Chapter 655: Sister and Brother Reunited

Yanjing.

Officials of Great Yan had regular rest days. Princes of Great Yan, strictly speaking, did not have any legally mandated holidays.

Of course, a prince could still take a day off. Other than his own father, no one had the authority to punish him for it. But when all was said and done, this realm belonged to the Ji family. If the Ji family themselves did not take its affairs seriously, there was simply no way to justify it.

Ji Chengjue rubbed his eyes. The workday was over. He could go home.

In truth, he had already remade the Ministry of Revenue. Those old hands who were willing to keep their heads down, obey orders, and refrain from stirring up trouble had been set aside to drink tea and read the court gazettes. Anyone who dared stick his head up and make noise had long since been transferred elsewhere.

On his own turf, Little Sixth Ji was ruthlessly efficient. After all, to take control of the Ministry of Revenue, he had brought down two Ministers of Revenue in succession.

From one perspective, the Ministry had become Ji Chengjue's personal base, staffed by his own people. From another, however, its entire bureaucracy now ran with remarkable smoothness. Given Great Yan's finances, which were presently close to collapse, that efficiency was genuinely useful.

When the people below knew how to get things done and did them quickly, the man at the top could finally enjoy some real leisure. Personally handling every last matter was impossible even for his father. Otherwise, the Emperor would never have copied the State of Qian's system by establishing a Grand Secretariat in Yan and delegating a portion of his authority.

In the past, even when the hour for leaving the yamen arrived, Ji Chengjue would usually stay another four hours. It was not for show. If one truly wanted to keep busy, there was always more work to find. Besides, whatever the Crown Prince wanted to do from inside the palace invariably required money and grain, which meant the Ministry of Revenue could never be left out. Ji Chengjue had to remain ready to enter the palace at any time to discuss affairs.

But today, Ji Chengjue did not work late. The moment the day ended, he walked out of the Ministry of Revenue yamen.

As usual, Eunuch Zhang drove his carriage. This time, however, they did not return to the residence. They headed out of the city instead.

The moment they passed through the gates, a squad of guards from Ji Chengjue's residence who had been waiting outside naturally fell in around the carriage.

Eunuch Zhang, holding the reins, could not help turning his head toward Ji Chengjue inside.

“Master, is it really appropriate for us to go welcome him like this?”

Ji Chengjue did not seem concerned. “What's inappropriate about it?”

“But the Crown Prince isn't coming.”

“If he doesn't come, does that mean I shouldn't dare come either?”

“Master, you know that isn't what this servant meant.”

“This matter can be hidden from a great many people, but there are also plenty of people it was never going to stay hidden from. Whether I go or not, afterward everyone will know that I knew. Since that's the case, why should I pretend ignorance? Most of my hand was already laid bare on the day of my wedding. I have an intelligence network spread throughout Great Yan. It's perfectly reasonable that I would know about this.”

“Knowing is one thing, Master. But coming out so openly to welcome him... won't that...?”

“For a hundred years, the Li family has been one of the foundations of Great Yan. Since Grandfather's generation, it has become the family the Ji clan relies upon most heavily and is closest to. The Li family's Young Marquis. Heh, I suppose he's the Young Prince now. By sentiment or by propriety, as an elder brother of the same generation, I ought to meet him.”

“Master, what this servant means is that there are some things where it may be wiser to remain deliberately muddled.”

Eunuch Zhang handled a great many affairs for Ji Chengjue. Much of the time, he was more adviser than mere servant.

“Once autumn comes and the two Princes and two Marquises enter the capital, everything will be settled. At this point, everyone's cards are already on the table anyway. My position won't become worse because I came out to meet him this once, nor will it suddenly improve because of it. So I might as well meet him. I'm curious.”

“Hearing Master say that, this servant can't help thinking of Marquis Zheng.”

“Hahaha. If that fellow Zheng were here, he'd definitely go take a look too. That man simply does whatever pleases him, and you can't put a price on that.”

“Master, don't you find it strange? Why would Li Liangshen deliberately make a detour from Sanshi Commandery to pass by Yanjing? Could he be trying to announce to all of Great Yan that their Heir has been found?”

“No. Li Liangshen abandoned his post without authorization. Emotionally, his reasons are understandable; by regulation, what he did is improper. The two can offset each other to an extent. But there still has to be a limit. He has to pass through Yanjing in the end. More precisely, he has to remain here. Then the person has to be handed over properly, and someone else has to take him back to Beifeng Commandery. Li Liangshen has a bad temper. Then again, people who use swords seem to have foul tempers in general. But he is still a general responsible for guarding the capital region. He can't simply do whatever he wants.”

“If that's so, Master, who do you think will come to receive the Heir? Another expert from Prince Zhenbei Residence? Or will they simply send another Grand Commander?”

