CH 4

It is night in the stone pavilion in the back garden of the Eastern Palace.

Zhao Yan, a courtier of the Eastern Palace, stood outside the pavilion with his head bowed. The sound of falling in the pavilion was clear to his ears, and his eyebrows twitched as he raised his eyes to look in.

The man sitting at the middle of the pavilion is dressed in  a moon-white uniform with a four-clawed dragon hidden on his sleeve, and he is playing with his hands, his brow stern and cold. Just sitting there, his body has a dignity and splendour that is different from that of ordinary noblemen.

Han Ye was established as the Crown Prince of Dajing at the age of six. Since his childhood, his character was elegant and wise, and his temperament was outstanding. No matter how hard several princes tried to emulate him, they could not divide his admiration in the hearts of the people. At the age of eighteen, he hid his identity and accompanied the  northwest army on an expedition to conquer the northern Qin, and his reputation among the people and courtiers reached its peak after a great victory.

Even though Emperor Jia Ning was always happy and angry, the ministers could vaguely sense that the iron-blooded emperor valued his only first son.

Otherwise, they would not have been allowed to set up ministers of various ranks in the Eastern Palace, who, although not of high rank in the court and still young, were undoubtedly the pillars of the future of Dajing.

As the youngest son of the Marquis of Qi'nan, he was chosen by the Emperor Jia Ning  to accompany the Crown Prince since he was a child, and now serves in the Eastern Palace, and has long since become the Crown Prince's right-hand man.

"Zi Jing, how are things at An Le Zhai?" As the last chess piece fell, Han Ye's voice came in a faint voice.

"Your Highness." Zhao Yan returned to his senses, stepped forward and saluted, "Today there is news from the palace today that the Lord of Anle Village has received the imperial decree and will depart for the capital in the next few days. Does Your Highness have orders?"

The female bandit from the frontier had boldly proposed to marry the Crown prince in the Imperial Palace, and she wanted to be the crown prince's consort. Although the Emperor Jia Ning had not agreed to the proposal, it had made His Royal Highness lose face. For half a month, this matter had been rumoured in the imperial capital, coupled with the fanning of the flames by the people in the Mu Wang mansion, the An Le Village Master, who was ten thousand miles away, had become a figure eagerly awaited by the literati, scholars and aristocratic ladies before she even entered the capital. 

"Order it down. Let Anle enter the capital. Just ignore her and do not bully at will."

Zhao Yan was stunned and hurriedly said, "Your Highness, the woman is so rude and domineering. She ignores the authority of the Eastern Palace and Your Highness, how can she be let off so easily ......"  

Halfway through his words, Zhao Yan's voice stalled and he was a little apprehensive. Although the prince was a refined and approachable man, he did not like his subordinates to interfere with his orders.

"The authority of the Eastern Palace? Zi Jing, An Le Zhai has been working against the court for decades, and has never even put the national prestige of Da Jing in her eyes, let alone I, the Prince of the Eastern Palace."

The wind rose and the sky was slightly cool. Han Ye got up and the servant girl who was standing by immediately brought a shawl and tied it around his shoulders respectfully.

"Your Highness..."  Hearing these words, Zhao Yan's mouth opened and his  expression was a bit impressive.

"Besides... to ask for a marriage with 30,000 sailors is not a small gesture. This Prince is not ashamed." Han Ye's voice was light and his face was calm, but there was a clear hint of mockery in his eyes.

"Your Highness..."

The ' Songzhu[1] gong zi[2]', who had always been known for his eloquence in the imperial capital, was unable to say anything except to look at the Crown Prince, unable to say 'Your Majesty is right'!

[1]  鬆竹 (sōngzhú ) - In literary works, pine and cypress are often used to symbolize the unyielding and heroic spirit. Bamboo symbolizes integrity.  The bamboo is tall and beautiful, and it is not withered in the cold year. Since ancient times, it has been universally loved by people. From the  "The Analects of Confucius"  and "Three Friends of the Years and Colds".

