Chapter 301: Carving

The sun had sunk a little!

The congestion on the main road before the city gate showed no sign of easing; the five battalions at the city gate had still not appeared to restore order.

Not a trace of them!

Yuwen Liqian maintained her patience, but the students behind her had grown restless and anxious.

They gazed at the suffocating crowds around them, filled with resentment, yet restrained by their status and propriety as representatives of Han State, standing stiffly with arms crossed!

The students had grown tired of waiting, staring at the dense, packed crowds.

There was no way to force their way out.

They couldn't curse aloud—it would disgrace their scholarly dignity.

The students began whispering among themselves, their words brimming with criticism and discontent toward Yan's governance.

"A lawless land, infested with unruly riffraff!"

"A great Confucian scholar must come here to govern—this place is a stinking cesspool!"

"Even worse than the southern barbarians of Nanmang—no trace of ritual or decorum!"

One student offered a suggestion:

"Master Su, why not beat them senseless, so these riffraff learn their place!"

Before Su Haibei could answer, several nearby officials hurried to dissuade him:

"Impossible! Absolutely not!"

Such an act would make them all liable for collective punishment.

Su Haibei immediately rejected it.

This group from the Qingbang has blocked us here precisely to make us anxious.

If we panic and make a mistake, they'll lead us by the nose—and in broad daylight, they'd dare lay hands on us, with countless eyes watching.

The incident happened this afternoon.

By tonight, Su Haibei's memorial would reach the deep palace compound of the Yan Prince's mansion.

The Yan Prince was not at the Yan Mansion.

But all the strategists of the Lu Army were gathered here—every decree issued in Yan over the past decade originated from this place.

The mysterious, elusive Commander of Shuiyin was also here handling official business.

Su Haibei thought of this and felt a chill of fear!

The Yan Mansion hung like a sharp blade above the heads of all northern officials!

A reminder to do their duty well!

Once the memorial arrived, the Battalion Commander of Beichen Office would personally arrive at Su Haibei's residence tomorrow.

Beichen Office, akin to Dali Temple of Daqing, held the authority to supervise all officials; its severity was plain to see.

Beating or mistreating commoners was an unforgivable crime under Yan law.

The revision of Yan law aimed to abolish harsh punishments and reduce capital sentences, yet for oppression of the people, penalties were doubled—even to the extreme punishment of death. In recent years, the Yan Mansion had never tolerated such crimes once discovered.

Most importantly!

If he did this, when he returned to his hometown, he would never hold his head high again.

He would not only be ruined in reputation, but also lose face before his fellow townsfolk.

Serving the Yan Prince meant setting an example, protecting the people—this stain would shame him for life!

Listening to the students' murmurs, Su Haibei felt a surge of irritation and anxiety.

He himself didn't matter—but today was not ordinary; he couldn't let anything go wrong on this first visit of Princess Yuwen Liqian and the Han students to Yan.

If mishandled, he couldn't answer to Minister Dou—and worse, the Han students might return home with a bad impression of Yan, spreading damaging rumors.

Damaging the Yan Prince's honor was a grave matter!

The more Su Haibei thought, the more frantic he became, pacing frantically before his carriage, as if only motion could ease his inner turmoil.

Yet!

Another half incense stick passed!

The five battalions at the city gate still hadn't appeared, making him even more unbearable.

Su Haibei strode forward into the crowd, his voice tinged with urgency:

"Fellow townspeople, I know you all have your difficulties, but today is extraordinary—staying here any longer is inadvisable."

Facing the crowd's indifference, Su Haibei finally lost his temper, bellowing:

"Make way for this official! Do you take me for a paper tiger?"

His voice echoed through the crowd, carrying undeniable authority.

After all!

Su Haibei was the Prefect—he was the father-mother official here.

The crowd seemed momentarily awed by his presence, exchanging uneasy glances; the atmosphere grew tense.

At that moment!

A middle-aged man in the crowd spoke—his voice was not loud, but carried calm dignity, clearly a high-ranking Qingbang member.

