Chapter 312: Capturing Zhu Xieyuan

The main force of the Nan'ao fleet sailed eastward along the Yangtze River, enjoying smooth winds and currents all the way. Their speed was swift—by the end of the eighth month they had already reached the mouth of the Yangtze, and in early September they anchored at Zhoushan harbor to rest and resupply.

It was at this moment that the hawk boat carrying dispatches arrived, reporting the news that Yuan Chonghuan had been recalled to the capital.

At the same time, intelligence from the Military Intelligence Bureau's Tianjin station also arrived—news of the disastrous defeat at Poyang Lake had reached the capital, shaking the entire court and country. The remnants of the eunuch faction seized the opportunity to counterattack, launching a fierce assault on the Donglin Faction.

And within the so-called faction of pure-stream officials, a small clutch of "lone loyalists" also seized the moment to launch vehement impeachments against the Donglin Grand Secretariat.

The situation at the center of Great Ming power was churning like wind and clouds. In Lin Qian's view, with Yuan Chonghuan heading to the capital this time, the odds were high that he would never return.

Transferring Yuan Chonghuan away without appointing a new Governor-General of Jiangxi—this indeed fit the Chongzhen Emperor's temperament.

Had the court not hampered him at every turn in this campaign, Lin Qian would never have won so easily.

And in the Great Ming's pool of talent, Yuan Chonghuan did not even rank among the top tier. Setting aside Hong Chengchou far off in the northwest and Lu Xiangsheng, whose reputation was not yet prominent, a single Zhu Xieyuan was enough to give one a headache.

This man was precisely the kind of great talent of whom it is said "the skilled warrior wins without dazzling feats"—extremely adept at coordinating military and civil affairs.

Had Jiangxi been defended by Zhu Xieyuan, in the first place he would never have committed the foolish act of cutting off trade with Fujian and Guangdong.

With trade uninterrupted, the entire chain reaction that followed—the deflation, the circulation of yuan-yang currency, the Jiangxi slave revolt—would never have occurred. Even if he could not pacify the rebellion within five years, he could at least have forged Jiangxi into a single block of iron, while coordinating the resources of Zhejiang, Huguang, and Guizhou to grind Lin Qian down in a war of attrition.

Now that Yuan Chonghuan had fallen, Lin Qian calculated every possibility and concluded that the man most suited to be Governor-General of the Southeast was none other than Zhu Xieyuan.

Even taking over Yuan Chonghuan's mess, with Zhu Xieyuan's ability he would be more than sufficient to stabilize the situation and continue the attrition.

Unfortunately, it was already too late—Lin Qian would not give the Ming court the chance to employ Zhu Xieyuan.

Lin Qian summoned Wang Ruzhong of the Marine Corps and instructed: "Zhu Xieyuan—do you know of him?"

"I do. The illustrious Lord Zhu."

"This man's ancestral home is Shaoxing, and he is currently at home observing mourning for a parent. Send a squad of your most capable men by water route to seize him. Remember—keep it quiet, and kill as few as possible."

"Understood!" Wang Ruzhong clasped his hands in salute.

In this Poyang Lake campaign, the Marine Corps had barely seen action, and Wang Ruzhong had long been itching for a fight. Now he could finally unleash that energy—finishing his words, he strode toward the cabin exit.

Lin Qian thought for a moment, then called him back: "Come back!"

Wang Ruzhong halted and turned around: "Helmsman, do you have further instructions?"

Lin Qian pondered briefly, then said: "Zhu Xieyuan has commanded troops for years. With our fleet anchored at Zhoushan, he will certainly be on guard. We cannot go now.

The fleet will set sail now. Leave one squad behind to wait at Zhoushan for seven days—once the heat has passed, then make your move. During those seven days, send men to scout the layout of the Zhu estate and draw up a plan."

Wang Ruzhong clasped his hands and flattered: "The Helmsman's divine calculations are infallible—Zhu Xieyuan won't be able to fly away even if he grows wings."

Lin Qian laughed and cursed: "Enough with the smooth talk—get going."

The next day, the fleet departed Zhoushan and continued sailing south on the return voyage.

Outside Shaoxing city, in Baiyang Village, in the study of the Zhu estate.

