Chapter 231: The Childhood Sweetheart

Chapter 231: Childhood Sweetheart

Champa (modern-day Vietnam) is located at the easternmost edge of Southeast Asia, its territory stretching in a long, narrow strip along the coastline, nearly spanning the entire north-south expanse of the region.

This unique coastline gave Champa unparalleled advantages in maritime trade, once making it a crucial hub connecting Asia to Europe, Africa, and the Americas, bringing centuries of prosperity.

However, its elongated shape made it difficult to defend and easy to attack. When enemies struck, it was hard to protect both ends, leaving the country perpetually vulnerable.

In our world’s history, Champa was annexed by Annam in the 17th century, its royal family slaughtered and erased by the tides of time.

In this timeline, though Champa has not yet fallen, it teeters on the brink.

In the capital, Indrapura (City of Indra), the sea breeze carries a salty dampness into architecture echoing Chinese designs. The seaside terrace stands silent, where a lean silhouette leans against the railing, gazing at the white seabirds in the distance.

A young girl dressed in the ornate and intricate attire of Champa’s royalty arrives at the base of the terrace, motioning for her guards to stay back as she lifts the heavy hem of her skirt and ascends the steps.

Looking at the silent figure standing before the sea, she steeling herself, steps forward.

"Teacher, I have prepared the gifts to present to Great Yu. In a few days, the fleet will arrive from Jiaozhi. Will the Emperor of Great Yu truly grant our petition?"

Her tone when speaking Chinese is somewhat peculiar, but her word choice and grammar are impeccable.

Due to its unique geographical position, Champa is deeply influenced by both Chinese and Arab civilizations, and most of its upper nobility learn both languages. At her age, mastering Chinese so well speaks to her intelligence—and her noble status.

The man finally turns around. He wears the dark blue attire of Champa’s nobility, his long black hair tied into a ponytail at the back of his head, with a few loose strands swept across his forehead by the sea breeze, revealing a pair of strikingly indifferent yet beautiful eyes. The man is Mei Wangshu, who has been away from Great Yu for nearly nine months.

"What of the Champa rice (a drought-resistant variety)?"

"We’ve selected dozens of sacks of seeds and transplanted over a thousand seedlings into shallow baskets lined with grass. We’ve also chosen ten experienced farmers skilled in rice cultivation, two of whom speak some Chinese."

Mei Wangshu nods. "That’s enough. Well done."

Champa rice is native to Champa. While traditional Chinese rice strains demand high levels of water and fertilizer, Champa rice can thrive in relatively poor and arid conditions, transforming previously unsuitable land into fertile fields and greatly increasing a nation’s rice yield.

After discovering that Great Yu lacked Champa rice, Qiu Huanian included the search for its seeds on the list of objectives for the southern voyage.

Unfortunately, when the fleet first docked in Champa last year, the country was under attack by Annam and plunged into chaos. To avoid entanglement and ensure the journey’s continuation, the fleet hastily purchased only a few sacks of unhusked rice before departing.

It was then that Mei Wangshu quietly disembarked. His purpose in sailing was to obtain a diaspora identity, and Champa—just a ten-day voyage from Fuzhou—had a significant Chinese population, making it ideal for forging such an identity. There was no need to continue with the fleet.

As for Champa’s chaos, for someone like Mei Wangshu, a former palace guard, it was no obstacle. In fact, it only aided his disguise.

Noticing the anxiety and sorrow in the girl’s brow, Mei Wangshu speaks. "Princess Yu Cao, there’s no need to worry. With Champa rice, your envoys will gain an audience with County Princess Qishu and present your petition to the Emperor."

The young regent princess of Champa, whose Chinese name is Fan Yucao, sighs heavily yet again.

As Great Yu’s fleet voyages across the southern seas, trading in numerous nations, the name of County Princess Qishu—who fully supports the expedition—has spread beyond borders, circulating among the southern kingdoms.

Fan Yucao has never been to Great Yu, but like all people of the southern nations, she yearns for and admires that vast, prosperous land. Hearing the name of the legendary County Princess Qishu—said to be wise, benevolent, and a heaven-sent sage—her pulse quickens.

