Chapter 59

Chapter 59

◎Combined Double Chapters◎

"Make this clear, what do you mean by saying you owe me an apology? It sounds as if you and I have some kind of relationship. I've been very clear—I saved Li Jing because, before my mother passed away, she casually mentioned that I should marry you. But you married Uncle Wei Wang, and I felt guilty for letting you become a secondary consort. So, I saved your son to repay that debt, and now we're even. And yet, you actually thought I had feelings for you?" Li Cheng was furious.

Yin Lifang clutched her chest, incredulous. "You're saying you didn't save Jing'er for my sake?"

Li Cheng matter-of-factly replied, "That's right. It was out of guilt. After repaying that favor, I felt completely relieved. Also, don't keep implying that I have feelings for you. The only woman I care about is my wife."

"Fine, since you're so determined to clear up any misunderstanding between us, I won't bring it up again. But let's talk about Jing'er here—"

"Wait, what do you mean by 'clear up'? There's nothing between us. Are you all self-deluded? The three of you sisters together aren't even as beautiful as I am. Do you really think you're some kind of peerless beauties?" Li Cheng felt like he was about to explode, feeling extremely wronged.

Just then, a soft voice called out "husband," and Li Cheng darted like an arrow towards Huiyin. Huiyin, aware that Yin Lifang was most concerned about her son's future, noticed that Xu Cifei had already disappeared. She knew this had been a setup to bring her here.

Standing in front of Yin Lifang, Huiyin said, "It was Xu Cifei who brought me here just now. I know you're all currently embroiled in this ongoing inheritance dispute, but this is not something we can interfere with. So, please don't make things difficult for us."

Seeing that Li Cheng was still about to argue, she quickly pulled him aside. "Today, you're here to discuss the burial arrangements with Princess Wei's younger brother. What are you doing standing here?"

With that, the couple left. Yin Lifang could still hear Li Cheng complaining, "They switched things around like in the old tale of 'The Cat Switching the Prince.' I'm just here to talk about the burial."

Hearing this, Yin Lifang finally understood. All her assumptions had been self-indulgent, and Li Cheng's behavior towards her had been so harsh.

After leaving, she went to see Princess Wei and shook her head. "The Little Prince won't get involved."

Princess Wei stood up and looked at Yin Lifang. "I didn't expect the problem to lie with him. He actually betrayed us."

Yin Lifang could sense that Princess Wei's gaze held a sense of her being useless, realizing that in the end, all the talk of morality and righteousness meant nothing. What mattered was self-interest.

No matter how Princess Wei and Yin Lifang schemed, or how Cifei and her brother tried to manipulate things, Huiyin and Li Cheng had no intention of getting involved.

However, that night, Xie Jiuyi came with Yin Liuyi. Xie Jiuyi and his wife were both quite familiar with Li Cheng, but their relationship with Huiyin was rather distant. They thought only Li Cheng would be there, so seeing Huiyin made them both feel uneasy.

Huiyin noticed this as well. It was as if they found Li Cheng easy to talk to but felt awkward with her presence.

"Little Prince, I have some private matters to discuss with you alone," Xie Jiuyi said, feeling that there were too many people around.

Li Cheng graciously gestured for him to proceed. The men left, and Huiyin, who had never been able to have a proper conversation with Yin Liuyi, sat facing her in awkward silence.

However, Yin Liuyi gave a bitter smile. "I didn't expect the Little Prince to not take our side."

Hearing this, Huiyin disagreed. "Prince Wei has three sons. Although your brother's son is the eldest, Prince Wei left a personal letter stating that the second son should inherit the title. To the Little Prince, all of Prince Wei's sons are his younger cousins, and any of them could take the position."

"If that's the case, Jianye will be thrown into chaos…" Yin Liuyi said, on the verge of tears.

Huiyin really couldn't understand how she could still hope that Li Cheng would remain loyal. It was absurd. All the royal offspring, and Prince Wei wasn't even the emperor. His sons weren't even crown princes. Why would Li Cheng pledge loyalty to them?

Moreover, even the crown prince had many who didn't accept him. Prince Wei himself had set up his own kingdom in the south.

