Joy of Life

Chapter 407: The Same Sky

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The big tree in the Shazhou side garden was very unfortunate. It had been used by Fan Xian, who was wielding the Emperor’s sword, to let out his princely anger and had lost countless layers of bark. The young imperial envoy was indeed very angry, but it was also impossible for him to show an angry face in front of his wife. He also couldn’t immediately charge to Shangjing in Northern Qi to curse his own sister’s teacher, so he had to find some way to let out his anger.

Fan Xian was not one of those boring bosses that liked to hit and criticize his subordinates to relieve his stress. Coincidently, in his previous life, when he was lying in bed reading “The Reader,” he had once read a heart-wrenching story and had cried buckets. In this life, he learned from the male protagonist in that story.

The love-struck male protagonist was often mistreated by his wife and had endured it for countless years. Always, in the middle of the night, he would slip out and smash trees beside the river, seeking from it some balance in his heart.

Fan Xian did not smash trees. He used proper Sigu Sword technique to carve at the trees. As he carved, he gritted his teeth tightly.

Once the trees had become old in one night, had their clothing completely shredded, and showed their petty and naked figures, Fan Xian and his group sat in the carriage and left, returning to the Peng manor beside West Lake.

...

...

There were a number of people waiting beside West Lake for the imperial envoy and Princess. Although it was not convenient for the Suzhou’s two inspector generals to come personally, the Hangzhou Zhizhou that Fan Xian secretly approved of was not modest at all. He had closed off one-third of the long bank beside the West Lake for the convenience of the Fan family carriage entering. He also led a host of subordinates in, terrified that the two important figures felt any displeasure.

As for this fawning, Fan Xian very comfortable accepted it. After all, Wan’er’s body was not well and indeed did need quiet. After everyone had gathered in the manor, Sisi and the Teng family wife helped Wan’er to go rest. Fan Xian took a moment to go see the Hangzhou Zhizhou and said a few warm words. However, the next day, he had Tiger Guard Gao Da block all of the officials’ wives outside the back garden.

Mistress Fan was not seeing guests.

...

...

Wan’er gazed pitifully at Fan Xian, her brows had long knit together like weak willow leaves in the wind. Her eyes were full of tears and complaints, “Good husband, have mercy on me.”

Fan Xian smiled. “Be good, drink the medicine, otherwise there will be spanking.”

Wan’er had no choice; she could only bitterly drink the medicine. She couldn’t resist sighing in her heart, thinking, Why was she so stupid? She had told Fan Xian all of the reasons but given his personality, of course, he would not allow her to do this. If she had known earlier, she might as well have not come to Jiangnan and secretly stopped taking the medicine in Jingdou.

Suddenly, she thought shyly, if she hadn’t come down to Jiangnan, even if she did stop taking the medicine and removed the foreign matter from her body but...without him, how could she have a child?

Fan Xian was using a handkerchief and helping her wipe away the remnants of the medicine at the corners of her mouth. He suddenly saw the blush on his wife’s cheeks and felt slightly startled. Not knowing what she was thinking in that little head of hers, he curiously teased, “Wife, why are you so embarrassed?”

Wan’er rolled her eyes at him and said huffily, “Not telling you.”

She quickly changed the topic of conversation. She had come down to Jiangnan this time for two reasons, one was that it was already agreed upon last year. The second was an urgent matter that she needed to discuss with Fan Xian, and she would not feel at ease to have servants send this message.

Fan Xian saw her become serious. His brows tightened slightly. He leaned closer to hear his wife speaking quietly into his ear. His mood became more and more serious, but his face did not change at all. It was still very calm. He comforted and explained, “I wondered what the matter was for you to rush like this to Jiangnan...the elders in the Palace love to gossip about others, they don’t understand much.”

During their days in Jingdou, this young couple had a good tacit understanding of each other. They had once made clear—now that Wan’er was his wife, his woman—in such a complicated relationship, Fan Xian felt tenderness toward her and did not wish for her to be overly involved in sinister matters. Even if in Wan’er could help him greatly, for example, their pillow talk on the day the Great Prince had visited the Fan manor.

