The grand hall of the Ye manor was quiet enough to hear a pin drop. There was a faint chittering sound. Everyone looked towards the sound and saw the sleeves and hems of the Prefect of Ruan County trembling slightly. It turned out to be the sound of his upper and lower teeth chattering unceasingly.
Fourth Uncle Ye was somewhat stunned. Although he had heard his sons and nephews talk about Ye Suijin's deeds of killing people outside, this was still an official appointed by the imperial court after all. Even though he was appointed by the previous Wei Dynasty, generally, these kinds of officials would be accepted by the new dynasty as long as they swore allegiance.
Fourth Uncle Ye had a feeling that...they were in too deep now to turn back. Where was Ye Suijin, the helmsman of Ye Manor, taking them?
...No matter where she was leading them, the character Ye could not be written twice. In others' eyes, Fourth Uncle Ye and Ye Suijin were tied together.
At least regarding this matter, Fourth Uncle Ye was clear-headed and firm.
"Why did you have to kill them?" he asked. Asking on behalf of the Prefect of Ruan County who was sitting there with his sleeves trembling.
Ye Suijin said, "Bring those two in."
The Prefect of Ruan County thought she meant bringing him and the Prefect of Neixiang County in to be beheaded too. He nearly fainted in fright.
But the Prefect of Neixiang County remained unmoving, calm as an old monk in meditation, observing his mind.
The Prefect of Ruan County was on the verge of tears.
He had thought he would meet his end today at Ye Manor, but unexpectedly two people were half-dragged in and thrown to the ground outside.
Seeing the decapitated heads of Ma Jinhui and Du Jingzhong on the ground not far away, the two men who had just been thrown in immediately begged for mercy. The one dressed as a scholar crawled over pleading, "Lord Ye, spare my life. I was merely a retainer passing messages! It was the audacious Ma Jinhui who wanted to collude with Fourth Lord Ye to ambush and kill you to seize control of Ye Manor..."
Fourth Uncle Ye spat in disgust.
Ill-omened words!
Everyone laughed heartily.
Now everyone knew about Third Lord Ye Fei's earlier scheme to probe Du Jingzhong. But this just showed that the relationship between Ye Suijin and Fourth Uncle Ye had been mended, and they trusted each other again, putting everyone at ease. So they laughed freely without reservations.
"Don't be angry, Fourth Uncle." Ye Suijin laughed and waved for the two men to be dragged away. "They judge others by their own standard, naturally they would believe it to be true. They don't understand, the character Ye cannot be written twice."
Fourth Uncle Ye felt a pang of sadness in his heart. He quickly collected himself and said solemnly, "That's right."
He asked, "Will that memorial be sent to the imperial capital?"
"Naturally, otherwise who will grant me my official appointment?" Ye Suijin said with a laugh.
Fourth Uncle Ye felt somewhat apprehensive, "We don't have connections in the capital."
"It doesn't matter. The massive imperial palace is right there, it can't run away. We'll go and report we've come from Dengzhou to present congratulatory gifts for the Emperor's enthronement. They won't dare stop us."
"We have to prepare congratulatory gifts too?"
"Of course we need gifts, we're asking them for a favor. How can we not bring gifts?"
"Not only do we need to give the Emperor gifts, but also to the Emperor's son-in-law. He has a lot of sway. If he speaks up for us, this matter will be practically settled."
The Jin Emperor doted dearly on his eldest daughter and found an extremely capable husband for her. He favored his son-in-law by association and placed great trust in him as well.
Later when the Jin Emperor passed away, it was because his daughter and son-in-law fought with his sons over the throne, that a dynasty only just recently unified fell into turmoil again.
In the end, this son-in-law gained control over the realm, changed the name of the dynasty, and started a new one.
After that, Zhao Jingwen collaborated with the Jin Emperor's sons to kill the son-in-law. But suppressing the Jin Emperor's sons afterwards still expended a lot of his energy.
There was not a single easy thing about conquering the realm, sitting on the throne, and settling the realm.