"The identity you requested is ready—a male one. Teacher… must you really go to Great Yu?"

Seeing Mei Wangshu momentarily silent, Fan Yucao quickens her speech. "Would Teacher stay in Champa and continue helping me govern? You could be my consort, my chancellor—or I could yield the throne to you. Then…"

Her voice cuts off abruptly as she sees Mei Wangshu shake his head lightly. Her eyes fill with tears.

Eight months earlier, Annam invaded Champa once more, turning two of its regional lords against the crown. Within days, the army sacked the capital.

The hedonistic king of Champa, along with his consorts and children, were dragged out of the palace one by one and publicly tortured and executed in the bustling market square. Only the twelve-year-old Princess Yu Cao, with the help of her mother and wet nurse, narrowly escaped, fleeing with her infant brother in her arms.

The leader of the Annamite army, checking against a traitor-supplied roster, counted the corpses and realized members of the royal lineage were unaccounted for. The city gates were immediately sealed for a thorough search.

Though Princess Yu Cao had been intelligent and well-read since childhood, she had lived a sheltered life of luxury, rarely leaving the palace. She quickly gave herself away.

That day, heavy rain poured as she fled from pursuers, stumbling into an inconspicuous abandoned house with no exit. Just as she thought capture was inevitable, she discovered another occupant in the dilapidated room.

The man was strikingly handsome, with Chinese features, and moved with preternatural lightness. Before Princess Yu Cao could even register his movements, the seven or eight Annamite soldiers who had chased her inside lay dead without a sound.

He gave a cursory glance at the princess clutching her baby brother before turning to leave. In a sudden surge of desperate courage, she crawled forward and grabbed the hem of his robe, lifting her tear-streaked face.

She stammered in broken Chinese: "Please... at least save my brother. He was just born—he's twelve years younger than me."

...

Mei Wangshu studied the resolute foreign princess before him, his thoughts drifting back to that day.

From the moment he became a shadow guard, his existence had been wholly defined by his master's commands. Every action he took was for his master. He had grown accustomed to—even dependent on—this insular mode of being.

Later, due to Qiu Huanian's persistence and for the safety of his sister's only child—the person who cared for him most in this world—he suffered excruciating torment under house arrest, ultimately becoming a disgraced shadow guard who betrayed his master.

Choosing such a perilous escape from the palace, deep down, he had secretly wished to perish during the attempt. That way, he would neither betray his master nor endanger his family.

During his days hiding in the Tianjin Prefecture residence, he often found himself gazing vacantly at the ancient trees in the courtyard.

Qiu Huanian had told him, "You've simply shifted from obeying the emperor to obeying me. It shouldn't be like this. You should listen to yourself—listen to what your heart says."

Mei Wangshu didn't understand. He was exhausted. Leaving the palace hadn't truly lightened his burdens, and he couldn't bring himself to ponder such things.

Only after leaving his homeland and arriving in this utterly foreign land—where there was no master, no family, no one to command or need him—did Mei Wangshu suddenly find himself wanting to do something entirely "unnecessary" to his original purpose.

"Please... at least save my brother. He was just born—he's twelve years younger than me."

...

"Father, don't make him practice so long. He's still so young—he's twelve years younger than me."

...

That day, Mei Wangshu's sword emerged from the depths of his heart, slicing through the endless rain and the heads of his enemies, each swing flashing with a murky, liquid sheen.

He had done something "unnecessary," yet in this world, he had finally become someone who wasn't "unnecessary."

Mei Wangshu pondered long why he had acted this way.

Eventually, he remembered the training grounds of Guzhu County, the wooden posts wrapped in coarse cloth and the honey cakes his elder sister would send. He recalled a little boy brandishing a wooden sword, laughing loudly as he declared he would grow up to be a righteous xia who vanquished evil and upheld justice.

Remembering this, Mei Wangshu stood amidst the scattered corpses and laughed in the rain. His laughter grew louder, gradually turning into wet, shuddering breaths.

...