But speaking of this, Wan’er could not pretend that nothing was happening beside her. She also could not hide her eyes and pretend not to see her husband and her not-very-close mother draw their swords and ready their bows.

A girl’s heart can be difficult to guess, but in this matter, she wanted to find a way to protect Fan Xian but not so that the two sides sunk into a situation that could not be salvaged. However, it was very difficult for Fan Xian to understand it, and it was the same for Wan’er.

She could only ask around carefully for information and help Fan Xian analyze the mysteries of those women’s politics. She used her special identity and privilege of being able to enter and exit the Palace without obstruction to help Fan Xian far away in Jiangnan contact various people in the Palace, to remove what resistance she could.

Fan Xian knew about these things and that he could not stop her, so he could only let her be. Furthermore more, sometimes, he indeed needed Wan’er to act as a lubricant in between, just like that trip into the Palace after the spring examination incidence.

...

...

Because of Fan Xian’s opposition, Wan’er’s capabilities were not fully used. Her natural feels on politics and the matters in the Palace were suppressed, but this did not mean she did not understand these things. After she heard of that story in the Palace, she came to Jiangnan without hesitation.

Unlike what everyone had thought, the Mistress of the Fan manor had not come to Jiangnan to see that Northern Qi Sage girl called Duoduo. She had to remind Fan Xian of some things in person.

“The elders in the Palace...can have a large influence.” Wan’er gazed at Fan Xian worriedly and gently said. “The empress dowager is the empress’ aunt, their connection cannot be separated...the empress has arranged for someone to enter the Palace to read to the empress dowager the “Story of the Stone.” Don’t be careless about the danger hidden in this.”

Fan Xian became silent and threads of anger surged through his heart. In the beginning, in Danzhou when he began to copy the “Story of the Stone,” it was only to find a game for himself and Sisi, to find some joy for Ruoruo, and at the same time, fulfill his literary intentions. He had not thought too much of it. Although he knew that Lao Cao’s words were indeed somewhat taboo during his time, thinking that this was a completely different country, a completely different world, how could it be taboo? So, he had been careless.

No one expected for his birth and his future to have had such large changes. Each word and line of “A Dream of Red Mansions”...seemed to be expressing his dissatisfaction and secret resentment, particularly that speech regarding Lady Qiao.

Anyone could have written this book, just not him. Now, everyone in the world believed that he had written this book.

The resentment in the novel seemed to be recounting his refusal to accept and his indignation at what happened to the Ye family back then. The empress had arranged for someone to enter the Palace to read the book to the old empress dowager. Given the empress dowager’s sensitivity and suspicious mind, would she not think that he had disloyal thoughts?

In matters of the royal family, what was important was the heart. If the heart was suspicious, then the person was suspicious. If the heart was to be punished, then the person was to be punished.

Fan Xian thought about this quietly for a bit and found that this indeed was a problem he would have to face soon. If the empress dowager truly thought he felt dissatisfaction in his heart and wanted to redress the incidence of that year, then the old woman’s temporary silence might not exist much longer. Qing Kingdom ruled through filial piety. If the empress dowager said anything, the Emperor would have to take some action.

However, it wasn’t a big problem. Fan Xian had been in Jiangnan for many days, and his power had reached another level. These small waves did not scare him. He gently patted his wife’s hand and said warmly, “Don’t worry, even if that old woman is suspicious of me...so what? I haven’t done anything. She can’t just ask the Emperor to remove my post.”

Wan’er laughed bitterly and couldn’t help but shake her head. She used a finger to gently stroke the center of his brows and huffed, “That is my grandmother as well as your grandmother...how can you just call her old woman.”

Fan Xian chuckled and said, “Speaking of which, when I saw you at the Qing Temple back then, I would never have guessed that you were actually my cousin.”

“Hmm...I wonder who kept it from me this long,” Lin Wan’er muttered with pouted lips.

Without waiting for Fan Xian to comfort her, Wan’er continued seriously, “Even if this matter is no trouble right now, but what about the matter of the Ming family? The waves of this case you started in Jiangnan has long reached Jingdou. Now, Song Shiren is truly famous. Since he dared to say that the heir does not have a natural right to inherit...this touched on a lot of people’s bottom lines. Although Song Shiren is helping Xia Qifei fight this case, everyone in the capital knows that you are their supporter in the background, and they can’t help but ask in their hearts...what exactly is our Sir Fan junior thinking?”

