Family Matters
“Why do you look so down, sister? You’ve been sighing nonstop…”
“It’s nothing… I just don’t feel very cheerful these days.”
Liu Bei, the Administrator of Pingyuan and ruler of the border city between the State of Yan and the Han Empire, had worn a gloomy expression for days.
“Haa…”
“Are you dissatisfied with your marriage prospect?”
“Not exactly… Wu Ya, do you think I lack charm?”
“Who said such a thing? Did Lord Zigong say that?”
“No, no… It’s not about him… Haa…”
Mi Zhu of Xuzhou, her intended, was hardly a poor match. A scholar of high repute, a wealthy magnate whose fortune rivaled even royal houses, and a man of virtue who had used his resources to aid the people and lead righteous armies to quell chaos even amid turbulent times. He was a gentle man whose smile suited him well, and for her—whose political influence was almost entirely tied to Gongsun Zan—he was an ideal partner. Yet her heart remained unsettled.
Of course, marrying for love was a luxury in this era. Most marriages served political ends, and for the less fortunate, they served the political ambitions of their families rather than their own. She, too, had planned the betrothal with Mi Zhu of Xuzhou as a means to achieve her dreams.
“It’s just… hearing that my sister-in-law is pregnant has left me feeling restless…”
Her sworn brother Gongsun Zan’s marriage struck her as rather unusual. Though a political union, the match between a man of illegitimate birth and the only daughter of the Administrator of Liaoxi seemed mismatched in status. Yet calling it a calculated alliance for a capable subordinate’s future felt equally off, given his lowly post as a mere Scribe. She didn’t know what had passed between them, but from what she had glimpsed during their time studying under Lu Zhi, their bond had been far too close and affectionate to be purely strategic.
“A love match… I suppose?”
“You mean the Lord and Lady Jin? Probably.”
“I’m envious… Was Lady Yun’s marriage also a love match?”
“Yes… Well, he was a servant before she ran away from home…”
“…? Before she ran away? How old was she then?”
“Fifteen or sixteen, I think… It was about ten years ago, so probably around that age. Why do you ask?”
“Ah… No, it’s nothing… It just seems like everyone around me marries for love, while I’m the only one choosing a partner based on family connections…”
“Is there a man you have in mind?”
“…There was. But he didn’t seem interested in me, so I gave up.”
“Sister, it might be presumptuous for someone unmarried like me to say this, but as the old stories go, no tree stays standing after ten strikes.”
“Sister, the wise love, while the foolish covet. Just as we swore in the peach garden that day, whatever choice you make, I will support it. Do as you wish.”
“…Thank you. I’ll think about it a little longer.”
---
“Haa…”
“What troubles you, Lady? Has something happened?”
“No… It’s nothing much… My mother is pregnant.”
“Congratulations. You’ve become a proper elder sister now.”
“Well… I suppose. But the two of them are acting like they’re back in their honeymoon phase—quite passionately, I might add… It’s embarrassing to be home…”
To Gongsun Yun, her adoptive father was an intimidating figure. Few could treat their adoptive father with casual warmth, but when that man was a duke of the realm, the ruler of the north, and an undefeated Grand General, it became even harder. Standing over two heads taller than most grown men, his massive frame—already unnaturally large when they first met—seemed more like a tiger or black bear than a human. And seeing that fearsome adoptive father’s face soften into a foolish grin, still acting like newlyweds after more than five years of marriage, felt deeply awkward to a girl approaching marriageable age.
Of course, the couple hadn’t neglected their parental duties. They had raised her, not their own flesh and blood, as if she were their own. She held no dark feelings toward her younger siblings. Still, when one reached high school age, parents acting lovey-dovey became something to feel embarrassed about.
“Ahem… That sounds enviable.”
“Come to think of it, Your Majesty hasn’t married yet, have you?”
The Emperor was sixteen this year—the age when most would already be married. Even ordinary officials typically wed during their time as crown prince, so it was strange that the Emperor, who should have been surrounded by three thousand palace women and securing the succession by now, remained unmarried.
“Could it be that Father…”
“No, no. Absolutely not. Lady, surely you don’t see the Duke of Yan that way?”
“Well, Father isn’t that kind of person.”
“It’s just… Ahem, it’s not that I haven’t thought about it… Ah, Lady, the chrysanthemums up ahead are in full bloom. Later… Ahem, would you care to see them with me sometime?”
“Ah… Um… Yes… If Your Majesty wishes… I’d be happy to.”
“Thank you. We’ve walked enough. Let’s head back.”
The girl, Gongsun Yun, served as the Emperor’s bodyguard. Though Zhang Liao and Gao Shun’s Bingzhou troops had been reorganized into the Hobun Guard and provided tight security around the temporary imperial palace—the Duke’s residence—she was the most suitable protector for the Emperor: a woman of his age who could hold her own against most generals. Most boys tended to develop feelings for older women, and the girl herself held some affection for the young Emperor, who had undergone a kind of evolutionary selection by marrying the Central Plains’ greatest beauty over centuries. Those around them had noticed the atmosphere between the two.
