When Yun Qing returned to the back courtyard, he saw that Yuxi's eyes were red from crying. He put his arm around her shoulders and com...
When Yun Qing returned to the back courtyard, he saw that Yuxi's eyes were red from crying. He put his arm around her shoulders and comforted her, "Your Er Ge1 will be fine." Any displeasure he still felt towards Han Jianye vanished when he saw him lying unconscious after being badly wounded while fighting the Northern Barbarians.
Yuxi said, "My Er Ge1 could have died at any moment—how could Xu Wu keep that from me? If I had known earlier, perhaps he would have woken up by now." Had she known about Han Jianye's injuries, she would have given him the best medicine and sent people to care for him. She was sure that he would have recovered by now.
Hearing the dissatisfaction in her words, Yun Qing reassured her, "Don't overthink it. I believe Er Ge1 will wake up soon."
Wiping away her tears, Yuxi told Yun Qing, "He Rui, when my Er Ge1 wakes, let him stay here in Yu City!" She did not want Han Jianye to return to the capital; the capital was a pond of muddy water2 and he would surely be dragged into the whirlpool3. Better to let him stay in Yu City, where at least there was no hooking hearts and clashing horns4.
Yun Qing shook his head. "Dage5 wants him to go to Shu, but I think he should decide for himself, rather than being sent wherever you and Dage5 choose. Han Jianye is twenty-five, not a three-year-old child. The road he takes should be his own choice." Han Jianye and Yun Qing were the same age.
Hearing this, Yuxi stated, "When we have a son someday, you must be the one to teach him." A son was different from a daughter: if you arranged everything for him, it would cause harm rather than love. She understood this in theory, but it was easier said than done—she couldn't even keep her hands off Han Jianye's affairs now and would probably find it even harder with her own son.
Yun Qing was delighted; her words showed she had truly relaxed and was no longer troubled by the prospect of having children. Holding her, he smiled and said, "We'll teach him together. I'll teach him martial arts, and you can teach him strategy. He'll grow up to be a young talent in both civil and military arts."
Yuxi smiled and changed the subject. "When you came in just now, your brows were knitted. What difficulty is troubling you?"
Yun Qing thought for a moment and replied, "It's about Xiang Weiguo. I never expected that when I put him in charge of military supplies, he would seize the opportunity to scoop some benefits for himself."
Yuxi responded, "Water that is too clear has no fish6. As long as he doesn't delay business, taking a little benefit isn't unforgivable. But Xiang Weiguo's wife, Yan Shi, flaunts herself too much, which gives a bad impression." She paused, then added, "She even boasts that the jewellery she wears came from the confiscations of wealthy households. I already had Xu Wu warn Xiang Weiguo once, but he ignored me." Everyone knew that confiscating corrupt officials and wealthy families had made Yun Qing's followers wealthy, but such matters could not be discussed openly.
Yun Qing's expression darkened further. "They say 'when marrying a wife, marry a virtuous one7'. But Xiang Weiguo married such a woman who will break his life with her own hands8." Xiang Weiguo wouldn't lose his life for the offences he had committed, but with a wife like that, he would be ruined sooner or later.
Startled, Yuxi asked, "You're not thinking of making Xiang Weiguo divorce his wife, are you? It's better to pull down a temple than to break up a family9. Don't be the villain." Such things required a lot of effort, but pleased no one.
Yun Qing was speechless. "How could you think that?" Although he disliked Yan Shi, he would never interfere in Xiang Weiguo's household. As for the profiteering, the real fault lay with Xiang Weiguo himself — if he hadn't been so greedy, none of this would have happened. Of course, failing to keep his wife in check also showed his own incompetence.
Yuxi also felt she had overthought it. Given Yun Qing's character, he would never interfere in another man's private affairs. "Remove Xiang Weiguo from his post and confiscate the benefits he's gained. Whatever share was meant for him, don't give it to him, and make sure you look utterly disappointed in him."
Yun Qing didn't quite understand and asked, " 'Look utterly disappointed'? I get the first part, but what does the rest mean?"
Yuxi shot Yun Qing a glance and replied, "He will lose his official post and money. Now that you're also disappointed in him, Xiang Weiguo won't have a chance to turn things around. Do you think Yan Shi will continue to live with him?"
Yun Qing's expression looked odd. "Who was it who just said, 'It's better to tear down ten temples than break up one marriage'? And now you've changed your tune in the blink of an eye—that's fast!"