Fan Xian’s eyebrows raised and he said, ‘What can I be thinking about?”

Lin Wan’er gazed at him. “On the surface, it looks like you want to help Xia Qifei take back Ming family’s property...will the empress dowager not be suspicious of you? Furthermore, there is still the trouble of the “Story of the Stone” earlier...combine the two together, and everyone will think that you want to take back the palace treasury.”

“But to whom does the palace treasury belong to?”

“Who is the heir in our Palace?”

Lin Wan’er sighed. “The things you have done after coming to Jiangnan is truly putting yourself opposite the Crown Prince and even opposite the empress dowager.”

Fan Xian was silent for a while, then decided to say his true thoughts. “You’re right...but in reality, I am purposely creating this atmosphere to make the people in the Palace think I have disloyal intentions.”

Lin Wan’er’s parted her lips slightly in shock. She felt that such premature action did not seem like his personality.

“You came a few days late so you don’t know that the Emperor had sent a eunuch to announce an edict.” Fan Xian smiled slightly. “In a few days, the capital will know my stance that I am standing on the side of the Third Prince.”

Lin Wan’er felt slightly confused and nervous. In a quiet voice, she said, “You want the Third Prince to join in the competition...but he is only a child.”

“This child is remarkable.” Fan Xian lowered his head and smiled slightly. “His abilities are not bad, furthermore, I am very confident in my ability to judge people and am also very confident in my ability as a teacher. No student of mine will be mediocre.”

“But...you still haven’t explained why you are creating the current atmosphere.” Lin Wan’er furrowed her brows. If this situation is allowed to develop like this, the two dies would gradually lose any chance of reconciliation and it would force...she suddenly raised her head and stared in shock at Fan Xian. In a startled voice, she said, “You...are preparing to move against them?”

...

...

The bedroom became silent for a while. Fan Xian slowly nodded his head and said, in a quiet voice, “A lot of people ignored the empress and the Crown Prince, but they and I know very clearly that between our two sides, only one side can survive...right now, taking advantage of the fact that the Emperor still cares about me and values me, I am the hidden disaster.”

Lin Wan’er’s expression gradually became helplessly and dimmed. Although she knew that in battles amongst the royal family there was never room for any sentimentality, she still felt a chill when she thought of the fact that between her dearest husband and her elder brother, the Crown Prince, one of them had to die. Fan Xian’s eyes were colder than his wife’s thoughts, slowly and coldly, he said, “I don’t want to kill, but they already killed people decades ago and now, it is impossible that they will let me go. Since it is so, I will finish this matter.”

Lin Wan’er was silent for a long time then opened her mouth and said, “Then...what about her?”

The “her” was naturally the biggest problem lying between Fan Xian and his wife, that Eldest Princess who refused to be content with her lot.

Fan Xian’s eyelids drooped slightly and he gently held Wan’er in his embrace. Warmly, he said, “The Emperor’s thoughts are too deep. I won’t try to understand them. Your mother’s thoughts are also too big, and it’s not for me to understand them...this is a battle between her and the Emperor. I only need to play a supporting role...I can’t promise anything else, but I can promise you that I will not personally do anything to her.”

Was this promise trustworthy?

“My uncle, the Emperor, has always treated me tenderly...” Lin Wan’er was like an injured little cat lying in Fan Xian’s embrace. She spoke weakly, but her eyes gradually showed a misty color. If the Eldest Princess truly had the daring to do that thing then afterward, even though by means of Fan Xian’s power and identity, Lin Wan’er would not be implicated, but...her identity in the royal family would become awkward and dangerous.

Fan Xian was silent. He knew that Wan’er sigh was the truth. After they were married, as they walked in the Palace, only then did he clearly feel that the Emperor was indeed very tender toward Wan’er. Her position in the Palace was indeed much higher than that of a usual princess. Thinking of this, he couldn’t help sighing. The Emperor had married his favorite niece to his illegitimate child, was this also a compensation for him?