So, looking at Yin Liuyi, she said, "In this vast world, power belongs to those who can seize it."

If Li Cheng wasn't up to the task, he would just end up as someone's pawn in the future.

……

Leaving the Huaiyin Mansion, Xie Jiuyi and Yin Liuyi boarded their carriage. Yin Liuyi said, "I fear the Little Prince might have designs on ruling independently."

"I've always feared he might rise against us, but I'm relieved to see that he doesn't have that intention yet." Xie Jiuyi was actually quite relieved.

Yin Liyi looked at her husband and said, "How could that happen? But this time, he’s demanding Wu Commandery. How come the Guo brothers didn’t put up any resistance? Wu Commandery is a major tax revenue region after all."

Recovering from illness was very costly, and Yin Liyi was well aware of that.

Xie Jiuyi said, "He just took Yuzhou and has maintained a neutral stance on the Prince of Wei’s issue, so the Guo brothers are naturally pleased. The Xu Imperial Consort has only one brother. If not for Prince Wei’s support, I wouldn’t have let him take this credit on a silver platter. If her son inherits the title, they will be able to manipulate everything. However, Prince Wei would never send any private letter to inform them."

He died too suddenly. If only I had more time, I could have asked him myself.

Seeing that her husband already had a plan, Yin Liyi felt much relieved, though thinking of Cao’s sister left her feeling disheartened.

Sure enough, no matter how much the Xu family stirred up trouble, Xie Jiuyi always had a counterplan. He first found the person who forged letters for the Xu siblings and then sought the support of the civil and military officials of Wei. After Prince Wei’s burial, he quickly had the senior secretary send a letter to the capital to report the news. A month later, news came back from the capital, conferring Yin Lifang’s son as the Prince of Yuzhang.

This time, when Prince of Huaiyin came, he reclaimed the three commanderies of Wu, Piling, and Guangling, thus severing all ties between the Prince of Huaiyin and Prince of Wei’s lineage. Grand Dowager Wu also went to Xuzhou with Prince of Huaiyin and Huiyin. After returning, Huiyin enjoyed a peaceful life for a while, leaving the Yin sisters behind and putting an end to the so-called "white moonlight" chapter.

In the past, Prince of Huaiyin had to report everything regarding Xuzhou’s governance to Prince Wei, but now he had full authority, bringing a new atmosphere.

Without the support of Grand Dowager Wu and Prince Wei’s family, Grand Dowager Wu didn’t have the confidence to cause trouble.

While Huiyin enjoyed peace, although Yin Lifang had finally succeeded in making her son the Prince of Yuzhang, she didn’t experience the expected relief. The Huo family didn’t contribute much this time, while Princess Wei always wanted to keep the Prince of Yuzhang by her side. Xu Imperial Consort and her son didn’t get their wish but kept making small moves. Not to mention, Yin Lifang’s own family wasn’t peaceful either.

What hurt her most was that Prince of Huaiyin completely ignored her, showing no affection whatsoever.

Another spring came, and everything revived. Butterflies and bees filled the jasmine flowers. Jing’er had started studying, and Zhan’er had learned to walk.

Ling Lu and Lingju brought lychee drinks over and smiled, saying, "Princess, the prince has sent a letter. Manager Qiao delivered it."

After Prince Wei’s passing, the title of prince in front of Prince of Huaiyin’s name no longer had the "young" prefix. Recently, he had inspected Qingzhou and Yuzhou. It was spring, a time to encourage farming, yet he still had the leisure to write a letter.

Huiyin read the letter, which mentioned many experiences. It said that people in Yuzhou ate more wheat products, and the flour there was better than in the south, so he had sent a lot back for her to enjoy whenever she wanted. He also mentioned that he had eaten his favorite fresh pork mooncakes in Wu Commandery and had sent several boxes back. The candied fruits and preserves of Wu Commandery were also sent back, and if there was too much, they could be shared with others.

She put down the letter and saw the servants carrying boxes and chests inside. She couldn’t help but tease, "He’s really something. Now that we can buy almost anything from the local market, he still went through the trouble of sending these."

Fugui and the others laughed, "This shows the prince's deep affection for you."

