Chapter 101 Part 2

 

In the East Hall, musicians played music, singers sang, and the hosts and guests were enjoying themselves. At this moment, Li Hui came to Pei Xiaoyuan, saluted, and invited him to watch his archery skills.

“After returning from Cangshan, I have kept in mind Master’s teachings and have been practicing diligently at home. These days Master is busy, and I didn’t dare to disturb. But today, I would like to ask Master to step aside and give me some pointers to see if I have made any progress.”

As soon as he finished speaking, several officials in the mansion who were familiar with him shook their heads and advising him to let it go. “We all know, Prince Xin’an, how thorough you are in everything you do, but there’s no need to be so diligent! Let your master sit back and enjoy the banquet. We’ll see it another day!”

Even Prince Ning laughed and lightly scolded his grandson for being inconsiderate, but Li Hui still refused to leave. Seeing this, Pei Xiaoyuan rose with a smile, apologized to the others, and allowed himself to be led away by Li Hui. After leaving the banquet hall, the master and disciple walked along the east corridor to its end and turned to the target yard where Li Hui usually practiced archery. When they arrived, Guo Guo’er and two of Li Hui’s personal guards were guarding outside, vigilantly scanning the surroundings. Noticing the two approaching, Guo Guo’er hurriedly stepped forward to greet them.

When Li Hui was sure that no one was around, he whispered, “Master, my maternal uncle entered the mansion at third watch last night. No one in the house knew about it except Grandfather, Mother and me. He is in the archery storage right now, waiting for you, Master.”

Pei Xiaoyuan nodded and stepped inside. Li Hui and Guo Guo’er then when to shoot arrows in the target yard, making a crackling sound of arrows hitting the target from time to time.

Xue Mian, the eldest son of the Xue family, who had inherited his father’s title as Duke Song and Military Commissioner of Shannan Circuit, and the governor of Liangzhou, entered the capital last month to report on his duties. Since the two places were not far away and Liangzhou was in the southwest of the capital, he requested to stay in the capital temporarily on the grounds of recuperation, and it was approved by the emperor. For the past few days, he had been resting with his family. After receiving a secret message from his younger sister, Lady Xue, he disguised himself and entered Prince Ning Mansion. Finally, at this moment, Pei Xiaoyuan appeared. Xue Mian stepped forward, saluted, and addressed him as “Prince Consort”.

In terms of the relationship within the imperial family, although Xue Mian and Pei Xiaoyuan were of the same generation, making them brothers-in-law, the other person was much older than him, nearing forty. Although he had no reputation for outstanding achievements, he was born into a family whose ancestors had made contributions to the founding of the country. He had also served as an official for many years and commanded an army, so he was also a very senior official in the court. Pei Xiaoyuan noticed that although he looked respectful, his eyes were actually scrutinizing him, and it was obvious that he was sizing him up. He quickly stepped forward, lifted Xue Mian’s arms to prevent him from bowing too deeply, and returned the courtesy with a formal gesture of his own: “Prince Xin’an said that Governor Xue arrived last night. I deeply regret having kept you waiting so long. My apologies.”

Xue Mian smiled and waved his hands, shaking his head: “I have long heard Prince Consort’s reputation and have always hoped to have a chance to meet you. This time, it feels like a gift from the heavens—something I sought and now relish. Putting aside our familial ties, Prince Consort is also my nephew’s mentor, which makes us all the closer. There’s no need for formalities between us.”

With just a few words exchanged, both had formed a general impression of each other. Xue Mian discerned that the young man before him, who had only recently become the princess’s consort, was humble, carried himself with the bearing of a gentleman, and possessed an extraordinary demeanor. He was not someone intoxicated by newfound power, arrogant or overbearing. Pei Xiaoyuan could also see that the head of the Xue family deliberately expressed a desire to forge a closer relationship with him.

He knew what was going on, so he stopped beating around the bush and invited Xue Mian to take a seat. Then he went straight to the point and said, “Pei invited Governor Xue to meet like this, but thankfully Governor is understanding. Since you’re here, I will not talk nonsense riddles with you. Can Governor tell me if you noticed anything unusual when you were interacting with Liu Ceye recently?”

Xue Mian’s expression changed slightly when he heard this, and the smile on his face disappeared. He hesitated for a while and asked, “Pei, can you tell me whether you made this appointment on the orders of His Majesty, or did you decide it yourself?”

“Is there any difference?” Pei Xiaoyuan asked back.

Xue Mian was stunned.

“His Majesty is busy with all kinds of affairs, so he has no time to personally inquire about such trivial matters as our in-laws’ meeting. However, it was the Princess’s suggestion to meet Governor here today.” Pei Xiaoyuan looked at him and said word by word.

