Over the next few days, news arrived without pause.
Two thousand troops of the Longxiang Guard thrust from east to west straight into Shangshan Prefecture. Joining forces with the assembled prefectural troops of Shangshan, they laid siege to Dulong Fortress, while Master Zongjian, Chief of the Xumi Court of Great Vajra Monastery, personally stepped forward to challenge Zhong Yulei.
After a fierce battle, Zhong Yulei fled severely wounded, and Dulong Fortress fell with a thunderous crash.
"Tsk-tsk, Great Vajra Monastery intervened after all."
"I heard the Emperor issued a decree requesting Great Vajra Monastery to step in?"
"Who knows? Even if there was one, it was a secret edict, and perhaps he promised them something in return."
"No promises were needed. Just by wiping out Dulong Fortress, the refugees fleeing northward would be more than enough for Great Vajra Monastery to gather up for their spring plowing."
Hearing this, Zhao Yingjie had an epiphany. "I was wondering why Great Vajra Monastery was joining the fray. Turns out it was for their own estates!"
"Even though they took a bit of a reputational hit, Zhong Yulei was the one who slapped them in the face first. Zongjian's intervention is justifiable," Wang Yu remarked with a chuckling smile.
Zhao Rong glanced through the intelligence gathered by the prince's estate. "Word has it that only three million in treasure was recovered from Dulong Fortress in the end. The rest was allegedly swept away by Zhong Yulei."
"Another two million vanished?" Wang Yu asked in surprise.
Zhao Rong explained, "Zongjian didn't deliver the killing blow, so Zhong Yulei survived. Besides, since the Longxiang Guard marched out on an expedition, they naturally had to take their cut."
The Longxiang Guard and the Huben Guard were the personal troops of the Son of Heaven, as well as the imperial army's two most elite divisions.
Zhao Yingjie chuckled mischievously. "I know this all too well. Every pair of hands it passes through skins off a layer of profit."
Wang Yu gave him a sidelong glance. "Is that so?"
Zhao Yingjie threw up his hands, crying grievance aloud. "I just understand the tricks of the trade, but I haven't embezzled anything myself! I live right here in the prince's manor—what good would skimming money do me?"
Wang Yu rolled his eyes at him. "Look at your lack of ambition. If you don't siphon off a little, how will you marry Feifei? How will you raise the next generation?"
Zhao Yingjie was entirely unfazed. "The gifts of respect from various quarters are more than enough for me to marry Feifei."
As the two openly discussed embezzlement and kickbacks, Li Yunxiu sat nearby expressionless, quietly leafing through the intelligence documents in her hands.
When Wang Yu had turned back that day, Li Yunxiu had voiced no objection.
In her view, Dulong Fortress had not yet raised the banner of rebellion; it was merely a mundane martial sect and posed no great challenge to the court. Suppressing Dulong Fortress was by no means a task that strictly required the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor, and there was no need for them to reveal an attitude of subservience to the Emperor's beck and call for such a matter.
Yet even she had not expected the Longxiang Guard would dare embezzle two million from the Loulan treasure outright, pinning the blame squarely on Zhong Yulei.
These were the personal troops of the Son of Heaven!
Li Yunxiu sighed. She suddenly realized that the imperial personal guards were filled with well-connected cronies backed by imperial relatives and high-ranking court officials. It was hardly surprising that they possessed such audacity.
Furthermore, she was looking not only at Shangshan Prefecture, but also at Chuanxi Circuit.
To cope with the unresolved unrest in the southwest, taxes had been raised in both Chuannan and Chuanxi Circuits in recent years. Layered upon layer, the burden had driven countless people to the brink of survival, forcing them to become displaced refugees.
Li Yunxiu frowned. Even though the Shu lands of Chuanxi Circuit were known as the Land of Abundance, they could not withstand such relentless torment. How could a place meant to be the empire's grand rear base have turned into a front line?
"Most of the southwestern rebellion was suppressed last year, with only two tribes left unvanquished. How could it cause such massive turmoil?" Li Yunxiu wondered aloud.
Wei Gutong resolved her confusion. "Word is that the Five Poisons Sect has made a move."