“Hard to say. Very hard to say.”

“It's rare to encounter something even Master can't predict.”

“That flattery lacked sincerity. I'm not some immortal. How could I possibly calculate everything? Even that fellow Zheng, sharp as he is and as terrified of death as he is, still has to march into battle sometimes with his head tied to his belt and gamble his life. Though...”

Ji Chengjue rubbed his chin.

“Heh. I do have one idea, but it's a little frightening.”

Eunuch Zhang immediately said, “Then Master had better not say it. This servant is timid too. I can't take much of a fright.”

The carriage came to a stop at a small market town outside the capital.

Merchants gathered and dispersed here, and officials returning to Yanjing would also stop here first to straighten their clothes and make themselves presentable before entering the city.

Today, however, the place was unusually quiet.

Squad after squad of Zhenbei cavalry had completely surrounded it.

Even though Ji Chengjue's carriage bore the insignia of his residence, it was still stopped and inspected. Fortunately, once Eunuch Zhang revealed his identity, the Zhenbei scouts immediately saluted and withdrew without further entanglement.

Even so, it was already rude enough.

At the feet of the Son of Heaven, on the outskirts of Great Yan's imperial capital, an imperial prince of Great Yan had actually been subjected to an inspection like this.

One could say the Zhenbei cavalrymen were simply especially excited today, and especially cautious on account of the person they were escorting. But Eunuch Zhang's face had already flushed red with anger. He could not very well complain about it to his master, because he knew his master would only feel even more stifled than he did.

So when Eunuch Zhang flicked the whip over the carriage horse, he put a little extra force into it and took a small measure of satisfaction from the horse's protesting neigh.

Ji Chengjue reached down, picked up a piece of candy from in front of him, and popped it into his mouth.

He muttered to himself, “The day before yesterday, during deliberations, the Crown Prince proposed recalling Eldest Brother and having Li Liangshen's men rotate into Nanwang City. I didn't object.”

Right beside the imperial bed sat an entire Zhenbei force.

And the general commanding it was a thorn like Li Liangshen, whose heart knew only Prince Zhenbei Residence and not the Son of Heaven.

Their father was domineering enough not to care.

Unfortunately, his sons lacked that confidence. They felt uneasy.

Eldest Brother had already consolidated and trained a force of his own at Nanwang City. Bringing him back would at least make everyone feel more secure.

Of course, the Crown Prince had made the proposal and Ji Chengjue had agreed to it, but whether it would actually be approved depended on the will of the Rear Garden.

Ji Chengjue suspected the Rear Garden would reject it.

If Father had intended to recall Eldest Brother, he would not have ordered Fourth Brother to reorganize the capital camps all over again. Wouldn't that be taking off your pants just to fart?

More importantly, if Eldest Brother returned and became the man holding the greatest military authority in the capital region, he would plainly possess the ability to influence the succession struggle directly.

Ji Chengjue was not naive enough to believe that because Eldest Brother had once been on his side, he would necessarily remain on his side forever.

By the same token, when the Crown Prince made this proposal, he had not automatically treated Eldest Brother as an enemy simply because Eldest Brother had once boarded the Sixth Lord Faction's ship.

Eldest Brother had married a Barbarian Princess and had a grandson of the imperial house with Barbarian blood. In principle, that excluded him from inheriting the throne, because the people of Yan would never accept the bloodline of their imperial clan being tainted by Barbarian ancestry.

But he was still an imperial prince.

If things ever truly reached that point, who could say whether his subordinates might decide to throw a yellow robe over his shoulders?

When the Founding Emperor of Qian had his own generals drape the yellow robe over him, he had cried and shouted that he was being forced into it, that he had betrayed the late emperor, and so on.

For the brothers, however, Eldest Brother's return would at least guarantee one thing.

The meat would rot in their own pot.

They could fight among themselves. Win or lose, so be it. But they absolutely could not let the game slip out of their hands and end with someone outside the family profiting from all of it.

Li Liangshen, as a general stationed in the capital region, commanded his own direct Zhenbei troops. His presence genuinely made the imperial princes extremely uncomfortable.

Yet the root of the matter was simple.

In their father's eyes, as long as Li Liangting never shouted that he was rebelling, Li Liangshen would never rebel either. And a loner like Li Liangshen, who looked down on nearly everyone, was in fact one of the best guarantees of neutrality once the succession struggle reached a fever pitch.

Ultimately, imperial power would change hands according to Father's own will.

That was Father's bottom line.

Ji Chengjue understood that the Crown Prince had probably only been probing. The Crown Prince himself could not have placed much hope in seeing the proposal approved.

At last, the carriage stopped.

“Well, look who came. Little Sixth, not bad. Married, fathered a child, and suddenly you've got more nerve than before.”