[2]公子  gōngzǐ - son of an official; son of nobility; your son (honorific)

Lord, you are at least the crown prince of a country. That female bandit is seeking marriage ah, not a marriage ah!　　

"Moreover, even if others don't know the details of Anle's fortress, you should know that it is not just a small fortress. Ren Anle is not a vulgar person if she can be taken seriously by the Emperor. Zi Jing [3], it is not wise to underestimate your opponent at any time."

[3]子(zǐ) -son; Viscount, fourth of five orders of nobility 五等爵位 (The Five-Class Nobility in Confucian Classics); 

Same field of the emperor's doctor. Just like 'Hou' (Jing'An Hou)same field as the prince of the emperor.

敬(jìng) - to respect; to venerate; to salute; to offer

Perhaps because the look in Zhao Yan's eyes was too sad and angry, Han Ye finally gave a graceful bypass of the topic.　　

"Opponent?" The first part of Han Ye's words had Zhao Yan nodding, but when he heard the second part, Zhao Yan lowered his eyes and his voice was a whimper, "Your Highness, to say it's opponent is also..."

Good or bad,  the young woman do not give up a thousand miles to make people to enter the capital to spread the word that she admire you. She emptied her family's fortune to get close to you, so to call her opponent is too unkind!

Besides, His Highness is the Crown Prince of a country. How can a female bandit be a match for him?

"What, do you think she's been exalted? Zi Jing, daring to say in the court of Dajing that she would be the Crown Princess of the Eastern Palace, such a person, in terms of boldness and bravery, is the second one I have seen in the world...she is the second one."   

He don't know what comes to his mind, but Prince Han Ye's gaze is slightly fixed, and in the darkness of the night, one can faintly see the longing memories in his pupils.　　

Seemingly because Han Ye's expression was too certain and serious, Zhao Yan suppressed his surprise and could not help but ask, "Your Highness, the other one is..."　　

"The head of the Di family back then, Di Shengtian."

Zhao Yan suddenly raised his head, but he saw Prince Han Ye had already walked down the stone steps, heading deeper into the Eastern Palace, and there was actually a thin cold and melancholy between his steps.

Rumour has it that the head of the Di Family was so fond of the first son of  Zhong wang that she was his teacher of enlightenment. Could it be true?

"Zi Jing, there is no need to pay attention to the rumours in the capital, let alone suppressed."

Hearing these words, a complex look appeared in Zhao Yan's eyes. He had been with the Crown Prince since he was a child and understood the deep meaning of his words almost immediately.　　

This father and son, the most honourable and noble pair in the world, were equally obsessed with one thing.

The Tianzi [4] is deeply secretive to the Di clan, but the one the Prince values most... is the only orphaned daughter of the Di family.

[4]天子 (tiānzǐ) - Son of Heaven; the (rightful) emperor

It is true that the rumours of Ren Anle are spreading, but because of this, the fact that the Crown Prince's concubine of the Eastern Palace is vacant is also being spread out in front of the people and the important ministers of the courtiers without any concealment.

Throughout, numerous wife are like a gully in heaven. The fact that the Crown Prince does not have a first wife and a first son is an absurd embarrassment to the whole of Great Jing.

With this opportunity to send the words public opinion of the world's officials into the palace, perhaps instead of being fed up with Ren Anle, His Highness ...... will thank her.

Zhao Yan looked at the faintly disappearing figure deep in the path and finally could not help but sigh.

It had been ten years or so since Di North City had been so lively.

The surrender of An Le Zhai was a major event in this part of Jinan, and in order to show the Emperor's prestige, Fan Wen Chao had sent his men to spread the news to the sky a few days earlier. The people of Di Bei City, who were the closest, were naturally the first to receive the news.