Li Yunxiu's pupils contracted. "Didn't they have a pact with Emperor Taizu?"
Wei Gutong shook his head. "Forty years have passed. Now that blades have been drawn once more, any former pact is null and void."
The Five Poisons Sect was the preeminent sect of the southwestern Miao Frontier. Standing shoulder to shoulder with the Snowy Regions Tantric Sect in the southwest, they were two great regional powers beyond the heartland. In contrast to the Snowy Regions Tantric Sect's cultivation of the three channels and seven chakras, the Five Poisons Sect practiced poison arts and gu insects, differing drastically from Central Plains martial arts.
When the new dynasty campaigned against Tiannan in the past, the Five Poisons Sect and Emperor Taizu had made a pact: the Miao people would submit but maintain self-governance, and while the imperial court could collect taxes, it could not garrison troops. Both sides had coexisted in peace for decades, yet the flames of war had rekindled last year.
Li Yunxiu nodded. "If the Five Poisons Sect has stepped in, then it's no wonder."
The mountains of the Miao Frontier were steep and the forests dense, making military campaigns arduous in the first place. With Five Poisons Sect masters moving about ghost-like and deploying unseen poisons, ordinary armies could scarcely hope to prevail.
Even so, for refugees to be fleeing Chuanxi Circuit was still taking things too far.
However, Li Yunxiu was no longer at court but in the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor. Naturally, she had no authority over such matters. She could only shake her head with a sigh, harboring quiet dissatisfaction while taking in more refugees to cushion the imperial court's failures.
"Well, at least there's still three million, and it can be escorted back to the capital before year's end without delaying the New Year festivities." Wang Yu rubbed his chin. "The Emperor shouldn't go completely mad over this, right?"
"Even if he goes mad, he'll direct his rage at Zhong Yulei; it has nothing to do with us," Zhao Yingjie said with a laugh. Then his thoughts turned. "Did Zongjian deliberately spare Zhong Yulei's life so he could bear the brunt of the Emperor's fury?"
Zhao Rong smacked the back of Zhao Yingjie's head.
Zhao Yingjie turned around in confusion. "Dad! Why did you hit me?"
Zhao Rong snapped peevishly, "I hit you because you never study, spouting nonsense and making a fool of yourself!"
Wei Gutong explained with a smile, "Although Great Vajra Monastery behaves rather overbearingly, they indeed do not take life lightly."
The twelfth lunar month, New Year's Eve, drifting snow.
Regardless of whether others had a good New Year, the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor was filled with laughter and joy this year.
Although early last year Zhao Zheng—the towering anchor who had bestridden the northwest—passed away, throwing the entire manor into a degree of turmoil, Zhao Rong had swiftly stabilized the army's morale and held things together until Wang Yu succeeded the title.
Given the new prince's former reputation, many people—even within the manor itself—had assumed the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor was headed downhill. Yet to their astonishment, from the moment the new prince took over, the estate seemed to have hopped onto a fast track.
One princess consort managed government affairs with impeccable order, causing the administration across all three northwestern prefectures to run smoothly overnight.
Another princess consort exercised grace and authority in equal measure within the residence, winning hearts and giving the manor a completely refreshed atmosphere.
And of course, most importantly, there was the prince himself. He invented perfume, blast furnaces, and colored glass, setting the manor's coffers ringing with endless cascades of silver. Even the household servants had received bonus rewards multiple times.
The Five Great Bandits of Mount Qi were completely wiped out, the Northwest trade route was cleared, and Longshan Prefecture grew all the more prosperous.
The manor began purchasing land, sheltering displaced refugees, and organizing farming, steadily improving the livelihood of ordinary folk.
Word had it that the prince had even wiped out a band of Black Qiang cavalry in the Western Regions, intimidating the northern Qiang so thoroughly that none dared encroach on the borders, elevating the northwest's security to a whole new level.
As the year drew to a close, the people of the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor suddenly realized that far from declining, the estate was thriving more than ever before.
Red lanterns hung inside and outside the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor. Even common folk bought an extra two jin of meat and half a jin of sugar, and the crackle of firecrackers began to pop sporadically throughout Longshan Prefecture.
Within the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor, what clattered away was the rhythmic shuffling of mahjong tiles.
