Chapter 149: Nothing of Note Today, So We Play Cards

Time rewinds to one incense stick ago.

The autumn light was splendid; the clear lake water was dyed into a sheet of shattered gold by the setting sun.

Marquis of Wuqing's residence, Qinghua Garden.

The small pavilion at the lake's heart had upturned eaves and interlocking bracket sets, exuding an indescribable luxury and ingenuity.

On the red sandalwood square table inside the pavilion, a camel-hair tablecloth, tribute from the Western Regions, was spread; at each of its four corners hung a piece of top-grade Hetian jade, pulling the cloth perfectly flat.

Four richly dressed young men were seated around the table, playing the currently most fashionable game of Madiao.

This round, it was Wu Weiying, son of the Marquis of Gongshun, who was the banker.

His father was the former Grand Minister of the Capital Camps, who had been caught by Wei Zhongxian last year on charges of embezzlement and was still idle at home.

This morning, before he went out, his father had even cursed him out over some trifle, leaving him still simmering with pent-up rage.

—You're the one who embezzled the army pay, you're the one Wei Zhongxian caught, what the hell does that have to do with me?!

I haven't seized any commoner's daughter by force, nor spent nights in any brothel; I just go out to play a bit of Madiao and still get nagged at — it's really damn annoying!

With his pent-up fire, Wu Weiying naturally played his cards with reckless abandon; without even looking, he threw out a "Twenty," putting on an air of "I'm going to slaughter everyone today."

"Brother Wu is fierce."

Li Guozhen, son of the Earl of Xiangcheng, wore a warm smile on his face, as if he were simply enjoying the leisurely afternoon.

He unhurriedly followed with a "Thirty" — neither too high nor too low, just enough to beat it, while leaving some room for the other two players.

His gaze, however, swept over the other two without leaving a trace.

Attacking the banker is like besieging a city: one may engage with orthodox tactics or prevail by surprise, but in either case, concerted effort is required.

Today's host, Li Guorui, the eldest legitimate son of the Marquis of Wuqing, was the second to play.

He had already lost nearly fifty taels of silver over the afternoon, and now his eyes were red; he stared fixedly at his cards, calculating how to recoup his losses.

Seeing Li Guozhen play "Thirty," he gritted his teeth, pulled a "Million" from his hand, and slapped it heavily onto the table.

"Million!"

The force was so excessive that it made the Ding-kiln white-glazed teacup on the table tremble slightly.

Li Guozhen's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

This Li Guorui was truly a card-game bungler.

The non-banker players ought to join forces to attack the banker, but no — for the sake of his own bit of silver, he started fighting his fellow players first.

So unable to hold his nerve — he would never accomplish anything great.

The last to play was Xu Yunzhen, son of the Duke of Ding.

He was handsome and refined in appearance, steady and composed in manner; from the start of the game until now, he had been unhurried and unflustered, neither greedy nor rash.

Seeing Li Guorui play "Million," he only smiled faintly, gently folded his cards, and indicated that he would pass this round.

"Brother Yunzhen, that's not right," Li Guorui grew anxious. "When I play this 'Million,' if you have 'Ten Million' or 'Honored Myriad Strings,' you could collect the pot!"

Xu Yunzhen lifted his teacup, blew on it, and said slowly, "Cards have clear rules, but momentum has no fixed pattern. Brother Guorui, at this card table, sometimes not losing is winning."

This statement was so reasonable that Li Guorui was left speechless.

Li Guozhen, however, could not help but look at Xu Yunzhen, yet he could discern nothing from his face.

What he said just now...

Was it about the card game?

Wu Weiying, the banker, had instead become the most idle person at this moment.

Seeing that his "Twenty" in this round had actually managed to sneak through by luck, his delight instantly doubled.

He pondered for a moment, but ultimately could not restrain his impatience, and pulled out a supreme card, "Nine Myriad Song Jiang," slamming it down heavily!

The others took one look and all shook their heads, each passing in turn.

"Brother Wu, being in such a hurry won't get you the hot tofu." Xu Yunzhen spoke again, his voice still as calm as ever.

"Yes, no need to rush, no need to rush..." Li Guorui echoed absentmindedly, but his mind was entirely on the game.

Li Guozhen smiled, weighing things silently in his mind.

The Marquis of Gongshun, after all, bore a stain; in this Capital Camps matter, he would only be a hindrance, not a help.

The Marquis of Wuqing's family had ample resources; in the previous matter of donating funds to build roads, they had contributed another twenty thousand taels, taking first place in one stroke, even higher than what the Duke of Ying had given.