Huiyin then had them open the boxes and chests. The flour was sent to the small kitchen, and the fresh pork mooncakes were baked and brought to her. They were indeed delicious, so she gave a box to Fugui to share with others. The candied fruits and preserves were used to make various pastries.

In the afternoon, Jing’er returned from his studies and, finding the pastries delicious, ate a few more pieces.

"These are candied fruits that your father brought back. They are very fresh and not the sugary kind that makes you sick of them. I specially had them used for the pastries," Huiyin said with a smile.

Jing’er was remarkably composed for his age, able to sit still for long periods. Prince of Huaiyin said that when he grew older, he would teach him horse riding and hire a master to teach him martial arts, so there was little need for her to worry about their son.

Compared to her past life, where she lived in constant fear of being poisoned during her pregnancy, this life was far more peaceful.

Jing’er asked Huiyin, "Mother, when will Father return? I miss him."

"Probably in another month or two. Spring is the time for planting seeds, and only then will we have food for the whole year," Huiyin replied. She didn’t mention that the food was needed to supply the soldiers.

After mother and son finished their meal, Huiyin returned to her room and slept soundly. However, just before waking up in the morning, she had a dream that left her feeling upset for half the day, though she couldn’t remember what it was about.

Originally, she didn’t believe in ghosts and gods, but since she had been reborn, it was probably better to have some reverence for certain things.

She decided to go to a temple to offer incense. Grand Dowager Wu, who rarely spoke to her, surprisingly expressed interest in joining her for the temple visit. Huiyin had no choice but to arrange it.

To avoid unnecessary complications, Huiyin rarely ventured out. This time, she specifically chose a nearby temple, but Grand Dowager Wu, though she didn’t say much outside, started complaining in the meditation room.

"What a dilapidated temple! Look at this meditation room—it’s in such poor condition, yet they brought us here. You really don’t put much thought into things," Grand Dowager Wu said, shaking her head.

Huiyin could only admit her mistake. "I don’t often leave the mansion, so I chose this place because the prince advised against traveling too far."

Grand Dowager Wu disagreed, saying, "If we have to be this cautious even in Xuzhou, wouldn't that embarrass your prince?"

Huiyin, aware that the Grand Dowager was muddle-headed, kept her head down and didn’t engage much. She knew that Grand Dowager Wu often looked down on Xuzhou, considering it less prosperous than Jianye, but now she was like a toothless tiger. Since it was just idle talk, Huiyin couldn’t be bothered to argue.

Sure enough, after a few remarks, the Grand Dowager, fearing she might actually anger Huiyin, dismissed her.

After leaving the dowager, Huiyin went to donate a hundred taels for incense money and paid her respects to all the bodhisattvas. Grand Dowager Wu, feeling exhausted, wanted to stay overnight at the temple. Since it was getting late and the journey back would be difficult, Huiyin decided to rest there as well.

What was supposed to be a trip to spend money to avoid misfortune turned into a strange event. That night, sisters Lingju and Linglu were laying out floor mats in the room, while outside, Fugui and Dongshun were resting. Dongshun, having endured cold winters as a child and relying on her own resilience, always felt hot. That night, she carefully went to the restroom with the help of an old woman, being cautious the whole way.

However, Huiyin, who always had trouble sleeping in unfamiliar places, planned to sleep after Dongshun closed the door. Unexpectedly, she fell asleep while waiting and only woke up the next morning to the sound of someone crying.

"What's going on?" Huiyin rubbed her temples.

Fugui, who was folding clothes at the foot of the bed, explained, "My lady, Dongshun went out to relieve herself last night and came back saying she saw a ghost. I was afraid she would disturb you, as she seemed frightened out of her wits."

Though Huiyin was usually afraid of ghosts, when something actually happened, she faced it head-on. "I've heard that this temple is an ancient one. Due to the continuous wars in Xuzhou, whenever there's a battle, the common people take refuge in the temple. As a result, many have died here, and the place has become dilapidated."

After saying that, she asked Nanny Nan to boil a bowl of calming soup for Dongshun and personally went to inform Grand Dowager Wu that they would leave today.