“Don’t worry, it’s all the elders’ business,” he smiled slightly and said. “Let them make a fuss.”

Although his words were light, the contents were not. In the next year, if Qing Kingdom’s dragon chair did not have a change of owner then there would be a bloodbath amongst the royal family. What would happen to Fan Xian and Wan’er, this young couple? If it was the former, Fan Xian believed that his whole family would be buried along with the Emperor. If it was the latter, how could Wan’er face it?

Fan Xian suddenly felt that forcing the other party to act ahead of time seemed to be a pointless thing, except, in order to protect himself and those around him, he had to do this.

“The old cripple should also be thinking like this, right? Hopefully, he will have some better ideas.”

Fan Xian gently patted Wan’er’s back. Looking out the window at the peaceful lake, at the green mountains, and the fishing boat at the willow branches, his thoughts floated to the far away Jingdou.

...

...

In the cold Palace in Jingdou, the servant girls and eunuchs walked silently. Occasionally, a young servant would let out a few laughs and quickly be harshly scolded by the elderly nannies. The rich spring had come to an end, and the beginnings of summer had arrived. The trees in the Palace were at their most luxurious, however, the people in the Palace still did not have a thread of relaxed freedom.

Guangxin Palace was once the Eldest Princess’ residential palace. After the news of the Eldest Princess secretly communicating with Northern Qi and selling out a high-level Overwatch Council employee was exposed to the entire city via letters by Uncle Wuzhu, the supposedly most beautiful woman in the Qing Kingdom quietly retreated from the Jingdou political scene and went to the cold Li Palace.

Although she could still faintly influence the situation in the palace from the Li Palace in Xinyang, it was not as convenient as being in Jingdou. Thus, in the sixth year of the Qing calendar, she finally persuaded the empress dowager and moved back to Jingdou. The letter that had created such a stir had long disappeared into people’s memories.

However, not long after she returned to Jingdou, the power of the Junshang Conference in Jiangnan revealed her, angrily, in front of her elder brother, the Emperor. Thus, the Emperor ordered to once again move into the Palace, nominally to gather the family, but in reality, it was close-distance surveillance.

However, after all, the Eldest Princess had operated in the Palace for a long time, she was also the empress dowager’s favorite girl, and her relationship with the empress had always been very close, so still no one could stop her entering and leaving the Royal Palace. The tricks she had done in secret had also been successfully kept a secret from many people.

To make the Emperor feel at ease, she could not leave the Palace too much or be in too close contact with the officials below. So, her most common activity was talking with the empress dowager in the Palace and studying flower, bird, insect, or wood-patterned embroidery with the empress.

What she was embroidering was probably not cloth.

...

...

The situation in Jiangnan had settled. Regardless of whether or not the Eldest Princess Li Yunrui accepted it, admitted it, or felt bad about it. Ultimately, the Jiangnan she had operated for over 10 years had already been completely taken over by that “accomplished” son-in-law of hers.

The old Ming matriarch was dead, Great Master San Shi was dead, and the Ming family were keeping quiet out of fear. Under the combined suppression of Fan Xian and Xue Qing, the Jiangnan officialdom did not have much backlash. The trusted aides she had installed into the three large workshops in the palace treasury transport company had all been pulled out by Fan Xian. Although the letters from those officials were still respectful, under Fan Xian tyranny, they had no way to move.

The people’s rage that had been stirred up with difficulty had, for some unknown reason, dispersed silently. Thus, the bloodletters from the people that had been delivered from so far away and the old scholars making a case in front of the Emperor became unrooted trees and could not be even a glimmer of a threat to the court.

“Fined their salary?” The Eldest Princess Li Yunrui narrowed her eyes, a glimmer of ridicule flashed through her beautiful almond-shaped eyes. “Do you think the Fan family has a need for this little bit of silver?”

Sitting beside her was the dignified and richly dressed empress. The empress smiled slightly and said, “The Emperor loves the Fan family dearly. The investigation into the Ministry of Revenue a few days ago, wasn’t it also hastily wrapped up?”

The Eldest Princess smiled slightly. Her long eyelashes blinked delicately in a way far from in accordance with her age. With a slight smile, she said, “Minister Shang has credit in serving the country. How is he someone women like us can compare to?”

