Chapter 99: Wheat Rice

"The ancients called the land of Jin 'exterior mountains and interior rivers.' Seeing it today, the mountains and rivers lean on each other, forming a self-contained system — truly not wrong!"

"The great river flows west, fishing boats sing in the evening. I never expected this place to have such splendid scenery!"

In the deep autumn season, the evening glow was delightful. On the northern bank of a great river south of Lucheng in Yanmen Commandery — that is, along the Hutuo River within the borders of what would later be Fanzhi County in Shanxi — two local dignitaries reined in their horses on a hillside, turned to gaze at the view, and felt deeply moved. And below the slope behind them, though several dozen attendants, servants, and even seven or eight young scholars stood waiting, not one of them spoke a word, all quietly waiting upon those two on the slope.

Indeed, the middle-aged man who spoke first was naturally Guo Yun, the Grand Administrator of Yanmen and Lord of this commandery, while the young man who spoke afterward was none other than Gongsun Xun, who had once toppled a previous Grand Administrator of Yanmen and later set fire to Danhan, shaking the northern frontier with his fame.

As it happened, Grand Administrator Guo Yun was on this occasion touring the counties in his official capacity as commandery governor and had arrived at Lucheng, whereas Gongsun Xun was traveling purely on private business... ahem, he was following his mother's order to accompany his wife on a pilgrimage to the Physician Lingjiu Temple on Mount Wutai to worship the Buddha — or rather, to go sightseeing.

It must be understood that Lady Gongsun rarely undertook a long journey, so during her sojourn in Yanmen, whatever there was to see — the salt pools, the coal pits, the Yellow River, Mount Taihang, Mayi, Wuzhou — she went everywhere she could. But as deep autumn set in, she finally, with some reluctance, set out to return to Liaoxi. However, before she left, she had specifically instructed Gongsun Xun to go with his newlywed wife to Mount Wutai to seek out that Physician Lingjiu Temple, saying that the place was most efficacious for praying for children, and so on.

After that incident at the White Horse Temple, Gongsun Xun naturally had no particular feeling toward monks, and at just twenty-one and newly married, he also had no particular feeling about having children... It was just that, after all, it was his mother's command! And with Yanmen's situation recently stable, and with him in the bliss of newlywed harmony, accompanying his wife on a trip was no great matter either.

Then, when passing through Lucheng, since they happened to meet, Guo Yun took the initiative to invite Gongsun Xun to join his county tour. And though it was called a county tour, it was really just gathering the local young talents outside the city by the Hutuo River to accompany him on an autumn outing, while incidentally conducting some assessments to facilitate the annual selection of Filial and Incorrupt candidates.

Yanmen had been peaceful recently, so such a classic civil and educational activity naturally proceeded very smoothly... It was just that, just as they were preparing to return to Lucheng, the two leading dignitaries suddenly felt a surge of interest and abruptly decided to ascend the slope to view the evening scenery of the Hutuo River, which led to this scene.

"Is Wenqi joking?" Guo Yun stroked his beard and laughed upon hearing the other's words. "Setting aside whether there are even any fishing boats on this river, even the waters of this Hutuo River must ultimately flow eastward. Think about it — is there any river under heaven that flows west the whole way? It is only because the terrain of Mount Wutai on the opposite bank is so steep that the Hutuo River is temporarily forced westward here. Once it enters the borders of my home, Taiyuan Commandery, it will change course eastward, pass through Hebei, and flow all the way into the sea..."

"That much I do know," Gongsun Xun said beside him, too lazy to argue with the other about east or west, merely nodding perfunctorily. "The Hutuo River over in Hebei is far more famous than the Hutuo here in Jin. I crossed it many times in my days traveling back and forth between Liaoxi and Luoyang."

"Indeed," Guo Yun could not help sighing at this. "To be honest, when it comes to beautiful scenery, I still think the stretch of the Hutuo in my home, Taiyuan Commandery, is the most beautiful. But it cannot compare to the stretch in Hebei, which possesses the divine marvel of Emperor Guangwu, recorded in the histories... It simply cannot compare!"

Gongsun Xun could not help laughing at these words: "Lord Guo speaks truly. If nothing else, the Gongsun Bean Broth and Gongsun Wheat Rice of that place are second to none... By the way, would the Lord Governor like to try some? When we return to Lucheng this evening, I will personally make you a bowl of wheat rice — perhaps we could even call it 'Gongsun Wheat Rice'?"

