Chapter 961: Gathering in the Capital

The Zhou Wangfu was on the western side of the inner city, where nearly all the princely mansions of the regional princes stationed in the capital were located.

After being granted their fiefs, the princes were always sent out of the capital to take up their posts; in recent years, only the current Emperor and the former Prince of Cheng had fiefs yet remained in Jingcheng.

But this wasn't exactly a good thing.

Not far from the Zhou Wangfu, in another mansion, hung a plaque reading "Prince of Qian," where Prince of Qian, Qian Mu Bin, resided; since inheriting the title, he had remained in Jingcheng, occasionally dispatched back to Yunnan to comfort soldiers and civilians.

Though titled Prince of Qian, the Mu family had always received the treatment of a Commandery Prince.

His father and grandfather, upon death, had both been posthumously enfeoffed as princes; without doubt, he would be too.

Though the regional princes said nothing aloud, they all knew Qian Mu Bin remained in Jingcheng not only because the Emperor favored him, but also because he served to restrain the Mu family in Yunnan.

After all, since the late Emperor, Yunnan had been constantly at war, with hundreds of thousands of troops continuously deployed; the capital needed someone the Emperor could trust as a hostage.

In comparison, the other regional princes without military power enjoyed far greater freedom, arriving in Jingcheng and immediately visiting one another.

They were relatives long separated, even if the blood ties stretched across several generations.

The Zhou Wang's gate was especially bustling.

Because everyone knew the Zhou Wang had old ties with the State Preceptor, and their relationship was quite good; on several occasions, when the State Preceptor had matters to handle, the Zhou Wang would submit memorials for her as if he were ill himself.

The Lu Wang now directly asked the Zhou Wang: "Zhou Wang, have you received some favor from the State Preceptor? She is a Daoist physician, and your Zhou Wangfu excels in medicine—could it be she truly has an elixir of longevity and youth, and gave it to you?"

The Zhou Wang's face turned pale; he quickly waved his hands: "Lu Wang, you must not speak such nonsense—how could there be an elixir of youth? Medicine can indeed prolong life, but I have never heard of such an elixir. Birth, aging, sickness, and death are the natural Dao of the world…"

"That's only for fooling ignorant commoners," the Lu Wang interrupted him. "If it were truly the natural Dao, why would Daoist Priests cultivate to seek immortality? What Dao does Pan Yun practice to become State Preceptor?"

In truth, even now, the Lu Wang did not know how Pan Yun had become State Preceptor.

"It's utterly strange—Pan Yun neither teaches the Emperor cultivation nor brews him elixirs for immortality; why did the Emperor appoint her as State Preceptor? Just because she went to Datong and retrieved the late Emperor's corpse from enemy hands?"

The Qin Wang, stationed in Xi'an, where a large army had been dispatched to reinforce Datong, knew more; upon hearing this, he sneered repeatedly: "This State Preceptor is formidable. Though she does not brew elixirs of immortality for the Emperor, her abilities are profound—otherwise, how could none of the civil officials or military generals oppose her?"

He added with meaning: "Because they have all seen her true abilities."

The regional princes thought about it—indeed, during Wang Zhen's control of court affairs, every year there were fearless civil officials submitting memorials to impeach him, and military generals privately cursed the eunuch dog.

Pan Yun rose directly to State Preceptor, and as a Daoist Priest, she should have faced even fiercer opposition.

The new Emperor had just ascended, his position unstable—when else would they oppose, if not now?

Yet since her appointment as State Preceptor, not a single impeachment memorial had been submitted, and among the soldiers, all spoke of her with deep admiration.

The Qin Wang's gaze swept over the relatives; others did not know, but he knew—Pan Yun had retrieved the late Emperor's corpse from amidst ten thousand troops, freeing Great Ming from the control of the Oirats; for this alone, she was revered by all three armies.

He just did not understand why the civil officials had remained silent all this time.

The Qin Wang lowered his eyes, pondered for a moment, then smiled at the Zhou Wang: "Zhou Wang, since you are close to the State Preceptor and have come to the capital, shouldn't you host a banquet for her?"

The Zhou Wang had originally planned to do so, but after the Qin Wang spoke, he no longer wished to; he declined: "I met the State Preceptor only once as a child; years have passed—what connection remains? All past actions were about matters, not persons."