The Commandery Princess's voice came from outside the carriage.

Ji Chengjue lifted the curtain and stepped out.

The moon was bright and the stars sparse. Bonfires burned ahead, while soldiers held torches aloft.

He could clearly see the Commandery Princess dressed in black, sitting astride a Pi Beast, tall and valiant.

Little Sixth looked her over twice and smiled.

“I'd imagined that even if you weren't weeping like pear blossoms beneath the rain, you'd at least have wasted away pining for him. Who would've thought Sister would actually be a little fuller than before?”

If she filled out much more, she would almost become exactly the type that bastard Zheng liked.

The Commandery Princess was not angry. Instead, she replied bluntly, “Just because I've lost my man, am I supposed to starve myself and make a spectacle of trying to die?”

“Of course, of course. Sister is a heroine among women.”

The Commandery Princess did not dismount from her Pi Beast to greet Ji Chengjue.

Ji Chengjue did not leave his carriage to move closer to her either.

What had happened on the night of his wedding had long since planted a thorn in both their hearts.

At this moment, the guards from Ji Chengjue's residence had also surrounded the carriage three layers deep. Hidden experts were mixed among them.

Little Sixth simply sat outside the carriage, leaning back and slowly turning a snuff bottle in his hand.

The Commandery Princess remained seated on her Pi Beast.

Neither spoke again.

Eventually, a scout rode in from ahead to report that the party should be arriving soon.

A smile appeared on the Commandery Princess's face.

A mocking curl appeared at the corner of Little Sixth's mouth.

At that exact moment, the Commandery Princess happened to glance over and caught it.

“What does that smile mean?”

“Sister should know perfectly well.”

“I don't.”

“My brain filled with water. I suddenly felt like smiling.”

“You're laughing at me?”

“How could I? How would I dare?”

“Are you a man or not? Talking like that is exhausting.”

“Our Li family's little brother is coming home. I'm happy for you, Sister. The burden on your shoulders can finally come off. Your life will be easier from now on.”

“So you are laughing at me.”

“Can we understand each other without saying it out loud?”

“Too hypocritical.”

“I'm a man. I have to keep the larger picture in mind.”

“Doesn't that make life terribly stifling?”

“Who in this world can truly live with complete freedom? Are you free, Sister?”

“I am.”

“No, you're not.” Ji Chengjue smiled again. “You're very much not. Once you've eaten alone for too long, it's easy to start taking it for granted that the whole dish was yours to begin with.”

“Ji Chengjue, is your skin itching?”

Ji Chengjue spread his arms.

“Come on, then. That gift Sister sent me on my wedding day, I couldn't accept it then. Today I can. Do you still dare send it?”

You are no longer the Li family's only one.

Trade lives.

Do you dare?

Most of the time, Ji Chengjue was an exceptionally calm man. But facing the Commandery Princess, he found it difficult to suppress the anger in his heart. Anyone who had gone through what he had on his wedding night would find it impossible to simply let the matter go.

“Is it because Zheng Fan was made a Marquis that you, Ji Chengjue, suddenly think you've really got the backing to do as you please?”

Little Sixth crossed one leg over the other.

“That's exactly it.”

“You think that fellow Zheng will keep flattering you and making offerings to you like before?”

Ji Chengjue shook his head.

“It's been me flattering him and making offerings to him for a long time now.”

The bastard had made his name and pulled his trousers back up.

Now, in his letters, he was even telling Ji Chengjue to look on the bright side and promising that he would do his best to keep him safe.

Wonderful.

It was like a man who had just finished having his fun, pulled up his trousers, and then advised the girl to go respectable.

Ji Chengjue did not mind.

He had known exactly what sort of man Zheng Fan was. Zheng Fan had said it plainly enough all those years ago at the Marquis of Zhenbei Residence.

But that honesty also made him dependable.

If Zheng Fan said he would protect Ji Chengjue's life, then Ji Chengjue could trust him with it. Never mind himself; his wife and child could genuinely be entrusted to Zheng Fan.

Ji Chengjue had always understood why Tian Wujing had chosen Zheng Fan as the man to whom he would entrust his son.

“Ji Chengjue, do you have any idea what kind of thing your Ji family is raising by continuing to support that fellow Zheng?”

Little Sixth nodded, reached out, and pointed at the Commandery Princess.

“What am I afraid of? Hasn't my Ji family already raised a thing like you?”

In the end, he still could not resist tearing away the last pretense and cursing her.

Afterward, he let out a breath.

Whew.

That felt good.

The Commandery Princess laughed.

“Ji Chengjue, remember what you said today.”

“I don't have many talents, but I do have one. I've had a photographic memory since I was a child.”

