Chapter 118: Worth a Try
The imperial decree was brief and to the point:
Effective immediately, Gu Yan would be solely responsible for all affairs of the Jiangnan Maritime Tax Bureau, with the imperative to rectify existing malpractices and revitalize the bureau.
After Gu Yan finished reading the secret decree, the old eunuch bowed and said, “The Young Lord has been entrusted with managing the Maritime Tax Bureau, with the Young Lord assisting. The imperial decree should arrive in two days.”
“Mm, thank you for your hard work.” Gu Yan carefully put away the secret decree and stood up.
“You are too kind, Young Lord. I am getting old, and I rushed all the way here. I am truly exhausted. I will go and sleep for a while, and I must depart before dark.” The old eunuch bowed respectfully.
“Shi Gun!” Gu Yan called out.
Shi Gun responded and entered, then gently supported the old eunuch as he left Qingshen Hall.
“This is a personal letter from the Crown Prince.” Ming Jing presented the letter to Gu Yan.
Gu Yan took the letter and gestured to Ming Jing, “Please sit down and rest, have some tea, and eat some pastries.”
“Yes, thank you, Young Lord.” Ming Jing sat on the edge of the chair, quietly drinking tea and eating pastries.
He was also exhausted.
The letter was thick. Gu Yan opened the envelope and read it carefully.
Ming Jing ate pastries, occasionally glancing at Gu Yan, who was engrossed in the letter with a blank expression.
The Young Lord had indeed changed greatly over the past year.
Previously, no matter how expressionless and silent the Young Lord was, he could discern something. But since last Lunar New Year, he could no longer tell. Now, the Young Lord’s current expressionlessness was truly devoid of any emotion.
The Emperor said the Young Lord had made great progress, at least in his ability to remain impassive.
On the way here, he had heard the legend that the climate of Jiangnan was favorable to Prince Rui’s lineage. Indeed, this villa had an extraordinary aura.
Ming Jing glanced out the window at the lush greenery.
“You should go and rest for a while too.” Gu Yan finished reading the letter, folded it, and said to Ming Jing with a smile.
“Yes.” Ming Jing stood up and withdrew, his hands by his sides.
Gu Yan rose and entered the study, sat at the desk, ground ink, and prepared paper to write a reply to the Crown Prince.
After grinding a full inkstone of ink, he picked up his brush, but Gu Yan did not write for a long time. He put down the brush, stood up, paced back and forth in the room twice, then stood by the window, hands behind his back, looking at the vibrant greens and yellows outside.
The Emperor’s decree had greatly surprised him, and the Crown Prince’s letter was an even greater surprise.
Before, when the Emperor was nearing his end, he had still instructed him and the Crown Prince: “Do not act rashly, do not act impulsively.”
He had always thought the Emperor was too conservative, that he was lazy in governance, and cowardly.
Gu Yan lowered his head and rubbed his face forcefully with his hand.
The Emperor was not lazy in governance, nor was he cowardly; he simply lacked capable people and dared not act rashly.
The last time, before his end, he had given such worried instructions because he had seen that both he and the Crown Prince were too ambitious and lacked practical experience. The aftermath had indeed unfolded as the Emperor had foreseen…
Gu Yan took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.
This time, the Crown Prince said, the Emperor felt he was ready for a small task.
A complex, burning emotion surged within Gu Yan, making his eyes moist.
This time, he would surely become a true “small task” capable of excising corruption and cleansing sores for the Empire, bringing about clearer governance and greater prosperity for the world!
Gu Yan paced back and forth a few times, calmed his emotions, sat down again, and picked up his brush to write.
Gu Yan wrote a thick letter, folded and sealed it. He then took out several sheets of paper, organized his thoughts, and meticulously wrote down his understanding of the Jiangnan Maritime Tax Bureau up to that day, as well as his future plans. He rolled up the papers, picked up a copper tube, placed the letter inside, and then coated the entire tube with sealing wax.
After writing a letter and a memorial, Gu Yan ordered a bottle of wine to be brought in. He poured a cup and stood by the window, sipping it slowly while organizing his thoughts.
Now that he had the imperial decree, and since the Emperor also felt he was ready for a small task, it was time to act.
However, he still couldn’t rush; haste makes waste.
He still needed to proceed steadily, step by step.
Tomorrow, he would still go to Kunshan County as originally planned and take a good look at Huang Xianzhou. He always felt that Huang Xianzhou was a capable person, but Huang Xianzhou always had a sarcastic demeanor. He always felt that Huang Xianzhou held a prejudice against him, but what exactly was this prejudice?
Gu Yan’s eyebrows suddenly twitched slightly. Tomorrow, he would bring the little girl along and let her talk to him.
Back then, at Prince Rui’s Mansion, Lu Xiu was very popular. He had initially thought it was because he favored Lu Xiu. Later, when she followed him north and they were in their most desperate situation, the young commander guarding them, despite having orders to starve them to death, agreed to Lu Xiu’s exchange, accepted the thumb ring, and gave them thirty jin of old rice. Later, he sent another twenty jin of rice.
Without that fifty jin of rice, they wouldn’t have survived until the sky fell.
This little girl seemed even more popular than Lu Xiu. He heard that in the paper mounting shop next to the tea house, the shop assistants saved all their scraps of paper for her.
Yes, he would bring her along and let her talk to Huang Xianzhou.
Gu Yan called out for Shi Gun and instructed him to go to Cai Lian Lane and ask Miss Li if she was free tomorrow. If she was, he would take her to Linhai Town to broaden her horizons.
Li Xiaonan wanted to refuse outright because her third sister was arriving in Pingjiang City tomorrow, but the words “not free” hovered on her tongue for a few moments before she swallowed them.
She had just borrowed money from him.
Alas, no matter how heroic one is, one cannot be high-spirited when in debt.
Li Xiaonan pondered the time it would take to travel to and from Linhai Town, and then smiled, “I’m free in the morning, but not in the afternoon. My third sister is returning to her maiden home.”
A round trip to Linhai Town would definitely not be enough in one morning.
“Mm,” Wan Jing nodded. “One more thing: have you learned to ride a horse with A Wu?”
“Shi Gun didn’t say whether he asked this, or if our Young Lord asked it.”
“Then how should I answer this?” Li Xiaonan asked humbly.
“If you can sit on a horse steadily, then say you can ride. Our Young Lord learned martial arts from his master before he learned to read and write! He could ride a horse as soon as he could walk. He rides a horse wherever he goes, and as soon as he gets on, he rides at a gallop, like a forced march. If you can’t ride and have to sit in a carriage, think how bumpy it will be!”
“Then, if I were to ride a horse, wouldn’t I fall off?” Li Xiaonan asked.
“I’m telling you to say you can *almost* ride, ‘almost’!” Wan Jing emphasized the word “almost.” “You can at least sit steadily. The horses in our mansion are well-trained. You just need to be able to sit steadily.
“Our Young Lord is looking out for you so much. If he sees you’re not a good rider, he might slow down, or he might ride ahead and leave some people to accompany you at a slower pace.
“Either way, it will definitely be more comfortable than sitting in a carriage!”
“Alright, then I’ll say I can almost ride.” Li Xiaonan repeated.
Wan Jing completed her task smoothly and bid farewell to Li Xiaonan with a cheerful mood.