The Qin Wang sneered: "When the State Preceptor was imprisoned in the Imperial Prison while clearing your father's name, your memorial submission then was also 'about matters, not persons'?"

The Zhou Wang nodded solemnly: "I could not stand by and watch Wang Zhen destroy loyal ministers." The Qin Wang fell silent; the regional princes exchanged glances, all remaining mute.

Indeed, for several days straight, the Zhou Wang shut his gates, even locking his heir apparent inside the mansion—until the first day of the eighth month, when the initial recruitment trial of the Embroidered Uniform Guard was held, and the heir apparent finally left the mansion with his guards to watch the competition.

Pan Yun and Seeing Miao Zhen, who had been stationed at the suburban testing ground, had just finished their work and returned to the capital.

Minister of Works Hu Cheng personally escorted Pan Yun out of the gate; he was covered in gunpowder smoke, his face smudged, yet his eyes shone bright as stars, and he excitedly told Pan Yun: "Give me two more days—I'll surely modify it to your satisfaction."

Pan Yun was also excited: "Good. We've forged all the gun barrels by cold forging and produced all the magazine clips—I believe you'll overcome the remaining challenges. I await the new arquebus's arrival; when it's ready, I'll ask the Emperor to name it."

Hu Cheng's eyes lit up; he praised Pan Yun repeatedly, as if the new arquebus were her own creation.

Hu Cheng eagerly saw Pan Yun onto her carriage, then turned to personally assist Seeing Miao Zhen; Miao Zhen's lips twitched, and she stepped onto the carriage herself using the wooden stool.

As the carriage moved, the curtain dropped; Miao Zhen exhaled and said: "Why does a Minister of Works treat us with such deference?"

"Research funding." Since Pan Yun became State Preceptor, the imperial treasury, the Emperor's private funds, and even Pan Yun's personal wealth had all flowed into the Ministry of Works.

Once restrictions on artisan households are lifted, more people across the realm will engage in craftsmanship, technological progress will accelerate, and Hu Cheng will one day be written in history with bold strokes.

The initial recruitment trial of the Embroidered Uniform Guard was held in the training ground of the Imperial Academy.

The Imperial Academy's training ground was vast, capable of horseback riding and archery practice; it had long been used for military examination trials.

Besides this site, the Imperial Guard's training ground was also frequently requisitioned.

But because the Emperor's birthday was approaching, not only were the regional princes coming to join the festivities, but foreign envoys were also arriving to watch; thus, the Imperial Guard's training ground was unsuitable, so the Imperial Academy's was chosen.

It also allowed the tributary states' envoys to see Great Ming's students and experience the culture of the suzerain state.

To celebrate the Emperor's birthday, the Imperial Academy voluntarily opened its gates, allowing commoners to enter and watch.

One only needed to obtain a ticket from the Imperial Academy one day in advance to gain entry.

It was like buying tickets to a theater—commoners accepted it well; and while theater tickets cost money, entry to the Imperial Academy cost nothing.

Upon hearing this news, commoners rushed to claim tickets, which were instantly snatched up; by the time officials' families remembered, none remained.

The Imperial Academy's President, Li Shimin, was upright by nature, and his students, at the peak of youthful pride and unyielding integrity, scorned to curry favor with the powerful—even though many of them were themselves from powerful families.

In short, no one could slip past their eyes to enter without a ticket; thus, the lucky commoners who obtained tickets either entered to enjoy the spectacle or resold them at high prices for profit.

When Pan Yun and Seeing Miao Zhen arrived, Pan Yue emerged from inside the gate, disheveled, and shoved three tickets into Pan Yun's hands: "The President strictly forbids each student to bring more than one relative inside—I can only bring you. Take these three tickets."

Pan Yun took the tickets and asked: "Where did you get these?"

"My younger brother had nothing to do yesterday, so I had him and his friends line up to claim them." Pan Yue pulled her hand toward the side: "The east gate also allows entry—this main gate is too crowded."

Pan Yun: "Wait, wait—Miao and the others haven't arrived yet."

Pan Yue: "I told my younger brother to pick them up—we agreed to meet at the east gate."

Pan Yun then relaxed and followed him.