She sighed and said, “When it’s all said and done, I don’t have a son. I have a daughter that I’m not very close to. What’s the point paying attention to all this? I think, when autumn arrives, I will ask mother to allow me to return to Xinyang to live.”

The empress’ heart thumped, and she secretly cursed this vixen for acting weak. She also realized that the other party was retreating to advance, however, in the current situation, if Li Yunrui actually threw up her hands and stopped, she and the Crown Prince would not be able to stand up against Fan Xian and the Third Prince’s might. Of course, the empress was not an idiot. She knew that it was impossible for the Eldest Princess to surrender the power in her hand and leave like this. The other party said this only to gain the upper hand.

The empress’ smile carried with it a glimmer of cautiousness that should definitely not have been there. “What are you talking about? Although I am just a stupid woman who knows nothing of the affairs of the country, even I know that you are a pillar of the country and have contributed to the Qing Kingdom in countless ways...if you go to Xinyan, the Emperor would be the first to disagree.”

The two women’s conversation still could not leave that chair. Only, in this kind of thing, before action was taken, no one dared to say anything too revealing.

The Eldest Princess was silent for a little while, then slowly opened her mouth and said, “Mother is getting old. It is very easy for her to be fooled by others.”

The empress nodded her head and smiled slightly, “We’ll go slowly.”

The two fell into silence and raised their cups to sip the tea. The empress suddenly asked probingly, “I heard...Fan Xian has been doing well in Jiangnan, only recently a master suddenly arrived and destroyed half a building in Suzhou?”

The matter of a sword splitting half a building was not something that could be hidden for too long. It still traveled to Jingdou and into the Palace.

The Eldest Princess knew what the empress wanted to ask, but she refused to tell the truth to the other party. With a slightly prideful smile, she said, “I am not very clear about matters of the jianghu.”

If there was a Great Grandmaster standing behind the Eldest Princess, then the empress would have a better idea of the position she should be in for their cooperation. Of course, this was a great boost to the empress’ and the Crown Prince’s determination.

Seeing that the Eldest Princess was not willing to speak openly, the empress cursed a few times in her heart and then made her farewells.

Looking at the desolate retreating figure of the mother of a nation, a glimmer of pity and disdain flashed through the Eldest Princess’ eyes, thinking, Such a lowly role, yet they still want to share in the bounty. She truly did not know where that confidence came from.

It was impossible for the chief strategists of Xinyang, Huang Yi and Yuan Hongdao, to enter the Palace, so at this moment, the trusted aide beside the Eldest Princess was a eunuch. This eunuch stood to the side and quietly said the question in the Eldest Princess’ heart, “The empress...does she not know this is...?”

“Asking a tiger of its own skin.” The Eldest Princess said the words that her trusted aides could not say. She smiled coldly and said, “Even if I am the tiger, she can only stand on my side. Otherwise, if the Third Prince truly took the throne, at that time if Fan Xian wanted to avenge Ye Qingmei...who would help block?”

She slowly closed her eyes and said, “Her and I have temporarily shelved the problem of whether it should be Chengqian or the Second Prince...because she knows that if this succeeds, she cannot defeat me. She can only beg for survival.”

“Over in Jiangnan?”

“There is no need to mind it anymore.” The Eldest Princess sighed. “My son-in-law had made preparations before going to Jiangnan. Those bumpkins in Jiangnan are no match for him.”

She shook her head. After her mind wandered for a while, she faintly said, “Thinking of it now, I had made a big mistake at the beginning. If there wasn’t the Niulan Street incident, it would not be like this between Fan Xian and myself...if he stood on my side, who would stand against us in this world?”

Without waiting for the eunuch to reply, she laughed self-mockingly. “That is to indulge in a fantasy. If there was not this deep and unresolvable hatred between Fan Xian and myself, how could that brother of mine, the Emperor, dare to give him such powerful positions?”

The eunuch listened to the side and did not even dare breathe too loudly.

“I was wrong from the start.” A glimmer of coldness and determination flashed across the Eldest Princess’ beautiful face. “No matter how powerful Fan Xian was, he is pulled by strings from within the Palace. Why did I pay attention to this puppet? I should have focused on the person holding the strings.”