It was a rare event for the female head of the Anle fortress to enter the capital as an official, and not all women of the Dajing dynasty dared to marry the prince of a country, so in just a few days, Ren Anle became a regular guest at the teahouse theatre.

Many people wanted to take a good look at this heroine from the south of Jin, so the official road to the Imperial City, which is the only way to enter the capital, was blocked early this morning.

However, the imperial guard of honour was so strict that even Ren Anle, who was used to being a hooligan, pretended to be delicate and hid in the carriage, not allowing anyone to look at her.  Regrettably, everyone had to walk back home bored under the scorching sun.

"Miss, you have finally made a wise decision. A girl should sit in a carriage and enjoy her life. How can you look like a lady on a horse and wield a sword all day long?" Yuan Shu sat upright in the carriage and said curtly to one side.

The young girl in green, about eighteen years old, named Yuan Qin, was sitting by the side, looking after Ren Anle's daily life. She seems to have a better grip on the fiery Yuan Shu than Ren Anle.

At this moment she has a dragon spring green celadon teapot in her hand, her two hands moving gently until the faint scent of tea overflows into the carriage. Only then did a shallow dimple appear at the corner of her mouth.

When she was young, she was chased by mountain bandits and mistakenly entered Anle's fortress. She has a quiet nature and is well versed in the classics of history, wise and intelligent. Two years ago she became the military counselor of Anle fortress.

At the beginning of the journey, Yuan Qin explained that everyone should not call Ren Anle by the name they used in the cottage, so as not to make a fool of themselves when they enter the capital. She was so used to being cold and quiet that Yuan Shu was frightened by her, and then she meekly called Ren Anle 'Miss'.

"Anlezhai is thousands of miles away from the capital, I'm already fed up and unbearably want to go horseback riding" Ren Anle gave Yuan Shu a look and leaned back on the soft pillow like a lord: "Go, get off the carriage later and buy some actor's lines  for this master...the people of Jinan have a good eye...listen, the Lord of Anle fortress was so powerful thats she fought against eight sides with her own strength...and took the heads of the enemy generals from a thousand miles away..."

Ren Anle pointed to the words in the playbook word by word and read them openly. Yuan Shu hung his eyebrows upside down and was just about to say something reliable to exhort her master's extremely inflated self-confidence when the carriage suddenly picked up speed.

The three of them looked at each other a bit strange, the Di North City was crowded, how could it suddenly...

Yuan Shu lifted the cloth curtain slightly and looked not far away with a corner of her eyebrows, her expression somewhat clear, seeing Ren Anle looking at her, she only whispered, "Miss, not far ahead is the Di Palace and the Di Clan Ancestral Hall."

Born in this part of Jinan, no one would be unaware of the Di family, not even the people of Anle Village who were the kings of the mountain and arrogantly dominant.

Ten years ago, after the entire Di family was executed, Emperor Jia Ning did not destroy the Di family's ancestral home and the Di ancestral shrine, but only sent a team of guards to guard the place. These two places have been left unattended for over ten years since the fall of the Imperial family, and now they have long since become decay and decrepit, no longer in their prime. However, the prestige that has been built up over the centuries still remains, so after all these years, the people of Jinan still respect this place with reverence.　　

"If the birds are dead, good bows are hidden. Once the cunning rabbit dies, the hound is cooked.[5]" Yuan Qin put down the cup in her hand, the celadon fell on the small table and made a clear and crisp sound. She raised her eyes towards the curtain and looked far away: "It's a pity that the Di family has such a huge century-old business. If we talk about ingratitude and injustice, His majesty is one of the best."　　

[5]If the birds are dead, good bows are hidden; Boil the hound once the sly rabbit is caught (fēi nîao jìn, liáng gōng cáng; jiâo tù sî, zôu gôu pēng. )

- This means that if a person loses the value of use, he is killed or has a worse end than others. It has the same meaning as 'destroying the bridge after crossing the river’ and 'unloading the mill to kill the donkey'.

