Chapter 30: Sincere Intent

That night, the Zhou King was overjoyed; the light Master Xuanmiao had implanted into his soul-body allowed him to enter anyone's dream at will.

If only he weren't bound to the Zhou Wangfu, he would have drifted straight to Jingcheng to meet the young Emperor in a dream.

But he was quite busy that night—after leaving Zhang the Physician's dream and confirming he had agreed to travel to Jingcheng the next morning to plead his case, he went to see the Wang Fei.

The Zhou Wang distributed his favors evenly: he visited not only the Wang Fei's dream but also those of the six Ladies, not to mention Zhu Zijin and his two brothers.

The three of them were keeping vigil; even though they were utterly exhausted, they remained half-asleep, nodding off only to jolt awake—yet when he thought to enter their dreams, he found himself inside all three at once.

The Zhou Wang was astonished.

Those who simultaneously dreamed of the Zhou Wang and the other two brothers were equally astonished.

After their shock passed, the four of them embraced and wept bitterly in the dream.

No one knew what the Zhou Wang spoke to them about, but the conversation lasted a long time; when Zhu Zijin awoke, the three brothers exchanged glances, confirmed they had all shared the same dream, and their brotherly bond grew stronger.

For the estrangement of over ten years had, in that moment, lessened considerably.

The Zhou Wang, who had distributed his favors evenly, also visited his younger brother in a dream; Pan Yun had no idea what they discussed, but after returning from Zhu Youjue, the Zhou Wang grew far quieter, and the free, exuberant energy that once clung to him faded noticeably.

Seeing him finally still, Pan Yun pointed to her head and said, "Come, enter my dream."

The Zhou Wang snapped back to himself and studied her. "Are you mad?"

Pan Yun sat upright. "I want to see how her technique differs from mine."

The Zhou Wang: "Just ask her directly—she's your senior sister, isn't she?"

Pan Yun lied with a straight face. "Even fellow disciples have their secrets."

The Zhou Wang: "Peering into others' secrets isn't a good habit."

Pan Yun simply stared at him silently.

"Fine, fine, fine, I'll go in," the Zhou Wang assumed his posture. "Go to sleep."

Pan Yun lay down and closed her eyes to sleep—but for a long while, neither the human nor the ghost moved.

The black cat, quietly crouched on the rafters, couldn't help but mock, letting out a soft "meow."

Pan Yun opened her eyes and sat up on the bed.

The Zhou Wang himself was nearly asleep. "This isn't my fault—I enter dreams simply by thinking of them. I've thought about it for ages and still haven't entered yours. You can't blame me if you can't sleep, can you?"

"Not your fault," Pan Yun said. "Wait. I'll meditate."

Pan Yun adjusted her breath and sat in meditation—not cultivating, but emptying her thoughts, then weaving a dream within her mind, until gradually she entered a half-dream, half-awake state.

The Zhou Wang still couldn't enter. He could only wander around the room.

He wandered, and wandered, until dawn broke.

The Zhou Wang sensed something—his gateway to entering dreams seemed gone. He looked at Pan Yun.

Pan Yun opened her eyes. The first beam of morning sunlight fell upon her.

The two locked eyes for a moment; the Zhou Wang's form gradually faded, returning to the funeral hall.

Pan Yun sighed and asked the black cat on the rafters: "Why can't he enter my dream?"

Pan Xiaohei: "Meow. Your will is firm, your dantian as solid as a rock—ghosts can't penetrate it. Isn't that a good thing?"

Pan Yun no longer dwelled on it. She decided that, given the chance, she would exchange this technique with Master Xuanmiao.

This method of entering dreams was far more adaptable than her own dream-weaving—it felt more natural and more convincing as a spirit's visitation.

Zhang the Physician and the eunuch Qian, who had both been pressed by a ghost and had deep, face-to-face conversations with the Zhou Wang, were thoroughly convinced. At dawn, they came to bid Zhu Zijin farewell.

They were willing to plead on behalf of the Zhou Wangfu.

Zhu Zijin immediately handed them the memorial he had copied the day before, along with the gifts the Zhou Wang had taught him to give.

The eunuch Qian received a box of golden trinkets—gold ingots, gold coins, gleaming yellow, exceptionally beautiful.