Guo Yun, hearing this, could not help clutching the reins and laughing aloud, laughing until tears came out, leaving the many attendants below the slope utterly bewildered.

As it happened, the so-called "Gongsun Wheat Rice" was simply Gongsun Xun making a joke using a historical allusion connected to the Hutuo River, and this allusion was precisely related to the "divine marvel of Emperor Guangwu" that Guo Yun had just mentioned.

Back in those days, when Emperor Guangwu, Liu Xiu, had just arrived in Hebei, he had only a dozen or so men with him, and the local Hebei strongmen who had risen amid the chaos had placed a bounty of a hundred Battalion Commander on his head... Left with no choice, Liu Xiu had to employ the Liu family's most adept skill — running — fleeing south all the way from the State of Zhao.

By the time they fled to Wulou Pavilion north of Raoyang City, they were truly freezing and starving, in the direst of straits, with seemingly nothing left at all. At that moment, one of the Twenty-Eight Generals of the Cloud Terrace, Feng Yi — later known as the Grand Tree General — somehow produced a few handfuls of beans from who knows where and secretly made a bowl of bean broth for Emperor Guangwu alone. After drinking it, the latter felt completely at ease... Since Feng Yi's courtesy name was Gongsun, Liu Xiu told people the next day: "Ah, you have no idea — yesterday I received a bowl of 'Gongsun Bean Broth,' and drinking it made me so comfortable!"

And then? Then, the fact that only Liu Xiu alone drank his fill was useless; the dozen or so men were starving and had no choice but to flee to Raoyang City to find food, only to be discovered, nearly caught in one sweep! Forced by necessity, the group fled south again like wild dogs, and when they reached the banks of the Hutuo River, they happened to encounter freezing winter rain. Everyone was exhausted, hungry, and cold... And just as Emperor Guangwu ran into a broken-down house by the roadside, stripped to the waist to dry his clothes by a fire, Feng Yi, Feng Gongsun, somehow procured a handful of wild greens and a handful of wheat from who knows where, and using that very fire, made yet another bowl of "Gongsun Wheat Rice" for Emperor Guangwu!

What happened afterward needs no elaboration. After eating that bowl of wheat rice, Liu Xiu presumably had the strength to activate his plot armor. In any case, as Guo Yun had said, all manner of "divine marvels of Emperor Guangwu" followed — how when he sent men to scout, the river had not yet frozen, but by the time they reached the banks of the Hutuo, it had conveniently frozen solid enough for men to cross; then crossing the river to the walls of Xindu City, where the Grand Administrator of Xindu, Ren Guang, actually opened the gates to welcome him, bowed his head, and pledged his entire commandery in allegiance... And then came the drama of sweeping through Hebei in two years, and so on and so forth.

Later on, whenever Emperor Guangwu thought of Feng Yi, he would tell people day after day that he would never forget in his lifetime the "Gongsun Bean Broth" and "Gongsun Wheat Rice" by the Hutuo River!

Here, let me digress for a moment. Feng Yi's nickname, "Grand Tree General," came from the fact that he never competed for credit. When others fought over merits after a battle, he liked to sit under a large tree in a daze... But come to think of it, with this "Gongsun Wheat Rice" and "Gongsun Bean Broth," what need did he have to compete for credit with anyone at all?!

Returning to the present, when Gongsun Xun spoke these words to Guo Yun, although he was merely using the place of the Hutuo River to make a joke by linking the Grand Tree General's courtesy name with his own surname, it was not without a hint of wanting to fully reconcile past grievances with Guo Yun and forge some degree of friendship...

After all, relative to their official positions, both he and Guo Yun were actually quite young, and their career prospects were still rather broad. Moreover, with no more conflicts of interest between them now, and having even cooperated quite well, why not become "friends who shared hardship"? That way, when they met in the future, they could say something like "old friends from the banks of the Hutuo River," elevating the tone a bit.

Guo Yun was certainly no fool either. After laughing, he immediately nodded: "When the northern frontier collapsed before and Yanmen fell into ruin, it was entirely thanks to Wenqi's full support that I was able to tour the counties at ease, conduct this grand civilizing endeavor, and enjoy such splendid scenery as this... For this, I am deeply grateful in my heart!"