Yuxi grinned. "I'm not the one breaking up anyone's match. Perhaps Yan Shi will share both hardship and sweetness with Xiang Weiguo." Though she thought the chance was tiny.
Seeing that Yun Qing was still hesitating, Yuxi continued, "If you don't want Xiang Weiguo to be ruined by Yan Shi and you still want him to work for you in the future, then do as I say."
Yun Qing's inner conflict wasn't really fear that harsh punishment would put others off. He couldn't bring himself to strike hard because he didn't want to lose such a loyal subordinate. He had too few trustworthy people right now — losing even one would be a major blow. However, he was also concerned that if the punishment was too light, Xiang Weiguo might not learn his lesson and could make an even worse mistake later on.
Yun Qing asked, "What if Yan Shi leaves him and he becomes deeply depressed and can't recover?" Back when Xiang Weiguo sought to marry Yan Shi, he even came to beg Yun Qing for help—that alone shows how much he loved her. If she betrayed him, Yun Qing truly feared he would become a broken man.
Yuxi's eyes turned cold. "If you don't follow what I just said, only for you to set your hand down gently with Xiang Weiguo after raising it high10, then he can't be trusted anymore." She paused. "For Yan Shi to flaunt those jewellery worth several cities11 in front of me, not only shows her vanity and foolishness, but also proves how greedy she is. A person like that would certainly betray us without even blinking an eye if you gave her enough profit." It wasn't a bit of greed that was the issue, but the fact that Yan Shi was insatiable and fearless—a very dangerous type. And Xiang Weiguo indulged her without the slightest principle. How could anyone rely on someone like Xiang Weiguo?
Hearing this, Yun Qing's face darkened. "Are you saying Yan Shi flaunted jewellery worth a fortune in front of you?"
On hearing this, Yuxi couldn't help laughing. "Yes! She showed off her ornaments to me—I thought she must have water in her brain12."
Yun Qing touched Yuxi's forehead and said, "It's my fault. I should have sent those chests of jewellery back to Yu City for you." He couldn't bear for Yuxi to be looked down on.
Yuxi's smile grew even brighter at his words; she was delighted by his thoughtfulness. "We're about to head to Haocheng. Sending them back only to move them again would be a hassle. Yan Shi's just brainless—don't bother about her."
Seeing Yuxi so happy lifted Yun Qing's mood considerably.
After a moment's thought, Yuxi asked, "How much silver did we earn in total this time?"
Yun Qing gave the figure, then added, "I had someone calculate it. After deducting essential expenses, there's roughly three million left over." By 'essential expenses', he meant officials' salaries, soldiers' pay, death benefits, and the cost of buying horses and replacing weapons.
Yuxi hesitated, but then said, "The death benefits can't be distributed at the rate you propose—at most only half!" Yun Qing had been using the amount set by the Imperial Court, but those standards had been established in peacetime. Now, in wartime, many people die each year, so if they followed Yun Qing's standard, the annual taxes wouldn't cover the payments.
Seeing that Yun Qing remained silent, Yuxi continued, "He Rui, we give death benefits to the families of fallen soldiers in the hope that the money will ease their lives. But if we can't stabilise the northwest and it falls into chaos, prices will skyrocket, and no matter how much you give, the families won't be able to live well. Take Maicheng as an example: late last year, one tael of silver bought only two jin of fine rice and flour. However, if the northwest is stabilised, a tael could buy more than a hundred jin13. Priorities matter—secure the larger situation first, and talk of other things later."
Yun Qing could see the sense in Yuxi's words, so he nodded in agreement without objecting. "Let's give out half first, and make up the rest when we have the money later."
Yuxi didn't directly respond to the previous point, simply saying, "Although we're providing the common people with seeds and encouraging them to reclaim wasteland, there certainly won't be much tax revenue this year." In order for the people to recuperate and rebuild their strength, the taxes couldn't be too high; otherwise, the ordinary folk wouldn't be able to bear them. Therefore, promising to make up the other half of the shortfall now would ultimately be an empty promise. Making promises you can't deliver on makes you appear to lack credibility.
Yun Qing understood the meaning behind Yuxi's words and, unusually for him, fell silent.