While they were talking, Nanny Nan came in and said, "My lady, we've caught the people who caused the disturbance yesterday. They are northern refugees who had been hiding in the temple. The current abbot doesn't allow outsiders in, so they were hiding here secretly. Yesterday, they didn't want Dongshun to expose them, so they pretended to be ghosts to scare everyone."

Northern refugees?

Having never lacked food or clothing, Huiyin was largely unfamiliar with life outside the prosperous regions of Xuzhou and Jianye. She didn’t hold it against them for scaring everyone and was curious to learn more about the situation in the north. After hearing this, she had them brought in and asked questions behind a screen.

"You said you're from the north, where exactly are you from?" Huiyin asked.

Among the group of men and women, Nanny Nan specially selected a clever girl of twelve or thirteen to respond. The girl's face was sallow, her hair fine and soft, and she had large white patches on her face, all signs of severe malnourishment.

The girl quickly polished off the snacks and replied, "I am from Jizhou. Last year, there was heavy rain and drought in Jizhou. We had about twenty acres of land, all of which were flooded. We managed to survive on our remaining grain until autumn, but then the drought came, and we had no harvest. Jizhou is also conscripting soldiers, so we had to flee south. We didn't expect..."

With her father being conscripted and Jizhou suffering from both floods and droughts, countless families were in the same dire situation. Huiyin had Nanny Nan reward the girl with clothes, food, and twenty taels of silver, but she could only sigh in sorrow.

Life in Jizhou was tough, especially compared to the diligent governance of her father, Li Cheng. He personally inspected various regions during the spring planting and trained soldiers afterward. The time he spent with her was squeezed from his busy schedule. No wonder his territories, though not extensive, always fielded well-trained and battle-ready troops. It wasn’t a fluke but the result of his diligent governance.

Jizhou was indeed not peaceful. Originally, both Madame Ji and Madame Xu ate porridge made from the rice from their estates. Now, although they ate high-quality rice, it was much worse than in previous years.

When Zheng Fang returned from the capital, he sighed again. Madame Ji couldn't help but ask, "What's going on? You finally got to go to the capital, but you returned like this."

"The Crown Prince is increasingly favoring that Shi fellow. The emperor has appointed Shi Chong as the commander of the Imperial Guards. Today, he competed with me and actually won."

Madame Ji was greatly shocked. "My lord, how could you compete with him?"

Zheng Fang held his forehead. "I underestimated the young man and intended to show off my skills, but I ended up being taught a lesson."

Madame Ji knew her husband's temperament well. With his martial skills, he looked down on everyone. It was likely that someone had provoked him into competing, so she asked further.

Sure enough, Zheng Fang said that someone had provoked him, and now that he had lost, he had no face.

As the couple was thinking of a solution, someone reported that Zheng Fang's favorite concubine was sick. Madame Ji snapped, "At a time like this, she’s still worrying about competing for attention? Send her away."

Madame Ji usually didn’t pay much attention to the concubines vying for attention. At her age, if she needed anything, she simply called for Zheng Fang. He treated her considerately. When she was unwell, she just wanted to rest. Their squabbles over jewelry and clothes were petty and harmless.

At this time, to bother her was simply insensitive.

Zheng Fang seemed not to hear her, only saying, "I lost face, but I'm afraid that Shi Chong has his eyes on my territory. He is from the Xizhou army. Last time I was defeated in Xizhou. Although he has fewer soldiers, they are all strong and robust."

Though Zheng Fang looked tall and imposing, Madame Ji knew he was all bark and no bite, hiding many fears beneath his tough exterior.

Madame Ji said, "There's no need for you to be afraid. Besides, you're getting older, so let the younger ones step up."

"If they were like our son-in-law, I wouldn't worry. Our son-in-law has now taken Yuzhou, but it's a shame he didn't seize the Prince of Wei's territory while he was at it. If he had consolidated all of it, I would have considered defecting to him." Zheng Fang became despondent again.

Madame Ji smiled and said, "What you said is quite amusing. Why would someone just give their large fief to you? Do you think Xie Jiuyi is easy to deal with? Last time, General Xie captured Qingzhou with little resistance. If it weren't for Lü Wei and He Guoguo joining forces to strike him, he might have continued his advance. How could our son-in-law risk offending him?"