At that moment, a procession appeared in the distance.

The man at its head wore an ancient-looking greatsword at his waist.

The Commandery Princess patted the Pi Beast beneath her. It rose from its crouch and looked toward the approaching party.

“Coming with me?”

The Commandery Princess extended the invitation to Ji Chengjue.

Ji Chengjue lifted a hand.

“You family members should have a proper reunion first. I'm in no hurry.”

The Commandery Princess rode her Pi Beast toward the approaching column.

Little Sixth looked around. There were quite a few people here paying respects.

He smiled.

“At last, things should be peaceful for a while.”

“Master, what do you mean by that?”

Ji Chengjue did not answer.

Instead, he sighed with feeling.

“The Li family doesn't have many people, but when it comes to being interesting, they really don't lose to our Ji family at all.”

* * *

When the Commandery Princess reached Li Liangshen, she said, “You've worked hard.”

Li Liangshen smiled and shook his head. “Fortunately, I did not fail the mission.”

“Is my little brother in the carriage?”

Li Liangshen nodded.

The Commandery Princess started toward the carriage, but Li Liangshen raised a hand and blocked her path.

“Heh...”

The Commandery Princess turned her face and looked at Li Liangshen.

This adopted elder brother had once indulged her without limit, spoiled her, and supported her.

Now, he was blocking her.

Because her little brother had returned.

“What do you think I'm going to do?”

Li Liangshen looked back at her.

“You can't be willful anymore.”

The Commandery Princess bit her lip. “I know. Earlier, when Ji Chengjue mocked me, I didn't even rush over and whip him.”

“That, you don't actually need to endure. If you want to whip him, whip him. Or I can do it for you later.”

“Brother, I won't do anything to Little Brother. Let me see him.”

Li Liangshen still did not lower his arm.

He knew how mad she could be.

The Commandery Princess stopped there and waited.

Between the two of them, there was silence. Only the wind remained.

At last, Li Liangshen shook his head.

“After we send him back to the Residence, you can see him then. Or once the person coming to receive and escort him arrives, you can see him.”

Li Liangshen had been the one to find him.

As long as the Young Marquis remained in his hands, Li Liangshen would permit no accident whatsoever.

The Commandery Princess reached into her robes, took out a letter, and handed it to him.

Li Liangshen accepted it.

The Commandery Princess said, “A personal letter from Father. He orders me to protect Little Brother on the way home. I've already taken leave of His Majesty. I'm the one who came to receive him.”

Li Liangshen read the letter.

It was his adoptive father's handwriting. There could be no mistake.

His arm dropped.

Since this was his adoptive father's will, Li Liangshen would obey it without condition.

The Commandery Princess went straight to the carriage and pulled open the curtain.

Inside sat Afei, freshly changed into clean clothes and looking much more presentable.

When he saw her, his expression held no confusion.

No surprise.

No happy smile of a younger brother seeing his elder sister.

Instead, there was unmistakable wariness.

“Do you know who I am?” the Commandery Princess asked.

Afei nodded.

“Many times, while sitting beside the river at Chen Family Hamlet, I thought about what Nanny told me, that Father wanted me dead. Our family doesn't have many people, only four. If Mother wanted me dead, there would've been no need for her to give birth to me. And if it wasn't Father, who else could it have been?”

The Commandery Princess shook her head.

“You should have pretended. You should have happily called me Elder Sister, then thrown yourself into my arms. You shouldn't have said a single word of what you just said. You should have buried all of it in your heart. Do you understand? By saying it so openly, you've left yourself no room to maneuver.”

Afei sighed.

Still seated inside the carriage, he answered with remarkable calm.

“I grew up in Chen Family Hamlet. Nanny told me about my origins when I was very young, so all these years I had to pretend I was just an ordinary child from the village. But when I agreed to leave Chen Family Hamlet, I made a decision. From that moment on, I would stop pretending.”

The Commandery Princess leaned her head sideways against the carriage wall.

She was not angry.

Instead, she smiled.

“I never thought much about it before. But now that there's suddenly a man of my own generation in the family, it feels pretty good.”

She raised a hand, pointed at Afei, and nodded.

“Unfortunately, the Li family no longer has the power to put you on the Dragon Throne. But guaranteeing that you can live the rest of your life without pretending? That we can do.”

Afei smiled.

He smiled very happily.

“Elder Sister.”

“Mm.”

“Actually, when I sat beside that river in Chen Family Hamlet, I didn't only think about what I just told you. Most of the time, I was thinking about something else. Now it seems I was right.”

The Commandery Princess swept a strand of dark hair away from her cheek.

“Oh? What were you thinking about?”

Afei answered with complete seriousness.

“My elder sister is exactly as I imagined. She really is beautiful.”

[End of Chapter 655]