PCA Chapter 168

From Lu Family Village, they managed to uncover the Secret Door’s headquarters. This journey could be called an unexpected delight. Although Lu Xun and Song Fan escaped, the Secret Door suffered a severe blow, eliminating the possibility of them causing trouble for the time being, and bringing a moment of peace.

 

The aftermath in Lu Family Village was left to Liang Fang to handle. Li Shi took Su Cen and hurried back to Chang’an, arriving just in time for the Mid-Autumn Festival. Every household was decorated with lanterns and colored hangings, and the city was filled with the fragrance of osmanthus flowers, creating a lively atmosphere.

 

The first thing after returning to the capital was for Su Cen to follow Li Shi into the palace. As an imperial envoy representing the emperor on his tour, he naturally had to first relinquish his commission, relay information about the disaster in Xuzhou and the aftermath, and convey the gratitude of the people of Xuzhou for the emperor’s vast grace.

 

As for Li Shi, he purely wanted to see how hard-pressed the young emperor was.

 

When the two entered, they saw the young emperor buried behind several stacks of memorials, chewing on a brush, frowning, and complaining to a nearby eunuch: “Another greeting letter from Huainan, asking if I’ve eaten well? Slept well? If my health is good? Reading their nonsense every day, how can I eat well, sleep well, or be in good health?”

 

The eunuch smilingly agreed. With a sidelong glance, he noticed the people entering and was about to bow, but Li Shi waved him away. The young emperor hadn’t yet noticed and continued to mutter to himself: “What do you think Imperial Uncle would do if he saw memorials like these? Would he send them straight back and have the person beaten?”

 

Li Shi: “…”

 

When did he become so violent?

 

Su Cen laughed lightly. The young emperor heard the sound and raised his head, prompting Su Cen to quickly kneel and pay his respects.

 

“I’m fine, I’m fine. Minister Su, please rise,” the young emperor hastily waved his hand, then turned to look at Li Shi with bright eyes, as if seeing his own father.

 

“Imperial Uncle…” the young emperor’s mouth drooped, with two “golden beans” (tears) ready to fall.

 

“That’s enough,” Li Shi smiled gently. “Have them all moved to Xingqing Palace.”

 

The young emperor collapsed face-down on the desk, letting out a long sigh, with dark circles visible under his eyes.

 

He had no idea that being an emperor required handling so much government business every day. How had his Imperial Uncle previously managed to deal with all these affairs and still have time to lecture him?

 

Li Shi asked: “If it’s so tiring, why not hand it over to Liu Cheng and the others?”

 

The young emperor raised his little head and said seriously: “In one’s position, one must fulfill one’s duties. Since I’m the emperor, I’ll eventually have to handle these matters myself. How can I always delegate to others?”

 

Su Cen cupped his hands and smiled: “Your Majesty is wise.”

 

“Fine,” the young emperor sullenly hung his head. “Actually, Prime Minister Liu has been urging me to appoint a regent, but I found it novel at first and didn’t delegate power. Later, when I wanted to, I couldn’t bring myself to lose face.”

 

Su Cen laughed softly, then heard Li Shi say: “These people are your ministers. You don’t pay them monthly salaries to be idle, nor to raise a tiger that will eventually turn on you. How to use people, how to balance kindness and authority to lead by example, how to make them willingly work for you without ulterior motives—these are all things you need to learn. Is it exemplary leadership to take on all matters yourself while they drink wine and admire the moon at home, letting them hold leverage over you?”

 

The young emperor’s mouth flattened, immediately feeling wronged. He had worked so hard for over a month just to preserve his Imperial Uncle’s position as regent, yet when he returned, there wasn’t a word of praise. Instead, he received a barrage of criticism. Although what was said wasn’t wrong, it did hurt his pride, especially in front of Su Cen.

 

Su Cen looked at the young emperor’s expression of having grievances but nowhere to voice them, and couldn’t help but be amused inwardly. Li Shi had always been sparing with his words to others, but it seemed all his lecturing ability was used on the young emperor. He knew Li Shi had high hopes for the young emperor, but such a young child couldn’t understand these good intentions yet, and it seemed like trying to help plants grow by pulling them upwards. He could only offer some comfort: “Your Majesty, for your first time personally governing, you’ve maintained your true heart, discerned clearly, and not been taken advantage of. You’ve already done very well. The Prince is just concerned about Your Majesty’s exhaustion from handling numerous affairs these days, and isn’t truly angry.”

 

The young emperor turned his head timidly to look at Li Shi, and seeing him finally nod, his mood brightened a little.

 

Su Cen detailed the events of the Xuzhou journey, and the young emperor listened without blinking. Upon hearing that the Xuzhou flood was man-made rather than a natural disaster, he couldn’t help but sigh: “Natural disasters are merciless, but human hearts are even more treacherous. The Secret Door disregarded the lives of tens of thousands of citizens, truly an unforgivable crime.”

 

“And that Song Fan, who turned out to be part of the Secret Door, with Song Yi even helping hide him right under my nose—their intentions are condemnable.” The young emperor frowned. “But after all, the Song family has an imperial pardon certificate. Does that mean we have to let them go unpunished?”

