Li Banfeng followed Ayi to Hulu Village and walked all the way to her residence. Beside her dwelling was the largest clearing in the entire village, where Ayi had constructed an opera stage.
Ayi said to Li Banfeng, "See that? That's the sacrificial altar."
Li Banfeng looked closely at the stage. It was quite large, supported by stone pillars below and topped with wooden planks, which were covered by a layer of carpet.
"This is the sacrificial altar?" Li Banfeng studied it up and down for a long while. "Isn't it a bit too crude?"
Ayi thought it was fine. "Why make it so elaborate? Didn't the peddler say we don't need all that red tape and tedious formality? Go on to my house and get some sleep first. Tomorrow morning, wake up and drink with my wife. Don't drink too much, though—you and I still have business to take care of tomorrow night."
Li Banfeng shook his head repeatedly. "That won't do. I'm a married man myself. Besides, there's no way the two of us brothers can let you take care of both of us by yourself!"
Ayi spat. "What kind of business do you think I mean? I'm taking Hulu Village to the Inner State, and we're holding a sacrificial ceremony tomorrow night! Hurry up and get some rest!"
By the following night, Ayi pinched Qiu Luoye's trunk and counted on her fingers, calculating that Hulu Village had reached a suitable location.
If one didn't understand, one asked. Li Banfeng said, "Elder Sister, what counts as a suitable location?"
Ayi replied, "Haocheng is the right place. In the Inner State, only that spot can produce soil. But you blew up the altar earlier, so Haocheng has tightened its security. I don't dare get too close to it. Yet if we're too far away, we won't produce any soil and all our effort will go to waste. So we have to find a spot that's neither too far nor too close—the optimal distance!"
Ayi calculated with meticulous care, measuring inch by inch with her hands, gripping with considerable force.
Qiu Luoye said in a muffled voice, "Let go of my nose first!"
Ayi hurriedly let go of Qiu Luoye's trunk and said softly, "Did I pinch you too hard? I'm just terribly fond of this nose of yours. Using it to measure dimensions gives amazingly accurate results."
Qiu Luoye rubbed his trunk. "You'd better plan an escape route. You nearly slipped up last time. If the Inner State catches us, not a single person in the village will get away!"
Ayi smiled. "Don't worry. I know this route backward and forward. Even if the Inner State discovers us, we can run out with our eyes closed."
Having pinpointed the right location, Ayi leapt straight out of the window down to the ground. She summoned A'yun and A'long, telling them to muster the villagers and prepare for the ceremony.
The sacrificial rites Ayi had prepared were far simpler than the authentic rituals of the Shang State. Formalities were reduced wherever possible, and the offerings consisted merely of river fish, river shrimp, corn, and grain.
The most crucial component was the dance. Li Banfeng was relatively familiar with the song and dance of Hulu Village. Unlike in White Falcon Commandery, most of the dancers in Hulu Village were women, and their movements were exceptionally gentle and graceful.
Today, however, the dance broke completely from tradition. The dancers were half men and half women, their movements vigorous, ancient, and immensely powerful.
Just as Li Banfeng was wondering who had choreographed this routine, he spotted an unfamiliar man on the stage, leading the dance for the group.
This man's movements were the most expansive, and his grasp of rhythm and beat was flawless, yet Li Banfeng sensed that something was off about his appearance.
Activating his Golden Eyes of Keen Detail, Li Banfeng examined him for a moment and whispered to Ayi, "The man leading the dance isn't a living person, is he?"
Ayi did not care to hear that. "How is he not a living person? We brought him back from Haocheng, and now he's part of Hulu Village."
Li Banfeng realized who it was—this was the Stone Monster.
The Stone Monster had originally been a first-rate weapon tasked with guarding the sacrificial altar. Now, having consumed the puppet Ayi had made for him, he had turned into a handsome, robust young man. It was he who had taught the sacrificial dance of the Shang State to the villagers of Hulu Village.
After they had danced for over half an hour, the carpet in the center of the stage suddenly split open, and soil welled forth like spring water.
Heartened by the sight, the villagers danced for nearly two hours until the soil had piled into a small mound.
Qiu Luoye watched with delight and shouted, "Bra—"
Before he could finish shouting "Bravo," Ayi reached out and pinched his trunk shut.
Qiu Luoye shoved Ayi away and rubbed his trunk. "Crazy woman, are you trying to suffocate me?"
Ayi sensed something amiss. She ordered the lute players and drummers to stop, left behind a dozen people to unload the soil, and sent the rest home.
Li Banfeng also perceived danger. "Elder Sister, have the Inner State people noticed us?"