...

...

Not far from Guangxin Palace, in Hanguang Palace, the empress dowager was half squinting with sleepiness. After all, she was getting old. Her focus was already not what it used to be, and her decisiveness in killing was also not what it used to be.

“Stop, stop.” The old woman stopped the reading servant girl with loathing. Looking at the book the servant girl held, she didn’t speak for a while.

“It’s all a bunch of absurd nonsense, I don’t understand how there could be so many in the streets who like to read it.” An old nanny beside her said in a pleasing manner.

The empress dowager shook her head and said in a quiet voice a moment later, “Children...it’s normal for them not to accept such things.”

The old nanny didn’t dare to say anything more.

A complicated emotion flashed through the empress dowager’s eyes. Of course, she understood the empress’ intentions in having her read the “Story of the Stone.” Although she was very angry at Fan Xian’s resentment, she was more furious about the empress’ actions.

No matter what faults Fan Xian’s mother had, Fan Xian was a child of the royal family. This is what the empress dowager considered the most important point.

“How long had it been since Chen’er left?” The empress dowager suddenly remembered her favorite granddaughter and asked the people beside her.

“The Princess should have already arrived in Hangzhou now.”

“Hmm...I’ve been to Jiangnan, the scenery there isn’t bad, but the women there are too presumptuous.” The empress dowager furrowed her brows. “No matter how carefully the Fan family has prepared, it can’t compare to the things in the Palace. Have some some things prepared to send to Jiangnan.”

The old woman thought for a bit and then said, “Send a letter to ask Chen’er if she’s settling well beside the West Lake. If she doesn’t like it ,have her move in the temporary imperial residence in the mountain.”

The old nanny quickly made a sound of acknowledgement.

...

...

Inside the royal study, the Qing Emperor, who had just concluded the royal discussion, rubbed tiredly between his brows and drank a mouthful of the warm ginseng tea. He looked outside the scenery that never seemed to change and furrowed his brows with some loathing.

“Hong Zhu...” The Emperor called unconsciously. Only after calling did he remember that Hong Zhu had been moved by him to the Eastern Palace for half a year. He couldn’t him smiling self-mockingly.

“Your Majesty, do you have orders?” The eunuch beside him asked respectfully.

The Emperor shook his head and lightly coughed a few times. The echo of the cough bounced around the room. He couldn’t help being startled, thinking, perhaps he was truly old. Hearing the echo of the coughs, he realized how lonely he was.

“Let’s go to the little tower.”

He swept up his dragon robe, straightened his chest, and walked out of the door. Behind him, the eunuch rushed to catch up and only managed to hear the Emperor sigh faintly, “When will I have time to visit Danzhou again?”

...

...

The Qing Kingdom this year was much the same as previous years. The Palace was still lonely and dirty. Outside the Palace was still lively, the court still competed, the Six Ministries still fought, and the Overwatch Council was still silent and sinister. Old Director Chen was still in the Chen Garden enjoying the singing and dancing, and Minister Fan was still busy in the Ministry of Revenue.

The people fought for survival. When they had the time, they looked for happy things to comfort their almost numb state of mind.

For example, the East family married a girl, an elderly died in the West family. The south side didn’t flood this year, the west side seemed to be at war again. Sir Fan junior hadn’t written any poetry. Had the Northern Qi Sage girl met the Mistress of the Fan family yet?

All the way down from Jingdou, in Jizhou where it was about to merge with the Yangtze River, the two sides of the river band was a bustling scene. The people repairing the banks worked hard like ants to move the sand and stones. This year, the Qing Kingdom’s luck was pretty good. The spring flood had been much smaller than expected, and the national treasury’s ample silver brought the river transport governor’s yamen a great deal of confidence. Although each level skimmed some off the top, a lot of pay was still sent down, so the people’s motivation to work was also much higher.

Yang Wanli’s face was deeply suntanned and wore an outfit of rough cloth. His brows were locked tight as he stood under the bamboo canopy. Although the situation right now was good, the spring floods were the most terrifying thing. He bore a heavy burden having to supervise the distribution of the silver sent over secretly, so there was a great deal of pressure on his mind.