Gongsun Xun smiled faintly but could not help shaking his head with a sigh: "How could this be the achievement of just one or two people? You, Lord Governor, drive the high and low to their duties; I maintain order on all sides; the powerful families are willing to contribute funds and grain; the common folk are willing to exert their strength; and there is civil education to win hearts and commerce to enliven the economy... With everyone thus fulfilling their responsibilities, this is the true reason Yanmen has been able to stabilize its situation."

"Well said." Guo Yun nodded as he turned his head to look at the official road on the northern bank of the river, where a trade caravan from the Anli Company was heading east from this spot, clearly preparing to travel overnight from here to Dai Commandery, then exit Mount Taihang through the Flying Fox Path to go to Hebei. "In a commandery or a state, if high and low can work together with one heart, even the greatest difficulties can be overcome... But speaking frankly between us here, the fact that Tanshihuai did not seize the opportunity to invade was truly a stroke of luck."

Gongsun Xun fell silent. After this experience, he truly had some deep feelings about the two words "military disaster"... Had Tanshihuai truly attacked, all the myriad measures taken before would have been nothing but a joke. But then again, the fact that the other did not attack, and instead used this great victory to focus on balancing the power among the various Xianbei tribes, made one feel even more that this grassland overlord was not to be underestimated.

It was just that, given Gongsun Xun's current status, he was utterly powerless against the man. As things stood, he could only hope that this person would, as his mother had said, not be granted many more years by Heaven!

Having thought of Tanshihuai, Gongsun Xun suddenly recalled another person: "Actually, thinking carefully, there is one more person we must thank... Had Lord Dong, the Regional Governor, not rushed to Hexi to oversee Hetao in the north and pacify the Southern Xiongnu in the south, even if Tanshihuai had not attacked, just the chaos from the Hexi side spilling over would have been enough to keep us struggling."

"That is indeed the truth," Guo Yun sighed softly. "When the realm is in turmoil, it is precisely the time for tiger-like ministers and good governors to apply themselves. However, with the Regional Governor exerting himself so fully, the court should surely take notice. That he will one day obtain a fine commandery is only a matter of time."

Gongsun Xun once again expressed agreement, and then his heart stirred slightly. He turned his head back to look at Guo Yun, and by coincidence, the other man also happened to glance sidelong at him.

The two exchanged a smile. It was Guo Yun who was more direct: "Speaking of which, since the situation on the northern frontier is gradually stabilizing, the court should soon be at the stage of discussing merits and bestowing rewards. Does Wenqi have any thoughts on the matter?"

"I have many thoughts, of course," Gongsun Xun said with a low laugh. "I just do not know what exactly Lord Guo is referring to?"

"Where will you go?" Guo Yun grew increasingly earnest. "Can you still remain in Yanmen? To be honest, if you could stay in Yanmen for another two or three years, even if not in a military post, even just as a county magistrate... then you and I could cooperate fully, and Yanmen would surely achieve great order!"

Gongsun Xun shook his head repeatedly: "Lord Guo must not forget, after I was summoned before, I came directly to Yanmen to take up my post, which was already a temporary expedient. And now that I have rendered meritorious service, if the court wishes to continue employing me, how could they be at ease without sending me to Luoyang to serve a term as a Gentleman Cadet? The Han system is here; to walk the proper official career path, one must ultimately pass through a term as a Gentleman Cadet!"

"It seems you will indeed enter the court as a Gentleman," Guo Yun shook his head helplessly. "Truly, there is no other way. However, since Wenqi is entering the court on the strength of great merit, you certainly cannot be appointed as a Gentleman of the Three Bureaus like an ordinary newly selected Filial and Incorrupt candidate. I just wonder whether it will be as a Gentleman Attendant or a Gentleman of the Palace?"

It must be said, the position of Gentleman Cadet in the Han Dynasty was an exceedingly interesting office, with extremely complex nuances, where all sorts of special cases in officialdom could be found, making it impossible to summarize. But roughly speaking, its primary function was to serve as a central party school and a reserve pool for officials.

And among these, broadly speaking, they could be divided into three tiers.