Ayi shook her head. "Not yet, but they're about to. With this soil, we have enough to make two hundred-li territories. Let's not get greedy today. Pull back first!"
Li Banfeng and Qiu Luoye returned to Ayi's house, where the two of them drank an entire jug of wine together.
Qiu Luoye smiled. "Old Seventh, feels good, doesn't it?"
Li Banfeng nodded. "It does! Sister Ayi's way of doing things really is refreshing!"
Qiu Luoye sighed. "Ayi is a good person. I respect her from the bottom of my heart. If she didn't treat me as her wife, I wouldn't mind spending a couple of years living with her."
Ayi suddenly jumped in through the window and poked the elephant's forehead with her finger. "What's wrong with me treating you as my wife? I dote on you so much, what do you have to complain about?"
Qiu Luoye smiled and handed Ayi a leg of mutton.
Ayi cradled the mutton leg and gnawed it clean in three or four bites. Wiping the grease from her mouth, she waved at Qiu Luoye. "Pour the wine!"
Qiu Luoye hurriedly filled her bowl to the brim.
Ayi downed a whole jug of wine as well. Having eaten and drank her fill, she prepared to lead her people out to unload the soil.
Qiu Luoye said, "Are you keeping this soil in Hulu Village too? How big is Hulu Village already? If you keep this up, it's going to become a second Puluo Province."
At these words, Ayi flared up. "Fool of a woman—long in the nose, short on wits!"
Qiu Luoye refused to take that sitting down. "How am I short on wits?"
Ayi set down her wine bowl. "Why do you think I'm expanding our family property? Isn't it so you can live in luxury with me down the road? Besides, I can't keep all these lands. I have an agreement with the peddler to hand over half to him in the future. Just thinking about it breaks my heart! I'm saving up an inheritance for you, yet you complain it's too much. What's the point of marrying such a spendthrift wife?"
Qiu Luoye hung his head and said nothing.
Li Banfeng was still somewhat puzzled. "Elder Sister, you completed a sacrificial altar just by putting together an opera stage. Yet all those capable people in the Inner State claim the altar can't be repaired in a year, and might even take three to five years. What is the reason behind that?"
Ayi scratched her scalp. "I can't quite figure that out either."
Qiu Luoye chuckled. "Now you're the one short on wits, aren't you? The Inner State is exceptionally particular about sacrificial rites. As the ancients said, 'Ritual propriety is to rectifying a state what the steelyard is to determining weight, what the chalk-line is to measuring straightness and curve, and what the compass and square are to drawing circles and squares.'"
Ayi praised, "Wife, what a fine poem you've composed!"
Qiu Luoye frowned. "How is that a poem? That's from the Book of Rites, 'Jingjie.' It means that ritual propriety is of utmost importance."
Li Banfeng was astonished. In his impression, Qiu Luoye's literacy was limited; how could he quote such lines so fluently?
"Brother Qiu, when did you read the Book of Rites?"
Qiu Luoye shook his head. "I can't understand it by reading, but I heard others explain it. Back when I was in the Inner State, I worked as a coolie in Haocheng and learned quite a bit about ritual law. The Inner State places enormous value on decorum. They have countless rules and requirements for sacrificial rites; you can't just slap a stage together and make it work. With the altar blown up, I reckon they must rebuild it exactly as it was, or else they'd be violating their ancestral laws. Think about the craftsmanship of their altar—every single brick, every tile, every stroke and carve. If every piece must be restored, three years isn't even that long."
Ayi poured Qiu Luoye a cup of wine, pinched his trunk, and said tenderly, "Wife, the way you look when doing scholarship is truly charming."
Qiu Luoye drank the wine, mixed feelings showing on his face.
Being praised for scholarship made him very happy.
Yet being called 'wife' still grated on his ears.
Qiu Luoye's explanation indeed made some sense, but Li Banfeng felt matters were not so simple.
No matter how much the Shang State cared about ritual, Qiao Yi was ultimately a pragmatic man. Newland was the core leverage the Inner State used to constrain Puluo Province. Logically, he should have thrown together a makeshift altar to make do first.
Yet now he had nearly driven himself sick over this altar. Could there really be no room for compromise?
Was the intelligence Luo Lijun gathered from the Inner State true or false?
If it was false, he needed to take precautions early.
If it was true, an opportunity had arrived!
Ayi looked at Qiu Luoye, finding him more pleasing to the eye by the second. "I'm going to unload the soil now. Wash yourself clean at home and wait for my return."
Qiu Luoye choked on his wine and shook his head. "Today isn't convenient."