Xue Mian was stunned again, but he still gritted his teeth, hesitating and unwilling to say more.

Pei Xiaoyuan chuckled faintly and said, “Governor Xue has a rich family background and profound ancestral virtues. Now there is excellent opportunity before you, one that can allow you to achieve honors as solid as Mount Tai and ensure the enduring glory of your family for generations. You are a wise man, Governor, so I hope you can seize the moment decisively. Do not waver, and certainly do not take any missteps that can be used by people with ulterior motives, which will lead to big mistakes.”

Xue Mian smiled reluctantly and replied, “Forgive me for my stupidity. I don’t quite understand what Prince Consort Pei said.”

“After the Jingsheng Rebellion, out dynasty was in a difficult situation, with unrest both inside and outside. Fortunately, thanks to His Majesty’s governance, after the past twenty years, the country has been peaceful and the four sides have been settled. Such a state of affairs is hard-earned. However, no matter how wise His Majesty is, the so-called importance of the world is not just about governance, and he also needs wise and capable people to assist him. Looking at the court, how many people can be called wise and capable ministers now?

“The Princess asked me to tell you that a few days ago, she was reading the histories of two dynasties and came across the saying: ‘A court without virtuous and capable ministers is like a swan without wings; though it may aspire to soar a thousand miles, it cannot reach the destination it yearns for.’ She deeply agrees with this sentiment.”

His expression had turned solemn as he fixed his gaze on Xue Mian. “Advancement through loyalty, and steadfastness through integrity. The Princess asks me to inquire: Are you willing to be the wings for the swan of tomorrow?”

Xue Mian was utterly stunned. Once he regained his composure, he hurriedly rose from his seat, bowed several times toward the north, and then, with averted eyes and a trembling voice, replied, “I am deeply honored by the Princess’s high regard. When I return, I will certainly make every effort to dissuade those shortsighted individuals. The world is peaceful now, why should they follow Chen Sida’s footsteps…”

Pei Xiaoyuan smiled slightly: “Governor Xue, are you afraid that if Prince Kang gains power in the future, you will be in trouble?”

Xue Mian’s worries were poked by his words, and he could no longer maintain the fake smile on his face. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and remained silent.

“Governor Xue, to be honest, I don’t know what the future will be like, but I’m afraid that Prince Kang is not what Your Majesty wants. I can assure you of this.

“Why don’t you put yourself in the Princess’s shoes and think about it. If you were in the Princess’s position today, would you be willing to let Prince Kang gain power?” Pei Xiaoyuan finally said slowly.

Although Xue Mian was also a military general, he did not have the same ambitions as Liu Ceye. His greatest wish in life was to maintain his current wealth and family business.

In the eyes of outsiders, his Xue family and the Liu and Wei families shared the same fate and were inseparable. For many years, he had naturally hoped that the crown prince would succeed to the throne smoothly, so that everyone would be safe and he could continue to maintain his wealth. However, in recent years, he increasingly felt that the crown prince was unstable, especially this time when the princess returned to the court. The crown prince and the Liu family might not be able to succeed, this was almost a very obvious trend. It just depends on when the emperor would speak.

He was naturally conflicted about this situation. Liu Ceye had been sending him letters in private recently to win him over. Although Liu Ceye did not state his purpose, he felt that something big was about to happen. If he helped Liu Ceye and failed, it would be a heinous crime that would bring disaster to the entire family. But if he did not help, and the crown prince really fell, leaving the emperor’s other son, Prince Kang, to take the throne, he would not have a good ending either.

Although his sister, Lady Xue, married into Prince Ning Mansion and his nephew was the eldest grandson, Prince Ning was a noble man who had never really been in charge of affairs. If it really came to that in the future, his help would be limited.

Xue Mian was in a dilemma. He wanted to go back to Liangzhou to avoid trouble, but he was afraid that if he left, something big would happen in Chang’an and he would not be able to react in time. Moreover, if Liu Ceye really took action, he would not be able to escape even if he went back to Liangzhou. So he found an excuse to stay temporarily and wait and see.

When he heard Pei Xiaoyuan’s words at this moment, thoughts immediately turned rapidly in his mind.

Prince Kang and the Princess may not harbor direct grievances against each other, but with the Prince Consort, Pei Xiaoyuan, tensions clearly remain unresolved, stemming from the Beiyuan incident years ago. Since the Princess had chosen Pei Xiaoyuan as her prince consort, it was evident that she aligns herself fully with him.

Could it be that the princess wanted to take advantage of the emperor’s favor and conspire with her husband to ascend the throne as Empress, or perhaps support her husband to claim the throne and completely change the dynasty’s name?

