Dragon Canon

With the autumn hunt concluded, a grand banquet for the ministers followed, along with the customary bestowal of rewards.

Wei Yuan had placed first in the autumn hunt. Besides the customary gold and silver, the King of Jin also bestowed upon him a treasure sword. The sword was nothing more than a top-grade mystic artifact, but it came with quite a few “privileges”—for example, seeing this sword was like seeing the King of Jin himself, that it could be used to kill any official, that its wielder could kill first with the sword and report the deed later, so on and so forth. Of course, if Wei Yuan actually believed any of it, then that would be his own failing.

Although King Wei had suffered a total defeat, he had at last opened a treasure trove which happened to contain a bit of national fortune. The realization had improved his complexion significantly. Out of three princes, he was the only one to have obtained any national fortune. A small amount it might be, it was certainly something he could use to his advantage.

On a related note, Lü Wenbai, Military Commissioner of Yunxiang, came in second place, and King Wei, the fifth prince, came in third.

With the autumn hunt concluded, Wei Yuan had officially passed his audience with the Holy King. At the moment, he was still a long way from joining the Council of State, nor was he qualified to participate in matters of state or even be privy to confidential matters. Therefore, after the grand banquet King Jin hosted for his ministers, Wei Yuan got ready to pack up his stuff and return to the realm of Qingming.

With Jin’s fortune clinging to his whole body like a spider’s web, Wei Yuan felt as uncomfortable as he could be. He urgently needed to return to his domain and allow Qingming to thoroughly purify him.

Just then, Liu Quangong, General Director of the Directorate of Ceremonial, arrived at the posthouse and said to Wei Yuan, “The First Consort requests an audience!”

Wei Yuan immediately bathed and changed his clothes according to Jin etiquette, quickly getting himself presentable. He then followed Liu Quangong into the palace. The two boarded an exclusive carriage and sat facing each other.

This was Wei Yuan’s first close encounter with the current leader of the Eunuch Clique—a powerful grand eunuch whose influence was currently at its peak. Liu Quangong possessed a delicate, fair complexion and a somewhat refined appearance. His eyebrows were long, and his narrow eyes exuded a sense of kindness and benevolence. Apart from that, he looked completely like an ordinary person.

Without knowledge of Western Jin’s history, just by looking at him, one would never have guessed that he was the man who had orchestrated the two major cases which had implicated over 10,000 people 30 years ago.

On the way to the palace, Wei Yuan openly slipped a box of immortal silver to Liu Quangong’s arms and asked, “A single eunuch would have sufficed to summon me to the palace. There is no need for someone like you to purposely make the journey, right Eunuch Liu?”

Liu Quangong pointed with his sleeve, and the box of immortal silver vanished without a trace. It was truly an immortal technique. He replied smilingly, “Your status is different now, Military Commissioner Wei. The safety of the nation now rests on your shoulders. Naturally, it’s only right that I make the trip myself. The royal capital hasn’t been very peaceful in the past couple days; quite a few petty criminals are just waiting for an opportunity to take action. Only by personally escorting you along this stretch of your journey can I put my mind at ease.”

Wei Yuan probed, “What petty criminals could be so brazen as to dare cause trouble in the royal city?”

“Who else? It could only be those few rebel factions.”

Who? Liu Quangong might as well have said nothing. With The Northern Liao army threatening the borders, Western Jin had actually stabilized internally. Wei Yuan had never heard of any significant rebel forces either.

The carriage was stable and swift. They quickly arrived at the palace grounds. Upon passing through the palace gates, Liu Quangong stepped out of the carriage and left on his own. Then, the carriage resumed its course and carried Wei Yuan to the Spring Blossom Palace. It seemed that the general director truly meant to escort him from the posthouse to the palace grounds only.

The carriage stopped at the gate separating the inner and outer palace compounds. There, a maidservant had already been waiting for him. She led him into the rear palace[1], passing through corridors and walking across bridges, until they finally reached the Spring Blossom Palace.

The Spring Blossom Palace was built with glazed tiles with a faint glow of fire flickering underneath, warming the floor surface. In this late autumn when the chill was so intense, it felt indescribably comfortable to walk on them[2].

Wei Yuan kept his head bowed the entire way, not daring to look around casually. After he was led into the hall, he knelt on one knee and greeted, “Minister Wei Yuan pays his respects to Her Highness the First Consort.”

“Raise your head.”

The voice that came from above was familiar, but at the same time, it also sounded cool and distant, as if coming from the summit of a snow-capped mountain. It was a different kind of experience; one that was not at all unpleasant.

Wei Yuan looked up and saw the First Consort seated majestically upon her throne.

She was wearing a gown embroidered with phoenixes dancing across the nine heavens against a backdrop of mis-shrouded, immortal mountains, and studded with multicolored gemstones and pearls. Each gem and pearl was perfectly placed and formed an indispensable part of the overall design. Despite how colorful and bright the gown was, it did not appear the slightest bit ostentatious.