The highest were the Gentleman Consultants, at six hundred dan, through which one could generally leap directly to the two-thousand-dan level — for example, Cai Yong currently held this post;

The lowest Gentlemen were naturally the Gentlemen of the Three Bureaus or the junior Gentlemen subordinate to the Feathered Forest and the Rapid as Tigers Guards, ranked at three hundred dan, generally held by those who had just been nominated as Filial and Incorrupt, or those just selected from the Annual Accounting Clerks, or junior military officers who had just rendered outstanding military merit... To further differentiate, the Gentlemen of the Three Bureaus were civil, while the Feathered Forest Gentlemen were military — Dong Zhuo back in the day was a Feathered Forest Gentleman.

As for Gentlemen Attendants and Gentlemen of the Palace, they lay between the two. The former was ranked at four hundred dan and were theoretically subordinate officials of the Imperial Secretariat, while the latter was ranked equivalent to six hundred dan and theoretically leaned more toward military posts... As Guo Yun said, given Gongsun Xun's record, it was most likely one of these two posts.

"Heaven knows!" Gongsun Xun said helplessly. "My honored teacher's son in the capital, my senior fellow apprentice Liu Song, previously sent a letter with gifts to congratulate me on my new marriage, and merely had a family member pass along a verbal message mentioning the Gentlemen... As for whether it will be Gentleman Attendant or Gentleman of the Palace, I can only let it be."

Guo Yun nodded silently, then sighed again: "I only wonder, after Wenqi leaves, whether everyone in Yanmen, high and low, can still fulfill their duties as they have these past months. Wenqi is brave and fierce, his subordinate soldiers are elite, and his officers each have their own strengths... Truly rare!"

At this point, both men fell completely silent, merely gazing at the western sun setting over the Hutuo River, watching the evening glow swiftly fade, before finally spurring their horses back to the city.

As it happened, Gongsun Xun and Zhao Yun naturally lodged in a pavilion hostel within the city, while Guo Yun stayed in the official residence where the county magistrate lived. Thus, the two men clasped hands and exchanged greetings at the crossroads, then each took their leave to return and rest.

"My husband." Zhao Yun, now a married woman, could naturally appear in public holding her cat to welcome him. "Was the autumn outing by the river enjoyable? Why else would you return only after dark?"

"Enjoyable, you say?" Gongsun Xun grabbed the cat and tossed it to a maidservant beside him, then took his wife's hand and stepped into the courtyard, utterly speechless. "With the Filial and Incorrupt selection imminent and Grand Administrator Guo present, all these young scholars and clerks of Lucheng were eagerly vying to show off — some flaunting their literary talent, some displaying their virtue, and some deliberately speaking boastfully to draw attention... Tell me, as a passing military officer directly under the court, how could I say anything superfluous at such an important moment? So I had no choice but to drink dull wine all day and speak nothing but perfunctory words. Only at the very end, just before leaving, did I find the time to climb the heights with Grand Administrator Guo and gaze upon the long river at sunset — that was the one thing of some value."

Zhao Yun could not help laughing: "It was hard on you, my husband."

When the two stepped further into the rooms within the pavilion, servants and maids naturally lit the candles. Then, Zhao Yun, as his wife, did not even mention dinner, but instead hastily retrieved a letter from the arms of her cat-holding maidservant:

"Sent by fast horse from Pingcheng!"

Gongsun Xun took it and saw it was written by Lu Fan. At first he thought little of it, but after opening it and reading a few lines, he could not help but fall into prolonged, silent thought.

It turned out that Gongsun Fan had sent a perfectly routine message from Luoyang to Pingcheng, saying that the court had finally begun to deliberate on the punishments for Xia Yu, Zang Min, and Tian Yan... This in itself was nothing. As Guo Yun had just said outside the city, with the northern frontier stabilizing, the court would naturally conduct various discussions on this campaign, and then assign blame, reward merit, and so on and so forth!

However, after receiving the news, Lu Fan, from his own perspective, posed a sharp question to his lord: setting aside the fact that Gongsun Xun would likely soon have to enter Luoyang, just considering the future ups and downs of officialdom — could it be that every time he changed posts, he would simply abandon his old subordinates?

According to the traditions of Han officialdom, former subordinates were like disciples; there were even cases of former subordinates observing mourning for their patron! And conversely, former subordinates were also the most reliable force a patron could rely on!

So Lu Fan's meaning was simple: if Gongsun Xun left, he, Lu Fan, would naturally follow; Lou Gui and Han Dang would also very easily follow; with some effort, they could even take all the officers they valued from the Pingcheng area with them... But could they do this every single time in the future?