"Master Su, if you draft a written petition regarding this decree and send it to the Yan Mansion, we will gladly escort you and your party out."

Upon hearing this, Su Haibei was even angrier; he retorted fiercely:

"All decrees are decided after careful deliberation by the Yan Mansion's senior officials—I, a mere Prefect, dare not presume to influence them!"

The middle-aged man did not retreat; he continued:

"Then we shall wait here. We've heard this carriage holds distinguished guests from foreign states—we dare not be disrespectful. Since you officials are not in a hurry, neither are we."

"Master Su, one more thing to remind you!"

"A few of our brothers just went to the southern gate…"

He didn't finish.

Su Haibei understood perfectly—the southern gate was where the five battalions were stationed; something must have gone wrong.

Though no one in the crowd voiced agreement, the invisible pressure grew heavier.

Su Haibei knew that forcing through now would only inflame public anger further.

Yuwen Liqian asked curiously:

"Could the Qingbang possibly have known Korean students were coming to Yan?"

Su Haibei quickly shook his head, assuring her firmly: "Princess, rest assured—this could not have leaked to the Qingbang. We only learned of your arrival this morning; the information was sealed tightly. All trusted personnel in the office were rigorously vetted—no leak possible."

"Any leak must have come from our own officials—they're locals with deep ties to the Qingbang. There's nothing we can do, but they only know my movements—mere speculation at best."

Su Haibei grew even more anxious—surely they couldn't be stuck here forever.

Yuwen Liqian's maid watched the crowd chatting and laughing freely.

Her face flushed red and pale—when had they ever suffered such humiliation visiting the four states?

She snapped:

"Your Yan Prince, Lu Chen, is this how he treats his guests?"

Yuwen Liqian frowned slightly, clearly disapproving of the maid's blunt words.

The students behind her all wore expressions of anger.

But the name "Lu Chen" rang sharply in the crowd, drawing frowns from many.

In Yan, directly uttering the Yan Prince's given name was disrespectful.

Yet others caught the other implication in the maid's words—"invited our princess," "this is how you treat guests"—these phrases spread quickly through the crowd, sparking murmurs.

Su Haibei's face turned awkward upon hearing this.

He was about to explain, when the same middle-aged man from earlier turned to the maid and asked:

"Miss, what do you mean by that?"

The maid, even more furious, pulled a silk scroll from the carriage and slowly unfurled it.

Inside was an official document.

She stretched it out with both hands!

The maid raised the document high and declared loudly:

"My mistress is Princess Yuwen Liqian of Han State, noble and precious beyond measure. She has come to Yan for scholarly exchange under the two states' alliance…"

The crowd paid no attention to her words!

Someone peered closely!

Beneath the text of the document, resembling a memorial, was a small seal.

It bore tiny red characters!

Someone whispered:

"Shen!"

"Zhou!"

The moment those two characters were spoken, the murmurs vanished.

"Shenzhou!"

Who in the north dared use these two characters on a seal?

Only one possibility remained.

The Yan Prince's private seal!

Instantly, the crowd fell utterly silent.

Old Li, sitting on the ground as if nothing had happened, dropped his tobacco pipe to the ground with a sharp "pop."

He scrambled to his feet, his face filled with disbelief.

"The Seal of the Prince of Yan!"

The middle-aged man who had just spoken pushed through the crowd and stepped forward, his eyes locked on the private seal on the document.

Yu Ke, seeing this, no longer concealed his identity, and spoke calmly to the crowd:

"I, Yu Ke, was indeed invited by the Prince of Yan to visit Mount Zhongnan."

His voice was not loud.

Yet it struck the crowd like thunder.

Several more figures stepped out from the crowd, their expressions stunned.

The lead middle-aged man muttered involuntarily:

"A guest of Mount Zhongnan!"

"A guest of the Prince of Yan!"

In an instant, the crowd erupted as if the heavens had cracked open.

……

……

【This autumn, your cultivation has advanced further—you have nearly touched the threshold of the Primordial Realm!】

【A slow smile spread across your face!】

(End of Chapter)