Chapter 35

[If you’re not reading this on chichilations, then you’re reading a pointlessly stolen copy. As always, thank you for commenting and liking.]

Jinzi pelting me with furious admonishments leaves me stunned for a moment. He’s not an emotional person, always in a self-imposed gloom –

what’s with this outburst?

I get an absurd feeling: if Zhang Qinglian knew his gigolo and former boytoy dared to talk to him like this and willfully get angry at him, how would he feel?

I’m still too useless, apparently.

“Jinzi, what’s wrong? I was just feeling cooped up, so I went out for a stroll…”

He didn’t show any sign of calming down, still holding me firmly. “Where did you go to?” He demanded.

Why does he need to know the answer to such a boring question? What’s with that tone?

I’m also getting angry. “Do I have to tell you about everywhere I go?”

Jinzi immediately loosened his hand, biting his lip hard in rage, his clear eyes glaring at me. Though I was too soft-hearted to look at his upset expression for a moment, I still didn’t show him any weakness and glared right back.

The outcome was that we started a new round of our cold war.

Getting along with him is becoming more and more of a problem recently. Jinzi’s acting strange, as if he’s super sensitive or something.

I really don’t feel like walking on eggshells for this crown prince. Is he in his rebellious phase? Last time I initiated the make-up process when he was acting like a brat; I had said that I’m older than him and should cut him some slack, but I can’t keep cutting more and more of it. I feel like I’m even more-so not in the wrong this time. I can’t be the first to give in.

At this time, someone came in and reported that Qu Baifeng and Liu Chunxi had come.

These two are the most frequent visitors to my Residence, Qu Baifeng being one of the more zealous of my fans, and Liu Chunxi is here today for an obvious reason: it’s come time for the Annual Election.

The Annual Election is the time each year when officials are chosen. Officials will get appraised by the Ministry of Appointments, and will either get promoted, or stay where they are, or move to an equal position, or get demoted – which, as far as officials are concerned, means their life is over. A promotion is naturally good; even if it’s just moving to different position, there’s a lot of well-paid posts to be had, and many not-so-well-paid offices. Those already occupying well-paid posts won’t speak of transferring offices, nor even of taking up a higher one. For a few days every year, the front yards of the homes of the Minister and Assistant Ministers of Appointments are as busy as marketplaces for under-the-counter influences. This also must be done with caution, biding time for when the night is black and the wind is howling, or an Imperial Censor will find out what you’ve been up to, and that’s no laughing matter.

Furthermore, each major faction’s feud will be intensified at this time. As if dividing the spoils of a siege, they fiercely fight over the posts yet divide up the important or relatively important official’s positions relatively equally.

It’s at this time that everyone acts like a grasshopper in heat, emotions running high, jumping and hopping about all day long, trying to gather favor everywhere they can, and not letting a single opportunity slip past them with a keen sense of smell.

For example, my godson Gao Yushu has a considerably important post, and it could even be said that he’s situated where the wind and waves are most vicious as the Minister of Justice. His moral character has always been spurned by very many people, yet he’s the backbone of my party and a thorn in the Qingliu’s side – even Shao Qing’s lackeys look down on him. However, the Minister of Appointments is an old fox from the Zhongli party, and will not move the core characters of each faction, so he will definitely give him an excellent review. For that reason, he’s still quite secure.

However, Gao Yushu is no less active, as the Minister of Appointments is an unavoidable force. He’d invited me to his home two days ago, deliberately setting up an affectionate “family feast” or whatever, and because it’s a “family feast”, I got to see the face of my legendary tigress of a goddaughter-in-law. She’s a noblewoman of 40 years of age, with a sturdy stature and a homely face, yet it can still be seen that she’s of high birth — I would later learn that she was the daughter of the former Prime Minister. Gao Yushu’s own family origins aren’t of a wealthy sort; he became a top-scorer in the imperial examination rising from years of hard work and humble beginnings. Like very many opera dramas, the Prime Minister affianced him – though this Prime Minister’s daughter isn’t at all as beautiful as a spring flower, this didn’t affect his ability to climb to higher branches, and from then on he began to go down a road of quickfire success. Shame that later on the Prime Minister would be convicted and was exempted from being able to retire and go home from officialdom, losing Gao Yushu his pillar of support. Following a ten-year abundance of melancholy from not being able to garner success, he shamelessly relied on me to climb further and once again make it in the world.

It’s hard to tell if his accumulated power got too heavy, but obviously since his old father-in-law’s fall from grace, he’s still as tremendously afraid of getting henpecked as ever. He doesn’t even have a single concubine, his three daughters all having been born from his wife; he can’t even use the excuse of not having a male heir to take a concubine. He can only occasionally seek out Lan Guan, producing even more of a scandal.

