Chapter 43: At the Wine Table
Chen Ping'an was carefully deliberating over several candidates for the vacant positions. The matter of elevating Bingzhou to a Dao, which the Great Li Dynasty was about to put on the agenda, touched upon the very foundation of the state. He had no choice but to repeatedly weigh the pros and cons, and also needed to broadly consult the differing opinions of various ministries and government offices. After all, using the right person for a wrong task, or the wrong person for a right task—the ones who truly bore the consequences were never just those official hats.
Taxes on pens, rent on inkstones, debts for literary accounts and study; cultivate oneself, regulate the family, govern the state, and pacify the world.
Guo Zhujiu was peeking around the study door. Chen Ping'an didn't even look up, just waved his hand and said, "Same rule as before—come in and read, but you can't take the books out."
Guo Zhujiu didn't step over the threshold but just rattled off like beans pouring from a bamboo tube: "Master, master, Chen Yi rarely leaves his room, but he came to me on his own and said something strange. He said that ancient fist techniques were divided into civil and martial, and that I could learn them too. Then he asked if I wanted to learn from him... the—jump-and-summon-spirits dance?"
Chen Ping'an couldn't help but smile. As a great shaman in charge of sacrifices, Chen Yi's skills were not the cheap tricks of today; they were genuine methods of communing with heaven and earth to repay the gods. The sacrificial rites that had been passed down in the human world for ten thousand years all originated from this.
He looked up and smiled: "As long as you don't feel embarrassed about learning what Senior Sister Pei hasn't learned, go ahead and learn."
At that time, the Fox Lord of Qingqiu thought that Pei Qian was being pretentious by refusing to learn fist techniques, but that was naturally because he, as the former Fourteenth, completely didn't understand martial arts.
In Chen Ping'an's view, Pei Qian's insistence—or perhaps obsession—with "fists from the Bamboo Tower" leading her to refuse Chen Yi's sincere offer to teach fist techniques was still somewhat regrettable.
But come to think of it, without that determination, how could Pei Qian have reached her current level in martial arts?
For cultivators, natural talent and bone structure; for scholars, learning ability and intellectual capacity—these are all important, but they also need "spirit" to lift them higher.
Guo Zhujiu laughed heartily: "What's the big deal? I'll learn it first, then get you to examine it and polish it. Soon it'll be our Bamboo Tower lineage's own style of fist technique. When Senior Sister Pei learns it later, won't that be a natural progression?"
Chen Ping'an gently placed his brush on the blue porcelain brush rest shaped like three mountains, and smiled: "Good idea."
It was said that the cock-spur brush, whose official system was changed to imperially manufactured by the Daquan Dynasty, sold quite well both on and off the mountain in Tongye Continent. One Snowflake Coin per cock-spur brush, and just the Divine Seal Peak of the Jade Gui Sect had pre-ordered thirty thousand—truly a display of wealth and generosity. It was remembered that when Dong Shuijing heard about this, he just shook his head and laughed, cursing, "Where do they get the face to call it 'imperially manufactured'?" Dong Bancheng added, "Anyway, it's just cheating the rich out of their money, a legitimate way to make a living." At that time, the Imperial Advisor nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, yes."
Rong Yu walked over. As she brushed past Guo Zhujiu at the door, she smiled and nodded. She stepped over the threshold, approached the desk, and stopped at her usual spot on the blue bricks. She said softly, "Imperial Advisor, I just received two intelligence reports from the Ministry of Justice and the Northern Office almost simultaneously. The contents are mostly the same: a few families are taking the lead and preparing to come to the Imperial Advisor's residence to cry injustice and demand a fair explanation from the court."
"I believe that soon a large group of elderly founding fathers and meritorious officials will gather outside the Imperial Advisor's residence, some holding imperial edicts, others clutching ancestral tablets. In addition, the titled ladies of various families will go to the Empress Dowager and the Empress to plead their cases. Imperial Advisor, here are the two lists."
Guo Zhujiu pricked up his ears and blinked. The Emperor had only just left the capital by boat, and immediately they started gathering to cause trouble at the Imperial Advisor's residence.
Rong Yu's face was frosty, her killing intent palpable. Chen Ping'an waved his hand and said, "Rong Yu, I won't look at the lists. You have full authority to handle this matter."
Rong Yu was greatly surprised, hesitating to speak. Chen Ping'an thought for a moment and said, "Regarding the Ministry of Justice, it's not suitable for you to move people around casually. Vice Minister Zhao Yao is a stubborn person, single-minded, and easily holds grudges against me and the Imperial Advisor's residence. Anyway, the Northern Office already has a notorious reputation; it won't hurt for them to offend a few more people. Inform Hong Ji that for the obvious specific matters, let Situ Dianwu handle them, but if there are any mistakes, he'll have to take the fall himself."
Rong Yu secretly breathed a sigh of relief. As long as the Imperial Advisor was willing to give a few pointers, she wouldn't be afraid. If the Imperial Advisor only delegated authority without any further inquiry, she would truly have no confidence.
Rong Yu said, "Hong Ji of the Northern Office said he somewhat regrets letting Gao Shi go free. At the end of the intelligence report, he asked if he could secretly come to the Imperial Advisor's residence tonight. His reason is that it's hard to go from luxury to frugality—after drinking good tea at the Imperial Advisor's residence, his palate has become spoiled, and now drinking the pre-rain tea that costs a few silver cents per tael at the Northern Office is a bit uncomfortable for him