Although he didn’t know anything about rushing repairs, the drainage divide, and such things, he still lowered his status and personally went to work. After a few continuous days of being exposed to the harsh sun, this disciple of the Fan clan finally washed away the final traces of a scholar and became a true official.

On the river bank, a number of people approached from the distance. They looked like officials from a different place.

From far away, that group of people began to tell at the bamboo canopy.

Yang Wanli lifted the front of his robe and wiped at the sweat on his face, gazing with confusion at that side. Finally, he saw clearly who was approaching and couldn’t help stepping out of the canopy in surprised joy.

“Jichang? Jialin? How come you are here?” Yangli welcomed them with emotion and grabbed both of their hands.

The visitors were indeed Hou Jichang and Cheng Jialin of Fan Xian’s four disciples. After the spring examinations, these two had been working in the outer provinces. Because of Fan Xian’s care, as well as their own abilities, they had risen very quickly. In less than a year, they had already jumped up a few levels and crossed the first difficult threshold of the seventh-level.

However, the place where these were located was very far from Jizhou, so in Yang Wanli’s surprise, he also couldn’t help feeling it was unexpected.

Hou Jichang did not have the time to answer his question. He only grasped the callused hands and gazed at Yang Wanli’s suntanned face. With great emotion, he said, “Master wrote us, he only said you have come to the river transport governor’s yamen. I had not thought...it would be so harsh.”

To one side, Cheng Jialing also began to sniffle.

Thinking of something, Yang Wanli chucked and then said seriously, “In the past, I only knew how to talk about state affairs, but after having direct contact with the people’s matters, only then did I realize how difficult the lives of the people are...teacher had me come to repair the river, it is truly an act of trust and an education...only by personally experiencing this did I know that under teacher’s seemingly indifferent expression there is actually a heart that worried for the country and its people.”

The three of them became silent. It was Hou Jichang who broke the silence and slowly said, “According to the rumors, teacher was able to dominate that Northern Qi Sage girl because of that sentence he said in Northern Qi’s Royal Palace.”

Speaking of the Northern Qi Sage girl, Haitang, even though the three of them were Fan Xian’s students, they still couldn’t help secretly laughing.

Yang Wanli resisted his laughter and asked, “What sentence?”

Hou Jichang turned and gazed at the work on the river bank below his feet, gazed at the roaring Yangtze river not too far away and sighed. “The first concern was the affairs of state, enjoyment of pleasure comes later...I am thinking, perhaps we underestimated teacher at the beginning.”

The three of them each though over this sentence in their hearts and a sense of respect was born.

“Teacher...although he has a cheeky appearance, he has a sincere heart.” Yang Wanli thought of all he had heard and seen during these few months. He thought of the importance Fan Xian placed on the river transport and the changes that Fan Xian’s arrival had brought, and he couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.

Beside the bamboo canopy on the river bank, there were other officials from the river transport yamen. Hou Jichang noticed that Yang Wanli always used “teacher,” and he couldn’t help but lower his voice to remind him, “In front of outsiders, it’s better to use ‘sir’ to prevent the court saying we are forming factions.”

“Gentlemen make friends, not factions, but if we truly need to form factions, I am willing to be teacher’s lackey.” Yang Wanli smiled slightly, using a deep voice different to that in his past. “Everyone knows of the four disciples of the Fan family. As long as we are working for the benefit of the people, why should we care about the rumors?”

Hou Jichang was slightly startled, then laughed in a clear voice, “You’re right, it is I who is being too meticulous. Wanli, it seems like you really have grown a lot in this half year. Following beside the teacher is indeed greatly beneficial for cultivating moral character and personality.”

Cheng Jialin also said admiringly, “We are officials far away and you are in Jiangnan, who knew that teacher would go the Jiangnan.”

Yang Wanli smiled. “I did not stay by the teacher for long, instead that guy Shi Chanli...if you go visit Suzhou, you’ll know how much teacher has changed him.”

Speaking until now, Yang Wanli only remembered to ask, “Where are you two going?”