Zhang the Physician received a cookbook, said to be from the previous dynasty's imperial court.

Since it was from the previous dynasty, giving it away wasn't against protocol.

Both men were delighted with their gifts, took the memorial, and departed immediately.

Zhu Zijin saw them off at the main gate of the Wang Fu; Zhu Youjue arrived in haste, catching only their fading backs.

The uncle and nephew exchanged glances, both thinking of the same dream from last night.

Zhu Zijin: Father never lied to me—he must have arranged everything in his dream last night.

Zhu Youjue was half-skeptical, yet the details matched almost exactly what his elder brother had said in the dream—could it truly be that some possessed foreknowledge or could spirits enter dreams?

Today, people began arriving at the Zhou Wangfu to pay their respects.

The Wang Fei, accompanied by the six Ladies, kept vigil and wept; the six Ladies entered and exited together each day, sleeping three to a room at night, with no incident whatsoever.

The imperial clan members who came to pay respects saw no names on the list for burial attendants, and upon inquiry learned the victims had not yet been chosen—they grew displeased with Zhu Zijin.

"Though he was not your biological father, he raised you. Knowing you suffered, he went out of his way to bring you back to inherit the title. For that alone, you should not be unfilial."

"Your father has been dead three days, yet you have not yet prepared a sacrifice—do you intend to make your father lead the way for a group of servants?"

Zhu Zijin bowed humbly. "Father could not bear to sacrifice living people. He has already submitted a memorial to Your Majesty, and now waits only for the imperial decree."

The Emperor had already received Zhu Zijin's memorial. Knowing Zhang the Physician and the others had arrived just in time to see the Zhou Wang's final moments, he sighed to Wang Zhen: "Thankfully we didn't delay in naming the Shizi—if we had, wouldn't the Zhou Wang have died with regret?"

Wang Zhen naturally smiled and praised the Emperor's wisdom.

"Issue the edict granting the Zhou Wang Shizi his title. Since Zhang the Physician is already familiar with the process, let him deliver it."

Zhang the Physician: … Really didn't want to go again.

But Zhang the Physician could only agree.

Wang Zhen interjected: "Your Majesty, why rush? The Zhou Wang Shizi must observe mourning. Why not wait until he completes a full year before issuing the edict? Otherwise, the Zhou Wang has barely passed, and the son immediately inherits the title—this would leave everyone unsure whether to grieve or rejoice, and would harm the appearance of filial piety."

Zhang the Physician, standing nearby: … What nonsense is this? When the late Emperor died, the new Emperor ascended immediately—does that mean the new Emperor is unfilial?

But the Emperor thought Wang Zhen was right, nodding repeatedly: "Good. Do it that way. Wait until he completes a full year of mourning before issuing the edict."

Will the young Emperor still remember Zhu Zijin a year from now?

Physician Zhang quickly glanced at Wang Zhen, fearing that when the time came for the Zhou Wang Shizi to inherit the title, they'd have to pay a hefty price to get Wang Zhen to step in.

Physician Zhang thought of the gifts he'd received this time and quickly brought up the late Zhou Wang's dying wish, hinting, "Zhou Wangfu knows Your Majesty wishes to honor the late Zhou Wang's last wish, so they've set aside the matter of the burial sacrifices and are merely awaiting Your Majesty's instructions."

Eunuch Qian agreed repeatedly, describing how the late Zhou Wang had begged and how uneasy he'd been at the end. "The late Zhou Wang was kind-hearted and couldn't bear to see killing, so even on his deathbed he kept bringing this up. The moment Zhao Yuansong returned, he asked about it. When he learned Your Majesty intended to issue an edict of approval at court, he was so happy he ate two bowls of rice, and when he left, his face was all smiles."

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The Emperor, hearing this, immediately said, "Then hurry and issue the edict—don't miss the late Zhou Wang's first seven-day memorial."

Wang Zhen narrowed his eyes, looked at Eunuch Qian, then at Physician Zhang, and sneered inwardly.

But seeing the Emperor eagerly wanting to write the imperial edict himself, he could not very well speak up to stop him.

In the young Emperor's eyes, this counted as breaking with ancestral precedent—something quite novel, and a good thing at that—so he was very willing to write this edict personally.