When he spoke, he should carry some weight before His Majesty as well.

What truly left him uncertain was still the watertight Xu Yunzhen.

The Duke of Ding's household had always remained aloof, and Xu Yunzhen himself was even more profound — he was like an ancient well, calm on the surface, but no one knew how deep it was underneath.

Whether the matter they were scheming today would succeed or fail — the key lay with this man.

Just at that moment, a clamor suddenly came from outside the garden, and everyone immediately frowned.

They cocked their ears to listen, but could only faintly make out a chorus of high-pitched, hoarse singing, like a flock of ducks quacking chaotically.

"What the hell is that?"

Li Guorui had already been losing money earlier and was feeling irritated; hearing this noise was like pouring oil on the fire.

Without turning his head, he waved impatiently at the steward standing in attendance behind him:

"Go see what broke scholar is making that racket, daring to disturb our lordships' peace and quiet!"

The steward bowed to receive the order and quickly departed.

The card game continued.

Wu Weiying knocked out another card, "Four String Zhu Gui."

Li Guozhen unhurriedly broke apart his own hand and asked, seemingly casually, "Brother Yunzhen, that top card of yours from the 'Cash String' suit, the 'Honored Empty Nothing' — is it still in your hand?"

Xu Yunzhen did not even raise his eyelids and said flatly, "Cards have no great or small; it all depends on how they happen to match. Holding it back in the hand — it's always a thought to cling to."

Li Guozhen smiled, played a "Six String Xu Ning," and said with a pointed meaning, "This card game — sometimes it also depends on who can form alliances. Fighting alone won't get you anywhere."

Wu Weiying was so agitated that he missed the implication entirely, thinking the remark was still about the card game.

In an impatient tone he urged, "What's the holdup! Three houses against me alone, and you dare collude right in front of me? Play your cards, quickly!"

Xu Yunzhen, however, raised his eyes and glanced at Li Guozhen, the corner of his mouth lifting in a faint, elusive smile.

He said softly, "Alliances and coalitions depend on who the opponent is. When the house is the imperial clan, no matter how good your hand, you still have to play according to his expression."

With that he waved his hand, simply signaling that he would pass this round.

Just as the words left his mouth, the steward returned and whispered a few words of report into Li Guorui's ear.

Li Guorui listened, and his furrowed brow relaxed. He said to the company, "I was overthinking it. It turns out it's just a group of provincial candidates preparing for the spring metropolitan examination, drinking and reciting poetry by the lake."

Wu Weiying curled his lip. "A pack of impoverished pedants — apart from raising a few shouts, what can they do!"

"Brother Wu, that remark is mistaken."

Xu Yunzhen's smile was faint. "Who knows, among them there may well be a few future Zhuangyuan, a few future Hanlin academicians."

"Brother Yunzhen speaks rightly." Li Guorui nodded repeatedly and immediately made amends, instructing his steward, "Select some fine melons and fruit, and send over two jars of 'Autumn Dew White.' Tell them it is from the Marquis of Wuqing's residence, to moisten their throats, and wish them success at the golden rosters and flower-viewing at the Qionglin banquet."

"Brother Guorui is indeed thoughtful." Li Guozhen clapped his hands in praise.

Xu Yunzhen, too, gave Li Guorui a rare glance, his eyes carrying a measure of approval.

Having won the affirmation of both, Li Guorui's face showed considerable self-satisfaction.

He looked down at the card game and simply waved his hand as well, signaling he would pass this round.

He picked up his teacup again and said unhurriedly, "His Majesty is young, precisely at an age of thirsting for worthy talent. To form a bit of good karma today is no more than the effort of lifting a hand. If one day they truly ascend to the heavens in a single step, it will make a fine story."

"The civil officials' side must be cultivated, but the palace cannot be neglected either."

Wu Weiying took up the thread indignantly. He slapped a 'Nine Cash' card hard onto the table, then raised his head and looked at the others.

"Otherwise it's just like this card — looks the smallest, but at the critical moment it's the most troublesome!"

"Now that the Directorate of Ceremonial has changed hands and Gao Shiming holds the seal, the day before yesterday I sent someone to deliver a pair of jade lions of superb quality, and they were returned untouched, exactly as sent!"

"This morning when I left the house, my father gave me a thorough scolding for it! Elder brothers, do any of you know what his scheme is?"

"Ah, just newly risen — he has to put on a show for a while." Li Guorui waved his hand dismissively. "Who comes out of the palace not loving money? Once some time passes and the spotlight moves on, he'll naturally blend with the common dust."

