Chapter 124: The Emperor

(ps: after a day at work I was full of anger, got home and saw the numbers, my stomach literally exploded, the two overdue notices together were under 200, I can't bear it, if I weren't still surviving on Tomato's welfare, I would have fled already…)

Yuan Jingji sat in the jolting carriage, his fingertips unconsciously gripping the jade pendant at his waist, even his breathing carried a hint of heaviness; his mood simply could not improve.

As a descendant of the Qinghe Yuan clan, with royal distant‑relative blood still flowing in his veins, he had been steeped in aristocratic pride since childhood. He was always escorted by samurai, conversed only with nobles' sons, and had never suffered even a hint of grievance.

But now he had to lower himself, bow his dignity, and go meet a group of barbaric merchants who seemed to have sprung from nowhere.

The thought of discussing matters at the same table with those reeking of copper and caring only about profit made his chest feel like a massive stone, his heart filled with an indescribable humiliation.

What made him even more aggrieved was that the Court's arrangement for this mission treated him like a discarded child. Apart from granting him the empty title of "Imperial Envoy" to give him outward dignity, they only gave him a flimsy edict.

Beyond that, there was no real support at all—no dispatched guard warriors, no funding for the mission, not even any specific regulations for negotiating with the merchants.

He felt like a puppet with a title only, carrying a heart full of resentment and anger, setting out alone on this humiliating and uneasy journey, with no clue at all about what lay ahead.

His escort consisted of only a few dozen warriors cobbled together from his own family; this mission, originally a major affair concerning the Court's negotiations with the merchants, now had to rely on his family's private force to hold up the scene, and any gossip would draw scorn from other nobles.

The carriage rumbled over the rugged mountain road, the screech of wheels against stones especially grating. Yuan Jingji leaned against the carriage wall, his anger swelling with each thought.

"These worthless scum from the Capital! All they do is chatter behind our backs, and when it really matters they throw us warriors out to die!" Yuan Jingji complained to his trusted retainer, Yuan Manzhong.

Yuan Manzhong wore a worried expression: "Lord, the matter has come to this, complaining is useless. We should think about what to do once we reach Jiuzhou. I've heard it's not peaceful there now."

"Hmph, how unpeaceful could it be?" Yuan Jingji sneered. "A bunch of country warriors wielding a few fire‑spitting torches, thinking they're invincible? When they see the archery and cavalry of the Yuan clan, they'll know what a true warrior really is!"

He said that aloud, but in his heart he had no real confidence.

After alighting from the carriage and boarding a ship, and enduring more than ten days of the fleet's sea‑rocking, they finally reached Jiuzhou's Bokuta Bay.

The moment they set foot ashore, Yuan Jingji was stunned by the scene before him.

Originally this should have been a tranquil port, but now ruins littered everywhere, exuding a burnt smell. Clearly a great battle had just taken place here.

The local officials, after confirming Yuan Jingji's Imperial Envoy status, wore mournful faces and poured their grievances onto him.

"Imperial Envoy! You must act on our behalf! The Shao Er family and the Dayou family have gone mad! They're tearing apart Bokuta to seize the business of Zhendong City! We can't control it!"

"Zhendong City?" Yuan Jingji latched onto the keyword.

"Yes, exactly. It's the city built by those black‑ship merchants. Now the powerful clans of Jiuzhou treat it like a holy site. Whoever gets a line with Zhendong City can buy weapons like those of deities. We… we…"

Yuan Jingji, too lazy to listen further, asked directly: "Where is that Songpu Town?"

According to Tengyuan Zhongping's plan, he would first strike at Songpu, the most conspicuous 'sitting‑duck', to make it feel the Court's authority, then proceed to Zhendong City.

"Lord Songpu?" The official's face showed a strange expression. "He's not someone we can meet casually now. He's effectively the ruler of Feiqian Guo. If you wish to see him, you must first go to his new city Pingdu City and submit documents."

"How audacious!" Yuan Jingji roared. "I am the Court's Imperial Envoy, representing the Emperor Your Majesty! To see a petty local magnate and still have to submit paperwork? He should crawl over here at once to meet me!"

The official, shrunk by his shout, dared not speak further.

Yuan Jingji, seething with anger, led his dozens of warriors toward Pingdu City with a fierce bearing.

However, he received treatment even more indifferent than at Bokuta Port.

Songpu never came out of the city to meet him. He only sent a retainer who blandly accepted his documents, then told him that Lord Songpu was currently 'unwell' and unable to receive guests, and asked him to stay at the out‑of‑town post station awaiting notice.