Yuan Shu blinked, a little confused by Yuan Qin's sigh. She looked at the Di family's ancestral home for a while before lowering the curtain, suddenly noticing that the carriage was unusually quiet. When she turned her head towards Ren Anle, she saw that she had closed her eyes at some point and was sleeping lightly, her brow was deep and indifferent. The playbook in her hand had fallen beside her lap and she never picked it up again.

Half a month later, the imperial guard of honour approached the capital.

Looking at the city gates standing not far away, Shi lang Fan in a carriage in front of him breathed a sigh of relief. He had sent his guards back to the capital a day ago to report that there was a reply from the palace. After a moment's hesitation, he ordered the procession to pause, stroked his two moustaches, lifted the curtain and waved his hand at the guards, "Call General Ren to come, I have something to tell her."

The guard was about to take his orders and go, but Fan Wen Chao called him back with a hesitant look, "Forget it, it's better for me to go there myself."

Fan Wenzhao, who had reached the position of a second-ranking official in the imperial court, was a man of understanding. Regardless of the real strength of Anle's fortress and the Emperor's obscure attitude, he had met Ren Anle twice during his days of travel.

Not knowing what to say, Fan Wenzhao nevertheless understood the moment he saw Ren Anle why this woman dared to say those shocking words in the court of Dajing.

It was true that this female bandit had a big grin on her face, but the sharpness of being in charge of a city and its tens of thousands of soldiers for several years was enough to make him swallow all his words with a grimace. Ren Anle was so unlike any other noblewoman he had ever seen in the capital that he could not even think of comparing them.

It's not that Ren Anle was born out of the ordinary, or that she was astonishing. It's just that who would talk about a warrior general and a young lady together, it would only make people laugh.

In the middle of his thoughts, he had already reached the carriage of the Anle zhai people. The curtains of the carriage had been lifted early because they knew that the capital was near. Ren Anle sat cross-legged beside the carriage frame and looked at the pacing Servant Fan with a sincere and frank smile: " Fan daren, has His Majesty issued a royal decree?"

Shi lang Fan's eyebrows jumped and he didn't mind Ren Anle's disrespect of not saluting as a 'subordinate' . He looked into the carriage and said, "His Majesty is sympathetic to General Ren's long journey and has given her a residence in the west of the city to rest for a few days. In three days' time, His Majesty and the ministers will receive the General at the Shang Shu Court."

The surrender of the Anle fortress is a major event for Great Jing, but Ren Anle is still a woman, and the mere placement of Ren Anle in the courtroom has caused much debate among the officials these days. His Majesty must have chosen to receive her in the Shang Shu Court for the sake of propriety.

"His Majesty is sympathetic to his subordinate, so this master...er...subordinate will rest at home for a few days before entering the palace to pay her respects." Halfway through her words Ren Anle felt a faintly invisible glimpse from Yuan Qin's eyes that staring at the book and smoothly stepped on top of Yuan Shu's shoes.   

"Why not meet Young lady, Yuan Shu?" Shi lang Fan, who remembered Yuan Shu extremely well, who was full of fury and carried a big sword all day long, wondered.

"The uncles in the fortress are not at ease, so they sent a servant, Yuan Shu to go to receive it. Daren need not remember."

Ren Anle replied casually, holding her chin, her eyes rolled for half a second, looking at the uncomfortable Shi lang Fan and asking, "I wonder if His Royal Highness is usually busy and what kind of things he likes, so that I can have someone prepare them for these days, and then visit the Eastern Palace when I have seen His Majesty."    

The court official's expression froze. When he saw the fire that seemed to be in the eyes of Ren Anle, who had been so light-hearted when talking about the Crown Prince. He subconsciously felt the vigilance that should be expected of a courtier of Dajing: "General is joking, His Royal Highness is usually busy with government affairs and rarely has time to spare, and His Royal Highness was extremely intelligent and talented when he was young, so so he is not like those ordinary hedonistic son of rich parents who play with things as trifling destroys the will [6]. If the general has time, she might as well meet the noble ladies of the capital, or to get acquainted with the environment of the capital as soon as possible."