Zhu Xieyuan received a servant's report and sighed: "I understand. You may go. Cough, cough, cough————"

His grandson Zhu Yixun brought over a bowl of hot tea and said: "Grandfather, since the rebel troops have already passed, why not dismiss the estate guards?"

Zhu Xieyuan thought it over and shook his head: "The rebel fleet passed along the coast. I worry that bandits may take the opportunity to stir up trouble—let the guards remain for two more days."

Having said this, Zhu Xieyuan continued reading the newspaper.

What he was reading was the latest issue of the Nan'ao Times, which reported in detail the full course of the Battle of Poyang Lake. Those words brimming with jubilation over the Nan'ao army's great victory irritated him into coughing without cease.

Zhu Yixun said with a worried expression: "Now General Qin has surrendered, and Lord Yuan has been defeated. The Great Ming has only the Denglai naval force left. Now the whole city is saying that the Nan'ao army taking the realm is a matter of days."

"Nonsense—nonsense! Cough, cough, cough————" Zhu Xieyuan cursed. "We only lost one naval battle. The elite land forces are all intact—those Nan'ao rebels can't turn the world upside down!"

Though he was at home in mourning, he still worried about the great affairs of the realm. Now with the great defeat at Poyang Lake, he naturally hoped he could step forward to save the crisis, day and night awaiting the emperor's decree to shorten the mourning period and recall him to duty.

Unfortunately, the decree recalling him never came—instead, a band of Nan'ao soldiers arrived.

On the evening of the seventh day, Xiong Beizi led over a hundred men, sailing a bird boat into the Qiantang River, then turning into the Cao'e River, threading through several networks of waterways before finally stopping at the back gate of the Zhu estate.

The boat carried thermite charges and packets of anesthetic, but Xiong Beizi was in no hurry to use them—instead he waited quietly outside the estate wall.

Around the third watch of the night, the back gate slowly opened a crack, and a man dressed as a servant poked his head out to look around.

The open countryside lay silent and still—not a single figure in sight.

The servant then looked toward the base of the wall, only to see over a hundred men in black holding bayonets, eyes gleaming, all staring at him.

The servant was so startled he nearly cried out on the spot.

Xiong Beizi moved with eye and hand in unison, covering the servant's mouth, and placed a finger to his own lips.

The servant nodded, and Xiong Beizi slowly released his hand.

The servant steadied himself and whispered: "The master sleeps in the study. Our indenture contracts are there too."

This man was named Zhu Zhong, a hereditary servant of the Zhu household.

Zhejiang was near the sea, and with the Ming navy completely destroyed, smuggling was not strictly policed, so the province's deflation was not severe and no slave revolt had broken out.

But the Jiangxi slave revolt had still dealt a considerable shock to Zhejiang. Though the servants could still get by, most had grown weary of generations of servitude and no longer wanted to remain a class below others.

When Xiong Beizi's men had infiltrated Shaoxing to gather intelligence, they had hit it off with Zhu Zhong immediately. He would open the gate and lead the way; in exchange, the Nan'ao army would burn his slave registration and take him to Zhoushan Island.

Compared to the Lin estate in Huangyan County, the Zhu estate faced less threat from wokou pirates and had weaker defenses—Xiong Beizi and his men infiltrated the compound without the slightest difficulty.

When Zhu Xieyuan had held office, he was Governor-General of five provinces commanding a hundred thousand troops, but during his mourning period, stripped of his official rank, he was merely an ordinary country squire. His estate guards were ordinary men, nowhere near the level of soldiers.

Moreover, Xiong Beizi's men were the Marine Corps' elite dagger banner company, specializing in dangerous missions. Every member had fought their way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood—their equipment and training were all top-tier. They knocked out several night-watch guards along the way, passing through as if entering uninhabited land, and smoothly made their way to the study.

From a distance, they could see lamplight spilling from the study.

Xiong Beizi looked at Zhu Zhong, who was guiding them, and Zhu Zhong said in astonishment: "When I opened the gate, I clearly saw the master asleep!"

Xiong Beizi made a gesture to his men, who crouched low and surrounded the study in a tight ring.

From within the study came the sound of newspaper pages turning, punctuated by sighs and coughing.

A young voice said: "Grandfather, why are you awake?"

"I couldn't sleep, so I came out to read a bit."

By regulation, when an official was in mourning, he was to build a "lean hut" before his parents' spirit tablets—a simple thatched shelter. By the late Ming this had gradually evolved into residing in the study, but one still could not have servants attending to daily needs; everything had to be done personally, to demonstrate filial grief.