At these words, everyone exchanged knowing smiles.

"Let us hope so — just so long as he doesn't emulate that traitor Wei, taking the money and then failing to deliver!" Wu Weiying snorted heavily.

"Speaking of court affairs," Li Guozhen casually played an inconsequential 'Five Cash' card, though his eyes flicked toward the others, "that memorial from Vice Minister Huo on reorganizing the Capital Camps — you've all read it by now, I take it?"

The atmosphere inside the pavilion quietly tightened.

Even the sound of cards being played on the table grew softer.

"How could we not have heard," Li Guorui curled his lip. "Though that memorial names no names, every word and every line is aimed at the Marquis of Baoding, is it not."

"The Marquis of Baoding holds command of the Capital Camps — standing by the melon field and under the plum tree, I fear he won't escape this torment."

"That is why, when he held his birthday banquet the day before yesterday, my house merely sent a steward to deliver a gift. I myself didn't even show my face."

"My house did the same," Wu Weiying chimed in.

The Marquis of Baoding, Liang Shixun, served as Governor-General of the Capital Camps, making him arguably the most powerful of the noble houses in the capital at present.

Huo Weihua's memorial seemed on the surface to be a signal, but His Majesty's reaction was impossible to read clearly.

The nobles naturally dared not act rashly; they could only keep their distance for now and gauge the winds before deciding their next move.

If the Marquis of Baoding truly fell, wouldn't they still need this group of old brothers to pull him back out afterward?

"The strange thing is," Li Guozhen's gaze was deep. He drew a card and gently rubbed it between his fingers, "after that memorial was submitted through the Office of Transmission, His Majesty retained it and issued no response. What... does that mean?"

"Could it be... he's letting it go?" Li Guorui sounded hesitant.

"Impossible!" Wu Weiying immediately retorted. "Which emperor has ever ascended the throne without taking a knife to the Capital Camps? Emperor Shizong, Emperor Shenzong, Emperor Suzong — which of them didn't do exactly that!"

"What is more..." Li Guozhen added unhurriedly, "the new sovereign is so sagely and virtuous..."

The moment the words "sagely and virtuous" were spoken, a deathly silence fell over the pavilion.

The faint chirping of birds, the faint sound of breathing, even the wind across the distant lake — in that moment, all became exceptionally distinct.

"Sagely and virtuous" — for them, this term was not entirely a good thing.

With a mediocre sovereign, desires still had traces to follow; in the end, each house would just pool together a bit and make concessions, and that would be that.

Like when the Jiajing Emperor wanted to audit the farmland — then audit it they did.

In any case, the farmland that was audited away would, slowly, all come back in the end.

But with a "sagely and virtuous" sovereign, his mind was like the moon in a deep pool — visible, yet impossible to grasp or touch.

The old rules, they feared, would no longer work.

Yet the new rules, His Majesty still delayed in making known.

How was one supposed to begin?

Tap.

A soft sound broke the suffocating silence.

Xu Yunzhen tossed the leaf-cards in his hand lightly, letting them scatter across the table.

He rubbed his brow and put on a show of weariness: "No more, no more. Sitting all afternoon, I'm a bit tired. Let's rest."

The moment he spoke, the others chimed in as well.

"Yes, yes, we'll resume the battle after a rest."

"My mouth is dry anyway — time for some tea."

Only Li Guorui still gazed at the card table with lingering interest, a touch of regret on his face, yet unwilling to go against Xu Yunzhen's wishes.

He had a feeling that this hand of his seemed quite promising.

That supreme card of the Cash Gate suit, the 'Revered Void No-Cash' card — it was right there in his hand!

A pity... such a pity!

The maids hurried forward, replacing the tea with fresh hot cups and setting out delicate pastries.

The group dispersed from the card table, some leaning on the railing to gaze into the distance, others pacing slowly within the pavilion.

"Speaking of which, Zhang Zhiji of the Duke of Ying's house has been making quite the splash lately." Wu Weiying cradled his teacup, his tone thick with sarcasm. "Running around with a pack of midwives for days on end just to tally up population figures — and now, look, he's caught His Majesty's eye."

"He spent a few years reading at the Imperial Academy, and now he really fancies himself a civil official?" Li Guorui sneered as well. "Even if he burns the midnight oil, can he possibly sit the exams and come back a jinshi?"