Of course, it still had to be sent to the Grand Secretariat for review before being sealed and sent down.

This time, the young Emperor once again sent men from the Ministry of Rites and the Directorate of Ceremonial to proclaim the edict.

The Director of Ceremonial's Chief Scribe Eunuch, Wang Zhen, then suggested Eunuch Qian: "Once makes strangers, twice makes friends—he's been there once, let him go again; the road will be easier."

The Ministry of Rites, hearing this, took the cue and recommended Physician Zhang.

Physician Zhang and Eunuch Qian: …

Although going to proclaim an edict might net them some money, a business trip this far was still too grueling—especially since, once there, they might run into the late Zhou Wang.

What if the late Zhou Wang asked them why there was no succession document for the Wang Shizi?

But Physician Zhang and Eunuch Qian still forced out smiles, pretended to be delighted, accepted the edict sent back from the Grand Secretariat, and left the palace.

That's right—business trips are this miserable. Don't think they'd just gotten back; they hadn't even set foot through their own front doors.

Their luggage was already packed. Though a bit dirty, a bit smelly, they could just grab it and go.

Still better than a capital official being posted to the provinces.

Today, by coincidence, some capital officials received news of their provincial postings. The moment they got the documents, they immediately hopped on a donkey cart and left the city, without even a change of clothes on their backs.

The two parties met at the city gate. Physician Zhang, who was acquainted with the other, exchanged a teary-eyed glance before heading out of the city one after the other.

Physician Zhang waited on the road and said quietly, "Brother, when you head back to Huicheng later, please trouble your household to send word to mine—just say I'll be home in at most ten days."

"Easy to say, easy to say. I've decided to come back a bit later, just before the city gates close. Sigh, the edict came down so suddenly, my family has no money. I wonder if Brother Zhang could lend me some to tide me over?"

Physician Zhang asked, "Where are you headed for your post?"

"Jiangxi, Guangxin Prefecture."

"Easy to say, easy to say. I'll write you a letter by hand, and have my Lady figure out a way to scrape together twenty taels of silver for you."

Twenty taels was no small sum—enough to set up a household.

The other party agreed, and the two chatted in low voices for a while before parting.

Eunuch Qian was not surprised in the least.

The Founding Emperor had left a rule: to prevent capital officials posted to the provinces from accepting bribes or borrowing money once posted, he specifically ordered that the moment a capital official received his documents and official seal, he must leave the city at once.

Anyone daring to go home would be seized and punished on the spot.

But officials couldn't really set out with only the meager travel allowance the imperial court provided—after all, they needed to eat and drink on the road, and once they arrived, they needed to set up a household too.

So when the authorities had a policy, those below had their countermeasure.

After leaving the capital, officials would always secretly sneak back into the city—those who needed to collect money would do so, those who needed to borrow money would do so.

It was an unspoken understanding. As long as nothing blew up, everyone turned a blind eye.

Even the eunuchs of the Directorate of Ceremonial knew about it; the entire court was well aware. The only one kept in the dark was the one sitting on the dragon throne.

Physician Zhang had lent out twenty taels of silver, with no idea when he'd get it back, and was in a foul mood.

Traveling continuously made his mood even worse.

So when he arrived back at Zhou Wangfu, his face was as sour as it could possibly be, making the people in the Wang Fu terribly uneasy, unsure whether it was good news or bad news.

Wang Fei and Zhu Zijin led the entire household of the Wang Fu to receive the edict before the mourning hall. The moment they heard clearly that the Emperor honored the late Zhou Wang's last wish and exempted all the people of Zhou Wangfu from burial sacrifices, everyone's spine went weak.

The six Ladies paused for a moment, then burst into loud weeping, wailing as they beat the ground: "Wang Ye ah—Wang Ye, how could you just leave us behind—"

The servants of the Wang Fu behind them also wailed at the top of their lungs, especially those who had attended the late Zhou Wang personally—they cried as if their own parents had died. Never at any moment had they mourned for the late Zhou Wang with such genuine, heartfelt sincerity.

Repeating the reminder: tonight's ten lucky numbers are those ending in 5, screenshot as proof

(End of chapter)