Ayi's face darkened. "For the past three years, not a single day was convenient for you, and for the next three years you say it won't be convenient either! Now that you've married into my family, every single day is inconvenient! Just when will it ever be convenient? When you asked me to spare the White Crane Gang back then, did I say it was inconvenient? When you asked me to help you protect Qiqiu City, did I say it was inconvenient? Let me tell you: if you say it's inconvenient again today, don't blame me for getting rough with you!"
Qiu Luoye drained the wine in his bowl and said to Li Banfeng, "Old Seventh, you heard her words. If I lay down my life here today, you must demand justice for me in the future!"
Seeing that both of them were dead serious, Li Banfeng hurriedly urged Qiu Luoye, "Brother Qiu, just yield to her."
Qiu Luoye waved his hand. "Stay out of this. It isn't what you think. You have no idea what she wants to do!"
The next day, Li Banfeng left Hulu Village. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he saw Ayi washing clothes.
Qiu Luoye was injured and temporarily unable to get out of bed.
Ayi felt aggrieved as well, complaining as she scrubbed the garments, "I married a wife who won't let me touch him—what's the point of taking a wife like that?"
Li Banfeng hurried away. The dynamics between those two were truly beyond his comprehension.
Leaving Hulu Village, Li Banfeng headed straight for the General Border Control Office. He had to get to the bottom of the Santoucha situation.
"Chief Commissioner Liao, you deployed so many men to Santoucha. What are you planning to do?"
Liao Zihui poured Li Banfeng a cup of tea. "Is this question coming from Director Li? From Seventh Master? Or from my brother?"
"Brother Liao, please just give me the straight truth."
Liao Zihui smiled. "Brother, the reason I sent men to Santoucha is that I heard something happened in the Inner State."
"What happened?"
Liao Zihui sipped his tea and said, "The Haocheng sacrificial altar was blown up. Qiao Yi took it so hard that he fell gravely ill, and I fear he won't be long for this world."
Even the Outer States had caught wind of Qiao Yi's condition. It seemed the news was genuinely true.
Probing to see just how much Liao Zihui knew, Li Banfeng tested the waters. "Qiao Yi was actually driven to this point? With the altar gone, why doesn't he just rebuild one?"
Liao Zihui shook his head slightly. "I don't know much about that. Logically, brother, as an imperial prince of the Inner State, you ought to know more than I do. My feeling is that Qiao Yi certainly wants to build another altar, but he might not be able to keep a handle on the situation. The heavens are likely about to change in the Inner State. A new broom sweeps clean, and I worry that if the Inner State gets a new master, they might take action against Puluo Province. I dispatched men to Santoucha precisely to heighten our vigilance. I've sent reinforcements to Tiewangang as well."
Liao Zihui, that old fox, truly planned far ahead.
Qiao Yi was on the verge of losing control over the Shang State.
"This might actually work out!" A smile surfaced on Li Banfeng's face.
Liao Zihui was startled. "Brother, what's going to work out?"
"A good thing!" Li Banfeng's smile broadened even further.
Returning to the companion dwelling, Li Banfeng picked up the Red Lotus. "Hua Jiu'er, help me make a sheet of covenant paper. The harshest kind."
The Red Lotus spread its leaves, stroking Li Banfeng's cheek. "A covenant paper like that won't be easy to make."
Li Banfeng touched the center of the lotus. "I know it won't be easy. As long as you make it properly, I certainly won't mistreat you."
The Red Lotus chuckled. "I trust you. Wait three days, and you'll have your delivery."
Hong Ying watched from the side with a sour taste in her mouth. "Xiaowan, have those two hooked up?"
The gramophone chuckled dismissively, paying it no heed.
The Tang sword also laughed. "Our lord is deficient in yang qi. Even if they hooked up, nothing could come of it. It's just a pity for the Marshal and General—their days ahead will likely be rough as well."
Hong Ying fell silent for a moment, lit a brazier, and set the Tang sword right over the flames until it glowed bright red.
Li Banfeng retrieved several sheets of blank paper, writing and sketching to create a diagram.
"My lady, can you understand this?"
His lady examined it for a long time, then used her stylus to trace out the logic on the diagram. "Husband's methods are brilliant, though there are still a few hidden perils in this."
Li Banfeng nodded. "There are indeed hidden perils. The crux lies not before the act, but after it succeeds."
His lady agreed wholeheartedly. "Once it succeeds, it will indeed be difficult to handle. Not difficult for you to handle, husband, but difficult for their side to explain away. Allow your humble servant to ponder it carefully."
That night, Li Banfeng hurried back to Yuezhou.
He didn't go to the Dark Star Bureau; he returned to his own residence.
