Chapter 341: Return from the Mission

Song Prefecture, whose seat was Songcheng, sat along this stretch of the Bian River, where a large number of dredging boats were already moving downstream to clear the canal.

With funds and grain in place and the on-site survey complete, Wang Pu submitted his plans and strategies for approval. After deliberation at court, the imperial government formally issued an edict to remedy the ills of the Bian River, appointing Wang Pu to oversee the matter and manage the entire operation.

The prefectures and counties along the river each levied their own river workers and labor, and on the basis of each managing its own stretch of the waterway, Wang Pu coordinated the overall deployment, dispatching assistant officials to guide and supervise. From Kaifeng, through Song and Bo, to Su Prefecture, the waterway stretched over five hundred li—though the degree of silting varied, for the Great Han court this was indeed no small undertaking. Moreover, the direction of this dredging route was quite conspicuous.

Dredging work demanded hard labor, using boats to drag the silt away. Cast-iron claws were tied to the sterns of boats and sunk to the bottom, while polemen held long poles and worked vigorously; even with the current carrying them downstream, the boats still needed trackers on the bank to haul them along. Stirred up in this manner, the Bian River turned murky...

A fleet of boats came upriver from the southeast, all large thousand-picul vessels sitting deep in the water. The flags they flew marked them as official government ships. This was Tao Gu and Wang Qiwu's party returning from their mission to the Southern Tang—judging by how heavily the boats pressed down upon the river, the journey to the Tang had yielded no small harvest.

As midsummer approached, the weather was growing hot. The attendants, soldiers, and boatmen aboard had long since shed their heavy clothes, and those doing hard labor were drenched in sweat. On the lead ship, Tao Gu and Wang Qiwu likewise wore light summer garments, standing by the gunwale, gazing into the distance as their sleeves fluttered in the wind—quite the bearing of celebrated scholars.

"Though Jiangnan's scenery is pleasant enough, this old man still prefers the northern landscape! At least it's not as damp and hot as the south, which is so uncomfortable." Tao Gu stood holding the rail, watching the canal scenery pass by in succession, quite moved with emotion.

Tao Gu was a man of Bin Prefecture, in the Guanzhong region, where it was dry as could be—his lament was indeed born of personal experience. Of course, even as he said this, his expression still carried a hint of lingering delight, as if he were still adrift in fond memories of Jinling.

The women of Jiangnan were elegant as water, and on the Qinhuai River, among the pleasure houses and bordellos, he had enjoyed himself on the sly, savoring the memory endlessly. On this mission to Jiangnan, Tao Gu had clearly let himself go, far from the "caution" and "humility" he showed at the Han court—though of course, his caution and humility had always been reserved solely for the Son of Heaven, Liu Chengyou.

Having served as deputy envoy on this shared mission, Wang Qiwu held Tao Gu in low regard, feeling nothing but contempt for him. He found the man to possess only an empty literary reputation, with base morals, arrogant and lacking in propriety, covetous of profit and lustful, with no sense of self-respect...

On this mission to Jinling, his conduct had been utterly sanctimonious. Had the Southern Tang sovereign and his ministers not been disinclined to stir up trouble, he would have thoroughly disgraced the dignity and face of a great power's envoy, becoming a laughingstock.

But Tao Gu was utterly oblivious, even smugly pleased with himself.

Though contemptuous inwardly, Wang Qiwu did not show it on his face, merely assenting in a casual yet serious tone: "What Lord Tao says is quite right! Since ancient times, the Jiangnan region has been low-lying, damp, and hot. Our northern officers and men are unaccustomed to southern climes, and should we ever move troops there in the future, we must take care. If preparations are inadequate, we risk severe setbacks. Even Huainan differs somewhat from the northern climate. Upon returning to court, we must fully report this to Your Majesty..."

Tao Gu had only wanted to chat with Wang Qiwu about local customs to relieve the tedium of the voyage, but who would have thought that a single remark would prompt this young man to launch into such a solemn discourse on military and state affairs—he could not help feeling rather exasperated.

