On the second day after the Emperor’s return to the Capital, Yang Feng presented his request to resign in person. This was not a strategic retreat; his attitude was very resolute.

When lunchtime arrived, Han Ruzi dined within Soaring Clouds Pavilion and also granted a meal to Yang Feng, though the two did not eat in the same room. Han Ruzi finished early and had the eunuchs clear away the food, then walked to the window to gaze outside.

The noble attendants had all arrived again, in even greater numbers. Many of them had followed the Emperor on his journey and participated in the Battle of Jincheng. Quite a few sons of powerful families had been killed or wounded, and the survivors had all received rewards. Compared to the money and land given to ordinary soldiers, they cared more about titles and official positions. Within a few years, many of those people outside the window would become generals. As for civil officials, they would still have to compete with scholars who had passed the imperial examinations.

Cui Teng had become the absolute center of the group. Beside the Emperor, he was merely a follower, but outside, he had resumed being a true member of the Cui clan. He sat in the only chair beneath a tree, with two nobles fanning him, looking extremely pleased and not ashamed in the least.

More than ten people surrounded him, while many others could only gaze enviously from a distance.

Prince Donghai did not participate in such activities and stood somewhere unknown—Han Ruzi could not see his figure.

A cough sounded from behind.

Han Ruzi turned around and said to Yang Feng as he entered, “Is Lord Yang worried about facing retaliation?”

With Yang Feng, he did not want to beat around the bush. The Emperor was completely indifferent to the matter of establishing another heir, but Maiden Wang could not achieve such detachment. She cared deeply, even harboring hatred. For her, it must have been an extremely torturous period.

Yang Feng pondered for a while. “That is only one reason.”

“Are there other reasons?”

“What kind of person does Your Majesty consider me to be?”

“We regard you as a teacher.” Han Ruzi returned to sit behind the table. Yang Feng was one of the people he trusted most, but not someone close to him, so he still had to refer to himself as “We.”

“I dare to also regard Your Majesty as a disciple, but now I have nothing left to teach Your Majesty.”

Han Ruzi smiled slightly. “Learning has no limits. During this recent tour, what We comprehended most was precisely this point.”

“Then Your Majesty can already study independently and has no need for me. I treasure the teacher-student relationship with Your Majesty and do not wish to see it damaged.”

“No one can damage it,” Han Ruzi said with certainty.

Yang Feng’s expression became somewhat stern. It seemed he still needed to give the Emperor a lesson. “Your Majesty can understand my joining with the court ministers to establish the Prince of Linzi, can’t you?”

“Of course. That was a necessary measure to make the Xiongnu give up hope.”

“But can others understand?”

“Hmm?”

“I have a teacher-student bond with Your Majesty, but not with the people of the world. In others’ eyes, I am merely a powerful eunuch who gained influence, and when Your Majesty was in the greatest danger, hastily established another heir to secure an escape route.”

Han Ruzi understood clearly that what Yang Feng truly cared about was not “the people of the world” or “others”—there was only Maiden Wang.

“Our mother will not… We will not let her affect you.” Han Ruzi still hoped to keep Yang Feng by his side.

“I believe in Your Majesty’s ability, but I do not want Your Majesty to do this.”

“Why?” Han Ruzi still could not completely see through Yang Feng.

“Please allow me to give a crude example.”

After seeing the Emperor nod, Yang Feng continued: “I am walking down the street, and merely because I accidentally blocked someone’s path, the person raises his fist to strike me. At this moment, another person arrives and intervenes righteously, helping me out of trouble. Should I be grateful to this intervener?”

Yang Feng’s questions could never be treated simply. Han Ruzi thought for a while but could only reach one conclusion: “Yes.”

“I think so too—not just should, but must. Yet I still feel somewhat uncomfortable in my heart, because I did nothing wrong, was about to be beaten for no reason, and then incurred a debt of gratitude, ultimately gaining nothing. If I had a choice, I would rather have not walked down that street, avoiding both the attacker and the intervener.”

Han Ruzi wanted to say that Yang Feng could at least have made the acquaintance of a righteous person, which was also a gain, but immediately swallowed his words, because he finally understood: Yang Feng had formerly been a scholar, later became a eunuch, understood imperial statecraft, and could navigate the official world with ease, but in his bones, he was a man of the pugilist world.