[6]玩物丧志 (wán wù sàng zhì) -lit. trifling destroys the will (idiom); infatuation with fine details prevents one making progress; means that when one is intoxicated with the enjoyment of something or indulges in or longs for some minor hobbies, one loses one's positive and aggresive ambition and high-mindedness. From The Book - The Mastiff of Travel.

The Crown prince, Han Ye, was respected by the courtiers, so how could he let a female bandit from the countryside get her hands on him in vain. It is better to keep her away from the Prince.

Shi lang Fan words are not restrained. He almost said that the daughter of a noble family would not dare to climb up to the Prince of Dajing, let alone a reckless woman from Anle zhai!

Yuan Qin, who was concentrating on the book, sighed and sat as steady as a mountain. The corners of her mouth curved up in a playful manner.

"Is that so?" Ren Anle's dark pupils blinked as she stared at Shi lang Fan for half a second without saying a word, causing cold sweat to form on the forehead of this second ranking official of the court before she flicked her sleeves and said with a long smile, "I never imagined that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would be so outstanding and far beyond what the people say. I guess these betrothal gifts won't catch His Royal Highness's eye."

Ren Anle glanced at the chests filled with gold and silver that stretched for miles behind the carriage and said lightly, "It seems that unless I am appointed to the court and have great military merit, I would not dare to speak of joining the Eastern Palace again.  Fan daren, do you think so?"

Fan looked at the suddenly glowing Ren Anle with a dumbfounded expression. His  face rose to the pig's liver color: "General, this is ......"

"An Le will remember your good advice and do her utmost to do so. On the day of this subject and His Highness's wedding, she will definitely invite Fan daren to be her guest of honour as a token of appreciation for today's revelation."

With these sincere and serious words from Ren Anle, Shi lang Fan finally lost his breath and and fell backwards towards the guards.

Your Royal Highness, the crime of banishing officials from ten thousand deaths!

Not bothering to care about the scene outside the carriage, Ren Anle lowered the curtain and lay down comfortably on the soft pillow, but she saw Yuan Qin respectfully bring a cup of tea to her with a serious expression: "Young Miss, in the past it was me and Yuan Shu who have eyes but fail to recognize Mount Tai[7]. If we have offended you in the future, I hope that you will be kind enough to let us live."　　

[7]有眼不识泰山 (yǒu yǎn bù shí tài shān )-lit. to have eyes but fail to recognize Mt Tai (idiom); fig. to fail to recognize somebody important or somebody's great talent; to be blind to the fact

The carriage was a deafening place for a moment, and Ren Anle blinked and froze for half a second before she realised that she had easily won a city on the enemy's side, but had lost to her own ya tou [8].

[8] 丫头 (yā tou) - girl; servant girl; (used deprecatingly, but sometimes also as a term of endearment)

In the midst of the military chaos, no one noticed that ...... the team, which had travelled thousands of miles, had officially stepped over the walls of the imperial capital of Dajing.

T/N: In regard to a reader's comment, and for those who are wondering about the title,

帝皇书 - dì huáng shū

帝   (dì) - emperor

皇 (huáng) -emperor; It contains a noble meaning, and also refers to solemnity and greatness.

皇帝 (huáng dì) - emperor

书  (shū) - book; letter; document

Emperor's Book

The Book of Emperors

Imperial Book

Emperor Book I

Because I wasn't sure what the precise English translation was because it was changing all the time, I didn't change the chinese title. However, in order for people to find this novel translation, I've added additional titles to NU. 

Author: Xīng Líng

Fact: Xīng Líng is also the author of 'Ancient,' a novel that was adapted into a drama series called 'Ancient Love Poetry.'

And Ren Anle is so funny. I can't stop laughing, while translating this novel.