Zheng Fang, who once harbored ambitions to conquer the world, was severely disillusioned by reality. Hearing Madame Ji mention the poor harvest, he became even more irritated. Madame Ji then said, "Since you're afraid of Shi Chong making a move, we need to manage the lands of Jizhou carefully. I can see now that Crown Prince Li Heng is quite capable."

Look, after the daughter of Wei Duo married into the family, it was said that she fell in love with the Crown Prince as well. Moreover, the daughter of the Wei family was pregnant, so it was likely that the position of Crown Princess would belong to that daughter of the Wei family.

Because of the Wei family daughter's pregnancy, the Crown Prince went to Donghua Temple to pray, where he was nearly attacked by bandits but was saved by Shi Chong. Thus, Shi Chong was appointed to the Imperial Guard. However, Madame Ji always felt that the whole incident was staged.

The Crown Prince was versatile. When the Lü family fell, He Guoguo stepped in. Zheng Fang thought he could rally their old troops, but he exhausted his forces without gaining what he deserved, while the Crown Prince secretly gathered his own men.

Jizhou's proximity to the capital made it a vulnerable target. It was likely that her husband's true intentions would be exposed. If Jizhou fell, the Crown Prince's territories would increase, giving him a base for future campaigns.

Seeing that Madame Ji agreed with his thoughts, Zheng Fang felt even more that after Lü Wei's death, the Crown Prince revealed his true nature and was not as attentive to him as before.

"No wonder Huiyin once told me that it's wiser to stay out of such matters."

Madame Ji didn't say much more seeing his discouragement.

However, the couple didn't mention the poor harvest in Jizhou. To people of their age, such issues were temporary and not a long-term concern.

Unbeknownst to them, Shi Chong was discussing with Crown Prince Li Heng, "There is a bandit in Jizhou named Guan Qing. Recently, the displaced people in Jizhou have been flocking to the mountains, where the strong ones have gone. In my opinion, Zheng Fang is extremely rude. He has repeatedly ignored your calls for mobilization, neither going to reclaim Qingzhou nor helping Zhang Song drive away Li Cheng. Now, the Prince of Huaiyin is gaining power. With the Prince of Wei gone, the Prince of Yuzhang's lands will likely fall into the hands of the Prince of Huaiyin. If we don't eliminate Zheng Fang now, he will control half the country in the future. Therefore, we must not be careless with Zheng Fang. Let these bandits stir up trouble and weaken Jizhou's forces. Then we will be ordered to suppress the bandits and take Jizhou."

Li Heng clapped his hands and said, "You are truly like Zhuge Liang. With you by my side, I have divine assistance."

The two of them continued their secret discussions.

Meanwhile, Huiyin had informed Li Cheng about the situation in Jizhou. Her main concern was the displaced people. She worried that they might sneak into Xuzhou through Jiahui Pass. If too many people came, it could lead to chaos.

Even the influential clans in Xuzhou frequently engaged in violent feuds. Li Cheng maintained order in Xuzhou by strictly prohibiting feuds, increasing patrols, and making examples of those who disobeyed. However, if too many displaced people came, trouble could arise.

After receiving the letter, Li Cheng admired Huiyin's ability to foresee potential issues. Even he hadn't thought that Li Heng would want Jizhou at this time. After recently taking over Yuzhou and Wujun, he had to focus on governance and troop deployment and hadn't paid attention to other matters.

For him, after the death of the Prince of Wei, even with Xie Jiuyi's assistance, Xie Jiuyi was just a subordinate. The Hos, Guos, and even the Xus wouldn't allow Xie Jiuyi to gain too much power. It was said that Xie Jiuyi had returned the daughter of the merchant Cao family to her family. Li Cheng guessed that Xie Jiuyi's actions were probably for Yin Liyi, but it was indeed a slap in the face to the Cao family.

The Cao family, while technically merchants, were no ordinary traders and might seek revenge in the future.

Li Cheng thought it would have been better not to take her in the first place. Taking her and then sending her back was a humiliation.

Previously, Li Cheng would have advised Xie Jiuyi, but now he has no interest in doing so. He even hoped to create some chaos to his advantage.