Ol’ Gao’s life is hard.

Gao had an overly-sappy conduct, saying a lot of overly-sappy words following that. My goddaughter-in-law ‘righteously’ retired for the night, and after that, ol’ Gao spoke to me about the the amnesty granted following Shao Qing’s return and the follow-up handling of the Cui family’s eldest son in regards to the ‘human duck incident’ – the Ministry of Justice had already taken advantage of the pardon and changed his beheading sentence to an exile of 3,000 li away, issuing him to serve in the front lines of the army. Governer Cui is quite satisfied as such.

Then my godson began to dance around the topic of the Annual Election, then began to wibble, until I gave him the assurance that I would absolutely support him if he’d stop making trouble.

Due to my godson’s heads-up, I’m very clear on why Liu Chunxi’s come. But… why’d he come with Qu Baifeng?

The answer to this question was revealed when I went with Jinzi to the small lobby used for guests to wait in: the two sat very far apart, answering each other with the smiles and politeness one would give a stranger. Seems they didn’t come together, but just happened to come at the same time.

“Chunxi, Baifeng. What good winds have blown you to the same place today?” Even though I’d just fought with Jinzi and my mood was bad, I’m still grinning from ear to ear, presumably making people feel as if they’ve been cleansed by a spring breeze. [3]

They stood up together and exchanged greetings.

I introduced them to each other. “Are you two acquainted? This is Young Master Qu Baifeng from Jiangnan, who’s a candid and mellow lover of poetry and wine by nature. This is Assistant Minister Liu of the Ministry of Revenue, with the ability to be material for a pillar that holds this country up. You’re both giants among humanity, getting along shouldn’t be a problem.”

They said that they’d already passed each other their surnames, yet I see that they seem like they’ve gotten off on the wrong foot, both their expressions quite a bit ill at ease.

A not-small amount of pleasantries and one cup of tea later, I ordered for dinner to be prepared and went to eat with them. I just don’t want the awkwardness of eating alone with Jinzi since I’d recently had a disagreement with him. That’d be the definition of ‘if you don’t talk while sleeping you shouldn’t speak while eating’ [2]; having dinner in so much silence that you can hear the fine and tiny sounds of chewing would be tremendous to bear.

In any case, the two are getting along in a way that could be called ‘pleasantly’.

Dinner includes five or six more dishes than usual – My Residence’s cook isn’t bad, and Hong Feng knows how to handle these things properly.

Qu Baifeng seems to think Liu Chunxi is the sort of person who looks for instant gratification and is a bit disdainful of him, only speaking to me. Liu Chunxi is also wanting to talk to me about the Annual Election in private and is inevitably a bit uninterested in Qu Baifeng’s presence, not paying attention to him either. Knowing of Yao Jinzi and I’s relationship, he politely tries to conversate with him, but unfortunately there’s nothing Jinzi likes better than acting cool. Furthermore, his mood is currently poor, making him even more standoffish, speaking only a sentence at a time if he even spoke at all. Out of everyone, I’m the only one trying to regulate the atmosphere like my life depends on it, only pausing to take a bite to eat, mentally and physically exhausted.

Qu Baifeng suddenly takes out an ancient-looking wooden box, saying to me, “Sir Zhang, I came here because I had received an ancient sword a few days ago. I’ve asked experts on the subject everywhere for its name, yet they’ve never had any texts on it and couldn’t recognize it by sight. If you also don’t know, Sir, please grant it a new one. If we’re discussing outstanding literary talents in the world today, you get Baifeng’s full admiration, Sir – even Big Brother Zhou only gets half-admiration. Thus, for such a precious sword, you are the only one in the land worthy of christening it.”

All these endlessly flattering words, let alone the praise of someone who sincerely adores you… I can’t help but be a tad over the moon. I pick up the case, feeling its extraordinary weight as I do. The wood grain is dark and beautiful, emitting a faint fragrance. “Is this… agarwood?” I ask.

Qu Baifeng compliments me, “You’ve good insight, Sir.”

Liu Chunxi is also curious, moving close to take a look. When I opened the case, there was a short blade about 9 cun (~30cm) long. The scabbard is worn; drawing it out, the sword’s tip is blunt and lacks a cold, threatening aura. Only a faint iridescent luster can be seen along the blade’s edge.

I pulled out one of my hairs and blew it towards the sword’s edge. As expected, it was immediately cut into two separate pieces. “Great sword!” Said everyone in unison.

