Chapter 614: The Thirty-Fourth Year

"That Joseon princess — is her name Yushu?"

Hearing the terms put forward by the Ji clan, Heifu, with an odd expression, had Xu Fu ask the other party this question. Ji Zhun felt a surge of anger — asking the name of a woman of his house was discourteous — but he merely took this swarthy army supervisor for a man ignorant of rites and customs, swallowed his rage, and shook his head in denial.

Only then did Heifu secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

"I knew it — this isn't the script of 'The Myth'; there won't be any clichéd melodrama about the Qin general Heifu escorting a Joseon princess to Xianyang, getting ambushed, and the two falling for each other."

Besides, Meng Yi was still far away in Zhangye Commandery at the other end of the empire, partnered with Li Xin as army supervisor; he might manage to hook up with a few Western-Region Hu beauties with high noses and deep-set eyes, but as for a Joseon girl? No chance.

Now Heifu could discuss serious matters with peace of mind. But a marriage alliance — let alone him, even Fusu could not make that call; it had to be sent back to Xianyang for His Imperial Majesty the Emperor to decide. This was also one reason a crown prince did not serve as a general: having to request instructions on every matter truly undermined his authority.

Actually, in Heifu's view, a marriage alliance between Qin and Joseon was no great affair. Marriages between Qin and the various feudal lords were common, and marriage ties with the Zi-surnamed Yin people, in particular, had a long history.

Heifu had once heard Zhang Cang say that over a thousand years ago, the Ying-surname ancestor Fei Chang drove the chariot for Tang Wu and defeated Xia Jie at Mingtiao, earning merit and becoming a minor noble of Yin-Shang.

After that, the old Ying clan continued to play to its strength in dealing with livestock, serving as charioteers for the Shang emperors generation after generation. By the time of the ninth Shang ruler, Emperor Tai Wu, Fei Chang's great-great-grandsons, the brothers Meng Xi and Zhong Yan, drove so well on the battlefield that they greatly pleased Tai Wu, who actually married his own two daughters to them.

From then on, the Ying surname reached the pinnacle of life: "Thereafter they rendered merit generation after generation, assisting the Yin state; thus the Ying surname grew illustrious and became feudal lords."

After becoming regional lords and earls, aside from sporadically marrying in Zi-surname women, the Ying clan's daughters were also frantically packed off by the family to the cities of the great Yi-Shang capital, to become the Shang emperor's "many consorts."

However, they could only serve as secondary consorts and could not make it into the positions of the three principal wives, because Yin-Shang regarded themselves as the divine sons of the Heaven-ordained Black Bird, practically a godly race. To ensure the purity of the "Divine Son" bloodline, they were very fond of marrying their own paternal cousins and the like. For instance, Wu Ding's wife Fu Hao was actually "Fu Zi," meaning a wife of the Zi surname; her sacrificial title was "Hou Mu Xin."

Over the six hundred years of the Shang dynasty, there were many "Fu Hao," whose status was generally higher than that of different-surnamed consorts. This custom was condemned by the Zhou people, who strictly forbade marriage within the same surname, and was considered one of the causes of Yin-Shang's decline. After they destroyed Shang, the Zhou harshly denounced it as an affront to decency and morality.

Yet the Zi-surnamed state of Song still secretly preserved this practice, once taking wives from within the clan for three successive generations.

Heifu had Xu Fu make special inquiries, only to discover that the Ji-clan Joseon still had this deplorable habit, and had even taken it to the extreme of brother-sister and elder-brother-younger-sister marriage, the ultimate in incest…

With keen interest, Xu Fu told Heifu and Fusu: "This Marquis of Joseon, Ji Fou, though his state is small, has nine consorts, five of whom are of the Zi surname — either his sisters or of the same clan. The consorts have borne him ten young masters and nine young ladies in total. From my casual inquiries, of these nine young ladies, six have been married to half-brothers by the same father. That eldest young master, Ji Zhun, married one of his half-sisters by a different mother."

"It's actually so!"