After staying up through New Year's Eve, the first day of the first lunar month arrived.
"Happy New Year!"
Wang Yu, accompanied by Li Yunxiu and Qianqian, began handing out red envelopes across the manor.
"Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you, Your Ladyships!"
"May Your Highness enjoy blessings as boundless as the eastern seas and longevity as enduring as the southern mountains!"
The three distributed red envelopes all along the way; even Ardai received one, beaming with delight.
Coming across Wei Gutong and Yan Ziyu chatting with Yuan Feifei, Wang Yu's eyes lit up. He took a brocade box from Zhao Shan behind him and presented it to Wei Gutong.
Wei Gutong smiled and waved his hand. "My thanks, Your Highness, but this Wei lacks for nothing."
"Don't be so quick to refuse, Senior." Wang Yu gave Wei Gutong a knowing wink. "I gave the very same gift to Uncle Rong yesterday, and he was quite thrilled with it."
Wei Gutong arched a brow in curiosity. Taking the brocade box and opening it, he saw three familiar porcelain bottles resting inside.
Wei Gutong kept an impassive expression, snapping the box shut with apparent nonchalance. He made no further mention of lacking for nothing, instead resting his hand firmly over the box by his side as he nodded calmly. "Thank you, Your Highness. You are very thoughtful."
Yan Ziyu asked curiously, "What is it?"
Wei Gutong merely waved his hand without a word.
Wang Yu laughed. "Just a small token of regard, nothing of great value. You two seniors accompanied me on a trip to Daxing Prefecture; if I didn't show some gratitude, I would feel terribly remiss."
With that, he turned and walked away, giving Yan Ziyu no chance to probe further.
Yan Ziyu looked from Wang Yu to Wei Gutong, her eyes filled with suspicion. Since when did her husband share such tacit understanding with the Prince of Zhenxi?
On the way back, even Li Yunxiu grew curious. "What on earth did you give Mister Gutong that could make him change his mind?"
Wei Gutong appeared aloof and possessed lofty pride; he was never known to accept gifts from anyone. The only reason he chatted and laughed within the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor was entirely due to Yuan Feifei and Zhao Yingjie.
Wang Yu did not answer, but Qianqian chuckled beside them.
Li Yunxiu glanced back at her. "You know?"
Qianqian laughed. "Of course I know."
Li Yunxiu was baffled. She certainly didn't believe Wang Yu had told Qianqian, because if he had told Qianqian, he would naturally have told her as well.
Yet Qianqian had deduced it.
This stoked Li Yunxiu's competitive spirit.
"You gave Zhao Rong a gift yesterday too, and he accepted it with great joy," Li Yunxiu murmured. "I assumed he was merely being polite and observing decorum, but he was genuinely delighted. What kind of item could make both of them accept so readily?"
Li Yunxiu began running through an inventory of Wang Yu's possessions; reasonably speaking, she knew everything he possessed.
And then it hit her.
Li Yunxiu looked at Wang Yu in disbelief, her gaze turning slightly rigid, stunned by his sheer audacity. "You didn't give them Sanyang Qi-Invigorating Pills, did you?"
Wang Yu nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "Of course I did!"
The Sanyang Qi-Invigorating Pill was the elixir gifted to him by Great Vajra Monastery. It solidified one's foundation and cultivated yang, and naturally could also serve as an aphrodisiac—an exceptional medicine whose primary and secondary benefits were both remarkably potent.
But gifting such a thing to a family elder and an aloof, detached friend felt utterly bizarre to Li Yunxiu, which was precisely why she had never thought of it in the first place.
Yet recalling Wei Gutong's reaction just now—
Li Yunxiu rolled her eyes at Wang Yu. "Men really are all no good!"
"Didn't you guess it too?" Qianqian giggled, then slipped her arm around Wang Yu's, her waist swaying like a willow and her eyes shimmering like ripples. "I adore Brother Yu just the way he is. If you don't like him, then don't cling to him."
Li Yunxiu offered no reply, simply wrapping her hands around Wang Yu's other arm.
The three bickered without either side yielding an inch, their voices trailing off as they walked into the distance...
Chapter 102