Zhao Jingwen was actually quite capable as well.
Fourth Uncle Ye was puzzled over how Ye Suijin knew so much about the matters of the capital.
But he was more captivated by the matter itself. He stroked the back of his head, still finding it a bit unbelievable. "A prefectural governor...?"
"Just an empty title," Ye Suijin said. "No matter what, with this title on our heads, the court will find it awkward to come settle accounts around us in the future."
She asked, "How is the construction of the barracks coming along?"
Fourth Uncle Ye said, "The first batch is almost done. We've recruited people who can move in directly. We'll build the second batch after."
Ye Suijin nodded, "With more people recruited, construction will go even faster."
Fourth Uncle Ye guaranteed, "At this speed, everything will be completed before winter."
"We've tested it. Dig pits in the ground, burn them first to harden the earth, then lay straw and hay over it to insulate against dampness. Wooden planks for the beds. As long as there are braziers by the door and vents in the walls for the heat to circulate, it'll be almost like having heated brick beds. We'll be able to withstand even the coldest days."
As the two of them discussed, it was as if the Prefects of Neixiang and Ruan did not exist, as if the two decapitated heads on the ground did not exist.
But the Prefect of Neixiang County suddenly cupped his fists and interrupted them, "My lord."
What a respectful address of "my lord"!
Ye Suijin looked over with a faint smile. "What is it, Prefect He?"
The Prefect of Neixiang County was surnamed He, given name Zhou, courtesy name Yuantao.
With this one address of "my lord", he elegantly turned around. From an appointee of the previous Wei regime, he instantly became a subordinate of Ye Suijin's.
He cupped his fists and asked, "May I dare ask, is my lord recruiting troops?"
"That's right," Ye Suijin said. "What are Prefect He's thoughts?"
"This lowly official is ignorant of military affairs, I wouldn't dare spout nonsense. Since my lord wishes to establish the Dengzhou Army to protect Dengzhou's peace, this will be a blessing for Dengzhou's common folk. Please put your mind at ease, my lord. This lowly official and Prefect Sun will certainly render our full assistance."
The Prefect of Ruan County was surnamed Sun, given name Xiangxue, courtesy name Ziwen.
Right now Sun Xiangxue wished he could fiercely kiss He Zhou several times!
His teeth were no longer chattering. He quickly followed He Zhou's example and likewise cupped his fists towards Ye Suijin, "Prefect He has spoken what is also in this lowly official's mind. We await your orders, my lord, and will render our full assistance."
They had narrowly escaped calamity with their lives. There was a feeling of utter exhaustion.
Ye Suijin's memorial petitioning for appointment as a prefectural governor was still sitting on the desk, yet they were already addressing her as "my lord".
Very tactful.
This was exactly the kind of people Ye Suijin needed right now. Governing a region was not something just anyone could pick up and do immediately. Currently none of the people at Ye Manor had experience in these affairs.
"You two have good intentions. But now, Nanyang and Fangcheng counties in Dengzhou are unoccupied. Prefect He..." Ye Suijin nodded slightly, returning a peach for a plum[1], "Do you have anyone to recommend?"
With these words, He Zhou and Sun Xiangxue felt reassured in their hearts. The two of them knew that as long as they did not harbor designs on Ye Manor or even secretly plot against Ye Suijin's life like Ma Jinhui, their positions in Dengzhou were secure.
No matter how things were in the past, as long as they turned in taxes to those capable of collecting taxes in the future, they could continue being officials just the same.
Especially He Zhou of Neixiang County. He felt even more steady now.
After careful thought, he said, "The county magistrate[2] of Neixiang, Qin Huaizhu, though not of examination scholar background, is knowledgeable about governance and revenues, steady and extremely capable. He may serve as prefect of a county."
Ye Suijin had floated two vacancies, yet he had prudently only recommended one person, not acting greedy. Clearly a man who knew restraint and understood when to advance and when to withdraw.