When he was the Weary Marquis and about to proclaim himself emperor, the grandfather and grandson, Du Motian and Du Chuanyun, departed gracefully. After achieving great merit, Ugly Wang willingly accepted exile. Yang Feng was making the same choice. They all valued personal relationships too heavily, preferring to let others owe them rather than owing others themselves.

Yang Feng refused to participate in the palace struggles because regardless of victory or defeat, he would be the loser in terms of personal obligations.

Han Ruzi couldn’t help but think that when the Martial Emperor had massacred the heroic knights, the real reason probably wasn’t that these people harbored rebellious hearts, but rather that they refused to be used by the emperor.

“Is Lord Yang going to investigate the Holy Strategist?”

“Yes, no matter what, he certainly has countless connections to Chunyu Xiao. I’ve received word that after the rebel army was defeated, the Holy Strategist first fled to the sea, and now has very likely returned to Cloud Dream Marsh.”

“In that case, We give you two tasks.”

“Please issue your decree.”

“The Founding Emperor’s sword is still lost somewhere outside, possibly in the Holy Strategist’s hands. You must retrieve it.”

“Yes.”

“Prince Ying is the Martial Emperor’s youngest son, abducted by villains and similarly lost outside. You must also find him and ensure his safety.”

“I obey the decree.” Yang Feng bowed deeply, and after rising added, “Thank you.”

Although finding both the sword and Prince Ying were important, they weren’t exactly urgent priorities. By assigning these two tasks, the Emperor was actually giving Yang Feng a kind of public authority—if it were merely investigating the whereabouts of a mystery figure, it really wouldn’t warrant the court making such a commotion, and couldn’t even be spoken of openly.

Imperial decrees had to be written to have effect, but Yang Feng wasn’t in a hurry and prepared to take his leave.

Han Ruzi still had one matter he needed to consult about. “Regarding the palace… does Lord Yang have any suggestions?”

“For internal affairs, consult Liu Jie and Jing Yao. For external matters, ask Zhao Ruosu more often.”

“Jing Yao…”

“He’s still in the palace as a servant, just waiting for Your Majesty to rescue him from his dire straits. When it comes to palace affairs, he might be even more knowledgeable than Liu Jie.”

Han Ruzi nodded. “Do you know the Drafter, Zhao Ruosu?”

“I don’t know him, but I’ve heard he once worked tirelessly on Your Majesty’s behalf in Jincheng City. I suspect this person is probably the so-called ‘Chief of Clerks.'”

“Chief of Clerks?” Han Ruzi heard this term for the first time.

“Officials have their chief, usually the Chancellor. Clerks have their chief, but they rarely show themselves openly. A Drafter holds a lowly position but heavy responsibilities. That Zhao Ruosu dared to step forward boldly must mean he has backing—he’s probably either the Chief of Clerks or someone very familiar with the Chief of Clerks. His willingness to work for Your Majesty represents true loyalty. This person’s usefulness is immeasurable. I hope Your Majesty will treasure and make good use of him.”

Han Ruzi also appreciated Zhao Ruosu, but not to the degree Yang Feng imagined. He said in surprise, “You want to promote him to high office?”

“Would Your Majesty let someone like Du Chuanyun become a general?” Yang Feng unconsciously revealed his habit of being a teacher again, not answering directly but asking a seemingly unrelated counter-question, letting the questioner draw their own conclusions.

Han Ruzi smiled and immediately understood Yang Feng’s meaning. Once Zhao Ruosu became an official, he would lose his function as “Chief of Clerks.” He also knew that Yang Feng wouldn’t explain the meaning and function of “Chief of Clerks” to him in detail—he would have to discover it bit by bit himself.

“The pugilist world is treacherous. Take care of yourself, Lord Yang.” Though they wouldn’t necessarily never meet again, Han Ruzi still spoke words of parting.

Yang Feng didn’t have so many emotions. He waved his hand lightly. “I am better than I once was. Your Majesty might as well tell the ‘pugilist world’ to take care instead.”

It was rare for Yang Feng to speak such arrogant words. Han Ruzi laughed heartily as Yang Feng bowed and withdrew. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Han Ruzi ordered someone to summon Prince Donghai.

Prince Donghai arrived extremely quickly, as if he had been waiting outside the pavilion all along.