High officials of matching status with the Emperor or Gongsun Yun had tactfully refrained from sending marriage proposals, while only those from humble families, unaware of the undercurrents, had sent proposals in a “might as well try” manner. It was no surprise that Gongsun Zan had rejected them all.
---
That said, does our Yun really have such poor prospects? She had learned everything she could from me, picked up various skills from her teacher, and absorbed knowledge from the researchers—an elegant beauty and human weapon straight out of a light novel. Even setting aside a father’s bias and judging as objectively as possible, she wasn’t someone who would come up short. Unlike me with my black hair and eyes—not the most appealing color—she had a refined shade like dark persimmon wood, mixed with light brown. Her nose was straight, her lips full, her skin fair and clear regardless of whose daughter she was. Anyone could see she was a beauty, a first-rate bride. With a duke for a father, her family wasn’t humble, and as the Emperor’s bodyguard she held a respectable position. Her abilities had long been proven, and while she could be headstrong, her personality wasn’t so difficult that men would flee. It was odd that only obscure members of the Clean Stream faction were sending proposals.
“Listen here, Lord Xun. What’s wrong with my daughter that she’s only getting proposals from marketplace riffraff?”
She wasn’t the type to bring home a decent suitor herself either. Since we’d agreed to wait and see, sending out proposals everywhere felt awkward, so we’d been observing. But the only offers coming in were from lowlifes. At this rate, we might have to throw a grand banquet like in Europe just to spread the word that our daughter was beautiful and refined.
“…Your Excellency, you are the greatest warrior under heaven, an undefeated general, a duke of the realm and elder of the north, the great brother to the eastern barbarians, the first human to set foot in the sky, a sage who achieved the primal spirit, a descendant of the Yellow Emperor who unified weights and measures, a descendant of the Flame Emperor who invented countless farming tools, and the greatest hero who pacified the turbulent age. How many would dare send a marriage proposal? Everyone is quietly waiting for Your Excellency’s choice, except for beggars who don’t know their place and try to snatch what they can’t eat.”
“I understand the rest, but what in the world do you mean by ‘primal spirit’ and ‘Yellow Emperor’?”
“Improving the thresher, plow, and wheel—such ideas aren’t something an ordinary man could conceive. Unifying weights and measures so that length and weight could be measured the same anywhere under heaven—how could a commoner think of that? And shattering iron balls like bursting chestnuts or riding a silk pouch through the sky—how could an ordinary Taoist manage such feats? Only because Your Excellency bears the surname Gongsun, inherited from the Yellow Emperor and Flame Emperor, could you accomplish these things.”
…Is that how it looks to them?
“Those people lived thousands of years ago. Even if their bloodline survived, it would be incredibly diluted by now. Isn’t that quite a leap? And claiming descent from the Yellow Emperor’s line… How can you make such an ominous statement…”
This man was the same one who opposed Cao Cao taking the ducal position, wasn’t he? The one who died after Cao Cao pressured him, saying there was no point in living longer… Wait a moment. Is this what I think it is? A preparatory step?
“Lord Xun, are you suspecting me of harboring rebellious intentions?”
“What do you mean? Has someone called Your Excellency a traitor?!”
“…Otherwise, why would you bring up the Yellow Emperor or Flame Emperor? I am protecting His Majesty, but I have never once dreamed of holding the Emperor hostage or declaring that the blue sky is already dead.”
Xun Yu mustn’t die yet. He was the only one capable of concretizing the Hanza Dongmaeng alliance—still just a vague idea—finding specialties from the eastern tribes to bring into the alliance, calculating negotiation terms, and maximizing political gains while minimizing our losses. Jia Xu at the research institute focused on short-term strategies spanning a few years rather than grand strategies spanning decades, while Zheng Xuan was practically the only science-oriented scholar in this literature-dominated era and likewise wasn’t strong in long-term planning.
“…Your Excellency, do I seem so idle that I would spread rumors about you plotting rebellion?”
“…”
“I know better than anyone that Your Excellency is truly loyal to His Majesty. The Hanza Dongmaeng, the Five-Year Plan—weren’t these plans prepared in advance from the frontier to benefit His Majesty’s reign?”
“Ahem. Then who first mentioned this nonsense about the Yellow Emperor and Flame Emperor?”
“Your Excellency, in these turbulent times, there is no household in Yan where children’s cries cannot be heard. To the people, Your Excellency is like the sage-king Shun, and His Majesty, who granted you the title of Duke of Yan, is like the sage-king Yao. Regardless of your true intentions, that is how the world sees it.”
“…I can’t tell if that’s praise or an insult.”
“Regardless of public opinion, Your Excellency has no intention of claiming the Mandate of Heaven, do you?”
“I don’t. Absolutely not.”
Emperor… Why would I take on such a troublesome role?
“Even the ducal position is burdensome enough that I’ve appointed Inspectors for You and Ji Provinces to outsource… delegate the work. How am I supposed to govern this vast Central Plains? It’s beyond my capabilities, something only His Majesty the Emperor can do.”
I’m the kind of person whose limit is maybe a division commander at best—someone with no talent for ruling anything greater. I’m the type who wants to live modestly with Lady Jin and Yun, have maybe two more children if possible, and die peacefully, not someone who stacks mountains of corpses just to paint more of the map. I must not be that kind of person.