Sun Xiangxue of Ruan County was somewhat envious, but since Ye Suijin had not addressed him specifically, and her casual killing just now had left a psychological shadow on him, he also did not dare overreach. He could only watch He Zhou recommend people to her longingly.
Ye Suijin considered briefly, then said, "Let him go to Fangcheng. We've killed all those who needed killing there and cleared it out relatively cleanly. Let him start over from the beginning. As for Nanyang..."
Her knuckles tapped lightly on the desk.
This habit would only be cultivated much later. Deep within the secluded inner palace halls, without wielding blades and troops, everything had to be accomplished through mental strategy. When pondering alone she found it hard to decide, she could not help but tap her right hand that once grasped spears and sabers lightly on desks and armrests. Over a long period of time, this became habit.
A person's temperament and aura were mysterious things unrelated to external appearance.
Although Ye Suijin's body was currently youthful, the aura she carried back from the inner halls and court had not diminished at all. When her knuckles tapped, everyone in the hall felt an indescribable sense of pressure.
How strange.
He Zhou thought, she is merely a young woman after all.
But he attributed this feeling of oppression to—she was too adept at killing.
After all, there were still two decapitated heads and a corpse dressed in official robes on the floor, with large pools of blood that hadn't been cleaned up yet. The stench kept wafting up to their noses.
Yes, that must be why.
"Fourth Uncle," Ye Suijin asked, "Is Six Younger of the Zhongyuantang branch home now?"
With such abundant and flourishing family branches, there were many offshoots. Zhongyuantang was one of them.
The Sixth Younger of Zhongyuantang mentioned by Ye Suijin was no longer of the main line, but a distant side branch instead.
Later, almost all of the main line perished, leaving only the crippled Thirteenth Lord Ye and some of the younger generations. Ye Suijin carefully nurtured them.
But they were too young, and would not have another chance to lead troops. Zhao Jingwen would not give them opportunities in the court either. For their safety, Ye Suijin did not force them to succeed at all costs.
To be a rich and leisurely person under Zhao Jingwen was the best future Ye Suijin, as their elder, could arrange for the young masters of the family.
Thus, she and Zhao Jingwen were both at ease.
The sixth son of Zhongyuan Hall, Ye Jingyi, could not even fully perform a complete set of the Ye family spearmanship. He was a typical example of the Ye family's side branches abandoning martial arts for literary pursuits.
But he was a capable person who had followed Ye Suijin in the early days, and later followed Duan Jin.
After Mr. Yang left, she did not have many people she could use.
A good bird chooses a tree in which to roost. Those with a bit of ability were more willing to follow Zhao Jingwen.
Only those surnamed Ye were destined to be tied to her, with no way to untie.
Ye Jingyi had always harbored a desire to study, but in the chaotic times his family was unwilling to let him venture out.
He had secretly run away several times, only to be caught and brought back each time. Although not destitute, his branch of the family was just ordinarily well-off. Each time he ran away, his father would come to Fourth Uncle Ye, and Fourth Uncle Ye would send people on horseback to tie him up and bring him back.
Upon hearing her inquiry, Fourth Uncle Ye immediately understood her intentions.
He was somewhat unhappy. "The main family doesn't lack people."
The third son, fourth son, fifth son, seventh son, ninth son, tenth son... The biggest one was his own son!
Even if you don't give it to the young ones, there's still you, Fourth Uncle, Fifth Uncle, Sixth Uncle - so many people!
How could you give a county magistrate position, an official post, to a branch descendant first?
Ye Suijin felt somewhat helpless.
But she could not blame Fourth Uncle Ye either. At this time, capturing Dengzhou was probably already the limit of what he could imagine and envision. Having taken Dengzhou, dividing up the profits, in his eyes a county magistrate position was already a very large piece cut from the big pie, and should naturally go to the main family line first.
There was nothing inherently wrong with this way of thinking.
The mistake was simply that Fourth Uncle Ye still did not know just how big the pie was that Ye Suijin intended to bake!