And if you tell a group of people who hold official posts, and who even have families in the local area, to follow you to Luoyang and temporarily become house guests — would everyone truly be willing?

That being the case, Lu Fan's final question, even if not written out, was already on the verge of being spoken: Why not try to recommend a trusted old subordinate to take your place guarding this area?!

To be honest, from Gongsun Xun's own selfish perspective, that detached unit at Pingcheng was an elite force that had followed him through life and death and been tempered in battle... He truly could not bear to simply let go!

Moreover, Gongsun Xun had not failed to consider and discuss this issue with his mother before, but after much thought, they had found no solution, and at the time could only say that they would try their best to gather all the talents around him and take them along, then rely on the Anli Company's connections with the many powerful families in this area to maintain as much influence over this unit as possible.

What else could be done? The Han system still stood — could you do whatever you wished just because you wanted to?

To put it even more chillingly, if at this moment you hardened your heart and set yourself up as an independent power in Pingcheng... do you believe the ones sent to suppress you would be none other than the great loyal ministers of Han, the tiger minister and good shepherd Dong Zhongying?

However, Lu Fan's letter provided Gongsun Xun with a novel perspective — a way to solve the problem that was actually easy to think of, but had been overlooked precisely because he and his mother were too widely learned and had thought too deeply!

Why not recommend a reliable and trusted former subordinate to take over the garrison at Pingcheng? All things under heaven are founded on people. If this trusted confidant is loyal, reliable, and capable, wouldn't this army be preserved?

Of course, recommending someone himself would never work, but a recommendation from Guo Yun, the Grand Administrator of Yanmen, would be perfectly reasonable... The court would have no grounds to refuse, right?

And thinking of it this way, had he failed to fully grasp Prefect Guo's goodwill by the Hutuo River today?

"Is the evening meal ready?" At this thought, Gongsun Xun suddenly put away the letter and said to his wife with a smile.

"Of course." Zhao Yun quickly replied. "Does my lord wish to dine now?"

"Not just yet." Gongsun Xun shook his head slightly. "I've just thought of something. I intend to go invite Grand Administrator Guo to join us for the meal."

"In that case, I'll make further preparations!" Zhao Yun grew increasingly flustered. This was her first time entertaining a guest in her capacity as a wife, and the other party was a high official of two thousand shi, no less.

"No need." Gongsun Xun said seriously. "Just tell me, did we bring any beans and wheat?"

Zhao Yun was even more puzzled: "Beans we certainly have, but as for wheat... my lord, have you forgotten? Our family's wheat is always ground into flour in advance. We only have flour, no wheat grain. And besides, how could one serve wheat rice to entertain a two-thousand-shi official?"

"The pavilion will surely have some." Gongsun Xun suddenly smiled. "How about you go and borrow some in person? And then go personally select some wild greens... Just these will do! Don't rush to cook, and you needn't do the cooking. Wait until I've invited Prefect Guo back, and I will personally tend the stove and make him a bowl of bean porridge and a bowl of wheat rice! To express my regard!"

Zhao Yun suddenly understood: "Could it be the 'Gongsun Wheat Rice' from the banks of the Hutuo River?"

Gongsun Xun did not reply, but rose with a smile and went personally to invite Guo Yun to dine.

—————— I am the dividing line of the Grand Magister ——————

"When Wang Lang rose in revolt, Emperor Guangwu raced southeast from Ji, resting in thatched huts by day and night, until he reached the Wulou Pavilion at Raoyang. The weather was bitterly cold, and all were famished and exhausted. Feng Yi offered him bean porridge. The next morning, Emperor Guangwu said to his generals: 'Yesterday I received Gongsun's bean porridge, and both hunger and cold were dispelled.' As they traveled on, they encountered a great storm of wind and rain. Emperor Guangwu led his carriage into an empty hut by the roadside. Feng Yi gathered firewood, Deng Yu kindled a fire, and Emperor Guangwu dried his clothes by the flames. Feng Yi then offered wheat rice, and thereafter they crossed the Hutuo River to Xindu... Later, Emperor Guangwu issued an edict saying: 'The bean porridge at Wulou Pavilion in haste, the wheat rice by the Hutuo River — such profound kindness has long gone unrepaid.'" — Book of Later Han, Biography of Feng Yi

(End of Chapter)