Zhu Yixun, seeing that his grandfather was advanced in years, had moved into the study with him to make it convenient to care for him. He understood what was weighing on his grandfather's mind, and after a few exchanges the conversation turned to the matter of the Nan'ao army.

Zhu Xieyuan spoke some strategies for dealing with the Nan'ao army, and Zhu Yixun chimed in with a few words of agreement, then suddenly said, "Grandfather, your grandson has something to say, but I'm not sure whether I should say it."

"Speak."

"Grandson thinks the Nan'ao army is rather good. Not to look far, since Zhoushan came under Nan'ao's governance, the common folk have grown much more prosperous, and there's no more oppression from wicked monks or the authorities. The newspapers say that at Poyang Lake——"

Zhu Xieyuan spoke with displeasure: "Though the rebel Lin does various good deeds, in the end he is still a rebel soldier who rose against his superiors. Those petty gains are nothing but tricks to fool the common people.

In the Jiangxi slave uprising, there were a dozen or more 'Levelers of Kings.' Was there a single one who didn't start with false benevolence and end up plaguing the people?"

"Grandson feels that Helmsman Lin seems different from those Levelers of Kings——"

"Silence! Even if the current court is corrupt and the emperor's virtue is lacking, we who are his subjects ought to remonstrate and correct, how can you speak such treasonous words?"

Listening to the two in the room argue louder and louder, if they kept quarreling, they would likely wake up the entire household.

Xiong Beizi made a snap decision and said, "Move!"

The moment the words fell, his men broke through the doors and windows and entered.

Zhu Yixun had been in the midst of an impassioned speech when suddenly a dozen or more burly men in black appeared in the study, packing the spacious room so full not a drop of water could pass, and he froze on the spot.

By the time he reacted, both his arms were already seized, his face pressed to the floor. Just as he opened his mouth to cry for help, a wad of hemp cloth was stuffed into his mouth, while his hands and feet were firmly bound.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Zhu Xieyuan had likewise been trussed up and pinned to the ground.

These procedures of grabbing, binding, and gagging were extremely practiced among Xiong Beizi's men, commonly used when capturing prisoners for interrogation in battle. Considering that Zhu Xieyuan and his grandson were both men of letters, they had gone a bit easier on them; otherwise it could have been even faster.

Xiong Beizi entered the study, swept his gaze around, and said coldly, "Search!"

The other soldiers rummaged through the Zhu residence, finding and setting aside all of Zhu Xieyuan's letters, but they still couldn't find the land deeds or indenture contracts.

Zhu Zhong, who had led Xiong Beizi there, watched with eager eyes.

The Helmsman had once said that when dealing with common folk, you can't rely on them to win a battle one moment and kick them aside the next.

Since he had promised to help Zhu Zhong escape his slave status, he couldn't go back on his word.

So Xiong Beizi walked up to Zhu Xieyuan and threatened in a low voice, "I have a few questions for you. If you dare shout loudly, then everyone in this household will lose their lives along with you. Understand? Blink if you agree."

Zhu Xieyuan blinked slowly.

Xiong Beizi had someone remove the hemp cloth from Zhu Xieyuan's mouth and helped him back into his chair.

"Are you the Nan'ao rebels?" Zhu Xieyuan asked immediately once seated.

The marines weren't wearing their distinctive crow-blue uniforms, but a soldier's bearing can't be hidden. In the entire Great Ming, the only ones who could secretly break into a residence were the Embroidered Uniform Guard or the Nan'ao army.

Xiong Beizi smiled and said, "Governor Zhu has sharp eyes. I ask you, where are the indenture contracts for your household's servants?"

A flicker of confusion passed through Zhu Xieyuan's eyes: "You break into my residence in the dead of night, for this matter?"

"The Helmsman invites the Governor to make a trip to Guangzhou. Before you leave, settle the matter of slave status first. Speak quickly."

Zhu Xieyuan looked at Zhu Zhong standing by the door and said with bewilderment, "So it was you who led the rebel soldiers here? Our family has treated you well. Why would you do this? Cough, cough, cough——"

Though the Zhu family was an old Shaoxing clan, they were among the rare few clans with a conscience. The hereditary slaves in their household not only lived decently, but even somewhat better than ordinary people.