In the shaded room, several deceased spirits were playing cards to pass the time. Seeing Li Banfeng return, they hurriedly put away their cards.
These deceased spirits were the ones Li Banfeng had brought back from the demonic cultivator Jin Shunying. During this period, they had been staying at Li Banfeng's house, occasionally heading to the black market to do odd jobs for Tang Changfa.
Li Banfeng signaled for them not to be constrained. "Keep playing. Xi Zhaofu, come with me for a moment."
Upstairs in his room, Li Banfeng retrieved two Golden Origin Pills and handed them to Xi Zhaofu. "I have an important matter I need your help with. Consider this your advance deposit."
Xi Zhaofu looked at the medicinal pills with wide eyes. "This is just the deposit? Seventh Master, how could I possibly deserve this!"
"You deserve it. This matter won't be easy in the slightest. First, let me show you this person's characteristics."
Li Banfeng had the projector play a segment of video footage.
During his three days in Yuezhou, Xi Zhaofu was coached until he looked and acted the part convincingly.
While Li Banfeng was pointing out a few finer details and guiding Xi Zhaofu through practice, the projector brought out the simple telephone. It was a call from Ma the Fifth.
The Luo sisters invited Li Banfeng to visit Boundless City once more, saying they had an urgent matter to discuss.
Li Banfeng had already guessed what it was about. He had Tang Changfa obtain a top-grade ghost servant vessel from Fourth Mother Yin. Taking Xi Zhaofu with him, he went to Qishuiyao.
Upon arriving at Boundless City, Li Banfeng met Nian Shangyou again.
Compared to their first encounter, Nian Shangyou had changed considerably. His cheeks were gaunt, his wrinkles deeper, and he looked haggard.
The light in his round eyes had dimmed significantly, and his thick, long whiskers drooped downward in curls. His demeanor was far more humble than before.
"Your Highness, regarding the price you proposed, I spoke with my master. He said there is room for negotiation." Nian Shangyou's manner of speaking had also shifted noticeably, becoming far more direct.
Li Banfeng sat in a chair, rubbing his chin, and nodded. "Then let us negotiate."
"Three first-rate weapons—that can be granted."
"Very good." Li Banfeng was pleased.
"As for twenty pieces of newland, they still need to be gathered. Before the deed is done, Your Highness will receive ten pieces first. The remaining ten will be provided once the matter is concluded."
"I can consider that." Li Banfeng looked somewhat dissatisfied.
"Regarding Old Train, there is simply no way. This concerns the safety of Great Shang's state altars and dynasty. We must ask Your Highness to make a concession."
Li Banfeng frowned. "What kind of concession do you want me to make?"
Nian Shangyou lowered his head and said softly, "Could you name an alternative price?"
Although Li Banfeng wore an unpleasant expression, this had actually been within his expectations. To trade for Old Train's release, the bargaining chips in his hands were not quite sufficient.
He had prepared for this long ago, yet he still put on an act of deliberating back and forth.
After a dozen minutes, Li Banfeng spoke. "Since I am Prince Pingyuan of the Shang State, asking for a fief shouldn't be excessive, should it?"
Nian Shangyou's heart tightened. This demand was exceedingly excessive.
The title of Prince Pingyuan had originally been intended to keep Li Qi in check. For Li Qi to demand a fief now was equivalent to slicing a piece of flesh from the Shang State.
Yet this was still far better than releasing Old Train. Nian Shangyou nodded slightly. "This humble official has noted it down and will discuss it with my master in the days ahead."
Li Banfeng waved his hand. "Don't rush. I haven't said which fief I want yet."
Nian Shangyou's whiskers twitched. "Your Highness, which one do you want?"
Li Banfeng replied, "I want Xiaocheng."
"Xiaodu?!" Nian Shangyou's mouth dropped open, all eight whiskers trembling simultaneously.
Xiaocheng had once been the capital of the Shang State. It was a stationary city, situated not far from either Chaoge or Haocheng.
"Your Highness, could you change the location?"
Li Banfeng was not inclined to switch. "Is there something wrong with Xiaocheng?"
"This—" After stammering for half a day, Nian Shangyou simply spoke his mind directly. "Your Highness, driving in a wedge is one thing, but you can't drive a nail straight into someone's eye! Xiaocheng was once our capital!"
Li Banfeng thought it was quite fitting. "It's no longer the capital now. Conferring it upon me, an imperial prince, suits me quite well."
"You cannot call that fitting—" Nian Shangyou's voice shook. "How about this: would Your Highness consider asking for a mobile city, like Boundless City?"
