Ning Chen bowed. “Your subject presumes to ask Your Majesty to write out a treaty. Your subject will also write a letter setting out the reason, and send men to carry them to the Wu Kingdom and have the agreement signed again.”
“The woman emperor of Wu is reasonable enough. She should not make anything of a small matter like this.”
The Xuan Emperor inclined his head slightly. For the moment there was no other way.
Ning Chen went on. “Your Majesty, your subject found several good things in the Wu Kingdom. One is glass — as clear as a fine glaze. It can be set into windows and doors, and it keeps the wind out without shutting out the light.”
“There is toothpaste too. It cleans the teeth and leaves a cool taste in the mouth.”
“Another is fine salt, as fine and white as sand.”
“If the two kingdoms open trade, the Wu Kingdom is willing to sell these into the Great Xuan… Your subject brought samples back too, but they went to the bottom with the warship.”
The Xuan Emperor was greatly pleased. “Good. This emperor will write out another treaty.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty!”
The Xuan Emperor said, “Ning Chen. This emperor promised that when you came home from a successful peace you would be made a General of the First Rank… But the treaty is ruined now, so that matter waits until the new agreement is signed.”
Ning Chen, helpless, bowed. “Yes!”
Fuck!!!
He had been one kick from the goal, and then his legs had gone out from under him.
Ning Chen turned his head and let his eye pass over the Right Chancellor. If it were not for this old scoundrel and the Fifth Prince, he would be a General of the First Rank already.
But it made no difference. That rank was in his pocket already.
When the court broke up Ning Chen did not leave the palace. Halfway out he turned and walked toward the imperial study.
The Xuan Emperor had only just sat down in the imperial study when a young eunuch reported that Ning Chen asked to see him.
“Let him in.”
“Yes!”
The young eunuch withdrew, and shortly afterward Ning Chen came in.
“Your subject presents himself to Your Majesty.”
The Xuan Emperor said, smiling, “No ceremony. Is there something you want to see this emperor about?”
Ning Chen cupped his hands and bowed. “Your Majesty! On the road back to the capital the warship was scuttled, and your subject came out of it alive by no more than a hair… After that a whole pack of assassins came hunting him.”
The Xuan Emperor inclined his head slightly. Nie Liang had already reported this to him.
“Your Majesty, those assassins came from an assassins’ organization called the Dark Moon Tower… Your subject believes the killing of Old General Chen was the Dark Moon Tower’s work too.”
The Xuan Emperor nodded, and signed to him to go on.
Ning Chen said, “Your Majesty! Your subject was inside the Ghost-Shadow Sect when Old General Chen was killed… Your subject believes the man who killed Old General Chen did not come from the Ghost-Shadow Sect, and that somebody meant to plant the blame on them.”
“The Ghost-Shadow Sect gave your subject the gift of the art, so your subject would like to plead for them.”
The Xuan Emperor frowned. “Do you know how much harm these assassins do?… Even if they had nothing to do with the killing of Old General Chen, this emperor will not have them.”
Ning Chen’s face changed a little, and he said quickly, “Your Majesty, the men of the Ghost-Shadow Sect are all fine fighters. It would be a waste to kill them… Your subject is willing to persuade them to enter the army and serve the country, and work off the crime with a service.”
The Xuan Emperor thought for a moment. “Bandits of the jianghu. Would they ever be willing to serve the country?”
“Your Majesty, your subject is certain of persuading them… And the most important thing is that your subject wants to use them against the Dark Moon Tower. Nobody hates a man like somebody in the same trade. Set the Ghost-Shadow Sect on the Dark Moon Tower and you get twice the result for half the work.”
The Xuan Emperor turned it over for a while. “Since you have pleaded for them, then for your sake this emperor will give them one chance to buy the crime back with a service.”
“But the chance comes once. If they offend again after this, this emperor will have their heads… and this emperor will punish you heavily too.”
Ning Chen knelt and bowed. “Thank you, Your Majesty!”
Ning Chen came out of the imperial study meaning to leave the palace, but he turned aside and went to the Fallen Phoenix Court instead.
In the courtyard the Ninth Princess, all in red, was practicing with a sword, the hem of her skirt flying, light as a startled swan.