Unconcerned with Yun Qing's reaction, Yuxi went on, "There are vast grasslands to the west of the West Sea where people are skilled in horse breeding. We can hire them to raise horses for us. The initial investment will be larger and more troublesome, but once it's set up, we'll save on the cost of buying horses. As for weapons, don't worry about buying them–we have iron and copper mines in the northwest. We only need to spend money on hiring master smiths to forge weapons."These weapons and equipment were things that had to be spent on every single year. If you had to buy them, then the money would go off like the sea14.
Yun Qing had never considered himself a traitorous rebel, so he had never thought about breeding horses or secretly manufacturing weapons. He said, "Ji Xuan secretly forged weapons; I have already imprisoned all the craftsmen who made weapons for him." Had it not been for Yuxi's constant urging not to create more murderous karma, Yun Qing would undoubtedly have killed all of the craftsmen who had served as the tiger's ghostly helper15 instead of merely imprisoning them.
A smile spread across Yuxi's face—this way, they could even save the money on hiring smiths. She said, "The northwest often suffers natural disasters, and grain is never sufficient. We must purchase more grain for reserves." Her view was that they should solve whatever problems they could themselves and only buy what they could not produce. Grain was a matter of 'the weightiest importance16', and if they could not produce enough themselves, had to be bought in quantity.
Yun Qing looked relaxed and suggested with a smile, "Once you have recovered, why don't you handle these matters?" Since Yuxi excelled in such planning, he would let her put her talents to use.
Yuxi was startled, then overjoyed. "Do you mean it? When I recover, will you truly entrust these affairs to me?"
Seeing her reaction, Yun Qing stroked her cheek and said, "When have I ever lied to you? But don't overwork yourself—act according to the measure of your own strength17." If Yuxi had a work to occupy her, she would not let her thoughts run wild, and he would also have less to shoulder. One move, two gains18—why would he not be happy about it?
Yuxi smiled as if she had picked up a gold ingot19.
Yun Qing had never seen Yuxi so happy that he couldn't help exclaiming, "You…!" Allowing her to work made her this joyful, whereas ordering her to rest only annoyed her. Truly, he didn't even know what to say.
Footnotes Full List
- 二 èr: second, 哥 gē: older brother
- The phrase 一团浑水 (yītuán húnshuǐ) is a metaphor for political chaos.
- The idiom 卷入漩涡 (juànrùxuánwō) means being caught in dangerous intrigues
- The idiom 勾心斗角 (gōuxīndòujiǎo) means political infighting
- 大哥 dàgē: eldest brother
- 水至清则无鱼 (shuǐzhìqīngzéwúyú)—a proverb meaning if rules are too strict, no one can survive
- The proverb 娶妻娶贤 (qǔqī qǔ xián) advises men to prioritise a woman's character, virtue, and wisdom over other qualities such as beauty or wealth when choosing a wife, as a good character is essential for a harmonious family.
- 折在他手中 (zhé zài tā shǒuzhōng) literally 'be broken in her hands', meaning 'be ruined because of her'.
- This proverb, 宁拆一座庙不毁一门亲 (nìng chāi yī zuò miào bù huǐ yī mén qīn), stresses that maintaining family harmony is more important than preserving buildings or material things.
- 高高抬起轻轻放下 (gāogāo táiqǐ qīngqīng fàngxià): literally "raise high, put down lightly," metaphor for showing sternness in appearance but punishing lightly.
- 价值连城 (jiàzhíliánchéng): "worth several cities," meaning "priceless."
- 脑子进水 (nǎozi jìn shuǐ) is a very common and humorous Chinese slang phrase used to insult or poke fun at someone who has done something foolish, illogical, or made a very poor decision. It implies their brain is not working correctly, as if it has been filled with water.
- 斤 jīn: a traditional unit of weight, each containing 10 liang (市两) or 16 old liang (旧市两) and equivalent to 0.5 kilogram or 1.102 pounds
- The phrase, 钱可就海了去 (qián kě jiù hǎile qù), is a metaphor for an endless, unmanageable expense.
- The idiom, 为虎作伥 (wèi hǔ zuò chāng), is a metaphor used to describe a person who willingly assists a villain or a cruel person in committing evil deeds.
- 重中之重 (zhòngzhōngzhīzhòng) is an idiom meaning the most critical of all priorities
- The idiom 量力而为 (liànglìérwéi) means to do what is within your ability; don't overreach.
- 一举两得 (yījǔliǎngdé) is an idiom meaning killing two birds with one stone
- 捡了金元宝似的 (jiǎn le jīnyuánbǎo shìde)—a vivid simile for sheer delight, as though fortune had fallen into her lap.
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