As Xu Fu recounted this, Fusu was stunned speechless by this ancient custom handed down from Yin-Shang. He truly had never imagined that a state with such an air of "gentlemanly" conduct could harbor such shameful secrets.

"The Ji clan has no choice either."

At this moment, Heifu, as if the spirit of incest from his seniors had suddenly awakened, unexpectedly began to speak in Joseon's defense.

"In the past, the Ji clan, barely a thousand strong, ventured deep into the lands of the Nine Yi, the Hui, and the Mo. For ordinary nobles it might not have mattered, but the Ji ducal clan still clung to the customs of Yin-Shang."

To ensure that the bloodline of the "Divine Son" was not polluted by barbarians like the Hui, Han, and Zhenfan, the Ji ducal clan resolutely refused to intermarry with them. To solve the problem of matchmaking, they could only turn their wicked gaze upon their own Zi-surnamed sisters…

To them, different-surname marriage was merely romantic love between man and woman; same-surname marriage was the proper business: propagating pure-blooded Zi-surname descendants.

In short, in Joseon, the ducal clan mostly took their sisters as wives, and there was an unwritten rule: except in extremely rare cases, ducal daughters could only marry members of the clan lineage and were forbidden from marrying out…

That Joseon was now willing to marry a ducal daughter to Qin was, by their customs, an enormous compromise and gesture of goodwill.

Though in Fusu's view, asking a Qin prince to marry a Joseon ducal daughter rather smacked of Qi wanting to marry off Wen Jiang — who had committed incest with her brother — to Zi Tu of Zheng…

Yet even if it was somewhat contemptible in the eyes of the Central Plains, this marriage still had to be arranged.

Heifu was pragmatic: "There's no need to let His Majesty know every detail of these hearsay matters. If Great Qin refuses, I fear Joseon will see it as an insult, and then, Young Master, you will have yet another enemy east of the sea."

Any state with ancient customs can accept harsh treaties under the pressure of power, but when it comes to matters that damage "face," they find it unbearable.

So not only must we marry her, it would be best if she were the principal wife.

Anyway, Qin Shi Huang was prolific, with a full eighteen sons; just casually pick an unmarried one among them, and that would be that…

Of course, Fusu was out of the question. Only a few years younger than Heifu, he had married and had children the year after the expedition against the Xiongnu. He had wed the granddaughter of the three-reign veteran general Lord Biao, but Lord Biao had been dead for many years; though the Biao clan's noble rank was high, they had little real power and could not serve as an external support at all.

"I think Prince Hu Hai would be suitable. He's turned eighteen this year; it's about time he was married, no?"

Heifu cracked this joke with an air of casualness. In the blink of an eye, that bear-child who once crouched at Qin Shi Huang's feet and laughed in his face for being dark had grown into a handsome youth. It was said his looks closely resembled the young Qin Shi Huang, and coupled with his cheerful, lively nature, he was the emperor's most beloved.

Fusu, however, showed no sign of jealousy or envy, merely shaking his head: "Impossible. Father dotes on Hu Hai immensely; how could he let him tie the knot with a petty state?"

Qin was no longer what it was in the days when it was tucked away in a corner; it was now a majestic superior state. Marrying the daughter of an allied state would be seen as a demotion, not a favor.

Therefore, among the emperor's many sons, the least favored prince might have the honor of sacrificing himself for the state…

…

According to ancient rites, whenever two states established relations, a "covenant-curse" ceremony had to be performed. This was a unique form of oath-alliance from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, somewhat like signing a treaty in later ages, but with the added process of the gods bearing witness.

The covenant-curse had to wait until Qin Shi Huang formally agreed. Fusu insisted on not leaving his soldiers and continued to lead his troops garrisoned at Liekou. Heifu, having no further business east of the sea, took the letters and state credentials and rode the increasingly cold north wind back to Jiaodong.

