Chapter 31: Scorned the Moment I Arrived in the Capital

In the thirty-fourth year of the Jingning era of the Great Qing, Luhe Post, situated near the eastern gate of Tongzhou, suffered severe damage in an earthquake and flood.

To safeguard the grain transport, the imperial court moved Luhe Post to the southern bank of the Xiao Empress River at Zhangjiawan, where it was merged with Hehe Post.

The newly consolidated station became the foremost posthouse at the capital gates. It marked the northern terminus—or, one might say, the starting point—of the Grand Canal, and was also a rare post station serving both water and land routes.

Despite the merger, the station continued to be called Luhe Post.

“Luhe” was an ancient name for Tongzhou.

It was now the seventh day of the third month in the first year of the Taishun era.

Late spring had arrived. The sky was clear, the air crisp, and all creation was stirring back to life, brimming with vigor.

Luhe Post was filled with clamorous voices and extraordinary bustle. Official vessels and merchant ships lay side by side, boats came and went without pause, masts rose in dense ranks, and merchants and travelers gathered from every direction. The scene of prosperity was magnificent indeed.

The drooping willows on either bank dipped into the shimmering light on the water. Willow fluff drifted across the sky, and beneath the radiant sun it seemed as though golden gauze had been woven through the air.

At that moment, the Jiang family’s great ship and the Xue family’s great ship slowly entered the posthouse wharf. The waves thrown up as the two vessels came alongside beat against the timeworn stone embankment.

He Yun, dressed in the official robes of a fifth-rank Dragon Guard, was the first to descend from the Jiang family vessel. His black leather boots rang against the old blue stone as he climbed aboard the Xue family ship. After conferring briefly with the Xue family, he came ashore together with Xie Jixing.

Before long, the two men had hired sedan chairs, carriages, wagons, mules, horses, and every other manner of conveyance.

Madam Xue and Xue Baochai shared one sedan chair. Tongxi, Ying’er, and the other maids rode in a carriage, while Xue Pan mounted a sturdy mule.

On the Jiang family’s side, Jiang Nian and Xiangling shared one carriage, Madam Meng and Madam Feng another, while He Yun rode on horseback.

From Luhe Post to Divine Capital, several dozen li still remained.

With only four men left in the Xue family, they still had to rely on the Jiang family’s care and protection along the way.

He Yun rode ahead, spurring his horse to a swift pace and hastening alone toward Divine Capital.

He had to seek out Prince Zhongyi and arrange lodgings for Jiang Nian.

The matter was confidential. Only Jiang Nian, He Yun, and Madam Meng knew of it. Even the Jiang family’s servants were unaware, to say nothing of the Xue family.

In addition, the Xue family had asked He Yun to inform the Wang household, where Wang Ziteng resided, and request that they send people to receive the Xue family.

***

Prince Zhongyi, also known as the Thirteenth Prince, was thirty-eight years old that year.

He was the thirteenth son by birth order of Emperor Jingning, the younger brother closest to the present Emperor Taishun, and the minister upon whom the emperor relied most heavily. As soon as Taishun ascended the throne, he elevated him to the rank of Prince Zhongyi and entrusted him with important responsibilities.

He was accomplished in both letters and arms, possessed considerable administrative talent, had a discerning eye for people, and was seasoned and skillful in his methods.

The Prince Zhongyi’s residence stood outside Dong’an Gate on Marshal’s Alley. The estate was magnificent and imposing, displaying all the authority and grandeur of the imperial house.

He Yun urged his horse onward and galloped all the way to the prince’s residence. The guards and household soldiers at the gate did not make things difficult for him.

Yet He Yun did not get to see Prince Zhongyi as he had hoped. The prince was not at the residence; he was in the Garden of Flourishing Spring.

Gao Zhuan, the chief secretary of the princely residence, summoned He Yun before him and said, “Our prince once mentioned to me that if anyone came from Jiangning seeking lodgings, a residence had already been prepared. I simply do not know what connection your master has with our prince.”

He Yun clasped his hands and said, “I ask your indulgence, Chief Secretary. I am not at liberty to speak plainly of this matter.”

