Chapter 35
Chapter 35
“This humble official was momentarily possessed by greed and embezzled the relief grain. I only hope Your Highness will grant me a chance to atone through meritorious service. Please don’t, don’t…”
Xie Chengze laughed softly and tapped the back of his neck with the gold-threaded fan. Liang Wanda shuddered violently and collapsed prostrate on the floor in terror.
“You mean, don’t cut off your head?”
“Your Highness, even if this humble official has earned no merit, I have still endured hardship. Please spare my life! This humble official will devote himself to Your Highness until death and never again embezzle public funds or pervert the law! I will bring out every bit of relief grain I hid at once, helping Your Highness’s plan to seal the city proceed smoothly and ensuring that absolutely nothing goes wrong!”
Grain prices inevitably rose after a flood. The higher-ranking lords had taken most of the silver, so Liang Wanda had naturally set his sights on the relief grain. He hid most of it in his own cellar, intending to have his people “launder” it into commercial grain once prices increased.
Shen Yuan had not touched that grain because he wanted to keep it in reserve against an emergency, leaving himself a path of retreat. Now Xie Chengze had maneuvered a host of grain merchants into coming to Yizhou, while his plan required relief grain for the immediate crisis. This was therefore an appropriate moment to bring it out.
Xie Chengze had intended to intimidate Liang Wanda before demanding the grain. But since the man had shown such awareness and volunteered first, Xie Chengze was happy to oblige.
“You are a clever man. As long as you are willing to turn over a new leaf, this prince will naturally grant you a chance.” Xie Chengze helped him up with both hands and smiled. “Go see to it. Handle the matter well, and this prince will let you live.”
People who loved swallowing enormous pies in the sky were far too rare these days. How could I bear to let you die?
As for exactly how he would survive… Xie Chengze smiled sinisterly inside. He had already selected the most fitting punishment for Liang Wanda.
Liang Wanda withdrew with endless thanks, conscientiously sending people to carry out Xie Chengze’s instructions.
Xie Chengze stood in the doorway, waving his gold-threaded fan. After a moment, he said mildly, “Wuhen, follow him.”
This matter allowed no mistakes. To guard against the unexpected, it was best to have Wuhen follow Liang Wanda and monitor his movements at all times.
Then Xie Chengze glanced faintly toward the distance and saw the edge of a robe vanish behind a corridor pillar.
It appeared someone else did not trust him either.
–
That day, every resident of Jiangdu County was mobilized.
The elderly lit stoves and steamed the grain remaining in the county yamen into hot buns. Women sewing oilpaper swallowed hungrily at the sight and could only endure their empty stomachs as they bowed their heads over the work in their hands. Men carrying bedding and iron pots could not resist glancing over whenever they passed, feeding their hunger with the sight alone.
Hearing that memorizing a ballad would earn them a bun, children gathered outside the prefectural yamen and repeated the words after the scholars in bright, tender voices:
“Yizhou has a mountain immortal, who pities every living soul. Entering dreams at dead of night, the immortal guides Prefect Liang. A storm will soon descend, and mountain floods will pour. Shelter on Yuji for three days, and countless lives will be saved.”
“The Prefect obeys the vision, and the mountain flood arrives. Mount Yuji cuts off the waters, cleverly saving every life. The thoughtful Prefect prays, seeking another dream. The mountain immortal comes and asks what troubles him.”
“Can this mountain be leveled? Can this river be split? East and west share water unevenly, and countless people suffer! The mountain immortal laughs aloud and praises his bold design, then points with a single hand and reveals ten thousand methods!”
“This mountain can be leveled! This river can be split! Divide the flow east and west, and a Land of Abundance shall rise!”
The children’s voices rang with conviction, stirring the blood of everyone who heard. They could not help pondering the meaning of the ballad: Could the mountain truly be leveled? Could the waters truly be split?
Could Yizhou truly become a Land of Abundance?
“Impossible!”
At the inn, Ji Songhua shook his head vigorously as he gnawed on a bun. “Prefect Liang will do anything for fame. He even invented a ballad like this to deify his achievements. If Brother Ouyang Jiu did not know something of the stars and clouds, and if Brother Cheng had not passed his warning along, how could Liang Wanda possibly have foreseen the future? And the second half of that ballad is pure nonsense!”