Xue Mian was shocked by his own thought, but then an inexplicable thrill coursed through him.

If this plan was true, the people who could be used by the Prince Consort and the Princess were as follows:

The grand princess and her prince consort, the Lu family, who have a great influence on the Beifu Imperial Guards.

As for the Sixteen Guards of the Southern Court, Han Kerang, Fan Ximing and other powerful generals should also come.

Chang’an’ military strength was there. As for the gentry clans, there was no need for further elaboration—after all, the Cui family, hailed as the foremost aristocratic family in the county, was represented by Cui Daosi, the Prince Consort’s maternal uncle. When the time comes, rallying the literati across the county to amplify their cause through public discourse would be an effortless task.

Not only that, there was another extremely important point. That was Pei Ji’s reputation and the national reputation of Pei Xiaoyuan’s father, General Shenhu, and Pei Xiaoyuan’s appeal to the old members of the Shenhu Army who were now scattered all over the country.

Based on the above, if an uprising really breaks out, it should not be a big problem to firmly control the court in Chang’an and the Eastern Capital.

As for what happens afterwards, if local people take the opportunity to rebel in the name of opposition, they could just send troops to suppress the rebellion.

With the strength of the prince consort’s army, this was not impossible. It just depends on how long the war would last.

If the Crown Prince and the Liu family were doomed to fall, rather than he waited for Prince Kang to take the throne and be killed, it was better to take this opportunity to follow the princess and her prince consort and stake everything on this bold move.

Xue Mian thought it over and no longer hesitate, he bowed to Pei Xiaoyuan and declared, “Thank you, Prince Consort and Princess, for your advice today! It has opened my eyes and enlightened me! I, Xue Mian, swear here that I will obey the spirits of heaven and earth, the power of the ancestral temple, follow the lead of Prince Consort and Princess, and be loyal to His Majesty and the court!”

A moment later, Pei Xiaoyuan came out of the archery storage. Li Hui and Guo Guo’er, who had been waiting at a distance, immediately hurried forward to meet him.

Li Hui was not quite sure why his master had arranged to meet his uncle in such a way, but he knew it must be an important matter. There were many people in Prince Ning Mansion, and there was no guarantee that there would not be one or two pairs of eyes watching in the dark. He would not ask too many questions.

Now that the master had come out, he immediately accompanied him back to avoid arousing suspicion.

Pei Xiaoyuan returned to the banquet hall and sat for a while. Then a message came from the West Flower Hall that the princess had finished her banquet and was about to leave. The people on this side were also hurriedly dispersed. Pei Xiaoyuan went to the West Flower Hall to pick her up.

The two gaze at each other, and amid the noisy laughter of the women around them, he nodded at her.

Xuyu knew that Xue Mian had been convinced by him, and finally breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at him.

Pei Xiaoyuan took Xuyu’s cloak from the maid who had followed them and was about to put it on her when Li Wanwan and Li Hui came up from behind the crowd. They stood side by side, bowed to Pei Xiaoyuan and Xuyu, and said in unison, “Congratulations, Aunt and Uncle!”

Then, Li Wanwan said: “Pearl curtains and embroidered screens!”

Li Hui, seemingly less composed than his elder sister and likely dragged along against his will, appeared slightly shy. However, he still mustered a clear and spirited voice to complete the greeting: “A joyful union of wine cups!”

“An immortal couple in a splendid home!” the other said.

“A perfect pair, like pearls and jade!” another chimed in.

“Newlyweds basking in bliss, like osmanthus and orchids budding!”

The brother and sister recited one after another. When they finished, Li Wanwan smiled and took out from her sleeve a branch of osmanthus tied with red silk, which she had prepared in advance. Li Hui took out a branch of orchid, which both the brother and sister presented.

“Aunt, Uncle, you two are getting married, but my brother and I don’t have anything good to give you, so we’ve just recited these lines for you. Also, we hope you’ll have good news soon, so I can become an older sister again!”

The osmanthus means “precious children” and orchid buds represent “a thousand treasures”.

Not to mention Pei Xiaoyuan and Xuyu were caught off guard, even Lady Xue and the womenfolk in the mansion did not expect it. After a brief pause, once they realized, everyone burst into laughter, pointing at the siblings.

Pei Xiaoyuan was embarrassed, but he tried to suppress it and not daring to respond hastily. Instead, he glanced at the person beside him. He saw her smilingly took both the osmanthus and orchid branches, not passing them to the maid standing nearby but holding them herself. She thanked them before turning and walking away from Pei Xiaoyuan.

Pei Xiaoyuan quickly followed her, taking steps to catch up.

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