Or perhaps it was simply because the First Consort was the one wearing it.

The throne was equally magnificent. It seemed as though the designer only wished they could stud every exposed surface with jewels and pearls. Dressed in such a gown and seated upon such a throne, she looked like a true phoenix perched atop a hill of jewels and pearls.

By all means, this should’ve been an unbearably garish scene, but because it was her, it only seemed entirely fitting. Only such a hill of jewels could do justice to her beauty.

That said, as a man who had studied the Rites of Tang, Wei Yuan also noticed that every detail in this palace had violated the prescribed standards.

Before Wei Yuan could examine the scene more closely, he suddenly sensed a sharp, restrained aura emanating from one of the maidservants. A maid was standing on either side of the First Consort’s throne, and at first glance, they appeared to be perfectly ordinary. In reality, Wei Yuan was sensing a faint but unmistakable pressure from them. They were both Avatars.

Just as Wei Yuan looked up and before the First Consort had even spoken, a clear, childlike voice rang out from the side: “Mother! I just wrote a calligraphy piece! Please take a look and tell me if it’s any good!”

A tiny figure, ignoring the attempts of the eunuchs[3] and maidservants to stop him rushed into the hall. It was none other than King Fu. Holding up a calligraphy piece with still-wet ink, he said excitedly, “I wrote this after I felt inspired by our family’s World-Quelling Heart Sutra[4]. What do you think of my insights?”

The First Consort remained seated as she replied, “It’s not bad. Show it to your Uncle Wei.”

The young prince glanced at Wei Yuan and remarked, “He’s just a barbarian. What would he know about calligraphy?”

With a swish, he snatched the paper back, shot Wei Yuan a fierce glare, and dashed away.

Wei Yuan clearly saw the emotions in that single glance: abhorrence, malice, resentment, and humiliation; every component that made up the major emotion known as hatred was present. It was hard to imagine that a young child could harbor such a clear and intense hatred.

Then again, he was born into the royal family of Jin, with a mother from the royal family of Zhao and ties to both the Lü and Li clans, two of the most prominent aristocratic families. He obviously had no lack of training or cultivation either. His precociousness was only to be expected. Even back during the unified sect exam, Bao Yun and Lee Zhi were already forming alliances and strategizing behind the scenes.

Suddenly, Wei Yuan realized another thing: Young King Fu’s glance also contained a warning.

But what was he warning him about? The Western Jin’s palace restrictions weren’t strict; the First Consort often received ministers in the Spring Blossom Palace, and the Queen and other consorts frequently did the same[5].

Of course, no one had dared to enter the palace to see the Queen after she and the First Consort had become bitter enemies. Anyone who tried automatically became a target of the First Consort’s wrath.

If entering the palace to pay respects wasn’t an issue, why did young King Fu still feel the need to warn him? Wei Yuan’s thoughts raced like lightning as he pondered about the matter. Could it be because he had outshone the boy during the autumn hunt? But if that were the case, the blame would primarily lie with young King Fu himself for choosing useless candidates.

Apart from that, they had never even met until now. He simply couldn’t fathom any other reason as to why the boy might dislike him. Could it be that, just like him, young King Fu simply couldn’t stand the sight of him for some reason?

“What do you think of my son, Minister Wei?”

“He’s bright, quick-witted, and extraordinarily talented!” Wei Yuan lied without batting an eyelid.

The First Consort covered her mouth and giggled softly. “If you like him so much, why not have him ask you to become his godfather? From here on out, he will learn under you at all times. What do you think?”

Wei Yuan was aghast. Was there a more terrifying nightmare than accompanying a spoiled brat day and night?

“This minister is of limited ability and shallow learning! No, I’m utterly uneducated! I dare not mislead a young talent with my barbaric ways! I humbly beg the First Consort to seek someone more qualified than me!” Wei Yuan spoke so hurriedly and rapidly it was almost incoherent.

The First Consort laughed out loud and chided him, “Next time, remember to think before you speak. You wouldn’t like the consequences otherwise.”

Sweat beaded on Wei Yuan’s forehead as he hastily agreed. There wasn’t many things in this world that he was afraid of, but this attack from the First Consort had truly struck his greatest weakness.

“Truth be told, the reason I summoned you to the palace this time was primarily out of curiosity. I wanted to see the famous Three Thrusts Wei with my own eyes. Now that I’ve met you today, I can see you truly have an extraordinary presence.”

1. The place where all concubines reside. ☜

2. Oooh, I’ve actually had the pleasure of trying this out in a bathroom while on a vacation and it was a mind-blowing experience. ☜

3. You have no idea how long it took me to decide whether 内官 here means palace attendant or eunuch. I’m only certain now it’s indeed eunuch. ☜

4. I’d like to thank Magic the Gathering for having the card World Queller. It makes me feel much more comfortable with what seems like an awkward translation at first glance. ☜

5. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) It’s exactly what you think. What, you thought that kings and emperors would have less imagination than you when they have so much more freedom? ☜