That day, he saved Princess Yu Cao and her brother, leading them out of Champa's capital.

Applying the political strategies of Huaxia (ancient Chinese civilization) to a small Southeast Asian kingdom no larger than a single prefecture of the Yu Dynasty was like bringing a cannon to a knife fight. Over several months, Mei Wangshu rallied Champa's royalists, formed alliances with provincial nobles, and orchestrated assassinations, eventually retaking the capital and installing Yu Cao's brother as king, temporarily stabilizing Champa's situation.

Though Champa had lost over two-thirds of its territory and balanced on annihilation's edge, and Princess Yu Cao's authority as regent had shrunk to a shadow, at least the precarious equilibrium between factions ensured their survival.

Princess Yu Cao knew domestic and foreign enemies wouldn't allow her and her brother time to grow into power. She sought to make Champa a vassal state of Great Yu, beseeching military intervention against Annam's aggression.

She would rather let Champa become a province of that powerful nation of ceremony and decorum than surrender her homeland to the enemies who killed her loved ones!

When the Great Yu fleet docks in Champa during its return voyage, she will present the formal letter of state along with gifts.

Although Mei Wangshu had taught Princess Yu Cao many things over these seven or eight months, and she was now capable of managing affairs independently, Princess Yu Cao still wished he would stay.

Princess Yu Cao wanted to persuade him further, but Mei Wangshu had no intention of continuing the discussion.

He left the seaside railing and said solemnly, "Everyone has their own path. Princess, yours is yours alone to walk."

"Then what about your path? Is yours in Great Yu?" Princess Yu Cao asked her mysterious benefactor.

Mei Wangshu smiled faintly, "All that I am lies there."

The good, the bad, the unforgettable, the love and hatred seared into his soul.

Princess Yu Cao let out a long sigh. This was her last attempt, and failure was expected. Even without her mentor, she would not fear her future.

"I brought a farewell gift for Little Qingmei. Let me see her."

Mei Wangshu did not refuse. They descended a floor and entered a warm little room. A trained Champa nursemaid bowed and withdrew. In a small cradle in the corner, a three-month-old baby girl slept soundly.

This was Mei Wangshu’s child. Had she not seen it with her own eyes, Princess Yu Cao would hardly have believed anyone could accomplish so many difficult schemes while pregnant—but Mei Wangshu had done it.

Princess Yu Cao, who had been there since the child’s conception and birth, knelt by the cradle and produced a delicate ruby bracelet.

"This gem is called Oting Stone, a treasure from Champa’s sacred mountain. Legend says a pair of lovers braved endless trials to meet and stay together on the sacred mountain. After their deaths, their essence became Oting Stones."

Princess Yu Cao explained to Mei Wangshu, "The people of Champa make jewelry from Oting Stones to give to children. It is said to guard all children born from love."

"This is the finest strand of Oting Stones I found in the treasury. May it keep Qingmei safe."

Mei Wangshu took the bracelet and leaned close to his sleeping daughter. The baby pursed her lips, slowly opened her eyes, and gave an innocent smile, her soft cheek nuzzling his calloused fingers.

"Of course she is a child born of love."

And yet, also of hatred.

Author’s Note:

The scene where Mei Wangshu gains enlightenment and discovers himself in the foreign rain was something I envisioned from his very first appearance. A million words later, it’s finally written.

Everything the little uncle went through was a process of breaking before remaking. Only now has it become a complete arc. The earlier oppression was a necessary condition for the later breakthrough. If he had simply achieved a carefree happy ending in the imperial city, he would never have had the chance to go to a place free of all external influences and rediscover his original self.

When writing the earlier arcs, there was much criticism and opposition in the comments. After hesitation, I decided to stick to the original plan and write step by step, because readers at that point didn’t know how the later story would unfold. Making rash changes might have made it worse.

Lastly, last chapter I said the little uncle would pull off something big—how could it just be having a child? Helping a small Southeast Asian country restore its throne and securing a vassal state in the process is what counts as big, haha.

(P.S. Spoiler: The little uncle won’t have any more children. Qingmei will be the empress.)