Sons of the merit aristocracy have their own hereditary offices — the diligent ones go out as Regional Commanders in the provinces, the idle ones circle around the capital. Either way, their path and the examination track are two utterly different roads.

Behavior like Zhang Zhiji's, in their eyes, was simply baffling — willingly stooping to such low company.

"What he's done this time, though — it's not far off from passing the jinshi exams."

Xu Yunzhen, who had remained silent all along, suddenly spoke. His voice was not loud, yet it silenced everyone.

The mocking expressions on their faces gradually faded, replaced by a complex, inexpressible envy.

Yes — they looked down on Zhang Zhiji's diligence, yet they envied his opportunity.

Sons of dukes and marquises, before they inherit their titles, have no room to spread their wings.

After they inherit their titles, they are likewise confined to a space no larger than a foot of ground.

An opportunity like Zhang Zhiji's — one that clearly promises a name in the history books — how could it not stir envy?

The atmosphere in the pavilion grew subtle once more.

Li Guozhen seized the moment. He walked to the edge of the pavilion, gazed out at the lake full of withered lotus, and sighed as if involuntarily:

"With the Capital Camps rotted to this point, the Marquis of Baoding will hardly escape unscathed. But the post of Governor-General of the Capital Camps is one of grave consequence — I wonder whom His Majesty will favor to take it up."

He paused, shifted his tone, and his voice took on a note of perfectly measured concern.

"Just the other day my father sighed to me, saying that His Majesty rises before dawn and eats after dark, and that he, as a subject, cannot share his sovereign's burdens — that he is ashamed in his heart."

Everyone present was sharp as a needle; none could fail to catch the meaning beneath the words.

Wu Weiying was the first to react.

His father, Wu Ruyin, the Marquis of Gongshun, had been made to repay embezzled funds only the year before; his reputation was poor, and angling for Superintendent of the Capital Camps was hardly realistic.

But lending a hand to the close-aligned Earl of Xiangcheng — that was only right and proper.

He spoke at once: "The Earl of Xiangcheng is seasoned and prudent, a man who plans for the state. If he were to govern the Capital Camps, he would surely let His Majesty sleep soundly at night. Brother Guozhen, I am willing to go home and talk it over with my father!"

Li Guorui also nodded hurriedly: "Quite so, quite so — I too shall go and talk it over with my father."

All eyes, in the end, fell upon Xu Yunzhen.

The Duke of Ding's household was the true bellwether of their faction of the merit aristocracy.

Xu Yunzhen met their gazes, his face still wearing that expression of utter composure.

He said neither yes nor no; he merely lifted his teacup, blew gently at the floating leaves, and said flatly:

"The Analects say, 'The virtue of the gentleman is the wind; the virtue of the petty man is the grass. When the wind blows over the grass, the grass must bend.'"

"A new sovereign of sage and virtue, a gathering of worthy men — it is hardly blameworthy if the Earl of Xiangcheng wishes to show his loyalty. When I return, I shall also mention this matter to my father."

Though it was only "mention," for Li Guozhen it was already enough.

What he wanted had never been a definite promise in the first place.

If the Duke of Ding's household opposed it, the matter was utterly impossible.

If the Duke of Ding's household did not oppose it, then the matter had room to proceed.

The matter settled, Li Guozhen rose and cupped his hands, smiling: "It grows late. Gentlemen, let us call it a day."

No sooner had he spoken than Wu Weiying and Xu Yunzhen took the cue and rose to take their leave.

Only Li Guorui still seemed reluctant for it to end. He rubbed his hands together and said, "Ah, don't rush off — it's still early! Let's play a few more rounds. I feel my hand this time is excellent!"

Yet what answered him was Wu Weiying's back, already turned without a glance, and Li Guozhen's apologetic smile.

Xu Yunzhen did not even turn his head, merely waving a hand indifferently.

In the blink of an eye, Li Guorui was left alone in the pavilion, staring at his peerless hand of tiles, utterly crestfallen.

He lifted his head to look at their retreating figures, somewhat unable to understand.

Why had they all just left like that?

Did they not always play until midnight in the old days, and then simply sleep right there in the garden?

The last rays of the setting sun washed the flying eaves and bracket sets of the Duke of Ding's mansion in a warm layer of gold.

Within the study, the fragrance of sandalwood curled lazily upward.

Xu Xigao, the Duke of Ding, stood before the window with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing at a century-old pine in the courtyard.

Steady footsteps sounded from behind him.

Xu Yunzhen walked up behind his father, bowed deeply, and said in a calm voice,

"Father, I have returned."

(End of chapter)