That waiting lasted three days.

During those three days, Yuan Jingji didn't even catch a glimpse of Songpu.

Now he was utterly enraged.

"Too much deceit! Truly too much deceit!" Yuan Jingji, in the post station, so angry he flipped the table, "A nouveau‑rich who made his fortune on foreign merchants dares to slight the Court's Imperial Envoy! Is he rebelling?"

"Lord, calm your anger," Yuan Manzhong urged. "It seems Songpu is set on cozying up to those black‑ship merchants. Staying here only brings us further disgrace. Let's head straight to Zhendong City."

Yuan Jingji gritted his teeth, realizing there was no other choice.

He refused to accept defeat; he brandished the Emperor Your Majesty's edict—how could those merchants still deny him face? Since they were here to trade, they ought to obey the local customs, right?

Thus, the party turned around and headed for the legendary Zhendong City.

When they saw from afar the towering, solid cement walls of Zhendong City, everyone was dumbfounded.

What is this, a mere warehouse? It was clearly a military fortress! The black‑gaped gun ports on the walls made their hearts race.

Yuan Jingji forced down his shock, straightened his attire, and approached the city gate.

"I am the Court's Imperial Envoy, Yuan Jingji! By order of the Emperor Your Majesty, I have come to read the edict! The one in charge, step forward to receive the decree!" he shouted at the guards on the gate.

On the gate stood rows of soldiers in identical black uniforms, bayoneted muskets in hand. They stared at the colorful, green‑clad heavy armor and wooden‑clogged "ancients" below, their gazes full of monkey‑show‑like mockery.

These were the 'Zhendong City Guard' formed from the rōnin recruited by Wang Meng; they recognized only the Wang Family's money, not any emperor.

A man who seemed a minor leader lazily stuck his head out and, in the language of the Japanese, asked: "What Imperial Envoy? What Emperor? We don't know. Our general says this is Wang Family territory; without his order, no one may enter."

"Audacious!" Yuan Jingji, fumes rising from his seven apertures, shouted, "You barbarians! How dare you despise the Emperor Your Majesty! Do you know this is a crime that could annihilate a clan!"

The minor leader scratched his ear, impatiently saying, "Stop shouting here. If you have business, queue over there for registration. When the general wishes to see you, he'll notify you. If he doesn't, no amount of shouting here will help."

After speaking, he ignored Yuan Jingji and turned away.

Yuan Jingji followed his direction and saw a small window beside the gate. A long line of people waited there. These were envoys of the various powerful clans of Jiuzhou, each obediently queuing to submit tribute letters.

To make a distinguished Court Imperial Envoy line up with these local magnates' footmen?

Yuan Jingji's pride suffered a devastating blow.

"Rebellion! All rebellion!" He trembled with rage, ripped from his chest the edict embroidered with a chrysanthemum crest in gold thread, and held it aloft.

"Open your dog eyes and look! This is the Emperor Your Majesty's edict! To see the edict is to see the sovereign! If you don't kneel and receive the decree, I… I will…"

He stalled for a long moment, unable to utter any harsh words, because he realized the soldiers on the wall, looking at the edict in his hand, showed not a hint of reverence but outright, unabashed mockery.

It seemed he was holding not a sacred edict but a roll of toilet paper so stiff even wiping would feel harsh.

"Lord…" Yuan Manzhong tugged his sleeve, his face ashen, "We… we should leave. These people are desperadoes; they truly could do anything."

Yuan Jingji finally felt fear; looking at those black‑gaped muzzles, his hand trembled, and the once‑holy edict grew unbearably heavy and ridiculous.

In the end, he, along with the people trailing him, slipped away from Zhendong City amid the queued envoys' eyes that watched like a spectacle.

The Emperor's authority and the Court's face were shattered at that moment by Zhendong City's cold walls and the soldiers' merciless mockery.

When the news reached the Capital, the entire Fujiwara clan was stunned.

They had imagined the other side might be rude, but never expected they would disregard them so completely.

The Emperor's edict, in people's eyes, is not even as good as dog shit.

This isn't just a slap in the face; it's pressing their faces into the ground and rubbing them back and forth.

Envoys sent by the local powerful clans also brought this matter back to various places.

Everyone knew that a powerful force had appeared in the Nine Provinces, one that even the Emperor and the Court did not take seriously.

For a moment, the world seethed with undercurrents.