Upon hearing that, Gao Zhuan’s brows drew tightly together, and a trace of displeasure entered his voice. “What secrecy could there possibly be in this? Even I, the chief secretary of this residence, am not permitted to know? Could it be that your master is a relative of the prince?”

With that, he gave a soft snort through his nose.

He Yun remained composed and clasped his hands once more. “In answer to Your Excellency, he is not a relative.”

Gao Zhuan questioned him a few more times. Seeing that He Yun continued to speak in guarded half-truths, he mused inwardly:

“If this so-called Master Jiang truly had an intimate relationship with the prince, why would His Highness prepare only an old little residence in the eastern outskirts beyond the city? Though the man before me is a fifth-rank Dragon Guard, that is hardly remarkable. This matter is not worth my concern.”

With that thought, Gao Zhuan lifted a teacup glazed the pale blue of a sky after rain. He used the lid to brush aside the floating leaves, took two sips, and only then looked back at He Yun. His tone had grown several degrees colder.

“I have a great deal of business to attend to today and cannot receive you personally. I shall send a master of ceremonies to escort you to the residence in the eastern outskirts.”

He then turned his gaze toward a master of ceremonies named Ke Shijie and gave him a brief set of instructions.

The Prince Zhongyi’s residence had six masters of ceremonies in all: two each of the fourth, fifth, and sixth ranks. They were responsible for all ceremonial affairs within the princely household.

Ke Shijie was the lowest-ranking among them, a sixth-rank master of ceremonies. After receiving his orders, he led He Yun to the residence.

The house stood in the eastern outskirts of Divine Capital and was an old, modest courtyard.

The phrase “modest courtyard” was used only in comparison with the estates of great clans and wealthy families. In truth, it was a two-courtyard quadrangle. For an ordinary family, it would already have been considered a respectable home.

Once Ke Shijie had brought He Yun there, he hurried away.

He Yun swung onto his horse, urged it into a gallop, and soon rejoined the Jiang and Xue families, who were making their way toward the capital.

He Yun told Jiang Nian everything that had happened. Jiang Nian sighed inwardly.

“So I have barely arrived in the capital and am already being looked down upon? That chief secretary of the prince’s residence clearly does not think much of me.”

Jiang Nian immediately went to the small residence.

The Wang family had not yet sent anyone to receive the Xue family. Since Jiang Nian’s small residence lay near the road into the capital, Madam Xue followed him there, intending to discover more about his background.

When they arrived, Madam Xue’s brocade embroidered shoes stepped over the moss-mottled stone stairs. She surveyed the dilapidated buildings in the courtyard, the corners of her lips curling into a mocking smile.

While looking at Jiang Nian, she pondered inwardly:

“My Xue family owns several residences in the capital. Any one of them would be superior to this place. Was this Jiang Nian not supposed to have an extraordinary background? Why is he living in such a shabby house in the capital? And in the outskirts, far from the city’s prosperity at that… Could my earlier judgment have been mistaken? Could his origins not be distinguished after all? If so, that promise to take me as his concubine has become a laughingstock. I must ask Baochai’s maternal uncle to put an end to Jiang Nian’s foolish delusions!”

Xue Baochai, for her part, was filled with unease.

“If Master Jiang’s background is not distinguished, would I not be even more lowly if I became his concubine?”

The old bronze bell beneath the eaves swayed and chimed in the spring breeze. In Madam Xue’s and Xue Baochai’s ears, its sound seemed to become, respectively, a voice of mockery and a cry of grief.

Jiang Nian, however, felt that being able to live in this little residence was already comfortable enough.

If this had been the world of his previous life, this two-courtyard quadrangle not far from Chaoyang Gate would have been astonishingly expensive. Anyone who owned such a “little residence” would unquestionably have been considered wealthy.

Yet now, leaning against a cracked cypress pillar beneath the veranda and gazing at the half-withered pear tree in the courtyard, he could not help wondering:

“After all, I am the son of Emperor Taishun, and it was Emperor Taishun who permitted me to come to the capital. The emperor granted He Yun the position of fifth-rank Dragon Guard and instructed Prince Zhongyi to arrange my lodgings. Under such circumstances, how did I end up with this shabby little residence in the outskirts? Was this done deliberately by Emperor Taishun—or deliberately by Prince Zhongyi?”