have ambition, you want to do great things." Lu Shaozhi lacked the energy to argue, only asking indignantly, "But why am I the one doing all these tasks?!"
He had only slept a total of four hours in the past two days!
Shen Mingyuan waved his folding fan. "Where did the initial capital come from?"
Lu Shaozhi was speechless. "You wore your jade pendant and made a round at the banquets of wealthy merchants in nearby cities, and they personally brought gifts to your door."
Shen Mingyuan waved his fan again. "Where did the people for the merchant caravan come from?"
Lu Shaozhi mumbled meekly, "You personally selected and trained people from the refugees waiting for porridge outside the city."
Shen Mingyuan asked, "I provided the money and the people. So who should handle these miscellaneous tasks now?"
Lu Shaozhi wilted. "I'll do it. Master Shen, you rest."
Lu Shaozhi continued writing with a bitter expression. Finally, he suddenly realized something was off.
He angrily raised his brush, then feared splattering ink, so he held his breath and glanced around his desk. Picking up a book, he hurled it at Shen Mingyuan: "This was your business from the start! I don’t have such grand ambitions—I just want to raise Luming!"
Shen Mingyuan reached out and caught the book thrown at him, sighing regretfully: "Ah, you caught me."
"Shen! Ming! Yuan!"
"Don’t be angry. You’re not as cute as when we first met. You didn’t object when I proposed this plan back then, and given our relationship, isn’t my ambition also yours?"
Lu Shaozhi sneered coldly.
But at this point, Lu Shaozhi suddenly remembered something.
He asked Shen Mingyuan, "Back then, you said you had three strategies—superior, moderate, and inferior. I regret it now. Is it still possible to choose the moderate one?"
"Of course," Shen Mingyuan replied with a beaming smile. "Digging canals to manage floods and dredging river channels—this plan is good, but its effects are slow. It would require generations of sustained effort to succeed. Let’s wait until peace and prosperity reign, and the rivers run clear, before undertaking such a task."
This wasn’t something Lu Shaozhi could accomplish now either; it would require the support of a powerful imperial dynasty.
Unwilling to give up, he asked, "What about the inferior strategy?"
Shen Mingyuan smiled at him and said leisurely, "The inferior strategy… War and plunder are the best means to accumulate resources. Amidst famine and chaos, rally a group of displaced people, overthrow tyranny, and rebel against the Da Yin court."
Lu Shaozhi was startled, unable to tell whether Shen Mingyuan was joking.
Shen Mingyuan said, "It’s a joke."
Just as Lu Shaozhi breathed a sigh of relief, Shen Mingyuan added, "I’m not planning to act that quickly at the moment."
Not planning at the moment? So he truly harbored rebellious intentions?
Lu Shaozhi felt like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, instantly bristling: "You… you… what exactly do you want to do?"
He closed his eyes in anguish, nearly despairing as he realized he seemed to have boarded a pirate ship. Even knowing Shen Mingyuan’s treacherous ambitions, he had no intention of reporting him.
Lu Shaozhi took a deep breath: "Don’t act impulsively. Although natural disasters are frequent, the world isn’t in chaos yet. I know you pride yourself on your talent, but you have no soldiers or authority. If discovered, it would be a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations!"
Shen Mingyuan blinked, soothing him: "Don’t be nervous. I really don’t plan to rebel. I already said this is the inferior strategy. Am I the kind of person who would abandon the superior strategy for the inferior one?"
Lu Shaozhi frowned: "What is your real goal?"
"I can’t say now," Shen Mingyuan smiled. "You’ll find out eventually."
Lu Shaozhi pondered to himself: "You’re not Prince Qi’s man, or you wouldn’t have used his name to swindle money, showing such disregard for reputation. You’re not the Crown Prince’s man either, or you wouldn’t target Prince Qi. Yet you’re clearly trying to establish connections with the imperial family… If you say you’re not rebelling, then you can’t possibly be trying to participate in the struggle for the throne, can you?"
Lu Shaozhi was startled by his own speculation and asked dryly, "Which prince do you serve?"
Shen Mingyuan neither confirmed nor denied, maintaining a mysterious smile.
He blinked: "Guess."
"…Forget it, I won’t bother with you anymore." Lu Shaozhi had never been able to see through Shen Mingyuan, nor did he intend to delve into his secrets.
He hadn’t known Shen Mingyuan for long. To claim that their friendship had grown so deep in just a few days that they were inseparable and willing to die for each other would be an exaggeration.
However, from a perspective of cherishing talent, he did not wish for Shen Mingyuan to come to harm.
Shen Mingyuan was a Kunpeng—given but a gust of wind, he could soar among the clouds.
It was Da Yin that had failed him.
Lu Shaozhi changed the subject: “Have you thought of a name for the merchant guild?”
“It needs a name?” Shen Mingyuan pondered for a moment. “Then let it be called… Yan Gui.”
*Leaves fall, wild geese head south;
North winds chill the river’s flow.
My home lies by Xiang’s winding shore,
Far beyond the clouds of Chu.*
Autumn geese fly southward, as wanderers long for home.
This was the first gift he had prepared for Yun Shen. One day, Yun Shen would understand the meaning behind this merchant guild’s name.
Chosen solely for him.
“Yan Gui?” Lu Shaozhi muttered, “Neither here nor there.”
He wrote it down on the letter paper, his movements almost reverent, as if offering a prayer.
*May you grow wings,
And transform into the northern sea’s fish.*
—Fly, wild goose.
Author’s Note:
*Leaves fall, wild geese head south;
North winds chill the river’s flow.
My home lies by Xiang’s winding shore,
Far beyond the clouds of Chu.*
—Meng Haoran, “Thoughts on an Early Cold River”
Shen Mingyuan: Yun Shen, from now on, you no longer need to be so strong-willed!