That meal was misery beyond words for Ning Chen.

There were plenty of dishes, but as each one came up Eunuch Quan had to prod it with a silver needle, and then the eunuch who served the food took the first mouthful. Only once it was certain nothing was wrong did Eunuch Quan lift a portion across to the Xuan Emperor.

Ning Chen felt a little sorry for the Xuan Emperor. From beginning to end he never got a single hot mouthful, and he ate a little of everything, which would probably give him the runs afterward.

And no dish could be eaten more than three bites of.

The Ninth Princess had Heye attending her.

Ning Chen sat there with his chopsticks like an idiot.

Every dish had to be tasted by the Xuan Emperor first, and there were so many of them… he had no idea which ones the Xuan Emperor had already eaten from and which he had not.

Take from the wrong one and it was the crime of overstepping.

To be the ruler of a nation was a pitiable thing, really. He slept with the ugliest women and ate the coldest food.

Ning Chen had heard that even when His Majesty favored a woman, a eunuch stood by with a little book recording it — what hour it began, how many times, and once the hour came the woman had to be sent back.

The moment the time was up, the eunuch would speak… Your Majesty, the hour has come!

Sometimes the Xuan Emperor took a fancy to a woman and wanted another turn or two… and the eunuch would speak again. Your Majesty, mind Your Majesty’s health.

Ning Chen was so deep in his own thoughts that he did not notice the Xuan Emperor watching him.

The Xuan Emperor’s forehead filled with question marks.

Why is the boy looking at this emperor like that? And with his eyes full of pity, no less.

“Ning Chen. What are you staring at this emperor for?”

Ning Chen came out of it with a start and said quickly, “Your Majesty. Your subject has eaten his fill!”

“Full already? This emperor recalls your appetite runs to more than that. Is the food not to your taste?”

He remembered that Ning Chen had eaten a great deal at the Heavenly Blessing Tower.

“Answering Your Majesty. Your subject ate not long before coming into the palace, so he isn’t hungry at all!”

The Xuan Emperor made a sound of assent. “If you’ve eaten your fill, then get out. Go and call on Old General Chen.”

“Yes. Your subject takes his leave!”

The Xuan Emperor waved a hand.

Ning Chen cleared out smartly.

The Xuan Emperor raised his head and looked at the Ninth Princess. “Huai’an. You are a princess of the Great Xuan. You must mind your bearing. You can’t be snatching up a feather duster and hitting people at every turn. Do you understand?”

“It’s all Ning Chen’s fault. The things he says are truly infuriating… He called me a little brat, and he said nobody would marry me. It was too much!”

The Xuan Emperor said, smiling, “Since Huai’an dislikes him so much, shall this emperor have him killed, then?”

The Ninth Princess was badly startled and said quickly, “Father, I don’t dislike him… My brother the crown prince says Ning Chen has had a hard time of it at home. The truth is he’s pitiable himself.”

The Xuan Emperor sighed. “He is indeed. Ning Chen’s own mother died early, and at home his father has no fondness for him and his stepmother no love… He is pitiable enough.”

“The first time your father saw him it was already late autumn, and he had not so much as a thick coat against the cold. His lips were purple with it.”

“He earned a hundred taels of silver selling poems, with no small trouble, and when he got home those brothers of his took the silver off him and broke his ribs.”

The Ninth Princess’s fine brows drew tight. “How pitiable! I won’t bully him anymore.”

The Xuan Emperor said, smiling, “Then in the future you can back him up.”

The Ninth Princess thought about it. “All right. From now on I’ll protect him and not let anyone bully him.”

Elsewhere, Ning Chen left the palace and rode to the general’s residence.

“Ning Chen. Have you had your midday meal?”

Ning Chen nodded. “I have! Old General, His Majesty sent me to call on you. What is it about?”

“You march out soon. This old man has mustered a thousand men for you. You had better show your face and get acquainted with them.”

Ning Chen nodded. “Very good!”

