Divided Loyalty?

It was another night of swirling snow. Whenever a snowy night passed, the yamen stationed throughout the city would dispatch runners before dawn to scatter snow-melting powder along the streets, ensuring the smooth passage of beast-drawn carriages. The restless New Year festivities had ended. Once the seventeenth of the first lunar month passed, the celebratory red lanterns hanging across streets and alleys were taken down, and the people resumed their busy routines. Yet the leisurely pace of life kept the festive warmth of the New Year from fading completely. The snow-melting powder scattered by the yamen not only thawed ice and snow, but also provided traction against slipping. Into the Tian'an Chamber of Commerce—which stretched across several city blocks—an unassuming carriage quietly rolled, guided by an usher into the stables of the chamber's headquarters. The person who stepped down was a young man dressed in form-fitting, opulent robes of black with white trim. His features were not extraordinarily exquisite, yet he was undeniably handsome. Closely following behind him was a slender woman dressed in plain garments, her face veiled in light gauze. From the pair of eyes revealed above the veil, one could tell she possessed beauty capable of toppling kingdoms. The usher's gaze lingered between the two for a fleeting moment. Taking note of how the woman attended him from slightly behind to his left, he formed a rough understanding of their hierarchy. Either a high-ranking scion of a prominent clan or a young lord of a sect bringing a female companion along to shop. Just as the usher opened his mouth to lead the way, he saw the handsome young master toss him half a tael of loose silver and wave a dismissive hand. "No need to follow. Off you go." The usher's eyes lit up. Catching the silver, he nipped it with his teeth to test its purity. Upon finding it was official government silver, his expression turned instantly obsequious. "Understood, Young Master! Please take your time." With that, he bowed deeply, took several steps back, and turned away. The headquarters of the Tian'an Chamber of Commerce maintained strict rules: whenever a guest entered, an usher was to accompany them. Yet rules were rigid while people were flexible. Handing half of the tip over to the steward on duty was enough for them to turn a blind eye. Watching the usher's back disappear around the corner, Xu Yuan finally raised his eyes slowly toward the headquarters of Tian'an. As the face of the Tian'an Chamber of Commerce, nothing short of sheer magnificence could command proper prestige. Grand red walls, thick pillars, and sweeping upturned eaves displayed magnificent splendor. A colossal structure rising over a hundred zhang towered from the ground, with a hundred tiers of stone steps ascending toward a vaulted, colossal gate a full ten zhang high. The entire ancient edifice seemed like a noble beast crouching upon the earth, reducing every pedestrian and distinguished guest beneath it to mere ants. Withdrawing his gaze, Xu Yuan paid no heed to Xiao Bai beside him and strode toward the entrance steps on his own. Distinguished visitors came and went in an unbroken stream across the wide steps, most of them clad in brocade and fine silks, accompanied by a few attendants. Xu Yuan did not stand out in the slightest amidst them. Bai Muxi quickened her pace to keep up with him, her eyes darting about. She had heard of the Tian'an headquarters, but this was her first time stepping foot in such a place. Such grand majesty was something she had never witnessed in the underground palace. After the young master woke from his coma today, he had summoned her out of the Prime Minister's Manor without a word of explanation. She had never imagined he would bring her to the headquarters of the Tian'an Chamber of Commerce. Keeping close to Xu Yuan's side, Bai Muxi hesitated again and again before asking softly, "Young Master... why have you brought Muxi here?" Xu Yuan did not turn his head. "Didn't I say the last time we met that I was going to take you somewhere?" Bai Muxi paused, caught off guard, before quickly catching on. "Then what is the purpose of coming to the Tian'an headquarters?" "To buy things, naturally." Xu Yuan's answer was simple and direct. Glancing back at her, he smiled. "You didn't think feeding, clothing, and providing for your hundreds of thousands of people wouldn't cost money, did you?" Beneath her veil, Bai Muxi's red lips parted slightly, her lovely eyes showing a hint of bewilderment. Then, she murmured softly, "As long as we can reach the surface, the people of the underground palace can support themselves..." Xu Yuan did not doubt her words in the least. Having grown up in the dire straits of the underground palace, enduring hardship was second nature to them. With a faint smile, he countered: "Then have you considered how those hundreds of thousands of people will settle down? "Great Yan has stood for over a thousand years, and the local powers in each commandery and county are firmly established. They might welcome an influx of hundreds of thousands of outsiders as mere labor, but if those hundreds of thousands share a united culture and faith, bound tight like a single cord, that changes everything. It would threaten the interests of the local powers. "No matter which corner of Great Yan your people enter, they will face rejection and ostracism. It could even escalate into large-scale conflicts with the native inhabitants. If things spiral out of hand, it will not be convenient for the Prime Minister's Manor to intervene." Bai Muxi's eyes flickered with uncertainty. After a brief silence, she ventured tentatively: "Regarding this... I recall the imperial court has relevant policies?" Xu Yuan pondered for a moment, narrowing his eyes slightly. "The one about land reclamation and retention?" Bai Muxi nodded. "Yes. For every ten mu of wasteland reclaimed, the common folk may keep eight mu, along with an exemption from land taxes for two years." Xu Yuan cast her a meaningful glance. "Heh. It seems during this time you haven't just been cultivating. You even managed to unearth an antique policy like that." This reclamation decree had been in place for decades, once serving as a means for the imperial court to broaden revenue sources. In its early days, it had brought considerable returns. After all, Great Yan possessed vast tracts of uninhabited wilderness, much of which was fertile and well-watered. When commoners went to open new land, they could easily become self-sufficient or even turn a profit. In recent years, however, the implementation of this policy had practically fallen into disuse. Those lands near official highways were the first to be claimed, and they were still relatively safe. But once that land was completely developed, only remote areas remained. Not only were those lands overrun by demonic beasts, but evil cults and bandit lairs also held sway. Every batch of settlers sent to clear land ended up dead. The local authorities were powerless to help. Even if they managed with great effort to muster forces for a suppression campaign, the outlaws would simply flee and wage guerrilla warfare. Over time, the local treasuries could not sustain the cost, and gradually the decree was abandoned. Except for those truly driven to desperation, no one was willing to venture there anymore, preferring to endure hardship and toil under local landlords instead. Yet none of these problems posed any real challenge to the survivors of the underground palace. Unforgiving lands bred fierce people. If they were sent there, they would likely show those bandits who the real outlaws were. With these thoughts in mind, Xu Yuan paused in his tracks. He looked back into her eyes for several breaths and asked softly, "So, you intend to take that route?" Meeting his gaze for an instant, Bai Muxi immediately lowered her head and whispered, "Resettling four hundred thousand people is a daunting task. Muxi only wished to avoid burdening the Prime Minister's Manor with excessive expense. But if Young Master has already made arrangements, Muxi is willing to follow your lead..." "Heh." Resuming his ascent, Xu Yuan looked with a smile at the cultivators and merchants bustling across the steps, and said gently, "Great chaos is about to engulf the realm. You want to find a tranquil haven away from war for your people, don't you? "Don't be in a hurry to deny it. I understand your thinking. But... "Bai Muxi, you must understand that the Prime Minister's Manor is not a charity. "Millions upon millions have already died along the Northern Border. If you wish to break our agreement from the underground palace, slaughtering four hundred thousand unregistered stragglers of dubious origin wouldn't be difficult in the least for the Prime Minister's Manor." Having said this, Xu Yuan had already stopped at the very top of the steps, standing beneath that colossal gate. He looked back at Xiao Bai, whose delicate frame was trembling faintly behind him. "Muxi... don't kneel. Kneeling right now would draw far too much attention."