Cheng Jialin smiled slightly and replied, “For this half year, teacher has been reorganizing the governance in Jiangnan and there had been a lot of empty position, so the Board of Appointments moved me to Suzhou.”

Yang Wanli nodded his head happily. He knew that once Cheng Jialin went to Suzhou, he would certainly be of great help to Fan Xian.

“What about you?”

Hou Jichang smiled and said, “I am going to Jiaozhou to take the position of provost.”

Yang Wanli was surprised, thinking, this kind of transfer could be considered a banishment. He didn’t understand why Fan Xian would make such arrangements.

Hou Jichang also did not explain anything. He only knew that Sir Fan junior must have his reasons for having him go to Jiaozhou. According to what the teacher said in his letter, that kind of sinister future event, of the four of them, indeed only he could barely manage to do it.

...

...

“The first concern is the affairs of state?” Among the Jiangnan waterways on a large ship, Fan Xian was lying on a bamboo chair on the deck watching the multitude of stars in the sky. He couldn’t help but sigh. “I came to this life to enjoy it. I am not here to worry about the country and its people.”

In a night such as this, the large ship was traveling on the river and had long left Hangzhou.

They passed the heat for a month beside the West Lake. Fan Xian carried out a careful analysis on the medicine Fei Jie left and found, to his anger, that what Ku He said should be true. However, it seemed that Fei Jie was remorseful. He made no reply at all to Fan Xian’s letter of invitation, who knew where that old pervert was hiding.

However, Wan’er continued to take the medicine so her body had gradually recovered to how it was initially, and Fan Xian’s mood was much better. His hatred toward Northern Qi’s Ku He had subsided greatly. As for things like having children, he wasn’t in a rush to start with. He was not yet 20, what was the rush?

After everything had been settled in Jiangnan, he would take everyone beside him, board one of the large ships the navy provided, and begin a journey along Jiangnan’s waterways.

The destination of the journey was none other than Wuzhou, Jiaozhou, and Danzhou.

At this time, it was deep in the night. Wan’er, the Third Prince, and all those people had long gone to sleep. On the quiet deck, there were only Fan Xian and Da Bao lying shoulder to shoulder. Even the Sixth Bureau swordsmen and the Tiger Guards who usually hid in the shadows had been sent away by Fan Xian.

Fan Xian couldn’t sleep, and Da Bao had slept too much on the ship during the day and so could stay up for a bit. The two of them lay shoulder to shoulder, randomly talking as they ate Jiangnan’s delicious desserts.

No one understood why Fan Xian would have such a great relationship with his idiotic uncle. Even Fan Xian could not explain why. Perhaps, it was only because when talking with Da Bao he can obtain a relaxation he never had before. There was no need to think of anything, there was no need to fear anything.

Furthermore, he didn’t have to talk about politics, the world, right and wrong, black and white, good and evil, other’s death or his own, the white jade workshop, or the stinking sewers. They only needed to talk about food and such simple and joyful things. For example, the stars that decorated the night dome above the ship.

The river wind blew warmly. The waves were not happy, and the large ship stopped in the middle of a nameless large lake. The reeds around them were far away, and there were no water birds singing at night annoyingly. It was completely quiet. The stars above were lonely and distant. Fan Xian looked at the stars above and said to Da Bao beside him, “What do you think are the stars in the sky?”

“Sesame.” Da Bao used his large fat hands to gesture. “The moon...is a baked sesame cake, the stars...are sesame...Xiao Bao is right.”

Xiao Bao was the second Lin young master that had died at Uncle Wuzhu’s hands. Fan Xian’s heart jumped and shortly after he smiled slightly. Pointing at the stars and moon, he said, “I don’t know whether or not it’s a bake sesame cake, I only know that this Qing Kingdom’s sky also has a moon. It also has those stars, and what’s more...it’s very strange, the day also only has one sun.”

For the sun to come out during the day and for the stars and moon to come out at night, this definitely couldn’t be considered strange. Even children understood this common knowledge.

But Da Bao nodded seriously and said, “Xiao Xianxian, I also think it’s very strange.”

Fan Xian sighed and said, “Yea, it’s very strange. I found out when I was just a little kid, this place...is also Earth.”

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