Glancing at Wang Qiwu's earnest demeanor, Tao Gu grew displeased, feeling that this junior was putting on airs before him. He then recalled how Wang Qiwu had stolen the spotlight in Jinling with his wit and strategy, and further thought of how the young man enjoyed the Son of Heaven's deep favor even back in the Eastern Capital...

His narrow heart made Tao Gu quite uncomfortable, and all sorts of emotions surged up at once. With a smile that did not reach his eyes, he said: "Qiwu's every word is for the state and for the sovereign—no wonder you enjoy His Majesty's appreciation so."

Tao Gu's snide remarks had no effect on Wang Qiwu. He simply faced north, clasped his hands in a distant bow, and said earnestly: "Since I eat the sovereign's salary and receive His Majesty's trust, though I am unworthy, I shall naturally serve with utmost sincerity."

"Heh heh..." Tao Gu laughed again, his eyes flickering a few times before narrowing slightly, and said casually: "This mission to the Tang, securing peace talks, probing their strengths and weaknesses, and returning laden with goods—I imagine that upon our return to the capital, His Majesty will surely grant rewards and promotions. Qiwu's prospects are boundless... How formidable the young are!"

The words were fine, but Tao Gu's tone was hardly friendly. Had it been anyone else—Wang Pu, for instance—with his fiery temper, he would likely have shot him a dirty look or even cursed him out directly.

But Wang Qiwu, though displeasure showed between his brows, maintained his composure: "To serve the state and seek merit is enough—why should one dwell so on His Majesty's rewards and promotions?"

At Wang Qiwu's words, Tao Gu's expression soured. He cast a sidelong glance at Wang Qiwu, snorted twice, and swept his sleeves as he stalked off.

Wang Qiwu paid Tao Gu no mind—when conversation turned disagreeable, he had not only dignity but also the fire of youth.

Gazing at the dredging boats yielding the right of way to the fleet in the canal, Wang Qiwu took mental note. His estimation of the court's capacity for executing river management and dredging rose a notch, and he also felt Liu Chengyou's resolve.

Leaning against the gunwale, his body swaying with the boat's motion, feeling the great vessel labor northward, Wang Qiwu felt reassured instead. What the ship carried was the Tang sovereign Li Jing's gesture of sincerity toward peace talks—thirty thousand shi of grain and twenty thousand strings of cash.

Compared to the original lion's share demanded, it was naturally nothing much. Even this modest amount of money and grain had required Tao Gu and Wang Qiwu to talk themselves hoarse, wear out their tongues, appeal to reason and emotion, and display force before the Southern Tang side relented.

The Southern Tang was currently at its "peak"—since its founding, its territory had never been larger, its population never greater, its tax revenues never richer. It was not so easy to extort. It was only thanks to the Tang sovereign Li Jing's "magnanimity," combined with Wang Qiwu's clever exploitation of the Southern Tang's factional strife, that they had gained this profit.

All in all, this mission to negotiate peace with the Tang had gone fairly smoothly, as both sides had ample desire for peace. As for why it had dragged on for a full month and a half—Tao Gu and Wang Qiwu had deliberately delayed, lingering in Jinling.

They bore Liu Chengyou's commission, and spying out Southern Tang intelligence was the most important task. The saying "know yourself and know your enemy" never goes out of date.

During that month and a half in the Southern Tang, they had probed its military through roundabout questions, observed its civil affairs directly, and as for its governance—the intelligence they gathered was almost too optimistic...

As for the money and grain they had insisted on extorting, it was merely a little bonus. Of course, even this small bonus was enough to delight the not-so-wealthy sovereign and ministers of the Han court.

Staring at the waves broken by the bow, the glinting reflections of sunlight dazzling the eyes, Wang Qiwu's gaze was clear, his mind sharp. He seriously reviewed the course and gains of this mission to the Tang, and in his mind he was already organizing his words on his understanding of the Southern Tang—how to report to Liu Chengyou, and what suggestions to offer...