Zhu Xieyuan himself was the perfect Confucian scholar-official—honest and frugal, gentle in dealing with others, and he didn't allow his family to mistreat the servants. The household was harmonious, and master and servant would even joke with each other from time to time.

Thus, facing the interrogation, Zhu Zhong's body trembled, and he turned his head away, not daring to meet his master's gaze.

Xiong Beizi had asked the Helmsman the same question before. Among those great clans in Jiangxi whose entire households were slaughtered by their slaves, not all of them were bad people.

Those whose wealth bred a conscience were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns, but they weren't completely nonexistent.

And among the rebelling slaves, quite a few had originally been estate stewards or even household managers for the great clans, deeply indebted to their masters' kindness. In the eyes of outsiders, these people stabbing their masters in the back was utterly heartless and ungrateful.

Xiong Beizi hadn't memorized the Helmsman's exact words about the relationship between class position and personal morality, but he had understood the Helmsman's meaning, and now was the perfect time to show it off.

So he said, "Since you tout yourself as a saint, why didn't you long ago write a single deed of manumission and grant Zhu Zhong a commoner's status?"

Zhu Xieyuan fell silent for a moment.

Xiong Beizi gave a smug cold snort and said to Zhu Zhong, "See? Favor is favor, status is status. Can the two be conflated?"

Hearing this, Zhu Zhong straightened his back, cupped his hands to Zhu Xieyuan, and said, "Master, this servant is grateful for your kindness and is willing to serve you all his life. But being a servant is no easy lot—this servant cannot let his children become slaves and maidservants as well——"

Zhu Xieyuan let out a sigh and said slowly, "So it's that someone in your household is with child."

Xiong Beizi said, "Enough talk. Hand over the slave registers."

Zhu Xieyuan pointed at a floor tile. Xiong Beizi ordered his men to pry it up, and sure enough, they found a box beneath it. They took it out—inside were the Zhu household's property deeds, land deeds, slave contracts, and various other documents.

The subordinate roughly flipped through them, then grabbed them all up and moved to throw them into the fire, but Xiong Beizi stopped him.

"The Helmsman instructed that we shouldn't make too much of a commotion. Besides, the Zhu family truly hasn't done any evil. Only burn the slave registers; the property and

land deeds—leave them all."

The subordinate obeyed, lit a brazier, and was about to put the slave registers in to burn.

Zhu Xieyuan let out a sigh and said, "Hold on. Burning only the slave registers won't do. Let this old man write a deed of manumission."

Xiong Beizi stared at him suspiciously and said, "You'd be so kind?"

Since things had come to this, burning the slave registers was a foregone conclusion. Zhu Xieyuan couldn't change the outcome, so he could only minimize the losses.

The Zhu family was enormously wealthy in Shaoxing; releasing their slaves from bondage wasn't much of a loss.

But burning the slave registers rashly without a deed of manumission—the authorities wouldn't recognize it, and it would instead provoke a slave uprising, which would be disadvantageous to the Zhu family, and might even throw all of Zhejiang into turmoil.

So whether for public or private reasons, this deed of manumission he had to write.

Zhu Xieyuan explained the reasoning, and Xiong Beizi ordered his men to untie him, watching as he indeed earnestly began writing the deed of manumission.

The Zhu household had over three hundred slaves in total. Zhu Xieyuan transcribed all three hundred names onto a single document. After writing, he blew on the ink to dry it, waved Zhu Zhong over, and handed the document to him, saying, "Tomorrow at dawn, lead the household's slaves and go together to the Shaoxing prefectural office to be released from bondage."

"Master——" Zhu Zhong took the document, moved to tears of gratitude, knelt and knocked his head heavily on the ground, saying, "Master's great kindness and virtue, this servant—this servant——"

"When slaves are released from bondage, a small fee must be paid—that's the official regulation. And with over three hundred people going together, the authorities will make difficulties. The Zhu family must send someone to accompany you. This grandson of mine is not accomplished and has always stayed by this old man's side—let him go along to help coordinate."

Zhu Xieyuan pointed at Zhu Yixun as he said this.

This was, in fact, a roundabout way of saving Zhu Yixun from his predicament.

Xiong Beizi, seeing how reasonable Zhu Xieyuan was, couldn't help but feel greatly favorable toward him. He was just about to agree when Zhu Yixun started wailing and shouting.