On the first day of the first month of the Zhuanxu calendar's new year, after bidding farewell to Fusu, Heifu stood on the deck of the tower ship, watching the coast of Joseon gradually recede. He could not help but breathe out a sigh: "The thirty-fourth year already…"

A year ago, the Tian clan rebellion had just been quelled, and Qin Shi Huang, not yet finished with his inspection tour, had already conceived the idea of campaigns south and north.

Now a year had passed, and this war had indeed begun — only its end was still nowhere in sight.

"As expected, what Second Mother said is right — every New Year, Second Father sighs exactly this line."

The wind was strong at sea; his nephew Wei Yang brought Heifu a warm dog-fur cap and a sable-fur greatcoat, and happened to overhear this remark.

After draping the clothes over Heifu, he said: "According to Second Mother, ever since Second Father got married, every New Year he counts the years, then sighs once, lifts his head to look at the sky, and no one knows what he's thinking."

This sigh had gone on from the twenty-seventh year, when Heifu married Ye Zijin, all the way to the thirty-fourth year, without missing a single year.

Heifu laughed in spite of himself. As expected of his wife — she knew his habits by heart.

Wei Yang, too young to know the taste of sorrow, asked curiously: "Is Second Father counting something?"

Heifu was silent for a long moment, then smiled: "I am counting — 'It passes on like this, never ceasing day or night.'"

This was an ambiguous answer. After sending Wei Yang away, Heifu, unable to bear the cold wind buffeting his face any longer, returned to the cramped ship cabin. Alone, he muttered to himself:

"I am counting… how many more years of peace this realm has left!?"

…

Time slipped by. After Heifu returned to Jiaodong, more than two months passed in the blink of an eye. It was now the twelfth month, the coldest time in the northern lands. Jimo City was struck by a great snowstorm, causing considerable damage. Commandery Governor Heifu personally came out to oversee the disaster relief, even leading the commandery troops to shovel snow in the streets, visiting residents suffering from frostbite, and bringing them warmth…

In this season of freezing cold, two pieces of news from Xianyang were delivered into Heifu's hands.

One of them was an edict from Qin Shi Huang! His Imperial Majesty first sternly reprimanded Fusu for his incompetent command of the army, failing to wipe out the Lord of Canghai in a single battle and bringing shame upon the great empire. He also took the opportunity to rebuke Heifu and Ren Xiao, demanding that within this year, they must find the Lord of Canghai and sever his head; otherwise…

"To accept a command and not shirk, to return only after the enemy is vanquished — this is the rite of a general. If the enemy cannot be vanquished, General Fusu need not return to the state!"

This was a stern warning, by no means empty words. The emperor's patience was limited, and so was his physical vitality. His test for Fusu had entered its countdown!

In addition, Qin Shi Huang also approved the four articles of the treaty with Joseon drafted by Heifu, agreeing to Joseon paying tribute and marrying a daughter to the Qin prince Jianglü…

"Jianglü? As expected, the least favored prince."

This news made Heifu smile wryly. With the coast frozen solid now, no ships could sail; they could only wait until spring, then cross the sea along with the supply convoy to deliver it to Fusu…

But the second piece of news wiped the smile right off Heifu's face.

"In the first month of the thirty-fourth year (the tenth month), General Tu Sui has already led the main army to attack the Western Ou. Yin Tong, leading the Yuzhang forces, has also been ordered to cross the Five Ridges and strike at Southern Yue…"

This was the worst scenario Heifu could imagine. The northern campaign was not yet over, and the southern expedition had already begun!

"Truly, adding frost atop snow."

Setting down Ye Teng's letter, Heifu gazed out at the swirling heavy snow beyond, his expression grim.

"To launch two distant expeditions at once, to fight and win two wars — my Sovereign… are you a great man, or a madman!?"

……

PS: Second chapter in the evening.

*Book of Wei: Annals of Gaozu*: In the seventh year of Taihe, an edict stated: "Thus, Xia and Yin did not shun marriage within the same clan; it was the Zhou era that first forbade marrying those of the same surname."

*Gongyang Commentary, Duke Xi, 25th Year*: "In Song, for three generations there were no high ministers, because for three generations they married within the state."

(End of chapter)