 

“The imperial pardon certificate doesn’t exempt treason,” Li Shi said while seated. “His collusion with the Secret Door has already exceeded the protection range of the certificate. No one can save him.”

 

Su Cen felt somewhat relieved. At least this would provide some closure for Lu Family Village and for Lord Chen.

 

Speaking of Lord Chen, the young emperor felt saddened. Before he was even born, Chen Guanglu had already been guarding that lonely village, so he had never met this person whom Su Cen described as Great Zhou’s foremost authority on criminal law. But from Su Cen’s words, one could easily detect his admiration and respect for this predecessor. After hearing about Lord Chen’s deeds, the emperor sighed deeply and said he would bestow a posthumous title upon Lord Chen after the court session.

 

“The deceased has passed, the living continue,” Li Shi looked at Su Cen and said. “That Lord Chen met you in the end means he can be said to have departed with peace of mind.”

 

“What virtue or ability do I have?” Su Cen lowered his head slightly, remembering how Lord Chen had asked him to recite the “Great Zhou Law.” He felt a heavy weight on his shoulders, making it momentarily difficult to breathe.

 

With Su Cen’s affairs concluded, he could now leave. Because of the Mid-Autumn night’s moon worship ceremony, Li Shi had to stay to preside over the sacrificial rites. The two could only exchange a glance, and after seeing Li Shi nod slightly, Su Cen took his leave.

 

Back at the Su residence, during the Mid-Autumn Festival, Ah Fu was in the kitchen making rice cakes.

 

Ah Fu was a genuine Suzhou native, born and raised in the Su family, and had learned to make many southern snacks from the Su family’s cook.

 

The steamed glutinous rice was pounded in a stone mortar, complemented with fresh osmanthus juice. After several rounds of pounding, not only was the chewiness of the glutinous rice brought out, but the fragrance of the osmanthus was also fully released. Finally, topped with peanuts and sesame seeds and drizzled with brown sugar syrup, it became tender, smooth, fragrant, and delicious.

 

Qu Ling’er leaned on the window frame, staring intently, fearing that the rice cakes on the chopping board might grow legs and run away. When he couldn’t resist, he poked the round, plump white rice cakes with his finger, then sucked his finger, savoring the taste endlessly.

 

Ah Fu frowned and scolded Qu Ling’er: “Stop poking them. If the Second Young Master finds out, he’ll be disgusted again.”

 

“Then let’s make a deal,” Qu Ling’er pointed at the rice cakes with finger marks. “Brother Su won’t eat these ones anyway, so could you pack them for me to take away?”

 

Ah Fu rolled his eyes, “Could you be any more shameless?”

 

While saying this, he still found a food box for Qu Ling’er and packed them one by one. He had heard that Qu Ling’er had gone down Tiger’s Cliff in Xuzhou to rescue people in place of the Second Young Master. Though he didn’t say it, he was grateful. Never mind a few rice cakes; if Qu Ling’er asked for his life at this moment, he would willingly give it.

 

When Su Cen returned, he happened to run into Qu Ling’er on his way out, holding a bunch of golden chrysanthemums and waving at him: “Brother Su is back! Don’t wait for me for dinner tonight.”

 

Su Cen reproached: “You’re restless as soon as you’re back.”

 

Passing through the kitchen, he saw the white, plump rice cakes on the chopping board, poked them with his finger, sucked on it, and had a thought. He said to Ah Fu: “Pack these few for me in a food box.”

 

Ah Fu: “…”

 

Before leaving, Su Cen also picked up a jar of seasonal osmanthus wine and waved to Ah Fu: “No need to wait for me for dinner tonight.”

 

Ah Fu: “…” Did you two plan this together?

 

And so the two from the Su residence appeared simultaneously at the entrance of Xingqing Palace, staring at each other in surprise, then turning their attention to each other’s food boxes.

 

The same style, the same contents, even the arrangement and quantity were identical.

 

Qu Ling’er said sheepishly: “Brother Su, you’ve come to see the Prince?”

 

Su Cen secretly thought to himself how he had stooped to Qu Ling’er’s level, stepping aside and pretending not to know him, “You go your way, I’ll go mine. Let’s pretend we haven’t seen each other.”

 

Qu Ling’er was thinking the same thing; a unique gift shows sincerity, but two identical ones just seem casual. He lifted his leg and ran off: “I saw some new osmanthus wine at the East Market, I’ll go buy two more jars for Brother Qi!”

 

Su Cen: “…”

 

Entering Xingqing Palace, Su Cen found that Li Shi hadn’t returned yet. He walked around the Dragon Pool and noticed the autumn chrysanthemums were in full bloom. Thinking they would complement the wine nicely, he picked several bunches and brought them to the pavilion in the middle of the lake. The fragrance of chrysanthemums and the aroma of wine would create a perfect setting to drink, sing, appreciate the moon over the lake, and enjoy the brown sugar rice cakes together. How delightful that would be.

 

So, the two from the Su residence waited with identical brown sugar rice cakes, osmanthus wine, and chrysanthemums, expecting their two companions to return from the palace.

 

They waited all night, but neither returned.

 

Early the next morning, Su Cen finally learned that an incident had occurred during the previous night’s Moon Worship Ceremony.

 

Cui Hao had beaten an elderly Hanlin Academy scholar during the ceremony.

 

 

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