Liu Chunxi was also toadying up. “Please give such a fine blade a good name, Sir.” This guy isn’t like the upright Qu Baifeng – seeing from how I look that there’s no way I’d know the origin or history of this sword, he promptly went straight to this step.

I hold the sword in my hands, mumbling incoherently: naming things isn’t something I’m good at. Should I call it… or ? Yi Tian or Tu Long?

Suddenly, a hand took the sword from my own, startling me. I look and see that it’s Jinzi.

He’s holding the sword under the light to get more details, then opened his mouth and spoke with a heavy voice, “Han Zhang. It’s almost unheard of in history. My former teacher mentioned it once.”

We all were shocked. Jinzi is very young in age, yet he could recognize an antique everyone else could not. Qu Baifeng looked at Jinzi’s face, then abruptly cried out in amazement. “Are… are you ‘Jindiao’, Yao Jinzi?”

I’ve come to know that this dear friend never pays any attention to things he isn’t interested in, so right up until this moment he never got a good look at Jinzi’s face. I secretly shake my head at him.

That thick-skinned fellow also shouted out, “I saw you in the Martial Convention back then, and after that no one knew where you went. How unexpected that you’d be at Sir Zhang’s Residence! What are you doing here, Brother Yao?”

Jinzi naturally isn’t fond of others poking at his scars, so his face is ice-cold as he doesn’t respond. Lu Chunxi is more or less aware of that sequence of events, so he’s also considerably uncomfortable.

I once again have no option but to step out and save the show. I pull Jinzi by the arm and say with a light smile, “Young Master Yao’s martial arts are superb, so he’s my bodyguard nowadays.”

Qu Baifeng looks at me, then at Jinzi, then looks like he just had an epiphany. “So that’s how it is… a martial artist-literary artist duo, a brave hero and a beau– uh, that is, a brave hero and a gifted scholar! Then those unbearable things said about Sir Zhang on the streets were actually about this!” He spoke with fervor. “If both of your hearts beat as one, what business is that of others? Between two talented people, how could a romance not flow forth? Never fear, Sir, for I, Qu Baifeng, would never be such a shallow hypocrite!”

I’m rendered speechless as I look at his impassioned face, and his happy smile, and his good mood.

This isn’t lunacy… it’s idiocy!

Qu Baifeng practically wraps himself around Jinzi, asking to exchange pointers in martial arts – really, how could an expert like Jinzi be willing to compare with him. Liu Chunxi looks like he wants nothing more than to say a few words to me alone, giving a purposeful look to Jinzi, who completely ignored it. Anxious, I pinch Jinzi’s thigh under the table. He grasps my hand in response. I pull twice, but don’t manage to get it back.

“As you like, Young Master Qu.” Just as I was wanting to try even harder, Jinzi’s clear and frosty voice rang out.

I side-eye him.

Qu Baifeng is overjoyed, going to walk with him.

Right on cue, as soon as they leave, Liu Chunxi started to speak in a casual manner. “Sir, Chunxi is actually here for…”

I cut him off that subject with a happy voice. “I know why you’ve come. Rest assured, Chunxi, I will give you a chance to fight for it…”

Liu Chunxi is elated, kowtowing in respect. I quickly helped him up, urging him, “It’s just that you have to know of two things before you hold a highly important post, Chunxi; in whatever you may do, do it step by step, and guard yourself against arrogance and impatience.”

“The gems of wisdom you’ve given me, this lower official will keep in his heart, Sir,” Liu Chunxi says.

I also say a few courteous words to incur good feelings, which is great for making him feel deeply grateful.

Following Jinzi and Qu Baifeng coming back in, the latter was out of breath, with dirt all over him and leaves in his hair. Seems Jinzi gave him a bit of a hard time. He himself naturally doesn’t have a single added wrinkle to his clothes, as clean and tidy as he had been. Even so, Qu Baifeng was looking at Jinzi with unmistakable adoration, and looking at me with about the same way.

When Qu Baifeng left, he gifted Han Zhang to Jinzi, who didn’t want to accept it, but Baifeng insisted. “Rare swords are for rare warriors. Only Brother Yao is the kind of hero that’d be worthy of making use of this one,” he’d said, firmly handing it over. I also rather like the blade, so I let Jinzi have it. He, being no good in front of people and my face even less so, finally did.

I’m going to try and get a double update on Wednesday for… reasons. No promises though.

[1] 含章 = Hanzhang. Roughly “keeping order”. Peacekeeper would be a pretty good localization.

[2] Something Confucius said.

[3] Subtle pun here; “cleansed by a spring breeze” is a real idiom, with chun (spring) and feng (wind) both being parts of Chunxi and Baifeng’s name.