Xiong Beizi knew he had something to say and had someone remove the gag from his mouth.

Zhu Yixun said, "Grandfather is getting on in years. If he goes to Guangzhou, he needs someone to look after him. I want to go along."

"What nonsense are you talking?" Zhu Xieyuan grew anxious, then burst into violent coughing.

Xiong Beizi, afraid that the coughing would draw others' attention, could only have someone bring tea and water for Zhu Xieyuan.

Watching Zhu Xieyuan cough without cease, Xiong Beizi truly feared he would die on the ship to Guangzhou.

If the helmsman's assigned task went unfulfilled, the crime would be great indeed.

And so he let Zhu Yixun accompany him, and had Zhu Xieyuan find another member of the clan's younger generation to handle the matter.

Zhu Xieyuan had no choice. He left a letter in the study explaining the full circumstances, instructing the clan's younger members to obey without fail, then said, "Let's go."

A moment later, Zhu Xieyuan left the residence and boarded the Nan'ao military vessel. Gazing at his former home, he thought to himself that he had not waited for the emperor's decree of exemption from mourning, but had instead waited for the Nan'ao army — truly, fate played cruel tricks on men.

Thinking that once he left, he might never return to his homeland in this lifetime, a wave of sorrow washed over him. For a long while he could not bear to look away, wanting to imprint everything into his memory.

Xiong Beizi somewhat respected Zhu Xieyuan's character, and seeing this, he offered comfort: "Lord Zhu need not worry. The helmsman said your trip to Guangzhou is as a guest, not a prisoner. Perhaps in a year or two you'll be back."

The subtext of these words was that within a year or two, Zhejiang would break away from the Great Ming and fall under Nan'ao's territory.

Zhu Xieyuan let out a cold snort at this, then coughed without stopping.

In early September, the fleet returned to Nan'ao Island.

The Candle Dragon could finally enter dry dock to upgrade its cannons, and the two fourth-rate ships, Star Abyss and Cloud Abyss, could have copper sheathing laid on their hulls.

By this time, the Guangzhou prefectural office was essentially complete. The General Staff Headquarters and the Government Affairs Hall had already moved to Guangzhou one after another; only the Lin residence had yet to move.

Ye Zhen had long since packed everything for the move, waiting only for Lin Qian's return.

Before the move, Lin Qian gathered the household's servants in the courtyard and said, "By now, you must all know of the slave uprising in Jiangxi.

In those days, the Hongwu Emperor had witnessed with his own eyes the tragic sight of Mongol Yuan nobles treating Han slaves like livestock, buying, selling, and slaughtering them at will.

Thus, after establishing the Great Ming, he issued decrees liberating bondservants and prohibiting the keeping of slaves.

Yet over two hundred years have passed, and in Jiangnan, the households of scholar-officials still maintain hereditary servants.

Worse still, some of their ancestors were enslaved at the founding of the state, and their descendants have remained servants generation after generation — over two hundred years now, unable to shed their registration. The people can bear it no longer. This is truly an evil policy, and it gave rise to the Jiangxi slave uprising.

When Nan'ao was first established, I promised the people who followed me that I would abolish the base-status registries. Now, under Nan'ao's rule, there is no longer a distinction between the Tanka boat people and land dwellers — yet there remains a division between slave registration and free registration. This is my failing!

The reason I have not abolished slave registration until now is that this matter is not easy to accomplish; it requires supporting measures.

If we rashly cut it all at once, the great households could use adopted sons, hired laborers, and other means to evade punishment for keeping slaves.

However, the Jiangxi slave uprising has reminded me that this matter can wait no longer. We cannot afford to wait until the laws are fully perfected before acting.

The abolition of slave registration should begin from this very moment — and it should begin from this very Lin residence!"

As Lin Qian spoke, he picked up a stack of slave registration documents and cast them into the brazier.

"From this day forth, you are free."

All the servants in the household wore expressions of panic, whispering among themselves.

Bai Kou, who was supporting Ye Zhen in the rear chamber, said urgently, "Madam, what does this mean? Does the master not want us anymore?"

Yue Yi immediately burst into tears: "Madam, please don't drive us away——"

Ye Zhen wiped away Yue Yi's tears and comforted her: "You two silly girls, hear the whole matter out first."