“I wouldn’t be so sure. Just because you cannot think of a solution does not mean no one else can,” Gu Ying retorted.
“Exactly! I agree with Little Brother Gu!” Zhu Xiaobiao immediately chimed in.
“You two…” Ji Songhua pointed at them both, then finally flung his sleeve in anger. “Utterly unreasonable! Brother Ouyang, look at them! They don’t truly think Prefect Liang is some immortal, do they?”
Ouyang Jiu glanced at Xie Chengze. “He is naturally no immortal.”
But perhaps…
Ji Songhua immediately said to Zhu Xiaobiao in triumph, “See? Brother Ouyang said it too. Prefect Liang cannot do it!”
He nudged another scholar beside him. “What do you think?”
The scholar was tall and powerfully built, but seemed so quiet and reserved that their presence was easy to overlook. When Ji Songhua drew them into the conversation, the scholar merely shook their head in silence and continued eating the flatbread in their hand.
“See? Every normal person thinks it is impossible!” Ji Songhua said smugly.
Zhu Xiaobiao disagreed. “I’ve thought about it. Why can’t a mountain be leveled? Why can’t water be split? If we can cut a quarry from the mountain, why can’t we cut Mount Yuji down? If we can design channels in a courtyard to divide rainwater, why can’t we divide the Min River?”
“They are merely larger. Then we can find more people to do the work! It is only a matter of time!” Zhu Xiaobiao said angrily. “How can you call it impossible when no one has even tried?”
“Merely larger? They are more than merely larger! You saw Mount Yuji that day. You saw how fierce and violent the Min River’s mountain flood was. Fighting nature costs both wealth and lives!” Ji Songhua declared aggressively. “All you know how to do is talk!”
Zhu Xiaobiao was rendered speechless.
After thinking for a moment, Bian Yangchun looked toward Xie Chengze, who was smiling behind his fan. “Brother Cheng, you are close to Prefect Liang. Do you perhaps know something?”
Everyone looked at Xie Chengze. After the mountain flood, they had noticed that Xie Chengze’s party seemed quite familiar with Prefect Liang. But he was, after all, the son of a wealthy family. It was perfectly normal for him to spend some money, form a connection, and receive extra consideration, so they had not grown particularly suspicious.
“Well…” Xie Chengze shook his head. “I haven’t heard anything.”
Gu Ying and Zhu Xiaobiao instantly deflated.
The little gathering dispersed. On the way back to the prefectural yamen, Zhu Xiaobiao trudged along with his head drooping, utterly dispirited. Xie Chengze raised his folding fan and tapped him on the head. “What is wrong? Why so dejected?”
“Your Highness, am I truly wrong?” Zhu Xiaobiao lowered his head unhappily. “Is it because I’ve never studied and only know how to take things for granted?”
Xie Chengze arched a brow and smiled. “Why don’t you ask Jing Ze? Hasn’t Jing Ze read many books? You even praised him as a talented scholar.”
That made sense to Zhu Xiaobiao. He immediately looked at Jing Ze with expectation. “Jing Ze? What do you think? Am I right, or are Ji Songhua and Ouyang Jiu right?”
Jing Ze fell briefly silent before replying, “Young Master is right.”
“You hesitated!” Zhu Xiaobiao pouted and turned away from him. “And you’ve learned to flatter me too!”
Jing Ze laughed helplessly.
“Honestly! You don’t like hearing the truth, and you don’t like hearing flattery either?” Xie Chengze tapped Zhu Xiaobiao’s head with his fan again, then lowered his voice beside his ear. “Xiaobiao, would you like to see a true immortal?”
Zhu Xiaobiao raised his head blankly. “Huh? A true immortal? Do immortals really exist in this world?”
Xie Chengze smiled with wild confidence. Light seemed to blaze in his brilliant eyes, making his entire person radiant and even overshadowing his peerless beauty. He said, “That’s right! This prince will make the myth you imagined come true!”