“This old man is unsteady on his legs. I’ll have Yuanzhong take you… Yuanzhong will be going with you on this campaign as well, at your side throughout.”

“And come and see this old man once before you march. There are some things I want to tell you.”

Ning Chen smiled and made a sound of assent.

Then, with Qi Yuanzhong leading the way, he set out for the north camp.

Fifty thousand of the capital guard were stationed around the capital.

Those fifty thousand were divided between two camps, one to the south and one to the north, charged with protecting the imperial city.

The two of them rode about two hours and reached the north camp.

Along the way there were no fewer than a dozen sentry posts, some in plain sight and some not.

By the time they got to the front of the camp, a powerfully built officer with dark, weathered skin had already had word back from the scouts and was waiting for them.

“Ha ha ha… Old Qi!”

The two of them had barely dismounted when the man came forward and caught Qi Yuanzhong in a bear hug. They were clearly old acquaintances.

Qi Yuanzhong clapped him on the back, and when he had been set down again, said, smiling, “Old Yuan, let me introduce you. This is—”

“I know. Ning the Silver Coat of the Inspectorate, the famous immortal of poetry, and the General of the Northern Expedition for this campaign. The edict came down yesterday!”

“Your subordinate Yuan Long, Commandant of the Dragon Guard, presenting himself to General Ning.”

“I’ve heard all along that Ning the Silver Coat was a prodigy, but I never thought he’d be this young. This is plainly a babe in arms, ha ha ha…”

Qi Yuanzhong’s face changed and he said heavily, “Yuan Long. You forget yourself!”

Yuan Long stopped laughing, bent and put fist to palm. “No offense meant, Ning the Silver Coat. We’re all rough men in the army and there’s no guard on our mouths sometimes. I beg your pardon.”

Ning Chen smiled without a sound.

He knew this could not be avoided. Soldiers believe in nothing but strength, and for a boy of fifteen to be thought little of was perfectly natural.

“It’s no matter!”

Ning Chen said it and stepped forward, and his hand went out like lightning and caught Yuan Long’s arm. He turned at the waist, bent his back, and put Yuan Long straight into the ground with a clean shoulder throw.

Bang!!!

Yuan Long went a good two hundred and twenty pounds, and the ground shook with it.

Qi Yuanzhong could not get a word out.

The guards at the camp gate were astonished, their eyes wide.

Yuan Long was thrown dizzy and reeling, and very nearly blacked out.

Before he could recover, his body went stiff, because a sharp dagger was resting against his neck.

Ning Chen looked down at him, smiling. “Commandant Yuan. Don’t think little of a babe in arms. On a battlefield, taking any opponent lightly can cost you your life.”

Yuan Long’s face was full of resentment. “I just wasn’t paying attention.”

“When a lion fights a rabbit, it spares nothing… On a battlefield your carelessness doesn’t only put you in danger. It puts your brothers-in-arms in danger.”

“Once you’re down, the enemy won’t stop to hear your excuses… If I were your enemy, you’d be dead already.”

Ning Chen drew the blade slowly back, stood, and held a hand out to Yuan Long.

Yuan Long was thoroughly unconvinced. He got up by himself and slapped the dirt off his clothes.

Qi Yuanzhong said heavily, “Yuan Long. Mind your manners.”

Ning Chen waved a hand. “Commandant Yuan certainly thinks I won that unfairly. Here’s what we’ll do… I’ll give you another chance. We’ll have another match in a while. Whoever goes down loses, and the loser buys the drinks!”

“Done!”

Yuan Long agreed on the spot. He did not believe for a moment that a slight frame like Ning Chen’s could put him down without a surprise attack.

Ning Chen said, smiling, “Come on, then. Let’s go and look at my men first and say hello, and then we’ll have our match.”

Yuan Long nodded. “Ning the Silver Coat, after you!”

The thousand soldiers had long since been drawn up in ranks on the parade ground.

All thousand were picked troops, picked over one by one for him by Old General Chen. Simply standing there, the fierceness came off them in a wave.

(End of Chapter 135)