"A mobile city isn't bad either," Li Banfeng nodded. "That's open for discussion."
Joy surfaced on Nian Shangyou's face. "You agree?"
After deliberate consideration, Li Banfeng agreed. "As an imperial prince, a single fief is indeed a bit meager. I'll take Xiaocheng, and I'll take the mobile city as well. Only then will it match the status of an imperial prince."
*Smack!*
Nian Shangyou slapped his own cheek.
Li Banfeng was dumbfounded. "What are you doing?"
Nian Shangyou smiled bitterly. "Nothing. My palm was itchy, so I scratched it with my face. Your Highness, is there really no room for compromise?"
Li Banfeng raised his teacup. "If you don't want to grant me a fief, then release Old Train. Haven't I given you enough room for compromise already?"
Nian Shangyou cupped his fists. "Farewell."
Watching Nian Shangyou storm off in anger once more, Luo Lijun had no idea how to advise him.
Luo Yanjun took a broader view. "Sister, no need to advise him. He will definitely come back."
Luo Lijun was baffled. "Where do you get such confidence?"
Luo Yanjun looked back toward the east courtyard. "I don't have much confidence, but Brother Seven does."
Luo Lijun shook her head. "What confidence could he have? He's merely demanding sky-high prices. He doesn't even know whose man Nian Shangyou is!"
Luo Yanjun said, "I believe Brother Seven already knows."
***
Qiao Yi, Zhu Jin, and Xie Gong traveled by boat to Haocheng.
Arriving at the Nine-Fold Gate, Qiao Yi caught sight of the altar and nearly fainted.
Compared to when he had visited last time, the altar remained a heap of ruins, showing virtually no change.
To seize Puluo Province, he had plotted for decades, and the key to claiming Puluo Province lay in newland.
Now the altar had been blown up. He had already accepted that fact.
Yet he had ordered the altar rebuilt, and to this day the Ministry of Works had not broken ground. That outcome was something he could not accept.
"Is the Ministry of Works openly defying orders?"
Zhu Jin made no sound.
Xie Gong explained, "The Ministry of Works has done quite a lot. They inventoried the stone materials, surveyed the land, and even tracked down the construction methods from when the altar was first built..."
"The Ministry of Works has truly worked hard!" Qiao Yi gritted his teeth in fury. "Summon the Minister of Works to Haocheng to see me."
Zhu Jin hung his head, silent.
Xie Gong said, "Brother, do you not recall? You summoned the Minister of Works the day before yesterday, and he claimed to have caught a chill and failed to present himself before you."
"A chill?" Qiao Yi let out a cold laugh. "To invent such a flimsy excuse—he truly thinks too little of me!"
Xie Gong sighed. "With the altar destroyed, many in the imperial court have begun speaking ill of you, Brother."
"It is not their place to point fingers at me! Not their place!" Qiao Yi coughed violently for a long time and passed out.
Xie Gong and Zhu Jin each assumed control over half the body and returned to their quarters.
Dismissing the attendants, Zhu Jin said to Xie Gong, "Second Brother, regarding the altar, did we take things a bit too far?"
"If we didn't push things this far, would you have ever seen this letter?" Xie Gong handed the letter to Zhu Jin.
Last night, when Zhu Jin and Qiao Yi were both asleep, Xie Gong had stayed awake, and Nian Shangyou had someone deliver the letter into his hands.
Having read the letter, Zhu Jin frowned. "Li Qi is pushing his luck. We cannot indulge him!"
"If we don't indulge him, what else can we do? Is there anyone else who can accomplish the deed?"
Zhu Jin was startled. "Second Brother, do you really intend to enfeoff Xiaodu to him?"
Xie Gong said expressionlessly, "What else, then? Do you want to let that locomotive go? If he takes several first-rate weapons with him, how will we ever contend with Puluo Province in the future?"
As he spoke, Xie Gong coughed several times.
Zhu Jin pondered for a moment. "I feel this matter still requires careful deliberation over the long term."
Xie Gong snapped in anger, "Careful deliberation over the long term? He acts with such obstinacy. If we delay any longer, your life and mine will be in grave peril!"
As he spoke, Xie Gong's breathing grew labored, and Zhu Jin felt dizzy as well.
Because of Qiao Yi's deteriorating condition, the state of their shared body was exceedingly precarious.
"Very well, we'll do as Second Brother says. But once the deed is done, how shall we face the court officials?"
Xie Gong caught his breath for a moment. "Once it succeeds, we'll use illusions to conceal the truth for a time. When we ascend the throne and our brothers share rule over the realm together, it won't be up to the court officials to speak out!"
Chapter 720