The Fifth Prince sat by the stone table eating a pastry, and did not forget to applaud the Ninth Princess while he did it.
A little palace maid came in quickly.
“Princess. Marquis Ning asks to see you.”
The Ninth Princess’s movement froze. She put the sword away in a hurry, her small face flushed pink from so much exercise, bright and lovely.
“Heye. My face paint hasn’t run, has it?”
Heye shook her head.
The Ninth Princess put the sword away and told the little palace maid to bring Ning Chen in quickly.
“Yes!”
The little palace maid went out and brought Ning Chen in.
“I greet the Princess.”
Ning Chen bowed, and then his eye fell on the Fifth Prince. “I greet the Fifth Prince.”
An innocent, simple, honest smile came over the Fifth Prince’s face.
He picked out a pastry and held it out to Ning Chen, though parting with it plainly cost him something.
“Thank you, Fifth Prince.”
Ning Chen took the pastry and bit into it without any fuss.
Naturally, outside the palace he would not have dared eat it.
But this was the Fallen Phoenix Court. If anything happened to him here, the Fifth Prince’s more than ten years of playing a part would have gone for nothing.
The Ninth Princess’s smile was bright and shy at once. She looked at Ning Chen. “When did you get back?”
“Last night.” Ning Chen came forward and took the Ninth Princess’s small hand. “I’ve been gone nearly three months. Has the Princess missed me?”
The Ninth Princess was overcome with shyness. “Let go, everybody’s watching.”
“Let them watch if they want to. A man holding his own future wife’s hand — that is the way of heaven and earth. I’m not afraid of what people say.”
“Well? Did you miss me?”
The Ninth Princess turned red and made a small sound of assent.
Ning Chen said, smiling, “Out there I thought about the Princess every hour of the day.”
As he said it he took a silk handkerchief out of his robe and opened it. Inside was a vermilion hairpin.
“I found this in a shop in the Wu Kingdom. It was the treasure of the shop, and the manager would not sell it for anything, but I wanted to give it to the Princess, so I had to take the desperate course.”
“I threw down my silver, grabbed the hairpin and ran… The manager set his dog on me, and it chased me three streets.”
The Ninth Princess’s small mouth fell open in astonishment.
“Does the Princess like it?”
“I do! You weren’t bitten?”
The Ninth Princess’s eyes reddened a little, and she was so moved that they filled with tears.
Ning Chen shook his head, glanced at the Fifth Prince, then turned back. “No. That dog had eaten too well to keep up. I run fast, and it never caught me.”
As he said it Ning Chen put the hairpin in the Ninth Princess’s hair with his own hands, and nodded, satisfied. “Beautiful.”
The Ninth Princess was moved and delighted at once.
“Wait here a moment!”
With that the Ninth Princess took Heye and turned and went into the room.
Before long the two of them came out carrying a chest. It was not large, but there was no telling what was inside it. It looked heavy.
Ning Chen hurried forward and took the chest from them.
The Ninth Princess said, smiling, “Open it and look. Do you like it?”
Ning Chen was taken aback. “For me?”
The Ninth Princess nodded.
Ning Chen carried the chest to the stone table, set it down, opened it and looked — and stopped where he stood.
The chest was full to the top with ingots of gold.
Ning Chen looked at the Ninth Princess in astonishment. What does she mean? Is this her telling me to eat soft rice, and eat it hard? (TL Note: to eat soft rice is to live off a woman’s money; to eat it hard is to do it without a trace of shame, and to hold your head up while you do.)
The Ninth Princess said, smiling, “I hear you’ve been supporting the Nurture Hall all this time, and there are so many people in your household. The spending must be very great.”
“In the palace I want for nothing, and I don’t often get the chance to go out, so I have no chance to spend anything… Take these. Buy whatever you like. I just don’t know whether you’ll like it.”
Ning Chen nodded and nodded. “I like it. I like it very much! This is exactly the kind of plain, unadorned thing I like.”
The Ninth Princess was overjoyed. It was enough that Ning Chen liked it. A moment before she had been worrying that she had not prepared a proper present for him, afraid Ning Chen would think she had not troubled herself over him.
(End of Chapter 423)