“Grand General Cui Hong will also return to the Capital soon. In this suppression of rebellion and blocking the Xiongnu, he has achieved great merit. We wish to reward him heavily, but the Grand General already holds the highest official rank and is enfeoffed as a marquis—there’s no room for further advancement. We can only extend grace to his descendants. Give Us some suggestions.”

This sort of thing was indeed Prince Donghai’s strength. After thinking for a while, he replied, “Cui Sheng is dead, and Cui Teng is a son of the principal wife who will inherit Cui Hong’s marquis title sooner or later—he doesn’t need to be enfeoffed.”

“Doesn’t Cui Sheng have a son? Shouldn’t he inherit the title?”

Prince Donghai smiled and said, “That is indeed the rule, but there’s always room for negotiation: Cui Sheng’s son is too young to support the Cui clan, while Cui Teng currently enjoys Your Majesty’s favor. The Cui family will sooner or later find a reason to request that Cui Teng be established as the heir to Cui Hong’s titles. If Your Majesty wishes everyone to be happy, why not hint to the Empress and ask the Cui family to submit their memorial early? Your Majesty could let Cui Teng inherit the title, then separately enfeoff Cui Hong’s grandson as a marquis. With two marquises in one family, the Cui clan should be satisfied.”

“Don’t you think the Cui family is… too powerful?” Han Ruzi liked the Empress and trusted Cui Teng, but Cui Hong valued power and position too much, and Cui Teng lacked real ability, which troubled him. He had already refused once to enfeoff Cui Teng as a marquis, and was reluctant to do so this time as well.

“Rewards and punishments must be clear. Since the Cui family has achieved this merit, they should receive this reward.”

Han Ruzi was somewhat surprised that Prince Donghai was actually speaking well of the Cui family, especially when Cui Teng was not present. “We will consider it. What about yourself? Have you thought about your reward?”

Prince Donghai smiled and said, “Your Majesty’s permission for me to bring my wife back to the Capital is already an enormous grace. I want no reward, nor any official position. If Your Majesty needs me to occasionally offer small suggestions, just keep me as an attendant.”

Prince Donghai only spoke a few words of truth when he held a complete advantage. Han Ruzi smiled and shook his head, saying, “Very well, you shall remain for now, available whenever summoned.”

“Thank Your Majesty.”

Han Ruzi did not call Cui Teng in, spending the afternoon alone reviewing memorials. Finally, he discovered a problem: he had no way to summon Zhao Ruosu without leaving traces.

Zhao Ruosu was a Drafter of the Central Secretariat, not a palace attendant. While the Emperor could act expediently when traveling, after returning to the Capital, everything had rules. Zhao Ruosu could not enter the palace casually. Only after the Emperor resumed normal governance could he appear in the Hall of Diligent Administration, but that place belonged to the Chancellor and others, making it difficult for the Emperor to bypass the ministers and speak privately with a mere clerk who delivered documents.

This matter could only be resolved by himself; he could not seek help from others. Han Ruzi was not anxious. At dusk, he first went to pay respects to the Empress Dowager and his mother, then returned to his sleeping quarters to rest.

Upon hearing that the Emperor wanted to enfeoff another marquis in the Cui family, the Empress was not pleased but instead advised the Emperor not to do so. “The Cui family’s power is already excessive and should not be increased further. If I may say so, my father should surrender his military authority and return home to enjoy his retirement.”

Prince Donghai, who had grievances with the Grand General, sought merit and rewards for the Cui family, while the Grand General’s daughter suggested stripping her father of power. Han Ruzi was truly confused. “The Grand General has campaigned in the south and north, certainly not for retirement. Since he has achieved merit, he should receive rewards, regardless of his status as an imperial relative.”

Cui Xiaojun thought differently. After pondering for a while, she said, “Let me first write to my father to discuss this. If he is unwilling to surrender power and retire, then Your Majesty may reward him as you see fit.” After saying this, she smiled. “Does Your Majesty think I’m being ungrateful?”

Han Ruzi shook his head. He felt the Empress seemed to be guarding against something, wanting to prepare for the Cui family’s future.

What made him feel regretful was that he and the Empress might never again be able to speak freely about everything.

If you are reading this on an aggregator site, do consider visiting https://tuzhitranslations.wordpress.com/ to support this translation project by leaving a comment.

← CH 363