Su Qingmei, standing nearby with reddened eyes, said, "Madam, I don't want to leave either——"

Ye Zhen laughed and scolded her: "You silly fool, since when were you ever a servant of our household?"

Su Qingmei was startled, then suddenly realized — being released from slave registration had nothing to do with her after all! And then she laughed again, carefree as ever.

This laugh only made Bai Kou and Yue Yi cry even harder, and Ye Zhen could only keep comforting them.

In the courtyard, Lin Qian continued: "Burning the slave registrations alone is far from enough. The household will help everyone find work, with wages no less — in fact, more — than what you received as servants here.

Of course, after we go to Guangzhou, the household will still need people to help with work and arrangements. If anyone wishes to come along, you are welcome.

Only, from now on we will no longer address each other as master and servant, and no one will obstruct your descendants from pursuing whatever occupations they choose."

At these words, a cheer erupted from the servants.

Whether they cheered for being released from servitude or for being able to continue following Lin Qian — that was anyone's guess.

To be fair, he had won people's hearts as helmsman, and the household was harmonious. But he was not omniscient — how many people had suffered grievances in secret, how many wished to be released from servitude but dared not speak — he did not know.

With this kind of institutional exploitation in place, one-sidedly emphasizing the deep affection between master and servant was nothing but a naive joke.

To be sure, capitalist employment relations were also exploitation in essence, but this kind of exploitation was far more progressive than the slave system the Great Ming operated.

In the rear chamber, Bai Kou asked in confusion, "So we don't have to leave after all?"

Ye Zhen nodded.

Yue Yi, tears still on her face, giggled foolishly.

Ye Zhen said, "You two are also of marriageable age now. Once we reach Guangzhou, we'll find husbands for both of you. Don't worry — even after we go to Guangzhou, we'll still follow the island's rules. Women can work even after marriage. When that time comes, you two can still come work at the household."

Yue Yi's face flushed red. She held back her tears and nodded silently.

Bai Kou, on the other hand, clamored that she wouldn't marry, that she would stay with Ye Zhen for life.

In the courtyard, Lin Qian looked at the servants who had just gained their freedom, knowing full well that burning the slave registrations was only surface work.

Merely shouting slogans, merely proposing a blanket cut — in the end it would go the way of the Hongwu Emperor's slave prohibition: gone with the man who made it.

To thoroughly dismantle personal dependency, the laws had to be perfected — the corrupt Great Ming Code could no longer be followed.

In his vision, taking a royal title and establishing a government was only the first step. The next step was to design a new set of laws for the new dynasty.

But at the root of it all, one still had to develop productive forces and transform relations of production, so that common folk, besides scratching a living from the soil

or serving as slaves and maidservants, would have a third path to walk.

Only when land was no longer the sole means of survival could the institution of slave registration be thoroughly erased.

When the Lin household moved, over ten thousand common folk came of their own accord to Qianjiang Bay dock to see them off.

Among these people were former Tanka boat people, also Liaodong refugees, and many Fujian immigrants. Recalling all that had happened since coming to the island, the people could not help but shed tears.

Walking among the crowd, Lin Qian could still recognize many familiar faces.

For instance, Old Zhao who sold stove cakes, Da Bing the fisherman, and Scissors Liu from the tailor's shop.

Lin Qian comforted each of them in turn, then said: "I'm only staying in Guangzhou temporarily—it's not that I'm never coming back. Nan'ao Island is still there, the rules we established are still there, and life on the island won't change.

From now on, not only will our islanders live well—the debased-registry folk, slave-registry folk, and poor commoners of Fujian, Guangdong, Jiangnan, and indeed the whole empire will all live like proper human beings, and live even better!"

Amid the islanders' waving hands and tears, beneath the boundless sunlight, Lin Qian's flagship slowly set sail.

At the same time.

Four thousand li away, wind and snow lashed the capital.

Amid the silver-white expanse of the Forbidden City, a spot of vivid red walked through the raging blizzard.

Yuan Chonghuan, in his crimson official robe, walked to the platform before the imperial steps, halted, raised his head to gaze at the leaden clouds, and recalled how one year ago he had stood in this very spot, brimming with high spirits—and now everything had changed.

The eunuch leading the way reminded him in a low voice: "Your Excellency, please step inside at once—don't keep His Majesty waiting."

Yahei

Pink Round

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